Analysis of Brand Management Strategy for Shoe Company

Analysis of Brand Management Strategy for Shoe Company Chapter 1: Introduction 1. Introduction This dissertation is comprised of brand evolution and sum various steps involved to construct it. The creation and importance of Brand Awareness, Brand Image, and Brand Loyalty is discussed followed by the evaluation of Servis Sales Corporation as how successful Brand they are in Shoe industry of Pakistan. Servis Sales Corporation claims to be the largest retail shoe sellers of Pakistan therefore research is held on the company as what are the various marketing strategies SSC adopted to gain such a large market share. Steps to create brand loyalty amongst their target market and implementing effective brand management are part of this research. Branding is the main ingredient in the process of creating stable reputation, identity and strong image of a company and is always a first requirement to have competitive edge, this create awareness and work as a positive gesture towards customers to be product or brand loyal. As the Chairman of Quaker Oats Ltd, John Stuart said, if this business were to be split up, I would be glad to take the brands, trademark and goodwill and you could have it all the bricks and mortar and I would fare better than you . Leslie De Chernatony(2001 p1) In this era of globalization every company wishes to grow and expand their businesses in order to attain a healthy position in throat cutting world of business . In this effort companies faces many challenges and went through many challenges by their rivals and most of all providing customer’s satisfaction. 1.1 Background Study: The term brand arrived form the ancient Norse word meaning â€Å"to burn† Rita Clifton, John Simmons, Sameena Ahmad (2004 ;13). The original term was developed to signify the source or maker or owner of a product or item. Now a days brand is used to identify service or product’s manufacturer or seller, when we go through we see that many of the many modern concepts of brands and branding were formalised in the United States at a Procter Gamble company in the late 1800s. We get a good example of importance of brand when we talk about â€Å"Virgin† which is currently at the face of hundred business strategies. A brand will be a strong brand if people’s values match the values of brand. Branding’s means adding value to the product Marieke K de Mooij (2005: 96) Brand stands for a reputation, you are always reputed when you are always reputed when you make a promise and fulfil it. Brand is more like a human nature not just a visual, public identity or a picture. Every single who is part of the organization represents the brand of the company and pay its part to construct it. The brand is a performance measured and recorded in interaction of every area involves customers investors, employees business partners and media (www.thebrandconsultancy.com) Its quite clear that every company is conscious about its brand loyalty amongst its customers because they know this if they are successful in managing the brand loyalty of their existing customers which is company’s strategic asset it will automatically add huge value to firm. As Douglas B states that Brand Loyalty is the customer’s willingness to stay with brand when competitor come knocking with offering that would be considered equally attractive had not to the customer and brand shared a history. The degree of customer stickiness is the key to the brand’s market power. Douglas B. Holt (2004 ; p 149) Merlo (2003) mentions that the brand loyalty is rewarded by an increase in profit through repeat business, referral sales, decreased customer maintenance costs and reduced exposure to price competition. When we talk about creating and enhancing brand loyalty we see that there are not-too complex ways of increasing brand loyalty. Companies can learn to recover from mistakes. A good recovery can turn angry, frustrated customers into a loyal ones. â€Å"Companies must handle problems and complaints with Care- Communicate, Acknowledgement, respect and regard and empathy†(Merlo, 2003) 1.2 Statement of Problem: Global challenges today have forced companies not to have their business image within their home land but to spread their identity across the borders by managing brand, securing the product or a service of companies and building loyalty among customers to achieve maximum and lasting competitive edge. The aim of the research is to evaluate the brand management of Servis Sales Corporation by analyzing their marketing strategies. Research covers the analysis that how successful SSC today is in gaining brand loyalty as it is considered to be the biggest footwear seller in Pakistan. 1.3 Aim and Objectives: The main Objective of the research is the finding that to what level SSC is successful in imperialising Brand Management to embrace positive effect on their customer’s perception and has given SSC a competitive edge, as they are Pakistan’s largest shoe company. Core Objectives of Research: To analyze marketing strategies of Servis Shoes Company leading to effective brand management giving SSC a positive brand image amongst their target market. To observe various strategies adapted by SSC to enhance brand loyalty amongst their customers? To find out what steps Servis Shoes Company took to create its Brand awareness amongst it’s target market and what are the areas they still need to focus upon. To identify the involvement of consumers to the brand as in why they prefer a particular brand (Servis) on every other different brands available in the market. 