Focus Group
Before I start asking the questions for the focus group i will play a short film called ’17 Seconds’ then i will have 2-3 minutes to ask the following questions.
1.How would you describe that short film in 1/2 words?
I asked this question because I’d like to get a general reaction to the short film but because of the time restrictions I’ll have to keep it very brief.
Answer: The general reaction was that it was a short and snappy short film with typical action scenes included. I also found out that the focus group thought that the short film had good comedic value and that it had a silly nature which they all agreed on. But overall they enjoyed the short film.
2. Which area of the production could have been improved? i.e. Editing/Camera Operator/Director.
This question allows me to see which part of the production team needs to work on their contribution and it allows me to see what worked for them and what didn’t.
Answer: The overall feeling was that the audio needed improving because it came across as patchy and grainy at certain points. However there were slight concerns over the lighting and the acting saying that the acting came across as cheesy.
3. How long do you prefer short films to be?
This allows me to get an estimate as to how long a short film should be before it becomes boring to the target audience.
Answer: The general consensus was that 5/10 minutes was the best/most preferred running time of a short film because they felt that it’s unlikely that the audience would form a relationship with a character in a short film. They also felt that 5/10 minutes was enough time for a decent narrative to capture the audience.
4. What genre do you prefer when it comes to short films?
I’m asking this because it allows me to see which narrative type will appeal most to the target audience and it also allows me to see which is the most receptive for the audience.
Audience: When it came to genre, the focus group by some distance felt that action/comedy are the best genres for short films as they found the narratives associated with them more appealing. However there was a solitary mention of the Sci-fi genre.
5. How many characters do you prefer to see in a short film?
From this question I will be able to tell how many characters development they’d like to see in a short film.
Answer: The amount of characters that the focus group would prefer to see in a short film was mainly 3 due to their opinion that if there was anymore it would be even harder to form a relationship with any of the characters. However 1 or 2 of the focus group felt that 4 characters is the right amount.
Questionnaire (Survey Monkey)
For the questionnaire, only 4 people answered. The questions on the questionnaire are as follows:
1. Are you male or female?
2. How old are you?
3. Please can you rate the following film genres? (Choices: Action/Drama/Horror/Spoof/Thriller)
4. What would you rate the short film? (Choices: 1-3, 4-6, 7-8, 9-10)
5. Which character most appealed to you? (Jack, John, Dafne, Handkerchief Guy)
6. What do you look for in a short film? (Own written answers)
7. What makes a good character to you? (Preset answers)
8. How long do you prefer short films to be? (Preset answers)
9. How many characters do you prefer in a short film? (Preset answers)
Overall
Overall i found the focus group to be more beneficial because it’s a qualitative data source in which i get answers from the respondents mouth and i 100% know that they are actually answering it. Whereas the questionnaire was a quantitative data source which is just based off fact and not peoples opinion which was more valuable to me. However quantitative data gave me a more clear set of results but i feel that the results from the focus group will serve me better in the long run. I also feel this because i had more opinions and answers from the focus group whereas only 4 people answered the questionnaire. I was also able to ask a wider variety of relevant questions in the focus group due to the fact that i could explain a question if someone didn’t understand it. Luckily this didn’t occur and the focus group understood the questions with ease. Finally the focus group overall gave me additional ideas for when i produce my own short film and i feel this can only improve my final production.
Holland1998 