The Art of First

Impressions:
How to Cut a Movie
Trailer
By Stephen
Garrett

Getting Started
A trailer is a condensed version of a feature film. It should collect its greatest
elements.
The genre will guide the trailer, but: do you let the genre define the film?
There are many things to consider when
making a trailer:

Would it benefit a narrator?

What kind of music do you need?

Do you want copyright to get involved?

Is there enough dialogue to sustain itself?

Horror Trailer

Rhythm and Structure

Trailer editing is about rhythm. A trailer that is cut well will have a sense that
everything plays off everything else and show the viewer the experience of the
film.
Trailers build up excitement and anticipation, this will be heightened through
a keen sense of rhythm.
Music may not be a defining characteristic but it will still play an intrinsic role
for the construction.

Act 1: Introduce the films characters and environment.

Act 2: Complicate their world with obstacles to overcome.
Act 3: Intensify the conflict builds up tension/excitement/humor.

DISASSEMBLING YOUR FILM AND CONSTRUCTING YOUR TRAILER

Editors cut material and shape them like tailors, but trailer
editors are like cooks condensing the material and extract
their essence in order to enhance the overall product.
Trailer editors de-contextualize everything - an excited dog
bark is a dog bark, a half smile from the heroine that secretly
devastates her boyfriend is a smile. They are seen as what
they inherently are, not how they function in the feature film.
Sally Menke Film Editor

Familiar editing tropes in trailers:

Dissolves
Fades from Black
Fades to Black

White Flashes
Fast-Paced Flutter-Cuts
Double Exposures

Speed Adjustments
Audio Rises
Audio Drones

Striking The Right Tone

The trailer of a film can turn off audiences who think that
they may have seen the type of film before.
Example:
Myles Bender was concerned that the production of Jane
Eyre would be seen as too literary, therefore requested the
traditional and romantic aspect to be played down in order
to emphasise the horror. Darker, eerier aspects of the film
were exploited so that the film was not seen as a classic
but rather a modern tale of madness and obsession.

Music Driven (Montage Driven) Trailers

Song and images can dictate the feeling and structure of
trailers, however do not reveal the story. Some filmmakers
are usually music-driven montages due to their distinct
visual style and use of music.
In Lynne Ramsays 2002 film Morvern Callar, a story which is
essentially about identity crisis. The music often kept getting
interrupted by stray bits of dialogue. The ultimate structure
of the trailer is one of disruption and deliberately jerks from
extreme happiness to worry and to anxiety as well as mental
and emotional processes.

Documentaries
Documentaries are technically non-fiction and usually follow the
same rules as fiction films.
Sometimes, the most obvious marketing angle isnt always the
right one. Werner Herzogs Encounters at the End of the World, is
narrated by the director and is rife with his trademark Teutonic
cadence. When it was cut Herzog was seen as a major selling
point; so, using the eerie choral music from the film, a series of
arresting images was cut together accompanied them with
Herzogs joyfully nihilistic ruminations. But THINKFilm president
suggested that Herzogs voice should be dropped; this left just the
images and the music. It became far more intriguing and
absorbing, and ultimately far more powerful.

Using Subtitles
Distributors relied on a narrator instead of dialogue to
explain the story for foreign viewers
Some believe that foreign language dialogues should be
treated in the same way as the English dialogue was
treated: to advance a story, set a mood and share
emotion.
The trailer for Cristian Mungius: 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and
2 Days, 20 subtitles are used in it. They convey urgency
and tension. The dialogue doesnt reveal information
but rather raises questions. The more subtitles, the
more tense the trailer gets.

Using Copy and Narration

Hollywood movies are seen to overuse copy and narration thus resulting in
tired and uninspired looking trailers. If a trailer was cut without copy or
narration, it can then explain the story organically. By doing so, it is telling
rather than showing, which is not viewed to be as interesting.
However, copy is a way to set up the premise quickly. For example, in Carlos
three copy cards were used at the beginning:

IN THE 1970s AND 1980s

ONLY ONE MAN
COULD HIJACK THE WORLD

The time, place and global impact was shown within seconds,
which can be seen to help it immensely.

Making a Trailer Economically

The majority (99%) of trailers have music, copy and narration, therefore
trailers without these factors have an advantage in terms of standing out from
many other trailers.
Wendy and Lucy : Kelly Reichardts
-

There was no music in order to accentuate the films stark and

unsentimental mood
The films strongest asset (Michelle Williams) created a riveting
performance that her dramatic predicament was used to create the
music and rhythms for the trailer.
- Williams escalating desperation formed the structure of the
trailer and parts of her dialogue accentuated her stress and
anxiety

Reference to the Title

If the title of the film is said in reference during the
film then one should consider using it in the trailer.
The dialogue can give context and a sense of poetry
especially if the films title is cryptic and exclusive. It
can also be seen to be a risk to total gross and ticket
sales if audiences are confused about the title.

Paper Town - 2015

The Perks of Being a Wallflower - 2012

10 Things I Hate About You - 1999

No Rules, Only Guidelines

Stephen Garrett ideally prefers trailers that do not have
copy, narration or subtitles, however he still holds
Gomorrah as one of his favorite trailers to cut, which has
lengthy copy cards, lots of narration and subtitles.
Furthermore, although it is easier and common to have
a 3-Act-Structure with distinct music for each act, L.I.Es
trailer only has one act and one song.
There is no perfect way to cut a trailer; a film can have
several trailers with different approaches however it
must do a great job selling the product of the film.

A Trailer Is Its Own Film

Trailers should:

Function separately from the film product

Be something one would want to watch again

Never resolve anything

Always leave the audience wanting more
Arouse, Provoke, Seduce and Beguile an
audience

And make people want to see more

Romantic films (^)

Allow the audience to understand the genre of

the film

The colours and music in the

trailer Me Before You are light
and upbeat, however it can get
quite slow to show the dangers
and troubles that face the two
characters. The trailer does not
reveal Wills decision at the end
of the film but rather leaves
the audience in suspense as to
what he will choose