2. According to www.the-numbers.com/market/2013/genre/Drama, 152 films were released in
2013 that fell into the drama genre.
Regarding how profitable the genre is, it is fourth on the list beneath action, comedy and
adventure, with a total gross of $1,018,127,259 and 172 movies released (more than
action, comedy and adventure) proving that it is, still in fact, a very popular genre
universally and the most produced film genre of 2013.
This means that my potential target audience would be large because of the vast release
of films in the genre which is good when creating my own production piece. However, this
also means increased competition and the need for individuality because it is the most
produced genre of this year so far.
HOW MANY FILMS OF THE SAME GENRE
WERE RELEASED IN THIS PERIOD AND
HOW PROFITABLE WAS THE GENRE?
3. http://www.the-numbers.com shows that the top 5 most successful
films in the drama genre 2013 were: The Great Gatsby, Lee Daniels’
The Butler, Silver Linings Playbook, 42 and Zero Dark Thirty.
I will look at the top 3 films and state a few reasons as to why the
piece was so popular in the year 2013.
WHICH FILMS WERE MOST SUCCESSFUL
AND WHY?
4. The Great Gatsby had a worldwide gross of $348,840,419 (
boxofficemojo.com), showing a great response from world wide
audiences which would have been for many reasons.
• Baz Luhrmann directed the film who is very famous and
renowned for classics such as his version of Romeo and Juliet
and Moulin Rouge.
• The film had an estimated budget of $105,000,000 (IMDB.com)
meaning production could be more professional and the film
itself would be more aesthetically pleasing.
• Very famous actors such as Leonardo Dicaprio, Toby McGuire
and Carey Mulligan starred in the film which would influence
people to go watch it because of previous successful films that
they have been in.
• The film is based on the book by F. Scott Fitzgerald which is
one of the classics in English literature meaning the storyline of
the drama is a very important and appealing aspect of the film.
• The soundtrack for the film included extremely popular artists
such as Beyonce, Jay Z, Lana Del Ray and Will.I.Am.
THE GREAT GATSBY
5. Lee Daniels’ The Butler had a world wide gross of $112,856,907
(boxofficemojo.com) still showing great popularity but came in
second place to Gatsby. Here are some reasons as to why it was so
popular.
• The film emphasises American culture with the idea of
Presidency in the Whitehouse meaning a large domestic
audience could be attracted ($106,685,208 was profited
alone domestically - boxofficemojo.com), but a large foreign
audience would also be interested due to famous topics
included such as the Vietnam War and the Civil Rights
movement which would have created a dramatic, history-
related storyline.
• The film had an estimated budget of $30,000,000
(IMDB.com) meaning the history included in the film could be
recreated thoroughly to entice audiences to go watch it.
• Stars in the film include Mariah Carey and Oprah
Winfrey, both very influential celebrities both in America and
globally.
LEE DANEILS’ THE BUTLER
6. Silver Linings Playbook grossed $236,412,453 world wide
(boxofficemojo.com) placing it third on the most popular dramas of
2013 but still held great popularity for these reasons.
• The film had a well recognised cast including Jennifer
Lawrence, who had great fame due to the Hunger
Games, Bradley Cooper, whose famed was renowned for the
very successful Hangover Films and Robert De Niro, who has
starred in countless classics over the years.
• The book it was based on the debut novel by Mathew Quick
meaning it already had publicity from 5 years before (2008).
• The estimated budget was approximately $21,000,000
(IMDB.com) which is a large sum meaning a better level of
production could be produced.
• The song Ho Hey was used to accompany the trailer which was
a very popular song reaching high in the UK charts and placed
third in the billboard charts in America (wikipedia.org)
SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK
7. Although my target audience will be young
adult females (apx. 16-25), the drama genre is
still appealing.
This is evident from both tables on the right as
The Woman in Black and The Sweeny are both
dramas and feature in both age groups
meaning that the genre does still influence my
audience to go watch films of a similar nature.
Although my target audience appear to enjoy
comedies and action films more; by including a
thriller element/s in the concept of my drama
teaser trailer, this will hopefully mean they will
be more inclined to view the film I would
produce.
WHAT ARE THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE
AUDIENCE?
8. Looking at the table of the right, all of the films
fall into the drama genre and have an audience
that fit into the AB socio economic group. As my
target audience will most likely fit into the C/D
range, it will mean I need to specifically cater the
film characteristic to their needs yet it will also
make my product more individual by trying to
target a lower social group.
Even though dramas can attract both genders, it
is evident here that it appeals to a more of a
female audience as ‘The Best Exotic Marigold
Hotel’ , Anna Karenina and Salmon Fishing in the
Yemen are all drams and show that over half the
percentage of the audience that attended were in
fact female.
