A typical film release would initially begin with the cinema release in order for audiences to enjoy the film on 'the big screen' first. After around 4-6 months, the film would then be released on Blu-Ray or DVD for people to enjoy at home. Then later on, perhaps after another few months, it would appear on a TV channel or 'on-demand' for further at-home viewing.
However, 'A Field in England' decided to release the film on all of these platforms on the same day (5th July) rather than creating a distance between multiple different release dates.
2) What are the advantages to releasing the film across all platforms on the same day?
The people that the film was targeted at were more likely to enjoy the film in the cinema as they would be typical arthouse enthusiasts who recognise that the film was intended for 'the big screen' and therefore would watch it as it was intended to be watched.
It allows a variety of different people to access the film at once - those who prefer to watch the film at home won't have to wait for the DVD release or could watch it on their TVs with freeview. This allows for a wider range of audiences to view the film.
3) What are the disadvantages to this approach?
A main disadvantage to this release strategy is that it means that people may not have been keen to watch the film in the cinema first because they'd rather watch it at home. This then doesn't meet the film's initial expectations for the film's release.
4) What target audience would A Field In England be aimed at? Demographics and Psychographics.
I think that the target audience would be those who are interested in Civil War (particularly Historians) or also those who enjoy watching British culture, particularly in the olden times, to compare it to today's more modern society.
5) Do you think all films in future will be released across all platforms simultaneously in future?
I think that eventually, this will end up being the case since the gap between cinema and DVD release dates is already rapidly decreasing since a lot of demand comes from those who wish to purhcase the DVD or stream the film online or on their TV. Therefore, it will most likely become a common method to release films on a variety of platforms all at once in order for the film to appeal to and rech a wider audience - those that take a trip to the cinema, as well as those who prefer to watch films in the comfort of their own homes.
