| Point | Example (with link) | Explanation and analysis | Argument (find examples for and against the point) |
| Monopoly | Global reach: https://www.statista.com/topics/1824/disney/ | Disney was listed as the strongest, most powerful brand in the world in 2016. They can reach all audiences as they have a wide range of products.
Disney is one of the 6 major conglomerates in the world which means they are able to dominate media. |
For – Disney was considered one of the most valuable brands in the world, (valued more than $31 billion).
Against- Disney was ranked as the second most reputable company in the world closely behind Swiss company Rolex. |
| Monopoly | Robert W. McChesney – The New Global Media (slide 17)
Gerald Caplan (slide 27) Ben H. Bagdikian, The Media Monopoly (slide 11) |
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| Monopoly | Horizontal integration –
Marvel Pixar |
Marvel – Disney bought Marvel for $4 billion.
This means they can gain more money through a new target audience as they are now one and become more mainstream.
Pixar – Disney bought Pixar for $ 7.4 billion. This allows Disney to use better animation technology and new ideas as Pixar has that and therefore a stronger business.
Lucas Film Ltd. – Disney bought Lucas Film Ltd. for $4 billion. This has led to the production of new Star Wars films, gained more mainstream audiences. |
For – Buying Marvel, Pixar and Lucas Film Ltd. has earned them lots of money, new ideas, bigger audience reach and new merchandise.
Against- Disney only wants to earn more money. They can do this a lot better now as they own more and more institutes. Michael Eisner said that “We have no obligation to make history. We have no obligation to make a statement. We have no obligation to make art. To make money is our only objective.” |
| Monopoly | Vertical integration –
ABC ESPN |
ABC- Disney bought ABC for $19 billion. This allows them to advertise their products on TV and create new shows.
ESPN- Disney invested in ESPN for $1 billion. This has allowed them to earn money from this network. |
For – Using these TV networks has allowed them to earn more money. They can advertise all of their new products and merchandise on the networks for free.
Against- Disney has so much freedom they can’t be stopped by other companies. |
| Disneyfication
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Negative female stereotypes: http://www.american.edu/soc/film/upload/gender-roles-in-disney.pdf
Cinderella |
Cinderella is an example of Disney representing females stereotypically. This is because she is incapable of independency and rely on men. She is also the ‘housewife’ which cooks and cleans, this is another stereotype. Cinderella also has to date and do what her father says, which stereotypes women from century’s back. | For – Women watching saw that they were being represented in a horrific way. This put a bad image on women and young girls watching these films grew up believing this. It also makes it acceptable for women to be treated badly.
Against- When Disney reinvented their films, they created new characters such as Ariel (the little mermaid). This made women look more independent and rebellious. |
| Disneyfication | Racist stereotypes: https://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/apr/06/repressed-brits-evil-mexicans-arab-villains-hollywood-animated-movies-stereotypes
Aladdin |
Aladdin – Aladdin is fair skinned and speaks with an American accent. Jafar is darker-skinned and has stereotypical facial hair and ethnic features. There’s also the idea that Aladdin’s skin becomes whiter after he defeats Jafar, this is to show that all protagonists are white, not black. | For – Disney is an American company owned by white people. This means they want to make them look superior to other ethnic groups and nationalities. This can be seen in some of their films.
Against- Some audience will say that they are just trying to fit the characters with their respected backgrounds. |
| Disneyfication | Check out the critically acclaimed films, Waltz with Bashir, The Illusionist, Persepolis and Spirited Away – how many have you heard of? How successful were these films in comparison to Disney’s? Why is it so hard for these films to compete?
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These animated films aren’t able to compete with Disney’s films as they don’t have as big of a following or budget for advertisement and marketing. Disney films are a lot more recognised and are more famous, because is it 6 major and because of all the parks and merchandise and their promotion around the world. Most people haven’t seen or heard of famous independent animated films because they only look to Disney for animated films as audiences find them more entertaining, people may only watch Disney films because it is created by Disney. It is a trusted brand. | For – Spirited Away (2001) got a 97% on Rotten Tomatoes and gained $289.1 million at the box office. This is from a budget of $19 million. This show that the film was a massive success.
