3) WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED FROM YOUR AUDIENCE FEEDBACK?

When we were first coming up with ideas for our A2 trailer we decided to create an apocalyptic horror that would be unique as it would also work to explore human relationships, as most British independent films tend to do. That being said we still wanted a target market of 16-25 year olds which would be attracted to the horror side of the film whilst older audiences might find the exploration of human relationships more interesting. In order to see whether we had created a trailer that came across to an audience as part of the apocalypse sub-genre of horror we created a survey to ask a range of demographics

about our media product to see how well it was received.

1. Feedback from the question about our genre proved that we were largely able to create a trailer that came across as a horror through the use of codes and conventions that usually signify a horror. Audience responses showed that we were able to convey that our media was a horror through the apocalyptic setting and 62% of responses showed that we were successful in portraying a horror. When we further questioned people about their responses common explanations as to why they thought the genre was horror was due to the music being used effectively to build fear and tension which was further conveyed by the mise-en-scene and reactions of the actors. Most concluded that the use of motifs typical of horror and thriller genre films reflected that it was part of the horror genre. For example we

received feedback that the use of blood, empty settings and unknown identities of the pursuers all suggested the horror genre.

2. From the responses we received on the relevance of the apocalypse sub-genre we were able to assume that we were successful in conveying human relationships and creating a unique selling point for our horror. This would also widen our target audience as many people might be intrigued to watch a film that still uses the conventions of horror in addition to being able to show a unique storyline that shows people coming together. This is evidenced by the 6% of people that would have classified the trailer as a drama. None of our responses claimed that there was no relevance to the apocalypse genre so we were successful in relating the film back to the apocalypse genre. Because 40.82% said that our

trailer was only somewhat relevant to the apocalypse sub-genre we can conclude that we may have focussed more on showing the development of the narrative and characters and left the apocalypse genre to be shown through the mise-en-scene, i.e. the isolated and overgrown settings and the use of costumes that look worn and old through fake blood and mud.3. When constructing the trailer we took a priority in establishing a narrative that made sense and conveyed an accurate portrayal of our film idea and plot, without spoiling any twists or surprises. We wanted the genre of the film to come across clearly and thought that the narrative might be an effective way to reinforce this as Derry’s story type ‘The quest’ is often featured in apocalypse films (i.e. The Road). As 87.76% of our audience feedback answered that the narrative was clear we were successful in getting the storyline across. We did this through the use of the 3 Act Structure which, through our research and planning, proved to be the structure that most trailers, regardless of their genre, used as an effective portrayal of the film’s plot. We used that structure to base our narrative around and split the editing into three sections: 1) The London shots and introduction to the bleak empty setting 2) The introduction of the main characters and brief plot 3) The end montage where the ambiguous threats and danger is explored. Furthered explanations from responses showed that the beginning montage of news clips were effective in outlining the plot and setting of our narrative. Many explained that the use of news clips helped to set up the story

and reinforced the genre of apocalypse horror.4. Following on from this we asked how effective the use of music was and received mostly positive feedback. This shows how we were able to effectively build up a climax and create a tense and exciting atmosphere that we had hoped. From the 4% of people we asked who

said that the music wasn’t effective we could infer that maybe we had made the trailer too fast paced because although we were able to create music that matched our montage we did use quick music for both act two and three. Our music consisted of four separate tracks that we found via YouTube through looking up tense atmospheric music. We used these to help build up the anticipation throughout the trailer until the title of the film was revealed at the end after the names of the actors. The crescendos within the tracks are also typically used with the genre of horror and not just the sub-genre apocalypse thus hinting at our trailer’s genre and helping to convey this to an audience.

5.

The majority of our results stated that our use of settings was successful and that we were able to conform to the typical empty and abandoned settings used within apocalypse films. By putting filters on some of the shots, the empty ones in particular we were able to create a vivid and fresh look to our settings but also able to darken them to make them appear miserable and bleak. As 96% of our feedback stated that our locations were effective we know that our inclusion of urban settings, such as the train station which we used to show a lot of our empty shots, were effective in creating the right visual images for an apocalypse setting. To contrast to the emptiness of the train station we filmed busy scenes in London with iconic symbols of Britain, such as Big Ben and the London Eye, to convey that our film is set in the UK. The use of these contrasting scenes also helped to convey the narrative and by speeding up the busy shots we were able to create the concept of time passing.

6. We had intended for our film to be aimed at an 18-25yr old target audience however this was only a rough target and in our survey we allowed for a few years around this age scale. Judging from our results 92% of people thought that we had aimed our film at 16-26 yr olds which proved that we were successful in achieving our target audience. We wanted to canter to an audience of that age as they are typical audience to horror and thriller films though it is a predominantly male audience within those ages. 12% of our feedback did show that perhaps younger people are now becoming more interested in films of our genre and that the adventurous narrative appeals to the younger teenage demographic.

7. Our trailer is both a modern horror that uses codes and conventions typical of older films within the genre. This is a result of us having to present our trailer as part of an independent film and so not having the budget to get shots of London when it was empty. This worked in our favour though as we were able to create a modern interpretation of apocalypse that 59.18% of our feedback agreed with. Our feedback 34.69% of our feedback stated that we used conventions and when we inquired further people stated that our effective use of music to build tension and suspense really made our trailer seem part of the horror genre.

8. Most of our audience replies agreed that our three media products were successful in complimenting one another and that we were able to create a package that made each product appear professional. The 4% of people that said our media products, when asked further, stated that it was the magazine cover that did not appear to match the trailer and poster however we were able to explain that as the magazine cover that accompanies the film is usually only advertising the actress, not the film. From the 96% of people that said

our products were cohesive some stated that the similarly dark colours used across all three products helped to link them together and to create a complete package. The uses of dark greens and red within our poster and trailer were pointed out and feedback said that this made the link between the two especially prominent.9. The vast majority of our feedback agreed that the title did make sense in reference to the film as we wanted to create the idea of what happens after the apocalypse. We were able to show this effectively through the structure of our trailer which built up the narrative and was able to explain that our title ‘The Aftermath’ was in reference to the people trying to survive after the fall of humanity. Our use of titles in Act 1 made this clear as we incorporated the phrases “In the beginning there was life” showing busy scenes of London however we then changed the setting after a blackout and used the words “But after...” to convey to the audience that an event had taken place which had wiped out most of humanity. The 6% of feedback that stated we had not made the title relevant said that ‘The Aftermath’ was not clear enough within the narrative, meaning that we had not shown an event but left that up to interpretation and the suggestion of something going wrong in the world.

10. Our feedback from this question indicated that we were successful in creating a trailer that would make people eager to watch the film through our presentation of narrative and effective portrayal of the genre. As 16% of our replies were against seeing the film we took into consideration that our film is aimed at 18-25 yr olds mostly and that therefore a younger teenage or older generation may not be interested in the genre or narrative that we presented. That being said the 84% of people that did wish to see the film help us to conclude that we were able to appeal to a large target audience and that our trailer was able to successfully give an audience a reason to watch our film.