The Big Six - Walt Disney

Walt Disney is one of the most renowned film production companies in the history of the business and now holds 15.3 percent of the US/Canadian market share (2007 figures). With highly successful movies like Pirates of the Caribbean, National Treasure, Meet the Robinsons and Enchanted, there's no doubt that Disney will continue to play a key role in the industry for years to come. 

• Walt Disney was founded by Walt and Ron Disney on October 16th, 1923, in Los Angeles, California, U.S. 
• Revenue for 2011 was $40.893 billion. 
• The company has 156,000 employees (2011 figures).
• The chairman and CEO of Walt Disney is now Bob Iger.
• 1923-1928: The Silent Era. In early 1923, Walt Disney created a short film entitled Alice's Wonderland. After the bankruptcy in 1923 of his previous firm, Laugh-O-Gram Films, Disney moved to Hollywood to join his brother Roy O. Disney. Film distributor Margaret J. Winkler of M.J. Winkler Productions contacted Disney with plans to distribute a series of Alice Comedies purchased at $1,500 per reel with Disney as a production partner. Walt and his brother Roy Disney formed Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio that same year. More animated films followed after Alice. In January 1926 with the completion of the Disney studio on Hyperion Street, the Disney Brother's Studio's name is changed to the Walt Disney Studio. Disney developed a cartoon series, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, distributed by Winkler Pictures through Universal Pictures. 
• 1928-1934: Mickey Mouse and Silly Symphonies. In 1928, Disney developed Mickey Mouse and Disney's first sound film Steamboat Willie was released on November 18th, 1928, through Pat Powers' distribution company. It was the first cartoon to feature synchronised sound. Disney continued to produce cartoons with Mickey Mouse and other characters, and began the Silly Symphonies series with Columbia Pictures signing on as Symphonies distributor in August 1929. On December 16th, the Walt Disney Studios partnership is reorganised as a corporation with the name of Walt Disney Productions. In 1932, Disney signed an exclusive contract with Technicolor to produce cartoons in colour, releasing them through Powers' Celebrity Pictures, Columbia Pictures, and United Artists. 
• 1934-1945: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Word War II. Disney began production of it's first feature-length animated film in 1934. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, premiered in December 1937 and became highest-grossing film of that time by 1939. Using the profits from Snow White, Disney financed the construction of a new studio complex in Burbank, California. The new Walt Disney Studios was completed and open by the end of 1939 and on April 2nd 1940, Walt Disney Productions had its initial public offering. After World War II began, box office profits declined. 
• 1946-1954: Post-War and Television. The release of Cinderella in 1950 proved that feature-length animation could still succeed in the marketplace. Other releases of the period included Alice in Wonderland and Peter Pan, both in production before the war began, and Treasure Island. Disney ended its distribution contract with RKO in 1953, forming its own distribution arm, Buena Vista Distribution. In December 1950, Walt Disney Productions and The Coca-Cola Company teamed up for Disney's first venture into television, the NBC television network special An Hour in Wonderland. In October 1954, the ABC network launched Disney's first regular television series, Disneyland. ABC became Disney's partner in the financing and development in Disney's next venture - It was the first phase of a long corporate relationship.
• 1955-1965: Disneyland. In 954, Walt Disney used his Disneyland series to unveil what would become Disneyland. On July 18th, 1955, Walt Disney opened Disneyland to the general public. On July 17th, Disneyland was previews with a live television broadcast. In November 1965, Disney World was announced in Orlando, Florida. Disney continued to focus its talents on television throughout the 1950s, but Walt Disney Productions invested little into television ventures in the 1960s. Disney's film studios stayed busy as well, averaging five or six releases per year during this period. Disney's most successful film of the 1960s was a live action/animated musical adaptation of Mary Poppins, which was one of the all time highest grossing movies and received five Academy Awards.
• 1966-1971: The Deaths of Walt and Roy Disney and the Opening of Disney World. On December 15th, 1966, Walt Disney died and Roy Disney took over as chairman, CEO, and president of the company. On October 1st, 1971, Walt Disney World opened to the public. On December 20th, 1971, Roy Disney died, leaving the company under control of Donn Tatum, Card Walker and Ron Miller, each trained by Walt and Roy. 
• 1972-1984: Theatrical Malaise and New Leadership. As head of the studio, Miller attempted to make films to drive the profitable teenage market who generally passed on seeing Disney movies. Inspired by the popularity of Star Wars, the Disney studio produced the science-fiction adventure The Black Hole in 1979 that cost $20 million to make, but was lost in the Star Wars' wake. The Black Hole was the first Disney production to carry a PG rating in the United States. In 1979, Disney entered a joint venture with Paramount Pictures on the production of the adaptation of Popeye and Dragonslayer - the first time Disney collaborated with another studio. Paramount distributed Disney films in Canada at the time, and it was hoped that Disney's marketing prestige would help sell the two films. In 1984, Disney CEO Ron Miller created Touchstone Pictures as a brand for Disney to release more adult-orientated material. In 1983, The Disney Channel debuted as a channel on cable systems nationwide. In 1978, Disney executives announced plans for the second Walt Disney World theme park, which would open in April 1983. 
• 1984-2004: The Eisner Era.
• 2005-Presnt: The Iger Era.

