What impact does media ownership have upon the range of products available to audiences in the media area you have studied?

I believe that media ownership has a very large impact on the range of products available to an audience as the larger the production company is and the more popular it is, the better chance its products stand of being sold due to the company’s reputation. Also, these larger companies such as Universal and Warner Bros will have better access to other companies who can supply them with higher quality products such as Blu-ray copies, IMAX experiences and merchandise.

A larger company such as Warner Bros will be able to produce more popular films down to the company’s reputation within the industry. It will have the ability to house a larger budget for things such as A-List actors, high quality special effects and high end products to include either with the film’s release, e.g.: a 3D/IMAX release or merchandise. ‘Mad-Max: Fury road’ was created in collaboration by Village Roadshow Pictures, and Ratpac Dune entertainment. These companies aren’t that popular but have worked on very successful movies such as ‘X-Men’, ‘Night at the Museum’ and ‘Marley and Me’. However as the distributor is famous (Warner Bros) the movie received a very positive reception along with the fact that the Mad Max franchise is very popular and its previous movies have created a large fan base which also created opportunity for merchandise as the franchise is well known and loved. Because the film was distributed by a notorious company, the expectation for the movies quality was very high, but this wasn’t a problem as the company could afford to have high quality visual effects and A-List actors such as Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron. Because this film franchise has a reputation for its spectacular effects, the opportunity to market it through the promise of 3D, Blu-ray and IMAX cinema experiences made sure that the film gained a large mainstream audience.

Similarly, the special effects and high quality visuals used in ‘Ex-Machina’ enabled the film to gain a successful reception and instant audience appeal as the creation of ‘Ava’ made audiences want to see how a human had been made to look like a robot with AI (Artificial Intelligence). Universal distributed this film, and as one of Hollywood’s ‘big six’ and it was created in synergy with Film4, DNA films and Scott Rudin – all well attributed companies which are popular and will ensure a confident audience in terms of creating a product that will be a high quality piece of entertainment. Because of the nature of this film and the themes it tackles, it gained a large audience which enabled the companies to release Blu-ray/3D copies of the film not only because it made its money back, but because the use of impressive special effects technology warranted the best possible viewing experience. ‘Ex-Machina’ only gained this opportunity through its distributor who has the funds and the positive reputation to ensure that it will be well received to its audience that gathered in mass to see it (even though it is a niche/cult film).

However, a film that is made by a smaller, less known company won’t have the same opportunities as the films made by the larger companies as they don’t have a worldwide reputation and won’t have the funds to create the same high quality films. ‘Kill List’ by Ben Wheatley wasn’t a very successful film due to its occult themes and slowness in narrative. It also didn’t have A-list actors that would create audience appeal or high end special effects. All in all, I think that this film should stay as an underground cult film as it suits its category and wouldn’t be impressive enough for a larger company to take on because of its odd nature. Because the distributor (Optimum Releasing) isn’t very well known and didn’t work in collaboration with a

Elizabeth Tuft

larger company, it didn’t have access to the elements that might have made the film better. However, some of the companies that helped to produce this film such as Film4 Productions and WarpX (who are famous in the British/European film industry) allowed for the film to have some good qualities such as decent special effects and actors. However it simply wasn’t enough to warrant 3D or Blu-ray experiences let alone IMAX opportunities as the nature of the film simply didn’t meet the requirements to warrant these products. It didn’t make its money back in box office sales.

In conclusion, media ownership plays a large role in whether a film has the ability to make its money back and sell products such as Bu-Ray, 3D/IMAX and merchandise as it requires the film to have enough audience demand in order to process enhancements, Blu-ray for example. Also, the more popular companies like the ‘big six’ will often produce films that have large fan-bases or will create large fan-bases which opens opportunities for spin offs, merchandise and other publicity opportunities like panel talks with the stars (which will typically be A-list), etc. A films success and ability to sell high quality products all depends on its distributors and producer’s popularity and access to higher budget, A-list actors, high end special effects and opportunity for audience appeal and expansion.

Elizabeth Tuft