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Week 10: TB2 Lecture: Interactive Media 2017

Interactive Media

Interactive media is communication, it is media that responds to the users input by by presenting content like images, videos, text, audio, video games, it allows a two way flow of information between a computer or a computer user. Interactive media isn’t necessarily new media, interactive media can be a board game such as monopoly or lego. Interactive media can be in many forms: Art, Games, Websites, Video (and TV & Film), Mobile devices & apps, Theatre, Music, Advertising.

Evolution of interactive media

Instagram 

Instagram is a communicative social media photo and video sharing application which enables you to share pictures or videos either publicly or privately. You can like, comment or share posts through other social media. The main goal of having an Instagram account is to gain as many followers, likes and comments on your posts as possible. Instagram’s main function is the filter options, filters are used to mainly change the colour of your image/video and you can even select multiple pictures or videos in one post, which can be viewed by swiping left. You can download other apps that work alongside Instagram such as boomerang and layout, The purpose of boomerang is to put lots of mini video clips together and with layout you can make a collage of several images.

Instagram is fairly accessible, you’ll need an android, smartphone or iPad to access it, you can also access Instagram online but it has limitations this way, it will allow you to use all the functions but it wont allow you to upload images or videos. The only down fall of Instagram is that if you don’t own an android or smart phone then you cannot access the app.

In my opinion, Instagram is a straightforward app, at the bottom of the page you have five different symbols which take you to a different page just with a tap, for example the house symbol will take you to the home screen where you can see the most recent posts from the users you follow, In my opinion these symbols make the app very easy to use.

Instagram can either make you feel good or bad, it can make you feel a lot of emotions with the different variety of posts. There is an underlying debate whether instagram effects your self confidence and I would say yes it does due to the millions of images uploaded by super models and celebrities but the app can also make you feel more confident. When you post selfies, people can like or give positive comments which would automatically boost your confidence.

A lot of celebrities use Instagram to stay somewhat connected with their fans, uploading several times a day to let their fans know what they are doing, where they are or inform them of world tours/concerts etc. A lot of other people use Instagram as a business platform to promote themselves or promote their business. If you have a talent, dancing or singing you can post videos to show the world what you can do.

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TB2 Week 9: Behind the lens: Working in Broadcast Journalism

News gathering

News reporters congregate news and significant updates that urgently need to be broadcasted to the general public to keep them informed and up to date about critical news events. News reporters use many different sources to obtain their information but their main source is personal interviews with witnesses at the event or news conferences.

News reporters spend a considerable amount of their day inspecting news before sending it in as an event. News reporters will be appointed particular locations dependant on where the monopoly thinks a newsworthy event can be created. There are many types of media, print and digital (Newspapers and magazines, television and radio) that rely on news reporters to keep their target audience interested. 

News reporters usually come in a pair, a reporter and the editor or someone who can do both however these two must work along side each other as both skill sets are required for a regulated newsworthy media story. 

News reporters usually have one genre of writing that they cover however if they work for big monopolies they might have several, for example the BBC is a big monopoly therefore reporters may work in more than one genre. These genres could include crime, politics, sports, business, etc. 

How to become a News reporter

Step 1: Earn a Bachelor's Degree

Employers usually hire newspaper reporters who have achieved a Bachelors degree, usually within Journalism or communications, however you may also get a job if you have a degree if the particular field of study you’re going to base your reporting on, such as business, economics or political science.

Step 2: Complete an Internship

Internships can help aspiring reporters gain hands on experience, they can also help future news reports obtain future employment through networking.

The BBC are one of the UK’s stop news companies, they provide Journalism trainee scheme.

Step 3: Compile a Portfolio

An aspiring news reporter or journalist should have created a portfolio that showcases her or her best work, most employers may want a physical portfolio but in this day and age they are genuinely digitally based, it may depend on the interviewer.

Step 4: Obtain Employment

News reporters may start their career at smaller news organisations in an entry level position such as general assignment reporter. This is to gain as much experience as possible to work their way up to the top.

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Week 8: Samira Ahmed's lecture. Working in Broadcast Journalism

News Watch is a programme that was first launched in October 2004, it was made in response to the Hutton Inquiry and their ambition was to make BBC news more liable for its news stories. The Hutton inquiry was an official review of events in the UK controlled by Lord Hutton. He was selected by the Labour party to look into the incident neighbouring the death of a man named David Kelly, weapons inspector at the United Nations Special Commission in Iraq.

In July 2003, Kelly was found dead, A BBC journalist named Andrew Gillingham had named Kelly as the source of his quotations used in the media reports, this led to a major controversy and this is thought to be why he committed suicide two days later. 

The media reports claimed that the political authorities had deliberately "sexed up" the Iraq intelligence dossier at the heart of the Hutton inquiry.’’(Day, 2013) The BBC were strongly criticised by the general public and Newspapers while the government were released of any wrong doing.

BBC News watch aims to build on the relationship that BBC news has with its audiences and to deal with the feedback from viewers which could be either complaints or suggestions. The BBC broadcasts around 35,000 hours of news on TV and radio and around 100,00 stories on the internet and its digital platforms, so occasionally, it gets things wrong. New watch will publish all of the mistakes of a serious nature across all of the BBCS platforms to try and explain what happened.

In this episode of Newswatch, http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b08kknff/newswatch-31032017 Samira Ahmed reports on complaints from public regarding lack of BBC coverage of the Brexit protests in London. She asks the question ‘Is the BBC playing down the views of unhappy ‘remainers?’ she also states that “There is plenty of complaints that BBC news is far too negative about leaving”.

