Thursday, November 8, 2018

Advertising and Media (Jungle Book)

Advertising and Media (Jungle Book)

Media Language means the way in which a text is constructed to create meaning for a reader or viewer of the text. All media texts are constructed; someone has made decisions about how they should be constructed so that the form matches the content and with a particular audience in mind.


Editing
Camera Work
Sound
Mise-en-Scene

Media text means any constructed media product or piece of communication, whether print or audiovisual, which can be analysed and deconstructed.

Media:

4 aspects of the               Language
theoretical framework      Industry
                                        Audience
                                        Representation 


Aim:  To study media texts in relation to media language, media representations and social and cultural contexts
•Know:  Recognise how the media language of the jungle book (1967 & 2016) has changed over time
•Know: Recognise how media representations of the jungle book (1967 & 2016) has changed over time
•Do: study the social and cultural contexts that influence how media representations are created
•Do: construct an essay on the Jungle book's film trailer and advertising poster
•Show: evidence of thee completion of the essay in blogger

Representation:   Refers to the construction in any medium (especially the mass media) of aspects of ‘reality’ such people, places, objects, events, cultural identities and other abstract concepts. Such representations may be in speech or writing as well as still or moving pictures.
1967 Jungle book movie poster-
In this version of the movie poster, the cover was illustrated by a cartoon drawer. This was illustrated in a way that the characters look more friendly with the colouring and how the animals are depicted. The bold serif font has been created in a very basic way and is not as sophisticated and serious as the 2016 title. The bold title could be symbolic of the film being a story of being bold and courageous, with the white colouring of the text being symbolic of innocence, especially seen in the main protagonist, Mowgli. The bright saturated colours have been intentionally chosen, as children of a young age are only able to identify certain bright colours such as the ones shown in this poster. This is aimed at a target audience of very young children as the colours are ones they will be able to see easily, as well as being more attracted to the bright colours rather than the muted ones, as they are brighter and much more stimulating to them. The colour yellow typically symbolizes happiness and optimism, which is a running theme throughout the Jungle book film, as it is a story about finding who you are. The fact that the colours are on the front of the poster tells an audience what to expect from the film. Where the characters are placed says a lot about the status of the characters. In this poster, we can see that Mowgli and Baloo are like the primary characters of the film, with Mowgli as the main protagonist as he is centre staged in the photo. Baloo is in front of him which is symbolic almost of how he is leading Mowgli on a journey of discovery. Bagheera is behind Mowgli but in a way that it looks like he is protecting Mowgli as he has his back. all the other characters look like they are having a fun time, which in turn makes the audience believe that by watching the film, they will have a good time too.
created using lithography
2016 Jungle book movie poster-
In this version of the movie poster, there are less vibrant colours, but it looks more realistic in how colours are much duller in real life. The dull colours would not appeal to a very young audience in the same way that the 1967 Jungle book film did, as children cannot see dull colours at a young age and are disinterested in them. As children get older they decide to engage with darker things, as reality is much darker than what it used to be when they were children. Because it is more realistic, it is going to appeal to a wider audience as the colouring, imagery, characters and text look much more sophisticated. Because of the realism in how the characters look, the setting and the whole thing visually, an adult would be much more engaged in this version, as adults prefer real threats and real danger. This version would be much  more like what Rudyard Kipling would have like to have seen in an adaptation from his book, as the book was considered to be too dark by Walt Disney, but Jon Favreau saw the darkness of the story as an opportunity to appeal to a much wider audience. The majority of this poster is CGI or green screen, with the only real thing here being Mowgli. This is almost like a metaphor for how Mowgli is an outcast in the Jungle, but in the context of the poster, it shows how the film industry has changed to make real threats mouldable to a realistic film, but in an artificial way. The placing of all of the character is very similar to that of the original movie poster for the 1967 Jungle book, in how Mowgli is centre stage as he is the main protagonist, Bagheera is watching over him for a great height in the trees, Baloo is doing a similar job but is beside him, like a best friend would be supportive anchor, while also looking very protective of Mowgli. The atmosphere is not as friendly as the 1967 poster, and this is why it is more realistic, as there is a clear threat (Kaar hanging from the tree looking at Mowgli like prey), however the biggest threat (Shere Khan) is not present, which makes the audience feel a bit tense, as well as intrigued, as the poster is what we initially see of the film and it creates a curiosity as to what Shere Khan will look like.
The whole poster campaign is really meant to sell the lush visuals of the movie in addition to the all-star cast that voices the various animal characters. So there’s a very nice visual consistency across the whole campaign. New technologies such as Photo-shop and graphic programs have enabled Disney to produce these eye-catching posters.

