3) WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED FROM YOUR

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK?
When we were first coming up with ideas for our A2 trailer we
decided to create an apocalyptic horror that would be unique as
it would also work to explore human relationships, as most
British independent films tend to do. That being said we still
wanted a target market of 16-25 year olds which would be
attracted to the horror side of the film whilst older audiences
might find the exploration of human relationships more
interesting. In order to see whether we had created a trailer
that came across to an audience as part of the apocalypse subgenre of horror we created a survey to ask a range of
demographics about our media product to see how well it was
received.
Feedback from the question about our genre
proved that we were largely able to create a
trailer that came across as a horror
through the use of codes and
conventions that usually signify a
horror. Audience responses showed
that we were able to convey that our
media was a horror through the
apocalyptic setting and 62% of
responses showed that we were successful in
portraying a horror. When we further questioned
people about their responses common
explanations as to why they thought the genre
was horror was due to the music being used
effectively to build fear and tension which was
further conveyed by the mise-en-scene and
reactions of the actors. Most concluded that the use of motifs
typical of horror and thriller genre films reflected that it was
part of the horror genre. For example we received feedback
that the use of blood, empty settings and unknown identities of
the pursuers all suggested the horror genre.

From the responses we received on the relevance of

the apocalypse sub-genre we were
able to assume that we were
successful in conveying human
relationships and creating a unique
selling point for our horror film. This
would also widen our target
audience as many people might be
intrigued to watch a film that still
uses the conventions of horror in addition to
being able to show a unique storyline that shows people
coming together. This is evidenced by the 6% of people that
would have classified the trailer as a drama. None of our
responses claimed that there was no relevance to the
apocalypse genre so we were successful in relating the film
back to the apocalypse genre. Because 40.82% said that our
trailer was only somewhat relevant to the apocalypse subgenre we can conclude that we may have focussed more on
showing the development of the narrative and characters and
left the apocalypse genre to be shown
through the mise-en-scene, i.e. the
isolated and overgrown settings and the
use of costumes that look worn and old
through fake blood and mud.
When constructing the trailer we took a
priority in establishing a narrative that
made sense and conveyed an accurate portrayal of our film
idea and plot, without spoiling any twists or surprises. We
wanted the genre of the film to come across clearly and
thought that the narrative might be an effective way to
reinforce this as Derrys story type The quest is often featured
in apocalypse films (i.e. The Road). As 87.76% of our audience
feedback answered that the narrative was clear we were
successful in getting the storyline across. We did this through
the use of the 3 Act Structure which, through our research and

planning, proved to be the structure that most trailers,

regardless of their genre, used as an effective portrayal of the
films plot. We used that structure to base
our narrative around and split the editing
into three sections: 1) The London shots
and introduction to the bleak empty
setting 2) The introduction of the main
characters and brief plot
3) The end montage
where the ambiguous
threats and danger is
explored. Furthered explanations from
responses showed that the
beginning montage of news
clips were effective in outlining
the plot and setting of our narrative. Many
explained that the use of news clips helped to set
up the story and reinforced the genre of
apocalypse horror.