Audience Research Evaluation
Carrying out our questionnaire was very
helpful as it enabled us to develop our knowledge of our audience and what
codes and conventions they would like to see in our thriller opening.
Question 1: “What is your age group?”
15-20; 19 people
21-30; 4 people
31-40; 3 people
41+; 4 people
This question enabled us to determine what
different age groups like in a thriller, allowing us to tailor the codes and
conventions within our thriller to our specific target audiences making it more
agreeable with our potential audiences so therefore if we were producing it for
retail we could maximize our profit margins.
Question 2: “Male or Female?”
Male; 17 people
Female; 13 people
This question enabled us to identify the
specific wants of different genders allowing us to cater for both within our
thriller opening meaning we can widen our target market. Furthermore it enables
us to ensure that we have a wide selection of results meaning we can analyze
correctly what we would benefit using in our trailer.
Question 3: “How often do you watch films
in one week?”
Once a week; 16 people
Between 1 to 3; 9 people
Between 1 to 3; 9 people
More than 3; 5 people
Question 4: “Where would you expect a
psychological thriller to be set?”
Farm; 1 person
City; 6 people
Prison; 3 people
Mental asylum; 6 people
Forest; 7 people
Dark houses; 7 people
This question allowed us to analyze in
detail which setting our audiences would like to see in our thriller opening so
we can cater to them and specify to what they want to see. When analyzing our
results it’s clear to see that the two most popular settings where Forests and
Dark Houses. I believe this is due to the element of seclusion included in
these settings, which also suggests that, the idea of a seclusion maybe a key
theme. We left this as an open question; the benefit of this would be that the questions
could be more specified to what audiences want.
Question 5: "What sort of sound would you expect to hear in a psychological thriller?"
Suspense creating; 8 people
Violent sounds; 3 people
High pitch sounds; 5 people
Shouts or Screams; 3 people
Silence; 3 people
Classical music; 4 people
Mysteries; 4 people
Asking people what sound they would expect to hear allows us to gain a knowledge of what audiences associate with a psychological thriller. We can then incorporate these sounds into our thriller opening in order to make it appropriate and conform to what our audiences. This was an open question which allowed audiences to be specific in what sounds they'd like to hear.
Question 6: "What's your favorite thriller film? (e.g se7en)"
Question 5: "What sort of sound would you expect to hear in a psychological thriller?"
Suspense creating; 8 people
Violent sounds; 3 people
High pitch sounds; 5 people
Shouts or Screams; 3 people
Silence; 3 people
Classical music; 4 people
Mysteries; 4 people
Asking people what sound they would expect to hear allows us to gain a knowledge of what audiences associate with a psychological thriller. We can then incorporate these sounds into our thriller opening in order to make it appropriate and conform to what our audiences. This was an open question which allowed audiences to be specific in what sounds they'd like to hear.
Question 6: "What's your favorite thriller film? (e.g se7en)"
Limitless; 17%
Taken; 10%
Exorcist; 7%
Se7en; 23%
Shutter Island; 14%
Fight Club; 3%
Ghost writer; 3%
Inception; 7%
Fast five; 3%
None; 7%
Cabin in the woods; 3%
Pyscho; 3%
Asking this question enables us to develop a knowledge of what our potential audiences like. From this research we could look at the most popular films and pick our different aspects that appear to work well and incorporate them in our film opening. This question was an open question so it allowed audiences to express there opinions freely however to ensure that the people filling out this questionnaire knew what genre type we were talking about we included an example.
Question 7: "What do you find scarier? (Circle 1) "
Fast editing; 13 people
Slow editing; 17 people
This question gave us an idea as to what editing type audiences would prefer in terms of editing. By asking which they find scarier it enables us to determine a way to put across our preferred meaning and build the atmosphere that fits with the scene. By asking audiences what they prefer it enables us to t
What sort of camera shots/movement would you expect from a thriller? (Circle 2)
Close ups; 16 people
Long shots; 10 people
Birds eye view; 7 people
Extreme close up; 16 people
Zoom in & out; 11 people
We chose to ask this question so we could incorporate appropriate shots and movements that audiences would like to see in our trailer. It was a closed question so that the answers given by those filling out the questionnaire couldn't answer with shots and movements which would be impossible to do due to lack of equipment etc for example a shot taken from a helicopter.
What characteristics would you expect from a main character in a thriller?
Dominant; 3 people
Unknown; 1 person
Strong; 3 people
Brave; 4 people
Naïve but bright; 1 person
Odd looking; 1 person
Innocent; 1 person
Heroic; 4 people
Family orientated; 3 people
Smart and Fearless; 3 people
Male; 2 people
Good acting; 1 person
2 faced; 1 person
Mysterious; 2 people
This was an open question which enabled audiences to go into detail on the typical aspects they would expect to see in a main character with non bias as suggested answers may have influenced them enabling us to review the answers and pick up on the popular suggestions and attempt to incorporate them into our opening. On reflection I do not believe this question was as successful as it does not clearly state which main character i.e. villain or hero, which could leave audiences confused.
What characteristics do you expect from a villain in a thriller film?
Clever; 2 people
Mysterious; 3 people
Hench; 3 people
Deformed; 2 people
Psychotic; 2 people
Tall; 1 person
Thrives to kill; 2 people
Dark features; 2 people
Evil; 2 people
Violent; 2 people
Scars; 3 people
Determined; 2 people
Cold Hearted; 1 person
Sneaky; 2 people
Similarly to above this was also an open question enabling us to get unbiased results however this question I believe was better as it was more accurate and told the person who was filling out the form for us exactly what opinions we wanted off them. We aim to incorporate the most popular options in our opening i.e. Mysterious.
Clever; 2 people
Mysterious; 3 people
Hench; 3 people
Deformed; 2 people
Psychotic; 2 people
Tall; 1 person
Thrives to kill; 2 people
Dark features; 2 people
Evil; 2 people
Violent; 2 people
Scars; 3 people
Determined; 2 people
Cold Hearted; 1 person
Sneaky; 2 people
Similarly to above this was also an open question enabling us to get unbiased results however this question I believe was better as it was more accurate and told the person who was filling out the form for us exactly what opinions we wanted off them. We aim to incorporate the most popular options in our opening i.e. Mysterious.
What tense would you prefer the thriller that you are watching to be set in? (Circle 1)
Past; 8 people
Present; 18 people
Future; 4 people
This was a closed question enabling us to get direct answers that we were looking for rather then people giving dates as that could of left us with potentially 30 different dates to choose from. As most people voted for Present tense we will aim to set our trailer in the present tense.
Present; 18 people
Future; 4 people
This was a closed question enabling us to get direct answers that we were looking for rather then people giving dates as that could of left us with potentially 30 different dates to choose from. As most people voted for Present tense we will aim to set our trailer in the present tense.
What time period would you expect a thriller film to be set in? (E.g. Victorian times)
Would you expect the narrative within a thriller to be linear or begin with a flash forward/back?
Do you expect non-diegetic music to be involved within the opening of a thriller? (E.g. a piano being played) (Circle 1)
Yes No
If yes, why?
