Research

 Target Audience:

Demographic:

Demography is the study of characterisation of a population. However when spoken about within regards to target audience a demographic is the group of people who would theoretically be more likely to watch what you are creating. This is the key part to creating a target audience.

Psychographic:

Psychography is the methodology used to describe the personality traits of a person. Within terms of target audience this helps the creators to understand why the demographic watches their show. This is extremely helpful for creating something that will appeal most to your target audience because this allows you to understand your audience in depth. 

Idea one:

Demographic; 

• Age-25-45
• Gender-Male
• Ethnicity-White British
• Class-Middle Class
• Religion-Atheist 

Before research I would assume the demographic for this show would be young to middle aged white males this is because a lot of similar shows tend to have mainly middle aged white males on them. This leads me to assume that this is done intentionally because the show runners have already researched who their target audience is and tailored their show for them. 

Psychographic;

• Relaxed 
• Family orientated
• Hard working 
• Enjoys light-hearted humour 

I found my psychographic estimate of my audience hard so instead I thought of the people I knew who fit my demographic. In conclusion I have a persona that works hard however finds the time to relax with their family enjoying light-hearted comedy shows. 

Idea Two:

Demographic;

• Age-18-30
• Gender-Female
• Ethnicity-White British 
• Class-Working Class 
• Religion-Atheist 

Before investigating my target audience I would assume that my demographic would be young, white, working class, women. This is purely based on my own experiences with people I know. 

Psychographic;

• Mothers 
• Enjoy celebrity gossip and rumours 
• Enjoy the emotions of performance work

The same as my previous estimation of the psychography of my audience this was taken from the people I know who fit the demographic. 

Idea Three:

Demographic;

• Age-16-25
• Gender-Female
• Ethnicity-White British 
• Class-Working Class
• Religion-Atheist

This was different from my other demographic because my intention for this piece was specifically target it towards a certain demographic as it is made for young adults. Whereas with my other ideas I picked who I thought would watch the TV show this example is specifically made for this audience. 

Psychographic;

• Preparing to leave home
• Growing more mature
• Beginning to take responsibility
• Comes from a small working family 

 I estimate that the psychography of my demographic would be a young adult who is either preparing to move out or taking more responsibility because of a working family. Therefore I think it is important to not make this show too immature while still keeping the cooking fun and relaxed.  

 

Data:

Quantitative data-

This is the data that has a numerical value it tends to come from closed questions.

Qualitative data-

This data is more literary and can be collected through primary research. Often this data determines the 'Whats' and 'Who's' of an audience.

Valid and reliable data-  

It is extremely important to ensure that the data you are collecting is not only valid but also reliable. Valid is the term used for the truth whereas reliable means repeatable. If you're data is neither valid or reliable then your whole target audience could be wrong. 

My Target Audience:

After deciding to pursue idea two it is extremely important for me to use the knowledge I have gained about data to determine who my target audience actually is. To begin I will research similar shows and then also the audience of the channels they are on.

The Graham Norton Show:

This show is broadcast on BBC One and Two has been since it first aired in 2007.

After researching I found the following data on a website called YouGov. From a survey they conducted from July 2020 to October 2020 it would appear that the show is equally as popular with men and women however it is more popular with people aged between 21-38 years old. 

BBC:

From an article published by the National Audit Office from data collected in 2016-2017 it would appear that 72% of the BBC's audience is an ethnic minority. Also it stated that 65% of their audience is between the ages of 16-34 years old. Furthermore 82% of the audience our in the class category C2 which refers to manual skilled workers. 

The Jonathan Ross Show:

The Jonathan Ross Show broadcasts on ITV and has done since 2011. From an article published on the website YouGov with data collected from July-October 2020 they discovered that the show is slightly more popular with people aged 21-38 however it is also more popular with women. 

Britain's got Talent:

This show has been broadcasts on ITV since it first aired in 2006. From a survey taken by YouGov from July-October of 2020 It states that the show is more popular with women and people aged between 21-38 years old. 

ITV:

The information I have comes from the ITV website itself stating that is has "a core audience of 25-44-year-old males" also the audience mostly consists of ABC1 in the class category (managerial and professional). 

My results:

After researching the target audience of similar shows and the channels they are one I have determined my target audience are 21-38 year old women. Also after my research I have decided that my show would best suit the BBC which means my audience is also very ethnically diverse. 

The Theory of Relativity Target audience:

 I could not find any reliable and valid data on who actually is this musical's target audience however I have subjectively estimated with the knowledge I have of the musical. The musical looks at a group of 15 college students who all have different problems in their lives. Which only allows me to state that the target audience would be aged between 16-25 years old as I feel this audience could relate more with the characters. However on a website called The Broadway League from a study taken in New York from 2017-2018 they gathered this information about theatre goers;

• 66% Female
• The average age was 40.6 years old
• The average household income was $222,120 annually 

This information leads me to believe that my target audience is female with the age ranging 18-40 years old from a wealthy home life. This target audience isn't far from the target audience I had already gathered which works perfectly in creating an audience of theatre goers and entertainment show watchers.

