AS Media Evaluation: Question Four

Who would be the audience for your media product?

In the pre production stage of making my media product, a horror movie, my group and I had to think about who the target audience would be and who would most likely watch my movie. There are many different factors that can make up a person and by using these factors it can help my group and I attract a certain type of a person that then fits inside a bigger 'target audience' which would then be the overall type of person that would watch my movie. However, by designing and catering certain marketing techniques  such as trailers and posters for a certain group of people to be drawn into viewing my product, it's aim isn't then to exclude people who may not fit into the target audience. People who don't fit into the target audience can obviously still watch my movie, but the marketing, promotion and the overall 'look' of the film just may not appeal to them as much as it would to someone in the target audience.

There are many different reasons to watch a Horror movie and they can appeal to a wide variety of people. Here are some factors that my group and I took into account when thinking about a target audience and which ones we chose for the target audience and why. 

The main age and gender that we would appealing to would be male teenagers/young adults aged between 18 and 25. One reason is that due to the amount of violence and gore that is associated with the Horror genre and also with my movie, this would ultimately be more tailored to a male audience. Another reason is that  people in this age range like to do activities with their friends, so they would go out to the cinema with their friends. They'd do because this to try and get a thrill out of life without necessarily being guided to it, and a Horror film can give this fairly young audience a thrill predominantly from watching the horror films and also from being out with friends and having a good time. Another reason that the movie is appealing to this genre is that the characters in the movie are the same age as people in the target audience. This could mean that the viewer can possibly  see themselves in the characters. Another factor that could possibly draw people in is the fact that the protagonists are two policemen. This could potentially attract a an audience who share this job role, as they could relate to the characters on a working level as well as on a personal level.

The ultimate aim for a Horror film is to scare the viewer. When making these points in regards to a target audience, I had to give examples for how other films could possibly appeal to a certain audience just as my movie could.

For example I talked about the Blair witch project and how the age of the characters and the story itself would be more likely to draw in a younger crowd because of their overall acceptance to the story being about the investigation of an urban legend.