Why is it important to consider ethical issues when producing media?

When creating media production a very important piece of film is considering ethical
issues. When taking into consideration you have to think about language, equal
opportunities and diversity. Language is very important to get right to make sure known
as offended. For instance it should only be used if truly benefits the film and is not shown
in a good light. A good example of this is the film !his "s #ngland. !his is #ngland is
based in a time where racism was a large part of the community, so the director felt it
was key for the story to include it, it is also historically accurate.
$n and off screen you should always be given equal opportunities no matter your
gender, ethnicity or beliefs. !here should be no need to discriminate someone against
these if it does not affect the overall product in any way. "t is also important you give
everybody equal opportunities because you are more likely to gain a wider range of
information and ideas. %iversity is also a big part of taking ethical issues into
consideration. "t is important you have a diverse workplace because will have a wider
range of experience and therefore you are not discriminated against anyone. &ou will be
able to appeal to a wider range of audience with ease and having people from different
racial, social and educational backgrounds will benefit the overall working environment
and the overall production.
How is gender represented in film?
'tereotypically in films man our represented as the hero or protagonist, whereas women
tend not to be. (ntil recent years males usually played the lead role and females would
be supporting. "t)s still very small today an estimated *+, of speaking parts our women.
!his supports the theory that people clam women are being unfairly represented on and
off screen in the media industry. Film makers often get female actors in films -ust for the
sex appeal. !hey won)t have big part but will be included in the promotion of the film to
pull a wider audience in. !he .ames /ond films commonly do this. 'ome films break this
stereotype by making the protagonist female and still including the same amount of
action as a male part. 'ome recent examples of this would be .ennifer Lawrence in !he
0unger 1ames, 'andra /ullock in 1ravity and Angelina .olie in !omb 2aider. #ven
though .olie plays the protagonist in the action film, she still used for sex appeal, the
clothing she wears and the way she acts. 'ome people argue that it is unneeded and
does not add any extra information or action to the plot or film.
"deally men and women should be presented equally on and off screen, but the amount
of money filmmakers receive for stereotyping the characters probably mean it won)t
change for a while. Also audiences now expect to see it, they now what type of film they
are going to see by how its advertised and even though they can most likely seen the
same plot hundreds of time they are more likely to spend their money if they know that
plot works.
What is the Film act (1985)?
!he Film Act was brought in to replace the Levy system. !he plan of the Levy system
was to tax the box office to help the /ritish Film "ndustry. !he government soon relised
this wasnt very effective and this is why it was replaced. !o gain money the government
also started taxing the filmmakers directly filming inside /ritain. !his law went on for
many years until 3+43 were it was finally dropped, this was done to encourage
filmmakers to come into the country and film tax free. !his benefited the country all
round because it offered a wide range of new -obs and experiences for the unemployed.
What is the Video ecordings act?
!he 5ideo 2ecordings Act was an act of parliament that any commercial video
recordings must carry a classification. "t)s the /ritish /oard of 6lassification)s 7also
known as //F68 -ob to do this. !hey are the ones who decide what age rating is going
to be on Films. "n this process they look at9
general context : plot, characters, outline of individual scenes
timings of key moments, including camera angles, type of shots, on: and off:
screen moments
bad language, sex and drug references and so on
!he //F6 have to rate all peice of 5ideo before it can be sold or distrabuted. !he only
exeption to this is if the video is for educational reasons, sport or religion. !he //F6 can
also ban vidoes if they feel they are not suitable for viewing. "f your video is banned only
the government can unban it if you have avalid reason, it also works the other way if the
government feels your video is unsuitable they can go agains the //F6 decision.
What would !e conse"uence of !rea#ing copyright law?
6opyright in the (; is very strict, the law basically states you cannot use anyone elses
material 7music, footage etc8 in your own production, without informing and getting
permission from the correct authority, you also not allowed to pass it off as your own.
!he law is put in place to try and protect working musicians and filmmakers. "f you ever
want to use someone elses material in your production you have to get permission or
get give credit to the rightful owner. "f the copyright law is broken you can face up to <
years in prison with a large fine example of copyright in the last couple of years is the
poster created for /arack $bamas 3++= election. !he poster created for /arack
$bamas 3++= election was created by 'hepard Fairey, the famous graffiti artist. !he
poster created was based on a photo that freelancing photographer >annie had taken.
0e sued the campaign and was taken to court and he walked away the large split of the
cost.