2. Codes and Conventions of
Trailers
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Horror Trailers are predominantly used to give the audience a taster of the film they are about to
watch or that is upcoming. Trailers also give the audience an insight into the narrative of the film;
The audience like to see the trailer before watching the film because they want to gain as
much of an insight as possible about the films narrative but at the same time not too much so
they spoil it by giving too much away.. Below are some common codes and conventions:
Innocent objects turning evil and sinister
Stock location are usually abandoned Houses/mansions or houses in a rural area to use the
idea of a common place where you feel secure turning into a dangerous and life threatening
area giving the audience a sense of realism as what they thought was and should be safe now
isn’t.
The use of red, black and white is primarily used within all trailers.
Weapons such as knives, guns, chainsaws are all used to connote violence and danger such
things that are involved within many horror trailers.
Non diegetic sounds and Diegetic sounds are both used in Horror Trailers make the events
which are happening or about to happen more sinister and realistic, adding emphasis to the
trailer as sound is a major factor to fear.
Trailers always display to the audience the main antagonist and protagonist which will appear
throughout the film so the audience gets a feel of what sort of characters will be involved within
the narrative.
Montage of scenes Straps such as ‘Based on a true story’ or ‘From the directors of’ Institutional
information at the end are extremely common within many Horror trailers.
Here is the link to ‘The Conjuring’ as all throughout the Trailer there are several uses of strap lines
such as mentioned before but also successfully features a sting at the end of the trailer
displaying all the codes and conventions that have been previously mentioned.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPxWnvUTwSM
3. Codes and Conventions of Film
Posters
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The use of designing and creating a Film Poster for Horror Films is not only for
effectiveness and advertisement but is also to draw in the attention of those who
these film posters are being aimed at, predominantly the target audience. When
Advertising a Horror poster, especially from a particular genre, it needs to bring fear
and terror to the audience as well as being eye catching alongside engaging the
audience to entice them to come and watch the film. These particular things are
know as codes and conventions in horror and below are some of the many codes
and conventions that film posters use:
The use of an effective main image dominating the frame using either a character
from a particular scene or a character from the narrative of the film, allowing the
audience to be revealed to the narrative through the use of the image as they gain
an insight into what sort of characters will be featuring within the film.
Appropriate typography that suits the sub-genre being promoted. Majority of Horror
Film posters tend to use quite thin, creepy typography to engage the audience into
the mood and genre of the film.
Film Posters all commonly use the colours Black, Red and White on the film posters as
all three of these colours connote Horror and events which occur within Horror Films.
Sell lines are also another common convention which many Film Posters
representing the genre of Horror use to feature a link into the narrative or provide the
audience with film institutional information
Many Film Posters also use the rule of thirds within the frame to indicate to the
audience the Props, colours or typography that match the sub-genre being shown
but also create direct address with the audience
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5. Codes and Conventions of
Horror Film Magazines
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A film magazine is aimed to advertise a film to a wider audience. The target audience are then able to gain
an insight into the narrative of the film but also find out more information behind the film such as the
actors featuring in the film, a detailed knowledge behind the film’s narrative and plenty more. This allows
not only for the film to get good reviews but also for it’s target audience’s needs and wants to be
completely fulfilled as they are gaining the knowledge, information and resources they want from their
favourite films, this is why Film Magazines are so successful. Here are some of the common codes and
conventions seen within Film magazines:
Majority of Film Magazines feature a large main image which dominates the frame using either the main
Antagonist or the main protagonist however it is most common for Film Magazines to use the Antagonist.
Film Magazines featuring films within their front cover tend to display the Film title or tagline of the film
they are promoting across the page
Film Magazines also feature Sell lines advertising other films and other stories which will appear inside the
magazine aiming to engage the audience with the content making them want to read further.
The use of dark colours are also a common convention used on Film Magazines as they are bold and
significant just like the typography they use as they want their Film Magazine to stand out in comparison
to the others and by using big bold, dark lettering this will appeal to the eye engaging the audience to pick
up the magazine and want to again read further. Furthermore by using dark colours within the front cover
of the Film Magazine this will also sometimes create a Symbiotic link with the similar use of colours used
within the images which are displayed on the front cover promoting a film poster film.
All Film Magazines contain a barcode and issue number on the front cover as this is a common convention
of any magazine being published.