Representation
•the way the media through representation construct versions of reality
•the processes which lead media producers to make choices about how to represent events, issues, individuals and social groups
•the effect of social and cultural context on representations
•how media representations convey values, attitudes and beliefs about the world and how these may be systematically reinforced across a wide range of media representations
•how audiences respond to and interpret media representations.
Social and cultural contexts
•how the media products studied differ in institutional backgrounds and use of media language to create meaning and construct representations to reach different audiences, and can act as a means of:
–  reflecting social, cultural and political attitudes towards wider issues and beliefs
–  constructing social, cultural and political attitudes towards wider issues and beliefs
how media products studied can act as a means of reflecting historical issues and events
•how media products studied can potentially be an agent in facilitating social, cultural and political developments through the use of media language to construct meaning through viewpoints, messages and values and representations of events and issues
how media products studied are influenced by social, cultural, political and historical contexts through intertextual references.


1967 Jungle Book-

Created by Walt Disney

•Based on Rudyard Kipling’s book THE JUNGLE BOOK (1894)
•Rudyard Kipling is also the creator of the poem called "The white man's burden"
•Kipling’s narrative contained “darker themes” and content which were judged to be unsuitable for a Disney film.
•Walt wanted a film that was “light, fun, and entertaining with happy song - good stuff, fun stuff.”
•The story was modified by Larry Clemmons, who was given, a copy of Rudyard Kipling’s novel but told him that ‘The first thing I want you to do is not to read it’. To turn the book into a successful film many of the original characters and situations were cut out, creating a clear storyline.
•At a superficial level the cartoon should not be offensive to anyone.


Character representation
Baloo- 
band leader & Comedian-singer Phil Harris was cast for the role Baloo – ‘Harris put the lines of dialogue into his own vernacular, (way of speaking) and brought the role to life’, said Ollie Johnston, one of Disney’s main animators.

The director, Wolfgang Reitherman, said that, ‘In The Jungle Book we tried to incorporate the personalities of the actors that do the voices into the cartoon characters, and we came up with something totally different. 
1967  2016

Shere Khan - 
Shere Khan was designed to resemble his voice actor, George Sanders, renowned in Hollywood for playing elegant villains, but his movements were based on live action big cats: the animator Milt Kahl based the movements on animals.
They chose an English actor, as those who spoke with an English accent were perceived to be untrustworthy, as they were from the upper class .hey are also perceived to be intelligent, and therefore are more likely to devise detailed plans of revenge.
•Disney and many American filmakers have a tract record of using the English accent to represent villainy see the following link and add the reasons why below.
1967   2016

King Louie (played by Italian American band leader Louie Prima)
Disney’s own politics were rather conservative, right-wing and
undoubtedly this affected the representations constructed within the film. 

•The character King Louie, who seems to some viewers to offer a racialized portrait of jazz culture that conflates “swingers” (presumably African American jazz musicians) with monkeys.
Louie, the Monkey-People’s, orangutan ruler. wants to learn how to make fire so that he can be like a man. This could easily be interpreted through a racial lens; the monkeys could be depictions of Africans wanting to learn how to be “civilized” equals of the white man. 

•The character King Louie, who seems to some viewers to offer a racialized portrait of jazz culture that conflates (compares)“swingers” (presumably African American jazz musicians) with monkeys.
Louie, the Monkey-People’s, orangutan ruler. Wants to learn how to make fire so that he can be like a man. This could easily be interpreted through a racial lens; the monkeys could be depictions of Africans wanting to learn how to be “civilized” equals of the white man.
The representation is further reinforced through the use of African American accents (however) the role was played by an Italian American
Social context: America was a segregated society during the 1960’s where Black people were actively fighting for Civil rights (equality).





