Britt vs Holywood essay (not finished)

My chosen two films are 'Real Steel' (2011) and 'Attack The Block' (2011) the budgets for these films differ massively and really demonstrates the difference between the Hollywood conglomerates and British film companies. Real Steel had a huge marketing budget at an estimated $80,000,000 and as far as Hollywood marketing budgets go these kinds of figures seem to appear on the majority of films that they release. Real Steel was also distributed by Walt Disney Studio Motion Pictures, whilst Attack The Block was distributed by a American company owned by Sony called Screen Gems. These marketing budgets dwarf British budgets, which are usually around 5,000 - 10,000, however, For Attack The Block They're may have been a slightly higher budget but the exact number is unknown. This, intern, gives hollywood blockbusters a massive advantage over British films as they can't reach the same amount of people as the hollywood films and their huge marketing budget. 

Nick Frost, the science fiction genre elements and ‘from the producers of Shaun of the Dead’ are all highlighted in much of the marketing.  But the distinctive British location, language and characters are also emphasized.  Film festivals are often essential for spreading word of mouth about smaller films. They can win competitions, awards and gain valuable attention from film fans and the press. Attack the block had a number of low budget techniques at their disposal to generate hype for the film, these methods include: releasing a trailer on youtube and on social media, creating hype and conversation about the film in the comments, Facebook and Twitter pages, an official website with information and purchasable merchandise (365 different t-shirt designs), multiple dvd covers and the film was also adapted to blu ray, posters where used in and around London (busses and billboards). The director and a few crew also attended comic-con on the U.S to give fans the chance to meet them and get a limited edition poster. There was also quite a few reviews on different mediums like imbd, the guardian, TimeOut and more. Thus appealing to the different audiences of these publications.

'Real Steel' also had lots of different methods to advertise the film................


The director of Real Steel wanted everyone to notice every aspect of his film as it fits in to many genres like: action, sports, drama and Sci-Fi. Therefor it has a broad target audience of 9-15 and then 18-30 as it has fighting robots for the younger audience and an uncomplicated plot for the adults to engage with. Although this film has a broad audience I believe the makers targeted mainly White Middle Class Boys as the main star vehicle is and independent white man who bonds with his son, which these kids can relate to and therefor get into.

Attack The Block is a Sci-Fi Action film that I would say has a target audience of both ethnicities of a slightly lower social grade and male. Nick Frost, the science fiction genre elements and ‘from the producers of Shaun of the Dead’ are all highlighted in much of the marketing.  But the distinctive British location, language and characters are also emphasised.  Film festivals are often essential for spreading

word of mouth about smaller films.  They can win competitions, awards and gain valuable attention from film fans and the press.  

Exam Question 2

"Media production is dominated by global institutions, which promote their products services to national audiences" To what extent do you agree with this

targets

To Do List

In order of Importance:

Evaluation
DPS article (finish) 

Brit hollywood essay

coursework amendments 

Impact Of Technology

Production 

 “A broader version of conventional literacy, which enables all visual, aural and digital forms, seeking to enable people to become thoughtful producers and interpreters of media” (Peter Fraser) “By looking at how culture is used and transformed by social groups, cultural studies see people not simply as consumers, but as potential producers of new social values and cultural language” (Toby Miller 2006) new media such as Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, Blogger etc. is a classic example of consumers becoming producers and, as Miller says, ‘potential producers of new social values and cultural language’ because any individual can reach as mass audience. Gauntlett (2007) goes as far as to say that new media (and new media technologies) erodes the boundary between producer and audience to the extent that it makes little sense to talk about media audiences at all anymore: “Conventional research methods are replaced—or at least supplemented by new methods which recognise and make use of people's own creativity, and brush aside the outmoded notions of 'receiver' audiences and elite 'producers' (Gauntlett, 2007)

Distribution/Exhibition

  “A new generation of UK media power players are ditching the traditional gatekeepers and going straight to their audience via the web” (Plunkett 2008)


“The view that the internet and new digital media as an optional extra is replaced with the recognition that they have fundamentally changed the ways we engage with all media” (David Gauntlett 2007)


“As people individually and collectively progress the web, they’re increasingly in command…this is the new consumer power. It’s not the ability to swap suppliers at the click of a mouse…It’s the power to become the supplier – in effect to become an economic power themselves” (Tapscott and Williams 2006).
And, it isn’t just the web that is giving people this power, though it is critical in terms of exhibition and reaching a wide audience, it is also advances in digital cameras, editing software etc that narrows the gap and makes it possible for consumers to become producers.