Against- Beauty and the Beast (1991) got a 93% on Rotten Tomatoes. It had a budget of £25 million and gained $425 million at the box office. Even though this film is older it still gained more money than Spirited Away. This is because Disney is a lot more powerful and can easily get their films advertised. Even though people didn’t like it as much, they still watched it because it was a Disney film. |
| Profit motive | Michael Eisner (CEO)
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Michael Eisner was the CEO of Disney and he believed that Disney’s products were only there to make money and are not for the enjoyment of audiences. | For – “We have no obligation to make history. We have no obligation to make a statement. We have no obligation to make art. To make money is our only objective.” This quote from Eisner proves that he only wanted to make more money. |
| Profit motive
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Film 1 – Finding Dory | Finding Dory is the sequel of Finding Nemo. Disney were able to get fans of Finding Nemo to come and watch this film because it was a sequel. Dory was a fan favourite from the first film. Disney knew that many people would come and watch this film as they would want to know what happened after the previous film. | For – Finding Dory made $1.024 billion at the box office. Star Ellen DeGeneres is loved by lots of people and Disney knew she would be able to get people to watch the film.
Against- Disney only made this film to gain more money. They ran out of ideas and decided to make a sequel to a film that didn’t really need one. |
| Profit motive
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Film 2 – | Monsters university is the sequel of Monsters Inc. Disney were able to get fans to come and watch this film because it was a sequel. Sully and Mike were a fan favourite from the first film and therefore used them two again, just with new characters and a new location and story. The characters were also older so audiences would like to see what they look like now and what happened and therefore watch it. Disney knew that many people would come and watch this film as they would want to know what happened after the previous film. | For – Monsters University made $744.2 million at the box office. It was Disneys and Pixars first sequel film which excited people more to watch it.
Against- Disney only made this film to gain more money. They ran out of ideas and decided to make a sequel to a film that didn’t really need one. |
| Difficulties for indie films | Spike Lee (slide 33)
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Dreamworks and Aardman animation are both independent animation companies. They are famous for Wallace and Gromit.
Passion of Christ and Slumdog Millionaire were both made by independent companies and were on a low budget. However, they were able to gain lots of money at the box office. Slumdog Millionaire made $ 377.9 million at the box office but had a budget of $15 million. Passion of Christ had a budget of $ 30 million and made $ 612 million at the box office. |
For – Wallace and Gromit had a budget of $40 million and gained $192.6 million at the box office. This shows that these independent films are still getting praise and recognition for their work. The success of the independent films (Slumdog Millionaire) have gained the filmmakers success. It was very well known.
Against- These independent companies are now being bought by conglomerates. This means they can now make more money out of these films. For example, Dreamworks is now owned by Comcast. |
| Difficulties for indie films | British indie films (slide 46)
Four Lions (slide 45)
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| Indie film success | Dreamworkz and Aardman Animation, Passion of Christ, Slumdog Millionaire,
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| Positive aspects of new digital technology | http://www.raindance.org/top-13-sites-for-independent-filmmakers/
https://www.wired.com/2016/01/netflix-and-amazon-offer-indie-filmmakers-hope-and-lots-of-money/ |
New technology has allowed films to look more professional and smooth. This means filmmakers can use more innovative ways of filming. | For – Red One Digital cameras are transforming the filming process by replacing the standard 35 mm camera with a smaller, lighter and more portable camera.
Against- Independent filmmakers and filmmakers on tight budgets aren’t able to make use of the new technology as they aren’t able to afford it. |
Summary
HOT TICKETS
Disney’s billion-dollar blockbusters in 2016
1. Captain America: Civil War: $1.15bn
2. Zootopia: $1.023bn
3. Finding Dory: $1.022bn
4. The Jungle Book: $966m
5. Star Wars: The Force Awakens: $2.07bn ($736m in 2016)
- Walt Disney Studios is tipped to amass a record $7bn (£5.6bn) in cinemas around the world this year.
- In 2006, Disney spent $7.4bn on Pixar, the hit factory behind Finding Nemo, its new sequel Finding Dory, Toy Story and The Incredibles.
- Disney bought more than 5,000 characters including the X-Men, Iron Man and Captain America from Marvel.
