Ex_Machina research

Ex_Machina research
Producer - Andrew Macdonald and Allon Reich
Director - Alex Garland
Cast - Alicia Vikander, Domhnall Gleeson, Oscar Isaac, Sonoya Mizuno
Budget - $15 million
Locations - Valldal Valley in Norway and Pinewood Studios
Technology - Visual effects company Double Negative worked on the creation and production of Ava using advanced motion tracking technology
Number of screens (opening weekend) - 1,255 screens
Number of screens (peak number) - 2,004 screens
Box office figures - $36.9 million

1. The issues raised by media ownership in contemporary media practice; The films production companies were Film 4 productions and DNA films, these are relatively small productions companies so this proves that small production companies can make successful films as the box office doubled the amount it cost to make the film.
2. The importance of cross media convergence and synergy in production, distribution and marketing; Distribution and marketing are both very important because without marketing, no one will know about the film or buy it, distribution is used to show films in lots of cinemas or theatres etc to make it accessible for people to buy and watch it. The synergy that was used in production was Ava's Tinder and Instagram account.
3. The technologies that have been introduced in recent years at the levels of production, distribution, marketing and exchange; Universal Studios used their size and popularity to advertise the film, they used posters, trailers, and social media to promote the new film. For this film they worked with an internet dating site 'Tinder' to create an account for Ava which will then send a link to the films Instagram page. This is a new type of advertising to promote the new film.
4. The significance of proliferation in hardware and content for institutions and audiences; The way we buy films has changed as films are available to rent, download, Blu-Ray and internet streaming. This has influenced the way films are being made, for example, Ex Machina is available on Blu-Ray which means the film has been made to look high quality when viewed via DVD.
5. The importance of technological convergence for institutions and audiences; The film companies would have had contacts with marketing organisations, this was the film would have lots of advertising in major cities, advertising includes trailers and posters. The way Ex Machina was distributed over social media could be a reason why Ex Machina did so well as many people have social media which meant that they would see the advertising of the film.
6. The issues raised in the targeting of national and local audiences (specifically, British) by international or global institutions; To appeal to audiences in different countries, they release the trailer in a variety of different languages for different countries to watch. This method worked because Ex Machina made double the budget with the box office. In the UK and US. posters and social media largely contributed to the films marketing campaign.
7. The ways in which the candidates’ own experiences of media consumption illustrate wider patterns and trends of audience behaviour I think these developments are good because they are a good way of getting peoples attentions to watch the film. The way they used social media was clever; making the main a character a tinder profile gives the character a real personality as they have social media. Posters are also good because they are in places where people can see and want to read if it is presented well.