2. +
Introduction
When making our film, one of the considerations we must take into
account is the producing of our product, and this is the job of film
production companies.
Such companies will often designate a producer to act as a
representative for them and go out and observe the production of
the film.
A producer will oversee the filmmaking process and often provide
financial support as well as help get the film to market and
distribute it to appropriate film distributors.
More specifically, a line producer would be helpful for our movie
because this kind of producer is one with a much more hands-on
role than an executive producer. However, over recent
years, these roles have become interchangeable with a lack of
distinction between the two.
3. +
With this in mind, I have decided to
research 3 categories of Film
companies in order to decide which
is most appropriate for our
production.
4. + These companies are the six largest in
the world and have extremely large
budgets to produce the likes of
Transformers, Harry
potter, Batman, Lord of the Rings and
many more.
Such massive companies seem rather
unattainable for our small budget
film, therefore our film would not be
looking to become a
blockbuster, especially considering it is
our first production. Labels such as
these generally don’t take risks with
first-time filmmakers.
5. + These companies are some of the
biggest in the U.K and have produced
the likes of The King’s
speech, Slumdog Millionaire, Hot fuzz
and more.
These companies seem more
attainable than the big, American
companies because the British film
industry is far smaller. Seeing as our
film is about the pressures of a
teenager based in London, these
companies seem to be very
appropriate for our film, not to mention
the fact that we do not require a
particularly high budget.
6. + Such independent film companies
have produced: The Grey, Silent
House, The Girl with the Dragon
Tattoo, The fighter, 127 hours and
Black Swan.
This seems to be the most appropriate
route to go down for our ‘no budget’
film, because we are appealing to a
very niche market and these
companies specialize in routing out
unknown talent and movies with great
potential.
In particular, these companies like the
idea of boosting the image of small
British films, which is exactly what we
are making.
7. +
Assessment of options
Hammer Films
In terms of our film being a thriller, Hammer Films would be the
obvious choice in terms of the British film companies because
they specialize in the horror and thriller genre, being most
recently involved in the production of The Woman in Black.
However, as our film is supposed to be a modern take on a
thriller, this company may not be that suitable because it
generally goes for the more traditional looking thrillers, perhaps
this is why it is nowhere near as successful as it was in the
1960s and 70s. We are looking for a company that has
ambitions for the future and Hammer Films doesn’t seem to be
moving with the times unfortunately.
8. +
Assessment of options
Open Road
Much like Hammer Films, Open Road films also specializes in the
thriller and Horror genre but the distinct difference between the
two is that Open Road is a very new company, founded in 2011,
making it a very attractive option for our film which epitomizes the
modernity of the thriller genre and the way in which it is changing
and becoming more realistic.
In such a short amount of time they have already proven to have a
good track record, with the production of The Grey and Silent
House.
Being an extremely modern and evolving company, it is very
impressive to learn that they have signed a deal with ‘Netflix’ to
allow the distribution of their films to the ever-growing online
audience.
9. +
Assessment of options
Kickstarter
Perhaps the most modern and increasingly popular way of funding
an indie film is in the form of a user-backed website like
‘Kickstarter’. In this method, films are entirely funded by the
general public where a target budget is set and in return, backers
will receive rewards, e.g. personal script, T-shirts etc.
The concept is fantastic for really small filmmakers like ourselves
who realistically may not be able to get an actual company on
board our project, but with donations we can reach the budget and
it creates a unique, consumer/filmmaker relationship which has
never been seen before.
However, being our first production, we felt as a group, this was
quite radical and a little too risky because we wouldn’t really be
receiving any financial or distributing support, on top of the fact
that for our first production, we would very much be keen to get an
experienced producer on board our project.
10. +
Final Decision
In the end, we have decided to opt to team up with Open Road
films and give them the role of co-producer, along with my
group member’s personal company and our own group’s
company specifically founded for this film, leaving the project in
a position with three production companies, which we believe
to be the best form of maximising its potential.
Open Road would be the main producer of the three because
they have the most experience and would be extremely
beneficial in the distributing process.
