Case Study: Spielberg

Steven Spielberg

Steven Spielberg was born on the 18th of December 1946 in Cincinnati in the state of Ohio of the USA and is one of Hollywood's most famous film directors as well as one of the wealthiest filmmakers in the world.




His first film, in which he was an uncredited assistant editor was the classic western Wagon Train (1957). His other works as an assistant editor were The Last Gun (1959), Battle Squad(1961) and Escape to Nowhere (1961) in which his sister, Anne Spielberg, also played a part.


His first film as a director was in 1964 when he directed Fireflight (1964) a movie about a small town being invaded by aliens. Then, in 1967 he directed Slipstream, however, this was never finished.  in 1968, he directed Amblin' (1968), which featured the desert prominently, and not the first of his movies in which the desert would feature so prominently. Amblin' also became the name of his production company, which turned out such classics as E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982). Spielberg had a unique and classic early directing project, Duel (1971), with Dennis Weaver. Most of his other work in the early 1970's, however, was on TV projects such as Rod Serling's Night Gallery. This did not, however, stop his first major directorial effort The Sugarland Express (1974) which marked him as a rising star.




Spielberg's next work was the piece that made him known the world over:  Jaws (1975). This classic shark attack tale started the tradition of the summer blockbuster or, at least, he was credited with starting the tradition.


Jaws (1975): 

Distributed by	Universal Pictures
Release dates	June 20, 1975 (1975-06-20)
Running time	124 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$9 million

Following Jaws was Spielberg's unique sci-fi film that remains a classic to this day, ' Close Encounters of the Third Kind'. Spielberg hit gold yet one more time with Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), with Harrison Ford taking the part of Indiana Jones. Spielberg produced and directed two films in 1982. The first was Poltergeist (1982), but the highest-grossing movie of all time up to that point was the alien story E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982). Spielberg also helped pioneer the practice of product placement. The concept, while not uncommon, was still relatively low-key when Spielberg raised the practice to almost an art form with his famous (or infamous) placement of Reece's Pieces in "E.T." Spielberg was also one of the pioneers of the big-grossing special-effects movies, like "E.T." and "Close Encounters", where a very strong emphasis on special effects was placed for the first time on such a huge scale. In 1984, Spielberg followed up "Raiders" with Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984), which was a commercial success but did not receive the critical acclaim of its predecessor. As a producer, Spielberg took on many projects in the 1980s, such as The Goonies (1985), and was the brains behind the little monsters in Gremlins (1984).


In the late 1980's, Spielberg became the centre of pop culture again  due to the landmark animation/live-action film Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988). This film was closely followed the next year by Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), and Back to the Future Part II (1989). All three of these films were critical successes in both the cinema and box-office.
Throughout the 90's Spielberg was a strong supporter of animation, something he had a great affinity for as evidenced in 'Who Framed Roger Rabbit'.


Spielberg was very active in the early 1990s, as he directed Hook (1991) and produced such films as the cute fantasy Joe Versus the Volcano (1990) and An American Tail: Fievel Goes West (1991). He also produced the unusual comedy thriller Arachnophobia (1990), Back to the Future Part III (1990) and Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990). Whilst every one of these films was successful in their own right, none quite reached the kind of box-office or critical acclaim as some of his earlier work.


In 1993, Spielberg directed Jurassic Park (1993), which for a short time held the record as the highest grossing movie of all time, but did not have the universal appeal of his previous efforts. Big box-office spectacles were not his only concern, however.  He produced and directed Schindler's List (1993), a stirring film about the Holocaust. He won best director at the Oscars, and also got Best Picture. In the mid-90s, he helped found the production company DreamWorks, which was responsible for many box-office successes. A second comeback, if you will, after who framed roger rabbit, which was in and of itself a comeback from Jaws.


As a producer, he was very active in the late 90s, responsible for such films as The Mask of Zorro (1998), Men in Black (1997) and Deep Impact (1998). However, it was on the directing front that Spielberg was in top form. He directed and produced the epic that was Amistad (1997), a film that was shorted at the Oscars and in release due to the fact that its release date was moved around so much in late 1997. The next year, however, produced what many believe was one of the best films of his career: Saving Private Ryan (1998), a film about World War Two that is spectacular in almost every respect. It was stiffed at the Oscars, losing best picture to Shakespeare in Love (1998) which was directed by John Madden.


