Evaluation: Part 3

What kind of media institution might produce and distribute your product and why?

Consider the role of the production company.

A production company is an organization with the resources available to facilitate film production. Their ultimate goal is to make profit as a business, so therefore are integral in all stages of production,  this being production, distribution and marketing, to ensure their project's success. There are both major and minor players in the film industry, the first being America's 'Big 5' - 20th Century Fox, RKO Pictures, Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and the 'Little 3' - Universal Pictures, Columbia Pictures and United Artists. Independent Production companies are another big part of the industry. They cannot compete on the same level as the big 5, but target niche audiences and usually exposed more to the film enthusiasts or critics. They have a restricted budget and resources in comparison to the big 5, meaning they don't often reach the blockbuster standard of mainstream producers, but there are examples of Independent films that have reached mainstream audiences and made huge profit. Independant British producers like Moonspun or Between the eyes, have made successful films like 'Shifty' and 'The Selfish Giant.'

My film was a crime-thriller inspired British-Gangster. It wouldn't have many special effects in the rest of the production, or qualities of the traditional MOB Gangster that is largely successful in America. 'The Godfather' for example, was produced by 'Paramount Pictures' in 1972 and had a budget of $6,000,000 and resources of the highest quality. Being an independent producer, my film Great Allegiance, would have nowhere near these resources. It would be more likely to use the microwave scheme, on a very limited budget. My production shares some similarities with 'Shifty', as that too is a crime-infused, low-budget, independently produced film. Therefore, I think that 'Between the Eyes Productions' would be likely to take on a project like mine, with a similar past project that was successful in mind, reducing the risk of investment.

Consider the role of the distributor.

A distributor is the individual or company responsible for the marketing of  a film. After setting a release date, their priority is advertising their project to a point where expectation and excitement is built up by their target audience. An example of how this sort of buzz has been created was by Walt Disney Studios, who used the technique of blanket marketing leading up to the 2013 release of 'Frozen' which was vastly successful. From merchandise to mainstream songs to various hash-tags on twitter, every avenue was explored, enabling them to hit a huge audience, and thus increase profits.

Similar to the production, 'Shifty' is another comparable past project in terms of distribution. Between  the eyes used 'Metrodome Distribution' an independent company who, in this instance, primarily focused on getting 'Shifty' to DVD, as opposed to a cinema advertising campaign. Given the fact it too was a small film, using the microwave scheme, this was most appropriate for its success. Therefore I also feel that 'Metrodome Distribution' would be a likely candidate to take on a project like 'Great Allegiance.'

Explain your opening credits.

My choice to use 'Channel 4' as the tag on my first title was mainly because of its reputation and connotations because of that. Channel 4 is well-known, respected, experienced TV company, who have been synonymous with British television with some time. This would appeal to my mainly UK-based target audience, who would both recognize and anticipate a film associated with this institution.

I also chose to use 'Arc Media Productions' as my production company because of the positive connotations it gives off to the viewer. 'Arc' suggesting this is an institution that is forward-thinking, versatile and dynamic, giving tyhe viewer a good first impression for the production. A term like 'media' implying that this is a company which have big potential in the media industry, not just restricting their trade to the film business. This all builds up and impressionable, new brand which would generate excitement among the target audience.






Creating an association with the Lottery means that I was able to reinforce the films British origin. T

I chose to also use the Microwave scheme as it gives the viewer context and a sense of expectation.