Short Film - "New Boy"

Link to watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FdeioVndUhs

This short film was written and produced by Steph Green and tells the story of a young African boys conversion to an Irish school after his father was shot and killed right in front of the boys eyes. 


The young boy, who's name is Joseph is introduced to the new class and immediately is a target of school yard bullying. The short film cuts between scenes of the present tense in which Joseph is at his new school and scenes of the past tense where Joseph is being taught amongst other boys similar to himself. The resources in the African school are kept scare compared to the vast amounts of books and stationary presented in the Irish school. Certain aspects of what happens to Joseph in his present life cause flashbacks of similar events in his previous life through a retrospective view. The two different scenes are represented through the obvious change in scenery as well as the use of different lighting. The Irish school is lit very clearly and brightly, emphasising the colours and the use of electrical lighting in the school unlike the African school which owns a warm type feel to the lighting which has been used to emphasise that the school uses only natural lighting, an effect of the poverty apparent in Africa. Joseph quickly finds himself at the full attention of his new teacher when a fellow classmate teases him, causing him to react somewhat violently. From this we can assume that Joseph has had to learn to protect himself from others, of which we find the reason for later in the short film. 


One of the most cinematic and intellectual scenes in the short film is when the topic of his father (also his teacher) is being approached. Their relationship is presented as a loving and friendly bond between father and son. Men, presumably from the army-type force suddenly enter into the classroom, taking no notice of Joseph. They forcefully order his father out into the open and Joseph worriedly follows. The camera closes in on his face and a voice-over sounds "You're dead" (words previously spoken by the boy Joseph had acted out on in his class) before sounds of gunshots are heard and Joseph closes his eyes. The scene then quickly integrates with his present life at his school where Joseph is hit with a milk carton by the school bullies. The gunshots can them be mistaken for the sound of the milk carton hitting the wall, which softens the impact of the gunshots but also makes the situation more dramatic as we do not see his father being shot. 


The end of the short film see's a happy ending for Joseph as he waits in the corridor with the other boys involved in his attack. The film ends on light-hearted humour as the boys are seen laughing and joking with each other at the expense of the teacher. The camera remains in the corridor outside the classroom to which the teacher's voice echoes through the halls shouting "now..."




Details   (taken from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1095191/)


Country: Ireland
Language: English (original)


Release Dates:
Ireland               14 July 2007                   (Galway Film Fleadh)
Albania              29 November 2007            (Tirana International Film Festival)
UK                     1 December 2007             (Foyle Film Festival)
Germany            12 February 2008              (Berlin International Film Festival)
USA                      April 2008                     (Tribeca Film Festival)
UK                    19 April 2008                    (Belfast Film Festival)
Japan                24 June 2008                   (Refugee Film Festival)
Denmark            19 September 2008          (Copenhagen International Film Festival)
Mexico              27 February 2009


Budget: 74,000 Euros (estimated)

Deliver Us From Evil - Research into...

Deliver Us From Evil

Deliver Us From Evil is a documentary film that was released in 2006 and was dirceted by Amy J. Berg. It tells the true story of Oliver O'Grady, a Catholic priest that was found to have sexually abused  approximately 25 children between the 1970s and 90s. The film features trial documents, videotapes and interviews with a number of people all relating to the incident. The film documents the years that O'Grady spent as a priest in Northern California. When O'Grady was convicted of child molestation, he was sentenced to seven years in prison.Once released, he was deported back to Ireland where Berg interviewed him on his indescretions. Lawyers suggest that the Church was fully aware of O'Grady's actions, yet they took careful steps in order to conceal it from the media and from the families of those involved. O'Grady suggests that the Church was far more concerned with the image of their religious institution to care about those who he had hurt and were therefore willing to shield O'Grady's perpetrations in order to maintain their image. The documentary comes as an informant of an incident that has already been wide-spread among the public. This means that the documentary will be addressing public interest as people are already fully aware of what has happened.

This is important to my documentary as it shall need to be released when the topic of interest is at its peak and will therefore recieve higher viewing numbers.

