Let’s talk inspo aka “My So-Called Life” and target audience!!

 Hey hey hey!!

As I am working on my storyboard, I will be talking about the target audience and sort of the vibe I want for my piece!! 

For one of the media analysis practices, we watched an excerpt from pilot of the TV show, “My So Called Life,” starring a young Claire Danes and Jared Leto. What I found interesting was that my teacher had mentioned that when this show aired in the 90s, it was revolutionary and ended up being cut short of its potential, as it was cancelled within its first season. Although it was short, something else discussed in my class was that it paved the way for shows made with and for teenagers, such as the controversial “Euphoria” to discuss difficult topics lived during the teenage years, and to even exist. 

What I loved about the short excerpt I watched was how personal the show felt, as in, how close one as a viewer feels to the main character. In the opening scene, we see a handheld shot, on what seems like a personal camera, recording the main character and her friend just being themselves (teenagers). Through that short part of the excerpt, we were able to identify their dynamics, a bit of their personality, and generally what they may be like through the mise-en-scene element of costuming. I truly loved how real, authentic, and natural it felt. With this being said, I really see myself inspired by it as I do want to make it feel that a teenager made it and it is for them :)

Sooooo, this means that my target audience would be teenagers. My film (opening) would aim to building that connection with them, while also giving space for silliness and a serious topic, and finally, not media that seems to intense or graphic for the eyes. As of now, and based on the media I see that is meant for us teenagers, most of the time it tends to be graphic or very heavy. Although it may be true that at this age we are a bit more “mature,” I believe that there should be space for the silliness and simple scenes like the one above, for teens. By practicing this idea, as a creator, I would hope that it could move and change the way media is created and set out to teens, just like “My So Called Life” once did.