Natalia's blog

 1)  Film Industry: Marketing - Marvel Cinematic Universe  2)  Film Industry: Black Widow  3)  Film Industry: I, Daniel Blake

  Hollywood v Independent cinema Independent films are very different to Hollywood blockbusters like Black Widow. The style of ‘indie’ films is very different to Hollywood blockbusters, as the directors and producers have more creative input – it’s being made in their vision, not in the vision of studio bosses. Independent films have much smaller budgets, and are often supported financially by public service broadcasters, film institutions and charity funding. They are also distributed by smaller companies. I, Daniel Blake notes I, Daniel Blake is an award-winning independent British Drama film. The main character, Daniel Blake, 59, who has worked as a joiner most of his life in the North East of England needs help from the State for the first time ever following an illness. He crosses paths with a single mother Katie and her two young children, Daisy and Dylan. Katie’s only chance to escape a one roomed homeless hostel in London is to accept a flat some 300 miles away. Daniel...

  Conglomerate Most major media companies are conglomerates that own a range of smaller companies (called subsidiaries). An example of this is Disney owning Marvel. Vertical integration Vertical integration is when one conglomerate owns different companies in the same chain of production. E.g Disney owns film studios, CGI specialists, film distributors and TV channels such as the Disney Channel. This gives Disney the chance to make money at every stage of production. Complete ownership = more profit. Horizontal integration Horizontal integration is when one company buys other companies at the same level of distribution. E.g Facebook acquired Instagram in 2012 (at a cost of $1 billion) so that they could cancel out the competition by making money from both. Horizontal integration allows companies to widen their audience and find other ways to make money. Convergence, branding and synergy  Convergence refers to the way we can now access everything about a film - reviews, trailer...

  Risky business The creative industries are a risky business for companies - it costs a huge amount of money to create a media product like a film and there's no guarantee the audience will like it. No brand loyalty A new, original film has no established brand or audience - it has to generate all the interest through marketing. This is why film companies prefer to make sequels, reboots or films from an established franchise (like the Marvel Cinematic Universe) - there is an existing audience ready to buy the product.  Star power If the film isn't from an existing franchise, film studios use star actors or directors to help generate interest in the film and find an audience. Star directors like veteran political filmmaker Ken Loach have an established audience that will always watch his films regardless of subject matter. A matter of timing Marketing campaigns need to be carefully timed to create excitement about the film's release. Often, the first teaser trailers will dr...