Adobe Audition lesson

What I learned today:
- How to create a multitrack mixdown.
- How to remove unwanted pieces of audio from a waveform.
- How to duplicate pieces of audio using copy and paste.

Voice Recorder

What I found easy:
- Operating the voice recorder
- Recording my voice with clarity
- Transferring the files to computer

What I learned for next lesson:
- Speak close to the microphone to get a higher volume (but not too close!)
- Press record button twice to start recording.
- Choose the folder to save the files in on the voice recorder.

This was a practice voice recording of the beginning of Matthew Milan's script.

Premiere Pro

What I learned in Premiere Pro today:
- create keyframes by clicking the stopwatch button
- rotate images using the rotation tool, first keyframe 0 degrees, last 360 degrees.
- change position in a similar way, first keyframe left position, last keyframe right, for example.

LO1, Task 2: Textual Analysis of Taken 3

Introduction

 Hi everyone. After last lesson on a film company, in this episode we’re going to be looking at and analysing a specific media product. This time, we’re going to take a look at the film Taken 3, from 2015, which is a 20th Century Fox film.

Purpose

 First of all, the purpose of the film Taken 3 is to entertain the audience. It does this by being action-packed and including a lot of spectacle. The pace is also very fast, as the editing involves a lot of fast cuts and dramatic music. Taken 3 is a film produced for a mass audience so it was released internationally. This means that 20th Century Fox can increase commercial gain, which means that they can make more profit, due to the fact that the film is mainstream. This is typical of the company as it is a large conglomerate.

Genre

 The genre of Taken 3 is action adventure. Since this is a mix of two genres, action and adventure, it is known as a sub-genre. In 2001, Daniel Chandler said that “genre means type or category” and Barry Keith Grant said in 1995 “all genres have sub-genres”. This can be seen with the film Taken 3, as it is primarily advertised as an action-packed film with lots of fights and chases, but the adventure aspect of it is the quest to prove who murdered Bryan Mills' wife and clear Bryan's name with the police.

Form

 Taken 3 is a feature-length film, the running time being 1 hour and 50 minutes. The film has been distributed all around the world on many different platforms. It was in cinemas globally when it first came out, and is now available on DVD and Blu-Ray, and download formats like iTunes and Google Play worldwide. It is available on the streaming service Netflix too. The large area in which the film was distributed reflects its targets of a mass, mainstream audience, and also the company that made it, 20th Century Fox, as the film made a lot of money.

Style

 Taken 3 has a modern aesthetic quality, meaning that it is set in the present day, in the 21st century. You can tell this from the film because the dress and language is modern, the setting, the USA, looks like it does at the moment, and the film has too high a definition to be from the past. Taken 3 also creates verisimilitude, which means that it appears real and presents real life. We know this because the film is based on a real-life scenario of someone’s wife being murdered and the wrong person being framed for the crime.

Content and Meaning

In 1977, Todorov stated that all films have a "narrative structure" which means that he thought every film had five stages to the story. Focusing on three stages for Taken 3, we have equilibrium at the beginning, which means that everything is alright, disequilibrium in the middle, which means that there is a problem and things are unbalanced, and equilibrium is restored at the end in a resolution. At the beginning of Taken 3, Bryan's wife is fine, they are getting along, and his daughter is living an independent life with her boyfriend. However, the disequilibrium comes in when Bryan's wife is murdered and Bryan is framed for it, meaning the police are after him. He has to try to discover who killed her on his own while evading the police. In the end, a new state of equilibrium arrives as the murderer is discovered and Bryan Mills is allowed to continue with his life normally.

Sound Analysis

Taken 3 Trailer - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JuU0M2xBasc

Diegetic Sound

At 0:40, a police radio diegetic voiceover denotes “Wanted for murder, suspect’s name, Bryan Mills”. This connotes that Bryan, the main protagonist in the film, is being looked for and chased by the police as they believe he has killed someone. Additionally, the fact that the suspect is a male reflects stereotypical gender roles of males being more violent and aggressive. The diegetic voiceover sets the tone early of an action-packed film in which Bryan has a hard job on his hands to avoid capture, reflecting the action adventure genre. It also connotes an upcoming disequilibrium, and the audience will sense this, as the police have the wrong idea about Bryan so his regular life is about to get disrupted.

