Firstly after opening windows MovieMaker I had to import all my videos which I had created/filmed, by clicking the import media button and choosing them from their various folders.
Stage 2.
I could then drag and drop the parts I wanted into my timeline at the bottom (this is how I added things to start making the trailer Video parts such as Images/Filming go into the Video Timeline and Audio such as sounds/music go into Audio Timeline which is below the Video one.)
Stage 3.
As images are automatically set to being 5seconds long which is too long for this particular image to be shown, I had to alter the amount of time it would be on screen for, to do this i dragged the end in. Note: (see how the green bar moved this indicates where my film ends.)
Stage 4.
The next stage of creating my trailer was to add another image but this time overlap it onto the first one so that it automatically fades into the next image, as it is shown on the picture there is a blue thick line at the bottom of the second picture which slopes down to a point which is on the first one this is indicating the change of picture by fading.
Stage 5.
On this stage the picture is showing how I added my affects on this one I am only adding fade from black so it doesn't look like a big jumbled mess from the image before.
Firstly I right clicked the image that I wanted to add affects to then clicked on the affects tab.
I could then easily choose whatever affects I wanted to put onto that image/clip by choosing from the scroll down menu.
Stage 6.
Next stage was to add and cut videos, to do this you do it the same way as setting the time limit to a image being show but choose what part of the video you want to be shown. Below is a more detailed look at how to do it.
Firstly I would choose the clip that i wanted to inset into my timeline for my trailer, by dragging onto the timeline then dropping, (see the highlighted clip which i chose.)
I then zoomed in onto the clip so I could choose more accurately where I wanted to start my clip from.
To zoom in I used this button, when zooming in it doesn't make you closer to the screen it makes the time spread out.
This is the same clip as above but zoomed in, notice how the seconds have become much larger making the clip seem alot longer but in fact it is exactly the same length.
So here I have chosen to start my clip at 7 seconds, as shown by the green line.
This screen shot shows how to drag the clip to cut it, you start from the red square which is the beggining then drag it to where you would like to finish the cut. (in this case 7 seconds in.) Note; the purple highlighted part of the clip is the part which is being kept.
I then chose where I wanted the clip to finsih as indicated by the green line in the picture.
Again repeating the process as before to cut the clip down I dragged the end of the clip to where I wanted it to end. as shown by the red box and arrow. (Note the purple highlighted part of the clip is the part which is being kept.)
This screenshot shows the finished clip which had been cut down to the exact part which I wanted to add to my trailer. This is the method I went through with all the clips that I used in my trailer. After cutting them down to the part which I wanted I could add affects the same way as I did for the images.
Stage 7.
After doing this process to all of the images and videos that I needed to have to create my trailer, I started importing my music/sound affects to go with the trailer.
Stage 8.
To insert the music to play with my trailer I drag and dropped it underneath the Video timeline, into the Audio/Music timeline.
Stage 9.
I then chose the pieces of music and the certain sounds I wanted from my clips of music by using the same process for clipping down the videos and images.
Stage 10.
If certain clips of music where to loud and when played with other clips it really stood out I could change the volume on that certain clip by right clicking on it and selecting volume.
After selecting the volume tab this box comes up where I can choose how loud I want that certain part of my audio.
Stage 11.
Using all of the techniques I have shown above I created the trailer exactly how I wanted it to be. Tell me what you think?
Before making my film trailer and after I had created my storyboard I had to plan on how I was going to fit all of the work in, so I created a gaant chart. (See Below) As you can see it shows full use of my time over a 3 month period and how I managed to film, edit and create my film trailer within that time given. Luckily working on my own in this project I could choose exactly how I wanted it to be and I come up with the idea of using myself as the main character therefore it would be alot easier in when I could get my filming done instead of having to fit my time around other people, this was a massive help to me and one of the main reasons why I think my film trailer has been a success.
Before creating my film trailer I researched professional film trailers which matched my genre like Saw, Texas chainsaw massacre, Halloween etc. This was so I could see what they all had in common and gather ideas on how to make mine in the same sort of manner so that it would have the same affect as these professionally made ones did and draw in the audience so they would want to go onto watch it when in comes out.
