Conclusion From Survey Results

I spent some time creating some questions for a survey that I distributed to a number of friends and classmates so that any elements of my film that I was unsure of could be solved and the help of fellow film viewers to give me their opinions on my film's genre and what it should include.

I asked what sort of music is most suitable for the dark comedy genre and most agreed that upbeat, light hearted music that mirrored the scenes and also portrayed the emotions of the characters. When asked how to personify the skateboard's emotions throughout the film and whether or not to a voiceover for the skateboard character there was a split opinion, those that said that the skateboard should have a voiceover mostly said because it would make it simpler and easier to understand, those who thought there shouldn't be a voiceover favoured the idea of having music represent the skateboard's emotions and also he use of reactions of human characters personify the skateboard. I have chosen not to narrate the skateboard as this survey has helped me realise that to stay ambiguous and mysterious, which is common in a dark comedy, I should keep the skateboard silent and have other less obvious techniques personify it, i.e. music and reaction shots of other characters.

I also needed to know how I would introduce the main characters quickly, as this is often an issue when creating short films, as well as introducing romances and friendships. Narration was suggested for these characters introductions. But it was mainly advised that the character be introduced at the very start and should be shot at the appropriate angles to represent them as well as using lighting and environment to portray their characteristics. For a dark comedy genre, I gathered the idea from my results that stereotypical scenes of staring into each other's eyes while music plays to introduce romance. However a couple of members of the audience suggested that an awkward moment that brings the two together, I will try to incorporate both these aspects to introduce the romance in my film.

When asked what features make a film viewer uncomfortable, they responded with 'awkward humour' , 'dramatic changes in music' etc. these are both features that I will now look to include in my short film. I also gathered that in order to create comedy after a serious incident such as a murder, over the top, melodramatic and clumsy acting can be used to make the audience laugh about a dark subject. I used a multiple choice question to see which techniques were preferred to personify the skateboard, in which 'music to portray emotions' dominated with only a couple of votes for 'voiceover' and 'reaction shots of other characters'. So for my film I may use all of these techniques but I will focus more on using appropriate music in depth instead of lots of reaction shots and voiceovers.