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Warp Films - Facts

• Warp Films was established by Warp Records founding partners Rob Mitchell and Steve Beckett. It was initially created with financial support from NESTA and had a remit to produce a number of short films.
• After the death of Rob Mitchell in 2001, Beckett decided to continue with Warp Films and enlisted the expertise of Sheffield friend Mark Herbert to run the company.
• The first film (Chris Morris' My Wrongs) was shot in 2002. It won the award for Best Short Film at the 2003 BAFTA Film Awards and became the first short film DVD in the UK market.
• Warp Films breakout success came with Shane Meadows' This Is England. Since its release in early 2007, it has gained many awards including the Best Film at the British Independent Film Awards, the Special Jury Prize at the Rome Film Festival and Best British Film at the BAFTAs.
• At the same ceremony, Warp Films recieved its third BAFTA as Paddy Considine's directional debut Dog Altogether won the best short film award.
• Three months after This Is England released in cinemas, Warp's third feature film, Grow Your Own, was released by Pathe. This film was Warp's first collaboration with BBC Films. The film was directed by Richard Laxton, written by Frank Cottrell Boyce and Carl Hunter, and produced by Barry Ryan for Warp Films, Like Alkin for BBC Films and Carl Hunter for Art in Action.
• In 2004, Warp Films made a significant expansion its capacity. Robin Gutch joined Mark Herbert and Barry Ryan to devise the Warp bid for the Low Budget Film Scheme tender put out by Film4 and UK Film Council. The Warp bid was backed by Optimum Releasing, Screen Yorkshire and EM Media. Warp won the tender against competition and Warp X was formally set up in 2005 as a low-budget digital 'studio' to develop and produce films with focus on new talent and commercial potential.
• Warp Films/Warp X productions, Tyrannosaur, Kill List and Submarine were nominated for a total of 18 awards at the 2011 British Independent Film Awards.
• Warp Films successfully ran a crowd-funding campaign to fund four short films shot at the All Tomorrow's Parties music festival by Vincent Moon, using the website Kickstarter.com. The project reached its funding goal on 15th October and the films are currently in post-production.
• Warp Films is currently developing several television products with Channel 4, the BBC and Sky. Warp Films' development slate currently includes projects with Shane Meadows, Chris Morris, Tony Grisoni, Paul Fraser, Gregory Burke, Paul Wright, Yann Demange, Tom Kingsley & Sharpe, The Sheeps, Peter Strickland, Olly Blackburn, Paddy Considine, Mikey Please, and Shynola amongst others. 

Films

• Dead Man's Shoes - A short film directed by Shane Meadows and written by Paddy Considine, Shane Meadows, and Paul Fraser. The film took $1,825 on the opening weekend (USA) (14th May 2006) and was shown on one screen. The total gross of the film was $6,013 (USA) (28th May 2006). 
• Four Lions - A film directed by Christopher Morris and written by Simon Blackwell, Christopher Morris, Sam Bain and Jesse Armstrong. The film took £608,608 on the opening weekend (UK) (9th May 2010) and was shown on 115 screens. The gross of the film was $30,527 (USA) (13th February 2011). 
• Submarine - A film directed by Richard Ayoade and written by Richard Ayoade and Joe Dunthorne, who was the writer of the novel. In the opening weekend, the film took £244,476 (UK) (both March 2011) and was shown on 60 screens. The total gross of the film came to $466,702 (USA) (14th August 2011). 
• Kill List - A film directed by Ben Wheatley and written by Ben Wheatley and Amy Jump. The budget of the film was an estimated £500,000 and on the opening weekend, the film took $9,838 (USA) (5th February 2012) shown on two screens. The total gross came to $26,297 (USA) (4th March 2012).

Film 4 - Facts

Film4 was originally known as Film four when established in 1998 as channel 4’s second channel but was for subscription only.

Channel 4 is a production house company, who's funding comes from adverts/commercial funding.

FILM 4 - "committed to enhance the British film making industry by nurturing and funding new talent"

Film 4 has a niche (very specific small audience)

It was then followed by many other channel 4 further programmes who time shared the air of blockbuster films.

In 2006 film four modified its name to Film4 and also became a free digital viewing channel and started producing many adverts with celebrities in weird situations to stress and intrigue the audience that this is the only channel to watch free movies continuously.

Tessa Ross became the Controller of film4 in 2004 and head of TV drama for Channel 4. 

Film4 is very heavily linked with Channel 4. Channel 4 financed in the helping of production in such films as “The Crying Game” and “Madness of King George”. Channel 4 also decided that there side film channel would be made free on digital networks, therefore becoming the only free film program to boost ratings. 

Film 4 are currently on some large projects including Tyrannosaur, which Film4 backed in production and distribution closely working with Warp X and Inflammable films. This movie is an example of how Film4 help broadcast and produce English films and not just Hollywood Blockbusters as this was the first film ever to be directed by Paddy Considine. Also Film4 are in the final stages of distributing their own creation of Random originally a theatre play by director Debbie Tucker Green. It is being regularly advertised on channel 4 and competitions have started to try and attract people to see the film in cinemas.

Film 4 produces about 6 films a year and works along their subsidiary Warp X

Less of the budget is spent on distribution, because the films can be advertised on their own and parent companies TV channels.

They have won 5 Oscars in 4 years & 3 BAFTA's in 2007. 8.3 million AB Cl's a month, with an upmarket (42%) and male (55%) profile.

Successful Films include - Slumdog Millionaire/127 Hours/Four Lions/This Is England/Trainspotting

Film 4 work closely with specific actors and directors such as Danny Boyle's/Martin McDonagh/Steve McQueen/Peter Mullan/Chris Morris

Film 4 recently launched Film 4.0 - digital/online arena

Film 4.0's aim will be to find new talent and discover new ways of making, marketing and distributing films and engaging new audiences online in a multi platform environment.

