Media Institution - Universal Pictures

A media institution is a company or organisation that is accountable for the production/exhibition of a certain media text ranging from; radio, tv, the internet, cinemas etc. Universal Picture join 20th Century Fox as one of the biggest movie studios. Universal Pictures is known as the "oldest surviving film studio in the U.S". I think that much of Universal's message is obvious, they wish to bring everyone together with iconic films that anyone can watch. Universal Pictures celebrates diversity by making their content for everyone. Like 20th Century Fox, Universal Pictures also looks to push the boundaries of media and technology. Here are a few films of Universal's that I believe reflects their mission statement.

E.T (1982)

E.T is considered one of the most iconic kids films to date. Using the the most up to date technology back then, Steven Spielberg has crafted a story that will be left in the minds of its audience for years to come. It seems that as technology has advanced, more production companies are spilling more money into CGI and are becoming more dependent on it. E.T focuses on an alien that gets stranded on Earth. the story focuses on the blossoming friendship between E.T and a boy that he meets on Earth. E.T is considered as being the 4th highest grossing film in the U.S. Universal Pictures wishes to create films that are both iconic and creative.

Jurassic World (2015)

Jurassic World is a prime example for how over the years, Universal Pictures is still producing content that is made for everyone. Jurassic World is Universal Pictures highest grossing film. This can be seen here, alongside their other films. Jurassic World involves a massive creature escaping from captivity and causes a chain reaction to set the other dinosaurs on the island to go crazy. Jurassic World focuses on telling a family story that is meant for everyone and very much reflects the goal of Universal Pictures.

As far as a mission statement can go, Universal Pictures aims to tell iconic stories that bring them in a lot of money. I believe that Universal Pictures does what they can to promote diversity but in some areas that might be weak.

The Universal Pictures logo is quite important in portraying the studios' message. Here we can see the ways in which their logo has changed and developed over the years.

A lot has changed with the logo. As technology has developed, Universal Pictures has changed and adapted their logo to represent how they are keeping up with the times. In the majority of the logos an earth is included to help create an idea of diversity. This could also be due to the fact that a globe is synonymous with Universal Pictures' image. As Universal Studios is one of the major production companies in the U.S, they earn a larger sum of money than the majority of Studios. I also believe this to be a demonstration for the divide between independent and mainstream studios. Most films that Universal Pictures produces turn out to be a blockbuster of some kind. For example, some of their past blockbusters include: Jaws, The Mummy and Jurassic Park.

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