The industry I have been studying is the film industry. The three case studies I have been researching are Ill Manors, A Field in England and Suffragette. The use of codes and conventions are used to promote media products, which is relevant in Ill Manors. The film is targeted at the youth demographic which is consumed from three media platforms; print, broadcast and e-media.
Regarding print, Ill Manors has used posters, magazines and newspaper articles to promote the film in many different ways. Ben Drew, the director of the film, is used to promote the film as he has an existing fan base, which cross-promotes both his music and the film. Ben Drew appeared on the cover of NME magazine, which is a rock magazine. The core demographic would be the young adult market, aged between 15-30. I think in terms of psychographics, the magazine would appeal to explorers as the magazine focuses on individualism. This will appeal to this type of audience as he is pictured with a cigarette and hoodie in one, which will appeal to the young reckless youth culture. However, in another picture he is then shown suited and booted in the next. This could show the younger audience that change is possible. This reinforces the stereotypes that are fixed to young people as Plan B appears as a threat to society.The fact that Ben Drew is used to promote the film is an example of synergy and is also shown in other films such A Field in England. The director Ben Wheatley promotes the film through him being a successful and experienced director. Both films use their directors to promote their film as it allows their fans, which are most likely to be the target audience of the their films to be interested.
Plan B also did a interview with Mens Health magazine. The target audience is mostly male, aged 30-50, which isn't the typical target audience of the film. This means by doing this interview, Plan B is appealing to other audiences. The fact they are focusing on Ben Drews weight loss makes the audience interested as thats what the main demographic look for when reading this magazine. In terms of psychographics, this would appeal to aspirers as the magazine focuses on keeping an good body shape. The article has a image of Plan B in a medium shot, the background and him are shown in even balance. This is the typical shot type that is used in most magazines, and I think that it is emphasising Plan B's dramatic weight loss that he refers to in the article. There is synergy between this interview and the Radio Interview with Fearne Cotton, they both focus on Plan B as a person and his life rather than the music and his film career. This means that Ill Manors is exposed to different/alternate audiences, which creates more coverage for Ill Manors.
The use of e-media in Ill Manors is very significant in regards to their construction. In the promotion of Ill Manors they have used E-media, to expand on promotion and lead the audience to generate content. The use of user-generated content is unique in itself. Ill Manors have created the twitter tag London campaign. This is where Ill Manors/Plan Bs Twitter followers would tweet a message to them about the government and they would be able to get this graphitised on buildings in Central London, like the London eye and Parliament. The fact that the audience would have to tweet in their responses makes it significant, as they would be making user-generated content. Also, the use of social media helps promote film. The two step flow model is used in this instance as opinion leaders are able to promote the film. The fact that Plan B is a rapper also would help the fan base and audience to consume both his soundtrack and film through synergy and through social media.
A Field In England's distribution strategy was simultaneous, therefore was released online too. This would allow the younger generation to come across the film more easily and be exposed to it and maybe watch it as they are consumed by the media. Other example of how does the platform on which they are consumed determine the construction of media products, is the film Suffragette, a historical period drama, who also used e-media in their campaign. The film ran a competition whereby audiences could post an image of their mum with the hashtag #InspiringMothers on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and they will be entered into a price draw to win a £250 Outfit gift voucher plus some exclusive Suffragette goodies. This creates interest in the film as audiences are able to interact and share personal opinions on something that is inspirational to them. Also, the films official website promotes the brands image as it has emotional and touching clips from the film as a backdrop, which coincides with the films inspirational approach. There is a tab named 'social' which are links to other media platforms such as their twitter and facebook etc. This creates synergy as users can follow these platforms and receive regular updates on the film, which makes the films brand even stronger. There are also tabs that read 'synopsis' and 'videos' , which gives users the chance to learn a bit about the film. The videos also give audiences some visual insight and hopefully encourage them to watch the film.
Within the broadcast platform, Plan Bs strong ideological and political beliefs are shown in this section, especial in the TEDx lecture he did. The target audience for the TEDx lecture is mostly middle aged adults that are from a middle class background. People who would be more willing to invest their money,effort and time into the youths. Perhaps people between the ages of 20-35 as they understand the issues the youth face. According to the psychographic groups this would appeal to reformers as they would want to be educated about this topic so they can help youths in deprived situations. This is different to the target audience for the film/music video as it is mainly for the youths that are deprived (working class) or young adults in general.Also, he appears on SBTV, the opening of the clip appeals to the teenage audience through the colloquial language used. The use of the swearing means that the youth of our generation can feel like they are in a normal environment, and nothing is artificial. This can allow them to build a relationship with these celebrities. Therefore, this creates exposure through his soundtrack, which creates synergy and therefore widens the audience that consumes his media products.
On the other hand, A Field In England , as already mentioned, used a simultaneous release strategy to gain a wider audience, which meant that audiences could consume all of it's media products at the same time. Therefore due to the film being released across all platforms on the same day, it put the film at risk of failing. Regarding the Suffragette film, an interview with the protagonist, like Ill Manors, also shows the films ideological beliefs. The interview with the main character Carey Mulligan helps the audience understand the reasons behind the meaning of this film. Mulligan talks about the plot of the movie and also talks about the character she plays. This helps promote the film as the audience can learn not only about what the film is going to be about but the importance of knowing how women got the vote. Another similatrity would be the fact that although the main focus of the film is the untold story of how women campaigned to get the vote, Meryl Streep, who is an iconic and notable actress, features in the movie, therefore attracts audiences who are fans of Streeps' work, like how Plan Bs fans are attracted by his exciting fan base.
In conclusion, I believe to a large extent that the platform on which they are consumed determines the construction of media products in Ill Manors, A Field in England and Suffragette.
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