Evaluation Question 3

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

Leigh Whannell in Saw

I think that it is first important to consider the budget that would be required. All of the actors in our film are new, so none would require high wages. This is one of the key factors that separates low budget slasher films with medium/high budget ones. The actors used wouldn't need to have no film/television acting experience, however, to be paid very little. There are many examples of unknown actors being used in successful low budget films. One example would be Leigh Whannell who played one of the leading roles in Saw. He began his career in television shows and short films and was relatively unknown before his role in Saw. Due to this, Saw managed to be produced on a budget of just $1.2m, and grossed $103m worldwide. The Woman in Black on the other hand, starred Daniel Radcliffe, and the film was produced on a budget of $17m. This large difference in budget is primarily due to the wages of the actors in the films.

Another important factor in deciding which distribution company to choose would be whether to go for a British or US company. It is likely that US distribution companies would rather go for higher budget, low risk film. British distribution companies however are often much more willing to take a risk, but don't have as much money. It would therefore make sense to choose a British company to distribute our film.

StudioCanal Logo

I think that StudioCanal UK (formally known as Optimum Releasing) would be the best for distributing our film as they are a successful company, having distributed over 200 films, and they often distribute low budget British films, such as Donkey Punch and Submarine and Wolf Creek.