      In the context of when the first film was made, possibly there could have been a link in how King Louie was made/portrayed, to how American society viewed people that were black. Firstly, King Louie is not part of the original Rudyard Kipling book, and was therefore a creation of Disney. The fact that he is singing swinging songs or jazz style songs links to the sort of sing black people used to sing at the time the film came out, as well as when back people were treated as slaves, as "swinging" song were sung by groups of slaves. There is the negative stereotype and racist term that people used to use against black people which was calling them 'a monkey' which may not just be a coincidence in this case. The voice was originally offered to Louie Armstrong, a famous black Jazz singer who had a distinctive voice. He turned the role down and the position was given to a white Italian man who was also a Jazz singer, however he put on the voice which is similar to the voice of Louie Armstrong.
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The intertextual link associated with Jon Favreau's representation of King Louie is Marlon Brando's character of Colonel Walter E. Kurtz in the film Apocalypse Now. He was based on the character of Kurtz in how he is intimidating, hides in the shadows, and obscured by darkness. They took direct movements from how Marlon Brando acted in Apocalypse Now, to almost make him look sinister and threatening.They decided that that because the character of King Louie was not originally in to book, and that kind of ape was not found in that setting in the 1967 film. For the 2016 film, they decided that they were going to use a real ape that was indigenous to that setting, as they wanted it to be a real and accurate as possible, so based it on the extinct Gigantopithecus. In the original film, the voice was done in an African American way, which may be seen to link with the black stereotype they were basing the character on. However, int he 2016 film they decided to use Christopher Walken to do the voice in an almost Chicago gangster style.
‘Intertextuality’ refers to the way aspects of a particular media product relate to another and thus accrue additional significance. 
















Jungle book                                         Lion King



Marketing
What ways can you market a film? Think of 10 ways of marketing a film to an audience and upload some visual examples… 
Do Something Remarkable – The Publicity Stunt
Pre-Roll Video Advertising
Be Smart With Press Events
 Let your viewers experience the story
Video Marketing
 Create a visually compelling & functional sub-site
 Make your Facebook Page Interactive
 Use social competitions & quizzes
 Using Celebrity & Brand Partnerships
Using Memes & Other Forms of UGC

Do something remarkable - the Publicity Stunt -

Interactive social media - 











Jungle book Ride at Disneyland


Mowgli's Run game-





"Above the line" marketing

Above The Line (ATL) advertising is where mass media is used to promote brands and reach out to the target consumers. These include conventional media as we know it, television and radio advertising, print as well as internet.



"Below the line" marketing


Below the line (BTL)  advertising is more one to one, and involves the distribution of pamphlets, handbills, stickers, promotions, brochures placed at point of sale, on the roads through banners and placards.
It could also involve product demos and samplings at busy places like malls and market places or residential complexes.
For certain markets, like rural markets where the reach of mass media like print or television is limited, BTL marketing with direct consumer outreach programmes do make the most sense. 



The 1967 Jungle book
  Disney thought the first version of the script was too dark for family audiences, that the audience wouldn’t be able to identify with the boy, Mowgli, and that the villain, the tiger Shere Khan, would be a cliché; so Disney himself took control and changed the production team. 

