Friday 11 December 2015

Distribution

Distribution


What is Distribution ? = Distribution is about releasing and sustaining films in the market place. It is one of the most important aspects of film making. If a film is distributed well through marketing and advertising then people will want to go and watch the film.


What part of the supply chain is distribution? = The third part of the supply chain is an invisible art of distribution.


What is distribution often referred as? = Known as the invisible art and one of the most important parts of the film.


What does 'vertical integration' mean when discussing distribution? = This is when the three stages of distribution are seen as part of the same larger process under the control of one company.


Why isn't 'vertical integration' so common in the independent sector? = This is because they don't have connections with large exhibitors.
 
What three stages are involved in the independent sector? = The three stages are licensing, marketing and logistics.


Licensing


What is licensing? = Licensing is the process by which a distributor purchases the legal right to exploit a film.


What are the two levels of licensing? = The two levels of licensing are international and national.


What is the advantage of being a major US studio? = They have their own distribution offices in all major territories.


What three different types of rights can you acquire on local level? = The three rights are theatrical rights, video rights and TV right.


What are royalties? = Royalties have to pay to the producer which are taken from the profits the film generates.


What is the most effective way to increase interest in a film? = The most effective way to increase interest is by opening the film theatrically in cinemas.


How long does it take for a film to reach 'free to air' TV? = It takes two years after opening in cinemas for a film to come on television.


Marketing


What are the two key questions surrounding the marketing of a film? = The two key questions are When? and How?


What day are films typically released on? = Films are usually released on Fridays.


What will a distributor look at before releasing a film on a Friday? = They will look for a schedule where only a few films are scheduled for release.




What is a 'light' week in terms of distribution? = A light week will ensure that there will be both screen space and adequate review column inches in the press to allocated to any potential release.


What does it mean to 'position' a film a film distinctively? = When a film is positioned distinctively, it means it avoids a release date occupied with other films with similar traits. 


Why has this become increasingly difficult in the UK? = It has become difficult because the release schedule has regularly featured over 10 releases in a week.


What are P&A? = This describes the costs of theatrical distribution met by local distributors (prints and advertising).


How much can P&A cost? = It can range from costing less than £1000 up to over £1 million.


Marketing- Prints and adverts


Typically how many prints will a specialised film have? = It will have fewer than 10 prints.


How many will mainstream films have? = These films will have over 200 prints.


What is a key factor in developing the profile of a film? = A key factor in developing the profile of a film is a favourable press response.


How else can awareness of a film be raised? = It can be raised by advertising in magazines and local or national newspapers.


Why is distribution in the UK seen as risky? = it is because of the cost of print advertising is comparably high.


Why are companies looking towards viral marketing? = Companies are looking towards this to extend the reach of advertising and develop more effective communication with audiences at lower costs.


What are the benefits of a 'talent visit'? = This is to create word of mouth and advance buzz around a film.


Logistics


In the pre digital film age what was distributor responsible for? = In the pre digital film age, a distributor was responsible for screening the film on certain ' play dates' and to arrange the transportation of a film to the cinema.


How much does 35mm of print typically cost?= Typically, a 35mm print will cost £1000.


How many reals is a typical feature print? = A typical feature print has 5 or 6 reals.


Why do 35mm prints get damaged? = They get damaged because they weigh a lot, around 20-25kg.


Where are prints stored? = Prints are stored in a single hard case.


How long did a theatrical release used to last? = They used to last around 6 months.


Digital Distribution


When did digital distribution begin in the UK?= Digital distribution started towards the end of 2005.


Name two advantages of digital distribution: Digital distribution is more cost effective. It is also less stressful to send films as a computer files to cinemas across the UK.


Which countries adopted digital distribution early and why? China and brazil were the first countries to adopt digital distribution.


How many screens were digital in 2005 and how many are now? = 2005 the UK Film Council Digital Screen network launched in the UK by Arts Alliance Media creating chain of 250 2K digital cinema systems.


Why has digital distribution radically altered the operating model of distributors? = The comparatively low cost of film copies and additional logistical effectiveness of digital distribution provide the distributor with greater flexibility.


What has happened to the typical release period for a film? = Films are now available to pre order while the film is still in cinemas.


What is a loss leader (Google it) and why are companies using cinema as a potential loss leader? = A loss leader is a strategy where a product is sold at a price below its market cost to stimulate other sales of more profitable goods or services.





Sunday 6 December 2015

June 2010 exam question


What significance does the continuing development of digital media technology have for media institutions and audiences?




Topic = Film Industry- the big six


Aspect = Digital Media - computers - editing - Mad max - tech - CGI - Ex Machina , Distribution - Netflix- Sky movies - Download - Illegal - DVD - Blu-Ray- free download- cheaper- consumer provides, Marketing- YouTube - Social Media - Viral Marketing.


Viewpoint = Developing - Improving


Instruction = Significance


Production


Post production


Distribution


Marketing








Saturday 5 December 2015

What significance does the continuing development of digital media technology have for media institutions and audiences?

The significance is that sci-fi action films are becoming more popular, this could mean that certain audiences will feel alienated as they may not want to watch these types of films. Digital media can be beneficial to a film as it can develop a film and make it more successful because film producers can include special visual effects, CGI characters and CGI sets. Institutions like Warner Brother's and Universal Studios will also become more successful as they will be making good films that will make large amounts of money.

