The King's Speech - Case Study

The King's Speech is a film about King George VI who was forced to take the throne after his brother abdicates because of his love for an American, twice-divorcee. However King George suffers with a stammer that takes control of his everyday life, with a job that requires him to speak publicly on a weekly basis it means that he needs to find guidance to help him recover from his stammer. This is where Lionel Logue steps in, an unorthodox speech therapist that tries to challenge George into becoming the best King he can be. George has to find the will to help lead England through an almighty war and the best way he can do that is to be strong himself.

Britishness:

In 2003, the Government defined a British film as 

"reference to obvious cultural elements such as: a setting in the UK or a focus on British people abroad; a predominantly British cast; a story line about some aspect of British life — past, present or future."

 Times have changed since then, the britishness of a film does not necessarily mean that it is a quintessentially british cast and story line sometimes it just means that it is directed by a british director and predominantly made in England. For example We Need To Talk About Kevin is a British film, it is directed by Scottish director Lynne Ramsay and would be classed as a British film even though it is set in America. However in regards to The King's Speech in many cases it would be regarded as a quintessentially British film because of the fact that the majority of the main cast members are of British descent, for example Colin Firth and Helena Bonham Carter. Also the director, Tom Hooper, is a British director and has many British credentials to his name such as The Damned United and Les Miserables. Many british films however do get help from international production companies and distributors and in The King's Speech case The Weinstein Company helped distribute the film.

Exhibition:

The King's Speech was a surprising success, it exceeding the expectations of many of the production companies behind it. Momentum Pictures was shocked at the amount that the film generated a "£3.52m opening weekend, including modest previews of £227,000." It beat many of the most popular british films of the recent years such as Slumdog Millionaire (which got £1.83m on the opening weekend), Atonement (which got £1.63m on the opening weekend) and Calender Girls (which generated £1.88m on the opening weekend).

The film's general reception was incredibly positive and well received. The American audience was very partial to seeing this film, they were intrigued by the britishness and quintessential life of what they would expect in England. The fact that the royals play such a big part in the American lives because they don't have a monarchy of their own it means that they adopt our history and royalty and embrace just like an true British patriot would. 

Many critics, especially the British ones, were key to point out the inaccuracies in the story and the melodramatic portrayal of some of our most key players in history. People such as Timothy Spall's portrayal of Winston Churchill was critiscised for being to over the top in his mannerisms. However generally the reception by all the major newspaper companies gave it four or five stars which shows that even though some inaccuracies would be noticeable to some observant eyes that this film still won over the audiences due to it's touching story line and the sentimental value behind it.

"At first, The King’s Speech, directed by Tom Hooper, looks awfully familiar, a musty historical drama full of monarchs and period costumes and atmospheric fog. Peer a bit closer though, and it’s a thoroughly modern tale, the true-life story of a king’s efforts to overcome his stammer in order to face his public, constructed like a contemporary makeover narrative."

 Sukhdev Sandhu at The Telegraph

"But overall the film is a major achievement, with Firth presenting us with a great profile in courage, a portrait of that recurrent figure, the stammerer as hero. He finds as many different aspects of stammering as the number of ways of photographing sand explored by Freddie Young in Lawrence of Arabia or John Seale in The English Patient. And as they did, he deserves an Oscar."

Phillip French at the Guardian

"For all its period trappings and occasionally heavy-handed Freudian psychodrama, ‘The King’s Speech’ always comes back to the unlikely friendship between two superbly sketched, immaculately played characters. By the rousing wartime finale, it’ll be a staunch, hard-hearted republican who doesn’t feel the urge to yell, ‘God save the King!’"

Tom Huddleston at TimeOut

One of the main criticisms for the film has been the historical inaccuracies that have been noticed by critics. One of the main inaccuracies has been the fact that the political history involved is not exactly correct. 

