Term 2 Break HOMEWORK - When they See Us

 Hey guys,

We are going to do an exercise with the video clip below. 

Write on some A4 paper;

1. Big picture ideas (2 -3 statements about who is represented and how)

2. divided page of planning into 4 tech areas (write down techniques that you would use for each area as evidence to backup your main points)

3. Write an introduction which includes your big picture ideas as well as Stuart Hall's reception theory and also Gauntlett's identity theory 

4. Hand in for marking 

When They See Us (Netflix TV Drama)

Week 10 - Wed | Technology changing the way filmmakers are using the web

Digital technology changes in how filmmakers are using web 2.0 

https://raindance.org/exploring-digital-media-through-filmmaking-trends-in-2022/

https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2022/03/02/the-5-biggest-media-and-entertainment-technology-trends-in-2022/?sh=3746611d3277

Another article with some great points in how technology is changing the way films are made;

https://blog.audiosocket.com/filmmaking/future-of-film/

Week 10 - Tues - The Dark Knight viral marketing campaign

Hi guys!

Let's look at this together and make some notes about how marketing is changing with technological advancements to be more interactive. 

Week 10 - Tuesday | Audience Behaviour Exam Question

   Hi guys,

Here is the exam question we are going to practise answering. We will discuss this as a class today and write up / draw up an essay plan. Then, you will write this for Media work on Thursday, using a 45 minute timer.

QUESTION 

"How does your own experience of media consumption illustrate wider patters of audience behaviour?"

Week 10 - Monday - Audience Research

 Hi guys,

Please work in pairs and work through this amazing document that has all the stats and information on how and where audiences are accessing media. 

 Audience Research. 

Please use the links below and answer the questions. Make a blog post under the RESEARCH label and give it the heading; 'Audience Research'

Check this link out for Global and NZ digitisation trends.

Questions;
1. How many of the world's population are currently connected to the internet? (slide 6)
2. How many of the world's population are active social media users? (slide 6)
3. What are the top 5 social media sites used globally? (slide 10)
4. What two age-groups have the largest contingent of social media users? (slide 12)
5. What percentage of NZ's population are connected to the internet and what percentage have social media? (slide 15)
6. What are the top 3 devices used to consume media in NZ? (slide 18)
7. How many hours a day are NZ's watching/ streaming online TV services? (slide 19)
8. What percentage of internet users in NZ swatch videos online and what percentage stream content via the internet? (slide 28)
9. What are NZ's top 5 social media sites? (slide 33)



Check out this link for trends within NZ for media consumption

Questions;

1. Who are considered 'i-gens' (page 3 )
2. In what ways are i-gens connected and using digital technology? (pg 4)
3. How would you describe the relationship with i-gens with the content of the media they are consuming? (Summarise page 5)
4. In what way does social media play a part in influencing i-gens activity in whether they watch a film or not? (p7)
5. List the emotional motivations that drive i-gens to watch movies at the cinemas and what in general do they like about it? (p8 & 10)
6. Comment on why i-gens opt to watch movies online at home (p 9)
7. What do the i-gens say is negative about the cinema experience? (p11)
8. Use page 13 to write a few sentences about how i-gens should be marketed to if you are trying to get them to watch your film
9. Use pages 14 - 19 to write a few points about the way i-gens prefer to engage with media and what they want out of a media consumption experience

Week 9 - Friday- Distribution

 Hi class, 

Read this article 

Write down some interesting notes on distribution that outlines the difference between Indi films and big budget Hollywood films.

- What is a usual release strategy for Hollywood big-budget films? 

- What are some examples of Indi films that did really well?

- Why do smaller films like Jojo Rabbit, winning awards, create a problem for awards show ratings? 

- Why do they suggest Indi films are even more vulnerable? 

CASE STUDIES

- how were your films distributed? 

- where/ what countries? 

- What release strategy did they use? 

Week 9 - HOMEWORK | Synergy and Cross-Media-Convergence Essay

 Hi guys,

Here's your essay question for the week ahead. 

"How important is cross-media-convergence and synergy for institutions and audiences within a media area which you have studied?"

