The Street - Disability.

Find more videos like this on Beauchamp College Media


How is disability represented in The Street?

The first thing the audience see is the metal fence and barbed wire, with blurred out people moving about behind it. The shot then changes to a man looking out a window in a door, which also has metal 'bars' which the audience has to look through. The audience then see a shot of a different man, who happens to be the main character, with what society would class as a 'disability'. The man is seen walking up to a van through the metal bars, which gives the shot a 'caged' feel to it, due to the fact that everything in the scene seems to be contained/surrounded by metal fences/bars. Later on in the scene, when the main character, Nick, gets angry, he is shot through the metal fence again, possibly symbolising that he needs to be locked up because of his disability, therefore representing disability as a bad thing and potentially dangerous to others, and consequently disabled people need to be separated from 'normal' people to either receive the care they need or to protect other people.

The use of over the shoulder shots when Nick is asking for his old job back allows the audience to see how his old colleagues react to Nick, now he looks so different to what they were used to seeing. It gives the audience a chance to analyse the other characters body language, and how they act around Nick now he has his 'disability'. It shows his former colleagues trying to avoid looking at Nicks face, which is heavily scarred, and looking rather awkward throughtout the whole conversation. This represents disability as something people try and avoid, they don't like looking at disability or be caught looking at it, for fear of causing offence.

This scene also represents disability as an atmosphere, or a burden. The body language used by the characters show that they feel uncomfortable around Nick, creating an atmosphere between, what used to be, good friends and colleagues. They don't feel as if they can act the same around Nick, and are unsure of what to say to him. They are also reluctant to give Nick his old job back because he would be considered a burden when there would be 'checks and polls' in the workplace, and Nick's 'disability' would cause the company some problems, therefore making him a burden if he was hired again.

In the next section of the clip Nick goes to help a woman, who he seems to be friends with, but frightens her when he bends down to help her pick up her shopping, and she screams. Whether this is due to Nicks face is neither confirmed or rejected, but the audience assume that that is the reason why she screamed. Nick seems to think that she screamed because his face is now frightening to other people, a fact which she denies vehemently. This could represent disability as something to be afraid of, as it is something not everyone can relate to, and the lack of information can make people scared of it. People with a disability are usually thought to look 'different' and therefore this could present 'different' looking people, who have a disability, as something to be scared of.

A sound bridge is used to connect the next scene with the one before. Nick is shown to be quite angry after scaring his friend and the music is used to reflect the characters thoughts/mood. It is a non-diegetic, asynchronous sound, mainly made up of face-paced drums, whose pace quickens as the audience is taken through the scene. The scene takes on a angry element, as music which involves the sound of drums heavily, like the music that is used, is mainly associated with anger. The audience are given a reason to why Nick may be getting angrier, because as he walks through the town strangers stare at him in the street. The camera shots are edited between Nicks face and the faces of strangers, supposedly staring at Nick, and everytime the camera comes back to Nicks face the shot gets closer and closer, maybe symbolising how all the stares are building up inside him and fueling his anger. The fact that strangers are shown to stare at Nick could represent disability as something unique/odd, and therefore warrants people the desire to look at it, possibly to study the disability in more detail as it is so different to them.

Another sound bridge is used at the end of the scene to inform the audience that Nick is still angry, and Nick confirms this to another character who works for the Army. The scene is quite dark, there isn't much light and the light that is visible are bars of light across Nick's face, again, maybe symbolising that people with disabilities need to be separated from others, or be barred from the 'normal' people. The lack of light also gives off a sinister element, making Nick's anger seem quite dangerous, on the other hand, it could show the idea that people with disabilities feel that they need to protect themselves from people staring, in effect they want to hide away. Editing is used in this scene to show the two sides to Nick's character, the camera switches between the scarred side of Nick's face and the 'normal' side. They could be considered to be binary opposites, as when the camera focuses on the scarred side of Nick's face, Nick releases all the anger he feels about his disability and the prejudice he's faced because of it, but when the camera focuses on the other side of his face, his anger seems to diminish slightly and he seems to show what he has accepted, that he will be 'ugly and scary'. 

In conclusion, I think that The Street represents the stereotypical view of disability, that it is something unique and different, and therefore people find it either interesting or uncomfortable, maybe even scary. I also believe that The Street gives a truthful representation of what prejudices people with visible disabilities may face in day-to-day life, and how it may make them feel about people, or even society on a whole because of this. The main focus of the clip is how people with disability are treated differently, as people don't want to offend them, or seem to think that they need to be treated differently because of their disability.

Editing.

How is editing used in the film Memento?

