RESEARCH: THE ROLE OF THE DISTRIBUTOR

I used the FDA website 'The Film Space' to research the role of the distributor. Mark Batey, Chief Executive of the FDA, describes how distributors have to review the 'what, who, when, and how' involved in obtaining and marketing films for successful distribution.

What?:

One key question when either obtaining a film or financing a film is what the distributor thinks are the best-selling points of the film are- WHAT type of film it is. It is not only important to considered what the particular film is, but what genre it is, if there are any similar films that have come out recently and how they performed and similarly how the directors and stars recent films have performed. Other considerations they need to take into account is if it's a sequel, based on a book or a play, each film has to be looked at on its own merits regardless of what it is. 

Mark Batey drew attention to the different genres of films that each required individual distribution plans. 

Who?:

In obtaining the film, the distributor will have considered that there is a viable audience for the film, i.e. WHO might pay to see it. This factor needs to be a key consideration, the most frequent cinema goers include: Young adults and student, but in today’s world the audience is broadening.

After reading the FDA yearbook, we found that statistics on page 71 show that the largest audience sector if from the 16-34 age bracket, 91% of people went to the. cinema in 2018, making a Total of 77 million visits. The FDA have observed a growing separation on viewing pattern by age, with TV audiences getting older (over half of TV audience are in the over 54 category), whilst OFCOM survey found that 48% of 12-15-year olds picked YouTube as their favourite streaming platform and 19% picked Netflix. These figures will influence how distributors market their films.

The FDA observes: The 'movies' can hold various different appeals to people at different times, for example: a film outing, a party, a date to see a romantic movie, a girls night out to see Mamma Mia, an afternoon or evening with a partner or a friend, and a way to stay 'in the know' among social peers. Audiences comprise a complex mosaic of consumer segments, varying substantially film by film, week by week. 

When?:

They will also decide WHEN to release the film in cinemas and on other digital formats. when the film released is a key decision. In the UK almost 700 feature films are released every year meaning it is an extremely crowded market so it is important to pick the right date but also tricky.

The FDA yearbook shows us films that came out during the Christmas season, this included the animated version of the famous Dr Seuss movie, How the grinch stole Christmas and the Nutcracker. These are both remakes of popular Christmas films that have previously been produced, the grinch is animated and is conveyed in a different way, the Nutcracker is a remake of the ballet that is performed during the Christmas season. These films are obviously relevant to release at Christmas, they have always been marketed as a Christmas film or something many families tend to do during the Christmas time. Distributors have to take into a lot of consideration off when the films would be released, if Christmas movies were released during the summer time most people wouldn't want to watch it until the Christmas season.

How?:

This will control HOW they will market the film and how much to spend on advertising and promoting it. Based on this they will create trailers and display materials to promote the film, create publicity through such things as interviews with the stars online, on TV, radio and in the press, premieres and news stories. This will also involved developing promotions for the film with media partners- all to engage particular audiences as the realise of the film approaches. When considering how the film will be released there are multiple factors that need to be taken into account, these include: who its for, how it will be released, how much the business can afford on releasing it, brining it to market and promoting the film to audiences. they also have to consider: how many cinemas will consider playing it. These factors have to be worked out for each individual film, what is the best distribution plan for each particular film. 

The FDA explains the different types of marketing strategy: FDA estimates that UK film distributors' investment in bringing 916 new tiles to market in 2018 exceeded £350m. Around half o this is paid-for UK-wide advertising, using many digital, social and physical media outlets. The remainder is formed of many components: advertising, poster, and trailer production, publicity and premiere costs and digital cinema packages to be supplied to cinemas in many formats. The FDA assert that although the UK is a large cinema territory in terms of box-office receipts, the high costs of marketing and distribution mean relatively low returns for the distributor. it is hard to 'cut through' in a congested marketplace and in the fact that it is so crowded makes decisions on release dates very tough.