The factors that led to the decline of town and city centre cinemas in the late 1970's and early 1980's can be linked to 3 significant contexts. Socially, films turned into blockbusters which made them a social event for people to go to, making multiplexes situated in shopping centres superior to town and city centre cinemas. Economically, merchandise and marketing made films in a multiplex more commercially viable because they are located in shopping centres which directly affected the popularity of town or city cinemas and in terms of technological advancements, movie goers preferred spectacle over substance which means audiences went to cinemas with the best projectors and sound systems. These 3 factors affected the production, distribution and exhibition of films which led to the decline of town and city centre cinemas.
The production of films affected town and city centre cinemas. The creation of blockbusters like Jaws turned films and cinema outings into a social event. These blockbusters created the stereotype, style over substance, which is a over-reliance on special effects rather than a plot or character development. Examples of films like this are Star Wars and E.T. These blockbusters attracted audiences who wanted to see the special effects under the best new technology available, which was in multiplexes located in big shopping centres. Town and city cinemas did not have the same appeal for blockbuster audiences. The film industry created a formula for blockbusters, in which the more money you put into your film and the special effects in the film, it is guaranteed to be profitable at the box office. The Hollywood film industry which created these film wanted the best possible viewing technology in their multiplexes to display their special effects. Town and city centres didn't have this cinematic experience and suffered financially because of it due to a lack of interest and cinema attendance. The emphasis on special effects and viewing experience was made even more significant due to technological advancements within homes, like VCR and VHS and the ability to pirate films, like E.T. Cinemas needed the viewing experience that you couldn't get at home in order for people to come and watch their films. Turning these films into a social event was how they did this.
The distribution of films affected town and city centre cinemas. Cinema attendance around the late 1970's was poor, people were not watching films at the cinema but instead watching films at home. The film industry decided to promote their films by selling merchandise of the blockbuster film and marketing the film using posters, and television adverts. By selling merchandise, they encouraged people to watch films in multiplexes built in shopping centres, where merchandise can be bought easily. This helped reinforce the blockbuster as a event film. This affected town and city centre cinemas because they could not provide easy access for people to buy merchandise than what the multiplexes in the shopping centres provided. Meanwhile, in the 1970's and 80's, Britain was facing a recession, people did not have money and this was to do with the poor economy and the three day week. People were only working three days a week which affected all parts of British life. Going to the cinema was pointless for people who had no money who instead stayed at home and watched films on the television, which made the cinema attendance decrease. Another economic issue with the films is that because of the three day week, not enough energy was being produced to keep up with Britain consumption demands which meant small town cinemas could not show as many films as they could before. This created a decline for them financially. Technological advancements like VHS and VCR meant that people didn't need to leave home to watch films, and it became a social event and the fashion to watch films in your own home. This created an alternative to going to the cinema that people didn't have before. It would not be before the rise of the multiplex that people started going to see films again. Small town and city centre cinemas lacked the social event status that VHS and VCR provided.
The exhibition of films affected town and city centre cinemas. Cinema attendance rose after the release of the special effects heavy, blockbuster, Star Wars. Star wars followed the blockbuster formula and released lots of merchandise, marketed itself heavily and created lots of hype and attention over the film. This hype and attention attracted teenage audiences, who regardless of the economic situation, bought into the franchise and its merchandise. The audience that saw Star Wars consisted mainly of children and teenagers, who were entertained by the special effects in the film. The small city and town cinemas were ignored by the Star Wars demographic who opted for multiplexes in order to have a day out and a social event. Star Wars was a financial success, due to the amount of money invested into by the children and teenagers who bought into the merchandise and the franchise. The Hollywood film industry decided to create more multiplexes in England to exploit the demographic and make more money from blockbusters. Eventually more and more multiplexes were being created which resulted in less and less popularity for the town and city centres. Technological advances also caused the small cinemas to decline. The special effects in Star Wars and the films after it caused large audiences to come and watch the films. Multiplexes could accommodate the large amount of film-goers whilst small town and city centre cinemas could not, putting them at a disadvantage. Also, the cinematic experience itself was richer in the Multiplexes, with better projection and sound system, putting the small town and city centre cinemas at a even greater disadvantage.