Mad Max uses all of these aspects to create effects. In the car chasing scenes, an edge arm was used  to film a sequence that they wouldn't  have been able to film without it. The edge arm could shoot 5 shots in a sequence scene from a close up of Max, a medium shot of nux, to a medium long shot of nux and the war boy, then the camera pulled out to a long shot of the men in nux's car, and finishing the shot the camera pulls out to a wide shot of 180 cars and the war ring all in one sequence shot. This could not have been doable with a traditional camera. Mad max also used real stunts in their film, 80% of effects were real. To film the war boys jumping from car to car, pole cats were used from the circus, the cameras were then used at different angles to film them jumping. When editing the film, they had to cut out the wires that were attached to the men to make it look real. Ex Machina used CGI, when Ava was pulling the skin off of her robotic body. In a the scene where Ava goes into the wardrobe, she puts on clothes, this was done so it would be less money for the producers as they didn't have to CGI. In editing rotoscoping was used to film Ava doing an action more than once and edit parts of her body out to make her look more robotic. This was done to make the audience view her as a future robot.

The development of digital media technology has been influenced on how films are being distributed and shown. Both Mad max fury road and Ex Machina were films that were successful at the box office. Mad max was shown on 16,700 screens in 68 countries, it was distributed on a lot of screens because cinemas knew that the film would be popular to audiences as it is a sequel. It also was popular like most blockbuster films as it has a lot of action and explosions in, which is what the audience who watched It would expect to see. Ex Machina had a different approach to releasing their film. Ex Machina had a smaller target audience than Mad Max. To start off distribution of the film, they had to target film buffs as these kind of people were into sci-fi films, as The Avengers was released at the same time, so a majority of people went to see that film. So, Ex Machina was released on only 15 screens in US, but after waiting for The Avengers to have been seen by people, it was put on over 2000 screens. This meant that more audiences saw it as film buffs had reviewed it.

Since being screened on cinemas, both films have now developed onto more digital media technology like Netflix. Netflix is a website that requires people to sign up to a monthly membership to pay to watch films online for a small cost. Ex Machina is being shown on a site similar to Netflix, this means not only are more people able to view films for cheap, but it is still taking in money from having to pay a membership. Without the development of using digital media technology, illegal downloading could have had a negative impacts on cinemas as they wouldn't make as much money. Sky movies is also very popular to watch film on rom your TV, which also has a box office option to watch the latest films without having to go to the cinema and pay double. DVD's and Blu-Ray are still being used by people who don't have access to the other types of digital media, however this is a smaller percentage of people, and DVD's and Blu-ray are slowly becoming less popular. Overall, digital media technology has developed for media institution by making them more money and helping to provide a wider variety of audiences.

The development of digital media technology has made a big significance of how films are being marketed. Ex Machina was very clever with the way they marketed their film, they used social media. By using social media, it is a good way of advertising as lots of people use it and have access to it. Ex Machina used sites like Instagram and Tinder which are popular with young people, this can help to bring a wider audience to look at the film. As Ex Machina only had a small budget for their film, they needed to keeps costs low, and by using social media to market their film, it was free so they could spend money on other areas of the film. Mad Max had a different approach to marketing their film, as they had a larger budget, they could afford to spend money on advertisement to larger audiences. They used television adverts and YouTube adverts by showing the trailer of the best and most exciting parts of the film. People who will see the trailer will have an insight of the film and be drawn to see it as they know to expect large explosions and lots of action. Trailers are a development of digital media technology as producers can now show the film in different ways with the help of technology.

Overall, the significance of continuing development of digital media is shown in both Mad Max Fury Road and Ex Machina as they are both successful box office films which made money and the Institutions have also made a lot of money from making these films. The audiences of these films may have expanded and more people are seeing sci-fi films, so they are becoming more popular from the way they have been marketed like Ex Machina which has had the help from digital media technology becoming more advanced.

Friday 27 November 2015

Essay rewrite




I believe a successful media product is to achieved b distributing a film at a good time of the year, usually the best time to release a film is around the summer or Christmas because people are usually off work and have time to go to the cinema, for example Star Wars is coming out this Christmas of 2015. Also having the correct equipment to make a film, advertising the film well and using well known stars to promote the film in a good way. If a film does these elements well, and has the budget to do them, it can be successful. Mad Max Fury Road and Ex Machina are both successful films in different ways. Mad Max is seen to be more successful at it was made by the American film industry and films made by them seem to do better, the American Film Industry makes $88.3 billion a year.


The production of Mad Max took a total of 15 years to film (green lighted) whereas Ex Machina only took 6 years to make, it is seen to be better and more well thought out as it had more time to plan a successful film. However, some people would disagree because the studio was worried that the film would not be made in time, and that George Miller was breaking the rules of production. Ex Machina only took 6 weeks as it didn't have a lot of action in like most blockbuster films do. Ex Machina had a smaller budget ($15 million) than Mad Max ($150 million). This was because Ex Machina was made by the British Film Industry and in Britain we don't the studio system to make bigger budget films.


However, Ex Machina was successful for the budget it had. It made $37 million at the box office. This is an achievement seeing ass it was distributed at the same time as The Avengers film was released on the 21st January 2015. This meant Ex Machina had competition from a sequel action film. Mad Max was released in May the 7th 2015 in the summer. Films released around this time seem to be more successful as people are on holiday and off work. So people have more time to visit cinema.


Mad Max is a film with a lot of action in it. There are many scenes which have explosions in, one of the biggest scenes took 138 days to film. Mad Max also had big stars in it such as Tom Hardy, Charlize Thereon and Nicholas Hoult. These stars are well known and quite famous so this would make a film more successful having big named actors in it, because people like to see there idols and well known block buster actors. Whereas, Ex Machina didn't have a large cast of actors, the two main actors were Domhnall Gleeson and Alicia Vikander. They aren't well known but since the film, the stars are set to be characters in the new Star Wars film.


