Trailer Conventions

Teaser Trailer Conventions

A teaser trailer is a short trailer that can be used to help to advertise an upcoming film or other form of media . It can be released months before the the official film is set to premiere to help create anticipation from the target audience.

The Purge: Election Year Official Trailer 10th Feb 2016 -

James DeMonaco

Narrative Context
Its been two years since Leo Barnes stopped himself from an act of revenge he would regret on Purge Night. Now serving as head of security for senator Charlie Roan, his mission is to protect her in a run for president and survive the annual ritual that targets the poor and innocent. But when a betrayal forces them onto the streets of D.C. on the one night when no help is available, they must stay alive until dawn, or both be sacrificed for their sins against the state.

Enigma codes
Enigma codes are used in media to make the audience ask themselves questions about what they are watching and entice them into watching the rest of it as they are curious to see what will happen next. Within this thriller/horror trailer there are many different questions we as an audience could ask ourselves along the way such as:

• Who is the senator? (background story?)
• Why do they want to attack the senator in particular?
• How did Charlie Roan get herself in the position to run for president?
• Who betrayed the senator and sergeant?
• Why did she vow to eliminate Purge Night? 

These are some of the questions we might ask ourselves whilst watching this thriller teaser

trailer and may interest the audience to go and see the film when it is eventually released.

How are the characters established and represented? 

• The Senator (Charlie Roan) - She is presented to us as a person who cares about the countries well-being, she portrays the role of an innocent victim/menaced woman, stands at a podium on her own looking independent and well made up with makeup on but also looks professional with glasses on and her hair tied back. Close up shots/ extreme close ups on her face exploit her authority and clarify that what she says is seen as important. There are shots of her shaking peoples hands to show her power and convey status.

• The Sergeant - He is portrayed as a character who is very much in control of things and adopts the dominant male position. He wants to protect the Senator and is a typical police/cop character who we generally see in thriller genre, and is established through medium shots or wide shots alongside the Senator to show that although he has some authority and power, he is not as high as her in terms of status and needs her to fulfil his job role as a former police Sergeant.

•  The Leader (Caleb Warren) - He is a typical assassin type character who looks very sinister and has power over all of his workers, dressed in a suit standing around a big table at a conference where everyone is seated watching the Senator talk about abolishing the Purge night. He is established in close up shots and medium shots with a light on one side of his face and the rest being shadowed away and dark to represent he is dangerous/ possibly holds a bad past which is why he so badly wants to keep the Purge night.

• Marcos - He comes across as a typical gangster/criminal character in the thriller genre, however he wants to help protect the Senator and keep her safe from danger. His appearance does not follow the typical conventions and continues to support the image of a gangster and bad guy.

• Rondo - His character follows the same representation as Marcos, he does not look like he would be an innocent being however he wants to help the Senator and he sticks with Marcos as they are both established in mid shots side by side as being friends.

Camera and Editing Techniques
Extreme close up shots are used to exemplify the danger/expressions on the Senators and her family's faces as they were all killed during the Purge and she was the only survivor.


Pan shots are used to establish the surroundings and show the contrasting sides of the happy environment with the sign reading "Welcome to our Home" hanging off the wall and the family tied up on the sofa in the following shot.


An extreme wide shot is used to emphasise the importance of the people sat at the conference table and to also point out that they are all watching the senator talk on the TV, which means that she plays a part in what they are talking about.


A wide shot is used again to furthermore heighten the importance of the senator and highlight her interaction with other important people, whilst the sergeant is watching behind him keeping a close eye out to make sure that nothing suspicious is going on that he does not know about, which also reinforces his character traits as being careful and on the look out for the senator making sure that she is safe at all times.


A high angle shot shows the senator and the sergeant standing in the middle of an audience of people who are applauding the senator, showing that these people respect her and agree with her views. There is a spotlight solely shining down on the senator to exemplify that she is the most important person and is the one who is trying to be kept safe throughout the film, as her position and status is greater than others. This light could also convey that although she is trying to do good by abolishing the purge night, she is only causing trouble for herself as many disagree with her opinions.


A medium shot is used showing the senator placing her hand upon a picture of her family to give an insight of her background story and give us as the audience more information about the senator as a real person which shows that she is caring and loved her family, and because of what happened to them it has influenced her views and decisions as a candidate for the position as president.


Editing is a crucial part of enticing the audience into wanting to watch more and finding out what the film is about.
Flashes are used every time between the transition of each shot in the past of the senators family being tormented. This is used creating suspense between each shot with a flash and not a smooth transition so it doesn't flow but makes us feel on edge as the audience watches and puts us in a position where we feel unsettled.

