This document analyzes and summarizes three film trailers from different genres: horror, sci-fi/horror, and comedy. For the horror trailer "The Woman in Black," it notes the use of dark imagery, scary music, and supernatural elements that are typical of the genre. The sci-fi/horror trailer for "Alien" combines elements of both genres by setting it in space but also creating isolation and tension. Finally, the comedy trailer for "Ted" uses upbeat music, comical scenes and conversations, and light atmosphere rather than the darkness of horror trailers.

1. Film Trailer Analysis
Eda Ozdemir

2. „Woman In Black‟ - Horror
„The Woman In Black‟ follows typical conventions of a horror trailer with scary/eerie music and taking the idea of
childhood innocence and manipulating it into something to be feared about which is very common in the horror genre.
There is use of darkness, blood, and a supernatural being which is all typical conventions of the horror genre which
links to David Chandlers genre theory. There is no copy used either which is not typical of horror genres, however the
voice used is appropriate to set the atmosphere. There is fast paced action towards the end which follows Freytag‟s
theory, however the music does not follow this fast pace action which goes against the typical conventions. This
trailer can be linked to people deciding to watch this film as a form of entertainment which links to the uses and
gratifications theory.
Cinematography: the trailer begins with an establishing shot in order for the audience to visualize this is where
the action will be taking place within the movie, giving the audience an insight. The room is old, tattered and
destroyed which creates an eerie look which follows the horror genre. There are use of close ups and mid
shots to show the terror on the characters faces and to show the „creepy‟ objects in the house. There are also
use of insert cuts as well once the setting has been established to show the action within the scene. There are
use of low angles on the house to show the power of this haunted house. The lighting used is also dark which
are typical of horror trailers.
Editing: within post production a variety of editing devices have been used. There are uses of transitions such
as fade outs which eaves a black screen which adds to the horror genre as black is a conventional colour.
There are also use of motivated cuts when the word „house‟ and „woman‟ is mentioned it cuts to a shot of
them so the audience can gain an insight as to who the characters are. The scenes have been edited so as to
when an object is destroyed or some form of action is shown on the screen it co-alongside with the flash of
music for emphasis. There are short takes throughout which have been pieced together in a fast pace towards
the end of the trailer to show tension and speed in the action.
Sound: at the beginning of the trailer there is ambient sound of the wind which creates an eerie atmosphere
and an idea of desertion within the house. There is also a voice over of the child telling the story of the film in a
nursery rhyme style. Children and nursery rhymes are often used in horror films to again create an eerie and
scary feel to show the genre of the film.
Mise en Scene: the overall mise en scene of the horror trailer is old, dark, death and decay which are all
common features of a horror genre. There is also a deserted area, the Christ's cross (which is used a lot within
horror) and blood – all typical conventions of a horror trailer to create a scary location to emphasize the plot
and make the consumer feel nervous and scared.

3. „Alien‟ – Sci-fi/ horror
The film „Alien‟ is a hybrid film that combines elements of the sci-fi and horror genre together. This has been achieved
by setting the film in space, a key element of the sci-fi genre. There is also use of planets and aliens as well as space
costumes, all contributing elements of the sci-fi genre. However there is also use of the isolated setting and tension
built throughout the trailer to create the horror elements. By combining these to genres to create a hybrid allows the
film to appeal to the demographics of a much wider audience to gain more profit. This also broadens the audience
choosing to watch this film for entertaining purposes, linking to the „uses and gratifications‟ theory.
• Cinematography: the trailer begins with an establishing shot of space in order to show the audience where the
action of this film will be set in. Throughout the beginning of the trailer we see the camera panning backwards.
This has been done as to build up suspension as to what the camera is going back towards. These are short
takes between the camera travelling backwards across the ground to extreme close ups of the egg. This again
creates suspension within the audience. The camera shots change from an extreme close up, through to a
close up and then a long shot of the egg. The variations of camera shots show the importance of the egg and its
vital role it will play in the film.
• Editing: Within post production a variety of editing devices have been used, such as creating the travelling
through space image with would have been created through use of computer technology. As the audience feel
as if they are travelling through space, lines start to appear which has been done again through a use of
computers. This creates tension and makes the audience want to find out what these lines are, which turn out to
spell the title of the movie. The egg has also been edited to have light shining through it as it braches, to show
how the creature is being hatched out of its supernatural.
• Sound: at the beginning of the trailer there is what seems like ambient sound of the wind. However we do not
know whether this will be realistic as we do not know whether there is wind in space, although in post
production this sound has been chosen to be added as the sound of a heartbeat which increases in volume and
pace as the trailer progresses adding to the tension.
• Mise En Scene: the overall mise en scene of this hybrid trailer is dark and eerie to fit in with the horror genre.
There is also the use of space and aliens which are key features within a sci-fi film. The location is also in a
dark isolated setting, which again is a feature of the horror genre. The costumes chosen of space suits and the
glimpse of the alien we gain all add to the sci-fi genre as well. By combining these different elements of both
genres helps to create a successful trailer that will appeal to a wider variety of audience. The use of using
animals such as a cat adds to the horror genre as it is believed how animals can sense danger.

4. „Ted‟ - Comedy
The film „Ted‟ is a comedy film, therefore the trailer has been produced in a completely different way with different
elements and features from the horror trailers previously analyzed. This comedy trailer includes features such as voice
overs, copy, upbeat music, comical scenes and conversations, light and upbeat atmosphere as opposed to the
darkness used in horrors. This trailer however represents women as sex objects, fitting in with Laura Mulvey‟s male
gaze theory. This film has also been made for the entertainment value for the target audience complying with the uses
and gratifications theory. The trailer also begins to show part of Todorov‟s narrative theory as we see how the film
begins with the equilibrium and how this is disrupted, although it does not show us the restoration – which is why the
audience will want to go watch the film to find out what happens.
Cinematography: a variety of different shots are used throughout this trailer in order to gain different comical
impacts. The trailer begins with an aerial shot that pans into the room of the two central characters when they
were younger. This scene gives the audience the impression of the film is aimed at a younger audience, making
the film more comical when finding out its true purpose. There are lots of reaction shots used also to again add
more comical impact to the trailer.
Editing: Within postproduction the editing team have added a variety of techniques to the final outcome of the
trailer. At the beginning of the trailer the „Universal‟ logo has been edited as if the camera is crash zooming into
the house. This has been done to engage the audience straight away into the film. There is also use of voice
over which is common feature used in comedy films.
Sound: There is use of voice over used for this film trailer, a key feature used in comedy films. There is also non
diegetic sound used throughout the trailer, whether that be the “magical” sound or upbeat and up tempo music.
This music cuts out through when a funny memorable part of the trailer is shown for a bigger comical impact on
the audience. There are also use on stings when the non diegetic music is cut out to emphasise the comedy
within that shot.
Mise en Scene: There are a variety of different locations used within this trailer such as the Christmas setting,
the city view, the car shop, the aquarium and the grocery store. A vast majority of locations have been chosen
to create connections with the audience as these locations will be recognisable with the target audience making
the film more relatable. The costumes used are again every day to day costumes to add the realistic nature of
this film.