Section A: Audience and Institutions

Case Study: Prometheus

Exam Focus• the issues raised by media ownership

• the importance of cross media convergence and synergy in production, distribution and marketing;

• the technologies that have been introduced in recent years at the levels of production, distribution, marketing and exchange;

• the significance of proliferation in hardware and content for institutions and audiences;

• the issues raised in the targeting of national and local audiences (specifically, British) by international or global institutions;

• the ways in which the candidates’ own experiences of media consumption illustrate wider patterns and trends of audience behaviour.

Minimising Risk• Director: Ridley Scott (Alien, Blade Runner, Gladiator, Hannibal,

Black Hawk Down, Kingdom of Heaven, American Gangster, Robin Hood)

• Investors trust Scott to make big budget films, often on an epic scale, with international stars and make a profit.

• He has a fan base, as do the stars of the film.• It is also in the science fiction genre which also has a huge amount

of dedicated fans and the idea that this film is a prequel to Alien has attracted many more people to it.

• That film, as well as Blade Runner, are widely considered to be science fiction classics and Ridley Scott’s return to the genre is a really big deal for fans.

Budget

• Ridley Scott is said to have originally asked for $250, 000, 000.

Fox said “Make it PG rated and we may give you the money”

Scott said one word..."NO".

The final estimated budget was around $130,000,000

Media Ownership: Production Companies

• Brandywine Productions is an American film production company most known for its Alien film franchise.

• Dune Entertainment produced films like Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, The A-Team, Knight and Day, Unstoppable, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, and Gulliver's Travels’ Wikipedia

• Scott Free Productions is Ridley and Tony Scott’s production company and it works closely with RSA Films,(the advertising company started by Ridley Scott more than forty years ago) .

• Distributed by 20th Century Fox suggesting they have put money into the production in order to get distribution rights.

Production• Principal photography began in March 2011, with filming taking place in

Canada, England, Scotland, Iceland, and Spain.

• Shot at Pinewood and Shepperton Studios

• This is the fifth time that Ridley Scott has shot at the studios; previous films have included Alien, Legend, White Squall, and Robin Hood.

Ridley Scott said of working at Pinewood and Shepperton: “It’s my heritage, my personal heritage, I film everywhere in the world and I think all things considered what we have to offer here are as good as anything you’re going to get in Hollywood.”

New Technologies: 3D

• The entire movie has been shot in 3D and the experience has been so compelling for Scott that he writes:

• “I will never be the same again. Even with a dialogue scene, the arena in the room grows. There is no question that you can be drawn in further by the feeling that you are there.”’

Targeting Audiences: Classification• Fox was keen for the film to be open to a wider audience and so pushed for a more

teen-friendly rating

• Ridley Scott hints that the violence may have been toned-down enough to facilitate a PG-13 rating, but intriguingly suggests that the impact will match the R-grade shocks of Alien and Aliens.

• Scott said early in the production of the film "The question is, do you go for the PG-13, [which] financially makes quite a difference, or do you go for what it should be, which is R? Essentially, it's kinda R."

Scott said: "It's not just about the blood, it's about ideas that are very stressful. I'm not an idiot, but I'll do everything I can to get the most aggressive film I can.”

• The film was eventually released as a 15 certificate.

Targeting Audiences: Stars

• Charlize Theron "Snow White and the Huntsman"

• Michael Fassbender "X-Men: First Class" • Noomi Rapace "The Girl with the Dragon

Tattoo

Media Ownership: Distribution

• 20th Century Fox were responsible for the distribution and the complex marketing campaign for the film.

• 20th Century Fox allowed audiences to immerse themselves in the world of “Prometheus” long before the film was released.

Targeting Audiences/New Technologies/Proliferation of Content : Online Marketing

www.projectprometheus.com

The Project Prometheus website allowed audiences to look at the fictional company ‘Weyland Industries’.