Here's some resources below to add to what you already have, to help with what to include...

https://www.slideshare.net/kimfyson/synergy-and-cross-media-convergence-43956766

Cross Media Convergence
This is really a Business Studies term and refers to companies coming together vertically or horizontally (or both). The example often cited in exams is of Working Title making use of its parent company(s) to gain access to bigger stars and a better distribution network for their films.  The same theory can be applied to the music industry where small labels are bought up and taken under the wing of larger groups, like Sony and EMI.  Sony is a good example where they produce films, TV and music as well as the hardware to view/listen to their products (including smart phones)

Synergy
Synergy basically means working together to achieve an objective that couldn’t be achieved independently. Cross-media convergence can help with synergy if companies are wise enough to take advantage of the links they have forged. Disney is an obvious example of a synergistic company from the top down from Film Studio to Kids’ TV Channel (where it further plays and promotes its films) to the Disney Store (in the street and online) where your kids can pester you to buy all the merchandise and DVDs/CDs they’ve seen on the TV/Web or in the cinema.

Week 9 - Thurs: China + Hollywood

 Have a read of these articles and make some notes around some recent Chinese censorship decisions. 

Article here 

Article 2 here 

Week 9 - Wed/ Thurs | The Interview

 Hey guys,

I want you to make some notes on the following videos, looking at The Interview as our case study example. 

Visit this website to check out some facts about the movie, so you have these ready for an essay, too...

You would use this case study in an essay about 

- ownership 

- technology (mainly how the internet has changed movies being so globally available)

- audience (how movies are now made for a global audience, even when not intended)

 

Watch until 1.22mins

Week 9 - Tues - AirNZ Viral In-Flight video

 

Hey guys,

You are going to add this example to your portfolio for a case study in the area of marketing.

Have a look at the viral in-flight safety video that Air NZ made in the theme of the Hobbit. It's a great example of CMC + Synergy.

Watch the VIDEO here  

Notes to write

1. How many hits did it get on Youtube? 

2. what year was this made? 

3. Why is this a good example that illustrates how NZ film is used for a different purpose than the films created for the Big 5? Was this safety video purely for entertainment? 

Week 9 - Monday

 

Hey guys,

Take a look at the marketing techniques used by WWDITS and make some notes for an essay on ownership or synergy/ cmc

What We did in the Shadows 

https://stoppress.co.nz/news/what-we-do-shadows-viral-marketing-its-finest/

Good Synergy / CMC examples from Avatar

 https://www.kimp.io/avatar-movie/

Friday - Youtube Case Study

   ARTICLE with information and stats on YouTube

Questions

- how have any of your case studies used Youtube? 

- What sort of success have these case studies had? 

- How much has YouTube and Web 2.0 helped your film reach a wider audience?

Video #1 - An Origin Story 

Video #2 - Youtube's story

- how much content is created everyday?

- Who acquired Youtube and how much was spent?

- how was allowing people to monetise channels, a major shift in the industry?

- how were algorithms  used to Youtube's advantage with subscribers? 

- name some of the ways Youtube has changed and added aspects to their channel to increase audience / subscribers? 

 ARTICLE with information and stats on YouTube

https://thesocialshepherd.com/blog/youtube-statistics

Week 8 - NZFC + the NZ Film Industry

Today we are going to look into the New Zealand Film Commission. 

I want you to open your case study blog post and do some research on the NZFC and answer the following questions;

1. Who are the NZFC and what is their primary purpose? 

2. What films have they funded in the last 5 years that did really well internationally?
3. What films have they funded in the last 5 years that you have seen or that you know have been popular?
4. What services do the NZFC offer to help NZ filmmakers in the production process?

5. What is the difference between the 'why' NZFC funds films vs. 'why' Hollywood Big 5 studios fund films? 

www.nzfilm.co.nz/new-zealand

Week 8 - Piracy

   Hi guys,

This concept of PIRACY can come into an essay on;

- Audience trends

- technology

- ownership 

Week 8 - Wednesday - Pro's + Cons of ownership

 Hi guys

Part A:

Today I want you to work together, in pairs and look at the advantaged and disadvantages of Indi vs. Big 5, Blockbuster movies. You have 15 minutes. Think about ALL phases of production.

We will look at these in class together when you're done. 

Part B: Research 

Questions to research for your case studies 

- what are some examples of your case studies in the area of synergy (compare and contrast what they were able to do/ achieve)

- what are some ways that big budgets benefitted your case studies or lack of bug budget, that put your Indi film at a disadvantage? 

- what was the Box Office revenue for each of your case studies? 

 

Week 8 - Thursday HOMEWORK | Ownership Essay Question

  Hi guys

We are tackling an essay on OWNERSHIP.

I want you to answer the following essay question, using the points of interest below;

"To what extent does Media Ownership impact the success of a film."


