Certification Research

As shown in the post of our results of the survey, the most popular certificate chosen was 15. Looking at the certification guidelines on the BFI website, it is clear that as a '15', it is necessary to follow these guidelines:

• drug use is permitted as long as it does not promote drug use
• dangerous behaviour e.g. suicide must not dwell on detail which could be copied
• frequent strong language is permitted
• nudity is permitted without strong detail
• strong violence is permitted without dwelling on detail, however sexual violence is not permitted without strong contextual reference. 

Question 10

(a) To what extent does Hollywood dominate the UK film landscape?
(b) How has it managed to retain its stranglehold?

One of the main ways Hollywood continues to have a hold on the UK film landscape is through priorities of distribution among exhibitors. Due to the necessity of making profits, most UK cinemas prioritise blockbusters from Hollywood to guarantee cinema attendance. This makes it much harder for UK films to make it in to cinemas as it is too expensive and so Hollywood films are generally the only ones that can afford to be exhibited in UK cinemas. Another reason to why Hollywood films are the ones to be able to afford to be screened in the UK is due to excessive pricing of prints. As each cinema requires their own 'print' of the film, it becomes incredibly expensive to produce enough copies of the film, therefore it makes it a lot harder for independent film production companies, to be able to afford to show their film in lots of cinemas because it is too expensive to create lots of prints.

Another way Hollywood manages to retain its stranglehold is through attraction to 'High Concept' cinema. Examples of High Concept cinema are action films with fast cutting, glossy editing and simplistic narrative, for example 'Transformers' and 'I am Number Four.' Although these films are incredibly popular especially for the 16-24 age gap, they are also incredibly expensive to make, meaning that the most likely suitor for production and distribution of high concept action films are Hollywood companies. Therefore, to keep on attracting audiences, it is necessary to keep showing what is popular - i.e. Hollywood action films, and so it continues to have high control over the UK film landscape. Finally, Hollywood manages to keep control over UK due to the fact that it brings in huge cinema attendance numbers. All of the example above show that money is the main root of Hollywood's sucesses and another way they can use this to attract people is through huge stars. By offering big sums of money to famous 'A-list' actors, for example, Shia Le Beouf and Megan Fox in 'Transformers', they manage to gain huge audiences due to the attraction of huge stars in films.

Cinema and Film Industry Qs

Q1. In the UK film market, an increase in the number of screens available to show films has not led to an increase in the number of films being shown. Why?

·         All films in cinemas are loaned by film companies for a specific and secure amount of time so there aren’t a pile up of films in cinemas

·         Popular films are ‘heldover’ and are shown a number of times a day and so there isn’t enough room at cinemas to show lots of films when there are a number of popular releases at once

·         Even though certain cinemas aren’t still owned by Hollywood companies, they still prioritise Hollywood hits which makes it hard for any other films to match the attention the huge releases gain.

Q2. In your opinion what might account for the fact that cinema attendances have fluctuated between 139 million and 176 million between 1999 and 2008?

·         One of the main reasons to why cinema attendance has fluctuated may be because of the success and marketing of major Hollywood hits throughout the years. For example, in 2002, which gained the highest number of people attending cinemas (176 million), the top releases were a number of films that were sequels or films in a series. For example, the top two films that grossed the most amount of money were ‘The Lord of the Rings; Two Towers’ and ‘Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets’ as well as other popular sequels such as ‘Stuart Little 2’, ‘Star Wars – Episode II’, ‘Men in Black II’ and ‘the Santa Clause 2.’ As well as already having two very popular prequels, both ‘Lord of the Rings’ and ‘Harry Potter’ are very famous books which would also have encouraged huge attendance – this was also similar to the release of ‘Spiderman’, a hugely popular comic. However, in years such as 2006 where the cinema attendance was 157 million, although there are a number of releases that were sequels to previous films, the top releases tended to be completely new releases such as ‘Casino Royale’, ‘Borat’ and ‘Night at the Museum.’

