2. British Film
• Location shooting, i.e. not in the studio, particularly British social realism films; they
are often shot in real locations such as council estates and urban areas. This
creates a greater sense of realism for the audience.
• Wide shots are often used within British films to give the audience a view and
understanding of what is happening around in the scene.
• Use of unknown, British actors so audiences can identify with the characters,
especially British actors.
• Semi-improvised scripts are often used to create a more realistic view of the issues
surrounding the theme of the film. An example of this was used in British film Kes
(1969).
• Combination of humour, often dry humour, and seriousness throughout the films, so
that difficult issues can be dealt with in a sensitive way but also appeal to
audiences’ emotions.
• Erosion of regional identities, often in British social realism films, e.g. The Full Monty
(1997)
• Wider social issues explored such as alcoholism, drug use and mental health –
these issues are explored more than in films from other cultures and in a more
realistic way; British audiences may identify with this more as they are issues that
affect their personal lives.
• Natural lighting
• Low budget filming – creates emotional, technical and surface realism.
3. American Film
• High budget filming and use of high-tech technology – more use of special
effects and more action than British films as American companies tend to
have bigger budgets.
• Studio produced rather than location shooting; locations are often in large,
famous landscapes.
• Professional actors (A-listers)
• Use of patriotic characters
• Narratives focus on romantic relationships and fairy-tale endings, giving the
audience a sense of escapism because the narratives tend to not focus on
real life issues.
4. British Film – British Companies
Warpfilms – based in Sheffield and London; founded by Rob Mitchell and Steve Beckett;
independent film company responsible for This Is England ‘86 & ‘88, Submarine, Tyrannosaur.
BigTalk Productions- responsible for Cuban Fury, The
World’s End, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World; the company
have a huge emphasis on comedy films; founded by Nira
Park in 1995.
Film 4 – British film company owned by
Channel Four; responsible for Trainspotting,
Nowhere Boy, Slumdog Millionaire, Trance;
recently started an ‘innovation’ project where
they set out to challenge current media
platforms and traditional media featuring the
film 20,000 Days On Earth.
Working Title Films – based in London;
founded by Tim Bevan and Sarah
Radclyffe; responsible for Billy Elliot, Les
Miserables, Closed Circuit.
HeyDay Films – based in
London; founded by David
Heyman; responsible for the
Harry Potter series, The Boy in
the Stripped Pyjamas, Testament
of Youth.
5. British Film - Funding
British Film Institute (BFI) – often provide funding for British films, helping to promote first-feature
films and directors; aiming to increase the development and distribution of high quality
independent British films.
Collabor8te – aims to build filmmaking teams by having new talent working closely with
professional filmmakers such as Irvine Welsh via Rankin Film Productions (RFP).
UK Film Council – government funding that helps small, non-mainstream productions with all
aspects of filmmaking such as promotion, production and distribution, and helps get these
films into film festivals making them accessible to an audience; works closely with BFI.
Kickstarter – new way to fund creative projects such as indie films, as well as other types of
arts, where each project is independently created, meaning that Kickstarter is a platform and
a resource but does not get actively involved in the development of the projects. Kickstarter
follows an ‘all-or-nothing’ funding approach where creators must meet their funding goal for
them to start making their project; funding is helped by the support of backers, i.e.
crowdfunding.
6. American Film – American Companies
20th Century Fox – one of the six major
American film studios; result of Fox Film
Corporation and Twentieth Century Pictures
merging; responsible for The Fault in Our Stars,
127 Hours, The Maze Runner.
Universal – another company
included in the ‘big six’;
responsible for A Million Ways
to Die in the West, Bad
Neighbours, Bridesmaids
Dreamworks – originally founded in
1994 by Steven Spielberg, Jeffery
Katzenberg and David Geffen;
responsible for Need For Speed, War
Horse, The Hundred-Foot Journey.
Warner Brothers – included
in the ‘big six’; responsible
for Oculus, Gravity, The
Great Gatsby.
Paramount – ranked as
one of the ‘big six’ film
studios; responsible for
Iron Man, The Wolf of
Wall Street, Interstella.
Columbia- another of the ‘big six’
companies; responsible for 22 Jump
Street, The Amazing Spider Man series,
White House Down.
