To what extent are your three main texts global? (30 marks)

When a text becomes global it means that it has reached audiences worldwide and is well known of in a large capacity of  industries. Franchises of films, such as Harry Potter are great examples of media platforms that are global, since the first film has developed into a series of films and is now extremely well known. In relation to Film, for a text to become global, most typically the budget would need to be high, with popular actors/actresses starring within it, and a director who has achieved success before. However this doesn't have to be the case, as referring to the first of my main texts, Weekend (2011) directed and written by Andrew Haigh proves that a text can become global for multiple reasons and not just by those producing, directing and writing it. Weekend was created with a budget of £120,000 by Haigh, receiving a British Independent Film Award in 2011. However, comparing this to the later work of Haigh in 2015 when he directed 45 Years. This had a box office gross of over 4 million dollars and was BAFTA and Oscar nominated highlighting that the global success of a film does ultimately come down a larger budget.


Additionally, awards and nominations play a bit part in the global extent of a film because it is the audience that are voting for the films they ultimately enjoy the most. My second main text Skyfall (2012) directed by Sam Mendes and produced by Barbara Brocolli was the winner of 2 Oscars, a Golden Globe and 2 BAFTAS illustrating the success of the film worldwide. Comparing this to Weekend, which aforementioned had a smaller budget, although they did not receive awards in the more well known and respected award ceremonies, the film, being of the gay and lesbian genre which has a more niche audience than those of an action film, won awards at the San Francisco, Milan and Czech Gay and Lesbian Films Awards, demonstrating that although this film may not be global and well known, it has reached that of the intended audience worldwide.


Star power also plays an extremely big part in the global success of a media text. This is because audiences can familiarise themselves with the actors from other media platforms and then feel comfortable when they star in a film they enjoy. My third main text, Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014) directed by Matthew Vaughn and written by Jane Goldman is a great example is this. Colin Firth alos known for his roles in The Kings Speech (2010) and Pride and Prejudice (1995) plays Harry Hart in this film, with Taron Egerton playing protagonist 'Egsy' and Samuel L Jackson playing antagonist Valentine. In my opinion, when I watched this film and saw Samuel L Jackson in his first scene, I automatically liked the film that little bit more because I enjoy watching him in other films as a result of his comedic nature. And since these actors are global as individuals, it draws in a wider audience to watch it in addition to those who would watch it because it is of a genre they enjoy.

B1. Explore the different audience appeals of your 3 main texts (30 marks)

My 3 main texts appeal to their intended audience in contrasting ways, and the extent of the appeal is demonstrated through social media, media coverage, the box office figures and multiple other ways. My first text is Skyfall (2012) directed by Sam Mendes and produced by Barbara Brocolli has been a global success with a box office gross of $304 million dollars. In terms of awards, this film has won 2 Oscars, 2 baftas and a golden globe, this demonstrates that it was a popular film within the industry and these awards are audience voted therefore the popularity is high. Additionally, Skyfall is one of the James Bond Films, some of the others including, Casino Royale (2006), Quantum of Solace (2008) and Spectre (2015) therefore the platform for this film was large before it had even been released since a big fan base of James Bond films already existed. On the down side, the expectation for this film was huge therefore it had to deliver, and much speculation was expected on social media before the release. With Skyfall, although the film falls into the genre of action and adventure, the sub genre of ‘Bond Films ‘has since become a category as there is a series of the films. It is evident that as a genre has been created for this film, the appeal to the audience is high.

My second text is Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014), written and directed by Matthew Vaughn. This was the first film of its form so unlike Skyfall didn’t have a platform to stand on before it was released. The use of star power is evident within this film to appeal to audiences as UK favourite actor Colin Firth is a protagonist within the film, with other high regarded actors Taron Egerton and Samuel L Jackson. This appeals to audiences because it means that actors/actresses that are popular in the industry and therefore provide a bigger opportunity for a larger audience. Contrasting to Skyfall, Kingsman brought in a box office gross of $128 million, which is significantly lower than Skyfall but significantly higher than Weekend (2011) which was written and directed by Andrew Haigh. In the trailer of the film the protagonists Tom Cullen and Chris New are introduced which tells the audience that they are new actors making their debuts, which may not be as appealing to an audience since they are not familiar with them yet since this film fits into the gay/lesbian genre, a genre that can be argued as a category with a niche audience, it means that the film is more likely to be appealing.

A2 Weekly News Update 14

My story this week comes from the Mirror, and it highlights the recent generous act of singer Adele at her concert in Sydney. During the concert, the singer brought out a huge gun onto the stage which was filled with T-shirts for her loyal fans. And if that wasn't enough, she also fired out 20 dollar bills to the fans aswell.

Of course it was speculated as to why she did this, but with rumours that she makes an estimated £523,000 for each tour date she does, its no wonder she has a few spare bob lying around.