The Internet

Although the internet was slowly developed from the 1960s, the early 1990s was when it really began to gain momentum and have an impact on film distribution and exhibition. By the mid/late 1990s more and more people in the USA and UK started to have home internet access which meant distributors could use the internet to target their audiences and audiences could watch films on their computers changing the face of exhibition.
As the technology has developed it has become more and more useful (as we saw last week in terms of marketing) for the British film industry because it can dramatically cut the costs of marketing and let any film maker reach an international audience.

It is arguable the case that the internet has had the biggest impact on the industry, in terms of distribution, because now anyone can promote a film and reach a global audience.

VHS

From 1995 onwards VHS was replaced by DVDs (Digital Versatile Discs - developed by Philips, Sony and Panasonic). This development had much the same impact on the British film industry as VHS - DVDs are still an important source of revenue for British and American films. Although some people claim videos are better than DVDs, the majority of people feel DVDs are superior (hence why you rarely see videos anywhere apart from car boots now) because; the image quality is better, tapes are linear DVDs are digital - meaning they are interactive, they do not wear out as quickly as tapes and they take up less space.

Exam Question

"Successful media products depend as much upon marketing and distribution to a specific audience as they do upon good production practices." -

My chosen two films are 'Real Steel' (2011) and 'Attack The Block' (2011) *I will be referring to the these films as 'RS' and 'ATB'* the budgets for these films differ massively and really demonstrates the difference between the Hollywood conglomerates and British film companies. RS had a huge marketing budget at an estimated $80,000,000 and as far as Hollywood marketing budgets go these kind of figures seem to appear on the majority of films that they release. These marketing budgets dwarf what British budgets which are usually around 5,000 - 10,000, however, For ATB They're may have been a slightly higher budget but the exact number is unknown. Nick Frost, the science fiction genre elements and ‘from the producers of Shaun of the Dead’ are all highlighted in much of the marketing.  But the distinctive British location, language and characters are also emphasised.  Film festivals are often essential for spreading word of mouth about smaller films. They can win competitions, awards and gain valuable attention from film fans and the press.

The director of RS wanted everyone to notice every aspect of his film as it fits in to many genres like: action, sports, drama and Sci-Fi. Therefor it has a broad target audience of 9-15 and then 18-30 as it has fighting robots for the younger audience and an uncomplicated plot for the adults to engage with. Although this film has a broad audience I believe the makers targeted mainly White Middle Class Boys as the main star vehicle is and independent white man who bonds with his son, which these kids can relate to and therefor get into.

ATB is a Sci-Fi Action film that i would say has a target audience of both ethnicities of a slightly lower social grade and male. Nick Frost, the science fiction genre elements and ‘from the producers of Shaun of the Dead’ are all highlighted in much of the marketing.  But the distinctive British location, language and characters are also emphasised.  Film festivals are often essential for spreading word of mouth about smaller films.  They can win competitions, awards and gain valuable attention from film fans and the press. 

Marketing

British and American film age ratings

Age Ratings. Age ratings ensure that entertainment content, such as films, videos, DVDs, and computer and video games, is clearly labelled for the minimum age group for which it is suitable. Age ratings provide guidance to consumers to help them decide whether or not to buy a particular product

.

The BBFC was created by the film industry in 1912, long before anyone had even heard of Harry Potter or Pixar. It wanted to make sure that all of its films, (videos and DVDs had not been invented then), were checked on behalf of the whole country. Cinemas needed a licence to show films because film stock burns very easily and there was a big fire risk.

Local councils, who were, and still are, in charge of cinemas up and down the country, grew to accept the BBFC's decisions. Even today, for films shown in cinemas, councils have the power to ignore any decision made by the BBFC and can give them their own age ratings. For example, in 1993, the comedy film Mrs.Doubtfire was given a 12 classification by the BBFC. Some councils disagreed with our decision and gave the film a PG.