·         Another reason to why cinema attendance may have decreased over the years could be because of the advances in recording technology and popularity of online streaming/downloading websites. For most people, for films that aren’t a particular priority but are of interest, it is more likely that they will be inclined to watch an alright copy of the film online rather than pay to see the real thing at the cinema.

Q3. In 2011, UK film distributors invested £330 million in advertising their new releases and on 35mm film prints. If around 450 new films receive a theatrical release in the UK every year, how much, on average, do distributors spend distributing a film in the UK?

330 million spent across roughly 450 films – 330 000 000/450 =

Approx. £730,000

Q4. This spending stirred up enormous demand – 171.5 million cinema tickets were bought in UK in 2011. This is great news for cinemas – what’s the downside of all this excitement generated and consumer demand for film producers in the UK?

·         For smaller companies, producers have a much bigger problem in balancing advertising and making profits than bigger companies. When distributing films, companies have to pay for each separate print of the film for each cinema. This means that bigger companies can pay for a lot more prints to be produced and so therefore a lot more can be produced and yet they can still make back their profit through audiences. This means that for smaller companies, they are less likely to make back their profit if they spend money producing lots of prints for cinemas. Therefore, if a small company’s film gets a lot of demand from consumers, it will be less likely that they will be able to afford distributing the film everywhere whereas big companies are much more likely to be able to do this.

Q5. In 2004 the average cost of releasing a US film domestically was $39 million, in addition to the average production cost of $63.8m, making an overall average production/distribution cost per film of $102.8m. What effect might this have on Hollywood production and distribution if these increases have continued?

·         If production and distribution expenses have continued to increase, it most likely means that to continue to make profits and make money to keep companies running, films need to be receiving more and more money from consumers and audiences. I think, due to the increase of online users of streaming websites, it is unlikely that cinema attendance will rise which means that if production cost continue to rise, companies will be unlikely to make profits. To make a profit, companies will have to make two and a half times its production cost of $102.8m, so to keep companies alive by making profits, it would be necessary to reinvent and encourage to people to return to cinema.

Q6. Why are more ‘middle-aged’ people going to the cinema in 2011? Who, in your opinion, are the current most bankable leading actors for the ‘youth’ market in the UK?

·         I think that a possible reason why more 'middle aged' people are going to the cinema is because the films that are being released may contain actors that are more appealing to older viewers. For example, in a recent release called, 'The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel' which was mainly aimed at older audiences, it contained many older actors such as Judi Dench, Maggie Smith and Bill Nighy which could be a main factor to why it did so well. Another reason may be because more films have been released that have intriguing plot lines for older audiences. For example, films such as 'Salmon Fishing in the Yemen' and 'The Kids Are Alright' that generally focus on ways of life rather than having a particular plot line tend to be main attractions to 'middle aged' audiences. 

·     I think that the most popular stars at the moment who tend to attract younger audiences are people who have appeared in our generation. For example, I really like watching films with actors such as Keira Knightly, Aaron Johnson and Chloe Morettz who people my age, have watched appear and grow but are still considered young, for example the arrival of Keira Knightly in ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ and Chloe Moretts in ‘Kick Ass’ and ‘Let Me In.’ Having said this, I also think that the ultimate ‘superstars’ such as Angeline Jolie, Brad Pitt, Johnny Depp etc. will never go out of date for us as they carry on doing completely new and different films.

Q7. Which top 10 films in the US last year made two-and-a-half times their budget?

Top 10 films: 1. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, 2. Transformers: Dark of the Moon, 3. Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 2, 4. Hangover II, 5. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, 6. Fast Five, 7. Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, 8. Cars 2, 9. Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, 10. Thor

Out of all of these films only two made profit: ‘Twilight’ and ‘Hangover II’

Q8. Look up the companies:

(a)    Fox Searchlight

(b)   Paramount Vantage

(c)    Sony Pictures Classics

(d)   Focus Features

Find some recent ‘Indiewood’ type films – ones associated with a certain ‘Art House’ feel yet connected to a big Hollywood studio – that these companies have produced. Who are their films aimed at?

