Compare and Contrast 24 Hour Party People's production to that of a Hollywood film

24 Hour Party People (Dr Michael Winterbottom, 2002) is a production of Film Four, a British independent company. The film's focus is music in Manchester between 1976 - 1992. During the film we follow the life of Tony Wilson, who interacts with the audience throughout the film.

24 Hour Party People have used one main type of synergy, which is music synergy. This is done by getting artists to create tracks for the movie. This is synergy because it helps to advertise the music soundtracks and also the film itself, because of the big name artists who are involved. In 24 Hour Party People the example of music synergy that we see are music tracks created by "Happy Mondays" and "The Sex Pistols". This is different from a Hollywood film as we would see more examples of product placement, where companies pay the producers of a film to have their product shown. When the product is shown it is then emphasised by the type of shot which is used, which is usually a close-up. An example of this is the "Apple" logo being seen on the majority of laptops and computers used in films. The reason that 24 Hour Party People used music synergy is because most companies would not want to have their products shown in the film due to the themes. The themes of 24 Hour Party People are sex, drugs and rock and roll. The companies who are likely to be involved in synergy would not like involvement in this type of film because they think it would not be successful.

Film Four production company have a very big advantage where cross media convergence is concerned. This is because they have Channel 4 as their parent company, which allows their film to be advertised on Channel 4, Film 4, More4 and E4. A few years after the release of the film it can then be broadcast on each of the channels. Neither process will cost the production company because all of the channels are owned by Channel 4. Hollywood companies also do this with their films. An example of this would be Vivendi Universal, which is the parent company of Universal Studios. It also owns many other companies, including record labels like BMG and Universal Music Group. Any subsidiaries of Vivendi Universal have easy access to many different formats of media to advertise and market their films with very little or no cost. This is more advantageous for Hollywood films rather than independent films because they are more well known, so advertising and reviews will be more beneficial.

New Media Technology used in 24 Hour Party People is editing, cinematography and sound. This is because they have a considerably low budget, and also they wanted to create a high level verisimilitude. The New Media Technology allowed the soundtracks of 24 Hour Party People to be added with great ease. Also there is a considerable amount of movement with the camera during the film which would not be possible with the cameras used around 30 years ago. Also it is very easy to make mistakes with a film like 24 Hour Party People so new advances in editing software is essential. Using a machine like a Moviola, editing for a film like 24 Hour Party People would take a very long time. Whereas Hollywood films use New Media Technology differently. They use a wide variety of special effects etc. This is because of the types of movies they make, and the large budgets they have. For example "2012" was made with a budget of around $260 million, which allows them to use many effects and perfect the film as much as possible. Editing for a Hollywood film is also important, because they can sometimes film the same scene many times and mix in parts of the scenes with each other, so new advances in editing software are also essential for Hollywood films.

New Media Technology has effected both independent and Hollywood production companies. New Media Technology has allowed both types of production companies to film and edit using cheaper methods. Although some editing and special effects software can be difficult to use, they are easier to use than a Moviola. Hollywood films receive very big budgets for their films, so they use New Media Technology as much as possible, so that audiences will stay interested in the film. New Media Technology has effected audiences, by allowing almost anyone to create their own films. This can help independent production companies because they take on actors who are not well known, so New Media Technology can help unknown actors to be realised by independent companies such as Film Four.