Teaser trailer timeline

Liam Woodgate

The Revenant (2015)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tww6754vZIc

The Revenant is an action thriller set in the early 19th century, it stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hardy.

0:06 – 0:22

The teaser opens with a low angle of a character staring up at something off camera, it slowly pans around to show a male character holding a rifle. The shot builds tension by taking it’s time to reveal the characters face and exactly what they are doing. The low angle makes the character seem important of intimidating to the audience, it therefore builds up tension allowing the audience to anticipate what could happen next. There is diegetic sounds like the wind playing, as well as non diegetic soundtrack and narration.

0:23 – 0:26

In this shot it is another low angle but paired with a tracking shot as another character is running through the woods, the way they are running and the angle makes the character look confident and intimidating. The tracking shot is quite slow and again builds up tension for any upcoming events that could take place. When the cut takes place there is a beat in the soundtrack, diegetic sounds such as footsteps can be heard.

0:29 -0:32

As before, the cut is accompanied by a beat in the soundtrack, there are diegetic sounds as the horses gallop however the sounds are muffled and quiet. It is a low angle that makes the riders seem intimidating

0:33 – 0:35

The sounds in this part are more defined but still faint, the angle is low and as the character misses his swing he is taken down by the other character in a very brief tracking shot that follows the fall, the angle after he has hit the ground is slightly raised which makes him seem weak on top of the fact that he has been taken down. The soundtrack is becoming more defined and is speeding up with multiple beats.

0:35 – 0:35

This is a shot of the implied antagonist strangling the implied protagonist, it is a close-up to show his facial expression which is strained, it also shows his emotions. He looks angry. There is very faint sounds of shouts and fumbling as the two characters fight and struggle. The soundtrack continues to pick up speed, the edit is just a simple cut to a different angle.

0:36 – 0:37

In this shot we see the protagonist on the ground being strangled but then suddenly the antagonist stops and his hands fall away limply. In the shot, the camera is slightly raised to show that the character is at a disadvantage and it is a close-up to see his reaction. The edit is a fast cut to quickly skip to see exactly what is happening to the characters who is being strangled.

0:37 – 0:41

This is a jump cut that leads into a tracking shot of the protagonist as he shouts at an unspecified person. His voice and other sounds is still muffled by the other sounds. The soundtrack still takes full precedent here and is the most prominent thing in the trailer so far. It is a jump cut because we do not see the main character actually go from on the ground to standing up and walking.

0:42 – 0:45

This is largely another tracking shot of another character who can be slightly heard shouting. The technique used here is shaky cam in order to build tension for any more actions and scenes. The scene starts with a low angle as the character hits someone with his gun, this makes him seem powerful, it then goes to a mid shot to show the character as he shouts.

0:46 – 0:49

This is a slight over the shoulder shot/low angle that shows our protagonist shoot someone in a tree and then track their decent to the floor with a tracking shot. The low angle makes him seem powerful and the tracking shot shows us exactly what happened. As before the gunshot and thud are slightly muted in favour of the soundtrack. The cut is another jump cut.

0:50 – 0:53

This shot is mainly a pan around to the other side of the character to show the audience where they are being attacked from and where they are running to. More shouts can be heard, still muffled by the soundtrack. The cut is another jump cut to different events.

0:54 – 0:56

This is a slight tracking shot as it does follow the characters to the boat but it remains further behind. It is a wide angle, showing a lot of people and objects in the frame. Again, sounds like gunshots are muffled and quietened in favour of the heavy beats in the soundtrack.

0:57 – 1:01

This shot consists of a pan around to the river bank as the boat leaves, it starts as a mid shot focusing on one character, but pans around to show the river bank and the people on it. A gunshot sound effect breaks the silence and the music is muted while all other diegetic sounds – horses, explosions, water splashes and gunshots – are free to play out.

1:02 – 1:04

This is a title card showing the name of the director. It appears on an audio cue with a beat in the soundtrack.

1:05 – 1:24

This is a series of quick cuts, all 1 or less than 1 second long, that shows us the main character as well as a few events surrounding him and his companions. A breath sound effect has started between cuts that is sometimes in line with cuts, other times it isn't.

1:25 – 1:27

This includes the title card displaying Leonardo DiCaprio and several shots that include him. The audio is still muffled and every other cut is accompanied by a breath sound effect while the rest get a beat from the soundtrack that slowly raises in speed as the trailer continues.

1:28 – 1:44

This is another series of fast cuts that includes to title card fro Tom Hardy, The 'breath cut' is still continuing and is raising in pitch and intensity as the teaser goes on.

1:45 – 1:57

This is a tracking shot of the main character riding a horse during a chase scene, all other sound effects except the breathing sound effect are muted. The music still goes on through the whole scene. It pans round showing some of the surroundings but the focus is on the protagonist for this section. It cuts to black and all sound effects cease.

1:57 – 2:25

This last section contains no sound effects, no music, it is juts eerily silent and puts the audience slightly on edge. The only visuals we are treated with are the title card, actor and director credits, production company credits and the obligatory 'coming soon' title card.

Conclusion

In conclusion I have seen what makes up the typical teaser trailer and I have seen how they can be structured, this particular teaser is typical of the genre which is thriller. This research will help me when I come to writing my own trailer because I will be able to match the structure of similar ones to mine so that I don't go a completely different route and make something that is not a thriller teaser in any way shape or form.