visual influences

discuss the audience appeal of your 3 main texts? (30)

Lost

Lost is a mainstream text that targets a mainstream audience

Non-liniers narrative is used in a mainstream media texts particularly in lost because it is a way of giving extra information to the viewer allowing them to be passive because they don’t have work things out for themselves. In the opening scene Kate is talking to jessy about when they were on the plain, but instead of us just hearing what he has to say about it, which is a lie anyway, we see the scene on the plain with him hiding from the air hostess as he takes drugs in the bath room, the non-linier narrative makes the audience feel important because they know more than the characters.

Score is used in mainstream texts because it tells the audience what to feel. The score allows the audience to be passive because they don’t have to think about the feelings of the characters. This would appeal to a mainstream audience because they want something they can watch without paying attention to. When a group of the lost characters decides to take the radio up to the top of a mountain the score is used to indicate a quest, it sounds like music from Indiana Jones, this would engage the audience because they might think that something interesting is going to happen on the journey.

Enigma codes are used in mainstream media texts because they are grabbing the audience’s attention and making them want to carry on watching. Lost uses a lot of enigma codes so that the audience stays engaged. In one scene a young boy is in the jungle looking for his dog and he sees some on the floor, the music goes tense and dangerous, then he sees that they are handcuffs so some of the tension is released, but then who did it? And the tension builds again. There are so many enigma codeds used in lost because it is on ABC which is a big American channel with lots of breaks and they need to keep people interested.

Mad men

Mad men is a high brow text that targets a niche audience         

The Cinematography in mad men would appeal to a niche audience because they would be looking deeper than the storyline. Mad Men was made by Mathew Weiner for AMC which is a channel that you have to pay for, this means that the audience would want more for their money, so the cinematography is more for their money because Mathew Weiner wanted quality over quantity of money brought in from the series, this means that they wanted their audience to gain gratification from there carefully thought out lighting and camera angles, an example of this is when penny and Don are in dons office and she tells him that she is leaving to company, she is standing over him as he begs her not to leave, the way they this final scene with the two of them is put together is to show the changing attitudes to women in the workplace, and this is shown thought the power that is portrayed in this scene and is enhanced by the cinematography.

The historical content in mad Men would appeal accuracy in the historical content would appeal to a more niche audience because not everyone would understand whey certain things are happening in the series unless they know about that period of time. The way men react to Joanne, in this series the men swoon over her and she uses her sexuality and looks to get ahead when she sleeps with a business man to get the company a contract and herself a promotion, a more passive audience might not understand that Joanne was considered pretty in the 1950s because she was curvaceous, and resembled Marylyn Monroe. A passive audience might not make the connections with the 1950s so they would not see why she is considered beautiful and an active audience would make their connections.

Peaky blinders

Peaky blinders is a drama made by BBC 2 that targets both mainstream and niche audiences

The mise –en scene and iconography would attract a more niche audience because they would be paying attention to how accurate the clothing and setting is, they would notice and appreciate the smallest detail because they would know that no expense has been spared on the mall seemingly insignificant things, such as the pin on collar that Tommy Shelby wears. Or the spike that goes with the fire when Aunt Polly tries to save Aida’s letter from the fire. A niche audience would also pay attention to the digetic sounds in the scenes. When the scene is outside you can hear sounds coming from the factories, there aren’t important to the main story line but they are to the setting, because this shows that they are in Birmingham when it was an industrial capital.

Sound track the soundtrack in peaky blinders is largely compiled of the white stripes; this would attract a mainstream audience because they are a well known duo so a lot of people would know the music and might be able to relate to it because it is something that appeals to them. Also the music is used to create excitement in the audience because it is used cleverly. There s a complete silence in a scene when the police are all lining up to rade houses, then as the first door in banged on the music starts, this excites the audience and sends them in to a frenzy so that they are griped by the scene

Famous cast in peaky blinders would attract a more mainstream audience because people would see an actor or actress they like and know does a good performance and they would want to watch it to see them. A well known actor in peaky blinders is killian Murphy, he would attract audiences who have also seen him in Hollywood films such as batman and inception and both texts had mass audiences which could potentially follow him to peaky blinders for his acting skills and his looks.

How have people responded to mad men?