There is a line of text which appears after the background story scene of the senators family being tortured on purge night which reads '15 years later', before she then goes on to present her speech for obtaining the presidential position. This technique of editing makes us feel as though we knew her life before and are now back to the present so we do not get lost into the backstory and know that the film is going to be about what is happening in the present and not past.

We are re-introduced to past shots of the senators family being tortured in black and white to remind us of what happened and keep us on the edge of our seats as it becomes more relaxed with shots of the senator and her looking happy with the people around her, then it cuts back to these shots specifically in black and white making us feel like we are having a flashback with her and are thinking back on it.

Short blackout moments are used between each shot of the men guarding the doors being shot down, emphasising the loss of security and making us feel even more uneasy that there is less chance of the senator being safe so the suspense is heightened and out worry for her increases. This also carries the theme throughout of small blackout moments scattered between various shots to convey purging and people being killed and blacking out very quickly as it is a dangerous environment to be in.

Slow motion is used in the scene where the two vehicles collide causing a crash and the car which holds the senator and the sergeant inside is therefore flipped. This holds out the action for a longer period of time and means we have to watch the trauma for much longer resulting in tension from the audiences point of view as we want to know if they are safe and have survived and what might happen next.

Use of Sound
As soon as the first scene of the trailer begins we can hear crashing and banging noises, which continue throughout the whole of the first scene but then becomes more clear that they appear to be lightning and thunder noises which relate to the transitions used between each shot which are lightning flashes, making the scene even more intense as we not only hear the lightning but can hear the cries and screams of the senator and her family in desperation. (0:12)

This is followed up with the sound of a knife being pierced into skin which then ends the screams abruptly, and then we are presented with a shot of the present day senator ending all of the non-diegetic sounds in the previous scene with the diegetic sounds of her in the scene presenting her speech. (0:13)

There is a continuous score of non diegetic music over a number of shots to put the audience in fear, slow paced and becomes louder as time goes on building the intensity of the scenes up. (0:16 - 0:46)

Screeching noises are played throughout the trailer to make it feel psychological and scary, which are aspects of thrillers and to inforce the meaning of purge night for killers which is to go out and plan their missions of destruction in whichever way they choose. (0:50) 

There is then a sound bridge of dialogue through surrounding speakers announcing the commencement of the purge and explaining the rules that go with the legality of the crimes for a 24 hour time period. The way this is placed over the other continuing shots makes us feel like we are there hearing the announcement taking place. (0:51 - 1:07)

Diegetic sounds of the security guards being shot makes us feel unsafe and as they happen so quickly and suddenly it sets off enigma codes and makes us wonder why they want to go after the senator so bad and who wants her to be killed. (1:10)

There is an eerie non diegetic soundtrack being played over shots of people hanging from a tree all wearing white and a woman skipping underneath them to reinforce the craziness of the people who want to take part in this event and why the senator wants it gone. (1:23)

Many different diegetic sounds are placed into one scene as we hear knives being drawn and the metal clinking, and then we also hear the noises of gunshots and bullets hitting the floor to create action and suspense within the shots. (1:36)

Non diegetic soundtrack of a choir singing an American anthem takes us away from the reality for a moment and makes us think about the innocent parts of the country without there being violence, This is also played over shots of the senator and sergeant being helped out by two fellow members of the community so this music could convey that they are the good Samaritans of America. (1:42)

Captions/Titles:
Titles are an important aspect of teaser trailers as they give us the extra bits of information in text that we don't otherwise collect from the trailer itself. Stereotypically thriller trailers will have many different titles throughout, however the Purge: Election Year trailer does not conform to the stereotypical trailer structure and only has titles appear at the very end.

The release date is the first title we are introduced to. This is an important piece of information for the audience as this is when the actual film product will be released for viewing to the general public. The directors of the film have also made this specific release date significant as it is July 4th and to fit with the theme of America this date was when the American colonies regarded themselves as a new nation, also known as 'independence day'. This draws the audiences attention to the theme of the film more. The colours of this text are also presented in light shades of red white and blue to establish the country flag colours in bold text to make it stand out.

The next title we see is just the single word 'keep' on one blank screen in the same style text and colours, followed by the word 'America', and then the word 'great' all separated to make the audience want to watch more to find out what the purpose is and keep them on their toes.

The final title we see on screen is the film title 'The Purge: Election year' with the first two words in bold writing the same as the previous titles, and the rest following in a smaller less bold text but still sticking with the theme and using the same colours. There also appears to be small cracks in the font if seen closely enough, which could convey that America is broken with the theme of the Purge being that America is not seen as a united community anymore but a separated and broken one.

