Film production and co-production

Film production and co-production 

Disney - Frozen 

• Conglomerate company (one overall parent company which owns a number of smaller, subsidiary companies)
• Frozen was produced by Walt Disney Animation studios and then released by Walt Disney Pictures
• Disney have complete control over the film from inception to release 
• Access to multiple platforms for cross-promotion and synergy 

Disney owns the Disney Channel (TV) but also owns Disney Life (video-on -demand) allowing it to compete with the likes of Netflix

Joint ventures: independent companies may undertake a joint venture which is when one media company works for another on a project which is mutually beneficial for both parties

Advantages -

• Larger budget
• free from control of a conglomerate
• gives independent film makers opportunities to be recognised.

Disadvantages - 

• don't have full control over production
• Lower budget 

Street Dance 3D

• Joint venture between BBC films and Vertigo films 
• Vertigo acquired the rights to distribute the film whilst BBC and the UK film council co-produced it
• Vertigo Films is an independent TV and film company founded in 2002. It became of of the most successful future film businesses however the company is now concentrating on TV production.

The World's End 

Joint venture between Working Title and Universal 

Advantages:

• High budget ($20 million)
• Distribution - both in UK and USA
• Marketing - NBC universal, owned by Comcast, access to TV channels and digital businesses for online marketing
• USA grossed $26 million
• Worldwide grossed $46 million 

Disadvantages:

• Less creative control
• Studio interference (story, casting etc)
• Tighter deadlines 

Working Title 

• Independent British film and television company owned by Universal Pictures as part of their umbrella 
• Advantages of being own by a conglomerate: higher budget to spread ideas, links of distribution 
• Disadvantages: less control over production, time constraints of working under a large company 
• Founded in 1984
• Have over 100 films which have grossed over $7.5 billion worldwide 
• Major film productions include Baby Driver, Love Actually, Nottinghill, About Time, Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz 
• Their highest grossing film was Les Miserables which brought in a worldwide box office of $442,169,052
• Working Title was acquired by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment in 1991 

Production roles 

Frozen:

• Look development artist - defines all the creative and technical elements needed for CG (computer graphics) productions. They identify the best methods to satisfy a productions CG needs. They also work closely with grooming artists and lighting technicians to ensure all assets work along side other elements.
• Matte painter - creates a painted landscape/set which creates the illusion of an environment. Tends to be used along side digital compositing now.
• Stereoscopic artist - creates/ enhances the illusion of depth within an image. They create the illusion of 3D depth from 2D images 
• Title designer - responsible fro creating the open and end title sequence. They will create several different sequences before the final composition