Analysis Of titles within a trailer
Titles are an essential part of creating a teaser trailer. They give us key information, such as the date it's released, as well as give an insight into the narrative of the story. There are many basic things to include when creating titles within a trailer, these are:
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The date it's releasedThis is obviously an essential part of a teaser trailer as it tells the audience when the film will be released in cinema's. Without this information people wouldn't be able to go and see the film. The release date usually appears at the end of the trailer along with extra information such as Twitter and Facebook pages in order for the audience to follow, and find out, more information about the film. However sometimes trailers include the month it's released in the middle of the trailer. for example; "This October..." In order to emphasise when the film will come out.
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other films by the same companyMost trailers include other films created by the same company in there titles. This is used to attract a specific audience, as people may have watched other films by them and be intrigued as to what this film will be about. It also shows the sub-genre of the film, as it usually links to the themes of the films being advertised in the "From the creators of..." title.
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Star ratingsAnother popular idea incorporated into a trailer is the use of star ratings from well known companies. This gives the audience a sense of how good viewers think the film is, and therefore wether or not they should watch it. It is very important to have a good star rating or else no one will want to see the film if the rating is too low.
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Title Analysis
In order to get an understanding of how influential the titles in a trailer can be to attract an audience, we analysed existing horror trailers made by students at our school, as well as some of the top trailers of this year. This was useful as it gave us a realistic idea of what our trailer titles could look like. Here are some examples of the trailers we looked at and the effectiveness of the titles they use:
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Real trailers
annabelle (2014)List of Titles:
-From producer James Wan -Before 'The Conjuring' -There was Annabelle -This October -Discover the secret -Of what she wants |
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These titles are similar to most titles found in a trailer, especially "from the producer" and "This October." However the narrative titles are very significant and fit well with the theme of the film. I think that the titles "Before The Conjuring" and "There was Annabelle" are very effective, as it allows the audience to understand that this film is a prequel to The Conjuring (2013). Therefore people who have watched the film will want to witness what happened before. The other remaining narrative titles are very well thought up, leaving the audience guessing what will happen in the film. "Discover the secret" has an iconic mystery about it, as a secret is usually something quite mysterious that people want to find out. "Of what she wants" leaves the audience questioning who the 'she' is referring to. Is it Annabelle? Or is it the doll? You'll have to watch the film in order to find out the answer. This effectively makes people want to know what is going to happen, meaning more people are intrigued and plan to watch the film.
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The background of the titles has the look of old victorian style wallpaper. This matches perfectly with the theme of the paranormal. The way the titles fade in gives an iconic ghostly impression, which connotes that the film will be based on a ghostly presence. However the main narrative titles, "Discover the secret" and "Of what she wants", don't use the fade in technique. Instead they just appear instantly on screen, giving the impression that something bad is inevitable.
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jessabelle (2014)List of Titles:
- From the producers of Paranormal Activity, Insidious, Sinister and The Purge - A secret from the past - A curse from the grave - This August |
In this trailer they only use a small amount of titles, which adds to the effect of the images on an audience. As it is mainly iconic images an excessive amount of titles are not necessary. However the trailer still uses the classic title "from the producers of..." which is a way of advertising previous films created by the company. This allows the audience to determine wether or not the film is going to be something they would like to watch. The narrative titles "A secret from the past" and "A curse from the grave" are very effective as they leave an air of mystery, allowing the audience to wonder what the curse may be and what will happen. The idea of secrets is quite iconic in horror trailer titles, just like Annabelle. This is because secrets create the idea of suspense as the audience can only guess what the secret might be.
The background of the titles has the image of a swamp, which features in the trailer and is a key part of the film, as thats where they find out about the curse. I like how each title has a different background, this is unlike most titles in a trailer making it a unique idea. The grungy dark filter adds a mist effect to the titles and gives them an air of mystery.
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The font used for the title is similar to that in most horror trailers, however they have added an effect to make the word look ghostly and decaying. I like the way a white mist surrounds the title, making it stand out from the background. The background is similar to the rest of the title backgrounds, the iconic image of a swamp. This image relates perfectly to the film and works well with the title.
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Let me in (2010)List of Titles:
-In a quiet town -Among ordinary people -Something wicked lives -From the director of 'Cloverfield' -This fall -She will keep you safe -She will keep you close -She will keep you forever |
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Unlike Jessabelle (2014) this trailer uses a large amount of titles to explain the idea behind the film. As well as the ordinary titles used by most trailers, such as "From the directors of" and "This fall." They use narrative titles to give the audience an idea of what the film could be about, without revealing the whole plot. The idea of having narrative titles before and after the usual titles gives the audience something to think about. The idea of using "she" in the titles is very effective as it makes you question who, or what she is. I also think that the three final titles are effective as the repetition used will make the audience remember the trailer. I especially like the final word "Forever" as it leaves you guessing how or why she is going to keep you forever. It is also has direct connotations with vampires in horror films. However I feel that the amount of titles were just too much for the length of the trailer. Teaser trailers shouldn't have very many titles as the audience are more interested in the storyline and the dramatic shots.
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The titles at the beginning of the trailer are very plain using a black background with white font. This is a very basic layout for titles and isn't as imaginative as the other trailers we have analysed. However the rest of the titles have a blue ice effect in the background which has connotations of winter and the cold. The font is similar to most fonts used in horror trailers. I think the titles are too simplistic for a horror trailer, and could be more imaginative by adding some iconic imagery to do with the trailer.
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Student Trailers
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Immediate evac 117List of Titles:
-From the creators of 'The Unexpected' -Game of survival -Will be lost -The city falls -The infection grows |
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AnnikaList of Titles:
-Their new home held so much promise -Based on a true story -The horrifying truth of what happened |
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Mortem's prayerList of Titles:
- Once you see her - Your soul is hers - The danger is real - Fear is a choice - From the producers of Bathsalts |
These narrative titles are very effective in making the audience feel scared about who "she" is and what danger they are in. The titles have been well chosen as they link to the supernatural sub-genre of the film. The font and effect of the titles also have an iconic imagery that people can relate specifically to Mortem's Prayer.
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Our attempt of title ideas
As a class we discussed the importance of narrative titles throughout a trailer, in order to attract the audience's attention and draw them in to the storyline. In groups we each came up with our own narrative titles that could feature in our trailers. These are some of our favourites:
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