Representation 25/10/18
Representation is the description or portrayal of someone or something in a particular way.
eg. the representation of women in films
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Representation is concerned with the way that people, ideas and
events are presented to us by the media. This could be represented
in magazines news, soaps, films, TV, computer games, social media
etc. The media rely on the audience understanding these
representations and accepting them.
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They Live - "sunglasses" scene
- the media’s intention is not always obvious
- how the media have a control over the society
- the protagonist represents the society
- the media’s manipulation is sugar-coated
- the sunglasses(protagonist) represented the 2 different types of audience
(active - sunglasses, passive - without sunglasses)
- we live in a capitalist society (money-based)
In this scene of the film They Live, the representation being communicated is how the media manipulates the reality and controls the society’s mindset. Every media platforms has a hidden meaning of what it wants the public to perceive and comprehend. For example, the billboard which is a media platform, showing the beautiful picture of a new government, who promises a “transparent” environment to the society. However, when the protagonist has the sunglasses on, the word on the billboard turns into “OBEY” showing that even though how beautiful and promising a media can seem, its true meaning and intention, which is what the audience will find, is hidden deep inside.
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Matrix - “Construction” scene
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represents how the media can manipulate what we perceive
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what is real? / how do you define real? *
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how our minds work
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representation is just electrical signals being passed into your brain
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how representation can be manipulated
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manipulation/work of the brain
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idea that representation is a program, set onto people
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delusion of appearance (can change)
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representation is mental projection of digital self (TV)
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making audiences question what they see / what they consider as “reality” *
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we form our own representation
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whoever controls the media can control the society (power) *
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the reality is our perception; not as what we see
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the media is the most powerful entity on the planet. it has the power to make innocent guilty, and guilty innocent, and that is power — Malcolm X
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media controls the mind of the masses — Jim Morrison
It is not possible for the media to present the world as it really is (reality). This is because the media constructs meanings about the world, therefore they change or mediate what is really there.
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The media re-presents the world to the audience. The ideas are a re-presentation of the original (reality).
The media is controlled by the institution (war on your mind)
Who is being represented? LCAGES (S for sexuality)
Identifying a lack of representation - is one group of people person, place or situation being represented more than another?
eg. When Kanye West came out as supporting Trump, the media call him a “token nigro” to try and get votes from black people
eg. The lack of East Asian casts getting main roles in blockbusters films
deconstructing how they are represented to the audience - media language, technical and cultural codes
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Everything you see on the TV is real. I partially agree to this statement as in some media platforms such as the news on television, information has to be truthful in order to be presented to the public. However, in platforms like social media or advertisements on billboards and magazines, the true meaning of the media might be manipulated in order to create an effect on the society. For example in the film They Live, billboards with advertisements turn into words like “OBEY”, “CONSUME”, “BUY” etc. Controlling the society to act/behave a certain way the media wants them to.
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the role of film is to accurately represents real people, places and situations. evaluate whether you agree or disagree with this statement. 29/10/18
“The role of film is to accurately represents real people, places and situations”, I strongly disagree with this statement as I believe that films do not represent reality, to any extent.
Firstly, media platforms such as films and advertisements always have different meanings from what they seem to be. Many films have inner aims that are rather implicit to the audience, for example, films that are popular to audiences may have inner meaning such as what they want the audience to react or behave in a certain way after watching their movies. A significant example to this are movies that were produced by the Nazi, having the aim of brainwashing Germans and alter their mindset into a certain way, believing that the Germans are superior than the others.
Secondly, the main aim or goal of almost every films nowadays is to make money. Almost no one care about positively “changing” anyone’s thoughts in order to create an “ideal world” through films like people used to. They are much more focused into gaining revenue, not representing “reality” in any way. As a result, only the good sides are being shown, as the audience would tend to spend money on what makes them happy and gives them gratification, not what depresses them showing the what the “real” world is like.
Finally, even though there are some people who has a positive mindset, having the passion to represent “reality” into films, there are obstacles, such as cultural and technical codes and restrictions that filmmakers will face during their production. There is a very high chance that the media, especially films, will always be edited/artificial in one way or another. To be brutally honest, the media is just a world of fake contents and beautifully edited reality.
example - haunted (documentary-like ; “based on a true story”)
verisimilitude - being true or real ; what all films want to achieve (audience to feel the story is real)
semiotics / semiology 29/10/18
The science of the life of signs systems in society” - Ferdinand Saussure 1857-1913 (Swiss Linguist)
“The study of sign systems. Explores how words and other signs make meaning.” - Derived from the Greek - Semeion - Sign
A sign is anything that stands in for something other than itself. Signs do not have innate meaning humans assign value to words and signs. Signs are categorised into those that are mental and private and those which are spoken or written in order to be made in public. Saussure highlighted the difference between what is on display in society and how the human made meaning from it.
Semiotics and this one process of creating meaning from society signs underpinned a logic and way of thinking.
summary
From this research into semiology, I now know how brands include theories behind their logos, for example, how fast food chains use hot colours to enhance the customers' appetite.
stereotypes 1/11/18
A widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a particular person, group of people or thing
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How is this film representing stereotypes?
