The opening transition of the trailer is reminiscent of an old video tape being played, which immediately gives the viewer the idea that the film is shown through amateur documentary-style footage, suggesting the viewer will follow the events of the film through perhaps a student or amateur ghost hunters’ footage. This is a common convention of the horror genre as the technique makes the content of the film seem more real, and therefore scarier.
The trailer opens with what is presumably the main character introducing herself, again in documentary-style. This immediately helps the viewer bond with the character and makes the amateur footage style seem more authentic. The close up and the blurred background encourages the viewer to focus on her and helps the viewer feel more involved with the character and the situation she is in. Additionally, the neutral colours of both the character’s costume and the set and the natural lighting could suggest to the viewer that the character doesn’t stand out from the crowd and is nothing exceptional, although the trailer opens with her, signifying her importance to the plot. It could also suggest that this location is not where the film is actually set.
The credit shots are both silver logos on dark blue backgrounds. The dark blue has connotations of mystery and sadness, perhaps suggesting to the audience the film contains tragic and suspenseful events. The silver logos could resemble a shred of hope for the characters – “every grey cloud has a silver lining” – or could symbolise an artefact they’re looking for.
The next shot we see is an establishing pan across the city of Paris, which helps set the scene for both the trailer and the film. The focus is on the Eiffel Tower, which is iconic and easily recognisable and tells the viewer the film is set in Paris. It’s again naturally lit and seems to be mostly neutral colours, which again suggests that Paris, or at least above-ground Paris, is not where the film is set.
It then cuts to a handheld camera tracking in to the main character and a cross she has drawn on the ground, which we can assume is in Paris from the previous establishing shot. In this instance, the handheld camera seems to simulate actually being in the scene, as if the viewer is another character in the film. This submerses the viewer into the plot and makes them feel a part of the action, as opposed to being a bystander to it all. This greatly improves the viewing experience. The character is wearing brighter-coloured clothing, although her jacket is black. This could foreshadow that the character or the film’s events take a dark turn, just like her costume did, or that she has something to hide. She also holds a yellow pen. As the yellow is very bright and contrasts with the surroundings, the viewer’s attention is drawn to the pen and subsequently, the cross on the ground next to it. This indicates to the viewer that the action will take place underground.
For the rest of the trailer, all shots aside from establishing and wide shots are done using a handheld camera. This submerses the viewer into the action and makes the viewer feel that they are actually a character in the film, which increases the horror element and makes the events of the film seem more real and personal.
A fade through black takes the viewer to a two shot of the main protagonist and a secondary protagonist examining a map. The table the map is resting on provides what seems to be the only light source in the room, foreshadowing that the answers they seek lie below in the catacombs. It could also foreshadow the characters’ deaths, as the light below could symbolise the “light at the end of the tunnel”. The main protagonist has blonde hair and is wearing light coloured clothes, which could symbolise her innocence and purity. However, she is wearing black bands around both wrists, perhaps telling the audience she is bound by her own dark secrets. On the contrary, the secondary protagonist has dark hair and is wearing all black clothing. As black has connotations of evil and mystery, it suggests to the audience he is perhaps not who he says he is and may actually turn out to be an antagonist in disguise.
After a few more establishing wide shots of Paris, the audience is intermittently shown a few title shots. These title shots are an eerie, ghostly green coloured text on black backgrounds, and flicker during the transitions. This unnerves the viewer, as it almost gives the trailer an ectoplasmic feel and subconsciously makes the viewer associate the events of the film with the paranormal. Additionally, the flickering transition sets the viewer on edge as it suggests instability in the film, perhaps in the group’s relationship or some of the characters’ mental states.
In between the title shots, the audience is shown another establishing wide shot of the sunset over Paris. This sets the scene for the viewer as it tells us the events of the film take place at night, which has connotations of mystery and danger as the character’s vision is limited. A film set mostly at night is conventional for the horror genre as it creates a spooky, tense, uneasy atmosphere. They are also shown a long shot of the character’s walking into the catacombs through a tunnel. This highlights the importance of the characters’ actions and marks the end of normality and safety in the trailer.
The catacombs are only lit by the characters’ torches. This provides minimal lighting, which is a common convention of the horror genre as it builds suspense and unease. The dim lighting also casts lots of shadows, where anything could be lurking. This creates an atmosphere of mystery and tension, as the viewer can’t tell if anything is actually there.
A close up of what is most likely a French inscription over a doorway signifies the entrance to the catacombs. The inscription reads “Stop! This is the empire of the dead.” This warning foreshadows the events later in the trailer, such as the deaths of some of the minor protagonists, what appear to be mummies and the apparent “ghosts” of dead friends and relatives. The dull greys and blacks further enhance the creepy message as it is like all the colour has been drained out of the world. However, there is some yellow from one of the character’s torch. Yellow has connotations of happiness and hope, signifying that there might be some hope for the characters. Or perhaps, on a darker note, that there could be some unnatural life in the “empire of the dead”.
In the next shots, it appears as the viewer is taking some photos of skulls, bones and crosses. These shots are edited in a photo style to enhance the feeling that the viewer is actually a character in the narrative and is documenting evidence for the protagonists. Sticking with the theme of the viewer being a character in the narrative, it implies that the viewer may be the only character to survive, and so are documenting everything as proof of the danger that lies in the catacombs. There is a white flash every time a “photo” is taken, which is a harsh contrast against the darkness of the catacombs. This almost stuns the viewer and puts them on edge.
