Audiences and institutions: The Women in Black (Watkins, 2012)

1. Who do you think the primary and secondary target audience is for The Woman in Black? Why?

I think the primary audience for this film seems to be both men and women aged under 25, it could be argued that the film is mainly for males as the horror genre is normally dominated by them but it could also be argued that this film would be more for females due to the use of Daniel Radcliffe as the main character would attract women to watch this film as well as the millions of harry potter fans. The secondary audience could be the over 25's due to this film being set as a typical period drama setting which would interest men/women over 25 who are normally interested in these types of settings.



2.  How was The Woman in Black marketed?

The main marketing idea for this film was the use of Daniel Radcliffe as the main character who helped bring all of his fans from his previous films to this this one. His participation within this film was not only his acting but by how he got so involved with the advertising to help gain the largest audience as possible through many marketing campaigns he took part in as well as appearances on TV shows/radio stations to try and reach the widest target audience as possible. Radcliffe was so eager to help advertise this film as he was wanting to break free from audiences seeing him as the character of 'Harry Potter' and thought this film was a great way to help this. He even took part in a marketing campaign for the film which included a competition to meet him which was clearly targeted at young female girls who are his main fanbase.
The typical adverts were used when marketing this film such as a teaser trailer to spike audiences interests, radio adverts were also made, film posters, TV adverts and merchandise. In all of these adverts Radcliffe was usually the only one shown which shows his dedication to this film and how he was desperate to get the largest audience as possible.



3. Do you think the marketing materials for the film were appropriate? Why?

I think the marketing materials worked well for the film and were the reason the film was such a great success as it made the audience aware of this upcoming film. It was worldwide to gain the largest audience and adapted in ways to reach the target audience the film was made for.



4. What kind of release did the film have?

The release was a huge event in the UK and USA, it took part over one weekend where it was shown in 412 UK cinemas and around 3000 in the USA. This is a very large release for a horror film such as this.



5. How much did the woman in black cost to make?

It's estimated that the budget for the film is $17,000,000. In the first week of it's release the film made $20,874,072, this greatly increased over total which gained it the title for the most successful horror film in 2012 as it's overall gross is $127,730,736.



6. Why do you think the film was so successful?

I think this film was such a great success due to the mass marketing and the used of such a famous main character who brought most of his fans with him to the film. Also the way how Radcliffe was so involved with all of the marketing of the film.