The film starts off using a close up of a hand holding a picture of a man dead on the floor with half his head missing, and blood all over the walls. After a short period of time, the character holding the photo then shakes it, as one would do when helping a picture to develop. When the photo is re shown to the audience the picture has faded. The action is repeated another 3 times and each time the picture fades a little more, this gives the impression of time rewinding itself, which is supported when the objects such as bullet case and glasses fly backwards, and the whole scene takes place in reverse.

There is then a smooth cut from the dead man's face, before he is shot, to a close up on the main characters face. However the scene has changed, the picture is now in black and white, and the main character is the only person in the room. The editing tells the audience that this scene is something separate from the main storyline that they just witnessed, which is confirmed when the main character, Leonard, starts to explain the condition he has. It allows the audience to receive more information in a simpler way, rather than leaving them confused for the rest of the film as to what is happening.

The scene then ends and is cut to a picture of the man who the audience had just seen Leonard shoot, Teddy. In the scene the editing is also used to cut between the two characters faces during their conversation, showing the audience how Leonard reacts to Teddy, and the expressions on the characters faces when they converse, giving an insight to what they are thinking. Editing can also give the audience more information in a different way, for example when Leonard leans into an abandoned car to see what's inside, and the shot changes to a close up of 4 bullets on the front seat of the car. At the same time it symbolises how important these bullets are, because they show that something isn't right with the situation, as the place is apparently 'abandoned'.

At the end of each scene, the edit used allows the film to cut between time frames, each 'coloured' scene goes back in time, showing the action that led to the consequence, therefore meaning each scene ends with what was the beginning of the scene before the one playing. Each shot also starts and ends with the same action, so the editing makes the transition of information smooth, the audience don't notice the edit, these can also be referred to as 'invisible cuts'.

Edits that lead to close ups of certain aspects in the film are used quite regularly, mainly to focus the audiences attention on important parts of the film. For example, everytime Leonard is given a new piece of information which he has had before but doesn't remember, the shot is edited to a close up shot in order to allow the audience to see this new information, and put together the clues along with him.

In conclusion, the editing used in Memento helps to give the film an original storyline, and a unique way of telling a story to the audience. It draws the audiences attention to the storyline, but it also doesn't leave them too confused, due to the use of 'invisible cuts' throughout the film which are used to make the audience feel like they are actually there in the film, it makes the film more realistic. The editing also allows the main character to suffer from his memory loss in a way, because using the idea of time going backwards shows the audience why he suffers from the memory loss, and why he is seen doing certain actions, like shooting Teddy in the head at the beginning of the film. On the whole though the editing is very disjointed, skipping between time frames, symbolising how confusing Leonard's life must be for him and how jumbled his day-to-day life must be.

Sound.

Diegetic - natural sounds within a scene.

Non-diegetic - added to a scene - soundtrack. Potential problem: less realistic. Potential benefit: more dramatic.

Sound bridge - when sound which carries on over two scenes, literally creating a 'bridge' between events.

Incidental music - short sequence of sound to create an emotion/feeling.

Asynchronous sound - a 'natural' sound out of place and without a source.

Contrapunctual - sound which creates an opposite  emotion to the one on the screen.


Skins Notes.

enigma code - why is he awake?
camera angle - above him, zooming out (allows us to analyse it, creates the impression of it being a slow morning), close up on his face (makes us want to find out more about him)
props - bed spread middle - bisexual? enigma: open with his parents? parents don't care? rebelling?), neat unrumpled (didn't sleep, controlling), he stands out against his sheets (dark hair, white pillows)
lighting - one shaft of light across his face (doesn't want to sleep? curtains not drawn, letting the light in), relatively dark.
scene - his room, tidy (controlling, symbolic), clean, white (hard to keep clean, controlling)
sounds - church bells (British culture, church Sunday? slow, asynchronous),birds (asynchronous),alarm (action code), diegetic.
shadows - two on either side of his face (two sides to him?) symbolic.

How is sexuality presented in this clip?

The scene starts off with a extreme close up on the characters face, and in the distance there are two diegetic sounds; church bells ringing and birds twittering. Both of these are asynchronous sounds because you cannot see where the sound is coming from, as the camera is still fixed upon the characters face, but at the same time slowly zooming out to reveal more of his surroundings. As the camera zooms out, you see that the pillows he has been 'sleeping' on look freshly made, and that there is a shaft of light across his face. This poses the question did he actually sleep at all? His pillows don't look like someone has been sleeping on them and the light would surely have been there all night, which means did he want to sleep? Plus the fact that teenagers are not normally awake that early on a Sunday morning would add to the curiosity.

