Production Budget Analysis

The production budget for I, Daniel Blake (2016) has not been publicly disclosed.

CAST: Dave Johns, Hayley Squires, Briana Shann, Dylan McKiernan, Kate Rutter, Sharon Percy DIRECTOR: Ken Loach CINEMATOGRAPHY: Robbie Ryan MUSIC: George Fenton PRODUCTION: Sixteen Films, Why Not Productions, Wild Bunch, BBC Film, Les Films du Fleuve, France 2 Cinéma, BFI

Box Office Performance

I, Daniel Blake earned $15,793,051 in worldwide box office revenue.

Profitability Assessment

Insufficient publicly available data to assess profitability.

INDUSTRY IMPACT

In 2017, Dave Johns took a solo show to the Edinburgh Fringe: I, Filum Star chronicled how Johns's life had changed since the success of the film, and received critical acclaim, playing to sold out rooms throughout the run. In 2019, he toured a new show, From Byker to the BAFTAs, with 24 dates from August until November that year.

A stand-up comedy show titled I, Tom Mayhew was performed at the Edinburgh Fringe in August 2019. The stand-up comedian Tom Mayhew had previously been on benefits for over three years in "austerity Britain" and was inspired to write the show after watching the film. The show was critically acclaimed, with it transferring to a sold-out run at the Soho Theatre in January 2020.

Dave Johns wrote a stage version updated to the 2021/2022 cost of living crisis, which was set to be premiered at the Northern Stage, Newcastle upon Tyne in May 2023. Following this sold-out run, it is touring throughout the rest of the year.

PRODUCTION NOTES

▸ Production

Principal photography began in October 2015 in Newcastle upon Tyne and the surrounding area. The film was produced by Rebecca O'Brien for Sixteen Films, Why Not Productions and Wild Bunch with the support of the British Film Institute and BBC Films.

O'Brien initially approached Channel 4's film division for funding. After a delay, O'Brien said she was told by Channel 4 that funding was not available as "we're already covering the area because we're doing Benefits Street", a programme that many saw as demonising people on state welfare.

▸ Marketing & Release

I, Daniel Blake used a variety of marketing strategies to make sure Ken Loach's points got across to his targeted audience and that the film reached a wider audience, including disruptive marketing, street displays and newspaper inclusions. Ken Loach worked with the Trinity Mirror through the use of the editorial column of The Mirror and each newspaper had the "I" changed to reflect the main font of the film.

The Trinity Mirror also provided 10,000 free tickets to see the movie as announced in one of their newspapers and used Daniel Blake as the masthead for its papers. The House of Commons and other major buildings in London had projections of Daniel Blake's end speech placed onto the outside walls as part of its "Guerrilla Marketing Campaign".

Ken Loach retweeted various tweets promoting the film and even started a hashtag #WeAreAllDanielBlake which can mostly be found on the official I, Daniel Blake Twitter page.

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

Awards Won: ★ European University Film Award — Ken Loach (29th European Film Awards) ★ Palme d'Or ★ Prix du public

Nominations: ○ European Film Award for Best Actor (29th European Film Awards) ○ European Film Award for Best Film (29th European Film Awards) ○ European University Film Award (29th European Film Awards) ○ European Film Award for Best Screenwriter (29th European Film Awards) ○ European Film Award for Best Director (29th European Film Awards)

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CRITICAL RECEPTION

I, Daniel Blake is Loach's biggest success at the UK box office. On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 92%, based on 184 reviews, with an average rating of 8.01/10. The site's consensus reads: "I, Daniel Blake marks yet another well-told chapter in director Ken Loach's powerfully populist filmography." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 78 out of 100, based on 31 critics, indicating "generally favourable reviews".

Writing in the Observer, Mark Kermode gave the film five stars.