The trailer for Gangster Squad effectively targets its intended audience through its use of intense violence, family themes, and historical context. It shows mainly action shots to engage adrenaline-seeking viewers aged 15-23. Similarly, the Legend trailer appeals to this demographic through its quick pacing, ambiguous violence, and exploration of family loyalty themes. Both films' trailers convey the crime genre well and target audiences through historical facts without revealing full plots. Warner Bros is responsible for producing and distributing both gangster films, with a history of successful crime genres films.

1. Detailed Research
Isaac Randall

2. Gangster Squad

3. Key selling points of the trailer?
One of the key selling points for the trailer and consequently film is
the large and bold action scenes, featuring expensive explosions and
gun fights. The high production value of the film also works with the
violence in order to create an intense and gripping trailer. The trailer
focuses on the family life of characters also, allowing the strong
themes of family and the danger that they are in to grip the audience
and involve them further in an emotional level.
The trailer also uses a voice over and
upbeat, fast tempo music in order to
engage the audience again, aiming to
appeal to the adrenaline seeking
audience bracket. I think that it is this that
is the main focus of the trailer, showing
mainly just action shots in order to do this
and sell the film as an action/crime film.

4. Genre?
The film itself is descried as a an action, crime and drama
film by IMDB (Image Movie Database). This is reflected
throughout the trailer, showing scenes of intense violence
as previously mentioned and also intense emotion.
The trailer effectively reflects the genre of crime, using
various methods such as lighting and shadows, various
shot types giving certain characters a sense of power and
also narrative methods such as the voice over to establish
the antagonist and the problems that the characters will
face. This therefore gives a clear indication of the
antagonist which will be the main focus of the film.

5. How is the audience explicitly targeted in
the trailer for Gangster Squad?
Gangster Squad in particular, uses intense violence and
evokes an emotional reaction amongst the target
audience. The audience themselves will be drawn to the
violence and strong themes throughout, as the age of my
target audience (around the bracket 15-23) will enjoy this.
Another factor is historical context as this may also attract
older audiences as they may have been able to remember
the criminals or aspects of the crimes themselves. This
historical context and the fact that the film is based on true
events may also attract the target audience as audiences
may be shocked by the violent, real, crimes and violent
acts committed. The themes of loyalty and family being in
danger and the characters willing to sacrifice their lives to
protect their loved ones also allows the audience to relate,
as they too would think similarly to the protagonists. This
is conveyed through the shots of the couple kissing and
scenes of the protagonists playing with their children.

6. What institutions are responsible for the
trailer?
Warner Bros. Pictures are responsible for Gangster Squad and also the trailer.
Warner Bros studios was founded April 4, 1923 (92 years ago) and is a subsidiary of
Time Warner. Some of their most successful films include Batman: The Dark Knight
($534,858,444 Domestic Gross), Harry Potter and the deathly Hallows Part 2
($381,011,219 Domestic Gross) and American Sniper ($350,126,372 Domestic
Gross). They are also responsible for films such as Gangster Squad which had a
gross of $17,070,347 in the US on its opening weekend and Bullets and Ballots,
released in 1936.
Bullets and Ballots is an example of how early
on the company were making crime films and
Gangster/Mafia style films in particular,
showing their expertise in the genre. The film
itself revolves around a New York cop infiltrating
a crime gang. This shows also that the narrative
in films of the genre do not vary all that much
and are still successful today amongst a modern
audience.

7. What other trailers/films is the institution
responsible for?
Other highly successful films by Warner Bros. include:
 The Harry Potter Series (Films 1-8)
 The Dark Knight
 The Matrix
 Inception
 The Dark Knight Rises
 I Am Legend
 The Hangover
 The Town

8. How is the trailer successful?
The trailer is successful as it appeals to the correct target audience, conveying the
strong, important themes throughout that are seen in many gangster/mafia films. It also
is age rated perfectly to target the film, and genres, target audience and ensure that the
film is not too violent and incorporates all of the fan base, ensuring the upmost success
and ticket sales when the film. The trailer focuses on the key elements that visually
audiences want to see, that being intense violence, car chases and a strong sense of
family and friendship. This is expressed clearly, almost forcing the themes upon the
audience using shots and narrative to do this, and using the key media elements also,
that being mise-en-scene, camera work, sound and editing. The trailer also uses the
well known actors and the fact that the film is based on a true story in order to sell the
film, as audiences look for, and trust films are worth their money if they possess these
factors.

