Target Audience Profile

For our target audience we are aiming at teenagers as a whole target audience no matter how old. This audience is ideal for us because they are relatable and the same age therefore making it easy to portray the narrative to them and establish genre. This also makes it easier for us to make a film that will attract this age audience because we know what they want .

As younger teenagers will always be interested in movies which are aimed and an audience who are a couple of years older  so we are going to target an audience from about 14-25 year olds. Although our film is based upon a horror there is a victim so this may appeal to another audience group along with the mysterious plot which may attract another audience.

We will dress the characters in modern costume so they are relatable and use modern concepts and modern detail within the narrative to make the film as up to date as possible for example playing a recent song on the radio to make the film seem as modern as possible.

Audience Questionnaire

1. Are you male or female?

2. Please indicate your age? 

3. What is your favorite genre?

4.How often do you go to the cinema?

5. Who do you go to the cinema with?
Friends       Boy/girlfriend        Family

6. What is your favorite type of music?
Hip hop   Rock    Classic   Pop   Soul Metal

7.How would you class yourself socially ?
Sports man   Musician  Indie   Emo   Academic

9. Any further information?
We have chosen these specific questions because it allows us to establish key features and characteristics that we need to include in our film in order for it to appeal and attract our target audience.

Reception Theory

Stuart Hall's encoding/decoding model stated that an audience could interpret the same texts in a variety of ways, as each are individually influenced by several factors. (gender, class, age and ethnicity)

An individual may wish to interpret the text straight, e.g. the code which the producers are trying to convey is recognized subconsciously by the audience. However some may interpret the same text in a entirely different way.

Uses and Gratifications

In 1948 Lasswell suggested that audiences use the media for a variety of reasons but each individual has their own personal use for the media. Lasswell theory was that the mass audience chose to interpret the media in four different. They four ways they may interpreted the media was for surveillance, correlation, entertainment and cultural transmission.

·         Blulmer and Katz carried on from this theory and produced their own in 1974, there research showed that individuals may you use the text for the following purposes:

-          Diversion - escape from everyday problems and routine.

-          Personal Relationships - using the media for emotional and other interaction, e.g. substituting soap operas for family life

-          Personal Identity - finding yourself reflected in texts, learning behaviour and values from texts

-          Surveillance - Information which could be useful for living e.g. weather reports, financial news, holiday bargains

Two-step Flow

Paul Lazarsfeld, Bernard Berelson, and Hazel Gaudet analysed the voters' decision-making processes during a 1940 presidential election campaign and published their results in a news paper. Their findings suggested that the information does not flow directly from the source it is found, but from the reporters boss who has power over them, therefore this will make the reporter change the source slightly to please their bosses. The audience then mediate the information received directly from the media with the ideas and thoughts expressed by the opinion leaders, thus being influenced not by a direct process, but by a two step flow. This diminished the power of the media in the eyes of researchers, and caused them to conclude that social factors were also important in the way in which audiences interpreted texts.

Audience theories

Hypodermic Theory

The Hypodermic Needle Model suggests, as an audience, we are manipulated by the creators of media texts, and that our behaviour and thinking might be easily changed by media-makers. It assumes that the audience are passive. This theory is still quoted during moral panics by parents, politicians and pressure groups, and is used to explain why certain groups in society should not be exposed to certain media texts for fear that they will watch or read sexual or violent behaviour and will then act them out themselves.

Our film Classification

 We wanted our trailer to be a 12 classification so that it can be screened on TV at an early time in the day and it grabs a larger target audience.

There is a feeling of horror but it is in moderate consideration, and there are no frequent trailer as a 12, this is because it does not dwell on discrimination at all. The use of drugs is not shown or glamorised nor are there any disturbing scenes. Imitable behaviour is also a no show in our trailer, there is also no use of weapons in any context in our trailer. There is no need for swearing in our trailer as we are aiming to keep the age barrier down. Sexual content is not in our trailer as it has nothing to do with the narrative. Violence is using silence as a way to build tension and protray an ideal hegemony of a horror. there is no nudity in the trailer.  

According to the British Board of Film Classifications, our trailer would fall into the 12A/12 year’s classification.Which is ideal as it allows us to target a mass audience.

http://www.bbfc.co.uk/classification/guidelines/12a12

PG’ film should not disturb a child aged around eight or older. However, parents are advised to consider whether the content may upset younger or more sensitive children.

No-one younger than 18 may see an ‘18’ film in a cinema. No-one younger than 18 may rent or buy an ‘18’ rated video work.

No-one younger than 15 may see a ‘15’ film in a cinema. No-one younger than 15 may rent or buy a ‘15’ rated video work.

