G321 - Audience questionnaires analysed.

To find out what audiences were looking for in a romantic comedy we created a questionnaire and gave them out to 10 different people within different groups (age and gender).

Do you enjoy watching Romantic comedies?
- Yes = 5
- No = 1
- Sometimes = 4

What is your favourite romantic comedy?
- 500 Days of Summer = 1
- Bridesmaids = 7
- Knocked Up = 0
- American Pie = 1
- Other = 1

Why and if other what film?
- Other = Mother-in-law
- comments given were things such as :
- 500 Days of Summer is told in an interesting and not obvious way unlike most romantic comedies.
- Bridesmaids is relatable as I have been both a bride and a bridesmaid.
- Bridesmaids - I can relate to the characters and the relationships between them.

What age range do you think romantic comedies are aimed at? (can tick more than one)
- 12-14 = 0
- 15-17 = 7
- 18+ = 8

What age range do you like to see a romantic comedy based around? (can tick more than one)
- Young Children = 0
- Teenagers = 4
- Young Adults (18-25) = 6
- Adults (25+) = 2

Do you think the use of props such as drugs, alcohol etc. are appropriate to use in a romantic comedy?
- Yes = 5
- No = 4
- Sometimes = 1

Do you think the mocking of social groups/gender hierarchy (men are more powerful) is funny in a romantic comedy?
- Yes = 3
- No = 6
- Sometimes = 1

What do you expect from a film opening?
- The outline of the story = 0
- To be left on a cliff-hanger for the film to explain the rest = 3
- A brief introduction to the characters = 5
- No introduction to any characters just titles and credits = 1
- Other = 1

It's clear from the first 3 questions what type of films are popular at the moments which will tell us the type of humour and storyline themes that audiences will enjoy. The extra comments given about the audience film choices also tell us what audiences look for in a romantic comedy (such as relating to the characters and the situation). We can also see that the audience for a romantic comedy is believed to be teens and over but that it should be based on characters past their teen years, although basing it on teenagers could work too. There were also comments given on the use of drugs and alcohol saying that they were only appropriate if they weren't being abused and the context was appropriate. After seeing how people considered social groups it's possible that further research should be done into what humour would be acceptable and which audiences it would attract. From this we can see that audiences expect an introduction to the characters and hints towards the storyline that will keep them interested/hooked to watch the rest of the film.

These questionnaire results will help us to create our own romantic comedy film opening as we can see what is expected, what would improve our opening and what could make it different to other openings interesting audiences.

Katie Pridige

Charlotte Hester

Mia Norton