Research into different genres and audiences

Research on audience and genre

Different genres attract audiences of very different types.

Age, sex, background, class and interests would all play an important part in dictating the type of genre a person would choose to watch.

My film is a crime drama and I will investigate the conventions of a crime drama and how these appeal to the audience.

Conventions

• Involve aspects of law enforcement – police/ detectives / psychologists / lawyers
• Involve a resolution to a mystery
• There is a question of morality
• Debates about guilt and innocence
• Often include ordinary people in everyday environments
• Teamwork to solve crime
• Struggles with bureaucracy

These aspects will appeal to different sectors of society for different reasons as different audiences will have different appeals.

The certificate of a crime drama is usually 15 or above, so that is where the target audience can range from. The audience is usually a mature audience because of the content and possibly the language.

If the crime drama centres around teenagers this would be more likely to appeal to a younger audience.

Both sexes enjoy crime dramas as there is not usually and sexist stereotypes to which only one sex will be favoured (typically the males are favoured and the females are subservient).

Men stereotypically enjoy the crime/ mystery element as this evokes masculinity. Murder and crime is often seen as involving men. Men are attracted by the action and pace of the drama.  They enjoy the sense of power. Often there are females in the plots which also encourages male interest. This incorporates the male gaze theory where the camera is the male's eyes.

Females also enjoy crime dramas. They enjoy the unravelling of the mystery and enjoy trying to solve the plot. They want knowledge and understanding. Often women are portrayed in a very positive light in crime dramas. They may be a detective or forensic scientist and females may watch the film as they aspire to be like them.

People may watch a crime drama as a form of escapism from their normal everyday lives. This would apply across the sexes and across age ranges.

People involved in real life roles in law or in the police may watch as they are interested in the topic.