Observing the observers.

 

Let's talk about the audience.

    "Are filmmakers obliged to their audience?"

            "Ultimately, the Center for Media and Social Impact concluded that filmmakers shared three general ethical principles that they attempted to balance in their work: Honor your (vulnerable) subjects. Protect them from attack and don't leave them worse off than when you met them. Honor your viewers."

 

    Here is where I got that quote from, with the article listing "filmmaking ethics"! One aspect of the overall process that AICE Media Studies has hooked me into having more consideration/ appreciation for is the audience. The people who consume the content that is created. It seems so obvious to prioritize them during the journey of making art in general. Still, previously as an active audience member, I didn't have much self-awareness in that respect. I had no knowledge that I was being accounted for and considered. I believed that I was an unlocated, hidden spectator. That I was watching something simply made (still true). 

    While I don't want to lose that innocence and still hold onto that truth, I can't undo the done. So acknowledging the inner workings and experiences of the people in the modern, reclining AMC seats and those in the undone, torn red wooden stools (I have been both) is now crucial and entertaining for me, as the truly meaningful psychological approach to filmmaking very much intrigues me.

Building a connection with the audience

     This is one of the key elements to developing a meaningful movie. This website introduces three points that help break down important elements of connecting with an audience ( target audience). 

1. The first one is “physical suturing”, or all the physical aspects of a film that put the audience in the place of the character(s). This includes specific shots such as POV shots, or even extreme close-ups.

2. The second one is “emotional suturing”. This involves creating characters that viewers can relate to and sympathize with. “Audiences are drawn to characters that are… funny, powerful, skilled, beautiful, charming, and hospitable. When we create characters with such attributes, our audience wants to be close to and identify with them.”

3. Lastly is “moral suturing”. While this may seem closely related to emotional suturing, it has more to do with the overall moral test of the film. The conflict of values presented in the film is what the film is really about, chosen to be universally understood by the audience. 

    We will and already have started implementing these into our plotline, but will focus mainly on ensuring a connection between the audience and the protagonist- Doran.

Intentions with our audience

     In our own film opening, we want to use all of the connective strategies to keep the audience at a very close distance to the main character Doran. The reason we want the audience to connect to Doran and care about Doran’s circumstances is because we want to take a more implicit approach when it comes to directly stating everything/ giving it all away to the audience. We want to show rather than tell, and create allusions that will be understood once the whole film is watched. Instead of having the audience “know everything” and have the fun part be watching the characters find it out, we want the audience to be along for the ride just like the main character, with what seems like “random” inserts hopefully intriguing the audience and making them want to piece together what is really going on in Doran’s society and in his story specifically. 

Final General Thoughts

    While questions such as "Is there such thing as a "wrong" experience had by a viewer if it was unaccounted for/ unplanned by the creator?" and "Is there such thing as a wrong interpretation?" tempt me into a more straightforward approach to the viewing and creating experience, I will choose to cherish the individualized experiences and the multiple meanings/interpretations, as the aid in evolving and metamorphosizing, as well as the creation of a space that invites empathy and understanding is just one example of arts many gifts!!