The Effects of Film Tourism on Host Communities

This week was a continuation of thinking about the film industry, and the effects of filming in small communities.

We started talking about communities, and all the different types of people that can be affected by film tourism. The point was raised that non-residents are still an important part of a community and can be affected by impacts just as much as those who live there. That's a thought I kinda never considered, that the people who regularly visit or stay in a place are going to be affected by change too. That made me think of a place that my family goes every single year over the Christmas holidays... It's the most beautiful caravan park on the beach that is hidden away from everything, so much that only people researching that very area for places to stay would find out about it. Personally, I would hate it if suddenly the area became highlighted by a movie or tv series, and start to change in atmosphere and population.

I think the copyright issue is also an interesting one. It just seems so greedy of film companies to not allow some towns to use the name or develop their own merchandise to roll off the popularity of whatever movie or show was filmed there. As was talked about, I think it's much more important for small towns and communities to be able benefit in some way from their region being used for mass media.... If they want to. I think this is more of an issue than we have talked about. I mean, some places would absolutely love to have more visitors and their town showed on a national or international scale, but what about the places that don't want more people to come visiting? Are they the ones who refuse to allow film companies to shoot in their region? Is that something they can control, or can studios go over a local council to get approval from a higher governance if they really want to? Maybe this is where the social responsibility comes in. I'm guessing film companies are always very careful to make sure nothing bad about them comes out in the media, so maybe they would just accept if a town refuses them permission to film there.

In regards to community support from tv and film companies, for those regions being negatively impacted on by film-induced tourism, I think that the studios need to understand that they are the reason for the increased tourism. They are the influence for people to visit in the first place, and so need to provide ongoing community support, long after they have finished filming and started on the next project.

This seminar definitely highlighted the real importance of tv and film companies promoting corporate social responsibility, and providing support for communities that may not be able to handle film-induced tourism. I think in the long run, if these multi-billion dollar companies are seen to be helping not just themselves, but also those places that have helped them become so successful, then people will have a positive feeling towards them and the film or tv product that they create.

The Film & Tourism Industries

This week's seminar was based on the structures of both the film and tourism industries, as a way of determining how different they are and the many levels to go through when working together.

It was funny how the class initially found it fairly difficult to identify how the tourism industry is structured and where their funding comes from, since we pretty much all just finished a business in tourism degree. I dunno, maybe I didn't pay enough attention in some of our undergrad classes, but I sorta found it hard to think of the different organisations and activities that happen under the Public Sector and the Industry Sector. But as soon as government activities were identified as the public sector, it was easy to think of the types of jobs the government does. Often that annoys me a lot, where I have no idea of the right answer to a question until I get a fairly large prompt or clue. I think it's a weakness in my learning skills, since I can't come up with an answer from my own head without help. It makes me more frustrated with others in the class are really good at that kind of thing.

Anyway, I was pretty interested in learning how the film industry is structured, because it's not something I often think about... It's more about the particlar films that come out of the studios, rather than how they came to be. I also had no idea that the distribution companies have so much power: they pretty much can decide whether a film is going to be a blockbuster, or a flop.
Was also interesting to hear that often distribution companies can dictate to filmmakers the type of content that is to be shown in the movie...

In the case of the Swedish films that were most popular in Germany. We talked about how the distribution companies over there demanded that all films coming out of Sweden have a very Swedish feel to them, with lots of scenic views and particular Swedish landmarks identified, since they were the things that Germans loved most about the films. It did make me wonder if the Swedish people seeing the finished products ever got sick of always seeing the same landmarks or countryside portrayed in the film.

I know that when I see an Australian movie, I tend to get sick of always seeing the same scenes over and over, like the Opera House, or Sydney Harbour Bridge, or Uluru. Instead, I like to see places that I have been before that aren't hugely prominent, but that are still great representations of the country I live in. I think that showing all different locations in films is a much better way of showcasing a country, even if it is in a film that isn't actively trying to promote a destination in any way. It's better than always seeing the same icons or places, and having audiences thinking that they're all a country has to offer.

