What Is A Trailer?

What Is A Trailer?
A trailer is an important part of the marketing campaign because it makes potential audiences aware of the film and encourages people to visit the cinema to go and see it. Seeing the trailer in the cinema also captures the excitement and atmosphere of an up and coming film, unlike any other marketing strategy and also unveils the USP of the film, which should make the film stand out from any others. Trailers are created and shown to inform the audience of crucial elements of the film, such as; genre, by using particular genre conventions, it also gives an idea about the main storyline without giving too much away. Trailers also give information about the film like what actors are starring in it, the release date and website. It is important to have a visual summary of a new movie, as the audience need to know what it will look like, and a collection of clips works much better than a written review or summary, as the audience member can make their own initial judgement on that movie.

There are a few different types of trailers, and many films release more than one trailer, but never should a trailer give too much away about a film; just enough to get people interested, but not too much that the audience feels they've seen the whole film already.
Teaser trailers are released first, well in advance of the actual film release- between one and one and a half years- to create hype around a film. Teaser's are generally around a minute long, therefore not giving away much about the film; they are literally 'teasing' the audience of what's to come.
Full length trailers (feature length, theatrical) are released not long after a teaser and pull the viewer even deeper into the story as they are usually around 2- 3 minutes long. Normally, more than one trailer is released to give a good insight into the future film so the audience know if they want to see it.
A TV spot is a short cut of a trailer shown on television, which should create an impact in a very short time, as air time is expensive.
Red band trailers are only on the internet and are for films with a certificate of 15 or 18. They are similar to a full length trailer, but with aspects that make the film a high certificate such as swearing or violence, which wouldn't be allowed on television for any age to view. For film fans, this creates excitement because you can't see this trailer anywhere else.
A featurette is a trailer that is a mix of clips of the film, but also people involved in the film, such as director or actors, talking about the film, what they like about it, and what makes it unique for example. A featurette is usually for big Hollywood blockbuster film's because they have famous director's, amazing star's, big budget's and incredible special effects. The featurette is exciting and interesting for film fan's because it let's the audience know inside information on the making of the film and influential people's opinion.

A clip is what it says on the tin; it is a small clip from the film, normally released after the teaser and theatrical trailer. It simply allows the audience a taste of the film, unlike a trailer can because they are fast paced and try and squeeze in the whole narrative.