At 0:58, “No service record, no discharge record - this guy right here, he knows how to disappear,” is denoted by dialogue from the head of police. This connotes that Bryan Mills has experience in what he does and will be difficult to catch, which reflects his status as the inimitable hero and protagonist. It also makes the audience anticipate upcoming excitement. This reflects the story in the way that Bryan is always one step ahead of the police too, and throughout the film we repeatedly see the police trying to catch up with Bryan unsuccessfully. In addition, the head of police is using a "teacher to pupil" mode of address here, as he is giving his team instructions on what to do.

At 1:22, sound effects denote punching and glass smashing. The connotations of this are combat and danger, and this might make the audience feel nervous for Bryan's life. The sound effects reflect the fast-paced, pulsing format of the film, as Bryan is always getting into close shaves and dangerous situations with enemies. They also reflect the action adventure genre since that type of film often involves these types of things. These types of sound effects are heard constantly throughout the film, which connotes that Bryan Mills will stop at nothing to get justice for his wife. This is a stereotypical characteristic of a protagonist.

At 1:57, sound effects denote the screeching of tyres. The connotations of this are a chase of some kind, high speed and danger, and it makes the audience feel adrenaline and anticipation. This is at a point in the film where the police are literally chasing Bryan in a fast-paced car pursuit, which reflects the constant underlying plot that the police want to capture Bryan Mills. Again, the constant connotations of danger show that Bryan Mills isn’t afraid of confrontation to prove that he is in the right.

Non-diegetic Sound

At 0:35, incidental music denotes increasing speed and tempo as Bryan escapes through a window. This connotes tension, danger and fast movement, and also the transition from the equilibrium phase to the disequilibrium phase, as everything in Bryan Mills’ world suddenly becomes unbalanced. At this point the audience will sense upcoming the upcoming disequilibrium and feel the tension.

At 1:12, non-diegetic music denotes a slow tempo and melancholy vocal. The connotations of this are a slight sadness but also tension. The narrative is similar to this in the way that although Bryan’s wife has died and there is sadness surrounding the family, which the audience will feel too, they must still keep alert in dangerous situations whilst they grieve.                      

At 1:45, incidental music towards the end of the trailer denotes a pounding drumbeat and fast tempo. This connotes nerves, excitement and a building drama, and the fast tempo reflects the pulsing adrenaline and action-filled scenes as Bryan must act quickly to avoid death and find who really killed his wife. The audience will be caught up in the moment and excited by what is happening. Adrenaline and excitement are also classic elements of an action adventure film, so this incidental music reflects the genre.

At 2:07, non-diegetic music as titles play at the end of clip denotes a ringing-out note, decreasing in volume, without a drumbeat. The connotations of this are eeriness, reflection and intrigue, which reflects the overall storyline as there are so many unanswered questions which Bryan Mills must set out to answer. This leaves the audience with a feeling of uncertainty and mystery at the end of the trailer, making them want to go and see the full film, while also reflecting the action adventure genre of it - it paves the way for fast-paced combat, chases and general action.

Mise-en-scene - using an extract from the film (1:02:00 - 1:08:00)

Taken 3 is set entirely in Los Angeles. This location encodes verisimilitude because since Taken 3 is an action adventure film, it is the stereotypical big, bustling city where crimes and police chases happen. Los Angeles fits the diegesis of Bryan trying to evade the police and get justice for his wife due to this. The location makes the audience feel more involved in the action as they can relate to a busy city.

In terms of iconography, the extract denotes the classic black cars that action adventure films tend to have in them. Stuart St John drives in a smart black Mercedes while the antagonists who try to kill Bryan drive in the classic black armoured SUV. The fact that the cars are black connotes the idea that antagonists are driving them, as well as a sense of disequilibrium, and the connotations of the cars being shiny and new are that the antagonists make a fair bit of money, probably in underhand ways. The cars are icons because they link to the narrative of chases and violence - Bryan Mills is always having to get out of trouble with various people - as well as the genre of action adventure, as these films usually include an eerie vehicle for the antagonist to drive. The audience will recognise the classic black villain cars from countless other films and sense approaching disequilibrium.

Another example of iconography in this extract is the small liquor store denoted in the scene at the side of the road which the antagonists go to to "get drunk". This store is an icon because often in films, the stereotypical antagonist often doesn't care what he does, goes out and commits crime and has a few drinks in the process. It is also an icon because it enforces a stereotype that males like to go and get drunk when they are in a group together. The liquor store in Taken 3 reflects this, as the antagonists go in there to get drunk, and a huge fight ends up breaking out between them and Bryan. This type of store would be recognised by the audience as one that seems a bit unsafe and again give a sense of approaching disequilibrium.

