Case Studies: I, Daniel Blake and Straight Outta Compton

Case Studies: I, Daniel Blake and Straight Outta Compton

"Distribution is the key to success for any media industry" - How have digital technologies affected the ways in which films are produced and distributed?

Underline key points

Knee Jerk reaction

Plan

DAC

Paragraphing

Distribution refers to the ways in which media products are shared and given out to their intended target audience. Distribution is absolutely vital to the financial success of the film, and this is made increasingly more so by advances in digital technology.

Specialised Industry

Digital Convergence

Social Media

Conglomeration

Regulation 

Production

Advertising

Merchandise 

Legendary ( Producer ) and Universal ( Distribution )

Convergence and Synergy

BBFC

Genre theory and building a target audience

Stardom and Celebrity

Stereotypes

Power and Media Industries - Curran and Seaton

Regulation - Sonia Livingstone and Peter Lunt

Cultural Industries - David Hesmondhalgh 

Horizontal, Vertical Integration and Multimedia Integration 

Regulation - Media regulation is the control or guidance of mass media by governments and other bodies. This regulation, via law, rules or procedures, can have various goals, for example, intervention to protect a stated "public interest", or encouraging competition and an effective media market, or establishing common technical standards.

British Board of Film Classification - The BBFC is the UK’s regulator of film and video, providing age ratings such as U, PG and 12A. They are a designated body so have legal powers to rate, and sometimes cut or even reject works.

Traditional marketing refers to trailers, teasers, posters, billboards
Websites are interactive, very visual, links to social media.
Social Marketing- creating social media pages for characters etc
Viral Marketing Campaign - Blair witch - a website was made to make it look like a real myth and that was currently being investigated. People believe the teens had really gone missing,
Press Marketing - allowing the press access to your set or pre-made images of characters etc, will encourage them to make the main feature from a film or even a cover.
Pr Stunts- a globally popular event watched by millions, opens with James Bond and the Queen entering the stadium, unexpected. Word of mouth.
Fan Created Marketing. Could be through their own websites, forums, twitter feeds or Facebook pages, fan fiction, fan-made merch, fan-made posters.  e.g reworkingtitles.tumblr.com

Straight outta Compton

Racial Profiling is key in the song 'Fuck the Police' by N.W.A, (Racial profiling is a judgement based on race/skin colour). The solution is given by the N.W.A is to kill the police. Skits are used throughout the song to impersonate a white police officer arresting, but at the end of the song, the police officer was dragged off to court for racial profiling. The song highlights key issues with gun law.

  Reappropriation is taking ownership of a word. 

Straight outta Compton was produced by Legendary Pictures, who entered into a partnership with Universal Pictures in 2014. It is essential to note the film was made and distributed by a major, vertically integrated film studio that is part of a media conglomerate is significant in terms of funding, possibilities for cross-promotion and reaching a global audience.

Theatrical trailer is viewed 7.5 million times, with the potential to be shared on social media.
Ties in to themes of police brutality, especially the black lives matter movement. Iconography of the trailer with images of riots and police conflicts capitalised on this.
Traditional forms of marketing including billboards, posters, trailers and magazine adverts
Film later distributed on Netflix, with a vast potential multinational audience. 
Fan edits and memes created from the Straight Outta Compton logo, which itself was based on a Parental Advisory Sticker
BBFC 15 certificate, very strong language, violence, sex and drugs. Use of very strong language limits potential audience, yet the film was recut to avoid an 18 certificate.
The extended directors cut rated 18, where regulation issues less likely to effect sales. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oyoew4T74_w

The point of a trailer is to build hype and sell the film. The film is a biopic on the life of the members of the N.W.A. The trailer glosses over swearing and leaves out some bits of narrative. This creates a hermeneutic code to make you want to see the film. The trailer DOES NOT have a voice-over; it uses the characters speech to introduce themselves and everyone else. There is also the absence of a release date and the names of the actors portraying the characters. The film is majority-black cast, which is sadly strange for a big-Hollywood blockbuster.

During the past two weeks, leading up to Aug. 14  2015 , the release of Straight Outta Compton, he got his answer: The efforts of the four companies resulted in several attention-getting plays: When UFC champ Ronda Rousey knocked out Bethe Correia in 34 seconds on Aug. 1, the Straight Outta Compton label was right below her on the mat; there was an ad for the film that played during the first Republican presidential debate on Aug. 6; the "Straight Outta Somewhere" meme went viral with nearly 6 million personalized labels being shared on the Internet; and the word "Compton" was literally painted over the skies of Los Angeles.