1.4 Report Structure: This report will be organized as follows: Literature Review: The literature review of this report covers understanding and benefit of effective brand management that how people connect to them. Chapter includes importance of creating and enhancing awareness among consumers followed by the concepts and historical perspective of brand loyalty giving a wider view of the perception about brand loyalty and its strategic values. Company Introduction: This chapter consist of the brief introduction to Servis Sales Corporation, giving a wider view of their leading position in shoe line in Pakistan amongst their rivals. This chapter shows company background and demographics with the facts and figures about their expanded business nationwide. Research Methodology: In this chapter different method of research is discussed. It also focuses on research philosophy principle, quantitative and qualitative analysis and secondary and primary data. After studying the methods and techniques different methods are identified which is most suitable to get the reliable and most accurate data? Which is used in research? Finding and Analysis After completing the research, the data gathered through different sources from the company are analysed in this chapter, which is explained with chart and then it is moderated with the findings. Conclusion: This chapter involves conclusion and the result in the light of findings with literature. Analysis of research finding and result are discussed, Recommendation to company and further research is also the part of this chapter. Literature Review Scott Galloway stated a very good definition showing importance of brands in today’s world of marketing that â€Å"Brand is the face of a business strategy† ( Scott Galloway in Alker, 2000 :33) another well appreciated definition of brand given by American Marketing Association cited in (Kotler 2003: 418) â€Å" A brand is name, term, sign, symbol, or services of one seller or a group of seller to differentiate them from those of competitors†. A brand is essentially a marketer’s promise to deliver a specific set of features, benefits and services consistently to buyers. The marketer must think that he is offering a contract to the customer about how the brand will perform ( kotler 2003) Le Pla et ala, (2003: 3) give a more profound and in depth definition of brand: Brand is the interaction between core company ( product or service ) strengths and what is customer value . Company strengths are what company does well. The things that the customers value include the benefits of a products features, as well as what the customer see as the ongoing worth of a relationship with the company. According to Kapferer (1997 : 56), â€Å"Products are mute: the brand is what gives them a meaning and purpose, telling us how a product should be read. A brand is both a prism and a magnifying glass through which products can be decoded†. Renault invites us to perceive its models as cars for living’.. brands guide our perception of products†. Hence it can clearly be seen from the above paragraph that branding goes a long way in giving a distinct identity to a product. Rowley (1997) explains that brand communicates with consumers, according too him when consumers are familiar with a brand, they expect the same qualities, benefits and advantages from products or services which are provided under that specific brand, this easily makes their decision in favour of the brand instead of searching or gathering information regarding products fulfilling their requirements. Therefore, it can be suggested that brand accelerates consumers’ process of decision making as it provides two different ways of communication between suppliers and their consumers (Rowley, 1997) Effective Brand Management The concept of â€Å"brand management† was developed at Procter Gamble in the US in the year 1930 and is also knows as product management .Ambler (2003:82). The main reason behind Brand management is to secure the product’s future and services any company or organization, and this is only possible with the formulation loyalty amongst customers creating emotional as well as rational values. This results sales in market place and stimulating affect on the perception of a company’s products .If brand power is tied together in a proper way organization can easily maximize market share and corporate profitability. Brands if handled and managed sensibly can provide their owners a considerable benefits and rewards. Davis (2002 :6) says that the following benefits accure to the company that manages is brands effectively: Loyalty derives repeat business- A recent study by Bob Pasikoff, president of brand keys, shows that an increase in customer loyalty of only 5% can lift lifetime profit per customer by as much as 100%. Premiums price of brand allow higher margins – Starbucks represents the ultimate example of a strong brand driving a premium price resulting in greater profit. Strong Brands lend immediate credibility to new one in product introductions. A well established brands can provide instant credibility for a new product. Gillette’s Marc 3 became number one personal shaver within a month of its launch. Strong brand allow for greater shareholder and stakeholder returns. One can see a good example is Yahoo and GE are big brands with even bigger shareholder returns. Strong Brand embody a clear, valued, and sustainable point of differentiation relative to competition – No one can FedEx’s claim of overnight delivery. Loyal customer base and strong brand make customer forgiving for the the mistakes made by the company, if a company makes a mistake for instance, the strike at the Saturn car plant had little impact on Saturn’s loyalty or sales. The lever for attracting best employees along with keeping satisfied customers is Brand Strength – Companies like coca-cola, Microsoft, Intel, Disney etc. are almost always in the top bracket of survey which measures employee satisfaction. It is obvious that it’s a difficult thing to build and maintain a brand reputation like Coke, Microsoft, Nike, General Electric, etc and as David D’ Alessandro, President of John Hancock Mutual Life insurance, in Klein (2000: 145), â€Å"it can take 100 years too build up a good brand and 30 days to knock it down†. Effect of Brand on People ( How People connect to them) Scott Davis( 2002) says that, Brands are at least in part a set of promises made to consumer. The leading brand travel a particular PATH in the human mind. This PATH is an acronym for promise, acceptance, trust and hope. Certainly this PATH is intangible and cannot be co modified†. But he then mentions that these very intangibles make a customer choose Sony over JVC and Nike over Reebok. The following are the customers perceptions vis-à  -vis a strong brand (Davis, 2002) 72% of customer sat that they will pay a 20% premium for their brand of choice, relative to the closest competitive brand. 