Skills required to work in broadcast journalism:

Literacy

Investigative skills

Communication 

Organisation and time management

Flexible and Adaptable

observant

Creativity

If you want to pursue a career in broadcast journalism, it will be beneficial to do some volunteering work or apply for a traineeship, BBC and ITV provide traineeship schemes. Its also a good idea to choose a degree in one of the following subjects, it may increase your chances:

journalism;

business;

finance;

economics;

government;

politics.

COMPANIES THAT EMPLOY BROADCAST JOURNALISTS AND WHERE TO FIND CAREERS: 

BBC

ITV

Channel 4

Job sites 

Indeed.co.uk

Reed.co.uk

Totaljobs.com

Monster.co.uk

Bibliography:

Day, J. (2013). Kelly 'said government sexed up Iraq dossier'. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/media/2003/aug/12/bbc.iraqdossier [Accessed 18 Apr. 2017]

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TB2 Week 7 Lecture: Managing a Cinema

 Regent Street Cinema - Independant

Regent street cinema is a repertory cinema known as the ’Birth place’ of British cinema, it has the latest in 4K digital film and is still one of the only remaining cinemas to use 16mm and 35mm film in the UK. it has a capacity of 187 seats and is attached to the University of Westminster. This cinema is known for showing the first moving image by the Lumiere brothers and it was also the first to show an X-rated film.

MULTIPLEX

VUE multiplex are part of The big three (including Cineworld and Odeon), Vue entertainment is part of Vue international which is top three in the worlds dominant cinema providers. “Vue has 85 state of the art cinemas throughout the UK and Ireland, with 813 screens. This includes 265 3D screens, 11 Extreme Screens, 7 Gold Class screens, 3 Scene Screens and Bars and 2 IMAX screens where Vue project every film in Sony Digital Cinema 4K for ultra high definition pictures with four times more detail. With a total of 154,062 seats, 98% of which are stadium seating”. (Myvue.com, 2013)

VUE’S contemporary advancement curriculum has pioneered its way through the UK. Shepherds Bush VUE Westfield and Westfield Stratford city continue to be the most popular in the country.

VUE CINEMA SHEPHERDS BUSH

Located in Westfield London, is a multiplex venue consisting of 17 screens and almost 3,000 seats, 7 of those available in 3D and 2 VUE extreme, All screens are fitted with digital dolby surround sound and operate films in high definition.

Ticket prices

Confectionary Prices 

Popcorn

Small Popcorn £4.85

Medium Popcorn £5.15

Large Popcorn £5.85

Large Sweet Popcorn £5.85

Snacks

Nachos £5.15

Hot Dog £5.85

Beverages

Small Soft Drink £3.85

Medium Soft Drink £4.15

Large Soft Drink £4.85

Regular Frozen Drink £4.85

Bibliography 

Myvue.com. (2013). About Vue Cinemas | The Ultimate Cinema Experience. [online] Available at: https://www.myvue.com/about-vue/about-us [Accessed 18 Apr. 2017].

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TB2 Week 5 Lecture: Getting into the advertising industry

Getting into the advertising industry

The advertising industry is highly competition, it is full of young talent trying to get noticed, the only thing that will make you stand out is your portfolio.

What is thought of as a great portfolios is dependant on the audience, traditional employers still prefer the experience of viewing a physical portfolio however in this contemporary world everyone would benefit from having a online version also.

Advantages of an online portfolio are that it enables you to share your work worldwide to millions of people increasing your chance of recognition and job opportunities, however, you will need to mark your work at copyrighted so it is protected. An online portfolio is also very mobile unlike a big folder of work in the fact you can view it from any device - PC, Mobile, Tablet, Laptop.

A good portfolio should reflect your own artistic ideas and clearly show the type of work you want to be doing, you will attract the right type of jobs that reflect the work in your portfolio. You should include self-initiated projects, they are a great way of showing your creative thought process and what you are capable of, you could include projects such as personal identity, competition entries, exhibitions, magazine, pop-up stores, product range, short films or installations.

COMPETITIONS

Another way of getting into the advertising industry is to enter advertising competitions: these competitions use real advertising briefs.

Examples:

D&AD ‘New Blood’ Awards:

Communication arts

Creative Conscience Awards 2017

You could also contact a senior creative or company that you like and ask them for a brief, this will show your dedication and passion for the industry and the company and if they like your response they may even offer you a job.

THE BIG BREAK INTERNSHIP

Internships are a great way to gain work experience, The WCRS is one of the UK’s top advertising agencies in London, They provide an internship called ‘THE BIG BREAK’, it gives you a 3 month unique insight into the ad industry, you’ll gain hands on experience in Account management, Strategy and project management.

PORTFOLIO ADVICE

Don’t create campaigns only for products with great USPs

Work with a partner;

Put your best work at the beginning and end of your portfolio - This is what is noticed more

Be prepared for conflicting opinions – but reject work that most people don’t like

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Week 4 Lecture: The advertising industry

Advertising is a form of marketing communication using audio or visual platforms to promote or sell a product, service or idea. The idea is to capture the publics attention to something with paid announcements but this is not a requirement. Advertisements can be in many forms such as television, print, internet etc, Advertisements gain consumers by delivering a non-personal message to promote or sell a product.

