Friday, 30 September 2011

Gender Essay

Overall the gender representation that is constructed in this sequence conforms to stereotypes;  placing the men in the more powerful roles and objectify the females (L Mulvey 1964)

At the very beginning of the scene  an establishment shot is shown to introduce the scene and show the audience where the location is. The female character walks into an expensive  shop this is shown by an over the shoulder shot behind the male shop assistant to show his authority and importance over the female character as she almost sleeks in unnoticed. However when the second male characters enters the shop further along in the narrative, a pan shot is used up and down  on him  to show his power in comparison to the women as he is immediately introduced into the scene which could suggest his role is more important than the females. The scene first shows two binary oppositions of women as there is the older woman who comes into the shop.  The shot used is a high angled shot onto the women to show her vulnerability and weakness against the male shop assistant therefore stereotyping that men are more powerful than women and showing her ‘lower’ social class. In addition to this her clothes connote her social status and she and how she differs to the other female character that portrays a stereotypical blonde. The blonde character is well suited in dark black clothes that can reflect on her personality showing that she may be feisty and ‘dark’. Furthermore her pronunciation is ‘posh’ and pronounced English to suggest she is from a high social class and portrays the perfect image of a ‘Mulvey’ woman.
The shop assistant comes across as very camp and fits into a stereotypical homosexual group. Both his clothing and mode of address help to portray his sexuality. The blonde female’s ring is a key item for the narrative so the first shot of it is an eye line close up to show its importance and the females social status. As the narrative develops other scenes begin with characters from different places. Parallel editing is used to switch from scene to scene to show that each thing is happening at the same time. The rest of the scenes all include male characters and no female to suggest a dominance of the male role. In addition to this the proximity of the two men sitting at the bar is an eye line mid shot which helps to show their emotions and facial expressions.

Both digetic and non-digetic sounds are used in the sequence. In the third scene a man is fixing a bomb therefore not showing some aspects of verisimilitude. A digetic sound of an alarm is then used to startle the audience and the character. The alarm could be seen as a connotation of warning and trouble. In addition to this the male character is using technical equipment to use in the hustle whereas the female character has been used to seduce the shop assistant with her looks and ‘ditzy’ personality to do her part of the hustle. Therefore this shows the stereotypical female character being used as an object or a distraction to the male characters. As the narrative develops and the ring is lost non-digetic sound is used to build up tension and suspense. The female character is flustered and panicked as she exclaims 'my husband is going to kill me' this shows signs of gender representation and that the male is more powerful and dominates over the female character.

Wednesday, 28 September 2011

Media Terminology

Semiotics - The science of signs ( Roland Barthes 1964) - (Always refer to him)

Denotation - What it actually is  E.g. Rose = Flower

Connotation - Meanings associated with things E.g. Rose = love, desire, romance. they way people have been brought up will have a massive effect on people's connotations.
(Cannotes)

Verismilitude - Realism

Proximity - Where they are on the screen.

Diegetic - Sounds that are natural and heard by the characters aswell

Non - diegetic - Sounds that are put in during editing e.g. background music

Mode of Address - The way the character speaks

Binary Oppostions - complete oppostites e.g. rich, poor, night, day.

Micro Analysis

Mise-en-scene
Clothing
Props
Hair & Make up
Lighting
Location
Sound accents, music sound effects
Editing
Camera Angles, movement and position

Macro Analysis - Key Media Concepts

Narrative
Representation
Audience
Genre

Tuesday, 27 September 2011

Stereotyipical Characters

A perfect example of a stereotypical female character in a TV Drama is Naomi Clarke from the American programme 90210.

The character Naomi portrays a girl with a 'perfect' image. She always has a full face of imaculate make-up. In addition to this her personality can vary from feisty and determined to weak and dependant on the male characters. In this picture it shows her revealing alot of skin and the use of light makes her look radient and glowing therefore portraying the idea to viewers that all girls should always look glammed up and 'beautiful'.
It also influences girls and making them believe that they have   look and act like these  stereotypical characters to be noticed
   by men.




An example of a stereotypical male character is 'Dodger' from the British TV Drama/soap 'Hollyoaks'. He portrays a young man probably in his early 20's. Both his appearance and attitude can be seen as very stereotypical. Firstly he has a strong body with 'rippling' biceps and a six pack which portrays an image of every girls dream man. In addition to this his attitude is 'bad boy' as he as a character is a player and confident that he can win the 'pretty' stereotyped girls. Frequently in TV dramas the 'sexy' characters are the ones that have a reputation and can have an influence on viewers as they expect men to look or behave like this. It can also influence men to try and be like these stereotypical characters. 