Films:

• Johhny English - It was wrote in 2009, worte by the same people of James Bond which grossed $160 million. Rowan Atkinson starred and the sequal was released in september 2010.
• Wild-Child - Budget of $20 million. Filmed at Cobham Hall. Was marketed on radio stations, social networking sites and TV adverts - was a financial flop with 2.2 mill opening weekend.
• The Soloist - Based on true Story. Budget $60 mill. Based on books and articles/directed by Joe Wright. Produced by Gary Foster & Russ Krasnof. Grossed $31,720,158 mill. Paramount helped distribute through Dreamworks animation and Universal Pictures. Released a year later than planned, therefore lost oscar potential

Written by Stephen Hare

"Successful Media Products Depend as Much Upon Marketing and Distribution to a Specific Audience as they do Upon Good Production Practices" To What Extent Would you Agree with this Statement, Within the Media Area you have Studied?

Successful Media Products Depend as Much Upon Marketing and Distribution to a Specific Audience as They Do...

Anuvahood Prezi

Anuvahood Research on Prezi

Anuvahood - Candidates Own Experience of Media Consumption

The devlopments of technology within the film industry have had both a positive and negative effect on a low budget film, such as Anuvahood. Developments in technology within the production stage of the film industry have had a negative effect on the film - the low budget did not allow Anuvahood to release their film in 3D, or in IMAX theatres, which are now-a-days seen as the standard way of releasing a film. Consequently, Anuvahood would automatically decrese in critics expectations and also would be less accessible to audiences who prefer to watch films in 3D or IMAX. However, the use of technology to create word of mouth has been an advantage for Anuvahood, as this is what they based their markting techniques on. Through the use of online distributors, like LoveFilm, I was able to watch this film at home and was able to send it back afterwards. As I didn't know what to expect from Anuvahood, I preferred to rent the film from LoveFilm rather than make a long term investment of buying the DVD, as there was a possibilty that I would not have liked it as much as I initially thought, and there was always the safety of sending the DVD back.

Anuvahood - Issues Raised in the Targeting of National and Local Audiences

Adam Deacon is a well known English film actor, rapper, writer and director. He is previously known from his lead role in Kidulthood and his directional debut and role in Anuvahood. Being a well recognized actor and known for his roles in urban street films, there would have been no question about his name being a huge attraction of British, local audiences, and therefore would automatically be a great marketing tool for the film within the UK. As well as this, Anuvahood was Adam Deacon's first film that he directed, and so critics, fans and bloggers would have been highly anticipating what he would have to offer and whether or not he made the right decision of directing the film himself (as he has previously stated that "I was too street and too scary for directors") suggesting that Anuvahood may have been like no other urban film that has been released. Previous films such as Kidulthood and Adulthood would also have an existiting audience that would be attracted to see Anuvahood, however, the majority of these audiences are locally based in the UK. Targeting worldwide audiences was an issue for Revolver Entertainment due to the small budget and the relatively unknown cast outside of the UK. Therefore there was minimum marketing used worldwide as this was not possible within the budget and was predicted to be unsuccessful and a waste of valuable money, creating a small worldwide audience and a lack of potential sales.

Anuvahood - Technological Convergence

Anuvahood has an official iTunes app that can be installed onto any iPhone, iPad etc. for free. This convergence in technology has helped the film market and publicise itself, even for months after the official UK release. Although this won't primarily ignite a financial boost for the film's producers, it will boost word of mouth and in the long term, may help encourage an increase in sales for the film.

As well as this, Adam Deacon managed to team up with JME to release 'Hype Hype Ting' the single and publicise the film even further. Big names, like JME, attract the right audiences to Anuvahood as his fan base is the younger teenage generation. Both of these examples of the use of technological convergence by Anuvahood demonstrates how it can be used to promote the film in various ways that will attract a specific audience. Films such as Anuvahood command a niche market from diverse backgrounds that is hard to replicate and draw in to see a film, but using apps and singles to publicize the film will dramatically help Revolver Entertainment when distributing the film and making it accessible. As well as this, Anuvahood used the internet to it's advantage by releasing official trailers, 'Anuvahood Cast Freestlye' videos to be viewed on YouTube and also filming their Anuvahood Bus Tour around the UK and also releasing the various videos virally. Anuvahood has also used other social networking sites when publicizing their film, for example their popular Twitter (5,004 followers) and Facebook (204,969 likes). Anuvahood use the internet and technology to their full advantage when promoting the film, as this is the most successful way to appeal to their small market, without breaking the low budget.

Anuvahood - The Significance of Proliferation in Hardware and Content

Films such as Anuvahood are now usually sold to online film distributors, such as Netflix and LoveFilm, as audiences have dramatically changed their viewing habits due to the development in technology in media. Teenage viewers, especially, no longer feel the need to spend extortionate amounts of money on a trip to the cinema to see a film when they can either buy it on DVD/Blu-Ray as a long term investment or even rent the film from an online distributor and watch it on their laptop or download it onto their smart phone/tablet. The introduction of home cinema has influenced the way that film companies have to alter the way they work as they have to consider their production, distribution, and marketing to fit the majority of audiences that prefer to watch a film in the warmth and comfort of their lounge and to publicise the other windows that the film has to offer, e.g. DVD, Blu-Ray, online distributors. However this may not be the case for a film such as Anuvahood as the target market for a film such as this is a younger audience, who tend to view films on their smart phones or on the internet rather than buying the long term DVD because it is cheaper in the short term to do so.
Also, with the forever increasing usage of smart phones, the film industry has had to adapt to the change when it comes to marketing their product and advertising it. For example, there is an Anuvahood app available to download on iTunes for the iPhone, which includes the voices of each main cast member, and a quiz on how 'gangster' you are, publicising the film even after it's release.

