1. Research
Kieran McConnell-Kipling

2. Audience
Research
(Survey)
Primary Research

3. Survey - Planning
I plan to make a public survey on SurveyMonkey so that I can gain more information from my target
market/audience, that will aid me in my research and project development. This will greatly help me because I will
be able to see what other people’s views on my chosen medium are and I can use this information to make sure my
final product can appeal to this market. Here is a list of potential questions I may include in my Survey, I may change
my mind on which ones I will include (and if I’ll add others):
• Age Range
• This is to help narrow down my main target audience so that once I have finished my product, I can get
answers from the age range that my product would be for and so I can get
• What are your favourite horror movies?
• So I can see how these movies might affect my product
• What would you say was the scariest aspects of these movies?
• To see how I can include elements like it in my product.
• Did you watch their trailers before your first saw the movies?
• If Yes, how accurately did the trailer portray the final film?
• To see if I should make mine an actual scene from the ‘film’, or something made for the trailer.
• Are there any horror trailers that scared you into seeing the film?
• To see how I could potentially use the same techniques in my trailer.
• What would you say is the biggest thing to avoid in a trailer?
• What I should try avoid in my own trailer.

4. Survey – Chosen Questions
• Age Range (e.g. 18-22)
• Under 13
• 14 – 17
• 18 – 25
• 26 – 45
• 46+
• Gender
• Male
• Female
• Prefer not to say
• Are you a fan of Horror Movies?
• Yes or No
• What are your favourite Horror Films?
• What would you say are the scariest aspects of these Films?
• Did you watch the Promotional Trailers prior to watching the
Movie?
• Yes or No
• If Yes, how accurately did the Trailer portray the final film?
• When you watch a horror movie trailer, what is it that draws
you to the film?
• Are there any Horror Trailers that you would say were
successful in presenting the films’ tone or scared you
enough into seeing it?
• What would you say is the biggest thing to try avoid
including in a trailer?
• What cliches are you sick of seeing in horror films?
• If you could give any advice on how to make a good horror
movie/trailer, what would you say?

5. Survey - Where will it be posted?
I posted my survey on the College Teams Group chat
so people in my class could answer it. I also posted
it on two different subreddits; r/HorrorMovies and
r/SurveyExchange. I also sent the survey to a bunch
of my friends on Instagram and Snapchat.

6. Survey - Results From the survey I sent out, I received a total of 15 responses. Whilst I
do wish I received more, the amount I ended up with isn’t too bad.
1.
5
7
3
From these results, I can gather that the
majority of people who’d be interested in
Horror Movies would be aged between
18-24 (with 46% of the people who took
this survey being in this age group), with
people aged between 14-17 and 25-34
taking up the remaining 34% and 20% of
the results. This shows that Horror can be
seen being more popular with teens and
young adults than it is with older adults.
Which helps me in that I can try make
sure my project appeals to this age range.

7. Survey - Results
2.
10
4
1
From these results, I can gather that
out of the fifteen people who took my
survey, the majority of them are male
at 66.6% and only 26.6% are female
(as well as one person who preferred
not to say, but it wouldn’t change
which one was highest any ways). This
could be used to represent how
perhaps males are the biggest fans of
horror movies, are considered the
biggest target market and the main
group I should perhaps focus on.

8. Survey – Results (cont.)
3.
13
2
From these results, I can gather that whilst two of
the fifteen responders don’t like horror movies,
when the remaining responders were asked what
their personal favourite horror film was. There
was a variety of results however, several films that
were mentioned multiple times include Hostel and
Fractured. This helps me quite a bit because it
gives me an idea into what types of films that are
generally liked the most by people. And from this I
can try incorporate the most well liked elements
from these films into my final product so that my
product can appeal to these types of audiences.

9. Survey – Results (cont.)
4. Did you watch the Promotional Trailers, prior to watching the Movie?
8
7
From these results, I can gather that almost half of my intended audience don’t watch any sort of
promotional material such as trailers, clips or adverts. But they rather see the poster for it whilst
online and if they think it looks interesting, they’ll watch it. This means that I have to try make
sure that more final poster design looks as interesting and unique as possible, and to make sure
that it stands out among other horror movie posters that may be put with it.

