Evaluation Question 4: Who would be the audience for your media product?

Who would be the audience for your media product?

As our media product had to be a film of a thriller genre, our first thought was to aim towards the age rating of either 12 or 15 as children younger than this might find the film complicated or even scary in some cases. As our film is a thriller, we needed to aim towards an audience who seek excitement whilst watching a film and who are kept on the edge of their seats.

              

As we started to shoot our film we had the age rating of either 12 or 15 in our heads but weren’t sure which one to go for. However, once all of the production of the film was complete we decided to keep it at the age rating of 12. We did this because the content that is incorporated in our opening sequence isn’t as strong as some that may be seen in a film rated 15, for example in the fight scene there is no blood seen at all by the audience. Also, no strong language is used in our scene. If we had chose to stick with a PG or U film then the content may be a bit too strong or even scary for some of the audience. If we had chosen to stick with an 18 rated film then we would have to incorporate different effects such as blood which is hard to make look real and isn’t really necessary, also strong language isn’t needed in our sequence either. Arguably our film could also be rated a 12A film but yet again may scare some of the younger viewers of the film or even confuse them.
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An example of a Thriller film that has been classified a 12 by the BBFC is the film 'Source code'. The film is rated 12 as it does not contain any strong violence, bloody scenes or any other unsuitable scenes for people above the age of 12. However, it does contain mild strong language which would be unsuitable for younger viewers. The opening sequence to our film is similar to this film as it doesn't contain anything unsuitable for people over the age of 12 but has aspects that may be unsuitable for those younger than this age. Above is the DVD cover for the film which shows its BBFC classified age rating in the bottom left hand corner. Below is the trailer for this film;

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An example of a Thriller film that has been classified a 15 by the BBFC is the film 'Shutter Island'. The film is rated 15 as it contains some strong violence, bloody scenes and unsuitable scenes for people under the age of 15. There was no need to incorporate strong violence or bloody scenes in our sequence and also would have been hard to do with no budget. Above is the DVD cover for the film which shows its BBFC classified age rating in the bottom left hand corner. Below is the trailer for this film;

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An example of a Thriller film that has been classified a 18 by the BBFC is the film 'Seven'. The film is rated 18 as it contain many scenes of blood and gore, although only one murder in the film is seen on screen, the aftermath of many others is shown which is quite graphic and unsuitable for those who are of an age younger than 18. Above is the DVD cover for the film which shows its BBFC classified age rating in the bottom left hand corner. Below is the trailer for this film;

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When it comes to social profiling, it is questionable about which group our film would fall under. It contains characters that some of the audience for both ABC1 and C2DE profiles could relate to. For example, those who lie under the ABC1 profile may be able to relate to Rob Thompson by seeing how he lives and the sort of career he has denoted by his clothes. On the other hand those who fall under the profile of C2DE may be able to relate to the stranger in a way that they may find it hard to find work and make money. However, if we look at which profile would most probably prefer our film, it would have to be ABC1 as they would most probably find it more exciting than those in the C2DE profile who may find it predictable and may even see it as unrealistic.

After our film was completed with all the post production done, we had a look at whether we thought our product was suitable for our initial target of a 12 rated film. We decided that it was a suitable opening sequence that would keep the audience excited but not scare them or incorporate inappropriate content.