Trailer Art: Deviating from the Norm

The trailer is an art form onto itself. Nowhere has this become more apparent than the web, where film trailers are among the most watched videos on sites such as iFilm and Grouper.

Most mainstream trailers follow familiar patterns of shots and editing, a series of clips which usually culminate in a climatic finale – Fine Line's trailer for Little Children is one of the better examples of the conventional form.

Every once in awhile, mass-market trailers deviate from the norm in ways that are surprising and satisfying – though when was the last time you saw a single-take trailer with no cuts?

Graphic-design/videos blogs such as Feed and Motionographer are some of the best places to catch more innovative trailers, as well as mind-expanding commercials and music videos. Motionographer, for example, recently highlighted the trailer for "Dexter," Showtime's new original series about a forensics expert/serial killer. While the short video introducing the "American Psycho"-like protagonist combines elements that are familiar to most trailers, the sensuality and provocative nature of the images is hard to beat. It's difficult to believe, in fact, that a company owned by Viacom could get away with such obviously risqué content.

The violence and dark humor that underlines the montage reminded me of Martin Scorsese's early, infamous and very independent 1967 short "The Big Shave" -- and whaddaya you know, it's available for viewing on YouTube. Perhaps mainstream and experimental forms aren't so different, after all.