Engaging Media - Week Four

The first reading for this week...

The Blockbuster and the Hollywood Economy by Marco Cucco

So what is a blockbuster?

• High production costs


• Good returns (well if all goes according to plan...don't mention Waterworld)


• Use of advanced technology - helps to differentiate the product from TV productions


• Big dollars spent on promotion


• Intended to be a transnational product that can work on a global scale


• "born from US popular culture and their target is the mass public, with few artistic-expressive expectations" (p. 218, 2009)


• Exists for commercial purposes rather than artistic ones


• Needs a simple & immediately recognisable identity - not intended to be a product the consumer will think too deeply about


• Designed around public taste and market research


• Ability to feed off itself in the form of spin-off merchandise


• Relies upon "saturation booking" of cinema screens, particularly during opening weekend at box office - slightly devious intention here of reaching as many viewers as possible before word-of-mouth spreads


• Least appealing type of film to critics


• Rely on star power to get bums on seats

First real modern blockbuster considered to be Jaws in 1975. An increasing number of blockbusters are produced each year, although production can be significantly impacted by events such as the Writer's Guild of America strike and the Global Financial Crisis. It is worth noting though that many of the highest grossing films of all time were released many decades ago (box office takings adjusted for inflation) including...