The idea of film and tourim also helping each other out is another one that makes sense. Tourism bodies or organisations located in destinations are going to know the most picturesque or scenic places to shoot a film, and can probably find a destination within their region to fit most aspects of a film, whether they need beachfront, forest, jungle, alpine areas, urban settings or any number of other options. Therefore, tourism organisations can help find these areas in conjunction with the film location scouts, and might also be able to help them get council approval or after-hours access to attractions.
In return, film crews will know how to best display the destinations that they have been provided with, and can probably help to create marketing opportunities for a region, particularly if it's a smaller city that doesn't have a huge budget or knowledge of tourism marketing.

Anyway, I think I'm rambling a bit here, which I'm not meant to do. Hopefully I'll be able to clean these up a bit before submitting them for assessment.
Until next seminar...!

Xox

Tourism and the Media

Hmm, I think I'm getting sick... Great timing considering I just finished holidays and am back at uni. Boo-urns.

Anyway, that's not what I'm here to talk about. For the tourism and the media class this semester, one of the assessment pieces is to write a reflective journal each week. It's worth 40% of our overall mark, which is kind of awesome, because I tend to be good at writing reflective things. As long as I pay attention in classes and actually have something to think about.

So I will start with today, which was the first class, and probably more brief than other seminars will be. I'm just going over the slides now, to refresh my memory (even though the class was only this morning!)

We started out with a discussion of media, and how some of the world's greatest pilgrimage and tourism sites were established through the written, illustrated and oral media. I guess this makes sense, especially in the ancient times, before there were advertisements and TV and the internet to let people know what was out there. All people had to inspire them were the stories and experiences that were shared upon the return of travellers. I guess no one really knew what was outside their own cities, until someone else went to find out, and then came back to tell of what they'd seen.

I think the quote about popular culture is also an interesting one:

"Popular culture is a dangerous category as it implies the existence of another culture which is either unpopular, or elitist, or both"

We wondered whether mass media might be a better term for popular culture, instead. Whenever I hear the term popular culture, I always think of really big brands, for some reason, it's always Nike... I know there is so much more that the term refers to, but I just always think of the 'popular kids', going around, drinking coke, and wearing their Nike shoes... Actually, looking at that sort of seems more like something that would fit the late '80s or early '90s! I guess nowadays, they'd be walking around with their iPhones on Facebook wearing scarves and vests and stuff and drinking Red Bull... I dunno.

Other things we talked about were the aspects of 'Beauty, Wellbeing, Aesthetics & Art', and how, maybe not so much today, but in the 18th and 19th centuries, people would travel to a destination just because they saw a beautiful painting or read a lovely poem that represented that place. I think it seems amazing that people were so trusting of the author or painter, who may have had their own style of writing or painting that represented the place incorrectly, or enhanced what would have been an ordinary scene, into one that promotes travel.
I think now that photographs exist, it's a bit easier to tell what a destination looks like for real... Although that does prompt me to think that it might not be true... especially with the existence of photo altering programs like PhotoShop, where people can digitally enhance a photo that might be a bit bland in colour, to the brightest and happiest looking scene possible. Perhaps the truest representations of scenes were from authors and painters, who probably wouldn't have thought to change the entire feel and look of the scene they are influenced by...

I must admit, though, I am one to look at a photo and immediately be attracted to a destination, even if I'm certain it's been doctored or enhanced for that very reason. Most of the time I think that if a photo is worth taking of a place, then it's probably worth me visiting it, although some people take photos of the strangest things while on holiday, so maybe not...

Okay, well I think that's enough for this week's journal. I'm not sure if we have to comment on everything covered in the seminar, though I'm guessing not. Sorry to the one person who actually sometimes reads these, but this post is pretty much only for me (well, and my lecturer when I post it in the actual part we're supposed to).

I'll write again next week, I guess!

xox