Teaser/Trailer - What's the difference?

Larry Rutledge

Fest Master
I am putting together a press pack for my upcoming short film to be used in attempting to raise money. I thought it might be a good idea to shoot a short teaser or trailer to show prospective financiers.

I assume there are some specific differences between the two (teaser / trailer), but I'm not totally sure what they all are.

I assume that a teaser would be about :30 (30 seconds) and trailer would be between 1 and 2 minutes in length. I also assume that a teaser just gives some quick shots/glimpses into the story without really telling anything, where a trailer actually gives clips that hint at the story to be told.

Am I close? Or totally missing the mark? Any help in this would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Larry
 
i think you're close. the way I see it, a teaser is a very short glimpse at a movie to entice or grab the attention of the viewer. (Ex. The Current "The DaVinci Code" teaser). It just to show "hey, look what's coming, but stay tuned for more information"

A teaser identifies more, such as the actors, a glimpse at the story, plot, etc, etc.
 
A teaser is a short news glimps at the upcoming story (A TV news term) a trailer is a short preview of an upcoming film/movie
 
MarcM said:
A teaser is a short news glimps at the upcoming story (A TV news term) a trailer is a short preview of an upcoming film/movie

Yes and no. You are absolutley right, a teaser is a TV news term, but it has been adopted by motion picture marketing. A teaser is a short "Pre-trailer" trailer. The teaser starts the "Brand identity" of the coming movie and are usually shown much farther in advance of release. The purpose of the teaser is to build hype about the movie. The purpose of the trailer is to give more info to get people to the boxoffice.

If you are doing a press kit, I would advise putting together a pretty good trailer to really hook people and to help them get a good feel as to what your movie is all about.
 
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