25% of customer state that price matter if they are buying a brand that owns their loyalty. Over 50% of purchases are brand driven. Peer recommendation influences almost 30% of all purchases made today. More than 50% of consumers believe a strong brand allows for more successful new product introductions and they are more willing to try a new product from a preferred brand because of the implied endorsement. The view of Le Pla et al, (2002 ; 3) is that a strong brand is much more than an image or a logo. People emotionally identify with a strong brand and relationship with such a brand makes them feel more secure and comfortable. This is completely in sync with Kotler’s ( 2003) example of a consumer buying a Mercedes because the car ( which is also a strong brand) makes him feel more important and admired’. Aaker (1991) suggests that anything which a consumer realises about a brand can be defined as brand association it according to him it create positive consumer attitudes towards brands, thus influence consumer buying decision process. Kapferer (1997) says that brand is like a living memory. The memory factor explains why individuals preferences endure and why within a given generation people continue to prefer the brands they liked between the ages of seven and eighteen ( Guest 1964, Fry et al., 1973, Jacoby et al., 1978 in Kapferer 1997). This is proof, if it was ever needed, that strong brands do have a long-term effect on people. It is imperative now to take a more focussed look on the three constructs that constitute the basis of this study. The first to be analysed will be brand awareness followed by brand loyalty and brand image. Brand Awareness a number of the definition if the term â€Å" Brand Awareness† abound, a fundamental definition of the term is given by Aaker(1991: 61) â€Å" Brand Awareness is the ability of a potential buyer to recognize or recall that a brand is a member of certain product category†. David Aaker’s (1991) ground braking work â€Å"managing brand equity† details with the concept of brand awareness comprehensively. Hence, it has been use here as a main reference, although it has been complimented with other readings. Aaker says that brand awareness involves a link between the product class and the brand. For example, the use of the large balloon with the word Levi’s on it may make the name more salient, but it will not may necessarily help improve brand awareness. However if the balloon is shaped to resemble a pair of Levi’s 301 jeans , the link to the product is provided, the balloon’s effectiveness at creating awareness is enhanced. Aaker (1991). By using the brand, perceiving it and being confronted with it through advertising, consumers learn about its meanings. All this information is connected associatively to the brand name. the richer this associative network is, and the stronger the associations the greater the chance of consumers thinking. Levels of Brand Awareness â€Å"Brand Awareness involves the continuum ranging from an uncertain feeling that the brand is recognised, to a belief that it is the only one in the product class. This continuum is presented in the ‘ Awareness Pyramids’’’ ( Aaker 19991 : 62) Levels of Brand Awareness ( Aaker, 1991) Aaker stated that â€Å"the minimal level of brand is recognition which is based upon aided recall test where respondents are given a set of brand in a product category and asked to identify those that they had heard of before. Thus, although there needs to be link between the brand and the product class, it needs not to be strong. Brand Recognition is particularly important when a buyer chooses a brand at the point of purchases† (Aaker 1991 ;62). Franzen et al, ( 2001) stated that the situations in which none of the choice alternatives is well represented in or memory, brand familiarity ( recognition) will be the determinant in the choice process. The purchases in which consumers regularly choose and re-choose because of the awareness stored in his memory, aided brand awareness i.e. brand recognition has hardly any significance. If we see further we see that brand recall is the further level dependent on asking a person to name brand in a product class. This is â€Å"Unaided recall† because , unlike in the recognition task, the responded is not aided by having names provide. Unaided recall is a substantially more difficult task then recognition, and is associated with a stronger brand position. The first named brand in an unaided recall task has achieved top-of-mind awareness. (Aaker 1991) Strategic Value of Brand Awareness Brand Awareness provides a sustainable competitive advantage and can be a key strategic asset for the company ( Aaker 1998) The following are the banifits of creating a higher brand awareness ( Aaker 1991: 63) ( Figure 3); Anchor to which other association can be attached : Brand Recognition is the first basic step in the communication task. It usually is wasteful to attempt to communicate brand attributes until a name is established with which to associate the attributes. Familiarity/Liking: Awareness provides the brand with fimilarity and people like the familiar. They are prepared to ascribe all sorts of good attitudes to items that are familiar to them ( Aaker et al., 2000). Especially for low involvement products like soap, chewing gum, sugar , facial tissues etc., familiarity can some times drive the buying decision. Substance/ Commitment: Name awareness can be a signal of presence, commitment and substance, an attribute very important to consumer buyers of durables. The logic is that if a name is recognised, there must be a reason like: The firm is widely distributed. The firm has advertised extensively. The brand is successful-others use it. Even if the person has not been exposed to advertising and knows little about, brand awareness could lead to the assumptions that the firm is substantial and backs the brand with advertising. Brands to consider: The role of brand recall (discussed earlier) is crucial for frequently purchased products like coffee, detergent, serials et. Several