FILM INDUSTRY

Your Starting Point (and also a good introduction!!)

“The film Industry is dominated by an oligopoly formed from the 6 major film companies. All are vertically and horizontally integrated meaning they control production and distribution of film and have many related businesses within each stage of the process of making material available for consumption, These companies are part of globalised multi media conglomerates able to exploit economies of scale and synergy to sell their films to a mass audience. Yet beneath this layer of dominance are a series of smaller, independent companies who are able to produce films (albeit in a different fashion) that offer a sense of challenge and diversity.”



ABOVE THE LINE


Costs are ‘direct’ and largely fixed – in other words they must be paid irrespective of what happens during the production. They refer to the fees for all the principal creators of the film and the cost of acquiring the original intellectual property (e.g. A successful novel, play etc.). Studio pictures are often expensive because of the fees paid to stars (actors, directors and writers).

BELOW THE LINE

Costs are indirect and refer to the goods and services purchased/hired as required for production activities – the ‘running costs’ of the production. The efficiency of the producer, director and crew during shooting and post-production can increase or reduce these costs.

Doc Martin

Discuss the way the extract constructs the representation of REGIONAL IDENTITY.

In media, regional identity is often vividly represented, depending on the location in which the programme or character is set/ from. In the clip provided we are presented with the fictional seaside village of Portwenn- which is set in Cornwall. This part of England upholds the stereotype that the citizens live in a rural area and are often in farming positions. The representation of the regional identities of the characters both conform and disagree with conventional ideas of this area.

The establishing shot presents a scene with a limited colour pallet- the lighting is dim which encourages it to appear dreary and dingy. This could be representative of the fact that members of this seaside town are likely to uphold jobs in manual labour, which are hard and demanding, therefore the shades of greys, dark greens and browns symbolise the monotonous routine of their everyday life's- it is repetitive and dull (much like the colours surrounding them). The camera is positioned at a low angle, so we are able to fully view the sink which the two plumbers are attempting to fix- emphasising their working class occupations. This angle also forces the audience to look up to Doc Martin- we become aware that he is the superior character, in both class and also importance. The shot is in deep focus as both the plumbers and Doc Martin are in focus so we are able to fully analyse the differences between their characters, such as their clothing which appears vastly different as Doc Martin wears a smart suit and the plumbers are dressed in overalls (this portrays a contrast in the importance of their occupations). A conventional two shot is intruded on by Doc Martin- this creates almost a feel of discomfort and awkwardness surrounding his character, he is out of place almost. The fact that they are in the foreground and he is in the background also distances his character from them. This draws upon the stereotype that small villages possess incredibly intimate communities, to the audience Doc Martin is disconnected from this it seems. Continuing from this Doc Martin questions the two plumbers about a certain aspect of their regional dialect to which the father plumber responds in a rather confident, however ill- informed manner. The scene composed here remains on the screen for a while, creating a long take which allows the audience to fully establish that the father is babbling and stuttering, he lacks intelligence which encourages him to be portrayed in an inferior light to Doc Martin. It is evident that he isn't equipt with great knowledge due to the diegetic dialogue in which he says 'well it's kind of like... well the thing is.. okay now what happens is'- however he attempts to appear that he knows what he is talking about. Perhaps, it could be interpreted that he is aiming to impress Doc Martin as he is an outsider and this may persuade him to view his character in an admirable light, we can connote from this that they are not used conversing with people from outside of their area. The dialogue also presents inequality between the characters, not only the father plumber and Doc Martin but also the younger plumber and his dad. It's apparent that the father is linguistically deprived. He continues to refer to his son as 'boy' which could perhaps be sociolect but however, also presents the idea that he is mentioning him in a derogative manner and undermining his sons impressive and unexpected knowledge. The younger plumber does not adhere to regional stereotypes, unlike his father, he is an unconventional character in this sense. It is commonly presumed that in small villages many businesses are family trades, this is represented in the clip as the son is following in his fathers trade. However it is apparent he is capable of greater things but has merely been trapped in a life of manual labour. His dialogue allows us to see this when he comments that 'it could be a Literary reference,' and 'paints Bodmin moor as a Gothic symbol of murder and madness.' This part of the clip lacks non diegetic music, creating a sense of realism and accentuating the focus on the conversation based scene.

