Everything Is Relevant: Contexts Of Film
Context in Films is information from the background of the film which shows us why things in the film happen and why it was made in that specific way.
The 6 types of context are
Technological
Social
Institutional
Cultural
Political
Historical
Technological context is based of when the film was produced and the limitations they have to make it accurate to the time the film is set in based of the technology available. E.g. Films made in 1920 would find it a lot harder to produce a movie set in 2050 then a film made in 2020 set in 2050 due to the fact they wouldn’t have had the same modern technology which they have in 2020.
Social context is how films communicate the truths about society they wish to portray and also the society where they are produced. The film producers will try to replicate there ideas on what society will be like, or was in the time the film is set.
Institutional context is how films reflect the industry which they were produced in, so if a company invested £100m into the production of a film not only would it be better than a film with £10m investments they would also get more of a say on what happens in the Film.
Cultural context is how films communicate the essential modern day values and messages we hold in real life nowadays. These can change depending on where the film is set, therefore if the film is set in Korea, it will have a different message than if it was set in the US.
Political context is how films portray and how they’re impacted by the political society in which they’ve been produced. Therefore the film producers views on the topic/theme of the film will be critical as they will have a level of bias which will either lean against or in favour of the films topic.
Historical context is how films represent and portray the history in the period of time which they are produced in. For example, a film about World War I would show real events that took place during that time period through the film.