Audience and Genre Research

Assessment 3- Audience and genre research

Target Audience Research

The BBFC is an independant company which have classified cinema films since 1912, when the company was first set up. The certificates are U, PG, 12, 15, and 18 and these are given to films depending on what the movie contains. The certificates which I will be looking at are the 15 rating and 18 rating. 

15 Rated Films


15 rated films are only suitable for a person who is 15 years and over. No one under this age boundary can go view a 15 rated film at the cinema or rent or buy a 15 rated movie. The target audience for a 15 rated film is obviously for people who are 15 years of age or older which clearly eliminates the younger audience, i.e pre-teens. The criteria producers have to consider when producing a 15 rated film are:

• Discrimination
• Drugs
• Horror
• Imitatable behaviour
• Language
• Nudity
• Sex
• Theme
• Violence

18 Rated Films
18 rated films are suitable for people who are 18 years of age or older, therefore they are for adults only. No one younger than the age of 18 may watch an 18 rated movie at the cinema or buy/rent an 18 rated film. An 18 rated film can contain pratically anything, but there are certain guidelines a producer has to follow before producing an 18 rated film.

Horror Genre Research

Horror films are movies that strive the emotions of fear, horror and terror from viewers. Their plots frequently involve themes of death, the supernatural or mental illness. Many horror movies also include a central villain. Early horror movies are largely based on classic literature of the gothic/horror genre, such as Dracula, Frankenstein, The Phantom of the Opera and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. More recent horror films often draw inspiration from the insecurities of life after World War II, giving rise to the three distinct sub-genres: the horror of personality, the horror of armageddon, and the horror of the demonic.