Theatrical run: The Jungle Book was released in October 1967, just 10 months after Walt's death. Some copies were in a double feature with Charlie, the Lonesome Cougar.  Produced on a budget of $4 million, the film was a massive success, finishing 1967 as the fourth highest-grossing movie of the year. The Jungle Book was re-released theatrically in North America three times, 1978, 1984, and 1990, and also in Europe throughout the 1980s. The total gross is $141 million in the United States and $205 million worldwide. The North American total, after adjustments for inflation, is estimated to be the 29th highest-grossing film of all time in the United States. An estimated $108 million alone came from Germany making it the third highest-grossing film of all time there only behind Avatar ($137 million) and Titanic ($125 million). However, it is Germany's highest-grossing film of all time in terms of admissions with 27.3 million tickets sold, nearly 10 million more than Titanic's 18.8 million tickets sold.
 Walt Disney Home Entertainment released it on VHS in 1991 (and the UK in 1993) and on DVD in 2007. It was re-released several times on DVD and on BluRay – with extras or different packaging in order to pick up new buyers (e.g. the Limited Edition DVD released by Buena Vista Home Entertainment in 1999 or the Diamond line combination of Blu Ray and DVD in 2014). Occasionally Disney films are ‘vaulted’ meaning they are not available for purchase, which pushes up the demand – the Diamond edition of JB disappeared to the vault in January 2017, for example. However, the classic edition of the DVD and merchandise relating to JB are still available in Disney Stores and on the Disney website, which is marking the 50th anniversary. The original vinyl soundtrack for JB was also the first record to achieve gold status in the USA from an animated feature film. JB has also been released by Disney as digital downloads via iTunes, Disney Movies Anywhere, Disney Life, Amazon Video, Movies Anywhere, Google Play etc.
Disney produced a live-action version in 1994 and an animated sequel, The Jungle Book 2, in 2003, which Disney had intended to release direct to video (under Michael Eisner a number of straight to video sequels were produced, which in turn promoted the original films).
The 2016 Jungle book
All the animals and landscapes etc were created on computers, mostly by the British digital effects house MPC
Give several examples of how the Jungle Book was marketed in 2016
Disney made several smart marketing choices during the lead-in to the release of The Jungle Book that helped build hype and buzz for the movie. They combined typical marketing approaches, special opportunities available only to Disney, and a few unique techniques and messaging particular to this film
 Mention any special promos, stunts, law of the jungle, theme parks, sand sculptures etc
 Toss Red Meat to the Base:
 In August, Mr. Favreau bounded onto a 7,800-seat arena at a Disney fan convention in Anaheim, California and showed sneak-peek footage from his film. He hobnobbed with three “Jungle Book” stars on stage, including Neel Sethi, who plays the man-cub Mowgli. Thousands of movie posters were handed out. This was the first marketing stunt for “The Jungle Book,” which cost roughly $175 million to make.
Theme Park Armies, Activate
> Various corners of the Disney empire pitched in to promote “The Jungle Book.” A New Year’s Day stunt on the Disney Channel, for instance, was used to portray the film as one of the year’s first blockbuster offerings for families and children.

> But the synergistic heavy lifting was done by Disney theme parks. During the jam-packed spring break weeks, park theatres in Florida and California offered sneak-peek footage of the movie, with Mr. Favreau providing introductions.

MARKETING
How did they attract the male demographic?
 Generally speaking, women and girls see Disney’s magic castle logo on a trailer and are pulled closer. The opposite can be true with guys. So Disney aggressively and repeatedly pitched “The Jungle Book” to male audiences.
Commercials on ESPN portrayed the movie as coming not from the studio that made “Cinderella” but “from the studio that brought you ‘Pirates of the Caribbean.’” An extended 3-D trailer for “The Jungle Book” was attached to “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” which had an audience that was 58 percent male.

 And Disney rolled out an action-oriented trailer during the Super Bowl.




Essay
Task 2: In studying the presentation there is a wealth of information to help you to construct an essay based on the question.
Part (a)
Comparing the 1967 and 2016 versions of Walt Disney`s Jungle book (posters and film trailers), using media language discuss how the representations of the characters have changed.
You will need to explore the changes in social and cultural contexts and impact of technology as part of your essay. 



Posters


In the 1967 cover of the Jungle book, it would appeal most to a child due to the simplistic nature of the characters in how they look, the brightness of the image, what the characters are doing, and it being a simplified drawing in general, as it was illustrated by a cartoon drawer. The vibrant and bright colouring appeal more to younger audiences, as from an earlier age, their eyes are not yet fully developed. They perceive bright colours better than the faded shades or fainter colours used for example in the 2016 poster. Bright colours and contrasting colours stand out more in the children's field of vision. This is aimed at a target audience of very young children as the colours are ones they will be able to see easily, as well as being more attracted to the bright colours rather than the muted ones, as they are brighter and much more stimulating to them. This means that the 1967 version is for a much younger age group of children, whereas the 2016 version is aimed at the children who are slightly older (as well as the adults). The basic serif font is what appeals as children of younger ages do not yet look at the more complex fonts, and prefer a simplified version. The bold serif font has been created in a very basic way and is not as sophisticated and serious as the 2016 title. The bold title could be symbolic of the film being a story of being bold and courageous, with the white colouring of the text being symbolic of innocence, especially seen in the main protagonist, Mowgli. The yellow colour is symbolic of happiness, energy, optimism, and positivity, and was intentionally selected to create a light and happy feeling, as well as being a running theme in the film , as it is a story about finding who you are. The fact that these colours are on the front of the poster tells an audience what to expect from the film. Where the characters are placed says a lot about the status of the characters. In this poster, we can see that Mowgli and Baloo are like the primary characters of the film, with Mowgli as the main protagonist as he is centre staged in the photo. Baloo is in front of him which is symbolic almost of how he is leading Mowgli on a journey of discovery. Bagheera is behind Mowgli but in a way that it looks like he is protecting Mowgli as he has his back. all the other characters look like they are having a fun time, which in turn makes the audience believe that by watching the film, they will have a good time too.

