1. Malus Evaluation Question 4
Cinema audience on a whole has changed dramatically through history and in recent
years it has become clear that the most common age range of cinema-goers is 15-24
year olds. Teenagers are more likely to attend the cinema, as there isn’t an awful lot
they can do with their spare time and so they opt to see the latest blockbuster. For
this reason it was important to stick to a certificate of 15 to allow the most frequent
cinema-goers to see the film.
The target audience is 15-24 year olds with a particular interest in fantasy and
horror to intrigue the male audience and strong female leads to attract the female
audience. By showing the film during October half term this will guarantee success
as the target audience will not be in school/college and so they will be able to attend
the cinema as well as the fact that it is very near to Halloween which is the most
successful time of the year to release a horror film.
Teenagers on a whole tend to favour horror films as it is a fun, coming of age
scenario to go from being forbidden to watch anything mildly frightening to going to
the cinema with friends for a good scare. Adults, particular parents, tend to lose the
stomach to watch horror films when they grow older because they feel that some of
the situations are too barbaric to pay to watch.
Teenage audiences also tend to provoke the promotion of the film and generate
hype with their more hands on approach to social media. For example, teenagers
generate a hype, unknowingly, by tweeting about a film or posting a picture of their
cinema ticket on Instagram. By going this they are spreading the word, on a global
scale, about the film and acts as free promotion for the movie. This would work well
in Malus’ favor to help get a good reception.