Another way films can be successful like Mad Max and Ex Machina is from the script, sets, costume and camera's used. Mad Max was written and directed by George Miller who has made successful films in the past. Ex Machina was written and directed by Alex Garland who didn't have the right foundations to make a film as good as Mad Max. Special effects can make a film look realistic. Mad Max's special effects were 80% real, this means they were done in camera. The last scene had 3000 frames per second to have the effect of the war rig crashing into the rocks. In another scene, a special piece of equipment called an edge arm was used to film big scenes like the car chase's. ad Max also used equipment like the Pole Cats, these were borrowed from the circus so they could film people jumping to and from different cars.  Ex Machina also used special effects when the character Ava pulled the skin off the arm. Also, Ex Machina didn't have enough funds to have similar special effects to Mad Max, in one scene, Ava had to  put clothes on as this would bring the costs down instead of spending them on special effects. There were also more boring scenes when characters were sat down and talking, this is seen as it having little action. In Ex Machina there is also a scene when Ava stabs Nathan and there is blood and violence. This meant that the film would now have a smaller market because they couldn't rate it as a PG anymore.


Marketing and distribution is key to making a good film and to make money at the box office. Mad Max made $374.7 million and Ex Machina made $37 million at the box office. It is clear that Mad Max was more successful as it made more money. Mad Max was well advertised, it was advertised in cinemas, TV adverts, YouTube, Posters and Magazines. Overall, Mad Max spent $43 million on marketing, $7 million of this was spent on TV advertising. Ex Machina didn't have enough money to do advertisement as well as Mad Max. Ex Machina advertised using an Instagram and Tinder account, which allowed people to speak to Ava online and interact with her, they did this at the XXSW film festival. This is recognised as good because a lot of people use social media. Ex Machina was put on 15 screens only in the US as the Avengers dominated most cinema, but after the Avengers had been seen by the public, they put the film on more screens 2000 this is called piggy backing.


Mad Max was put on 16,700 screens in 68 countries. This is more successful because the more screens it was shown on, meant more money was made. Films are only successful if the right target audience is met. Ex Machina targeted film buffs and geeks because the film is a sci-fi film. It was distributed by universal studios and Mad Max distributed by Warner Bros. Universal is seen as more successful company but with Ex Machina, it was released at the same time as the Avengers so it would be hard to compete with them. Mad Max's target audience was mainly men as it was an action film. It also would have been advertised at cinemas in action film, where men will mostly likely see it.


Overall, I would agree that successful media product do depend on marketing and distribution to a specific audience as they do upon good production practices. This is clearly shown that Mad Max is a lot more successful than Ex Machina because the production process was a lot more well thought out. Mad Max also promoted the film with better advertisement. However, Ex Machina did use good advertising techniques like through the power of social media. Mad Max is also a sequel so more people would want to see the upcoming film. I think from what we have learnt, in the next 5 years, the cinemas will be dominated with sci-fi action films. There is set to be 3 new Star Wars films and up to 50 new Marvel films. I think this isn't good as people will start to get bored of watching the same genre of film. Marketing of media products will become more advanced in the next 5 years through social media like YouTube. I think media products won't depend as much on Television and cinema adverts as technology will be more widely used. Overall, to make a film a success, the key is to try and make as much profit as it can.
Representation of Ethnicity

Black people

Clip from British drama Top Boy
The drama is about black gangs in London. They are represented as drug dealers and people who steal. A lot of people have this representation of black people as they live in ruff estates and are seen as scary to other people as their lives are very different. In this clip, DuShane is having a conversation about drug dealing and look like gangsters as they have a big pimped out black car. The teenagers are seen to be trouble makers and this clip shows them stealing and the boy gets arrested.

Clip from British drama Skins.
In this clip, the black character Thomas who is from Africa is a migrant. He is stereotyped by the type of music he listens to and for being an immigrant to the UK.

Clip from British drama Misfits.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUltPHWUnO4
The character Curtis is an athlete and a lot of black people are stereotyped to be fast runners. He is also stereotyped as he is doing community service for drug dealing which is what people stereotype black people to be doing.

Asian People

Clip from British drama Skins
In this clip, Anwar who is an Asian Muslim is stopped at the airport for the colour of his skin. A lot of people have the representation of Muslims to be terrorists and that they bring in bombs through airport security. This clip highlights this stereotype as Anwar is stopped by the Russian police and taken to be searched. People have this representation of Muslims because of past incidents like 9/11.

Clip from American drama Pretty Little Liars
In this clip, Emily is an Asian character. She is a hardworking girl who comes from a typical Asian family who obey rules and do well at school. However, Emily is a countertype of this because she is gay, many Asian families would frown upon this as it is seen wrong in the Asian community.

Clip from American drama Glee.
In this clip, Mike is an Asian character from Japan. He is a dancer in Glee and is very good. Him and his parents follow the Christian faith which countertypes the stereotypical faith other Asians follow, e.g. Hindu, Muslim, Buddhists.


Clip from American drama Heroes
In this clip, Masi Oka who is a Chinese character in Heroes, he can time travel, that is his power in the drama. The Chinese are stereotyped to be clever and hard working.

Clip from British drama Skins
In this clip, Abigail who is girl from a private school is at a choir concert. She is stereotyped to be posh and a snob. A lot of people from private school are seen to be rich and well off as they can afford private education. Abigail is seen as being quite rude to Michelle and a lot of posh people are seen to be rude.