• people have made character profiles and analysed them on youtube 
• Mad men  fan sites
• won 68 awards
• merchendice- T-Shirts, mirrors, bobbly heads, hip flask, clocks posters
• other writers who like the program have housed it to influence there programs
• 
  

Most media texts target a wide range of audiences 'how true is this to your chosen text'.

Lost is a mainstream text this means the director JJ Abrams target a wide rainge of audiences both passive and active.

A narrative device that is used in lost is enigma codes. An enigma code controls what the audience sees and knows, this device is used to keep the audience hooked as some information is kept from then. An example of this is when they see a polar bear. Kate says "guys this isn't gust a bear,its a polar bear." then boon says that can't be a polar bear" and the rest say back to him its a polar bear. the is creating an enigma code because they are in a jungle and polar bears live in the north pole.
the uses of enigma codes keeps the audience hooked because they want to know what is happening which means that they will keep watching to find out.



Another narrative convention that lost uses is the use of a score. score is music that has been specially written to accompany the text to help the audience to




another convention that lost uses to appeal to a mainstream audience is the use of an ensemble cast. this is when the cast has a wide variation in there age, race, gender and nationality.
an example of this is when they find our

My Targets

To improve my grade i have to:

. gather all of my notes for the different industries and text that i am analysing so that it is easier to revise.

. i need to keep up with the workload that has been set, if i don't finish it in lesson i need to spend time catching up.

.i need to be more punctual to lessons because i sometimes miss the start and that is as important as the rest.

. when i am doing independent study i need to stay focused, especially if i am on the computer.

Fish Tank genre analysis.

How stereotypical is my chosen text to its genre?

The scene i will be analysing is shortly after Conner takes the family to the pond. the scene is when a woman comes to the house to tell Mia about a school that she has been accepted in to, but Mia doesn't want to talk so she runs out of the house and gos to a internet cafe where she watches videos of dancers. as she goes to leave she is confronted be some girls from a previous scene, and she meets them with hostility. 

The social realism genre often contains long editing, this is shone is fish tank when Mia is in bed, there is nearly 27 seconds of her just lying there. this is used it the social realism genre to make the film scheme more real, it shoes how slow pace life really is.

Another thing that is often in the genre is over the camera shots, to show life from the point of view of someone, often the main protagonist. this is scene in fish take when carrie is talking to Mia about the school. You see carrie and the living room over mias shoulder. this is used it the social realism genre so that you see the world through the persons eyes, and it helps you to gain empathy as you see everything from the is point of view.  

social realism genre conventions

Character roles
The protagonist is usually a typical working class hero, who strives for a better life, better than the one which they have is the beginning of the film.

Usually a non-nuclear, often dysfunctional or broken family.

Representation- it is widely agreed by critics of the genre that social realism has represented females is a negative light. often representing them as dependant on men.


Narrative themes 
Social realism films represent real life and its difficulties.

The narrative follows the lives of niche underrepresented groups of people usually through headship, struggle or social injustice.

The narrative themes are ones that are typically under discussed and are either not or not entirely expected in society.

Typical narrative themes include issues such as the so called underclass, underage pregnancy, phedophilia, depression homosexuality and abortion.


Technical conventions
-Digetic sound
-Shallow depth of field
-hand held camera work
-Natural lighting
-Point of View (pov)
-linear narrative
-Closeups
-simple cuts

Mise en scene & Iconography
-real unvarnished, typical working class locations
-factories, council houses, terraced streets or other traditional locations
-alcohol, drugs cigarettes
graffiti filled run down locations
so called working class fashions that connotate certain subcultures and stereotypes

Genre conventions of Film Noir

film noir was a popular genre in the 1940's and 50's. after world war 2 and during the cold war. because of this the main protagonists are often damaged, eater physically or mentally like the men would have been after they had fort in the war.

Film noir conventions catégories.

character roles 
femme fetal
cynical protagonists
corrupt power

mis-en scene and iconography
dark side walks

narrative themes
mis-trust
paranoia
melancholy
bleakness and depression
1950s politics
effects of waiting for cold war
consequences of war

technical conventions and codes
high contrast lighting
low key lighting
voice overs
shadows cast by venetian blinds
non-linier narrative
first person voice overs

Most texts today mix genres, how true is this of your 3 main texts? (30 marks)

District 9

District 9 is a typical post modern film, because it mixes genres, the film uses both sci-fi and documentary style conventions.

