The British film
1) Write a one-sentence definition of what makes a film British.
People making the film are British, is it funded from within Britain, are the cast British, is the film’s subject matter about Britain or British culture.
2) What is the difference between a Hollywood production context and production context of a British film?
British film as a production context tends to be varied but idiosyncratic to the story being told within the film. A films production context is the conditions under which the film has been made. For instance the Hollywood production context means that most films made by Hollywood studios have high budgets, a heavy reliance on celebrities both in the cast and crew and spectacle driven stories.
3) When did the James Bond franchise start?
The 1960s brought about the start of the James Bond franchise as well as a greater involvement of American money and talent.
4) In terms of film censorship and graphic content, what began to change in British film in the 1970s and 1980s?
The British film industry in the 1970s was dominated by the subject of censorship that continued into the video nasties banning of the 1980s. The 1980s also saw a dramatic decline in American investment in British film that did not increase again until the 1990s. The BBFC in the last few decades has tried to engage more with British audiences, making its guidelines not only accessible to all but also engaging with the public when reviewing these guidelines.
5) What groups are often represented in British film? Give examples of films these groups feature in.
The 1950s onwards and has seen an evolution in some parts of the representation as well as a persistent consistency in the way some films portray young people, especially in the British Horror Film. For example if we look at the way youth is portrayed in a very singular way in Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange (Warner Bros., 1971), the focus is on violence, anti-establishment and a compulsion to act in an anarchic way.
6) What does the Factsheet suggest might be the audience appeal of British film?
This is the first step towards targeting and appealing to a British audience as with any film made by a country for its own populace. The main characteristics that can be identified as appealing to a native British audience would include; the actors, British actors tend to be clearly identifiable as British and will often be associated with a particular genre of British film, for example Hugh Grant having an association with British romantic comedies.
British film industry
To complete our introduction to the British film industry, we need a little more background to the industries context.
Find Media Factsheet #100 on the British film industry. You can find it on the same link as above. Read the whole of the Factsheet and answer the following questions:
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 - choose three of the films listed and research them to work out what they score on the cultural test: The Sweeney (2012), Attack The Block, The King's Speech, We Need To Talk About Kevin and Skyfall.
• the Film Fund- According to the BFI website (www.bfi.org.uk), this fund is intended to support “filmmakers in the UK who are emerging or world-class and are capable of creating distinctive and entertaining work”.
• the Innovation- Fund This fund supports projects that can help the UK make a successful transition into the digital age.
the Prints and Advertising Fund Even when British films get made, it is often difficult to find
additional funds to market the final product so audiences are unaware the film exists, do not go to see it and the film’s box- office takings suffer accordingly.
3) What is the main problem for the British film industry?
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.
4) What are three of the strengths of the British film industry?
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?
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. Since these features would make no sense to an audience outside of Britain, it is unlikely that an American company involved in a co-production would approve of them.
The UK film industry’s second option is to attempt to make low budget films targeted at a niche, British audience.
6) In your opinion, which of these two options would best safeguard the future of the British film industry?
I think they should stick with the first option as they would have more wider audiences and would still be able to survive as Americans also love British productions and media and they would gain more money.
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