Audience Research

Potential Audience

Over the last few years the creation of short films has increased this is because of technology which has enabled many people to create films in short amount of time.Short films are not profit- oriented; they are mainly created for the self-promotion of directors, to be entered in film festivals and competitions- they are like a ‘stepping stone’ and to gain experience.

The target audience would effect the content in the film. Feature length films have more potential audiences because they have much more publicity, as the trailers/posters/adverts are shown in various locations such as on television, near cinemas, stations and bus stops the public becomes more aware of them compared to short films which are not normally as heard of. The main reason for this is the budget which is much less than main stream films, as short films are normally 5-10 minutes less money is needed to create them therefore there is also less publicity otherwise more would have to be spent on publicity compared to the actual film. 

Other ways how short films are distributed is through the internet again with due to technology, people from all over the world are able to see short film with sites such as YouTube and the BBC Film Network (some films are also shown on the official websites of the director/creator) and this enables the creator to easily share their work as people of different ages visit these sites. However not many people do search for short films as they are not main stream as do not get as much publicity as feature length films. therefore it would not easily reach target audiences.

The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) classifies all films in created in the UK. There are six categories where films can be classified into and there are ‘U’ which is suitable for all, ‘PG’- Parental Guidance, ’12’ and ‘12A’- Not suitable for children under the age of 12 however may see the film accompanied with an adult, ’15’, ‘18’ and ‘R18’.

The reason for why films are classified is because of the content- some scenes may disturb/be harmful to different audiences. For example horror film may upset younger children making them unsuitable therefore there would be an age limit so the child must be at least a particular age before they can watch the film. An example for this is Paranormal Activity 3 was rated 15 as it contained strong language and threats which would not suit anyone younger than this age.

The aim for short film relates tends to relate to the purpose if short film. One of the main reasons is for self-promotion. Therefore, the film is aimed at people who go to film festivals and competitions or even talent scouts. As short films are typically used as experimentation for aspiring and established film directors, the audiences would not be as wide as a feature length film. An example of this would be Cherries by Tom Harper. The 15 minute film was about a class of 16 year olds who were being called to the front line. The film would have been shown in schools from year 10 upwards on the issue of a  

But that main reason is for self-promotion as it won an award in the Virgin Short Film festival. However, short films are not always used for self-promotion. Alive In Joburg and Double Take are clear examples

Survey

Analysis of survey results