The camera carries on zooming out slowly, giving the scene a slow pace, possibly signifying that the character is tired, or that it will be quite a slow day, which added with the church bells (a British culture code), could symbolise it to be a Sunday morning. During this more and more of the characters room is revealed and you see him lying in his bed. His bed cover is of a naked man and woman lying to the left and right of the cover, which is also unrumpled, supporting the idea that he has not slept. He is lying right in the middle of the bed, right between the two people on his bed cover, possibly symbolising that he is a bisexual, due to the fact that he is not associating himself with either of the two people on his bed spread.

If we take the idea that the character was up all night thinking about his sexuality, then the use of the church bells in the clip take on a different meaning. It could be seen that the bells are reminding him of his sexuality, as being a homosexual is seen as a sin in the church's eyes, and therefore if the character comes from a religious family, this could be a cause of worry for him. In the scene there are two shadows on either side of the characters face, maybe symbolising that there are two different sides to him, which also links in to the idea of the character being a bisexual, as it could represent the part of him that likes women, and the part of him that likes men. Because the character is in the middle of these two shadows, it could present the point that he feels stuck in the middle of the problem, unsure whether he should tell people, but on the other hand worried what they would say if he did.

The scene finishes with an above shot of the character in his bed with some of his room visible. From what is shown the bedroom looks very neat and clean, everything seems to have a certain place and the floor is bare, not covered in items (such as clothes) as people would expect to see in a teenage boys room. It gives the impression that the character takes pride in the things he owns, and likes everything to look presentable, maybe giving him a controlling edge to his personality. However, taking more of a pride in appearances that teenage boys usually would could be linked to the idea of homosexuality. Interest in appearance is something that is stereotypically associated with gay men, and therefore the use of this aspect in the scene also adds to the idea of the character being a bisexual. 

To conclude the clip presents sexuality in two different ways, being loud and brash about it by using the bed cover, which stands out because of it's uniqueness, but also by using subtle hints, such as using the shadows to represent the two sides of the character. However the bed cover could just symbolise that the character is a very confident person, and is not worried about having such a 'different' bed spread, or that he likes to rebel against his parents, who would probably not approve of his choice.

Moral Panics, Hypodermic Theory And The Passive Audience

Columbine High School Massacre
2 students, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, went to their school and started shooting fellow students.
12 students and 1 teacher died and 21 more were injured. After the two boys committed suicide.
Apparently influenced by a game called 'Doom' which both teenagers played on frequently and had created their own levels for it. In the game you play as a marine posted to Mars and consequently have to fight off Martian creatures.
Analysists thought that the game enhanced the teenagers violence and their restriction from the game brought on the massacre.
Another games thought to have had an impact upon Eric and Dylan was Wolfenstein 3D, where an American tries to escape Castle Wolfenstein and overthrow the Nazi regime.
Others blamed violent films and music, natural killers and Marylin Manson for the massacre, claiming that all had a profound effect on the two boys.
After the massacre a game was created about them, and the massacre was included where people got to play as Eric and Dylan. The downloads of the game increased when the media started covering it, making it more popular.

Social Networking - Facebook
Facebook allows you to keep up to date with your friends and family.
The network has limited security and allows anyone to see your personal details, such as photos with you in them.
Even after you may have deleted your account there is still a backup of it, on the networks hard drive.
People can loose their jobs due to employers looking at their Facebook profile, and events like house parties can get out of hand if posted onto a social network.
Your identity can also be stolen and used by other people.
It also gives cyber bullying the opportunity to take place, and statistics show that it's mainly men who are the victims of this.

Skins
Thought to be a bad influence on teenagers, as they want to live the glamorised lives they are shown in the programme.
Can be seen as offensive to older viewers. Most parents don't like the programme and would prefer their son/daughter not to watch it.
Includes a lot of story lines involving drugs, sex, alcohol consumption and little education.
The Sun branded the programme controversial.
Attracts a lot of media attention, boosting the audience figures.

Manhunt
The game is about a convict who has been spared the lethal injection by someone who he only knows through an ear piece. It carries on to show the person who you play as being kidnapped and having to fight his way back to freedom.
It is thought that the game is effecting today's youth, making them more violent and involved in crime.
A boy in Leicester stabbed his best friend to death and was thought to be influenced by Manhunt, however he had never actually played the game.
Because of this the media portrayed the game as a bad influence and something that should be banned, consequently the sales of the game increased.
It was reported that New Zealand had banned the game because of its graphic nature, however this was untrue, but it still helped the game to sell.

Paranormal Activity
The film had to be banned in America after people left the theatres ect from the content.
Apparently uses real footage from the story which the film is based on.
Considered to be a bad influence on people, they used the film to play sinister practical jokes on their friends.
Has three alternate endings.
Gained huge publicity because of the massive amount of media coverage, and raving reviews.