Analysis of the opening of Deliver Us From Evil

The documentary opens on a black screen where a quote from Jesus Christ then fades onto the screen reading "If you bring forth what is within you, what you bring forth will save you. If you do not bring forth what is within you, what you do not bring forth will destroy you." This quote emphasises the process of confessing your sins to make you a better person, which is completely contradictory of what the documentary is about. Daunting music plays in the background to build an eerie atmosphere and create suspense amongst the audience. The quote then fades out to black and the screen opens on an panning image of a church, reinforcing the religious nature of the documentary that the title has already intended. A voiceover of O'Grady then begins to play where he begins to confess to his sins. We do not see the face of O'Grady throughout the whole of this extract which suggests a privacy to his confession and an almost criminal perspective of him as a person. The confession makes O'Grady appear regreattable for his actions, although the audience will not feel sympathy for him. The camera then scales up the crucifix and rests on the head of Jesus Christ, where the title of the documentary fades in.

The documentary then opens on an interview of Bob and Maria Jyono whose daughter, Ann was sexually abused by O'Grady. They tell of how they accepted O'Grady so easily into their lives and their home, completely unaware of the abuse that he was inflicting on their child. While the couple talk of their family life, pictures and collages pan across the screen so the audience gain a full visual insight into their lives before Oliver came along. It also helps to make the audience feel as though they are part of this family and that they are being introduced to every little aspect of this families life. It helps each member of the audience to relate to the Jyono's and therefore makes the rest of the documentary seem more shocking. Maria expresses her devotion to her Catholic religion and how this then impacted on Ann's life and led her to meet the priest.

The camera once again return to images of an empty church, which haunting music that would be seen fit in a church setting plays over the top. Here, we are then introduced to "Father Ollie". We still do not gain an insight into what O'Grady looks like, his appearance is kept very much to a minimum. All we have gained about him so far from the documentary is the sound of his voice in the voiceover which continues to narrate throughout the whole documentary. Other priests described O'Grady as a 'people person' which he claims, helped him to decide to become a priest. The camera fades into a close up of O'Grady's eyes as he continues to tell his story, allowing the audience to become a little more intimate with him as a person. He begins to describe his passion for children as he see's a little of himself in them.

We then return back to the Jyono's who continue to tell their story of how they met O'Grady.

The beginning of the documentary does not give much away as to Oliver O'Grady as a person. If a member of the audience was unaware as to who he was or what he has done, they would be none the wiser as to what the documentary was about. Drip feeding the audience information is a clever way of keeping them involved and interested in the programme, although maybe the opening to this documentary is a little slow paced.

The way that Berg hides the identity of O'Grady for such a long period of time is effective in suspense building. People want to come face-to-face with the man himself but Berg attempts to drag this out for as long as possible. This could be effective in my documentary when talking to victims of alcohol abuse that do not wish to be identified. This would protect them from being recognised by the audience but would also want to make them watch on and see what they have to say.

Release Dates:

USA:  

24th June 2006   (Los Angeles Film Festival)

Australia:  

26th June 2006 (Melbourn International Film Festival)

Canada: 

7th September 2006  (Toronto International Film Festival)

USA:

5th October 2006    (HATCHfest Film Festival)

USA: 

13th October 2006   (limited)

USA: 

9th November 2006  (High Falls Film Festival)

Germany: 

8th February 2007  (European Film Market)

Netherlands: 

22nd February 2007

Ireland: 

30th March 2007

Australia:  

17th May 2007

France:  

20th May 2007  (Cannes Film Festival)

UK: 

10th July 2007  (Cambridge Film Festival)

New Zealand: 

19th July 2007  (New Zealand International Film Festival)

Iceland: 

15th August 2007  (Green Light Film Festival)

France: 

2nd April 2008

Spain: 

25th July 2008

Sweden: 

9th March 2009  (TV premiere)

Japan:  

21st February 2010   (TV premiere)

 

Brief

Initially, I was planning on doing an extract for a documentary on the effects of underage drinking. I completed a wide range of research into the subject of documentaries. However, due to the fact that I arrived late at the college and started well into the course when others had already begun, I started to struggle with the amount of work that needed to be done under a time pressure. I therefore decided to team up with another colleague in my class in order to lift some of the pressure off, with the appoval of my teacher.