10. Survey – Results (cont.)
5. If Yes, how accurately did the Trailer portray the final film?
From these results, I can gather that when people did watch the trailers for horror films prior to
(or even after) watching it, a lot of the time, the trailers would end up accurately portraying how
the final film would be, as most of the time they gave enough of the plot to give the viewer
information, but not too much that it spoils the entire film. This helps me because it makes me
want to ensure that my trailer accurately portrays what the film is, whilst giving both enough of
the plot and not spoiling too much of what happens at the same time. So I do believe that this
question does help me with making my product.

11. Survey – Results (cont.)
6. What aspect scares you the most from Horror Movies?
From these results, I can gather that when it comes to what aspects of horror films scare people the
most, there were a variety of answers, however a couple common responses between them all
include jump scares, suspense, disturbing elements that could potentially happen in real life. This
question and it’s responses were extremely useful because it gives me a lot of insight into how I could
ensure that my product incorporates most of these aspects so that it can be the most scary and
thrilling as it possibly can.

12. Survey – Results (cont.)
7. When you watch a Horror Movie Trailer, what is it that draws you to watch it?
3
6
2
2
2
From these results, I can gather that when
people watch a horror movie trailer, the main
element that draws them in is the use of
suspense/tension. With the music & soundtrack
following close behind in second and other
elements such as the director, the kills, the story
and the set being other factors that draw
people in. These results are useful, because I
can use it to make sure that my own project
incorporates at least some sort of suspense &
tension, whilst also making sure that the
music/soundtrack is unique and can draw
people in.

13. Survey – Results (cont.)
8. Are there any Horror Trailers that you would say were successful in presenting the films’ tone or scared you enough into seeing
it?
From these results, I can infer that a trailer which many people believe portrayed it’s respective film
both well & scared the viewers into watching the movie was the 2017 version of IT. This question
and information is very useful to me because it means that I can study the trailer(s) and promotion
for the film and see how well it balances showing the film’s plot and how it incorporates scares and
build up of tension & suspense successfully.

14. Survey – Results (cont.)
9. What cliches are you sick of seeing in horror films/trailers?
From these results, I can gather that in terms of what clichés people are sick of seeing most in
horror films, the most recurring clichés mentioned include cheap jump scares that have very little
or even no build up, the stereotypical grouping with the ‘final girl’ & the ‘black guy dying first’ and
a concept that is just too silly or absurd to be seen as neither realistic nor relatable to ordinary life.
These responses greatly help me when it comes to making my final product, because it means that
I can ensure that my trailer doesn’t include these clichés or tropes so that it can both appeal to my
audience and be seen as something unique and different.

15. Survey – Results (cont.)
10. If you could give any advice on how to make a good horror film/trailer, what would you say?
From these results, I have been given a lot of responses as to how I can make a good horror trailer/film
that would appeal to my target audience. A recurring theme among some of these results is the emphasis
on not giving away too much of the plot by being short and simple yet giving the audience enough
information about it, hiding the killer/antagonist as much as possible and making sure that the score adds
to the rising tension of the trailer. These responses greatly help me with what I should do for my trailer,
because it means that I can try ensure that my work can appeal to my target audience’s wishes for a
horror movie trailer.

16. Audience
Research
(Interview)
Primary Research

17. Interview Potential Questions
For my interview, I am interviewing my friend; Luke Headland. He happens to be good friends
with movie director Josh Stolberg and has worked with him to make the official posters for his
upcoming film: Red Wedding (2021). So I could potentially ask him questions such as:
• When designing a poster, how much of it is based off of what you’re given?
• What do you think makes a unique poster and what should people try avoid when making
one?
• When you’re considering watching a horror movie, what is the main thing that draws you to
watch it? The Poster? The Trailer? The Cast?

18. Interview Questions
Luke Headland (18) – College Student, Movie Poster Designer
When you look at a Movie Poster, what sort of elements do you think are necessary for it to draw you in to watching the film
it’s promoting?
For me personally, less is more when it comes to movie posters. I’m a big fan of minimalism and I think it draws you in a lot easier when there’s
only one main thing to focus on rather than having a cluster of different images on one page.
How well do you think movie posters portray the films they’re promoting? Are there any movie posters
that you can think of that perfectly display the film they’re promoting?
I think they do a pretty good job. For example one of my favourite movie posters is the Theatrical poster for ‘Hostel Part
II’. I like the creepy imagery and minimalism too it and I think it captivates the mood and tone of the film perfectly,
especially with the dim lighting and strong colour tone.
When you’re considering watching a horror movie, what is the main thing that draws you to watch it? The Poster? The Trailer?
The Cast?
Probably both the poster and trailer. Trailers and posters are easy to come across on social media and are often captivating right from the
moment you see them. They’re a good form of media that is easy to spread around and use to get people’s attention.

