Aim

Lets talk target audience! 

Thriller Movie Age Profile

I read this article by Forbes in order to better understand the purpose and importance of a target audience. The article states, "By clearly identifying target audiences, it becomes easier to capture someone's attention because their needs and goals are front and centre." After reading that sentence I thought, ok, what do people look for in thrillers? Then I stumbled upon a research paper on Scribd. that answered that question for me.


Thriller fanatics are people who:

• like to figure things out for themselves
• don't give up trying to figure out what's happening
• like the element of surprise



Thriller Movie Gender Profile

• enjoy the mystery and twist in a plot

The age ranges that most closely fit those descriptions where 18-25 and then jumps to 50+. In addition to the age range, thriller fanatics tend to have a slight female skew. I decided to stick with this target audience because it shows the "know it all" tendencies of young adults, which can be fueled by the mysterious aspects of thrillers. With this established, I am confident in pursuing a female lead in order to appeal and empower women to watch the film. Also, as sexist as it is, an attractive female will undoubtedly attract male interest, ultimately killing two birds with one stone. In order to hit all interests of thriller movie-goers, I am leaning towards the idea of presenting the main character with an internal conflict she is trying to resolve. This paves way to mystery and suspense, as important factors are unknown both by the character and audience. In addition, it allows the audience to try and piece together what is going on, ultimately hitting the important elements that capture the mentioned target audience. 

Sources:

Ladypreach. "Target Audience and Genre Research." Scribd. Scribd, n.d. Web. 9 Mar. 2017. <https://www.scribd.com/doc/22176569/Target-Audience-and-Genre-Research>.

Evans, Mark. "The Importance of Really Knowing Your Target Audiences." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 20 Mar. 2013. Web. 9 Mar. 2017. <https://www.forbes.com/sites/markevans/2013/03/20/the-importance-of-really-knowing-your-target-audiences/#67a523034dd7>.