1. Evaluation Question3: Whathave you learnedfrom your audience feedback?
00:00:00 Presenter1
(Elise Johansson)
What an informative andinterestingprogramme
we have all justlistenedto.DannyBoyle gave
great insightintothe differencesbetween
creatingbothTrainspottingfilmsandhow the
elementsof youthculture andidentitywere
neededwithinthe films.
If you have justjoinedme,Iam Elise Johansson
and youare listeningto Surrey FilmRadio.
In a few minuteswe willbe hearingfrom Nicky
Johansson whoisinterviewingGrace Johansson
abouther latestshortfilmTrapped asa part of
FilmFanatics.Butnow we are goingto hear from
Gosta Johansson whoat 6:00pm will be speaking
to directorAmberO’Dell aboutherprogressionin
filminthe past year, Gosta…
Presenter2
(GostaJohansson)
At 6 I will be sittingdownwithrisingdirector
AmberO’Dell totalkabouther challengeswithin
filmingandhow she hasworkedtolearnmore
abouttechnology inpreparationforhernew short
filmFirstImpressions. Joinme at6:00pm to find
out more.
Presenter1
(Elise Johansson)
Thank You Gosta,now we will hearfrom Nicky
Johansson inthe FilmFanaticssegmentof the
show.
Presenter3
(NickyJohansson)
Good evening,todaywe have DirectorGrace
Johanssononthe show.PreviouslyGrace released
an introductionentitledThe Womanwhowas
NeverSeenwhichreceivedpraisefromaudiences,
she has listenedtoheraudience andthistime
aroundhas createda full shortfilmentitled
Trappedwhichshe hopeswill getthe same
appraisal.Stayafterthissegmentforthe Film
HistoriansDavidNolanandSeanMaguire talking
aboutLaura Mulvey’sMale Gaze theory.
The main reasonGrace ishere withus todayisto
talkabout hernewestshortfilm, Trapped.
Trappedcarriesthemesandissuesof age,gender,
neglectandlonelinessandthe mainplotisthat of
Agoraphobiawhichisafear of leavingyourown
home.Mackenzie,the Agoraphobicisplayedby
AmyBenton,andshe is leftalone inherhome to
deal withherfearsuntil she getsa call that may
helpherovercome herAgoraphobia.
Grace how did youcome to realise yourtarget
audience foryourshortfilmandwho theywere?
2. Grace Well Ibeganby creatinga quantitative research
online surveymonkeyandsendingthe linkaround
to all of the people Iknew viasocial mediaandby
messagingappsthatI had on myphone.Through
thisI got a total of 94 responseswiththe biggest
age groupbeing16 – 24 year oldsmakingup38
out of 94 and a percentage of 40.43%. Alsomy
target audience waspredominatelyfemaleas85
out of the 94 participantswere of the female
gender. The race of my targetaudience turned
out to be majorityWhite/Caucasianwhichwas
surprisingasI expectedthere tobe more of a
cultural mix inmy survey,andalsomostof the
participantsdidlive in SouthEastEnglandmaking
up 74.47% of participants.
Presenter3
(NickyJohansson)
How didyourtarget audience researchimpactthe
waythat your filmturnedout?
Grace Due to the fact thatmy target audience was
predominately 16– 24 yearsoldand female I
wantedtoappeal to that and have somethingthat
my audience couldpossiblyimagineinthemselves
somehow,soIdesignedmystorylinetobe based
arounda teenage girl sothatit wouldfitmytarget
audience andshow female poweraswell asa
slightlyyoungercharacterthana lotof films.
In mysurveythe choice of social group that my
audience wantedtosee the mostwasteenagers
and youngadultsbecause thatoptionhad61
votesandso from thatI workedwithitand came
up witha storyline thatfitinwithyoungage and
mental illness.The reasonforchoosingmental
illnesswasbecause of whenaskingthe question
of whichissuesmyshortfilmshouldshowcasethe
top answerwasmental illnesswith49selections,
so itwas a sure choice that it shouldbe the focus
of myfilm. The reasonI pickedAgoraphobiaafter
that wasbecause I heardaboutit brieflyonline
and thenlookedintoitdeeperandfoundittobe
such an interestingfearbecause itseemstobe
quite unusual and rare and a fact of trauma soI
wantedtoexplore thatslightlyinmyfilm.
Presenter3
(Aimee Lee)
How didyoupresentyourresearch?
