Working Title Films was founded in 1984 as an independent film company but was later acquired by larger media conglomerates seeking synergies. It was first bought by PolyGram in 1992, then by Universal and GE in 2004. As part of these conglomerates, Working Title gained access to larger budgets and global distribution but lost some independence and control over content. Their films have been criticized for portraying an idealized version of Britishness that lacks diversity in an effort to appeal to international audiences.

1. Media Institutions
 You will have reviewed your essay question and
considered its strengths and weaknesses
 You will understand
production, distribution, marketing and exhibition and
relate this to Working Title

2. Review of task –Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of being a
commercial or independent film company and how this impacts audiences.
Refer to your case studies and give examples from your case studies and
your wider knowledge.
Mostly a good understanding of the advantages and
disadvantages of being a commercial or independent
company.
Some good knowledge of the impact of different
budgets, though this was limited to production and
marketing, with little explanation given about the impact
on exhibition and distribution.
You need to refer continually to your case studies – it is
evident that, at the moment, you don’t know enough about
them. How did they market for example? Who made the
marketing etc?

3. Working Title Films

4. The facts
• 1984: Founded by Tim Bevan and Sarah Radclyffe. First investment: £500,000 in My Beautiful
Laundrette, the first of a series of collaborations with Channel Four Films. Overall, 15 films
produced in the 1980s.
[Synergy]
• 1991: Sets up a Hollywood office, developing production deals with Tim Robbins.
[Conglomerate]
• 1992: Working Title bought by PolyGram (a European music company).
• 1998: PolyGram bought by Universal, a subsidiary of Seagram. Universal allows Working Title
to greenlight films up to a budget of $35m. One of the first films produced was Billy Elliot
(Stephen Daldry, 1999).
[Vertical and Horizontal integration]
• 2000: Seagram bought by Vivendi, the French multimedia conglomerate with extensive
interests in film, TV, video games, music publishing, telecommunications and the internet.
• 2004: Vivendi sells 80% share of Universal to GE (General Electric Company).

5. The facts
• In 1999 – WORKING TITLE 2 PRODUCTIONS was launched which is an
independent arm of Working Title.
• It has limited budgets – e.g. Billy Eliot (200) was made with a budget of
$5,000,000 unlike WORKING TITLE films (which are funded as a
commercial company under working title) which has larger budgets; e.g.
Johnny English Reborn (2011) which was made with a budget of
$45,000,000.
REMEMBER THIS
Working Title was an independent company that became frustrated with
the smaller budgets offered when they sought external funding (usually
from Channel 4). As a result they were bought by Universal (80%) and GE
(20%) in 2004. They now operate as part of a conglomerate and in a
commercial way. This is part of their institutional context.

6. Films you could watch and be familiar
with:
• The Boat That Rocked (2009) • About a Boy (2002)
• Frost/Nixon (2008) • Captain Corelli's Mandolin (2001)
• Atonement (2007) • Bridget Jones's Diary (2001)
• Nanny McPhee (2005) • Billy Elliot (2000)
• Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (2004) • Notting Hill (1999)
• Wimbledon (2004) • Elizabeth (1998)
• Shaun of the Dead (2004) • The Big Lebowski (1998)
• Love Actually (2003) • Bean (1997)
• Thirteen (2003) • Fargo (1996)
• Ali G Indahouse (2002)
Examples for the exam that you cite as case studies
and now in depth should be recent (within the last 5
years, preferably the last 3).

7. Issues with Media Ownership and Practice
Company structure (Practice)
• At first, WT enjoyed its freedom as a small independent UK company, thanks to
Channel Four. Formed in 1982, Ch4 had a government remit to commission
and show programme content from independent production companies.
• Within two years Channel Four had co-produced over 20 feature films with UK
production companies for its regular “Film on Four” slot. Guaranteed
exhibition meant independent WT could take greater risks.
• WT’s Channel Four debut, My Beautiful Laundrette (1984) featured life in
London’s Asian community, with two of the main characters having a
homosexual affair.
• WT continually faced difficulties in raising the money needed for their
productions, unless they were low budget collaborations with Ch4.
• My Beautiful Laundrette only had a budget of £500,000 from Ch4 in 1984.
• Universal’s protective umbrella has meant that WT now has a green light to
make films up to £40,000,000 without Universal’s permission.

8. Issues with Media Ownership and Practice
Loss of national identity
• A study of Working Title’s output suggests one of the issues raised
by ownership patterns and trends is that Working Title’s success has
been built upon making films with both British and American stars
to appeal to an international market, starting with Four Weddings
and a Funeral (1994).
• However, this approach has provoked criticism about the 'mid-
Atlantic' nature of its films. Working Title thus exemplifies the
ongoing debate in the British film industry – whether to make
culturally specific films which appeal to a more limited audience, or
to make broader, generic films aimed at a much wider, international
audience.