CoD
Has a level where players can play in the role of a terrorist and kill innocent civilians in an airport.
The level is surrounded in controversy, does it show people that it's acceptable to kill?
Players are warned about the content of the level and are given the option to pass it with no penalties. They are also not told to kill the civilians, but aren't allowed to kill the terrorists if they want to complete the level.
Debate: is the level really needed? You gain or lose nothing whether you complete the mission or not.

Representation Of Ethnicity In Hotel Babylon.

Find more videos like this on Beauchamp College Media


Explain how ethnicity is represented in the clip. Mention mise en scene, editing and sound.


The clip starts with looking at the ethnicity of black people, portrayed in two different ways. The two characters could be describe as binary opposites because they are so different to each other, it shows one guy called Benjamin, who works for the hotel, as someone who doesn't want to get involved with the things he did in his past, in effect he has turned his life around and become a 'respectable person'. On the other hand, his old friend, who he hasn't seen in 7 years (signifying how well he has managed to stay away from his past), wants to carrying on living in his younger years. The lighting in this scene is quite dull, maybe showing the stereotypical idea that black people are involved in 'shady deals', or activities that need to be kept in the dark. Benjamin's friend has dreadlocks and tattoos,adding to the image that black males are mixed up in dangerous things, and could be referred to as a 'rebel' in simpler terms. During the exchange between the two characters the over the shoulder shot is used. It helps to show the binary opposites by panning between the two characters, allowing the viewers to compare the two and notice the differences between them. The music played in the clip has a slight beat to it, like hip hop or rap music does, giving the section a 'gangster' feel to it.

In the next section the clip shows two female cleaners, both of which are French, dragging cleaning trolleys to a particular room. This could show that mainly European women do these types of jobs, aka cleaning jobs, because they either don't have the qualifications for a better job or that the can only get work in low paid jobs as they are 'illegal immigrants'. When they enter the room there is a Japanese man sitting on the bed, in a dressing gown, apparently waiting for them. The older of the two maids has already said that the man "pays double for double" suggesting that they may have to do something extra than just cleaning his room in return for extra money, which portrays the woman as greedy, as they seem to be willing to do anything for some more money. The said money is shown to be placed upon a table in two neat piles, showing the stereotypical idea that Japanese people are very tidy and organised. He then picks up the remote and turns the CD player on which plays Moulin Rouge, which is a up beat, sexy song making the scene feel quite sexual and as the music plays the cleaners start to take off their uniforms, giving the audience a good idea about what they have to do for the extra money. Close up shots are used on the Japanese mans face, showing him getting sweaty and watching the maids avidly. The use of this camera angle allows the audience to see the stereotypical view of Japanese men being perverts or dirty people, as he's paying the maids to strip off for him.

The scene after is short and shows a woman who works for the hotel coming into someones room. She then passes some toilet paper through the door to a Mr Taylor, who is not seen in the section. Mr Taylor sounds angry and impatient when speaking to the woman, and as he is British, it portrays British people as rude and impatient. The two actors that we see next, also British, are talking about the chefs in the hotel kitchens. They are dressed very smartly and talk 'properly', suggesting that they are from the 'upper classes' of people, and therefore are quite posh.

Finally the scene in the kitchen involves an Italian chef and a British chef. The Italian chef is dressed in black whereas the British chef is dressed in white, and you find out that the Italian man has slept with the British chefs wife. The black dress suggests an 'evil' side, as black it usually associated with evil, with white being its binary opposite, therefore symbolises the 'good' aspect. Also the fact that the Italian chef has slept with another mans wife could show Italian's to be 'womanisers' and quite reckless people. This is backed up when, during an argument between the two chefs, the Italian man picks up a meat cleaver and threatens to use it, which fits in with the idea of Italians being reckless, and adds the idea that get angry quite easily, that they are 'hot-headed'. Throughout the argument each chef calls each other offensive names in reference to their ethnicity allowing the camera to flick back and forth between them and close in on their faces giving the audience the impression of how angry both are getting, and showing, in some ways, Italian and British stereotypes.

In conclusion I think that Hotel Babylon represents ethnicity quite simply, picking up and using some stereotypes, but not being too controversial about it. They stick to the ideas about ethnicity that are already thought by the audience, therefore avoiding a cognitive dissonance, and allowing the audience to concentrate on the story line the characters are involved in, rather than their, possibly, complicated ethnicity.

Analysis Of Eva Mendes.

How does Calvin Klein represent females here in the above advert? Are they objectified or sexually empowered?