In order to advertise something you will firstly need a campaign which is an organised course of action to promote the product. Your campaign will be an integrated sequence of related advertisements with a single idea of theme. The campaign will be broadcasted through several media platforms such as TV, Print, Internet etc. It will focus on one theme and one or few brands or products, Before you can create a campaign you will need to create the creative brief which is a combination of a strategy and the concept.

A strategy is a procedure set out to influence and advise a consumer to purchase a product or service, it translates what the advertisement needs to communicate with the consumers effectively, the plan is decided mutually between the client and the advertising agency and then it becomes the creative brief, The brief states the message that the advertisement is going to portray.

Typically includes:

Market background (any market research)

Position of product relative to competitors

Competition

Problem to solve

Key proposition to the consumer (what the advertising needs to communicate)

Reasons to believe the proposition

Target audience (type of person)

The concept

After the strategy has been formed, the ideas and concepts evolve. The copywriter and art director will work together to come up with creative ideas to answer the advertising brief such as unique selling points. The copywriter will be responsible for the words and headlines and the art director will be responsible for the images, layout and artwork.

Problems in marketing

Increasing the market share

Attracting the right type of demographic,

Not knowing your competitors and how you can stand out

Not having a unique selling point

Communicating the right message

Example

Haribo Starmix Advert 2014

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9scm3NCIH_E  (YouTube, 2014)

Haribo is a confectionary company that launched in the UK, in 1995.  The company has worked with the advertising agency Quiet Storm to produce an advertising campaign which has so far consisted of an integrated sequence of 11 advertisements. These advertisements all have a single theme running through out and are focused on different products by Haribo such as StarMix, SupeMix and TangFastics. The running theme is based on the role reversal between adults and children or children interrogating their parents.

List of Haribo adverts

Train 2016

Changing room 2016

Rugby

Halloween

Halloween

The Unexpected Kiss

Boardroom

Cinema

She's Tangfastic

Llittle girl (just too Goods)

Once Upon A Time

Seminar task 

In this weeks seminar we had to build an inclusive marketing strategy and advertising campaign. The advertising had to comply to the strategy I chose. The product we were trying to sell was Lego, my strategy was durability and the slogan was ‘Lifetime of Lego’, the idea was based on the evolution of monkey to man however we chose to show the evolution of the tower of legos and show that the even though man was getting older he still hadn’t lost interest in the product.

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TB2 week 3:New Distribution Models

The purpose of digital distribution of media platforms such as music and film is to bring it into market, by reaching as wider audience as possible. This is accomplished through various types of distribution deals, however due to digital disruption, distribution is forever changing because of new technologies. 

Development appears when brand new digital technologies and business models effect the profit proposal of existing media sources such as film and music. Over years, new technologies such as online streaming and downloading have become increasingly more popular as they are more accessible, this effects the order of distribution and the distribution deals that are made.

A powerful example of digital disruption is how Netflix, Amazon and Hulu plus have disturbed the media and entertainment monopolies by modifying how content is made accessible for consumers and how advertisers make a profit from this. 

The invention of these new streaming websites has decreased the amount of monthly TV subscriptions made to companies like SKY and virgin and DVD sales because viewers can now watch films and TV shows on these news technologies.

BBC iplayer is an online streaming website where viewers can catch up on shows produced by the BBC. You can use the website to catch up on TV shows you missed out on or watch them as they air. This website can be used via your Television or Computer/laptop. To watch live Television in the UK everyone needs to have a TV licence which costs a monthly fee of approx £12 however users would use this website which had access to the BBC’s television shows and news without needing or requiring a licence, since 2016, an additional clause on the TV licence has been added to say you now require a TV licence, even to use this streaming website online. This shows how licensing companies are keeping up with the new technologies as they have adapted their laws so that they aren’t losing out on revenue.

Old and new world distribution

The old world distribution models were governed by hierarchical elite who decided on how films and music were distributed, therefore had all the power. The following table shows how the old world models have changed over time due to digital disruption which has given more control to the filmmakers, lower costs and global distribution.

Hybrid distribution strategies

Hybrid distribution is used as an alternative to the ‘one size fits all’ strategies that are more commonly used. For example, the hybrid strategy allows for splitting your rights amongst distributors while being able to keep the rights to sell downloads and DVDs etc. from your own website. You are free to pick and choose different distribution partners for different aspects of the project that they are best suited for in order to make the most effective distribution.

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TB2 Week 2: Film Distribution

What is film distribution?

Film distribution is the practice of making a film accessible for watching by its selected target audience. A film distributor’s main responsibility is to conclude the marketing strategy of a specific film, they are in charge of setting a release date and how it is to be exhibited. Films can be exhibited directly to the public through a number of different sources, mainly cinema and television. 

A feature film is always the film with the biggest target audience, the film will usually last over 40 minutes to be considered a feature film. This film will usually be the most popular and have the biggest target audience. Before the feature film, the cinema will show movie trailers for upcoming films and paid advertisements. 

Prior to the 1970s, cinemas used "double features”, these were commonly in a better grade, independent theatre would lease these films for a negotiated fee, they would also use a "B picture" which was of a reduced quality rented for a proportion of the gross receipts.

History of independent film distribution

Censorship and distribution

The purpose of Censorship in film distribution is to control free speech, public communication or other information which may be considered offensive to the general public. The rating system is designed to classify films to the suitable audience, this is in terms of issues such as violence, sex, substance abuse, obscene language or other mature content. Films will be issued a rating such as a certification or classification. The BBFC (British board of film Classification) is in charge of the UK’s Motion picture rating system.

http://www.bbfc.co.uk/what-classification/how-does-classification-work

There are three types of film distribution; Formal, Informal and illegal.