Intended Target Audience

The age category usually intended for thriller films to be aimed at is stereotypically around the 15+ mark as they can contain some footage which is seen as too explicit or disturbing for younger audiences.

In regards to this film specifically, I would say that the people who would want to go and watch it would be 18+ because of the violence and footage used within the trailer it already gives off the impression that it is very violent and expectations would be that it has some mature scenes not suitable for anyone younger to view, and this is clear throughout the use of editing and soundtrack which creates the most impact in being able to tell that this for an older audience.

Split: Official Trailer 20th Jan 2017-

M. Night Shyamalan

Narrative Context

Though Kevin (James McAvoy) has evidenced 23 personalities to his trusted psychiatrist, Dr. Fletcher (Betty Buckley), there remains one still submerged who is set to materialize and dominate all of the others. Compelled to abduct three teenage girls led by the wilful and observant Casey, Kevin reaches a war for survival among all of those contained within him -- as well as everyone around him -- as the walls between his compartments shatter.

Enigma Codes

There are may different enigma codes in which we are presented within this trailer, in how it creates suspense for us as an audience and builds up the tension in a unique way as such, making us question certain aspects and want to understand more about it encouraging us to go and watch the film. These questions include:

• Who are the girls we are first introduced to in the car and where are they going?
• Who is the man that has climbed into the drivers seat of the car and is gassing the girls?
• Who is the woman that he is visiting about his problems and what are they?
• Why does he have the girls kept captive underground and why them in particular?
• How is "the beast" formed and why is he so powerful/what is he capable of?

How are the characters established and represented?

• Casey Cooke - She is presented to us as a girl who is smart yet very worrisome and cares about her friends and the people around her more than she does herself.  She portrays the role as one of the victims who is being held captive by the man with split personality disorder, and out of the three girls she is the one who is evidently more clever and tries to gain friendship/information with the different personalities that this man seems to have. Close up shots are used mostly on her to exploit her emotions as she is the character we see the most of throughout and this supports that she has the most power when it comes to attaining Kevin's attention.

• Claire Benoit - This is one of the friends of Casey's that got more than she bargained for when she got into the car to be picked up from school, as when the man with split personalities got into the car, she was the first one who spoke up and told him "hey, pardon me sir I think you have the wrong car" but was sprayed in the eyes first along with the rest of the girls. From this we could tell that she is intuitive and doesn't care to speak her mind and what she thinks, as in the film she is constantly thinking of ways to escape the enclosure but it does not always work out for her.

• Marcia - She comes across as the quietest of the three girls, the most laid back and reserved when it comes to making decisions and isn't shown in many shots as she doesn't play as big of a part in the film as the man is more interested in Casey. We are not presented with many shots of her, however she is portrayed as a gullible character in the film as the man makes her remove her bottom garment of clothing to which she follows his command, then drags her into the room next door with him but doesn't touch her in any way and leaves her unharmed.

• Barry/Dennis/Kevin/Hedwig - Straight away we are introduced to his character in such a sinister way, climbing into the car and holding the girls hostage without reason. He is shown as a character who has power and a cunning way about himself that draws people in and makes them sympathise with his issues. Close up facial shots are mainly used to emphasise characteristics of his different personalities and to distinguish them apart, along with medium shots if the personalities have different costume to show this to the audience and make it an aspect to help tell them all apart throughout the film trailer so it doesn't become confusing.
  

• Dr. Karen Fletcher - The doctors representation is different to the other characters', as she is the only person who doesn't truly know what her patient (Barry) is capable of behind closed doors, and genuinely cares about him as she listens to his problems and tries to get him to open up to her as later on in the film she becomes clever and realises there is something going on and comes to visit him at his home. This tells us that she is instinctive and can piece information together to retrieve what she needs from her patient. Her character is established through medium and close up shots when she is speaking to Barry and draws attention to her use of body language.

Camera and Editing Techniques

Pan shots are used to establish the surroundings and get a feel for the environment it is taking place in before we are introduced to any characters within the trailer (car parking lot).

Medium shots are used to exaggerate the girls' fear when the mysterious man gets into the car with them and to show their actions individually towards this situation in regards to body language, to which one of the girls moves forward to tell him he is in the wrong car.

A close up shot is used on the main victim character Casey at the beginning to exemplify her emotion and to inforce that she is different to the other girls as he did not put her in any harm or spray her in the face to knock her out, but she sits breathing heavily with tears down her face.

An establishing shot is used for the outside of Dr. Fletchers apartment where she carries out her appointments with patients, we can see that it looks like a quiet place away from the chaos of the city.