Anuvahood - Technologies Introduced in Recent Years

Since the release of Anuvahood, the film has relied heavily on Blu-Ray/DVD sales to contribute to it's success. The DVD/Blu-Ray is crammed full of 'exclusive extra features' such as cast and crew interviews, 'the making of', the west end premiere, Levi Roots - cooking with the cast, Hype Hype Ting music video (Boy Better Know, JME & Adam Deacon), behind the scenes footage, comic strips and the theatrical trailer - All of which are promoted in an attempt to advertise the DVD. There is a direct link that appears on the official website of Anuvahood so that audiences can "order yours now"and takes you straight through to play.com so that you can order a physical copy of the film. As well as this, Aunvahood is also available to download and is on-demand, making the film even more accessible for the public, as watching films through internet streaming or smart phones (because of downloadable content) is becoming increasingly popular amongst the target audience of a film such as Anuvahood. The film was not to be released in 3D because of the small budget that the film had and so this particular introduction in technology did not effect the way that the audience watched or bought the film.

Anuvahood - Cross Media Convergence

Gunslinger Productions was the only studio to produce the film, however it then worked together with Revolver Entertainment to distribute the film and make it accessible to the public. Revolver Entertainment has bases in London and West Hollywood and is therefore able to distribute heavily in those two areas. As these are only two moderately small companies, they are not able to use their size to promote and publicize the film very successfully. However, the two companies work together to promote their business' when making and promoting a film; If Anuvahood recieved a positive crtical response from the public and the media, then the companies that produced and distributed it will therefore also recieve a positive response, resulting in possibly more awareness and recognition of their companies in the future. However, it is also possible for a company to be 'trashed' by the public or the media and, consequently, their company could recieve negative, unwanted attention, which could be significantly damaging to their company.

Working on Anuvahood would have been a great risk for both of the companies producing/distributing it as the film was supposedly the first of it's genre 'urban comedy' and so Revolver and Gunslinger did not effectively know how well it would be recieved, putting themselves at risk.

Anuvahood - Media Ownership

Anuvahood was directed by Adam Deacon, Daniel Toland and Najama Dahir, and was produced by Nick Taussig, Paul Van Carter, Daniel Toland and Terry Stone. The writers included Adam Deacon and Michael Vu, who together wrote a British urban comedy film. Adam Deacon is a well known actor and director and would've been known previously for his lead role in Kidulthood, his background in urban films influenced the type of film that he was setting out to make and therefore would have had an impact on the success of the film also.
Adam Deacon had a budget of $1,000,000 and therefore was dealing with a small film that was not guaranteed to be successful as the budget would not be able to market the film hugely. Consequently, this only attratced a small production company (Gunslinger), however, a relatively well known distributor (Revolver Entertainment) became involved with film.
Revolver Entertainment is well known for it's promotional stunts and are the leader in social media marketing with over 10,000 Twitter followers and 9,000 Facebook subscribers, a great helping hand in creating publicity for the 'first urban comedy film' Anuvahood. Revolver Entertainment has also distributed similar films to Anuvahood, such as Kidulthood, and so therefore will attract fans of the previous films and know how to make the film accessible to audiences of the urban film industry. Revolver Entertainment would have, therefore, been a massive influence on Anuvahood's potential success as a film.
Gunslinger Productions are a small, un-heard-of production company and, consequently, will not have the advantage of attracting fans of the previous films that they have worked on. Therefore, this supports the general idea that small companies make small films and don't tend to make a substantial amount of money as a result.

Anuvahood - Official Trailer

Prometheus Prezi

Prometheus Research on Prezi

Prometheus Revisited

Prometheus - 2D Vs. 3D

Prometheus Responses

Prometheus - Candidates Own Experience of Media Consumption

The developments in technology used in media during recent years has definitely had a positive effect on the film industry. With advancements in technology, such as CGI, allows films like Prometheus to have incredible realistic effects that have a great impact on the audience making the aliens realistic and believable. This development in technology in production and editing also means that the horrifying scenes within Prometheus can be made in such a way that it scares the audience - creating a strong atmosphere in the place of exhibition, for example the cinema. This certain aspect of the use of technology in media has always had a positive effect in the way that Ridley Scott directs his scary scenes, such as the 'alien chest burst' in the first Alien, which would have horrified the audience at that time. This enabled Prometheus to match up to the genre of a sci-fi horror and achieve it. I also feel that the distributor for Prometheus, 20th Centruy Fox, made the film very accessible for the public and assisted the producers a great deal with doing so.

Prometheus - The Targeting of National and Local Audiences

The target audience for Prometheus was close to a worldwide market due to the high status that accompanied the film, which was 20th Century Fox, the distributors for Prometheus. This successful distribution allowed the film to become accessible for almost all audiences and targeted viewers. Ridley Scott is a famous English sci-fi film producer and director, mostly known for his series of Alien, this would have impacted and influenced the British audience to go and see Prometheus. As well as this, Alien fans would have also been highly anticipating the film because of the previous work done by Ridley Scott, which they have been entertained by so far.
Prometheus proved a hit as it's total domestic gross ended up as $126,477,084.

Prometheus - Technological Convergence

Prometheus had a fairly big budget of $130 million and therefore the technological convergence within the film was quite large, along with this, technological advancements and developments in the technology used in media have made it possible for sic-fi films such as Prometheus to be made via such a standard of digital effects and CGI. There was pressure on the effects to match up to the standard of the previous Alien films (as they were incredible in their time of release) and so, consequently, added to the anticipation of it's release.
As well as this, various films and clips are available to download on iTunes, including a Behind the Scenes package that is available to download for free, which includes "In Character with Guy Pearce" and so on. This is from 20th Century Fox's movie channel on iTunes and is another example of how well known and respected distributors can publicise a film successfully.