Please(!!!) plan your essay like we discussed, before attempting to write it.

In your plan:

• write a killer, clear, easy to understand opening sentence that sums up your position on the question.
• write 4 - 5 solid points that you will expand on in each paragraph
• write bullet points for case studies / facts / figures / quotes that you have for each paragraph to back up your points
• use case study and research ALL THE WAY THROUGH
• use terminology from class notes / glossary ALL THE WAY THROUGH

In your essay, cover the following

BASIC IDEAS

1. Hollywood's DOMINANCE over media industry
2 NZ's film industry situation - NZFC (compare & contrast issues for NZ film production competing with Hollywood)
3. Piracy as an issue for all

• how is media ownership structured (conglomerates / Hollywood big 5 - who are they?  / subsidiaries / Disney case study - what does Disney own? What are they worth? how much of our media are they actually making? )
• contrast Hollywood with NZ film (who are NZFC? What films have they made in last year? What are NZFC driven by (what is their end goal) / what types of films are being made and why? )
• How does the $ of ownership influence cross-media convergence / synergy opportunities? Does it influence how successfully a film is marketed?? (CASE STUDIES to back this up / 'What we do in the shadows' / Hollywood Blockbuster case study marketing strategies / Dark Knight Why So Serious marketing campaign / Cases that contrast how indi films struggle or NZ funded films struggle in comparison? maybe they don'y struggle? Maybe the internet has levelled the playing field?  / Horizontal Integration & Vertical Integration  - how does this benefit a film's success and give examples of both types of integration
• benefits of big $ to spend in ALL stages of production? (use your brainstorm from Monday - e.g. being able to hire big stars which also helps in promoting film (give EXAMPLES), benefits of technical equipment and bigger budgets for things like sounds / special effects etc
• impact of a big company vs indi film in things  like distribution - how does big $ make a difference in distribution process? Think integration of companies and how that may affect a film being distributed. How much harder is it for a small indi film to get distributed vS. your Hollywood blockbuster?
• Impact of big conglomerate on the TYPES of movies being made. What are top grossing movies of last year? Who made them? What types of movies are being produced and re-produced because they're popular? What happens to the original storyteller and stories that need to be told? How does Hollywood's domination of the market affect independent films or international films who want to get work out there?
• Piracy - how does this affect people who own the media? Use case study examples and research you've done to talk about this

Week 8 - Synergy

  Hi class,

Task 1: In preparation for this week's essay, I want you to watch this video and make some detailed notes (in your own words), explaining what synergy is. 

You should also have some examples (like the Black panther examples) of how your case studies used examples of Synergy.  

 Task 2: Take a look at this slightly tedious but very informative video and make some notes on the difference between Cross-Media-Convergene and Synergy.

SLIDESHOW Video link 

Video with explanation of what synergy is 

Another good resource that we used in class. Scroll down to get to the slideshow about synergy + cross media convergence 

Link for synergy + cross media convergence slideshow 

Week 8 - Ownership Research - Disney + Big 5

  

Major film studios are production and distribution companies that release a substantial number of films annually and consistently command a significant share of box office revenue in a given market. 

In the American and international markets, the major film studios, often known simply as the majors or the Big Five studios, are commonly regarded as the five diversified media conglomerates whose various film production and distribution subsidiaries collectively command approximately 80 to 85% of U.S. box office revenue.

 

Since the dawn of filmmaking, the U.S. major film studios have dominated both American cinema and the global film industry.^[5][6] U.S. studios have benefited from a strong first-mover advantage in that they were the first to industrialize filmmaking and master the art of mass-producing and distributing high-quality films with broad cross-cultural appeal.^[7] Today, the Big Five majors – Universal Pictures, Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros. Pictures, Walt Disney Pictures, and Columbia Pictures – routinely distribute hundreds of films every year into all significant international markets. It is "nearly impossible" for a film to reach a broad international theatrical audience without being first picked up by one of the majors for distribution.

 

The Big Six remained dominant until 2019, with Disney's acquisition of 21st Century Fox including TCF. This resulted in a new "Big Five" for the first time since Hollywood's Golden Age. Paramount and Warner Bros. are the only early Big Five members to remain as majors today.^[8]

Definitions 

Who are the Big 5?

What is a Subsidiary 

What is a Conglomerate ? 

 

Case Study 

 

Disney - write some key facts and information found in the videos below to bolster your Disney case study