General Introduction to the Film Industry

Media Booklet 1

Why is Convergence both a blessing and a curse for the UK Film Industry?

Convergence works when two types of technology or fields come together to support each other such as a camera on a Smartphone. Convergence is good for the UK Film Industry as it creates lots of opportunities for the film industry to branch out and expand its market and reach to many more people. Ways in which this is done to interest people to buy DVD’s or go to the Cinema are The internet and Advertising and Radio or even Posters.

Convergence is also a curse for the UK Film Industry because people use the convergence of film and internet to stream illegally films in which people would normally have to pay for, for free. This creates a loss for money in which the film industry could be making if people were watching the films the way that industry displays them.

How has the internet allowed filmmakers to find and attract audiences in different ways?

The internet allows filmmakers to branch out and attract a bigger audience as the internet is a wide and vastly growing audience. Many ways in which filmmakers reach theses audiences are from video sites displaying advertising for different films and merchandise or trailers being displayed before videos are going to be played that people are going to watch. Pictures and now moving pictures with animations are now a growing way in which films are reached to other audiences which is a big field which is linked with social network sites, this is done by people liking and sharing pictures from a film or merchandise that will be sold or be soon put on in the cinema.

Summarise how you think sites like YouTube, Spotify and Facebook are good for film audiences. What do they let us do, that we couldn’t before?

YouTube allows trailers and adverts to be played before videos that people are watching and also theses single videos of the trailers can be found to watch as many times as people want to on the website itself. These trailers give a short insight into what the film is going to be like so interesting the audience.

Spotify now has adverts on the playlists that you cannot skip in which filmmakers have placed audio adverts to also interest people. There are also picture adverts around the pages on the site of Spotify whilst people navigate around the programme.

Facebook allows Filmmakers to branch out widely to different audiences as adverts can be shown on the pages of Facebook. A convergence of Facebook and YouTube means that you can share YouTube clips straight to Facebook for your friends to look at and watch. This means that the video is shared around and can be seen by lots of people creating a growing audience and creating interest for films.