Research into similar products - 'Emmerdale' Trailer (Audience Theory)

This trailer puts over the up coming story line for ‘Emmerdale’, ‘Judgement Day’. The trailer uses audience theory to appeal to the audience and make sure that what they are showing appeals to they target audience. This can be seen by the way in which they uses reception theory, making the trailer appeal to social class that watches ‘Emmerdale’. Along with this the trailer encodes the preferred reading in a way that allows the audience to have a dominant reading. The trailer also fulfils the audience needs and makes them active use of the media through the uses and gratifications. The trailer uses all these methods to make sure that the trailer puts over the right message and to get the audience to watch the soap. When creating my soap I need to think carefully about the effect of audience theory and make sure that it gets the right responds from my target audience.

The trailer fulfils the audience needs and fits in with what Blumler and Katz theory about uses and gratifications with the trailer making the audience have an active uses of the media. The trailer provides diversion and escapism for the audience. Being that the trailer draws the audience into the world it has created, seen by the uses of close up on the character faces. Using these show the characters facial expression and allows the audience to gain an understanding of what is going to happening. Along with this it allows them to escape into the world of that character linking in with the way in which the trailer creates personal relationship allowing the audience to develop empathy with the characters from the way in which they are reacting to the main character allows them to gain a relationship with them. The trailer also fits in with the personal identity being that the trailer highlight and reflects our society and lets the audience to see their place in society as the trailer has a mix of characters that allows the audience to realise where they stand. Seen through the uses of costume with some characters wearing a suite and other wearing hoodies showing the way in which it appeal to a wide audience.

The trailer knows that people from different social groups will have different cultural tastes and uses the reception theory to appeal to a wide audience. With the trailer being set in the Yorkshire Dales meaning that the trailer will appeal to that region but in the trailer in showed no specific location which means that it is able to appeal to a wider audience. Typically soaps are aimed at a female audience this can be seen with in the trailer when they use visual pleasure, having the main character male looking directly at the camera, including these elements appeals to the female audience but also having a mix of female characters allows the audience to identify with them as well. The reception theory is important when creating my trailer, as I will need to think about the way in which my target audience will relate and decode what they are watching.

The trailer has a conventional preferred reading created with it wanting the audience to decode the mystery around the characters, what’s going to happen? Through with this the audience could decode the preferred reading in different way. The first is that they are dominant and agree with what is being shown, becoming interested in the soap. But with this the audience could also take an oppositional view on the trailer being that they might not like the way in which the characters are being represented, being that he is shown to be the typical ‘bad’ character by having the black costume which is used to connote ‘evil’ and the uses of low key lighting putting over the drake horror effect of the trailer. Which mean that when I’m creating my trailer I need to think about the way in which my target audience could decode what they are watching and the effect this could have on the soap.

Audience theory applied well to the trailer and shows the way in which the trailer was made to appeal and get the audience attention. Through applying this theoretical approach had weakness with many of having critics such as with the hypodermic needle model not apply at all and does not fit in with today’s society. However the other approach to audience theory seems to have a similar view, with the audience having different response. Though when creating my trailer and soap I need to think about the effect that audience theory has and the way in which I can get it to appeal to my target audience.