Blinded by the light

• Blinded by the light is a 'feel good' British movie about an Asian boy growing up in britain in the 1980s featuring the music of American rock artist Bruce Springsteen. It had a low/medium sized budget which is very small compared to the average marvel superhero blockbuster that costs hundreds of millions.
• It was directed by an award winning Asian female film maker called Gurinder Chadha who also made the highly successful Bend It like Beckham, was based on a book called greetings from bury park
• 'what's being sold is a story about the child of Pakistani descendants living in Great Britain who is inspired by a white American rock star, all told in a movie directed by a british indian woman'
• the film also added attraction to Springsteen and American fans of some new previously unreleased Springsteen tracks exclusively on the soundtrack to the film. The film makers made use of free publicity available for films that are favourably received at film festivals in finding distribution deals for the film.
• Maximising profit- this is what media theorist Hesmondhalgh would call an obvious attempt at minimising risk in order to maximise profit, - eg springsteen tracks inclusion
• This film was shown at the Sundance film festival, low budget indie films do this for a small fee or for free, the film then has the opportunity to be seen by audiences and critics which could generate good reviews and win good awards, this can help films reach big companies such as Warner.
• FREE PUBLICITY- the film makers made use of the free publicity available for films that are favourably received at film festivals in finding distribution deals for the film. The word of mouth from festival screenings can also be spread by audiences across social media
• used advertising techniques such as - posters at (bus stops/train stations/billboards)
• Director name may have helped the distribution, 'The acclaimed director of 'Bend it like beckham',
• the film used free advertising on social media
• was released at the same time as 'Yesterday' which had a much larger budget
• Horizontal integration- disney buy their competitors like lucasfilm and marvel
• Vertical integration- Disney buys diff stages of the production processes by owning shops, DVDs, and TV streaming services.
• Gurinder Chadha and screenwriter Paul Mayeda Berges- aim to 'deliver' 'moving, inspiring and commercial' films to a global audience and 'invite them to see the world from a new perspective'
• used money from the BFI film fund, they use money from the national lottery to support UK companies develop, produce and complete film productions. For instance, if you have wrapped up filming, the BFI can help you launch your project at major film festivals around the world
• In terms of marketing, the quotation “the feel-good film of the year” comes from The New York Post. This signals the quality of the film to audience because it is a trustworthy source.
• based on a book called 'Greetings from Bury Park' by Safraz Manzoor
• independent film however has a 15 million dollar budget
• distributed by new line cinema
• mix of genres
• was shown at the sundance film festival which is known in itself for showcasing politically challenging independent films
• relied heavily on word of mouth
• safraz manzoor is a fan of springsteen as well as gurinder chadha, both left wing film makers sharing the same left wing view as him
• had a limited release
• gurinder chadha's themes focus on the south asian community living in the UK
• regulation- had a 12a categorisation, not pushing boundaries so that the film was widely available to younger audiences so they could observe
• comedy hybrid musical drama
• examples of low budget films- jojo rabbitt, david copperfield,
• about greetings from Bury Park- Safraz Manzoor was two years old when he emigrated from Pakistan to Britain with his brother, mother and sister.
• Safraz spent his teenage years in a constant battle, trying to reconcile being both Muslim and British, trying to fit in at school and home
• Safraz Manzoor- when his friend introduced him to the music of Springsteen that changed his life completely, from the age of 16 on, after the moment he heard the harmonica and opening lines to 'the river', Springsteen became his personal muse, a lens through which he was able to view the rest of his life, both a tribute to Springsteen and a story of personal discovery, Greetings from Bury Park is a warm, irreverent, and exceptionally perceptive memoir about how music transcends religion and race
• the film explores identity and race in Britain through the 1980s through the prisom of Springsteen's music.
• coming of age film- employs motifs from teen film (canteen tribes, a slow-motion corridor sequence, a teacher as a mentor, romance, etc)
• cost 15 million to fund the film- low/medium budget movie
• Bend it films developed Blinded by the light with support from Levantine films and Ingenious media (funding)
• social realist coming of age musical drama- perhaps a hybrid movie
• political stance of the movie, politically left-wing libertarian and anti-racist, However, as discussed, this feels somewhat watered down by the strange hybrid musical/coming of age/social realist genre. Also the 12A certification made it less hard hitting and impactful with regards to its political message
• Springsteens references in the movie are examples of working in synergy and creating intertextuality
• was shown at the sundance film festival- known for championing potentially challenging, independent films about social issues
• set during 1987- Thatcher britain where there was mass unemployment and racism