Formal distribution is regulated and measured through:

Film Festivals - Sundance, cannes

Multiplex: (Cineworld, Odeon, Vue, Empire, i-MAX) 

Independent cinemas (Regent Street, Electric, The Phoenix) 

DVD’s

Television

Online: Netflix, iTunes, Google Play, YouTube, Game consoles, Streaming, etc.

Distributors 

Walt Disney, 

Warner Bros. 

Sony pictures, 

20th Century fox, 

Universal Studios

Informal film distribution

Unregulated and Unmeasured:

Pirate DVDs

Illegal downloads

Clubs/film societies/Universities/Schools

Independent/specialist retailers

Seminar task

In the seminar task we had to get into groups of 3 and imagine we had made the films Upstream colour and Mr Nice and are seeking funding and a distribution deal for a theatrical release. We had to watch both trailers and discuss ideas with the class and answer a list of questions based on things like social and demographic groups, the marketing of the film, the type of cinema they’d be released in etc.

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Week 1 TB2:Film Exhibition and Programming

The film booker

Film bookers are people who are responsible for getting movies from Hollywood studios to local cinemas, Their main responsibility is to negotiate an exhibition contract with the film distributor on behalf of the cinema owner, the most important term of the contract is the percentage of revenue that the cinema keeps. Film bookers are paid by theatre owners to search out and lease films temporarily from distributors. The film booker has to decide the number of screenings of the film daily and the length of the run (how long the film will be screening for).

Harlow Cineworld (Harvey Centre

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DzfpyUB60YY

Released 17th March 2017

Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams

Jordan Peele(writer)

Horror, Mystery

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXfEc4wG208

Released 17th March 2017

Emma Watson, Dan Stevens

Stephen Chbosky (writer)

Evan Spiliotopoulos  (writer)

Family, Fantasy, Musical

From this table shows that Beauty and the Beast has the most screenings per day, I think this is because of the PG rating making it family friendly which makes it accessible to people of all ages to watch. The film has early screenings and late screenings giving everyone the opportunity to watch the film around schedules.

Logan and Get out have only 5 screenings between both cinemas, this is probably due to the 15 certificate which significantly narrows the margin of the target audience.

The institute of contemporary arts

located on The Mall in London, is a cultural and artistic centre which houses galleries, a Threatre, 2 cinemas, a book shop and a bar. The ICA was founded in 1947 and was intended for artists and writers to have a space where they could discuss and share their ideas outside of the royal academy which was the norm of that time.

ICA Cinema

2 cinema screens

Cinema 1 (185 seats) and Cinema 2 (45 seats). (Ica.art, n.d.)

Daily programme

6 Different films/1 show a day

35mm repertory screening

independant films and film festivals

SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esDKg23kOmk

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esDKg23kOmk, 2017)

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Week 12: Working in Film production

Film production - Assistant Director

What is an Assistant Director?

An Assistant Directors role within a film consists of pursuing day-to-day improvement across the filming production agenda, they also have to arrange logistics, prepare day-to-day call sheets, check cast and crew are following orders, monitor healthy and safety of the crew.

Entry requirement

Experience of the production process and industry network contacts are usually more sort after than qualifications, working your way up the career ladder from a runner or production assistant on set to 3rd or 2nd assistant director. Production courses in media include the practical skills and work placements that may help you get a job as a runner. 

Skills required

Be a leader

Be able motivate others

Organisation and planning skills

Ability to solve problems

Positive attitude

Administrative skills

What you'll do

As an Assistant Director your role will be to support the director by arranging everything on the set. The majority of productions will have a team of Assistant directors, they will always have a 1st, 2nd and maybe more than one 3rd. Each of the assistants will have their own roles. 

The role of the 1st assistant will be in charge of much of the planning on set whilst filming is in progress, They may also be responsible for working with the director to break down the script in order to make a storyboard for the film process.

Salary

Assistant Directors are usually paid a set fee for each project. The rates can vary widely dependant on the project requirements but the (BECTU) has information on the current pay guidelines. 

https://www.bectu.org.uk/home 

(Bectu.org.uk, n.d.)

Working hours, patterns and environment

As an Assistant Directors you will have to be flexible as the role may often include unsociable hours such as evenings and weekends. The hours will also depend on the requirements of the production they are working on but will genuinely be long and irregular. 

A driving license will be required for this role as a lot of work could require you to travel nationally in different TV, film studios or different locations.

Career path and progression

Experience in an Assistant Director role could lead to the following careers:

Director

Production Manager

Producer

Companies to work for

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Week11: Introduction to Music and Film Copyright

Bbc.co.uk. (n.d.). BBC - What is Copyright? - Copyright. [online] Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/copyrightaware/what-is [Accessed 18 Apr. 2017].Intellectual property is something original and unique that an individual has physically created, such as films or music. Your creations are only counted as intellectual property if the content is yours. A script for a film is counted as intellectual property but the ideas for the film does not.

Having intellectual property will prevent “people from stealing or copying the names of your products or brands, your inventions, the design or look of your products, anything that you’ve written, made or produced”. (Gov.uk, n.d.)

