5 th December 2012
Lesson Objectives
Learning outcomes
To understand the
I can understand the
important role that film importance of film distribution plays within distribution in the film the film industry. industry. To know the different I can identify the process of film different film distribution. distribution process. To use focusing skills on I can focus in on a case a case study. study.
The history of film is usually related through the
achievements of producers, directors, writers and performers. Making films, production, has always been perceived as a glamorous pursuit. Alternatively, our personal understanding and appreciation of film is shaped by our experiences at the cinema. The exhibition of film is a commonplace, shared cultural activity highly visible in every city and town in Britain, constantly feeding the popular memory.
By contrast, distribution, the third part of the film
supply chain, is often referred to as 'the invisible art', a process known only to those within the industry, barely written about and almost imperceptible to everyone else. Yet arguably, distribution is the most important part of the film industry, where completed films are brought to life and connected with an audience.
So what is involved in this invisible process?
Distribution is about releasing and sustaining films in the market place. In the practice of Hollywood and other forms of industrial cinema, the phases of production, distribution and exhibition operate most effectively when 'vertically integrated', where the three stages are seen as part of the same larger process, under the control of one company. In the UK, distribution is very much focused on marketing and sustaining a global product in local markets.
In the independent film sector, vertical integration
does not operate so commonly. Producers tend not to have long-‐term economic links with distributors, who likewise have no formal connections with exhibitors. Here, as the pig-‐in-‐the-‐middle, distribution is necessarily a collaborative process, requiring the materials and rights of the producer and the cooperation of the exhibitor to promote and show the film in the best way possible. In this sector, distribution can be divided into three stages -‐ licensing, marketing and logistics.
licensing is the process by which a distributor
acquires the legal right to exploit a film. In distribution, licensing itself can take place on two levels. International distribution ensures that films find their way to the 90+ market 'territories' around the world. The major US studios generally have their own distribution offices in all the major territories. By contrast, independent producers have to sell their films to different distributors in each territory.
Independent production companies are usually small
concerns, sometimes set up for one film and often lacking the necessary knowledge or contacts of each of the territories around the world. Instead of doing this themselves, they might choose to hire a specialist sales agent, whose function is to understand the value of a film in many different markets. The sales agent will then set up stall at the film markets that take place throughout the year.
Then there is 'local' distribution, which involves the
distributor acquiring the licence to release and exploit the film in a particular country. The distributor will usually pay the producer a minimum guarantee for the licence. This fee will vary depending on the status and perceived commercial potential of the film, and on the range of rights that the distributor chooses to exploit. A distributor will usually be offered theatrical rights, for showing the film in cinemas; video rights, for video and DVD exploitation; and TV rights, if the distributor is able to sell the film to a broadcaster.
In addition to paying a fee to secure the film, the licence
will stipulate that the distributor will also pay royalties to the producer, taken from the profits that the film generates. A local distributor will conventionally share profits equally with the producer for the theatrical leg, pay back higher royalties for broadcast rights, and lower for video/DVD. Once the licence has been agreed, it is then the distributor's job to launch the film. In the UK, feature films are released initially theatrically (in cinemas). A theatrical opening is seen as the most effective way to create interest in a new film. The big screen is still the optimum setting for a film for both audiences and the filmmakers.
Some months following the theatrical release, a film will be
packaged and released on DVD and VHS video, then on various forms of pay television and eventually, two years after opening in cinemas, on free-‐to-‐air television. The value of the film built up by its theatrical release reaps dividends throughout its release cycle, influencing the audiences and commercial value it subsequently commands. At every stage, the successful distributor must have an in-‐depth knowledge of the marketplace -‐ which cinemas, video outlets and broadcasters can best draw an audience for its films -‐ and of the variable marketing costs involved in releasing a film in that territory. The trick is to weigh up the two factors, to invest as much as is needed in promoting the film to draw out the maximum returns.
The marketing of a film release revolves around two
key questions: 'When?' and 'How?' In the UK, new films are released theatrically on Fridays. The schedule for forthcoming releases is coordinated and published by the Film Distributors Association. A distributor will assess this schedule to identify a Friday release date where there are only a few films scheduled for release. Finding a 'light' week will ensure that there will be both screen space and adequate review column inches in the press allocated to any potential release.
A further consideration for scheduling a release is the
seasonality of the film. For example, it is widely assumed within the industry that specialised films have the greatest potential to reach audiences during the academic year. Finally, the distributor will try to position the film distinctively and avoid a release date occupied by other films with similar traits (story, subject, country of origin). In recent years in the UK, these two aspects of release planning have become increasingly difficult, as the release schedule has regularly featured over 10 new releases in a week.
