Film industry: Piracy

http://www.theguardian.com/film/2012/may/04/avengers-theaters-midnight-mania-piracy

"In 2009, X-Men Origins: Wolverine leaked to torrent sites a full month before the film's release, with one source estimating hundreds of thousands of downloads within the first 24 hours of its availability."

http://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/jul/17/digital-piracy-film-online-counterfeit-dvds

"Almost 30% of Britons are now watching movies illegally online or buying counterfeit DVDs, costing the industry £500m a year "

"This, says Batey, can be particularly detrimental to the independent film-maker who may have spent years raising money for the film and may have had to remortgage their house."

"Phil Clapp, chief executive of trade organisation the Cinema Exhibitors' Association, says that cinemas are losing about £220m a year at the UK box office due to piracy, representing about two months' income in an average year."

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/jul/10/hollywood-director-piracy-is-necessary-and-doesnt-hurt-revenues

“You know what statistics are bullshit? The ones stated by the MPAA about lossesdue to piracy,” she said emphatically. “Piracy has NOT been proven to hurt box-office numbers - on the contrary, several studies say it may have boosted the bottom line.” Hollywood Lexi Alexander

http://www.raindance.org/piracy-a-help-or-a-hindrance-for-indie-filmmakers-2/

When you choose not to pirate an indie film, you are contributing towards its worth. In turn, you are giving it value and demand. This will generate exposure which will equal profit which will equal more interesting films. Let's support the independent film industry, not participate in its many obstacles to success.

Deadpool fandom and Jenkins

1. Clip from the deviant art page http://deadpoolfans.deviantart.com/ 
2. Founded 6 years ago and features an introduction clearly illustrates a hierarchy (there is someone in control) and so shows collective thinking (sets or rules) and cultural convergence (have their own culture) 
3. Has 3,725 members- shows web 2.0 has made fandom more accessible. This is an example of a knowledge community
4. The fan-art produced by these fans is an example of trans-media and cultural production 

Netflix distribution

Netflix: Distribution

Agreement with DreamWorks Entertainment for exclusive rights to broadcast its films, as of 2013. January 2016 Netflix has expanded its multi-year distribution deal with DreamWorks Animation, scooping up global rights, outside China, to several new DWA original series.
On January 14, 2013, Netflix signed an agreement with Time Warner subsidiaries Turner Broadcasting System and Warner Bros.
Universal, Paramount and Lionsgate have all ended their former deals with the company.

Theorists revision

Kickstarter

Blue Mountain State: The Rise of Thadland

-          What was it? The film idea came about after the TV show (Blue Mountain State) was cancelled in 2012 after just three series. One of the creators, Eric Falconer, felt the story wasn’t complete and so decided to make a film to continue the story.

-          2016 American comedy film

-          23,999 backers

-          Pledge total $1,911,827 to help bring this project to life.

-          $1,500,000 goal

-          Offered a range of rewards:

o   Pledge $10 or more- PDF OF THE SHOOTING SCRIPT PLUS A THANK YOU TWEET AND FOLLOW FROM THE OFFICIAL 'BMS: THE MOVIE' TWITTER ACCOUNT.

o   Pledge $10,000 - A SPEAKING ROLE IN THE MOVIE. You will speak at least one line in the movie.
As an added bonus, you will receive two tickets to the premiere of your choice plus access to the exclusive after party with the cast and creators. You'll also receive a signed BMS Jersey, a "Special Thanks", an autographed poster, a personalized Vine, a T-shirt, a digital download of the movie, Mascot's doorknob sign, a PDF of the script, a tweet/follow from the official BMS: The Movie twitter.

-          Distributed by Lionsgate Entertainment Corporation

o   As of November 2013, it is the most commercially successful mini major film and television distribution company in North America and the seventh most profitable movie studio.

o   Lionsgate distributed The Hunger Games and The Insurgent film franchises

-          Blue Mountain State: The Rise of Thadland was released on Netflix on March 1, 2016.

Does social media have the power to change the world?

The Long Tail and Streaming

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/analysis-and-features/david-bowie-s-predictions-about-the-future-of-the-music-industry-were-right-a6813321.html

"But streaming doesn’t seem to be delivering much of a financial return to small artists. That is hardly surprising given that Spotify’s average “per stream” royalty payout is between $0.006 and $0.0084. You would need to have had a lot of songs streamed before you could even cover the costs of a recording session. "