9. Representation in Working Title: Britishness
Characteristics of Richard Curtis / Working Title films
• Romantic comedies
• Happy endings
• Climax
• Belief in true love
• Sentimentality
• Plot twists
• Humour
• Stars
• Settings
• Representation of race: The main and supporting characters in these films
are white.

10. Representation in Working Title: Britishness
What about Hollywood’s representations of Britain and British people? How do they know who we are?
Surely, we are in the best position to represent Britishness to the world.
• But what is Britishness?
• The concept of national identity is a social construction, a representation based on a particular view
of what it means to be British.
Working Title representations
• WT relies heavily on the writing (and directing) skills of Richard Curtis. Curtis honed his skills by
writing for Blackadder (BBC), The Vicar of Dibley (BBC) and producing Rowan Atkinson's one-man
stage plays. Several films that he has written for WT – Four Weddings and a Funeral; Notting Hill;
Bridget Jones 1&2; and Love, Actually – are synonymous with WT’s current “rom-com” brand. They
have also been very influential in creating Hugh Grant’s star persona. However, the popularity of all
these films has been countered by a critical response, accusing Curtis of creating a fantasy world,
one which bears little relation to contemporary Britain, while also relying on sentimentality and
predominantly white, middle class stereotypes. Such representations of Englishness might be one
of the reasons for the success of these films in America.

11. However, there is a major down-side here for the British
economy. Although WT films can be classified as British at
the production stage, they are distributed by Universal, who
then claw back a huge chunk of the worldwide box office
profits. So, is WT really a success story for the British Film
Industry?

12. Issues raised in the targeting of UK national / local audiences
by international or global institutions: Media Imperialism
• Media Imperialism is the belief that large media
companies make it difficult for smaller companies to
survive.
• Media imperialism suggests that huge media
companies (like Universal) put the interests of the
consumer and audience second and put the company’s
own political and economic interests first.
• With Universal being owned by NBC Universal, which is
in turn owned in part by the French ‘Vivendi’, how free
is Working Title to create films that aren’t limited by
the huge conglomerate’s ideology that is it
undoubtedly wound up in?

13. Ongoing debate
• British cinema should be a resolutely national
cinema, representing British culture to a British
audience. To do this, British films need to be
publicly funded.
Or
• British cinema should be a profitable
business, competing in the international
marketplace, particularly with Hollywood, by
attracting a wide audience.

14. Importance of cross media convergence / ownership
and synergy in production, distribution and marketing
• WT got its first break by using television to guarantee a
nationwide première for its films, starting with My
Beautiful Laundrette, the first of a series of successful
collaborations with Channel Four Films throughout the
1980s. WT is now owned by Universal Studios, who are
now owned by Vivendi and General Electric.
• Vivendi has guaranteed European film and television
distribution through its Canal+ Group, with ready access to
its wealth of record companies, and video games interests.
• General Electric has guaranteed US and South American
television distribution through its extensive NBC network.

15. Synergy Partnerships
• WT has developed a number of synergy partnerships across the
production, distribution and marketing stages, eg:
• Billy Elliot (in collaboration with BBC Films & Tiger Aspect)
• Oh Brother, Where Art Thou (in collaboration with Touchstone
Pictures)
• Captain Corelli's Mandolin (in collaboration with Studio Canal &
Miramax )
• Bridget Jones's Diary (in collaboration with Studio Canal &
Miramax)
• Love Actually (in collaboration with Studio Canal)
• Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (in collaboration with Miramax)
• Mr Bean's Holiday (in collaboration with StudioCanal)
• Frost/Nixon (in collaboration with Imagine Entertainment)

16. NEW TECHNOLOGY: Impact in recent years
(production, marketing, distribution & exchange) on
institutions and audiences.
Production:
• Computer-generated imagery (CGI)
• Non-linear (digital) editing
• HD video
• Digital film production issues
Digital distribution & exchange / exhibition:
• DVD / Blu-ray markets
• Digital TV
• Digital cinemas(inc IMAX)
• Digital film distribution & exchange / exhibition issues

17. Homework: to research, in detail, recent realeases from
Working Title and Film 4.
ABOUT THE FILM(S)
• Who is the audience?
• Director
• Sales figures?
• Budgets/ cost of production
• Contributors (financial, advisory, technological)
• Actors
• Reviews and quotes
• Year of production
• Distribution
• Ancillary sales (e.g Spiderman` figures)
• BFI classification
• Effect of technological convergence – how did people watch it?
• How was the film marketed (consider convergence)
• How was the film distributed and by whom?
• How was the film exhibited?
• How many screens was the film first shown in
• What did the film make in its opening night/weekend/week/month?