The transitions to these next few intermittent title shots stick with the photo theme, but are viewed through a yellowy-green filter. They only flash up for a few milliseconds but transmit subliminal messages to the viewer of the sheer amount of death that echoes in the catacombs, which unnerves the viewer and creates a dark atmosphere.
Between these title shots, the audience is shown characters crawling on their stomachs through caves in the catacombs, and one of the characters gets stuck. As the character starts to panic, a sense of panic builds up in the viewer too, as the way the camera is placed makes it feel like the viewer is stuck there too. The gap then seems to close itself and the character is squished between the rocks. The camera gets covered in a red, lumpy liquid that can only be the internal organs of the character. This submerses the viewer right into the action in a gory, grotesque way that echoes the conventions of the horror genre.
A different type of transition is used next after the previous shot. This transition is like ghostly green camera static between the shots, giving the viewer the impression that the previous event was caused by something supernatural. This unnerves the viewer and builds tension. Additionally, this echoes the amateur documentary-style footage from the beginning of the trailer that gives the impression that the protagonists died in the catacombs and this is all anyone could find of them.
The characters are then shown deeper in the catacombs, and they find some relics from when the catacombs were built. They are all shown as an extreme close up or close up to highlight their importance to the narrative. In addition to this, the characters always shine their torches on the relic to draw the viewer’s attention to them. The relic depicting what looks like a wizard is brightly coloured compared to its surroundings. This again catches the viewer’s eye and highlights its significance to the narrative.
The characters soon find an old grand piano hidden deep in the catacombs. This immediately puts the audience on edge as it is not something you’d expect to find in the catacombs. One of the characters walks up to it while telling the other characters he used to have a piano that looked just like the one they found, and that it used to have a broken key. The viewer is then shown an extreme close up of him pressing some keys in ascending order. The camera begins to move away but moves back again when a broken key is pressed, like it realises the key the character describes as being broken, is actually broken. This puts the viewer right into the action and makes the viewer feel as uneasy as the characters in the narrative. This is further enhanced by the shaky close up of the character’s face as he expresses his confusion and unease.
The transitions into the next title shots are all black and white close ups of various remains in the catacombs, and as the trailer progresses, the transitions get increasingly blood splattered. The flash up briefly but are shown long enough to remind the viewer of the true horror of the catacombs. The black and white colour scheme is effective because it’s like all the life has been drained out of the picture, which is essentially the reality of the catacombs; they are an echo of life. Also, the increasing blood splatter coincides with the deaths of characters, suggesting to the viewer it’s the characters’ blood they can see.
The titles change style completely when the trailer begins to pick up. The font is a much older style, reminiscent of old Latin font. This adds a new dynamic to the trailer, as it hints there are ancient forces at work. The colour of the font also changes to grey. As grey connotes age and bleakness, it enhances the idea of ancient forces at work. It could also connote impurity, as grey is white tainted by black, perhaps in a character’s intentions.
The audience is then shown a close up of an inscription, which looks to be written in two languages at least. The languages of the inscription is unfamiliar, which suggests it is of ancient or uncommon languages, perhaps both. This creates an atmosphere of mystery and confusion as the viewer doesn’t understand what the text says. The fact the inscription is carved into black stone suggests the text has a dark meaning, as black has connotations of evil, which is unnerving for the viewer. As the inscription is lit only by a character’s torch, the viewer’s attention is drawn to the strange inscription as that is the only thing that can be seen.
The trailer then cuts to a close up three shot, which shows clearly the characters’ emotions in the scene. Reacting to a scary event in the plot, two of the characters look genuinely scared and confused. However, the third character, who is the secondary protagonist that might actually be the antagonist in disguise, looks more intrigued and almost amused by the event, as opposed to anxious and afraid. This, coupled with the character’s costume, further enforces that he is the antagonist in disguise, as he is wearing a white jumper over a black t-shirt. Black has connotations of evil and mystery, whereas white connotes innocence and purity, which suggests to the audience he is disguising the evil within by wearing a façade of innocence. Additionally, he is the only one of the three not wearing a head-torch, which could further suggest that he is evil. On the contrary, it could also suggest he is the only one out of the three to survive, as he is the only one not seeing the ‘light at the end of the tunnel’.
The next transitions are in the style of video static, and they occur after scary events in the narrative. This suggests that the scary events are caused by a paranormal presence so strong it interferes with the electrical equipment. This creates a tense atmosphere in the audience. All transitions after these are the same pictures taken earlier in the trailer. However, they get increasingly more blood stained as they are used. This creates a feeling of unease within the audience as they flash up like subliminal messages, subconsciously transmitting fear into the viewer. Additionally, the shot length decreases, building tension in the audience and drawing the viewer into the action.
As the audience nears the end of the trailer, they see an increasing number of objects that are out of place in the catacombs, such as a young boy, a man hanging from the roof of the catacombs and a burning car containing a passenger. This confuses and intrigues the audience as it leads them to wonder how those objects got there, persuading them to watch the film so they can discover the answers.
From my shots, lighting and colour analysis, I have learnt that horror trailers are usually dark, use close ups so as not to reveal to much of the plotline and the most common colours are black and red. I have also learnt how to use these techniques properly in my own trailer.
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