Moving on to characters and gestures, obviously one key figure in this extract is Bryan Mills. One key gesture denotes him quickly swinging a bottle at of the antagonists’ heads to knock him out, just after he has entered the liquor store. It is a fast and strong move which connotes aggression and stealth. This is a stereotypical male action in a film, as they are perceived as strong and more aggressive by society. In addition, this move represents his role as protagonist, as he has to be fast-acting and quiet about his work in order to avoid being caught.

Another example of key gestures is the onslaught of punches that Bryan receives from the main antagonist in this extract as they are deep in combat. The punches he throws are quick and relentless, which connotes a lack of mercy and aggression. The look on the antagonist's face also connotes a hatred of Bryan and a willingness to kill him. Again, this is a stereotypical male action, as they tend to be perceived as more violent and uncaring than women in films. However, since this character is the binary opposite to Bryan as the antagonist, his movements are different. Bryan's movements are less aggressive and he tries to get things done quickly, and if possible, not kill people. The antagonist is a juxtaposition to this because he seems to be a lot more violent and enjoys beating people up. He has no qualms over how much he hurts someone, which might make the audience feel sickened and make them support Bryan more in his quest.

In terms of costume, Bryan Mills' denotes a black leather jacket and jeans. This encodes verisimilitude because it is everyday clothing of an American, and it also reflects Bryan's attitude as he is cool, casual but also tough - he doesn't let many things faze him. These are the connotations of jeans and a leather jacket. Additionally, this costume reflects the stereotypical attributes of the protagonist, which Bryan is. They need to be calm and collected as well as hard to beat, and the audience would recognise these attributes from Bryan's costume and demeanour.

In comparison to the antagonist's costume, this is one of the areas where the protagonist is actually similar. The antagonist’s clothing denotes, just like Bryan, jeans and a black leather jacket. So although they are binary opposites in terms of "goodie vs. baddie", their costumes are the same. For the antagonist, however, the costume has much stronger connotations of toughness and violence, and it might even appear sinister.

Moving on to make-up, the denoted signs of damage on Bryan are messy hair, a large bruise on his forehead and a smaller one on his cheek. This connotes that he has been in a fight and that he is flustered. The bruises also connote the state of disequilibrium that the film is currently in. The overall image of Bryan after the fight reflects an angry, violent mood, and this creates verisimilitude for the audience because it is typical after a gritty fight that both people are left feeling tired and angry.

In comparison to the antagonist in this scene, Bryan looks a lot healthier. Much more make-up is denoted on the antagonist, as after the fight, he is left with blood stains all over his face, a cut lip and blood coming from his mouth. He has also been made up to look like he is sweating heavily at this point. This connotes that he has been beaten hard in the fight and is weak and exhausted. These connotations reflect the stereotypical antagonist in a film, as they often get into a lot of fights but usually end up getting beaten by the protagonist. In addition, both the make-up of Bryan and the antagonist reflects the genre of action adventure - there is almost always an epic fight in there somewhere. The audience might themselves feel adrenaline after witnessing the fight.

There are a couple of significant props in this extract from Taken 3. Denoted is the bottle which Bryan uses to knock out one of the antagonists quickly and quietly as he enters the liquor store. This prop is significant because it has connotations of brutality and pain, and it reflects the action adventure genre of the film. Furthermore, it reflects the protagonist's stereotypical ability to do whatever it takes to make things right - even if it does involve violence. This links to the narrative in the way that Bryan is always getting out of dangerous situations using his combat skills.

Another significant prop is the gun. It connotes danger and tension in the extract because instead of it being something used as a simple killing machine, there are multiple guns denoted and they are always changing hands and being wildly fired in attempt to harm. It is almost a free-for-all and the audience's hearts would be in their mouths as it is uncertain who the gun will end up with. This prop is significant because it again reflects the genre of action adventure - it is hard to find a film of this genre without a gun in it. In addition, it enforces the male gender stereotype of toughness and violence, as all of the men carry guns and don't hesitate to use them.

The location at 1:13:10 an example of low-key lighting. Bryan and his daughter, Kim, are denoted in the scene in a group of people who are trying to decide how to make Kim safe again, by looking at police records and questioning Stuart St John for information. The low lighting and shadows connote a deep state of disequilibrium at the time, and also a fear for people’s safety. There are also some lights coloured dark red in the background and one on the wall, which might connote upcoming danger. The narrative darkens as the conversation goes on, too, as it is revealed that Bryan’s wife was killed because Stuart couldn’t pay off someone he owed money to. The low-key lighting creates a sinister and murky atmosphere for the audience at this point.