19. Interview Questions – cont.
Luke Headland (18) – College Student, Movie Poster Designer
When you were designing your posters for ‘Red Wedding’, how many times did you have to go through it and revise it before
you made the final version?
During the making of the posters I was constantly getting different thoughts and ideas. Currently, we only have 3 official posters released but I’ve
made a total of around 25 so far. Making posters is quite challenging especially due to the fact that you’re improving everyday, so you may make a
poster and like it, but a few months on you might dislike it and see all the errors and mistakes easier than you could before. Usually I will create a
version, analyse it visually and go back and make changes. This usually happens 2 or 3 times.
What types of imagery would you say influences you when you’re designing
the posters?
Mainly disturbing and creepy imagery as I think it works best for horror movie posters.
What do you think makes a unique poster and what problems should people try avoid when making one?
Unique, simplistic and creative designs. They stand out more amongst the typical group of movie posters and feel a lot more ‘artistic’, rather than
having plain boring Hollywood cliched posters such as the ‘floating heads’ technique and the teal and orange colour pallet.

20. Interview Analysis
From this interview, I can gather that when it comes to designing posters to accurately
portray the film it’s for (in my case, a horror film), I should try make sure that the designs I
make are unique and creative yet simplistic designs for posters. I should also try make
multiple versions of my poster, so that I can make any changes or improvements to what I
think could be improved. I also have to make sure that any poster or promotional material
that I make, replicates the overall mood and tone of the film and doesn’t make audiences
think it will be a completely different product from what is being promoted. And I should try
avoid my poster using the plain boring Hollywood cliched posters such as the ‘floating
heads’ technique and the teal & orange colour pallet but rather try include disturbing and
creepy imagery to help make it stand out overall.

21. Existing Products
(Films & Shows)
Research
Secondary Research

22. Scream – The Film
Scream is a horror movie that really inspires me due to how it’s story, acting, music
and filming techniques all culminate to make it a very terrifying, shocking and
suspenseful film whilst feeling natural and realistic. The film plays itself as a self-
aware, meta-horror movie were the characters are aware of the conventional horror
movie tropes and feel much more realistic and genuine as they call out the generic
tropes such as never saying ‘I’ll be right back’ or even saying “don’t kill me Mr.
Ghostface, I wanna be in the sequel”. This realistic writing, as well as the effective
scares and shots, is what I hope to make my final product similar to. The film’s opening
scene, inspires me a lot as for my trailer, it was gonna be set within the confines of the
character’s home and in Scream, the entire first 10 minutes is within the confines of
Casey’s house. The writer stated that when having it be set in the house, they “wanted
a house with windows everywhere. Wes was always big on shooting on location. He
always wanted to see out the windows, so that the audience could see the danger, or
not see the danger that was lurking out there.” So whilst my film trailer may not be set
in a house with loads of windows, it’ll still have enough windows that you’ll be able to
see the outside darkness surrounding it in the background of the shot.

23. Scream – The Trailer
In my opinion, the marketing and main trailer released for Scream,
matched the overall tone and feeling of the final film really well.
The trailer overall, gave the best description of the plot without
spoiling any big surprises. It also effectively displayed how the film
was gonna be a sort of meta commentary on the horror genre with
there being several clips in the trailer of the main characters talking
about general horror tropes and rules to survive. The trailer also
includes a narration that is not featured in the film, giving a brief
explanation of the synopsis and the rules the characters (or the
audience) have to follow to survive.
Whilst it is a good trailer, I won’t be borrowing too many ideas from
it as I won’t be including elements like the overlaying narration.

