My chosen genre is a sci-fi thriller. There are many conventions used in sci-fi trailers which I would have to adhere to in order to create an effective trailer and the trailers I have looked at for influences have been extremely useful in generating my trailers style and tone.
One of the common conventions used is the use of a voice over at the beginning of the trailer, this is used to inform the audience of the scenario that has been set out due to science fiction films being set in a futuristic present day. This was found in the majority of trailers and the voice over is normally taken from a press conference where the lead character, generally a scientist, is discussing the new product. This dialogue which is usually from the start of the film, is carried throughout the trailer with shots underneath which are from the entire film in order to contradict what he is talking about. Another common convention which is used, is after the title is shown at the end of the trailer, it cuts to black and then one extra piece of dialogue and shot is shown, which is used to excite the audience as it meant to be a crowd pleasing moment. This is shown in Extinction and can easily be replicated.
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| Closer to God |
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| Trancendence |
Generally science fiction trailers utilise a three act structure. Most science fiction trailers use slow paced editing in the first act in order to introduce the characters and the setting/premise of the film. The editing speed increases in the second act and then in the third a fast paced montage is shown. This increase the tension of the film and showcases the action to invest audiences in the story. The montage is something which I think is necessary as shown by it being used in every trailer that I looked at. It will require a considerable amount of time for the amount of shots needed and the editing time required to make it in sync with the music but I think that it is needed as it's not just a convention of sci-fi/thriller trailers but all trailers. The music is also extremely important and usually ties in the the structure of the trailer, the majority of the film trailers that I looked at included a slow piano melody in the first act, in Moon and Ex Machina this is done to showcase the beauty of the situation. The slow piano piece also increase the mystery of the situation as shown in Transcendence as the piano increase the intrigue surrounding the new technology. As the trailers enter the second and third acts the speed of the music increases with the editing speed, this helps to increase the tension of the trailer. Throughout the second and third act several sounds are also added, such as sound booms, screeching or buzzing. These further increase the tension and suspense as they are commonly associated with horror/thriller trailers and therefore alert the audience to the upcoming action.
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| Closer to God |
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| Moon |
Generally when a science fiction film which centres around a man made creation which threatens to change life as we know it, the beauty of the Earth is shown, this is done in Ex Machina and Transcendence. This is done in to challenge the perceptions of beauty and showcase the destructive power of humans. Due to my budget, I most likely wouldn't be able to include any long flowing shots over a beautiful location, so therefore I may need to find an alternative to be able to include this convention. As I want my trailer to revolve around artificial intelligence, there are several conventions that are used when AI is shown in films/trailers. The mysterious nature of said intelligence is usually an important issue along with showcasing the beauty of this new creation. As a common trope is artificial intelligence going wrong and attacking humans, I wish to slightly twist this trope by switching it and showcasing a human attacking an AI and then how said AI and other humans react, this I feel will differentiate my trailer from the many others.
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| Ex Machina |
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| Transcendence |
The lighting is also going to be crucial in the trailer, from the trailers that I looked at in the first act, the lighting is generally high key which fits in which the calm setting of this act. However in the second and third acts the lighting changed depending on what style of film it is, generally these changes in light where shown in the montage so that the contrast would be striking and interesting. Some utilised red light, to highlight the psychological thriller aspect of the trailer and some utilised a lot of chiaroscuro to play up the horror aspect. I wish to use a bit of both perhaps and I want to make sure that the trailer is as visually interesting as possible by using as many different colour schemes as I can, similar to The Signal trailer.
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| Ex Machina |
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| Moon |
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| The Signal |
The graphics also play a key role in all trailers, as many of the trailers that I looked at didn't have any bankable stars or directors these weren't shown but many were critically successful films therefore they use
this extra time to show the audience the awards it has won and the reviews. This is done in Moon and Closer to God, due to our low budget and no bankable stars this is something which can easily be replicated. The title is also important and most science fiction films use futuristic or computer text in order to remind the audience of the genre.
In conclusion, the science fiction/thriller genre which I have chosen to use and adhere to has many different conventions whilst still allowing a great flexibility which allows each trailer to feel slightly different. This is also down to the science fiction genre encompassing a wide range of sub genres which each have there own conventions, this means that I would have a large selection of choice when deciding which conventions to adhere to. As the structure of the trailers are generally similar this is something which I need to stick to, this then allows me to select certain trailers to influence me on different things like lighting and shots.
AF
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