"The King's Speech has been criticised by several writers for glossing over Bertie's support for Neville Chamberlain's policy of appeasement towards Adolf Hitler."

As said by Alex von Tunzelmann at the Guardian. However in the bigger picture, the film can brush past these errors. This isn't a film about World War Two and the time leading up to that. It is a film showing the very human struggle of a public figure and the way he dealt with that in a very tough part of his life. 

Production Issues:

One of the main production issues with this film was purely for the fact that the script was completely unusual and incredibly different to what was on the film market in today's society, it's not everyday that you get a film about a King with a stammer. The producers struggled to find stars as well to be in the film as they needed that star value to help push box office sales for the film. Gareth Unwin of Bedlam Productions sent Geoffrey Rush, one of the main stars of the film, the script to his personal address in the hope that he would see a spark in the story and sentimentality in it to star in it. His agents and managers were incredibly angry with this, however despite that Rush knew that this was a special script that deserved it's say on film. Unwin says 

"This flies against every fibre of me knowing how the business works. I ended up with a four-page email from his manager tearing me a new one. But it finished off with Geoffrey saying he liked it and that we should talk. We wouldn't have got to talk to Geoffrey at that stage otherwise. Joan [Lane - theatre producer and agent to David Seidler, who wrote the original script] was audacious in her thinking and it did pay off."

The main production companies involved with the film were See-Saw Productions (a British and Australian production company), Bedlam Productions (The King's Speech was the first official film produced by this company, owned by Gareth Unwin) and Momentum Pictures (a key player in the British film industry). There were no real major Hollywood companies behind this film, however with the help of The Weinstein Company, owned by the ruthless Harvey Weinstein, it quickly became a word of mouth hit.

One of the major financiers for the film then was The Weinstein Company. Also the UK Film Council was responsible for giving the film the kick start it needed to start filming, it gave the production team £1 million to help in June 2009 and filming began in December lasting 39 days.

The film also was intended at the start to be a stage play, David Seidler who suffered with a stammer as a child wrote a script about this story and initially intended it for a London stage. However, in 2005 Joan Lane received a script and she started talking to Simon Egan and Gareth Unwin of Bedlam Productions, now intending it for the silver screen. They organised a reading of the play which is where Tom Hooper's mother saw the script and recommended that Hooper should do this as his next project.

Distribution and Marketing: 

These posters that would have been released just before the film came out. They are very eye catching and would have generated a lot of curiosity about the film. With the very minimal design and bold quotations it makes people who don't know a lot about the film very intrigued and interested to know more about it. The close up photographs of Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush really catch our eyes as a passer by. Also with the graphics used, "God Save The King" on Firth's and positives comments about the film on Rush's, it makes us realise that this film about the monarchy and the fact that it has received many positive reviews already, it gives a positive message that this is a film worth seeing. Also with the muted colours and simple background it means we can focus on what the text is trying to say to us and the simplicity also means that we know that this regal film will be very stylistic and 'art-house'.

These trailers are for different audiences. The top one here is for American audiences and it focuses on Geoffrey Rush's character and his guidance in helping the King, however the UK version focuses more on the 'britishness' of the film and it also uses the famous Shakespearean quote "some men are born great, others have greatness thrust upon them" this adds to the trailer and also adds an air of patriotism to the British people and because it is about our history and that sense of the monarchy being the central base of English attention. Also in the UK trailer Helena Bonham Carter's character calls her husband the 'Duke of York' whereas in the US trailer she says 'the King', when she meets Geoffrey Rush's character. This makes sure that the American audience knows that this is a important person and that this is a real story about a real monarch. It also gives the international audience more of a understanding about King George and his importance to the British history.

The use of posters and trailers in the marketing scheme especially behind these kind of films is very important because they grab the audience's attention and make them want to see the film. Posters are made to be very eye catching and noticeable and are placed on billboards and the sides of buses to attract passers by and encourage them to go and see the film. Film trailers are made to show you a few snippets of the film to engage and interest the audience enough to persuade them to see the film. 