Proceeding from this the boy continues to appear wiser, obtaining excessive common sense in comparison to hi father who seems passive, almost in a dream-like state. His dialogue strengthens our understanding of his great knowledge, both in his job as a plumber and also not, he says 'no dad, not that one,' at which point a pipe bursts. At this point Doc Martin loses his composure and a sophisticated element of his character collapses. His dialogue begins to be stuttered and panic ensues. The diegetic parallel sound of both the tap and the ringing of the phone add to an atmosphere of hectic chaos which the father fails to respond to- making his character appear especially laid back which is what we expect concerning his regional identity. However Doc Martin is more agitated by the situation as he is used to a fast paced environment and is programmed to react to situations almost instantly due to the lifestyle we connect with his character. The boy and the Doctor manage the situation, it appears they are more intelligent- whereas the more conventionally rural citizens appear calmer and less urgent. We are presented with a shot of the corridor which is in selective focus on the receptionist, however we view the young plumber answering the phone in the background of the shot to show that he is assisting Doc Martin in solving the issue, we can connote from this that he is more proactive and responsive. A medium close up of Doc Martin's displays that he is infuriated and is finding the characters lack of intelligence incredibly tedious. This shows the viewer that he is increasingly more uptight than the other characters in the scene. He is not familiar with such laid back attitudes, this continues to differentiate him from the rest of the community. This is followed by a reaction shot of the receptionist which allows us to understand that she is not used to such fiery personalities as her expression appears perplexed. Time is compressed as a jump cut is used to present us with a following pan of Doc Martin and the dog which has just intruded in the previous scene. The following pan technique allows us to see his character from the front so we can view the annoyance of his character and also the way in which he briskly walks along at a faster pace than the other extras in the background of the scene, we can interoperate that he is used to a more exciting life of 'hustle and bustle' in which it is necessary to rush about. It appears that he hasn't adjusted to a slower pace of living, he is yet to familiarise himself with the lifestyle of Portwenn. Pleasant non diegetic music is played as he drags the dog to the polices station which is juxtaposed with the attitude of Doc Martin, he is annoyed yet the music is cheerful. This could be representative of the attitudes of the town and how he is rather more cynical than the citizens in the small seaside town. He is a binary opposite to the majority of the villagers, especially the father plumber as we saw in the previous scene.

We are introduced to the next section of the clip with the camera panning up from the policemen's feet allowing us to see he is in a position of authority, he is respected by the small, intimate community in which he lives. However the scene that follows shows Doc Martins disregard of his role in the village as he appears fairly impolite and rude. His abrupt dialogue demonstrates this lack of interest for the policemen's importance within their society 'look, listen, I'm not interested in your opinion as to whether I seem a bit lonely... It's just a dog.' A swift jump cut to a following scene and the compression of time here emphasises blunt and brusque tone. Alongside the younger plumber, we also encounter another unconventional villager however unlike his character she speaks in standard English like Doc Martin and doesn't share the vivid accent that the other citizens possess. It becomes apparent that she views herself as perhaps 'a cut above the rest' and she can see similarities between her and Doc Martin. The fact that she is of a higher class is represented by both her dialect and also her clothing as she is dressed in a red velvet blazer, which juxtaposes with the outfits of the other, more conventionally regional characters. A following pan of a two shot, which appears to be filmed on a hand held camera, shows that Doc Martin is in a rush, he can't stop to talk so the woman (and consequently the audience and the camera) walk with him, this corresponds with my previous comment about his fast paced lifestyle. The fact it is a two shot creates intimacy surrounding the secretive conversation which is about to ensue, she hopes for a favour and the dialogue seems private. Doc Martin attempts to avoid having to indulge in conversation with her by merely saying 'I'm not quite set up yet'- it appears he is a reserved individual unlike the stereotypical ideas of people from small, rural villages. She responds to this by saying 'no of course not, I'll come and see you when you're ready'. It seems she hopes to be socially desirable to him and therefore attempts not to appear annoying by nagging him. The following dialogue of her character 'you're just what this community needs,' demonstrates that she yearns to impress him, perhaps she hopes to associate herself with another outsider who differs from the conventional country people. Throughout this conversation both characters are viewed at eye level, denoting they are equal in class perhaps and share a similar regional identity. The composition of the shot displays rolling hills of countryside in the background, reminding the audience of the rural surroundings and how these two characters contrast to this environment. This is a long take, which allows the audience to see that she has to plead for his attention as he is a fairly dismissive character and doesn't care for the affairs of others lives, unlike the majority of conventional villagers.

