Film Essay

 Consider the differences between film trailers and film openings.

Film trailers are short clips typically under a minute long and they are small montages showing some of the scenes from the actual movie, usually the clips used show no major scenes in the movie, this is so that the trailer doesn’t give too much away, but creates impact and offers the audience a sneak preview.

A trailer is used to make the audience want to see more and watch the full movie, a trailer is know as an appetizer. A trailer also includes the main actors names, the producers of the film, any other films the director or producer have created, and the company behind the film, it also introduces a high tempo first impression.

The opening scene or sequence of a film is different to a trailer because it sets the pace and genre for the rest of the film, the opening scene is one clip with different shots, in the opening sequence the main actors are usually introduced to the audience so they know who the main characters are, there is also always some sort of action in the opening scene to help grip the audience and set the pace and scene for the rest of the movie, the opening scene also sets the plot for the rest of the film so the audience understand what is happening.

The trailer for the film “Blind Side” starts off by showing the production company which in this case is “Warner Bros” after the “Warner bros” logo there is another logo who also worked with “Warner bros” to produce the film this company is “Alcon.” In the background you can hear the voice of Sandra Bullock who plays the main character, this instantly shows the audience who the main character is and who plays the main character, the first camera angle used is a medium close up of the main characters legs the camera then pans to a young boy who is just waking up, the first 10 seconds has already shown who the main characters are and who plays them, the shot then cuts and shows a subtitle saying ‘Its the only world she has ever known’ the last three letters are in a larger font this is used to help emphasise the words. There is then an establishing shot of a very large house, then the shot cuts to a man taking a family picture this again shows Sandra Bullock and the other main characters. The next shot shows Sandra Bullock cooking Christmas lunch, this shot portrays Sandra Bullock to be a traditional mother who looks after the family and does the cooking. There is a medium shot of just Sandra Bullock this also helps show that she is one of the main characters. The shot cuts again to another subtitle this subtitle shows “its the only world he’s ever known” this shot then cuts to an establishing shot of a slum estate in America and in the center of the image there is another main character the audience know that this person is another main character because he dominates the screen. The shot cuts again to a gang sat on some steps looking directly into the camera lens, there is background music by the ‘Fray.’ Over the music there is a woman’s voice talking the camera then shows an extreme close up of the main character staring out of a car window.

There is another establishing shot of a posh school, the camera pans to the main character showing him looking up at the school, the background music is slowly dying out and a man’s voice begins to speak in the background, the shots used make the audience feel pity for the main character because the music and the facial expressions used and sad ones. The shots keep cutting to different classes where the main character is being taught, the main character is seen as an outsider to the school. After about 45 seconds the black main character meets Sandra Bullocks son they begin to talk this is the connection between the main characters and this shows the audience what is likely to happen to the characters. The shot then cuts to another subtitle showing who produced the film and who directed it. The trailer for this film is used to show different social backgrounds, the trailer does this effectively by using a black main character from a slum and a white upper class family who live in a mansion. The trailer also uses dialogue clips that o not match the scene that is being shown this is used so that the trailer doesn’t give to much away to the audience, this is also used to make the trailer have less clips in because they can mix and match the audio and make the trailer short and snappy. 

Trailers are usually short and snappy because it wants to engage the audience and make it so they do lose concentration.

In comparison to the blind side trailer I also decided to analyze the opening sequence for ‘Blind Side’, at the beginning of the sequence the logos for “Warner Bros” and “Alcon Production.” The screen then goes black and Sandra Bullock begins to narrate an American football game and explaining a move that the American football team are doing. The American football game that is being narrated is an actual American football game that was shown on live TV. The football game then rewinds this is as if Sandra Bullock is watching the game and commentating on it as it happens. The camera then shows a reverse angle a zooms in on one player ‘Orange Taylor’ the narrator (Sandra Bullock) begins to describe him, the shot then cuts from the game and shows a squad picture of the Seattle Seahawks, the shot then fades into an establishing shot of an afro american slum then in the center of the image the audience gets the first glimpse of the main character, the main character is in the center of the image and the audience know he is the main character because the camera slowly zooms in on him and pans up his body starting at his feet and then up to his head, there is background music playing and Sandra Bullock is still talking, all of this happens in the first three minutes, the opening sequence usually sets the scene for the rest of the movie the opening also gives the audience an idea of what the genre is likely to be.

The opening scene is different to a trailer because a trailer is simply just a montage of clips from the movie, these clips show what sort of genre the movie is likely to be and who the main actors are, a trailer and opening sequence both have one thing in common and that is that they both show the names of the big name actors in the film and the production companies that produced and directed the film.

Trailers try to appeal to a wider spectrum of audiences because they are trying to get as many people in the cinemas and watching the films as possible so they want to aim the trailer at everyone, then the opening sequence portrays what the genre is going to be like in the rest of the film.

In conclusion trailers are vey different to opening scenes or sequences because trailers try to sell the film and they are used as an advertising tool to make people go out and buy or watch the film, opening scenes are used to set the pace and tone of the film and make the audience want to carry on watching the film.

There is a major difference between a film opening and a trailer, they both have different jobs, for example in the film “blind side” the trailer gives very little away and only shows the main characters where as the opening scene of “Blind side” gives a brief out line of the plot but also shows the main characters. Trailers are more as an advertising technique than a way of showing what the film is about because they are used to make people want to go and watch the film, where as film openings make the audience want to know more.