Sunday 22 November 2015

Narrative Codes

Roland Barthes developed a concept that every narrative is interwoven with five codes that drive one to maintain interest in a story. The first two codes involve ways of creating suspense in narrative, the first by unanswered questions, the second by anticipation of an action's resolution. These two codes are essentially connected to the temporal order of the narrative.

The Hermeneutic Code

The hermeneutic code refers to plot elements of a story that are not explained. They exist as enigmas that the reader wishes to be resolved. A detective story, for example, is a narrative that operates primarily by the hermeneutic code. A crime is exposed or postulated and the rest of the narrative is devoted to answering questions raised by the initial event.

The Proairetic Code

The proairetic code refers to plot events that imply further narrative action. For example, a story character confronts an adversary and the reader wonders what the resolution of this action will be. Suspense is created by action rather than by a reader's wish to have mysteries explained. The final three codes are related to how the reader comprehends and interprets the narrative discourse.

The Semic Code

A seme is a unit of meaning or a sign that express cultural stereotypes. These signs allow the author to describe characters, settings and events. The semic code focuses upon information that the narration provides in order to suggest abstract concepts. Any element in a narrative can suggest a particular, often additional, meaning by way of connotation through a correlation found in the narrative. The semic code allows the text to 'show' instead of 'tell' by describing material things.

The Symbolic Code

The symbolic code refers to a structural structure that organizes meanings by way of antitheses, binary oppositions or sexual and psychological conflicts. These oppositions can be expressed through action, character and setting.

The Cultural Code

The cultural code designates any element in a narrative that refers to common bodies of knowledge such as historical, mythological or scientific. The cultural codes point to knowledge about the way the world works as shared by a community or culture.



Together, these five codes function like a 'weaving of voices'. Barthes assigns to the hermeneutic the Voice of Truth; to the proairetic code the voice of Empirics ; to the semic the Voice of the Person; to the cultural the Voice of Science; and to the symbolic the Voice of Symbol. According to Barthes, they allowing the reader to see a work not just as a single narrative line but as a braiding of meanings that give a story its complexity and richness.
TV drama- Generic convections
Characters – even particular kinds of characters: eg, at its most simple, ‘good’ and ‘bad’ characters.
  • Stories – they all tell stories, whether those stories involve adventure, crime or romance and they often, but not always, end happily.
  • The stories are told against familiar backdrops: – eg, homes, police stations and offices (for crime dramas), hospitals (for medical dramas) – most of which are created in studios. However, most dramas also use outside locations to create particular effects.
  • Camerawork – particular kinds of shots are used: eg, sequences involving establishing shots followed by mid-shots of characters, shot/reverse shots to show character interaction and, in particular,close-ups to show the characters’ emotions.
  • Stories use dialogue to tell the stories. Occasionally, monologues are built in (as voiceovers, a character telling a story).
  • Music is used to punctuate the action, create effects (suspense, tension) and underline emotional moments.
  • Particular subgenres tend to have items which make them immediately identifiable – police cars, blue lights, operating theatres and scalpels, triage/reception areas in hospitals. Icons of the genre, they symbolise the (sub)genre.
  • Sunday 8 November 2015



    In this clip, it is clear that there is a teacher and a student because the teacher is wearing professional clothing, she is wearing a fitted dress and blazer with heels. Her hair is neat and tidy. Tariq who is the disabled character is in a wheelchair and is wearing his school uniform. He is also wearing gloves, this will be because it makes it easier for him to move his wheelchair as the gloves give him more grip. The setting in the clip is in the school grounds and garden area, there is a lot of greenery with trees and plants in the frame. There is also the school building in the right hand side of the frame. There is a wheelchair ramp to show that the disabled character can access places easily. The clip shows a tracking shot of both characters moving from right to the middle of the frame. The clip starts with a long shot where you can see both characters full height, to then a mid shot of the teachers waist and above Tariq's shoulders. The shot has been zoomed so both characters can be seen in more detail. Sound during the clip includes birds singing which brings a calming atmosphere and due to the little noise in the background it makes it easier to hear the conversation between the two characters.



    Friday 6 November 2015




    1. Camera's used in the film were  ARRI Alexa cameras and capture with Codex Onboard Recorders to film intense action scenes and include many visual effects
    2. Originally, Fury Road was intended to be shot near Broken Hill in New South Wales, Australia.
    3. This was because in the desert there was unusual amounts of heavy rainfall causing the desert to blossom flowers.
    4. Originally slated for a 2003 shoot in Namibia, the film had to be delayed after the beginning of the Iraq War caused trouble with shipping and security in Namibia. Production began again in 2009.
    5. Mad max fury road was released 30 years after the last film,.
    6. Charlize Theron shaved her head for her role of Furiosa
    7. Charlize and Tom Hardy did not get on on set.
    8. The film experienced many weather and location problems causing the film to be delayed many times.
    9. The film was shot in sequence and story boards were completed before the script.
    10. 80% of the films effects were real practical effects, stunts and makeup and sets.
    11. The film was expected to be released in 2013
    12. The film had to deal with many production delays, financial trouble and travel & shipping restrictions, this put them into "development hell".
    13. Started shooting in Namibia in July
    14. Had a budget of $100-$125 million
    15. Warner Bro's had concerns that the film on going production was slow so they set a deadline for November.



    Sunday 25 October 2015

    Textual Analysis and Representation (The 7 key areas of representation)

    You need to understand how the technical elements (in the last post) create specific representations of individuals, groups, events or places and help to articulate specific messages and values that have social significance. 