One convention of the sic-fi genre is having an underlying meaning, District 9 is actually about the apartheid, and how black and white people where separated.

an example of the in the film, is a short sequence of editing where it shows shots of wikus and two of his co-workers, the scene quickly cuts between wikus in one frame on his own, and another with the other two, in a back and forth conversations. This references the apartheid because it is showing that wikis is in power, because he has had a promotion, so is in charge of the others, and they also call him "boss" and he has the shot on his own this clearly shows he is the powerful one and more important. also both of his workers are black, and they get the shot together, which shows that although there where more black people, the white population has more power. 

Another theme that is commonly scene in sic-fi films is corrupt covenants, and the powerful corrupt characters are usually stereotypicaly middel aged, white males.    

science fiction conventions.

body horror 

corrupt governments

characters

District 9

wikus van de merwe- Protagonist, False hero

Piet Smit- Villan

Christopher Jonson- Hero

Colonel Koobus Venter

Fish tank

mia- protagonist

Connor- villan, false hero 

Joanne

Billy

Genre conventions in District 9

SiFi conventions
Futuristic technology
Space travel
Aliens
Metaphors for real issus
Corrupt governments
Body horror
polysemic meanings

Documentary style meanings
Stock footage
News headlines
Character introductions
Hand held cameras
Narrators
Time and date



futuristic technology, corrupts government (corporations, army, the MNU) they are stereotypically white middle aged men, who think that they can do anything when they are in power (e.g. Connor from fish tank, Cardinal Rawk from sin city and Piet Schmit from district 9).

humans and aliens co-exist, in District 9 this is a polysemic meaning. district 9 represents the apartide, and how this effects people. (e.g. signs to say that aliens cant be around people, this is like when black and white people couldn't mix. calling the aliens names, is like when they used to do it to black people to try and De-humanis them, in the film it is 'prawn' and they used to call black people 'monkeys'.

Wikus is also corrupt, when he gets promoted the power goes to his head, and he treats the aliens badly.

the body horror is a polysemic meaning, it also show

introduction

Introduction key

·      State intentions

·      Introduce two texts

·      Separate different topics

·      Introduce theroies I will use

With reference to “Million Dolla Baby” and “Domino”, to what extent are Hollywood representations stereotyped?

In my research investigation I will be exploring the representations of women in the Hollywood films “Million Dolla Baby” and “Dominos” and will discuss if these are accurate stereotypes in society. The theories I will look at are: the male gaze, uses of gratification and feminism. My aims are to discuss, Do females have stereotypical gender roles, Are females takeing on masculin roles and Are females being objectified.

Aim 1: do females have stereotypical gender roles?

In a lot of mainstream films use stereotypical gender roles, so that the audience can quickly identify what role a character as in the film. the stereotypical roles for a women are that they are domesticated, this means the roles that they usually play are Housewives or mothers, they are often objectified as well.   a lot of the roles that women play in mainstream txts are to serve male characters, they are often waitress, or secretary. in the film Million Dolla Baby

Narrative Theorys

Vladimir Propps

His theory is based along the lines of old fairy tales, he thinks that texts use the same characters.

>The villain — struggles against the hero.

>The dispatcher — character who makes the lack known and sends the hero off.

>The (magical) helper — helps the hero in their quest.

>The princess or prize and her father — the hero deserves her throughout the story but is unable to marry her because of an unfair evil, usually because of the villain. 

>The hero's journey is often ended when he marries the princess, thereby beating the villain.

>The donor — prepares the hero or gives the hero some magical object.

>The hero or victim/seeker hero — reacts to the donor, weds the princess.

>The false hero — takes credit for the hero’s actions or tries to marry the princess

Levi Strauss

His theory is based on binary opposition, this means that the narratives have to have opposites in it.

> good and evil

> old and young

> light and dark ect..

Tzvetan Todorov

His theory was that the media text has 5 stages of equilibrium 

1. A state of equilibrium as an outset

2. Disruption of equilibrium 

3. A recognition of the disruption

4. An attempt to repair the disruption

5. A reinstatement of the equilibrium

Uses of Gratification

Personal identity: 

> finding a reinforcement for personal values

>finding models of behaviour

>gaining insite in two ones self

>identifying with values already gained

Infirmation:

>finding out about relevent events and conditions in immediate surroundings, society and the world
> seek advice on particular matters or opinions and decisions
> satisfying curiosity or general intrest
> self educating, gaining a sense of security through  knowlage

Entertainment:
> escaping or being diverted from problems
> relaxing
> getting intrinsic cultures or aesthetic enjoyment
> filling time
> emotional release
> sexual release

Integration and social integration:
> gaining insite in to circumstances of others, social empathy
> identifying with other and gaining a sense of belonging
> finding a basis for conversations and social integration
> having a substitute for real life and companionship
> helping to carry out social roles
> enabling one  to connect with family friends and society.