I, Daniel Blake

Official Website: Discounted cinema tickets for the target demographic ( Working Class )

Low Production values and budget, targeting a middle class and socially conscious audience

Traditional methods of distribution. Premiered in Cannes, and then sold to the distributor 

( eOne ) for UK distribution

Production : financed by BFI, BBC, Wild Bunch, Canal Plus

Distributed in France under the title Moi, Daniel Blake

An independent film created through the collaboration of many international financiers

Traditional theatrical trailer, which was also distributed digitally 

adverting comp 1 section B revision Q

How do adverts you have studied appeal to a range of specialised and generalised audiences? (12 marker)

Water Aid

Tide soap

(kiss of the Vampire will not come up in Comp 2 section B)

1. knee jerk reaction 
2. Plan
3. DAC (definition, argument, context)
4. paragraphs 

Primarily the advert I have studied target a generalised audiences, through there are some concessions to more niche audiences 

Sociaohpistorical context

representation of women

mise-en-scene

Ideology

Binary opposition

reception theory (readings, Stuart Hall)

cultivation theory (George Gerbner) 

stereotypes 1950s

Fem theories 

Narrative

Pick and mix (Gauntlet)

Demographics 

Tide Soap

First impressions:

-Bright colourful and eye-catching

-old fashioned maybe 50s

-cartoon imagery and text

-feminine: curvy title, little hearts

-very wordy maybe in a magazine 

- too happy; ubiquitous (all the time) smile

-body language hugging the box 

-ad within an ad?

-not a single man in sight

-specific address with “you women”

Context:

-launched in 1946 in America, still a product today

-used print and radio adverts to build up familiarity with brand

-the main character is the housewife and became a popular icon

-the word ‘White’ is used almost in a racial way, all characters are white

-the words ‘you women’ creates community for women and gives them a sense of comradeship

-the use of superlatives ‘cleanest, whitest, brightest’ \hyperbole (very over the top language) ‘miracle’ 

-the lexis creates the ‘best product’ vibe

-the ‘sudsing whizz’ gives informality and women to women friendliness

Water Aid

Context- The charity water aid was established in 2008 asa response to a UN compassion for clean water, sanitation and water hygiene education.

dominate ideology/ preferred response: audience feels sympathy and believe that all kids in Africa need water (audience is British) give money and donate  

oppositional response: reading through that ad and not believing in the stereo type presented (entire country shown as poor)) romanticised poverty. presented Africa as a single country when its contains lots of country's, songs in English not in home language  

TIDE SOAP

• Close up of women hugging soap packet is connative of love and romance which indicates and reinforces the ideological persecutive that women should be housewives. 
• Reinforces hegemonic beliefs and ideologies, allowing it to appeal to target mainstream audiences. The mise-en-scene of the makeup further enforces this view as it connotes a stereotypical representation of women
• Audience are positioned in a friendly and relatable manner through the costume of the housewife. The symbolic connotations of the colour red appeals to audience through reference to the romance genre, specifically targeting middle aged, female house wifes most likely working class.
• Direct mode of address directly involves the audience alongside the comic book panel reinforces the adverts mainstream market potential 
• However by appealing exclusively to a working class audience, especially with the exclusive lexis 'no wonder you women buy tide more than any other washday product'. This additionally entirely admits men which is appropriate for the 1950s sociohistorical context of the advert.

WATERAID

• Appeals to a mainstream audience through the mise-en-scene of the establishing shot, an instantly relatable image of a drab rainy, British day from the interoir of a middle class house. Immediately afterwards a hard cut establishes the central Africa setting, positioning audiences in an escapist fantasy equaling a binary opposition between wet England and dry Africa.
• The diegetic sound of the radio is an intertextual reference further anchoring the white audience in their role. 
• The third shot, a low angled tracking shot of a young black woman positioned us with Claudia which is further anchorged by the sow and gental paced editing to sympathise with her. By following her journey to the water the audince feels the need to accompany/help her in her need. 
• Post colonial theory: Paul Gilroy, the choice is made to represent a small and rural representation of African community, tapping into the idea of the white audience being the 'saviour' and hero in the narrative.

advertising comp 1 section A revision Q

In what ways do these adverts create meaning?

Make reference to intertextuality, view points, ideology and media language 

Water Aid Claudia 

NHS- Quit Smocking 

1. knee jerk reaction 
2. Plan
3. DAC (definition, argument, context)
4. paragraphs 

subverts the normal conventions of charity adverts by showing the after effects of donating (cleaning running water and a happy community) 

Uses the conventions of a horror film to enforce the damage of smoking and allow the audience to visualise the effects on their bodies 

(it would be easier to argue that the Wateraid add is not guilt tripping and that the smoking advert is for comparison purposes)

binary opposition positive vs negative

shot types

mise-en-scene

music diegetic and non diegetic sound

semiotic codes

colour grading

setting

representation of characters

montage elements

genre conventions

stereotypes

D: Intertextually is where one media product references another in order to create meaning for the audience. This allows the  producer the opportunity to further demonstrate their ideology.

