Homework: Coming Down The Mountain

How is the audience positioned to think about both David and Ben?

The audience is positioned to think that David has to take full responsibility for Ben, and that he is his carer. This is clear because Ben's character is very much based on needing dependancy from someone else to guide him and answer his curious questions. The viewer can empathise with both of these characters because David is having to take full responsibility over someone that he loves and cares about, whereas Ben does not have a choice in this and cannot be as independent as he would like to be because of his condition.

How is the editing conveying representation of disability?

Editing is conveying the representation of disability when David is answering Ben's questions and is being fixated by what he is hearing. There are constant cut aways throughout the extract showing Ben's reactions and thoughts whilst he is listening to David talking. This shows that David is clearly a character that Ben can rely on and trust because he is not able to see the world in the same way that David can. Therefore the viewer feels sorry for Ben because he is fascinated by the simplest of things in life and is in awe of the life he thinks his brother has lived, showing that his brother inspires him.

Who gets the majority of screen time?

The majority of screen time goes to David because he is being portrayed as the more knowledgeable character. Therefore Ben's reactions are shown in a separate shot to show the differences between the two, and the different personalities and experiences they have had. Also to a new viewer of Coming Down The Mountain, it would be more entertaining to someone if they were to watch someone who seemed more academically capable and more intellectual than a person who has a disability. This is because disabled people generally are shown to be people who aren't seen as knowledgeable or wise in a way that would intrigue a viewer who is having a comparison in characters being shown. Therefore someone who is articulate and intelligent is going to be more pleasing for a viewer than another character who could be slightly more incapable in these departments.

How does the mise-en-scene convey representations of disability?

Ben's characters facial expressions involved a lot of his mouth being open, creating dribble. This is generally what happens with children with disabilities, and commonly Down Syndrome. This is because the muscles in the face become extremely weak, and they don't have the control to stop this from happening. This shows the representation of disability in an original way because instantly the viewer can see that the two characters are different because physically, Ben is disabled. Ben is shown as someone who is hunched over and very smiley, which again is how most people with Down Syndrome are stereotypically shown, whereas David is shown to be slightly more put together and polished because he is able to have control over how he chooses to present himself.

Can you find any examples in the dialogue which convey representations of disability?

Dialogue that conveys the representation of disability involve sentences such as "we've done kissing" and "what's sex like?". Both of which show that despite Ben's character not actually being that young physically, emphasise that he could mentally be of a young age and finds these things to be very mature and make him feel more responsible for his own thoughts and feelings. Although this may be the case, the viewer empathises with Ben because he is still so vulnerable to the world and he cannot help this, therefore these questions and stories are really big and exciting events for him because they help him feel more grown up and impressive.

Film Institutions Essay

Evaluate how different media institutions market and distribute products in the media area you have studied.

In film, major movie studios and independent productions market and distribute their products in many different ways. One example of an institution that has done this is Disney’s major studio production of ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’. It is evident that Disney have used various marketing strategies such as the technological convergence engagement of their very own multimedia interactive app. This was extremely effective because it engaged an audience and it was convenient due to it being mobile, which is a clear demonstration of Disney taking advantage of convergent devices. Furthermore, the app also had features including a camera setting, enabling the user to take a ‘selfie’, which encouraged sharing and spreading branded content onto platforms such as Facebook or Instagram.

In contrast to this, Ben Wheatley’s Film 4 Production of the independent film ‘A Field In England’, decided to created a website for a digital master class rather than an app, due to the limited budget AFIE had. The website enforced engagement with the audience and Web2.0, which is a new form of interaction. To add to that, the website appealed to the film’s ‘cinephile’ target audience and the site included videos, which took advantage of digital technology because it showed behind the scenes content, giving more insight into the making of the film.

Going back to Disney, they also used the synergistic strategy of premiering the trailer for ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ on ESPN, this was an intelligent use of synergy because Disney owns ESPN, therefore reaching out to an audience watching a Monday night football game allowed for a larger audience. The use of a ‘premiere’ also creates more of an event for the user. There are also various audience reactions uploaded onto Youtube where people are getting emotional because of the excitement of the release.

However, Film 4 Productions also used social media to take advantage of the director’s small but committed fan base. It created niche cult audience for the film. The use of the day of release allowed A Field In England to be a trending topic. The BFI also said “Wheatley and the whole cast supported the plan and mobilised their active fan base” which is helping to promote the film and makes the reviews more positive. To add to that, Mark Kermode, Virgin and Film4 also tweeted about the film trying to show the audience that the film is worth watching, as Mark Kermode is a film critic.

The distribution strategies used by Disney in order to promote Star Wars: The Force Awakens included the day and date worldwide release which was effective because it created an event and the saturation release capitalised the demand and desire from a vocal hard core fan base. The traditional release windows such as cinema, video on demand, DVD and streaming on television allowed fans to choose format and encouraged repeated viewings in a different format. Whereas the strategies used by Film4Productions mainly involved the simultaneous release which maximised a dedicated but small audience. They used all platforms possible with no release windows, which allowed all fans to see it regardless of geography.  They add value to cinema with Q&A screenings, which took advantage of convergent devices, meaning the viewer could watch the film anywhere, which created an event.

From this, it is clear that there is a difference between both institutions because A Field In England was more dependent on social media, whereas Disney used synergistic marketing and multimedia apps.  This is because Independent films need more social media in order to create an audience for the film and allows there to be a wider audience. I think the most effective release was A Field In England because of the simultaneous release, this is due to it being a technique that isn’t often done, but Wheatley was able to make this successful because he managed to incorporate social media into this process as well.