WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT FROM YOUR

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK?Evaluation Question 3

Importance of Test ScreeningsTest Screenings are vital to films to accomplish a successful film fit for my demographic audience. This allows the creators to receive honest and critical feedback to inform improvements. Many film producers use this such as Paranormal Activity which was showcased at a variety of film festivals for around a year before its worldwide release.

Another great example of the advantage of test screening is The Woman in Black as they did two test screenings. To begin with they did a variation of ad campaigns to create a successful buzz. When receiving feedback one negativity was not enough jump scares therefore they created more . Along with this the protagonist within the film is Daniel Radcliff who too advertised his film on YouTube as well as social networking sites. I have also created a YouTube channel to receive feedback on my draft trailer in the comments and by the number of viewings, likes and dislikes it receives.

Director Steven Spielberg is a prime example of test audience to identify what they want in a horror film. screening success. For instance when Spielberg watched Paranormal Activity at his Pacific Palisades estate in his bathroom he identified the door was locked which lead him to believe that the film was haunted. This created a massive buzz within the film world, attracting attention towards the film. Film festivals are great to use as you can over watch the audience live reaction when they watch the film for the first time. Both positive and negative feedback are great when receiving feedback from your target

Audience FeedbackPrior to our creation of our trailer and group feedback we created a survey on Survey Monkey to question our target audience on what sub-genre is most successful. From this we identified our target audiences psychographics by focusing on their opinions and interests within the horror genre to allows us as a group to create a narrative which is based around the preferences of our demographic audiences.

After the creation of the our horror trailer draft we did a test screening with our class who are our target audience. After this we filmed the group feedback so we are able to refer back to it in the future. We asked for both positive and negative feedback to identify what our audience want within a film. This allowed me to understand the significance of a test screening as it enabled us to understand the audiences likes and dislikes. We also witnessed a live reaction from our audience when they watched it for the first time which allowed us to spectate the success of the jump scares within the trailer.

Feedback: TRAILER• NEGATIVE FEEDBACK:Before receiving feedback as a group we had many concerns about certain areas including the narrative structure of the film as a whole and soundtrack. This was correct when receiving the group feedback as many suggested intertitles to explain the narrative as well as create suspense. Also the group commented on how the music didn’t flow continuously as it was jumpy therefore we changed the music to fit the trailer. Along with this we added hits and rises to create tension when a jump scare appears. Another sound issue was that the dialogue was unclear when the priest was present so I manipulated the sound to increase the noise level making it clear and understandable.

POSITIVE FEEDBACK:We received a variation of positivity with the camera shots and angles used to portray the antagonist as the ‘villain’, such as the end scene of Miss Anderson walking towards the camera. This consisted of a static camera which I edited to become fasted as well as inserted flashes to create a blinking effect. Another positive acknowledgment was the location of filming as it created ambient sound and added suspense.

Feedback: POSTER• For my poster I asked a selection of my target audience to analyse my draft poster

with both positive and negative feedback to improve on.

POSITIVE FEEDBACK: Most people liked the image I used as it signified iconography pf the horror genre as well as the religion aspect of the film. Also this is eye-catching as the image is supported well against the colour pallet used. The colours were also mentioned within the feedback as they are all typical conventions of a horror poster and create contrast. Another positivity is that the composition of the image works well as it pulls in potential target audience.

NEGATIVE FEEDBACK:Most mentioned that the image could be a bit darker to give the assumption of the film being a horror. Therefore I added dark mist and change the exposure of the image on Photoshop to make it darker. Also the composition of the title and credits needs to switched as it looks to messy therefore I moved the title and credits together in the lower bottom of the poster and created a headline at the top of the poster to attract viewers.

POSTERBEFORE (Now Draft) AFTER (Final Poster)

Feedback: MAGAZINE• For my magazine I asked a selection of my target audience to analyse my draft

magazine front cover with both positive and negative feedback to improve on.

POSITIVE FEEDBACK:Again my target audience really appreciated my main image as it resembled my film truthfully as it’s a horror with religious aspects. This was supported as the picture was captured in a graveyard with Miss Anderson lurking behind a tree.Also the dark mist was mentioned to also add to the typical convention of a horror.

NEGATIVE FEEBACK:The colour palette was complimented on however some mentioned it is quite dull and less eye catching. Therefore I added yellow to the colour scheme as it attracts potential viewers and consumers. Another improvement was making the image darker as it looks too bright and sunny so instead I dimmed the image down on Photoshop making the atmosphere more tense and daunting

MAGAZINE FRONT COVERBEFORE (Now Draft) AFTER (Final Magazine Front Cover)