Black panther

What year was Black Panther released?

2018

Who produced black panther?

Marvel studios

What company is marvel a subsidiary of?

The Walt Disney Company

What record did Black Panther break?

The highest opening weekend in the USA

How much did BP gross worldwide and what percentage of that came from non-us countries?

Over $1 billion - 48% from non-US countries

How many Oscar’s did BP win and what for?

3 Oscar’s for

Costume design

Production design

Original soundtrack

What Oscar was BP nominated for that hardly any other superhero movie has been nominated for?

Best picture

What does it mean to be commercially successful?

A media product, such as a film, generates a large amount of revenue. For a film, this would include cinema box office revenue.

What demonstrates Marvel films’ high production values and big budgets?

Extensive use of CGI, special effects and action to offer escapist entertainment

What does it mean to be critically acclaimed?

When a media product receives positive reviews from critics and/or wins awards.

Why is BP considered risk averse?

It’s based on pre-existing comic books, so there is a ready-made audience for the movies.

What is it that the Walt Disney company have a long history of making films with?

Associated merchandise, theme parks, TV programmes and digital media products such as video games.

When did WDC purchase Marvel and how much for?

2008 for $4 billion

What has WDC established itself as?

A trusted bran which consistently delivers high quality, commercial entertainment.

What division of WDC distributed BP and what does that demonstrate?

Walt Disney Studios Motion Picture, showing vertical distribution.

What did Disney agree with Marvel when they bought them?

That they would have minimal creative influence over Marvel products

When did Marvel sign a deal with Netflix?

2013

why did Marvel cancel their Netflix shows?

It caused a conflict with Disney who launched Disney + in 2019

What is a media conglomerate?

A company that owns other companies across a range of media platforms. This increased their domination of the market and their ability to distribute and exhibit their products.

What are the features of a media conglomerate?

Owns subsidiaries

Multi-National

Vertically/horizontally intergrated

Driven by profit and power

Operates across different media platforms

Big budgets

Why is BP typically of Marvel’s house style?

It has high production values (spx, CGI), includes action and has mainstream appeal.

How is BP different from Marvel’s house style?

It has an Afrocentric ideological perspective and all Black cast

What is the marvel logo used for?

To set up expectations for the audience, and acts as a mark of quality.

What marketing campaign did Disney adopt for BP?

A 360-degree consumer experience

What was the concept of the marketing for the film?

To make the film into a cultural event, across a variety of media and platforms and raising its profile from “just another superhero movie” into something more politically resonant.

What was the estimated marketing budget for BP?

$150 million - the biggest advertising budget and biggest line of merchandise of any Marvel non-sequel.

When was the first poster released and why?

During the 2017 NBA finals to target fans of marvel/superhero movies, African Americans and mainstream audiences.

How many times was the teaser trailer viewed within 24 hours?

89 million times (2nd most viewed trailer ever)

What did the teaser trailer do?

It created audience anticipation through creating buzz, setting up enigma codes, promising action and spectacle and by introducing the protagonist and other key characters.

What BP teasers were on display during the 2017 San Diego comic con?

Costumes and exclusive footage of the film, which received a standing ovation.

When was the full trailer released?

16th October 2017

How did Disney use Kendrick Lamar to promote the movie?

They organised the first College Football Playoff National Championship half-term show where Kendrick Lamar performed to promote the BP anthem and the beginning of ticket sales.

What did BP become in March 2018?

The most-tweeted about film ever with 35 million tweets.

How did Disney use New York Fashion Week to promote BP?

Designers created custom pieces inspired by the film for an event called “Welcome to Wakanda: Fashion for the Black Panther Era”

What did Marvel studios and Lexus create together?

A graphic novel called Black Panther: soul of the machine

A Super Bowl commercial featuring Boseman

How many views did the Lexus X BP Super Bowl add gain on social media?

4.3 million views

What was the point of the synergy between Lexus and BP?

It expanded the audience for the film beyond superhero fans as it targeted a mass mainstream audience as the coverage of the superbowl is the most watched watched TV programme in the USA and also has a large global audience. Lexus is a well known luxury car brand, so has mainstream and aspirational appeal.

How does the partnership between BP x Lexus target black audiences?

Through aligning Black Culture with technology and affluence.

What TV shows did Disney and marvel create a “synergy program” with?

Black-ish, Grey’s anatomy and the College Football Playoffs,

What sort of merchandise did Hasbro toys create for the film?

