Building Successful and Sustainable Film and Television Businesses

Description

This edited collection focuses on the production cultures of successful small and medium-sized (SME) film and television companies in Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands and the UK, based on a three-year research project, ‘Success in the Film and Television Industries’ (SiFTI) funded by the Norwegian Research Council. It explores case studies of multiple businesses that have thrived over a period of at least five years and have made several successful productions: both in terms of popularity and critical acclaim. Chapters investigate their histories and evolution, contextualising these companies and the people who work for them within macro-economic and cultural conditions. This anthology goes further – to compare and contrast these companies cross-nationally, in order to seek common elements that may explain how they have been able to survive and thrive.

Introduction

Eva Bakøy, Roel Puijk and Andrew Spicer

 

The Film and Television Industries in Norway

Jo Sondre Moseng

 

Leadership Practices in the Norwegian Film Industry

Eva Bakøy

 

Co-Produced Television Drama and the Cost of Transnational 'Success': the Making of: "Lilyhammer"

Vilde Schanke Sundet

 

Different Places, Different Stories? The Importance of Place in Regional Film and Television Production

Stine Sand

 

An Introduction to the Danish Film and Television Industries - A Small Country Successfully Producing Drama

Heidi Philipsen and Roel Puijk

 

Zentropa: A Successful Danish Film Company – 'A State of "Emergency" Is a Good Position to Be in'

 

Heidi Philipsen

The Means and Meanings of Being Independent: Competing Truths in the Television Company STV

Søren Birkvad

 

Embracing the International Market: The Dutch Film and Television Production Landscape in Transition

Eggo Müller and Daisy van de Zande

 

Innovation in the Independent Dutch Film Production Companies Column Film and Rinkel Film 

Willemein Sanders and Roel Puijk

 

The Professional is Personal: A Comparison Between the Dutch Television Production Companies is JVtv and BlazHoffski

Willemien Sanders and Roel Puijk

 

The Finance and Production of Independent Film and Television in the United Kingdom: A Critical Introduction

Steve Presence

 

Staying Alive as an Indie: How Three UK Companies Build and Sustain Their Businesses

Audun Engelstad

 

'It's Our Property and Our Passion': Managing Creativity in a Successful Company – Aardman Animations

Andrew Spicer

 

Conclusion

Eva Bakøy, Roel Puijk and Andrew Spicer

Sujets

• Cinéma
• Cinéma
• Cinéma
• Cinema
• Media
• Télévision
• Film
• ART
• Radio
• Media studies
• Television
• Video
• Película fotográfica
• Business Aspects

Informations

• Publié par: Intellect Books
• Date de parution: 01 octobre 2017
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781783208227
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

