Case Study 3: The Lego Movie

Title: The Lego Movie
Genre: Animation, Action/Adventure
Year: February 2014

Companies: Warner Bros. Village Roadshow pictures

Director: Phil Lord, Chris Miller

Trailer

As with other trailers, the trailer for the Lego Movie follows a series of basic conventions in the way that it is put together to sell itself to intended audiences. As this is a children's/family film however, it is important for those who put the trailer together to both sell the children on the idea that its a good film as well as convince the parents that its worth their children and their family going to the cinema and watching it. Of course, if the children have been sold on the film, then they will act as another tool in persuading the parents to take them to the cinema.

1) Trailer skipping

Trailer opens with Batman to persuade the audience NOT to skip the trailer. As Batman is an iconic Lego character this will get the target audience (the children’s) attention straightaway and thus make them pay closer attention to what they are about to see.

It will also make the video more watchable online as people have a tendency to skip trailers and adverts that come before what they would have originally clicked on to watch. This is like the opposite of clickbait: as opposed to making people want to click something, it is making them want to NOT press the skip button.

2) The Makers

The trailer then moves into showing the people who played their roles in putting the film together. This is used to give proper credit to those who were responsible for putting the film together as well as the fact that it helps to manage people expectations for what they are likely to get out of this film and the quality that its going to be. 

3) Main character

The first thing that the trailer itself reveals to its audience is the main character – Emmet. This is important because it allows the audience to see who the film is going to be about and what that person is like. Its important that the trailer do this as quickly and yet as effectively as possible because its important to make them fall in love with the character whilst at the same time make sure that they have time within the trailer to showcase the film as a whole.

4) Titles

The trailer uses titles to talk about Emmet whilst he is being showcased as well as about the film as a whole. By splitting the description of Emmet into smaller parts it allowed a slight suspense build-up as to

what the climaxing lines will be. Also, by making a point of the fact that it was made by the same people as those who made Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs – a recent film within the same genre as the Lego movie will be – it sets a standard for the film as well as making people who enjoyed that film want to see this one more.

5) The Song 

The trailer also uses the catchy song “Everything is Awesome” in the background which will give the film a greater personality and the children a song to enjoy and remember as something that they can sing along to and bring the audiences together. A previous children’s film, Frozen, had its own song, “Let it go” which helped to make that film a huge success proving that having a catchy song to go with your film is more likely to make it successful.

6) The Plot

Once the main character has been introduced, it is important to introduce the films plot and villain. “Everything is awesome” is quick to end once Emmet backs away from the crowd and falls down a hole. Once this happens, the plot begins to reveal itself and the idea of “the special” is introduced. It’s important for them to show what the film is going to be about so that the audience has a decent idea of what they are going to see should they choose to go and see the film. 

The antagonist, Lord Business is also shown at this point, his name and picture being shown at the same time so the viewers can see who is being talked about. Lord Business is shown in some customary colours of red and black as well as showing his ‘headpiece” which makes him appear threatening. It is important to make sure that he fits the part so as to be an effective villain.

7) Voice actors

The various voice actors are also showcased within the trailer to give the audience an idea of what the various characters will be like and sell the film with the amount of well-known actors they have such as Chris Pratt, Morgan Freeman and Liam Neeson highlighting the big budget with the number of people they can afford for different roles as well as arousing an interest from those who enjoy the works or have particular interest of different actors.

8) Humour

The remaining part of the trailer is used to montage short sections of the film together with a dose of humour mixed in so as to highlight the comedy aspects of the film and give the audience a taste of what they can aspect from that department. The elements of humour that they use also help to make the trailer more interesting  and enjoyable to watch as it’s important that the audience enjoy the trailer for this will mean they are more likely to want to go and see the film to get more of what they saw within the trailer.

9) Extra information

At the end of the trailer we are given the films name (The Lego Movie) and information regarding the film such as release date and website from which to get more information. The title is built up, rather appropriately and uniquely given the theme of the film, by Lego bricks and presented in an iconic way so as to make it stand out more. Also, rather than stating that the film will be released on February 7^th, they phrase it as ‘assembling” sticking to the Lego theme that has run throughout the trailer.