Pragmatics of intentional omission in a film synopsis

This article explores film synopses that are treated as advertising texts characterized by semantic density and succinctness. They contain purposeful omission aimed to intrigue recipients and stimulate them to watch the film. The research is set in the framework of linguapragmatics and its goal is to reveal the ways intentional omissions work in film synopses. This research is novel as film advertisements have not been viewed through the lens of the means aimed at creating omission of information and their effect on the text pragmatics. The sample includes 100 film synopses for Russian films spanning 2010—2023. The analysis of the elements of their semantic structure shows that in film synopses, semantic incomp­le­teness takes the shape of semantic gaps and implicatures. Importantly, it affects any element, inc­luding the inciting incident, personages and spatial and temporal settings. The findings re­veal that the intentional omission is predominantly implicit and the employment of inference cannot fill all semantic gaps, thus intrigue is preserved. However, in some film synopses intrigue is expressed explicitly. Our findings show the range of linguistic markers signaling the intentional omission of information in sample texts. This research paves the way for further investigations into how intrigue is created in promotional film texts, such as pos­ters and trailers. It may also be valuable for studies in commercial advertising.