END OF YEAR ASSESSMENT - INDUSTRY: THE JUNGLE BOOK

-

EXPLAIN HOW CHANGES IN PRODUCTION AND/OR DISTRIBUTION METHODS HAVE AFFECTED THE FILM INDUSTRY. REFER TO DISNEY'S 1967 AND 2016 VERSIONS OF THE JUNGLE BOOK TO SUPPORT YOU ANSWER [15] 


Changes in film production have affected the film industry greatly over the past fifty years in order to adapt to new audiences, ideologies and technologies in modern day contexts.  


Being the multinational conglomerate that Walt Disney Studios is, their feature films, along with smaller productions, have a great outreach and overall world influence within the film industry. With JB67, Walt Disney was personally at the centre of all decision making, scrapping the darker first draft of the film for on with a more light-hearted tonal value. After a decade of diversification into theme parks, TV series and live action films, Disney had become less hands-on with animated films, which had led to a low caliber of features, like The Jungle Book’s predecessor, the Sword in the Stone. Overall, Disney’s personal control over what would end up being the last film he worked on created a global hit, being Germany’s number one movie to this day. This was largely accredited to the film’s family values and happy tones, the production team using a multi-plane camera to create depth and technicolor to give the film life, two very advanced pieces of film technology at the time. Pushing the boundaries of technology has been a key feature of Disney’s films to this day, as we further see in JB16, keeping these films at the forefront of pop culture and social influence in the film industry. 


A key difference between the two films however, is that JB16 didn’t have to impress with its originality in storytelling, as it very much is built upon the nostalgia of the first film (though clearly reflects the darkness of Kipling’s original story), contributing to the new phenomenon of Disney’s live-action remakes. Because of this, there was more room for experimentation with technology, a bigger budget, and an outside director, Jon Favreau, the studio knowing that the story is already a fan-favourite and therefore allowing new influences to take the reign and give a fresh perspective on the story all these years after Walt Disney’s death. This darker CGI version of the film very much extends an idea of nostalgia-marketing that is emerging within the film industry as kids grow up and are attracted to remakes of the films they enjoyed when they were younger, wanting to share it with their kids or recreate memories with their families once again, and so remakes like JB16 are often tonally darker and more grown up, but still enjoyable for young audiences who are still at the core of Disney’s ethos. This, along with modern film trends has encouraged he use of CGI in order to create a space of hyperreality as opposed to the complete escapism that Disney often brings with its animated films. Viewers are now encouraged to dream of adventures in a world that can often be mundane and tedious to live in as a young adult, lacking the extensive imagination that they had as a child, and so film production has shifted in order to extend this escapism into their adult lives, whilst still having the realism and connection to the real world that popular dystopian and action film like Avatar and The Avengers have impacted the 21st Century. 


So, the key differences in JB67 and JB16 not only come down to the contexts of the time in which the films were made, but also the audiences that consume them, their ideologies influencing decisions as far back as technologies and production. JB67 production consisted of a lot of re-evaluation and restarting of the project when the studio was at a lull and a lot was riding on its success, Disney wanting a happy and light film for families to enjoy. Whereas, in JB16, the storyline was already successful, and the challenge was to change the format, making it both accessible to families and adults without being a carbon copy of its predecessor. This in turn resulted in a film much darker and alike to the idea that Disney scrapped all those years ago, taking advantage of new technologies to create adventure for both new and old audiences.  


Nice detail, but only one two points only, Ownership and Technology. This is a big question that requires multiple answers/content. [8/15]

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

STRANGER THINGS - LESSON 2: SCENE ANALYSIS

-
Image
SOUND ANALYSIS: There is a use of an 80s music sound bridge as a non-diegetic sound device. This acts as a transitional indicator of a changing setting in order to move the plot along. In the scene it helps to establish a safety in the Wheeler's home, contrasting later sound in the Byer's home, along with a safety when Will is with his friends whilst conforming to the historical 80s setting of the show. CAMERA ANGLE ANALYSIS: The use of a low-level POV shot from Mike's perspective helps to place Mrs Wheeler as a dominant figure over Mike in the scene. This establishes the coming of age genre in the plot and embeds the idea of a child vs parent ideology, placing the audience as mike. This further extends the TA to both people who grew up in the 80s and kids today, putting older viewers back into a child's perspective in order to view the show through the protagonist's (mike) eyes and put him in a relatable position. MISE-EN-SCENE ANALYSIS: The intertextual...
Read more

LFTVD - QUESTION 3 PRACTICE (CODES + CONVENTIONS)

-
Image
'THE DIFFERENCES IN THE CODES AND CONVENTIONS OF LONG FORM TELEVISION DRAMAS REFLECT THE DIFFERENT VALUES, ATTITUDES AND BELIEFS OF THE AUDIENCES THAT CONSUME THEM.' HOW FAR DO YOU AGREE WITH THIS STATEMENT? The contrasting nature of codes and conventions within the LFTVD genre very much stems from the need to reflect the different values, attitudes and beliefs of the consumer in order to engage and target individuals personally, regardless of whether the show is for a global mass audience or niche national one.  Netflix, a large international media company, has to extend the codes and conventions in order to reflect audiences on a global scale, making sure consumers can connect with the product regardless of geography. Whereas, smaller PSBs like DR only need to appeal to it's niche nordic audience so codes and conventions will differ. Where Netflix has a need to appeal to a global audience range in order to increase it's market share, DR is projecting to a niche audien...
Read more

THE BIG ISSUE - LESSON 2: HOUSE STYLE

-
Image
The house style of the Big Issue is not followed that strictly in terms of typography and imaging, however there is a consistent masthead which usually will be in the top-left corner of the cover. sometimes, it will appear smaller or in different places along the top of the cover. Yet, consistently over 2019, bar their Christmas issue where it was much smaller, it was in the top-left. The Masthead is usually black and white, but often the black can change to a red or translucent color. There is no barcode on the front of the Big Issue because it is not sold in shops. The general styles of each cover vary depending on the articles and how they suit it, but all remain consistently bright, colorful and chaotically organised, yet still uncluttered and modernized. There is a consistent bright yellow color acting as an accent through most of their copies, but the house style isn't strict and artistic liberties are changed and shaped depending on the issue's messages. It's o...
Read more