Notes

"Film censorship is motivated by fears about audiences and technologies"

Piracy is not good technological wise and doesn't benefit the audience as it cannot be money back guarantee 

Pirated movies does not have certificate

Record shows u want to watch again rather than pirating

Film piracy became more common as VHS tapes became available to the public

Film censorship is recognisable by the icons and gives the audience an idea about what is in the movie- violence, sexual, swear words. 

 

Film censorship is made so that audience are not affected by it if not mature enough as it could be seen as inspirational 

Laws set against supplying minors with high age certificate films (12-18) 

Censorship was when things were cut out that no one should see

Restriction is when parts were cut out to allow to show to a wider audience.

BBFC follows guidelines for the release certificate they decide for new films

Things that were cut out were things like rape, graphic violence, explicit sexual scenes which was decided by government and pressure groups.

Censorship is there so that it doesn't affect people to a degree that they would act upon it 

Very few people had seen the film who were video nasties 

Conservative party of the government were protectig the people as they were worried of the affect it would have over everyone - nanny state 

To show they have control over us

Moral panic

Scapegoats: Clockwork orange, .......

What factors led to the decline of town or city centre cinemas in the late 1970's and early 1980's?

Introduction
A combination of factors led to the decline in town and city centre cinemas but there are three main pointers: technological, economical and social reasons.

Teenagers have disposable income so have money to spend with friend through a socialising environment such as cinemas and due to the multiplex cinemas being built in shopping centres that are easily accessible through the motorway and have more attractions such as restaurants, arcades  and shops mean that a day outing can be planned around the entertainment available.

The development of VFX that was first displayed in Star Wars led to the making of the Industrial Light and Magic company founded by George Lucas and Steven Spielberg. 

Multiplex cinemas replace flea pits due to the beneficial income because of the variety of films that will be advertised meaning a greater audience is brought to increase their revenue. 

Production

Spectacle films are now being produced due to VFX and the formulaic value that they know will sell to the audience- Star Wars was produced in 1975 which changed the course of cinema down this avenue leading to more films such as E.T that conformed to the science fiction genre which was now a huge hit with the teenage audience. However due to the mass of the teenage audience that brought in majority of the ratings, it also brought in new types of films such as the disco era that was brought about making films such as Saturday night fever in 1977 which was to reassure the fact they would continue bringing this audience in.

Distribution 

Piracy meant that American film studios were getting less revenue from the blockbusters being churned out which means they cannot afford to take a risk with a new creative idea for a film meaning the same formulaic films year in year out are being produced. This meant that American film studios had to cooperate with the new consuming preference of the audiences through the internet which led to the creation of Netflix and hulu so that people could watch movies online but still get money out of the audiences.

Exhibition
People were intrigued by the new all around better experience in the multiplex cinemas that they would pay slightly more money for, in comparison to the dilapidated flea pits. Due to the fact they were located in a shopping centre meant there were many more things to do within walking distance of the cinema- this meant people went on a 'day out', taking it for granted rather than saving up and treating it as a special occasion like the older generations usually do. this meant that the american film studios were making many films to keep the revenue and ratings flowing into the cinema.

production

Social.
In 1972 the first blockbuster was released called 'The Godfather' that focused upon the characters and the storyline which meant the narrative was the vital part of the film; this shows that before the hype of star wars and multiplex cinemas, the films were well scripted and thought through- even though they used the Stars as a way to draw in the demographic the films were a lot better.











When the ratings went down during the recession of the early 1970's it meant that american film studios were creating a film that would bring back the ratings- this is when they produced and released Jaws in 1975 that had such a hype over the shark that it pre-made an audience that all went to see it when the film was released meaning the ratings skyrocketed due to this and brought the balance back to cinemas.

With blockbusters becoming popular because of the spectacle within new films, Star Wars was made which was style over substance; the demographic gradually moved away from flee pits into the multiplex cinemas that came about in the early 1980's and presented a new exciting and better experience for the audience. This proves that the production of films became formulaic after the invention of the multiplex cinema due to the fact that the american film studios needed to roll out more films to fill the screens which therefore guaranteed an increase in the social groups filling up the cinemas.

Technological.

People wanted to see spectacle, and so films such as Star Wars used lots of special effects to create these spectacles such as space ships, laser guns and holograms, which were all made by ILM, who then inspired future blockbusters such as ET. 

The Godfather was also a blockbuster, however it was not as formulaic as Star Wars and ET, and it used A-list stars to attract and audience, rather than special effects.



Special effects in Star Wars

Special effects in ET

A-List Stars in The GodFather

Economical.