Targeting Audiences/New Technologies/Proliferation of Content : Online Marketing

• Users could join “Project Prometheus” to play games, read secret materials, create I.D. cards, etc.• These features allowed audiences to interact with the film and built momentum for its release.

Targeting Audiences/New Technologies/Proliferation of Content : David 8• Michael Fassbender plays a character called ‘David’. The website builds and elaborate back-story detailing his creation.

• A Twitter account was also set up to allow users to interact with David using social media.

• This .gif image is another great example of using the web to immerse audiences:

Cross Media Convergence: TED Website

• To fuel the sense of expectation four short ‘viral clips’ were released onto the web

• These created a detailed back-story to the film• The most significant of these clips used the increasingly well-

known and significant TED (Technology, Education, Design) conference

• It featured a character from the film, Peter Weyland, making a speech to the conference in 2023 some 50 years before the setting of the film

TED Website

• FROM THE TED WEBSITE:TED is a non-profit organisation devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, Design. Since then its scope has become ever broader. Along with two annual conferences -- the TED Conference in Long Beach and Palm Springs each spring, and the TEDGlobal conference in Edinburgh UK each summer -- TED includes the award-winning TED Talks video site, the Open Translation Project and TED Conversations, the inspiring TED Fellows and TEDx programs, and the annual TED Prize.

TED Website

• The TED website describes Weyland, the keynote speaker, in the following terms:

• Peter Weyland has been a magnet for controversy since he announced his intent to build the first convincingly humanoid robotic system by the end of the decade.

• Whether challenging the ethical boundaries of medicine with nanotechnology or going toe to toe with the Vatican itself on the issue of gene-therapy sterilization, Sir Peter prides himself on his motto, “If we can, we must.” After a three year media blackout, Weyland has finally emerged to reveal where he’s heading next. Wherever that may be, we will most certainly want to follow.

Targeting Audiences/New Technologies/Proliferation of Content/Cross Media Convergence: Viral clip 1

• http://blog.ted.com/ted2023/• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMp8DN8UwiQ

Targeting Audiences/New Technologies/Proliferation of Content/Cross Media Convergence: Viral clip 2

• Viral clip 2 – creation of the android David• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWmbqH_z7jM

Targeting Audiences/New Technologies/Proliferation of Content/Cross Media Convergence: Viral clip 3

• Viral Clip 3 – Phone call between ‘Dr. Elizabeth Shaw’ and ‘Sir Peter Weyland’• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9PNTIZeJzY

Targeting Audiences/New Technologies/Proliferation of Content/Cross Media Convergence: Viral clip 4

• Viral Clip 4 – Peter Weyland quoting Thus Spoke Zarathustra by Friedrich Nietzsche• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnTWPH9Bd1U

Traditional Media

• The first teaser poster was released on 14 December 2011 followed by the teaser trailer on 22 December 2011 on iTunes in order to build anticipation for the official trailer.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFfhttZYoEw

http://sciencefiction.com/2011/12/19/teaser-for-prometheus-movie-trailer/

The teaser poster featured the tagline “The Search For Our Beginning Could Lead To Our End”.

Cross Media Convergence: Traditional Media

• The official trailer was released in partnership in with AMC cinemas on 17 March 2012.

• It was simultaneously shown at the AMC Downtown Disney during WonderCon and on Facebook, Twitter and the AMC cinemas website.

• It was published immediately after on the AMC YouTube page.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFfhttZYoEw

Cross Media Convergence/New Technologies/Targeting audiences/Proliferation of Content :Traditional Media

• The International Launch Trailer debuted in the UK on 29 April 2012 on Channel 4.

• It was played during the first advertisement break during Homeland.

• Viewers were encouraged to Tweet their thoughts and opinions which allowed audiences to interact with the film using social media.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1byZkbNB3Jw

“It wasn’t any ordinary ad. It was part of live experiment as Channel 4 invited viewers to share their thoughts about the teaser on Twitter, under the #areyouseeingthis hashtag, and then featured a selection of live tweets in the following ad break. The results were impressive with thousands sharing their thoughts. The ad was a worldwide first and marked the first time a broadcaster had created a tailored TV spot, which featured live tweets that were sent only minutes before.”