Monday 24 March 2014
Essay Plan- What factors led to the decline of town or city centre cinemas in the late 1970's and early 1980's.
What factors led to the decline of town or city centre cinemas in the late 1970's and early 1980's?
Introduction- The factors that led to the decline of town and city cinemas can be attributed to three significent contexts
social- films evolved into blockbusters and turned into social events for people to go to, making the multiplexes situated in shopping centres superior to town and city centres cinema.
economically,merchandise and marketing made films in a multiplex more commercially viable because they are located in shopping centres.
technological- movie-goers preferred spectacle over substance which means that audience relied on better cinemas, rather than flea pit cinemas for an overall better experience.
These 3 factors affected the production, distribution and exhibition of films which led to the decline of town and city centre cinema.
Production-
Point 1- Social- Films like star wars created the movie stereotype of 'style over substance'. This was a over reliance on special effects and technological advances disregarding plot, which appealed to a teenage audience who wanted to see these films in the best possible conditions, in expensive new multiplexes surrounded by shopping centres. These films turned into days out for people. There was not the same appeal for town or city centre cinema who lacked these appeals.
point 2- economically- The film industry, particularly ILM (industrial light and magic) created these expensive films and technology in order to attract this age group. The more they spent on their films, and the special effects, they knew they would get their money back. This created the blockbuster formula. Also, they spent money on multiplexes to have the best possible viewing experience. Flea-pit cinemas did not have this viewing experience that multiplexes did and they suffered financially because of it due to a lack of cinema attendance.
point 3- technological - Due to advances in technology, the hollywood film industry produced films like Star Wars which used lots of special effects. This inspired films like E.T and created an social appeal for audiences to come and see the new special effects. This social appeal was important because other technological advances like VHS had emerged, leading to films being pirated. In fact, E.T was one of the first highly pirated films. This technological advances in terms of viewing experience led to multiplexes being superior than flea pit cinemas which couldn't offer the same viewing experience.
Distribution
Point 1- social - cinema attendance was plummeting. the film industry needed something to raise cinema attendence. They attempted to do this by marketing and building franchises to make their money back on films that cost a lot in production. This attempt at marketing meant that films were now being released in multiplexes in shopping centres to make it easier for people to buy the merchandise. This had an effect on flea pit cinema which didn't have accessibility for people to buy the merchandise. This led to its decline.
Point 2- economic- The UK was in recession, people could not go to the cinema since they did not have money, three day week. People had tv in homes and VCR. The cinema experience was pointless because they could sit at home and watch films at home. The three day week affected flea pit cinemas because there was not enough energy to power the projectors which meant that not only were cinema attendence dropping, the amount of films shown were decreased.
Point 3- technological- The emergence of VCR's and VHS as new technology meant the cinema lacked an appeal that the flea pit cinemas had. People had an alternative to going to the cinema which they didnt have before. Viewing films at home also was the fashion of the time and it turned into a social event. This affected the flea-pit cinemas who lost its status as a social event due to the rise of the VCR and later on , the multiplex.
Exhibition
Point 1- Social- Cinema attendence improved when the blockbuster Star wars was released. Star wars was heavily hyped and marketed, with lots of merchandise released around this time. It also contained lots of visual effects in the film. This attracted an cinema audience of mainly children and teenagers who had money to spend, regardless of the economic crisis at the time. This demographic was highly influenced by the hype and attraction of multiplexes and the easiness of accessibility to buy merchandise. This affected flea pit cinemas in that they were ignored by the children and teenagers in order to go to multiplexes and to spend their money on not only the film, but on merchandise.
Point 2- Economic- Because of the children and teenagers going to see Star wars, the film was a economic success and generated a lot of money for the hollywood film industry in not only the box office and merchandise sales as well. This prompted the hollywood film industry to introduce more and more multiplexes in England, in order to make more money by showing Blockbusters. This affected town or city centre cinemas because the creation of more and more multiplexes meant they became less and less popular and lost money because of this.
