Titles Analysis

Titles in Trailers

Titles Analysis

In every trailer I analysed, the first five seconds contained a green information shot (slides 3, 17 and 31) telling the viewer what audiences the trailer is appropriate for. All the trailers I analysed were only suitable for appropriate audiences, which shows the horror genre is not suitable for everyone.

The titles in Silent Hill: Revelation 3D start off as grey block capitals with red smeared through the font on a black background (slides 4 to 9). Grey has connotations of impurity, due to it essentially being a contaminated white, suggesting that something may appear innocent but in reality is harmful. The red resembles blood splattered across the font, hinting at violence and death in the film. A dark background suggests evil is at work, lurking in the shadows, due to black connoting evil and mystery.

In the midst of the above titles, a logo shot, “Open Road”, is shown (slide 7). The “Open” part appears to be the same as the above titles but the “Road” part depicts a highway, cleverly using the denotation of road in the font image. Additionally, the outside ‘shell’ flakes away to reveal a red, ‘fleshy’ inside, again hinting at violence and gore in the film and helping the viewer to associate the trailer with the horror genre. The flaking away also singles out the company name and helps it stick the viewer’s mind.

When the pace of the trailer picks up, the titles do too (slides 10 to 15). They are animated, and are much brighter in colour. The same font and block capitals are used, but the text now appears to be lit by fire. Additionally, the background looks like close ups of machinery in some kind of metal workshop. Both these things connote hell and subconsciously helps the viewer to associate the happenings in the trailer with hell and demons. In addition to this, the dynamic titles help keep the fast pace of the trailer while still transmitting essential information to the viewer.

In As Above, So Below, the first titles the audience is shown are logos (slides 18 and 19). This is a common technique as it sticks in the viewer’s head. The logos follow a similar colour scheme to each other, both being silver logos on dark blue backgrounds. The dark blue connotes sadness and despair, perhaps suggesting to the viewer the film contains emotional events. The silver of the logo itself could be symbolic of both companies’ worth, or could resemble precious artefacts in the catacombs.

The next title shots resemble old-fashioned computer screens (slides 20 to 22), which catches the viewer’s attention due to its familiarity. The black background connotes mystery and evil, which suggests to the viewer dark forces are at work in the background. The ghostly ectoplasmic green makes the viewer subconsciously associate the events of the trailer with the supernatural, hinting the film contains paranormal beings. Again block capitals are used, which appears to be a common convention of the horror genre as they give the trailer a more serious, official look.

When the trailer begins to pick up, the font and colour of the titles change (slides 23 to 29). The font is still in block capitals but looks much older, similar to the Times New Roman font. This adds a new dynamic to the trailer, as it hints there are ancient forces at work. Additionally, the colour of the font changes to grey, enhancing the impression of ancient forces as grey connotes age and bleakness. It could also connote impurity, as grey is white tainted by black, perhaps in a character’s intentions. Furthermore, the titles look more severe and create a tense atmosphere due to their intensity.

When the title of the film is shown (slides 27 and 28), “As Above” appears first, followed by “So Below”. “As Above” is written in the same grey font as before but “So Below” is written in blood red. This makes the viewer associate the events that happen “below” with being violent and gory. Additionally, “So Below” is directly below “As Above”, like a reflection. This foreshadows that in the film, whatever happens “above” i.e. on the surface will be reflected “below” i.e. in the catacombs.

In the trailer for Jessabelle, the first title shots we see are again logo shots (slides 32 and 33). The ‘B H Productions’ logo is a house, and is shown painted onto a wall in luminous green paint inside a dark room. This foreshadows the events of the film, as the main protagonist is locked inside a room for her safety. The luminous green paint connotes supernatural forces and hints to the viewer that paranormal beings might be the cause of the disruption to the equilibrium. Furthermore, it could foreshadow that the room she’s locked in contains a supernatural presence.

The rest of the titles all follow a pattern (slides 34 to 39). They all have a black, Times New Roman style font and are written in block capitals, which is proving to be a common convention, on a forest-style background. The background is greeny-grey and with dark spots, suggesting something evil is lurking in the background as the dark has connotations of mystery and evil. There are also shadows of branches on the background, which creates a sense of unease in the viewer as forests are a common convention in the horror genre due to their concealment. As the titles progress, there is more and more forest in the background, perhaps resembling more and more dark secrets in the narrative are being concealed and lost forever.

From my titles analysis, I have learnt that titles are normally short, sharp and increase in pace and intensity with the trailer i.e. become more animated and dramatic. In addition to this, they always fit the style of the trailer and are quick and easy to read.