British film idustry factsheet.
1) Write a one-sentence definition of what makes a film British.
In order to be British it has to feature British characters or represent a British way of life.
2) What is the difference between a Hollywood production context and production context of a British film?
The British film as a production context also tends to be varied but idiosyncratic to the story being told within the film. A films production context is the conditions under which the film has been made Whereas,for instance the Hollywood production context means that most films made by Hollywood studio shave high budgets, a heavy reliance on celebrities both in the cast and crew and spectacle driven stories.
3) When did the James Bond franchise start?
The 1960s brought about the start of the James Bond franchise
4) In terms of film censorship and graphic content, what began to change in British film in the 1970s and 1980s?
The British film industry in the 1970s was dominated by the subject of censorship that continued into the video nasties banning of the 1980s. For example, The 1970s sees a rise in British Films of sexual content, both the act of sex and sex linked to violence with films like A Clockwork Orange coming under a lot of scrutiny. The 1980s see the rise of videos and the ‘video nasty’s scare where film making was becoming more accessible and more extreme content was being created and finding its way to Britain.
5) What groups are often represented in British film? Give examples of films these groups feature in.
Issues such as class, politics, social change and education are some of the many issues that British film has explored throughout its history. For example if we look at the way youth is portrayed in a very singular way in Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange (Warner Bros., 1971), the focus
is on violence, anti-establishment and a compulsion to act in an anarchic way. A class realated film that could be suggested is The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner (1962), a more recent film about politics could be The Post (2017)
6) What does the Factsheet suggest might be the audience appeal of British film?
The fact sheet suggests about the audience appeal of British film is common actors who are from the UK and so the audience will know who they are watching and this is more appealing towards them, as well as location as audience will enjoy a film more if they know where the location is, for example Bend it Like Beckham, this was shot very local, and therefore audience members will recognize where some of the shots were shot. Also British comedy can be a major factor as it people outside the UK may not understand any of the jokes apart from the people who live in the UK. This is the first step towards targeting and appealing to a British audience as with any film made by a country
for its own populace. The main characteristics that can be identified as appealing to a native British audience would include; the actors, British actors tend to be clearly identifiable as British and will often be associated with a particular genre of British film.
Factsheet #100: British film industry
1) What is the 'cultural test' to see if a film counts as British?
The Cultural Test is divided into four sections and a film must score at least 16 out of a possible 31 points to be classified as British.
2) Complete the task on the Factsheet, researching the films listed and finding out what they score on the cultural test: Sweeney, Attack The Block, The King's Speech, We Need To Talk About Kevin and Skyfall.
4) What are three of the strengths of the British film industry?
The three strengths of the British film industry are:
5) What are the two options for the future of the British film industry?
The two options British film industry face in the future are, British filmmakers could choose to rely upon co-productions with American studios to keep the industry afloat. However, the drawback would be that much of what makes the film British may be lost, such as regional accents and dialects or cultural and political references. The second option the British film industry have The UK film industry’s second option is to attempt to make low budget films targeted at a niche, British audience. For example, Chicken(2015)
6) In your opinion, which of these two options would best safeguard the future of the British film industry?
In my opinion, I believe the second option is a massive risk, however I believe it is the best option
I chose option two, in which the British industry make low budget films, as seen in Chicken. I believe this is a really good option, even though they may not have the budget, which I believe is the only drawback in this choice, I think keeping it simple with one location and not a range of different characters the way forward. There also could be a lot of profit made from this, as if its a hit the profit they can make from the film will be extortionate.
The reason why I did not chose option 1, is because as stated in the factsheet much of what the British industry represents will be taken away if they chose to rely on American studios, and therefore this takes away the British culture.
Overall I believe both options are valid, but I believe if you want purely based on British film industry for the future the option in making low budget films, but keeping the British culture is integral and therefore I believe this is the future of British film industry
In order to be British it has to feature British characters or represent a British way of life.
2) What is the difference between a Hollywood production context and production context of a British film?
The British film as a production context also tends to be varied but idiosyncratic to the story being told within the film. A films production context is the conditions under which the film has been made Whereas,for instance the Hollywood production context means that most films made by Hollywood studio shave high budgets, a heavy reliance on celebrities both in the cast and crew and spectacle driven stories.
3) When did the James Bond franchise start?
The 1960s brought about the start of the James Bond franchise
4) In terms of film censorship and graphic content, what began to change in British film in the 1970s and 1980s?
The British film industry in the 1970s was dominated by the subject of censorship that continued into the video nasties banning of the 1980s. For example, The 1970s sees a rise in British Films of sexual content, both the act of sex and sex linked to violence with films like A Clockwork Orange coming under a lot of scrutiny. The 1980s see the rise of videos and the ‘video nasty’s scare where film making was becoming more accessible and more extreme content was being created and finding its way to Britain.
5) What groups are often represented in British film? Give examples of films these groups feature in.
