BOOKS: Video trailers for books

We’ve all sat in the cinema, munching our popcorn while watching movie trailers – often they’re better than the actual feature we’ve paid to see.

Traditionally, the blurb on the back of a book has been the best method of capturing the imagination of readers… until now. The launch of the first ever book trailers are set to change the industry for good and bring books to life before they are even published.

This new trend hopes to attract a new audience to reading who wouldn’t otherwise have heard of the author. Three up-and-coming student directors from the National Film and Television School have been selected by a panel of judges, to produce a 90 second film based on three forthcoming books.

Chamoun Issa was chosen to adapt Small World by Matt Beaumont into a mere 90 second film. You can watch exclusive clips from his trailer in this brand new video, which also includes interviews with the two main men. Chamoun explains how he responded to the challenge and Matt explains how excited he was with this new interpretation of his work.

The short films were premiered at the Book Video Awards in February and they can all be watched at www.play.com

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