The first film trailer I analysed in my research was Saw;
The saw trailer starts off with clips from the film straight into the action, it has very dark images and the camera used is over the shoulder following a photographer who is taking pictures as he can hear a noise but can’t see who is there. So every time he takes a picture it flashes really bright giving a split second glance of his surrounding not really giving the audience any indication of what is about this builds suspense. Then out of the darkness the killer attacks the photographer this is when a loud scream is played to make the audience jump, it then goes onto the producers of the film as to some people who enjoy films this can be important because they can associate good films with good companies. It then goes into another clip from the film this time it is where the main part of the film takes place in a basement environment. There is no music here just sound affects which would be present if the actions on screen took place e.g. turning on an industrial light - loud buzzing noise. This then goes into images of a puppet character which the killer uses as the face of his name, over this clip there is a voice the one which is used for the puppet which says "Hello I want to play a game" this is a key part of the trailer getting the audience to fall deeper into what this film is about drawing them in. The trailer then speeds up with the music fastening as well giving it more suspense it goes through different scenes in the film including newspaper articles about the "Jigsaw killer" which is the name of the physco in this film; this gives the audience information about the film so they have an idea of what it is about. As mine is a teaser trailer not a feature trailer I will have to only give a small amount of detail unlike this one. The last clips include images of the killer without his face and also a previous victim which survived his games, again giving the audience information about the film; it then ends on a door slamming shut fading into the name of the film. Having the name of the film is extremely important I find or the audience would never know the name of it.
The next trailer I fully researched into and analysed was The Strangers, I chose this film as it contains lots of suspense and build up in the film and really makes the audience jump.
The first clips in this film is the producers logos, but the music starts here it is a old piano being played slowly one note at a time it really sets the mood straight away giving a chilling affect. It then goes into showing the characters and why they would be at this house in the middle of no where, they are a couple and the guy has just asked his girl to marry him. When they are hugging in the house the piano repeats one note then a loud smash is heard which startles both of them, they then hear a creaky old swing, swinging as the shot moves over to the window where the curtains are closed. It then moves onto a text saying "inspired by true events" knowing that they are inspired by true events always brings over suspense and draws in the audience a lot more, for me it definitely makes the whole film more scary. It then has more images of things which just mysteriously happen and loud noises then more text appears saying "We always tell ourselves there is nothing to fear" then it jumps to the woman standing in the middle of the main room in the house with the fire on and behind her there is a corridor which is dark then as she is standing there from that corridor one of "the strangers" appears, the girl cannot see this but the audience can, it makes you want to scream as if to say get out. This for me is a major way in how to attract the audience knowing that it scares them that can give them incentive for wanting to watch the film. The next part of the trailer shows the other two "strangers" which appear out of nowhere and disappear just as fast, then it the music changes to a old song being played on a record player which they didn't put on, they then approach a room and open it to find writing all over the window and the guy sees his phone on the fire, this lets the audience know that something is about to happen, whilst all this is happening the music is still playing. They then go over to a door which builds the suspense even more as you can only see the two characters and the door no real indication of what is going on around them, then a loud hacking noise happens as an axe comes through the door this is the climax of this scene. The rest of the trailer builds up to a fast pace and loud until it stops the shots during this part as scenes which show struggle where the victims are trying to get away from "the strangers". The final clip is a blurred image of one of the strangers masks, with a voice over asking "Why are you doing this to us?" then one replies "because you were home". It then has the name of the film faded out into "coming soon". This film trailer really does create a lot of suspense and makes the audience feel very vulnerable in their own home, sure it doesn't make sense to go watch it because I'm sure no one wants to feel un safe in their own homes but isn't that what horror and suspense films are about?
The last film trailer that I looked at to research was Halloween;
This trailer starts off again with the producers/sponsors of the film then goes into a voice over reading out the text which is displayed on screen, during all these shots the background is black and the images/text is in a yellow/green colour giving a death feel, in between one text and another is a clip which looks to be taken from a home video then it goes back to the text and voice over. It then has a pan wide shot which pans down to show the house of which this evil character is in, it then has a mid shot which shows him at a desk as a child, this then zooms up onto a rat and his hand which seems to be holding some sort of knife. It then goes onto showing him getting out a kitchen knife from the draw in the kitchen then flashes to him standing behind a girl character (His sister) with a baseball bat, the music here is slowly building up creating suspense, it then has the images cut into black then back into images every time the killer hits the girl with the bat. The next shot is him running his hand on his mum’s leg which is extremely dirty his mum then wakes up the shot cuts to his hand holding a knife when a loud scream comes over the shot; it then cuts to police carrying out his sister. When the trailer moves onto the boy sitting in the car it has a flash over the car with the mask which he uses later on over his face as he looks at the camera expressionless. It then cuts to another text image with a voice over reading it out. The soundtrack for the film then starts which is a fast paced high pitch piece of music and it shows the killer putting on his mask then it shows clips of the film where he is either chasing his victims or breaking into their homes always with his famous knife. The trailer ends on a mid shot of the house then the door opens and a woman screams as he drags her by the neck back into the house. This trailer is possibly one of the scariest I have seen as it has everything suspense, climaxes, tension and certainly makes you jump.