24. Jaws – The Film
Jaws is a movie that inspires me in several ways due to how it uses tools such
as great cinematography, music and atmosphere to help create an extremely
thought-provoking, terrifying and visually scary movie. The film uses a large
array of unique camera shots that all help make the scene convey underlining
themes and messages that aid in making the film that much more meaningful.
The film also uses cinematography really well in that it manages to make the
Shark such a terrifying, dominating presence despite the fact that it’s barely
onscreen. The use of hiding the Shark greatly adds to the suspense of the film
as the audience are watching scenes from the Sharks perspective and they are
left to imagine the terror of what could be hiding in the darkness. This inspires
me because for my product, I hope to have the main antagonist/’monster’ be
hidden from the view of the camera most of the time, so this film really helps in
that it manages to create massive amounts of tension and fear, without even
showing the monster for most of the film. The film also uses music to build
tension as when something bad is gonna happen, the music starts to build up
and get louder. So I hope to use this technique in my product by having the
build up of music be a big part in the scare.

25. Jaws – The Trailer
The original trailer for the film, starts out with a dark, continuous shot from
underwater with an accompanying voice over (which stays in the entire trailer) to
help build up fear and when the Shark attacks, it cuts to a kid playing a Shark
game, and as it shows various shots of families and people at the beach, the title
appears as a juxtaposition against the happy background. With the trailer later
returning to the horror theme afterwards and then towards the end, it mixes in
bits of action and comedy (suggesting I’s not just gonna be a straightforward dark
horror film). This trailer mostly portrays the film well as it displays the terror and
overall theme of the movie well, and the use of action and comedy helps perhaps
draw more people in and make it seem like it could be a film that everyone can
enjoy. This is kind of unique to most horror trailers of the time, as whilst they
would show clips of the film to help give a glimpse to what it’ll be about, they
never really included scenes of the film that would be considered from different
genres. I don’t think I would use this aspect in my trailer, just because I won’t be
able to film lots of scenes (due to the pandemic) which means I can only film a
small amount and I’d want it to portray the product as accurately as possible.

26. It Follows – The Film
It Follows is a psychological, supernatural horror movie that inspires
me a lot in terms of filmmaking, scares and music. This is because the
film effectively uses it’s masterful soundtrack to help build tension and
fear during the right moments. And with the film having a relatively
small budget, the director managed to make the audience feel
paranoia with almost every scene due to the fact that the monster can
look like anyone in a crowd, and you can never know if the people in
the background of the shot are just regular people, or the monster
slowly at a distance towards the main character(s). The music also aids
greatly to the suspense, with it being very pulsating and synth-heavy to
help build up the scare factor when ‘It’ is approaching the main
character. For my project, I hope to maybe incorporate the same
uneasy feeling in the film of never being safe and that anything can
happen no matter wjhere you are. I also hope to maybe have a similar
sort of soundtrack with it being repetitive but frightening as it plays.

27. It Follows – The Trailer
In terms of the promotion and trailer for It Follows. It portrays the film
very well, with the trailer giving a very good view on what the plot of
the film is, whilst also giving the audience enough information that
they’d want to know more. It also incorporates the film’s unique
soundtrack very well by having it get louder and more ferocious as the
trailer progresses. The trailer starts off as seemingly innocent enough
and more light-hearted but by 2/5th of the way, it starts to show what
the actual plot of the film is, it both gives us answers about what’s
going on, but even more questions about how everything will go down.
If I were to do more than a teaser, I would maybe incorporate a lot of
elements like how it promotes the film’s plot and events. But seen as
I’m just doing a teaser, I will just be incorporate elements such as the
use of music.

28. Buffy the Vampire Slayer - The Show
The 1997 show; Buffy the Vampire Slayer inspires me in how it’s unique dialogue is
written and how it portrays genuine interaction between people and friends
compared to most other shows. This is prevalent with how Joss Whedon (the
creator) used elements of his own way of talking to create what is nicknamed;
‘Buffy-speak’. Which is often described as "smart but whimsical characters with
inarticulate modes of expression, and self-aware pop culture references“.
The show is also an inspiration to me as how it manages to create genuine moments
of horror and fear, through use of it’s talented writing, design and directing.
The show also uses it’s monsters, creatures and bad guys as
metaphors/representations of troubles and issues that teenagers in general go
through life as they journey from being in High School, to being a young adult.
This inspires me because I hope to make my main characters be around the same
age as this shows cast and have them talk in a more natural way similar to how the
characters in Buffy do, I also hope to maybe incorporate the theme of the
villain/monster being a metaphor for a real life issue for teens.

