Research- What is the purpose of a movie trailer?

A movie trailer is a combination of selected cuts from a film, its sole purpose is to advertise the movie before it is released. It gives the audience a flavor as to what to expect within the film so therefore the most enticing shots are usually incorporated. The movie trailer can feature on the internet, between television shows or before watching other films at the cinema, this not only allows them to be distributed to the masses, but also we are able to comment and find out others views and whether they are likely to watch it. The initial judgment of the text comes from what we see in the movie trailer, so therefore the trailer is extremely vital in marketing a film.  There are a number of techniques which feature within a trailer in order to reel the audience in and make them want to see the final product. These features include;

• Music- This really helps set the tone of the trailer, the type of music depends of the genre of the film. For instance an action movie will usually include fast pace music, this immediately entices the audience and compliments the fast pace cutting shots within the trailer. The music can range from being a popular song of the time or even specially composed instrumental, it really depends on the atmosphere in which is trying to be created.

• Fast moving shots- Most trailers include a variety of fast pacing shots, this is done because it makes it hard for the audience to take there eyes of the advertisement as there fearful they may miss something. Consequently it forces the viewer to ingest all of the trailer, making it more likely to excite them and therefore make them want to watch the movie. Another effect of this montage is that it allows snippets from the most enticing scenes without giving to much information away.

• Sound- Sound is huge part of every trailer, overlaying the sound track is usually a combination of diegetic and non diegetic sounds. A convention of many trailers is a voice over, the most famous voice over is spoke by Don Lafontaine which is also known as 'The voice of God'. The mixture of different sounds and visuals make the trailer attractive to the audience.

Research- Codes and conventions of 'The Expendables' movie trailer

• Appropriate for all audience- In the establishing shot we are shown this sign assuring that the trailer will be appropriate for everyone. This has been done in order to advertise the the masses, as if it is for everyone then they wont lose viewers from the younger generation. This will ensure that there sales are not effected due to age restrictions. 

• The 'voice of god'-  The voice of god is used at the beginning of the trailer, this is so it can set the scene and give the audience a brief overview of what the movie entails. The narration is shortly taken over by using clips of the film to tell a basic story line 

• Major Hollywood studio produced and distributed- Just before the main action of the trailer is shown, we are presented the names of the Hollywood based production and entertainment company's in which created this film. This instantly tells the viewer that the standard in which they will receive will be extremely high. This will make people more likely go and watch the movie as they are reliable company's which create extremely famous films each year.

 

 

• Classic Hollywood 3 act narrative structure- The trailer loosely sticks to this structure, we are introduced to the characters in the expeditionary scene, we then are made aware of some sort of mission and lastly we see the outcome of the mission. The reason that the trailer isn't completely presented to us in this structure is due to interruptions of action, makes the structure slightly disjointed.

• High production values including CGI FX. Fast paced editing- Within the first 20 seconds of the trailer we are shown strong support that the movie will contain a combination of advanced optical and mechanical effects. This is extremely important to make clear as especially with action films they are vital in order to create realism. The trailer as followed the convention of using fast paced editing, this creates tension and suspense whilst allowing us to see snippets of action packed scenes from the film, the effect of this means that we get to see alot however little is revealed.
  
  
  

• Single stranded, linear, closed narrative- Non linear narrative is used, this allows us to see more action though without us piecing it together. This is effective as not to much is revealed so we are left with unanswered questions,  which we would have to watch the film to be answered. 

•  Dramatic non-diegetic sound- In the expeditionary scene we are slowly being introduced to the trailer, this is complimented by slow music, this creates suspense as we are expecting something to occur. As the shots change they are followed by sounds similar to a gun this adds dramatic emphasis. It isn't until near the end of the trailer fast paced aggressive music which we can assume is the theme song as it mentions the word 'expendable' is finally played this is due to the mirroring of visuals and sound, this song is highly catchy so therefore the audience will build an association.  

