Institutions and Audiences - Terminologies: Distribution

Distribution        

• Censorship - Control over the content of a media text. Different media forms have different forms of censorship - sometimes from a government, but mainly from a regulatory agency, e.g. the British Board of Film Classification
•  Convergence - The way in which technologies and institutions come together in order to create something new. Cinema is the result of the convergence of photography, moving pictures (the kinetoscope, zoetrope etc.), and sound. The iPad represents the convergence of books, TV, maps, the internet and the mobile phone.
•  Opening Weekend – First weekend of a film’s release, performance determines success.
• Blanket release
• Piracy
• Prints – The reels of films (digital hard drives these days) delivered to cinemas that are projected onto screens.
•  Convergence – Technologies coming together, distribution across several media
•  Target Audience
•  Synergy – synchronizing and forging connections between directly related areas of entertainment e.g. video games, soundtracks.
• Release Patterns
•  Distributor - Business entity that buys the rights to sell a film to the cinema, video and TV markets. All blockbuster movies are made with the distribution rights pre-sold or arranged as big studios have their own distribution arm. Smaller, or independently produced movies often have to wait till they are completed before anyone will buy the distribution rights.
• Day and Date Release - Simultaneous distribution of content on different platforms (e.g. a movie released on DVD and VOD on the same day).
•  Exhibitor - Cinemas - usually large chains of cinemas (e.g. UA in Hong Kong, Cineworld or Odeon in the UK).
• Hold-over - When a film plays for longer than originally intended, perhaps because of large audiences, or winning an award.
• Advance Screenings – Shown before film release, used to get audience and critics feedback, may lead to reediting, used to build word of mouth, anticipation.
• Arthouse – Non-mainstream, quality films playing in independently owned cinemas.
• Festivals