Major Issues Facing British Film Makers:

With the rise in technology spreading all over the world it means that the access to this and also the finance side of the cameras and technology is more available to British film makers, however in saying this the British film makers are still facing major issues. This is because of the budgets normally sourced for independent British films is done in the UK and this means that the amount that the film makers get isn't necessarily as much to create a big, big hit than a Hollywood 'Big Six' production. However this also means that the profit that needs to be made is a more reachable goal when the budget itself is lower than expected. Also in 2010, the UK was experiencing a tough time generating the profit that was expected. This is the time around which The King's Speech came out. 
Although the King's Speech is a very lucky film and it has essentially revived the British Film Industry.

"The irony of the situation has been observed, But what we're feeling right now is triumphant. What we have is the most successful independent British film of all time, made as a direct result of public funding. That's a great validation and a great thing to have at the end of a very difficult eight-month period. Yes, it's a bittersweet moment. But it's also an amazing legacy for the UKFC as a whole."

Said Tanya Segatchian, head of the UKFC's film fund

It shows the UK and US film audience that British films, even if they may be more sentimental and touching in most cases, are still worth investing in and the problems associated with the money side of the issue are very trivial at the end of the day. Even though it is a money associated business if the love of the film and the story behind the film is emotion grabbing enough then the audience will come and the money will start to generate. The fact of the matter is that films such as The King's Speech reach such a wide audience and with the fascination of the monarchy in all parts of the world then it means that British films get more recognition as a whole.

Dredd Presentation (with Sophie Beeston)

Script for Dredd Presentation (with Sophie Beeston)

Script for Dredd

Background on Dredd (2012):

Dredd (2012):
Dredd is a British/South African film based on the comic book character of the same name.  The Director of the film was Pete Travis who has directed films such as Vantage Point (2008), Omagh (2004) and Endgame (2009). The main stars of the film were Karl Urban and Olivia Thirlby, who were cast as Dredd and his rookie, Anderson. They were fairly unknown actors and neither of them were A-list celebrities. Karl Urban had been in a few big blockbuster films, such as his character Bones in the Star Trek reboot in 2009, although even though he was known quite well he still agreed to playing the traditional character of Dredd (where he doesn't take his helmet off the entire time). The film got the green light in 2008, a year after the script had been written. Alex Garland was one of the main producers of the film and he also was the one that wrote the script so he was very passionate about this film. The other writers of the film were John Wagner and Carlos Ezquerra, both of these people were the original creators of Judge Dredd, the character from the 1970s so they would have a specialized knowledge of the character of Dredd and would be able to give him the attention and detail that he as a character deserves. John Wagner also was crucial to the 1995 release of 'Judge Dredd' starring Sylvester Stallone.  The main distributor of the film 
was DNA Films, which is a British production company and have produced films such as 28
Days Later (2002), The Last King of Scotland (2006) and Never Let Me Go (2010). One of
the reasons why this film probably wasn't as successful as originally intended was probably
because of the fact that the British production company didn't have the wide scale marketing abilities to be able to achieve a good profit of the film. The budget for this film was $45
million, and Dredd earned $23,153,028 from international markets and $6.9 million in the
UK. So obviously this film lost money in the box office which is surprising because many
critics gave it positive reviews and it has received cult status, so there is a wondering as to 
why this film lost money. The marketing schemes were like any traditional film, with its 
posters, trailers, and adverts.

