Film Industry: British film industry factsheets

Factsheet #132: British Film

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

A British film is considered to be made in Britain by British people using British money and actors.

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

Hollywood production context is means that the films are made by Hollywood studios have high budgets and are quite reliant on celebrities both in the cast and crew. Where as, the British film production context does not have many clearly defined characteristics. British films can be large budget or they can character driven small budgeted films. British film production context should in some way reflect British culture.

3) When did the James Bond franchise start?

The James Bond franchise started in the 1960's.

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

In the 197's we see a rise of sexual content in both the act of sex and sex linked to violence with films. In the 1980's we see a rise of videos and violent and explicit content of the videos being more accessible to the British public. 

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

There are many representations within British films and these representations change according to different issues. The youth is an example especially in British horror films, the youth is portrayed in a singular way. The focus is on violence, anti-establishment and the urge to act in an anarchic way. This is amplified British cinema and current films such as Eden lake 2008, where we see a similar set of values being given to the youthful antagonists in the film. They play into the stereotype that the youth are rule breaking rebels, that are more violent. There are contemporary representation of youth in films that attempt to show a more realistic, more insightful depiction of the youth, that challenges these stereotypes of the threat of the rebel.

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

Then British content and focus on British culture is appealing to a British audience as with any film made by its own country for its own populace. The main characteristics that can be seen to be appealing to a British audience would include; the actors, British actors tend to be more identifiable and will often be associated with a particular genre of British film. British locations are a popular feature of the film, with London being the most popular even  though there has been a rise in popularity of northern towns and cities being used in British film. The most appealing characteristic to a British audience is a social theme. British audiences have an interest in British films that have a focus on class,social strife, education and more. 

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 Institutes cultural test in order to be defined as British.The cultural test is divided in to 4 sections and must score at least 16/30 to be classified as British.The 4 sections are cultural; context, contribution, hubs, practitioners.

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.

3) What is the main problem for the British film industry?
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. Once sold, all revenue from cinema screenings, DVD and Blu-ray sales, plus sales to television companies, are lost.

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

The British film industry has outstanding creative skills of practitioners and they have outstanding facilities since they are the third biggest film industry and take 5% of the world's box office takings.

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

British film makers could choose to rely upon co-productions with American studios to keep the industry afloat. They could also attempt to make a low budget film 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 that they should have co-productions with American studios because that way they will continue to generate revenue and profits without losing anything. Also, it would be nice for the audience to see something different and the duo could produce a film together that will make the industries a lot of money.