Parts of the costume such as gloves and helmet, and figurines.

How do the posters target different audiences?

They introduce the genre and concept of the film through the characters. There’s an emphasis on the characters played by an African-American or British-African actors to emphasise the movies USP.

Some have a more action- oriented style, showing scenes from the film to appeal to fans of action films and superhero films.

Some of the posters include details of the high production values e.g “experience in IMAX.

How did the film release harness a political element?

Crowd-funding projects to buy under-privileged children a ticket

The film was released during Black history month

Workers on the film gave interviews about how the film celebrates African culture.

What is convergence?

The process through which different media industries and forms merge with one another or move closer together. This process is facilitated by digital technologies.

How does the marvel website use convergence?

It includes trailers, film extracts, news items, images and links to social media.

What digitally convergent media platforms did Disney use to market the film?

The Marvel website, YouTube, FaceBook etc. Where trailers and interviews were available.

What has the internet led to in terms of marketing?

Easier access to film marketing materials and more opportunities for fans to interact with each other and film studios.

How does social media act as word-of-mouth publicity?

Fans can pass on information

Why may audiences be more active nowadays?

They are able to find more of a range of marketing materials online.

Why may audiences these days feel like they have more influence over the type of media products made and developed?

As they can be heard online and film producers can see and respond to them.

To what extent is BP a global movie?

It was released in 112 countries

It generated 48% of its box office revenue outside the USA.

Grossed over $1 billion globally

How many awards was BP nominated for and how many did it win?

Nominated for 265 and won 112 (42%)

How does BP support Curran and Seaton’s point that the media is controlled by a small number of companies?

Owned by a major film studio Disney, which make up an oligopoly that dominate the film market which includes Universal and Warner Bros.

How does BP support Curran and Seaton’s point that media concentration inhibits creativity?

Most top films are franchise, superhero or family oriented movies.

How does BP challenge Curran and Seaton’s point that media concentration inhibits quality and variety?

BP is different to other Marvel and superhero movies as it focuses on a cast with African heritage, challenging the white hegemony of mainstream media products.

How does the film market show that more socially diverse patterns of ownership help to create the conditions for more varied productions?

Digital giants like Netflix and Amazon are starting to challenge the oligopoly as they offer more varied content

How does the Disney company challenge Curran and Seaton’s point?

Disney may be more complex than is suggested - for example Disney has allowed Marvel to operate as a separate brand and maintain a degree of creative control. This avoids “Disneyfying” the brand.

How does BP support Hesmondhalgh’s idea that companies try to minimise risk and maximise audiences through vertical and horizontal integration and by formatting their products?

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures produced the movie (vertical integration) and Disney have acquired other companies like Pixar to reduce competition (horizontal integration). Black Panther is formatted as it’s part of a high grossing franchise and minimises risk through having a oremade audience due to being based off comics.

How does BP support Hesmondhalgh’s idea that conglomerates now operate across a number of different cultural industries?

Disney owns theme parks, stores, a streaming platform and merchandise

How does BP support Hesmondhalgh’s idea that the radical potential of the internet has been contained?

By its partial incorporation into a large, profit-orientated industry. Disney plus and Disney is fairly risk adverse and uses typical tactics in movies and marketing, which contains radical potential.

How does BP challenge Hesmondhalgh’s idea that the radical potential of the internet has been contained?

Some aspects of its marketing may be seen as somewhat radical such as the less conventional forms of crowdfunding and its emphasis on its link to Black History month

Why are age rating important?

In guaranteeing an audience

who classifies film and video releases in the UK?

The BBFC

What was BP classified as in the UK and why?

A 12a as although there is violence, it isn’t graphic or detailed- rather it’s fantastical (hard to imitate). There’s minimal/mild swearing and no sexual content.

Who classifies film ratings in America

The MPAA.

What is BP classified as in America?

PG-13

What age rating is BP classified as in Indonesia?

17+

What age rating is BP classified as in Sweden?

11+

Why do age ratings vary across the world?

To reflect different cultures and their values and attitudes.

Why does a 12a classification allow Disney to maximise audiences?

As they’re opening up cinematic viewing to those younger than 12 accompanied by their parents, broadening the audiences.

Why is distribution in countries like Indonesia less of a focus?

As the potential audiences there are smaller.

how do online streaming services undermine the regulation process?

It opens up the possibility of global viewership regardless of age.