The Gripping, Mind-Blowing, Thrilling Evolution of the Movie Trailer

The movie preview has become an art unto itself — and a viral sensation. Here's an analysis of what makes these shorts so epic.
In a world where fans follow the latest trailers with rabid devotion the movie preview has become a genre unto...
In a world where fans follow the latest trailers with rabid devotion, the movie preview has become a genre unto itself—and a viral sensation. Here's what makes these shorts so epic.

We're obsessed with movie trailers. This year fans watched more than a billion on YouTube and searched for trailers three times more than in 2008. And these numbers continue to grow as studios focus film-advertising dollars online. As soon as the latest movie teaser goes live, the web freaks out. Entertainment sites like IGN and Vulture post shot-by-shot deconstructions—some outlets like Slate even have dedicated trailer critics. Fans pull scenes apart and piece them back together as YouTube parodies. And the trailer editors, along with their studio overlords, monitor comment boards for instant reactions.

In short, these previews have become a thriving industry, almost as popular as that of the movies they're teasing. But it wasn't always this way. To understand shifts in trailers, we watched scores of them and analyzed their defining elements: title cards, voice-overs, music, number of cuts. Condensing what we learned into usable intel was like cutting a trailer ourselves—extracting essential elements, picking the choicest bits, and ultimately getting us excited for what's to come—an age in which ever-savvier fans demand more (and better) trailers. Because really, 2013 is just a preview of coming attractions.

A Short History of Coming Attractions

Trailers have changed dramatically over the years, from their one-note origins in old Hollywood to the high-stakes mini-movies they are today. It's a history defined by the business and artistic transformations in the film industry itself. In the following pages, we explore four eras of the movie trailer, each illustrated with an emblematic example of the period.

The Art of the Trailer

Short History of Coming Attractions

Secrets of a Trailer Guru

Anatomy of a Trailer Campaign

Cuts, Cuts, and More Cuts!

What's the Best Trailer Ever?

Why Fan-Made Movie Trailers Are Often Better Than the Real Thing

1940s–1950s: SPECTACULAR, SPECTACULAR!

Case Study: The African Queen (1951)

"The most exciting adventure ever screened," declares the trailer for The African Queen, a picture that teams two of Hollywood's brightest stars for a trip down the river—and into the annals of film history. View this Trailer >

1960s–1970s: NEW VOICES

Case Study: Dr. Strangelove (1964)

With this Cold War satire, director Stanley Kubrick doesn't just create an iconic, boundary-busting film; he helps redefine the trailer as a work of art. View this Trailer >

1980s–1990s: BLOCKBUSTERS RULE

Case Study: Independence Day (1996)

With the rise of the blockbuster, trailers return to their paint-by-numbers roots. It works: Independence Day wins the summer of '96 and grosses more than $300 million in the US. View this Trailer >

2000s–2010s: RETURN OF THE AUTEUR

case study: The Social Network (2010)

This moody preview—for David Fincher's Oscar-nominated movie about Facebook—wins the top prize in 2011 at the Oscars of trailer-making, the Key Art Awards. View this Trailer >

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