So, together my partner and I are working on making a short film based on the subject of teen abuduction. Alongside the production, a poster for the film and a magazine film review featuring our short film will also be produced as articles to support the piece.

Script for short film

Script: The Bridge

"Tears of Blood"




SCENE 1.EXT. LOCATION: WORK - EVENING




Louise slowly walks out of work, looking at all the cars with her mobile clenched in her hand. She looks at her phone and then calls her Mum.

LOUISE

Hi, are you still picking me up; I've finished work?

LOUISE'S MUM

Sorry, darling I have so much to do, I will not have time to get you; is it okay for you to walk home?

LOUISE

(Sighs)

Yeah, that's fine. See you later!

LOUISE'S MUM

Okay. See you when you get home! Bye, love.

Louise cuts off the phone and carries on walking. She begins to get nervous and looks over her shoulder to make sure that no one is following her.

Louise tries to call her friend but they don't pick up.

LOUISE

(Mumbles)

Fuck sake.

EXT. LOCATION: ALLEYWAY - NIGHT

Louise carried on walking and gets to an alleyway. She hesitates but then begins to walk down the alleyway briskly.



EXT. LOCATION: MAIN ROAD - NIGHT

Louise lets out a big breath as soon as she reaches the main road. She walks on the path and begins to slow her pace.

EXT. LOCATION: THE BRIDGE - NIGHT

Louise then comes off the main road and starts to feel panicky again. She starts to hear noises and begins looking around frantically. She unlocks her phone and tries to call her Mum, but there is no answer. She finds herself at the foot of the bridge. She walks hurriedly under the bridge and begins to hear footsteps. Before she has the chance to turn around, a man disguised in black grabs her. (You only ever see the back of him)

LOUISE

(SCREAMS)

SCENE 2.INT. LOCATION: CAR - NIGHT

The camera shows a mans hand clenched round the steering wheel, but never shows his face. The camera then pans around the whole of the car (360 view). There is no sign of Louise. The camera then focuses on the boot of the car and banging can be heard coming from inside.

The camera then cuts to the inside of the car boot where you then see Louise banging on the door, trying to figure out a way out.

LOUISE

(CRYING)

Let me out!

Please, just let me out!

Louise frantically searches for her mobile but can't find it. She begins to cry in hysterics.

LOUISE

(SHOUTS)

You took my mobile!

You arsehole!

Louise looks regretful of what she has just said and begins to cry again.

LOUISE

(CRYING)

Ignore what I just said; I didn't mean it!

Can you just let me go?

I won't tell anyone, I promise!

The camera then cuts back to the man inside the car. He turns on the radio and turns it up too loud. He begins tapping on the steering wheel to the beat of the song.

SCENE 3.INT. LOCATION: THE GARAGE - NIGHT

The man gets out of the car and walks to the boot.



MAN

Don't do anything you'll regret!

He slowly lifts the door of the boot, waiting for Louise to react. The boot is finally open. Louise is just lying there with her eyes closed.

MAN

Get out.

Louise continues to lay there, not moving. The man looks at her and she opens her eyes. He goes to pick her up and lift her out of the boot and she kicks him in the stomach in an attempt to escape. He shoves her and she bangs her head on the boot of the car.

MAN

(SHOUTS)

Didn't I tell you not to do something you'll regret?!

The man forces her out of the car and pulls her towards a dark garage. She begins to scream and in order to muffle her cried for help, he covers her mouth with his hand. He opens up the garage and pushes her onto the concrete floor. She starts to cry.

LOUISE

(CRYING)

Please, just let me go!

The man ignores her and kneels down on the floor next to her. He begins to pull her trousers down. Louise tries to stop him by pushing him away. He slaps her round the face and pushes her down to the floor again. He finally gets her trousers and underwear off and persists to rape her. She screams in pain and he punches her in the face. She starts to bleed.