However it's most unusual marketing scheme was a website.
In August 2012, the viral advertising site "Dredd Report" was launched, satirising the 
Drudge Report. The site featured a video condemning the use of Slo-Mo, and links to news 
about the film. The film did receive very good critical reception from many critics, on web-
sites such as Metacritic it received reviews from users and critics and the majority were very positive for example "Pitched at the right level to please original fans, but still slick and accessible enough to attract new ones, Dredd 3D feels like a smart and muscular addition to 
the sci-fi action genre." From Steven Dalton from the Hollywood Reporter. Dredd won a
couple of awards for its efforts. At the Empire Film Awards it won the award for the best film in 3D and it also won an award from the Golden Trailer Awards, where it won the award for the best thriller TV spot. The film was shot digitally and primarily in 3D using RED MX, SI2K and Phantom Flex high-speed cameras. Multiple camera rigs were used. Some 2D elements were converted to 3D in post production. Some of the reasons for the lack of success of the
film may be due to the fact that the audience just wasn't there to support it and give it the
money it deserves. However many fans have protested the fact that there is the possibility
that a sequel won't be made, and even started a Facebook petition which achieved 80,000
signatures. The comic book company, 2000AD (the company which Dredd spawned from)
have been writing the stories of Dredd since the seventies so they continue to write his
dramatic story to this day, as well as that there were action figures that were released to
coincide with the film's release. Also the soundtrack of the film's music all the way through
was released as well.

Dredd (2012) - Review:

The film 'Dredd' is based on the infamous comic book character of the same name. Set in a post-apocalyptic America, Judge Dredd is a law enforcer given the power of judge, jury and executioner in a vast, dystopian metropolis called Mega-City One. When he is called out to a crime scene in one of the city's Mega Blocks with the rookie Anderson, they set out to take down a drug lord and the vast control that she has in this inner city. Sometimes to disastrous consequences. 

When Dredd started my honest first thought was that I was not going to enjoy this, half way through I still thought I wasn't going to like this. However after it had finished and I had some time to contemplate what I had just seen I realised that this really was a great piece of film-making. The extraordinary visuals and the hidden depths of the script really shocked and impressed me whilst watching this surprising movie.

A criticism that I do have for the film is that for me I found the gore and violence slightly too much for my tastes, however I can appreciate that this is part of the story and part of the look and feel of the comic book, I found that for some viewers and especially, stereotypically as well of course, that maybe the female audience would find it quite offensive because it is so 'in your face' and maybe they would struggle to see the need for it. Although my initial reaction of not being excited at all and being anxious to see full frontal violence quickly changed and I started to appreciate this film for what it was. A fun, action packed roller-coaster of emotions.

Karl Urban starred as Dredd, and with the Judge being famously known for never taking his helmet off Urban definitely definitely had his work cut out to portray this famous character and please both the hardcore fans and attract new audience members. Which I definitely think he managed, I went into this film not really having an idea of who the character was or the world he lived in and I think Urban accomplished this as whilst watching the film and after as well I realised what this movie and also the character was trying to say and represent. However whilst reading reviews on the website Metacritic, I saw a comment that I feel really represented the film for me. David Hiltbrand of the Philadelphia Inquirer said that 'For sci-fi action fans, it's an instant classic. For everyone else, it's a dark, bloody mess.' I totally agree with this statement, because as much as I enjoyed the film Dredd I did find that maybe this was a passion project for the makers of the film and I can see why they would have wanted to make it. 

I don't think this film is a masterpiece as it does have it's faults, however I think that for the right market that this would definitely appeal all round. It's an interesting concept that I think I would be happy to see again however I think this film was just marketed all wrong and it came out at just the wrong time. However who knows this off beat film may achieve cult status in a decade or two, who knows.

Blockbuster Task Script

Media Studies - Star Trek Script by laurennboltonn

Blockbuster Research - Star Trek into Darkness

Star Trek Into Darkness Research:

Synopsis: After the crew of the Enterprise find an unstoppable force of terror from within their own organization, Captain Kirk leads a manhunt to a war-zone world to capture a one man weapon of mass destruction. 

