Trailer Analysis - The Cabin in the Woods

The Cabin in the Woods trailer follows the conventions of a normal trailer as it is 2:25 mins long. This means it is not a teaser trailer, but a full length one. This trailer is different to other horror trailers as at the start of it, it is very misleading. There is a group of teenagers who are going camping together and although this may already seem like a typical horror movie, the non diegetic music which is added is very upbeat and happy which suggests at the start the film is a rom/com or comedy. However, as the trailer progresses, the sound changes to more sinister music which suggests that this is now a horror movie. From this already, I can tell that in order for a trailer to be successful and hit the right genre you want it to, you must make sure you add the right music/sounds in order to crate the right atmosphere, if this was wrong, the trailer would take a totally different direction. By the music changing, the viewer knows something bad is going to happen, making it a horror film.

To keep the viewer interested and occupied, a number of different shots have been used. As well as this, in the trailer 'own footage' is used for a part of it and this is effective as the viewer is more at risk and unaware of what is happening/going to happen to the characters which builds adrenaline for the viewer and that is what they want from a horror.  Long shots have been used to establish the scenes in which the teenagers face and also close up shots have been used. These are essential into showing how the characters feel and creating more of a tense atmosphere for the viewer. This trailer contains a lot of sub titles, which are mysterious and keep you guessing. They give hints into what the storyline could be but never reveal what happens and this is effective as after watching the trailer, the viewer will be more likely to want to go and watch the film to find out what happens. There is also editing included which would keep the viewers interest. It helps to show what one of the characters is seeing after something bad happens to them, which again makes the viewer want to see the film even more to find out what happens. The most common colours for this film are dark colours which sets the mood, there is also a lot of red which connotes blood, death and anger which is what people like to see in horror films therefore this film would be successful. At the end of the trailer, the title is shown, it is shown at the end rather than at the start to make the viewer more likely to remember the title of the film. From watching the trailer and getting an insight into what will happen, of course they will want to know what it is called so by having the title at the end, it makes it effective as they can relate what they've just saw to the title which will help them to remember.

Trailer Analysis - The Ring

The Ring is a horror film in which the trailer was released in 2002. The length of the trailer is 2:10 mins which means it is a typical length for a full trailer. At the start of the trailer, the title of the film is not revealed, it isn't until the end that you see the title, this could of happened so the audience are more likely to remember the name of the film. iIf they place the title at the start, the viewer will see it then watch a series of clips to make the trailer so by the time it has ended, the title will be insignificant and won't be remembered but having it last will allow the viewer to relate the trailer to the title. To keep the viewer interested and to keep it the trailer fast paced, a number of different shots have been used. The shots are quick and move from scene to another very quickly to create a tense and dramatic atmosphere. The trailer contains close up shots as well as long shots, the close up shots allow the viewer to see how the characters are thinking and for this horror film it is important that the viewer see's the reaction of the character in order for them to feel frightened and shocked. Long shots are also used which helps to establish the setting, the long shots show that the film is set in dull dark locations, great for a horror film. Throughout the trailer the lighting is dark and gloomy which creates a scary atmosphere and helps to show that the trailer is in the horror genre. The colour blue is a theme throughout the trailer and blue connotes sadness and confusion which is what the film wants the audience to get the impression of. Within the trailer there is also editing done to add effect. Towards the start of the trailer there is effects added to create fuzziness over the shot, this creates confusion and tension and builds up the suspense for the trailer. There is also shots which contain blood which immediately tells the viewer what genre this is.

The sound is important in a trailer in order for the genre of it to be clear, with this trailer, non diegetic music is added throughout the trailer to create a tense atmosphere and to build the suspension, it also makes the trailer a lot scarier. At the very start of the trailer it starts off with voices from the characters in which you can immediately tell they're panicked which creates a tense atmosphere from the very start. When watching the trailer is it easy to distinguish the characters and the roles they play. The main character who is the hero, is placed in the trailer a lot, you also see the villain and the helper. In horror films there is also the character who plays the 'princess' meaning they get saved by the hero and in this case, the main characters son is this, who get's saved by his own mother once she has saved herself. The overall trailer is very effective and from the start you can tell exactly who is playing who and the type of genre it is, which means, for me, I think it is a very successful trailer.

Questionnaire results

By doing this questionnaire i have been able to carry out a lot of target market research and this has helped me to decide on what would be a strong idea and what would work best for my chosen target audience. I have analysed every question and looked closely at the results and this has helped me to decide on what my trailer will be and especially it has helped me with choosing the right urban legend to go to.

Generating Solid Ideas

Items or situations that scare people:

-Spiders

-Clowns

-Falling

-Ghosts

-Snakes

-Guns

-Knives

-Getting Lost

-Bloody Mary

-Breaking Mirrors

-Fire

-The Devil

-Ouija Boards

-Zombies

-Vampires

-Long Corridors

-Darkness

-Time Passing

-Social Situations

-Being Stalked/killed/tortured

-Heights

-Small spaces

-Open Spaces

-Kidnapped

-Run over

-Werewolves

-Possession/being possessed by the devil

Narrative Theory:

Stage 1 - the state of equilibrium is defined

Stage 2 - disruption to equilibrium by action or crisis

Stage 3 - character(s) recognize problem and set goals to solve it

Stage 4 - character(s) try to fix problem, but there are obstacles

Stage 5 - equilibrium is re-instated, problem solved, conclusion

Ghosts

Stage 1:

Ghost Spirit who haunts a house, shows past content of the ghost freaking out a family/taunting them so they move out. Later shows a girl moving in who is making the ghost angry.

