How has the development of digital methods, technical hardware and scientific knowledge changed the industry and culture of screen media

Technology and contemporary trends are becoming more integral in how the UK screen media industries operates, thus meaning their sense of participation in screen culture can become influential in welcoming new creatives into the wider screen sector. In regard to the screen industries in Britain, this influence can be especially seen in film related areas such as film journalism, film production, and film distribution. While the influence of contemporary technologies on screen media and culture has continued the widespread interest in film as a medium for cinephiles, fans and aspiring creatives alike, it has democratised these areas by creating more accessible tools and resources, on the other hand it has also questioned, impacted, and arguably benefitted the ways in which they function today. In comparison to the near century old age of the medium itself, this dynamic situation has only materialised over the last decade, showing it is a very current and new area of film discourse in need of constant input in order to keep up with its constant developments.

This thesis, on the development of digital methods, technical hardware and scientific knowledge, aims to explore how contemporary technology and technological trends have
changed the industry and culture of screen media, by focusing on film journalism, the filmmaking industry, and key types of film distribution, such as film festival events, in a
predominantly British based context. Key research methods will be used to help recognise and consider the positive and negative effects of these trends, and in doing so will identify these effects through questionnaire data, interviews, and grounded research, and then explain
the subsequent impacts these changes could impose on these areas and on film as a general medium.