studies have demonstrated the relationship between top of mind recall and attitude/purchase behaviour. One such study, of six brands in the three product classes (Fast food, Soda and banking), showed large differences in preferences and purchase likely hood, depending on weather the brand was first, second or third mentioned in an unaided recall task (Woodside and Wilson, 1985 in Aaker, 1991). Sometimes it is possible that people recall brands that they dislike strongly. Benefits of Brand Awareness (Aaker 1991) A number of researchers besides Aaker have also demonstrated that brand awareness is a particularly important concept relative to brand evaluation in predicting and explaining consumer choice behaviour. For instance, Arch G (1996 :38) refered to Axelrod (1968 , 1986) demonstrated that top-of-mind awareness (TOMA) of a brand is a sensitive and stable measure than can serve as an intermediate criterion for predicting brand-choice behaviour and brand-switching behaviour. Axelrod (1968) in Aech G(1996 ; 38) emphasized the needs for developing valid and reliable intermediate survey indicators of whether marketing and advertising influence product and brand choice behaviour because of the greater expense and time necessary for experiments to measure the impact of marketing and advertising actions on such behaviour. Haley et al, (1979 in Holden et al., 1992) postulated that brand awareness is more important than attitude. This nation was supported by Hauser (1978 in Holden et al ., 1992) who, using an information theoretic approach, reported that the probability of inclusion of the brand in the evoke ( recalled ) set accounts for more variation in brand choice thus brand attitude (Holden et al., 1992) Similar to Aaker ( 1991), Holden et al, (1992) also say that in the case of low involvement purchase, Brand recall may be reason enough to buy the brand ( that has been recalled Also a high degree of brand awareness is linked to higher sales due to the factor of â€Å" Social desirability† . Most people tend to behave according to the expectations of their social environment, even when it goes against their own opinion. If they are aware of the brand, they will have a tendency to buy it because it is the socially desirably thing to do ( Franzen et al., 2001). Copeland (1923: 287) talked about the benefits of brand awareness as follows â€Å" if the consumer’s previous acquaintance with the brand has been favourable, or if the manufacturer’s and dealer’s advertising has made favourable impression, other things being equal, the recognised brand will be selected from among other unrecognised brands†. Creating and Enhancing Brand Awareness Because consumers are bombarded everyday by more and more marketing messages, the challenge of creating awareness is considerable ( Aaker, 1996). The best approach for every brand to create and maintain brand awareness depends upon the context but the following do server as good points ( Aaker, 1991: 72) ; Be Different, Memorable: An Awareness message should provide a reason to be noticed and it should be memorable. There are many tacks that work but one key is to simply be different and unusual. Involve a slogan or jingle: A Slogan or a Jingle can make a big difference. Slogans like â€Å" it floats† or â€Å"Just do it† can help recall. For a product class like soap, it might be easier to come up with â€Å" it floats† and then Ivory, rather than to name Ivory directly. The link to the slogan might be stronger because it involves a product characterstic that can be visualised. Similarly, a jingle also is vey powerful awareness device. Symbol exposure: A symbol can play a major role in creating and maintaining awareness because it involves a visual image which is much easier to learn and to recall than a word or a phrase. Event Sponsorship: The primary role of most event sponsorship is to crate or maintain awareness. For example, the Benson and Hedges Cricket world cup, the Mercedes super 9- tennis tournament etc. It must be noted that the strongest brand are managed not for strategic awareness. It is one thing to be remembered ; it is quite another to be remembered for the right reason ( Aaker, 1996). Brand Loyalty Every company’s endeavour is to increase its brand loyalty in order to retain as many consumers as possible and it can be well assumed when we see that in 2000, the NDP Group, an international market research company in New York, conducted a survey that half of 20,000 respondents who described themselves as loyal to a company one year were no longer loyal the next. According to Frederic Rechheld, founder of Boston-based consulting firm Bain and Company, the average American company loses half of its customers every five years The next economy  By Elliott Ettenberg, NetLibrary, Inc (2001 ;34) The Brand Loyalty concept from Historical Perspective Contrary to what some people believe brand loyalty has existed for a long time in the realm of marketing. Copeland (1923) first introduced this concept around 80 years ago. He talks about three ascending stages of brand loyalty-consumer reorganisation ( when the product is recognised and bought from among a host of unrecognised products), consumer preference ( when pervious use or advertising has created a favourable preference in the consumer’s mind) and consumer insistence. The third stage is the pinnacle of brand loyalty where the consumer approaches the purchase of an article with the attitude that he will accept no substitute ( Copeland, 1923). Different Perceptions of Brand Loyalty â€Å" Brand Loyalty is the biased behavioural response expressed over time by some decision making unit with respect to one or more alternative brands out of a set of such brands†. More recently, the concept of loyalty have evolved further, encompassing a rich diversity of dimensions underlying the relationship that a customer may entertain with a brand. Martin et al.,(2004:217) referred Oliver’s statement in his book â€Å"Loyalty involves a favourable attitude towards the brand or organisation and positive re-purchase intentions. This can be further understood by investigating the element of loyalty. Cognitive Loyalty, in which the brand is cognitively compared