Evaluation Question 5

How do you attract/ address your audience?

I looked at a number of techniques to attract and address the audience that i wanted for my film. I did not want an extremely niche audience as that severely limits the number of people who may want to watch my film (e.g. making a film specifically for those going through marriage difficulties-teenagers would most likely not want to see this thus the audience is greatly limited).
I classified my film as a 15 due to some of the key themes that are present in the film. One major part of the film is the violence in it which appears glorified by the main character as he seeks vengeance and retribution. I felt that this attracted a teen and young adult audience as many teenagers in our society today feel a lot of pressures as they grow up; There may be times where they get angry but can't express it. I wanted the teen and young adult audience to use my film as a form of escapism as they get lost in the story of vigilante justice and they can pretend to be some being of great power for a little while. Through this escapism the teen and young adult audience can use my film as a stress release that will ultimately leave them thrilled and satisfied.  So the glorification of violence was one way in which i addressed my audience however i had to be careful that i wasn't emphasizing mindless beatings, i had to make sure that i made the purpose of the violence clear which i think i achieved.

Another way in which i attracted my audience was through the location and setting. When looking at my questionnaire the main cinemas that my sample audience visited were either art house cinemas (ie Clapham Picture House or Brixton Ritzy)  or multiplex cinemas (such as the Odeon). This gave some insight to where i wanted to set my film and ultimately i chose the slightly rough and ready areas of South West London. I chose this location because of the great gritty and realistic feel of the surroundings; there is nothing out of the ordinary in terms of location which meant that it was more relatable to by the audience. This added another element of 'thrill' and tension as in my film the main character is approached by muggers which would allow the audience to infer that crime is rife in urban environments and they may not be so safe after all.

So far the audience that i have addressed and attracted are those of age 15-25 possibly 30. The range of this audience is reasonably limited to those who enjoy thrillers, so i wanted one more aspect of my film that would hopefully attract somebody who may not enjoy thrillers but would be willing to see my piece as it interests them in some way. I think one way that i did this was through the voice over; you learn that the backstory for the vengeance was because his daughter was killed this implies that the main character could actually be reasonably old, possibly even middle aged, which would attract an older audience.
I also did not clarify the gender and age of the main character in my 2 minute opening which allows the rest of the film to be open to interpretation. The main character could be a woman or a mercenary for somebody and may not be the main character at all. Through this technique i think i broadened my audience rather than lessened it.