The document provides a detailed summary and analysis of the shots, transitions, music, and narrative of a horror film trailer. Key details include:
- The trailer is made to look like a Skype call with shots glitching and buffering to build tension.
- It begins with happy home videos but later shows threatening messages and a girl forcing herself to kill on camera.
- Jump scares and graphic violence are intercut with messages from an anonymous caller counting down.
- By the end, only one girl is left on the call, screaming in terror while the anonymous caller's identity remains unknown.
The summary analyzes how the trailer uses techniques like music, graphics, and pacing to
3. What genre is the film?
Unfriended is an American found
footage supernatural horror film.
4. What is the horror genre?
Horror is a genre that taps into our deepest fears
however they are easily addictive to watch. The
writers base and write the story lines around the
fear of the unknown building suspense and
adrenaline in the audience.
6. Age
The usual age for someone watching a horror movie
is between 15 and 25. During young adulthood
stages they are in the key stages of developing
themselves and learning about the world, they
want to try and experiment with different emotions
and feelings. They want to rush into life without
being guided therefore wanting to feel the thrill.
Horror movies can give this sense of thrill and can
excite the young audiences but this age group are
also less susceptible to being put off the film by
violence or unnatural images which may make an
older audience feel negative towards the film.
7. Gender
Males are more likely to be a fan of horror movies
than girls, this is due to the stereotypical thrill
seeker which is portrayed with a boy and the thrill
boys seek with their young adult hormones.
Violence is also a convention of horror movies
which is often loved by males, males seek the thrill
of violence, blood and gore and horror film are
therefore more attractive to this target audience.
8. Class
Overall horror films are aimed at the working
class, the reason for this is because of the thrill
and excitement that is given off whilst if the
higher class watched horror films they usually
prefer a sub genre on romance or action.
9. How long does the film trailer last?
The film trailer last 2 minuets and 29 seconds
Horror movies are the longest lasting trailer due
to the writer and director wanting to capture
the audience and draw them into the storyline.
10. What transitions are used within the
trailer?
The trailer is made to look like a skype call, the
transitions involve the shots glitching, buffering
and the shots flashing on the screen.
The effect of buffering builds tension with the
audience watching because they are unsure and
fearful of what is going to pop up on the screen
next.
13. Shot 1 – audience confirmation
This shot is shown at the beginning of the trailer
to show the audience confirmation. This allows
the audience watching the trailer to know who
the trailer is suitable for. This is used not only to
let the audience know who its suitable for but
also for the safety of younger viewers to let
them know that its not suitable for their
viewing.
15. Shot 2
This second shot shows the layout of an average
you tube account playing a video online. This
shot makes the audience feel more involved as it
shows on there screen as if they are watching
past memories.
This shot also shows the US film production
company universal’s logo to show who produced
the film.
16. Shot 3 – 8
Shots 3 – 8 show the audience home videos of
memories, this makes the audience happy and
smiling at the videos such as the wedding and
the young boy learning to ride his bike. The
filmmaker may have done this to soften the
mood of the film and make the audiences minds
feel relaxed and comfortable to make them
continue watching the trailer.
17. Music for shots 3-8
The music is a soundtrack placed over the top of
the videos making it non-diegetic sound. The
music consists of a piano and the tone of music
is light and warming, it fits well with the home
videos and the music lightens the mood of the
genre.
19. Shot 9
A type writer effect is used as the text appears on
the screen. This effect may have been used to make
the audience feel more involved and that the
message is personally written to them but the type
writer also has the effect that this movie is based
around technology and computers.
Another idea that the filmmaker may have been
trying to perceive is that the sound of the
typewriter draws the audiences attention to the
non-diegetic sound which leaves them in suspence.
20. Shot 9-14
Shots 9 – 14 show a range of home videos again
making the audience feel even more warmed to
the movie, making them want to watch more of
the home videos.
23. Shot 15 & 16
Both of these shots use the same type writer
effect however the text on the screen changes
from being something positive to a negative
message, this shows the audience that the
trailer has a negative impact.
25. Shot 17
This shot here was computer generated, the
audience is shown a conversation between two
people. The quote ‘ OMFG did you see the Laura
Barns video!’ captures the audience and leaves
them intrigued into finding out what the video is
about.
27. Shot 18
Shot 18 shows again a computer generated
layout of a news page. The cursor on the screen
is moving over the highlighted words ‘forced
her to kill herself’ the writer may have used this
creative method to pull the audience in to make
them want to know the reason of her desperate
suicide.
28. Sound effects
As shot 18 is shown the shot cuts to a large
screen of the video of Laura Banks stood in a
sports ground pointing a gun at her head.
The camera movement here is a hand held
camera to suggest that someone has filled this
footage themselves and that the event was
unplanned and that someone has quickly
captured it on a phone.
29. Sound effects continued...
A loud non diegetic sound of a gun shot is heard.
The camera points up towards the sky suggesting
that whoever filmed it jumped at the sound and
lost control of the camera
In the background we can hear a females distraught
scream, this makes the audience fearful yet
intrigued because they can not see who is
screaming.