Grace I presentedmyfindingsfrommyqualitative
researchsurveyina powerpoint document.I
chose to do itin thisstyle because thiswayIcould
take screenshotsof all the answersIhad been
givenandthenwrite outunderneathwhatexactly
3. the responseswere inmysurveytomake sure the
informationwasclear.Iput2 questionson each
slide andmade sure that everythinglookedneat
before itwaspresentedonmyblog. The
powerpointallowedme toquicklyrefertomy
informationwheneverIneededitandall the
informationwasaccessible asIcouldjustflick
betweenslidestofindoutthe informationI
needed.
Presenter3
(NickyJohansson)
From yourquantitative researchwhatwere your
nextstepstowardscreatingyourshortfilm?
Grace AfterI hadanalysedthe responsesfrommy
surveyIlookedupextensivelythe different
amountsof mental illnessestherewere thatI
coulddo a filmabout,andthenthoughtabout
whichoneswouldbe of interesttome and my
audience andthatwouldalsofitinwiththe zero
budgetandsmall amountof locationsthatI would
have.AfterfindingAgoraphobiaIjust
rememberedthatI’dheardof itbefore andit had
alwaysseemedinterestingtome as it wasnot
somethingIhadcome across before andhavinga
fearof leavingyourownhome wassomethingI
wantedtoput across to otherpeople andshow
themwhatit wouldbe like tofeel that.
I thenwentaboutby findingarticlesabout
AgoraphobiasoI couldeducate myself more on
the illnessandpublishedthese onmyblogas
researchso that I couldreferbackto theminthe
future.AfterthisIstarteddraftingmyfirstfew
synopsisideasformyfilmsothatI coulddecide
how exactlyIwantedto go aboutthe processof
creatingmy shortfilm.Ithenwenton todraft my
scriptusingCeltX,ascript writingprogramme that
has everytype of insertthatyoucouldneedto
create a script,I created6 drafts of my script
developingiteachtime butstill keepingit
surroundingthe theme of Agoraphobiaevery
single time,andbythe endof the draftingprocess
I was veryhappywiththe waymy storyline had
turnedout.
Presenter3
(NickyJohansson)
How didyourquantitative researchhelpyou
duringyourdrafts of your scripton CeltX?
Grace Usingmy target audience researchIwasable to
decide thatI wantedmymaincharacter to be a
late female teenagerwithAgoraphobiaasmy
mainparticipantsinthe surveywere femaleand
agedbetween16and 24 years old.To make the
plotline more hopefulandshow progressfrommy
worklast yearI usedvoicemailsfromthe main
4. character Mackenzie’sphone thatsignalledan
urgentneedforherto leave the house tovisither
familyinthe hospital,thiswasareasonto try and
overcome herAgoraphobiaandIwantedto show
hertryingthat. I stuck to a cast that my audience
couldrelate toand alsoan issue thattheywanted
to see because itwouldbringmore interest
towardsmy filmanditmade more sense tocreate
a filmusingwhatmytarget audience hadtoldme
rather thangoingagainstit.
Presenter3
(NickyJohansson)
Afterthe filmingof yourshortfilmdidyoudoany
furthertargetaudience research?
Grace Followingthe creationof myassemblyeditwhich
was the firstcut of my filmafterI hadfilmedit,I
createda listof 10 questionsforqualitative
researchand asked2 of mypeersfortheir
feedbackwhichIvoice recordedanduploadedto
youtube andthenmyblog.I alsodidqualitative
researchto decide whichphotowouldbe bestfor
my filmposterwhencreatingit,andsome
researchafterI had createdthe firstdraftof my
filmreview tosee whatmypeersthoughtabout
it.
Presenter3
(NickyJohansson)
What didyou gainfromthis qualitative research?
Grace I foundthat the assemblyedit qualitative research
was the mosthelpful asitgave me an insightinto
the viewsof myaudience andalsoit letme know
where theystoodonknowledge of Agoraphobia
so that I knew whichdirectiontotake myfilmin.
For example,myaudience didnothave a prior
knowledge of Agoraphobiabuttheythoughtit
was interestingandwantedtoknow more about
it soI feltthat I wantedtoincorporate thatinto
my filmandeducate themaboutwhat
Agoraphobiaisbutalsomake the filminteresting
so that audiencesdon’tgetboredof watching.