29. Buffy the Vampire Slayer – The Trailers
In terms of the promotional trailers for Buffy The Vampire Slayer
during it’s seven-season run, at the beginning they portrayed
the show well but by the end of the Show’s run/when it came to
Season Seven. The show had changed from the slightly cheesy,
family friendly battle of good vs evil into something much more
dark, mature and interesting. However the promotional trailers
for Season Seven didn’t show this, they still used loud and silly
pop music.
Whilst I may be inspired by the show on how I’ll do my product,
I won’t be using the trailers/promos for inspiration with my
work as they just don’t fit with the theme of what I want to do.

30. Scream – The Show
The MTV ‘Scream’ Show is a massive inspiration for me because of how it manages
to make a slasher film work as a television show. The first season is a “whodunit”
series, with fingers constantly pointing as new secrets come to light. It does
however, have a lot of twists and turns that are actually quite well written, from big
character reveals, to absolutely shocking deaths. Whilst the second season has a
bigger mystery that honestly feels much more darker and unique than Season One,
it also focus’ a lot on the protagonist “Emma’s” psychology and mental state due to
the events of the previous season. With there being a lot of moments of her
thinking she’s been attacked by the killer or has fought them but in reality, there
was no one there, leading the audience to wonder if perhaps ‘Emma’ is actually
the killer but doesn’t even realise it. The show also has a lot of gore and violence
when it comes to some of the kills, with one death having a very unique camera
shot showing the mother’s reaction as it pans out from the gap where her son’s
split open head is on display on both sides of the shot.
This show inspires my project because there are certain elements like the overall
story-arcs and focus on a character’s psychology that I potentially would want to
focus on in my project.

31. Scream – The Trailers
In terms of the trailers and promotion for MTV’s Scream, I’d say it properly
described the show by Season 2. To start with, the Season 1 trailers (at least the
early ones), only showed the mask once and barely showed any violence besides
from the opening kill to go with it, it felt more like it was just gonna be a teen
drama rather than a teen slasher (whilst the show still is a teen drama in reality, it
mixes in the slasher and drama aspects much better than the trailers lead the
audience to believe). Season 2 is where the promotion starts to represent the
show much better, the music choice is also much better as it fits with a big plot
point in the show and it’s been changed to make it seem more scarier and scarier
as the trailer progresses. It also makes the audience question who the second
killer could be and if there’s a chance it could very well be the main protagonist by
having the cast members faces cut in-between shots in the same places as the
masked killer.
So I’d say that the Season 2 trailers are much more inspirational to me as the eeriness and editing from it match the
style I’m potentially interested in having my work be like.

32. Research Analysis
From my Existing Films and Shows/Products Research, there are several elements from
each film and their respective trailers that I believe are very useful to me, for when I make
my Final Major Project. A common factor between each of them is their music and score,
the use of the score in each film (and show) helps elevate the tension and atmosphere
within each scene. Another common factor between some of them is the use of realistic
and relatable characters, as it makes everything feel more natural and believable as the
characters would do what any normal person would do during these situations. And one
common element between some of the trailers, is the technique of hiding the
antagonist/monster/villain from being shown during the trailer. This is a good way to scare
the audience, because it gives them the freedom for it to be left to interpretation on what
the enemy looks like.

33. Existing Products
(Other)
Research
Secondary Research

34. The Blair Witch Project - Poster
This poster inspires me, due to how it’s presented and how it portrays it’s
respective film. Some elements to point out are the use of the simple
monochrome colour scheme displays the realism in the film with the use of red
acting as something to grab the audience’s attention as it colours a mysterious
unknown symbol, this would make the viewer want to see the film to find out
what this actually is. The use of red also has connotations of blood and death,
linking to the film’s overall horror theme. The images used such as the
decayed/dead trees also add to the scary effect by showing how the film takes
place in an abandoned/old location. And the use of the low angled extreme close-
up of the character has been done in a hand held way to highlight the realism of
the film and the fact that their surroundings aren’t shown can also symbolise the
feeling of getting lost/being alone which would draw the viewer in even more as
they’d want to know the character got in this situation. When it comes to my
poster, I hope to incorporate elements such as the close up on the face to help
build realism and the sense of paranoia for my film, and use of a monochrome
colour scheme so the parts that I want to be most visible, stand out much more.