Juxtaposed to this is high-key lighting denoted in the film at 1:37:55, which is right at the end of the film. The bright, natural sunset connotes a happy and calm ending as Kim decides to name her unborn daughter after her late mother, Lenore. In this way, the scene is solemn but also relaxed and victorious as Stuart has been arrested and all problems are solved for now. The audience might feel relieved that everything is now as okay as it can be, given Lenore has died. This stereotypical happy ending can be linked to the action adventure genre, as they usually end up with the “goodie” defeating the “baddie” and things turning out well. The high-key sunset over the sea connotes an end to the disequilibrium and the resolution phase being entered as the film draws to a close.

Camerawork

At 03:26, an establishing shot denotes the city of Los Angeles at night. It encodes verisimilitude for the audience as they can see that the film takes place in a real city in America, where it would be realistic for the genre of action and adventure to take place. In addition, the shot connotes a busy and public place where action is going to happen, while the fact that it is dark might make the audience already sense a connoted upcoming disequilibrium. 

The close-up shot at 15:05 denotes an expression on the face of Bryan Mills as he is told by Stuart St. John that he wants him to stop seeing Lenore, his ex-wife. The connotations of this expression are confusion, suspicion and concentration as he attempts to understand why he is being told this. This reflects the role of the protagonist as they always have to be wary of others and figure out what is actually going on under the surface. Also, the audience might begin to feel uneasy at this point as the expression connotes the very beginning of the disequilibrium stage of the film. Something has been said to Bryan that doesn’t seem quite right, so it seems like things might get worse from this point.

At 1:26:20, a high angle shot denotes Oleg Malankov being brutally threatened by Bryan Mills.  The shot connotes the fear, weakness and desperation of Malankov at this point, based on his facial expression and the way the camera looks down on him like he is small and weak. It makes him subordinate and being dominated by the protagonist, Bryan. As the protagonist is threatening an antagonist and still trying to find who killed his wife, the film is in the disequilibrium stage, but the audience would feel relief that Bryan has the upper hand on this antagonist. This situation is a classic element of the action adventure genre.

 The fact that Malankov is male and subordinate represents challenged gender stereotypes in the way that it is usually a female in films who is portrayed as feeble and scared. However, since he is also being threatened by a male, John Berger’s 1972 theory of “men act, women appear” is represented. This means that males have all of the main protagonist / antagonist roles in films while women have smaller parts, which is certainly the case in Taken 3.

At 1:35:05 there is a low angle shot which denotes Bryan Mills threatening Stuart St. John right at the end of the film, as he has found him out to be the main antagonist behind all of his grief. The angle of the camera connotes the power and dominance of Bryan Mills, while his facial expression connotes disgust and a built-up anger at Stuart St. John. The fact that the protagonist holds all the power over the antagonist at the end of the film is typical of an action adventure film, as after a long hard struggle, he comes out on top. This reflects the dawning of the resolution stage of the film, and the audience will start to feel calmer and happy as order is restored to Bryan’s life and the antagonist is defeated.

 In terms of gender stereotypes, this shot is very stereotypical. Bryan is male and showing his strength and power over Stuart, and since Stuart is male too, John Berger’s 1972 theory “men act, women appear” theory also applies.

The brief tracking shot at 18:51 denotes Bryan as he runs away from the police towards the start of the film. The shot allows our eyes to keep up with Bryan as he runs, which connotes speed and urgency, as well as the start of the disequilibrium stage of the film. As the audience feel like they are moving with Bryan, they will feel the adrenaline of the situation and feel excited at the fast-paced action. This reflects the action-adventure genre as speed and excitement are classic elements of it. Additionally, the expression of Bryan in the shot connotes that he is focused on the task at hand and not overly flustered. This reflects his character type of protagonist, and further underlines gender stereotypes in the way that a male is the centre of attention once again, using his strength to get away. 

At 1:02:21, the panning shot denotes a movement from right to left, showing first the sea and the seashore before panning to the road and the fence that runs alongside it. This slow, steady movement represents our eyes as we survey the new setting, creating verisimilitude for the audience as they are introduced to a realistic area near the coast where action is about to take place. Also, the fact that the movement is slow and at the beginning of a scene connotes a sense of “calm before the storm” as there is no action happening at the time but the audience know it is approaching. The connoted upcoming disequilibrium might therefore make the viewer feel wary and uneasy.