Pre- Production: 

• This film is a remake/sequel, there was already a incredibly famous TV series of the same name and this film is also the sequel to the 2009 release from JJ Abrams, who directed this one as well.
• JJ Abrams is the director of this film and also one of the main producers of the film. He is known for being involved in many sci-fi projects such as Super 8 and currently in Pre-Production he is directing the new Star Wars film.
• The production companies involved in making the film was JJ Abrams own Bad Robot and also Paramount Pictures and Skydance Productions were involved as well.
• The estimated budget for this film is $190 million, which is a lot however the special effects in this film were spectacular and you can really see what they spent their money on.
• The main stars that signed up to the project were mainly ones that had been in the previous film such as Chris Pine, Simon Pegg and Zoe Saldana. However there were a few other editions to the cast this time as Benedict Cumberbatch and Alice Eve joined the cast.
• Around 2011 and 2012 did the film get a green light for filming to commence. Paramount Pictures was interested in developing the film right after the first one was made however it took longer than expected to get everybody on board, the five original producers agreed to get the film rolling ( J. J. Abrams, Bryan Burk, Damon Lindelof, Alex Kurtzman, and Roberto Orci) however in January 2011, JJ Abrams still didn't know whether he would direct as he had not seen a script yet. However Principal Photography began on January 12 2012 with Abrams behind the directing wheel

Production:

• Filming was predominantly done in California and in Iceland in the following studios: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory - 7000 East Avenue, Livermore, California, USA, Crystal Cathedral - 12141 Lewis Street, Garden Grove, California, USA, Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA, The Getty Center, Los Angeles, California, USA, and Sony Pictures Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA.
• Around 30 minutes of the film were filmed with IMAX cameras and the film was released in 3D. Edgar Wright (director of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz and The World's End) actually directed one shot in the film and the film completed Principal Photography in May 2012.
• There were a lot of delays in the actual start up of the film as the script took a long time to write. Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, the writers of the film, tried to write a preliminary script completed by December 2009 for a 2011 release however the script was more delayed and it was finally finished in March 2011. Also some of the actors crucial to the film had other scheduling arrangements, such as Chris Pine who was scheduled to film 'Jack Ryan' however he decided to film Star Trek first.    

Post-Production: 

• The film does rely on special effects as the majority of the film is set in space, so to create the space environment the Digital Effects team would have to work really hard to make sure this foreign environment would look realistic enough for the audience to believe they are watching something real.
• This film actually had 1,400 CGI effects whereas compared to the previous Star Trek film which had just 1,000 effects. The film was predominantly filmed in IMAX (around 30 - 40 minutes of footage) and this made it harder for the visual effects to be completed because the shots were on such a larger scale so they took longer to create and render. On the website 'ScreenRant.com' they say about Star Trek Into Darkness.

 "For scenes that take place outdoors in the film, they tried to use natural light as much as possible; if there was a way to create an alien landscape outdoors, that was the first choice instead of using a soundstage. When it came to the look of “future Earth,” they tried to make it look more like a natural evolution of a city’s growth as opposed to some completely outrageous take. This was specifically in reference to a shot of London, which still had some recognizable structures."

• The 3D in the film was added after filming because some of it was filmed using IMAX cameras and I'm sure the added cost of using 3D cameras as well would have been to expensive and extra time consuming. It was converted into 3D afterwards.

Marketing:

The film was marketed in many different ways as it was such a high profile film, it needed to be in the limelight as they spent $190 million on it the producers would want there to be some sort of profit. Here are some examples of the marketing methods used:

• JJ Abrams previewed three frames of the film on the Conan O'Brian Show in America on October 4th 2012.
• Two months later the first official poster depicting Benedict Cumberbatch's then unknown Khan character was released, this would have been to spark a early interest in the film.
• Also nine minutes of the film was played before showings of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, which would have sparked crucial interest in fans of the fantasy/sci-fi genre.
• A 30 second teaser of the film was played at the Superbowl on February 3 2013 during the stadium's blackout.
• The same day, Paramount released apps for Android, iPhone and Windows Phone which enabled users to unlock tickets for showtimes two days before the film's release date.
• The film premiered in a lot of places all over the world however the main ones included Tokyo, London and Hollywood.