Stage 2:

Starts to notice odd occurrences, typical ghost taunts

Stage 3:

Finds a wall with ‘help me’ on it and the girl realises she must help the spirit

Stage 4:

Remaining member of the previous family occurs to help to try and get the girl to stop helping the ghost as they’re know possessed by it

Stage 5:

The girl finds out the member of the family is possessed and ends up killing them in order to set the spirit free and put it to rest. She moves out of the house thinking the spirit/ghost is gone but at the end of the film we find out that the spirit is not gone and the next family are going to be haunted by the ghost.

Characters:

Villain- Ghost, the evil presence in the horror
Hero- Girl who moves in, solves why the ghost is not at peace
Helper- Next door neighbour who offers advice/information about the ghost/spirit and what has previously happened
False Hero- Only surviving member of the family who is offering to give information but is lying as the ghost possesses them still.

Research into the Storyline for my Trailer

I decided that I would create a Horror film trailer as this is a genre I enjoy watching and I feel like I would be able to achieve the best I could by doing this genre. When first coming up with ideas for my trailer, the main idea which stuck out was urban legends. In order for my idea to work I would need to make sure I chose a strong storyline/urban legend to go with. As I had different ideas and didn't know the bets idea to go with, the best idea was to create an online survey for people to fill out. I did this by creating a survey on survey monkey and I have created a separate post which contains the link to this in which people can go onto and fill out. By doing this I would be doing market research and I will be able to find out what the target market want most/like the most. In the survey I have included typical questions such as age and gender and favourite type of genre. However, I have also included different questions to help me with deciding on an idea for my trailer. I have included a question  about different urban legends and which one would be more appealing to the person and have also added questions such as what appeals to you in a horror film and what don't you like to see in a horror film, by doing this I will be able to find out what my target audience want from a horror film and this will allow me to make a good trailer.


I have already experienced some difficulties with the making of the trailer at the start. I first had to think of a solid idea which took a lot of thinking as I knew it had to be a strong idea to make sure my trailer is good. I also, to carry on any further needed to do market research which I am in the process of comparing the results from the survey. After this I thought I was in a strong position but once I had got feedback from my teacher it was clear that I hadn't thought out the whole storyline. I am only making a trailer therefore I will not have all the filming footage from a whole film however, with the trailer it needs to have a storyline to make sense and to grab the viewer's attention and I had just thought of various idea's to have in my trailer and not thought about what the storyline will be and what would happen if I was to make the actual film. In order for the trailer to be successful I need to make sure I fully understand the storyline and to do this I need to have an idea of what will happen in the film. After receiving feedback I also realised that my initially idea for my trailer was very stereotypical and if I just carried on with that idea lone it would be very predictable and probably wouldn't gain the attention of my target audience. From this, I am now in the process of thinking of new ideas to add to the one I have now. I need something that will stand out in my trailer that is not typically done and will grab my viewer's attention, to do this I will need to think of an un original idea which will still keep my film in the horror genre but will bring something new to it. As I need to know overall storyline for the trailer, I will need to plan out what will happen in the film, that meaning I will need to think of more ideas to make sure the trailer is a success.

Horror Film Questionnaire

I have chosen to do Horror for my Trailer, however I have not done any research into this and what the audience would want/like. Due to this I have created a questionnaire on Survey Monkey which will help me with my market research into what the target audience want in a horror film and how they would feel about some of the ideas I have for the trailer. Below I have inserted the link to the questionnaire I have created.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/?sm=oEojFQswXJUMQ4h6WTth6L06bmChZMA497ceVb7FewU17QSIc6mkUsrfuAvY0ywUQ6rb0BkLp2ZK5OBLfeUC75vJxb%2fBFv9CutMQjDaBJWE%3d

I have also created a copy of this survey for handouts so I can ask people directly who are my target audience to fill out the survey/questionnaire, this will provide me with results quicker and I will know that the right target market is being reached.

My Target Audience

Various people watch horror films for different reasons, this may be because they like the thrill from horror films or could simply be because they do not like any other genre's. However, there is a target market in which horror's appeal more to. There are a number of different factors within the target audience for horrors. One of them being age, horror films are aimed more at 15-25 year olds. During the early adult years and older teens, you are more likely to experiment and want to try new things, and also seek thrill more than any other ages therefore a horror film can provide this. Horror films can excite a younger audience more therefore appeal to them more. Also, a younger audience is less likely to be put off by violence or un-natural images than older people therefore they will not feel negative towards the film. Another aspect of the audience for a horror is gender, typically males are more likely to watch horrors because of the stereotype of males being thrill seekers. Violence is something which is showed a lot in horror films and again the stereotype here is that males love watching violence in films. 

Class can also be another factor in the audience for horror films. Horror films are usually aimed at a working class community. This is due to thrill and adrenaline seekers being able to get this from horror films at a relatively cheap affordable price. There are also certain groups of people who horror's target more, a group of friends is a popular one as many do this as a thrill seeking activity they can all do together and enjoy. Another group of people is couples on first dates, this is a common thing that is done. The comfort which is needed at the end of a horror film is why this group of people find this successful. As well as this, they're also good conversation starters therefore are a popular choice of film genre. 

Overall, the overall target audience for a horror film would be a young male aged between 16-24 who is a thrill seeker. If not this, the next is most likely a couple on a first date or have been dating for a while but don't go out, this is because the strong emotion in the horror can bond two people. The audience of horror films often relate to the characters in the film. They often form a relationship due to the similarities and therefore have a stronger emotion pull to the film. The relations of the characters also puts the audience in the shoes of the character gaining a stronger horror effect.