Analysis of One of Last Year's Soap Opera Trailers

This is Valley Hill, one of last year's year 13 soap trailers.


The typical conventions of a soap opera trailer have been followed in that it focuses on one storyline and one set of characters rather than all the current storylines of the soap. This is vital as the trailer only allows a short amount of time in which to entice the audience into watching the soap and so the storyline selected for inclusion in the trailer should be one which has impact.The trailer clearly displays the domestic themes apparent in all soaps so that the audience is aware from the outset the type of programme that is being advertised. Titles are used throughout the trailer to accentuate the themes and issues of this particular storyline, emphasising the drama of the situation. Fades are used effectively to separate each scene but to also show how they link into the whole storyline which may not have been so obvious had each scene just cut from one to the next. I feel that the end of the trailer is the most effective. Fast cuts and diegetic sound build tension and the use of clips from earlier in the trailer lead the audience to realise that any of the characters could be the murderer, thus leaving them wanting to watch the soap in order to find out who it actually was. I feel that the trailer could have benefited from non-diegetic music throughout in order to increase tension and hint at the overall storyline as it is not immediately obvious from the outset and only becomes clear within the last minute or so. The trailer could also have included a channel to make the soap easier for the audience to access.