I have found in my research that nearly every horror trailer has two sections; Equilibrium and Disequilibrium, but never new equilibrium. Equilibrium, disequilibrium and new equilibrium are the three main driving points of a movie. It is Tvzetan Todorov's theory. Which simply suggests narrative is simply equilibrium, disequilibrium and new equilibrium. Equilibrium is where state of peace at the beginning of the trailer. Later on in the movie, there is a disequilibrium which is when the equilibrium is disrupted by an unfortunate event or evil chracter that would then lead to a chain of events involving conflict. At the end of most if movies there is then a new equilibrium, involving the evil forces being defeated, the conflict being resolved and harmony existing once more. Horror films also allow us to ask the ‘what if?’ and let us safely dip into our primeval fears. To prove my points, here is the trailer for Resident Evil 5: Retribution. At the beginning of the trailer, you can see the world at peace. Talking about how fantastic technology is and how it's changing our world in a positive way. It's almost like a generic mobile phone advert and then it throws the question "Imagine what our world would look like tomorrow?" Capturing the audience with the disequilibrium.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRmWLqrJkz4
If a horror were to have a new equilibrium section then the film or trailer would become positive again, which is not wanted in a horror trailer. Instead, the end of horror trailers normally leave the audience hanging in suspense, often leaving them puzzled, which is the full intention of the trailer. This can be done in a few different ways. The most popular way is the build the music in the trailer up to a climax and then stop or slow down the music, in anticipation of a large scare which frightens the audience. This can be seen in the trailer for the morgue when there appears to be new equilibrium until a quick shot of a man cutting his throat appears to give the audience one last scare.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=maGlKKkUCoQ
As well as this, most good trailers are fast paced when the disequilibrium starts and often contain flashing shots of knifes, blood, violence on the screen and weapons being thrown. This often promises the audience blood and gore, to which most people who like horrors are attracted.
Whilst I was carrying out this research I discovered these conventions that are very common in nearly all horror trailers:
Dark lighting is very effective as most people become nervous in the dark.
Fast paced editing such as jump cutting, dissolves and fades are commonly used to merge scenes, add pace and atmosphere to the trailer.
Some of the main settings you will see time and time again when watching a Psychological horror film are big houses, forest/ woodland areas, ware houses, schools, and hospitals and so on.
These types of settings create realism for the target audience as they are able to relate to the film on some level, having seen/ been or currently live in these settings. This increases the fear for the audiences are they begin to picture themselves in these positions.
When watching a Psychological horror film, the weapons you tend to see are not actual physical weapons, but tend to be more supernatural and psychological. For example, the killer’s twisted minds act a weapon of fear against the victims in the film. Also, in Supernatural horror films things such as visions, jumpy moments and so on are used as weapons of fear, supernaturally, rather than actually possessing a knife, or axe for example.
The editing of the piece, especially in the disequilibrium section, is very fast and often has very few transitions to scare the audience.
Many horror trailers also leave the viewer in suspense with one last scare at the end after the credits/text
Iconography is constantly used so that the audience know that they are watching the horror genre.
Variety of camera shots used to get all perspectives in the predicament. Panning is a common camera angle used as well as camera shots of extreme close up, close ups and long shots.
A disturbed, or tormented individual is the main antagonist, usually comes back to get revenge on their victims. The victims can differ but like any horror film, a high percentage of the victims are female.
A voiceover is generally used in a theatrical trailer, but is sometimes used in a teaser trailer with the actors voice used over a sequence of shots.
Horror films/trailer always follow media theories such as the Gratifications theory. For example offering entertainment and social interaction.
Creating some form discomfort in the target audience by exposing common or universal psychological vulnerabilities and fears.
They expose the evil that hides behind normality, but with splashes of the paranormal which the audience is unable to relate to completely.
Quite often, when watching a psychological horror film, there are flashbacks that take the audience back to see why the killer is disturbed and to explain what happened to them in their lives that has lead them to become mentally challenged.
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