EXT. LOCATION: OUTSIDE THE GARAGE - NIGHT

A girl passes by outside the garage and hears screaming. She looks around worriedly and gets her mobile out. She dials '999'.

CHARLOTTE

(FRANTICALLY)

Hello, Police? I hear screaming.

SCENE 4.INT. LOCATION: POLICE STATION - NEXT DAY

Louise sits in the reception of the police station, staring at the door. Her eyes are pinned wide open, still in shock of what has just happened to her. She starts crying as she gets flashbacks of the events of the previous night. Tears begin to roll down her face and her breathing becomes heavy. The police officer touches her hand. She looks up and begins to cry even harder. She tries to talk but she is shaking so much that nothing comes out.

POLICE INTERVIEWER

(CALMLY)

Are you okay? Would you like a glass of water?

LOUISE

(CRYING AND SHAKING)

Yes please!

The police interviewer reaches for a radio and phones in for another officer to bring a glass of water to the interview room. 

POLICE INTERVIEWER

Just take your time to describe the man to me. There's no need to be afraid; we're hear to help.

There is a knock at the door and a police officer comes in carrying a glass of water. Louise looks up slowly and her eyes and body become still and lifeless. The crying and shaking has seized; she was focused and still like a cat creeping on its prey. Louise opens her mouth slowly. The other police officer looks at her in amazement and confusion, wondering what is wrong.

The police officer with the water places the cup on the table, a look of sheer fright in his face.

Louise crunches the water cup in her hand, water spills over the top. She does not take her eyes off the other police officer.



POLICE INTERVIEWER

(CONFUSED)

Louise, what's wrong?

LOUISE

(GASPS)

(FRANTICALLY)

Yo.. Yo... It's you! It was him!

It's him! Get him away! Get him away from me!



America the Beautiful - Research into...

The title:

Coloured using the national colours of the American flag. The “I” in “America has been made into a lipstick for humour but also to emphasise the nature of the documentary. Making the Statue of Liberty hold a lipstick apart from the torch makes a mockery out of American culture and how it has become so obsessed with looking ‘perfect’.  ‘America the Beautiful’ is the name of a well known patriotic song. Naming the documentary this is both ironic and humorous as again, it is making a mockery of American tradition and culture.

The image:

The image has been edited for the effect of the documentary. The fact that such an influential and respectable landmark has been drawn all over and changed to what is seen as ‘perfection’ both emphasises the light-hearted feel to the documentary, but also highlights the seriousness of it. The statue has been changed to fit the idea of the American man’s perfect woman. Some Americans may find this image offensive, but the producers of the film poster have cleverly used the image to represent the narrow-minded, productised characters of the American population. The annotations are written using a font that looks like someone’s handwriting to represent that it is so easy for anyone to highlight someone’s imperfections and how superficial people are becoming.

The slogan:

The slogan is a rhetorical device which intends to address the audience and draw them in. Using a question causes the reader to want to find out what the advertisement is about, therefore encouraging them to watch the documentary. ‘Obsessed’ has been highlighted and brought above the other words to emphasise it and also make a suggestion as to what the product being advertised is about. The colour is identical to that of the colour of the lipstick that the Statue of Liberty if holding to intensify the plasticised personality of Americans and also of the product.

Super Size Me - Research into...

Super Size Me

Super Size Me is a documentary film that was released in 2004 to highlight the issues of over-eating of fast foods (fatty foods) in America. The documentary follows Morgan Spurlock as he attempts to eat nothing but McDonald’s food for 30 days. The documentary explores into the fast food industry’s influence on poor nutrition for it’s own benefit and how this mass intake of unhealthy food has an effect on people’s health both physically and emotionally. Spurlock’s inspiration for the documentary was the fast increase in obesity in America.