Saving Private Ryan: 
Distributed by DreamWorks Pictures and Paramount pictures.
Released on July 24, 1998.
Running Time 169 minutes
Country United states of 'Murica
Languages English, German and French
Budget $70 million
Box office $481.8 million




Then, Spielberg produced a series of films, including The Haunting (1999), Evolution (2001) and Shrek (2001). he also produced two sequels to Jurassic Park (1993), which were financially but not particularly critical successes. In 2001, he produced a mini-series about World War Two that definitely was a financial and critical success: Band of Brothers (2001), a tale of an infantry company from its parachuting into France during the invasion to the Battle of the Bulge. Also in that year, Spielberg was back in the director's chair for A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001), a movie with a message and a huge budget. It did reasonably at the box office and garnered varied reviews from critics.


Spielberg has been extremely active in films there are many other things he has done as well. He produced the short-lived TV series SeaQuest 2032 (1993), an anthology series entitled Amazing Stories (1985), created the video-game series "Medal of Honor" set during World War Two, and was a starting producer of ER (1994). Spielberg, if you haven't noticed, has a great interest in World War Two. He and Tom Hanks collaborated on Shooting War (2000), a documentary about World War II combat photographers, and he produced a documentary about the Holocaust called Eyes of the Holocaust (2000).


With all of this to Spielberg's credit, there is no wonder that he is looked at as one of the greatest ever figures in entertainment and, subsequentially, Media.

	(1975-06-

Textual Analysis of another students work

Youtube
Tupton Hall Media
2015 AS Final productions
Max Biddlecombe, Max Bradbury, Andreas Lee and Brad Roberts


The production team's name appears for 2 seconds and is in a red, creepy in front of a dark, misty forest with trees with no leaves, This could be to give us an idea of the theme and genre of their thriller opening which is likely a horror thriller. The camera angle is also a wide shot which gives us an, obviously, wide view of what is in front of the camera, in this case it is a dank, perpetual forest of ominous mist and perennial shadow.

The producer's name appears for 2 seconds in letters that appear cracked, like glass, giving the font a sinister, jagged edge. The blue sky and the dark forest also contrast, when combined with the aesthetically sinister, jagged font, the gloomy mirk emanating from the forest embeds the viewer with a primal fear, the sinister music does not help to alleviate this fear.

 

The director's name appears for 2 seconds in the same cracked glass look, giving it the same jagged, almost eldritch, look. The positioning of the camera also makes the branches look like a natural cage with the killer staring at the camera, simultaneously filling the viewer with an ominous sense of dread and breaking the fourth wall. 

 

 

 

The title appears for 6 seconds, yet again, in the same sinister, smashed glass font, but this time in front of a black background as if surrounded by a pure form of perpetual darkness, the kind we saw emanating from the perennial shadows of the forest in the first shot I explored.

 

 

 

 

 

In conclusion, the opening to the other students' work is like an ouroboros of shadow and darkness, setting the perfect scene for a horror thriller.

 

 

 



BBFC film regulation

British Board of Film Classification








U stands for universal and is an appropriate film for viewing by all ages, those younger than 4 inparticular, in accordance with the law. However, it is impossible to predict what might upset a particular child, especially at this lower end of the category range. This category allows only for infrequent, covert implications of what would be seen in films of a higher category.

PG stands for parental guidance, allowing the film to be viewed by the general populace in accordance with the law. Films in this category should not unsettle a child around 8 or older, however, it may be unsuitable for children around the age of 4 and below. This category allows parents to judge whether or not the film is suitable for their child to watch. Also, this category often aims to explore more challenging issues such as bullying, bereavement or racism and allows for mild bad language such as sh*t but must be infrequent and is heavily reliant upon the context in which it is said as well as taking a similar stance on violence. This category, much like the U category, does not allow anything other than the vaguest of venereal references.

