After finishing the first draft of our Teaser Trailer, the feedback we received said that our beginning montage was too long, providing an unclear narrative as it seemed more like a film opening rather than a Teaser Trailer. It would have therefore confused the audience, as they may not have been able to clearly identify the genre of out piece.
We therefore decided to cut down the montage at the beginning of our trailer. We only used three scenes, all with the protagonist with her back to the camera. The feedback from our changed montage scene was more positive due to the shorter length, and the fact that it provided a clearer narrative for the audience, as the transition to the party scene in our trailer works better.
To make this transition work, along with cutting down the beginning montage, we also added the non-diegetic sound of an alarm clock, which increases in volume and tempo to mirror a heart monitor, which provides a clear transition to the next scene, which is the POV of the protagonist the party.
We decided to use some techniques and ideas from our inspirations post at the start of the year, however after carefully planning our shot list, and experimenting with some shots we thought would work effectively, we found out that some of our ideas would not be suitable for our Teaser Trailer.
An example of this is the Dolly Zoom we were planning to use when our protagonist first takes the drug.After filming this scene using this particular effect, we found as we watched it back it looked too comical. We therefore decided to change this shot to a close-up of the protagonist. We found this worked better as the audience was clearly able to see the characters emotions, showing the effect the drug had on her, which provided a very clear narrative, unlike the Dolly Zoom.
Another example of this is where we decided against using dramatic music for the main part of our trailer, which we originally attended to do. We decided instead to use a remix of a popular pop song (Pumped Up Kicks) as we felt as though it paralleled what was going on screen very well, as it conveyed the disorientation the protagonist was feeling at the party, and the negative effects of the drug it had on her later in the trailer. We felt that the use of dramatic music throughout our trailer would not make the genre as clear, as it would make it seem like more of a horror. On top of this, as our Teaser Trailer has some social realist aspects in it, the use of using a pop song conforms to this type of genre.
We also did use some techniques and ideas from our inspirations list. An example of this is where we used red tints/lighting within our Teaser Trailer as the colour red can connote a sense of danger that a character may face, conforming to the idea about the dangers of drugs. It also conformed to our genre.
We also used Graphic Matching within our Teaser Trailer, as we found it looked very effective within our Teaser Trailer.We used graphic matching for a montage scene to demonstrate the normality of the protagonists life, which contrasted with the shot towards the end of the trailer where we used a handheld shot of her running down the street showing her descent into chaos.
Finally we also used Close Up Shots in our Teaser Trailer as it conforms to the Psychological Thriller genre building tension, as the audience can see the Characters Facial expressions clearly. Close-Up Shots can also draw importance to different objects or characters, so the audience is able to focus on them. This worked well in our Teaser Trailer as we were able to use close-up shots of the characters face whilst at the party, and after she takes the drug, to portray the audience the negative effects of the drugs.
We have decided to alter the certification of our Teaser Trailer to an 18, due to the mature themes and dark nature of the trailer. After doing research, we discovered that the theme of drugs is more relevant to 18-21 year olds and is a very serious issue. Because the audience is intended to be active, it is up to them to think for themselves when they view the film and we felt as though 15 year olds weren't the right target audience.
Our Trailer does not promote nor encourage drug use, although at the negative effects are not explicit until the second half of the trailer- which may mean it is not suitable for under 18s. Although our teaser trailer has no strong language, it is likely our film would as it is a hybrid between a Social Realism and a Psychological Thriller and it is a convention often adhered to in both genres. Our teaser trailer is comprised of a multitude of close ups of drugs, and overall, drugs are explicit throughout.
This was the first official poster released for the film directed by Johnathan Demme, when it came in 1991.
The poster shows the protagonists (Jodie Foster's) face with a butterfly covering her mouth. Her eyes, usually blue are red. The faux skull markings on the moths head, show that the skulls are made up of 7 naked women, which is believed to be homage to Salvador Dali.
The poster shows a contrast of light and dark; the protagonists face being white, and the background around he fading to black. This use of colour suggests the presence of both good and evil in the film. This use of colouring conforms to the Psychological Thriller genre. On top of this, the use of the deaths-head Hawkmoth across the protagonists mouth, and the high contrast of her face matches the dark tone of the film, allowing the audience to immediately be aware of the genre.