Prometheus - The Significance of Proliferation in Hardware and Content

Films such as Prometheus now tend to be sold to online film distributors, such as Netflix and LoveFilm, as audiences have dramatically changed their viewing habits due to the development in technology in media. Viewers no longer feel the need to spend extortionate amounts of money on a trip to the cinema to see a film when they can either buy it on DVD/Blu-Ray as a long term investment or even rent the film from an online distributor and watch it in the comfort of their own home. The introduction of home cinema has influenced the way that film companies have to alter the way they work as they have to consider their production, distribution, and marketing to fit the majority of audiences that prefer to watch a film in the warmth and comfort of their lounge and to publicise the other windows that the film has to offer, e.g. DVD, Blu-Ray, online distributors.

Also, with the forever increasing usage of smart phones, the film industry has had to adapt to the change when it comes to marketing their product and advertising it. As for the Weyland Industries website, Ridley Scott is able to apply a setting so that iPhone and other smart phone users can view it, increasing the publicity of the film even further. This proliferation in hardware has boosted the publicity of Prometheus even further than the already successful viral marketing. 

Prometheus - Cross Media Convergence

Scott Free Productions and Brandywine Productions worked together to produce the film. Scott Free Productions is an English film production company owned by Scott Ridley himself, the director and producer of Prometheus. Brandywine Productions, however, is an American film production company most known for the Alien film franchise. The company was founded by American filmmakers Walter Hill, David Giler and Gordon Carroll. These two small production companies are both familiar with the Alien franchise and so could work together effectively to produce Prometheus at it's best. The film was then passed on to 20th Century Fox to distribute Prometheus in Belgium, France, and Switzerland (May 30th 2012), United Kingdom (June 1st 2012), and in North America (June 8th 2012). Having a major distributor such as 20th Century Fox meant that the film would be largely distributed in these countries, creating lots of extra publicity for the film, this would have been worth the extra expense of having such a well known distributor on board. Although Prometheus relied heavily upon viral marketing as a way of generating anticipation for the film, such a large distributor would have also been a significant factor of it's success as a film.

Prometheus - Technologies Introduced in Recent Years

Blu-Ray advertisement



The advertisement of Prometheus on Blu-Ray influenced the majority of Prometheus viewers to buy the DVD once it had been released, as it offered an alternative ending and beginning to the film. This was so effective because of the massive cliffhanger that we were left with at the end of the film, and the alternative ending may answer our questions as an audience, which appeals to the fans of the Alien series. This boosted sales of Prometheus after the initial releases in cinema, as people who wanted to see the film but were put off by the extortianate prices for a ticket much preferred the investment of Blu-Ray or DVD as a long time product, which they can view over and over. There is also said to be seven hours worth of special features, and an interactive game that you can complete using your tablet. Online distributors also contribute to the success of a film, such as Prometheus, because of their wide variety of films that people can access and rent out. These recent techniques in distributing are increasing in popularity and some companies are becoming extremely well known. e.g. Netflix or LoveFilm. However, free internet streaming of the film has had a negative effect on the success of the film industry, as it is becoming more popular especially with the teenage market. Although this way of viewing the film is illegal, it is still possible to find a decent quality copy of the film online for free - Consequently having a negative effect on the sales of the film. The recent introduction of a 3D cinema experience changes the way the film industry now makes films in the production stages, as more technical and special effects need to be considered when filming, possibly making the process more complicated and difficult, but getting a good response in sales at the end of it. This also has a positive knock-on effect of cinema sales as more people want the real-life experience of 3D and are willing to pay for the benefits. The introduction of IMAX has also benefited Prometheus and, in London's Waterloo, one screen took more than £500,000 in advance ticket sales. IMAX is becoming increasingly popular amongst films such as Prometheus, which has some of the best effects running continuously throughout the film, and to see such effects on a 20 metre high IMAX screen is something sci-fi fans are, evidently, highly anticipating. 

Prometheus - Media Ownership

Prometheus was distributed by 20th Century Fox, one of the six major major American film studios. Such a massive distriubtor alongside the two studios producing the film, Scott Free Productions and Brandywine Productions, and a budget of $130 million almost promises success for Prometheus after it's release. Having a distributor such as 20th Century Fox guarantees that the film will be heavily distributed across the country that it is to be shown in and therefore giving the film a huge scope and making it accessible to all potential audiences. A well-known distrubtor such as this also has all the finance needed to distrubute the film well and has a recognizable name and corporation, which may also attract an audience to the film as the company is linked to many other successful films and can be trusted.
20th Century Fox also backed and distrubted the earlier films within the Alien franchise, continuing with Ridley Scott's strand of films. This would attract audiences and fans of the earlier Alien films to see Prometheus, also increasing the success of the film.
20th Century Fox distributing Prometheus follows the traditional theory of 'big companies make/distribute big films' and therefore make all the money.

Five Cool Things About Prometheus Marketing

1. Ridley Scott returns to science fiction
Ah, the prodigal son returns. God bless Ridley Scott and his many incarnations - one involving a story of the Crusades as the West went off to war in Central Asia and modern day Babylon - but it is in his role as a master of science fiction in which he can do no wrong. From the infamous Apple 1984 commercial, where he cut his chops creating arresting video, to Alien, where Scott once and for all proved his geek bona fides as a master of the genre.

2. Who is Sir Peter Weyland?
Forget Howard Roark, Ayn Rand's cartoonish Creator. Weyland, the founder of the Weyland Corporation, which caused so much trouble in the Alien films, has always been a bit of a mystery. Is Sir Peter a bit of a Sir Ridley, and vice versa? Both, clearly, have been fascinated by mythology and by science. Sir Peter, according to his fictional TED Talks biography, is the son of an Oxford educated Professor of Comparative Mythology and a self-taught software engineer. And Sir Ridley, like Stanley Kubrick, seems obsessed by the intersect between science and art, between artificial and artistic intelligence.

