This document discusses conventions used in supernatural thriller trailers. It covers various camera techniques like zooming, panning, and tilting to build suspense. It also discusses common character archetypes, themes involving haunted homes, uses of music and sound, narrative structures, editing techniques, lighting, locations, and other elements employed in trailers for the genre. Overall, the document provides an in-depth look at cinematic techniques that help set the tone and build tension for supernatural thriller trailers.

1. Assignment 4: Conventions in
Supernatural Thriller Trailers
Gelsomina De Lucia
Patrycia Butrym
Leticia Silva
Tayla Humphris

2. Cam Movements
Zooming – In supernatural thrillers, they are used to built up to a climatic point which is followed by a jump scare
or to zoom into something they think the characters saw.
 In the trailer ‘The Houses October Built’, they use a zoom technique at 1:14-1:17 because they saw something
which has followed them from ‘The Haunt’.
 It is then used again but to built up to a climatic point at 2:06-2:11.
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yedl4lY9VgM&safe=active
Pan – In supernatural thriller, a pan is used to follow a characters movement which links in to how the
supernatural follow the characters.
 This is visible in the trailer for ‘The Conjuring’ at 1:27- 1:30 and then it is used multiple times after that.
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vjk2So3KvSQ&safe=active
Tilt – In supernatural thrillers, tilts are used to restrict the audience from finding out what is happening which is
then stereotypically followed by a jump scare.
 This is shown at the end of ‘Paranormal Activity’.
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KdPd4iGzGEs&safe=active

3. Composition and Framing
• When the camera in supernatural thriller is placed on a tripod, usually the framing is in a rule of thirds.
• The composition is symmetrical at this point.
• This is usually when the plot is still at its calm state.
• However, when some supernatural thrillers remove the camera off the tripod, it loses its framing and
composition comes into place.
• There is where asymmetrical composition comes into place.
• This is symbolic for chaos which links to the plot of the film.
• This is evident in the trailer ‘Grave Encounters’
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8FBRATbJoA&safe=active

4. Character Types
Venerable victim(s) – Stereotypically, there are two or more venerable victims of the supernatural. They tend not to
go looking for the ghosts.
 An example of this is ‘The Blair Witch Project’
The curious one - In some supernatural thrillers, we are presented with a curious character who provokes the ghosts
hence why they become attacked.
 This characterisation is in ‘Deliver Us From Evil’. The character mentions his belief at 00:21-00:28.
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWDM_p68HAQ&safe=active
The non believer – In supernatural thrillers where a group is involved there is usually a person who tries to debunk
the supernatural events.
 ‘The Possession of Michael King’ is an example of this. He seeks proof of the paranormal, becomes challenged by his
sceptical views and then becomes possessed trying to prove people that the supernatural is not real.
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIZbq7V2xvs&safe=active

5. Plot/Theme
This happens in Amityville: The Awakening the
previous resident murdered his own family because
‘voices’ told him to do it and now he’s hauting the
new family that just moved in.
In Women in Black , the house is haunted
by the ghost of a woman dressed in black.
• One common themes that supernatural thrillers tend to use, is a home where the
previous residents had died there and a new family moves into that home. This
then sets of the paranormal events.
In Paranormal Activity The demon is trying to
make the new residents leave and he does that
by terrifying them in different ways.
In Sinister, When the father finds a box of home
movies in the attic he is then being terrorised by
the demonic figure.

6. Sound & Music
The Women in Black:
Angel of Death
• Deep music is added when the character see’s something thats concerning her which is
the cross and that signifies a warning. The shot and facial expression also validates this
because her face shot is right after the cross.
Sinister
Tension (Range of scenes) Incidental Music! End of Jump Scare
•Tension+Incidental Music - Scenes skip in a fast pace from the character, camera in different
shots.
• Also the characters facial expression and dark settings increase the tension.
•The characters body language (jumping from seat) creates a bigger and more effective jump
scare just when the incidental music hits at the exact same time as the middle screen shot.

7. Narrative Structure
Opening -
• In supernatural thrillers, the beginning of the film usually tells you the characters where the writer
introduces them through conversations with other characters or reaction to a unsual event.
• With this, they also introduce the setting in a wide shot and slow pace with soft and low score music.
Build up –
• After the opening, the pace builds up and shows a lot more scenes and these scenes are where the
characters are in pressure but the writers keep demonic figures as restricted as possible to create
enigma’s.
Title –
• Title Appers after the build up and the whole scenes. It is frequently shown in a slow pace.
Jump Scare -
• Jump scares are right at the end of trailers. This attracts more audience as it will give them a taste of
the film and experience how scary and thrilling it is.
Opening Build up Title Jump Scare
(Case 39) ( The Eye ) ( Case 39)

8. Costumes
In supernatural thriller movies there are usually a
group of 5 characters. They’re costumes are used to
represent what the characters personality is and
what they do. For example: Ouija.
The characters are dressed casually to represent
their youth and vulnerability
These are some of the outfits that were used
from the characters in Ouija.
Because the characters are teenagers at a
young age they are most likely to dress like
their age . Each characters outfit portrays
the type of personality so the audience
would know what type of characters they
are.

9. CAM SAMC ( no movement)
• In supernatural thriller there
are mostly close ups of the
character to reveal the
characters fear. Or to reveal to
the audience that something
has gone wrong.
They have wide shots to make
the characters look isolated
and to show the audience
that the characters are in
danger.
They sometimes have over the head shot to
portray that the character is innocent and that
something is watching them.

10. Titles, credits and texts
They sometimes add the title on top of
a gloomy background to portray the
supernatural thriller feel to it.
The subtitles are a warning towards the audience and
they are placed where they don’t take the attention away
from the trailer and try to scare the audiences at the same
time.
They also when giving credit to
the companies make them seem
scary as well with animation and
sound effects.

11. Editing Techniques
• Time lapse is used to speed up time which can reach a climatic point. For
example this is used in Paranormal Activity when there was something to
be revealed, which the audiences knows and anticipates.
• Ellipses shows time progressing, using this allows audiences to establish
important information and it quickens the length of the trailer.
• Montage is a general technique used in all trailers that entices audiences
to go watch the rest of the film.
• The pace in Supernatural Thrillers are generic and starts off at a normal
pace which shows the Equilibrium and gradually creeps into the
Disequilibrium which speeds up the pace and this is the place where
montage editing mostly takes place.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0gBeG31fX40
Pace: The Possession

12. Lighting
There is a lot of low key lighting used to create the mystery of the unknown.
This also restricts audiences from information being revealed.
Supernatural thrillers also have a tendency to use natural lighting so that it
looks realistic and corresponds with the theme of natural forces.
Lighting is crucial in Supernatural Thrillers because it can reveal clues for
example shadows who, to audiences don’t know if this is a supernatural force
and if they are good or evil.
Paranormal Activity The Sixth Sense
://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_UxLEqd074 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nD5DIm3gUQU

13. Locations
The Location is crucial in delivering the theme of Supernatural as it is the
place where strange things happen.
Abandoned house which isolates characters from reality, however this can be
challenged in films such as Ouija and Paranormal Activity.
Desolated forest can sometimes confuse audiences as to whether it is natures
forces that cause things to move and by doing this it leaves enigmas.
The Blair Witch Project Amityville Horror