In this Calvin Klein advert Eva Mendes is shown to be a dominant and slightly aggressive woman due to her pose. She is standing in the stereotypical powerful stance, her hands on her hips and legs apart (steady footing). This gives her the impression of being aggressive because her pose indicates that she has attitude, and isn't the sort of person who would back down easily if confronted. The photo is also shot at a low angle making her look more powerful as she is 'looking down' on you, giving the impression that she is better than you. This is also supported by her facial expression, her eyes are closed so she doesn't make eye contact, which also makes her seem superior because it's like she doesn't deem you important enough to look at. Plus her teeth are slightly bared, sending out aggressive signals.

However the photo does also exudes a sexual element, mainly to help sell the product. She's wearing high heels to make her legs look slimmer, and also to give her more height, adding to the dominating feel of the photo. The use of this also objectifies Eva because makes her something to which men want to look at and wish to 'possess'. It helps to sell the underwear as it makes men think that their partner could look like the model, and therefore they have a little piece of 'what they want' so to speak. Another point that shows that Calvin Klein objectifies females is the fact that there is no ring on the models hand. It makes her seem 'available', showing that she doesn't belong to anybody, which portrays that females who do wear a ring, and essentially, are married, 'belong' to someone and are unavailable to other people, the same way people view objects. If an object belongs to you, no one else can have it.

The use of suspenders in the photo both sexually empowers and objectifies females. On one hand it can make the photo more attractive to potential buyers, mainly male buyers, because it shows the more sexy side of the photo, as suspenders are associated with sexiness. But there could also be the point that women are only there to look good for men, something for the man to 'control' as it were. Finally the fact that the model has been oiled to make her look wet, and with the damp hair it suggests she's just come out of the shower, makes her seem sexually empowered because it gives the impression that she's going out for the night to a party, date, meal ect. This makes females seem sexually empowered because it makes people think that they need to dress up in 'sexy' outfits when they go out, especially if they are available, to make them more appealing to the opposite sex. However it also poses the question that do females have to dress up when they go out? Taken from this angle it could show that Calvin Klein is objectifying females, single females mainly, as it could suggest that men expect women to dress up for them if they go out because it's what they want to see, still involving the controlling element.

To conclude I think that Calvin Klein represents females as sexually empowered because the whole photo is sexually suggestive and appealing to people. I believe this because most of the attention is drawn towards the models groin, the 'masculine' bra, which is simple and plain, doesn't draw the eye, whereas the use of the hands on the hips and the head turned away tries to pinpoint people's focus to the models groin. Having her hands on her hips draws the attention to her hips and with her fingers pointing to the underwear makes people focus on that particular area.

Stereotypes In British TV Dramas.

Select one character from a British TV drama and explain how they are a 'stereotypical' representation of your area of study (sexuality).

A stereotypical view of homosexuality is that gay men tend to be more feminine than other males, take an interest in peoples appearance (mainly their own) and sometimes overreact about little things. The British TV drama I chose was Downton Abbey because it shows two types of stereotypes about homosexuality. The programme is set in an Edwardian country house during 1912, and shows the lives of the Crawely family and their servants. Thomas, the Crawely's first footman, played by Rob James Collier, is a 'closet gay'. This phrase is used to describe someone who is a homosexual, but no one knows about it, usually because the person fears rejection from people they know if they told them.


The programme mixes two stereotypes about homosexuals, the more 'modern' look, which I referred to above, and the more 'out dated' view. In 1912 homosexuality would have been something of disgust, and any gay acts were illegal until 1967, meaning it was almost impossible for people to be openly gay. This is shown in Downton Abbey when Thomas goes out on a date with another servant. The girl, who has no idea about Thomas' sexuality, receives a warning about Thomas from the cook, who brands him as 'a boy who has fallen off the tracks'. This is a stereotypical representation of homosexuals because the other characters are trying to tell the girl that Thomas is a bad person, someone who she shouldn't be associated with, without actually mentioning that he is gay, as it wasn't something people talked about in that period. It agrees with the public view of sexuality in 1912, reinforcing the stereotype that homosexuals are 'bad people'.


Thomas, as a character, is also cruel to the other servants and uses his sexuality to push himself higher up in the social ladder. This is also agreeing with the 1912 stereotype of homosexuals, as they were thought to be calculating and sleazy, which is supported by Thomas' manipulation of the Crawely's guest. However, this doesn't support today's stereotype of homosexuals because they are seen as feminine people, therefore quite gentle/dainty and not capable of manipulating someone.


At one point in the programme the other footman, William, comes downstairs with his shirt not tucked in properly, which Thomas picks up on immediately. Thomas then proceeds to berate William and gets the other servants to tease him about his scruffy appearance. This supports today's stereotype of homosexuals because it backs up the idea of gay people taking a interest in peoples appearance, as none of the other servants had noticed until Thomas pointed it out. He also overreacts about the whole thing, making a bigger production out of it than he needed to. This depicts Thomas as a stereotypical homosexual because he shows the personality trait of overreaction, which is something people associate with women and more feminine people, such as homosexuals.