The conventions of a sports genre

> contains sporting event

> contains sporting narrative

> disruption

> equilibrium

> resolution

> failure

> relationships between characters grow stronger.

most of these apply to Million Dolla Baby

> the sporting event is Boxing

>the main Narrative is about training and competing

> the disruption is clint eastwoods actions

> the Equilibrium is in the end when she cant box anymore and dies

> the resolution to the problems are Clint Eastwood teaching her how to Box

> her failure is when she breaks her neck and cant compete anymore

> Hillery Swank and Clint Eastwoods characters become closer, almost like farther an daughter.

opening paragraph for investigation

In this Investigation, I will be analysing how my chosen two films, 'Domino and Million Dolla Baby' show the representation of women, and if they are stereotyped.

Question

With reference to Million Dollar Baby and Domino, to what extent are Hollywood representations of women stereotyped?

James Bond

Skyfall

I will be analysing a scene from sky fall, the scene is when James get taken to the  abandoned Island by Raoul Silva.

Propps theory can be applied in this scene with the Hero, Villain and Princess. Berenice Marlohe plays Severine who's role is the princesse,you can see this when you first see her in the scene and she is slumped against a rock, this shows she is week and needs saving. she is also wearing red, which could suggest that she is in danger. she is also tied up, which actively shows that she needs help.

Javier Bardem who plays Raoul Silva is the villain, they have shown this thought the stereotypical european bad guy. you are made to dislike him because of the way he acts, he is unnecessarily extravagant and annoying. they also use his accent against him, because the hero's accent is familiar, but silva's accent is unfamiliar so you don't trust him as much.

Daniel Craig plays james bond, and is the hero, this is shown through his outfit, he is wearing all black and looks smart

Niche and Mainstream 

Niche: is a media text that is not as well known, it usualy isn't as well known because of its subject matter or because it isn't a popular genre. they will have a more select following.
Mainstream: is when a text appeals to a wider audience, because it has a bigger cast veriety. more mainstream text will also be more advertised and will be on a bigger tv chanel.

The film brick is a niche film (not as popular, or as known as a mainstream high budget film), because the main cast are mainly white American high school teens, this does not appeal to a wide audience, because older people, or people of a different ethnicity might not be able to relate to the characters in the film. in 2005 when the film was first shown the cast members where not well known, this would not attract a big audience because people often watch films because the are a fan of one of the cast members, this could only happen after, once the actors or actresses have built up more of a career (Joseph Gordon-Levitt). A lot of the language they use in the film is slang, so this wouldn't appeal to an older audience, because the might not be able to understand it. some of the camera shout they use are unusual, they are long, with no breaks in them ( end scene on a football field, there is a lot of dialog and no cutting away. also when Brendan finds Emily's body there are no breaks in the scene), this would not capture a mainstream audience because they would get board. another thing that makes this film niche is that it deals with the reality of life, the do not glorify drugs, and there effects on people and there lives, often more mainstream texts will not show all sides of the drug, only one side that will make them seam fun, this is because people often don't want to know the truth, so if films are made like this they will sell. the film also doesn't follow narrative theory's properly, Propp's theory is that film have set characters (eg. hero, princess, villain, donor, dispatcher, helper) this film doesn't follow those rules, there is some one who is set a task, but they are not a hero, they just want to know something, and know one is a villain, the characters have good and bad sides, there is a helper though. it also doesn't simply follow Strauss's theory of binary opposition, because there is no set opposites of good and evil, because all the characters are good, and bad at different points in the film, the characters are more realistic than that, the main boy (Brendan) is doing bad things for a good reason, and the Dode is also doing bad things out of love for Emily. the advertisement for the film was done originally with sun dance film festival, this ment that there wasn't a big budget for advertisement because it was an independent film, so it was most likely only advertised round the film festival, through posters.

the film