At what point in the trailer are we told the name of the film? Why is this?
The title of the film is only introduced at the end, due to how the trailer is trying to first create an intense atmosphere through using Todorov's theory to create a sense of equilibrium and then disequilibrium in the atmosphere. This is done to hopefully catch the audiences’ attention so that when the trailer comes to the end; the title of the film can be shown, hopefully making audiences remember the name of the film, due their focus being on the trailer.
Why are we told who is starring in the film?
The trailer doesn't reveal who’s starring in the film probably due to the cast being minor actors because of the low budget of the film. Instead, the trailer mainly focuses on trying to create an atmosphere full of tension to attract audiences into wanting to watch the actual film when it's released in cinemas.
What type of action from the film do we see?
Action in the film starts of slow to create equilibrium in the atmosphere to put viewers in a calm sense of state like most horror genre film trailers do (showing the trailer to conform to conventional ideas). This is done to mainly help create realism due to how viewers can relate to what's happening in the trailer as an everyday experience, where everything is normal and calm. The trailer then quickly starts to build up tension through more dramatic sequences and effects such as split second flash effects to create a sense of surprise and shock. This quickly leads to disequilibrium in the atmosphere due to how the trailer now counters the beginning of it. The action in the trailer then comes to a final climax where there are split second camera shots and flashing effects, ending the trailer with an atmosphere of disequilibrium, to make audiences want to watch the film when it’s released, to find out how the situation is resolved.
What clues does the music give us as to what type of film the trailer is advertising?
There's no non-digetic music soundtrack used in the trailer to establish it in a movie genre but only non-digetic ambient sound effects which are used throughout most of the credit titles and high tension fuelled moments. This non-diegetic music could be said to signify the trailer as being apart of the horror genre, due to how it’s the type of conventional sound effect heard in horror trailers.
Does the trailer come with a voice over and if so, what can you tell about the voice being used?
The trailer doesn’t use a voice over, maybe to help yet again direct the audience’s attention onto the high atmospheric tension being created in the trailer through the scenes they’re being shown. The trailer does use sub titles, which can be another reason why there is no use of a voice over, due to the use of sub titles showing information which would probably have been said in the voice over.
How does the speed of what we see compare to watching a clip from a film? Why is this?
The speed of the trailer on a whole is faster and more rapid to create a higher sense of tension, suspense and fear in the atmosphere to hopefully catch audience’s attention for a few minutes in the hopes that they’ll be enticed to watch the film, when it’s released. If I were to compare the speed of the trailer to a clip from the film, the speed would be a lot slower due to how the clip from the film would build up tension slowly, while revealing a large amount of information which may not be necessary and exciting in grabbing the attention of audiences.
Does the speed alter throughout the trailer or does it stay the same?
The speed of the trailer starts off at a slow rate to create a calm state of atmosphere, only speeding up near to the middle of the trailer, establishing a rapid build of tension. It’s only till the end of the trailer does the speed of clips start to be come 1 second camera shots, creating a more intense and adrenaline fuelled atmosphere in a last attempt to catch audiences’ attention. This pattern in build of speed shows the trailer to conform to the conventional ideas of a horror trailer, due to how they tend to start off slow, speed up a little and then speed up rapidly.
What information are we given about the film?
The trailer of the film doesn't give a lot away due to how it's trying to stick to the conventional ideas of the horror genre by making the atmosphere full of mystery and confusion to emphasize the horror of the film. All that's known about the film is that there seems to be a couple (main characters) living in a house, which seems to be haunted by an invisible force which is violent and erratic and seems to be tormenting the couple. Already, the villain can be established as the conventional villain from the horror genre as this scary, powerful and unpredictable character.
At what point in the trailer are we given about the film?
Throughout the entire trailer, information on the narrative of the film is given out. I can only analyse the amount of information on the narrative of the film being given out at certain points, for example. At the beginning of the trailer there’s only a small amount of information being given out through sub titles, probably to not overwhelm audiences with the narrative of the film but to create a slow build of tension through the slow revealing of information. It’s only 20 seconds into the trailer, does information on the narrative start to be shown through footage from the film. It’s then at the end of the trailer, that a large amount of information becomes accessible to viewers but only to the amount where there is still a lot of questions left to debate.
What type of audience is the trailer aimed at? How can you tell?
The trailer is aimed at males and females aged 18 to 30 year olds. This is due to how the trailer has been filmed from a live showing of paranormal activity at a cinema, where the group of viewers watching it are females and males, who look like 18 to 30 year olds. This shows the type of audiences who would watch the film, showing this group to be conventional audiences of films in the horror genre.