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In the opening scene of the film The Breakfast Club, stereotypes of the characters are shown through their costume and appearance. Costumes create stereotypes by using connotations which the audience can decode. The types of clothing and the colour create meanings that help to represent a specific stereotype. For example, the "princess" character's clothing were clearly fashionable, with hair and makeup done. Showing that she is the "popular girl" or "princess" in the school without explicitly telling the audience. The "jock" dresses like he is always ready to play any kind of sports, muscular and bare-faced. This shows that he is rather flexible with any situations, and adapt to changes easily. Moreover, he wears the same thing as his dad, this communicates a meaning that his dad is living a life he wants in his son's life. The "nerd" wears rather normal clothing, nothing interesting or eye-catching, showing he likes to stay quiet and unexceptional. The "rebel" character wore black clothes that cannot be noticed which is which, messy hair and oversized jacket, most of her face is covered by her hair, giving a description of her being peculiar and uncommon from everyone else. The delinquent wears a black long trench coat, this goes against what the audience expects high school students to wear on a normal day.
mise en scene 8/11/18
Mise en scene is a French term meaning what is put into a scene or frame. It is the visual information in the frame. It communicates essential information to the audience. Represents people, places and events.
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1. Settings and Props
- Location & atmosphere of the film, props (properties) ; objects
within the scene that belongs to the character, shows the behaviours/characteristics/identity/lifestyle/backstory of the character
- Naturalism, time period, symbolism, emotional response, dramatic irony/ tension, colour symbolism
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2. Costume, Hair and Makeup
- representation of each character (protagonist/antagonist etc.)
- examples ; Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland
- Characterisation, status, symbolism, colours, emotion, similarities/ differences, alliances/ enemies
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3. Lighting and Colour
- Plutchik's wheel of emotions
- different types of lighting
- Shadows, spotlight on? High / low key – emotion, colour symbolism
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4. Facial Expressions and Body Language
- portray a character's emotions
- Character status, emotion, stereotype, Where characters look
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5. Blocking/Composition Positioning of characters/objects within the frame
- the movement of a character within the frame
- Conflicts / alliances, statuses, centre of attention / outcast, spacing – positive. Negative space
Props
The more unusual props the main character has, the deeper of an impression they leave on the audience
eg. the feather in Forrest Gump - serves as a metaphor and a motif ; every time in appears, there were a subtle change of plot leading to more metaphorical meaning
Specific props can bring the audience to certain scenes/situations making the audience recall precise information
Can be used as transitions/cutting points (example below)
Props & Settings
Props and Settings play an important role in manipulating an audience, the narrative, expectations and the genre of a media text. Sets are either built from scratch or located through a setting that already exists.
Settings
A set is an extension of the character ; where a character works, lives and spend free time with — audience can learn more about the character
It can be used as a strong symbol (eg. Vietnam War Movie), or as a transition of situations/metaphor of the story.
Characters can’t really escape from the set and the set is continuously used to enhance the storyline and the plot throughout the story
Settings provide as much meaning, symbolism, and mood as a real life character
costume, hair and makeup
Costume, hair and makeup act as an instant indicator to the
audience of a character’s personality, status and job. It tells us
immediately where and when the media text is set in terms of
timeframe, society and culture. Certain costumes signify certain
Johnny Depp has played in many films, each required him to have a different appearance. Through the use of costume, hair and makeup, the crew of each film successfully made Depp a different identity in each of the films he took part in.
Facial expressions and body language provide a clear representation of how someone is feeling. It also indicates how a character feels towards another character or may reflect relationship. In film body language can be used as brand identification
facial expressions and body language
lighting and colour
Lighting and colours are used to highlight important characters or objects within the frame. To reflect a characters mental state/hidden emotions (i.e. bright = happy, dark = disturbed, strobe effect =confused)
In the examples above, a range of colour palettes can be seen that is used in certain scenes of films such as "Drive", "American Hustle", "Mama Mia" etc. These colours, which might look contradicting at first, are used to complement each other and create certain atmospheres to the scene.
Click on each photo to see the full palette and description!
blocking/
composition
How each character/object is placed within a frame can draw the audiences attention to an important character/object. It can also indicate relationships between people.
In these videos, they show techniques and basic procedures of blocking and how important it is being a significant component in the film
summary
From this research into mise en scene, I now know the the components making up each scene and how they support each other to create the mood and tone of the film.
media language research 23/11/18
WWW
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acting
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emotional manipulation (laugh)
EBI
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more shots/tachniques
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background music
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improve in editing (no voice of crew)
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tell story through edit
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continuity editing ; make sure the shots are not repetitive
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cinematography
We made a short story based on differences shot angles, sizes and movement.
Shots include in film
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Tracking
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Over the shoulder
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Eye level
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Point of view
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Close up
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Extreme close up
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Tilted / low angle
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High angle
summary
As a result of this media language research, I now know how to combine different shot sizes, angles and movements in order to create a short film.