- Disney bought Lucasfilm (maker of Star Wars) for $4bn
- Disney is currently constructing a “Star Wars land” in Orlando and Anaheim. It is following the premiere of 2015’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens, merchandise sales are predicted to hit $5bn, with Disney reportedly taking about 10%. Another Disney blockbuster, Frozen, is reportedly the biggest merchandise moneyspinner of all time, with sales of more than $107bn.
- In 2015, 61% of Disney’s total $5.88bn global box office take came from outside the US.
- Disney is also aware that the Marvel and Lucasfilm acquisitions have helped it pull in large numbers of millennials
- The only barrier to Disney hitting the magic $7bn box office total is whether Rogue One proves to be a winner with diehard Star Wars fans this Christmas.
- Last year’s marketing campaign for The Force Awakens clocked up more than $2bn from cinemagoers, with $1.33bn of that banked as box office takings in the 2015 calendar year.
- Disney will be hoping that its force will be strong enough to net the $1bn-plus it needs to make history this year.
Ownership
In 1983, 40% of U.S media is controlled by the 6 media GIANTS:
- COMCAST
- NEWSCORP
- DISNEY
- VIACOM
- TIME WARNER
- CBS
Now, 90% is controlled by the GIANTS.
8Lionsgate is an mini-major company.
Media Language
Semiotics = THE STUDY OF SIGNS.
- Examines how symbolic, written and technical signs construct meaning
- Looks at how meanings is made and understand
The signifier = THE SIGN: A WORD, COLOUR OR IMAGE (EG. BLUE)
The signified = THE CONCEPT/MEANING/ASSOCIATION THAT THE SIGN REFERS TO (EG. BLUE CONNOTES SADNESS/MASCULINITY)
denotative level = what we see
connotative level = what you associate it with
October half term hw
Walt Disney is a parent company to Pixar animation. Disney brought out Pixar because of the way they created animation films an therefore made Pixar create Disney’s animation films. Monsters university was created by Pixar. The light-hearted, character-driven film is also a technological marvel, like most computer-generated movies that are years in the making.
Inside the building where production was taking place, a data center with double the size that the company used in the past — that would be considered one of the top 25 supercomputers in the world. The 2,000 computers have more than 24,000 cores. The data center is like the beating heart behind the movie’s technology. It would of taken 29 hours to render a single frame of Monsters University, according to supervising technical director Sanjay Bakshi. Rendering means that the computers build the 3D world in its full colors as the scene is meant to be viewed in a theater. Rendering is however expensive and time-consuming . The machines create the frame and it is then captured as one of thousands of frames in the movie. When you watch the movie, you see anywhere from 24 frames to 60 frames per second. It has taken the production of monsters university more than 100 million CPU hours to render the film in its final form.
The reason behind why Pixar took so much more computing power is that the eyes of the audience have grown. Something that looked spectacular 12 years ago (in Monsters Inc), like the fur on the monster Sully, doesn’t look so great today. Sully now has 5.5 million individual hairs in his fur to make him look younger and to stand out better in modern audiences and modern technology. Besides designing Mike and Sully, the team created more than 400 monsters to fill out the roster of students at Monsters University. There were six basic body types, including a fungus, and a slug. Still, each character had to be unique to live up to Pixar’s reputation of creating wonderful, believable characters.
The Pixar way of creating an animated movie is a far cry from the hand-drawn art that Walt Disney’s artists used to create their first animated feature film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, in 1937. Computers can automate the creation of 3D scenes and moving characters in a film. But even with a lot of computer automation, it still takes a long time to animate something because you have to create the animation frame by frame, crafting something from nothing on a computer. It still takes weeks to do a few seconds’ worth of animation. Pixar’s own proprietary software was used and was called Presto (named after a 2008 short film). This creates the skeleton of a scene and plays it back at around 8 frames per second (a film runs at 24 frames per second or faster) just to see if it works.
The synergy from Monsters University for Disney and Pixar would of been the DVD’s and CD’s it sold, the merchandise, soundtrack, the video games online and on mobile and magazine articles and toys etc.
Disney & Media Intuitions
What is a Media Conglomerate?
A media conglomerate is a combination of two or more corporations engaged in entirely different businesses that fall under one corporation
What is an Independent film institution?
An independent film institution is a movie production company that produces and distributes movies outside the 6 major film production companies.