Point 3- technological-the emergence of technological advances in films like special effects in Star wars drew in larger audiences. These large audiences would have attended multiplexes since they were designed to hold a larger capacity of people rather than flea pit cinemas which were small by comparison. Also the cinematic experience was better in multiplexes with better projectors and sound system which the flea pit cinemas lacked putting it at a disadvantage.
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Introduction- The factors that led to the decline of town and city cinemas can be attributed to three significent contexts
social- films evolved into blockbusters and turned into social events for people to go to, making the multiplexes situated in shopping centres superior to town and city centres cinema.
economically,merchandise and marketing made films in a multiplex more commercially viable because they are located in shopping centres.
technological- movie-goers preferred spectacle over substance which means that audience relied on better cinemas, rather than flea pit cinemas for an overall better experience.
These 3 factors affected the production, distribution and exhibition of films which led to the decline of town and city centre cinema.
Production-
Point 1- Social- Films like star wars created the movie stereotype of 'style over substance'. This was a over reliance on special effects and technological advances disregarding plot, which appealed to a teenage audience who wanted to see these films in the best possible conditions, in expensive new multiplexes surrounded by shopping centres. These films turned into days out for people. There was not the same appeal for town or city centre cinema who lacked these appeals.
point 2- economically- The film industry, particularly ILM (industrial light and magic) created these expensive films and technology in order to attract this age group. The more they spent on their films, and the special effects, they knew they would get their money back. This created the blockbuster formula. Also, they spent money on multiplexes to have the best possible viewing experience. Flea-pit cinemas did not have this viewing experience that multiplexes did and they suffered financially because of it due to a lack of cinema attendance.
point 3- technological - Due to advances in technology, the hollywood film industry produced films like Star Wars which used lots of special effects. This inspired films like E.T and created an social appeal for audiences to come and see the new special effects. This social appeal was important because other technological advances like VHS had emerged, leading to films being pirated. In fact, E.T was one of the first highly pirated films. This technological advances in terms of viewing experience led to multiplexes being superior than flea pit cinemas which couldn't offer the same viewing experience.
Distribution
Point 1- social - cinema attendance was plummeting. the film industry needed something to raise cinema attendence. They attempted to do this by marketing and building franchises to make their money back on films that cost a lot in production. This attempt at marketing meant that films were now being released in multiplexes in shopping centres to make it easier for people to buy the merchandise. This had an effect on flea pit cinema which didn't have accessibility for people to buy the merchandise. This led to its decline.
Point 2- economic- The UK was in recession, people could not go to the cinema since they did not have money, three day week. People had tv in homes and VCR. The cinema experience was pointless because they could sit at home and watch films at home. The three day week affected flea pit cinemas because there was not enough energy to power the projectors which meant that not only were cinema attendence dropping, the amount of films shown were decreased.
Point 3- technological- The emergence of VCR's and VHS as new technology meant the cinema lacked an appeal that the flea pit cinemas had. People had an alternative to going to the cinema which they didnt have before. Viewing films at home also was the fashion of the time and it turned into a social event. This affected the flea-pit cinemas who lost its status as a social event due to the rise of the VCR and later on , the multiplex.
Exhibition
Point 1- Social- Cinema attendence improved when the blockbuster Star wars was released. Star wars was heavily hyped and marketed, with lots of merchandise released around this time. It also contained lots of visual effects in the film. This attracted an cinema audience of mainly children and teenagers who had money to spend, regardless of the economic crisis at the time. This demographic was highly influenced by the hype and attraction of multiplexes and the easiness of accessibility to buy merchandise. This affected flea pit cinemas in that they were ignored by the children and teenagers in order to go to multiplexes and to spend their money on not only the film, but on merchandise.
Point 2- Economic- Because of the children and teenagers going to see Star wars, the film was a economic success and generated a lot of money for the hollywood film industry in not only the box office and merchandise sales as well. This prompted the hollywood film industry to introduce more and more multiplexes in England, in order to make more money by showing Blockbusters. This affected town or city centre cinemas because the creation of more and more multiplexes meant they became less and less popular and lost money because of this.