An important change came with the arrival of video in the early 1980s. In 1984, a new law was passed, The Video Recordings Act, which put the BBFC in charge of classifying all videos for home use. The law asks Examiners to make sure that works are classified for appropriate audiences and make sure that they show nothing that might be harmful to people, especially young children.

Audience

Hypodermic needle 

The hypodermic needle model (also known as the hypodermic-syringe model, transmission-belt model, or magic bullet theory) is a model of communications suggesting that an intended message is directly received and wholly accepted by the receiver.

Production Cycles

The Production Cycle

Pre-production - is the process of fixing some of the elements involved in a film, play, or other performance. There are three parts in a production: pre-production, production, and post-production. Pre-production ends when the planning ends and the content starts being produced.

Producing - Producers are frequently the first person to become involved in a project; they participate directly in all the main producing phases; and see the project through production, to post- production, marketing and distribution. The Producer's is role to turn story ideas into profitable cinematic entertainment, and to persuade others to share in his or her commercial and creative vision. Producers usually report to the production company, or to the Executive Producers appointed to supervise the production on behalf of the financiers and Distributors.

Distribution - Releasing and Sustaining a film in the market place. Worked best when the three key stages (Production, Distribution, Exhibition) are linked or controlled by the same company. UK system has more focus on marketing and sustaining a film in the local market. Independent Studios struggle to get distribution - No formal connection between Producers, distributors and exhibitors

Marketing - Every major Hollywood studio/distribution has an internal department for promotion and the resources to promote (TV, Magazines, Radio). The marketing campaign will be cohesive across all media platforms. Most common forms are teaser trailers, trailers, Adverts in News papers and Magazines, Television spots, Radio promo, internet (official websites, viral sites, social networking) and billboards.

Exhibition - is the retail branch of the film industry. What the exhibitor sells is the experience of a film (and, frequently, concessions like soft drinks and popcorn). Because exhibitors to some extent control how films are programmed, promoted, and presented to the public, they have considerable influence over the box-office success and, more importantly, the reception of films. Exchange is about the relationship between the audience and institution and what they ‘do’ with the exhibition Exhibition/ Exchange.

FILM theories

As Hanseen (2007) summarised, 'The Hollywood studio system era' of vertical integration that impacted production, distribution and exhibition (because the major companies owned the cinemas) came to an end in 1948; "when the USA Supreme Court issued its famous Paramount decision. The Paramount consent decree required the divestiture of affiliated cinema chains and the abandonment of a number of vertical practices" (Hanseen, 2007)

Hollywood Conglomerates

• 20th Century Fox - now owned by 21st Century Fox.
• Columbia Pictures - now owned by Sony.
• MGM (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer).
• Paramount Pictures - now owned by Viacom.
• RKO Radio Pictures - defunct c. 1957.
• United Artists - purchased by MGM.
• Universal Studios - now a part of NBC Universal.
• Warner Bros. - now Time Warner.

The rise and fall of the British film industry

Hollywood film research: Real Steel

Reel Steel

Charlie Kenton (Hugh Jackman) used to be a prizefighter but lost his chance to win a title when heavy, towering robots took over the boxing ring. Now working as a small-time promoter, Charlie pieces together scrap metal into low-end fighters, barely earning enough to make it from one underground venue to the next. After hitting rock bottom, Charlie reluctantly teams with his estranged son, Max (Dakota Goyo), to build and train a championship robot for a last shot at redemption.



Official Sites: DreamWorks [Canada] (French) | DreamWorks [United States]

Country: USA | India

Language: English | Ukrainian

Release Date: 7 October 2011 (USA)

Also Known As: Real Steel: The IMAX Experience

Filming Locations: Yankee Air Museum
Box Office

Budget: $110,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend: $27,319,677 (USA) (7 October 2011)

Gross: $85,463,309 (USA) (10 February 2012)
Company Credits

Production Co: DreamWorks, Touchstone Pictures, Reliance Entertainment

British film research: Attack The Block

Attack The Block (British)

Plot: South London teenagers (John Boyega, Alex Esmail, Leeon Jones) defend their neighborhood from malevolent extraterrestrials.
Fantasy/Science fiction film