The audience believedthe highestpointof
tensionwaswhenMackenzie wasabouttoleave
the house and strugglingtogetout the frontdoor,
thiswas helpful forme asitwas whatI was
hopingthe audience wouldunderstandandthat
theywouldsee Mackenzie hastwosidesinher
headone is tellinghertostaywhere she issafe
inside herownhouse butthe otherissayingshe
needstobe withher familyandface herfearsor
she will nevergetoverherAgoraphobia. Ialso
askedparticipantswhattheythoughtaboutmy
firstinitial endingbecause Iwasnotsure about it
and I askedthempossible waystheywould
change it and theysaidthattheywouldaddin
5. more flowingshotsthatwenttogetherwiththe
hospital shottomake it lessstaticas inthe
assemblyedititwentfromhandholdingrightto
the hospital andit didnotflow well atall.
Withmy posterqualitative researchIhadtakena
bunchof photosthat I hadas possible optionsfor
my posterandI put themup as a blogpost. I then
compiledalistof 12 questionswhichhelpedme
to gathera general consensusastowhichphoto
the audience likedbetter.Iaskedmyparticipants
whatthemestheycouldsee inmyphotosand
theyansweredbysuggestingisolation,
abandonment,innocence,internalconflictand
mental health,all of whichwere whatIwastrying
to show in Trappedand in myposteras
Mackenzie isleftalone andneglected,butshe isa
childsoshe isinnocentanddoesnotknow much
aboutthe worldoutside asshe isAgoraphobicand
hermental healthissuescreate aninternal
conflictthatleavesherconstantlystrugglingon
whichdecisionsshe shouldmake inherlife and
how theywill affecther.The audience members
whotook part inmy surveysaidthatthe photosof
Mackenzie facingthe outside withherface slightly
hiddenbythe doorwere theirfavouritesbecause
they show everythingthe clearest andalso
because theyhadmore potential tobecome a
posterbecause there wasmore space aroundthe
image. Theirleastfavouriteswere the firsttwo
imageswhichwere takenbehindthe frontdoor
inside the house because theylookedlessnatural
and theywere quite dark.
My filmreview qualitative researchwasusedto
determine whataboutithadadheredto
conventionsandwhat neededtobe changed
aboutit. Speakingof conventionsandpage
architecture one of myparticipantsstatedthatmy
review doesadhere toconventionsof filmreviews
as the columnstructure is verysimilarto
magazinessuchas TimeOutandSightandSound. I
askedmyaudience whattheirfirstimpressions
were aboutmy review andtheysaidthatitlooked
professionalbutitwasa little bittoolongand
gave away toomuch of the storyline inthe review.
Presenter3
(NickyJohansson)
You saidthat youraudience didnotknow about
Agoraphobiabefore watchingyourshort,didyou
feel thatyouhad to informtheminyourfilmof
whatit was sotheyknew aboutthe issue?
Grace I suppose Ialmostdidfeel thatwaybecause if it
6. came to itand a personwas completelyclueless
aboutsomethingsuchas Agoraphobiatheycould
become reallyinsensitive tothe issue andsothey
needtoknow as much as possible sothat theycan
see the effectsithas. I wantedtotry and create
the emotionof someone withAgoraphobiaso
that my audience couldlearnwhattheygo
throughand how a personcan overcome sucha
struggle andlearnto cope witha phobiathey
have had all theirlife.
Presenter3
(NickyJohansson)
Didyou have any problemswiththe castingof
your filmwhen itcame topreparingforit?
Grace I had a slightproblemwhenitcame tofindinga
personto playCaroline the younggirl whomeets
Mackenzie onherway to the hospital,asI could
not hire someone withoutabudgetandI didnot
know any youngchildren of thatage at all so it
was difficulttofindsomeone todoitfor me.In
the endI endedupusingAmy’syoungersister
Sophie asCaroline because she looksdifferent
enoughfromAmythat she can playanother
character that isnot relatedinthe same film.
Presenter3
(NickyJohansson)
Withinyourfilm, didyoumanage tostick to the
goalsyou setoutfor yourself afterreceivingthe
resultsof yourfirstquantitative research?
Grace AfterI hadreceivedthe resultsfrommy
quantitative researchIplannedmysynopsiswith
an ideaof how I wantedmyfilmtobe and who
and whatI wantedinit,I knew I wantedthatto
include Agoraphobiaandaftera while of thinking
aboutit and debating whetheritwouldworkwell
enoughIdecidedthatI wantedtouse younger
actors as the main featuresinmycast as well,as
theywouldrelate more withmyaudience
membersandcatch the eye of audiencesmore.So
I setout by writingmyscriptwithan all-female
youngcast starringin a filmcentringaroundthe
issue of Agoraphobia,andthroughoutthe
scriptwritingprocessIalwayskeptinmymindthe
fact that the mainstory wasabout Agoraphobia
and that wasnot goingto change,soneitherdid
my storyline reallystrayfromthatapart from the
fact that towardsthe endit became more hopeful
and light.
