I, Daniel Blake and the film industry

 Initial discussion - what kind of film is I, Daniel Blake?

• A personal narrative that focuses on a normal, working class older man and his health issues. 
• Low budget. Complete lack of CGI, no known actors
• Genre - drama. Problems, issues, real life scenarios. Lack of action scenes, ‘real life’ narrative
• Target audience - perhaps older audiences? Perhaps people with health issues are struggling with the benefits systems? Carers who may relate to the situation. Or perhaps middle class audiences who may not have lived this life. 
• Setting - north of England - Newcastle. Accents are local, and difficult for non-Geordies to understand. 
• Introspective narrative - looks within, but also is a reflection on society. A deeply political film. 

What makes this an independent film?

• No indication of major studios producing or distributing this film. However, there are a number of funders, distributors and independent producers. By being made by many different companies, making this film is a less risky proposal
• Unknown and lesser known actors. Dave Johns was previously a standup comic. 
• Set in Newcastle in the North of England. Run down and depressing, this film clearly targets a niche audience 
• Complete lack of special effects: not appropriate to an independent film/social realist film
• 15 certificate: no potential of maximising an audience 
• Themes are not appealing to a mainstream audience
• Storyline is difficult to convey in a 2 minute trailer 

What issues are encoded in this trailer?

• Unemployment 
• Struggling single mothers
• The UK healthcare and benefits system 
• Poverty
• Foodbanks
• Coping with loss 

In what ways are working class people (ie Daniel Blake) shown to be heroic in this trailer?

• Stands up for the single mother in the Jobcentre
• Woodcarving and carpentry - still working in spire of everything
• Gesture of hand in the air in front of graffiti - peaceful protest

What are some issues which affect our society today?

• Inflation, and monetary issues. Affordability of basic products. Inflation is caused by a number of different factors, both local and global. 
• Discrimination. Racism, sexism, ableism…
• Homelessness. Caused by cost of living, precarious living situation, poverty, mental health concerns and substance abuse issues
• Terrorism. Causes feelings of unease and anxiety 
• Unemployment/underemployment 
• NHS, overcrowded hospitals, long waiting lists 
• Inequality. Some people have notably more than others 
• Lack of education
• Knife crime. Affects young people disproportionately, and certain areas disproportionately 
• Refugees. People fleeing conflict or poverty in other countries, no9t being accepted fpr a variety of different reasons (ignorance, patriotism, fear…) 
• Social media - body issues, political echo chambers, ruins attention span, cultivates depression
• Depression and anxiety - higher usage of social media, global conflicts, climate
• Complete and utter deluge of issues is an issue in itself 
• Mental health and the inadequacy of society in dealing with it. Depression and anxiety are issues which will always affect people, and there are ways of addressing this. However, we can argue that these ways can be inadequate
• Collapse of the healthcare system. Cost saving measures mean that access to therapy, dentistry, physiotherapy etc are now more difficult for certain people, which leads to inequality 
• Crime - the fear of crime can erode communities, lead to distrust and lead to anxiety and depression. Younger people, especially POC are far more likely to be victims of violent crime, eg hate crime, gang violence, knife crime etc
• Poverty. Cost of living crisis. Inflation outstrips wage increases, and certain [people are disproportionately affected
• Corruption - certain wealthy people are not using their wealth to help people. 
• Class divide. The gap between rich and poor, middle class and working class has become extreme. Social mobility is a myth, it is very hard to move from one social class to another, and for many people, simply living day to day is a struggle 
• War - our leaders have direct impacts on other people's lives. Reinforces ideas of inequalities, and also refugees fleeing war torn countries must be homed and looked after. War can cause huge price inequality
• Climate change - more and more extreme weather events will become the norm for many people, disportionately affecting 3rd world countries, overwhelmingly caused by developed nations 
• Helplessness…

Who produced I Daniel Blake?

• Produced by Sixteen Films, a production company established by Ken Loach and Paul Laverty in 2002 to make the film Sweet Sixteen
• A range of international distributors and funders . British funders include the BFI and the BBC, while there are many French funder, including Cine + (A subsidiary of Canal) and France Television. Ken Loach is particularly popular in France!

Social and political contexts - what does this mean, and how can we apply this to I Daniel Blake?

• In 2016, Teresa May’s conservative party was in power. While the film doesn’t make reference to May, we can argue that the film is an explicit criticism of the conservative party. Making an explicitly political film can reduce a target audience. Not only are those not represented by this film less likely to engage with, the anti-conservative bias makes it less appealing to conservative. But is this film propaganda?

I Daniel Blake - what kind of film is this?

• Drama - based around a heart attack - human drama 
• Documentary style - no unnatural camera positions, naturalistic acting style, ‘realistic’ mode of address, sparing use of score/non-diegetic soundtrack, 
• British setting. Regional, Newcastle accent (Geordie). Lacks mainstream appeal 
• Unclear narrative, although it is simple and straight
• Based around the UK benefits system and the issues which surround this. Potentially will only appeal to UK audiences 
• Extremely mysterious opening: over a minute spent looking at a pitch black screen. Signifies targeting a less mainstream audience 
• Social realist film - a film about issues in modern society 

Conventions of social realist cinema

• Issues that affect those most vulnerable in our society
• Often, but not always set in the north of England
• A depiction of the working class as being heroic 

Examples of previous films by Ken Loach

KES (1969)

• Children represented as vulnerable. The protagonist is a victim of violence, both domestic and institutional. 
• The setting is the North of England. The MES is run down, working class, and everything is filthy
• The protagonist has troubles at home. He is not academic and acts out in lessons, gets in to fights and steals. He has to live in this situation. 
• Unhappy ending. Life isn’t fair. Everything is awful. 

Sweet Sixteen (2002)

• Extremely strong language (over 50 uses of ‘the C word’) limits mainstream appeal
• Mental health 
• Youth violence and gang warfare
• Small town, deprived setting 
• Extremely strong accents 
• Deals with dealing and addition to heroin 
• Heroic main character, buying a caravan for his addict mother 
• Bleak and depressing ending

Moi, Daniel Blake - marketing a British social realist film in France 

• The font of the title is serif and handwritten. It has a more graceful tone of wording, that provides a softer mode of address for the target audience. It also looks very stereotypically French. However, the British title is crudely tagged on the wall in spray paint like graffiti, emphasising themes of rebellion
• The setting evidenced in the French poster suggests themes of working class identity and even poverty, although nowhere near as extreme as the actual film. In contrast, the British poster eschews setting completely to focus on themes of rebellion against the government. By avoiding overtly political references, French audiences are spared not understanding certain cultural aspects 
• The French poster focuses on themes of family, and avoids the complex relationship between Blake and his friend