After looking at my research that I have got from looking at these film trailers I have found that to make my trailer successful I need to make sure that I have a lot of tension and suspense constantly being built in the trailer and that it climax's at the right point. The camera shots are also important I need to use a lot of close ups so the audience don't realise what is going on around the characters to give them room to let their imagination take them. Also constantly quick change of images as the music builds suspense adds even more suspense to the trailer, this being used with a heart beat or camera as I have seen in trailers works extremely well even a clock ticking noise can do the job.
As well as researching film trailers I have also done some research into camera angles here are some camera angles which I think are important into making this film trailer look as professional as possible;
For the Bird’s-Eye View, the camera is placed above the subject, looking down toward the subject and the ground. This kind of shot can seem disorienting because it is rarely the way audiences themselves see the world. Because of this, directors often use the bird’s-eye view when they want to make some kind of dramatic comment on a character or scene. In Gilles MacKinnon’s Regeneration (1997), an incredible bird’s-eye shot of a World War I battlefield is used to open the movie. The effect of this shot is to suggest the madness of war and the brutality it inflicts on soldiers.
The High Angle, looking downwards, tends to draw attention to the importance of the environment or setting for a scene. High angle shots also tend to make characters look small and are often used by directors to symbolically suggest insignificance or withering authority.
The Eye-Level shot is the most common angle seen in movies. Scenes are shot at roughly the same level as an observer would see the scene. These are not terribly dramatic shots but are used to photograph scenes that explain story development.
The Low Angle, looking upwards, has the opposite effect of a high angle shot. It tends to focus attention on the size and significance of a character or object. Often directors will use this kind of shot to symbolically announce the power and authority of one of their characters without literally telling the audience this information. For instance, in Star Wars the first time the audience meets Darth Vader, he is shot from a low angle to immediately announce his role as the arch villain in the story. In Ridley Scott’s classic science fiction movie Blade Runner (1982), the building occupied by the Tyrel Corporation is shot from a low angle to suggest the ominous power of the people who reside within.
Camera Movement Cameras are moved for a number of reasons and in many complex combinations of ways. Movements can alter the audience’s sense of time, speed and space, follow action or characters, reveal information that was previously off screen, concentrate the audience’s attention on specific details and emphasise a point of view shot.
Movement of the Camera on a Tripod These movements are the equivalent of moving your head up, down, to the left or to the right. As a result, these are often used to contribute to creating a point of view shot.
The pan turns the camera to the left or right, focusing attention on an object or subject being followed. The pan is also commonly used to survey surroundings, revealing what is beyond the confines of the original frame and to place characters or objects more firmly within their environment.
The tilt pivots the camera upwards or downwards, often to survey surroundings, andfrequently mimics the sight of the character in point of view shots.
Very small tilts and pans are used to keep a subject in the desired part of the frame as he/she makes small movements. This is known as reframing. Often unnoticeable at first, reframing is most easily spotted by looking at the corner of the frame.
The Zoom doesn’t really move the camera at all, it simply enlarges or reduces the proportion of the frame taken up by a person or object. In doing so, the zoom can focus attention on a particular detail, but over-use of the zoom is often distracting. A good use of a zoom might occur during a documentary interview, between actual shots, so that you have different frame sizes to cut to and create some visual variety.
Movement of the Camera, Camera Fittings and Operator These movements are the equivalent of travelling through a set or location and create a greater sense of action, affecting the pacing of a film and the audience’s appreciation of time, speed and space.
In a tracking (or trucking) shot the camera moves to the left or right, often on a prelaid track or on a specially designed truck. Tracking shots are conventionally used to follow movements across a frame, often moving parallel to characters, and can help to involve the audience in characters’ actions and discussions.
A dolly is the movement of the camera towards or from an object or subject. Dollies are often used in point of view shots to give the audience the impression of approaching someone or something with the character. The dolly in creates a sense of moving towards an object. In contrast — though they look very similar at first glance — when zooming in on an object, by simply enlarging part of a frame, the object seems to be propelling itself towards the camera.
