Target Audience Profile - Spy Genre

Demographics:

We will aim our clip at people around the age of 15-30 years old. Spy genres are mainly watched by people above the age of 15, as it incorporates your own knowledge of the spy genre to understand what is going on. Also many of the actors used in spy genres are around the age of 30 years olds.

Ethnicity: Mainly white British people as the main characters in our clip are white British and therefore this will be the only ethnicity represented.

Class: Mainly middle class and upper class as it is a more sophisticated opening sequence which takes more understanding than a comedy or thriller film, therefore this will appeal to the upper class. Statistically the lower class are less intelligent therefore may not understand the storyline.

Gender: The gender that will watch this film will be mostly Males with the secondary audience being females. This is because all the characters in our sequence are males therefore it will appeal more to men rather than women.

Psychographics:

Resigned: They seek survival from the other main character. They also have rigged and authoritarian vales. They are interested in past and tradition by stereotypically ordering people around.

Skyfall opening sequence analysis

Opening sequence review

Firstly, in this scene a medium close-up of his hand is used, this clip was also slowed down to represent the fatality o  The use of low-key lighting connotes a sense of the unknown, which the audience will find intriguing and suddenly can’t take their eyes off the centre of the screen. Moreover, the audience will wonder who the woman is dragging him down and what she is doing – this adds to the suspense and excitement. A two shot is normally used to incorporate two different types of people into one picture – with the audiences judgement they are now beginning to develop on the idea that they are doing something wrong and it also could suggest that Bond is working with the villain antagonist. This is also supported by the mise en scene which is they way the settings and surrounding of an event are arranged for example Bond is wearing a suit which portrays the stereotypical view of a hero, this further implies that he could be trying to save the woman that seems to be drowning.
f him drowning. We can also imply that the director is trying to get us to focus and draw our attention to Bond’s hand as it is in the centre of the triad – this is the main focus of the clip and gives us the ability to concentrate on a certain image.

In this clip we can suggest that the director has used low-key lighting to isolate the character and also to convey drama. In this clip diegetic sound is played in the background to create drama and excitement it is inevitably done to switch up the pace of the clip and make it more intriguing for the audience. Starting off slow and then gradually picking up the pace to become faster can create suspense and faster, this will allow the audience to feel the tension and also the importance of the scene.  The abandoned and derelict scenery could signify that Bond should not be there in that situation and something bad may be about to happen – we can imply this through the power of the surroundings as no one is around and it does not look safe. However some of the scenes are very predictable like this one as the audience are aware of who the villains and hero’s are due to the semiotics, which are given off within the shot. The shot is rom behind Bond which creates the image that  the audience are following him on his journey therefore making it more interesting.

Firstly, static camera used in this shot to gain a fixed image but also submerge the two different clips together (Bond’s eye and a derelict house) this could be done to create emphasis of his visions or also what he may be thinking. Low-key lighting is used within this short to clip to create a dark shadowy and atmospheric scene – this inevitably creates mystery and tension within the audience as they wonder what may happen in this house.  In this clip a camera movement called zoom has been used between the two different institutions. The zoom out enables a swift and professional transition into the film whereas an establishing shot is made to highlight the surroundings. The use of semiotics in this scene support Vladimir Prop’s theory of films being driven by the two main codes of action and proairetic using symbols and signs

Surveying our audience

As part of our research into the genre in which we have chosen we have decided to make a survey online in which our audience can fill out and display their feelings into the style which we will do which will inevitably get more people to watch our clip as it incorporates their ideas. We made the questions specific and not necessarily about the spy genre so that it is unspecific and not biased but also so we can shoes that our audience truly enjoy spy films. 

Our first few questions helped to see what our target audience is and how we can make this appeal to their interests. We used questions such as 'What is your gender?' and also 'How old are you'. In order to see whether they actually enjoy spy films we asked what their favourite genre is and also what Bond film is their favourite. By asking this question we can try and make our clip the same style as the opening Bond clips - this therefore will make it much more intriguing. 

From this Survey we can convey the idea that our audience are not really interested in Spy films at all. However we do know that they enjoy comedy and action films as well as other types of genres. From this type of information we can create a hybrid style clip which incorporates comical factors and some action to make it more exciting for the audience.

From this survey we can see that most of our audience highly enjoy the film sky fall and many others like casino Royale and different types of bond films. From this information we can take ideas from the opening clip of sky fall and other sky fall movies which are not in this survey to make our clip more interesting to our audience.

From this survey we can see that everybody from our audience is between the age of 15 and 29. This is actually very useful as we can just see what interests people of this age and how we can use this in our clip to make it more exciting. Also we can see which types of spy films are made for audiences of these ages and take parts of these films, recreate them ourselves and make them better. 

Our survey shows us that most of our audience is males and only 21.47 percent of our audience is female. In order for our audience to enjoy and be thrilled by our opening clip we will have to make it more biased towards male ideas and also incorporate their views.

How costumes are represented in the Spy genre

In the James Bond film his costume helps him to portray his true identity massively as he is considered as a very masculine and upper middle class character. Although, he is dressed in a very smart and casual suit it also gives off the effect that he is very powerful and controlling of situations - someone who seems to be very intimidating.

Jason Bourne conveys the stereotypical view of an 'alpha-male'. From his costume we can tell that he is a very determined character and enjoys to get things done very quickly. His outfit portrays a very casual look however the use of the gun in his hand creates the idea that he obviously is not what you would expect of a stereotypical male and he is the total opposite.