• Clear binary oppositions-  Levi Strauss' binary opposition theory of good vs evil is present in this trailer. The lead characters in the film are introduce these are evidently the 'anti hero's' as although they are the protagonists, they are dramatically flawed due to the fact we are presented with shots of them fighting and killing people. Despite this their opposition immediately takes the role of the enemy as we are shown the south American gang kidnapping and killing and the anti heroes are seen saving the day. The use of binary opposites creates excitement and there wouldn't be an action film without them.

                                        

•  Star Marketing: Audience identification/expectations (Cruise/Pitt/Willis/Thurman/Jolie/Stallone/Craig/Schwarzenegger Di Caprio…). Generic Typecasting and Secondary Persona apply- From the expository scene we can identify that the main characters are all huge Hollywood stars, this immediately gives us high expectations due to the high quality of the movie. Generic typecasting is definitely apparent, for instance Arnold Schwarzenegger stars in some of the most famous action films known to man such as 'The terminator'. At the end of the trailer all of their names are featured in large text, this confirms any speculation and makes sure that fans are alerted. 

• Romantic sub-plot, Humorous dialogue- We can see a romantic subplot will feature in the film, this adds more depth to the narrative but also plays with our heart strings slightly as it is clear that the love is going be put into danger. this is more appealing for female audience this is vital because action movies audience is hugely male dominated. 

Research- Questions on 'The Expendables' trailer

1. At what point in the trailer are we told the name of the film? Why is this? We are told the name of the film at the very end of the trailer, this ensures it is the last thing the audience sees so therefore we are unlikely to forget.
2. Why are we told who is starring in the film? How is this information given to us? We are told who features in a film as it can give us a clear indication as to how good the movie will be. If the cast is mainly big Hollywood stars we can expect high quality acting. The information is usually given to us in large font shortly followed by a shot of the actor this allows us to put a face to the name.
3.  What type of action from the film do we see? In this trailer we can see special affects of explosions and gun fire, we can see extreme stunts, violent fighting and kidnapping this gives us wide variety so therefore we can expect the film to be action packed.
4.  What clues does the music give us as to what type of film the trailer is advertising? The music is fast paced and aggressive which is usually associated with genre.  it was actually made for the film as 'the expendables' is Incorporated within the lyrics.
5. What can you say about the voice of the person delivering the voice over?Why do you think this voice was chosen? What effect does it have? The 'Voice of god' plays the role of narrator in the beginning of the trailer, this has been done as it shows the film is of high quality, it sets a mysteriously tense tone.
6. How does the speed of what we see compare to watching a clip from a film? Why is this? Does the speed alter through the trailer or stay the same? The speed of the trailer is a lot faster than the action we would see in the film, this is effective as it makes it more intense to watch and gives the impression that the film has so much action in it that to enable us to get even a taste, we have to see it at this pace.
7. What information are we given in the very last frame of the trailer?  

 

 This is the last thing we see of the trailer, by involving social media allows the viewers to unite and discuss the movie, this creates an almost snowball effects as people will acknowledge others talking abut the film and get involved. This also will ensure that people that haven't seen the trailer will be notified about its release. 

 8. Which is more effective in making you want to see the film, the poster or the trailer? Why is this? I personally think the trailer is a lot more effective as a poster is an inanimate object consisting of one or two images from the film. However the trailer really allows you to gain more understanding of the narrative and gives you an expectation. A trailer is simply more engaging and due to this it is more likely to make me watch the film as it gives me enough amount of information for me to know if i will enjoy the film or not. 

