CMNS230 Tutorial

1. CMNS230 Tutorial November 29, 2006 Assignment 3 David Newman

2. Assignment 3 - Cultural text • Synthesis and application of ideas you should have learned over the semester • Those who chose a film will probably find this easier because more sources are available, but apply the concepts you have learned • Grading will take into account that there are less sources publicly available for some cultural products (i.e., non-film) • Some of this will take quite a bit of detective work… it is like putting a jigsaw together. Be prepared that it might be time-consuming

3. Assignment 3 - The Pitch • Wikipedia definition of a Pitch “A pitch is a concise verbal (and sometimes visual) presentation of an idea for a film, generally made by a screenwriter or director to a producer or studio executive in the hope of attracting development finance to pay for a screenplay to be written. Pitches are usually made in person, although they can be made over the phone or, occasionally, pre-recorded on audio or videotape. • A good pitch is generally between five and ten minutes long and lays out the premise, hook and essential beats of the story, along with thumbnail sketches of the principal characters (often including the names of actors who might play the roles), and a clear idea of the genre, tone, likely audience, and budget level.

4. Assignment 3 - The Pitch • Typically a pitch runs for about 10 minutes • What we are asking for is really an “elevator pitch” • Maximum of 100 words

5. Assignment 3 - The Pitch • Key elements in what we are looking for: • Premise • Hook • Brief synopsis • Indication of genre • Key stars… if important • Adapt this as appropriate for the medium you are working in

6. Assignment 3 - The Pitch • Premise • The fundamental concept behind the text or the plot • Should be unique and compelling • Short, compelling concept = ‘high-concept’ • Give the essence of the plot in one sentence • e.g. The Full Monty (1997) • A group of unemployed male steel workers decide to become strippers Based on the Wikipedia definition

7. Assignment 3 - The Pitch • Hook • Literary technique in the opening that “hooks” the audience attention so they want to know more • Engages the audience Based on the Wikipedia definition

8. Assignment 3 - The Pitch • Synopsis • Brief outline of the story • e.g. Flower & Garnet (2002) A portrait of love and loss, hope and heartbreak in small-town British Columbia, Flower & Garnet is also a love poem forged between a sister and brother, both of whom are on the verge of life crises. Sixteen-year-old Flower is the daughter of a broken-down man whose wife died giving birth to a son, Garnet, nine years earlier. When Flower becomes pregnant, her decision to have the baby threatens the family she has worked so hard to maintain. But it is her brother Garnet who is the catalyst: he has now reached the age at which the questions he's asking are nowhere near as important as the answers he's being denied. • Do the synopsis in your own words, don’t just copy it from another source

9. Assignment 3 - The Pitch • Genre • Organisation of cultural products by type • Usually has a set of defined codes and conventions • Tend to be rather vague categories • Jaws (1975) is a horror-thriller Based on Hayward (2000). Cinema Studies: The Key Concepts

10. Assignment 3 - The Pitch • Some additional references for you to look at: • http://www.scripthollywood.com/id29.html • http://breakingin.net/tswmoneypitch.htm • http://www.allfreelancework.com/articlefreelwriting4lenore.php • Take another look at Branston and Stafford, pp. 223-226

11. Assignment 3 - Audience • Define the audience demographics of who is most likely to be interested in the particular cultural text • Be specific • There may be secondary audiences with difference demographic characteristics • Compare to similar texts if you wish • This is often included as part of the Pitch

12. Assignment 3 - Finances Funding: Identify the sources of funding for the creation of this product and what constraints there are as a result. Try to identify what the possible cashflow is likely to be. What impact do the funding constraints have on the creation of the product? (funding sources may include audiences, government subsidies, overseas revenues, the creators themselves) This may be the most difficult to research and develop. Those doing a film have the most advantage, but we will try to adopt easier criteria for other industries where information is more difficult to find.

13. Example - Flower & Garnet (2002) Canadian film by SFU grad, Keith Behrman

14. Example - Flower & Garnet (2002) • Starting point - Internet Movie Database • http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0304023/ • Also useful for television • Provides a range of information including: • Estimated budget • Production and distribution companies • Synopsis and year of production • Release dates and box office information

15. Example - Flower & Garnet (2002) • We learn there are the following investors or supporters: • Telefilm Canada • Canada Television Fund: License fee programme • BC Film Television and Film Financing Program • BC Film Incentive BC • Movie Network • CBC • Canada Film or Video Production Tax Credit Program • Boneyard Film Company • CanWest Western Independent Producers Fund • Movie Central/Corus • Rogers Telefund • National Screen Institute of Canada NSI Features First Program

16. Example - Flower & Garnet (2002) • Telefilm Canada as an investor • Provides access to a range of information • http://www.telefilm.gc.ca/data/production/prod_889.asp • Production funding - $636,000 • http://www.telefilm.gc.ca/01/18.asp?period=&prog_group_code=&compo_group_code=&off_code=&titr_dem=Flower&Search=true&imageField.x=6&imageField.y=13&imageField=search

17. Example - Flower & Garnet (2002) • Company contacts. • You can try contacting the company, explaining you are a student working on a project exploring the funding and revenue flows of a Canadian cultural project, and would they be willing to assist you with some information • Many will say no or not respond; a few may say yes and give you some very good information. You have nothing to lose by asking.

