Group Seminar: KiDULTHOOD

Group Seminar:
KiDULTHOOD
Kwasi, Jonathan, Michael, Nelson, Abena
Introduction
• To serve as research, it was important that we as a group analyse
and investigate an existing film campaign to fully understand the
dynamics of marketing a film from a specific genre
• For this presentation, we will be taking an in-depth look at the
poster, trailer and also the soundtrack of urban drama
‘KiDULTHOOD’ specifically exploring:
– Style and form
– Technical Aspects (mise en scene, sound, cinematography/ photography
and editing)
– Genre
– Representation and ideology
– Narrative
– and institutional context
KiDULTHOOD – An Overview
• KiDULTHOOD is a 2006 British drama film
• It was written by Noel Clarke (who also stars as the film’s
antagonist Sam) and was directed as well as produced by
Bangladeshi film and television director Mehnaj Huda (who
also collaborated with Clarke on West 10 LDN and also directed
1999’s Jump Boy).
• The urban drama follows the lives of several teenagers growing
up in inner west London and deals with themes such as
friendship, responsibility, and the temptation of living in the
inner city.
Poster Analysis
Within the poster of Kidulthood there are a few
elements which suggest to the audience that this
film is an urban drama.
• The gritty dark/black background along with
the sky suggest something bad might happen
as the colour black is mostly associated with
bad things.
• The clothing of the characters suggest to the
audience the age group of the characters and maybe
which class system they would fit in, which links in
very well with urban drama’s as they are often in a
more deprived part of the a town.
• The way the characters have been positioned is very
important as there are only two characters standing,
this suggests that may be more important or different
then the other character
• Baseball Bat giving connotations both of sports and violence, however if the
mise-en-scene of the character is looked at in greater detail it is visible to the
audience that the character is more likely to use it for violence due to the way
he is standing with the bat instead of play sport.
• He is also the only one with his hood up, which reinforces the negative
stereotypes of black males with hoods up.
• The line above the title ‘Before adulthood comes...’ this line alone
helps the audience to be able to make a. smart guess as to what age
group the characters might be playing
• The work KID in Kidulthood tell us they are still growing and
learning new things.
Trailer Analysis
FORM & STYLE
•A two minute trailer that initially attempts to attract the audience
by employing an extremely intense atmosphere, the narrative is
linear
TECHNICAL ASPECTS
•Mise en scene: elements of urban city life (cars, corner shops, guns,
raving, high rise buildings and morose clothing in addition to
extremely low lighting to contribute to that eerie/ cold feeling)
•Sound: Use of aggressive rap music (appeals to the target audience
but also amplifies the grittiness of the trailer)
•Cinematography: Intense scenes utilise multi-angle two/ three
shots at mid-close range, high rise buildings are filmed at low angles
depicting them as overbearing (significantly, this is also done in the
house scene where the three main characters ‘stamp
Kidulthood (2006) – 2 minute trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdoKD4gTQ2c
Trailer Analysis Contd.
TECHNICAL ASPECTS contd.
out’ the antagonist)
• Editing: Initial transitions compose of freeze frames and then
subtle dissolves creating a smooth yet very surreal effect
(magnifies the eerie atmosphere), towards the climax, scenes
become more electrified and quick cuts are employed to
sustain intensity
GENRE REPRESENTATION & IDEOLOGY
• We get a glimpse of the negatives of growing up as an
impressionable adolescence in an urban jungle, where we can
be easily influenced by our surroundings
INSTITUITIONAL CONTEXTS
• Would be used in cinemas at the beginning of a screening,
shown on TV (after 9 because of how explicit it is), shown
online etc.
•
t
KiDULTHOOD Original Soundtrack
• One of the more overlooked elements that contribute to
the atmosphere of the film is the score.
• Released on 27th February 2006 (earlier than the actual
film, creating hype), it consisted of grime, garage and R&B
performed by a range of British underground/ relatively
unknown artists, the soundtrack sort to parallel the
‘unrelenting rawness’ that was found in the film and
tackled the same modern day concerns
• Akala – Roll Wid Us (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAuMcDDQJAU)
• The soundtrack’s “attitude” led to critical acclaim. Rachel
Owen of subba-cultcha.com sourced the album’s appeal to
the “urban beats and street cred” whilst Matilda EgereCooper (BBC Music) said its “a quality soundtrack,
conveniently doubling as a useful primer to the
contemporary UK Urban scene”.
KiDULTHOOD Original Soundtrack
Institutional Context:
• The lack of commercial appeal led to the score itself being marketed
virally with songs receiving airplay on pirate radio stations and radio
shows like BBC 1Xtra with Logan Sama or Westwood (both shows bear a
similar target audience as the film)
• The original soundtrack was also made available at high street retailers
such as HMV, online retailers such as play.com and amazon and made
available for download through 7digital, iTunes and the like.
Conclusion – How Effective Was The
Marketing?
The Figures:
•
•
Opening Weekend: £100,056 (41 Screens)
Total Gross Revenue: £453,876
The Reality:
•
•
•
The reality is this film was never going to be a huge,
Hollywood box office ‘success’ for many reasons including
the narrow niche that the film aimed for.
The campaign/ film however was a success in the sense that
it has almost garnered a cult following from it’s UK audience
The success in this case should not be measured by how
much money was made, but the further effects for example
the fact that the film was followed by a sequel
(‘AdULTHOOD’) which managed to make £3,347,811!
Figures adapted from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kidulthood
and may not be reflective of actual earnings