Film Production

It takes a lot of time to make a film, before the public can experience a good quality film it takes many stages to achieve the final product. There is four main stages of production for films and they are: Development, Pre-production, Production and Post-production. All of these stages are crucial to the quality of the film at the end of the making process. The people who work in the film industry and work on certain films all have roles to play whether it's the Director, Cinematographer or Costume Designer they all play their part into making the films that we see what they are.

The Idea:

Sources of Information: We find inspiration from everywhere and when you're a filmmaker so look out for anything that remotely sounds like an interesting concept for a film. All areas of the media can spark an idea for example looking in a newspaper and see a interesting story for example the story that inspired the film, The Impossible, was a true story. Reboots, Remakes, Conversations (original ideas), Factual Events, Book Adaptations can be made into films.

Examples of each source of information:

• Reboot - Casino Royale was a reboot of James Bond starring Daniel Craig. Also The Amazing Spider-man starring Andrew Garfield was a reboot of the trilogy of Spider-man films in the early noughties starring Tobey Macguire.
• Remake - The Great Gatsby is an example of a remake.
• Factual Events - As said before, The Impossible was based on real life events of María Belón's and her family's experience of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.
• Book Adaptations - The Fault in our Stars, a teen cult novel, is currently in production and it is based on John Green's book of the same name.

The Producer: Once the idea has been conceived it goes to a producer to be made into the reality. Normally the producers see a lot of films so they know what ideas sell in the industry. Producers then develop the film further, they handle the financial side as well as sometimes the creative and commercial side of the whole production. It takes skill and care to develop a film and make it a success and only very few can manage it efficiently. It is a quality that all producers must process.

The Director: The creative development of the film mainly involves the director as they are the one with the vision to see what the final outcome of the film will be. Their involvement begins early on the the production process. Sometimes the director will actually have the idea of the film and approach a producer to help them develop it further. If the director is well known then they should have the credibility to produce a good quality film for the audience, this can also help them get a good writer to get the most out of a good looking film and good quality script.

The Writer: The relationship between the Writer, Producer and Director is key in the development of the whole production. If all these three elements are all present and correct then the outcome of the film will be worthwhile. The writer will either write the script or give treatment to one to make sure that what is on the page will be a success when brought to life on the big screen.

Treatment: The next stage of the film making process will be that the writer will write a treatment of the script/story, it is a description of key events and and the characters. It is basically a synopsis that tells whoever reads it what the general idea of the film is and whether it is a interesting watch or not.

Pitch: In the pitch, the Producers will try to sell the idea to financiers and the pitch will also contain all the information that the film currently has. They need the financiers to help commission a script. The pitch will include: a one-liner describing the film briefly, the genre of the film to help set the scene, discussions of who the target market will be so they know exactly who to aim the movie at, a list of all the people who are currently attached to the project, a rough budget of how much it'll take to produce the film, and also a brief synopsis extended from the one-liner.

Development Finance:
This stage starts off with the pitch and the producer uses the treatment and the written pitch to persuade financiers to give them money to develop the script. The producer could also approach film production companies to help with the financing however the production companies have to be persuaded and they also have to right to have a large part in the film making process. The producer can also offer the future sales and broadcast rights to Sales, Distribution and Broadcast companies in exchange for money to develop the script further. Producers can also go down the public investment route which means a public funding body such as the UK Film Council will give the producers a development grant which also means the script can be developed and then eventually made into the actual film. Producers can also go for a private investment which is when they ask somebody with a lot of money for funding for the project if they think it is interesting and worth developing into a film. The investors have a share of the project so the producer has to work closely with them, after this though the producer now has to tie down a writer to complete a number of drafts of the script to work out which will be the most successful.