Denoted at 48:30 is an example of a shallow depth-of-field shot. Since only the foreground is in focus and the background is out-of-focus, it connotes an importance of the character in the foreground, in this case Kim, Bryan’s daughter. The connotations of Kim’s facial expression are misery, grief and a wistfulness which will translate to the audience as they can probably relate to how it feels to lose something special. In addition, the fact that there is a sadness in the shot and the background is out of focus connotes that the film is in a deep stage of disequilibrium, as things aren’t clear and there is no order in Kim’s life at the time.

 This shallow depth-of-field shot is very significant in the way that it challenges gender roles. Usually in films, males are seen as dominant while females are subordinate and seen as not as important. However, in this shot, the roles are reversed, as Kim is the important one in the foreground while a male is out-of-focus and unimportant in the background. Therefore, many theories are challenged, including John Berger’s “men act, women appear”, as well as Laura Mulvey’s “The Male Gaze”, as Kim is not dressed in a sexually suggestive way for males to look at as an object.

Editing

At 1:14:51, we see a shot-reverse-shot structure denoting Kim accusing Stuart of killing Lenore. All of the shot types within this structure are close-ups, which connotes tension and a hatred between the two. This section of editing actually represents challenged gender roles, as the camera angle is at eye-level for both characters, connoting that they are on an equal footing, whilst Kim is the one accusing and attacking Stuart with her dialogue. This would make the audience feel supportive of Kim as she is one of the protagonists. Again, the two characters are binary opposites as one is male and one is female, but this time the roles are reversed slightly as Kim holds her own against Stuart, and if anything, she is more dominant in this scene.

 For this reason, John Berger’s 1972 theory of “men act, women appear” does not apply here. When he said this, he meant that in films, men generally tend to get the main protagonist or antagonist roles, while women get the smaller parts. But here, Kim is acting as a main protagonist in the film and she is not being overshadowed by a male character. This is somewhat unusual for a film with a genre of action adventure, as the protagonists in them are most often male. She is also not a victim of Laura Mulvey’s “Male Gaze” theory, as she is not dressed up to look sexually attractive for the pleasure of male viewers - she is dressed up as a protagonist and to get the job done.

Another example of shot-reverse-shot structure is at 1:04:40, denoting one of the antagonists trying to chat up the shopkeeper. In terms of the camera angles that have been used here, the antagonist is shown from a low angle while the shopkeeper is shown from eye level. Gender stereotypes are therefore encoded here as the low angle gives the antagonist dominance and power over the shopkeeper, as if she is an object for him to chat up and say what he likes to. The eye-level angle on the shopkeeper gives her no particular powers, and the audience might put themselves in her shoes and feel slightly intimidated or offended by the antagonist. Male and female is an example of binary opposition, and this is an example of males being dominant and females being subordinate in films, reinforcing gender stereotypes.

 John Berger’s theory of “men act, women appear” is represented by this editing also. In this scene, we see the male antagonist doing most of the “acting” as he chats up the female shopkeeper, while she just “appears” by simply smiling or laughing. In addition, Carl Rogers’ 1980 theory of “ideal self and ideal partner” applies here, meaning that the shopkeeper is portrayed as the “ideal partner” because she is made up to appeal to the audience.

At 18:36 in the film there is an example of action match, denoting Bryan jumping out of a window as he first gets in trouble with the police. The fact that this one action runs through four different shots connotes that it is an action which involves a lot of skill and timing, which Bryan has in abundance. This would make the audience feel thrilled as the fast cuts between multiple angles create a fast pace and sense of excitement, the perfect atmosphere for a film of the action adventure genre. Also, the majority of the shots in this action match are low angle shots, which connotes that Bryan is powerful and knows what he is doing. This represents gender stereotypes as once again, the main protagonist in the film, Bryan, is male and portrayed as strong and skilful. We do not see a female in the film doing stunts like Bryan.

 In terms of theory that this action match could relate to, there is Carl Rogers’ “ideal self”. Bryan’s character in the film is as the protagonist and as the perfect all-round human and family member, making him the “ideal self” in the film. This means that the audience members look up to him as a role model for themselves to be like. 

We see an example of cross-cutting at 1:28:28, which denotes the head of police in his car communicating with some of his squad in Malankov’s building as they try to diffuse the situation between him and Bryan. The expressions on the faces of the policemen connote concern but also a calmness as they go about their work. The cross-cutting editing here makes the audience feel like the police operation is real and cohesive, as well as giving them a sense of scale of the operation through the use of multiple locations, which was its purpose. In terms of representations, there are five or six males involved in this cross-cutting sequence, compared to zero females, which reinforces gender roles as males have all of the important jobs and roles in the film. Therefore, this relates perfectly to John Berger’s “men act, women appear” theory of 1972, as the men are doing all of the acting in this important police scene, while women aren’t even appearing.

