Thriller TV Show Analysis #3

 

The main image of the poster is a female character, presumably 16-20 laying in a lake. Her reflection is of a different character, and she is surrounded by forests that we can see behind her. The sky is dark and cloudy. This main image is important as it is the audience’s first impression of the show, meaning the designers must promote the atmosphere and characters to the audience. The title of the thriller is important in hinting to the audience what will occur in the show. For this TV show, the 4 title ‘Cruel Summer’ makes it clear that the season/weather will be summer and that something or multiple things go wrong for characters throughout their summer. Furthermore, the placement of the title is effective as it's below the characters’ faces, at the middle bottom of the poster. The design is also interesting as the word 'summer’ blends into the water. The setting of the poster is important as we can see a forest and a lake. This desolate location suggests that the characters are in solitary, and the dark weather suggests that despite the season being summer, the area is still filled with sadness and horror. The colour palette for the poster includes dark green/blues, black, and grey. This establishes the mood of the show as serious and darker as these muted colours are associated with thriller-drama tv shows. The poster also makes evident additional information about the show. This is because below the title, the release date (6/5) and 2 ways to watch the show (freeform and Hulu) are displayed. This makes it easy for audiences to find out more information about show’s plot, allows them to be conscious about when they can watch it, and makes it easily accessible. By using the colour white, the information contrasts the dark water, making it stand out. The primary target audience of this show is females aged 16-25. This is clear through the use of the actresses, both presumably playing 16–20-year-old characters. I think that the secondary target audience is 25–40-year-old females who enjoy the thriller genre and likely watched shows like Pretty Little Liars and other thriller drama Tv shows when they were slightly younger.