In the film 'Spy' the main character Melissa McCarthy is represented as a very normal character wearing just a blouse, t-shirt and a dress. However, the other characters juxtapose the idea that this is a normal film as they are all seen wearing suits. This portrays the idea that they are very important and intelligent. You can work out many things from someones outfit within a film. For example, if someone is wearing very casual clothing we deem them to be rather dumb or unintelligent. However if someone is wearing a smart suit or fashionable items we create the image that they are smart and  popular as the create the view of being part of the upper class.

Evaluating the opening sequence of Bourne Identity

The opening scene of the film Bourne identity starts by cutting straight to a storm. The scene does not fade in making then movement smooth and calm. It flashes in telling the audience that something dramatic is happening. The storm is used to foreshadow that a storm may be coming. The music begins as a group of mystery characters are shown nearby a boat. The sailors communicate in a foreign language making it difficult for the audience to figure out if these characters are good or bad - this therefore adds to the curious atmosphere. Parallel editing is used to show that the two scenes - the sailors on the boat and the floating body- occurring at the same time. This builds up tension as the audience watch the characters eventually meet. They wait in anticipation to see who will reach the other first.

The floating body shown reveals to the audience that a murder has been committed. The audience may wonder why and who has done this crime but this is part of the story and have to work it out for themselves. This is also generally used in both spy an thriller scenes as it creates a mystery that needs to unfold. A POV shot has been used here so that the audience so that the audience can see what the sailor is currently seeing. This also reveals to the viewer that the sailor has spotted the body as we wait to see his reaction and whats he's going to do next. A flash of lightening turns the screen completely black, the title emerges. Random letters appear in a coding effect that forms in the title.

This can foreshadow that the character has to figure out something highly complicated in the future. After the sailor has spotted the body the music tempo increases as the audience can now see what we may assume to be the main character of the film clearly and evidently for the first time. The theme of the mystery continues as we still have no idea who the man is.The diegetic sound as well as the pace of the music as the sailors realise that the man is still alive. They also start to shout to each other as they panic in a rush to save his life. The music starts to fade out as an extreme close-up is used - inevitably to attract the audiences and also focus their attention on the scalpel which is about to cut open the main character. The now nearly silent music is used to emphasise the focus needed when operating on a body.

Binary opposition

Binary opposition is used within the glass marksman as Bond himself is consistently seen as a 'heroic' character in all of the movies. He is always trying to be captured by a supposed 'villain'. On the other hand, |binary opposition is a very easy way to gain attention of the audience and is continually used in spy genre films, this helps to build tension and drama. Binary oppositions can inevitably create a huge amount of conflict between different conflict this is portrayed through good vs evil, black vs white and Indians vs cowboys etc. Moreover, in our short final clip we will include a Todorovian narrative which is normally used when binary opposition is created as good starts to prevail and then the characters all come to a conclusion then order is fully restored. 

lighting created in casino royale

In this clip the lighting helps to convey the mood and atmosphere. It is used to guide the audiences attention to a particular object - in this clip we can see that there is shadows surrounding the young girl guiding our eyes towards her and the shot glass. This inevitably creates anticipation for the audiences. Additionally the soft lighting creates a diffused illumination and the sun also creates hard light whilst an overcast sky creates soft light. The light from the sun reflects off of the shot glass which shows the direction of the light is aimed at the girl. From this we know that the director is manipulating the light of the scene which is typically decided on two primary sources: key light and fill light.
Furthermore, backlighting is used behind where the young girl is stood to create a silhouette and this causes the edges of the subject to glow. This also causes her hair to glow and look rather fuzzy  it also gives an angelic halo effect around of the head.

Lighting research

Firstly, lighting helps to convey mood and atmosphere in a scene. It can be used to guide the audience's attention to a particular object, person or gesture. Furthermore, it can be used to guide the audiences attention and also cast shadows. By controlling the direction of the light and its intensity, cinematographers can create various visual effects. The careful control of light can produce shadows that conceal details and create moods and direct the audiences attention to point of emphasis.

High Key Lighting refers to a low contrast lighting style that is used to brighten up

everything within the frame and cut down on shadows. With high key lighting, every person 

in the scene, as well as every object get the same amount of light so that everything looks even. The advantage of High Key Lighting is that it also cuts down on shooting time as there is no need for a complex set up of lights.

Backlight is a term used in visual arts such as photography, film and stage lighting that simply means “light that comes from behind”. A light source placed on the opposite side of the “subject” (model, actor) from a viewer’s (camera, audience) point of view. On a conventional theatre stage this means lights that are hung upstage (towards the rear of the stage) that shine back towards the acting area.The angle of backlighting can vary from low down, right up to nearly over the “subjects” head. Light directly overhead is referred to as “toplight” or “downlight” and shares similar lighting qualities to backlight.

Fill light:An auxiliary light, usually from the side of the subject that can soften shadows and

illuminate areas not covered by the key light. 

I would really like to incorporate the idea of back light to create tension and show off the main character in the centre of the triad. Additionally I would also like to use high key lighting as it helps to brighten everything up in the centre of the frame and also create shadows. Lastly I am going to consider using low key lighting to portray the idea that something ad is going to happen and build up anxiousness.