The title "The Silence of the Lambs" is interpreted in visual form on the poster. The Protagonist is displayed to represent the lamb, and the high key lighting of her face connote some sort of innocence about the character.The moth across her mouth represents her being silenced. The red colouring of her eyes, and the dark colouring of the moth could represent the danger she will face in the film, as well as adding to the mysterious and sinister atmosphere of the poster.
The film is shown to challenge the classic thriller conventions by having a female protagonist, which is the only character displayed on the poster. This can be considered unusual for the Psychological Thriller genre, as the protagonists are usually all male. By challenging these conventions the poster could potentially appeal to a wider audience.
The use of the typography in the red font is used to connote the danger the protagonist will face in the film. The colour also conforms to the Psychological Thriller genre.
The first shot of this trailer is a tracking shot, first showing the audience the 'Missing' poster and then moving towards the crowd of people holding candles. The lighting is low-key and the diegetic sound of crickets in the night creates an eerie ambience. This is contrasted by the non-diegetic contrapuntal piano music which sounds upbeat and romantic. There is a sound bridge to the next shot- a midshot of Nick speaking into the microphone, with Amy's parents to the right of him, and a poster of Amy framed in the background to his left. Everyone believes Nick is the only thing standing between Amy being reunited with her parents and this framing further suggests that. It is a low angle shot, and possibly a point-of-view shot, as Nick is standing on a stage, above the crowd. This presents him as powerful and dominant. Nick is also presented as powerful in the next shot, in which Amy's head is against his chest and she looks up at him. His hand is stroking her head and she is in a vulnerable position. The non-diegetic love song continues and the lyrics depict everything the audience is lured into believing Amy is innocent.
Three shots of Nick Dunne are used, separated by two contrasting shots- one of them kissing and then of the first sign that something is wrong when Amy disappears. The shots of Nick zoom in each time, closer to his face as he realises for the first time that something bad has happened. Nick is framed alone; the long shot leaves him in the middle of the screen, surrounded by the interiors of the house, the cool tones of the shots on his own, contrast the warm yellow tones of the shot of the couple. Their lives have changed so drastically from then to now, and this is evident in the lighting. The shots of Nick have high-key natural lighting suggesting that the truth will be revealed while the kissing shot is low key, and only their silhouettes are visible clearly. The eye level midshot presents a balance in the relationship that is no longer there.
The last shot of Nick in this sequence, is a low angle close up, presenting him as powerful and is one way in which the audience are made unsure of what happened to Amy. His face is lit naturally from the windows on the left but the right side of his face is left dark, conveying a duplicitous nature and a hidden truth, once again handing the audience false clues as to what has happened.
Throughout the trailer, there is a variation of lighting- often a high-key lit shot will be followed by a lowly-lit shot. Other shots incorporate both light and darkness- such as the shot of Nick pulling down the blinds. His face is in the background of the shot and is dark and appears sinister as he shuts the light out. The blind is in the foreground- and is brightly lit by natural light. It is also white which furthers the contrast to Nick's shadowed face in his dark home.
Fast paced montage editing is a convention of teaser trailers and the shots are often cut quickly to prevent giving too much away to the audience. The screen goes black just as Nick grabs Amy, and the audience are more likely to watch the film to find out what happens next. To add drama, this is where the music gets faster and a fast paced drum beat comes in. This is supposed to be the most romantic part of the song, but when paired with the contrasting abusive shots, it is twisted and becomes disturbing.
The straight cut editing gets faster as the teaser trailer progresses until the last shot of Amy's body in the water after being drowned. This creates tension and intrigue, which is the ambience a Psychological Thriller wants to leave with the audience. The water is dark and appears murky- which contrasts Rosamund Pike's fair skin and blonde hair. She is often labelled as an English Rose. The fade to black after the shot adds more mystery as Nick Dunne's voiceover pleads innocence while the audience can see her body on screen.
The trailer finishes on the line "I did not kill my wife. I am not a murderer," which reiterates the main plot, and leaves the audience to decide whether they believe him or not. The last shot matches the poster and the website- shots similar to this are used to connect the trailer with its ancillary products, and help to promote the film to a larger extent.
We therefore decided to cut down the montage at the beginning of our trailer. We only used three scenes, all with the protagonist with her back to the camera. The feedback from our changed montage scene was more positive due to the shorter length, and the fact that it provided a clearer narrative for the audience, as the transition to the party scene in our trailer works better.