 

Analysis of the opening of Super Size Me

Even from the beginning of the documentary, we are introduced to what the topic of the programme is. We are met with a track shot of a group of children of all different sizes (some displaying extreme obesity) singing a song based upon fast food. The connotations that we can gather from this snippet it that eating food is fun and enjoyable and that, even from a young age, children are introduced to the fast food industry which could potentially kill them. The screen fades to black, for which then a quotation from McDonald’s founder, Ray Kroc claiming “look after the customer and the business takes care of itself” which is completely ironic as fast food companies do not take care of their customers, yet the businesses are booming. The black screen then fades out into an image of the American flag to show the culture of the documentary, also ironic as American’s are well-known for being a stereotypically ‘fat nation’. A voiceover (Spurlock) then begins to speak, glorifying the ‘big’ nature of the USA with “the biggest cars, the biggest houses, the biggest companies, the biggest food and finally, the biggest people!” This creates a shock factor as all the other items mentioned are something to be proud of, whereas obesity is not. The voiceover begins to supply the audience with hard-hitting statistics that take the light-hearted nature of the documentary to a realistic, shocking level. The documentary presents both audio and visual information that coincide with each other to strengthen the message of the documentary. Spurlock then gives a personal account of his experience with food growing up, which adds to the realistic nature of the documentary. The reason for choosing McDonald’s as the primary target for this documentary is that it accounts for 43% of the fast food market.

The documentary is of a light-hearted and slightly humorous nature in order to attract a wider audience, especially the younger generation of whom can prevent this trend from furthering. The first few minutes of the documentary are focused on giving all the facts about obesity and setting the foundation for the narrative of the storyline to evolve. We are met with Spurlock about 4 minutes into the documentary where he talks directly to the audience and explains his mission.

How is this method/structure effective?

Presenting the audience with the harsh reality of what the fast food industry is doing to people not only draws them in and encourages them to watch the programme, but also sets a ‘no mercy’ message to the documentary. It almost suggests that there is no escape from the truth of fast food, just as there is no escape from the harmful effects that it can manifest. This documentary will be especially shocking for parents, specifically those that allow their children to eat large amounts of fast food. Inflicting harsh truths at the beginning of the documentary also prepares the audience for harsher events to come. Just as with a horror film, the narrative always becomes scarier as the story progresses. This is the same in Super Size Me; the situation being presented is bound to get worse, more shocking and grotesque as we progress further. The documentary is presented in a child-like quality to address the primary audience but also to make the information being presented more understandable for all ages. This is an appealing idea to use in my own documentary as it is targeted at a younger audience. My documentary needs to be made fun and entertaining to maintain the attention of the audience. This could be achieved using animations and more visual aspects (different video snippets changed often) as opposed to overloading the audience with too much information (including statistics) that will bore them and lose their interest. 

Budget: $65,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$516,641 (USA) (9 May 2004) (41 Screens)
£264,843 (UK) (12 September 2004) (82 Screens)
AUD 718,003 (Australia) (6 June 2004) (26 Screens)
€76,911 (Italy) (10 April 2005) (60 Screens)
SGD 70,861 (Singapore) (11 July 2004) (5 Screens)
KRW 18,900,000 (South Korea) (12 November 2004) (28 Screens)

Gross:

$516,641 (USA) (9 May 2004) - $11,529,368 (USA) (26 September 2004)

£264,843 (UK) (12 September 2004) - £809,046 (UK) (26 September 2004)

AUD 718,003 (Australia) (6 June 2004) - AUD 1,343,074 (Australia) (13 June 2004)

€76,923 (Italy) (10 April 2005)
€69,517 (Netherlands) (22 August 2004)
€124,500 (Spain) ( 2004)

Release Dates:

For the UK:     10^th July 2004, at Cambridge Film Festival (premiere)

                        19^th August 2004, at the Edinburgh Film Festival

                        10^th December 2004

For France:     13^th May 2004, at the Cannes Film Market

                        30^th June 2004

For USA:          17^th January 2004, at the Sundance Film Festival

                        13^th March 2004, at South by Southwest Film Festival

                        10^th April 2004, at Philadelphia International Film Festival

                        7^th May 2004, limited areas

                        29^th August 2004, video premiere  

Also released in: Canada, Australia, Switzerland, Singapore, New Zealand, Germany, Denmark, Norway, Hungary, Netherlands, Thailand, Iceland, Israel, Philippines, Finland, Sweden, Belgium, Poland, Turkey, Spain, Portugal, Austria, Mexico, South Korea, Czech Republic, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Argentina, Greece, Italy, Estonia

Ratings:

The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) rated the original version of the documentary as PG-13 for language, sex and drug reference, graphical medical procedures.