In the final scene of the clip we are provided with a long take as he walks past the school. The camera angle almost appears canted as the pavement slants creating ideas of disorientation. This is reinforced by the non diegetic music which appears fairly quirky, we can connote that he is out of his comfort zone and appears confused by the surroundings and other characters. A jump cut positions the audience with the shot of an old lady unloading produce from a vehicle. The vegetables are in shallow focus at the foreground of the shot, displaying ideas of a self sufficient community, in which farming is focal (this agrees with conventional ideas of rural society). The woman is dressed stereotypically, wearing a green gillet. This magnifies our perception that the heart of the seaside town revolves around manual, physical jobs, and very few people uphold 'important' positions. Sophisticated jobs are stereotypically connected to the city, whereas the countryside provides less intellectually demanding occupations. We encounter slow tracking towards the characters, Doc Martin and the old lady, as he helps her unload the food from the back of the van. The director may have included this slow tracking to encourage the audience to realise that the conversation becomes more intimate- the old lady's dialogue reveals this. 'Her name is Louisa Glason by the way, the teacher.' Both the camera tracking and also this dialogue strengthens ideas that small communities like to gossip and it also creates the sense that we are eaves dropping as we draw closer to the conversation.

Overall I feel the Doc Martin clip provided both adheres and also opposes conventional ideas of regional identity. Some characters appear vividly representative of common stereotypes of rural communities- such as the father plumber, the woman at the start and the old lady near the end. However the younger plumber and the more upper class woman do not agree with what an audience may expect in a character from a small seaside town. Doc Martin himself is fairly conventional throughout, displaying blunt, dismissive and tense characteristics.

Regional identity

05 regional identity from ibz10

Film industry

03 g322 section b the british film industry 2013 from Alleyn's School Media Studies Department

02 g322 section b film industry introduction 2013 from Alleyn's School Media Studies Department

G322 film industry revision from MrSouthworth

Film distribution from Armthorpe Media

ER Clip

This clip I am evaluating is about ER, which demonstrates representations through age, this clip is suggesting to the audience that age is too complicated or it doesn’t matter at all and we gain an uderstanding of the different roles people play due to their age. The representation age is shown through camera, mise-en-scene, sound and editing which are the four key elements.

The clip we see at the start of the scene is a close-up of a male doctor in a white coat walking beside a female doctor, who is also white coat, conferring about something to do with a patient. The dialogue between the two doctors suggests that the male doctor is confirming and giving feedback about the patient’s latest test or health which signifies that the female doctor is more qualified and to be more qualified in the doctor career takes a lot of time which can indicate that the female doctor is older than the male doctor. While the two doctors were conferring a behind the shoulder shot was taken behind the male doctor. There was non-diegetic sound in the background such as telephone ringing, other people talking, paper rustling etc. This makes the scene more realistic to the audience.  The next scene is where the male doctor walks in to a patient’s room as the camera is zoomed out to create a mid-shot so the entire room is fit into the camera frame. The patient was a little boy in a patient’s gown with medical wires around him. The lighting is low key so it is dark as the scene is tensed and serious. Then a role reversal is taking place. The little boy is severely ill and could die and has not told his mother about it. The doctor is persuading the boy that it is about time he should tell his mother. This scene indicates to the audience that the boy looks and sounds like he has more knowledge than the doctor which suggests that however much knowledge one knows, age doesn’t matter and there is no age in learning. During the scene a number of close ups and shot reverse shots have taken place to build up the tension for the audience. There is continuing editing throughout this scene. The scene after clearly signifies a transition scene because it is in the A&E ward where a number of patients are waiting to be seen and there is non-diegetic sound with telephone ringing, people talking and crying. A little boy, who looks similar in age to the boy in the previous scene, is being checked by two female doctors. The boy is wearing a brown hoody and is with his mum. This is a transition scene because the boy is moaning and groaning as his was bitten by a gerbil. This ‘illness’ is not so much a life and death situation has the doctor prescribed him an antibiotic. Whereas the boy in the scene before, he was in a life and death situation but was acting mature about it. So the boy who was bit by a gerbil, he’s reaction to his pain is seen as over-reacting if compared to the boy in the patient’s gown. This is a signifier that age does not matter and it all depends on the maturity and personality you consist of.

Moving on we see the place in a surgery room through a long shot as the doctors are wearing such equipment. There is low key lighting used as someone is being operated and the doctors seem quite distracted. Also from the non-diegetic sound of the dialogue it seems that the doctors do not quite know what to do which brings the audience back to the age concept where age doesn’t matter as this scene suggests that no matter how old you are and how qualified you are, you will still not know everything you are supposed to know. There is a number of quick jump cuts and close ups of each doctor to emphasise the conversation taking place. There is continuous non-diegetic sound from the equipment which gradually gets louder as the scene gets tenser.  The last scene consists of a lot of tracking shots in the waiting room. A woman is sitting in front of the elevator as the elevator opening sound is heard. A doctor comes out as she approaches to the woman and questions her about a patient related to her. The woman then gets up and they walk into the reception room. A black shadow-like comes over face and darkens it suggesting a tensed scene is taking place with low key lighting. This low key lighting suggests the woman is a culprit of something, as from the dialogue it seems that there is a missing bullet. As soon as the word ‘missing’ was mentioned a zoom on the woman’s face was made. There is continuous editing throughout this scene. The scene then ends on a cliff hanger as the audience don’t know what the situation about the missing bullet is.