Types of intellectual property include:

Copyright

Patents

Designs

Trade marks

Once an idea has been created, copyright is the legal right that will protect your idea against other people using it. The copyright legislation set out by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 provides a set of rules and guidelines about how protected work can be used. It explains the owners rights and the rights of the person/people who want to use the work. “You can do many things with your copyright work including for example copy, change or sell it, share it online or rent it to someone as well as prevent other people from doing those things.” (Bbc.co.uk, n.d.)

If other people want to use copyright work then they will need a licence, “which is a contractual agreement between the copyright owner and the user” (Gov.uk, n.d.) This agreement sets out what the user can or cannot do with the work. The agreement is likely to be based on the rights granted by the copyright law which fall into two categories: Economic rights and Moral rights.

Examples of a copyright licence can be seen under all youtube videos. Youtube needs a licence as it allows easy access to watch videos, upload, like, share and comment on other videos. Youtube uses the ‘Standard youtube licence’, it remains the default setting on all uploads to youtube. Artists also have the opportunities to add their copyright notice as well as download links and social media accounts in the same section, for example you can see ‘© Dave, 2016’ Just above where it states the Licensing agreement.

Music Piracy

convert2mp3.net and YouTube to MP3 Converter are technologies that enable you to convert youtube videos to MP3 files. There is an underlying debate whether this is legal or not. While the technology is completely legal, US law states that it is illegal to download a conversion of a copyrighted work. Youtube also says that ‘stream-ripping’ is a violation of their Terms of Service however they haven’t sued anyone.

http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/2016/10/10/youtube-to-mp3-sites-illegal/

DURATION OF COPYRIGHT

Licensing fees

Copyright Licensing services are a non profit establishments but they do take a percentage of Royalties which covers there costs. For royalties collected in the UK, 25% plus VAT is deducted and for royalties collected from overseas, 15% plus VAT is deducted.

You can claim different types of copyright in a copyright musical framework:

Lyrics 

Melody & composition

moral rights of the composer of the lyrics/music

sound recording and the publishers rights

performers rights in the ‘performance’ of the music

Publishing Rights

Complex layers of copyright subsisting in Film

Artistic e.g. set designs

Dramatic 

Literary e.g. screenplay

Musical

Film and images

Sound Recordings 

Broadcast

Bibliography

Bbc.co.uk. (n.d.). BBC - What is Copyright? - Copyright. [online] Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/copyrightaware/what-is [Accessed 18 Apr. 2017].

Gov.uk. (n.d.). Intellectual property and your work - GOV.UK. [online] Available at: https://www.gov.uk/intellectual-property-an-overview/what-ip-is [Accessed 18 Apr. 2017].

Gov.uk. (n.d.). License, sell or market your copyright material - GOV.UK. [online] Available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/license-sell-or-market-your-copyright-material [Accessed 18 Apr. 2017].

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Week 10: Introduction to ownership models & media dominance

When a company is in power in any market then they can restrict competition, but if they take advantage of their position to the point of eliminating this competition, they would have abused it.

Examples include:

Increasing the prices

Decreasing prices that smaller competitors cant compete with.

Refusing special discounts to customers who buy supplies from superior company.

making the sale of one product conditional on the sale of another product.

As you can see in this pie chart, in UK cinema market share, nearly 75% of the big three (Cineworld, Odeon and Vue) have more control of the market share, showing their dominant position. The other 25% of the market share is made up on other smaller chains such as Empire or other independent cinemas.

Media regulation

Media regulation is the control of mass media, is it controlled by the government or other bodies. Media regulation is set out to preserve public interest, boost competition, building an active media market. Television, Radio and press were the main targets of old media regulation, however now includes film, music and internet and mobile phones. Regulators control the media markets and corporations as well as the content.

Competition & Markets Authority

Promote competition for the benefit of the customers, their objective is to ensure markets work efficiently for customers, businesses and the economy. The CMA is a non-ministerial and independent department that employ around 700 people across Britain daily in their London office. They are responsible for the restriction of competition through investigating mergers, carrying out investigation in markets where there could be problems with competition and consumers, investigating breaches of UK and EU prohibitions, deliver criminal documents against individuals who commit offences, enforcing the consumer will have protection. cooperate with sector regulators, consider regulatory references and appeals. By having competition laws in place this encourages healthy competition that is more equal globally. It restricts the big corporations from abusing their dominance and putting smaller chains and independents out of business.

Horizontal integration

A horizontal integration is made up of companies that merge with a similar company in order to increase its size, diversify its products or services, reduce competition and increase access to new markets and customers, an example of this is when Disney bought Pixar.

Vertical integration

A Vertical integration consists of companies that operate either before or after the purchasing company in the production process in order to strengthen its supply chain and reduces its production costs. they do this by purchasing a company that is on either side of their supply chin process.

Google acquired motorola mobility in a vertical integration.

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THE BRITISH BOARD OF FILM CLASSIFICATION

What is the BBFC?

The BBFC began on the 1st January 1913. it is a designated body which gives them the legal power to to rate, cut, reject or even ask for films  to be re-edited. Their main role is to provide age ratings such as U, PG and 12A. They are also able to age some online material. Their aim is to protect children and filmgoers from harm and illegal material. However the BBFC have no legal authority, The local councils would still have a right not to abide by the boards decisions.

The Cinematograph Act 1909 The parliament of the United Kingdom created the Cinematograph Act in 1909. Its aim was to regulate the UK’s film industry and it had the power to do this as it was the known as the first primary legislation. The act unintentionally provided the legal bases for film censorship, this lead the establishment of British Board of film censors in 1912.