Cross Media Convergence/Targeting Audiences/Media Ownership: Other Marketing•Fox France promoted the film internationally with a huge publicity stunt in Paris. They transformed a closed subway station, including a giant blue bead and enormous spot lights so that riders could see it as they passed through:http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=fssV1o5Mryc

Media Ownership/Cross Media Convergence

This full page advert featured in the Wall Street Journal.

The Wall Street Journal is owned by “News Corporation” - the conglomerate that also own 20th Century Fox.

Cross Media Convergence: Synergy

• Prometheus uses synergy with TED in its viral clip.

Cross Media Convergence: Synergy

• Prometheus partnered Internet Explorer to promote the film and promote the HTML 5 for Windows.

Cross Media Convergence: Synergy

• VerzionFios ran a campaign for Prometheus giving audiences the chance to win a competition and a virtual tour of the spaceship.

• The campaign was nominated for a OMMA Award for Online Advertising Creativity.

New Technologies/Targeting Audiences: Exhibition

• The film was released on 10th June 2012 in a number of different formats:

• 2D Standard • 3D Standard• 3D Imax

New Technologies/Targeting Audiences: 2D v 3D

• Controversially the film was released on more 3D screens than 2D. This meant choice for some audiences was severely limited.

• Here is Mark Kermode talking about the issue:

• http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/markkermode/2012/06/prometheus_-_2d_v_3d.html

Targeting Audiences: Secret Cinema

• The "Prometheus,“ event was launched in tandem with the U.K. release in June 2012 a first for Secret Cinema.

• This is the first time Secret Cinema have shown a new release.

Targeting Audiences: Secret Cinema

• The four-week run of the Secret screenings, which ended Sunday, smashed ticket sales for a single venue for "Prometheus," grossing £720,000 ($1.1 million) across 38 shows in 28 days.

• The secret film attracted more than 25,000 attendees.

Targeting Audiences: Secret Cinema

• For "Prometheus," promoters transformed a 190,000-square-foot warehouse in central London into a futuristic spaceship, including props from the actual movie.

• Ticketholders, who were invited to come dressed like workers in various scientific professions, met at a spot nearby and were led to the secret screening by actors.

• The interaction continued with the actors re-enacting scenes until the film began, preceded by a taped message from Scott.

Targeting Audiences: Secret Cinema

• The event provides inspiration for distributors looking for alternative methods to showcase films.

• It also fits in with how marketers increasingly find they need to reach moviegoers with their campaigns in foreign territories, especially Europe.

• Audiences there tend to react more to campaigns where they can interact with a film's marketing materials through photo opportunities or other experiences.

• Doing so makes audiences feel as if they have a connection to a film when it bows, rather than more traditional poster, billboard and trailer efforts in the U.S.

Summary

• The production, distribution and exhibition phases of the film “Prometheus” can easily be used to demonstrate your understanding of some of the key focus areas. In particular:

• Cross Media Convergence• New Technologies• Media Ownership• Targeting Audience

Summary

• This case study can easily be compared and contrasted with “Shifty” to show an excellent understanding of the similarities and differences between a major studio production and an independently produced film.

Key Question

• With reference to the industry you have studied, discuss the following statement:

“ Products that are created ‘independently’ can never be as successful as those that are born out of mass media conglomerates ”.

Compare “Shifty” to Prometheus (and/or The Hunger Games).

• Use clear examples from the case studies to help you explain:

• How films from major studios can easily dominant the film industry as they have the power to draw large audiences.

• How independent films use the same tools but on a much smaller scale.

• That independent films can never make as much money as the “blockbusters” but that they usually don’t spend as much either, hence it is easier to make a profit and be successful.

• That independent films can be just as successful but on a much smaller scale.