Test Screenings

Test Screenings

A test screening is where production companies and studios view their film to an audience for free. They show the film to test the audience reactions. They then give a short questionnaire to the audience and ask questions like; do you like the ending? do you like the soundtrack? etc. The most important question is 'would you recommend this film to a friend?' If the film does not get at least 60% of the audience say yes, then something should be done to fix the problem. Lots of films will get changed if there is a low percentage whereas some actors and directors will fight their case. An example of this is Se7en where is was said to be a Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman film, so the audience were not expecting to see a violent, mystery crime thriller. This did not get a good audience reaction from a large part of the audience. One elderly woman left the cinema during the film and wrote over her questionnaire that she thought that the creators deserved to be shot. They had a very low percentage on the vital question so it was suggested that changes should be made. Brad Pitt and the Director both stood against this proposal and were able to keep the film as it is. A film that did have to be changed was The Little Shop of Horrors. This was already a famous theatre musical and there were many fans of the show. When the film was previewed it was all going very well; audiences were clapping and singing along until one of the main characters died. They were quiet for the rest of the film. They didn't get a very high percentage for the vital question and had to change the ending. This was difficult considering that had to create a whole new ending and a way to kill off the plant. The effects in the new ending were not as good and some of the shots didn't make as much sense. For example, Seymour's expressions changed from confident and heroic to distraught. This then got a better audience reaction because audiences like a happy ending most of the time. A lot of films have been changed from the original endings from their plays or books because they have sad endings. Test screenings are a good way to test reactions, but if the film is bad then the audience can write whatever they want on the internet for all to see. There are likely less test screenings around today because of this problem.