Many comedy trailers use a less serious soundtrack as the true plot is revealed, conveying the characters or plot line more appropriately. Some might use “dumb” music, while others just use mainstream chart music, if the film is aimed at a large audience, due to its mainstream genre.
However, although I consider my trailer as a main stream comedy, I did not choose to use comparable music. Instead, like I stated before, chose to use music that would be more suited in an action film.
Comedy trailers also use a large amount of speech, which helps to convey the characters personality and situation. It also helps the directors include a larger amount of characters, who might be played by recognised actors. Therefore used as a marketing tool selling the film in a different way to it just being entertaining.
However, not much speech is used in my trailer. I thought that showing the audience physical aspects of the main character is funnier than having many different people speak. The structure of the trailer makes it clear that the main character is being bullied and is training to confront them. Therefore not much speech is needed.
Thursday 7 January 2010
Trailer Conventions I Followed
In many comedy trailers, the opening starts like a more dramatic film would. This seriousness and epic feel gives a humorous anticlimax when a very unimpressive character is revealed. This part of the trailer usually has dramatic music, use of black fades and a deep voice over speaking about a very dramatic but unclear happening (for example “This summer, something will happen”).
My trailer follows this convention very closely. The voice over of “When a boy gets pushed too far, he becomes a man” gives, like many trailer voiceovers, a very vague or misleading description of the plot. The dramatic music I used also follows the convention, as does my slow fade into the actual start of the shots. As well as this, the garage door that slowly opens up dramatically reveals the character and we see that a not so heroic nerd has been revealed. The zoom into his face gives a greater sense of anticlimax by showing how humorous his facial appearance is.
After the anticlimax many trailers would create an even further juxtaposition by having a cut to something very physical that is happening to the main character.
My trailer also follows this, as a montage of shots showing the two bullies kicking the geeks in the groin and their reaction shots. The montage itself is also a regular convention in comedy trailers, as they are used to emphasise repetition.
As a trailer ends, the still image of the film name shows the film certification and other information. In many trailers, not just comedy, a brief shot is shown afterwards. It is effective as the film trailer ends on a more exciting tone, which is much harder to achieve with just an image.
My trailer ends with the close up of Chris saying “Give it your best shot” in a very threatening and challenging way. This closes the film with a very humorous ending but also leaves the outcome over the confrontation open, making the viewer more interested in seeing it. I also think that it challenges the viewer, making it seem the threat is also directed at them, as well as the bullies.
As well as comedy trailer conventions, I looked at some action film trailers. Their conventions were things like a montage of action packed shots, with the characters speaking briefly to each other. Also, they use energetic music and the beat is sometimes timed with the actual actions in the filmSimilarly, my trailer does the same. The shots of Chris working out and punching the bag are timed with the beat of my song, “Club Foot”. This gives the trailer the effect of that its trying to be serious however the main character just isn’t, and creates a sort of oxymoron or contrast.
Finally, in many trailers I have seen, there is a shot of the character speaking. The voice then goes over the other clips whilst the actual shot stops. Usually the following shots are of the same context as the speech.
My trailer follows this when Chris is speaking in the mirror to himself, saying, “I’ve been picked on for too long, revenge is a dish best served cold”. The voice overlaps the clips of him working out. Here is the video below.
My trailer follows this convention very closely. The voice over of “When a boy gets pushed too far, he becomes a man” gives, like many trailer voiceovers, a very vague or misleading description of the plot. The dramatic music I used also follows the convention, as does my slow fade into the actual start of the shots. As well as this, the garage door that slowly opens up dramatically reveals the character and we see that a not so heroic nerd has been revealed. The zoom into his face gives a greater sense of anticlimax by showing how humorous his facial appearance is.
After the anticlimax many trailers would create an even further juxtaposition by having a cut to something very physical that is happening to the main character.
My trailer also follows this, as a montage of shots showing the two bullies kicking the geeks in the groin and their reaction shots. The montage itself is also a regular convention in comedy trailers, as they are used to emphasise repetition.
As a trailer ends, the still image of the film name shows the film certification and other information. In many trailers, not just comedy, a brief shot is shown afterwards. It is effective as the film trailer ends on a more exciting tone, which is much harder to achieve with just an image.
My trailer ends with the close up of Chris saying “Give it your best shot” in a very threatening and challenging way. This closes the film with a very humorous ending but also leaves the outcome over the confrontation open, making the viewer more interested in seeing it. I also think that it challenges the viewer, making it seem the threat is also directed at them, as well as the bullies.
As well as comedy trailer conventions, I looked at some action film trailers. Their conventions were things like a montage of action packed shots, with the characters speaking briefly to each other. Also, they use energetic music and the beat is sometimes timed with the actual actions in the filmSimilarly, my trailer does the same. The shots of Chris working out and punching the bag are timed with the beat of my song, “Club Foot”. This gives the trailer the effect of that its trying to be serious however the main character just isn’t, and creates a sort of oxymoron or contrast.
Finally, in many trailers I have seen, there is a shot of the character speaking. The voice then goes over the other clips whilst the actual shot stops. Usually the following shots are of the same context as the speech.
My trailer follows this when Chris is speaking in the mirror to himself, saying, “I’ve been picked on for too long, revenge is a dish best served cold”. The voice overlaps the clips of him working out. Here is the video below.
