Research and Planning: Focus Group

I conducted a focus group of 5 people, I did this verbally and since the participants were not comfortable with their answers being recorded, I asked them to write down their answers as I asked them. Those asked mainly fell into the correct target audience for my film as they were all teenagers, however one male was asked despite the target market being female. I also felt that by each person writing there response instead of saying them would lead to less peer pressure and the feeling of needing to conform with what others said, making the answers more truthful and therefore more helpful in my research.

From the focus group I have gathered that my opening sequence needs to establish my film as a thriller and that a key focus on the central, leading female character needs to be made. 'I hope that she is in fact more than a damsel in distress because modern films need to break 
this stereotype.' shows me that I was heading in the right direction with my main character as 
she acts as a independent woman who is not afraid to show her weakness. Her best friends 
in the film, Leah and Calvin, act as supporters to her not as competition. Calvin being the only
male character challenges gender stereotypes, as in thrillers the main characters are often
male. Another quote says - 'It also shows that teenage girls can enjoy more than romantic
comedies.', this clearly illustrates that there is gap in the market for thriller films, like mine, for 
the teenage girl audience. Although companies often associate girls with romantic films,this 
focus group illustrates that girls are fed up of being put in a box and would like to see something 
different aimed specifically at them. An example of how I will take this constructive criticism 
and work it into my film is to look carefully at camera angles and positions. Many times women
are shown through the male gaze, as explained by Laura Mulvey. I will not objectify women in 
my opening sequence as it will distract from the story I am trying to tell and will only
feed into negative representations of women.

To improve my idea for the film, I need to make sure that I don't contribute to negative
stereotypes - 'The only thing that would put me off is representing negative stereotypes of age, 
gender, ethnicity and sexual preference.'. This tells me that my film should in fact break these 
stereotypes as the audience is sick of seeing them. Within my idea for an opening sequence
I think that there is no reliance on negative stereotypes, as I am showing the individual 
personality of each character not one that was built for them by society.

Written below is a transcript of the focus group, I highlighted quotes that were most helpful to me. 

Transcript of Focus Group- 

Moderator (Ella Penfold):

It is very important for me to get your honest feedback about the idea for my film. I will read to you a brief synopsis of the film (as well as the treatment) and after that ask you some questions, all questions from you will also be greatly appreciated. Please make your answer between 1-3 lines.

This is the plot of the film- A teenage girl at a house gathering, with her 2 best friends, opens her bag to a find a gun with a note attached, reading ‘Guess Who?’ There have been several crimes going on within the area and she believes that she has now been targeted. She debates whether to tell her friends as everyone is a possible suspect. 

Can she solve the mystery?

Question 1 : Does the plot of the film appeal to you as a teenager?

Participant 1 : As a teenager the plot of the film does appeal to me as it is quite unusual to see
 teenagers being the main characters of a film in the thriller genre. I also like the fact that they 
are dealing with a gun as it can also hopefully show the consequences of weapons like these. 
I think it would also be cool to play with the idea of paranoia in the film.

Participant 2 : Yes, I think it would be interesting to see and it makes me question what I 
would do in that situation. It would probably appeal to other teenagers as well because
it's a unique story for the target audience.

Participant 3 : The plot of the film does appeal to me as a teenager because normally the
characters of dramatic and tense films are older than us. By having them be the same age
 as us makes it way more relatable. I can't wait to see what 3 teenagers will do with a
 mysterious gun.

Participant 4 : It does appeal to me because most of the time films aimed at teenagers
underestimate our intelligence in a sense and I think most of the time film companies 
don't always understand teenagers as a target market.

Participant 5: Being a teenager myself, the plot of the film does appeal to me. It is something
different from the usual overly action-packed films aimed at my age group.

Question 2 : What do you think about a woman being the central character of a thriller film?

Participant 1 : I like the fact that the main character is female as women need to be
represented more in genres like thrillers. However, I hope that she is in fact more than
a damsel in distress because modern films need to break this stereotype.

Participant 2: would like to see a woman front and centre in the film as it gives some variety by
showing a different perspective. It also shows that teenage girls can enjoy more than romantic 
comedies.

Participant 3 : I don't mind that a woman will be the central character of a thriller film, it makes
no difference to my viewing pleasure.

Participant 4 : I love that in your film the main character will be female, it gets so boring seeing
a middle aged man in his 30s or 40s being the star of a thriller. I will be interesting to violence
 and crime through a woman's perspective as we rarely get the chance to.

Participant 5 : By having a woman play the central character in a thriller film, the film will be far
more unique and I think it will interest a lot of teenagers because often girls are heavily
associated with romantic movies and so it would be a nice change to see them leading a thriller.

Question 3: What are your opinions on it being a crime thriller?

Participant 1 : I think it will be something new for the teenage audience and reflects the times
we are living in. Most of the time crime is easily blamed on young people but we don't usually 
see this on film in the same way that you have pitched.

Participant 2 : Personally psychological thrillers are my favourite but I also enjoy crime thrillers. 
To separate it from the others, I think it is a good idea to never really see the police involved and
focus in on the teenagers themselves.

Participant 3 : I have seen a few crime thrillers and this sounds quite different to them. As long
as it's something new and fresh, I like the fact that it's a crime thriller.

Participant 4 : I like all types of thrillers, so the fact that it is a crime thriller doesn't bother me. 
There have been quite a few so it needs to be different. I think by having a woman be the main
character makes it different.

Participant 5 : For me, crime thrillers are my favourite because they can feel so tense and you
know that the stakes are somewhat realistic for the characters. I like it when they take twists
through out the story because it makes it more fun to watch.

Question 4: What, if anything, would make you not want to watch this film?

Participant 1 : The only thing that would be put me off is representing negative stereotypes of
age, gender, ethnicity and sexual preference. Normally it is quite difficult to find a film that 
doesn't play into negative stereotypes.

Participant 2 : The film needs to keep me gripped throughout as often the tension can die down
within a film but I want the mystery and tension to be kept.

Participant 3 : The characters should be interesting and relatable, if I can't connect with the
characters it can sometimes cause me to disconnect with the film.

Participant 4 : I wouldn't want to watch the film if the main character is not likeable or if I can't 
relate to her. I want her to be a strong woman and to me it is important that all aspects of the
film are treated equally - dialogue, plot, cinematography and characters.

Participant 5 : Not really, as long as it follows everything pitched then I will enjoy watching this 
film.