3. The Weyland Corporation
With a 218 trillion dollar valuation, the shadowy Weyland Corporation's ambitions are more than international in scope - they are, indeed, galactic. "There are other worlds than this one," Sir Peter boldly declared, "And if there is no air to breathe, we will simply have to make it." Hello?
The company's website is just masterful, the stuff that social media geek conversation is made of. There is actually an Investor Information page on the site, the sort one would find on any corporation website, only this one has fictional - but fascinating - charts ("Weyland Employee Satisfaction Rate") as well as graphs of data that, no doubt, added value to the whole "Prometheus" experience. It only heightens the excitement.
Hello? If Weyland Corporation had a fictional LinkedIn account, how many would apply? Which brings us to...

4. The viral marketing strategy
They had me at the fictional TED talk, given in 2023. It was, of course, an instant social media success - to date over 6,000 retweets and over 21,000 Facebook likes. There were also viral movie poster. This viral video campaign has been studiously calculated to tickle the g-spot of every tech geek, every aficionado of science fiction practiced at the highest levels. Sir Scott is best when he allows his creativity full reign, creating whole worlds out of thin air.

5. The stars
Nooni Rapace, Michael Fassbender and, of course, Sir Ridley. I. Was. So. There.

Credit to IFC Fix for this post

Prometheus - When Movie Marketing Goes Very Right

Any major studio film these days is going to have a marketing campaign that includes some kind of online element. Often that means a trailer. Sometimes film clips are thrown in there too. But what every studio exec would really like is something about the film that goes viral - that has people passing it on to friends. With Prometheus, the upcoming film from director Ridley Scott, Fox has scored a major viral victory.
First there was the TED talk from the future. The short video shows Guy Pierce as fictional Weyland Industries head Peter Weyland, giving a TED talk in 2023. The piece was first screened at the real TED conference in February. According to the LA Times, TED organisers helped to make the film look like what they envision a talk will really be like in the future. (Look at previous post for the video).
Now Fox has released a second video. This one is about David, a robot who understands human emotions that he does not feel, and who is creepily life like. Actor Michael Fassbender who plays David in this short made to look like a corporate video about a cool new product.



The latest video is almost a little movie into itself. We learn a lot about David and the world he lives and works in and the video is just incredibly entertaining.
On top of all that there's this Website for Weyland Industries. The movie promo site could easily be mistaken for an actual corporate website. My favourite bit is the "about" section. It includes the standard corporate information like number of employees: 837.53 million. Secondary locations: 160 countries and 63 colonies. There's a corporate time line that includes facts such as in 2042 Weyland Industries donated $5 billion to Little Explorers, a charity "dedicated to the education of troubled middle school students."
There are several reasons this marketing is proving to be so effective. The movie (which is likely a prequel to Scott's Alien) has been shrouded in mystery. Sci-fi fans have been chomping at the bit to get any information they can about the film's plot. The current marketing campaign provides lots of tasty tidbits.
The promos are also good enough to pull in movie lovers who have never seen Alien. This summer is going to be crowded. Prometheus will be up against a new Spider-Man, The Dark Knight Rises and The Avengers. Those franchise films are based on well-known heroes. Prometheus doesn't have that advantage so the film makers (and the studio) have had to be smarter about their marketing. Mystery + well done promos = marketing gold.
Will it help at the box office? That remains to be seen. The film hits theatres June 8th.

Credit to forbes.com twitter - DorothyatForbes

Peter Weyland TED Talk 2023 - Viral Marketing

Prometheus Full Length Trailer

How is Media Convergence Important for Audiences and Institutions?

How is Media Convergence Important for Audiences and Institutions

The Other Guys Research Prezi

The Other Guys Research on Prezi

The Shoot: Behind the Stunts of The Other Guys

Critical Reception

The Other Guys received mostly positive reviews from critics, garnering a 79% "Certified Fresh" rating from top critics on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the consensus being "While not the best collaboration between Will Ferrell and Adam Mckay, The Other Guys delivers bursts of comedy during a summer devoid of laughs." Peter Travers of Rolling Stone praised the film, saying, "Don't let anyone spoil the wildly hilarious surprises. Ferrell and Wahlberg will double your fun. Guaranteed." Some critics praised The Other Guysas the best police film of the year, comparing the film to the critically panned Cop Out, with Richard Roeper stating, "Note to Kevin Smith: THIS is how you do a spoof of the buddy-cop genre," and Stephen Whitty of The Star-Ledger said in his mixed review, "Measured against this year's other police farce - remember Cop Out? - it looks absolutely heroic." The Other Guys also received the "Best Comedy Film" award for 2010 at the first annual Comedy Awards.

Accolades

2010 Comedy Awards

• Best Comedy Film (won)
• Best Comedy Actor Film - Will Ferrell (nominated)
• Best Comedy Director Film - Adam McKay (nominated)

2011 Teen Choice Awards

• Choice Movie-Comedy (nominated)
• Choice Movie Actor-Comedy - Will Ferrell (nominated)
• Choice Movie Actress-Comedy - Eva Mendes (nominated)
• Choice Movie Chemistry - Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg (nominated)
• Choice Movie Hissy Fit - Mark Wahlberg (nominated)

The Other Guys: Motion Poster

Other Windows

'Pimps Don't Cry'
The song, which appears in the motion picture The Other Guys, was so popular amongst the audience that it is now actually available to download on iTunes. Even though the song was only a short snippet in the film, Cee Lo Green and Eva Mendes teamed up and produced an official single selling at £0.79p a copy and was released on 3rd August 2010. The single has surprisingly proved popular and has therefore generated more money alongside the film, and at the same time, increased publicity of The Other Guys. Here is a clip from the film, showing Eva Mendes singing to her 'husband' Will Ferrell:



DVD/Blu-Ray/Download/Online Rental
Copies of the film are available to purchase in any form, whether it be a hard copy or a download from iTunes (There is even a HD option), or even to rent from an online distributor such as Netflix. All these windows will carry on generating money up to years after the film's ending date to be shown in the cinema, and is where a lot of film's make the most of their profits.
DVD sales for The Other Guys were impressive as 2,111,507 units were sold, resulting in $36,297,562 in consumer spends from DVD and Blu-Ray alone.

