Warner Bros. Film Studio Tour Evaluation

On the 7th of October, my media group and other art groups from around school, from both year 12 and year 13, went on a school trip to the Warner Brothers Studios Watford; to go on the Harry Potter studio tour. We went so we could learn about how a film was put together, the different techniques used (e.g green-screen), learn how they marketed the film and to generally experience what it would be like to work in the film industry.
Firstly, when we arrived at the studios, we stood in a lobby which contained pictures of characters from the movies. We were then given a stamp passport, an ID card and a ticket to take with us through the tour. We then stood in a queue to start the tour. After the queue had receded we could enter, with our party, into a room where we were talked to about what we were going to do on that day and also the story of Harry Potter came about. After this, we went into a cinema room where we started the actual tour, with a talk from the main Harry Potter characters (Daniel Radcliff, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint). The cinema screen rolled up and we were greeted by the doors to enter the great hall; of which we entered and were toured around it, by a tour guide. We then entered a huge room which contained some of the most iconic Harry Potter memorabilia, costumes and props from the films (Wands, Doors, Chalices and Trophy's etc...). Also in this room contained rooms, which were built for the set of Harry Potter and used in the films. After touring this for around 15minuets we were taken to a classroom where we had a mini media lesson from two of the qualified teaching tour guides. During this class, we made up a basic plot for a film and discust what movie marketing was.
Movie Marketing is the practice of promotion specifically in the film industry. As with all business it is an important part of any release because of the inherent high financial risk; film studios will invest in expensive marketing campaigns to maximize revenue early in the release cycle. Marketing budgets tend to equal about half the production budget. Publicity is generally handled by the distributor and exhibitors.
After the lesson we were allowed to tour the studios by yourself or in groups for another hour. After this, we went outside into the eating area where we all had our lunches. There was more Harry Potter memorabilia outside also; this included Tom Riddles grave, The Hogwarts wooden bridge and the purple bus. After our lunches we went into the second stage of the tour where we walked down Diagon alley and saw even more props. We then entered the final stage of the tour where there was a huge model of Hogwarts. After this we were led through the wand room and into the gift shop.
My 10 highlights:

• Seeing the great hall
• Marvalling at the costumes on display
• Having A picture on the broom stick
• Taking pictures of the sets
• Trying Butter Beer (vile)
• Walking down Diagon alley
• Seeing all the drawrings and sketches of the characters, sets, props etc...
• Models of the animals and troll(s) (Aaron Williams)
• Seeing the huge model of Hogwarts
• Talking to the guides about Harry Potter

From this trip I have gained an insight to the world of filmography and media. I have learnt how fun but also how challenging it is to put a film/production together and all the jobs required for it. I have also gained knowledge on the use of special effects (e.g green-screen). Being able to see professional work up close will help make my work look more professional by giving me inspiration for my future coursework and an example to follow .The knowledge and experience gained on this trip will definitely help me through my media course as pretty much all the aspects of filmography are a source of media. No knowledge I gained on the trip will have a negative impact because of this.