The educationally enhanced version was rated as PG for thematic elements, a disturbing medical procedure and some language.

Broadcasting

My documentary is eligible to be broadcast on Channel 4 as it is not the purpose of the documentary to gather ratings, it will be broadcast based upon public interest. For example, if the number of news stories/broadcasts are focused on underage drinking and the effects of underage drinking, then the documentary will be of more interest to the public. The recognition of the topic across the media as a whole is important to the intake of the documentary.

Channel 4 broadcasts documentaries such as:

Coppers (2010)
A documentary that attempts to capture the work of the police in the UK. The camera follows them in their day-to-day routines and allows the audience to understand how the police force works.
The Family (2008)
An observational documentary that captures everyday family life of different families in the UK.  
The Secret Millionaire (2006)
A documentary that follows a millionaire as they go undercover into struggling communities and choose individuals to give away tens of thousands of pounds to help them exceed in their current lifestyles.
Seven Days (2010)
Follows and documents the lives of individuals living and working in Notting Hill.
How The Other Half Live (2009)
A documentary featuring two families; one rich and one poor. The programme focuses on the children of the two families. The child from the poor family will send a DVD to the rich family in order for them to see what life is like for them. The rich family will normally then send money to the poor family in order to help them improve their way of life.
3 Minute Wonder (2007)
A short slot in Channel 4 prime-time programming that allows first-time directors to broadcast their 3 minute TV programmes in an attempt to help new talent break out in the very competitive television industry.

Taken from  http://www.barb.co.uk/report/weeklyViewing

Channel : Channel 4/S4C
Weekly views (000's) : 38,924
Reach : 67.9%
Av. Weekly Viewing (time per person) : 01:54
Share : 6.3%

Channel : BBC3
Weekly views (000's) : 16,614
Reach : 29.0%
Av. Weekly Viewing (time per person) : 00:23
Share : 1.3%

Channel : More4
Weekly views (000's) : 11,499
Reach : 20.1%
Av. Weekly Viewing (time per person) : 00:17
Share : 0.9%


Taken from  http://www.barb.co.uk/report/weeklyTopProgrammes?

Channel 4

w/e 29 Aug 2010

		000's
1	BIG BROTHER: THE FINAL (TUE 1959)	4,287
2	ULTIMATE BIG BROTHER (WED 2205)	3,617
3	ULTIMATE BIG BROTHER (THU 2203)	3,513
4	ULTIMATE BIG BROTHER (FRI 2100)	3,309
5	BIG BROTHER (MON 2203)	2,977
6	ULTIMATE BIG BROTHER (FRI 2237)	2,782
7	ULTIMATE BIG BROTHER (SAT 2100)	2,750
8	HURRICANE KATRINA: CAUGHT ON CAMERA (THU 2102)	2,248
9	ULTIMATE BIG BROTHER (SUN 1959)	2,216
10	CUTTING EDGE: MY NEW BRAIN (WED 2102)	2,144

As shown in the table above, during the craze that was Big Brother, the programme received the most viewing hits on Channel 4. Excluding all Big Brother programmes in the chart, the two other most popular programmes on Channel 4 were both documentaries. Channel 4 is reknowned for its broadcasting of documentaries and for this, the programmes get more recognition. It is evident that if the documentary addresses public interest, for example; people were intrigued to know how it would have felt to experience Hurricane Katrina and because it was such a global catastrophe, they tuned in to the documentary 'Hurricane Katrina: Caught On Camera', then the documentary is more likely to recieve higher viewing rates.  




