Little Red Riding Hood

Kianna Briggs

EditingAlthough Little Red Riding Hood was one film there were two trailers used to promote it therefore I decided to analyse both and compare them.

For example this trailer uses a red background which has connotations of evil and blood. This could be then used as a way of describing the content of the film. The use of white text could possibly suggest purity and freedom which could indicate Little Red Riding Hoods character within the film. The white text and red background could suggest power in which Little Red Riding Hood’s purity and freedom has been taken over by evil passion. This therefore enables the audience to notify the genre of this film.

On the other hand this trailer uses a forest as the background which immediately has connotations of danger and fear. This could then enlighten the audience with the name of the film and the genre of it. The use of the red writing also has connotations of evil, and blood which also suggests the genre of the film.

Camera ShotsThe use of a high angle shot not only shows the audience what has happened but it also shows the audience the costume. This therefore suggests the status of the characters and the time in which the film is set. The angle does not show any specific faces which suggests that the shot to follow this will show a reaction.The shot after this a medium shot which shows the reaction of Little Red Riding Hood suggesting that the person in the centre has some relevance to her life therefore has relevance to the narrative. Within the shot there are huts which suggests their status is of a low one. The shot also shows her between two woman which could indicate her importance within the story in which she is constantly in the centre therefore highlighting her role in the film.

The beginning of the trailer shows the institution which could be a hint as to how the good the film will be as the audience can judge it on the institutions past success. The editing of this however brings the film into context suggesting what genre the film will be.

A fade is used to give a clue to the name of the film. The fact that it fades to see a red cloak immediately suggests Little Red Riding Hood because the cloak is a symbol in the fairytale.

The shot to follow is a low angle long shot which reveals the name of the film as it shows Little Red Riding Hood. However this shot is contrasted with how the institution at the beginning is edited because whereas the institution has been edited to give it a suspicious and tense effect this shot shows Little Red Riding Hood happy.

EditingThe trailer uses a lot of zoom to almost draw the audience in. The zoom is quite fast suggesting that a lot of action is about to happen. Furthermore the fact that the camera zooms into a house creates suspense as the audience are immediately wanting to know what and who is inside the house. This is one that I would like to include in my trailer because not only does it create suspense but it also shows the main character in danger which makes the audience want to continue watching.

Towards the middle of the trailers suspense is created by the use of pace between each shots. Each shot last between 2-3 seconds and straight cuts are used, this therefore increases drama as the audience are wanting to know what is going on and what happens at the end of the sequence. It ends with a close up of a door with the image of a wolf which suggests that this entire build up was based upon the wolf indicating there will be danger to follow. Each of these shots are close ups which allows the audience to notify the characters facial expressions which also creates a tense atmosphere as they are all interested and worried about what they are about to see. The two shots to follow the end of this sequence are very powerful.

These two shots directly follow the sequence which creates a tense atmosphere as it the close up of the man is a dark image suggesting that he could possibly be evil within the film. Whereas the close up of Little Red Riding Hood shows her in the dark suggesting her innocence but also because of her frightened and shocked expressions suggests that the man has told her something that could twist the plot for the worse.

Sound The beginning of the trailer begins with a happy melody which accompanies the shots as they are joyful, peaceful shots of Little Red Riding Hood enjoying herself. However within 10 seconds of the trailer the music suddenly fades away brining with it harsh sound effects which suggests that the genre of the film will not be romance but instead something much darker and more frightening which is reflected in their facial expressions and distance. Unlike most trailers Little Red Riding Hood does not use a voiceover however it does make use of diegetic sound in which the trailer features the most important lines from the script and includes them in different shots so the audience have an idea of the narrative. This is effective as it allows the trailer to flow without guidance from a voice over and allows the audience to see how the film is actually scripted.