My Audience Persona:

Age- 28 years old 

Gender- Female

Live- Manchester England

Born- China

Job- Works for a software development company

Home- Small house

Income- £20,000

Car- 2016 Ford Fiesta 

Pet- One cat

When do they work- 9-5 Monday to Friday 

I have created this fake audience member based on my target audience data so that I can visualise who I am tailoring my show for. 

Target Profile:

Expansion:

Demographic:

Women aged between 18-38 who live who are ethnically diverse which means my target audience often have to fight be to be heard. They also fall into the class category of C2 meaning they often have manual skilled jobs. 

Geographic:

According to a study taken by the company Compare the Market Manchester has the highest percentage of 18-35 years old in England making up 38.57%. Making me believe it would be most like that my target audience lives in Manchester. Also considering the average rent it’s very possible that my target audience could afford a small house.

Psychographic and behavioural:

My audience works hard through the week so enjoys their time off relaxing in front of the TV preferring light-hearted easy watching entertainment over narrative driven shows. Also my audience enjoys listening to music and does so when doing chores or working. Furthermore they enjoy hearing celebrity gossip therefore the performance section of a talk show is their favourite. 

Survey:

Question 1:

The majority of my are within my target audiences age so I can be sure that the opinions given on my survey are from my target audience. 

Question 2:

The majority of people answering my survey were also female which also fits my target audience. This is exactly what I wanted to know from my first two questions whether the survey is taken by my target audience which it is. Therefore I know the opinions given will help my expansion of the understanding my target audience. 

Question 3:

 

The majority of answers say they enjoy watching live music performances and the answers showed no negative answers which and more validation that my target audience is correct. This makes my previous research more reliable. 

Question 4:

Because the majority stated they would rather watch a BBC Live Lounge performance that leads me to believe that my target audience prefers a performance that isn't fuelled by competition or celebrity gossip but instead is primarily performance based.

Question 5:

For the 5th question I asked why they had chosen that show. Everyone who said BBC Live Lounge talked about the focus on music and feeling connected to the artist. Whereas the people who picked the Graham Norton show said it was because of the comedy. However the people who picked Britain's Got Talent stated it was for the variety. This leads to think that focusing on BBC Live Lounge would be the best choice for my piece. 

Question 6:

The majority of people said they would prefer a mixture of both music and theatrics which is ideal because this was exactly what I had in mind for my mise en scene. 

Evaluation:

Overall I think my survey was extremely helpful in determining what my target audience would like to see from my piece I will use the data I have collected to help with furthering my project. 

Analysis:

BBC Live Lounge; Ed Sheeran covering Stay With Me:

I chose this clip from Live Lounge because of all the different instruments and singers there's a lot to capture similarly because in my piece there are two singers who are also both dancing I also have a lot to capture. 

The first thing I noticed was the lighting it was low and shadowy it felt very intimate to me making any audience member feel as though the performance was made just for them. I thought the opening shot was a great way to start it was quite wide allowing the audience to instantly absorb everything in the room. Also I noticed as the audience could hear a noise it would do a close up of that thing for example the song starts with just piano so there is a close up of the piano then the singer begins and the camera shows a close up of him. I think that this happens to allow the audience to subconsciously understand that the performance is defiantly live. Furthermore something I enjoyed about the clip is that the camera movements and changes matched the tempo of the music. I really enjoyed that small detail and I felt it made the video and sound feel more symbiotic. As an audience member I felt connected to the music and video. 

The Graham Norton show; Dua Lipa Don't start now:

I chose to analyse this performance as there was dancing and more movement which is similar to my own piece. The first thing I noticed about this performance was the set it instantly grabbed my attention and clearly considered in depth and was executed well. I felt the cinematography perfectly matched the music's tone the shots were constantly changing or moving translating the upbeat music more clearly to the audience. However I didn't like when the camera went behind the singer and band I felt isolated from the performance ruining the flow of the video for me. Although the dancing and movements were limited I felt they were captured well there was obvious thought gone into capturing the movements while still using a range of different shot types. 

Codes and conventions:

Establishing shot:

From conducting my research I have found that performance based videos often start with an establishing shot that allows the audience to see the whole set before the performance begins. This means the audience can appreciate every performer on the set. 

Focusing on individuals:

It's a key feature of many performance videos to focus on a new sound or dance as it begins I found it really enhances the music when your shown exactly where it is coming from.

 

Lighting and set design:

It's very important to reflect the music in the mise en scene of the video it can ruin a video if the production team hasn't captured the atmosphere the song creates correctly. For example in this photo the lighting is soft and intimate and so is the set it's very casual and relaxed which reflects the tone of the song perfectly. 

Matching camera movements and cuts to the music:

I noticed this convention added more depth and professionalism to the performance video the whole piece feels so much smoother and natural when the music and video match. This is defiantly something I will be including in my own project. 

Stuart Hall Reception theory:

The theory suggests that different people could read media text differently resulting in the intentions of a piece being misinterpreted if seen by the wrong audience. Hall provides his view on the different ways a piece could be read;

Dominant/preferred reading- This refers to the piece being seen as it was intended by the creators and producers this will happen if the producer uses their knowledge of the correct target audience. 

