For this task, I had to pick out the code of conventions that are repeated in the sub-genre "Supernatural" from existing horror movie trailers. I decided to pick a range of horror movies that had more than just supernatural as a sub genre, for example "Devil" is a mystery thriller yet it is still part of the Supernatural sub genre. This is because certain sub-genre's of horror usually have other elements of other sub-genres in the movie and so by expanding my search it will help me decide which codes and conventions appeal the most to my target audience. This trailer overview will help me discover the repeated patterns of codes and conventions that tend to appear in supernatural horror trailers.
I decided to layout my codes and conventions in a graph so that its easier to see and also it is presented better. I have analysed nine trailers and I managed to pick out their codes and conventions that match the Supernatural sub-genre.
From the Graph, you can see that majority of the trailers tick of the boxes for Possession, dark lighting. intensified use of diegetic sound and so on. From all the trailers that I watched, "The Unborn" ticks all the boxes except for ghostly spirit. Since "Devil" has other sub-genres within it, it had less of the codes and conventions of the Supernatural sub-genre.
The dark lighting and intensified use of diegetic sounds are the most common code and convention that appears in the trailers I decided to analyse. These are the most effective conventions that appear in the supernatural sub genre and even the whole horror genre, by looking at these we would consider adding them in our productions to create a real supernatural effect. In supernatural horror movies, if there isn't an ghostly spirit that isn't seen, its usually a demonic child. Children are usually small, innocent and pure and so by having them in a horror movie, it freaks out the audience and make them feel vulnerable since someone younger can do a lot of harm. An example of a demonic child in a supernatural horror movie is "Insidious" where a family move into a new home, the child goes to the attack where he falls and hits his head leaving him in a coma, but this coma involved the child to be controlled by a demonic spirit.
Jumpy moments are commonly used in a trailer for the audience to actually want to go and watch it, these jumpy moments happen by using a sting, an effective bang or even a quick cut. These little elements all add up to make the trailer much more scarier and effective. A typical iconography that tends to appear in supernatural horror movies are things like Christ crosses, since ghosts usually disappear with the power of religion, they are usually used since it kills the "demon" that tends to be haunting the victim, we can consider using a cross in our horror production. In "The Devil Inside" many crosses appear throughout the trailer and they are placed in cliché areas such as the mental hospital. This is done to represent that "Christ" is protecting and healing them.
The setting that mostly occurs in horror movie trailers are generally a big, isolated home which involves the characters just moving in. In some trailers, we are presented with an establishing shot of the house that they would be living in, this is to hint to the audience that they horror is coming.
(Amityville Horror - Establishing Shot)
The costume and props that occur in horror movie trailers are usually dark, plain clothing that doesn't appeal much to the audience. We see a lot of costume change from the start of the trailer and as the disruption happens, we see a sudden change which is caused by lighting or generally the character having a wardrobe change. Since I over-viewed supernatural horror movies, protagonists are generally not in them, but when they are they either look scary with scars all over their faces or really old looking lifeless. Their clothing tends to be long old fashioned loose fitting. The typical props that appear in trailers are usually old fashioned pictures, knifes as a form of protection and crosses. This is to represent the genre of the movie and also reflect the different sub-genres by the props used in that certain trailer.
(costume before) (Costume after disruption)
The typical camera movements that usually appears in trailers are close ups on the characters faces. This is to expand on their emotions and facial expressions to show off the fear in their eyes. We encounter many scenes where at the start establishing shots appear to make it clear to the audience on where the action is going to happen. Quick cuts and fades are done to create more of an intensified feeling, this type of editing and camera movement will create suspense and fear since it will get the audience's heart pumping.
By over looking these trailers that I have listed, the majority of them follow Todorov's narrative theory. They generally start off with an equilibrium where the trailer tells us what's happening, for example a family moving into a new home. We then are previewed with a short disruption that doesn't give away of what is actually disturbing that certain scene. Towards the end, we see a slight preview of the reaction and repair. During these trailers the make sure they do not give any hints of what the problem is and how they are going to solve it as for it will then ruin the story since it will be giving a lot a way and so these trailers hint a little to keep the audience interested. Generally, by using dialogue, the trailer manages to balance the revealing of the narrative by using one sentence for example, from the devil inside it mentions the story of what happened "My mother murdered 3 people during an exorcism"
The straps appear either at the start of the trailer or three quarters in where the fast montage happens. The straps are generally there to guide the audience through the trailer for example, a scene can happen then a strap will appear saying "15 years later". This is a visual way to deliver information. Also straps are used to create a break for the audience since a lot of action and a fast montage will be happening, it will also create an anxious feeling since the audience would want to know what coming up next.
Non- diegetic sounds are one of the most effective way of making the trailer really intriguing. Throughout the trailers we have either complete silence or a build up of eerie music. Bangs and screams reflect what's going on in the certain shot and so it adds more drama, as you can see from the table above, the majority of the trailers features eerie music which involves bangs, footsteps and screams.
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