A: The NHS advert uses the conventions of a horror film to enforce the damage of smoking and allow the audience to visualise the effects on their bodies while the Water Aid advert raises awareness through hopeful conventions and a subversively positive outlook. 

C: Water aid is a long established charity which focus on providing water to developing countries

Water aid
intertextuality, view points, ideology and media language 

media language - 
establishing shot of a steytepical representation of Brition from the point of view of inside the house looking out at the rainy weather. Use of lowkey lighting and the mise-en-scene of the rain hitting the window pain, allowing British middle class audiences to identify with the setting. Immediately cut to to another establishing shot of a dusty, yellow field in Africa creating a powerful binary opposition. This emphasise the lack of water in African countries in comparison to the target audience taking it for granted. 

The non-diegic musical soundtrack of the child, 'Claudia' singing presents a positive and realistic/relatable atmosphere. Clauida sings in English and sings a cover of the Bristih pop song 'Sunshine on a rainy day'. This means the audience would relate and recognise the tune demonstating the producer is targeting a large and mainstream audience. 

The use of close and tracking shots positions the audience with Claudia, following her on her journey to get water, frequent cuts to POV shots prevents the advert from being voyeristic. 

view points and ideology- 

The Anchorage of the optimistic soundtrack demonstrates to the audience the proffered reading. However is could be taken as patronising and irritating. 

The ad subverts the conventions of a normal charity appeal for example it shows the children laughing and being joyful over the ater tap, depicting the outcome of water the audience donations can achieve. Slow mo cinematography around the flowing water 

NHS
intertextuality, view points, ideology and media language 

view points and ideology-  
Establishing shot of steeytypical working class British household. The colour is washed out and demonstrated connoting misery, poverty and depression. A far cry from the glamorous representation of smocking in old films. 

Cultivation of the idea that smoking is bad by casting a hegemonically and stereotypically unattractive (although relatable) man in the central role. This explicitly targets a working class audience  

media language -

Extreme close up of cigarette and low key lighting combine to make reference to the horror genre. This combined with the mis-en-scen of fleshy cigarette functions as a proatic code suggesting the death of the male, working class protagonist protagonist. 

A lack of non-diagtic sound emphasise the boring and dull everyday life which builds to a subtle crescendo creating tension and symbolising bad outcomes 

To what extent do Zoella and Attitude reflect the social and historical context of the time when they were made? [30]

Social:

1. Interaction with brand/producer via social media/comment sections 
2. fandom- creates a community and a cult following plus Identity (pick and mix)
3. Escapism!! 

Historical:

1. new age of advertising- influences feeling more real than models (hyper reality)- Panorama documentary
2. Layout of website 2.0 white background and clean boxed in sections with clear labeling and san serif font 
3. Click bait and thumb nails 

Zoella: started making videos from 2009

1. Target audience young teenage girls conforms to female stereotypes- face full of makeup, obsesses over candles and puppies etc, subverts stereotypes- sexless in attitude, presentation and content (male gaze)
2. June favorites 2016- 1.8Mil views (editing) presenting products that over all come to over £400 'a small haul' plus 'Fuck Zoella' tweet (pick and mix and end of audince)
3. Zoellas tweets from 2009 calling someone a slag and a chav going aginst her presented ideology (fake news?)

Attitude Online: started in 2014 (magazine 1994)

1. target audience gay men specifically 20-30 (talk pink pound) includes multiple explicit images of topless men (not all gay celebrities) 
2. Tabloid feel compare with The Daily Mirror  
3. Dec 2017 subversive attitude cover with member of the Scissor Sisters (representation) 

Talk about:

Moderation 

Commodity fetishism 

Anchorage 

Synergy (online, print, products...)

lack of Black people represented

hyper modality 

To what extent do Zoella and Attitude reflect the social and historical context of the time when they were made? [30]

Both Zoella online and Attitude online are examples of hyper modality presenting hyper real worlds for their audiences which reflect the social need of our time for escapism. The ideology in both is stereotypical of the producer and targets a very specific audience, this therefore reinforces the fact that as the consumers need guidance. 

