MEST1 Section B: Institution research

Current case studies: financial figures

Ill Manors: Funding and production budget

What was the estimated budget for Ill Manors?

The estimated budget for iLL Manors was £100,000

Where did the money come from? List the different organisations and companies that contributed funding to Ill Manors?

Ben Drew refused funding for the film iLL Manors as he was an inexperienced director and wanted to gain the necessary experience. 

How did the Ill Manors budget compare to a Hollywood blockbuster such as Skyfall?

There is a stark contrast to the Hollywood movie Skyfall and iLL Manors as the budget for ill Manors was £100,000 and the budget for Skyfall was ‎$150–200 million.

A Field In England: Funding and production budget

What was the estimated budget for A Field In England?

The estimated budget for the film A Field In England was £300,000

Why did A Field In England manage to secure a higher budget than Ill Manors?

Ben Drew was inexperienced and iLL Manors was his first debut movie .Whereas as, Ben Wheatley was already an established director, which therefore made companies more confident with the film.  

Where did the money come from?  

The film was funded by Film4 Productions and Drafthouse Films. 

Film London and Microwave Film
Ill Manors was created partly thanks to Film London and Microwave Film. Revise the key details from your MEST2 research by answering the following questions:

What is Film London and why does it exist?

 Film London is a non-for-profit agency primarily supported by the national and regional government. It's aim is to support those who are making low budget films.

What is the purpose of Microwave Film?

Microwave film is about funding films, gives development and mentoring support to all films that have been shortlisted.

Choose one film funded by Microwave film and explain how it compares to Ill Manors (similarities and differences)

Shifty is another film which is similar to the film iLL Manors, they are both based in run down urban areas and the common theme which seems to appear is drugs and violence. The main character of the film Shifty is also in iLL Manors. The main difference between both of these films is that with iLL Manors there is more of a individual and his life whereas with Shifty the film is to do with two friends and the storyline is based on both of them. 

Vertigo Films and Warp Films

Your BFI Study Day on UK cinema focused on two important production companies in the British film industry: Vertigo Films and Warp Films. Revise what you learned on the trip by answering the following questions:

What are the most successful films Vertigo Films has been involved in?

Vertigo Films have made The Football Factory, Sweeney, Monsters, Step Up 2 and more

Why do you think those films were successful with their audience?

Vertigo took fresh and original ideas that made the films unique to watch for audiences.

What different film genres has Vertigo Films worked with?

Where did Warp Films start out?

Warp films first started out as Warp Records (the first version of itself) It was created by NESTA who also gave financial support, and had the remit to produce short films. It had set-up head quarters in Sheffield and in London. 

What are the most successful films produced by Warp Films?

This is England, 4 Lions and 71

How have Warp Films helped to develop new talent in the film industry?

They develop new talent by getting new film makers who have the talent to produce a film and make a bigger name for themselves. Also, they produce short films and help were established by Warp Records.

What titles have Vertigo and Warp Films produced that are similar to Ill Manors? Explain the similarities - it could be in terms of audience, location, content or genre.

Warp Films have produced Four Lions, which involves the same protagonist as the one in ill Manors, Riz Ahmed. The audience would be the same as ill Manors too, although the subject matter is different, the younger demographic would be appealed by this also.

Certification: BBFC

One final aspect of institution is the certificate a film is awarded for exhibition. This is decided by the British Board of Film Classification. Revise the key details regarding the BBFC from your MEST2 research by answering the following questions:

How does the certification process work at the BBFC?

The BBFC certification process works through identifying the content of the film and deciding what the rating should be depending on what it is that is being shown and then the age is decided. 'U' is suitable for all audiences, 'PG' is parental guide, '12A' is a Cinema release suitable for 12 years and over, '12' is a video release suitable for 12 years and over, '15'is suitable only for 15 years and over, '18' is suitable for adults only and 'R18' adults works for licensed premises only.

Think about the certificate of Ill Manors (18 certificate). What is deemed acceptable for an 18 certificate? What is the difference between a 15 certificate and an 18 certificate? 

An 18 rating films has a lot more explicit content than a film that is aged for the audience of 15 year olds. An 18 certificate film has more strong language, the violence is not hidden from the audience and will have more use of drugs and sexual content. A 15 rated film may have some of these but will not be as explicit.

Why was Ill Manors given an 18 certificate? How might this have affected the Ill Manors target audience and commercial success?

iLL Manors was given a 18 certificate due to the amount of strong language and the portrayal of sexual activity. This may have affected the iLL Manors target audience as it may have appealed to younger kids starting from the age of 16 and they wouldn't have been able to view the film as it has a 18 certificate. This therefore, could lower the commercial success due to fewer people seeing the film. 

What was the certificate for A Field In England? Why was this certificate awarded?

This was rated 15 as it had only included the use of drugs and hadn't really included adult themes such as criminal activity as the protagonists in the film are seen as escaping the warzone to go on a trip in the field as the title suggests.

What are the advantages and disadvantages for a film in being given an 18 certificate?

The advantages of a film being rated 18 is that audiences may assume the film is going to relate to their life styles because it wouldn't be appropriate for younger people to hear what they do. Also, being awarded an 18 certification would be that the correct audience would be able to see the film in the cinema and the content would not be limited, therefore the rawness and gritty reality can be seen accurately. There are no limits or restrictions, therefore it is more realistic. 

The disadvantage to this is that there would be that less people can watch the film.  Due to the age restriction, not many younger viewers could watch the film unless they are accompanied by an adult aged 18 or older which would make a minor improvement in sales but not a significant . Alos with the high age restriction of the movie and the inability of younger viewers to watch it may lead to illegal streaming and piracy of the movie instead.