with alternatives ( generally on functional grounds); Affective loyalty, in which the customer likes the brand or organisation as a result of previous satisfying experiences; Conative Loyalty, which reflects an intention to re-purchase; action loyalty, which relates to a deeply held commitment to rebuy or repatronise a preferred product/services consistently in future†¦ despite situational influences and marketing effort having the potential to cause switching behaviour’ ( Oliver 1999 cited in Martin et al.,(2004:217) In (2001) Chaudhuri and Holbroo stated couple of characteristic of brand loyalty â€Å"purchase loyalty and attitudinal loyalty mentioned by mentioned by Marion Maguire(2007), â€Å"Behavioural, or purchase loyalty consist of repeated purchase of the brand, whereas attitudinal brand loyalty includes a degree to the authors, purchase loyalty leads to greater market share because of higher levels of repeat purchase among their users†. It is found in the research that consumer’s perception about price of brands is not linked to brand loyalty. Another suggestion given by Dick and Basu (1994) says that â€Å"loyalty related marketing advantages, such as favourable word of mouth, which, in turn might increase market share†. But the findings of Dall’Olmo Riley et al. (1997) discerned that the attitudinal loyalty of many individual consumers appears to be fickle, According to them, various studies (by Achenbaum, 1982 repeat responses ranging about 50% in individual attitudinal answers (e.g. Taste Nice†) at two subsequent times, independent of the attitude scales used and from the length of the interval between interviews. Overall their interpretation was that specific attitudinal beliefs do not seem to be very strongly held but vary stochastically ( in random manner) (Dall’Olmo Riley et al., 1997) Rothschild (1987) at the university of Wisconsin, evaluated brand loyalty as encompassing only the behavioural aspect. He suggests that a psychological process that may explain brand loyalty is the one of behaviourism. The central concept of behavioural learning theory is that behaviour that is positively reinforced is likely to reoccur while that which is not reinforced, or punished, will be extinguished. Consumers become loyal to brands that are reinforcing to them: good decision are reinforces while poor decisions are not ( Rothschild, 1987). Dekimpe et al, (1997) also share Rothschild’s (1987) view and say that the approach is justified as behaviour is observable and hence easier to measure. Richard Elliott and Larry Precy quoted Franzen (1999) saying that loyalty brand users have a high degree of bonding with the brand and do not show much of an urge to switch. Its basically the bonding here meant was part of brand equity but it necessarily doesn’t need to be a function of brand equity. also if its contribution is there. Loyalty of a brand may be not habitual or it can be the high cost of switching to another brand. But when there is a genuine preferences involved it really contribute to brad equity. Quester et al, (2003) say that the behavioural approach to Brand Loyalty (taken by Rothschild, 1987 ; Dekimpe et al., 1997) many present an over simplistic view of the construct. Behavioural definitions are insufficient to explain how and why brand loyalty is developed and modified in consumers ( Dick and Basu, 1994 in Quester et al., 2003). Repeatedly buying a brand (behavioural approach) may reflect only the convenience inherent in the repetitive and habitual behaviour rather than any real commitment to the brand purchased (Quester et al., 2003). Habituals’ as termed by (Knox 1997) in Quester and Lim., 2003) display only behavipural loyalty and are very likely to switch brands if there routine purchases cycle is disturbed. â€Å"For ‘habituals’ and /or spurious loyals’. The brand is not closely tied to the consumers belief system, so they can be easily attracted by a competing brand that offers a better deal, a coupon etc. Behavioural definitions, therefore, essentially fail to distinguish between habitual or spurious loyalty and true ( or international) loyalty and it may be misleading to infer brand loyalty from merely overt purchase behaviour† (Quester et al.,2003 : 27). Fournier et al, (1997) have analysed the concept of brand loyalty in new light and have come up with some very interesting insight regarding the same. According to them, (1997) a major assumption while reaching the concept of Brand Loyalty is that loyalty process is a Black and white quality. This tendency towards dichotomy not only precludes attention to loyalty levels and type, but also blinds the researcher to the value that may exist in relationship classified as Disloyal ( Fournier et al. 1997) The research of eight brand loyal coffee drinkers by Fournier et al, (1997) revealed three intriguing loyal consumer-brand relationships namely martial commitment, falling in love consumers brand relationships namely martial commitment, falling in love and best friendship. Each of the above relationships share a strong and meaningful life theme connection that adds significant value in the consumer’s mind. On the other side, Fournier et al ., (1997) also found some rather piquant Non-Loyal Relationships. One of the interviewees shared meaningful relationships with not one, rather three coffee brands. Financial limitations prevented him from bonding exclusively to one brand. â€Å"By connecting at the level of kinship, a portfolio of brand candidates that at first glance appears as a set of interchangeable substitutes is revealed as a family of meaningful partners in the consumer-brand environment† (Fournier et al., 1997 :463). Fournier at al, (1997) say that the existing brand loyalty measurement process emphasizes share-of-use over the strength and character of brand relationship form. This approach is flawed in their opinion because â€Å"As with people expressions of loyalty need not be associated with exclusivity, but with emotional tenor and sincerity of intentions over time. Also, like normal human relationship, brand loyalty may sour overtime and subsequently change. In accepting the power of both Brand and Consumer to affect the relationship, loyalty is better appreciated as a dynamic phenomenon† (Fournier et al., 1997 :467). A consumer-based conception of loyalty that recognizes multi-brand relationlity and the delicacy of even a strongest of consumer-brand bonds seems more aligned with the realities of today’s variety-filled marketplace. (Firat and Venkatesh, 1995 in Fournier et al., 1997) The biggest criticism of the work of Fournier et al, (1997) is actually acknowledged by their own selves when

