An insight into an "out of body" audience experience that you're all missing out on.
As a young teenager who has grown up within the “age of social media” it is hard not to be a part of an audience in some sort of way, as scholar John Fisk suggested “audiencing is something that can be done alone, in the company of strangers, like minded others or together with family and friends, both in person or online”. This suggests that whether your interpretation of being a part of an audience is aimlessly scrolling Tik Tok for hours just to pass the time, making the fateful decision to watch Netflix on the couch at home instead of writing your blog for BCM or making your way to your closest cinema at 12am to watch the first screening of a new Marvel film.
Source: https://www.marvel.com/
Now, I am very clearly aware that Marvel is not for everyone but to those readers whose attention I still have, have you ever actually been to an opening night marvel movie? The heart-wrenching suspense watching the opening adds as you are either diving hand first into the bucket of popcorn to try and calm the nerves or eagerly whispering to your friends one last time before that 181 minutes of pure adrenaline. The first opening night Marvel movie I ever saw was ‘Avengers Endgame’, now before this film I wouldn’t have considered myself a hardcore marvel fan. Walking into that cinema was an “out of earth” experience, hard core fans dressing up as their favourite characters and an overwhelming sense of community as the sold out cinema gathered to watch the final episode in an era of film that shaped a generation. However I must reiterate that yes this may be an example of Mass Media, but that does not denote the fact that it is an incredible piece of media loved by an impressive statistic.
There were a range of different audience reactions when the opening scene filled the 3x3m space, both passive and active; the passive members merely enjoying the experience of the film, watching for the pleasure of watching whilst the active members could be seen connecting the plot points from A to B, critically analysing the post-credit scene from Age of Ultron to the beginning of Endgame. I wouldn't have considered myself an active member of this audience until I caught myself crying at the portal scene.
Yes, I did say that prior to Endgame I was not a die hard fan but now I would consider being included in that very umbrella category. Stan Lee (1922-2018) connected to audiences through his Marvel Comics in 1939 and over 73 years later has generated a fan base of over 63% of the entire world population; now Marvel can be seen through the film adaptations generated by the Russo Brothers.
If I’m being honest the whole experience of participating in an opening night Marvel film is an experience I recommend to everyone, Marvel fan or not. The aura of the community, the range in viewership and overall crowd participation makes for an exhilarating film experience. One take away I can denote is that despite the incredible world that is the Marvel Cinematic Universe, being a part of this audience is not just for the sake of watching a film… it is a family, a community who live for these incredible storylines.
Source: https://twitter.com/search?q=Marvel%20endgame&src=typed_query
So now I suggest you mark your calendars and take a week off work... you've got some catching up to do before Dr Strange comes out on the 5th of May ;)
References:
Turnbull, S 2020, ‘Media Audiences; Is Anybody Watching?', Audiencing in Practice, pp. 28-29.
Twitter (Marvel Endgame opening night): https://twitter.com/search?q=Marvel%20endgame&src=typed_query
Twitter (Marvel endgame portal scene): https://twitter.com/search?q=Marvel%20endgame%20portal%20scene&src=typed_query&f=top
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