Fish Tank 2009

By Sophie Bennett

Research:• Fish tank is a British film.

• Release date: 11th September 2009

• Stars: Katie Jarvis, Michael Fassbender, Kierston

Wareing ect.

• 2 screens in America, 47 in UK.

• Genre: Drama.

• Locations: Barking, Dagenham, Havering,

Stanford, Tilbury & Tower Hamlets.

• Awards: Fish tank won 20 awards, one being

British best film & had 22 nominations.

Audience: • Classification: 15 years of age, due to use of

strong language.

• Target audience: 35-40 year olds (critics)

• Fish Tank doesn't’t appeal to a worldwide

audience (such as America) due to people from

other countries not being to relate to the

situation because people do not know about

the estate side of London.

Film makers:

• Director & Writer: Andrea Arnold

• Producers: Kess Kassander & Nick Laws

• Composer: Phonso Martin

• Cinematographer: Robbie Ryan

• Editor: Nicolas Chaudeurge

• Casting Director: Jill Trevellick

• Production Designer: Helen Scott

Storyline:

• Mia, an aggressive fifteen-year-old girl, lives on

an Essex estate with her tarty mother, Joanne,

and precocious little sister Tyler. She has been

thrown out of school and is awaiting admission

to a referrals unit and spends her days

aimlessly. She begins an uneasy friendship with

Joanne's slick boyfriend, Connor, who

encourages her one interest, dancing.

Revenue:

• Budget: $3, 000, 000

• Domestic box office gross: $374, 657

• International box office gross: $5,

547, 617

• Worldwide box office gross: $5, 922,

292

• Profit: $2, 922, 292

Production Companies:

Distributors: • Artificial Eye

• Cineart

• MK2 Diffusion

• Nutopia

Entertainment

• Syrena Films

• Alta Films

• Canana Films

• Film 1

• ICF Films

• Mongrel Media

• SP Films

Technical Specifications:

• Camera: Arriflex 35 IIC, Panavision

Primo Lenses Panavision Panaflex

Millennium XL, Panavision Primo Lenses.

• Runtime: 123 minutes.

• Sound mix: Dolby Digital.

• Fish Tank is in colour.

Marketing: • Fish Tank used film festivals to advertise there film.

• The trailer was also a way of marketing.

• Online websites were used for a wider range of

advertising.

• Posters were also used for advertising. For example: as

seen below…

Social Realism: • Social realism is a genre of film. This specific

genre focuses on issues such as: drugs, money,

alcohol, dysfunctional families & prostitution ect

that are in modern society. Social realism also

uses the theme of class, religion & political views.

• Fish Tank explores the theme of dysfunctional

families and alcohol within the genre of social

realism throughout.

Issued raised with national and local

audiences:

• Fish Tank:

• Four weddings & a funeral:

• Avatar:

Fish Tank issues:

• Due to the film ‘Fish Tank’ having unknown actors the audience

would be smaller & it would be hard to have a national audience

because people will not know the actors therefore they will not have

their own fan base (like American, Hollywood films).

• The genre of social realism is portrayed throughout the film ‘Fish

Tank’ therefore it would not appeal to other countries outside of

London because the estate side of London is not known. For

example: Americans wouldn’t know about conditions in east London.

• For ‘Fish Tank’ the location is in east London (Tilbury). This is clearly

shown through the film as it shows the Thames & Queen Elizabeth

bridge, therefore the location could not be anywhere else but

London.

Four weddings & a funeral issues:

• The film Four weddings and a funeral was focused on middle class

people, therefore it had a bigger audience than the film Fish Tank

as it appealed more to national audiences.

• One issue raised about this film was the name ‘Four weddings and

a funeral’.

• Due to the film being about weddings, everyone can relate to the

film, instantly gaining a bigger audience.

• Four weddings and a funeral also had more well known stars in the

film, for example: Hugh Grant, Andie MacDowell & Rowan Atkinson

ect. Meaning that people who like these actors/actresses will be

attracted to watching the film as they already have their own fan

base, where as the film Fish Tank used unknown actors/actresses.

Avatar Issues:• Avatar is an American, Hollywood film therefore it has a huge

national audience. The film appeals to people worldwide.

• Due to avatar having a big budget they was able to

advertise/market their film in the best ways to create a bigger

audience for the film.

• Avatar also uses well known actors/actresses, for example:

Sigourney Weaver & Sam Worthington. Which creates a bigger

audience for the film itself.

• Generally Avatar has a massively bigger audience than Fish

tank and Four weddings & a funeral due to it being an American

film because British films cannot compete with Hollywood films

as British films do not have a big enough budget.