Minorities in Film a Biography on John Woo

John Woo, one of Hong Kong's most famous and respected action director, has long been a cult favourite in the United States. John Woo[1] is a Chinese film director known especially for the ballet-like violence in his movies. Woo's films are also often tragic and sentimental, engaging with themes of loyalty and honour and the place of the loner hero in a world full of corruption and violence.Woo was born in Guangzhou, China, in 1946, and moved to Hong Kong with his family at age four. He was educated at Matteo Ricci College and, at age nineteen, began making experimental films. In lieu of film school, Woo sought entry-level positions in the flourishing Hong Kong film industry.It is identified that the bread-and-butter of the film industry is the action movie. Every season audiences can expect to see car chases, gunfights and explosions, and studios can expect to see millions and millions of dollars in return. Though most viewers and critics see these movies as â€Å"fuzz† enter tainment, there is one director, John Woo that puts as much heart and soul into his â€Å"fluff† as any number of talented directors put into their â€Å"serious† movies.He is the best contemporary director of action films working anywhere in the world. One of Woo's most vivid childhood memories was seeing a man killed on his front steps. After his family was aided by a local church (who allowed Woo to attend school there), he envisioned a different kind of path. He wanted to become a priest, but the fathers saw something different in him. John Woo's illustrious career as a filmmaker began in Hong Kong, where he spent over two decades at the centre of a thriving film industry directing nearly 30 feature films. He was known primarily as a comedy specialist until the mid-1980s when he created a series of inspired romantic and violent gangster dramas that broke box-office records.John Woo turned to the movies, which were a refuge for him from his earliest memories. As a t eenager, with borrowed film equipment, Woo and several of his friends began experimenting with the items and by the time he was 22, Woo was making his own movies. In 1969 Woo landed his first â€Å"real† job as a script supervisor at Cathay Studios.In 1971, Woo moved to the prestigious Shaw Bros. studio, where he worked under the well-known martial-arts director Chang Cheh, who taught Woo many things (the most important being editing). By 1973, Woo started working on his first film as director, The Young Dragons, a fairly nondescript martial-arts film that also had a young Jackie Chan working on it (as the fighting coordinator).The film was thought to be too violent and was shelved for two years. Upon release of The Young Dragons and its success at the box office, Woo was hired by Golden Harvest, which, while viewed as a young upstart at the time, would go on to become one of Hong Kong's biggest studios in the mid-1980's.Woo went on to write and direct several more martial-ar ts films, including Hand of Death (1976) which not only starred Woo himself but also reunited him with Jackie Chan (who was in a starring capacity this time out) and featured future Hong Kong superstar Sammo Hung. Hand of Death was an important step in Woo's career and for introducing Woo's ideals about dictators and revolutionaries and brotherhood and loyalty (shown by Chan's character).After his initial kung-fu phase, he made a comedy called The Pilferer's Progress (1977) which became a huge success and gave Woo recognition as a comedy director. The one exception was Heroes Shed No Tears (1983), where Woo escaped from the kung-fu and comedy genres in an ultra-violent tale of mercenaries sent to capture a drug lord deep inside Vietnam. He has called it his â€Å"first real movie†.There is something deeper to the obvious joy Woo finds in filmmaking and the intense bonds fostered on the film set. More important to Woo than being applauded for his maverick style, is the pleasur e in collaboration with his crew and actors, the thrill of making movies and paying tribute to a lost chapter in American historyWoo discussed his own reasons behind making the movie: Comedies and Kung Fu films dominated Hong Kong cinema in the mid-eighties. Other genres rarely got the support of the studio and the audience. And also, right before ‘A Better Tomorrow,' he shot two films in Taiwan, that were commercially unsuccessful; so it seemed quite impossible for him to make the films. He felt that Hong Kong at that time was seriously lacking in moral values. So he wanted to make an uplifting film to highlight the lost traditional values, including the values of family, friendship, tolerance etc.and Hark continued to team together and produced some of the landmark titles of the â€Å"heroic bloodshed† genre, which combined Scoresian-style relationships and themes, such as friendship and loyalty, with Peckinpah-style â€Å"ultraviolence.