Book Trailer
What is a book trailer?
A book trailer is a video advertisement for a book. It is similar to a movie trailer or preview.
Check out these examples from YouTube (you will not be able to watch these at school):
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
Stargirlby Jerry Spinelli
A book trailer is a video advertisement for a book. It is similar to a movie trailer or preview.
Check out these examples from YouTube (you will not be able to watch these at school):
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
Stargirlby Jerry Spinelli
Book Trailer Tips (courtesy of Rock with Book Trailers by Lynn Johnson and Margie Rohrback)
Choices
- Choose your software: iMovie, MovieMaker, PowerPoint
- Choose still images (pictures, clip art), live action, or a combination
- Choose your audio (background music, sound effects, narration)
- Make it short (1-2 minutes)
- Start with a conflict to grab the viewer's attention
- Introduce main characters and setting
- Show an important scene that occurs early in the story
- Show a potential antagonist
- Show another important scene (keep scenes short)
- Show a series of quick, action, or tense scenes that focus on the rising action
- Decide on a closing scene, but don't reveal the ending!
- Focus on the main character's problem or goal
- Introduce the antagonist or obstacle to this goal
- Create a series of scenes that quickly show the story without telling too much
- End with a cliffhanger--DO NOT give away the ending and DO NOT simply summarize
- Use intriguing images
- Use background music and sound effects
- The title of the book and the author's name
- Correct spelling and capitalization; underline or italicize the title
- Credits at the end...give credit to your sources!