9. Legend

10. Key selling points of the trailer?
Similarly to the trailer of Gangster Squad
Legend appeals to a similar target
audience. The target audience hope to
see large explosions and violence when
watching a film from the crime genre and
this is reflected throughout the trailer for
Legend. The trailer reflects one of the
main selling points, that being that Tom
Hardy plays both Kray Twins in the film,
well. It does so by consistently changing
between the two twins and creates
contrast, with ‘Ronnie’ being the more
violent of the two compared to ‘Reggie’
who is shown to be more relaxed,
organizing the crime not actually partaking
in it.

11. The genre is described as a biography, crime, thriller film
according to IMDB ( Image Movie Database). The film is
defined as a biography as it features a large amount of
factual information about the Kray Twins.
Again the trailer effectively reflects the genre of the film
through the use of narration in particular, allowing the
audience an insight into the lives of the Kray Twins and the
text asserts that the film is “based on true events”. Similarly
to Gangster Squad the the trailer establishes the protagonist
characters and therefore their criminal activity through
narration, dialogue and focus on violent action scenes
throughout in quick succession.
Genre?

12. How is the audience explicitly targeted
in the trailer for Legend?
Again, similarly to Gangster Squad, Legend appeals to the
target audience through the use of violent shots and
ambiguity also . This works well and the quick tempo that
the trailer uses works well in doing this, not giving the
audience time to process the information that they are
seeing in detail. The target audience again, like many crime
films in this bracket, is roughly 15-23. Historical context of
the film is another important factor when appealing to the
target audience. The Kray Twins were notorious gangsters
in London during the 60s meaning that some of the older
audience members will remember the crimes and the Twins
first hand, meaning that the films content will be
memorable. For this reason, the films trailer will attract
members of an older audience bracket, expanding the
audience further, resulting in more money. Strong themes
of family are explored throughout the film and are explored
through the film, and reflected through the trailer. The
Kray’s loyalty to each other is a significant factor driving the
plot of the film forward. This is shown through the use of
narrative mainly in the trailer, explaining how they are
needed to muscle and front the organisation and business.

13. What institutions are responsible for
the trailer?
Legend was produced by a variety of production companies,
these being Anton Capital, Entertainment Cross, Creek
Pictures, Studio Canal and Working Title Films. Working
Title Films are responsible for films such as Johnny English
Reborn ($3,833,300 USA Opening Weekend Gross) and
The Theory of Everything (USA gross $35,887,263). Studio
Canal are responsible for films such as The Pianist
($2,456,117 USA Opening Weekend Gross) and Crime film
RocknRolla ($144,701 USA Opening Weekend). The
production companies regularly work together on films,
allowing smaller budget films to increase the budget,
consequently producing a better film and gaining more
money when the film is released.

14. What other trailers/films is the
institution responsible for?
Studio Canal and Working Title Films are responsible for films such as:
 Smokin Aces
 Hot Fuzz
 Atonement
 End of Watch
 The Twilight Saga – Breaking Dawn – Part Two
 Big Miracle
 Rush

15. How is the trailer successful?
The trailer is successful as it conveys the genre of the film well and appeals
to the correct target audience, conveying the films themes well. The themes
of family are used in order to attract the correct target audience and allows
them to relate to the protagonists. The trailer also conveys the content and
through the use of violence also the age certificate of the film, which is an
18. Similarly to the trailer for Gangster Squad, Legend’s trailer uses a
variety of shot types and lighting to convey the main characters and the
action scenes in a way in which the audience cannot get a full sense of the
plot, meaning that they will need to visit the cinema if they wish to answer
the ambiguous questions created throughout. As mentioned previously, the
trailer uses the narration in order to convey the biographical content of the
film, and the lives of the Kray Twins, however in brief, ambiguous, detail.