Similarities between me and a character


Amy Barnes - Hollyoaks

In terms of looks I think I am nothing like my chosen character as she has long blonde hair and blue eyes whereas I have quite short brown hair and green eyes. However I think that in some aspects my personality is similar becuase at times she can come across as shy and lacking confidence which I can too. Although similarly to me when she is in a friendly environment with people she knows she 'blossoms' out and becomes more confident and talkative. In addition to this she is good hearted, kind and caring as she regualry puts others before herself. Therefore in some ways I think we are similar as I try to put others before me. 




Monday, 26 September 2011

Gender Representation (Female)

Laura Mulvey - Male Gaze

Influenced by Freud and Jacques Lucan, Mulvey sees the representation of women in film & literature ( and therefore in society in general) as being dominated by a male point of view. Her belief is that the world is a patriachy and that men have the 'ative' roles and women are 'passive'

Traditionlly

  • Men play active roles which drive the narrative
  • Women play passive roles and are seen as erotic objects which slow the narrative.
  • Men far outnumber women.
Stereotypes

  • Bimbo
  • Females physical attraction such as figure and breasts overpower the male.
  • Easy
  • Housewife
  • Mother
  • Intelligent yet willing to settle down.

Male Gaze

  • Two distinct modes of the male gaze of this era voyeuristic and fetishistic
  • Mulvey argued that women were given to character types - sexually active female and powerless female.
  • Films presented images of women that were produced simply for the gratification of male viewers.

Importance?

Women are far more likely to be shown as:
  • Frightened
  • In need of protection and direction
  • offering support to the male lead character(s)
  • Not dependent or self driven
  • Generally weaker
  • Still objectified sexually.
" Women in any fully human form, have almost completely been left out of film"  L Mulvey

As womens roles change so does the media representation. still objectified but also likely to be ....

  • Career driven
  • Intelligent
  • Confident
  • Empowered
  • Able (violent)
 Misogony - The contempt or hatred of women and girls.

Overview of Exam

Overview of Exam

2 hours ( inlcuding 30 minuites for viewing and making notes on the moving image extract; which will be watched four times.)

Questions - Candidates are required to answer two compulsory questions. the unit is marked out a total of 100 with each question marked out of 50.

There are two sections to the paper:

Section A - Textual analysis and reprsentaion (50 marks)
Section B - Instiutions and audiences (50 marks)

Mise en scene - Everything in the scene

  • Clothing
  • Props
  • Lighting
  • Setting/location
  • Make up
  • Hair
Section A

Area of focus:

  • Camera angle, shot, movement and composition
  • Mise-en-scene
  • Editing
  • Sound

Areas of represntation:

  • Gender
  • Age
  • Ethnicity
  • Sexuality
  • Class and Status
  • Physical ability/disability
  • Regional identity


Marking Criteria

Explanation (20 marks)
Use of examples (20 marks)
Use of terminology (10 marks)

Friday, 23 September 2011

Representation

Representation of Male and Female


Masculine
Feminine
Tall
Petite
Independent
Organised
Easy going
Stubborn
Patemal
Maternal
Sporty
Fashionable
Courageous
Sociable
Proud
Caring


Objects 

Masculine
Feminine
Football
Make up
iPod
Mobile
Trainers
High heels
Sports
Shopping
Beer
Wine
Mechanic
Beautician
Aftershave
Perfume


Representation in the Media

By definition, all media texts are re-presentations of reality. This means that they are intentionally composed, lit, written, framed, cropped, captioned, branded, targeted and censored by their producers, and that they are entirely artificial versions of the reality we perceive around us. When studying the media it is vital to remember this - every media form, from a home video to a glossy magazine, is a representation of some one's concept of existence, codified into a series of signs and symbols which can be read by an audience. However, it is important to note that without the media, our perception of reality would be very limited, and that we, as an audience, need these artificial texts to mediate our view of the world, in other words we need the media to make sense of reality. Therefore representation is a fluid, two-way process: producers position a text somewhere in relation to reality and audiences assess a text on its relationship to reality.



Stuart Hall (1950)

Created this audience theory -  ENCODE & DECODE media want us to agree with the majority of things we see. 'Preferred'
For example with Yorkie bars, the advert stating not for girls was put across in a certain 'preferred' way therefore they rebel and decide to buy it therefore Yorkie's 'preferred' idea worked.


In order to fully appriciate the part representation plays in a media text you must consider:

  • Who produced it?
  • What/who is represented in the text?
  • How is that thing represented?
  • Why was this particular representation (this shot, framed from this angle, this story phrased in these terms ect.) selected, and what might the alternatives have been?
  • What frame of reference does the audience use when understaning the representation?

Representation of women across all media tend to highlight the following:

  • Beauty (within narrow conventions)
  • Size/Physique
  • Sexuality
  • Emotional (as opposed to intellectual) dealings
  • Relationships (as opposed to independence/freedom)

Representation of Men.