    Particular areas of representation that may be chosen are:
    1. Gender
    2. Age
    3. Ethnicity
    4. Sexuality
    5. Class and status
    6. Physical ability/disability
    7. Regional identity
    Textual Analysis and Representation (The 4 key areas of textual anaysis)


    Camera Shots, Angle, Movement, Composition
    • Shots: establishing shot, master shot, close-up, mid-shot, long shot, wide shot, two-shot, aerial shot, point of view shot, over the shoulder shot, and variations of these.
    • Angle: high angle, low angle, canted angle.
    • Movement: pan, tilt, track, dolly, crane, steadicam, hand-held, zoom, reverse zoom.
    • Composition: framing, rule of thirds, depth of field – deep and shallow focus, focus pulls.
    Editing

    Includes transition of image and sound – continuity and non-continuity systems.
    • Cutting: shot/reverse shot, eyeline match, graphic match, action match, jump cut, crosscutting, parallel editing, cutaway; insert.
    • Other transitions, dissolve, fade-in, fade-out, wipe, superimposition, long take, short take, slow motion, ellipsis and expansion of time, post-production, visual effects.
     Sound
    • Soundtrack: score, incidental music, themes and stings, ambient sound.
    • Diegetic and non-diegetic sound; synchronous/asynchronous sound; sound effects; sound motif, sound bridge, dialogue, voiceover, mode of address/direct address, sound mixing, sound perspective.
    Mise-en-Scène
    • Production design: location, studio, set design, costume and make-up, properties.
    • Lighting; colour design.

    Camera shots, angles and movement.
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Examples of these shots:
     
     
     
     
     
    

    Thursday 15 October 2015

    The Big Six:




    20th Century fox:
    -Parent company: Fox entertainment group
    - Owned by: Rupert Murdoch 
    • 20th century fox television productions
    • Fox international pictures
    • Fox news
    • Fox broadcasting company
    -Market share: 11.2%
    -Ice age = $383,257,136
    -Maze Runner = $580 million
    -Titanic = $2.187 Billion


    Columbia:
    -Parent company: Sony pictures entertainment 
    - Owned by: Sony
    • Sony Pictures motion picture group
    • Sony pictures studios 
    • Sony pictures television
    -Market share: 6.6%
    - Casino Royale = $600 million
    - 21 Jump street = $201.6 million
    - Spider man 3 = $890.9 million 

    Paramount:
    - Parent company: Paramount communications inc.
    - Owned by: Famous players-Lasky
    • Paramount Digital Entertainment
    • Paramount home media distribution 
    • Paramount Licensing Inc.
    -Market share: 6.6%
    - Transformers = $3.761 million
    - Indiana Jones and the kingdom of the crystal skull = $786.6%
    - Star Trek = $2.003 billion

    Universal: 
    - Parent company: NBCUniversal
    - Owned by: Vivendi 
    • NBC Universal Television
    •  NBCUniversal cable 
    • NBC News
    • NBC Sports group 
    -Market share: 26.8%
    - Jurassic World = $1.665 billion
    - Kick Ass 2 = $60.7 million
    - Fast and Furious (Franchise) = $3.907.312.431

    Walt Disney Pictures:

    -Parent company: The Walt Disney Studios
    - Owned by: The Walt Disney Company 
    • Walt Disney studios motion pictures 
    • Disneynature 
    • Walt Disney Animation Studios
    • Disney theater group 
    -Market Share: 12.8%
    - Dumbo = $1.6 million
    - Mary Poppins = $102.3 Million
    - Pirates of the Caribbean, Dead men tell no tales  =  $320 Million

    Warner Bros: 
    -Parent company: Time Warner
    - Owned by: Four Brothers
    • Warner Bros Inc Entertainment 
    • Warner Bros pictures 
    • Warner Bros Animation 
    - Market Share: 16,3%
    - Harry Potter (Franchise) = $15 billion 
    - Interstellar = $675 million
    - The Hangover = $467.5 million