16. Black Mass

17. Key selling points of the trailer?
One of the key selling points of the film is the
highly popular and successful cast list. The
protagonist is played by Johnny Depp, and the
film features other actor such as Joel Edgerton,
Benedict Cumberbatch and Dakota Johnson. This
is used throughout the trailer in order to sell the
film using celebrity endorsement and popularity.
The use of Depp’s name will bring in an audience
immediately that may be unrelated to the film, but
are fans of Depp and his previous work. The
trailer also uses the biographical content to sell
the film, portraying how the film is based on true
events, like the other films mentioned. This
therefore gives the film a more real atmosphere to
it, and audiences will be drawn towards the film
more because of this factor. It attracts audiences
as they will be more intrigued about the life of the
protagonist and the fact that the events a
true/based on true events will engage the
audience more, also attracting an audience that is
interested in the historical content of the film for
reasons discussed in the following slide.

18. Genre?
According to IMDB (Image Movie Database) the film is described as a
member of the three genres, Crime, Biography and Drama. The film
focuses heavily on the violence and the historical biographical content,
using various media techniques such as special effects and lighting. The
film is different to the other two films in particular however, using subtle,
more gritty violence giving a realistic feel, rather than large brash
explosions. The trailer uses overhead shots of a body on the floor and
also quick shots of someone getting punched to do so. The narrative
combined with the shots creates a more unnerving feeling amongst
audience members, rather than an adrenaline packed trailer such as
Gangster Squad. The trailer also uses high and low angles to assert who
is the dominant characters, making the audience feel uncomfortable,
therefore relating and conveying the gritty crime genre further.

19. How is the audience explicitly targeted in
the trailer for Black Mass?
The audience is specifically targeted through
the use of violence and narration in
particular. Johnny Depp’s character is shown
through the use of narrative specifically,
attracting the audience through his acting
and portraying the insanity and cold
heartedness of his character. This is the
main focus of the trailer, as much of the
shots feature Depp and this consequently
relates to the plot also. Individuals also may
be drawn to the historical side of the film
shown throughout the trailer, attracting those
interested in the time period or individuals
that remember the crimes themselves. The
target audience of the film again fits the 15-
23 age bracket, as this is the general age
bracket for crime films. This is again shown
through the elements included in the trailer.

20. What institutions are responsible for
the trailer?
The trailer and film is produced by two production companies, that
being Cross Creek Pictures and 360 Films. Cross Creek Pictures is
an American film production company and film financier. Their first
production was the acclaimed Black Swan in 2010 (according to
Wikipedia). They are a new company however are responsible for a
list of very successful films such as the mentioned Black Swan, Black
Mass, Legend and The Ides of March. 360 Films, RatPac-Dune
Entertainment or RatPac Entertainment, is an American motion
picture financing company which provides funds for various Warner
Bros. Company films. They are a well established film and are
responsible for various films such as Avatar, X-Men: Last Stand, Borat
and Night at The Museum.

21. What other trailers/films is the
institution responsible for?
Other highly successful films by Cross Creek Productions and 360
Films. include:
 The A-Team
 Knight and Day
 Date Night
 Predators
 Love and Other Drugs
 127 Hours
 Black Swan

22. How is the trailer successful?
The trailer again is successful as it reflects the genre firstly through the use
of the micro elements and the characters in particular. The trailer does not
give too much information about the film however, creating enigma and
ensuring that the audience is left questioning what happens throughout the
film. The trailer establishes the location of the film and then uses various
shots from throughout the film, then showing various more specific
locations also. Depp, as mentioned, allows the protagonist to be portrayed
in detail and allows the audience to get a very clear sense of his
characteristics from just a short clip. The film uses this and the focus on the
strong lead character in order to successfully market the film further.