I, Daniel Blake: blog tasks

1) What is independent cinema and how is it different to Hollywood blockbusters?

Indie films are usually made on budgets, and filmmakers rely on crowdfunding, grants, or savings to help bring a vision to life. Hollywood blockbusters are made by the big movie studios, and indie films are made outside the studio system by independent production companies.

2) What is I, Daniel Blake about?

This film is about a 59 year old man who suffered a heart attack. He seeks support from the Uki government. He then meets Katie ( a single mother) who is facing housing issues herself.

3) Who directed I, Daniel Blake and why is this important?

Ken Loach who is a director for over 50 years directed this film. It is important because it focuses on political themes and the style is social realism which represents the lives of ordinary working, for example unemployment, poverty and addiction. 

4) How was I, Daniel Blake promoted to an audience? List at least three different methods used by the film's marketing campaign and how they targeted their audience.

- Film was premiered in Newcastle (where it was set) to gain local support.

- Jeremy Corbin attended the premiere which helped gain support from his fans.

- Loach appeared on BBC Question time to talk on issue which spread more awareness about the film and what it was about.

- Projected film name on towers of Parliament which catches peoples attention.

5) What unusual or creative marketing methods were used to get audiences talking about the film?

An unusual and creative marketing method was by them projecting 'I, Daniel Blake' on the houses of parliament. This was a creative marketing method as it would attract many people's eyes and it would influence people to watch it as they will be interested. 

6) What was the estimated production budget for I, Daniel Blake and how much did it make at the box office?

The estimated production budget cost £2 million. 

It made $15.8 million at the box office. 

7) What were some of the companies involved in funding or producing I, Daniel Blake? 

• Sixteen Films.
• Why Not Productions.
• Wild Bunch.
• British Film Institute (BFI) (BFI, support)
• BBC Film. (support)

8) What is the name of the film regulator in the UK and what was the age rating for I, Daniel Blake?

The name of the film regulator is BBFC and the age rating is 15.

9) What aspects of the film contributed to the film's age rating?

The age rating was 15 because there was bad language used and sensitive topics were being spoken about like drug addictions and poverty.

10) Finally, considering everything you have learned about I, Daniel Blake, do you think the film was a success? Explain your answer in a well developed paragraph. Try and compare it to Black Widow if you can.

In my opinion, I think the film was a success because they made a profit of around £11 million, was exhibited in 24 countries and was awarded winner. However, black widow was a failure as they actually lost some of their money as the film wasn't successful as they thought it would be. This was mainly because of the covid 19 pandemic that caused a lockdown in 2020. This meant that they couldn't release their film in 2020 like they planned and had to extend it to the following year. Black widow was released in 2021 but many people weren't going to the cinema as they were afraid of the virus and therefore this film became a failure.