Feedback Evaluation

1. What have you learned from
your audience feedback?

2. Throughout my process I have relied on Audience
Research and Feedback to shape my final
productions into texts that are enjoyed and widely
received by my targeted audience. In most cases I
have used stratified samples in order to collect
accurate results that reflect the habits and opinions
of my targeted audiences only, this way I was able
to define these opinions in analysing the results
and take inspiration that reflected these views.
Whereas, my audience feedback reflected the
highlights of my final productions as well as the
points that my targeted audience felt that more
could have been done to communicate the
narrative effectively.

3. I have learnt a lot from my audience research, the main lesson
being that my targeted audience enjoy more physical than
verbal comedy. This was an intriguing find for me as I was
planning to construct a silent satirical comedy that would rely
on the use of exaggerated body language and facial
expressions as well as aspects of Mise En Scene such as
Music and Lighting in order to represent emotion. This meant
then that after I conducted my Vox Pops and discovered that
my stratified sample had enjoyed the use of Physical and
movement comedy in the short Lifted by Disney, I decided to
incorporate use movement such as this in my own short. As a
result then this decision affected my process when casting my
actors. My blog post on this process explains how I had to
look more specifically for an actor with exaggerated features
to play John, someone who could naturally emphasize
movement so that the gap left by a lack of dialogue could be
filled. This led to me casting James Grey as his height made
it easy for him to over-exaggerate movement. Also then when
designing my shot list and storyboard I ensured that
movement was emphasized so that my actor could clearly
see how emotion was to be represented.

4. My audience research also explained more about the
consumption habits of my targeted audience. Making it easier
for me to decide on the institutions that would be best to
produce and distribute both my main product and ancillary
texts. My first both of my Audience Research Questionnaire’s
for my ancillary texts reflected the radio stations and travel
habits of both my primary and secondary targeted audiences.
My Radio Trailer Questionnaire reflecting a split in
preferences between my primary audience listening to pop
stations such as Capital and Kiss and my secondary targeted
audience listening to stations such as those broadcasted by
the BBC. This split therefore helping me to recognise the
change in cultures between the two audiences and the ways
in which I could target them both effectively. Consequently
then my Audience Research Questionnaire for my Poster
provided me with results that reflected the high numbers of
my targeted audience that travel to and from work by Public
Transport. These results then showing me how I could target
my audience using platforms such as Bus Stops and Tube
Stations. This led to my decision to use JCDecaux to
distribute my film poster if my film was to be produced for a
mass market.
Overall then my products and decisions that I have made
throughout my process were moulded around the findings of
my primary audience research. This only contributed to the
making of a more effective and accurate texts as I reached
the stage of construction, a contribution that can be proved

5. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of my final products
I conducted one last survey to provide me with
audience feedback. This survey was sent to a stratified
sample of my targeted audience who had all been
exposed to both ancillery texts as well as my short film
– Underdog.
This first question aimed to tell me how much overall that
my audience enjoyed my film. The results show that
60% of my targeted audience would rate Underdog 7-8
out of 10. Although this does not necessarily mean that
they would recommend the film the result still reflects
how they thoroughly enjoyed it proving that many of the
conventions that I aimed to include in my film were
recognised by and therefore appealed to my audience.
As a result then I feel that my film was a success
amongst both my primary and secondary targeted
audiences who were evenly stratified for this sample.

6. With this question, I hoped to discover more about the specific
aspects of my main text that my audience enjoyed. The
results taught me that over-exaggerated movement and
ridiculous sound were the two conventions most highly
appreciated by my targeted audience. Making me recognise
then how if I was to do this project again I would most
definitely focus more on these conventions in order to
improve my product and encourage more people to rate my
film higher. I feel that these results highlight the significance
of the editing and casting processes. Where editing
contributes to the effect of sound, casting can affect the
quality of the acting and in this case the movement that had
to be so accurately captured. If the casting had not been
accurate then I would have struggled to represent emotion
with a lack of scripted dialogue. This question was designed
to reveal the effectiveness of representing conventions that
repeat themselves throughout the comedy genre and I can
see that the results certainly pick up on this.

