{"title":"Production of Game Making Spaces: Disco Elysium and the game making community in Estonia","authors":"Anna M. Ozimek","doi":"10.2478/bsmr-2021-0002","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2478/bsmr-2021-0002","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract This article discusses Disco Elysium in the context of the development of game making communities in Estonia and international production networks. Drawing on an analysis of secondary sources, in-depth interviews and a survey with game makers in Estonia, this article contributes to studies on national and regional game-production cultures. The aim of this article is two-fold. First, it contributes to studies of game production cultures by discussing the development and structure of game-making communities in Estonia. As such, it enriches the understanding of game production in Europe by providing empirical data about game making in Estonia. Second, based on the example of Disco Elysium, the article demonstrates how national, regional and international production networks contribute to the spatial politics of game production. In conclusion, this article emphasises the importance of the construction of space in game production and the asymmetries of power among game production regions.","PeriodicalId":253522,"journal":{"name":"Baltic Screen Media Review","volume":"37 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"126637700","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Public Funding in a Time of Crisis: Film Funds and the Pandemic","authors":"Caitriona Noonan","doi":"10.2478/BSMR-2020-0002","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2478/BSMR-2020-0002","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 This essay will examine the role of publicly-funded film funds in small nations during the pandemic. Organisation like Det Danske Filminstitut, Hrvatski Audiovizualni Centar, Screen Scotland and Screen Ireland exist to support filmmakers in the realisation of their creative vision, to aid the circulation of national cultural resources and to provide audiences with the opportunity to access a diverse array of films. In small nations they are often the primary source of funding to the sector and so play a key role in building the capacity and international visibility of the nation and its film output.\u0000 This contribution to the special issue will identify trends in the funding and support provided by these organisations during the crisis; for instance, in adjusting their funding strategies, but also in their advocacy efforts with those beyond the film sector to secure financial support measures for the sector. It identifies future roles for film funds including redistributing limited public funds, supporting creative labour markets that are sustainable and equitable, and communicating the message to international productions, potential co-producers and investors that the country and its sector is open for business. I conclude by also reflecting on the long-term threats that these bodies may themselves face in the coming years as a result of economic and political transformations that are occurring today.","PeriodicalId":253522,"journal":{"name":"Baltic Screen Media Review","volume":"40 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"125054235","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The Resilience of Small Television Markets to COVID-19: the Case of Lockdown","authors":"T. Raats","doi":"10.2478/BSMR-2020-0008","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2478/BSMR-2020-0008","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 This article presents a case study of Lockdown, an anthology series developed by two production companies under strict COVID restrictions in Flanders, centred on a prison visiting space. Every episode is written and directed by different screenwriters and directors. The case study clearly shows how a combination of creativity of Flemish independent producers, a felt need to counter the damaging effects of COVID on Flemish audio-visual industries, and the need to produce under strict hygienic and social distancing rules, resulted in a unique creative concept, that, ironically, might not have been achievable under normal circumstances. The analysis shows that the smallness of the Flemish market, which over the past decades resulted in an industry dynamism characterized by improvisation, voluntarism, high dependency on collaboration and short term financial planning, is precisely what might have provided the ideal backdrop for the production of this unique series.","PeriodicalId":253522,"journal":{"name":"Baltic Screen Media Review","volume":"49 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"127252139","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"From Dusk till “DAU”: the Rise of Heterotopic Cinema in the Times of Pandemic","authors":"Alexandre Zaezjev","doi":"10.2478/BSMR-2020-0007","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2478/BSMR-2020-0007","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 The release of Ilya Khrzhanovsky’s megalomaniacal cinematic project DAU coincided with the global Covid-19 pandemic. With festivals postponed and public screenings no longer possible, Khrzhanovsky moved his project online, integrating the unprecedented experience of the global lockdown and quarantine into the cinematic universe of DAU. Using the concept of heterotopia devised by French philosopher Michel Foucault, this paper examines the ways in which self-isolation altered the conditions of spatio-temporal engagement with DAU. Ultimately, the paper presents an original theoretical model of heterotopic cinema to demonstrate that confinement is precisely what allows Khrzhanovskiy’s artistic method to fully function.","PeriodicalId":253522,"journal":{"name":"Baltic Screen Media Review","volume":"49 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"124779625","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Is COVID-19 on the Covers of Socio-Political Magazines an Example of Media Polarisation? Case Study from Poland","authors":"Anna Jupowicz-Ginalska","doi":"10.2478/BSMR-2020-0005","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2478/BSMR-2020-0005","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 The main purpose of this paper was to explore the media image of the COVID-19 pandemic through the perspective of Polish media polarisation. In order to achieve this, a quantitative and qualitative analysis of the content of covers from 10 socio-political magazines, representing different ideological inclinations [left-wing, liberal, conservative, right-wing and Catholic] was conducted between January and June 2020. The study focused not only on the scale to which the coronavirus appeared on the covers, but also on the textual and visual representation of it. Additionally, the contexts in which COVID-19 appeared were analysed. As it turned out, apart from the medical context, the pandemic was mostly presented through political, social, economic and religious perspectives, of which the first was the most visibly connected with polarising media content, indicating clear links between the ideological bias of the magazines and the ways they described reality.","PeriodicalId":253522,"journal":{"name":"Baltic Screen Media Review","volume":"18 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"132203892","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Pandemic and Public Service Media: Lessons from Finland","authors":"M. Horowitz, R. Leino","doi":"10.2478/BSMR-2020-0003","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2478/BSMR-2020-0003","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 This essay discusses the global context of public communication during COVID-19, as well as some specific lessons learned from public service media (PSM), specifically from the Finnish Broadcasting Company (Yleisradio, Yle). We address the role of PSM as a national information channel during crises and as a sustainable element in the media system, points to the need to understand its role beyond news and to develop new interactive alternatives to global platforms, and calls for PSM organisations to address its audience – not as consumers – but as people with needs for information, entertainment, learning and meaningful interactions.","PeriodicalId":253522,"journal":{"name":"Baltic Screen Media Review","volume":"172 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"127643299","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Film and Television Production and Consumption in Times of the COVID-19 Pandemic – The Case of Germany","authors":"L. Mikos","doi":"10.2478/BSMR-2020-0004","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2478/BSMR-2020-0004","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 The article discusses some developments in the audio- visual media industry in Germany that became apparent during the pandemic. Tendencies in the production, distribution and consumption of film, television and streaming are examined. While streaming platforms and linear television are becoming more important, cinemas are facing some problems.","PeriodicalId":253522,"journal":{"name":"Baltic Screen Media Review","volume":"1 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"128903524","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"What’s the value of a star? Actor familiarity and likeability effects on emotional mimicry of cinematic displays","authors":"Elen Lotman, Alan Voodla, A. Uusberg","doi":"10.2478/bsmr-2019-0001","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2478/bsmr-2019-0001","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Researchers and practitioners have long been intrigued by the role of stars in the film industry (McDonald 2005). Actors with star status can enhance the economic prospects of a film (Wallace et al. 1993). For instance, replacing average stars with top stars has been shown to increase revenue (Nelson, Glotfelty 2012). A meta-analysis of 61 studies collating data from 1545 films has shown the significant effect of commercial star power on Hollywood films’ revenues (Hofmann, et al. 2017). The Hollywood movie industry can be viewed as a system that maintains and regulates the popularity of existing and emerging stars through agents, producers and award systems (McDonald 2013).","PeriodicalId":253522,"journal":{"name":"Baltic Screen Media Review","volume":"56 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"130595293","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}