Primeval essay

Primeval essay

 Primeval is a Sci-Fi drama, similar to Doctor Who and similar adventure TV shows. In the short clip we have just seen, there are three females, and around 8 males. Each of the female characters are represented in a different way through the way they act and the things they do. The first woman we see does not seem very courageous, this is because she wants to leave the area, we can’t tell much about this character because she is only in the scene for about 15 seconds therefore not being able to get an idea of what type of women she is trying to be represented as.

There are two other female characters; Abby, a blonde, and a brunette who works for the press who is trying to put a news story together. Both of these characters represent two different types of women. We know this by the way they act and how they dress. Abby, who is part of the ‘crime fighting’ team, is dressed in a black leather jacket, which also has a badge on it. By wearing a leather jacket, it tells us that she is rough and aggressive. The brunette is more of a lady, by wearing red lipstick, hair tied back and wearing more posh clothes creating a stereotype of the women through the mise en-scene used. You can tell she cares about the way she looks because when she is pushed down, she tells one of the men that it is her favourite coat. As well as the clothing on the women, out of the four main men, they each have their own style. The main one is wearing a blue shirt whilst another one is wearing a blue t-shirt which is covered in mud. Another one is wearing a pink t-shirt, with a waste coat and a stylish hat. Wearing these clothes whilst in the middle of a jungle is quite strange. But it tells us a lot about him.

Toward the end, a man and a women enter the barn with guns, but he comes in with a spade. This tells us that not only does he want to dress to impress, but he also is the ‘funny man’ of the group. The fourth man is the owner of the dogs, who is being questioned. He is wearing clothes that you would see a typical farmer wearing, but he also has a shotgun on hand showing us that he is powerful enough to own a gun as such. By looking on the clothing it helps tell you who is the most feminine and masculine, and also helps tell us who is brave and who isn’t. As well as the clothing sound also helps represent gender.

Throughout the whole scene, the music is quick and loud. This is also because the main instruments which are used are the trombone and drums. These instruments also make up the sound of the war, which is why they are referred to as masculine. The narrative of the story is also very manly. Throughout the whole clip, only about 20% of the script is spoken by a woman. Abby is not represented as a women as much as the brunette. Not only is this because of the costume and make-up, but also when they are fighting sabre-toothed she is the one in the digger/machine. This tells us that she is more courageous and very powerful, because at the end of the day, she saved them all by shooting the animal. This is the complete opposite to the man in pink, because he is wearing much less masculine clothes but he is also doing his work by the plants, not in the vehicle, whereas conventionally it is the other way around. There are two main editing techniques used to represent gender. They are slow motion, and fast cuts. There are no other transitions used such as fader and dissolves. The slow motion is used at the end when the breeder has got the woman on the floor. This effect is used so that you can see the strength of the main as well as the fright on the more ladylike woman.

Fast editing techniques are used when Abby is in the digger and the man in the t-shirt is running. This is to show that it is quickly paced, and that they went to show that they are running/trying to attack someone. Throughout the scene, different angles, movements and shots were used to show the different characteristics of each character, and how each of them represented gender.

They were two main close ups, one was when the man saw the large animal, and the other was when the lady was knocked to the floor. Both of these showed the expression on their face which was both scared and they were frightful. This represents gender because it shows that you do not have to be a woman to be scared, even men are. There was also two different times when two angles was used. A low angle was used when the breeder had knocked the woman to the floor, to show that he is in charge and more superior, with the woman looking more vulnerable, and when the blonde girl was is the digger it made her look more superior from the rest. The blonde girl also uses her feminine side when she asks the other woman “are you okay.” This shows that even she is courageous and that she is wearing aggressive clothes, but is also shows that she is very caring.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Final - Disability Clip

