Movie Trailers
From LoveToKnow Movies
"Movie trailers" is the industry's term for a movie "commercial" or coming attractions. These are the brief (most run under two minutes in theaters and sixty or thirty seconds on television) spots that try to show the highlights of a motion picture, a brief synopsis of the plot, and some exciting scenes or interesting dialogue; all in an effort to make you, the viewer, want to see the film. Some films that were complete critical failures have become blockbuster hits based on the strength of the trailer. Because of this, the work of piecing together a quality trailer has become nearly as much an art form as making the films themselves.
The Voice
Have you noticed that, for the past twenty years or so, the majority of movie trailers seem to feature the same voice-over announcer? That's because, for the most part, they have. Don LaFontaine is perhaps the most famous movie trailer announcer in history, certainly the most recognizable working today. He's narrated trailers for everything from The Godfather to Terminator 2 and is called upon to lend his famous voice to almost every major picture released. A successful movie commercial needs a good voice over announcer, and Don LaFontaine has created the way modern movie trailers sound. Ashton Smith perhaps said it best when he said, "When you die, the voice you hear in Heaven is not Don's. It's God trying to sound like Don."
Editing Movie Trailers
The real challenge in putting together a film trailer comes in selecting what to show and what not to. The editor must include enough to give the audience some idea of the plot and some glimpse of scenes that will make them wish to see the film. At the same time, it is vital to refrain from giving too much away. Imagine if the trailer for The Empire Strikes Back included the voice of Darth Vader saying "Luke... I am your father." The opening day lines may have been longer, but the climax of the movie would have been shattered for all who saw it. To this end, the film's director and editor often work together to create the movie trailer on most modern productions, something that was unheard of in the industry some twenty-five years ago.
Movie Trailer Impact
Those who doubt the power of the movie commercial need only look back to the winter of 1998. That year a Brad Pitt vehicle called Meet Joe Black was released to a lackluster opening weekend. It seemed folks just weren't interested in Mr. Pitt's take on the Grim Reaper. In its second weekend, however, Meet Joe Black's box office receipts soared. Did everyone suddenly realize that this was the movie to see? Hardly. Selected theaters had been chosen by Lucasfilm to show the trailer for Star Wars Episode One: The Phantom Menace. Not only were people ponying up their $7.50 to catch a coming attraction of a movie that wouldn't come out for another six months, theater owners reported that auditoriums which were full to capacity when the film started were empty when it ended. People watched the trailer and then left.
This page has been accessed 3,698 times. This page was last modified 23:43, 25 May 2006.
© 2006-2008 LoveToKnow Corp.