Sequel?
In the extended DVD edition, the film concludes with a second cameo appearance by Jeter, now homeless, who hands Terry and Allen a manilla folder containing details on "Their next case", seemingly setting up a sequel. Also, director Adam McKay stated in an interview with MTV that if the film does a good job at the box office and a fan base grows, then a sequel could be possible. There is every possibility that there could be an 'The Other Guys 2', opening more windows for the first edition of the film, as people who are interested in the second movie will watch the first one in order to follow the storyline.

The 'Players'

Director: Adam McKay
Writers: Chris Henchy & Adam McKay
Actors: Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, The Rock, Eva Mendes, Samuel L. Jackson, Michael Keaton, Anne Heche, Steve Coogan, Rob Riggle, & Ray Stevenson
Producers: Patrick Crowley, Chris Henchy (Executive), & Adam McKay (Executive)
Cinematographer: Oliver Wood
Music: Jon Brion
Editor: Brent White
Studio: Gary Sanchez Productions & Mosiac Media Group
Distributors: Columbia Pictures
Narrator: Ice-T
Practical Visual Effects Work: KernerFX

Principal Photography for the film began on September 23rd 2009 in New York City, with additional scenes filmed in Albany, New York.

The Other Guys: On Set

With the madness of Christmas at Rockefeller Center 28 stories below them, Ferrell and his collaborators were hard at work shooting a summer comedy. The Other Guys had been taking over sections of New York for months, filming car chase and shootouts all over the city, but the day I visited the set with some online colleagues, things were limited to a regular office scene - but that didn't mean they were normal. A routine investigation of a businessman's suicide devolved into silliness when detectives played by Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg were assigned to the case, and that's even before their competition, played by Rob Riggle and Damon Wayans Jr., showed up to taunt them and maybe flirt with each other a little.
As you probably already learned in the movie's trailer, The Other Guys stars Ferrell and Wahlberg as a pair of detectives who finally get a chance to step up to the big leagues when the force's star cops - played by Samuel L. Jackson and Dwayne Johnson - are indisposed. No one was telling us whether or not the star cops die or simply get injured early in the film, but given the wild tone of the film, I'd count on a spectacular death sequence. Given the chance to investigate a suicide, the pair of cops jump all over their opportunity to hit the big league, but they're constantly being investigated by both their boss (Michael Keaton) and the rival team of cops played by Riggle and Wayans, who always show up to try and take them down.
We saw all of that in the scene they were filming that day in 30 Rock, where Ferrell and Wahlberg arrive to investigate the scene and start collecting clues, only for Keaton to show up and take them off the case, telling them all the reasons their clues mean nothing. Rubbing salt in the wounds are Riggle and Wayans, who have become so popular for their own work that they were at a bar doing shots with Derek Jeter, while Wahlberg's character has become notorious for, uh, shooting Derek Jeter. In the leg. The fact that Wahlberg is a famous Bostonian and Red Sox fan will probably make this movie a huge hit in Boston, as Wahlberg himself pointed out on the set.
Director Adam McKay took the cast through a lot - a lot -of takes of each scene, both to capture the standard different camera angles and to allow the actors room to improvise. They would stick to the script for a few takes to get the lines down, then McKay would encourage them to improvise, with every one of the actors getting in on the fun. Keaton constantly made up different photos to pull out of the envelope that was supposed to contain evidence - quilting patterns was one - while Riggle and Wayans, who ended the scene, carried out their final dialogue to the point that, in the last take, the two buddy partners seemed on the verge of making out. Even Wahlberg, who may be the least experienced in improv among all of them, was able to get in on it with McKay encouraging him, using some of his trademark intensity to make it truly hilarious when his character was demoted to the traffic beat.
Though we couldn't see McKay from the monitors we were watching, it was fascinating to watch the way Ferrell works with him from on camera. At one point we could hear McKay telling Ferrell he was "like the coach's son," basically telling him he was in charge among the fellow actors. I couldn't think of a better way to describe the working relationship between an actor and a director doing their fourth movie together; the two clearly get one another in a way that makes any great collaboration possible, and though Ferrell is the star, he also recognizes to help McKay turn the movie into what he wants to make it. As an unabashed fan of everything they've done together so far, I was really encouraged to see this kind of collaboration happening between them on The Other Guys as well.
You can call this overkill, but I swear this is true - we were joined as visitors on the set by a family from Kentucky who were there because the youngest son was a Make-a-Wish kid, and apparently had the dream of visiting a Hollywood set. During on break Ferrell came over to chat with the entire family, take countless photos and sign T-shirts, and chatted amiably with them about their experience in New York. While we journalists moaned about being stuck inside on a Saturday afternoon, this kid and his family were thrilled to be in the very room. Way to put us in our place.
During breaks between scenes we got a chance to talk with all the principal actors as well as McKay and screenwriter Chris Henchy. Below is the interview with Ferrell and Wahlberg, and we'll be running all the rest of the interviews throughout the day. Included in the interview are three brand-new images from the film that you'll only find at the sites that visited the set - and given how small that 30 Rock office was, there weren't that many of us. The Other Guys comes out August 6 this year, just in time for you to be totally sick of actual action movies and ready for a summer movie that is actually intentionally making you laugh. 