However, in the 2016 poster for the Jungle Book, the whole poster is much duller in its colour choice, with hints of vibrancy. These vibrant elements are a intertextual link to the 1967 version of the Jungle book, as the vibrant colours are the yellow/orange and golden glowing colours, which are present throughout the whole of the 1967 cover. The colour has been specifically selected as an intertextual link in that yellow/gold is symbolic of hope, which in this case relates to the darkness surrounding them, but the beam of hope that they are holding onto. The dull colours would not appeal to a very young audience in the same way that the 1967 Jungle book film did, as children cannot see dull colours at a young age and are disinterested in them. As children get older they decide to engage with darker things, as reality is much darker than what it used to be when they were children. The whole poster has been laid out in a way that looks very sophisticated and professional, which has been done through the use of special effects and CGI, but despite it being added on, it looks very realistic
. Because it is more realistic, it is going to appeal to a wider audience as the colouring, imagery, characters and text look much more sophisticated. Because of the realism in how the characters look, the setting and the whole thing visually, an adult would be much more engaged in this version, as adults prefer real threats and real danger. This version would be much  more like what Rudyard Kipling would have like to have seen in an adaptation from his book, as the book was considered to be too dark by Walt Disney, but Jon Favreau saw the darkness of the story as an opportunity to appeal to a much wider audience. The majority of this poster is CGI or green screen, with the only real thing here being Mowgli. This is almost like a metaphor for how Mowgli is an outcast in the Jungle, but in the context of the poster, it shows how the film industry has changed to make real threats mouldable to a realistic film, but in an artificial way. The placing of all of the character is very similar to that of the original movie poster for the 1967 Jungle book, in how Mowgli is centre stage as he is the main protagonist, Bagheera is watching over him for a great height in the trees, Baloo is doing a similar job but is beside him, like a best friend would be supportive anchor, while also looking very protective of Mowgli. The atmosphere is not as friendly as the 1967 poster, and this is why it is more realistic, as there is a clear threat (Kaar hanging from the tree looking at Mowgli like prey), however the biggest threat (Shere Khan) is not present, which makes the audience feel a bit tense, as well as intrigued, as the poster is what we initially see of the film and it creates a curiosity as to what Shere Khan will look like.







The font used in the title is a serif font, as it is curly and curvy, and is one of the main focus points of the poster. The font looks very creative to an audience which is why it is intriguing. The serif font has been coloured with what looks like an old ancient wall from a forest setting. The gold colouring is similar to that used in the original Jungle book film, which is symbolic of hope and energy, which is a running theme in the story, as it is a story of adventure.  In this version of the movie poster, there are less vibrant colours, but it looks more realistic in how colours are much duller in real life. The dull colours would not appeal to a very young audience in the same way that the 1967 Jungle book film did, as children cannot see dull colours at a young age and are disinterested in them. As children get older they decide to engage with darker things, as reality is much darker than what it used to be when they were children. Because it is more realistic, it is going to appeal to a wider audience as the colouring, imagery, characters and text look much more sophisticated. Because of the realism in how the characters look, the setting and the whole thing visually, an adult would be much more engaged in this version, as adults prefer real threats and real danger. This version would be much  more like what Rudyard Kipling would have like to have seen in an adaptation from his book, as the book was considered to be too dark by Walt Disney, but Jon Favreau saw the darkness of the story as an opportunity to appeal to a much wider audience. The majority of this poster is CGI or green screen, with the only real thing here being Mowgli. This is almost like a metaphor for how Mowgli is an outcast in the Jungle, but in the context of the poster, it shows how the film industry has changed to make real threats mouldable to a realistic film, but in an artificial way. The placing of all of the character is very similar to that of the original movie poster for the 1967 Jungle book, in how Mowgli is centre stage as he is the main protagonist, Bagheera is watching over him for a great height in the trees, Baloo is doing a similar job but is beside him, like a best friend would be supportive anchor, while also looking very protective of Mowgli. The atmosphere is not as friendly as the 1967 poster, and this is why it is more realistic, as there is a clear threat (Kaar hanging from the tree looking at Mowgli like prey), however the biggest threat (Shere Khan) is not present, which makes the audience feel a bit tense, as well as intrigued, as the poster is what we initially see of the film and it creates a curiosity as to what Shere Khan will look like.