·       Fox Searchlight:  ‘Beasts of the Southern Wild’: I think this film is mainly aimed at people who are into visual filmography and characters rather than plotline. I would say the main audience response would be from people in late 20s up to ‘middle aged.’
      ‘Fantastic Mr. Fox’: I think this is an obvious example of ‘Indiewood’ as it is quite a famous story but the artwork of the film is very different and original – however it has a huge influence of Hollywood with actors such as George Clooney and Meryl Streep. I think this is aimed at all ages as its cartoon nature would obviously attract children but its original artwork and famous stars would also attract older parents etc. 

·         Paramount Vantage: 'Son of Rambow': This film is obviously targeted at younger audiences but I think is also an example of 'Indiewood.' I think it has quite a similar feel to Moonrise Kingdom due to the style and colour of the filming but also the characters and plot lines. However, I think it is more obviously aimed at younger audiences since the actors are quite young and there is a stronger structure to the story unlike Anderson's films.

·       Sony Pictures Classics: Sony seems to be releasing a lot of new foreign 'Indiewood' films recently such as 'Chicken with Plums': Just looking at the trailer for this, I think it is obviously 'Indiewood' due to the shots, credits and music of the film as it looks very different and quite strange and dreamlike. I think this would mainly be aimed at older audiences as I think it seems to be mainly focussed on style rather than plot. Another film that is similar to this I think, but is aimed at a younger audience is 'Rust and Bone.' This also has quite an 'Indiewood' tone but also I think it has a clearer plot line so is probably more attractive to viewers in their 20s etc. 

·      Focus Features: Moonrise Kingdom (and other Wes Anderson films): Anderson uses a very specific style and tone which is kind of realistic but then also so structured with colour that it becomes quite odd and dreamy. I think generally his films are considered to be targeted at older audiences as the plots within his films aren't very clear and so wouldn't appeal to younger audiences (such as children).

Q9. Jerry Bruckheimer - is he still a 'high concept' producer? 

Michael Bay - does he deserve his reputation for films that are high on effects and low on narrative?

• Following the idea of 'look, the hook and the book' I think that Bruckheimer is definitely still a 'high concept' producer. His most famous, recent releases such as 'Pirates of the Caribbean' (all 4) and both 'National Treasure' films obviously show 'the look' and 'the hook' as both have very Hollywood style plots of action and romance and also have that specific Hollywood, glossy and sharp cutting of shots. 
• I think that Bay does deserve the reputation that he has. His most recent and most famous releases are all of the 'Transformer' films, 'I am Number Four' and 'The Island.' From the trailers of these films, none of them seem to have a particularly strong plot line other than that they are obviously action films. However, within all of these films, they seem to use loads of effects to show the fast paced plot of an action film. 

Survey - Q10 Results

In our final question, we asked the participants to rank the following films in order of preference (1= worst, 10 = best). We then totalled all the numbers up to see which film was most popular overall, giving us an idea of what sort of thriller may be popular with our target audience. The films we gave to rank were:

     The Dark Knight           Blair Witch Project

Bourne Ultimatum              Shutter Island
     Drive                                Inception

       Pulp Fiction              Silence of the Lambs
Psycho                               Taken

The results of the survey were:

Silence of the Lambs - 188
Inception - 178
The Dark Knight - 171
Taken - 162
Blair Witch Project - 146
Pulp Fiction - 145
Psycho - 142
Shutter Island - 131
Bourne Ultimatum - 116
Drive - 106

These results don't show a specific type of thriller genre that is popular. However, the highest rated films in these results, tend to be ones with interesting/complicated plot lines such as Silence of the Lambs and Inception which corresponds to the results of Q9, which showed that most people were likely to go to see films with interesting plots lines. This means that these results also show that for our film to be most successful, it is necessary to have an interesting plot line.

Thriller Conventions

Brief: The opening 2 minutes of a fictional film, including titles

Definition: Thriller films are movies that primarily use action and suspense to engage the audience and emphasize nervous tension and anxiety. Thriller films are distinct from horror movies which emphasize fear, or action movies which emphasize exhilaration. A thriller contains suspense as an indispensable ingredient. There are a number of different hybrids that contribute to a thriller such as adventure, detective fiction and espionage but the topics such as disasters and defeating criminals tend to be subjects of other genres.
      Some of the main thrillers come from fictional stories, for example Hitchcock had the tendency to put 'the common man' in the position of what would be the protagonist in an action film.

