Film in the Digital Age - Questions and Extra Notes

1) What is the advantage of using moving image story boards? 
Moving Image Story Boards were first pioneered in 1992 by Francis Ford Coppolla during the production of Bram Stoker's Dracula, and involve the directors and cinematographers utilising an 'electronic stimulation' of the story or scene that is to be created on a certain day, instead of using hand drawn, inanimate storyboards to 'pitch' a film or organise the crew. This creates many advantages - firstly, time is saved as less time will be spent constructing detailed sketches and drawings to detail the scene, and the moving image story boards provide a more accurate visualisation of what is to be shot so the crew can more easily replicate the storyboard.

2) What is the advantage of using DV Video Cameras?
The use of Digital Video (DV) Cameras to film documentaries and full length films is increasing, due to the many advantages this new technology has over celluloid film. Firstly, DV Cameras are more mobile, are lighter and much more practical and easy to use overall. The cost of shooting scenes and editing is also reduced as they do not need the expensive film stock, nor does their video require processing in the same manner. Complex scenes can be organised more easily also, as complicated lighting systems that are needed when shooting on celluloid are not needed.

3) What are the two types of CGI? What are the advantages and disadvantages of CGI?
CGI, or Computer Generated Imagery, is also seeing increased use in the film making processes. There are two types of CGI; Invisible Special Effects, which according to Buckland (1999) contributes to up to 90% of all of the work of the special effects industry, are not meant to be noticed, hence the name, by film spectators, and then Visible Special Effects, which produces "out-of-this-world" images to captivate audiences in a way that would not be possible otherwise. The advantages of CGI is that more elaborate and complex creations can be made that are both aesthetic and life like with the development of technology - however, CGI has also become more widely available to the public, with digital effect software reaching domestic audiences, and is sold by electrical retailers to enhance home videos and GCSE / A Level Productions.

How does Piracy affect Working Title and how have they tried to stop it?

Piracy is a crime that effects the production, distribution and exhibition of the film industry in the UK. With Hollywood investigators claim that Piracy has increased by 10% each year from the amount of revenue lost to illegal distribution. This is largely due to technological advances in internet speeds and broadbands, allowing for the faster distribution of files online, and increased confidence in computers and torrents en masse, and the fact that the quality of these torrents is improving so that the "consumer" obtains a better quality of the film. Approximately 77.75 Million counterfeit DVDs were sold in 2009, resulting in an effective monetary gain to criminals of £278 Million. This results in a huge loss to the Industry as a whole, £700 Million overall. This means smaller studios have less money to invest in future projects and produce further films, restricting creativity and overall reducing the choice of films that will be available to the consumer.

Companies such as Working Title have endeavoured to prevent piracy from effecting their profits. Working Title have also used the advancements in technology to produce higher definition films, creating a distinction between the legal and illegal copies, through blu-ray discs. Similarly, 3D films are produced, which aren't as readily available for the public to obtain, and create a unique viewing experience that isn't available through torrents, and blu-ray discs are encrypted with passcodes so they cannot be copied. Furthermore, Working Title distributed Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, in an encrypted safe, with a passcode to each individual safe, to combat piracy. They also create educational DVDs that inform people on the effects of Piracy to the filmmakers and the industry in an attempt to persuade and convince people, particularly the younger audiences who view Piracy as acceptable, to stop pirating films. Working Title also make their products available instantly online for rental, in a better quality than the alternative torrent download. It could be argued that piracy did allow for technological developments in film, as unique viewing experiences such as IMAX and 3D would not have been developed as much to combat piracy, benefitting the consumer. However, unless piracy is combatted more widely, it could lead to the decline of the film industry in the UK.

Convergence in a Film Company

An example of a company that has utilised Media and Technological Convergence would be Walt Disney.

Media Convergence: When multiple products come together to form one product with the advantages of all of them.
Digital Convergence: The growing interactive use digital technology in the film industry and media which enables people to share, consume and produce media that was difficult or impossible to do a few years previously.

There are many products produced by Disney that are associated with their films, with most of these being aimed at a young audience, such as plush toys and costumes, and a few products aimed at adults such as ornaments. There are many Disney stores worldwide that sell these products and Disney has spread out to many other medias, such as songs being sold on iTunes from their films, most recently Frozen, as well as a variety of other platforms advertised on their website, such as games, interactive activities, TV programmes and an online store. The financial benefit of this to the company is that it creates extra advertising and marketing for the various products - social networking accounts for respective films to generate interest, and then various products to sell alongside the film means extra profit can be generated.

Convergence in Websites

The Hobbit 

The website for “The Hobbit” uses convergence to increase audience awareness about the film. On the “Features” tab of the website, there are a variety of activities including “A Journey Through Middle Earth” and “Play Barrel Escape”. These verbs allows for audience participation and engagement with the film to sustain interest in the film- the audience that would be attracted to this, a young audience or young adolescents, could play the games and discuss them with friends and then go to see the film. Other forms of convergence have been used: Lego: The Hobbit is to be released on console platforms that will appeal to the target audience. 

The Lego Movie

There is a variety of different integrated games to appeal to the younger audience of the film. There is a feature on the website to create your own Lego character and various other interactive games that are easy to play, and hence will be played by young children and will spread as their friends play it. A PlayStation game for the Lego Movie has also been released, which although gives away the storyline, will help to attract a wider audience and get more people to watch the film.

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