With handheld shots the camera is carried by the operator, often creating an uneven movement. These shots allows the operator to follow action very closely, creating a greater sense of immediacy for the audience, and may mimic the movement of a character in point of view shots. Due to its traditional use in documentary film making (with no time to set up tracks etc. when reacting to a live event), the use of handheld camera shots in a fiction film can create a sense of “reality” about what is being filmed. A common visual metaphor in movies is also created by handheld cameras creating a shaking, trembling effect in horror films.
I believe now I have done a decent amount of research that I am ready to do my planning and storyboard to make my film.
This page of my blog is a explanation of a storyboard of how I would like my clips to flow throughout my trailer with detailed explanations.
Shot 1. This shot is just a introduction to my trailer with the company name which created the following work. (Carr Media) In this clip the sound effects start, they are of a creepy evil laugh this carries on into the next shot.
Shot 2. This shot will be of a security camera which already lets the audience know that filming or being on film plays a important part of the film. This shot will be a focus shot which will show just the object in view. It will fade in from black then fade out into the next clip. In this clip the sound effects become more louder and more noticeable building suspense in the early stages of the trailer.
Shot 3. This next shot will a text clip with " As a nation always being watched " written on it, this text will be a indication to the audience that it is about being watched, this shot I have also put in to draw the attention of the audience to watch it all as it is a statemnet which is true. In this clip the music quiets.
Shot 4. This next shot will be similar to shot 2. where it will contain images of cameras to again refer back to being filmed or being on camera. It fades in from black and will fade out to black. In this shot the music continues on from shot 2. having more laughing to gather more suspense in the trailer.
Shot 5. This shot again is a text image which is used to draw the audience in even more with " Have you ever wondered " being the text shown, this is asking the audience a question but there is no end to the question, again drawing the audience in to find out the next part. This shot has the same flow of sound affects as the previous shots.
Shot 6. This next shot will be a mixed shot showing different images of cameras which will fade into text and back into cctv cameras, the text will be the second part of the question which is in shot 5. it will fade firstly from cctv image into " Who " then back into camera then into " Is " then back into cctv image then into " Watching " when it gets to this part it will " ease out " meaning it will be zoomed in and draw out so you can see the full text. This then fades into the next clip. In this clip the music changes into sounds from the forest lots of bug sounds like crickets etc. this follows on into the next shot.
Shot 7. This shot will be a camera held shot where it will be in first person view of finding the killers hut, starting with image of a bush/tree which the camera pushes through until it finds the hut, the only light visible will be that of a torch for ultimate effect of first person view. In this shot the same sound affects as before are present with a very loud clock ticking over the top which gets louder and faster as the camera approaches the hut.
Shot 8. This shot is another text shot which eases in the text says " This Summer " this fades in from black then fades out into the next shot. This shot gives the audience information about when the film will be out. This point the music ticking is very loud and fast it then fades out into heart beats which start during the next shots.
Shot 9. This shot is a mid shot which shows the killer on a computer watching his victims. The killers face is not shown and has his back to the camera. This shot fades into black. In this shot the music is faded from the ticking into a hard violin noise which then fades into a loud heart beat.
Shot 10. This next part of the trailer has got lots of images which quickly fade into black then into another image, I want them in this way so they give that sense of struggle from the victims it also shows parts of the hut and images from the security cameras the killer has access to, this is another method i am using to keep my audience intreged to they want to find out what happens next which will cause a knock on effect of them wanting to watch the film. In this shot the music from the heartbeat continues and the heart beat is in sync with the changing of images which gives a chilling affect.
Shot 11. This shot is another text shot which reads " Who Will Be Watching You... " as with the This summer text still fresh in the audience's mind it has the affect of asking them a question whilst giving them information about release date. The text in this shot will ease out again starting close up into the full text being seen. This shot is started off with a camera flash which then fades into silence.
Shot 12. This next shot will have flashing images with a photocamera sound being played over the top to go with the flashes as if someone is taking pictures with a camera and what is on screen is what they have taken pictures of. The images will be again of the hut and what is inside it including torture tools. The images/footage used inbetween flashes will be hand held and in first person to give it a more of a gripping affect on the audience, as if to say this could be you. (The white flash effect is what would be carried on to being a white flash, with the camera noise in sync with the flash.)
Shot 13. The next shot fades in from black into a low angle shot looking up from a first person view (again to give the affect that it could be you the audience in the situation) at the door from inside the killers hut, giving the affect that this person is hiding from him, the next thing that happens is the door swings open and the figure of the killer rushes in. The music here starts off quiet building suspense then when the door swings open there is a loud rush which climax's the shot.