           The poster sells the sophisticated visuals of the movie in addition to the all-star cast that voices the various animal characters. So there’s a very nice visual consistency across the whole campaign. New technologies such as Photoshop and graphic programs have enabled Disney to produce these eye-catching posters.


Characters


The main protagonist is the character Mowgli who is played by an innocent, young actor (Neel Sethi), who suits the character of Mowgli to the detail, as the Character of Mowgli is played by someone who looks like he is front the middle-east, therefore fits in with the set location (Asia). This is not the case for the actor who played the voice of Mowgli in the 1967 version of the Jungle book, as it is the voice of a boy not from the middle east as shown in the image in the bottom right. Despite it being only his voice needing to be heard, he does not speak the same way a person from India would speak, and instead has an American accent. There is a similar issue with the voicing of the boy in the 1967 Jungle book, as the boy used to play Mowgli is Indian-American, which is the accent picked up on in the film. Despite him having Indian heritage, he does not have the Indian accent which the character would have if he grew up in India. This has possibly been changed for the reason that it would be hugely marketed in America and England, and therefore they decided to get an actor with an American accent.




2016      





                                                                 1967






Shere Khan (the main antagonist) is played by Idris Elba who is an English actor from Dagenham in London, and is known to be a strong male character, who is displayed as being quite intimidating. His voice is deep and low, and to children might be frightening, as is the case with the character of Shere Khan. He is typically chosen to play strong authority figures who are unsophisticated in their behaviour, which can be applied directly to the character of Shere Khan as he is seen as the biggest threat to all other animals (especially Mowgli) and viewed to be like the leader of the Jungle. Idris Elba brings an intensity to the character of Shere Khan which was intended int he original text created by Rudyard Kipling, as he created a darkness in the story which is not necessarily shown in the 1967 Jungle book, but is visible in the 2016 Shere Khan, as it is much more realistic of how a Tiger would act, and this is why it appeals to more of an older audience than the 1967 movie.
The actor who played Shere Khan in 1967 version of the Jungle book was played by George Sanders who was also an English actor was well known for his low, smooth and sophisticated voice. he typically played characters who were from upper-class backgrounds, who were sophisticated but villainous. His roles as the antagonist were not malicious and was comedic in his behaviour, despite always being the villain in the story. Because he is more playful and comedic as the Tiger, it appeals much more to a younger audience as he is seen as much less of a threat than the 2016 Shere Khan.

 2016           

                                                             
                                                                 1967







In the 1967 version of the Jungle Book, the character of King Louie was played by a White Italian jazz singer, who was chosen to recreate the voice of African-American singer Louie Armstrong who was a famous jazz singer, who was famous for his distinctive voice. The character of King Louie was not in the original text created by Rudyard Kipling, and this particular type of ape was not indigenous to this part of Asia. Walt Disney wanted the character of King Louie to be made so there were playful and fun characters in the film. This may have been negatively associated with the actor was chosen to imitate a black man's voice may play to context of when the film was created, in how there were segregation going on in the 1960s between white and black people, which therefore may be viewed as racist by certain people, as it is a stereotype of how black people were portrayed at the time to act. The characterisation of the 2016 Jungle book King Louie is based on Marlon Brando's Colonel Kurtz in the film Apocalypse Now. The intertextual link is in how he took the elements of Kurtz living within the shadows, and being very intimidating. Comparing 1967s King Louie to 2016s King Louie, there is a very big difference. 1967 King Louie is a buffoon, fool and not someone who is taken seriously as a King as he has good time, as well as having an African American voice. However, in the 2016 Jungle book, King Louie was a strong, intimidating, large and frightening character to be taken seriously, and had an Chicago American gangster accent. This version of King Louie is taken more seriously than the 1967 version, and it is almost like African American people are not taken seriously, but Chicago American people are intimidating and taken more seriously.
2016                  




