'This is England' (2006)

Director: Shane Meadows
Genre: Crime, Drama

Plot Synopsis:

This Is England is a very personal film for Meadows. Much of the story is based on his own association with skinhead gangs in the early eighties. This Is England tells the story of Shaun, a 12-year-old kid growing up without a father in the North of England. Set during the summer holidays of 1983, we chart his rites of passage from scruffy misfit grieving the loss of his father into a shaven-headed thug whose anger and pain are embraced by the local skinhead fraternity. With a shell of a mother and no father to guide him, Shaun seems set for self-destruction, but it's not long before things turn sour with his new-found 'friends' and Shaun soon learns that violence is the coward's answer.

Production:

The production companies were Big Arty Productions and Warp Films.

Distribution:
The film never reached the cinemas, it went straight to DVD release and was aired on channel four.

Budget: £1,500,000 (estimated)
Opening Weekend: $18,430 (USA) (29 July 2007) (1 Screen) 
Gross: $327,919 (USA) (18 November 2007)

Media Convergence

Media convergence is the coming together of different types of media/technology, changing the way people consume content, allowing flexibility, interactivity and almost unlimited access to media./information Nowadays, there is an ever increasing variety of products and services that enable people to communicate or consume information in many different ways. For example, information that appears on a TV or in a newspaper is now available on PC's or mobile phones too. Movies and TV shows are also available on the internet which can be accessible through PC's, games consoles and wireless devices. An example of technology convergence is mobile phones; they are able to do so much more than just call/text people. You are able to listen to music on them, take photos/videos, use them as alarm clocks, use the internet, watch films/programmes etc.

This is having a massive impact on the film industry, as there are many ways in which they can produce or market for their audiences. For example distributors use the latest software and programmes to design film posters and trailers. They are able to promote their film using websites such as Facebook or Myspace, phone apps, online marketing etc. This allows them to target a wider audience, and access more information about the film in more areas, and access more information about the film in more areas.  

An example of a film that uses media convergence is 'Star Wars'. Along with the film, it has books, video games, cartoons, action figures, websites, uploads on Youtube and magazines.  This has generated profits for the movie. An example of an intermedial text that used media convergence is 'Doctor Who'. It has a variety of merchandise, it was aired on a radio drama, DVD's were created on it, it has websites, games and is shown on terrestrial and digital channels. 

This also impacts the society as to the way they adapt and change according to technology and media convergence.They will ultimately decide the success and failure of the competing platforms and the level of convergence. They are likely to be influenced by content choice, price, and sign-posting from peer groups.

INCEPTION 2010

Released: 16th July 2010

Director: Christopher Nolan 

Genre: Action, Thriller, Sci-fi, Mystery

Actors/Actresses: Leonardo DiCaprio,Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Ellen Page, Tom Hardy, Cillian Murphy,  Ken Watanabe

Dom Cobb is a skilled thief, the absolute best in the dangerous art of extraction, stealing valuable secrets from deep within the subconscious during the dream state, when the mind is at its most vulnerable. Cobb's rare ability has made him a coveted player in this deceitful new world of corporate espionage, but it has also made him an international fugitive and cost him everything he has ever loved. Now Cobb is being offered a chance at redemption. One last job could give him his life back but only if he can accomplish the impossible-inception. Instead of the perfect heist, Cobb and his team of specialists have to pull off the reverse: their task is not to steal an idea but to plant one. If they succeed, it could be the perfect crime. But no amount of careful planning or expertise can prepare the team for the dangerous enemy that seems to predict their every move. An enemy that only Cobb could have seen coming. 

Rated: PG-13 for sequences of violence and action throughout

Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures

Produced: Legendary Pictures

Blanket Release 

Budget: $160,000,000 (estimated)

DVD Release: December 7, 2010 

Development began roughly nine years before Inception was released. In 2001, Nolan wrote an 80-page treatment about dream-stealers, presenting the idea to Warner Bros.The story was originally envisioned as a horror film, inspired by concepts of lucid dreaming and dream incubation.Feeling he needed to have more experience with large-scale films,Nolan opted to work on Batman Begins, The Prestige and The Dark Knight. He spent six months polishing up the script for Inception before Warner Bros. purchased it in February 2009.

Inception released in both conventional and IMAX theaters and was budgeted at $160 million. The cost was split between Warner Bros and Legendary Pictures. A box office success, the film grossed over $21 million on its opening day, with an opening weekend gross of $62,785,337. The filmed grossed $832,584,416 worldwide and $74,319,604 in DVD sales. It is currently the 25th highest-grossing film of all time.

The film had its world premiere at Leicester Square in London, on July 8, 2010.  In the United States and Canada, Inception was released theatrically in 3,792 conventional theaters and 195 IMAX theaters. The film grossed $23.7 million during its opening day on July 16, 2010.  Additionally, it is Leonardo DiCaprio's second highest-grossing film right behind Titanic.


This was the merchandise sold to promote the film even more. It included products such as includes a spinning top, a hat, T-shirts, key rings etc.

Here is the DVD cover for Inception.

The Business - Understanding Film Making