Main Task Audience Research

Main Task Audience Research

Horror films are meant to scare and excite people - therefore none of them are suitable for young children. A horror will be at least a PG (Parental Guidance) but will most probably be either a 12A, 12, 15 or 18.

Our horror film will be rated as a 12. We are aware that only creating the opening sequence for a film means that our piece will not necessarily contain all of the elements that make it the rating that it is, however it will introduce the themes that we will have to rate, therefore, we will choose a rating for the whole film and not just the opening.

The bbfc (British Board of Film Classification) states: 'Films classified 12A and video works classified 12 contain material that is not generally suitable for children aged under 12. No one younger than 12 may see a 12A film in a cinema unless accompanied by an adult. Adults planning to take a child under 12 to view a 12A film should consider whether the film is suitable for that child.' We have decided that our film will not be suitable for any children under the age of twelve.

The elements of film that will not be suitable for children under twelve years of age are: the murder scenes - which will contain some graphic images, blood and violence; and emphasised psychological horror elements will also be included.

The types of horror that people above the age of twelve seem to, on the whole, like are films with psychological elements which you make you jump both at the screen and at shadows - they make you afraid of what you can't yet see; it's 'the fear of the unknown'. 

Some stereotypical horror film features are: a victim - stereotypically a female; a non-believer who is usually the first to be killed or believes by the end of the film; a hero/heroine - (stereotypically a male); an evil character/being; a young child who either almost dies, dies or is dead; a creepy house; a forgotten ghost/creature which becomes furious at something a human does and so seeks it's revenge; and a streak of mysterious deaths.We want to do something quite different and unusual with our film that will still leave people frightened, therefore, we will be using these themes in our opening sequence; a female protagonist who is both the victim and the heroine-type character, a mysterious and lonely setting, a series of strange deaths, and a tragic/horrific event that starts the evil occurrences.