Preliminary Task

Final Survey Analysis

Final Pitch

Focus Group 2: 35+

B : Tell me your names; First names will be appropriate.

J : My names Jill.

K : And I’m Kevin.

B : Brilliant! OK, im gonna ask you a series of questions, these will just be 5 questions, and they’ll require a bit of open thought, but just give your best opinion, OK? So, in general, do you like films that require more deep thought, so this is more of a plotline thing, where its more detailed than a plot that’s just fed to you.

J : Yes I probably do, as long as ive sat down long enough to concentrate properly.

K : Yeah, same as me.

B : So if you’ve got enough time to really concentrate-

K : If Ive got enough time to concentrate, yes.

J : Its better to think about it.

B : But otherwise it would be better to have a-

J : Yes, if your up down and in between then an easier to read plot would be good.

B : OK that’s perfect, that’s fine, perfect. Right, what is it that makes you, like, feel comfortable or feel content in your- in your home

J: The people and the animals in it.

B : OK, so being around your family, I’m guessing that means, and your pets?

K : Yeah.

J : Yeah.

B : OK, so you agree then, that’s perfect. So, apart from the last answer, since this is a very similar question; what makes you feel safe, what is it that makes you feel secure?

J : Again, probably the people in it.

K : Yeah, it would be the people in it, and the people around it.

J : Yeah, apart from, obviously, having security.

B: Yeah, proper security, so locks and stuff, yeah. Good answers, OK. Right, so its more of an in depth question, but in whatever event, you can think of right now, what would unsettle you the most? Just, straight off of the top of your head, what would be the most unsettling thing?

J : In everyday life?

B : In anything that you could see being used in a short film, or a movie.

J : Oh, so in a film?

B: Yeah, yeah, anything that you can think of. Or in everyday life, as long as it can be made into a short film.

J : Evil spirits, black magic, that type of thing.

B : Black magic, OK, that’s interesting. Yeah, brilliant.

J : Yeah, it terrifies me.

K : I would think more psychopathic killers with me.

B : OK, yeah that’s quite interesting. That’s some interesting answers, that’s all I need, that’s perfect.

The results from this focus group are actually quite useful, since it gives us an insight into how more mature audiences see psychological thrillers. One particularly interesting point i noticed was that they both agreed that for films that require more deep thought than, for example, an action film or a comedy, its better to sit down quietly and go through the film so that the audience can think about the film more. This means that psychological thrillers have to present very well written and directed scenes in order to keep the audience invested. This focus group has also sown us how other people being in a home makes people feel more secure, so we can use this information and play on that sense of security in order to make the film more tense and exciting for the audience. Finally, the idea of using an evil spirit or a group of spirits in the film, probably as the villain (Propps Theory), however i feel like this would be unnecessarily subverting psychological thriller conventions, since supernatural elements are very rarely used in the genre because they make the films narrative feel much less believable, which is important to use for building tension. Other than that, this focus group has given us some good ideas to consider for making the production more appealing to a more mature audience.

Focus Group 1: 16-18 Age Group

Transcript:

[Do you like films that require deep thought? And why? 

Scott: Yes 

Tom:That’s not why 

Chris: and why? 

Harry: Yes because it makes the film worthwhile and rewarding. Yes. 

Scott: Lots of deep deep thought. 

Harry: I do, its worthwhile if you watch a film that's, youve got to think about it. 

Chris: What is it that makes you feel comfortable in your house? 

Scott: Security 

Harry: My house alarm, and the fact that it will call people if someone was breaking in my house 

Chris: And what makes you feel safe? Other than what you’ve said  

Scott: Security 

Harry: Wow okay 

Scott: My house makes me feel safe 

Harry: There you go. Fire. Place. Not just fire. Because its warm and comforting in a cold house 

Chris: What unsettles you the most? 

Scott: In general 

Chris: Yeah just in general 

Harry: Wait what was the question? 

Chris: What unsettles you the most? 

Harry: hmm this quiz 

Scott: yeah it's pretty unsettling  

Harry: yeah cuz i dont actual experience anything that's unsettling Unfortunately, there isn't much to take from this focus group, but some valuable points are made nevertheless. The most important thing mentioned here is that they consider watching films with complex narratives rewarding and worthwhile, meaning that our genre will appeal to teenagers, and students in particular. They also both agreed that a homes features, such as security, fireplaces, furniture and simply being in their homes is what makes them feel safe and comfortable, so we can play on this by having the scene set in someones home, where the psychopath character breaks into someones home and attacks them; this would be following convention since there are quite a few thrillers that involve home invasions and attacks. Whilst we did get some good information for these two points, I feel like we could've gained even more from this focus group if we made the group slightly larger and took more time for asking and answering the questions.

Technical Research

Draft Survey Analysis

Audience Profiling

Work done by Tom Page

Form Analysis