Additional Research - 'Skins' Trailer

Blogged by Naomi

As we plan to film a party scene inspired by the trailer for Skins (Series 1), we decided it would be a good idea to analyse the trailer in order for us to film a successful and realistic party scene. Our cast for the scene will be a group of our friends aged 17-18 (a similar age group to the cast of Skins) and so the events we see in the Skins trailer will be similar to that in our trailer.

The majority of cuts in the Skins trailer are short and fast paced, creating a vibrant, energetic atmosphere associated with a typical teenage party. We plan to convey a similar mood in our own trailer with a variety of fast cuts between different characters in the scene. In contrast we will use slow motion to help subtly set the storyline for future scenes in the trailer. For example we will film close ups of a couple where the male will be playing with his girlfriend's necklace, a prop which the main character will later find when she is trapped in the pheasant cage. A similar effect is used in the Skins trailer but is not as significant in the creation of the storyline.

As well as close ups of individuals and couples the Skins trailer also features a high angle shot of the whole party, something we can perhaps use in our trailer to add to the lively atmosphere of the scene as a whole. The use of close ups is used to show the viewers the main characters, or in our case the characters whose possession's will be found by Lily later on.

The majority of the lighting in the Skins trailer is fairly low, giving a setting similar to that of inside a nightclub. There is also the use of flash/strobe lighting to further convey the lively mood of the party. However as we are filming in the woods it will not be possible for us to use strobe lighting, but low lighting should not be a problem if we film in the early evening.

The Skins trailer illustrates a stereotypical teenage party to consist simply of sex, drugs and alcohol. We will loosely base our trailer on similar antics; characters coupling up, characters falling over and "passing out", characters writing on each other etc. In the shots we will also feature alcohol bottles, bottle tops, silly string and other various props to add to the authenticity of a teenage party.