To conclude, in Downton Abbey, Thomas is a stereotypical representation of homosexuality, but it focuses more on the 1912 stereotype, mainly because the programme is a period drama and therefore the characters act how they would have in 1912. Thomas is a stereotypical representation of homosexuality because he acts the way people expect closet gays to act, such as going out with women to cover up his sexuality, and he has the stereotypical personality traits of a gay male. I believe that Downton Abbey reinforces the stereotypical idea of homosexuals because they include all the stereotypical personality traits and relationships people would expect to see. This would avoid creating a cognitive dissonance, because it would agree with most people's views of homosexuals. Downton Abbey would try to avoid creating a cognitive dissonance so that more people would watch their programme, as for a Sunday night people want to relax before they have to go back to work/school, and therefore won't want to watch something that they don't agree with and ultimately, dislike.

The Male Gaze - Trevor Millum (1990s)

Seductive

A cool expression, less reserved but still confident. Eyes aren't wide and it's in general a milder picture.

Carefree

An active, out door type, healthy woman, described as 'nymph like' or vibrant. Quite often smiling or grinning in the picture.

Practical

Concentrating on what they're doing, eyes focused anywhere except the camera, mouth closed, sometimes with a slight frown. Usually a short style or hair tied back.

Comic

Messing around, acting silly/the fool, pulling faces and being exaggerated.

Catalogue

Has an artificial (dummy) look, expression is vacant and empty showing no personality, any pose, usually with wide eyes and a smile.

The Male Gaze - Marjorie Ferguson (1980s)

Chocolate Box

Half/full smile, lips together/slightly parted with teeth barely visible. Face turned towards camera or else full face. A blandly pleasing picture, devoid of uniqueness.

Invitational

Mouth shut with a hint of a smile, emphasises on the eyes, with the head to one side or looking back to the camera. A 'flirt', hinting mystery/mischief.

Super-smiler

Picture includes the whole face with a wide/broad smile. Hair can be blown around the face, and the head is either pushed forwards or the chin is thrown back. 'Look at me!' attitude, can be seen as aggressive.

Romantic or Sexual

The picture includes a male and a female, or partners, with a dreamy quality. Both people will be heavy-lidded and possibly in an overly sensual/sexual pose. Makes the people look available.

The Male Gaze - Laura Mulvey.

The concept of gaze is one that deals with how an audience views the people presented.


Feminists (3 ways)
1. How men look at women. (see women as 'lesser' people, less powerful, objectified ect)
2. How women look at themselves. (looking for ways to improve themselves)
3. How women look at one another. (seeing what clothes they wear ect)


Film audiences have to 'view' characters from the perspective of a heterosexual male. The camera lingers on the curves of the body, and events which occur to women are presented largely in the context of a man's reaction to these events. Relegates women to the status of objects. The female viewer must experience the narrative secondarily, by identification of the male.



We had to answer five questions on this music video.

1. What colour tops was he and she wearing? blue and blue with white stripes.
2. What number was the lane? 10 x lane 3
3. What colour belts did he and she wear? brown and pink
4. What colour shoes did he and she wear? bowling shoes (red, blue, and white) and red
5. What colour eyes did he and she have? blue and brown.

The idea was that the girls would noticed these little details better than the boys would, as the boys would mainly be looking at the woman in the video.

Some theorists also have noted the sexualising of the female body even in situations where the female sexiness has nothing to do with the product being advertised.

Leon Festinger.

Stereotypes shape the public opinion. They are narrative shortcuts which orientate the audiences expectations. Some people argue that stereotypes are fixed and unchanging. (Mass audience and hypothermic theory).

Festinger believes we resist changing out opinions unless faced with overwhelming evidence against what we believe. Cognitive dissonance is when our 'brain' encounters new ideas and rejects them because they don't match our expectations. (Reflective/two way flow).

Age

• Babies - cute, target (aspirational) audience is children mainly.
• Children - child characters act more mature, making children want to be more mature than they actually are.
• Teenagers - cool characters with an action packed life, not realistic, kids look up to them,everyday aspects of life (such as school) are ignored, older teenagers are seen to be put into categories (chavs, geeky guys/girls, ditzy blonde ect).
• Skins - druggies, drop-outs, have over exaggerated lives, seems more glamorised.
• Young adults - good looking, perfect people, the 'ideal' age that people want.
• Older women - sophisticated, glamorous.
• Older men - glamorous, powerful.
• Old people - weak, old, war heroes, crazy.