                                                                                       1967  
    





Trailers


The Jungle Book Official Trailer #1 (2016) Scarlett Johansson Live-Action Disney Movie HD
The 2016 trailer for the Jungle book does not display itself to be the same joyous film as the 1967 version. The musical numbers from the first film do not make an appearance, and It appears to be more of a action and adventure story than the original. They tried to make it much darker, like how Rudyard Kipling originally intended it to be, and it is much more realistic. The dark colours and intensity throughout the trailer is what makes it appealing to the audience. The constant fast pace of the trailer makes the audience excited and tense. The cuts such as when Mowgli jumps off an edge make the audience tense up as they want to see what while happen next, and this is what makes the audience want to see the film. The clips are very short, therefore showing you a lot of scenes without showing or telling you too much, which makes it much more mysterious and intriguing. The sound used in the trailer is both non-diagetic and diagetic. There is the intense and dramatic music playing in the background of the whole trailer which makes the audience tense the whole time. at the moments when Mowgli jumps off and edge, there is intense loud music, then darkness on the screen and silence, like it is the calm before the storm. The loud beats make the audience jump and sense something bad but exciting is coming, There is the diagetic sound of the voice of Kaar trying to entice Mowgli, but it entices the audience in also, as we are intrigued. Within the trailer, we see thing such as "from the director of Iron man" and "from the studios that made Pirates of the Caribbean". This has been done intentionally to appeal to action fans, as well as fans of marvel films (as Iron man is owned by Marvel) as well as in order to appeal to more males, as more females favour the older version than males. This was done in order to appeal to a much wider audience, and catch certain audience members that the original film possibly did not capture.
The 2016 version of the Jungle book is what is known as a live-action version of the original film, meaning it has been done to look like it is filmed in real life, despite it not being done this way. They used things such as green screen to create post-production edits to change the backgrounds and add more animals. Because of the advanced technology there is now, they were able to use puppet like figures as a guide for the actors to use while filming, and the details of the animals were added in post-filming to make it look realistic. This shows how technology has advanced in making something very realistic. It also shows how money and investment in films have changed. For the 2016 version of Jungle book, pre visualisation was used in order for the directors and editors to get an idea of what it would look like, as well as to see if they wanted to make alterations tot he film. It makes the film less expensive as it means they do not have to re-film anything, as they can see what needs altering before they make the final edits to the film. MPC in London was responsible for the 3-D special effects used in the film, which earned them an Oscar win for best visual effects. They were responsible for the modelling, rigging, and animation, and made the details of the film look extremely realistic, all with the use of green screen, CGI, and software with plug-ins they made to create the special effects for the film.


In the 1967 trailer for Jungle book, there are several musical number playing in the background as diagetic sound, as we can see the character dancing around in front of us, and it makes the audience cheerful as they sing along and want to dance with the music. there is a very friendly atmosphere and the audience do not feel tense watching the trailer. The non-diagetic sound consists of a narrator telling us a little about the story, however all of the audiences attention is payed to what is going on in the trailer. The trailer is comprised of long clips at a slow pace which makes the audience calm, happy and chilled out. Because the shots are long scenes from the film, the audience are given a lot of context as to what to expect from the film, as well as to make the audience pay lots of attention to the characters and the story. There are no open ended scenes, so the audience are not made to feel tense, or drawn in by the action of the story, as what action there is in the scenes shown in the trailer, is humoured. There is use of both diagetic and non-diagetic sounds within the trailer. The non-diagetic sound is the narration of the story and what to expect form the film. There is no introduction to the actors playing the characters as there is in the 2016 version. Instead of trying to sell the actors in the trailer, the narrator tries to sell the story to the audience. The diagetic sounds used are the musical numbers and the conversations the characters are having on the screen which the audience is watching. This trailer tries to give the audience a sneak peak into what to expect from the film, and this is what interests them.
The 1967 Jungle book film was made entirely from animation, which was a common way to make children's films at the time the film came out. Musical numbers were common at the time as they engaged the audience and go them involved. In modern times, this is less common but is starting to come back into fashion in other Disney live-action remakes that are taking place, such Beauty and the Beast which came out in 2017. Another example of how it is coming back into fashion is in new musical animation films such as Moana, which proved to be a huge box office success.