31. Shot 19
The screen then cuts to another typed message,
the text ‘today is the anniversary of her death’
has a haunting effect as we know that the movie
is about the remembrance of a suicide and
leaves the audience suspicious into why we are
celebrating someone's death.
This effect again leaves the audience wanting to
watch more.
32. Shot 20
The screen cuts to a skype call where the profile
pictures of all of the main characters are seen,
this is the first time we properly see who the
main characters are.
In the background however over the talking a
constant drumming sound can be heard
suggesting a fast pace heartbeat creating further
tension.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q72LWqCx3pc
34. Shot 21
However in shot 21 a medium close up is shown of a
female character, from this shot we can see the confused
and shocked look on her face.
The fast paced heartbeat sound stops to create silence
and the sound of message notification can be heard.
The text ‘GUESS WHO!?!’ suggests to the audience that
the person popping up is anonymous and this would
create a sense of fear again for the audience who are
anticipating into finding out who the anonymous
messenger is.
36. Shot 22
The tension within the trailer is now building
and the texts from the anonymous caller are
becoming more threatening and fearful.
The messages being shown on the screen makes
the audience feel more involved and that they
are also part of the skype call because they can
see the message.
37. Shot 23
The non diegetic sound of a record player being re-
wound is heard to suggest the film is going back in
time, but also when a tape is re-wound often the
strip inside becomes muddled up.
This could suggest that the plot line of the trailer is
going to replicate this by complicating the lives of
the people on the skype call, which has had the
effect of their lives being messed up by this
anonymous caller and cant be fixed again.
39. Shots 24 and 25
A game is normally associated with fun however
because of the music in the background of the
constant build up of a heartbeat we assume that
the anonymous skype caller is saying it
sarcastically.
41. Shot 26
This shot is the first time the audience see a physical
effect that the anonymous caller has had on the skype
callers.
The audience would have a sense of fear as someone
over message is having control of the blackout in each
one of the skype callers houses.
Another technique the filmmaker may have used is that
the enhanced lighting off the screen blocks out the
distractions in the backgrounds and focuses on the
characters facial expressions.
43. Shot 27
The buffering symbol is normally a sign suggesting
to people watching videos that they need to wait
for the internet connection to re-connect.
But this symbol here creates tension for the
audience and makes them feel helpless towards the
people who are on the skype call because they can
no longer see what has happened to them.
In the background of this we can hear the diegetic
sound of a female crying alone.
45. Shot 28
This shot is interesting as it advertises the film of
‘Unfriended’
As a ‘new genre of horror’ this may appeal more
to audiences, its new, tantalyzing and the
filmmakers have perceived the film as if its
something that audiences have never
experienced or watched before.
47. Reviews ( shot 29)
These reviews are shown in order to inform the
audience of what other viewers have thought
and there opinion of the film, however
filmmakers will only show the top reviews in
order to sell the film and make it more
appealing to the audience.
49. Shot 30
This shot here shows suspense of what has
happened to the caller on the other end of the
skype call and the glitching suggests that we are
about to lose this character.
This makes the audience want to watch more so
that they can find out whether the character
survives or not.
52. Shots 31, 32, 33, 34
These shots show the messages of the anonyms
caller counting down.
This creates tension and suspence for the
audience and also mixed emotions. As me being
a viewer I was both excited that I wanted to
know what was going to happen when it got to 0
but also nervous and fearful about what was
going to happen.
54. Shot 35
Shot 35 is really graphic and one of the skype
callers can be seen putting his right arm into a
blender, the sight of blood and gore can make
some audiences feel sick however some
audiences enjoy the sight of this and may
continue watching the trailer.
56. Shot 36
In this shot we can see the same male actor with
this time the blades from the blender cutting
into his neck, as an audience we turn away at
the horrific sight but at the same time we feel
captivated, shocked and the sense of needing to
watch that the young boy is being put through
this pain and that he is no longer in charge of his
actions.
57. Shots 35 and 36
Both of these shots have a fast pace in editing,
this suggests that the filmmaker wanted these
shots to be hidden. This makes the audience
want to watch the film to find out the effect it
has on the boy, and whether he survives or not.
59. Shot 37
Shot 37 is a medium close up of a young actress
face. Her facial expressions shows that she has
been crying and also that she is screaming in
terror.
This shot also shows that all of the other skype
callers have disappeared and that its only the
young girl and the anonymous caller left.
60. Final shot
The audience are left with the diegetic sound of
a scream and the logo of the film ‘unfriended’
62. Narrative
A young school girl was on a night out enjoying
herself and due to her drunken behaviour was
unable to control her actions and became
vulnerable and exposed in videos which were
posted online. The young school girl was unable to
deal with the abuse and hate that she was receiving
because of that one mistake and therefore
committed suicide. On the anniversary of her death
all of her school mates have a skype call however
one of them are responsible for posting the video
and therefore her spirit gets revenge on all of them
until there's only one left.
63. Conclusion
The trailer gives the audience a sense of
adrenaline and fear because it leaves the
audience suspicious into who the anonymous
caller is.
The trailer starts off with a slow pace and then
leads into a fast pace as the tension of the story
line becomes more intense.