Issues such as class, politics, social change and education are some of the many issues that British film has explored throughout its history. For example if we look at the way youth is portrayed in a very singular way in Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange (Warner Bros., 1971), the focus
is on violence, anti-establishment and a compulsion to act in an anarchic way. A class realated film that could be suggested is The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner (1962), a more recent film about politics could be The Post (2017)
6) What does the Factsheet suggest might be the audience appeal of British film?
The fact sheet suggests about the audience appeal of British film is common actors who are from the UK and so the audience will know who they are watching and this is more appealing towards them, as well as location as audience will enjoy a film more if they know where the location is, for example Bend it Like Beckham, this was shot very local, and therefore audience members will recognize where some of the shots were shot. Also British comedy can be a major factor as it people outside the UK may not understand any of the jokes apart from the people who live in the UK. This is the first step towards targeting and appealing to a British audience as with any film made by a country
for its own populace. The main characteristics that can be identified as appealing to a native British audience would include; the actors, British actors tend to be clearly identifiable as British and will often be associated with a particular genre of British film.
Factsheet #100: British film industry
1) What is the 'cultural test' to see if a film counts as British?
The Cultural Test is divided into four sections and a film must score at least 16 out of a possible 31 points to be classified as British.
2) Complete the task on the Factsheet, researching the films listed and finding out what they score on the cultural test: Sweeney, Attack The Block, The King's Speech, We Need To Talk About Kevin and Skyfall.
- Sweeney: Budget:£3,000,000 (estimated) : Cultural test: The locations is filmed in London, England, the lead characters are British citizens, the original dialogue is recorded in mainly the English Language and the film represents British culture, which already equates to 16 points to be a British film.
- Attack The Block: Budget:$13,000,000 (estimated) Cultural test:The locations is filmed in London, England, the lead characters are British citizens, the original dialogue is recorded in mainly the English Language and the film represents British culture, which already equates to 16 points to be a British film, even though the budget is in dollars from IMOd.
- The King's Speech: Budget: $15,000,000 (estimated) Cultural test: The locations is filmed in London, England, the lead characters are British citizens, the original dialogue is recorded in mainly the English Language and the film represents British culture, which already equates to 16 points to be a British film and it also fits most of the criteria for Cultural Practitioners and Cultural Hubs
- We Need To Talk About Kevin: Budget: $7,000,000 (estimated) Cultural test: This film may not past the cultural test as the not all the lead characters are not British so therefore it does not get 4 points, also the location was in Spain,Valencia therefore it could not be classified as being shot in the UK. Therefore this Film would not pass the Cultural test.
- Skyfall: Budget: $200,000,000 (estimated) Cultural Test: The locations is filmed in London, England, the lead characters are British citizens, the original dialogue is recorded in mainly the English Language and the film represents British culture, which already equates to 16 points to be a British film and it also fits most of the criteria for Cultural Practitioners and Cultural Hubs
3) What is the main problem for the British film industry?
There are several problem for the British industry, for example the British film industry has been production led rather than distribution led. This means that many UK films are made but, in order to get the film exhibited, the filmmakers have to sacrifice the distribution rights by selling the film to a distribution company. Another problem the British film industry face is American actors are seen as more glamorous than their UK counterparts so a big, Hollywood name is often drafted into the
lead role of a film in order to encourage the audience to see it.
Other problems occur for the British film industry such as:
lead role of a film in order to encourage the audience to see it.
Other problems occur for the British film industry such as:
- Typically in the UK, theatre acting is seen to be of greater worth than film acting so film has never been seen as a worthy artform
- Despite Britain having many talented production personnel, the lure of better pay and conditions in Hollywood is often too great for them to remain in Britain.
- • Britain shares a native language with America so it is very easy for American films to be exported to the UK
4) What are three of the strengths of the British film industry?
The three strengths of the British film industry are:
- They are the third biggest film industry in the world, British films take 5% of world box-office takings, which is extraordinary for such a small nation.
- They have outstanding creative skills of practitioners
- They have outstanding facilities
5) What are the two options for the future of the British film industry?
The two options British film industry face in the future are, British filmmakers could choose to rely upon co-productions with American studios to keep the industry afloat. However, the drawback would be that much of what makes the film British may be lost, such as regional accents and dialects or cultural and political references. The second option the British film industry have The UK film industry’s second option is to attempt to make low budget films targeted at a niche, British audience. For example, Chicken(2015)
6) In your opinion, which of these two options would best safeguard the future of the British film industry?
In my opinion, I believe the second option is a massive risk, however I believe it is the best option
I chose option two, in which the British industry make low budget films, as seen in Chicken. I believe this is a really good option, even though they may not have the budget, which I believe is the only drawback in this choice, I think keeping it simple with one location and not a range of different characters the way forward. There also could be a lot of profit made from this, as if its a hit the profit they can make from the film will be extortionate.
The reason why I did not chose option 1, is because as stated in the factsheet much of what the British industry represents will be taken away if they chose to rely on American studios, and therefore this takes away the British culture.
Overall I believe both options are valid, but I believe if you want purely based on British film industry for the future the option in making low budget films, but keeping the British culture is integral and therefore I believe this is the future of British film industry
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