Part (b)  

Discuss how these films were marketed and the value earned by the company.  Using media language discuss the effects of technology on targeting an older audience in the 2016 version box office.


Marketing the 1967 Jungle book-

The total budget for the film was $4,000,000. The film grossed $205,843,612 worldwide and $141,843,612 in the USA. It is estimated to be the 29th highest grossing film of all time in the United States. In terms of marketing, the Jungle Book (1967) was marketed through movie posters and cinema signs but due to the lack of internet and social media it did not get the same marketing attention as the 2016 version did. At the time, these films were not as big as they are now, so there was little competition in selling animated films, and relied on the posters and signs to bring in the audience. At the time, because musicals were in fashion with families, they used this to advantage to draw the family groups in, and to advertise it as a family film. The whole campaign was done "above the line."


The 1967 Jungle book was created using cel animation, by drawing each of the frames for each animation, putting them onto an acetate sheet, and then colouring it. This was the normal way of making an animation for the time, therefore it was not as technologically advanced as the 2016 Jungle book, as there was more of a spectacle with the new film. However, the film did not use the visuals as a selling point for the film, they used the fact that it was a family film as a selling point. Another type of technology used to make this film was the use of a multiplane camera, which was used to record the movement of multiple layers of art work that would move past the camera at various speeds and distances, and ultimately created a 3-D like effect. This may have been a little point of spectacle for some points in the film, as it was very different to the typical type of thing that was seen in films.
Marketing the 2016 Jungle book-

The total budget for this film was $175,000,000. On the opening weekend it made $103,261,464 (USA) and overall grossed $364,001,123 (USA) and $947,589,026 (worldwide), which is much more significant than the original film. This could be due to the much larger marketing campaign which included things such as releasing sneak peaks, teaser trailers, trailers, etc. on Youtube, Facebook, twitter, Instagram, and other social media platforms. Things like this were spread and share amongst internet users and a buzz was created around the film from fans. The production company held a fan event which showed sneak peaks  and the trailers, as well as some of the actors within the film being there to promote the film. Disney World and Disneyland helped get involved by posing big sang models of the characters within the film in some of the parks. There were snapchat filters created for fans to spread across social media which also helped create an interest in the film, as well as social media pages on twitter such as fan accounts, and other websites such as 'lawofthejungle.com' which was set up to get fans involved. Celebrity endorsement was used form the actors voices within the film, such as posing the actors with their character counterparts, which created a spectacle for the fans, as It looked like they were posing with real animals, which was done using the incredible technology used within the film. Because there was a long list of top actors within the film, it made fans of the actors interested in seeing the film, which is one of the reasons why it was such a big success. Commercials on ESPN portrayed the movie as coming not from the studio that made “Cinderella” but “from the studio that brought you ‘Pirates of the Caribbean.’” An extended 3-D trailer for “The Jungle Book” was attached to “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” which had an audience that was 58 percent male. Disney rolled out an action-oriented trailer during the Super Bowl in order to appeal to the male demographic, as they were the hardest group to gain an interest in the film, as the have a preconception of the film from how the first film was, as well as the film coming from Disney, who are believed to be associated with princesses and fairy tales.

The film features much more advanced technology such as CGI and special effects to make it look so real even though most of the film is just green screens, puppets and computers. Live action remakes are very popular among Disney at the moment due to the advances in media technology and popularity of something that isn't generic. Other films that have been remade into a live action version includes; Cinderella and Beauty and The Beast. There has been a rise in the calls to make children films more action packed due to the rise of films such as Marvel in the last decade which have changed the style of children films. this film being directed by the director of Iron man (a Marvel character) Is significant, as it shows the shift from comic book action, to making Disney action. This is also significant as Disney in recent years has begun to take on more action pact franchises than there were in 1967, with its two biggest being Marvel and Star Wars. It shows a shift in how society and children are perceived to be in current times, as for children in the 1967's, these versions of children's films may be perceived as being too frightening for children.

Since 1967, Walt Disney has become one of the biggest powers in the film industry, as it is (the company) part of one of one of the big 6, which are the biggest production companies which branch off into other production companies. This means that they have a bigger influence, even more now than ever, as they are building up their library with famous franchises which are huge blockbuster successes. This helps wight he marketing and distribution, as it means they have more connections in where they can distribute the film, which is one of the reasons why it had such a large marketing campaign.




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