Channel 4


w/e 6 March 2011
                                                        000'S
1        FILM: TAKEN (2008) (SAT 2103)                                                                      3,716
2        EMBARRASSING BODIES (FRI 2100)                                                             3,244
3        ONE BORN EVERY MINUTE (MON 2100)                                                     2,891
4        JAMIE'S DREAM SCHOOL (WED 2101)                                                          2,539
5       COME DINE WITH ME (MON 1659)                                                                 2,529
6       COME DINE WITH ME (FRI 1659)                                                                    2,521
7       COME DINE WITH ME (TUES 1659)                                                                2,501
8       COME DINE WITH ME (THUR 1659)                                                                2,447
9       COME DINE WITH ME (WED 1659)                                                                  2,280
10     HESTON'S MISSION IMPOSSIBLE (TUES 2102)                                         2,224


As shown in the viewing figures above (taken from http://www.barb.co.uk/report/weeklyTopProgrammes?) Come Dine With Me was the most commonly watched programme on Channel 4 during the week stated above. However, what I found most noticeable and in relation to my own media production was that the film Taken was the most watched programme during that week by a clear margin.





Taken (2008)
(Image and information taken from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0936501/)


Taken is a film written by Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen and directed by Pierre Morel which tells the story of a father's struggle to save his estranged daughter after she is kidnapped whilst on holiday and sold into the slave market. The former spy relies on the skills he picked up during his service at the CIA to help uncover the whereabouts of his daughter and track down her kidnapper. 


The popular viewing rates of such a film that tackles issues similar to the ones that I wish to portray in my own short film suggest that it will be a great hit amongst viewers on Channel 4. Although Taken stars many famous actors that may or may not attract certain audiences to watch the film, it is the way that the film approaches the issue of kidnapping in such a realistic and shocking way that truly makes the film a hit. Channel 4 is also renowned for airing short films before the beginning of certain programmes in order to give new-time directors the chance to be recognised amongst the general public. 


Country: France, USA, UK
Language: English, French, Albanian, Arabic
Release Dates: 
France         27 February 2008
South Africa   12 September 2008
UK             26 September 2008
USA            30 January 2009
Egypt          4 March 2009
Greece         18 June 2009
Japan          22 August 2009


Budget: $25,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend

$24,717,037 (USA) (1 February 2009) (3,183 Screens)
£1,165,986 (UK) (28 September 2008) (396 Screens)
PHP 4,522,977 (Philippines) (15 March 2009) (30 Screens)

Gross

$145,000,989           (USA)          (5 July 2009)
$144,989,009           (USA)          (28 June 2009)
$144,977,147           (USA)          (21 June 2009)
$144,924,285           (USA)          (7 June 2009)
$144,783,869           (USA)          (24 May 2009)
$144,540,399           (USA)          (17 May 2009)
$144,197,013           (USA)          (10 May 2009)
$143,623,907           (USA)          (3 May 2009)
$142,607,741           (USA)          (26 April 2009)
$142,088,804           (USA)          (19 April 2009)
$141,107,779           (USA)          (12 April 2009)
$139,416,323           (USA)          (5 April 2009)
$137,068,886           (USA)          (29 March 2009)
$133,096,403           (USA)          (22 March 2009)
$126,752,054           (USA)          (15 March 2009)
$117,933,922           (USA)          (8 March 2009)
$107,796,273           (USA)          (1 March 2009)
$95,034,161            (USA)          (22 February 2009)
$80,496,557            (USA)          (15 February 2009)
$53,610,944            (USA)          (8 February 2009)
$47,487,241            (USA)          (6 February 2009)
$24,717,037            (USA)          (1 February 2009)
£6,277,639             (UK)           (2 November 2008)
£5,525,386             (UK)           (19 October 2008)
£4,527,090             (UK)           (12 October 2008)
£3,104,042             (UK)           (5 October 2008)
£1,165,986             (UK)           (28 September 2008)
PHP 7,110,684      (Philippines)      (22 March 2009)
PHP 4,522,977      (Philippines)      (15 March 2009)