Ability/Disability

• Clothing - 'house wear' because they are supposedly spending a lot of time indoors, comfortable, warm.
• Setting - run down bungalows that need work, untidy, dirty because they can't clean up after themselves.
• Camera angles - looks down on the disabled characters making them look small and powerless. There is normally also a helper in the shot.
• Programmes focus on the disability rather than the character.
• Personality traits - stupid or supremely evil characters. People also assume that they have a mental deficiency.

Gender

• Women - seen to wear dresses (ladies sign), long hair, weak, house wife, small, less responsibility than a man, prone to crying/overreacting.
• Men - wear trousers (mens sign) short hair, strong, more money, working, big, patriarchal, more supportive/protective, stoic.
• Men do more fighting, more aggressive/violent than women.
• Because men film and create TV programmes they understand what it is like to see things from a men's point of view, rather than a women's, so all programmes and such are filmed in a 'male gaze'.
• Representations of men: strength (physical and intellectual), power, sexual attractiveness, physique and independence of thought/action.
• Representations of women: beauty, size/physique, sexuality, emotional and relationships.

Prezi Presentations.

Age

• Baby - can be annoying because all it does is cry or either look cute and cuddly (stereotypical views).
• Old man - spend their time just sitting about, can be portrayed of not being quite all there, or else be someone of wisdom (stereotypical views).
• Both people need to be looked after as they both can be seen as helpless.
• However old people can look after themselves, and don't always need help or care.
• Stereotypical teenagers - steal, act cheeky to their elders, are arrogant (shown in Little Britain, which focuses on the over exaggeration of stereotypes), usually depressed, under aged drinking, and always moaning.
• Middle aged people spend most of their time arguing.

Regional Identity

• North - friendly people but reject 'outsiders', don't pronounce 'the' when speaking, more innocent, less intelligent, more miserable, enjoy moaning about their lives (stereotypical idea).
• South - less rural, monochrome looking, mainly made up of cities, money based society, more straightforward about subjects, fast paced lifestyle (stereotypical idea).
• Countryside - wear more casual clothes, more relaxed lifestyle, considered a working class.

Ethnicity

• Hoodies and dark clothing make people look unapproachable, considered to be the sort of clothes black men would wear, this is not true though because black men can wear whatever sort of clothes they like, they all don't wear just one style.
• Indian wedding, have to wear traditional Indian dress, seem heavily religious and are subjected to arranged marriages, can't be gay (stereotypical view)
• TV programmes mainly made up of white actors/actresses.
• 'This is England' uses camera shots from down below, showing that the characters are more lower class and quite intimidating.
• Lower class - run down, intimidating because they're supposedly violent, people are afraid of them, live in council houses (stereotype)
• Black male - lazy, doesn't want to work or help the community, however this stereotype is challenged in 'Hollyoaks' where the character of Calvin, a young black male, is a police officer and tries to help out his community as much as he can.

Here is mine and Josh's prezi presentation on sexuality and how it is portrayed in the media.

Sexuality on Prezi

Sexuality

• Tight fitting clothes, prep look (stereotypical gay men)
• Cannot brand people's sexuality on what they wear
• Spend their time in gay clubs or gay parades (media coverage/stereotype)
• Use the same type of camera angles, except for when filming scenes involving the characters sexuality
• Make gay male characters 'glow' to make them more feminine and less intimidating
• Well spoken, gesturing when talking, high pitched voice, not interested in sports, care in their appearance, over acting, 'drama queen' (stereotypical views on gay men)
• Billy Elliot - dad is angry about Billy taking dance lessons, boys dancing can be seen as gay
• Lesbians - enjoy sports, act manly, deep voices, short hair, 'butch' (stereotypical view)
• Plots involve the character finding out they're gay, how they cope with it, and possibly what abuse they suffer.

Roland Barthes - Narrative Codes.

Roland Barthes was a semiologist (paid to look at texts and find out how they were put together).
Open texts - unravelled in a lot of different ways.
Closed texts - there is only once obvious line.
Barthes also decided that the threads (of a text/story) that you pull on to try and unravel the meaning are called narrative codes.

The 5 Narrative Codes
1. Action Code - applies to any action that implies a further narrative action.
2. Enigma Code - refers to any element in a story that is not explained and, therefore, exists as an enigma for the audience.
3. The Semantic Code - any element in a text that suggests a particular, often additional, meaning by way of connotation.
4. The Cultural Code - any element in a narrative that refers 'to a science or body of knowledge'. In other words, the cultural codes then to point to our shared knowledge about the way the world works.
5. The Symbolic - Levi-Strauss argued that the narrative structures have binary oppositions, eg. good vs evil.

