Podcast Script

There are a number of research techniques that producers use in order to define the audience for a particular film.

Part 1

Primary research is a research method which involves gathering original data which isn't already available for you to use, therefore enabling you to ask specific questions to fit the purpose of your research. For example if a film producer was producing a new film and wanted to improve it they can conduct primary research by using a test screening which is a post production method where the producers get a number of people who fit the target audience for a particular film to watch the film and answer questions relating to the film they watched therefore allowing the producers to improve anything necessary.

Secondary research refers to gathering data that already exists from a third party such as using published materials such as books or searching the internet. For example when producing a new film the producers may research previous films of the same genre and reviews using the independent movie database website to see what appeals to a particular audience and weather it can influence their production.

Quantitative data is numerical data such as statistics collected through conducting either primary or secondary research, whereas qualitative data is much more in depth relating to a persons, opinions, attitudes or beliefs. For example if a film producer was to create an exit poll they could collect quantitative data by including closed questions such as "did you enjoy the film?" therefore providing them with a percentage of yes and no answers. They can also collect qualitative data by including open questions such as "what did you enjoy about the film?" therefore providing the researchers with more in depth data relating to a persons opinion.

Part 2

I feel the target audience for this particular film is a younger demographic aged between 15-30, predominately male with a social classification of C1 and below. In terms of marketing a trailer for this movie was released therefore promoting the movie and encouraging people to go and watch it. The trailer for this movie begins with an establishing shot of New York, therefore it is clear that the film is set within a big city therefore automatically defining the genre of this movie which is Action Thriller due to the fact that it is a typical genre convention.

In terms of characters, throughout the trailer the protagonist is male and portrayed at the stereotypical strong hero often seen within this genre, his behaviour and stern toned voice gives us as the audience the impression that he is a fearless character. However from 1 minute into the trailer non digetic sound of slow music has been used to emphasize the more caring and sensitive side of this character therefore

making us as an audience connect with the character and as a result encourages us to go and watch the movie. It also includes an attractive young woman, therefore encouraging males to watch this move. It is also clear from the trailer that the women in this movie are represented as the stereotypical victims, again a typical convention of action thrillers which often feature a narrative in which a lead male protagonist saves a stereotypical female victim from danger. The narrative of the movie also creates an enigma for the audience due to the fact that we wonder what happened to the women who was kidnapped and we want to know why the protagonist is no longer a cop therefore encouraging us to go and watch the film.

iconography has been used effectively throughout this trailer, due to the fact that people watching the trailer will instantly recognise Liam Neeson from his previous roles in action thrillers and therefore if they are fans of his or his previous roles then they will be eager to go and watch "Walk Amongst the Tombstones"

Technical codes such as fast paced editing has been used throughout, anchoring the fact the action within the trailer, also audio codes such as dramatic music ad sound effects such as screaming has been used throughout to add tension and suspense. In terms of cinematography a number of close ups of the protagonists face has been used to show us his emotions and also to create a personal feel for the audience, another convention of action thrillers.

Part 3

Another form of marketing used to promote the film "Walk Amongst the Tombstones" and to encourage people to go and watch it is the poster. The primary optical area consists of the stars name "Liam Neeson" therefore this is the first thing we notice when looking at the poster, this automatically attracts fans of Liam Neeson and his previous roles due to the fact they will assume that this film is similar to previous films he has starred in therefore encouraging them to go and watch "Walk amongst the tombstones"

There are a number of genre codes and conventions within this poster. Firstly both the title and the release date are in red which connotes both danger and blood, also the stars name and the protagonists clothes are black which has the connotation of death, all of which anchor the genre 'action thriller' which feature themes such as death and murder. One of the most recognizable genre convention within this poster is that the protagonist is holding a gun. The fact that Liam Neeson is stood in a graveyard automatically emphasizes the title of the movie "Walking Amongst Tombstones" therefore without even watching the film we as an audience already know that this film will involve death and that the protagonist will be involved in some way, which is typical of this particular genre. The poster itself is in black and white, featuring a lot of black which emphasizes the negative themes within this movie. The protagonist is stood over what looks like a pool of blood, which automatically creates the idea that at some point in the film he will be responsible for killing somebody, as well as connotating danger. The poster includes a dominant

image of Liam Neeson, therefore we automatically know that he is the protagonist and the low angle shot creates a sense of power, therefore representing him as the stereotypical strong lead male character which is often seen in films of this particular genre.

Part 4

After watching walk amongst the tombstones I conducted primary research by creating an exit poll consisting both open and closed questions allowing me to collect both quantitative and qualitative data. I presented the exit poll to 100 people, 90% aged between 15-25 and 10% being 40+ therefore suggesting that the marketing campaign was successful in terms of attracting the target audience for this particular film. When asked how they had heard about this film 50% of people answered that they had seen the movie trailer, also in order to collect qualitative data i asked the question "what made you want to come and watch the movie?" and there were dominant answers with 50% of people saying that the trailer appealed to them quotes include "the trailer looked good" and "the trailer looked interesting" with another 40% saying that it was because Liam Neeson was in it, for example one person stated "because i like Liam Neeson as an actor".

Although this film had a target audience of predominately males i found that 70% of the people watching the film were female and only 30% male therefore suggesting that the market campaign appealed more to women than men.

In conclusion i feel that the marketing campaign for walk amongst the tombstones was successful in terms of attracting a younger demographic and the use of star theory was effective.

, therefore again suggesting that the marketing campaign was effective.