    Why did Ex Machina succeed at the Box Office?
    Ex Machina was a film that did succeed at the box office but many people thought it wouldn’t do due to the following reasons. Some people have the opinion that the film had little satisfactory closure because it doesn’t have the conventional happy ending. The ending is unconventional where Ava escapes and leaves her creator dead and the romantic interest is locked away to die. Traditional sci-fi films have endings where the hero gets the girl. Unlike most box office films that have a lot of action and explosions in, Ex Machina fails to have these elements and has little exposition.  
    The $15 million independent British film succeed with this cheap budget due to there being few actors in the film. The main three characters that are in the film is Nathan Bateman played by Oscar Isaac, and the other two characters, Ava played by Alicia Vikander, Caleb smith played by Domhnall Gleeson. These two characters are not seen to be highly regarded actors for a box office film. However, they both will be characters in the new Star Wars film coming out soon. Ex Machina was directed and written by Alex Garland who has been successful in screenplay and wrote “28 days later” and “never let me go”.
     As there were few actors in the film, there was a greater reliance on the script. In some areas of the film it lacks pace and takes a long time to understand what is going on. Unlike other films where the story line is virtually given to you, this film allows your imagination to decide what you want to happen. This film is quite simple as the budget was small, to create the robots no CGI was used. The film was shot live action, so the robotic parts were made and the camera took different shots each time Ava moved. As the budget was small, they couldn’t afford CGI and in a scene where Ava puts clothes on, this was to save money and save time as they didn’t have to film as many frames.
    The film only had 2 locations where it was filmed, one was at the Pinewood studios for 4 weeks and the other was at the Juvet hotel in Valldalen, Norway for 2 weeks. Filming only took 6 weeks as there were only ten characters in the film. The house in the film was where most of the filming took place and the house was real so no set was needed.
    Ex Machina was funded by Film Four and DNA films. It was released in the UK and US. Ex Machina is an indie sci-fi thriller, which didn’t appeal to millions of people. The film was seen by people known as “film buffs” as these are people who enjoy just watching films, this is one of the reasons why the film succeed. These types of people are what made profit go up. The film lost a lot of audience to the “Avengers age of Ultron” as they were released at the same time. When the films came out the Avengers was shown on screens all over the U.S whereas Ex Machina was shown on smaller screens. This was to make the viewing of the film do film buffs and prevent bad reviews whilst the Avengers was popular. As the number of viewing fell for the Avengers, this gave Ex Machina the chance to be successful at the box office as there weren’t other films like it.
    Ex Machina made $36.9 million at the box office, this is a success as most films need a budget of at least $100 million to make a good box office film. Ex Machina didn’t have the common four quadrants that most blockbuster films have, it could only appeal to half of the quadrants. This is because in the film full frontal nudity was shown and this made the film as over the age of 25 to watch it. This ignore the age bracket of people under 15 who could have been potential viewer of the film which could have brought profits up higher.
    The marketing team who had to promote the film came up with the idea to make a Tinder account for Ava. People who would click on it would be asked questions by Ava. The questions would be similar to the ones Ava was asked in the film like, what makes a person human, where they would meet and if they attracted to Ava. The Tinder app would then have a link to an Instagram page that promoted the film. Tinder complained about the account saying that other users could think it was fake, this meant publicity for the film. The publicity meant that people had now heard of the film and it may have encouraged them to go and see it. Due to Ex Machina using clever marketing skills it succeed being a low budget film which may have not done as well at the box office without thought out decisions when to release or promote the film.
    To conclude, Ex Machina succeed well at the box office, it made a profit and managed to encage viewers like film buffs to help with keeping the film on screens during The Avengers. The film was screened behind the larger blockbusters which everyone wanted to see, however these films would get bad reviews as everyone had seen them. On the other hand, Ex Machina could then promote the film more widely once film buffs created a popularity on social networking about the robots and Ava.  Ava and the robots could have been represented for the male gaze as they were naked for a lot of scenes and would do what Nathan and Caleb told them to do. The film’s success was a good accomplishment seeing that the budget was very small but it manage to make a good profit from well thought-out marketing and distribution ideas which made the film stand out from other blockbusters. 

    Tuesday 13 October 2015


    Mise-en-scene: Skins

    Tony and his bedroom

    • Tony as a character is well thought out and stylish, he wants to look good to impress people. He works/flexing etc. In the scene where he is working out, a mini montage is used.
    • Tony is presented to have a cleans face, his hair is tidy, he also is quite plain looking, people don't know what to think about him.
    • He is  very confident and knows what he is doing with his everyday life.
    • His relationship with his dad is seen to be that Tony is in charge as he manipulates his dad. His relationship with effy is good, in the scene he is helping and sticking up for her.
    • Tony's room isn't the stereotypical boys room, it's bland but bright  and minimalist compared to effy's room which is untidy and dark. As Tony's room is like this, it could suggest that he has OCD. This is also suggested by how Tony wakes up in the morning, he is awake before his alarm and when he is in his bed it wasn't creased.
    • There are lots of movie posters and books that he is interested in, showing he is more intelligent than most teenagers.
    • He's in the centre of the frame in most shots.
    • Countryside setting, church bells in the background.

    Luther 


    • Set in a city, similar to London, both characters are high up on a city bridge with large buildings surrounding them, which makes them appear smaller in frames. 
    • The next scene is set in the woman's apartment, which is quiet and mysterious to the audience, the look of the apartment is simple and bland as well as the furniture. 
    • The apartment also has props that suggest the woman is intelligent, for example there is a telescope on the balcony, meaning she could be scientist and gives a more masculine feel to the apartment.
    • Both characters have smart professional clothing on, both wearing coats meaning it must be cold.
    • The woman is wearing makeup with red lipstick, along with red hair, the colour suggests danger and passion. 
    • The woman seems to have a lot of power over Luther, she touches him and speaks over him throughout the clip . 



