The Conventions of Teaser Trailers

Teaser Trailers are short trailers that are used to advertise upcoming films, games or television features. The main reason why they are named 'teasers' is because they are shown usually long in advance (approx. one or one and a half years) before the film is released and many are released as the film is in production/being edited and therefore they may feature scenes or alternative versions of scenes that are not in the completed film or they contain very little, if any footage from the actual film. Teaser trailers are unlike theatrical trailers as they are much shorter, normally lasting from 30-60+ seconds in order to keep storylines, characters and the general mystery of the film a surprise from the audience. 'Teasers' are usually primarily made for big-budget and blockbuster movies e.g. a current teaser trailer 'Iron Man 2' however they are also used to promote independent and cult films e.g. 'An Education'. Teaser trailers give the audience a taste of what is expected in a particular film until longer trailers or the films are released.