How Film Trailers Are used to Attract an Audience

The Chronicles of Narnia:
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe


(British)


Fantasy

In this trailer there are many aspects that are emphasised, for example the editing used is very precise as each clip smoothly cuts to the next to entice the audience to keep watching. At some parts of this trailer the director uses a jump cut so when the audience are focused on something, another shot is placed so they quickly focus on that for example at 1:57 to 2:09 of this trailer is that the shots move so fast that the audience feel a tension as the narrative develops from showing the characters at the beginning, to them being in a war thus developing the story to make the audience understand what's happening and keep them interested. The editing used is a fast pace montage sequence that works very well with the camera shots which is another aspect that is emphasised to connect with the audience and keep them watching, for example at the beginning of the trailer it shows a little boy walking in a wardrobe, and a point of view shot is used and this was because it helps the audience be in the position of the boy and see what he sees which gets the audience more involved as they identify with the character thus making the watch more. Other camera shots and camera movement that is an aspect which is emphasised is the use of crane shot used and this can be seen repeatedly throughout the trailer as it shows one aspect of the mise-en-scene which is the setting, and this was used to allow the audience to see the location of this trailer which shows not only the setting but also the characters for example at 1:28 it shows a wide shot of the setting but the characters are shown to emphasis the power of the protagonist, which is the white witch.

The genre of the trailer can be identify through the use of mise-en-scene for example the props that are used within this trailer can be seen as supernatural for example the magical potion that the little girl uses identifies the fictional narrative which then shows the fantasy genre. Other props that are used to see the fantasy genre is the use of props like swords, tents and the fire bow and arrow however other things that accompany props is the characters costumes for example the armour clothes that they wear during the war can be seen in ancient times which shows the genre of fantasy. The characters themselves identify the genre because the talking animals are things that would be seen in animations and by the director using them show a major aspect of the genre for the audience to quickly understand what the genre of the film is they will be watching. The sound is another aspect that can help identify the genre of this trailer for example the sound used in this trailer is very fast paced when the editing moves fast, for example at the beginning of the trailer there is a loud chime sound which keeps the audience focused, but as it continues the sound becomes faster as the editing becomes faster and this is used to have the audience focused and keep up with the narrative and within this trailer there is a sound bridge used for example before the lion is shown at the end we the audience can hear the raw which in a way tells the audience what to expect before seeing is. Other features of the genre of this trailer being established is through the use of narrative for example in most fantasy films there is usually a conflict between good and evil and in the film there is a conflict between the White Witch and Aslan which shows that the genre of this trailer is fantasy. With all these aspect shown the genre is easily identified.

From just looking at this trailer the target audience is very clear as the genre of the film stands out because of the mise-en-scene. From just looking and hearing at the trailer it seems as though that the main target audience would be children aged 7-12 and this is because aspects like the characters show that it's based for children and stars children as they are able to portray a magical world better than adult would. They would also be able to identify with the children characters and pretend to be like them, going on a magical quest. Other aspects that establish and identify the target audience from what I see is the colours used within this trailer, for example there are a lot of bright colours used which connotes adventure and happiness thus again showing the target audience being children.

The trailer shows that this film is worth seeing as it has many features that are suitable for the target audience for example the fast pace editing used help create energy which the audience prefer when this type of genre is used. It shows different elements of the trailer making it very exciting and understanding for the audience to acknowledge what happens in the film for example the different characters show like the talking animals and the land making it seem very fictional and fantasy which the whole family can enjoy to watch. The locations used in this trailer help accompany the camera work used to bring the characters to life and also set an enigma at parts of the film when the audience will ask what will happen next. As the trailer lasts 2:28 it gives more information but also lets the audience decide whether they want to watch the film or not, moreover it also allows them to see all the characters and determine whether they are people they like watching or not. The faster the editing becomes to more it entices the audience and make them want to watch more.

The conventions that are easily recognisable within this trailer are things like the montage used to create a face pace shot to entice the audience which keeps them watching, and the length of the trailer isn't that long because if it gets long people won't want to watch the film as the trailer has given to much away, but if its short and fast but at the same time gives a bit away it helps the audience understand the narrative. The institutional image and logo is another conventions that is recognised and has been placed to show the audience which company distributed the film for example some companies are good at producing and distributing horror, fantasy or action films and the target audience might see a institutional logo and want to what the film because they trust they distribute good films. The music used in another convention as it helps create an atmosphere for the audience to understand what mood the film is based upon e.g. in this trailer the mood set it more energetic because of the visual image which moves so fast that it doesn't really stay on for long to the audience to see what it is making it another convention along side the voice-over used to help show the narrative for example the first part of this trailer there is a voice over used by one of the characters talking about what will happen in the film but not giving away to much and this is used to allow the audience to understand what is happening. The use of dramatic angles help show different parts of the film and setting for example a lot of crane shot is used to show both the characters and setting to allow the audience to familiarise themseleves in the postition of the character by using shots like point of view shot. In this trailer the title is shown at the end of the film to allow the audience to see what happens and even try and work out what the film might be called if they are watching a TV advert, which is another convention which goes with the release date shown at the end of the film because it shows the audience when the film will be shown in local cinemas if they want to go and watch. Finally another convention that this trailer shows is the use of having the director and producers names at the end of the trailer which allows the audience to see if they know the director from other films they might have produced.

In conclusion the use of mise-en-scene, editing, sound and cinematography help film trailer attract the audience to watch the film and if any of these aspect were missing, it wouldn't appeal to the audience so much to watch the film.