HORROR TRAILER“DO’S AND DON’TS”BYJAKE BUTLER

The Do’s and Don’ts of Horror Trailers

This power point will take you through what you should or shouldn’t do when creating your very own horror trailer, be it editing or shots, sound or lack thereof. Also provided are examples of trailers which do the suggested ideas in an effective manner.

Hopefully, this powerpoint will inform our creative choices when creating our own trailer and help us work to create a good horror trailer.

DO: Make use of sound to set the mood.

Most trailers include some kind of sound, whether it’s diegetic or non-diegetic. This can help set a mood for the kind of trailer it is. In horror, it’s best if the sound is minimum. Not too loud and not too much. Use quiet, eerie music which intensifies, make use of natural sounds like creaking or scraping to create a mood which reflects the kind of horror film you’re trying to make.

A good example of a trailer which uses sound effectively is the first trailer for GOODNIGHT MOMMY -------------

DON’T: Over-use dialogue.

While dialogue can be good for exposition purposes and explaining the narrative, too much of it can kill any tension you’re trying to build up. It may also create the sense of a more dragged out trailer and will then be less enticing to the audience.

RECOMMENDED: Keep dialogue to a minimum and limit it to short narrative purposes to briefly explain what it’s about.

DO: Limit the shots used

When I say this, I mean don’t use whole shots. Try and make sure the shots used are brief rather than entire beats from a scene (which is better used at the start or end of the trailer), making use of either quicker cuts or slow fade transitions. This can either help create an erratic scary mood or an eerily sinister mood.

A great example of a trailer which uses both in some way is the trailer for BLAIR WITCH (2016) -------

DON’T: Use standard institution logos

While the use of an institution logo is obvious, many of them aren’t horror themed since they make a variety of films. However, if you use the classic version (example: bright sky Warner Bros) in a horror trailer, it may ruin the mood slightly, suggesting it might not be as serious as it scenes.

RECOMMENDED: Alter your institution logo slightly to give off a horror vibe.

DO: Show as little as possible

One of the purposes of a trailer is to create intrigue, mystery… doing this will not only gain the audience’s attention, but will also help guarantee the trailer’s success by getting them to see the real film to find out what’s next. Omitting important plot details such as why the characters are being targeted, who the antagonist truly is and such will create this intriguing mystery which helps the trailer be effective.

A good example of this trailer is THE BABADOOK. It shows very little except for the idea of a demon wanting a child ----

Conclusion?

There are many things you shouldn’t do and many things you should do. Hopefully, using this as a guideline will help us create the most effective horror trailer we possibly can.