At 52:43, an insert shot is used which denotes Kim picking out her usual yoghurt from the local store, but on closer inspection she sees a message reading “drink me now”. The shot type on the insert shot is a very slight tilt down, which helps the audience to read the message as the camera goes over it, but it could also reflect how the meaning of the message, and who wrote it, slowly dawns on the audience. The insert shot connotes a sense of urgency due to the adverb “now” but also a sense of mystery and intrigue as it is only a fleeting glance at what was written. Bryan wrote the message in an attempt to eventually meet with Kim, but the shot is too quick for the audience to realise this straight away. They would realise as the film progresses.

At the point 1:27:22 in the film, there is an example of eyeline match. The two shots denote Stuart St. John surreptitiously glancing at Kim’s computer screen, to make sure she isn’t doing anything behind his back. The connotations of the glance are wariness and caution but also evil intentions if Kim does anything Stuart doesn’t like, so the audience might feel on edge and nervous for her. This reflects the disequilibrium stage of the film as the scene is quiet, tense and shifty. In addition to this, the close-up of Stuart’s face and the dislike that we see in his expression represents the stereotypical antagonist. The other characters don’t realise it yet, but he is constantly checking up on them and he is in control, having deceived them all. Since he is dominant in the situation and he could easily harm or control Kim if she did anything out of line, it represents stereotypical gender roles as the male is dominant over the subordinate female.

Production Process

For a blockbuster film like Taken 3, pre-production, production and post-production are all important in making the finished product. 

An example of pre-production for this film would be the scouting of the location Los Angeles, as 20th Century Fox would have wanted a city that created verisimilitude for the audience and would be an appropriate setting for the narrative of fast-paced crime action. Another example of pre-production for Taken 3 would be the designing of sets, one of which is the small beach shack at 1:08:38. This set, where Stuart is tortured by Bryan for information, would have been made up by the crew to look dim, deserted and intimidating through all of the chains, tools and various canisters around the shack. They would have done this to make the scene feel gritty for the audience.

Moving on to production, there is an example of on-set pyrotechnics at the point 1:03:24, denoting Bryan’s car blowing up after it has been battered by the antagonists and rolled down a hill. The purpose of this aspect of production was to create verisimilitude and spectacle for the audience, to round off a lengthy car chase between Bryan and the antagonists. Another aspect of production in Taken 3 is the costume and make-up of Oleg Malankov at 1:25:58. Malankov wears nothing but an unbuttoned white jacket and white underpants since he was in the hot tub when Bryan stormed into his apartment. In terms of make-up, his face is battered and bruised, and there are scars, cuts and blood - known as prosthetics - coming from his lips. His costume and make-up combined make him look completely defeated by Bryan at this point, and the purpose of this is to create verisimilitude so that the audience can see what Bryan has done to him, as well as reinforcing the idea that Bryan is the heroic protagonist.

Finally, looking at post-production, at 1:33:29 Bryan crashes in to the aeroplane carrying Stuart and his daughter, just as it is about to take off. There are multiple explosions, clouds of dust fly up and sparks fly everywhere as the plane’s body slides along the ground. This example of CGI once again creates spectacle for the viewer at the end of the film, and the purpose of it would have been to leave them with a lasting sense of excitement after the film has finished. Another example of post-production for this film is at 1:34:31, as Bryan has a flashback when he realises that Stuart was the one behind his wife’s murder all along. The post-producers have made the colours in the flashback section look white and washed out, which creates a sense of a vague memory coming back to Bryan. It also helps the audience to differentiate between what is happening in real-time and what is a memory.

Thank you for listening to this educational resource about the media product Taken 3 - I’ve been Alex Blundell, and I hope you will join me again for the next one!

Tutor Feedback for LO1 Task 1

Peer Assessment

Peer assessor's name:

1. Conglomerate - used 
2. Cross media ownership - used
3. Independent - used
4. Distribution - used
5. Exchange - used
6. Film production process - used
7. Vertical integration - used
8. Horizontal integration - used
9. Synergy - used
10. Joint venture - used
11. Subsidiaries - used
12. Film production cycle - used

All words used

Competitors

Synonyms for the word "competitors":
- rivals
- opponents
- enemies
- foes
- adversaries
- opposition

Market Position LO1

Market position means how successful the company is in their field.

