Audience Pleasures for Arthouse Film:
'Arthouse films are artistic rather than commercial in character' as defined by the Media Magazine. The difference between a Hollywood film and an arthouse film is the fact that an arthouse film is strongly narrative driven and character driven, whilst the purpose of a Hollywood film is purely entertainment. The resolution would be solved by the end of a mainstream film as this is what mainstream and conventional audiences desire when watching a film - a stereotypical happy ending; however this is different with an arthouse film as there is not always a resolution at the end of the film and they do not always end with a happily ever after, making it differ from the norm as there is a lack of narrative closure. Also, due to the films often being foreign, the use of subtitles make it off-putting for certain audiences, however the theorist Bourdieu suggested that having cultural competences to read difficult texts gives the individual cultural capital and is one of the ways in which social class is emphasised. This therefore means that arthouse films are considered as something rather high-brow and very classy, in terms of the audience viewers.
Audience Struggles:
Due to the use of subtitles, as most arthouse films are foreign, audiences would be deterred from watching the film due to the idea of reading being off-putting. However, Bourdieu suggested that having cultural competences to read difficult texts gives the individual cultural capital and is one of the ways in which social class is emphasised. Arthouse films are considered rather high-brow, due to the artistic element and the fact that the film does not revolve around a fixed narrative structure which follows Todorov's narrative theory (stereotypical of Hollywood films). Also David Bordwell suggested that 'the art cinema is less concerned with action than reaction; it is a cinema of psychological effects in search of their causes.' The audience are not meant to easily understand the film but almost have to read within the film and become part of it to appreciate the ambiguity of the film.
Arthouse Film for Middle Classes/Older Audiences:
The arthouse genre is typically one that revolves around the idea of deeper meaning, therefore a more mature audience would perhaps be more willing to be open to try to understand the meaning to appreciate the artistic dexterity within the film yet the younger demographic may not have the patience and just want pure entertainment. The stereotypical youths would fall into the psychographic category of an explorer, therefore would be open to change but be interested in adventure and entertainment. The class that would typically watch high-brow tv and films would be the middle classes as they think of themselves as elitists and would want to fit into their stereotype of being elite and superior to others. The arthouse category of film has connotations revolving around superiority and difference, therefore the non-mainstream audiences and the one's with money to spend would stereotypically go and watch an arthouse film.
A Field In England:
A Field In England would be targeted at quite a niche market; predominantly quite a middle-class ABC1 demographic. In terms of age, I also think it would be aimed at an elder, more mature audience due to the setting of the 17th century and the use of the black and white filming. However, I also think it has potential to appeal to a younger market due to the content of the film being drugs and the issue of psychedelia. This may therefore appeal to a wider audience, yet due to the artistic film making, may be something that the younger market may not necessarily feel comfortable with watching due to Ben Wheatley's unorthodox approach to film making. In terms of psychographics, I think the film would be aimed at explorers, however I believe that explorers are younger and more experimental so the younger market explorer demographic may be interested in the film and the succeeders as they have money and status so would be interested in quite a different and high status cinema like an arthouse one, dissimilar to a mainstream multiplex such as vue.
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