The act was Designed to regulate the licensing of cinema shows for public safety, every cinema in the UK had to be granted with a licence (688 in 1909) from their local council. The council were able to licence cinemas under some restrictions, those being that they were not allowed to be immoral or indecent but gave no formal definition so filmmakers had no way of knowing the size of their potential market, and they never knew if the film would get cut. 

BBFC CERTIFICATES U, suitable for all audiences A, suitable for adults only. H for Horror certificate was introduced in 1933, X certificate being introduced in 1951 making entry possible for the over 16s (upped to the over 18s in 1970). AA for the over 14s was introduced in 1971.

This screen will always be displayed at the cinema before the film starts to play, this is to inform you that the film has been certified by the BBFC and has been given a rating. it was also inform you once again the rating of the film and what audience this is suitable for.

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Regulation & Censorship across the Media Landscape

WHAT IS MEDIA REGULATION?

Media regulation is how governments and other bodies such as Ofcom, ASA and BBFC control and guide mass media content. The main goal of media regulation is to protect the ‘’public interest’’ or to encourage competition within the media market. The media regulation targets different media content such as press, radio and television, film, recorded music, the internet and mobile phones.

The Watershed

The watershed is a form of protection regulated by Ofcom. The Watershed’s main goal is to protect children from harmful material on Tv and Radio. Ofcom has a very strict broadcasting code that sets standards for television and radio shows and every broadcaster must follow its rules. The Watershed means what can be shown on TV before 9pm this is because it needs to be suitable for underage audiences for it to be broadcasted.  

Unsuitable material includes anything from sexual content to violent, graphic or distressing scenes and or fowl language. it must not be broadcasted before the watershed on TV that starts at 9pm because children are likely to be listening or watching before this time. Ofcom always asks parents twice a year, every year and the wider general public what they think about standards on TV, Ofcom quotes that ‘’Almost everyone (93 per cent) understands the watershed and 74 per cent think 9pm is the right time. If you just ask parents, that number rises to 76 per cent.’’

freedom of expression/speech

The British press travel all over the world reporting on the latest world disasters and conflicts, they film and interview citizens that have witnessed horrific atrocities but they have a responsibility to censor the most graphic scenes. This is due to governing bodies such as ofcom, ASA and BBFC having these laws put in place so that they can protect viewers from explicit/graphic content. When watching the news you will never see nudity, deceased or severely injured people which decreases the shock factor which can give you a false sense or idea of what is actually happening in the world. In my opinion, news should not be censored to anyone because I think people of all ages old enough to understand need to know what is happening in the world around them, it is very important to know the truth as if the truth is not entirely told then people become very ignorant and oblivious to current affairs.

Here is a picture from the daily mail showing a young boy being dragged from a bomb attack. This image has censored all the seriously injured people which makes the scene look less terrifying.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3044582/At-30-killed-suicide-bomb-attack-bank-eastern-Afghan-city.html

What should be regulated and What difficulties would Ofcom have with this?

Media such as TV, newspapers, radio etc. are regulated by bodies such as OFCOM. These forms of media have been around for many years and regulations have evolved over time to keep up with society, norms etc. Social Medias such as Youtube, Facebook and Twitter are yet to be regulated, which to a degree goes against the norms of society. For example, a young person can open an account on one of these sites without having to prove their age. They will then have access to adult material at the touch of a button, however the legal age to join Facebook is 13 years yet the level of content shown on Facebook is not suitable, is this right? Youtube has an age restriction and it’ll ask you to log in but theres nothing stopping you from lying about your age.

This goes against current laws where photographic identification would need to be produced in order to purchase adult material such as video games, magazines, DVD that have a 15 or 18 certificate. Some would argue that Social Medias, Facebook and Twitter should be regulated in the same way. The same could be said when purchasing PC, Laptops and mobile phones, although parents can put parental blocks and filters on these devices this is not a law and therefore is not always enforced.

If regulations where put into place regarding these issues then I don’t feel that OFCOM would have many difficulties as this would be a new law installed to move with the times and the new problems faced by today’s society. All media should have regulations especially regarding children and vulnerable people. Here is a music video by Konshens, a Jamaican dance hall artist, the video shows explicit content that is accessible to anyone.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FY4m-mWol4U

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqROP_T5jyM&oref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DfqROP_T5jyM&has_verified=1 Here is an example of a Facebook controversy showing a white police officer shooting a black man for no apparent reason.

Should consideration be given to cultural context?

consideration should be given to discrimination of cultures but not expression of culture, an example of discrimination of culture can be seen in this video Exhibit B: Art That Angered Black Britain : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hyl1NR3FAj0

This video shows a documentary based on Brett Baileys play that represented and reacted a 19th century human zoo. Brett Bailey is a white south African man and has used black south african actors. This play should have been put into consideration due to the historical  racial context behind it. In the slave trade, White south Africans would use black South Africans as slaves and kept them in cages. This play was racially insensitive towards black history and the explicit content would have crossed a moral boundary.

