2. Gender and Age
From these questionnaire results I have found out that
my target audience is a mix of both males and females.
However, the percentage is slightly towards females.
This means that the horror trailer I create must be
targeted at both males and females. However, in order
for the target audience to be fully met I will ensure my
trailer is aimed slightly more towards females where
possible.
What is your gender?
Male Female
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
15-17 18-20
Which age category
do you belong to?
15-17
18-20
The results from my questionnaire
involving age fall into two categories.
These categories are 15-17 and 18-20. No
one else who completed the questionnaire
was in any other age category which
shows horror films appeal to people within
the age of 15-20. This means that the
trailer I create must be aimed towards 15-
20 year olds as this is the niche target
audience and therefore who it appeals to.
3. Occupation and Hobbies
0
15
0 00
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
Part-time
Student
Full-time
Student
Part-time
Work
Full-time
Work
What is your occupation?
What do you like to do in
your spare time?
Play Sports
Watch Television
Read
Books/Magazines
Shopping
Other
My questionnaire results shows that
horror films appeal fully to full-time
students. Perhaps this is because
they are young and naïve. This
means that when I create the horror
film trailer it must appeal to full-
time students and therefore any
magazine/poster which goes with
the film trailer must be of a suitable
price for them to afford.
From my questionnaire results I have found out
that the target audience of horror movies
mainly like to shop as a hobby, the majority
like to play sports and some like to watch
televison. When making the horror movie
trailer these sorts of things need to be taken into
account so that the trailer can appeal to both the
demographics and psychographics of it’s
audience. From the questionnaire I also found
out that the target audience do not like to read
many books or magazines as a hobby. So
therefore, I will not character a young girl to be
reading within the trailer as the target audience
will not be able to relate to the reading.
4. Colours and Opinions
What sorts of colours
do you expect to see in
a horror film trailer?
Red
Black
Grey
Purple
White
My questionnaire results show that the target
audience most expect to see the colour
black, red and grey within a film trailer.
However, a few of them also said they expect
to see white and other dark colours such as
purple. From finding out this information, my
trailer will mainly consist of black, grey white
and red in order to satisfy the target audience
and to meet their expectations. However, I
will probably add in another colour to the
housestyle.
From my questionnaire I can see that the
target audience most like to see dark
scenes, screaming and eerie settings.
However, some said they like to see text-
on-screen, monsters, sound effects and
blood. This means that my main priority
when making my horror film trailer is to
include dark scenes, eerie settings and
screaming characters. However, I will also
try my best to include monsters and blood
where I can so that my trailer can fully
appeal to its target audience. And of
course, I will include text-on-screen as a
conventional element to the trailer of the
film which will also appeal to my audience.
However, my questionnaire results show
that no one likes to see weapons which is
slightly odd as weapons are conventional
for the horror genre.
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
Blood
Monsters/Masks
Dark Scenes
Text-on-screen
Screaming
Dramatic Sound Effects
Eerie Settings
Weapons
What types of things do you
like to see in horror movies?
5. Setting and Genre
What is your favourite
sub-genre of horror
films?
Slasher
Thriller
Zombie
Monster
Psychological
0 2 4 6 8
Graveyard/Church
Train Station
Field/Forrest
River
House
Which do you believe is the most
effective setting for a horror film?
From my results I have found out that the target audience
believe that a graveyard or a church is the most effective
setting for a horror film. However, some people also suggested
a field/forest and a house to also be effectibe. This means that
the setting of the horror trailer must be one of the three which
were suggested in order to relate to the target audience and
their needs.
My results show that the target audience
most prefer ‘slasher’ horror movies as that
one received the highest votes.
However, psychological horror films were
quite popular and thriller horror films had
some votes. From this, the horror film trailer
I create will be the sub-genre of ‘slasher’ in
order to appeal to my target audience fully.
My results show that zombie and monster
films are not my target audience’s favourite
as these received no votes at all. So from
this, I will make sure I avoid a monster and
zombie film trailer.
6. Shots and OpinionsWhat urges you to go and
see a horror film?
Gripping Trailer
Cliff hanger
Ending
Tension/Suspense
Good Reviews
Fast Cutting
Sound effects
Text on screen
0
5
10
15
What type of shot do
you believe is best to
create fear?
From my questionnaire results I found that the target audience opt to watch a horror film if it has a
gripping trailer. This means that the horror trailer I create must be gripping. Along with this other
people mentioned that the film trailer had to build tension and suspense in order for them to want
to watch the film. So therefore the horror trailer I create must be tense in order for the audience to
be interested. Also some of the target audience said that fast cutting and editing of the trailer
creates suspense and therefore makes them want to see the film. This means that I will use fast
pace cutting and editing within my trailer in order to create suspense so that it is appealing to its
audience. Others said that good reviews help them decide which film to go and watch. This means
the horror film must have good reviews in order to appeal to it’s target audience and make them
want to watch it .Also some people said that sound effects and text-on-screen in the trailer make
them want to see the film. So, my trailer must have text-on-screen to inform the audience and it
must also use sound effects to add tension and engage the audience.
My questionnaire results show that the target audience think
that close-up shots are more effective to create fear. This
will mean I will use close-ups in my trailer to represent fear
in order to meet the target audience’s expectations. Close-up
shots are great for representing fear; they focus purely on
facial expressions, so if a character is scared a close up of
their face can identify their emotion immediately.
However, in my questionnaire I also got votes on mid-
shot, long-shot and wide-shot. So from this, I will use a
wide-shot of the setting to look gloomy which will also
create fear for the characters and the audience. Within my
trailer I will also use mid shots and long shots although I
won’t use them to create fear because the majority of the
target audience said that close-ups are the most effective.
