QUESTION 5

What kind of media institution might distribute your media

product? And why?

A production company is in control of filming all the shots, from start to the end, while at the same time managing costs of various aspects such as costumes, the set, and other legal requirements. A distributor is a company that is responsible for marketing the film i.e. trailers, posters, and merchandise - to generate an audience. I think that an independent company is likely to distribute my film as some ideas shown are reminiscent of ideas that would be conveyed in a lower budget, independent film. For example I used a low costing digital camera to film my product with, and I also used sounds from online websites rather than creating my own in a studio. I also feel that because my main actor is a little boy, a more niche audience would be required to watch the film, as not many people would agree with the views presented about him.

This could be due to the fact that children aren’t usually seen as playing a character associated with crime and therefore the audience may be shocked by the character portrayal and therefore not agree with it. I feel that also as I am an unknown director, my film is less likely to be distributed by a conglomerate film company as they are usually directed by large, successful directors. Also, my film would be more likely to be distributed by an independent company due to the fact that you can have as much creative freedom as you want. This freedom is exhibited through the film Tyrannosaur, in which a man kicks his dog to death as a result of drinking too much. These ideas would not usually be portrayed in a film produced by a conglomerate as they are too controversial, and do not follow the hegemonic viewpoint, or follow Maslow's Hierarchy. Therefore, because I have subverted various ideologies (such as the main protagonist being a young child) it would be harder for a large conglomerate to distribute my film because they usually contain common ideologies that everyone (if not most people) will agree with and understand. I think that initially my film would have to be shown at a film festival to gain money needed for distribution.

As I only have a small budget, I would need my film to be distributed on various platforms to help make back all of the money spent and to help maximize profit. For example the film Submarine was shown at various film festivals such as Toronto International Film Festival, London Film Festival and Sundance Film Festival. I would use this method of showing my film at a film festival as you are guaranteed an audience, and it is a good marketing scheme to generate a positive buzz for the film (should people like it). My film would be suitable for a film festival as it contains quite unique ideas/ ideologies, which is good as these are the main types of films shown at film festivals like Sundance for example.

I think that a company who could distribute my film could be Coffee Films, who are a British independent company, mainly specialising in the thriller genre. The evidence from my product that can classify it as a thriller are the fact that it contains iconographies such as having a protagonist and an antagonist, having the music build to a crescendo to raise tensions, having the plot set in a town/city, and having shadows/ reflections of the antagonist so that his character isn't revealed right at the start. Coffee Films have a very niche audience, and have produced films such as 'Lucid' and 'Silence Amplified'. These are both psychological thrillers, which was the sub-genre I initially planned my thriller to fit into.

Coffee Films also distribute their films straight into (independent) cinemas, this could be a successful method to use for the distribution of my film - after my film had been shown at various film festivals. However, because my film is quite unique, I feel that it would be more appropriate to distribute it online — possibly for a small fee, to fit with the modern as well as niche audience that could be created from watching my film. This would be effective in generating a profit as my target audience are quite young 17-31 and this is the age category that is most likely to stream a film online, rather than going to the cinema.

Coffee Films use a collection of cheap Hi-8 consumer camcorders to produce their film meaning that they produce very low budget films, therefore making it a suitable company for my film as I used a fairly cheap camcorder to film my thriller.

Also, because Coffee Films has an official partner deal with 'DailyMotion' it would be easy to distribute to a range of websites online to an appropriate audience, as the age range (around 17-31) of the typical users of these websites fit my target audience, which is approx 17-31. The website DailyMotion allows people to upload their creative content freely, therefore it would be easy for my film to be distributed and to gain an audience, and then therefore sustain more profit.