Film Industry: British film industry factsheets

1) Write a one-sentence definition of what makes a film British.

A British Film is a film that is made by people who are British, if the film is funded within Britain, is the film about the British culture and finally if the film is shot and set in Britain, but there are many different films that are set in Britain but are counted as American movies.  

 
2) What is the difference between a Hollywood production context and production context of a British film?

A films production context is the conditions under which the film has been made. So, in the Hollywood production context, this means that Hollywood studios 

3) When did the James Bond franchise start?

The James Bond Franchise started in 1962.

4) In terms of film censorship and graphic content, what began to change in British film in the 1970s and 1980s?

In terms of film censorship and graphic content which used to be quite serious before the 1970s. Now this has changed between 1970s and 1980s. This meant that in British films audiences would see a rise in sexual content and more violence using weapons. Then in the 1980s audiences would see a rise in videos and the ‘video nasty’s scare where film making was becoming more accessible and more extreme content was being created and finding its way to Britain. This meant that the censorship and graphic content was evolving and more extreme content is shown on screen.

5) What groups are often represented in British film? Give examples of films these groups feature in.

One group that is represented in British films is Youth. An example of film where youth is represented is Clockwork Orange, this is based on teenagers and youngsters where it focuses on violence, anti-establishment and a compulsion to act in an anarchic way.
Another group that is represented in British films is Women. They are represented usually as the mother or the person getting kidnapped which gets really stereotyped. Women have largely suffered in line with the current attitude towards women of the day with a gradual shift and awareness of an inequality towards women gaining ground from the 1980s onwards.

6) What does the Factsheet suggest might be the audience appeal of British film?

The factsheet is suggesting that location is audience appeal of an British film. British locations to be a heavily used feature of the film, with London being the most popular, although we have seen a rise in popularity of northern towns and cities being used in many British films. The British love to see the social theme in British films that they watch. The British audience has a keen interest in British films that focus on class, social strife, education and more.

Also, British audiences liked films to do with war because they appreciated how the soldiers sacrificed their lives so that they could live today. The ‘look back’ films that tend to focus on stories from Britain’s past where, class warfare or social difficulties were at their peak

Factsheet #100: British film industry

1) What is the 'cultural test' to see if a film counts as British?

If a film does not qualify as a co-production, it must pass the British Film Institute’s Cultural Test in order to be defined as British.The cultural test is divided into four sections and a film must score at least 16 out of a possible 31 points to be classified as British. 

2) Complete the task on the Factsheet, researching the films listed and finding out what they score on the cultural test: Sweeney, Attack The Block, The King's Speech, We Need To Talk About Kevin and Skyfall.

Sweeney:

Financing: £3,000,000 
Cultural Test: UK

Attack the block:

Financing: $13,000,000 
Cultural Test: UK and France

The King's Speech:

Financing: $15,000,000
Cultural Test: UK, USA and Australia 

We need to talk about Kevin:

Financing: $7,000,000
Cultural Test: UK and USA

Skyfall:

Financing: $200,000,000
Cultural Test: UK and USA

3) What is the main problem for the British film industry?

The main problem for the British film industry is the British film industry has been production led rather
than distribution led. This means that many UK films are made but, in order to get the film exhibited, the filmmakers have to sacrifice the distribution rights by selling the film to a distribution company. Once sold, all revenue from cinema screenings, DVD and Blu-ray sales, plus sales to television companies, are lost. Even a highly successful British film is not necessarily making money that will be reinvested in British film making.

4) What are three of the strengths of the British film industry?

The three strengths of the British film industry is that they have outstanding facilities which attract investment from film makers around the world and especially in the USA. Also, outstanding creative skills of practitioners which have allowed British studios and people to be part of successful franchises such as Harry Potter. Finally, British films take 5% of world box-office takings, which is extraordinary for such a small nation.

5) What are the two options for the future of the British film industry?

The two options that are available for the future of the British film Industry is firstly, British filmmakers could choose to rely upon co-productions with American studios to keep the industry afloat. However, the
drawback would be that much of what makes the film British may be lost, such as regional accents and dialects or cultural and political references.
On the other hand, the second option is to attempt to make low budget films targeted at a niche, British audience. Though the production costs will have to be lower and box-office taking and profits will necessarily be lower too, the filmmakers will be able to retain what it is that makes British films so distinctive without compromise.

6) In your opinion, which of these two options would best safeguard the future of the British film industry?

In my opinion, I think that the option that would be safeguard to the future of the British film industry is that they should rely rely upon co-productions with American studios to keep the industry afloat. However, the
drawback would be that much of what makes the film British may be lost, such as regional accents and dialects or cultural and political references. I think that, this is the best option because I think if the British film industry made films targeted for a niche audience then the films wont be big and the industry wont be recognised and the industry wants to make films that are entertaining for every audience. But if we go for the option that I think will be safe then the theme of culture in the British film industry will be lost and audiences wont be happy with this. But, the positive of this is that, they are relying on the American studious to keep them afloat. However, I think that this is taking a risk relying on the American studios because at some point they may perform bad and their films may be not hitting the charts and getting positive reviews. 

 have high budgets, a heavy reliance on celebrities both in the cast and crew and spectacle driven stories. But, on the other hand, the British production context is very different because film production context does not have as many clearly defined characteristics.British films can be large budget, high concept films or they can be character driven, small budgeted films. The British Film production context is varied because Britain make a wide range of films and shows for audiences to watch which will keep everyone entertained.