18. Example - Flower & Garnet (2002) • Company website provides information: • http://www.screensirenpictures.com • Again, we find a list of the investors

19. Example - Flower & Garnet (2002) • BC Film is the Provincial investor • http://www.bcfilm.bc.ca • 2000-2001 - Development financing estimate • $9,000 (638,616/71) • 2001-2002 - Production financing estimate • $75,280 (3,462,895/46), probably higher as feature film (cost more than doco’s), so boost it to $125,000 • Estimated Total = $134,000 • Note, unless you get actual numbers from the company, many of your number will have to be reasonable estimates for this assignment.

20. Example - Flower & Garnet (2002) • Total budget approximately $2,000,000: • Telefilm Canada $636,000 • Canada Television Fund: License fee programme • BC Film Television and Film Financing Program (est.) $134,000 • BC Film Incentive BC • Movie Network • CBC • Canada Film or Video Production Tax Credit Program • Boneyard Film Company • CanWest Western Independent Producers Fund • Movie Central/Corus • Rogers Telefund • National Screen Institute of Canada NSI Features First Program

21. Example - Flower & Garnet (2002) • Tax credits • Federal and Provincial (check what was in force at the time of production) • Based on local labour costs. Rule of thumb, 50% of movie budget spent on labour. Typically higher for low-budget. • Lets assume for this that labour costs are: 50% x 2,000,000 = 1,000,000

22. Example - Flower & Garnet (2002) • Tax credits • Labour costs = $1,000,000 (50% of production costs; but only allowed 48% at that time) • Federal FVPTC = 16% of $960,000 = $153,600 • BC Film Incentive = 20% of $960,000 = $192,000 • Note: there are various rules about monies to be excluded in calculation of the credits, so the actual numbers likely to have been somewhat lower. • Also changes in the levels more recently.

23. Example - Flower & Garnet (2002) • Total budget approximately $2,000,000: • Telefilm Canada $636,000 • Canada Television Fund: License fee programme • BC Film Television and Film Financing Program (est.) $134,000 • BC Film Incentive BC (est.) $192,000 • Movie Network • CBC • Canada Film or Video Production Tax Credit Program (est.) $153,600 • Boneyard Film Company • CanWest Western Independent Producers Fund • Movie Central/Corus • Rogers Telefund (bridging finance against govt. subsidies/investments) • National Screen Institute of Canada NSI Features First Program

24. Example - Flower & Garnet (2002) • Upto a total of $1,115,600 • Money from broadcasters would have been for future broadcasts • Box office revenue • Check www.imdb.com • www.playbackmag.ca • In this case, pretty low figures, so low they don’t seem to appear on any lists (it is a Canadian film afterall). • Add video/DVD revenue • Television broadcast fees, and so on

25. Other sources • Backend Money (photocopies in the photocopy room and the library; PDF on the class website) • The Movie Business Book (on Closed Reserve in the Library) • Blockbusters and Trade Wars (on 24 Hour Reserve)

26. Other sources • For book publishing, take a look at: • Thring, Sarah. (1995). Publishing: a view from the inside, book marketing & sales in Canada. Toronto: Canadian Book Publishers Council • Dan Poynters Parapublishing at: • http://www.parapublishing.com/sites/para/(this is focused on self-publishing, but may assist with some of the concepts of ‘how the business end works’)

27. Audience reception • What have the reviewers said? • How has it performed in the marketplace (size of audience… has the audience built over time)? • What could have been changed to make it more successful locally and internationally? • Think about it as a Producer… what changes would you suggest?

28. Relationship to policy • How has policy made a difference to the production context, content or meaning of the product? • Canadian film with Telefilm funding - has to meet certain ‘Canadianness’ criteria defined by the nationality of key individuals • Service production filmed in Canada - attracted here by tax credits (reducing costs) • Grant from Canada Council for the Arts Book Publishing Industry Development Program enabling a book to be published • Censorship requirements? • Think about the different kinds of government intervention that may affect the production of the product

29. Good luck