Power and Media Industries (Straight Outta Compton)

The film is a blockbuster

Movie posters with a yellow background signify comedy, very independent with mainstream enough script so its accessible enough for the main public.

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Curran and Seaton: Power and  media industries


The media is controlled by a small number of companies primarily driven by the profit and power

Media concentration limits variety, creativity and quality

More socially diverse patterns of ownership can create more varied and adventurous media productions.

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Straight Outta Compton
Produced by legendary pictures who entered in partnership with Universal Pictures (The films distributor) in 2014.

Universal is owned by NBC Universal, a Comcast company.

Conglomeration: The process of a big company, owning many products and services, being formed

Horizontal Integration: When one big company buys another big company to get money of it.

Vertical Integration: When a company buys another company of that are involved in the making of a film.

Fuck the police

Gangsta/hiphop rap

Explicit

For late teens

Highly offensive/controversial/racist

Directly attacking white police officers

Negative representation of the police

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rsbWEF1Sju0

• Appeals to a young black male audience who may relate to the characters
• There wasn't a lot of violence,swearing and sex scenes in the trailer, but there is in the movie
• The trailer has a political message
• Blurs out swearing so they can show the trailer in other films
• Dull piano music goes to uplifting, exciting hip hop music to give the audience goosebumps.
• Trailer gives us a narrative
• Rags to Riches story
• The trailer is light-hearted, it does show some serious point but also tries to be quite funny
• Don't know who the actors are, they are not the most well known, but we are given the characters names.
• The main selling point is the NWA
• Synergy

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Different way a movie can be marketed: 

1. Poster
2. Trailer
3. Leaflets
4. Social Media
5. Toys
6. Billboards
7. Magazines
8. Streaming Platforms
9. Websites

Marketing is the process of selling something

The average amount of money used to advertise a film is $39 Million

BBFC
The British Board of Film Classification (regulates the film industry in the UK)

UC: Suitable for unsupervised children
U: Suitable for all
PG: Parental Guidance
12/12A: Suitable for 12 years and over
15: Suitable for 15 and over
18: Suitable for only adults
R18: Only to be shown in licensed cinemas or sex shops
E: Doesn't need a classification

The BBFC is the regulation of theatrical releases (cinemas) and physical releases e.g DVD's, not the internet

The BBFC regulations is not very effective in the UK, partly due to digital technology.

Synergy: Is when 2, or more, industries combine

For Straight Outta Compton  it's the music and film

Film is a specialised institution

Regulations: The Rules and instructions a media product must follow


Key theory: Sonia Livingstone and Peter Hunt: Regulations

The increasing power of global media corporations, together with the rising convergent