Oppositional reading- This reading is when the audience rejects the preferred reading therefore adding their own unintentional meaning. This often happens when the wrong audience views a piece or if the narrative is too complex. 

Negotiated Reading- This is when a reading is taken partly from the preferred reading from the creators and also their own views. 

Applying Halls theory:

Within the context of my own project I feel that it's very important for me to understand the tone and message of the performance so that I can match the mise en scene. If I do not get the set design and lighting correct I feel that it be extremely easy for my audience to get a oppositional reading. 

Mulvey Theory of the male gaze:

The theory:

Laura Mulvey is a well known feminist film theorist who often takes inspiration from Sigmund Freud and Jacques Lacan but with respect to film and media. Her theory on the 'male gaze' regards to objectification of women in film. Mulvey says herself “the gender power asymmetry is a controlling force in cinema and constructed for the pleasure of the male viewer". In simple terms female characters are made with the opinion that a heterosexual man will have of them in mind. The creators of a film will ensure all their audience views the character through the eyes of a heterosexual man. 

Application:

Although I found this theory extremely fascinating I don't think it will apply to my project because my target audience is female and I believe the characters are more accurate representation of how women see other women. Also they are already established characters that appear in my piece. 

The female gaze:

Theory:

Recently the film society at Lincoln Centre countered the male gaze with the idea of a female gaze which they described as being intimate and emotional it aims to empathise instead of objectify. Cinematographer Ashley Connor states "The male gaze seeks to devour and control and the female gaze is more a frame of mind"

Application:

I feel the female gaze fits perfectly with my piece, the song and performance although upbeat carries a lot of emotion and details an intimate friendship. The camera should show the two girls as people rather than sexual objects because it has no relevance towards the narrative. 

The Queer Gaze:

How were queer characters portrayed in TV since the beginning of TV?

Representation of queer characters has evolved dramatically especially in recent years. When TV started it was unheard of to have a gay character on a show however around the 90's TV show started to include more sexually diverse characters (friends 1994-2004, Ellen 1994-1998 and Vicar of Dibley 1994-1999). Although TV shows had began to include queer characters often they were portrayed in a very offensive stereotypical way most of the time their sexuality was played for laughs or shock. However in recent years TV has started to show a much more casual representation of queer characters their sexual orientation is just one of their character traits rather than their whole persona. For example Brooklyn Nine-Nine 2013-, Schitts Creek 2015-2020, The Fall 2013-2016 and many more. 

Queer Theory and Heteronormativity:

Queer theory challenges many set ideas of what normal is and the fact people don't need to be categorised by their sexuality. Heteronormativity is a worldwide view that states that being heterosexual is the normal/preferred sexuality. It's a form of control that pressures all sexuality's to live within a social norm by government institutions such as tax, marriage and adoption. Queer theory is hard to define as it is still so new however the key point is trying to make all sexuality equal within the eyes of society. Which is why it so important to show queer characters on all types of TV. The media plays such an important part in making social change happen the more representation people see on TV the further away from a heternormative society we get. 

Conclusion:

After researching the different types of gaze I believe that the female gaze best applies to my piece for multiple reasons. The first being that because I am a woman I automatically film through from a woman's perspective and therefore before even considering my audience I would naturally film with the female gaze. Additionally the context of my piece and the characters do not fit the queer or male gaze their is no reason to sexulise either character and neither of them indicate their sexuality throughout the performance. Furthermore my target audience is female and therefore using the female gaze would speak to them the most. 

Representation:

Ideology:

This refers to the ideas and beliefs that the producer/director portray through their work it often influences how the audience views the story. I will show my ideology using mise en scene I intend to make the character Jenny appear as a villain of some type. 

Anchorage:

When words join an image such as a tagline or slogan. It can completely change how an image is perceived. Although Anchorage is a powerful form of representation it doesn't fit with my live performance any graphics used will show no opinion and therefore can not lead the audience to make one. 

Stereotypes:

This refers to grouping a community of people whether by race, culture, sexuality or gender and believing they all share qualities or skills just because they belong to this community. Although media has stereotyped people a lot in the past mostly for comedic effect it's being recognised as offence and unacceptable resulting in the representation of different communities becoming much more casual and much more accurate of the average person. However the characters within the musical piece I'm recording are stereotypes of two types of teenage girls it's not offence and is used as a way to relate to their audience. 

Mediation:

It consists of three keys aspects; Selection, organisation and focusing. First selection the media creators select what sources it includes. Then you organise which sources show your point of view. Finally you create focus (meaning) in your audiences mind using what you selected and how you organised it. 

Presence and absences:

An absence is quite simply the absence of something to create a desired effect examples include; music being interrupted, freeze frame and when a something blocks the audiences view. Whereas presence refers to what the audience thinks, feels and sees. For example a character in a film has a presence even though they don't actually exist, in the audience and creators mind they can still perceive them as a presence. 

Construction:

After deciding what you want to present to your audience it's important to choose how through your equipment and effects. It is this choice which defines construction in media. For example I want to represent my characters personality's I have chosen to do this through lighting, set design and positioning.