Trailers vs Teasers

Teaser vs trailers: What's the difference?

Trailer - A trailer is an advertisement or a commercial for a feature film that will be released in the future at a cinema, the result of creative and technical work.

Teaser - A teaser is usually released long in advance of the release of the film, a while before the trailer is released, to tease the audience.

Both teasers and trailers are very effective at gathering an audience and promoting an upcoming film still in the production process. Especially with the world today being very technology based and online. They aim to entice the audience's curiosity and build anticipation in the hope of a successful turnout in regards to ticket sales in cinemas.

They are also very useful when it comes to gaining knowledge on how consumers are responding to aspects of the film whilst still in the production process, and therefore make changes if necessary.

The aim of a teaser/trailer is to make people aware of an upcoming movie, not to give away the story's plot and narrative; in the hope a 'buzz' will be created.

• A teaser is much shorter in length, less than one minute.
• Whereas, a trailer runs for around three minutes, revealing more of the film.
• A teaser is released much earlier than a trailer and doesn't reveal much of the film, instead it aims to excite the audience.
• A trailer can provide us with much more detail regarding the film, with it being longer, much more is revealed.
• Most of the time, teasers are made during the early stages of a film's production process.
• On the other hand, trailers are normally made after the entire film is shot, the film may still be in the editing process however.

It is sometimes the case that teasers or trailers include scenes and shots of the film that are no longer included. Some companies such as Pixar have completely exclusive footage for the teaser/trailer with no means of it appearing in the film as well. Examples of films in which include footage in their trailers that don't appear in the final film:

- Godzilla
- Purple Rain
- Superbad
- Varsity Blues

• Very often, teasers do not provide the audience with many credits such as cast members or the production team.
• With trailers, credits are shown and in some cases reviews are displayed from leading media outlets such as popular websites or newspapers.
• It is highly unlikely that a teaser trailer would include dialogue at all.
• Still unlikely, but trailers sometimes include a small amount of dialogue which can help the audience to identify characters.
• Teasers are often made up of montage shots at a fast pace, so they don't reveal too much. Cliff-hanger endings are also included.
• Trailers always seem to have some sort of mystery attached to them, instead of teasing the audience, they attract them so they want to see more.