Theatrical trailer analysis - The Shallows (2016)

The Shallows (2017) - Theatrical trailer

Genre: Drama, Horror and Thriller
Narrative: 'A mere 200 yards from shore, surfer Nancy is attacked by a great white shark, with her short journey to safety becoming the ultimate contest of wills.' - IMDb

Unique selling point: - The plot (Shark VS Girl), the nostalgia as it relates back with Jaws, the audience will be intrigued due to the realistic representation of the shark. As well as Black Lively being the main character who is well known from Gossip Girl, therefore her followers will be more interested in watching the film.

Target audience: Teenagers and young adults, as mentioned before Lively's followers will be more likely to watch the film but also the story line. It attracts a younger audience due to the action element that the film provides and the relation to Jaws.

Music: The trailer begins with  the diegetic sound of the waves which fits with the establishing shot as they are beginning to set the scene for the audience. It then switches to non-diegetic sound later as the shark is introduced and is shown to be approaching the humans. There is a constant switch throughout the trailer, this is mainly seen when the shark is shown and the sound immediately changes to non-diegetic. This has been intentionally done to add more suspense and excitement, as the music shows the tension that is happening as the audeince are in anticpation for what the shark is yet to do. As well as the music, they also include sound such as dialogue. The dialogue is used throughout the whole trailer as they are showing snippets of the film itself so it has to be more in depth compared to the teaser. Dialogue such as 'Hey, you should come over here' 'I'm good here, thank you' at the beginning. Then onto 'Hey sis, I just wanted to let you know I made it here. Mum was right, it took forever to find but it's perfect.' The use of this is again to create a familiarisation with the female protagonist and her life prior to the events that are occurring, it helps the audience feel a part of her life.

Shot types/ camera angles: 

The trailer like many starts with an establishing shot of the island, this has been done to set the scene of the film. It also shows the difference in other films as they have selected a more reserved and tropical place to film in.




There are a few underwater shots, panning upwards which shows the character emerging from the water. This allows the audience to follow through the movements of the character but also feel included into her life. The audience are able to see the actions she takes throughout the trailer and through the underwater shots, it shows the vulnerability of the female character as she is out in the ocean alone.

Following along from the underwater shots, they have also included low angles which are shown as a POV of the shark. This immediately adds tension for the audience, especially with the specific type of music they have included into the trailer. They have included a thriller type of music when they show the shark so that a reaction is created by the audience.


Many medium shots of close ups of the female character are shown to allow the audience to have a clear view of the character's reactions and emotions throughout the trailer. It also helps the audience to feel a part of the character's life as they are now familiar with the main female protagonist after following her and the actions she takes.



As mentioned previously, a lot of the shots have been included to ensure that the audience feel apart of the character's life. This is particularly as in this female's perspective, she is in a very wild and rare situation therefore for the audience to feel as included allows them to experience the emotions she may be feeling. Therefore, the use of the over the shoulder shots also help to contribute to the reaction that they want the audience to create. The shots allow the audience to get a feel of what the character is feeling, specifically allows them to see through her thought process as she decides on what to do next.

These are the only use of inter-titles throughout the whole of the trailer, this is because of the short amount of time the trailer consists of meaning that the main focus will be on the shots shown. In less than two minutes, they are required to attract their target audience therefore the lack of inter-titles is understandable and also does not affect the trailer overall. However, the inter-titles are simple yet elegant, they have stuck to a basic colour palette which again is not a surprise as the plot of the film contains a lot. Moreover, in the final inter-title the main image is used to captivate the audience yet again as is the main goal of the entire trailer as they include a shot of the female character with the shark in the behind hidden in the waves. 

Pace: As it was a teaser trailer, the trailer was fast and snappy to portray the severity of the female's situation especially in such a short time. However, the snappiness also adds excitement and tension to be raised for the audience as they have to keep up with the events that are quickly unfolding.

Special effects: The effects were used for scenes featuring the shark and in particular when featuring both the shark and the characters. It could have even been used for certain aspects of the location such as the ocean when they included the scenes showing both the female character and the shark as she attempts to escape.

From this trailer, I would want to take into my own work the fast pace of the trailer as it keeps the audience engaged throughout. This is in difference to the teaser however I do want to keep both aspects of fast and slow pace. I would also like to include the variety of shots that they have shown throughout in the fast pace and the way they have used the music to intensify the mood of the audience as they watch the trailer. Especially with the story line, they have exaggerated certain sounds to make the audience feel alert and perhaps even give them a feeling of false comfort. I may not follow the genre of this specific film, however I do still plan on having the music as a key source to set the mood to the audience. 

