1. The Wolf of Wall Street - 18
2. American Hustle - 15
4. Lone Survivor - 15
5. 12 Years A Slave - 15
6. Only Lovers Left Alive - 15
7. Dallas Buyers Club - 15
8. Captain Phillips - 12A
9. August: Osage County - 15
10. 300: Rise of an Empire - 15
As these statistics show, the genre of drama appears to target a mainly adult audience, as only one of the films of the current most popular drama films is certified in a way which allows people under the age of 15 to watch it. This is because they often show the grim reality of a certain society, which means there is often violence, bad language and drug use. The genre also targets older teenagers, as not only does the classification mean that younger teenagers cannot watch the films, the subject matter is often not something which is of interest for younger teenagers. For example, The Wolf of Wall Street would have been even more popular and successful had it been certified as a 15, because it's certification as an 18 meant that many viewers aged 16 and 17 had to turn to piracy in order to see the film.
The demographic groups which our genre targets are usually from working class to middle class - it is unlikely that anybody who is upper class would be interested in watching a drama. This is because they contain elements of realism which they are unlikely to have ever experienced before, although they may be more interested in a historical drama such as 12 Years A Slave. Because of this, the demographic groups targeted by our film will be B, C1, C2 and D, as it is unlikely that anybody in demographic category E (the underclass) would be interested in watching a film about a subculture, and anybody in category A is likely to feel too detached from what they are seeing to be able to relate to it.
The audience theory which can be applied to this genre is the Hypodermic Needle theory. Despite being outdated, the theory suggests that the audience are going to copy whatever they see in a film. This is true for most drama films, as they are often relatable to the audience (kitchen sink dramas) and allow them to change the audiences mind about a certain issue. An example of this is The Wolf of Wall Street, as despite it containing situations which the vast majority of the audience will never experience (making $50 million in a year), it has a message which they will be able to relate to at the end, which is that the capitalist idea of making as much money as possible isn't the best way to live. The audience know this because they see how money corrupted the young man. This is a perfect application of the Hypodermic Needle theory, as the audience are likely to go away with this idea in their minds, and live their lives according to it. Drama is one of the only genres where this theory is still applicable, as many other genres of film contain story lines which are too surreal for the audience to take things from to apply to their own lives.
As expected, most of these films used big name actors and directors (Martin Scorcese, Leonardo Di Caprio, Tom Hanks and so on) as their main way of attracting an audience to watch their films. I will not have the luxury of any budget to pay actors, let alone a budget as big as these ones, so I will have to rely on the more subtle techniques and theories which are used to attract the audience in these films when making my own one. For example, if I were to employ the uses and gratifications theory into my piece, then I would be able to show the audience that my film is able to fulfil certain needs of theirs, for example the need to witness artificial relationships or for entertainment. All of the drama films which I have studied employ these theories, however they are harder to spot in higher budget films because the majority of the emphasis from attracting audiences is placed on the lead actors within it.
The demographic groups which our genre targets are usually from working class to middle class - it is unlikely that anybody who is upper class would be interested in watching a drama. This is because they contain elements of realism which they are unlikely to have ever experienced before, although they may be more interested in a historical drama such as 12 Years A Slave. Because of this, the demographic groups targeted by our film will be B, C1, C2 and D, as it is unlikely that anybody in demographic category E (the underclass) would be interested in watching a film about a subculture, and anybody in category A is likely to feel too detached from what they are seeing to be able to relate to it.
The audience theory which can be applied to this genre is the Hypodermic Needle theory. Despite being outdated, the theory suggests that the audience are going to copy whatever they see in a film. This is true for most drama films, as they are often relatable to the audience (kitchen sink dramas) and allow them to change the audiences mind about a certain issue. An example of this is The Wolf of Wall Street, as despite it containing situations which the vast majority of the audience will never experience (making $50 million in a year), it has a message which they will be able to relate to at the end, which is that the capitalist idea of making as much money as possible isn't the best way to live. The audience know this because they see how money corrupted the young man. This is a perfect application of the Hypodermic Needle theory, as the audience are likely to go away with this idea in their minds, and live their lives according to it. Drama is one of the only genres where this theory is still applicable, as many other genres of film contain story lines which are too surreal for the audience to take things from to apply to their own lives.
As expected, most of these films used big name actors and directors (Martin Scorcese, Leonardo Di Caprio, Tom Hanks and so on) as their main way of attracting an audience to watch their films. I will not have the luxury of any budget to pay actors, let alone a budget as big as these ones, so I will have to rely on the more subtle techniques and theories which are used to attract the audience in these films when making my own one. For example, if I were to employ the uses and gratifications theory into my piece, then I would be able to show the audience that my film is able to fulfil certain needs of theirs, for example the need to witness artificial relationships or for entertainment. All of the drama films which I have studied employ these theories, however they are harder to spot in higher budget films because the majority of the emphasis from attracting audiences is placed on the lead actors within it.
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