Research - The History of Film Trailers

A trailer also known as a preview is an advertisement for a feature film that will be shown in cinemas once the feature film is completed. Trailers were originally shown at the end of a feature film screening, unfortunately this did not last long as customers would leave theaters at the end of the screening. Trailers are now shown prior to the start of a film. Film trailers are also shown on DVDs, Blu-rays and on the internet, this is another way to promote trailers for global consumerism. The first trailer ever to be shown was in a U.S. film theater in November 1913. 


Nils Granlund produced a short promotional film for the musical ‘The Pleasure Seekers’. The Daily Star described it as an entirely “new and unique stunt”. In the late 1950s trailers were originally created by the National Screen Service, they would design their trailers in various ways. They would frequently add a few shortened scenes from the feature film followed by large descriptive text introducing you to the story, there would also be music to make the trailer and the text stand out more. Most trailers that could afford to do so would also include some narration; this would generally be in a stentorian tone. As the feature film industry was moving forward with new techniques of filming being invented as well as being improved, film trailer techniques were also changing with time. In the early 1960's, motion picture trailers that consisted of text montage trailers were being replaced with quick edited and textless montages. These trailers became really popular due to the birth of “New Hollywood” the new techniques introduced to these trailers became very popular when advertised on televisions. Stanley Kubrick was one of the directors to set a trend with his montage trailers for his feature films "Lolita", "Dr. Strangelove" or "How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb", "2001: Space Odyssey" and "A Clockwork Orange".

In 1964 Andrew J. Kuehn started Kaleidoscope Films, he and his company became largely recognized for making film trailers. This was due to Hollywood becoming massively more successful producing blockbuster films which is why directors like Steven Spielberg, Oliver Stone and Barbra Streisand would invest more money into marketing the films properly which is why they were dependent on Kuehn. The creative people that once worked for Kaleidoscope now work for big film companies in their trailer making departments such as Paramount Pictures, 20^th Century Fox and Metro Goldwyn Mayer (MGM).
  

Film trailers include a number of selected scenes from the film so it can be advertised, the purpose of the trailer is to attract audiences to the film, the selected scenes have to be exciting and an important part of the film but in short a form without spoiling the film. This is why generally the scenes are always shown at random and not in order. A trailer has a time limit of 2 minutes and 30 seconds, this is the maximum length of time allowed by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA). If necessary the MPAA do allow some studios and distributors to exceed the time limit for trailers at least once a year. Some studios use a special shoot for the trailer. This is footage that is specifically created for marketing purposes, this footage is not shown in the film. For example this technique has been used for Terminator 2: Judgment Day, they used detailed special effects in their trailer but these scenes were never shown in the film. The special shoot technique was also used in the 1960s thriller Psycho, the trailer showed the director Alfred Hitchcock giving the audience a tour of the Bates Motel eventually leading us to  the famous shower scene here he rips back the curtain for the audience to see Vera Miles with a blood curdling scream. Unfortunately it should have been Janet Leigh but after the film was completed as she was unavailable to film the trailer which is why Hitchcock used co star Vera Miles, the audience barely noticed.
     

There are several well known companies that are specialized in creating trailers for feature films, most of these companies are situated in Los Angeles and New York. The trailers get put together in agencies such as The Cimarron Group, MOJO, The Ant Farm, Aspect Ratio, Flyer Entertainment, Trailer Park and Buddha Jones. When these agencies make the trailer they normally have to work with raw footage of the feature film because it’s not been edited. These are also known as dailies or rushes, which is why sometimes the trailer may have a few scenes that might have been edited out of the feature film.  

The basics of composing most trailers are known to have a three act structure known as the beginning: "act 1" which unfolds the basis of the story, the middle: "act 2" usually showing the story unfolding further. Then comes the ending with a sharp climax: "act 3" generally consisting of a piece of music, either an orchestral piece or a song composed by an artist. The music normally follows a montage of strong and expressive scenes of the film. To help with marketing, the trailer may also show a cast run of recognizable actors and directors which could help with advertising the film.

It is also traditional for trailers to have a voice over narration. This helps to set up the foundation of the story, the voice over narration also helps the audience understand the narrative better because a trailer can sometimes be overwhelming. Some of the best known voice over artists today are Don LaFontaine, Peter Cullen, Morgan Freeman, Tom Kane and Brian Cummings. The classic voice over artist during the 1950s and 1960s included Art Gilmore, Knox Manning, Reed Hadley and Fred Foy. Hollywood film trailers back then were known for clichés such as “colossal” and “stupendous”. Some film trailers choose to use these clichés for the irony and comedic effect. Music plays a big part in the trailer because it helps understand the tone and the background of the film. Most of the time the music in the trailer isn’t necessarily going to be in the film, the music in the trailer can be from other films for example "Requiem for a Dream" main title music “Lux Aeterna” by Clint Mansell. Sometimes music sung by artists such as Madonna can be used because the lyrics and the tone are connected to the trailer and the film. 

Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trailer_%28promotion%29