9. Where would you expect to see this trailer? You would expect to see this trailer before action films at the cinema, this is because those who go to watch the film are sure to be action fans so therefore they are more likely to be interested in this. If you were to play it before a chick flick it would be unsuccessful as girls stereotypically are not enticed by the action genre. If it were to be played in the advert break between television programmed it would be most likely be played in between programs such as the the football as again they are likely to be watched by males

Research- Intertextuality in Music videos

Madonna- Material girl

 One of the most famous examples of intertextuality is in Madonna 'material girl'. There are clear references to Marlyn Monroe 'Diamonds are a girls best friend' which are far from subtle, in fact they are almost identicle.  In both texts displayed we can see strong similarity in various ways for instance: their blonde bouffant hair, heavily done makeup, tight pinks strapless dress and diamond encrusted jewelry. There is not only similarities in there appearances but also within the setting to such as the red backdrop and the males surrounding the protagonists holding love hearts. The audience are undoubtedly able to identify the intertextuality due to Marlyn Monroe's scene being so iconic as a result of this Madonnas music video gained a lot of attention.

 

 

Red hot chili peppers- Californication

The red hot chili peppers 'Californication' includes various homages to video games of that era. The games include: Tony Hawk 'pro-skater', tomb raider and Grand theft auto. These references are shown in a number of ways. Firstly animation has been used, in the expeditionary shot we see a Birdseye view of a map which is very similar to the one scene in Grand theft auto followed by a personalised logo, from the outset this sets a visually fascinating tone. We then see various scenes which are portrayed in a video game like way including a score box and an energy monitored, combined with cuts of the artists singing. This concept has been interpreted as is not only quirky though at the time of the song the video game culture was evolving so therefore many 'gamers' would be enticed by the theme and therefore are likely to watch the video over and over again making it increasingly popular. Consequently the band will be ensured to a gain more fans and therefore fame. 

   

Taylor Swift- Love story

 

The song 'Love story' by Taylor swift screams intertextuality, from the outset we are introduced to the concept through various cutting shots of the artist which strongly reference iconic scenes from the infamous play 'Romeo and Juliet' written by Sir William shake spear. The music video like the play is in the form of narrative, based on the unconditional love shares by two young people. The video is set in a similar time period to romeo and Juliet which is evident through the mis-en-scene for instance their costume and the castle. The most famous scenes in 'Romeo and Juliet' are apparent in the music video such as the traditional ball and the balcony scene. There are also numerous lyrical connections like "Marry me Juliet you'll never have to be alone" this is complimented by the scene in which he proposes to her. The intertextuality in this video has been extremely successful, as a viewer you get the feel as if your watching a modernized version of the most famous love story ever to be written. 

Research- Intertextuality

              

Research- How does the trailer 'psycho' fulfill the codes and conventions of the genre of thriller?

The first thing you can identify is the black and white coloring, this tells us that the film is dated, the lack of color almost makes it appear more chilling. The use of quick cutting in the establishing shot of body parts followed by a silhouette of a figure holding a knife instantly indicate that some type of violent attack either has happened or is on the approach. This immediately makes the audience speculate and try to put the pieces together, it leads us to believe where about the murder could of took place, though it preserves a sense of mystery. Combined with stereotypical screeching non diegetic music, from the outset of the trailer we immediately know that the genre is thriller. Low key lighting is used to create the outline of a figure, we can see this from what we can assume is through the victims prospective. The fact we cannot see his face is unnerving, the fear factor is increased as to us he is the unknown. We are then introduced to a hotel through a long shot, this shows that it is out of the way, it is described as 'a quiet little hotel' however theirs almost a sense of irony as Hitchcock says this. The music starts to slow down to coincide with the scene this shows that the non diegetic sound is linked to the action of the trailer so therefore it adds to the creepiness, building tension when it needs to. We see from within a car pulling up into the hotel that there is a rainstorm outside, this is a common convention of a thriller film as it alludes to something bad happening. The narrators role has been filled by one of the characters in the film, this helps make sense of some of the visuals and increases the thrill. We are shown montage editing closeups, revealing facial expressions of particular character, important object and just general clues, due to the lack of order it leaves us to feel disorientated which is another key convention. There are various shots of shadows this again adds to the mystery as we have no idea who the shadow belongs to and what there intention it has.

Research- Goodwins theory aplied to Iggy Azalea- work