Audience data/response
- 1. Did you watch Star Wars: The force awakens at the cinema? Gender No Yes Grand Total Female 6 2 8 Male 1 12 13 Non-Binary 1 1 Grand Total 8 14 22 Roughly how much money have you spent on Star Wars products? Gender £0-50 £100-200 £200+ £50-100 None/Prefer not to say Grand Total Female 6 2 8 Male 3 5 1 4 13 Non-Binary 1 1 Grand Total 9 5 1 4 3 22 Howold were you when you first watched orheard of Star Wars? Gender 0-5 10-15 15-25 25+ 5-10 Grand Total Female 1 3 4 8 Male 3 1 1 1 7 13 Non-Binary 1 1 Grand Total 4 4 1 1 12 22 Can you see yourself spending money on StarWarsproductsin the future? Gender No Yes Grand Total Female 5 3 8 Male 3 10 13 Non-Binary 1 1 Grand Total 9 13 22 Who did you first watch the film with? Gender class mates Family Friends No one Grand Total Female 1 3 3 1 8 Male 10 3 13 Non-Binary 1 1 Grand Total 1 13 7 1 22
- 2. From myaudience researchIcan firstlydeduce thatthe primarydemographicismale as they answeredhighlyonall relatedquestions.Forexample,onlyaquarterof female answerssaw The Force Awakensatthe cinema (2/8),whereasincomparison92% of the male responderssaw the film inthe cinema(12/13). Therefore the employmentof more typicallymale conventions-suchasthe actionand violence-are verysuccessful inattractinganaudience;eg.The filmsclimacticlightsabre battle betweenFinn,ReyandKyloRen. Additionallywe caninferthatmalesare muchmore likelytospendmoneyon the franchise with76% sayingtheyare likelytospendmoneyonStarWars in the future,incomparisononly37% of females agreed.Thismaybe because the primarydemographicismale subsequentlymore malesare investedenoughintothe sagato spendmoney onit.Thisiscorrelatedbythe (estimated) amountof moneyindividualshave spentonStarWars relatedproducts,withthe maximumaverage being £134; the maximumfemale averagebeingnearly£100 lowerat £37. One male evenestimated spendingupwardsof £200 on merchandise,whereasthe highestafemale hadspentwas£50. This alsoimpliesthatthe filmsdemographichasareasonablyhighspendingpowerasmyresearch indicatesmanypeople (especiallymen) are preparedtospendlotsof moneyonthe franchise, therefore theyare likelytobe middle class(C1,C2) on the socio-economicscale. Therefore the productiondesignelementsmayappeal greatlytothe audience asoutfits,propsandspaceshipsare oftenelementsmorphedinto productsforthe publictobuy.Withinthe trailerthiswouldmanifest as objectssuchas the Millennium-Falcon,KyloRen’sprongedlightsabreandmaybe evenRey’sbeige costume. My researchalsoshowsthata higherproportionof male audience membersfirstwatchedthe film withfamily membersratherthanfriendswith76% (10/13) agreeingwiththisstatement. In comparisononly37% (3/8) female viewerswatchedThe Force Awakenswithfamilythe firsttime. Thismay be due to the verynostalgic–andoriginallymale- marketinganddesignof the film, deliberatelycallingthe original trilogytomind. Anexampleof thismaybe the returnof Williams’s original score inthe trailer,whichcouldsatisfythe personal relationshipsgratificationforthe demographic,asthe franchise hasoftencreatedafather-sonbond.Subsequentlythe nostalgic elementsare veryappealingtothe male primarilymaletargetaudience. Thisisalsobackedupbymy researchwhichshowshow onaverage malesare exposedtoStar Wars froma youngerage:77% before the age of 10 whereasonly62% of femaleshave heardof or watchedStarWars bythat age. Additionallythisimpliesthatthe primarydemographicenjoythe nostalgicelementsthatmake them feel young(er) again,thismaybe the epicscale of the universe, connotedbythe hyperspace jumps inthe trailerandfilm.