Masculinity is a concept that is made up of more rigid stereotypes than femininity. Representations of men across all media tend to focus on the following:

  • Strength (physical and intellectual)
  • Power
  • Sexual attractiveness
  • Physique
  • Independence (of thought/ action)

Wednesday, 21 September 2011

AS Overview

Term 1a
G322: Key media concepts – Section A: Textual analysis and representation of TV Drama.
Term 1b
G322: Key media concepts – section B: Institutions and audiences: Music/ video games
Term 2a
G321: Foundation portfolio – Magazine
Term 2b
G321: Foundation portfolio – Magazine
Term 3a
G321: Foundation portfolio – Magazine
(A2) Term 3b
G324:
A2 advanced portfolio – TBC

Monday, 19 September 2011

Production Rules

180 degree rule

In film making, the 180° rule is a basic guideline that states that two characters (or other elements) in the same scene should always have the same left/right relationship to each other. If the camera passes over the imaginary axis connecting the two subjects, it is called crossing the line. The new shot, from the opposite side, is known as a reverse angle.



Match on Action

When the camera moves to follow a particular action, for example somebody being filmed inside about to open the door to leave and then moving the camera outside to film the person walking outside. The camera moves in order to keep the action fluent.

Continuity Editing

Continuity editing is the predominant style of editing in narrative cinema and television. The purpose of continuity editing is to smooth over th  discontinuity of the editing process and to make the shots look more realistic. E.g. If somone has a broken left arm make sure that the sling is always placed on the left to avoid conintuity.


Shot Reverse Shot

Ability to view dialogue between two people without speech e.g. facial expressions/ winks. The body language adds more emotion into the scene and can enhance feelings or moods.


Eye Line Match

Seeing what the character sees and following their sight. E.g. a ball flying through the air - the camera shows a close up of the characters face and eyes following the flying object, then it switches to the actual flying object. This shot is shown from the perspective of the character to show the audeince exactly what they see. Therefore making them feel more involved.

TV Drama Definition

TV dramas are scripted programmes based on reality. Sometimes the narratives are very extrememe circumstastances although it is still possible to happen. Most TV dramas are continuous as the carry a storyline on into the next episode. Frequently at the end of each episode it is left on a cliff hanger leaving the viewer wondering and intruiged to watch the next episode.



TV Dramas
Genre
Narrative (Storyline)
Channel
Time
Desperate House Wives
Family
Affairs, back stabbers
E4
9:00 pm
90210
Teen Drama
College students, sexuality, Drug abuse.
E4
9:00 pm
Waterloo Road
Teen Drama
School life issues
BBC 1
8:00 pm
Skins
Teen Drama
Adolescence
E4
10:00 pm
One Tree Hill
Teen Drama
Adolescence
E4
10:00 pm
Gossip Girl
Teen Drama
Adolescence

 
E4
9:00 pm
Wild at Heart
Family
Families, relationships
ITV1
6:00 pm
Downton Abbey
Period Drama
War and social standing
BBC 1
9:00 pm
Misfits
Teen Drama
Comedy, People doing community service with super powers.
E4
10:00 pm
Hollyoaks
Soap
Murders, sexuality, Love money, school life
Channel 4
6:30
Eastenders
Soap
Decpetion, Love, based on reality
BBC 1
8:00 pm
Coronation Street
Soap
Decpetion, Love, based on reality
ITV1
7:30 and 8:30pm
Emmerdale
Soap
Decpetion, Love, based on reality

ITV1
7:00 pm
Holby City
Medical Drama
drama based in a hospital, following everyday lives of doctors and their problems in life. Based on reality
BBC 1

6:00 pm
Grey’s Anatomy
Medical Drama
drama based in a hospital, following everyday lives of doctors and their problems in life. Based on reality

Living
10:00 pm

Sunday, 18 September 2011

Storyboards

Producing a Storyboard 


A sequence of rough sketches, created by an illustrator to show important major changes of action or plot in a scene.  The main reason for storyboarding is to communicate your vision and idea  of the film to a crew who will be working under your direction. For them to understand what you’re trying to achieve is film.

The drawings don't have to be large, ideally  4-6  can fit on a on a page of A4 paper. Story boarders should leave space under each drawing box to write down details of the shot, for example details of location, captions and a brief description of the action that is happening.




Include things in the captions such as:

  • Who - Professionals usually create storyboards. Anyone who can visualize a story can create a storyboard, one that can be edited by an expert.
  • What - A storyboard is a series of illustrations detailing what a film, an animation, a game or a multimedia project will look like when completed. Storyboards can be hand drawn or made digitally using computer graphics.
  • Why - Storyboards are easier and faster to read than scripts. Because they are closest to a finished project. With a storyboard directors and project leaders can maintain creative control over the final product.
  • Where -  In cartoon animation, storyboards are very detailed. They contain information about timing, camera shots and audio tracks. In film and commercials, storyboards are less detailed, giving directors more opportunity to make changes during production.