Audience Research on Film Posters

To begin my research, I used a questionnaire and asked people who were mainly aged 16-20 the questions below.

In the sample, there were 67 people. 30 were male and 37 were female.

• What attracts you to a film poster?

Actors

Colour

Title

Review quote/star rating

Tagline

Images

In my research, the sample said that they were first drawn to the actors in the film. This could be through recognition of the actor or the image on the poster. Title was the second most popular vote and so in my own drafts, I may emphasize the title.

• What do you believe is the most important feature of a poster?

Title

Image of actor

Images relevant to the genre of the film

Tagline

Date of release

Actor/character names

Colour connotation

Billing block

The sample thought 'Images related to the genre' was the most important feature of a film poster for example, hearts for a romance, explosions for an action film. 'Image of actor' was the second popular which in all, means that the images on a poster are the most important features. This means that I'll have to make sure I use the right images in my poster and use them as a main focus point like in the posters I have analysed.

• When you see a poster, what stands out first?

Image

Title

Colour

Review quote/star rating

Awards given/Nominations

Tagline

The image and colour are the things that first catch the attention of the sample. This means that my poster will have to be eye-catching as well as connote the narrative and genre.

• What style of poster do you prefer out of these two?

a)

b)

The chart below shows the percentage of what the people asked preferred between the poster A) 'complicated' poster and B) 'simplistic' poster. As you can see, 57% of the audience preferred Poster A) rather than Poster B) due to the busy style used with the photos.