Point 3- technological-the emergence of technological advances in films like special effects in Star wars drew in larger audiences. These large audiences would have attended multiplexes since they were designed to hold a larger capacity of people rather than flea pit cinemas which were small by comparison. Also the cinematic experience was better in multiplexes with better projectors and sound system which the flea pit cinemas lacked putting it at a disadvantage.
http://leighmediaasfilmessays12.blogspot.co.uk/2014/03/session-1-assessment-week-how.html#comment-form
Friday 21 March 2014
Thursday 13 March 2014
Production, Distribution, Exhibition
http://leighmediaasfilmessays12.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/film-production-distribution-exhibition.html
Production
. Film Lab- £500k
.VFX studio £1 million
. Producer/Writer £500k
. Artists and Designers £250k
. Legal £1 million
. Test screenings £500k
Total 3.75 million pounds
Distribution
. Marketing £250k
.Web distributor £1 million
. Merchandise £2 million
. Distributor £1 million
Total- 4.25 million pounds
Exhibition
.Youtube/Vimeo £250k
.Cable/Satellite TV £1 million
. DVD retailer £500k
. Film subscription service £2 million
. Multiplex cinema £3 million
Total- 6.75 million pounds
Overall, the model of production, distribution, exhibition shows that more money has been put into exhibition and distribution of films.This is consistent with the films in the present day, in that less money is spent on quality producers and writers and instead on selling the film and showing it to as many people as possible. It follows the blockbuster format, especially in Production where VFX and legal are the most costliest things in production. This links to the idea that viewers like spectacle over substance and film companies want to attach actors to contracts so they can make franchises and sell more movies. Essentially, movies are like products if this model is to be used.
Production
. Film Lab- £500k
.VFX studio £1 million
. Producer/Writer £500k
. Artists and Designers £250k
. Legal £1 million
. Test screenings £500k
Total 3.75 million pounds
Distribution
. Marketing £250k
.Web distributor £1 million
. Merchandise £2 million
. Distributor £1 million
Total- 4.25 million pounds
Exhibition
.Youtube/Vimeo £250k
.Cable/Satellite TV £1 million
. DVD retailer £500k
. Film subscription service £2 million
. Multiplex cinema £3 million
Total- 6.75 million pounds
Overall, the model of production, distribution, exhibition shows that more money has been put into exhibition and distribution of films.This is consistent with the films in the present day, in that less money is spent on quality producers and writers and instead on selling the film and showing it to as many people as possible. It follows the blockbuster format, especially in Production where VFX and legal are the most costliest things in production. This links to the idea that viewers like spectacle over substance and film companies want to attach actors to contracts so they can make franchises and sell more movies. Essentially, movies are like products if this model is to be used.
Tuesday 11 March 2014
Notes
Teenagers has disposable income, pocket money- cinemas targeted them.
teenagers started in the 1950's.
Blockbusters boosted cinema attendance. They also helped save money.
Multiplex cinemas emerged due to the american film industry investing in them within Britain.
Visual effects (ILM) were used as an thing to attract people towards audiences.
teenagers started in the 1950's.
Blockbusters boosted cinema attendance. They also helped save money.
Multiplex cinemas emerged due to the american film industry investing in them within Britain.
Visual effects (ILM) were used as an thing to attract people towards audiences.
Tuesday 4 March 2014
Summer Blockbuster pitch
Global appeal: Crime, cars, and criminals all resonate with a global audience. It is all relevant in society. Grand theft auto also satirises western culture.
£250 million budget- Newsworthy. Not many video game films would have this amount of money to spend. However, lots of money would be spent on production to show wealth and excess. CGI effects and expensive cars would appeal to style over substance type of film-making.
CHN- The audience feel bad for Nicholas Cage's character. He is a criminal, with vast amounts of wealth but he isn't happy, (stuck in a loveless marriage, forced to commit crime since he can't get out of it now.') Film's overall story arc would be Cage commiting one last act of destruction to get out of criminality all together.
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