Q.5 How did you attract/address your...

Q.5 How did you attract/address your audience.

Q.5 HOW DID YOU ATTRACT/ ADRESS YOUR AUDIENCE.

Fardad Khayami A-Level Media Evaluation Questions.

- Fardad Khayami A-Level Mediai

Q.5 How did you attract/address your audience.

TABLE OFCONTENTS1: Heading 1- Soundtrack3: Heading 2- Casting6: Heading 3- Violence8: Heading 4- Villain weapon10: Heading 5- Jump Scares12: Heading 6- Mise-En-Scene14: Heading 7- Distribution

- Fardad Khayami A-Level Mediaii

Q.5 How did you

HEADING 1 : SOUNDTRACK

Soundtrack creates tension within horror films, drawing in audiences to watch my product. I used Filmstro to produce the soundtrack.

SOUNDTRACK IN HORROR

Soundtrack is vital in horror films, it adds to the dramatic effect, is very effective in creating tension and heightens the level of thrills for the audience.

“The Soundtrack Works Well And Builds up tension To The Jumps.”Quote From Audience At A Screening For The Opening Sequence Of, ‘The Last House’ At The Harrodian School.

- Fardad Khayami A-Level Media1

Q.5 How did you

SOUNDTRACK TO CREATE TENSION

As the soundtrack emphasizes the fear of the sequence, it will increase the thrill that the audience receive when watching my product. Therefore, attracting them to watch the rest of ‘The Last House’. Audiences watch horror movies for the ‘thrill’ that it provides, as it is a form of escapism. The soundtrack made the sequence more tense, therefore heightening the levels of thrills that audiences receive from watching the sequence, therefore attracting them to my product.

SOUNDTRACK TO CREATE FALSE JUMP SCARES

The soundtrack also allowed me to include false jump scares within my sequence. False jump scares are when the audience falsely think something bad is about to happen. An example in my sequence is when I use the soundtrack to build up the event of the villain breaking through the bedroom doors. The music builds up to a max while zooming in on the door; it then blacks out at the point where the audience would anticipate that the villain will break in. False jump scares add tension to the sequence, heightening the excitement the audience receive, and therefore attracting more viewers to my product.

SOUNDTRACK TO ADRESS HORROR FANS

My sequence is instantly recognisable to be a horror from the first 10 seconds of watching because of the sound score that I made using Filmstro. This addresses the horror fans, as they will want to carry on watching after hearing the tense opening in the soundtrack, before the sequence has actually begin. They will do this as they know as a horror, my sequence will give them thrills.

2 - Fardad Khayami A-Level Media

Q.5 How did you

HEADING 2:CASTING

The casting was very important in ensuring success in my sequence. I casted Lauren Edwards (Left, 16) as the victim, and Lucas Donavan (Right, 17) as the villain.

CASTING IN HORRORS

Casting the right actors was vital for drawing my audience in. Horror films stereotypically have low quality actors, therefore I was not too interested in Lauren’s or Lucas’ acting ability, more interested on their looks. I needed Lauren to be able to make audience members sympathise with her in order to make the sequence more intense. I also needed Lucas to look dominant on screen, to look believable as a killer.

“The Villain Looks Very Dominating... The Victim Looks So Innocent; I Really Didn’t Want Her To Get Hurt!”3 - Fardad Khayami A-Level Media

Q.5 How did you

Quote From 6th Former At The Harrodian School.

BRITISH ACTORS

As FAMK productions is a British production company, my product will be released in the UK, therefore the sequence will attract a British audience. I chose to cast upcoming British actors, in order to attract British audience, as they want to see their countries young and upcoming actors, as they feel a sense of pride when watching.

Villain

My villain is broad shouldered and tall, giving him a powerful physique that has great presence on screen. This makes my villain look more daunting, which will attract audience as a menacing villain adds to the thrill of the sequence, heightening the audience’s enjoyment from watching my product.

Victim

My victim will allow female audiences in the same age range (15-25 See Q.4) to put themselves into the victim’s shoes when watching the sequence. By this I mean they will have personal identity with


Q.5 How did you

the victim, everybody has been alone at night so this audience group will be able to connect with the victim, making the sequence scarier, adding to the thrill that my product provides, making that audience group want to carry on watching the rest of the film.

This connection with my victim will also create long-term scares. Next time they are home alone, they will be reminded of the sequence and have the psychological fear that someone may break into their house, though this is highly unlikely and will not happen. This psychological fear adds to the thrill that the sequence provides in the long term, a fear that many people want from leaving a horror film and therefore attracting more audiences to my sequence.

I deliberately chose an attractive, 16-year-old girl who would potentially appeal to males of the same age group. ‘Star appeal’ means that audiences go to see a film due to the person who plays main character eg. Michelle Gellar, Neve Campbell and Drew Barrymore. Although not the lead role, she plays the protagonist in the opening and therefore will have the same effect.


Q.5 How did you

HEADING 3: VIOLENCE

Violence is not a convention of modern horror films, however I decided to include it for dramatic effect.

VOILENCE WITHIN MY SEQUENCE

Violence in my sequence occurs during the final few moments, when the victim is murdered by the antagonist. I decided to add violence in the scene to make my film stand out from the current trend of supernatural villains. I could not however add gore to my sequence, due to the complexity of these effects.

“The End Scene Was Very Frightening. Nice Way To End The Sequence”Quote From Media Student At The Harrodian School.


Q.5 How did you

ATTRACTING MALE AUDIENCE

The violence in my sequence will attract male viewers. Males tend to enjoy the action genre that feature a lot of violence. They enjoy this due to the primal triggers that set off when watching violence on screen. They will feel the same way when watching the end of my sequence, therefore attracting more male and action movie fans to watch the sequence and carry on watching the rest of the film.