What Institution do Disney own?
- ABC Television Network
- Disney Publishing
- ESPN Inc.
- Disney Channel
- SOAPnet
- A&E
- Lifetime
- Buena Vista Home Entertainment
- Buena Vista Theatrical Productions
- Buena Vista Records
- Disney Records
- Hollywood Records
- Miramax Films
- Touchstone Pictures
- Walt Disney Pictures
- Pixar Animation Studios
- Buena Vista Games
- Hyperion Books
- Lucas Films
and more !
What is vertical and horizontal Integration?
Vertical integration is when production company has the owner ship of the means of production, distribution and exhibition of the film by the same company, because of this they receive all of the profit.
Horizontal Integration is when a production company expands into other areas of one industry. This means that the company can develop in a particular area of production or they can buy out another company that deals with these areas.
Examples of vertical and horizontal integration in Disney
An example of how Disney have horizontally integrated is taking over Pixar as they are in the similar field. For example both Disney and Pixar produce films.
An example of how Disney have vertically integrated is taking over a distributor. For example Disney owning Lifetime TV channel or ABC News.
Overview of how the 6 companies dominate the industry
The six corporations that collectively control U.S. media today are Time Warner, Walt Disney, Viacom, Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp, CBS and NBC. Together, they all dominate the news and entertainment in the United States. They are all media conglomerates so these companies have major institutions within themselves so they can control what the audiences see and hear and this is the biggest problem that American citizens in society face these days, when they’re controlled of what they hear and see they are also being controlled of how they think for example bad media coverage of muslims may be the reason behind Islamophobia and no one can stand against this and why this is being aired as you can only have a say if you are in the ‘Big 6’.
The big 6 is becoming more present in other areas of life like the radio and the internet for example Clear Channel now owns over 1000 radio stations across the United States. Companies like Google, Yahoo and Microsoft are increasingly dominating the Internet.
About MU
Monsters University is a 2013 produced American animated children comedy produced by Pixar and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. It was the 14th feature film by Pixar and a prequel to 2001’s ‘Monsters Inc’ making it Pixars first preque film. The 104 minute film cost a budget of $200 million and grossed at the box office at $744.2 million. It was released first in the the US on the 8th of June at a Seattle Film Festival and then the 18th of June at a Los Angeles Film Festival. On the 20th of June 2013 it was released to Australia, Germany, New Zealand, Russia, Portugal, Greece and then Canada, Spain, Mexico, Turkey and Brazil on the 21st of June 2013. It wasnt released in the UK until the 23rd July 2013 at an Edinburgh International Film Festival and later in UK cinemas on the 12th July 2013. The plot of the film is about Mike Wazowski and Sully Sullivan going to University and becoming rivals, joining two different groups (the loosers and the cool frat). Mike has a dream of becoming a scarer whilst Sully is already a natural born scarer. The pairs out of control competitiveness get them both kicked out of the scare program. They then work together, as a team, along with an ofd bunch of misfit monsters to make things right again. The film teaches children and perhaps grownups what it truly means to be honest, honourable, loyal and fair. Pixars marketing and prmotion for this film went to far more extent than just trailers, posters and simple social media tacticts like other studios. The marketing department for this film created an entire functioning college website with a campus map, campus life, a store with purchable merchandise (MU hats, hoodies and t shirts). The website also gave information about the University as if it was a real University. This unique approach of the virtuaite capitalizrd a real-life experience. The marketing team also released new sneak peak trailers throughoht the upcoming months to ensure everyone was talking about it. The advertisment scheme again used 3D panels that were location in the retail environment that were covered in bright fur to gab attentions and to showcase the exciting nature of the film. Overall, the marketing and promotion for this film correctly targetting to their target audience to placing posters in appropriate areas and by advertising on relevant social media sites. The reviews for this film were 78% positive on the Rottem Tomatoes and an average of 7.3/10 (based on 238,358 reviews) meaning it was a very successful film.
