Glossary of key film industry terms

Film Industry Key Terms

360 degree, saturated marketing campaign –a campaign that covers every possible format in as many territories as possible and is extensive.

BBFC - The British Board of Film Classification: the British film regulatory board.

Blanket/global release-  releasing the film everywhere around the world at the same time (releasing it on different dates in different countries is known as a staggered release).

Buzz - hype created about a film through publicity online and in the press.

CGI- computer-generated imagery. Filming in front of a green or blue screen, then images added on a computer.

Colour grading- improving, manipulating or enhancing an image in editing.

Concentration of ownership:- most media companies are owned by a small number of conglomerates, so ownership is concentrated.

Conglomerate- a large media company that contains several smaller companies within it (e.g. The Walt Disney Company, Viacom, 21^st Century Fox etc).

Convergence – previously separate types of media have now converged with the development of new media technologies. The use of different mediums is now common, i.e. comic books, publishing, TV and Film, online etc to create a world outside just the film which in turn helps advertising. The film industry uses all the different media types now to promote and distribute its films.

Cross-media ownership- owning companies in more than one media sector (e.g. film and television.) The conglomerates are all examples of cross-media ownership.

Demographic profile - analysing audience in a quantitative manner, mainly consider gender (Male/ Female), age (ranges i.e. 5-12), socio-economic class (ABC1C2DE) and ethnicity.

Digital Intermediate- footage is filmed on 35mm film, transferred to computer for editing, then back to film for distribution. (Hollywood is mainly all digital now, but some studio films are still made with these methods).

Distributor– the company in charge of getting the film released and marketing it to the target audience.

Film buyer - an employee of a Distribution company who is responsible for finding films with profitable potential, they usually search at film festivals.

Film festivals - major publicity events, filmmakers can enter their films into film festivals across the world in the hope of winning awards and attracting distribution. Some films at festivals will already have distribution, but are hoping for awards in order to boost profit.

Genre - a way of categorising film, this is a very useful tool for distributors as it helps them to produce sale forecasts.

Hardware- the physical media items, such as cameras and devices (smartphones, computers, tablets, televisions etc).

HD- high definition

Independent industry - all films produced outside of the Hollywood conglomerate system.

Merchandise- products related to a film that make money for the production company and help to promote the film. Toys, clothing, games etc.

MPAA - The Motion Picture Association of America is the America equivalent to the BBFC.

On-demand- Sky Box Office, Blinkbox, BT Vision etc. You pay for just the movies you want.

Online distribution - distributing a film via the internet, including making it available on streaming sites such as Netflix, or for download in places like iTunes.

Piracy- films stolen (e.g. filmed in the cinema) and distributed illegally through DVDs or online.

Pre-existing property - something a film is based on, it could be a novel, another film, a comic book or even a theme park ride (as Pirates of the Caribbean was).

Premier - a major media event when the film is shown to the public for the first time, this will generally occur in a major central cinema such as in Leicester Square, London.

Press junket – a day when journalists are invited to meet and interview key cast and crew from the film. The cast will speak to each journalist for a set time, i.e. 10 minutes before the next is invited in.

Press pack - a document from the distributor which gives journalists key information about the film, i.e. cast and crew, 10 frequently asked questions and a synopsis.

Press screening - a screening exclusively for journalists and reviewers before the Premier to encourage early reviews of the film.

Production: the process of making a completed film.

Product Placement: when a company pays for their brand or product to appear in a film (e.g. Heineken in Skyfall).

Proliferation: to increase or spread at a rapid rate

Promotion - any advertising which involves competitions or involves the film being advertised through other products.

Publicity - press coverage of the film, this could take the form of TV or print interviews, articles or documentaries about the making of…

Sales agent - a person employed by the production company to help raise awareness of the film and to attract a distributor.

Special effects - the use of technology to create effects that are impossible in our real world or to enhance images.

Streaming- watching films through the internet without having to download them. (subscription services like Netflix and Amazon Prime Instant Video, as well as on-demand streaming like Blinkbox and Google Movies).

Studio productions - any production made in Hollywood by the majors.

Subsidiary – another company within the same conglomerate.

Synergy – working together with other companies to produce or distribute the film (see tie-ins, spin-offs, merchandise, product placement and pre-existing property).

Tagline - a brief, enigmatic statement which sells the film, normally seen on posters, trailers and online advertising.

Target audience - the key audience that the distributors are aiming their campaign at.

Teaser campaign - the early marketing campaign which leaves audiences asking questions and wanting more.

Tie-ins- when a film and a product work together to promote each other (e.g. Happy Meals, or Skyfall and Omega watches)

USP (Unique selling point) - the aspect that makes the film different from others; the main selling point to push in the campaign.

Viral marketing - interactive, online marketing. This usually refers to something beyond just a standard website.

Zeitgeist - the ‘thing’ of the time.

Marketing - all print, online, audio-visual advertising created for the film