This scene from a BBC programme was created to represent disability. The first thing we hear is the non-dietetic voice saying 'last summer I decided to kill my brother’ followed by a birds eye view of the bedroom in which the brothers share together- it gives an overall shot of the scenery and displays the setting in which they live in which makes the clip more personal and relatable to the audience. The gloomy heavy music combined with the darkness we see on Gary's side of the room compared to his brother's lighter side emphasises the negativity surrounding David's personality, this is represented through the lighting of David's surroundings, the dark and gloomy side to his bedroom would suggest that his is a dark and cold person foreshadowing the defended emotion and anger. This automatically conveys to us that there is a narrator who is predominantly the main character in the programme which is emphasised as he is telling the story from his point of view, this also demonstrates the use of 'voice over' which is used during this clip. The high angle establishing shot highlights the difference in the characters as David looks extremely on edge whereas his brother looks relaxed and comfortable. We hear him talking about his plans in involving killing his brother-that is disabled which is very shocking to the audience – we question what sort of person David is to have that sort of emotion and thought of killing your own brother. He is displayed to be his brothers carer and obviously isn't happy about that situation in which he is in as they clearly have very different roles within the family home as Ben is signified to be the child with a disability who David has to spend his time looking after. The darkness around David accentuates that he is perhaps a dangerous character that needs to be looked out for whereas his brother is presented as the complete opposite and someone who is completely innocent and wouldn't hurt a fly which is a complete drastic difference of personality. The mid shot/panning of his brother Ben makes the audience sympathise him as he cannot help who he is and David doesn't seem to understand that, close up shots demonstrate a person’s emotions as it does in this close up where we feel sorry for the boy.

The next themes and stings music is used once again to set the scene, we are introduced to the family home through a establishing shot which establishes the scene to the audience, often giving information about where the scene is set which in this scenario displays the lack of money that the family have – the audience are able to gather this impression as the house is shown to be in the middle of an estate representing the family must struggle financially, this helps to emotionally attaches you to the family as you feel upset by the lack of money which they clearly have perusing a very negative attitude. The close up of the disabled brother Ben more so makes him seem weak and helpless in contrast to Gary who is superior in this situation, demonstrating who is shown to have power and who isn’t as such. The narrating voice of Gary portrays how he has to do everything for his brother and he’s getting fed up of it –the disabled brother is unable to do anything for himself as shown where he is sat in the centre of the dinner table, centre of attention while everyone around him has to do everything for him.

The establishing and long shots combined makes the kitchen seem like a negative place which is where they argue on a regular basis as it is the main area for any family. The constant synchronous drops and smashes of the kitchen food items on the table reflects the chaos that is in their home as of Ben’s disability and David’s anger towards him for this. Gary and his parents are constantly illustrated through long and mid shots, so that we can view their body language and facial expressions in contrast to the disabled brother who is just shown through close up shots which signifies his youth and hierarchy status in his family.

The establishing shot of the bus stop and diegetic car sounds of which are ambient reflect the surroundings of crazy and anger go on in both their lives. Ben is then seen through the unclear mirror of the bus stop, in contrast to Gary of whom we can see clearly and this highlights his disabilities and lack of being able to do normal, every-day things due to his disability, giving him a lower status in society because of his disability’s which is unfair in the viewer’s eyes that he is being conveyed this way.

We are then shown a series of various scenes displaying how his brother is learning things which many people learnt in their childhood – such as activities like climbing trees and going on bike rides representing the childish manor he has as a personality. Gary is then seen picking up a toy gun, pointing and aiming it at his brother and the synchronous sound of the non-diegetic ‘bang’ foreshadows his wish for his brother Ben to die, the shocking and disturbing actions of David create an image of the type of person he is through the way he acts. Relating back to the start of the clip where he says ‘I want to kill him’ David is being conveyed as a heartless evil person. In the majority of the shots of ben he is shown from beneath therefore displaying his position in the TV drama which contrasts to Gary and his family as they are shown as superior to him as they impact his life and are the cause of his actions as he is unable to control his own.

In the last scene of the clip, a close up and establishing shot is used to highlight the location of the school, the theme is used yet again to depict the atmosphere they’re in. We can see David taking the mick out of a fellow student in class of who is answering a question, we begin to believe this could be caused by the stress from caring for his brother and reflects how he cannot physically and emotionally take anymore and feels like his only option is to take it out on those around him at school as he feels like he can’t do it anywhere else – the build-up of caring for someone for so long is too much for David and this reflects the representation of disability to be very over whelming. David’s friend references ‘babysitting’ which connotes how the disabled brother is seen as a child by many people due to being unable to do the thing other children can do caused by his down syndrome. David gives his brother money to bribe him into not telling his parents that he had left him alone demonstrating his guilt and by using ‘chocolate’ as another way to lead his brother away from spilling the truth as it’s something he knows his brother will enjoy. Children laugh at the disabled child on the bus when he is on his own, and take the mick out of him whilst the clip ends with Gary narrating the scene again and discussing how he is unable to care for his brother anymore.