'A Field In England' Ben Wheatley

a) How was this film released? (In what way, on what platforms)
It was released on DVD, Blu-Ray, Video on Demand, Cinema and Field Cinema 

b) Why was it released in this way?
Each platform provided different benefits 

c) What are the advantages of this method of release? 
DVD can viewers can dive into various extra features, Film4 is broadcasting the with an introduction and interview with the director and VoD viewers can catch up on what they missed.

d) What are the possible disadvantages of this method of release? 
It could mean that it affects how much they would have made in cinemas 

e) Why does this method of release suit a smaller, more niche and independent style of film, rather than a mass market, major studio, mainstream blockbuster?

Synergy task

Synergy is when two things work together to benefit themselves.
One example of synergy is that Ben Wheatley's film season is shown on film4 before they released 'A Field in England'. This benefits Ben Wheatley and al his previous films before 'A Field in England' as well as promoting film4 as it would increase the number of audience viewers.

Another example of synergy is that the character of Bond, Daniel Craig, featured in a Heineken advert in the style of the Bond movie and he also wears a Rolex. This benefits both the new films Spectre and it also promotes Heineken so they both work together to promote each other as they are both popular.

Merlin extract - Class Representation

One way in which editing is used to portray Merlin as lower/working class is through the use of fast paced editing during the fight between Merlin and Arthur. The editing technique makes Merlin look unskilled with the weapon and uncontrolled, almost like he doesn't know what he is doing. Arthur swings at Merlin with the weapon and it goes into slow motion which is contrasted to Merlin a he is skilled and knows what he is doing. This shows that Merlin is uneducated to use weapons and fits with the lower class representation.

Distribution Questions

1) How many of the 'Big Six' studios also own distribution companies? 

- All of the six majors also known as the 'Big Six' have their own distribution companies in the uk. 

2) Have a look at the new releases in UK Cinemas this week and see if you can work out what the following distribution terms mean, and find one example of a film released 

a) Limited - select number of cinemas 
b) Key Cities - major cities cinema release 
c) Wide - majority of cinemas but not all, all parts of the country
d) Saturation - large scale release across the majority of cinemas 

3) Now have a look here, and see if you can find out what these more complicated distribution strategies are:
e) Platform Release - releasing the film within 2-3 steps, firstly releasing in 10-20 screens then stepping up to 500+ screens

f) Non-Theatrical - releasing the film straight to DVD. 

4) What is interesting or different about the release of the following films?:

• Veronica Mars- released 
• A Field In England
• Frank

Social Class Article

The article refers to the different classes as having the 'Seven Deadly Sins'

One being how you talk which is referred to as being the "U and Non U".

For example: 

A lower class person is more likely to say "pardon?" whereas a higher class is more likely to say "sorry?" or "what?"

However, if a lower class person were to say "what?" They would initially drop the 't' to make it sound like "wha?"

Another word is 'toilet', upper class people are more likely to say "loo" or "lavatory" whereas a lower/middle class person is more likely to say "gents" or "ladies" or just call it a "toilet" or a "bathroom".

Another word is 'napkin', most upper class people would refer to it as a "serviette" whereas a lower class person is likely to say "napkin" 

Another big term used is 'dinner' or 'tea' 

Tea is usually around 4o'clock after lunch when you have scones and tea. Upper class people refer to dinner as 'supper'.

 

Exam Question

"Evaluate the role of Digital Technologies in the marketing and consumption of products in the media area you have studied" 

Digital technologies play an increasingly important role in the distribution, marketing and consumption of media products in the film industry. One film that has fully utilised modern digital technologies and taken advantage of technological convergence is Disney's Star Wars: The Force Awakens. One example of this is the official star wars app on android and iPhone which allows you to purchase tickets for the films,  make yourself into a star wars character, access the trailer, has links to the social media sites and allows other fans to comment and like things. 

Another prime example is the social media sites such as Facebook, twitter and Instagram which allows fans to follow the pages and post in to them adding their experiences with star wars movies, games etc and allow fan to interact with other fans by sharing and using hashtags so everyone who clicks on that hashtag can see what you think of star wars. 
The current twitter page has 1.71m followers which tells us that it is very popular and is successful in interacting the audiences. 



Another main example of digital technologies is the youtube channel which releases different versions of the trailer, the original trailer and a video of the actors surprising the fans over webcam, this interacts with the audience and the fans as it allows them to see the actual actors in star wars speaking to the fans. And also shows the actors having interviews and allows the fans to have an insight on what goes on backstage.