The British film industry: institutional context
1.
For a film to count as British, it must score 16 out of 31 points in the British Film Institute's Cultural Test. This includes the film being set in the U.K, the lead characters being British, having it be based on British subject matter and having the dialogue be English as being some of the major conventions of a British film, these constituting for the most points (4).
2.
The Sweeney - counts at British with it fulfilling all the cultural context aspects of the test, that putting it up to 16 points alone.
2.
Attack The Block - also counts as British with it again fulfilling all criteria from a cultural subject since it not only has British actors playing the characters, using the English language, but also relates to the whole concept of 'broken Britain' as subject matter - gang crime being a main component of the film.
The King's Speech - definitely counts as being British with its portrayal of members of the Royal Family in terms of subject matter and naturally, the use of British actors using the English language.
We Need To Talk About Kevin - although the film has a British director, British lead actor and the use of the English language it can be also considered to be an American one since the other actors are American and the film is actually set in the U.S.
Skyfall - again similarly to 'We Need To Talk About Kevin,' although the film is British with its subject matter depicting British intelligence, having a British director and being mainly recorded in the English language, $150-$200m of funding came from the U.S so it gets put into question whether the film is actually British or not from that standpoint.
3.
The main problem facing the British film industry is the fact that they're production-led rather than distribution-led. With this, they're often referred to as the 'cottage industry' by which they can only operate on a small-scale and not in direct competition with their American counterparts who effectively are conglomerates, having thousands of people in single film companies.
4.
One of the main strengths of the British film industry is the creativity of the practitioners within with things like intellectual property in terms of things like concepts for films. Another strength is the facilities that it has to offer in terms of things like studios but also post-production houses for things like editing footage. The last strength is the fact that there a number of different funds that can aid filmmakers in the U.K, aspiring or professional, such as the Film Fund which gives the filmmakers an annual budget of £15 million.
5.
One of the things the British film industry can do in future is do co-productions with the U.S. While it would keep the industry afloat though, it's argued that elements that make a film British would be lost in the process to a more American feel in the film. The other thing the industry could do is just target the more niche, British audience with a lower budget. While this could mean that there'd be lower box office takings, it would also mean that the industry stays true to what exactly makes a film British without compromise.
6.
In my opinion, the industry should stick to a niche audience since it would mean that it actually stays true to its values that have made it so notable throughout time. Not only this, but it would also give Britain something to lay claim to in terms of film-making instead of having to share ownership with US producers when co-producing.
The King's Speech - definitely counts as being British with its portrayal of members of the Royal Family in terms of subject matter and naturally, the use of British actors using the English language.
We Need To Talk About Kevin - although the film has a British director, British lead actor and the use of the English language it can be also considered to be an American one since the other actors are American and the film is actually set in the U.S.
Skyfall - again similarly to 'We Need To Talk About Kevin,' although the film is British with its subject matter depicting British intelligence, having a British director and being mainly recorded in the English language, $150-$200m of funding came from the U.S so it gets put into question whether the film is actually British or not from that standpoint.
3.
The main problem facing the British film industry is the fact that they're production-led rather than distribution-led. With this, they're often referred to as the 'cottage industry' by which they can only operate on a small-scale and not in direct competition with their American counterparts who effectively are conglomerates, having thousands of people in single film companies.
4.
One of the main strengths of the British film industry is the creativity of the practitioners within with things like intellectual property in terms of things like concepts for films. Another strength is the facilities that it has to offer in terms of things like studios but also post-production houses for things like editing footage. The last strength is the fact that there a number of different funds that can aid filmmakers in the U.K, aspiring or professional, such as the Film Fund which gives the filmmakers an annual budget of £15 million.
5.
One of the things the British film industry can do in future is do co-productions with the U.S. While it would keep the industry afloat though, it's argued that elements that make a film British would be lost in the process to a more American feel in the film. The other thing the industry could do is just target the more niche, British audience with a lower budget. While this could mean that there'd be lower box office takings, it would also mean that the industry stays true to what exactly makes a film British without compromise.
6.
In my opinion, the industry should stick to a niche audience since it would mean that it actually stays true to its values that have made it so notable throughout time. Not only this, but it would also give Britain something to lay claim to in terms of film-making instead of having to share ownership with US producers when co-producing.
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