    Monday 12 October 2015

    Script for documentary





    Iron man 3 is an action, adventure, superhero film which is enjoyed by many children and men who like this genre of film. The film is a sequel from the past two films “Iron man” and “Iron man 2”. The film is part of a franchise and Marvel is the creator of the comic book adaptations. The third film has been directed by Shane Black who replaced Jon Favreau who was the original directed of the previous two films. The film is being made and produced at Marvel studios and was distributed by Walt Disney pictures. Kevin Feige produced the film as well as Marvel. The film was written by Drew Pearce and the director himself to get across his vision for the film. The film was granted $200 million. It made $1.2 billion making profits for Marvel and Disney, even though participants like Robert Downey Jr. took their fees from the film, as well as the $90 million or so owned Paramount because of its previous distribution deal with Marvel. The film was a major success and was the second highest-grossing film of 2013 overall and second highest-grossing film at domestic box office released in 2013. The film stared the brilliant Robert Downey Jr. who played the main character Iron man. There were many other famous stars involved in the film including Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall, Stephanie Szostak, James Badge Dale, Jon Favreau and Ben Kingsley. From taking five months to buying it on the 18th of October 2010, Walt Disney Studios agreed to give Paramount $115 million for the worldwide distribution rights to Iron Man 3. In February 2011, planning for the film began when directors and scriptwriters were confirmed. Filming began in Wilmington, North Carolina on May 23rd 2012, at the EUE/screen gem studios. A scene was filmed at the Wilmington International Airport. The port of Wilmington was a location for the oil tanker in the climactic battle, as well as the soundstage recreation of the dock. Another scene in the film where the house crumbled was filmed on a hydraulic-powered guibo platform that could bend and split into two pieces. The inside of the house had practical effects, including debris ad explosions, made by computer graphics which added exteriors and Iron man’s armour. There were four main filming locations such as Malibu, California, Rose hill, Tennessee, Miami, Florida and Washington DC. Chris Townsend was the visual effects supervisor for the film. There were over 2,000 visual special effects shots featured in the film, which were worked on by 17 studios. The film was filmed in 2D and 3D and was available at IMAX theatres. A problem that the film faced was due to the following release of Iron Man 2 which caused conflict between Paramount Pictures, which had distribution rights to certain Marvel Properties and the Walt Disney Company, Marvel Entertainments new corporate parent, interrupted timing and the distribution arrangement of the third film. The film’s marketing strategies could be seen as easier as the film already has a fan base from the previous 2 films, the publicists want to appeal to existing fans and attract new ones. To do this and to promote the film, in July 2012 at the San Diego comic-con international, new Iron man armour from the movie was on display. A question panel was held where Shane Black, Robert Downey Jr., Don Cheadle, Jon Favreau and Kevin Feige talked about making the film and parts of the movie were shown. The first television advert was shown during the super bowl in the US. To also promote the film, the marketing crew made a trailer for the film, they also promoted it on social media. The film was premiered at Hollywood’s El captain theatre, many of the cast and crew attended. The film has been a major success and is now available on VOD and DVD blu ray. 

    Wednesday 30 September 2015


    Representation work


    My mood board shows some of my favourite brands to wear and to look at. I have also included female celebrities that i inspire to have a similar fashion style to. In the top left hand corner, there are two images of Kylie Jenner. I really like Kylie's style, even though she wears high designer clothing, I can find similar items that she has worn in high street UK stores, like Topshop. Topshop is my favourite shop, most of the clothing i wear is bought from there. I like that topshop have good quality clothes that is also on trend. The second picture of Kylie Jenner shows her with pink hair, I often have my hair pink/purple when i want to change from being blonde. Kylie is known for changing her hair many different colours and i think this is what makes her unique. Another brand that I have put onto my mood board is Mac cosmetics, which is where i love to get my makeup from.
     I also love to shop at Ark and New look, these are highstreet fashion stores, they sell cheaper affordable clothing but their products are always on high trend. To the left of the board, there are pictures of Kim Kardashian and Kendall Jenner. These two women are in the media a lot and always look good in what they are wearing. I really like to look at what they wear for certain events so i follow their social media accounts to look at their clothes. Some brands on this board are very expensive such as Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, Chloe, American Apparel and Victoria's Secret. I occasionally buy one or two items from these brands because they are highly priced. However, there products are of really high quality so it is worth the money to buy them. I also like to follow a lot of the brand's social media accounts on the board, I like to look at new releases from the brands. 
    Jennifer Aniston is on my mood board becuase i think she looks very good for her age and dresses really nicely so i like to look at what clothes she buys. There are three British female celebrities on the board, one of them who is underneath the American Apparel logo is Charlotte Crosby. I love how Charlotte dresses and i think she is really inspiring as she has set up her own fashion brand of clothing which is affordable for people like me to buy. The other two British celebrities are Cara Delevingne and Kaya Scodelario. Cara is a supermodel for top designer brands, I like to look at her social media, I also feel like my personality is like her's. I like to have fun and i think she is a bit crazy like me. Kaya isn't really famous for her style, she's more famous for being an actress. I like her hair and she currently has it purple and that's what colour i like mine. Kaya is famous for her work on the British Tv series "Skins". I feel like I can relate to the programme and it is similar to mine and my friend's lives. Throughout the series, they all go to parties, which is what i like to do. The last few brands on the board are shops that i like to buy a few pieces of clothing from, Urban Outfitters is one of my favourites, along with Zara, ASOS and River Island. These shops are middle range pricing and always have what is on trend. 
    Lastly, the remaining celebrities are all women who have curvy figures and dress so well to suit their figures, I feel like i can relate to them. Khloe Kardashian, Rihanna and Beyonce are three beautiful women and they have unique styles that a lot people in the world inspire to have. Jennifer Lawrence is someone who i think is acknowledged for her unique style as well. Jennifer stars in a film called "American Hustle", and in this film she wears a stunning fur coat which makes her look glamorous. I have a similar coat to hers from the film because i liked how she was styled for the part she played.
    Reading through each of the tribes, I don't know what category I would fit into because I have a lot of different personality traits so I wouldn't know where to place myself as I like lots of different things.

    Tuesday 29 September 2015


    The Male Gaze- Anaconda, Nicki Minaj Music Video

    Nicki Minaj's music video "Anaconda", has been widely spoken about for being one of the most viewed explicit music videos on the internet. Throughout the video, Nicki Minaj and many other women are seen to have little clothing on, and are "twerking" in the video which could be seen to look sexual. In the video, camera angles focus on the curves of the female body, this is seen that women are used for visual pleasure, basically seen as sexual objects to men. 
    At the start of the video, the camera shoots shots of a woman's bum. This shot would be pleasing to a male's viewing as it's what men would probably only look at when watching the video. This shot will attract men to watch the video. The video shows the women dancing sexually in a jungle scenery showing themselves off for the camera. The women are moving around the scene slowly, similarly to snakes which is also referenced by the name of the song "Anaconda". 

