Conventions of Horror Film Trailers

From our research into the conventions of Horror Film trailers, we have learnt a number of things, and seen a great deal as to what makes a horror film stand out from the others.

Colour 
Dark scenes and dark colours have been used since the beginning of horror. This technique is supposed to obscure the audience's view of what is happening and therefore evokes a sense of fear because they don't know what is coming. When we are born, we often also have the fear of being alone and the dark, a feature capitalised by horror films. Dark colours and darkness can also be attributed to death; something most humans are afraid of, and everyone has to face. For example today, female victims will usually wear pale, 'happy' and sometimes daring colours which will lead them to their death. The antagonist will usually be seen in black because this colour is heavily associated with death - the last colour you will see before you die ("it all goes black.")

Unique Selling Point (USP) 
A unique selling point is the factor that will make one film stand out from the rest. In order for a horror film to be successful it must be different because people will feel scared when they have already seen a film that has a similar plot as the one they are currently watching. A good example of this would be the first film of the Paranormal Activity franchise. Though haunted house stories had been done before, none were quite as compelling as this film, which was done so well, it made the audience believe the family on screen was being hunted by a ghost. Diverse camera shots A wide variety of camera shots are used in trailers to give the illusion that everything on the screen is real. Also since horrors are usually made up or a real life situation has been adapted into the plot, to allow the audience to believe that what they are watching is real, camera shots from different angles lure the audience in before using their interest to scare them.

Voice-over 
The voice over usually runs through the first third of the trailer and indicates to the audience what the film is about. For example in 'The Devil Inside' trailer, it begins will the recording of a 911 call and then one of the main characters begins to tell the story about her mother. The audience now believe that the mother of this woman is possessed by evil.The call itself is so well spoken, it could easily be a real call for help in a desperate hour of need. Again; the reality of it helps to make the audience feel as though it is real for a split second.

Speed of editing & Music 
Trailers mostly begin with long camera shots and minimal camera movement. Eerie music is played over the trailers. At the beginning it has a high pitch, a low tempo and isn't very loud. The cuts are still sharp as the camera jumps from one scene to another. On the other hand, recently horror films have been starting of with a series of very fast shots that the audience can't get a clear picture of what happened. The speed of editing and the music keep increasing as it reaches the fast montage where the speed of the editing is at it's peak. The music may change during different scenes and increase in tempo which builds tension. If there is music during the fast montage it will have a low pitch and have a strong beat to it. Some trailers go even further from this formula, such as 'You're next', which uses happy music, played in the major key, before having the music shift to a far darker tone when the murderer, or creature arrives. Most trailers will have their music build to a point, before having a short break before the jump scare; a key element of any trailer.

How much of the plot to give away 
For a trailer to entice the audience to come and watch the film it has to attract their attention first. A horror film needs to be realistic to the audience so sometimes it is difficult to develop plot that has many disruptions before it reaches the repair followed by the new equilibrium. So trailers cannot always show the main disruption. Directors make the decision to add foreign parts into the trailer that may not appear in the actual film. To increase tension trailers leave the audience with a hook or cliff hanger. For example if it is a slasher, the audience may be left to believe that this killer will kill the protagonist, when in reality, they may be the only character to escape the killer.

Actor's/Actress' names
Directors do not use very famous actors in horror films because people world have seen the actor/actress in other films so they automatically know that this film isn't real and lose that sense of fear that is brought on from watching horror films. Unknown actors are used because it makes it feel as though it is real life footage. However in the last couple of months there has been two big-name actors who have starred in successful horror films.

Straplines 
Trailers shows some production information such as the producers and directors that have created other films usually in the same genre. This helps to lure the audience into believing that they will like this film because it has the same director or producer. Straplines are another persuasion technique used in trailers. For example "Before you experience the fear, before you know the pain, to witness the horror, to uncover the truth, you have to go back, to where it all began" is from the horror 'House at the end of the street' which indicates to the audience what the film will show them without actually giving away the plot. Straplines generally make use of a memorable phrase that stick with the audience long after the trailer has faded from memory.