Shot 14. This shot is a text image again giving information to the audience about the release date being "summer 2010" the music here is a carry on from the previous shot which fades out as the text eases out giving a affect of the text being metal/heavy/sharp making it fit the genre of horror.
Shot 15. This final shot is of the killers mask again filmed using the hand held camera shot, from a angle which gives the audience the sense of them being the one who filmed it. This final shot is give the audience that sense of knowing what the killer could look like. This then fades into a tv screen being turnt on then off which then fades into black. The music/sound effects i used here include a heartbeat which builds slight tension, then it goes into a screen being turnt on then off which matches the images this is used because of the fact that the killer watches his victims.
Shot 16. The final shot is of a poster advertising the film with the film name and who it is created by, using font designed for the film. The sound affects here end with a heartbeats into a sound which you would get from turning off a amplifier.
Thriller and Suspense Films are types of films known to promote intense excitement, suspense, a high level of anticipation, ultra-heightened expectation, uncertainty, anxiety, and nerve-wracking tension. Thriller and suspense films are virtually synonymous and interchangeable categorizations, with similar characteristics and features. If the genre is to be defined strictly, a genuine thriller is a film that rentlessly pursues a single-minded goal - to provide thrills and keep the audience cliff-hanging at the 'edge of their seats' as the plot builds towards a climax. The tension usually arises when the main character(s) is placed in a menacing situation or mystery, or an escape or dangerous mission from which escape seems impossible. Life itself is threatened, usually because the principal character is unsuspecting or unknowingly involved in a dangerous or potentially deadly situation. Plots of thrillers involve characters which come into conflict with each other or with outside forces - the menace is sometimes abstract or shadowy. Thrillers are often hybrids - there are suspense-thrillers, action- or adventure- thrillers, sci-fi thrillers (such as Alien (1979)), crime-caper thrillers (such as The French Connection (1971)), western-thrillers (such as High Noon (1952)), film-noir thrillers (such as Double Indemnity (1944)), even romantic comedy-thrillers (such as Safety Last (1923)). Another closely-related genre is the horror film genre (e.g., Halloween (1978)), also designed to elicit tension and suspense, taking the viewer through agony and fear. Suspense-thrillers come in all shapes and forms: there are murder mysteries, private eye tales, chase thrillers, women-in-danger films, courtroom and legal thrillers, erotic thrillers, surreal cult-film soap operas, and atmospheric, plot-twisting psychodramas. Thrillers keep the emphasis away from the gangster, crime, or the detective in the crime-related plot, focusing more on the suspense and danger that is generated. Characters in thrillers include convicts, criminals, stalkers, assassins, down-on-their-luck losers, innocent victims (often on the run), prison inmates, menaced women, characters with dark pasts, psychotic individuals, terrorists, cops and escaped cons, fugitives, private eyes, drifters, duplicitious individuals, people involved in twisted relationships, world-weary men and women, psycho-fiends, and more. The themes of thrillers frequently include terrorism, political conspiracy, pursuit, or romantic triangles leading to murder.
As my film is a horror/thriller it would be appropriate for me to aim my trailer at a audience which are interested/enjoy/drawn in by thriller or horror films. I want my trailer to appeal to ages above 15/16 as i think that this age range is best matched for my genre. My film being based on a teenage girl who is at a school/college will be what audience members aged from 15-21 will be able to relate with as most people this age will still be in education. The older members of my target audience 25-40 will be able to relate to the parent figures in the film making it engaging for them.
My film is based on the horror of someone watching/stalking you, it has a main character which is a serial killer, who tracks down targets due to them being selfish and unkind to others, the killer will then watch them until the time is right to catch them and take them to a dark gloomy hut in the middle of a forest. This is where the main part of the film would be filmed, the killer doesn't just kill his targets he tortures them on a live feed which he posts onto the internet for others to watch. The killer who's actual face is never seen is also a classy business man who has a very nice life with a big house and a family, so why does he want to kill people? This is down to a difficult childhood where he was a very unprivileged and beaten by his father even though he was a wealthy man, his dad would cheat on his mother in front of him because he had money she never found out. Then one day he came home to find his mother hung by her neck and his dad paying off a policeman, this is when his first victim was found. Being so young the authorities couldn't find any evidence that the young boy had killed his father and believed that it was a burglar since that day he was never going to be normal. The film then turns into a hopeful when a police woman decides to dedicate her work to finding out the killer until the situation take a bad turn for her.