Contemporary levels to tolerance of expression within my culture

The levels of tolerance to Freedom of expression in my culture are how the female body is viewed and represented. As a women I feel that the female body is always looked upon as a sex object, even in contemporary art. I believe that this should change and women should freely be able to express themselves in anyway they want to without being judged and treated like a ‘sex toy’ however this would be hard to achieve In Britain because there is porn every where you look, on the internet, on the top shelve, in sex shops such as ann summers,  you can even rent them from the adult section in blockbusters, it is so easily accessed here whereas in some some other countries the culture is so different and adult content is not as easily exposed. I’ve grown up in England but I have turkish roots and the culture there is so different. Women are expected to be clean and dress in a modest way in order to be respected, they are not supposed to wear anything that shows thighs or cleavage or even their upper arms, Porn in turkey would never be as accessible as it is here and anyone who has filmed pornographic material filmed in an unnatural way will be imprisoned between 1-4 years. Realistically, Turkeys idea of a porno is a romantic comedy.  I feel that the tolerance from these two countries are on either end of the scale and this has effected my views and feelings about my culture, but also has effected my upbringing as each side of my family has different norms and values and both try to teach me differently.

The difference in fashion culture between British women and Turkish women

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Social Media & Music Media

An immersive alternate reality is a very important part of viral marketing and spreadable media. it creates a narrative synchronisation with its players which means they all come together and follow the games instructions. it combines real-world and online experiences to tell a story. Players come together from all around the world and are immersed and seduced by specific marketing techniques. ARG’s are used to promote a brand, film or video game and to create loyal fans. Players usually interact with the game through websites, emails, text messages, newspapers, phone calls, real world events, physical objects. the game becomes immersive when fans look for clues, solve puzzles and work together from all over the world to figure out the ending of the story.

  42 Entertainment for Warner Bros is an immersive entertainment agency, it created the ‘Why so serious?’ campaign which was played out in 75 countries in 2008. The idea was to create a fictional Gotham city and invite Batman fans to become part of it. 42 Entertainment quotes “Our goal was to tell the story of what was happening in Gotham City between [..] ‘Batman Begins’ and [..] ‘The Dark Knight’ . . It struck a chord with the audience’’. For a whole year, players completed different missions from finding cupcakes with cell phones baked into them to posting images at local landmarks with full joker make up. A newspaper lead them further into the world where nothing was safe from the joker, who ever had a joker phone was able to keep in constant contact with ‘Gotham city’ so they could follow the Jokers instructions. Harvey Den even contacted players by phone and email for support. Citizens Marched and protested.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pd74It-yVo

http://42entertainment.com/work/whysoserious

SPREADABLE MEDIA Spreadable media is creating value and meaning in a networked culture, a lot of changes are taking place in this contemporary media environment, corporations no longer control media distributions. Spreadability means to disperse media content widely through both formal and informal networks, some content approved and many unauthorized, it also describes the ways media content travels through social media and how this effects convergence culture; where old and new media clash.

An example of spreadable media is The Weeknd’s ‘Earned it’ for the 50 shades of grey soundtrack. ‘Earned it’ hit number three on Billboard hot 100, it became the weekend's first five top singles. The songs popularity made the fifty shades of grey the latest soundtrack to create existing top-ten singles. The ‘earned it’ music video was directed by the films director  Sam Taylor-Johnson, the video features the films lead actress Dakota Johnson and also features clips from the film and narrates the same BDSM theme. The director Sam Taylor-Johnson said that ‘’The Weeknd's voice is instantly seductive, which fit the film perfectly.’’

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=waU75jdUnYw The Weeknd ‘earned it’ 50 shades of grey soundtrack

PRODUCT PLACEMENT

Product placement is a very effective advertising technique that is used by companies to promote their products. it is usually done through appearances in film, television, music videos or other media. Product placements often begin through an agreement between the product manufacturer and the media company, both parties benefit from this agreement because the product manufacturer gets recognition for their products and the media company will be paid to display or feature the product.

Popular examples of product placement can be seen in Wiz Khalifas ‘See you again’ ft Charlie Puth video. Product placement was integrated into this music video by the use of Levi’s clothing brand and the latest fast and furious 7 film. Music videos are really TV commercials that persuade and seduce through music and images. Product placement can also avoid the advertising standards and regulation that normally occur to traditional commercials. The main sponsor will benefit from a 2 second still or more in a music video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgKAFK5djSk Wiz Khalifa - See You Again ft. Charlie Puth [Official Video] Furious 7 Soundtrack

Product placement can also be seen in UK grime and rap music videos, here is a still from the Section Boyz ‘OI’ music video promoting the clothing brand ‘trap star’, they have also been known to promote well known brands such as Adidas and Puma. Lyrics in the song also promote the brand ‘Trapstar man'a wear Trapstar clothes’. Section boyz are an English Grime group from South London, they come from a background that is associated with words like ‘hood’, ‘ghetto’ and trapstar’, just like Hiphop, UK rap and grime also promotes the same lifestyle. The word ‘trap star’ means someone who excels at selling Drugs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghaW1Rp639I

https://uk.trapstarlondon.com/

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WORKING IN FILM DISTRIBUTION AND EXHIBITION

Film distribution and curation is a highly competitive business, distributers spend around £300 million a year on bringing new movie releases to market. Raising awareness and engagement among its target audiences, distribution deals are an important part of financing a film. Picturehouse entertainment is a distribution company of Picturehouse Cinemas and it is the owner and operator of 23 Picturehouse Cinemas and programming agents for a further 42 venues across the UK. The company was formed in 2010 and it is most known for its high class Bolshoi ballet and National Theatre. Picturehouse Entertainment has worked with British directors such as Shane Meadows and Ben Wheatley. The company has distributed a dynamic range of releases such as the BAFTA winner; The Imposter, award-winning docudrama 20,000 Days on Earth, featuring Nick Cave; 2015 BIFA award winner Dark Horse and many more.