UK Film example: The World's End is an example of a British film
US Film example: World War Z is an example of a American film

Script Development:
The writer produces a synopsis for the film and he and the producer will decide on the key events and scenes that happen in the film then the first draft of the film is written. Some writers produce a step outline to plan out how to write their script. The first draft of the film is crucial to whether the writer gets paid or not. Once the Writer and Producer are happy then the draft is sent to the financiers and they will have their own ideas about the script. One everybody is happy with the script it is locked off and becomes a 'final draft' then the writer gets paid.

Packaging:
The Producer and Director now package the script which means they put the final draft, the sales treatment and rough budget into a pack this makes sure that it is ready for full commercial proposition, ready for financing. Next the cast are decided as the aim of the producer is to attract well known stars to add commercial value. Next the knowledgeable financiers discuss with different heads of departments to decide how the film will look and how it will be made such as discussing with the Production designer and the Director of Photography. Now the budget has to be officially decided to make sure everything is set. Investors also ask the Producer now how they will raise the money to pay for the film and how they will be paid back. Finally the Producer has packaged the film into a viable commercial proposition.

Financing:
The Producer has to travel now as the financiers can be located all over the world and they need to secure the investment. The Producer's Lawyer now draws up contracts to 'seal the deal'. The Producer can also raise money from pre-sales, which means people are sold rights to the film before it is made. Once the essential funding and insurance has been secured the film can get a 'green light'.

Pre-Production:
The Heads of Department are hired and the scripts are passed around and discussed. The Casting Director, Director and Producer begin the long process of deciding who to cast in the project. The script is then story boarded and the shots and the design aspects are decided and made to make sure the whole cast and crew know what they are letting themselves in for. Special effects scenes are made in advance because of the sheer amount of detail that has to go into into them. 

The Shoot:
The Camera Department is responsible for getting all the footage needed to be able to tell the story of the film. Once the Lighting, Sound and Hair and Makeup have been checked then the shoot can begin. However the actors are the crucial part of this production stage because they have to create this emotional world and make us believe they are the characters. All the special effects scenes are filmed very carefully so they don't cause harm to the cast and crew. 

Post-Production:
As the footage comes out of the shoot, the Editor organises it into a sequence and a narrative that the audience will understand. Once the picture is locked then the Sound Department step in and work on the audio track laying, creating the sound as well. The Digital Effects teams are now responsible for adding the special effects and the opening and closing credits. The final stage is to make sure the colour and actual aesthetic in the film are up to scratch. After the picture is locked the film is then sent to the dubbing theatre so the rough sound mix can be completed and the sound mixer sets the final levels of the sounds of the film. The film is now a final cut.

Sales:
The trailer is made to entice people to see the film, and it is the most marketable aspect to the film as this the first thing people see of the film. The Producer and Sales Agent collect everything they need to sell the film to the distributors. Film Festivals are essential to putting the film out there for people to see and normally they are very high profile as well and they are good for generating 'heat' around a film. The film is now a hot project so distributors all over the world can negotiate with the Producer now.

Marketing: 
The Marketing team do a lot of work to make sure that the film will be accepted in the audience. They will run test screenings to see whether the target market will actually accept the film in the industry. The potential audience are also targeted by posters, cinema trailers, TV spots and other marketing methods. Newspapers and the Internet also help giveing a positive word of mouth.

Exhibition:
A high profile premiere is held with A-list stars attending to draw attention to the film. After that the film is shown either nationwide or worldwide and the people involved in the production hope for a success. Once the distributors have been paid the investors can recover their investments.

Other Windows:
The film can gain extra profit from hospitality sales such as in flight showings and hotel channels. The DVD sales and profits are higher in the UK than cinema ticket sales so this can really compensate for how well the film does. Television and Game rights are sold and licenses can be extremely useful to the profit. Once the film has made the profit then the Producer and the Key Creative people can reap the rewards. The film may be made into a sequel or even be re-released in the future.