12A is the category that allows children under 12 to watch the film provided there is an adult there to supervise/authorise said 12 year old to do so. 12 means that no child under 12 can see this film under any circumstances. The BBFC's guidelines state that strong language, such as f***, is dependent upon the context in which it is said whilst it must remain infrequent, it also helps if moderate strong language, see PG example, may be used without contextual red tape. Discriminatory language is only allowed to be used if it is openly and clearly condemned. Venereal topics must be brief and vague and is dependent upon the context, the safest context for it to be used in, in 12A and 12 films, is comedy. Nudity is heavily contextual in this category and is only allowed in 12A films if it is "brief and discreet" whilst sexual references are treated the same regardless of sexuality. In this category, relatively frequent violence is allowed but should not dwell on detail such as emphasis on injuries or blood, though occasional gory moments can be permitted if they can sufficiently justify the context (e.g. brief sight of a bloody injury in a medical drama). Despite the requirement that they may not go into detail with injuries and wounds, fight scenes may be conducted at length, though any weapons that are easily accessible must not be glamorised or the films risk being graded as a 15. Venereal violence is also a no.

15 means that the minimum age requirement for the film is, you guessed it, 15. In this category, no themes are prohibited so long as the themes treatment is appropriate for 15 year olds. Watching a 15 film means that you run the risk of seeing

  strong violence

 frequent strong language (e.g. 'f***').

  portrayals of sexual activity

  strong verbal references to sex

  sexual nudity

  brief scenes of sexual violence or verbal references to sexual violence

  discriminatory language or behaviour

  drug taking

(This list was taken from the BBFC website)There is no cap on the quantity or quality of strong language used in a 15 film. Racist, homophobic or other discriminatory language or behaviour. However, the film is under no circumstances, in accordance with the law, allowed to endorse said discriminatory language or behaviour. Venereal activity can be shown but must not go into detail whilst educational and non-sexual nudity can be shown with impunity. Sexual references and activity must be treated the same regardless of sexuality. Violence may be shown with impunity. Drugs are also allowed to be shown but must not be shown to promote or encourage said behaviours and must not be drugs that are easily accessible to 15 year olds, such as aerosols or solvents. Venereal violence is the only no for 15 films.

 

 

 

18; adults only in accordance with the law. No theme is prohibited as 18 year olds are supposedly smart enough to think for themselves, as they're so much smarter then 17 year olds. It is almost certain that you will see at least several of the following (again from the BBFC):

 



very strong violence

  frequent strong language (e.g. 'f***') and / or very strong language (e.g. ‘c***’)

  strong portrayals of sexual activity

  scenes of sexual violence

  strong horror

  strong blood and gore

  real sex (in some circumstances)

  discriminatory language and behaviour

No limitations on language used. Discriminatory language can be used with impunity but must not under any circumstances breach the law.

There may be strong and detailed portrayals of sex at 18, including full nudity. There are no constraints on nudity in a non-sexual or educational context. Very strong, crude and explicit sex references are permitted at 18. An 18 film or video might also contain depictions of real sex, as long as the film or video is not a sex work(basically, pornography with plot)which would require it to be rated as an R18 film. Violence and subsequent wounds and injuries may be shown with impunity, this includes venereal violence. Strong horror and gore are permitted. All forms of drugs can be shown within this category, however, this cannot be encouraged or promoted within the films as it must be in accordance with the law.

The only things outright banned from 18 films are as follows(from the BBFC website)

1. where the material is in breach of the criminal law, or has been created through the commission of a criminal offence.
2.   where material or treatment appears to us to risks harm to individuals or, through their behaviour, to society – for example, any detailed portrayal of violent or dangerous acts, or of illegal drug use, which may cause harm to public health or morals. This may include portrayals of sexual violence which might, for example, make rape look appealing, reinforce the suggestion that victims enjoy sexual violence or which invite viewer complicity in sexual violence.
3.   where there are more explicit images of sexual activity which cannot be justified by context. Such images may be appropriate in R18 works and, in ‘sex works’, would normally be confined to that category.

 

 

 

The R18 category is a special and legally-restricted classification primarily for explicit works of consenting sex or strong fetish material involving adults. Films may only be shown to adults in specially licensed cinemas, and video works may be supplied to adults only in licensed sex shops.