Exactly the same criteria are used to classify works at ‘12A’ and ‘12’. These categories are awarded where the material is suitable, in general, only for those aged 12 and over. Works classified at these categories may upset children under 12 or contain material which many parents will find unsuitable for them.

Film Classification

A U classification film is a film which is suitable for a young audience (4+). It only brings up positive issues and there is no violence. It brings up topical moral issues with always a positive outcome.

Our trailer Classification

Our Trailers Classification  

We wanted our trailer to be a 12 classification so that it can be screened on TV at early time in the day and it grabs a larger target audience base.

I would classify our in any way. There is a feeling of horror but is it in moderate consideration, and there are no frequent trailer as a 12, this is because it does not dwell on discrimination at all. The use of drugs is not shown or glamorised disturbing scenes. Imitable behaviour is also a no show in our trailer, there is also no use of weapons in any context in our trailer. There is no need for swearing in our trailer as we are keep the age barrier down. Sex is also a no show in our trailer as it is not necessary. Violence is using the use of silence as a way to build atmosphere. Nudity will not be shown due to us trying to limited as we wanted to get the audience to use their own imagination and we did not want to give too much away.  

According to the British Board of Film Classifications, our trailer would fall into the 12A/12 year’s classification.

http://www.bbfc.co.uk/classification/guidelines/12a12

Trailer Conventions

We concentrated on one particular film Piranha. The genre of this film is horror/thriller; It uses several different techniques to get its genre across to the audience in the trailer. The first two main things I would say they use to get your attention is what you're seeing and what you're hearing directly. 

So as it is a horror/thriller they will want the tempo to be quite high, creating tension and a mystery to what is happening. To accompany this they use sound to create an atmosphere and to get your imagination going, the sound starting slowly and speeding up at particular moments grabbing your attention making you ask yourself what is going to happen at those several different points in the film. Along with the sound of the heart beat they added in the deep thumping sound, this may be used to get your own heart going by the tension it is building and the adrenaline which will be released.

The trailer shows a variety of things which the producer thinks will grab the audience’s attention making them want to come and watch this film. In this trailer they showed a large amount of partying and girls and guys in swimwear. I think they did this as it creates that elderly teenage atmosphere grabbing your attention by using props such as booze, swimwear, big speakers and big boat. A sort of ultimate part scenario. They then got across the horror/thriller genre of the film by showing specific points in the film which were increasingly bloody and would shock the viewer, making the audience ask themselves, "What is happening here ?", " This is new and different I wonder what will be next?", 

They also usually have a unique selling point, it can vary from having a very famous actor or having SFX, but in Piranhas case is was 3D, but as the trailer is on TV they could only show this using inter-titles. 

Mt First Plan

Action- An action trailer would be a great way to experiment with camera angles and filming techniques such as building up tension. It would also be easy to establish genre and to make the trailer appeal to a selected target audience. We would use typical mise en scene to establish genre and would focus on the gore and violent aspects as that is was really sets action apart as a genre.

 Horror- horror is an ideal choice for us because it will allow us to use a wide range of filming techniques and we can experiment with camera angles and tension building techniques. It will also allow us to challenge the modern hegemony of a horror genre by using different new narratives via the storyline , characters and outcomes.

Sci-fi- With the high tech filming facilities you need to create a sci-fi trailer it would be impossible to create a recognisable narrative and establish a genre. I am also not a great fan of the sci-fi genre and i wouldn’t know how to create a suitable narrative nor execute it efficiently.

Rom-Com – A romantic comedy would not be a worthwhile genre to attempt. It is not a genre that I show particular interest in and therefore I would not be as passionate. It also wouldn’t test our creativeness and wouldn’t allow us to experiment with tension techniques or suspense.

Thriller – A thriller genre would be a great genre to choose as it is easy to establish genre using common mise en scene and narrative types. We can use classic scenarios to suits be modern hegemony of a thriller genre.  With the facilities that we have accessible to us it would be doable and therefore genre is definitely with horror the front runners for our genre selection.

Comedy- A comedy would be very limiting in a filming perspective as it would only really allow us to use camera angles as there would be no need to build up tension or change the pace of the trailer. it would be easy to establish genre but not face us with any challenges or allow us to utilize our full creativity.

Character list

Character#1

Height – 5’10

White British

Brown eyes

Well dressed

Smartly dressed

Well educated

Innocent

Character #2

Height-6’1

Brown eyes

Black British

Scruffily dressed

Intimidating

Violent

Mysterious

Setting

Our trailer will be filmed in a number of locations relative to the plot and storyline therefore teasing the audience by giving information about the narrative but not giving them any key information other than the characters and locations. It is important that you don’t give away the narrative as it will ruin the mystery of the film and will not attract as many views.

Locations to be used in trailer:

House- Creating narrative

Forest- the chase

Town- Character introduction