First published in the UK in 2017 by
Intellect, The Mill, Parnall Road, Fishponds, Bristol, BS16 3JG, UK
First published in the USA in 2017 by
Intellect, The University of Chicago Press, 1427 E. 60th Street,
Chicago, IL 60637, USA
Copyright © 2017 Intellect Ltd.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Copy-editor: MPS Technologies
Cover designer: Aleksandra Szumlas
Cover images: Zentropa interior. Photo Sophie Bech; Paradox interior. Photo Eva Bakøy; Aardman exterior. Photo Simon Dowling; JVtv exterior. Photo Roel Puijk.
Production manager: Amy Rollason
Typesetting: Contentra Technologies
Print ISBN: 978-1-78320-820-3
ePDF ISBN: 978-1-78320-821-0
ePub ISBN: 978-1-78320-822-7
Printed and bound by Short Run Press
This is a peer-reviewed publication.
Contents
Acknowledgements
Chapter 1: Introduction
Eva Bakøy, Roel Puijk and Andrew Spicer
Chapter 2: The Film and Television Industries in Norway
Jo Sondre Moseng
Chapter 3: Leadership Practices in the Norwegian Film Industry
Eva Bakøy
Chapter 4: Co-Produced Television Drama and the Cost of Transnational ‘Success’: The Making of Lilyhammer
Vilde Schanke Sundet
Chapter 5: Different Places, Different Stories? The Importance of Place in Regional Film and Television Production
Stine Sand
Chapter 6: An Introduction to the Danish Film and Television Industries – A Small Country Successfully Producing Drama
Heidi Philipsen and Roel Puijk
Chapter 7: Zentropa: A Successful Danish Film Company – ‘A State of “Emergency” Is a Good Position to Be in’
Heidi Philipsen
Chapter 8: The Means and Meanings of Being Independent: Competing Truths in the Television Company STV
Søren Birkvad
Chapter 9: Embracing the International Market: The Dutch Film and Television Production Landscape in Transition
Eggo Müller and Daisy van de Zande
Chapter 10: Innovation in the Independent Dutch Film Production Companies Column Film and Rinkel Film
Willemien Sanders and Roel Puijk
Chapter 11: The Professional Is Personal: A Comparison Between the Dutch Television Production Companies JVtv and BlazHoffski
Willemien Sanders and Roel Puijk
Chapter 12: The Finance and Production of Independent Film and Television in the United Kingdom: A Critical Introduction
Steve Presence
Chapter 13: Staying Alive as an Indie: How Three UK Companies Build and Sustain Their Businesses
Audun Engelstad
Chapter 14: ‘It’s Our Property and Our Passion’: Managing Creativity in a Successful Company – Aardman Animations
Andrew Spicer
Chapter 15: Conclusion
Eva Bakøy, Roel Puijk and Andrew Spicer
Notes on Contributors
Index
Acknowledgements
This book and the study that underlies it would not have been possible without the support and contributions of several institutions and individuals. First of all, the editors of this book would like to express our gratitude to the film and television companies that have been the centre of this study for their willingness to open their doors and share their professional lives. We would also like to thank the Norwegian Research Council for the generous funding provided to the Success in the Film and Television Industries (SiFTI) project. Special thanks go to the chapter authors whose insights, enthusiasm and perseverance have made assembling this collection a valuable and positive learning experience. Thanks must also go to Chris Bilton, Arne Krumsvik, Finn Gjerdum and Richard Paterson for sharing their knowledge about the film and television industries during our project seminars. We also owe a considerable debt to Chris Mathieu, Philip Drake, Maria Norbäck and Lothar Mikos for their willingness to spend their valuable time to review the draft versions of this book. Finally, we wish to thank Joyce Woolridge and Kristin Sandvik for their help in the final stages of preparing the manuscript.
Chapter 1
Introduction
Eva Bakøy, Roel Puijk and Andrew Spicer
T his collection is based on a three-year research project, Success in the Film and Television Industries (SiFTI) funded by the Norwegian Research Council. The project had two basic purposes: 1) To illuminate the operations of sustainable and successful film and television companies in Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom; investigating their histories and evolution, the particular challenges they face and how they deal with them, the people who work for them and the men and women who run them; 2) To compare and contrast these companies in order to find out if there were common elements in how they conduct their business that might explain why they had been able to survive and also thrive. In contradistinction to the conventional focus on media conglomerates (Chan 2005; Fitzgerald 2012; Kunz 2007), or large-scale institutions such as Hollywood studios (Bordwell et al. 1985; Caldwell 2008; Dangcil 2007) or public service broadcasters such as the BBC (Bloomfield 2008; Born 2004; Davies 2001; Küng-Shankleman 2000), the focus of this collection is on micro-, small-and medium-sized companies (MSMEs), which the European Commission calls the ‘engine of the European economy’ (2015: 3). 1 The collection’s focus on European companies is also a departure from the main trajectory of media industry studies, which have usually analysed American businesses (e.g. Gitlin 1983). It is therefore a contribution to the increasing academic attention that is now being given to European media production (see for instance, Bondebjerg et al. 2015; Meir 2016; Szczepanik and Vonderau 2013). 2 However, even within studies of European media, this volume’s comparative, cross-national approach makes it distinct from the bulk of cultural/creative industries studies.
MSMEs are not only economically important, but also culturally significant. They are thought by cultural policy advisers to counteract media imperialism by providing a crucial contribution to democracy through enabling a multitude of different voices to be heard (see Curran 2011; Paterson et al. 2015). Often regarded by policymakers as more flexible, creative and innovative than their larger counterparts, MSMEs are perceived as a viable economic model in the shift from the Fordist period of mass production to a post-Fordist one in which niche markets are targeted and profits can accumulate through the ‘long tail’ (Anderson 2009). When MSMEs are concentrated in one locality – as part of ‘creative clusters’ or ‘cultural hubs’ – they have been seen as important to regional and urban development as potential replacements for dying industries (e.g. Florida 2004). 3 Although our research is connected to these broader issues, it recognizes that the audio-visual industries are a special case and therefore that investigation and analysis should focus on the particularities of film and television production. And, as the authors in this collection contend, despite the arguments about cultural ‘convergence’ and a ‘networking’ culture in which companies are increasingly interdependent, there remain clear differences between these two industries. Therefore, analysis should focus on the specific conditions of production that obtains within each, as well as their common challenges and interrelations.
The companies discussed in this book were selected on the basis of two criteria for success: they have survived for over five years, and they have produced film or television programmes that have received critical acclaim and/or been popular with audiences. This admittedly wide and basic definition of success includes two very common business criteria: profitability and the ability to remain economically viable over time. However, some of the companies have experienced periods of considerable financial uncertainty because of the project-based character of film and television production. The definition also implies customer satisfaction and cultural capital in the form of peer recognition and awards.
Success is a complex concept and other less tangible but equally significant measures come into play in media management. These can include keeping your employees happy and content, making a meaningful contribution to the community, campaigning for social or environmental issues and developing audio-visual media as artistic expressions. There are also what can be termed subjective or personal success criteria, which include making a living from doing something one loves, using one’s talents, achieving personal goals, meeting interesting people or simply being happy and content in one’s work. A recent study of over 150 Dutch SME owners showed that most placed personal satisfaction and good relationships above commercial criteria. It showed that success criteria varied and were derived from the values owners held, which often evolved over time and differed according to the age and size of the firm (Gorgievski et al. 2011).
Our focus on ‘success’ might be considered unduly celebratory and that we are ‘[a]cting as temporary partisans of media organizations’ (Hesmondhalgh 2007: 48; Hesmondhalgh 2014). Our sympathetic attitude, while far from uncritical, is partly the result of the collection’s focus on MSMEs. The companies discussed in this volume can be collectively identified as struggling entrepreneurs that contribute to media diversity rather than being dominant or predatory players in the media marketplace; their success contributes to the general cultural health of the media. We will return to a discussion of the diverse meanings of success in our concluding chapter, where the comparative dimension of our analysis is discussed at length. We argue for a family resemblance between these successful companies. They are unique and different in many respects, but at the same time connected by