How does a film opening attract an audience (G321)

Ways which a film opening attracts an audience include:

• Catching their attention straight away.
• Generic convections
• Targeting selected groups

Catching their attention straight away
It is important to grab the audiences attention straight away as doing this immediatley gets them into the film. If you fail to grab your audiences attention then they may struggle to get into and follow the film and therefore will not enjoy the media product. A good example of this is the opening to the film Zombieland (2009).


Generic convections
The use of generic convections is another thing which is used to attract an audience. Take the opening sequence to Live and Let Die (1973) for example, the generic convections we see and hear in this sequence inclued a gun, fire, high tmpo music and a skull symbolising death. These are all generic convections of the genre action. This shows that the target audience for this film are people who are fans of the action genre.



Targeting selected groups
Film openings from films such as Live and Let Die are targeting a large mainstream audience, one which is usually easily influenced by a film and just wants to be entertained, one which fits into the hyperdemic needle theory. These groups are most commonly targeted by big name production companies such as Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema by producing films which fit into major genres such as comedy and action.

On the other handmore specific, niche audiences can be targeted by production companies. However these 'niche' audiences are usually targeted by Independent production companies such as Film4 and Kojo Pictures. An example of an independent film opening is the opening of the film This is England (2006). The opening title sequence of this film specifically targets a british audience and even more specifically people interested in british history during the 1980's.