Analysing trailers

There are many different types of crime genre that cross with other genres. for example there are:

• thriller 
• action 
• murder
• spy
• mystery 
• Si- fi / fantasy

I will be exploring the codes and conventions for all these types of films and how effective they are for the audience. 

Now you see me
Genre- Crime, thriller, action

As you can see from the first trailer crime thrillers have a very clear use of intense music. for example at the start of the trailer the sound of the clip is very low and deep with big thumping noises to emphasise the thriller side of the film. 

The trailer also uses short cuts of clips to make it seem more dramatic and to build up suspense which works well in engaging the audience. The dark scenes really work well in creating a mystery for the film.  A non diegetic sound says 'Come in closer, because the more you think you see' This then creates a sound to build up quickly and then stops where it is silent for a few seconds for the voice over to say 'the easier it will be to fool you' which creates emphasis. 

Conventions of a thriller film 
- Suspicion                  - Enigmas                                      - Extraordinary events
- Drama                       - Investigation              
- Fast Pace                  - Antagonist & Protagonist            - Storyline that requires thinking
- Crime                         - Cliffhanger                                  - Complex Narrative

I thought that i would look at the conventions of a thriller film first as when looking into doing a crime film it is easy to get more into the crime side of the film rather than incorporating the thriller side of it.

Initial pitch feedback

Audience Feedback

My target audience is for both male and female who are 15+ depending on what crime it is about it can attract quite a big audience. However if i combine my crime film with other genres i need to take into consideration my audience. For example if i wanted to do a crime horror movie it would not appeal to teenagers who are aged under 18. Crime films are usually targeted at a mature audience because there are scenes with violence and swearing in so are normally certificated at 15.

Jicnar Scale

A- upper class (barristers)
B- middle class (bank managers)
C1- lower middle class (office worker)
C2 - skilled working class (car mechanics)
D- working class (assembly line worker)
E- unemployed (students)

My target audience for crime films will not really fit into any of these categories that are set by the jicnar scale. This is because anyone can like crime films especially if they are cross genre with something else, for example crime thriller, crime horror and crime si-fi are all types of genres which can appeal to any age group and status. The upper class may find crime films interesting as it is something new and different for them which is unfamiliar. In contrast the unemployed may find it interesting as it may affect them more in the real world where stereotypically people who are unemployed are more likely to commit crimes.

1. Which pitch do you prefer?
2. Do you enjoy crime thrillers and what about them do you like?
3. What examples of crime films do you watch?
4. Would you like my ideas turned into a film?
5. Would you like a crime film to include another genre such as comedy, rom com or action
6. What do you like about the pitches
7. What improvements could i make to my pitches?

Film pitch 2

Film pitch 1

Tzvetan Todorov

Roland Barthes

Claude Levi Strauss

Vladimir propp

Eagle eye trailer

Genre-
Eagle eye is an action, mystery and thriller film and was released in 2008. These 3 types of genre work well together as there is thriller and suspense to start with which creates a good atmosphere for the film and then the action starts which gets the audience's heart racing.

Cast-
Shia Labeouf- Jerry Shaw
Michelle Monaghan- Rachel Hollowman

Plot-
The main characters Jerry is a slacker with a twin brother who worked with the military and secret services. After his brother dies in an accident mysterious things start happening to Jerry. Rachel is a single mum of a little boy and the two are complete strangers that have been getting mysterious phone calls from a women who is telling them what to do and guiding them through by black mailing there lives and family. as the film goes on they face worse danger and have become close to death a few times.

Why would the audience want to watch the film?
Shia Labeouf is a very famous actor who has been in many successful film such as Transformers and Disterbia, people will want to watch this film because he is a good actor and young girls will find him attractive and also want to watch the film. it would also attract young boys and teenagers because of all the guns that are used and the action that is shown in the trailer of things blowing up it will attract there attention.

Sound- 
The start of the trailer has diagetic sound of a bus and has diagetic sounds of him going up to a cash machine. The music only really starts when he goes back to his apartment and it is of a fast pace to keep the audience entertained and to fit with the conventions of an action thriller trailer. a phone rings and then it starts again to emphasis that mystery. A narrative is used throughout the whole trailer of a women's voice to indicate that it is dramatic. Music is used when the action is taking place during the trailer to put the audience on edge.

Costumes- 
In the trailer the male and female main characters are wearing the same clothes throughout. In this trailer Jerry is wearing a black suit and tie with a dirty white shirt. His tie is only half done up and his button is undone which would show that he does not take care of his appearance and could mean that he doesn't have a job. His hair is short on the sides but longer on the top which makes him look smart but the suit contrasts with the conventions of someone who is out of work. so it could mean that he doesn't want to be.

DIVERGENT - Trailer #2 (Official)

Divergent

Genre- The genre of the film divergent is romance, action, adventure and science fiction. All these types of genre work really well together in the trailer during the action bits the music and cuts of the camera on the film are fast and during the romance the camera is slow and calm music is played.

Plot- The plot of the film is very much set like the hunger games. There is 5 areas in which you are put into these are done by tests to see which one best suits you. after the test she is told her results are inconclusive and that she is something called a divergent which the government are trying to track down and kill because they are uncontrollable. Beatrice the main character feels she does not belong with her family in selfless so instead goes for something more outgoing like dauntless. where they are pushed to the limit and having to face there worst fears which is know problem for Beatrice who has no fears whatsoever.
she struggles throughout the first few weeks of dauntless and only scrapping in at the end of each round. She finds that the last task she is struggling with as it is trying to face her worst fears in a dauntless way but because she has no fears her new friend Four helps her along the way in trying to get her to overcome her fears. Four invites Beatrice back to his apartment where they get feelings for each other.However the new government have been issuing a new tracking device into people and making them do what they want. Beatrice and Four work together in trying to save the race and stop the dauntless killing all of the other areas. They save the human race but have to escape as people are looking for them and so they get on the train to the end of the line and cross the big wall.