Things I could research about my chosen company to evidence their market position is:
- Gross profit from films
- Amount of subsidiaries
- International success
- Market share (how much income has the company made?)
- Online reviews (from official sites).
- Units sold
- How long they have been going
- Awards won
- How much the company is worth, revenue made

LO1 Task 1: Investigating a Media Organisation (PASS)

Task 1: Investigating a Media Organisation (PASS) - Script

Introduction

Hi, my name is Alex Blundell and I am currently working for Education Wise. I’m going to bring you a series of videos to help with the media course you’re doing, and in this one, we’re going to look at how a certain film company operates and what it does to succeed in the industry.

This “certain company” is the one and only 20th Century Fox, one of the biggest film corporations, if not one of the biggest corporations, on the planet. They are a conglomerate - this means that they are made up of lots and lots of other companies, known as subsidiaries. Conglomerates are different to independent companies. An independent company is one that operates and makes products by itself, and is not composed of any other, smaller, companies. These tend to be more local or national businesses, while conglomerates like 20th Century Fox tend to make more money and operate on an international scale.

Ownership of 20th Century Fox

20th Century Fox is owned by Rupert Murdoch. The company that he founded, called News Corporation, acquired 20th Century Fox in 1985, before News Corporation rebranded as 21st Century Fox in June 2013 and took over 20th Century Fox. As a conglomerate, it is composed of many other companies which help it to create a wider range of products for a wider range of audiences, such as Blue Sky Studios and Fox Searchlight Pictures. However, these subsidiaries are also composed of other smaller companies, so they themselves are conglomerates. The business is so large that it has a huge and complex structure, allowing 20th Century Fox to make as much money as possible. 

All of their subsidiaries mean that they can produce many different types of media product, such as TV, film and radio, as each subsidiary specialises in a different area. It is called cross-media ownership when a company can do this, and so 20th Century Fox is a cross media company. For example, the “20th Century Fox Television” subsidiary produces TV programmes while the “Fox Interactive” subsidiary developed and produced video games. In this way, 20th Century Fox can reach all sorts of people who are interested in different media products and make more money. In addition, since they can produce for different platforms, they can cross promote and advertise the “Fox” franchise all over the place. This creates synergy, meaning that their subsidiaries combine in advertising to make more money for the company.

Sometimes, 20th Century Fox works with other companies in what is called a joint venture. This means that two companies work together in a commercial way, usually to maximise profit. They remain individuals during the process, so they do not become part of the same conglomerate. For example, 20th Century Fox has worked with DreamWorks in the past - DreamWorks created animated films such as The Croods and 20th Century Fox distributed them. In this way, both companies can make some money.

Operating Model

20th Century Fox is a company which has vertical integration and horizontal integration. These two terms are important in how a company operates. Vertical integration is when a company can control the production, distribution and exchange of its own products. Horizontal integration is when companies work alongside one another in a joint venture, similar to what I mentioned before. The companies that work together are called affiliates. An independent company or a conglomerate can utilise horizontal integration by working with others, but only conglomerates like 20th Century Fox can use vertical integration. This is because independent companies are usually only able to produce as they lack the size and resources of a conglomerate.

For 20th Century Fox, horizontal integration is very important because it allows it to produce many different media products for many different audiences, as I explained earlier. If 20th Century Fox only had vertical integration, it could only produce, distribute and exchange films. It couldn’t access the audience of video games, for example. It works with different companies who produce different media products to maximise profit.

Vertical integration is also useful though, because it means that 20th Century Fox has the ability within the company to fully produce, distribute and exchange a media product. This allows the company to reduce costs and improve efficiency when it is making its own product, in this case, films. It doesn’t have to pay and wait for another company to do the distributing and exchanging. 

The film production process involves three processes. Pre-production involves the planning of a movie - things like sourcing actors, scouting locations, finding props, calculating a budget, writing the script and designing the set. The actual production of a movie means the making of it - it involves filming scenes, acting, costume and make-up routines, sound, on-set effects (known as pyrotechnics) and green-screening. Finally, the post-production aspect involves editing footage and audio, applying CGI (computer generated imagery), replacing green screens with backdrops, and adding special effects. Special effects are less complex than CGI, for example a black-and-white filter. These three processes are known collectively as the film production process. Since 20th Century Fox has vertical integration, it does all three of these things, as well as the distributing and exchanging. The producing, distributing and exchanging processes are collectively known as the film production cycle.

