Vertigo is a UK-based independent film company founded in 2002 that aims to produce commercially successful films across a wide range of genres on small budgets. Some of their most popular films include Streetdance 3D, The Football Factory, and Monsters. While most of their films are British productions starring English actors, some like Spring Breakers feature American casts. Though independent, Vertigo is relatively large in size and distributes their films internationally as well as producing them. They target mass audiences by appealing to different genres and aim to identify and promote new talent.

1. Fact File

2. Who are they?
 Vertigo are a UK based film and distribution
company. It was founded in 2002 by Allan
Niblo and James Richardson.
 Their companies aim was to create and
distribute “commercially driven independent
cinema.
 All of their films cover a wide range of genres
and audiences.
 They focus on identifying new talent such as
writers, actors and directors, and act as a
“calling card” to get them noticed in the
industry and kick-start their career.

3. What films have they made?
Vertigo produce and distribute
a whole range of genres of
films. Some of their most
popular films include;
 Streetdance 3D (A box
office smash hit)
 The Football Factory (the
biggest selling UK
independent DVD of all
time)
 Monsters (Multi award
winning)

4.  Due to wanting to appeal to many different
audiences, there is a wide range of
genres that they produce, such as
comedy, family films to horrors and
thrillers.
 All tend to have a rather small budget, due
to being an independent film makers
without the sources of a conglomerate.
Are there any common
characteristics to their films?

5. Can they all be considered
British?
The majority of Vertigo//’s productions are
considered British. This is due to being
produced by Vertigo, which was founded in
England, and many are filmed in England
and start English actors. Some films
produced are also based on British content,
such as The Pudsey Movie, which was
based on the winning dog of Britain’s Got
Talent. However some, such as Spring
Breakers, feature a more American based
cast.

6. How big is their company?
Due to the company being independent,
they are somewhat limited in size as they
are not vertically integrated and lack other
companies which conglomerates have.
However, for a independent company, they
are rather large as they branch out to many
different genres and also distribute films, not
just producing them.

7. How far to their films reach?
 They have a post production 3D studio in
Berlin, showing that they not only work in
the UK, but in Germany as well.
 Some of their films are not just popular in
the UK, but in the USA too.
 They have connections to British channels
such as BBC or E1 Entertainment,
showing they have branched out from just
cinema and DVD releases.

8. Who is their audience?
Vertigo films aim to appeal to a mass
audience, to ensure their films are
commercially successful. They target most
genres and audience members, ensuring
they earn enough for their low budgets.

9. How do their films appeal to
their audience?
For each type of audience they target,
Vertigo ensures the film genre suits those
types of people. For example, when
targeting family audiences, Vertigo
produced The Pudsey Movie and The
Unbeatables. They make sure aspects of
the film suits that certain genre and target
audience, for example, The Unbeatables in
an animated movie, which would appeal to
kids of all ages.

10. Have they worked with any other
companies, if so who and when?
 Vertigo have collaborated with SyCo
(Simon Cowell’s company), working to
develop the winners of the popular British
show, Britain’s Got Talent. In doing this,
they have produced Streetdance 3D
(2010) and The Pudsey Movie (2014).
 Vertigo teamed up with IM Global to
produce the ‘feel good’ musical, Walking
On Sunshine (2014).