Cast-
Beatrice- Shailene Woodley
Four- Theo James
Natalie- Ashley Judd
Eric- Jai Courtney

Sound- As the trailer begins it starts with an establishing shot on a tilt of the country side with an a fast moving no diagetic sound which sounds almost like a ticking clock this makes the audience feel excited and under suspense. There is a narrative where what looks like the mother is speaking to a daughter "were you nervous for your test"the music becomes more fast paced and of a lighter pitch. There is a change in the narrative and a train noise is sounded and screaming and shouting comes from them to show their excitement this shows that it contrast with the boring lines that everyone else is in. meanwhile the narrative that is taking place in the background says that the test will show you they really are. Symbols and drums to show suspense. Fast moving cuts and quick sound to make the audience excited and wonder whats going to happen next. A piano is used to show that she is innocent and doesn't know what she is doing drums are used to accompany them so the audience is put on edge. there is a silent moment where you are almost in the same position as she is trying to think. Deep sounds are used after to make is seem more dramatic. Throughout the rest of the trailer upbeat and fast pacing music is used as well as a narrative over the top and drums in the action moments to make it more dramatic.Using diagetic sounds such a knives being thrown adds more suspense for the audience. During the intimate part of the the trailer an electric guitar is used on the lower part of the bass to still keep the action there. towards the end of the trailer to music because more high pitch so you feel a sense of hope that they will survive or finish whatever there doing, a choir is used at the end of the trailer to add to the suspense.

Costumes-
Beatrice is wearing a grey and white long dress that looks dirty which indicates that she doesn't have the simple things like washing her clothes or another change of clothes. Her hair is tied up in a neat bun and she looks exactly like her mum which shows that they all look the same and no one can be different. She is wearing a little bit of make up to make it look natural.

Character representation-
The main character Beatrice is seen to be at the start as a shy character who seems nervous but seems to grow her confidence throughout the trailer. Beatrice is a 16 year old and follows the representations on other 16 years old.

What would interest the audience

The audience would watch the trailer and find it interesting because the main actress has also been featured in ' the fault in our stars' which was a popular film which came June 6th of the same year. Many girls will find the other main character Four attractive which will encourage them to watch it. also during the trailer there is an intimate scene where is has his top off which is used to do the same effect of  getting an audience in of young girls to watch it. you action of knives and fast passing movements are used to still get the male audience interested. With this film you have a mix of action and also romance between the characters so there audience is targeted at teenagers both male and female but more targeted to females.

Research Task - The Great Gatsby

Trailer

As you can see at the start of the trailer, you firstly listen to the music which is an upbeat pop song which makes the audience already engaged. The trailer uses a mix of action and romance in this trailer to keep a wide audience. By putting an upbeat pop song on already captures the audience and creates the action and suspense which diverted to a slow version of a love song where you see it is a romantic love story. the trailer uses lots of shots in the trailer to keep the suspense by cutting from shot to shot quickly. Zoom in's are used throughout the trailer to give you an idea as though you are there. There are lots of establishing shots in the trailer to show the grand scale of there houses.

How and why do these products link/combine together?

As you can see by the products they are all very familiar if not the same. This works very well in there favor. Because these products are the same there is continuity between all of them and if the products were not in anyway similar then the audience would not see any relation between the products.  

What and why do they have links in common?

These products link extremely well together because they all have the main character in them. Jordan and gatsby are on the front cover of the DVD, poster and trailer because the film is all about them. The old 1920's - 1930's feel about this film links all the products together. The mise-en-scene helps the audience work out what the film will be about. The bright colours on their clothing is shown through all products to really show what the 1920's was about but also tells the story between the two of them which is why the background is in a dark colour. 

What purpose does the combination of products serve? 

These means having a link of combination of products means that the audience becomes more familiar with the actors and actresses. This is shown by using the same mise-en-scene such as costume and hair will help show  the similarities and people will want to see more about them. because of the wide range of advertising that is available it is important to maintain the same formats so you keep the images in their head and reminding them of the film. 

Who benefits from this combination of products and why?

The people who benefit mostly from these products are the director, publisher, actors and actresses who are shown on the front covers of movie. The audience can see if there favorite actresses and actors are in the film and therefore become more favorable towards watching the film. They are purposely kept the same image as it will boost marketing because more people will want to buy it.

Codes and conventions of a film trailer

• There is normally a film production logo - to show the production company which will make people want to watch it more if it is a well known one
• Film title 
• BBFC age certification
• Social media- twitter is sometimes used at the bottom so you can hashtag your comments on twitter about your comments about the film
• Character introduction- shows the big stars that are in the film and will make people want to watch the film 
• Music and voice over- it demanstrates the pace of the film and is used to guide the audience through the film explaining what the film can be about 
• Name caption- they show the names of the directer and producers so it attracts them to watch the film if they are a well known directer who make good films 
• It is normally around 1:30 - 2 minutes so that the audience only get a small snip of what the film is about so they do not get told all the good bits of the film in the trailer 
• Release date- so they no when it is coming out in the cinema so they can get there tickets

Continuity Editing