What is a Teaser Trailer and what are the conventions ?

A teaser trailer is an altered version of the movies full length trailer to make it smaller, or just a preview of footage that relates to the film. The aim is to tease the audience with footage from the film and to attract attention for when the film is released in the cinema. Teaser trailers are generally shorter that theatrical trailers differing from around 30 seconds to 1 minute and 30 seconds. They are very capturing in a sense that they have a mysterious element to them and they draw the audience in to make them interested.




The Dark Knight Rises
(Modern Day Noir Film)

• A modern film noir following the sequence of Batman
• Carries on the character of the male lead of Batman but creates it's own individual film dynamic
• Longer than average teaser trailers lasting 1.36 as it's a big film production with a lot of interest
• A lot of camera shots of buildings in the city, relating to the concept of film noir and the fact that the batman logo is shown within the falling buildings it really shows that the film has a connection to noir and also gives a lot of innovation to the trailer
• Includes the approved message at the beginning and also the production labels 'Warner Brothers Pictures' and 'Legendary Pictures' showing that it is a professional film and it follows the characteristics of many successful trailers over the years. It also provides the time of release, type of film format, and other information relating to the film such as the website, director, writer, producer etc.
• Shows quite a bit of film footage compared to other teaser trailers that I have watched as the footage tells the beginning of the story and grasps the audience during the process.
• Uses the narrative of the characters to tell the synopsis of what the film is based upon and the characters who star in it. Also featuring some catch lines emerging from a dark screen with some film info and also the star vehicle.
• Tends to be a great deal of slow jump cuts from one scene to another. As it fades to black as well it gives a sense of mystery and darkness in the film.
• The limited lighting in the trailer and the very vague outline of the silhouettes is film noir type and really builds on the dark element of the story. The low key lighting and the saturation shows that it does have some of the conventions of film noir. Most importantly the way the lighting is used when the dark hero moves further into the light it acts as a metaphor as he is finding the good in himself.
• You can see that the trailer is non-linear because in the two shots the man lying in the hospital bed, you see him up and active this shows that the shots in the trailer are not chronological to what happens in the film.

Oz the Great and Powerful
(Short Super Bowl Teaser Trailer for Disney Movie)

• This was a highly anticipated film from Disney Studios this year as it is a story from a different narrative opposed to the original movies who's character narrative is Dorothy.
• This is a very short teaser trailer being only 11 seconds which just states the film's name and when it comes out.
• The Disney logo shows at the beginning which is the distribution company before anything such as wording or snippets from the film.
• The clips aspect ratio changes from 4:3 (traditional television) to wide screen. The 4:3 aspect ratio would have been widely used in the 30's and 40's when film noir was around.
• Half way through the teaser as well as changing aspect ratio, it also changes from black and white to colour which shows the transition through time from old to new film.
• Shows you the face of the two main characters both, Oscar and Theodora.
• The clip shows you the hot air balloon, tornado and the emerald city that are iconic features of  'The Wizard of Oz'.
• The trailer does include the brilliant use of special effects shown within the film.
• The quick storyline shows the route taken to get to OZ, which most people will remember from the first film.
• Last on the clip is the title of the film, certificate of the film and also the release date written in an innovative typography.

Last Vegas
(Teaser Trailer for a new film with four star vehicles)

• The trailer has a very high quality to it with very well lit scenes, showing that it must be a big production film as they have a lot of good and expensive equipment to make the film as vibrant as it is.
• Split screen showing three of the main characters on the phone to the other, so it introduces the star vehicles first to grasp people's attention as a lot of people go see films because of the actors that are in the film.
• The plot line/trigger event is told to the audience within the first 10 seconds telling people exactly what this film is going to be centred around.
• Punch line said before any other scenes of the film are shown to draw the target audience in. In this case it would be people who enjoy comedy movies.
• States around the time it's coming out but not the exact date which makes research into the film which creates a larger interest in the film, when it comes people will be waiting for it. Also when the quote 'This Year' is cut to the screen is done while there is a jolt in the music which is a good idea and makes people look at the screen, as it is a loud noise and will be attracted to look at the screen.
• City scape of Vegas is shown of where the film is set to entice the audience and give them a sense of where the characters are at in the film because it sets the scene for people.
• One of the camera faces the camera and reads 'Welcome to Las Vegas' almost as if he is speaking directly to the audience of the film which makes people believe they are part of the film.
• Quick jokes are told throughout the whole trailer to keep the audience interested and focused on the movie.
• 'Grab Lines' are zoomed out on a black screen and the font is a bright yellow/orange which stands out.
• The cuts are made in the trailer as there is drum beats occurring on the music track which keeps the timing of the trailer organised.
• Slip screen showing the characters when they were young and what they look like now, which suggests that their past must relate to the film in some way.
• They don't waste time using fade to black to change the scene, they just cut straight to it so that they can get as much in and grip the audience.
• Lots of quick shots from the film just showing little snippets of what happens.
• The punch line that reads 'Academy Award Winners' make the audience stand up and take notice of who the actors are and the film must be good if it has more than just one. The audience feel impressed that there is four star vehicles and that they all work together the film must be a success.
• As the actors are so well known in the film industry and Hollywood for that matter the movie must think that it's faster for people to read the last names and people will still know who the actors are in the film. Again with the time they want to fit as much in the trailer as possible.
• The line that reads 'Like you've never seen them before' suggests that the film is unique and different to all the films that the actors have ever been in and that it is something new for people to see, opposed to a storyline such as boy meets girl, girl falls in love with boy, they live happily ever after. Everyone has seen this storyline over and over again just with different actors and a slightly different disequilibrium.
• 15 second clip of some funny scene in the movie is shown which may make people think that if there are more jokes/funny scenes like this in the film they want to go and see it.
• The title of the film is something to talk about as it is called 'Last Vegas' which is a take on where the movie is shot 'Las Vegas' denotes that this may be the last time these characters in the film ever get do to anything like this again or go back to Vegas in the future. Also the font of the title, with the 'A' there is a diamond and a spade within the letter relating to Las Vegas and gambling.
• All four characters are all shown towards the end of the trailer together, and after the quote shown read 'It's going to be legendary' is left on the screen making people think that this film is totally different to anything that has ever been on the big screen and it is a must see the year that it comes out.
• At the end of the trailer all of the information is shown including the actors names, the title of the film, all the crews names and the companies involved with the production logo.

