Trailer conventions create interest in films before release and promote them. There can be multiple trailers for one film. If trailers are released late, they may contain important details. Trailers are an important part of film marketing. Theatrical trailers shown right before release are longer and more detailed, providing plot details. Teaser trailers shown further in advance online and on TV use exciting clips to tease audiences without revealing significant plot details. Narrative theories examine how stories are structured and conveyed. Vladimir Propp analyzed character roles in Russian fairytales. Tzvetan Todorov proposed most narratives move from an initial equilibrium, through a disruption, to a new equilibrium. Roland Barthes identified

1. Trailer conventions
Creates immediate interest in the film before
the actual release
Promotes the film
There can be many film trailers for one film
If film trailers are released late it will contain
important details of the extremely important
release date
Its an important part of film marketing

2. Theatrical trailer vs teaser trailer
Theatrical teasers are longer and shown in the theatres right before the film release.
Teaser trailers tease the audience with a few exiting clips. Teaser trailers are found online, on tv and in
the theatre's quite a long time before the films release.
A theatrical trailer is more detailed, it may provide plenty of details as to what the plot is about. Many
modern trailers in fact seem to give away too much information ahead of time and thus ruin part of the
surprise.
A teaser on the other hand is specially that , it is meant to tease. They don’t reveal any significant plot
details and are only meant to give a minor glimpse what is to come.

3. Narrative theories
Narrative is the way in which a story is told in both fictional and non fictional media texts.
Vladimir propp is a Russian critic who was a literary theorists. He had analysed over
one hundred Russian fairy-tales in the 1920s and he had concluded that there was clear
characters and their actions had clearly defined roles and functions.
Propps character roles:
The hero(seeks something)
The villain (opposes the hero)
The donor(helps the hero)
The dispatcher(sends the hero on his way)
The false hero(falsely assuming the role of the .hero)
The helper (gives support to the hero)
The princess (the reward for the hero, but also needs protection for the villain
Her father

4. Tzvetan Todorov is a literary theorist who proposed that most narratives start
with a state of equilibrium in which life is ‘normal’ and protagonist’s happy. This
state of normality is disrupted by an outside force, which has to be fought
against in order to return to a state of equilibrium. The model can easily be
applied to a wide range of films.
Equilibrium - disequilibrium - new equilibrium

5. Roland Barthes is a French semilogists and he had suggested that narrative works
with five different codes which allows the reader to make sense of it.
In addition using terms ‘denotation’ and ‘connotation’ to analyse images.
Action – as narrative device by which a resolution is produced through action, eg a
shootout
Enigma – a narrative device that teases the audience by presenting a puzzle or riddle
to be solved. Works to delay the story’s ending pleasurably.
Symbolic- connotation
Semic - denotation
Cultural- a narrative device which the audience can recognise as being part of a culture
eg. A ‘’made man’’ in a gangster film is part of the mafia culture.

6. Claude levi-strauss was an social anthropologist and had started the
myths of tribal cultures. He had also examined how stories
unconsciously reflect the values, beliefs and myths of a culture.
These are usually expressed in the form of binary oppositions. His
research has been adapted by media theorists to reveal underlying
themes and symbolic oppositions in media texts.
Binary oppositions
A conflict between two qualities or terms.
An example would be good – bad

7. Claude levi-strauss was an social anthropologist and had started the
myths of tribal cultures. He had also examined how stories
unconsciously reflect the values, beliefs and myths of a culture.
These are usually expressed in the form of binary oppositions. His
research has been adapted by media theorists to reveal underlying
themes and symbolic oppositions in media texts.
Binary oppositions
A conflict between two qualities or terms.
An example would be good – bad