†ABT† also (probab ly permanently) linked Woo with leading man Chow Yun-Fat. With the success of ABT, He eventually moved on to create Just Heroes (1987) as a sort of benefit project for his aging mentor Chang Cheh.The film, a loose retelling of Shakespeare's King Lear set within a Triad â€Å"family,† was actually a joint project between Woo and his friend Wu Ma (who was having financial troubles at the time). As such, even though it features big Hong Kong stars such as Danny Lee and Woo's now-typical explosive gunfight sequences, the film lacked the focus of ABT and was a disappointment for Woo. He did enjoy some aspects of filming Just Heroes. After Just Heroes, Woo struggled to find another project.He wanted to stay away from ABT, but the film's popularity (teenagers took to dressing like Mark Gor, something which got Woo in trouble with politicians, who accused him of glorifying the Triad lifestyle) and Tsui Hark's constant prodding eventually convinced Woo to do the sequel. â€Å"ABT2â⠂¬  features a high-powered finale with one of the highest body counts per minute recorded on film and was another huge hit for Woo. However, things behind the scenes were not so rosy.Woo felt the characters in ABT were under-developed and were against any changes. Despite its status now as a classic, The Killer (which is Woo's favourite movie, since he feels that the characters are fully developed) flopped in Hong Kong. Many people thought the film is too serious and just not very â€Å"fun† to watch. However, Woo was gaining international recognition. At the age of 44, his contemporaries were calling Woo a â€Å"wunderkind† and he finally started to think of him as a success.After a series of disputes over â€Å"A Better Tomorrow III†, Woo and Hark parted ways. After being virtually blackballed from most of the major studios, Woo eventually formed his own production company with his new business partner Terence Chang.Woo used his new company to produce his ve rsion of the â€Å"ABTIII† script, which he reworked into â€Å"Bullet in the Head†. BITH is, by Woo's own account, his most personal film to date. While BITH is regarded as one of Woo's best films, again the local audience didn't like it.This time, the intense riot scenes were just too much for a people still reeling from the Tiannemen Square Massacre. Woo was forced to shoot another ending only a few official copies of Woo's original vision survive today. Woo's next film was 1991's Once a Thief, a breezy comedy/action/romance.While not a huge hit, Once a Thief did well enough at the box office to gain Woo funding for his next movie, â€Å"Hard-Boiled† (1992). Again though, Hard-Boiled was not popular with the Hong Kong people. Many felt Woo was becoming too dark and over-the-top, however, as with Woo's previous films, Hard-Boiled has become known as a classic in the action genre, both in Hong Kong and around the world.After attracting Hollywood's attention[2], John Woo was invited by Universal to direct the Jean-Claude Van Damme vehicle Hard Target in 1993. Woo clashed with the studio heads many times during the making of the picture, mostly due to the fact that his initial edits failed to produce a â€Å"R† rated picture.Eventually, Hard Target was taken out of Woo's hands and chopped down by the studio itself (after even â€Å"the muscles from Brussels† Van Damme had a shot in editing the film) to produce a â€Å"suitable† cut. In 1996, after receiving CineAsia's prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award, he finished working on Broken Arrow, which teamed him with American pop icon John Travolta.Face/Off (1997), which would go on to surpass the â€Å"hit† mark for American movies film awards, winning the â€Å"Best On-Screen Duo† and â€Å"Best Action Sequence† at the 1997 MTV Movie Awards.   He has directed two pilots for television, John Woo's Once a Thief (based on the Hong Kong movie) and Bla ckjack, and has become an executive producer, lending his name to The Replacement Killers (which was Chow Yun-Fat's American debut) and The Big Hit.The influence of Woo's films is quite easy to see, especially in his native Hong Kong; by 1988. In western countries such as America, the effects were more subtle. For example, the â€Å"mindless killing machine† personified by John Rambo (Sylvester Stallone) in 1985's Rambo.The trend continues today; very rarely do we see a hero in American films such as Clint Eastwood's â€Å"Dirty† Harry Callahan (a virtual icon for 1970's and 80's American action movies) who kill with no remorse.The Killer as one of his favourite movies. In fact, the â€Å"black suits with skinny ties look† popularized by Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction was first used in Woo's A Better Tomorrow II (as an interesting side note, two characters in the Tarantino-scripted film True Romance are watching ABTII on television during one scene in the movie).Woo is also known for the â€Å"Mexican standoff,† where one or more characters have a â€Å"dead lock† on one another. Woo's innovative editing techniques, such as the use of â€Å"wipes† and freeze-frames (which were considered by many American editors to be â€Å"hokey† and â€Å"too TV†) have also become mainstays of American action cinema, as has Woo's use of slow-motion to add dramatics to his action sequences. It is because of all of these influences that many consider John Woo to be an auteur.John Woo, after many years of hard work, has become known as the world's best action film directors. His action sequences have become the stuff of legend and are now the basis from which all other action movies are judged. More importantly, along with the bloodshed, Woo has proven that he can create real characters with real emotions that the audience can sympathize with. Perhaps that is his greatest talent, and perhaps that is why he wil l become known as an auteur in the years to come.References1) Bordwell, David and Thompson, Kristin. Film Art: An Introduction. McGraw-Hill, New York, 1994; pp.492-495.2) Brieglieb, Volker. hardboiled.de. Internet document. Found at: http://www.hardboiled.de/man.Cinema of Vengeance, directed by Toby Russell. Xenon Home Video, England, 1994.3)Gaschler, Thomas. E-mail conversations conducted with the author, September 2000.Hard Boiled, DVD commentary and notes from John Woo and Terence Chang. Criterion, United States, 1998.4)Hoover, Michael and Odham-Stokes, Lisa. City on Fire: Hong Kong Cinema. Verso, New York, 1999; pp. 38-64[1] John Woo's illustrious career as a filmmaker began in Hong Kong, where he spent over two decades at the centre of a thriving film industry directing nearly 30 feature films. He was known primarily as a comedy specialist until the mid-1980s when he created a series of inspired romantic and violent gangster dramas that broke box-office records.[2]   John Woo made his reputation as an action film director in Hong Kong during the 1980s, but since 1992 has worked in Hollywood directing big-budget thrillers such as Face/Off (1997, with John Travolta and Nicolas Cage) and Mission Impossible.

