Slumdog Millionaire is a 2008 British film that tells the story of a poor Indian teen competing on the Indian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?. Students are asked to research the background and production elements of the film, including investigating who drove the film, who funded it, and the budget. They should also research the making of the film by watching the documentary and taking notes on the filmmaking process.

1. MS4: Media – Text, Industry & Audience
FILM Case Study: Slumdog
Millionaire
Production Complete research into the first
two strands of the Industry
elements.
Background/Contex
t
INDUSTR Slumdog
Marketing/Promotion Y Millionaire
Regulation
Global
Implications
Distribution/Exhibitio
n

2. MS4: Media – Text, Industry & Audience
FILM Case Study: Slumdog
Millionaire
INDUSTRY RESEARCH: Background/Context &
Production
Your research into the
Background & Context of
the movie should really
investigate how the film
came about – who was the
driving force of the film?
Who fought to get it made?
Who funded the movie?
How much was the
budget?
The production research should
be about the making of the film
and finding out all about the
factors which impacted on the
writing of the film as well as the
shoot and the post production
(editing) process.

3. MS4: Media – Text, Industry & Audience
FILM Case Study: Slumdog
Millionaire
INDUSTRY RESEARCH: Background/Context &
Production
Watch the ‘making of’
documentary and make notes
on all aspects you think that
are relevant to your research.
Remember that you are not
only looking for facts but
understanding the process that
the filmmakers have been
through.
Remember that there may be other areas of interest in the
documentary – so pay particular attention to what the interviewees
say about the narrative of the film and infer anything you can about
the genre...