For a huge conglomerate like 20th Century Fox, both vertical and horizontal integration are really useful and necessary to make things as easy as possible and reach a mass market. 

Products

20th Century Fox can produce many different types of media as a conglomerate, as each subsidiary can produce a different type of media product. However, the company “20th Century Fox” alone produces just film. It is one of the six major American film studios so through vertical integration it specialises in films. The biggest film ever to be produced by the company was Avatar in 2009, which is actually the highest-grossing film of all time. It generated over $700,000,000. Another well-known film which was created by 20th Century Fox was Titanic in 1997, which is actually the second highest-grossing film of all time. The fact that these two films were such big hits gives you an idea of the size and reputation of 20th Century Fox!

The subsidiaries of 20th Century Fox have created well-known products in other types of media too. For example, The Simpsons, one of the most famous TV series in the world, was created by the subsidiary 20th Century Fox Television, and Ice Age, the famous animated film, was created by animation subsidiary Blue Sky Studios. And although the video game developing and producing subsidiary called Fox Interactive has now shut down, it had success with games based on films, such as The Simpsons: Hit and Run.

Since 20th Century Fox is a huge international company, it targets a mass-market and its products are usually very mainstream, meaning that they try to be popular on a worldwide scale. The company wants to make a lot of money all over the planet - by creating mainstream products which pertain to all ages and a range of audiences, 20th Century Fox can maximise profits. In the past, the company has even created more niche products, meaning films that are popular only locally or nationally, to go alongside their more mainstream pictures.

Market Position

There are many ways we can tell how successful a company is. One of these ways is by looking at the market share of a company. In 2015, 20th Century Fox is currently making 10% of all box office profits, coming 4th in the list of profits made this year. In 2014, it made 17.3% of box office profits, which made it the richest film distributor in that year. Based on this information, 20th Century Fox seems to be a very successful company. Their closest competitors are Warner Brothers, Paramount Pictures, Universal Studios and Buena Vista, and they compete closely with them every year.

Another way of looking at how successful a company is could be to see how many subsidiaries they have. The more subsidiaries a company has, the more shares they own in different areas of media, so they are likely to be richer. 20th Century Fox has 10 subsidiaries. Of course, we have to compare this to some competitors to see how significant this is. Warner Brothers also has 10 subsidiaries, Paramount Pictures has 11, and Universal Studios has 6, so 20th Century Fox is certainly up there as a sizeable conglomerate too.

Finally, the length of time that a company has been going is a really good way to see how successful it is, because if it’s been going for a long time, it suggests that it makes quality products and has built up the reputation to keep going. 20th Century Fox was founded in 1935, so it’s over 80 years old at the moment. However, Universal Studios and Paramount Pictures were both founded in 1912 and are over 100 years old, while Warner Brothers was founded in 1923. Although 20th Century Fox is not older than these other companies, this shows that all of the top film companies have been going for decades and decades, so they are all well-respected and successful. 

All of these statistics, along with the fact that 20th Century Fox has created the top two highest-grossing films of all time, should help to show you that it is a highly successful international company with a very high market position.

Competitors

The main competitors to 20th Century Fox, as I mentioned earlier on, are Universal Studios, Buena Vista, Warner Bros. and Paramount Pictures. These companies are considered competitors because they are all film-makers, like 20th Century Fox, and because they all consistently rank in the top five of box office profits made. The order might change slightly each year, but these five generally are always fighting it out for top spot.

Often, the reason why a company achieves top spot in a given year is because it releases the biggest blockbuster film of the year which generates a huge amount of money. For example, this year (2015), Jurassic World is helping Universal Studios lead the pack as it has generated nearly $650,000,000 already. This makes it the third highest-grossing film of all time. Further examples of this would be 20th Century Fox coming 1st in 2014 with the help of X-Men: Days of Future Past and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, or Warner Bros. in 2013 with Man of Steel and Gravity. So clearly, it is important for 20th Century Fox to be able to create huge films that will have a large amount of interest in order to be able to compete with the conglomerates around it.

In an industry as competitive as films, it is difficult for one name to stand out from the others. Of course, 20th Century Fox is bigger than the majority of film companies and is already a household name, so it does stand out in this way and probably will for a long time. However, in terms of competing with its closest rivals, which are also huge conglomerates and household names, it just depends on which company can release the major hit film, or films, in a year. This is always changing as the companies are all closely matched.

Thank you for listening to this education resource, I hope you learned something new and now know more about how a film company operates! I’ll see you soon in the next resource.