Dawn of the Dead follow the convention of trailers, across all genres, where the begin with slow paced editing and calm music which then crescendos and ends with montage editing of fast action shots and impacting music. This is the reason I have chosen this trailer as I am considering using this convention and technique.
- We first view an establishing shot which indicates that the film is set in an empty shopping mall. However, it is not the stereotypical shopping centre which is very pact and full of people, but the complete opposite. derelict and silent. The lights make the area bright which subverts conventions of horror. The shot appears to consist of greens, which could mean that it could have a green filter.
- We see people playing basketball, drinking coffee and trying on shoes and clothes which are 'normal' daily activity's. This contrasts against horror scenes.
- The shots are very slow paced and the music feels very dreamy. It makes you feel as if some action is about to occur. It is not until 33 seconds in to the teaser that the atmosphere changes and the fast editing infiltrates. This is a convention of horror films, where they begin quite sluggish, and then contrasts to accelerate in montage editing.
- The montage editing displays news programes of the action happening. we cannot receive full details on what is happening, but we hear short, snappy words which follows the convention of with holding information. We hear 'Do not leave your home' which implies that everyone is unsafe.
- The montage editing then slows down and cuts to a long shot which shows 8 people, who look unhappy. we then see close ups of 3 of their faces to see their reactions (reaction shot) as we listen to a man on the television's, then they cut out.
- After that, the establishing shot that we saw at the beginning is shown form a different angle. However, this time the lights go out. Lighting is one of the key conventions in horror. Darkness makes us feel uncomfortable as we loose one of our senses. Without our sight, we immediately feel vulnerable as we cannot control what is around us. Torches are iconic of horror, as it creates an unnerving atmosphere, as our sight is still weakened. But things that jump out seem more nail biting.
- We see someone get attacked, so we assume that a killer is on the loose. murder is a popular topic in horrors, so this fulfills the convention.
- Now that the teaser is coming towards the end, the shots gradually begin to get faster again, and the shots reproduce in to montage editing which is accompanied by action packed music. We see a lot of pain and violence which is stereotypical of the horror genre.
- The last shot parades the title 'Dawn of the Dead', encouraging people to remember the film and want to see it when it is released. Despite this, it only reads 'Coming Soon' when usually it shows a date so the audience know when they can look out for the films release.