After setting a release date, the distributor works
towards the theatrical release, investing in the materials and the marketing campaign to support it. The costs of theatrical distribution, met by local distributors, are often referred to as 'P&A', or Prints and Advertising. P&A are the nuts and bolts of marketing and distributing films into cinemas, the tools used by the distributor to create a public for its film. P&A also represent the bulk of the distributor's investment, after paying the initial fee for rights, and can range from less than £1,000 to over £1 million for the release of a film in the UK.
The distributor will enter into an agreement with the
cinema to screen the film on certain 'play-‐dates'. It is the responsibility of the distributor to arrange the transportation of the film to the cinema, as part of its wider coordination of print use across the UK. Logistics represents the phase of distribution at its most basic -‐ supplying and circulating copies of the film to theatres, of tapes and DVDs to shops and video rental stores, and managing the effectiveness of the supply.
The showing of films in cinemas is a time-‐pressured
activity. Cinemas spend their money publicising film play-‐dates and times in local papers or through published programmes. There's an imperative for the distributor to deliver the film on time.
For UK theatrical exhibition, the distributor typically
handles 35mm film prints. Each print can cost around £1,000 -‐ or twice that if subtitled -‐ so a degree of care is required of everyone involved in handling the print. In the UK, prints are generally broken down for ease of handling into smaller reels, each lasting around 18-‐20 mins when run through a projector at 24 frames per second. So a feature print, in its physical form, will usually be 5 or 6 reels, stored and supplied in a single hard case, weighing in at 20-‐25kgs.
Prints are hired by the exhibitor for the duration of
their play-‐dates, and therefore each print is made for repeat use. It's easy to see from this that, during the course of even a short theatrical release period, any single print needs to be moved many times from the main print warehouse, onto a delivery van, to the cinema, onto an assembly bench, through the projector and then back through the process and onto the next cinema.
35mm theatrical prints invariably suffer cumulative
damage as they pass through different projectors, and the hands of various projectionists. There are also overheads incurred by the distributor for the storage of prints at the UK's central print warehouse in West London. For these reasons, each theatrical print has a finite lifespan. Distributor will invest in sufficient prints to provide optimum coverage through the first period of theatrical release, usually lasting up to 6 months. From this point on, many of the now used release prints will be destroyed, leaving only a small number to be used for second-‐run and repertory theatrical bookings through the remainder of the film's licenced period.
Since 2005 Distribution companies have been moving
towards distributing film as computer files, which is much cheaper, easier and safer to move. The DSN (Digital screen network) has initially worked with files transferred from a high definition digital master (either HDD5, or HD Cam). The compressed and encrypted files will be sent directly to cinemas to be downloaded, de-‐encrypted (unlocked) and opened as files for screening with digital projection equipment. 2/3 of cinemas now receive their films digitally out of 3,300 cinemas across the UK. All cinemas by 2015.
Bullet Boy is a low budget, independent feature
helmed by first-‐time feature director Saul Dibb. The film stars UK rapper Ashley Walters as Ricky, a young man newly released from prison, but unable to extricate himself from the cycle of gang violence that has become an everyday feature in some parts of inner-‐city London. The film describes, with particular insight, the effects of Ricky's life on his mother and, especially, his younger brother.
Verve Pictures saw the potential of the film in the
wider market beyond the arthouse, especially with a young black audience drawn by the presence of Ashley Walters (of So Solid Crew, here making his big screen debut) to seek out the film in key urban multiplex sites. In order to broaden the theatrical release of the film, Verve applied successfully for funds from the UK Film Council's P and A Fund. The film was released on 8th April 2005, opening on 75 prints UK wide, in a combination of established independent cinemas and multiplexes concentrated in greater London and other major urban centres.
The poster design aims to convey the look, subject
and tone of the film, supported by key press quotes, while also foregrounding the major presence of Walters. The ad campaign, too, aimed for diverse audiences, interested in film and music, urban black and white. The campaign included advertising in all of the national daily newspapers that allocate significant space to film reviews, plus two tabloids, newspapers with a black perspective, a selective London Underground campaign and extensive use of radio stations with a concentration on R 'n' B and Garage, the musical forms with which Walters is associated.
Towards the end of its first six months of theatrical
release, the film had grossed an impressive £450,000 at the UK box office, most of this achieved in carefully selected urban multiplexes rather than specialised cinemas. It was anticipated that the substantial audiences and awareness generated for the theatrical release would ensure success for the DVD release of the film, six months after the theatrical opening.