The major role of the distributor involves acquiring a film.
What?
Distributors have to work out what kind of film this is going to be, and this means that as well as find out about what genre it is going to be, they also need to find out how well similar films have done, how well the directors last film did as well as the actors and cast involved. The big question they need to answer is What is this film? What is it based on? This is all compiled to figure out what the purpose of the film is. Each individual film has to be looked at with its merits and that is what will help the distributor.
Who?
Distributors have to consider WHO will watch the film. This is a key part to working out the target audience to the film which is broadening all the time. According to Mark Batey of the FDA audiences can range from 8 to 80 years old. Older people are going to the cinema more frequently, with 40-50 year olds being the most common in the older age group. The FDA has observed that there is a growing divergence in the viewing ages of certain mediums. For example, the TV audience ages are rising with over half of the TV audiences in the over 54 category. This is in contrast to the OFCOM survey which found that 48% of 12 to 15 year olds chose YouTube as their favourite platform. 19% chose Netflix too. This will influence how distributors will market their films, depending on their target audience. Films like Trolls: World Tour will be marketed more on YouTube than on TV due to the target audience. Audiences comprise a complex mosaic of consumer segments, varying substantially film by film, week by week.
When?
Distributors decide when a film will be released in cinemas and on other digital formats. This is key as in the UK about 700 feature films are released every year. Choosing the right time is very important to ensure that the film isn't lost in the backlog of all the other films released in the same year. For example, it wouldn't be wise to release a smaller film on the same weekend as a Marvel film as it will be looked over very quickly. Distributors also struggle with clashing events, for example the 2018 World Cup quarter final between Sweden and England cause a major disruption in the cinemas as many people opted to stay inside and watch the game. There was also excellent weather which also dissuaded people from going to the cinema. These are all examples of unexpected events that can cause issues with cinema releases.
How?
Distributors also govern how they will market the film and how much money to spend on marketing and promoting the film to a wider audience. Based on this they will create trailers, and display materials in order to help garner the audiences attention. They will create interactive material like twitter Q&A's as well as TV interviews and premieres and news stories. This process will also include developing promotions for the film with media partners to engage all possible audiences. FDA estimates that UK film distributors’ investment in bringing 916 new titles to market in 2018 exceeded £350m. Around half of this is paid-for UK wide advertising, using many social and physical media outlets. The remainder is formed of many components, for example publicity, premiere costs and cinema packages. The FDA assert that although the UK is a large cinema territory in terms of box office receipts. The high cost of marketing results in a lower return for the distributor. It is hard to 'cut through' in a congested marketplace and the fact that it is so crowded makes decisions on release dates very tough.
What?
Distributors have to work out what kind of film this is going to be, and this means that as well as find out about what genre it is going to be, they also need to find out how well similar films have done, how well the directors last film did as well as the actors and cast involved. The big question they need to answer is What is this film? What is it based on? This is all compiled to figure out what the purpose of the film is. Each individual film has to be looked at with its merits and that is what will help the distributor.
Distributors have to consider WHO will watch the film. This is a key part to working out the target audience to the film which is broadening all the time. According to Mark Batey of the FDA audiences can range from 8 to 80 years old. Older people are going to the cinema more frequently, with 40-50 year olds being the most common in the older age group. The FDA has observed that there is a growing divergence in the viewing ages of certain mediums. For example, the TV audience ages are rising with over half of the TV audiences in the over 54 category. This is in contrast to the OFCOM survey which found that 48% of 12 to 15 year olds chose YouTube as their favourite platform. 19% chose Netflix too. This will influence how distributors will market their films, depending on their target audience. Films like Trolls: World Tour will be marketed more on YouTube than on TV due to the target audience. Audiences comprise a complex mosaic of consumer segments, varying substantially film by film, week by week.
When?
Distributors decide when a film will be released in cinemas and on other digital formats. This is key as in the UK about 700 feature films are released every year. Choosing the right time is very important to ensure that the film isn't lost in the backlog of all the other films released in the same year. For example, it wouldn't be wise to release a smaller film on the same weekend as a Marvel film as it will be looked over very quickly. Distributors also struggle with clashing events, for example the 2018 World Cup quarter final between Sweden and England cause a major disruption in the cinemas as many people opted to stay inside and watch the game. There was also excellent weather which also dissuaded people from going to the cinema. These are all examples of unexpected events that can cause issues with cinema releases.
Distributors also govern how they will market the film and how much money to spend on marketing and promoting the film to a wider audience. Based on this they will create trailers, and display materials in order to help garner the audiences attention. They will create interactive material like twitter Q&A's as well as TV interviews and premieres and news stories. This process will also include developing promotions for the film with media partners to engage all possible audiences. FDA estimates that UK film distributors’ investment in bringing 916 new titles to market in 2018 exceeded £350m. Around half of this is paid-for UK wide advertising, using many social and physical media outlets. The remainder is formed of many components, for example publicity, premiere costs and cinema packages. The FDA assert that although the UK is a large cinema territory in terms of box office receipts. The high cost of marketing results in a lower return for the distributor. It is hard to 'cut through' in a congested marketplace and the fact that it is so crowded makes decisions on release dates very tough.
Excellent work. This represents extensive research and a detailed grasp of the distribution process. You have drawn on both the FDA site materials and the FDA yearbooks for 2019 and 2020.
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