35. Scream (TV Series) – Poster(s)
This batch of character posters for MTV’s Scream inspire me because of
their style/formatting with the picture of the character torn to reveal a
hidden Ghostface mask. I believe this is executed well because it plays on
the murder-mystery aspect of the show and how everyone you know has
something hidden about them beneath the image of themselves they
show to the world. The use of the torn paper effect makes it feel more
realistic and conveys the message of the truth behind the picture even
more. When talking about the main character’s poster, it also relates to
her storyline in the season where it’s possible she’s going through severe
PTSD and is actually the killer but doesn’t realise it, so the picture of her
screaming in terror, could actually just be hiding the true killer
underneath. I hope to incorporate elements from these into my poster(s)
such as the closeup shots and perhaps the hidden image underneath.

36. Steven Spielberg - Director
Steven Spielberg is a movie director who has inspired me a lot thanks to
films like Jaws and Jurassic Park. Within all his varying films in his ever
expanding career, his cinematography is one aspect that his creative
talents are shown in great effect. He uses such a massive variety of
camera shots, angles and lenses to convey meaning through every single
shot in his films, no matter what is in the shot, it always has meaning.
For example, in a scene from his film Munich, it’s only a few seconds but
it uses a massive variety of camera shots. When the target approaches
and enters the store it uses a single shot, when it shows both the target
and a cashier it’s a 2-shot, when the target walks away and out of the
door it’s a single shot and then it does a deep focus to show the person
in the car watching him from the background. This was all done in a
single take.

37. IT (2017) - Music
The music and soundtrack from the 2017 IT Movie inspires me quite a bit
for my project. This is because it uses several elements and techniques that
all create a constant and ever rising growth of tension as it gradually gets
more haunting, chilling and downright terrifying. It accomplishes this by
not only using vocals to add to the uneasiness. But it also uses other
sounds and noises integrated into the rhythm of the music such as
screaming voices, traditional aleatoric, harsh string-writing, roaring horns
and synthetic pulses and buzzes. “You’ll Float Too” for example, has a great
train of terror: It starts with a short pulsating buzz suddenly interrupted by
unleashed, distorted screams that will shatter your eardrums. Then it gets
a bit quieter for a second as the electronics buzz only to get followed by
shrieking strings.

38. Existing Products
(Target Audience)
Research
Secondary Research

39. Target Audience - Age
From my research into which age ranges is Horror most popular in, I have found that the
younger generation (age range between 18-24) are the biggest fans of Horror & Thriller
movies, and as people get older the percentage drops significantly. With the rate for Horror
fans in the US dropping from 68% at the ages of 18-29 to a mere 30% by the ages of 65+.
And that when it comes to the percentage of moviegoers, paranormal and sci-fi horror fans
both make up 13% of audiences, with their ages being around 32% younger than the overall
moviegoing audience.

40. Target Audience - Gender
From my research into which gender watches Horror Movies (and films in general) the most, I
have found that Males watch more films than Females in general. Starting with general
blockbusters, 56% of viewers are male whilst 44% are female. Regarding Sci-Fi films, there is a
larger difference between male and female viewers with 67% being male and a small 33%
being female. However, when it comes to Paranormal/Horror films, the female percentage is
much closer to the male percentage with 51% of males and an impressive 49% of female
horror fans.

41. Target Audience - Psychographics
From my research into which psychographic fits with my project’s chosen theme of Horror,
and the Psychographic that I believe are the target audience are ‘Explorers’. This is because
people who are considered ‘Explorers’, are the type of people who like to challenge
themselves, discover new things and are attracted to new or innovative brands, products and
experiences as the main thing they seek is discovery.

42. Target Audience - Geodemographic
From my research into which areas/countries Horror Movies are most popular in, I have found
that in countries such as Mexico and South Korea, Horror Movies are extremely popular.
However in countries such as China and Japan, horror films are not very well liked. This is most
likely due to how these countries (specifically China) are very strict with what’s allowed to be
watched with their being many restrictions such as no movies containing ideas not based on
scientific fact (including ghosts, religion, time travel, the supernatural and superstition).

