The location was represented as a local street/house which could be anywhere.
The artists were represented as a group of friends, down to earth, who 'decided to make a music video'. There is one person who is the particular lead singer.
2) How is that representation being created?
The costumes we used were linked together, like a clique. The shot types and the mise en scene showed the house, the street and the garden as it was, without change.
Hand held camera was vital in creating the correct image for our video as it fitted with our intentions. The editing was quick, which also fitted with the style of video we were trying to create. The lead singer is identified through close ups and longer footage time.
3) Why is this representation created in that way? What was your intention? Our intention was to create relatability and an atmosphere of enjoyment, which we did through the above methods. It was also to aim it at the right audience, being young 'cool' teenagers.
4) What is the effect of the representation? The feedback we received was positive and we seemed to have accomplished the task we set and our intentions came across well. This is likely because we had aimed it at the right audience and this was the audience that provided the feedback.
1) Do you think genres are timeless?
Yes because ultimately you can never change a genre that has already been created and there will always be enough people in the world to be interested in any given genre, even if they discontinue creating them, they will always still exist due to people's memories and old films.
2)Why do you think hybrid/sub genres are becoming more common?
Hybrid films are becoming more common because the audience always wants something new and exciting. The demand for hybrid films is higher because of the sheer amount of films available to audiences, we all want something that we haven't seen before and lacks the predictability of single genre films. Many companies compete for the biggest audiences/profit, so there will always be competition with other companies to make the biggest film and the most profit.
Sub-genres are virtually the opposite of hybrids in that they are very specific and are aimed at a niche audience, as opposed to hybrids which are aimed at the most people possible.
3) Choose one of your videos - how does it conform to or challenge genre conventions? = THRILLER
Our thriller both conforms to and challenges genre conventions.
Janet Steiger - If we were to continue the film, a romantic sub plot would have evolved through the (female) hacker and one of the Government agents linked with the case. Our film is in accordance with Janet Steiger's 'Social conventions method' as we tried to follow what we perceive a thriller to be, and what society expects. This included things like the costumes and the misc-en-scene. However we broke some of the conventions as we had a female lead.
Robert Stam - Through the use of amateur actors, the audience would not be expecting certain characteristics of their characters. This left our plot options wide open as there were no preconceived expectations. However were we to use well known actors for our film, in accordance with Janet Steiger's theory, we would use actors relevant and known for film of our genre. For example, for the major Government leader we would use Morgan Freeman as he is well known for playing a power figure. However the audience has an expectation that Morgan Freeman would play a powerful, but nice character, so to play on this, we would subvert it to make him the antagonist as a twist at the end, assuming we would have created the full plot.
it is always important to research your target audience as it's esstential to know want the audience wants. If you don't do this well your product won't succeed within your intended target audience.
Who was your intended audience?
For our video we decided that our audience would be teenagers as the genre we interpreted the song as was indie rock
What would their expectation of the product be?
We feel that the target audience would want something edgy, but still conventional to the genre that we picked.
How did you attract your intended audience?
Stuart Hall's theory of Encoding /decoding
Hall believed in 'Encoding/decoding which had a major influence on cultural studies. This means that every individual interprets different medias from their own perspective. Therefore, we think that maybe, different social classes, for example may have conflicting opinions on the style of our music video.
Uses and Gratifications Theory;
This theory relates to understand mass communication. The theory places more focus on the audience, instead of the actual message itself by asking “what people do with media” rather than “what media does to people” It assumes that members of the audience are not passive but take an active role in interpreting and integrating media into their own lives. The theory also holds that audiences are responsible for choosing media to meet their needs. The approach suggests that people use the media to fulfill specific gratifications. This theory would then imply that the media compete against other information sources for viewers' gratification. So people who watch our music video will do for their our gratification rather than the message that the song entails.
Feedback you received from your audience
After we showed our rough cut to the class the feedback we got was on the whole very positive, they liked the hand held elements as it made it seem more personal than other music videos.
He discusses the role of popular media in people's lives. In particular he has focused on the way in which digital media is changing the experience of media in general.
Stuart Hall
Encoding/decoding- this is how we interpret the medias we watch differently depending on our own background, i.e middle class views.
Propp's theory
We don't conform to Vlad's theory as we lack most of the conventional narrative characters, mostly due to the time limitations along side the lack of characters.
The character types we have managed to use in relation to our film are:
Donor - the person who puts the chemicals into the jelly.
Hero - the alien
Dispatchers - the girls who leave the box
Helper - the little alien and possibly the girl who enters at the end, if the story was allowed to progress further.
The narrative structure of our film follows the first two stages of Propp's 'journey' theory. Preparation - the alien being made from the jelly and chemicals. Complication - the alien being left on it's own to fend for itself.
It does conform to an extend to Propp's theories, but we didn't have the time to expand it to the length of completion.
Strauss
Human/Non-human Little/Big
Todorov
Equilibrium - Human world, we haven't heard about the aliens
Disruption - The discussion of the chemicals being put in the jelly
Recognition - We actually see the result of this as the aliens appear.
Questions
1. Does my text have a clear story?
Our story doesn't get much beyond an introduction, so the storyline is still unclear to those who watch it, leaving it open for the audience's imagination.