The layout of both websites 2.0 white background and clean boxed in sections with clear labeling and san serif font highlights their 'modern' audience however the two differ in ways such as advertising. With in Attitude Online there are various side bar adverts promoting gay cruises or party holidays. This reinforces the onlines presentation of gay men as it is assumed that they would be subjects of interests and taps into the idea of the 'pink pound' and that gay couples would have more money to spend on luxuries. We could apply Stewart Halls theory of representation on this as well as the adverts the clickbait additionally adds to this. However with in Zoellas website there are no clear advertisements and the only images are the thumb nails of the sections which in a simple attractive way present to the audience what the section is about. This look is likewise imitated on her youtube channel. The mise-en-scen of her thumb nails userly being her, center frame in a clean and pastel coloured bedroom, head tilted to the side emphasising her makeup and looking directly out to the audience for example her 2016 June favourites video. This depicts a very girlish, soft femenim friendly feel which successfully catches her target audiences attention (13-16 year old girls).  

This lack of explicit advertising on Zoellas channel, social media platforms and website raises many issues with products being promoted unknowingly. Many 'Influencers' have come under fire for promoting products without making it clear to their fans that they are being paid to do so. This totally reflects the social and historical context our time and became apparent very recently through the documentary 'Panaram' on the BBC. Comapines really on celebrities cult followings and fandoms and it has proven that many people would really far more on a video of someone they watch on tv recommending them a product that a glossy advertisement in a magazine. This is a perfect example of both henry Jekins fandom theory and Jean Baudrillard Post Modernism capturing the idea that the audience will believe whole heartedly that these people are more trust worthy. 

In contrast to Jenkins fandom theory in Clay Shirkys end of audience theory. She presents the idea that the audience is no longer passive and have been given the reasouces to respond. On the Attitude website unlike other newspapers online there is no comment section as unfornutly it is assumed that the website would be too much of a target to homophobic trolls. On the other hand both on Zoella Youtube channel and her website the comment section is over flowing with fans praising her lifestyle. The site however is not moderated as for example user named 'fuck zoella' comments abuse at the influencer accusing her of promoting a 'small haul worth over £400' and being a 'privileged bitch' This is an example of a totally oppositional reading. 

Attitude the magazine began in 1994 however it did not go online till 2014. This seems rather late however it can be assumed that the magazine did not feel the need to go digital until this time. We can also state that the online version offers a diffrent look to the paper back. Indeed it to could be directly compared to a redtop paper or like the Daily Mirror online with an almost side bar of shame and its gossipy and celebrity based headlines. It is also apparent that there is a lack of diversity on the website. On the tab labled BOYS there are multiple explicit images of half naked men majority being white and a couple mixed race. Paul Gilroy theory of Post Colonialism could connote to this lack of black people being represented and this brings forward the historical issues and questions the websites ideology or what they think the consumer would like to see. On the other hand the magazine is known to subvert its views and divide its readership. In its 2017 December issue the cover image was of a member of the Scissor Sisters in a camp pose wearing a grungy army jacket, red nail paint and heavy dark eye makeup. This mixed symbolism of the femenuim nail varnish combined with the aggressive outfit reinforced by the singers facial expression presently a new idea of what a gay man can look like and differs dramatically from what the website puts forward. Therefore this subverts the social context.....

Commodity fetishism has become more and more relevant in this digital age. Zoellas own brand highlights this trend effectively placing as much emphasis on the packaging her candles come in as well as the candle itself. This can been seen in her videos of her explaining and reviewing her own line of products in her videos. 

    

Attitude Audience

AUDIENCE

ACCORDING TO THE PRESS PACK:

Attitudes audience are 20-30 male, gay and middle class and are professionals  

saved money by not having children and spend their money on technology  

How does Attitude construct its audience? 

Examples of commodity fetishism and aspirational 

Also instructing the community in what to wear to present their sexuality 

Assumed knowledge the audience will know about fashion (SS and AW)

Basically constructs a gay mans taste

How does Zoella construct her audince?

creates a perfect aspirational hyper real utopia world that younger girls want to emulate and indulge in

Difference between website and magazine.....

WEBSITE:
simplistic ideology
aimed at a more working class audience
fits to stereotypes (not subversive) 
   



Comparison between The daily mirror online vs Attitude online, not that much difference!

There is no option to comment on the attitude website as it would be a massive target for abuses and homophobia 

Both Attitude and Zoella manipulate their target audience through using reductive and simplistic representations for the sole purpose of profit




Use web 2.0 (clean attractive website)
Thumb nails 
Menu bar so easy access to where to go
Social Media eg. fb, Instagram, twitter 
APP
You can subscribe
Able to get in touch 
digital download (PDF £5)
related adverts 

Is Attitude positive? 

Are stereotypes positive? 

Can we really interact with it?

Clay Shirky argues that digital technology has allowed the world to become more demographic and that we have more say and space to argue and present our opoion  

Is the audience actually dead? or are we juts being fans and not producers 

Rather than being the producers we are distributors as we act on free advertising by retweeting, sharing, liking on social media 

Attitude is a traditional online magazines as it conforms to the old media way of purely being read