Screenwriting : Matching target audience to story by Regina Lee

This post might feel a little squishy because I'm making up an example to try to illustrate a lesson (and keeping the real details out of the public space). I read a Treatment for a very good friend last weekend. She's a working actor (SAG/AEA), so she definitely has a strong history with story. I was concerned that the Tment had a fundamental flaw. She had chosen a folkloric character to be her protagonist. For the purposes of this post, let's say it was Paul Bunyon (it wasn't). And her story was chiefly a romantic story or rom com. What's the likely audience for a "Paul Bunyon" movie? I think it's safe to say the likely audience is kids under 10 or thereabouts, right? What's the likely audience for a romance or rom com? For this example, let's say the likely audience is women ages 25-45. What's the overlap between these 2 audience demos? None. Will it be easy to market that movie and find its audience? No. I'm going to keep it short and say that it's valuable to consider your target audience and whether or not your story decisions align well with your target audience. If they don't align well, it's still possible that the narrative itself could be an engaging one, but its commercial prospects will read as limited. As a new writer, that will make an uphill climb even steeper if you're entering the studio market.