Presenter3
(NickyJohansson)
Whencreatingyourfilmandposterdidyou
adhere tothe conventions andwas itnoticeable
to youraudience members?
Grace WhenI was creatingmyfilmI did try to focuson
havingareasof representation,whichwere age
and gender,Ihad a narrative structure althoughit
subvertsfromwhatTodorovsays because myfilm
7. doesnotbeginwitha state of equilibriumitstarts
withdisequilibriumandgoesontowardsthe end
to endup ina state of new equilibriumwhen
Mackenzie overcomesherphobiaatthe endof
the film. IfollowedPropp’scharactertheorywith
Mackenzie beingthe protagonistof the filmand
findingherownwayin the filmandCaroline being
the damsel indistressbecause althoughitmay
seemlike Mackenzie ishelpinghershe makes
Mackenzie forgetaboutherownfearsand also
helpsherto getto the hospital inthe end.
Presenter3
(NickyJohansson)
Were there anydifficultieswhentryingtostickto
your researchandthe plansyou hadmade?
Grace It was difficultsometimestodecide whattomake
the level of intelligence inmyfilm, whatImeanby
that is24 of the participantsinmysurveysaidthat
they were filmliterateand45 saidthey were
somewhatfilmliterate,thisdoesnothelpme in
knowinghow muchtheyknow aboutfilmsso
whencreatingmyfilmIdon’tknow what level of
creativitythey’ll wanttosee orknow about so
that wasa challenge forme. The social groups
questionwasachallenge tostickto because I
allowedthe participantstopickmore thanone
optionandso theycouldchoose anyamount
whichmeantpickinganoverall winnerwasalmost
a difficultybutinthe endteenagerswonoutand
so that iswhat I wentwithforthe mainfocusof
my film.
Presenter3
(NickyJohansson)
What specificallyrelatesyourfilmtothe topicof
Agoraphobia?
Grace A lotof the shotsI have usedshow Mackenzie
confinedtoa cornerof the sofain the house,not
movingandlookingaroundwide eyedasif she is
scared.I alsohave a continuousshotof her
struggle toleave the house where she goestothe
door looksout,turnsaway,leansagainstthe wall,
pressesherhandsagainstthe doorand thentakes
a longwhile toactuallyleave andall these stepsin
turn buildupa physical andemotional
representationof whatAgoraphobialookslike or
couldlooklike fromone pointof view. The
difference betweenmypreviousworkandthis
piece of workisthat there ismore focuson hope
inTrapped,as she is goingmore towards
overcomingherfearthanhow much she is
confinedtoone space by herAgoraphobia.
Presenter3
(NickyJohansson)
Goingback to your posterqualitativeresearch,did
youfollow youraudience research?
Grace Yes I didfollow the audience feedbackIreceived,
I usedone of the lastfew imagesoutof the
8. selectionIhadbecause Ididagree that theyinthe
enddidlookmore natural and lessposedwhen
creatinga posterand creatingthe emotion of
Agoraphobia.One of myparticipantssaidthey
couldsee ability/disabilityinmyphotosformy
postersandI wantedto almostincorporate that
intomy filmaswell because it’sthe twosidesof
hermind,herabilitytoleave the house butalso
the mental illnessthathasbeencreatedthathas
hermindtellingherthatshe iscompletely
incapable of leavingthe house outof sheerfear.
My audience saidthatshe lookedscaredinthe
photosand I wantedtokeepthatas a theme of
the posterso whenIwas editingit,Itooktheir
commentsinmindandI made the colourof the
postercoolerandmore of a bluishhue sothat it
lookedmore spookyandaddedabrokenglass
fontfor the title tocreate a sense of what
Mackenzie’smindislike.
Presenter3
(Nicky Johansson)
Well Grace ithas beensointerestingtohearfrom
youtoday and we are so grateful youcouldcome
and talkto us aboutyour new filmandyour
audience research. Thankyouforcomingto join
me here at FilmFanaticsand I hope tosee you
againsoon.
Grace It was noproblemitwasa pleasure toshare
informationaboutmynew filmandI’dlove to
come back again.