Teaser trailer analysis - Beauty and the Beast (2017)

Beauty and the Beast (2017) - Teaser

Genre: Fantasy, Musical and Romance 

Narrative: Follows the original plot of Beauty and the Beast (Belle is a girl who is dissatisfied with life in a small provincial French town, constantly trying to fend off the misplaced "affections" of conceited Gaston. The Beast is a prince who was placed under a spell because he could not love. A wrong turn taken by Maurice, Belle's father, causes the two meet. - IMDb)

Unique selling point: It's a live version of the story, features Emma Watson as Belle, familiarity e.g. the rose shown at the end of the trailer, which is a key symbol to the film. As well as casting Emma Watson, who is famously known for her role in the series of Harry Potter films. She is also an inspiration to the younger audience which can also link to the audience as they will be more intrigued to watch the film.

Target audience - kids and adults, due to the production company being Disney and the famous tale which links to the reasoning behind the adults. They are more likely to want to watch the film, as they've grown up with the tale so it allow them to reminisce on their childhood.
Music: The trailer begins with diegetic sound when the Disney castle is shown introducing the aspect of fantasy, the sound of the sound also fits into place with the surroundings. However, the diegetic shifts to a non-diegetic sound bridge of the piano that is shown in one of the shots which is played throughout the whole teaser, this also adds to the element of mystery. The music shifts again when the close up of the painting is shown and diegetic sound is used again to represent the sound of the scratch made on the painting which immediately relates to an animal, causing more suspicion onto the plot. The shifts of the music is intentionally done to show the different events that are unfolding and especially with simple sounds like the animal, which have been exaggerated to cause a reaction from the audience. 

Shot types/camera angles:

The trailer starts with an establishing shot of the castle, immediately setting the scene for the audience as it is portrayed to give an eerie and magical impression of the trailer. Especially, as it is a teaser trailer so the shots are short and snappy as they intentionally leave the audience with suspicion on what is going on.

From the establishing shot, it carries on to a low shot of the castle as the camera pans upwards so the audience can see the castle up close. Once again, as mentioned before this allows the scene to be set for the audience, especially for when the characters are introduced.

The main focus in this teaser trailer is on the location. They have purposely taken most of the screen time on the castle and the interior of it. Through the use of these wide shots, they have shown various different parts of the castle to build on the story. The whole point is to make the story familiar with the characters as it has been put into reality. Therefore by continuously showing the location rather than the characters, the audience are aware and can easily identify the story and the characters are left to be revealed further in the trailer.

In these two wide shots, the character of Emma Watson is slowly being introduced to the audience. This is because it is shown that someone has entered the castle through the focus on certain aspects of the castle such as the door. Then shown in the final wide shot, as by the door, very faintly a shadow can be seen to be entering the door. 

The use of close up's is to add emphasis on the scene that is currently unfolding in front of the audience. The first close up shows the image that has been scratched by a creature perhaps due to the vicious movement. This immediately creates enigma codes on why this has been done and who the person in the image is. As this is a teaser, none of those questions can be answered however it can easily be assumed due to the original tale. However, it still engages the audience and allows them to be intrigued to see the way Disney are going to present this film. 

Another close up is on the rose, which is the trademark symbol of Beauty and the Beast. The use of this close up shows the significance that the rose holds in the film. Thus, along with the introduction of the rose, it pans upwards to reveal the character of Watson who is playing Belle. This shows the connection between the character and the rose and the importance that both have in the film. 

This is the only form of inter-titles throughout the whole trailer, this may because it is a teaser trailer therefore they have to keep the focus on shots rather than the inter-titles. However, it could have also been done to further the enigma codes for the film as not a lot is revealed expect for the character of Belle played by Emma Watson. 

Pace: For a teaser trailer, the pace is surprisingly slow (ranges from only 5-6 scenes throughout the entire teaser). However, this allows the teaser to take the time to build up the surroundings and narrative of the story. The pace of the teaser also doesn't reveal much, this then leaves the audience with enigma codes as they question what or who could be featured.

Dialogue: Limited amount of dialogue, mainly non/ diegetic sound based. There is dialogue between the beast and the talking object in the castle e.g. 'Look a girl' 'Yes, I can see it's a girl, you fool' 'What if she is the one.' As well as the voice of Emma Watson as she says 'Hello?' when entering the castle for the first time. As mentioned, most of the dialogue is kept limited this is to continue on with the mystery and suspicion as not a lot is revealed to the audience intentionally. 

Special effects: The location, as it is a fantasy film many of the surroundings in the shot won't be real therefore they would have had to create the castle and the interior from the original story and their own imagination. 

For my film, I want to include include a variety of different shots of the location to introduce to the audience like the teaser did. Especially with the pace of the teaser also, it allows the audience to fully immerse themselves into the film within such a short amount of time. I also would aim to include the social media links that both films have incorporated as it shows that they accessible to hear the feedback from the audience. Furthermore, it enables the audience to keep up to date and gives a good impression of the film as they have involved themselves in the social media world where the majority of their audience can be easily targeted. 

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