Essay: Obesity Essay

How many times a day do you see an obese person walking down the street? And how often do you see them exercising to overcome their problem? Obesity is one of the biggest problems in the United States due to people not knowing how to eat right, depression and lack of exercise. To begin with, Americans are not very open minded on the idea of healthy eating, they are not well educated on the topic. They think that eating healthy is just eating salad or not eating anything at all, when in reality, that just makes the problem worse because it would be like trying to keep a boat from sinking by throwing rocks at it, you’re just making it worse. Eating right consists of different types f foods: proteins, which are meat and/or chicken and others, fruits and veggies which are the salads, and grains which would be the rice and the beans. Secondly there is another common reason, depression. Depression tends to lead to obesity because people start eating with their minds and eyes instead of their stomachs. In the United States there are many stressed people, from working too much, to having to many kids, and even from having too many pets. Stress leads to depression; therefore from having to much stress in the U.S, we have a large number of obese Americans. Calming yourself and meditating is a very good way to disconnect for some time, and just relax. The third and most common reason for obesity is lack of exercise. I remember when I was 10, I was slowly becoming obese, and little by little I would start eating more and more, until it got to the point that I was considered obese. I was like that for a few months until I got tired of it and started exercising, by the time that I was 13 I was healthy and no longer obese. By saying exercise, it does not mean that you have to work out 24/7, it just means to take 60mins, or if not more, of your day off to do any type of exercise. To sum it all up, Obesity rates in the U.S keep growing for various reasons such as not knowing how to eat right, depression, and lack of exercise.  Eating right and exercising is not too much to do, anyone can do it, you do not need a manual or instructions. Overcoming obesity might be hard, but it is definitely not impossible.

Persuasive Analysis Charlie And The Chocolate Factory

Introduction. Charlie and the chocolate factory is quite a popular novel, and due to its popularity, it was made into a movie in 2005.Since then it has been used to teach kids how to write persuasive essays.Now aside from the movie information, I need to say what form of storytelling is better and keeps us more entertained along with the fact this is my opinion.So we can get this persuasive essay train rolling.So after analyzing the film and the novel I have decided that the novel keeps us more engaged, entertained and is more useful to experience.So in that case here are some reasons why. First Body paragraph My first reason that the novel is better than the film.Would be that the novel is a lot more descriptive than the film.For†¦show more content†¦Second body paragraph. My second reason for liking the novel better than the film is.The novel allows you to create an image in your head.So because of that, the novel would let allow you to get a better experience and last you a bit longer to read and process.Therefore it would be more engaging to experience.For example: When we are introduced to the Oompa Loompas the movie portrays them with a reddish plastic suit with some type of logo on the front.(Here is a link to a photo) and because you can’t think of another image when youre watching the film that is all youre stuck with, just that simple image.But on the other hand, when you read the novel Roald Dahl gives a valid description of the Oompa Loompa and when describing described the Oompa Loompa as having:†Golden brown hair†,†Rosy white cheeks† and a â€Å"deerskin slung over his shoulder.†Now when we read this we can imagine whatever we want(Within the confinements of the authors descriptions of course).When yo u read a novel you are also challenging your brain to make sense of what the author has put down.For example, when you are reading about hypnotism or any other complicated subject, Things just happen there is no explanation or reason why it happens(Like the Oompa Loompas dress code) you just have to piece together reasons and explanations in your mind.Which is much healthier than justShow MoreRelatedFeminine Mystique12173 Words   |  49 Pageswomen that soared but also the quality of their jobs. 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