A film curator selects films for suitable screenings i.e. in cinemas, festivals or film archives. The main goal of a film curator is to maintain customer expectations and attract a loyal audience. Clare Binns is the director of programming and acquisitions at Picturehouse Cinemas and Picturehouse Entertainment, she works with a team of 6 programmers each having between 2 or 3 cinemas to manage.

The Barbican Centre is Europe’s largest curated multi arts venue, they organise and curate a diverse range  of film, theatre, art, music, dance and creative learning events. Their film department offers an artistic atmosphere with the curation of film, theatre, festivals, special events and the latest releases. Within the film department they have a special programme that seeks inspiring artists to help create a platform of independent directors, they showcase the work of young artists and filmmakers and collaborate with the Guildhall school of music and drama.

The Barbican’s Theatre 

CINEMA THERAPY AND MEDI-CINEMA

Cinema therapy means to manage medical and mental health by the use of cinema and movies. There are several different types of cinema therapy provided to patients with varying degrees of entertainment and therapeutic value.

Evocative cinema therapy, helps individuals connect with story lines and the movie characters. In the process they "learn about themselves in more profound ways.”

Prescribed films by therapist to help with particular issue/mental health, this is called Cathartic cinema, it helps a person access their emotions and is only used in early signs of depression.

Healing via the medium of going to watch a film at the cinema, this often results in an emotional release and can increase pain threshold, this is what medicinema offers.

Medicinema is an independent charity that relies on the support of the film industry and donors, it is just like any other cinema except that it accommodates for wheelchair users and severely ill patients. Medicinema offers a collective shared experience that brings patients and their families together, it helps patients to forget about their pain for a while and it increases pain threshold. A recent study from researchers at oxford university found that  “Emotional arousal when watching drama increases pain threshold and social bonding”  http://rsos.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/3/9/160288

Mediacinema was founded in 1999, by St Thomas’ hospital by Christine hill, MBE. MEDICAMENT now has 7 cinemas across the UK and has supported over 19,000 patients and their families. Medicinema has many industry partners such as 20th Century fox, warner bros. pictures, walt disney pictures, and universal. They are also supported by other cinemas such as EMPIRE cinemas, VUE, EVERYMAN, DIGITAL CINEMA MEDIA, PEARL AND DEAN and VIVENDI

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Script writing

What is script writing Script writing is a piece of text usually done in the style of drama. It is different from other forms of writing because it is usually intended for performance purposes such as film, TV, radio or the stage. Scripts are writing in such a way that they will sound real when read aloud.

What does a script consist of:

A script consists of:

Fade in

Scene Heading

Characters first appearance

Characters

Action

Transition

Dialogue

These are laid out in a particular way so that the actors and directors know what to say and where to stand. It also sets the scene and gives editing instructions.

Writing a script

When writing a script it is important to write it in the correct format. When writing a TV show script it should be set out in the following way.

Title page should include the title of the Show, your name, contact details as well as your agents contact details.

Font, margins and breaks are important when writing as they allow the readers to differentiate between their parts, their dialogue and also the scene descriptions.

Details about the characters and the settings are helpful as this informs the readers of the action that is taking place, the location, time of day such as whether it is day or night. The characters names should be in capitals above or next to their dialogue.

Making sure you haven’t written too much is key, a script page will usually last about one minute, but there will be some room for maneuver in this. 

Writing a brief outline of the plot will be helpful to the reader as it will give them a sense of the script as a whole. It will also help the writer to stay focused on what their final script will be.  

First drafts are essential; they allow the writer to write the script as a whole and can then be used to filter out any mistakes, side tracking, irrelevant information etc.

Research is always helpful after the writer has written the first draft because they can compare their script to others that are similar, they can also add or take out anything that they feel is necessary.

Maintaining your style of writing ensures that the script remains realistic, using different styles can be confusing and unrealistic to the audience.

Setting the scene in the scripts by detailing locations, times of day and the action taking place etc. gives the overall scene an appealing effect which keeps the audience engaged.

Once a final draft is ready ask a person whose opinion you respect to read the draft and ask for their feedback. The feedback can then be considered as to whether it should be changed or amended.

BROADCASTING The biggest broadcasting channels are BBC ONE, BBC TWO, ITV1, ITV2, CHANNEL 4, E4, MORE 4, SKY1 and SKY ATLANTIC and other streaming services such as netflix, amazon and BBC iPlayer. These channels all broadcast Dramas.  BBC 1 is the most watched channel in Britain and it is known for broadcasting British soap operas such as the on-going Eastenders series that first aired in 1985. The programme airs for 30 minutes every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday between 7:30 or 8:00pm. Eastenders is always shown before the end of the watershed which means that it is suitable for all audiences.

Examples of Eastenders scripts http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/scripts/EastEnders-5015pps.pdf

Film still from Eastenders

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UO77ytykkzM

As part of our seminar activities we had to come up with our own idea for a new drama series. My idea was to create a sitcom based up-north in a hotel. The main character would be a Mexican named ‘Pedro’ or something very stereotypically Mexican. The story is about how he moved to England and got a job in the hotel as cleaning or room service staff. Because of the higher vote for Brexit which took place up north we thought that it was be extra funny if the story line was based around the racial conflict between customers and the main character. Guest speaker Alan Swift said that ‘it sounds like the series faulty towers’ however I had never heard of this programme before.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jcEws7il4EY