There have been a lot of buddy cop comedies over the years. What made you and Adam decide to do one? 
Will Ferrell: We just were big fans of Mark’s, and just thought that no one’s really used him in a comedy this way. If he was up for it we thought it’d be a fun kind of thing to do. 
Mark Wahlberg: I’ve been dying to do a comedy, and these guys took me to dinner and bought a bunch of nice wine and said, “Do you want to do a movie?” I said, “Are you kidding me?” If you do the wrong kind of comedy you never get a chance to do it again if you come from my background. Having an opportunity to work with these guys was a real dream come true. Then they actually went through with it and wrote this part that was right up my alley, and I get to work with this guy so it’s a no-brainer for me. 

Was it intimidating for you? 
Wahlberg: No, because they were very clear that they would take me under their wing and protect me. I always thought comics are completely different from what they appear to be onscreen. You hear stories of how serious they are, how they try to be funny during a take but in-between takes it’s weird and awkward. These guys aren’t like that. Ferrell: We’re more weird and awkward. (laughs) We just thought it would be a great opportunity to comment on the genre. To do what we do and put the spin on the buddy cop movie. 


Who’s good cop and who’s bad cop? 
Wahlberg: I try to get him to play good cop/bad cop in the movie. We’re confronting this guy. I say, “I go hard, then you come in.” I tear into this guy, and next thing you know this guy goes twice as bananas as me. [Note: you can see this scene in the trailer]
Ferrell: I mishear him, I think he says “bad cop/bad cop”.  
Wahlberg: He goes bananas. To see Steve Coogan’s face when Will went nuts was pretty damn funny. 


Mark, what are you learning from Will about comedy improv? 
Wahlberg: These guys go non-stop, and not only Will but anybody, whether it’s a bit part or a day-player, everybody that comes in is on fire. You got to be on your toes and they let me riff. Every time they do a scene you get a couple takes that are written, then you go nuts. I’m always trying to learn from every single person I work with. If I was ever the most experienced person on set that’s when I’d be nervous. When you have guys like these around you, you feel like you can do anything you want to do and still come off looking good. 


This cast is huge. When you say, “Be in my movie,” does everyone come ‘a running? 
Ferrell: This one was so cool because we started making these movies and said, “Wouldn’t it be fantastic to get that person?” and there was no way in hell. With this movie the people we actually wanted were like, “Of course, we’ll do it.” It’s nice to see that our work has been liked to the point where you picture Eva Mendes and she’s like, “Sure, tell me when.” Everyone was really looking forward to being a part of this.  
Wahlberg: And she plays his wife! (laughs) Ferrell: Which is a natural conclusion; I don’t know why you’re all laughing. (laughs) 



How is it shooting in New York? 
Ferrell: We love it. It’s such an energy to shoot here. Definitely when you’re doing an exterior in a big crowded part of the city there’s some issues with people constantly yelling. “HEY ENTOURAGE! I LOVE ENTOURAGE!” (laughs) Wahlberg: Or you tell people to wait for a minute and they just walk right through the shot. Even old ladies! They’re like, “I don’t give a fuck.” 


Will, I think we heard Adam on the set treating you like the coach’s son. Is that what your working relationship is right now, you’re kind of one and the same? 
Ferrell: A little bit. I’m more like a coach’s son who was never good at basketball, not allowed anywhere near the court, I just got to fill the water bottles, wash the towels. We don’t even really think about what it is we do because it’s our fourth movie; we kind of know what the other guy is thinking. It’s pretty open territory. It’s not just me, though, he’s open with everybody. It’s best idea wins. He’s one of the few directors to say, “Frank the sound guy had a good idea, we’re going to do this.” He’ll give credit; he takes no ownership of anything. The biggest thing you want to set up is a feeling that if you fail it’s okay. At least 50% of the stuff we come up with, and probably 80% on some days, is terrible. But the 20% is so good it’s worth it. As long as you have that going in and everyone feels comfortable and it’s a great working environment. Adam sets that up. 


How realistic is this? Your movies have gotten pretty wacky in the past.
Ferrell: This might be the most realistic thing we’ve done. We are real detectives, and we want this stark, real, gritty background so when we throw in these jokes they bounce even higher. 
Wahlberg: Every time we’re doing something we’re trying to make each other laugh and say something funny, Adam’s always like, “Make sure you say something about the case…” 
Ferrell: There aren’t any broad portrayals, or super-over-the-top characters.  
Wahlberg: Certainly with me I’m trying to stay as committed as possible no matter how absurd it is, and hopefully that’ll translate as funny as opposed to doing pratfalls and shit.


Mark, can you talk about shooting Derek Jeter? Is that something you wrote into the script? 
Wahlberg: That was something they were nice enough to write in for me, and he was dumb enough to do it. No, I took great pleasure in that, especially after them winning the World Series.  
Ferrell: (laughs) We had to openly root for the Yankees this year.  
Wahlberg: We wanted them to show up in a good mood. The Red Sox were already out of it anyway, so I was okay with that. I got to have my cake and eat it too. We were sitting there talking and laughing and I told him, “Do you know how this movie’s going to play like in Boston when I shoot you in the leg?” Just that is enough to cement me in Boston for the rest of my life.  



Credit to cinemablend.com

The Other Guys: Box Office Figures

Domestic Total Gross: $119,219,978
Distributor: Sony/Columbia
Genre: Action Comedy
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Release Date: August 6th 2010
Runtime: 1hrs. 47 min.
Production Budget: $100 million

Domestic: $119,219,978 = 70%
+ Foreign: $51,212,949 = 30%
-------------------------------------------
= Worldwide: $170,432,927

Domestic Summary
Opening Weekend: $35,543,162
(#1 rank, 3,651 theatres, $9,735 average)
% of Total Gross: 29.8%

Widest Release: 3,651 theatres
Close Date: November 18th 2010
In Release: 105 days/15 weeks