Target Audience Research: Looking at Similar Products

I have decided to do some research into films and tv shows that have a mental illness theme within them in order to get a better idea of their audience, and the audience's expectations on products with very sensitive topics being one of the focuses within the narrative.

I used YouGov Profiles to look up some films and shows that featured a character who has an experience with an eating disorder to start with. 

Skins

The first that came to mind was Skins. Skins Generation 1 features a main character, Cassie, who is in treatment for her anorexia. Throughout the first two seasons of the show, Cassie is shown to be rarely eating and rather thin, with many of the other characters worrying about her health, whilst some just think she is weird. Cassie's character is then revisited in Skins: Pure, where she appears to be fully recovered from her eating disorder but facing other difficulties in her life.

YouGov Profiles showed me that the average demographic of Skins fans are 18-24 year old females, confirming my suspicions that my film will have a more predominately female audience who are quite young.

Pretty Little Liars

The second show I decided to look up was Pretty Little Liars, as one of the characters featured in the main cast of the show, Hannah, is presented to have suffered with bulimia before the start of the show. Unlike Skins, Hannah's bulimia is not a regular theme within the show, and is only ever briefly touched upon. However, one episode does focus on her past with the illness, but after season one, the show's writers tend to rarely mention it.

Again, Pretty Little Liars demographic is a young-adult female audience. However, as clearly demonstrated within the other entertainment that the viewers enjoy, the audience's do not have much more in common beyond their demographics. 

Silver Linings Playbook

Following my research into shows that feature eating disorders specifically, I decided to look into media products that focus on Mental Illness as a whole. Silver Linings Playbook features a male character with Bipolar Disorder, and a widow with depression. Throughout the film, the primary focus is on the couple helping each other through their mental illnesses, despite both of them having very different experiences with them.

Once again, the demographic of this films audience is 18-24 year old females.

Each of these product's audiences confirm that younger females are more interested in sensitive subjects and therefore connect to the products involving these. This shows that I show target a similar audience, confirming that I should have a female protagonist as it will enable the audience to connect on a more personal level with the story line and the narrative of the film. Having a protagonist of a similar/younger age than the targeted audience will also enable and strengthen this connection.