43. Target Audience - Analysis
From my target audience research, I believe this research was useful because it has given
me key audience information that I can use to incorporate into my Final Major Project. Such
as the fact that regarding Horror, the most popular age range is 18-24 year olds, despite
being close in score, more men watch horror films compared to women, the stereotypical
people who watch Horror are ‘Explorers’, the people who like to challenge themselves,
discover new things and are attracted to new or innovative brands, products and
experiences as the main thing they seek is discovery and that the countries that horror films
are most popular in, are Mexico and South Korea. And with this information, I can use it to
ensure that my product can appeal to each of these groups of people.

44. Existing Products
(Reviews)
Research
Secondary Research

45. Scream
From what I can tell from the good review, the film may have been well liked more by someone of
the target audience (i.e. teens or young adults) and from it, I can gather what it is that I should try
include to make my product liked by the same audience. I can also gather that for my work to be
successful, my film should be ‘unpredictably scary’, have both a good script with good characters
and be a ‘typical horror film’. The negative review however, suggests that if I fail this however, my
product could end up being seen as a ‘fifth-rate screenplay about teenagers terrorized by an all-too-
clever serial killer’ that is ‘smug and unreal’ and feels like a ‘TV-movie’. So when I’m making my final
film/trailer, I should make sure that my product doesn’t convey any of these negative aspects.

46. Jaws
Despite my film not being a nature-horror like Jaws, it’s use of suspense and tension inspire me for when I
make my own product. And from this positive review, I can see what I should do to make my film/trailer
just as suspenseful and impactful. This review mentions how the film’s cinematography is ‘superb in it’s
ruthless attempts to bring the audience to the depths of a powerful ocean’. Another aspect they praised is
the score, which uses ‘creepy piano notes’ in the title sequence alone and helps the listener feel more
unease as they look through the Shark’s eyes in the uncharted blue depths beneath the sea. Where as the
the negative review however, claims that it’s ‘way too simple’ and is just ‘dull, boring and unwatchable’.
Overall, I can use both of these reviews to help me with making my product, as I can take elements from
the positive review such as the use of cinematography and score to further add to the suspense of my
film and I can also try appealing to the negative review by making sure my idea isn’t too simple and dull.

47. It Follows
From this positive review, I can gather that one way I can make an impact on my audience, is by having the opening
scene catch the audience ‘completely by surprise’ and make sure it ‘sets the bar very high’, It Follows does this in a
way that it feels like it’s showing that the director ‘has no remorse in punching below the belt’. Another element the
review praises is the score, which is ‘incredibly savvy’ and is ‘almost a character on it’s own’. The negative review
however, sees the film’s narrative in a negative light, as they view it as ‘boring from the start until the very end’ with
a ‘stupid story’. The fact that ‘you get no backstory’ was also a key element in their negative view on the film as a
whole. Overall, I can infer from both of these reviews when making my own product, as from the positive review, I
can try make sure that my opening scene is impactful and the score is so prominent that it could be seen as a
character. And from the negative review, I can appeal to this audience by making sure my product has a unique
narrative as well as more backstory to the main antagonist.

48. Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Despite Buffy being a TV show, there’s certain elements . And from this positive review, I can
infer that some elements the show does well include the ‘humour, action and romance’, the
dialogue as well as it’s ‘incredibly well-written, believably flawed characters’. Were as the
negative review sees these in a negative light, claiming it has ‘childish dialogue’ and ‘selfish’
characters, with the reviewer unable to watch past Season Three. Overall, whilst I can
understand the negative reviewer’s points, I will mostly be inferring from the positive review, due
to the fact that the ‘childish dialogue’ and ‘selfish’ characters (according to the negative
reviewer), is intentionally done to make the dialogue feel more natural and down to earth, same
with the characters who are presented as being flawed but complex teenagers.