    Further on in the video, a shot is taken where all of the women are posed and the camera is shooting them from behind. The women also have their hands on each other's bum's. This could link to women as being objectified as the hand symbols having hold over them. They are also bent over which could be seen as a posed shot to please the male audience. Also, the women's faces are not seen in this shot, this shows that their identity is hidden but they are just seen as objects again. 

    Then, in this next shot, the women are all on chairs, wearing revealing clothing with their legs spread out. This part of the video shows the women dancing exotically and showing a sexual nature. The male gaze is how the audience views the people presented, men would see this shot and most likely think of sex. This shot also seems to look as if the women don't mind posing in that sexual way, it looks like they don't seem to care of how people perceive this shot or even how men would.
    In this shot, Nicki minaj who is obviously the star of her own music video, is bent over very provocatively, wearing joggers which have been pulled down showing her pink thong lingerie. Her bending over would make it pleasing for the male eyes to view and has connotations to sexual acts. Her pink thong could indicate that she is trying to attract the opposite sex. The shot is set in a gym, a lot of men stereotypically think that women should do exercise to look good and when men are exercising they have women to look at. 
    These next two shots are portraying sexual acts; the banana is in place of a penis. This would be seen as playful to the male eyes and again women being used for the visual pleasure of men. The whipped cream is on an intimate area of Nicki and she is wearing revealing clothing so men would look at this and think about women in a different way. Also, this shot is filmed in a kitchen and a lot of people stereotype women and say they belong in the kitchen and should cook for men,Nicki Minaj is encouraging this stereotype by also wearing a tight outfit that shows off her curves for men to look at.

























     Lastly, towards the end of the video, Nicki Minaj is seen to be crawling towards to male sitting in the chair. Her outfit is very reveling and she looks like she could be implying to pleasure the man by the way her body is posed. The male looks as though he expects the pleasure by her as she crawled towards him which would could be seen as degrading. This gives proof of that the male gaze is giving men what they want or what they want to see by using women as objects and filing them from various angles which are seen as revealing and to please the male's eyes. A lot of the time, music video's use women provocatively in them to make more money from people watching them. 

    Monday 28 September 2015




    Stages of film production


    •   Writer- The writer is someone who writes the script, they have to research and develop story ideas. There roles includes looking in-depth of understanding the story, plot and narrative. They have to understand the different ways that films affect the audience, they have to know how to format screenplays and they have to work to strict deadlines. A famous script writer is George Lucas who has written and also directed the Star Wars films.
    • Producer- A producer is someone who turns story ideas into profitable films, puts together a cast and crew and they are responsible for all areas of a film's production. The role of being a producers include having a lots of experience in the film industry. They must have a creative vision and creative processes of filmmaking. One of the most important things a producer must have is good communication skills because they will have to tell a lot of people who are working on the film what they have to do. A producer is the person who oversees all of the aspects of making a film and they will be put under pressure to make sure everyone is doing certain areas of work. An example of a famous producer is Walt Disney who has produced films like Cinderella, Mary Poppins and Alice and Wonderland.
    • Casting director- The job of a casting director is organising the cast and selecting Actors and Actresses for certain roles in a film. They have to arrange and host interviews and auditions for people wanting to enroll as a part in the film. The casting director will work closely with the director and producer. The role of a casting director includes having good knowledge of cinema and actors. They will have to have an interest in theatre and stage actors. One very important thing is that they will have to know how to work a video camera. An example of a casting director is Christopher Nolen, who has casted films like Interstellar, The dark Knight. 
    • Director - A director has to make the film script into images and sounds on the screen, they are responsible for the success or failure of a film. A lot of directors also write their own film scripts, they do this so they can get their own vision of what the film could be like when they finish it. Being a good director means like have to be passionate about filmmaking, this is key to a good film as it shows a lot of work has been put in to make it. Directors always want their film to be the best and they are keen to put a lot of detail into every element of the film. An example of a film director is Steven Spielberg who has made films such as ET, War horse, Jaws, Jurassic Park and Indiana Jones.
    • Film Finance- Film finance are in charge of money involved in a film, a lot of the time they are checking how much money is spent and that the producer doesn't go over budget. Money for a film doesn't just come out of nowhere, people have to either ask large companies to invest in the film, or put the money to together from various different people. 
    • Camera Operator: A camera operator is someone who basically films the film and records images for shots of the film. The operator will make sure the camera is working as it should be and the equipment is reading to film. Camera operators work closely with directors to ensure that the vision of how the director wants the shot is filmed. Camera operators will also be in charge of their own team, members of their team could be working with other cameras to get shots at different angles.
    • Editor: The editors also work closely with the director to make sure that the way the shots are put together are how the director visioned. They work in an editing room using advanced technology to create the film. They  confirm that the film is running as it should from start to finish. A lot of films have different scenery that is filmed at different time so the editor's job is to put the shot in the same order.
    • Production designer: Production designers manage and look at each visual part of the film. They usually work with the producer and director, they are usually negotiating certain areas of the film. The production designer is in charge the films props, costumes and setting.
    • Marketing: People who are involved in marketing will look at the creation and planning for campaigns for the film. Their job is to make sure people of the right target audience see advertisement of the film and the advert will make people want to see the film. They have to make people want to watch the film and make adverts look good. Adverts for films are usually trailers for a film or posters.

    People involved in some of these roles.

    Writer: George Lucas

    Producer: Walt Disney

    Director: Steven Spielberg 

    Camera Operator: Emmanuel Lubezki

    Editor: Michael Kahn

    Production Designer: Rick Carter