Applying Recognisable Conventions of Trailers

In order to further our understanding of the conventions of film trailers, we were put into groups and told to create ideas for a film trailer for a movie entitled "Bloodshed High". I was in a group with Dan and Joey. One convention that we recognized as being important to show is a USP (unique selling point). This is important to show in a film trailer as it shows how your film is unique which will attract an audience to go and see it. The USP of our film is that it is one of the only films where horror and teen themes are used. We thought that this was a good idea as it will attract people that are interested in teen films as well as people who are interested in horror movies. Another convention of a film trailer we realised was advertisement of the star characters. We did this by highlighting that William Defoe was starring in our film because he is associated with horror films and also because he is a star he will attract an audience simply by him being in it. One of the most important features of our film trailer, which will be highlighted in the film trailer, is the fact that the setting is an abandoned mental hospital turned into a boarding school on an isolated island which adds a claustrophobic element to the trailer/ film. From looking at my own groups idea and by analysing other groups' work i learnt a few key points. These are:

Key Features of Movie Trailers
1. Film trailers and the movie itself are two different things, while a film have a narrative a film trailer is only made to highlight the important parts of the film to make it an effective advertising tool.
2. When creating a movie trailer it is important to take into account an audiences expectations of a film trailer while creating a few new elements for example a unique selling point. An example of an important feature that an audience will expect is the production company at the beginning, from seeing this the audience will usually automatically know wht kind of film the trailer is for, e.g 'Twisted Pictures' will associate the film with a horror genre.
3. It is important to stick to horror movie conventions when creating a trailer as this will help the audience recognise the film that is being advertised which is important so that they will go and watch the film. For example non-diagetic music used in film trailers creates mood and atmospherem also using a star name in a trailer is important as it will help sell the film because some audiences will go and see a film simply because of a star that is in it.
4. Lastly it is important to apply the knowledge you have of conducting a film trailer, it is one thing knowing the key elements and another thing being able to put it together effectively.