49. From this positive review, some elements I believe I should focus on if I want to appeal to my general audience, is to
make sure that my product’s ‘story clearly explains the motives of the killer’, ensure that ‘there’s a good mystery to
it’, well acted characters and that the ‘story doesn’t deviate with any unwanted segments’. Were as the negative
review however, claims that the show ‘tries to show how clever it thinks it is by referencing old horror films and
shoving social media in our face nonstop’, uses actors who were ‘obviously too old for high school’ and that the
opening scene/kill ‘isn’t scary or particularly that well done’ and this caused them to stop watching after the first
episode. Overall, I can use both of these reviews as a way to make sure that my product appeals to a wider
audience, by ensuring that the story of my product explains the motives & makes the characters feel both real &
genuine, make sure that I cast age-appropriate actors, don’t waste too much time on non-important scenes and
don’t rely too much on expositional nostalgic horror movie knowledge.
Scream (MTV)

50. Audience Reviews Analysis
After doing my Audience Review Research, I believe this research was very useful to me
because it has given me insight into what I can try incorporate into my work to ensure that it
appeals to my main target audiences. This is because I can use the points that both the
positive reviews said worked with each movie, and use the negative points from the negative
reviews to see what it is that I should try to avoid when making my product. Such as having an
emphasis on the score, well written but flawed characters, include a unique & shocking
introduction scene and a good use of cinematography to raise tension within the scene. I
should also make sure that my product doesn’t have a generic run-of-the-mill plot that isn’t
seen as being ‘smug’, little to no focus on the killer’s motives &/or backstory, long-lasting
‘dull’ moments or actors who don’t look appropriately aged to the characters that they’re
supposed to be portraying.

51. Bibliography
• Anon. (1997) Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Available: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118276/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0
• Anon. (N/A) It Follows. Available: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3235888/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0
• Anon. (1977) Jaws. Available: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0073195/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0
• Anon. (1996) Scream. Available: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0117571/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_1
• Anon. (2015) Scream: The TV Series. Available: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3921180/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_4
• Crucchiola, J. (2015). What Makes the New Horror Film It Follows So Damn Good. Available: https://www.wired.com/2015/03/it-follows-unholy-
trinity/.
• Evening, S. (2012). Horror Audience Research. Available: https://saraeveninga2media.wordpress.com/2012/10/09/audience-research/.
• Fischer, D. (2011). Science Fiction Film Directors, 1895-1998. North Carolina: McFarland. p. 548.
• Follows, S. (2016). The Relative Popularity of Genres Around the World. Available: https://americanfilmmarket.com/relative-popularity-genres-around-
world/#:~:text=Cinema%20audiences%20in%20Mexico%20and,well%20in%20Japan%20and%20China.
• H. Heidkamp, B. (2017). It by Benjamin Wallfisch (Sountrack Review). Available: https://behindtheaudio.com/2017/09/benjamin-wallfisch-
soundtrack-review/.
• Lannom, S.C. (2019). Steven Spielberg Movies: Filmmaking Style & Cinematography Techniques. Available:
https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/steven-spielberg-movies-filmmaking-style/.
• Parker, Z. (2014). Shot-by-Shot: More than 100 reasons why I love Steven Spielberg's 'Jaws'. Available: https://viewandreview.com/?p=370.
• Rubin, R. (2018). Diverse Audiences Are Driving the Horror Box Office Boom. Available: https://variety.com/2018/film/box-office/horror-movies-
study-1202994407/.
• Shapiro, L. (2018). The Story Behind Scream’s 12-Minute, Still-Terrifying Opening Scare. Available: https://www.vulture.com/2018/12/scream-
opening-scene-drew-barrymore-backstory.html.
• Shapiro, L. (2018). The Story Behind Scream’s 12-Minute, Still-Terrifying Opening Scare. Available: https://www.vulture.com/2018/12/scream-
opening-scene-drew-barrymore-backstory.html.
• Stoll, J. (2021). Favourite film genres in the U.S. 2018, by age group. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/949810/favorite-movie-
genres-in-the-us-by-age/.
• Unknown. (Unknown). The Slanguage of Buffy. Available: https://conlangs-slang-and-buffy.weebly.com/the-slanguage-of-buffy.html.

52. Bibliography – Movies, Shows, etc.
• Craven, W. (1996) Scream
• Craven, W. (2015-2016) Scream
• Muschietti, A. (2017) IT
• Rober Mitchell, D. (2015) It Follows
• Roth, E. (2007) Hostel: Part II
• Sánchez, E. Myrick, D. (1999) The Blair Witch Project
• Spielberg, S. (1975) Jaws
• Spielberg, S. (1993) Jurassic Park
• Spielberg, S. (2005) Munich
• Stolberg, J. (2021) Red Wedding
• Whedon, J. (1997-2003) Buffy The Vampire Slayer