Release date: 13 May 2011 (United Kingdom)
Director: Joe Cornish
Budget: 8 million GBP
Box office: 4.1 million GBP ($5.8 million)

Production: Big Talk Picture
Distribution: Screen Gems
Edited: Jonathan Amos

6.6/10 IMDb
90% Rotten Tomatoes
3/4 Roger Ebert

Box office: 

On its opening theatrical weekend in the United Kingdom in May 2011, Attack the Block garnered £1,133,859, putting it in third place only slightly behind American blockbusters Thor and Fast Five; also in the opening weekend Attack the Block had the highest cinema site average by almost twice of the other films. On a screen-by-screen basis, Attack the Block was the week's strongest performer. The North American theatrical run began in July 2011 and was only a limited release, yet despite being shown for less than two months and in only 66 cinemas at its peak, the film grossed $1,024,175 (£659,040) on its American theatrical run.

Contrast between the British and Hollywood film industries from 1930 - 2000

Through history, British and American Cinema have competed with each other to gain the most monetary success in the film industry. British Cinema dominated the film industry throughout the 1920s and towards the end of the second world war, because they produced war films as a form of propaganda, in order to boost morale amongst British citizens. However, American cinema had the advantage when The UK film studies were destroyed after the war. In 1941, Hollywood produced the popular mystery drama, Citizen Kane, which made an profitable $1.6 million at the box office.

In the 1960s, Britain produced many Carry On Films, which boosted the comedy genre and proved to be very popular with British viewers, because it gave them characters and themes that are easy to relate to. The first James Bond film, Dr No was released in 1962 and was a financial success for British Cinema, earning $59.5 million at the box office. However, Alfred Hitchcock, a famous British film director, moved to Hollywood, despite being England's best director. At the time, America was suffering from The Vietnam War and Civil Rights Protests, where inequality was still sadly present all throughout America. In spite of these issues Hollywood were still producing Science Fiction and Spy films. It also produced the exceedingly successful musical drama film 'The Sound Of Music' in 1965, which made an impressive $286.2 million at the box office. By November 1965 it had become the highest-grossing film of all time, and held this position for 5 years.

Due to the fact that America had sky-rocketed ahead of Britain in the film industry, Britain had to use American companies to make films like Harry Potter and James Bond because otherwise Britain just would not have the funds needed to produce, advertise and distribute them. Even though the Harry Potter franchise alone made over one billion pounds for the British Film Industry there is still no way they can compete with America. Although they had a bit of a boost when James Cameron released Avatar because despite the fact that America just produced the highest-grossing film in history, they had to sacrifice the use of digitally exporting films - this meant that Britain could now get films at just as good quality as America could, as opposed to getting the used tapes that had a clear difference in quality.

History of the British film industry

Slumdog millionaire ( 2009 )

Lower budget than Avatar
Social difficulties
not much CGI/ Special Effects
Just set in India
Dev Patel
lower box office than avatar
set in the modern day ( 2008 )
Very much like a Bollywood film.


Avatar ( 2009 )

Sci-fi
high budget
high box office
loads of CGI
James Cameron
futuristic
3D cameras - that would have cost millions
Pandora

The cameras on the avatar film was very expensive and better equipped than the cameras and equipment on the film, Slumdog millionaire. the colours in avatar is blue and darker lighting. in contrast to this, slum dog millionaire

American
1970's

Star wars EP 4 ( George Lucas )
Jaws (Steven Spielberg )
The excorsist

1980's

E.T
Star wars EP 6
Ghostbusters
Back to the future

British

1970
- The railway children
- The tales of beatrix potter

1980
- the awaking

What Is a British film?

What is a British Film?
As critic McDougall (2008) states there are various 'official' ways of categorising British films. The most common is through using the following categories defined by the BFI (British Film Institute)

Category A: Films made with British money, personnel and resources.

Category B: Films co-funded with money from British and from foreign investment, but for which the majority of finance, cultural content and personnel are British.

Category C: Films with mostly foreign money (but non USA) investment and a small British input either financially or creatively.

Category D: Films made in the UK with (usually) British cultural content, but financed fully or partly by US companies.

Category E: US films with some British involvement.