High Concept

A former market research analyst in the film industry, Justin Wyatt is an associate professor of communication studies, journalism, and film/media at the University of Rhode Island. He holds a Ph.D. in film and television studies from UCLA.

• Acknowledgments1. A Critical Redefinition: The Concept of High Concept The Entertainment Industries on High ConceptThe Critics on High ConceptEconomics, Aesthetics, and High Concept as "Post" Classical CinemaMicro- and Macro-Analysis: Style, Marketing, and Differentiation of Product"The Look, the Hook, and the Book"2. Construction of the Image and the High Concept Style Advertising as an Influence on Style"You've Got the Look": Perfect Images in High Concept Stars and StyleMusic as an Element of StyleExcess in High Concept: The Promotional Music VideoThe High Concept Image: Character Types and GenreStyle, Classical Hollywood, and the Art Cinema3. High Concept and Changes in the Market for Entertainment The Marketplace and Traditional DefinitionsConglomeration and Film Content: The Roadshow, The Youth Picture, The BlockbusterUncertainty in the Marketplace: The Development of the Contemporary Industry StructureDifferentiation of ProductHigh Concept as Product Differentiation4. Marketing the Image: High Concept and the Development of Marketing Changing Distribution PatternsAwareness Marketing: High Concept in PrintMaintenance Marketing: Selling through Music and ProductMerchandising and Ancillary Tie-ins5. High Concept and Market Research: Movie Making by the Numbers The Growth of Market ResearchThe Model of Market Research within the Film IndustryCase Study: Determining Boxoffice RevenueTheorizing the Positive Influences on Boxoffice GrossSpecification of the ModelEstimation of the Model and ResultsManipulation, Control, and High ConceptFactors Influencing the Decline of Market Research6. Conclusion: High Concept and the Course of American Film History The Transformation of the AuteurTelevision and the Ideological Agenda of High ConceptThe Alternatives to High ConceptNotesIndex

Wyatt's book is one of those studies that is bound to enforce a new way of considering contemporary Hollywood cinema. He presents a new way to examine high concept film in greater detail instead of dismissing it as just another crassly commercial product. (Criticism)