2. Is the structure linear/non-linear/montage etc?
Linear. The story follows a simple pattern, with no flashbacks. Everything is explained as it goes along.
3. Are there key roles within the narrative?
Our hero character would become the alien, the dispatchers were the girls who left the box behind, the donor is the boy who 'created' the alien by adding chemicals to the jelly, and the helper would become the smaller alien.
4. Is my text structured by cause and affect?
Yes, it is structured by Todorov's theory as we followed the pattern of equilibrium, disruption and recognition. We would have continued this pattern throughout the rest of the film if we were to finish it.
5. What are the audience's expectations of narrative in this genre?
When we first thought about children's films, we immediately thought of animations, as it is a popular format for children's films at the moment due to Disney and Pixar. We think the audience also expect this, especially because of the technological advancements in this area. The general modern narrative expected from a children's film/fairytale uses Todorov, Propp and Struass's theories in conjunction with modern technological advancements, we have followed these theories in our opening to continue with this kind of structure of films.
6. What is the function of narrative for audience's and institutions?
The audience doesn't mind watching the hero in distress because they know it will end happily. However sometimes this can be predictable and films don't always follow this pattern. They may purposefully have a unexpectedly unhappy or unresolved ending to challenge the audience's expectations. However the 'norm' for children's films does follow this theory as children supposedly should not be exposed to the complexity of adult life.
Propp's Theory:
Hero: Bruce Wayne/Batman
Villain: Lots of small villains, Scarecrow, the man who shot his parents, Falcone, Henri Ducard
Donor: Henri Ducard, Alfred
Dispatcher: Henri Ducard, the man who shot his parents
Helper: Alfred
False Hero: Henri Ducard, Scarecrow
Princess: Rachel Dawes
Father: Alfred and Bruce's father
Preparation: His parents get shot and he develops his fear of bats. Also, his time spent in prison.
Complication: He then figures out he needs help. Earlier on, he changed when his parents die.
Tranferance: He trains with Henri Ducard.
Struggle: Lots of little struggles, firstly minor villains (i.e. prison mates), Scarecrow, and finally Henri Ducard.
Return: He returns home.
Recognition: He gets the girl and all is restored in the world, until next time...!
Strauss
Young/Old - Minor (non-violent) conflict between Alfred and Bruce
- Parents and children
Rich/Poor - Bruce's family and friends are rich but a lot of the city is not, specifically the man who shot his parents.
Male/Female - Bruce and Rachel.
Police/Criminal - Fairly major plot significance. The whole plot line relies on Bruce's vigilance.
Racial differences - At the beginning, the majority of powerful characters are not white, for example, Al Ghul and the head policeman.
Todorov
It follows Todorov's theory that we want the underdog to win. This is shown through the scene in the prison when Bruce defeats all the criminals despite his weak appearance. This continues throughout the film.
It has a beginning, a middle and an end, but it shows the beginning (his childhood) in separate sections, so it is not linear.
Tangled
Hero - Rapunzel
Villian - Mother Gothel
The Donor - The man in the pub who helps them escape and Maximus
The Despatcher - Flynn Rider
The Helper - Flynn Rider and Pascal
The False Hero - Flynn Rider and Mother Gothel
The Princess - Rapunzel
The Princess' Father - The King
Other than the Hero being female, Propp's conventions are being followed. The characters are based upon the traditional story of Rapunzel so the traditional conventions of the prince and princess have been kept, however to keep it modern (and not sexist..) they have 'empowered' the woman by making her the hero.
Screensaver and general computer use (Google Maps)
White noise etc
Creates atmosphere and believability. It wouldn't be a sci-fi thriller without strong use of technology.
Cinematography
Long shots to establish location
Close ups of computer screens
Handheld - gives it a sense of urgency
Fairly simple shot types, but used to give it diversity. Also, manipulates the audience by not showing certain things (location etc). It also keeps the identity of the hacker a secret. This makes you want to watch more as it provides a question to keep the audience captivated.
Editing
Parallel editing
Split screen
As above, doesn't reveal the identity of the hacker or the location. Parallel editing shows both groups at the same time, and split screen gives it a 'crime thriller' feel. (Character profiling) The split screens also add to the technology aspect of this thriller as it does not use the conventional one shot size/type and creates more interest in the storyline.
Sound
Car sound effect - Visceral
Diagetic typing
Technological noises (white noise noise etc)
Score - Sound Bridge - continuous sound
Dialogue
Keeps it technological. Fits with the visuals, makes it realistic and believable.
Limited dialogue keeps the tension high and doesn't distract the audience.
Sound bridge keeps the tension high and links the parallel editing together.
Mise-En-Scene
Very dark Hacker scene
Fancy pancy house
Fancy pancy car
Lighter for the agents - Means the audience takes sides with the agents because they are 'lighter' and therefore 'better'.
Technical looking - white noise etc
Props - computers
Lighting makes it eerie and 'thrillerish'. No obvious costumes, so we don't know much about the characters and whether they are 'bad' or 'good', we rely on the lighting, but this could be purposefully misleading.