Our Survey + Results

1. Which category describes your age?

This graphs shows the results of our survey, showing that the majority of the people we interviewed were between the age of 15-18. This means that, looking at the results of the rest of the survey, our target audience will be between the ages of 15 - 18.

2. What is your gender?

The results of this question shows that the majority of the people we surveyed were female which means that we have to take into account that looking at the rest of the results for our survey, our film may be most popular amongst women.

3. Which borough do you live in?

The results show that the majority of the people we surveyed lived in an urban area and so this may mean that they generally go to different places to see new films which could affect where we want our film to be targeted.

4. What religion (if any) are you?

Religion may be important if there may be restrictions on what people of certain religions can watch - this shows that our target audience is mainly non-religious so means that we may not have as many restrictions.

5. Which category best describes your occupation?

The results show that the majority of our target audience that we surveyed are students which means that our film would probably be targeted at younger generations and also means they may have more time to see films.

6. What is your most preferred movie certificate?

This graph shows that amongst the age group of 15-18, the most popular certificate by far is certificate 15. This means that for our film to be most popular amongst this age group, our film would have to be certificate 15.

7. Where do you prefer to watch films?

This graph shows that the majority of the people we surveyed are most likely to watch films at mainstream cinemas, online or at indie festivals. This means that we would probably have to aim our film online or at festivals as these would be the most likely places we could show our film.

8. What is your favourite film genre?

Although the results show that the majority of the people that we surveyed preferred comedies, we can use this information to infer that a comic thriller (such as Pulp Fiction) may be most popular amongst our target audience. Aside from rom-com, we can also see that horror, sci-fi and action thrillers are also very popular so we can use this also in our research of what genre of film our target audience may most prefer.

9. What category describes best the reason you would go and see a new release?

The results show that the most popular reason to why people see new releases is due to favourable actors and interesting plot. Since we don't have the resources to use popular actors, our main way of attracting people to our film would be through an interesting plot.

Target Audience Research

Please fill out our survey!

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/LCF27CB

Opening Scene - Taxi Driver

• heavy music - gives the audience a hint that the main character may be a villain
• scene is heavily focussed on dialogue - shows us a lot about the character
• zoom in on face - makes the audience more familiar and become closer to the character
• high angle on the interviewer makes him seem more vulnerable and inferior compared to the low angle on DeNiro making him seem more powerful 
• diegetic sounds of the office make it seem like a busier setting - more interesting for the audience to watch and gives a clear idea of the type of office he's in
• point of view (low angle) looking up to DeNiro - gives the audience an idea of how others view him
• conversation is also mainly focussed on DeNiro, clearly showing he is the main point of interest for the audience

Opening Scene - Drive

• wide aerial shots give audience an idea of setting
• unexpected credits font - stands out to audience and juxtaposes against the camera shots
• dark lighting - the whole face of the character is never shown (always in shadow), gives the character an air of mystery
• heavy focus on the face - background is blurred - obvious to audience that this is the most important character
• point of view shot when driving through the city makes the audience feel closer to the character (more personal)
• lighting - the car and face goes in and out of shadow when driving creating mystery
• backlighting and darkness in the flat when Ryan walks in - keeps him as a mysterious character
• shadow of window frame in flat and framing of elevator may show some influence of 'Film Noir'

Opening Scene - Children of Men

• Sound bridge from ident brings us into the scene and gives a background to the setting
• blue/grey lighting - very dark and depressing
• stillness of actors around Owen causes emphasis to be put on him - clear to audience that he is the most important
• very long mid shot - allows audience to build a relationship with the character and see how he interacts with his surrounding
• long wide shot - surveys the setting and gives the audience an idea of what state the world is in
• after the bomb blast the camera takes on a 'hand held' effect showing the chaos and confusion of the scene
• constantly a lot of busy diegetic sounds and dialogue - this makes the scene more bold and interesting for the audience