7. I wanted to find out whether I had effectively
portrayed the implicit ideology of my
narrative without the use of dialogue, a
challenge that required me to find other
ways of representing emotion such as
movement, sound and settings. These
results have reflected the percentages
found in the first question and therefore
suggest to me that those who didn’t
understand the implicit themes were less
likely to enjoy the film. The majority of the
results however reflect a general
understanding of how John can be seen
as a victim at the end of the narrative.
Some answers have included an
explanation of how the corporate hoax
made John poor and others have simply
stated how easy the narrative was to
follow, reflecting how the combination of
conventions I used to make up for the
lack of dialogue was effective. However
those who did not understand the
narrative so well have answers
suggesting the issues with the general
structure of the film. One individual has
commented on the structure of Scene 13
where John is visited by his Landlady.
This confusion is again reflected in

8. In order to create a short film I had to condense my
narrative to conform to the general expectation that a
short should last approximately 5 minutes. This meant
that in doing so the timeline of events within my
narrative would appear conveniently distorted with the
Landlady demanding rent exactly after John had spent
his money. I feel that these results have taught me how
I could have created more of a build up of tension
between the two characters in order to explain in detail
John’s situation to my audience. Adding an additional
scene for example could have meant having John
receive Notice’s for Re-possession or having the main
character meet with a Bank manager. This then would
have created more of an effect when John’s Landlady
confronts him. As a result then if I was to complete the
project again I would most definitely look at introducing
an additional scene to develop the narrative’s time
scale. These results then have taught me the
significance of time frame and how if not applied
correctly they can confuse an audience.

9. One of my main aims of this film was to make my target
audience recognise how John could be considered a
symbolic representation of whole markets of consumers.
Considering that my narrative was an over dramatisation of a
real event I felt that in order to give the film it’s satirical aspect
my targeted audience must understand how John could be a
representation of themselves. This question then was
designed to provoke my audience to express how they now
see John after watching the end of my film. The majority of
answers had promise as to what I expected showing how
John could be seen as normal or even relatable. Answers
such as the one below have taught me that by using such a
dramatic turn of aspects I have achieved communicating my
implicit narrative effectively.

10. The few answers that lean from my expectations
stem from a mis-understanding of the narrative
overall that I have discussed before and therefore I
am less so effected by comments that deter from
the narrative’s intentions.

12. Here I wanted to take the time to compare the success of my two
ancillary texts and look more specifically into the aspects that
really appealed to my targeted audience. I felt that this taught
me more about the aspects that my audience appreciated most
and why that was. For example those who preferred my
Promotional Poster commented suggesting how the use of
Social Networks and main image were two factors that
appealed to my targeted audiences. This has taught me how
audiences like to feel involved, more particularly when it comes
to media texts that could provoke social action. These results
have also taught me the significance of the main image in any
media text. Some results have suggested how the poster was
‘eye-catching’ and this is why it was their favourite, as a result
then suggesting how a bright image when it comes to comedy
can have a positive impact on the opinion of the audience. For
those who chose my Radio Trailer as their preference I can
see that the use of sound was found particularly appealing.
Creating an over-exaggerated effect proved important in
engaging my targeting audience and communicating my films
comedic theme. I feel that these results have made me
recognise that if I was to complete the project again I would
focus on giving more weight to the radio trailer, perhaps using
unseen conventions in order to shock my targeted audience
more to get them involved rather than relying so much on the
use of soundtrack and voiceover.

13. Finally, this last question
directly approached the issue
of anything missing that my
targeted audience would have
liked to see in my ancillary
texts. The answers were
mainly ‘No’ suggesting that the
experience that my audience
had taken from both texts was
extremely positive. However
some respondent’s had
commented suggesting how
certain conventions such as
the release date on my poster
could have been made bigger.
Overall however I feel satisfied
in learning that my targeted
audience found both of my
ancillary texts effective.