Binary oppositions - the contrast between to exclusive words, eg. on and off, up and down.

Rushmore - Opening Montage.

Is Max a stereotypical teenager? Explain your answer using only the montage sequence. Refer explicitly to mise-en-scene.


A stereotypical American teenager is thought to be rude, disrespectful, lazy and someone who doesn't care about anything or anyone else. They don't want to do anything for anyone and don't really care about what their actions will mean for the future. Most American teenagers are patriotic to their country as well, because that's how they've been brought up. The opening montage of Rushmore, set in an all boys, American, private school, shows the main character, Max, to be a rather unique teenager.

The first part of the montage starts with a book that is decorated with bees on the front cover. This signifies to me that Max is always busy, like a 'busy bee', and that he's proud of the fact because the bees look like they've been added to the cover, presumably by himself. The book is then opened to show the first page which has a black and white picture of Max, like one you'd see in a newspaper, wearing a beret and possibly holding a cigarette, complete with the caption 'Editor-in-chief'. This makes me think that Max is not a stereotypical teenager because even teenagers interested in journalism, or just writing for their school magazine, are not likely to wear a beret and be holding a cigarette in a picture of themselves so that they seem more mature/older than they are.

In the next school activity Max is shown to be the President of the French Club. In the shot Max is sitting in the front row, right in the middle, wearing a red beret (which might possibly be his own beret as the other students are wearing different ones), with a sash designed to look like the French flag and a statue of the Eiffel Tower. This is not like a stereotypical American teenager because Max is shown to be slightly obsessed with France, however you would expect an American teenager to be proud of and love their own country over any other, but Max seems to want to belong to France and doesn't seem to have any patriotic tendencies towards America at all. He also chooses to represent Russia in the Model United Nations, instead of America.

Also Max proves to not be a stereotypical teenager when the montage says that he is the Vice-President of the Stamp and Coin Club. Stamp and coin collecting is considered to be something that older people do, such as pensioners, and not something that would interest teenagers.

However Max takes part in the track and field events at the school, which puts him in the frame of a stereotypical teenager, because teenagers are supposed to be interested in sports and American high schools focus a lot on their school teams. Therefore because Max takes part in the school sports it makes him seem more 'normal' for a teenager. Though Max is still shown to be different from the stereotypical teenager with regards to his school team because he is the manager of the team, rather than a team player as you would expect him to be. This shows Max's desire for control and makes him seem more mature than the usual teenager.

To conclude Max is portrayed in the opening montage to be a little different from the average American teenager because he has different hobbies and interests, and because he has joined so many school activities, whereas most teenagers would only join one or two at most. Also because he is either the founder, captain or president or these clubs it cuts him off from other teenagers because they just go to have fun, whilst Max goes so that he has power/control. He does take part in some ordinary teenage activities, such as the Yankee Racers, but most of the activities he belongs to are consider to be either a little eccentric or for people of a much older age. I believe that most teenagers would see Max as someone to make fun of because he doesn't seem to fit in anywhere, and is seen as an outcast as he is not the sort of person teenagers would want to associate themselves with.

Liana :)

Re-presentation.

The way the media present 'something' as though it were real, it is not real but merely a copy of something. - Re-presentation.

Signs and Signifiers

1. Something which communicates a piece of information. - sign.

2. Multiple 'idea' or 'feelings' behind a sign. - signifier.

3. All signs belong to cultures.

 

Gatekeepers - the people in charge of what we see.

 

Ideology - a belief system.

Rushmore

Mise en scene: camera angles, props, setting, lighting and acting.

1. Where is the film set?
Starts off in a classroom in an all boys school called Rushmore, and then the setting changes to a church/chapel, showing that the school could be religious.

2. Describe the main characters personality
Geeky, appears to be good at maths, seems to be idolized, which doesn't seem to be true as it was all a dream, the character is more likely to want to be appreciated by his fellow pupils/wants friends his own age.

3. What is he excellent at?
Maths

4. How do other view him?
In the dream they consider him to be a hero, but in reality he's quite lonely.

5. How was he dressed?
In the full uniform, more pride in his appearance than the other students.

Liana :)

The 5 C's.

Camera Angles

Continuity

Cutting (editing)

Close ups

Composition.

When telling the audience where the film is set, they use long shot. This lets you show all the important information.

A medium shot is the most commonly used shot in cinema. It is used to show any character interaction.

Something/someone important to show the audience use a close up.

Continuity

Generally refers to visual errors. In very basic terms it means having a character in a red top one second and a blue top the next.

Cutting/Editing

Essential otherwise films would be in real time and never end. It also allows the director to change locations. The main use is to either add pace to a scene to make it exciting, or to slow it down for dramatic emphasis.

Liana :)