Monsters University was released by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment on Blu-ray, 3D Blu-ray, DVD, digital copy, and on demand on October 29, 2013
Independent film
The inbetweeners 2 is produced by Bwark Productions and Film4 Productions. These are both independent companies. Both Inbetweeners 2 and Monsters University are both sequel films however, The Inbetweeners 2 is a British adult comedy film whilst Monsters University is an American children’s animation, both binary opposites. The inbetweeners 2 grossed at $63.8 million at the box office. This is compared to Monsters Inc which grossed at $744.2 million. The Inbetweeners 2 won the highest-grossing British film in the domestic market in 2014 and became very successful for an independent produced film. The film was distributed by a British distributor, Entertainment Film Distributors and into cinemas Inbetweeners 2 was shown in Uk cinemas and also in Australia. This is compared to Monsters University which was shown worldwide as it had a worldwide premiere. Monsters University attracted a wider range of viewers (Familys, Children, young adults) compared to The Inbetweeners 2 which was only targeted at a certain audience (Adults or young adults). This would of been one of the reasons why Monsters University was far more successful than The Inbetweeners 2. Monsters University also had successful marketing and promotion. This would of been because it was a Walt Disney and Pixar film and spent $50 million on advertisment so it was successful.
essay 001
In this essay I will be talking about media production and how different institutions gain success. It is estimated that the U.S. film industry posted $30 billion in revenues in 2011, this was mainly dominated by the Big 6 majors. These majors are Warner Bros, Paramount Pictures, Walt Disney, Columbia Pictures, Universal Studios and 20th Century Fox. Walt Disney holds 15.3% of the Us/Canadian store share making it the most preponderant film company. These outshine the film industry and make it hard for any rivals to get close to the success, independent films will therefore find it challenging to compete with as they don’t have the reputation of a loyal audience reliance. In this essay I will be talking about Disney’s success as a big major.
A media conglomerate is a company that owns various different smaller companies. These can range from TV, radio and publishing companies to motion pictures, theme parks and the Internet. Media conglomerates have recently had a massive major impact on the film industry because of the way situations can be produced and markets for audiences. According to the magazine Nation, “Media conglomerates strive for policies that facilitate their control of the markets around the world”. An example of a media conglomerate is Comcast. Comcast is the largest mass media conglomerate company that owns smaller companies for example NBC, Universal Studios and AT&T. Another example is Merlin. Merlin is a mass company that owns attractors such as Thorpe Park, Sea life center and Chessington World of Adventures. An independent film company produces films completely outside of the studio. The film will be produced by the independent company, however distributed by either the independent entertainment agencies or my mass company putting it into the box office by showing the film at film festivals. They would use larger companies to distribute the film because they do not have the money or reputation alone to sell it independently. Independent films usually, but not always, are made with lower budgets than major studio movies. An example of a successful independent film is the Inbetweeners 2 and Max max in 1979. An independent company is thought to be better than bigger institutions because they are separated and they get more freedom because there is no film executive controlling and cutting the scene, this makes it a more creative process. Independent films also are categorized away from the rest and own their own Oscars, known as ‘The Spirit Awards’. This however is not commercial.
Globalisation is the process of the world becoming interconnected as a result of massively increased trade and cultural exchange. This could be used in the film industry by Hollywood. Hollywood is the home of the U.S. film industry and is a well known market for it. The film version of Globalisation is Disneyfication. Disney is creating a brainwashed world in which kids and cultures are changing due to the stereotypes made by Disney. Disneys positive reputation used this to create Disneyland, to spread happiness and joy, and also created TV adverts to help overcome current problems (e.g the use of Donald Duck during the great depression to encourage people to sign income tax). People trusted Disney. What we watch influences what we think, believe and chose to base our behaviour on and Disney creates a massive role on shaping children and adults public memory and values. Disney wants society to be more inclusive of different ethnics, gender and social roles in a more accurate light – e.g Mulan, a strong Asian woman, reverses the role of sexism in movies. Disney knows its reflection it gives off and strives to change what society thinks. Another example is Brave, a strong tomboy ginger girl as the protagonist. Disney used this to show kids that it doesn’t matter what you look or appear like, you can still be your best. It shows that Disney was nor perfect and even during any hardship (cold war and the great depression), it still managed to create a power of joy and entertainment to uplift and invigorate American people and the world to dream, imagine and achieve more.