Economic
Jaws was the first ever blockbuster, it was also an event movie due to all the hype it received, making a lot of money in return. The Hollywood film industry saw this as a ultimate success and then went on to make nothing but blockbusters so that they have guaranteed revenue.

imdb data base (Jaws bugdet/gross)

 Godfather was also a blockbuster but which received a large revenue but also boasted a sizeable budget because of its "A list" actors.

imdb database (godfather budget/gross)

Notes

PDE

Production- how they make the film

Distribution- how they get it to cinemas + marketing

Exhibition- sales, revenue from advertising - which films are shown, where and experience

Films are formulaic- effects etc 

Box office focused on revenue 

Box office figures skyrocketed meaning cinema attendance increased dramatically 

Write 35 minute timed essay answering question: what factors led to the decline of the town or city centres....

VFX/ technology- Star Wars meant people went to multiplex cinemas

Massively marketed- jaws

E.T first VCR released and hugely pirated 

godfather was a blockbuster counterpoint 

Hollywood film studio was the reason for multiplex cinemas to make money and advertise their own films 

Big recession in 70's meaning decrease in cinema attendance 

George Lucas and Steven Spielberg made industrial light and magic 

1. Milton keys in Birminghamshire 1983 was the first multiplex cinema to be built

2. The cinema attendance was low at this time which is why the multiplexes were invested in and built in the UK to advertise the blockbusters

3. Saturday night fever in 1977, Jaws in 1975, Star Wars 1977, E.T 1982

4. Built on the upper floor of shopping centres near the motorway so easy access to the destination also had other attraction such as restaurants and shops to draw in the numbers

5. People were intrigued by new and exciting experience at the multiplex cinema with the illusion of choice meaning flea pits were discarded as the old ways. 

6. Better sounds and audio quality, free parking, more of a variety meaning there were more screens meaning more seats meaning more people meaning more money for film distributors

7. Tv was invented meaning fashionability of stay at home came around and invention of VCR meaning people could watch films at home, recession affected what people could do due to lack of income. 

Illusion of choice

Production 

Test screenings

Film lab

VFX studio 

Legal contracting

Producer/ writer

Artists and designers

Distribution

Marketing

Youtube/ vimeo

Cable/ satellite TV

Distributor

Web distributor

Exhibition

DVD

Merchandising

Film sub service

Multiplex cinemas

What social, economic & technological context gave rise to the blockbuster film from 1975-1983?

American Film Studios built multiplex cinemas on the outskirts of town in a shopping centre in England to replace the single screen cinemas that were also known as 'flee pits' that advertised their Hollywood films. Due to the fact that there was more than one screen meant that there was a variety of films available to watch that the audience could chose from, however they were the same formulaic structure which meant that all it was doing really was leading us to believe people had a choice.Their Hollywood films were known as blockbusters which were new movies with the added spectacle which brought new interest to the screen. The fourth Star Wars Film: A New Hope directed by George Lucas was a well known American production that was all spectacle; alternate universe, explosions, lasers, light sabers and aliens which changed the course of cinema from then onwards.

In the time frame between 1975 and 1983 the teenage demographic was on an increase due to the social events that became increasingly common and the new rage of things to do was attend the new and improved multiplex cinemas; due to the disposable income that teenagers were entitled to from their parents meant they could go out and do what they wanted. Due to the majority of viewers in cinemas being teenagers meant that they were the huge influence on the ratings of films and the summer blockbusters. From 1975, due to this, new eras of film were born such as the disco era from which the blockbuster, 'Saturday Night Fever' was produced in 1977; this film was directed at the new and common teenage demographic that were the reason for majority of the multiplex cinema's income.

The new invention of VFX to be used in movies meant that it added to the spectacle and gave something new and exciting to the cinemas which meant it brought in the audience. In 1975 the blockbuster 'Jaws' was released which was one of the most successful blockbusters of all time. VFX was bascially what brought people out of their homes and into the cinema.

Cinema viewings became less popular in the 1980's which meant there was the invention of the VCR which meant people could watch movies at home; E.T was the first movie to be released on VCR. Due to the VCR and video tapes bringing movies to people's homes, it meant the fashionability of people staying in at home to watch movies came in. 

Multiplex cinemas were built near motorways to make it easily accessible and noticeable by people; due to the fact they were usually located on the upper floor of shopping centres meant there were many other attractions to draw the demographic in such as shops and restaurants. Milton Keys in Birminghamshire was the first multiplex cinema to be built in England; it was a business that the Americans used to earn money both ends; brought money in to expand the cinema and bring new things in that would be new and exciting. 

Essay structure ideas

Notes

In the recession people lost their jobs and therefore did not have much money in their pockets and did not go to the cinema so stayed at home and watched TV.

The new audience that started the cinema ratings rising was the teenagers as they had disposable income to go out and spend on things like that.

Blockbusters were what encouraged people back into the cinemas 

Inception and godfather prove that good movies can be made

American film studios invested in the multiplexes in England so they could earn money both ends

Industrial light and magic was the visual effects company that was started up by George Lucas and Steven Spielberg 

Trailers

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The godfather had A-list stars

Jaws was character focused, didn't have the VFX because it sunk, the hype of the movie was what made is successful 

Star Wars was style over substance, it was the significance that broke the mould and led the way to the same formulaic movies

Mock exam

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