"Why
did the 1980s see the
decline of Fleapit cinemas and emergence
of
the Multiplex? Give
reasons linking to the Production, Distribution & Exhibition of Blockbusters and their popularity."
Answer Scaffold:
Intro: Your answer to the question (production, distribution, exhibition)
3 x paragraphs: Point> Example (film)> Explain how this answer the question
Summary: Why Blockbusters are linked to rise in Multiplex cinema in 80's/personal opinion?
Task 2: Lesson Preparation
1. Read through and make notes on the articles and the videos linking to:
Technology
Economics
Social
2. Mind Map "Multiplexes in the UK"
surround the statement with your notes under the 3 contextual categories
3. Connect the answers to the questions -
you may have to research more extensively beyond the starting point
articles/video (& beyond wikipedia...)
- When was the first Multiplex in the UK?
- What was cinema attendance like in this time?
- What films were being played in the new Multiplexes (name and year?)
- How were these Multiplexes encouraging audiences to go to the cinema?
- Where are these Multiplexes built instead of the High Street and why?
- What had happened to audience leisure patterns that meant 'Fleapit' cinemas lost popularity?
- What advantages did Multiplexes offer cinema audiences and film distributors over Fleapits?
- What reasons was cinema attendance low? (Technologies and Audience Leisure Patterns)
Some answers (but not all) match up & explain (the bit where you THINK and deduce a connection)
- Youth Audience
- Multiplex guarantees a larger audience
- Audience Leisure Patterns: Fashion of Home Video (VHS/Betamax)
- Piracy & Home Video
- The Rise of Blockbuster 'Event' Movies
- Fleapit cinemas sound & picture quality experience and run down
- Recession & Cinema Attendance
- Audience Leisure Patterns: Shopping & Out of Town leisure
Practice Question: Multiplexes
What factors led to the decline of town or city centres cinemas in the late 1970s and early 1980s?Certain factors such as production, distribution and exhibition in the film industry have influenced the decline in town or city centre cinemas which have been influenced by different changes within society which led to an increase in multiplexes on the outskirts of city areas as well as the atmosphere in cinemas becoming more of a social experience rather than going to actually enjoy a film which led to the rise of multiplexes being placed in shopping centres. In terms of technology since visual effects from companies like Industrial, Light and Magic (ILM) were becoming more popular it led to people desiring a spectacle in which they could only get that experience from a multiplex and not in town or city centre cinemas'. Economically, merchandise and marketing made films in a multiplex more profitable since multiplexes were placed in shopping centres which influenced the decreasing popularity of town or city cinemas. In response to these factors blockbusters were being made to fill multiplexes to have more control over films being made and multiplexes were being created to house blockbusters because the film industry realised that this would make a profit because all audiences wanted were style over substance films.
As town or city centre cinema declined in came the rise of the blockbuster and multiplexes. In terms of production, companies were beginning to play more with special effects to create a spectacle and in return, these new effects created hype around films like Jaws turning it in to an event movie, creating the idea of going to a multiplex to be a social experience. An example of directors using new visual effects in their films to create a spectacle is when George Lucas and Steven Spielberg created ILM which was involved in the creation of Star Wars and also influenced the creation of ET in years to follow. As a result of this it has later influenced other film companies to conform to similar production techniques as they new they would get large audiences from films with spectacle over substance. Only multiplexes could house blockbusters because in terms of technology multiplex cinemas had wider screens, as well as better sound and video qualities which town or city centres did not have which led to a decrease in popularity for these 'flea pit' cinema's because they were using older screen technology and could not offer the same viewing experience that multiplexes could.
As the UK were just coming
out of a recession most families were still quite tight with money and
could not go out to enjoy films in the cinema which meant there was a
loss of business for town or city centre cinema's because they could
rent a film and get the same experience that they would in a town or
city centre cinema. Also piracy was also a huge issue, an example of
this is ET, ET was the most pirated film in 1982. Piracy
meant that American Hollywood Studios (AHS) were getting less revenue
from the blockbusters and they therefore needed something brand new to
give audiences or find another way to make their money back. They did
this through merchandising. Blockbusters began to only be played in
multiplexes and turned blockbusters in to event movies. This led to
marketing a film selling merchandise and advertisement to increase
revenue and attraction to the film before it is even released. An
example of a film which followed this formula of marketing is the Star
Wars franchise and the film was only given to Multiplexes as they
created a bigger experience than town or city centre cinema with better
seating and better sound quality. This hurt town and city centre
cinema's as all the films that were making huge amounts of money were
only being played in multiplexes which caused town and city centre
cinemas to decline.Technological
advancements like VHS and VCR meant that people did not need to leave
home to watch films, because of this it became fashionable to watch
films in your own home. This created an alternative to going to the
cinema that was not available before. It would not be before the rise of
the multiplex that people started going to see films again. Small town
and city centre cinemas lacked the social event status that VHS and VCR
provided. However, something to note is that because of the recession
most homes would not have a VHS or VCR because they would not be able to
afford one which suggests that this technological advancement may not
be the sole factor in the decline of town or city centre cinemas. A
contrasting point however is that for the homes that did have a VHS or
VCR it would be cheaper to rent a film, than to go out and watch a film
in a 'flea pit cinema'.
During the late 70s and early 80s teenagers quickly became the cinemas
main audience, they became this because they were economically dependent
on their parents, were granted a disposable income and were able to go
out socially whilst their parents worked for them. They were attracted
to multiplexes which were placed in shopping centers which were where
teenagers would interact socially before multiplexes were placed their
anyway. This in a sense devalued cinema because it turned it in to a
'shopping experience'. Blockbusters also in return became formulaic to
fit what teenagers liked. An example of this is Jaws, Jaws was a violent
film which attracted teenagers and it was also based in the summer time
in a beach setting which is relatable to things that teenagers like to
do socially. Jaws was also released during the Summer time during a time
where teenagers would go to the beach as well. This led to the decline
in town or city centers because teenage audiences had a big influence on
the film industry and multiplexes attracted them more than town or city
centers because multiplexes gave them more choice and gave them a new
experience in where they interact socially and town or city centers did
not deliver the same experience so teenagers did not go there to see
their films.In conclusion there seems to have been a substantial decline in town or city centre cinema in the late 1970's and early 80's which seems to have a correlation with the rise of the blockbuster and the rise of the multiplex. There also seems to be a correlation between the rise of home video and a decline in cinema attendance in town or city centre cinema. These have been influenced by social, economic and technological factors which offered new experiences for cinema audiences and you could only achieve the best experience apparently in multiplexes which pretty much put town or city centers out of business because blockbusters were only being played in multiplexes who were placed in the UK by AHS and multiplexes eventually became an experience for cinema goers, rather than actually going for the film itself, essentially devaluing films and blockbusters began to be created to be place in multiplexes and multiplexes created to house blockbusters.