Disney’s main genres of film are mainly Animated and/or comedy (with the exception of family, mystery, musical and adventure). These aren’t very varied as their target audience is mainly kids and families. This is compared too Warner Brothers which have a vast range of film genres (from Action and Si-Fi to Western, Drama, War and Comedy). Disney’s films are all joyful and always ends with a happy ending for the protagonist. Disney is not being very challenging and instead, being simple, captivating children’s minds from a young age.
Disney only looks at it’s future and the money. CEO Michael Eisner’s statement of ‘We have no obligation to make history. We have no obligation to make art. We have no obligation to make a statement. To make money is our only objective’. This may of been taken out of context as with stiff competition, they want to become the best they possibly can. Disney hides behind innocent, fun and magic as its culture supports and promotes capitalistic politics in a disguised form to content profitable customer behaviours. Michael Eisners statement underlies the influential power Disney characters impact upon society. Everything Disney is doing as a company, is f0r economic values and ideology, this is shown within there being no morals behind their movies.
Disney is a multinational mass media headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, California. They own a wide range of different production companies. These vary from Online websites such as ABC.com, clubpenguin.com, Disney.com, ESPN.com and the historychannel.com. Magazines companies such as Discover, Disney Adventures and Magazine, Top Famille and US Weekly. Music companies such as Buena Vista Records, Disney Music Publishing Worldwide, Hollywood Records and Walt Disney Records. Cable Stations and TV channels such as A&E, ABC Family, Crime and Investigation Network, Disney Channel, ESPN (ESPN Classic, ESPN2, ESPNEWS, ESPNU), Lifetime Network and Toon Disney. Radio Stations such as ABC Radio, ESPN Radio (syndicated programming)– Atlanta And a radio station in almost every state and city in America. Film companies such as Buena Vista, Hollywood Pictures, Pixar, Marvell, Touchstone Pictures and Walt Disney Pictures. Parks such as Disney Cruise Line and Vacation Club, Disneyland Resor (Paris, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Orlando, Los Angeles), Walt Disney Imagineering and Walt Disney World Resort. Merchandise such as Club Penguin, Disney Apparel, Accessories and Footwear, Disney food, health and beauty, home furnishings and décor, Disney stationery and toys, ESPN Zone and The Disney Store.
Vertical Integration is when a Media Company owns different businesses in the same chain of the production and distribution, this is where an institution has shares or owns each part of the production and distribution process. A vertically integrated company does not only assembles and sells products, but also controls the supply chain and sales. An example of vertical integration is warner brothers. Warner Brothers owns lots of different media companies for example home video, interactive, entertainment, animation and television. Another example of vertical integration had become necessary for Disney because Pixar was taking advantage of Disney’s dependence to constantly renegotiate the contract, forcing Disney to buy out Pixar. Disney outsourced the production of 3D animated films to Pixar in 1991 because there was a lot of uncertainty around the potential of 3D animation. Horizontal Integration is a Media Company’s Ownership of several businesses of the same value, for example all cinema studios. A Media Company can own a Magazine, Radio, Newspaper, Television and Books. Horizontal integration out buys/takes over another company in the same stage of production. It helps to create more money and makes the company more popular among readers. This increases market growth and power and reduces the cost of international trade. Disney started out as an animation studio with a set target audience to children and families. However, in the process of diversifying and developing their company, Disney did a horizontal integration into live action films (For example, Pirates of the Caribbean series). This made the company become more successful. Disney brought out the news channel ABC News, this is an example of horizontal integration. As ABC News attracts to a different target audience, they can however advertise the new Disney films with a different target audience to try and get more people interested, and to help with the marketing.
Overall, I believe that the 6 majors will continue to dominate the film industry. This is mainly because they are trusted by audiences and maintain a reputation in the industry. The big majors also have a higher budget to spend on the films production, better technology and the marketing/advertising so therefore it is easier to produce a better quality film overall. From my experience, I watch and stream films online and decide on what I am going to watch based on who produced it (for example if it is well known, like Warner Brothers or Pixar – By Walt Disney, I automatically know it is going to be good). The big majors also dominate the box office and the local cinemas internationally as they have the money to put their films into cinemas. The box office contribute to what films will get success by showing specific films and knowing their rivals. Independent films hardly make it into the cinemas because they don’t have as much back up support or the budget, they would need to distribute their film to a major to help this.
AS Theory 