Tuesday 5 January 2010
Summary of how my trailer relates to the three comedy subgenres
Despite the fact I have divided some of the shots into the different subgenres, it is clear that a lot of the time all three different subgenres can be applied to a shot. For example, the shot of Chris above on the punchbag. This has physical comedy, as well as character comedy – because its part of his ridiculous personality, and cringe comedy – because some viewers may feel embarrassed for him.
How Does My Trailer Relate To Physical Comedy
My trailer follows many aspects of physical comedy. Especially most of the first shots of the nerds being beaten up, as they involve them getting kicked in the groin which is always funny. As well as this, shots such as Chris on the Wii or working out can be classed as physical comedy. Mainly because the actual movements are humorous, as well as the cringe and character aspects. 
This shot is a typical piece of physical comedy. Mainly because it is Chris getting kicked in the groin.
This shot where he is struggling to curl the dumbbell and eventually goes to drop it. The sound effect used shows he has caused some sort of damage as he’s dropped it.
This is physical comedy because apart from his facial expression, which comes under both character and cringe comedy, the slow motion action to the song beat is very humorous
How Does My Trailer Relate To Cringe Comedy
My trailer does not support aspects of Cringe Comedy very heavily. However, the main aim of a cringe comedy is that it makes the viewer embarrassed for the character, due to the ignorance of his or her stupidity or ridiculousness, or physical happenings to them. A good example of this is where Glen’s character says “So what you gonna do about those boys”. The way he delivers the line in such a camp tone of voice is quite cringe worthy to watch. However, although I feel that I haven't used lots of cringe comedy, some people could argue that the whole film should be classed as cringe comedy. Solely because the main character embarrasses himself so much throughout the film subconsciously, by being such an absurd nerd who thinks that they can retaliate to bullies by working out and practicing boxing on the Wii.
Watching him confront the bullies shouting “Halt! Leave my friend alone” is also slightly cringe worthy as the viewer feels embarrassed for him.
This shot is a good example of cringe comedy. Although I used a similar shot for character comedy I feel that the actual character is sometimes slightly cringe worthy to watch, especially watching him pose his muscles with a satisfied grin on his face.
Watching him confront the bullies shouting “Halt! Leave my friend alone” is also slightly cringe worthy as the viewer feels embarrassed for him.
Like the other two shots, the viewer feels embarrassed for the actual character, and what he is doing.
How Does My Trailer Relate To Character Comedy
The main character in my trailer, played by Chris Craske, is arguably the funniest feature and the most important in terms of making the audience laugh. Therefore I would have to say that Character Comedy is the most important sub-genre I have used in my trailer. As well as Chris, Glen Russling’s character is pretty comically appealing to the audience. However, this is probably due to his appearance, as the trailer does not characterize him as much as Chris. A good example of character comedy in my trailer is at the end where Chris says “Give it your best shot”. Despite the aggressive way he delivers it the viewer sees that the line is no where near as intimidating as he intends it to be. This shows how naive the character is and the audience just can’t help but to laugh at him.
This is another good example of a shot based on character comedy. The main comedic factor of this shot is the way he replies to Glen with his expressions as well as the way the character delivers the line “I’m gonna get those boys”.
The main aspect of character comedy in this shot is the way he marches up to the shocked bullies, confronting them with the challenging threat of “would one like a piece of me”.
This shot of the character flexing his “muscles” in the mirror with a proud expression is an example of character comedy. Mainly because the shot says so much about him that he portrays himself very humorously.
This is another good example of a shot based on character comedy. The main comedic factor of this shot is the way he replies to Glen with his expressions as well as the way the character delivers the line “I’m gonna get those boys”.
The main aspect of character comedy in this shot is the way he marches up to the shocked bullies, confronting them with the challenging threat of “would one like a piece of me”.
Monday 4 January 2010
Using Pinnacle
To edit the actual trailer, I chose to use Pinnacle because it was the most available software to me that is of a professional standard. The programme helped me cut the footage, put it in order, add effects such as slow motion, add fades, sounds and so much more.
What I learnt from using this software
1. I learnt how to change the noise level of sound into the most appropriate level, this was very useful throughout the film, especially when Glen speaks, as it needed to be louder over the music.
2. I learnt how to shorten clips with ease to help make the trailer stay with 1 minute, which was especially helpful during the working out scenes.
3. I learnt how to actually upload my recorded clips onto the computer so they can be edited
4. I learnt how to add music and time it so the beat plays at exactly the same time as the clips, such as when Chris punching the boxing bag
5. I learnt how to separate the actual sound of a clip from the video, this helped me drag Chris’ voice over the shots of him working out
6. I learnt how to reduce the noise of wind
from a shot by using the “Wind Reduction”
tool, which made the trailer sound much.
What I learnt from using this software
1. I learnt how to change the noise level of sound into the most appropriate level, this was very useful throughout the film, especially when Glen speaks, as it needed to be louder over the music.
2. I learnt how to shorten clips with ease to help make the trailer stay with 1 minute, which was especially helpful during the working out scenes.
3. I learnt how to actually upload my recorded clips onto the computer so they can be edited
4. I learnt how to add music and time it so the beat plays at exactly the same time as the clips, such as when Chris punching the boxing bag
5. I learnt how to separate the actual sound of a clip from the video, this helped me drag Chris’ voice over the shots of him working out
6. I learnt how to reduce the noise of wind
from a shot by using the “Wind Reduction”
tool, which made the trailer sound much.
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