Close up shots of Barry's face are used during the appointment to emphasise his uncertainty and worry that Dr. Fletcher is catching onto his plans and the trouble he is causing, with certain actions such as his eyebrow twitching continuously and him fidgeting about rolling his neck, becoming uncomfortable.

There are editing techniques used such as short jump cuts during the appointment between Barry and Dr. Fletcher, creating a sequence and cutting between shots of him constantly moving and becoming unstable to inforce that he is very easily agitated and can switch emotions very quickly.

Three different split screen videos is an editing technique used further on in the trailer to portray each personality he has and how they act individually, also reinforcing the fact that he has split personalities through three split videos alongside each other playing at the same time.

Quick flashes are used between shots in editing to imply that his personalities can be very jumpy and unstable, and can strike out quickly whenever so using these cuts fits the editing style and the story.

Short blackout screen pauses are used between shots nearer to the end of the trailer heightening suspense for the audience and building up the tension, making the audience wait that slight bit longer to see what is going to happen next. This follows the theme of the disorder he carries which means he can forget who he is and switch to a different person in a matter of seconds.

Use of Sound

As soon as the trailer starts we can hear non-diegetic music of single piano notes being randomly pressed to gain audience attention and make the beginning scene more interesting, however this music stops when the man gets into the car and we can only hear diegetic sounds of the car seatbelt signal and the car door being shut. (0:01-0:09)

We then can hear a sharp sudden belt of non-diegetic music again of screeching as he reaches over to spray one of the girls in the face, and we are shown Casey's face crying in the front seat making the audience sympathise with her as she is being victimised. (0:13)

We can hear minor violin notes in non-diegetic music being played over the scenes during this time period to create an eerie uncomfortable feeling and suspense as though it is building up to a bad event that will occur. (0:15-0:35)

Non-diegetic sound effects of a heart monitor machine is played in the appointment between Barry and Dr. Fletcher, enforcing that he has problems and his heartbeat is irregular confirming that his problems fetch far deeper than just externally. (0:19-0:22)

Diegetic echoed sound of Barry heavily breathing is used to create realism for the audience and put us in the situation with him to feel the emotions he is feeling. (0:24)

When Dr. Fletcher asks Barry a question we can tell he becomes paranoid that she knows something and does not give a straight answer but we can hear non-diegetic sounds of whispers in his head speaking to him telling him what to say/do. (0:37)

The same irregular violin music is played but the notes become much faster paced and louder as the girls panic and cry out for help making the situation more intense. (0:39-0:51)

Non-diegetic music of loud fast paced screeches are played over the dialogue as Casey's character begins to worry and shake as she fears she will never find a way out, enticing the audience into her emotion and wanting to know what will happen next. (1:31)

Diegetic noise of the door creaking whilst being closed and bolted can be heard but the girls forcefully try and push open the lock after he has left to escape the room. (1:44)

The breathing from one of the girls can be heard from the confined room as she tries to keep quiet and not make any noise to keep him away from her. (2:04)

Diegetic sound of Barry growling and making a 'beast' like sound can be heard at the end of the trailer to reinforce the idea that he is dangerous and can become a powerful deadly person if he changes into his different form making him increasingly aggressive. (2:22)

Captions/titles:
The first title we are presented with in this trailer is a black screen with white bold writing but is not straight and is jagged, fitting with the theme, displaying the directors name 'M. Night Shyamalan' which is one of the most important titles to include in the sequence.

We are then shown names of films that the director has previously produced, in an attempt to entice the audience and encourage them to watch this film if they have seen other films made by this director that they have enjoyed watching.

The next title we see is the release month of the film which says 'This January in the same bold white writing on the screen giving us the information we need to know about when we can view the film if the audience decides they want to watch.

The film name 'Split' is the last title we are shown at the end of the sequence, with lines through the writing as though it has been cut and pieced back together in the wrong way, linking to the theme and idea that he is not normal and isn't a straight forward character throughout the film.

We then see the title 'Coming Soon', meaning there is no secure date on when in January the film is going to be released and the website for the film along with the distribution company name which is Universal Studios.

Intended Target Audience:

Again, thriller films are stereotypically aimed at people in the age category of 15 years and older because of the content used it would not be mild enough to attain a certificate as low as a 12. In regards to this film in my opinion, I would expect the intended target audience to be mainly people from the age of 15+ as although it has some mature content, there aren't any extremely violent scenes in it that might make it for an older audience of 18 years and up. There isn't any explicit language or major violence used in this trailer that may cause it to become a higher certificate film meaning that it gets out to a wider range of people resulting in more views and increase in popularity if people enjoy it.