Iron Man 3
(Highly anticipated squeal to a successful film sequence)

• Shot of snow falling, which is of the characters point of view when he is lying down on the ground looking up.
• Screen fades to black to transition from one scene to another, which causes a dramatic build up to what is going to happen in the trailer.
• The hero of the film falls to the ground in slow motion, which is showing the reverse stereotype of the strong hero who wins battles opposed to one who falls flat in defeat.
• As the camera looks down at the hero, this suggests that the hero is powerless and broken which again is going against the stereotype.
• The Marvel logo connects the film to the successful comic books as they are well known and attract a wide audience who like the comic to go see the film adaptation.
• Low pitched music connotes to sad or dramatic scenes in a movie, thus making the audience think that this film is going to have a sad/dramatic element to it.
• Paramount is the distribution company for the film, this also shows that a successful film company is supporting the film and means the film will be large budget and well made because companies like paramount only support the best films in the industry.
• Quick shots of scenes from the movie giving the audience a small idea of what is going to happen in the film.
• The iconography of the previous films like the iron man suite are in this movie as people will familiarise this will the old films and know that this is a new film that continues on from the last.
• Main character is narrating his own story of what happens during the film.
• The femme fatale character is revealed as the hero's love in the plot synopsis.
• As the attack/dis-equilibrium is brought the screen, the music which is played throughout the trailer stops, showing the interruption in the story.
• The music dies and the release date for the film appears this attracts the audience and the music is gone for people to look up as it is important information.
• The explosions show the trigger event of the movie which is the big interruption during this film however the plot line is character driven, so they draw you in with various different scenes.
• The big scenes with explosions etc., show that this film is clearly a big production and a Hollywood movie.
• The fades to black in fast pace shows the suspense of the film and what it is building up to.
• The femme fatale is in danger and everything that the main character (Iron Man) is doing leads to him saving her.
• The statement that the villain says in the film intrigues the audience and makes them wants to know more about the film and what it is going to entail.
• The logo at the end that flashes off and the main character appears fallen, makes the audience wonder what has happened, however when the light turns back on and we see the character standing again we begin to think his fall in the film is part of storyline.
• At the very end of the trailer all of the information is shown including the fact that it is a marvel film, the website, production and distribution label.

Some Girl(s)
(Small independent festival film)



 

• Small independent film/small budget film festival which relates to the kind of film that we are doing.
• Main character outlines plot synopsis of the film by stating what he is going to do on his journey throughout the film.
• As he mentions travel it cuts to a scene of him on an aeroplane and in the airport which relates to the story he is telling.
• Again he states that he is going to visit a few old girlfriends as they are all shown.
• This film clearly shows that it is about complications as he goes around and buries the hatchet with the chosen girlfriends.
• As the characters that are all shown in the trailer they are introduced with name captions.
• Variety of characters with unusual personalities making the unique and different for people to watch.
• Music fades in as the title of the film appears towards the end of the trailer.
• Slow cuts from scene to scene to show the emotion in every clip of the trailer.
• Shot of all the cast and crew of the film including the website, as well as the production company and their logo.
• The exact date of release is shown to let the audience know when the film will be coming out.
• As the film is a small budget film, it is only shown in few cinemas and Vimeo online to get a profit.
• The website is shown at the end of the trailer to strike an interest and so that people will visit the site for more information.

Back To The Future
(Teaser Trailers go back 30 years)

• The fact that this teaser trailer was released in the 1980's shows how far this form of advertising goes back.
• The pre-approved message is shown before anything else showing that they have the right to screen it to the public.
• The big names 'Steven Spielberg' and 'Robert Zamecks' are both big names in the past and present film industry.
• Shows the Nike airs which are classic iconography of this film and main character.
• The close up of just the shoes means that the suspense of knowing the character is a building up.
• The rhythmic steps of when the character is walking on the ground synchronises with the sci-fi music playing in the background.
• The cuts from one angle to another of the same prop show the suspense of the character building.
• The character walks towards the car another well know icon of the film.
• All of the shots from different points gives the audience an introduction to what the film will be all about.
• The flashing lights from all different places attract the attention of the audience and diverts them to the clip just as they show the main character and the film that he announces also.
• This clip is not part of the film which means it doesn't really give that much away other than teases the audience with who and what the film will focus on.