VIOLENCE TO CREATE FEAR

The violence in my film is also very raw. This may be scary to some viewers, especially the female viewers who are not normally exposed to violence on screen. This is due to the fact they don’t watch as many action films as men do, meaning they are more sensitive to the violence. This makes my sequence scarier for these viewers, adding to the thrill of the sequence, and therefore achieving the goals of a horror film’s opening sequence.


Q.5 How did you

HEADING 4: VILLIAN’S WEAPON

In my sequence, I wanted to be original. I haven’t seen a horror film that uses a shovel as a main murder weapon. I found this surprising as it is a visually scary tool that could easily inflict a mass amount of damage.

THE SHOVEL

Not many modern horror films’ antagonists use weapons, due to the current trend in supernatural villains. I decided not to follow this trend. The villain is in the working class and therefore uses the same shovel for his labour job, another reason for using this weapon.

“Thought The Shovel Was An Original Idea”Quote From Media Teacher At The Harrodian School.


Q.5 How did you

HOUSEHOLD TOOL

Not many horror films choose to use a shovel as a murder weapon. Shovels are a common and household tool. The shovel will create long-term scares for the audience, as every time they see one they may be reminded of the horror in my sequence. This intensifies the long-term thrill that my sequence provides for the audience, adding excitement through escapism, which will attract more viewers to the sequence.

ORIGINALITY

The shovel is also an original idea that I had for the villain. Audiences are always attracted to fresh, new ideas within film, especially indie film lovers, due to the stereotypical view of the conglomerates. The ‘Big 6’, recycle the same old material, leading to the frustration of many film lovers and indie film makers. The originality of my sequence, having a villain with no supernatural ability/ using a shovel, will attract these viewers to at least watch the opening sequence. Hopefully this will draw them into wanting to continue to watching the rest of the film, meaning success for the opening sequence.


Q.5 How did you

HEADING 5: JUMP SCARES

Jump scares are used in my horror film in order to create short term scares for the audience to keep them on the edge of their seat.

JUMP SARES WITHIN THE SEQUENCE

There are multiple jump scares during my sequence. The First Bang, The Second Bang, The Bedroom Scene and The Murder Scene. These jump scares are used to surprise the audience, catching them off guard.

“The Bangs On The Door Really Got Me”Quote From Audience At A Screening For The Opening Sequence Of, ‘The Last House’


Q.5 How did you

SHORT-TERM SCARES

The Jump Scares alongside the psychological scares contribute to the fear that a horror creates. Jump scares provide more short-term scares while the psychological scares are what “keep you up at night” and tend to occur during the film as long-term scares. Opening sequences conventionally have many jump scares in order to engage the audience. The scares will attract my audience as it adds to the thrill of the sequence, providing more escapism for those viewing, leading to audience members to become frightened and anxious. This adds to the excitement that my product provides, which addresses and attracts more audience to my media product.


Q.5 How did you

HEADING 6: MISE-EN-SCENE

A shot from my film with the Union Jack hung up in the background, adding to the Mise-En-Scene.

MISE-EN-SCENE WITHIN MY SEQUENCE

Mise-En-Scene was a topic of focus for me. The best Hollywood films put great detail in the Mise-en-scene, so I have tried to replicate that.

“The Villains Jacket Makes Him Look So Scary!”Quote From Audience At A Screening For The Opening Sequence Of, ‘The Last House’ At The Harrodian School.


Q.5 How did you

UNION JACK

I placed a Union Jack above the staircase and can be seen in various shots. The Union Jack will be recognized by the British audience and shows that the victim is clearly British. The British audience will then side with her even more, making the audience even more invested into the sequence towards the closing moments. This then makes the sequence more thrilling to this audience, attracting them to watch the film.

The Union Jack also tells the audience that this is a British Production. This will draw in British audience as they are more likely to support a product that has identified itself as British, therefore making it more likely that they would like to watch the rest of the

film.

TEA

My victim is drinking tea before she first encounters the villain. Drinking the tea is a sign of innocence for the character. This innocence will make the audience sympathise with victim, increasing the thrill in ending moments of the sequence when she is in danger, and therefore improving the experience the sequence provides.


Q.5 How did you

HEADING 7: DISTRIBUTION

I am distributing my opening sequence on YouTube and Vimeo.

DISTRIBUTING ON SOCIAL MEDIA.

As ‘The Last House’ is an independent student film, I will not be looking to make any profits from the film, and therefore uploading my product onto popular free viewing sites; YouTube, Vimeo.

“I Made This Film Out Of Just Pure Passion For Film Making… [Not] For Any Profits”A Quote From The Director Fardad Khayami From His Interview On The Lucas Donavan Experience Podcast.


Q.5 How did you

YOUTUBE

Distributing on sites that require no membership deals makes the film more available from the targeted audience (See Q.4). As an indie film it unlikely the targeted audience will want to pay to watch my film, therefore I have chosen to distribute it on YouTube where my audience can watch the sequence free of charge. Everybody uses YouTube therefore I will upload it to their servers to open up to as much audience that I possibly can.

VIMEO

I have also chosen to distribute the film on Vimeo, this will attract other indie film makers to watch my product, as Vimeo doesn’t attract as many traffic as YouTube yet their audience tends to be individuals who are interested in the media industry e.g.- Singers, Filmmakers etc. Other indie film makers would want ‘The Last House’ to support my product, therefore opening my product to those sectors aswel.


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