July School Holidays Assignment - Representation Deep Dive - When they See Us

 

Key Terminology 

Term	Definition & Exam Application
Representation	The way media re-presents the world — people, places, events and ideas are constructed through choices. Never 'neutral' or 'natural'.
Stereotype	An oversimplified, widely-held image of a group. Stereotypes are ideological — they serve the interests of dominant groups by making constructions appear natural.
Counter-type	A representation that deliberately challenges or subverts a dominant stereotype.
Ideology	A system of values and beliefs presented as common sense. Media texts encode ideological positions through representational choices.
Preferred / Dominant Reading	The meaning a producer intends audiences to take from a text. The technical codes work to anchor this reading.
Signifier / Signified	From semiotics: the signifier is the image/sound; the signified is the concept or meaning it evokes. Useful for analysing mise-en-scène.
Connotation / Denotation	Denotation = what you literally see/hear. Connotation = the cultural meanings and associations it carries.

 OBSERVATION GRID 

Element	What I noticed (observation) → What it means (analysis)
Camera
Editing
Mise-en-Scène
Sound

✦ ACTIVITY:  — Three Statements 1.   Students write three statements, each using a different technical element and explaining how it contributes to the representation of a character or group in the extract. 2.   Each statement must follow the structure: [Technical choice] + [Specific detail] + [Effect on audience/meaning created] + [Representation constructed]. 3.   Example: 'The low-angle shot of the detective [camera] creates a sense of authority and dominance, positioning the audience to view him as powerful, constructing a stereotypically heroic masculine identity.'

 

 

T2 | Wk 11 | David Gauntlett's Identity Theory

  

“Identity is complicated; everyone's got one.” Gauntlett believes that while everyone is an individual, people tend to exist within larger groups who are similar to them. He thinks the media do not create identities, but just reflect them instead 

Let's look at this article and clip from David Gauntlett himself 

https://davidgauntlett.com/digital-media/new-video-on-identity-for-uk-a-and-as-level-students/?fbclid=IwAR3ej7DimvZ2DDzuxJ0i9I-lx9R0iQJVtDpka8A0xcL-0PUsAU4X2VhNFtQ

Consider the question 

Why is it hard for us to ask the question 'how does this media text construct identity'? 

What are some key notions of identity that we should take into consideration? 

Use one of the clips from this week's homework assignment and write a paragraph that uses both Stuart Hall, Blumler and Katz (Uses _+ Gratifications theory) and Gauntlett's theory correctly. 

T2 | Wk 11 | Monday | Period Drama - Representation Practise - Downton Abbey

  Task 1

Check out this clip from Downton Abbey.

I want you to watch it through from 1.36 mins to the end (please note, this will be longer than the average clip you'll get in an exam but for the purposes of practise, it's a great clip).

Task 2: 

Create a blog post with the title, "Downton Abbey Representation Practise" with your notes

Questions;

1. Who (out of the 7 core representation areas of society) are being represented in this clip? 

(you can choose more than 1 category if you feel it's relevant)

2. How are they represented to us? (what messages are we told about these groups? What are they like? What are their lives like? What are we encouraged / pursuaded to think about them?)

3. Split a planning page up into 4 squares and include your 4 technical elements. Go through the clip from 1.36 and collect EVIDENCE (or examples) of where each technical area created meaning. Use correct terminology AND details of the example you're referring to (you can't just say 'there's lots of close-up's") You will need to watch the clip through 3 - 4 times, like you would in an exam, to get the notes you need. 

Task 3:

Watch this video as it goes through each technical element and how you should be taking notes for your essay;

 Task 3:

Write an essay over the next 2 lessons in response to the exam question,

'How is meaning created using the four technical elements?"

This is due end of lesson on Tuesday . 

T2 | WK 10 | Friday - The Interview (when CMC goes wrong with a Global audience)

    Hey guys,

I want you to make some notes on the following videos, looking at The Interview as our case study example. 

Visit this website to check out some facts about the movie, so you have these ready for an essay, too...

You would use this case study in an essay about 

- CMC + Synergy (CMCis great for publicity but what happens when things go wrong with a Global audience who doesn't share Western values? )

- ownership (issues with a Global audience)

- technology (mainly how the internet has changed movies being so globally available)

- audience (how movies are now made for a global audience, even when not intended)

 

Watch until 1.22mins

T2 | Wk 10 | Thursday - NZ examples of Syngery / CMC - Hobbit + Air NZ

    

Hey guys,

You are going to add this example to your portfolio for a case study in the area of marketing.

Have a look at the viral in-flight safety video that Air NZ made in the theme of the Hobbit. It's a great example of CMC + Synergy.

Watch the VIDEO here  

Notes to write

1. How many hits did it get on Youtube? 

2. what year was this made? 

3. Why is this a good example that illustrates how NZ film is used for a different purpose than the films created for the Big 5? Was this safety video purely for entertainment? 

T2 | Wk 10 | Wed - Dark Knight marketing campaign

Let's look at this together and make some notes about how marketing is changing with technological advancements to be more interactive. Also, for a marketing essay, let's use this as an example of how movies can create hype/ buzz in creative ways. This was produced by and distributed by Warner Bros. Use this as an example of how big studios have an advantage for this sort of reach, in their marketing. 

https://blog.opiumworks.com/why-so-serious-how-the-dark-knight-changed-movie-marketing-forever

T2 | Wk 10 | Tues - Shirky's End of Audience theory

 Shirky – end of audience theory.

What is it?

Audience behaviour has changed due to the internet and the ability for audiences to create their own content at home thanks to the lower cost of technology. This new audience doesn’t just consume media, but also produces it – creating the term ‘prosumer’.

Amateur content made this way has different values to professional media producers, in that it promotes a connection between other amateur producers – they both deeply care about the products they make and can help them work together.

When they work together in this way, audiences can make more content than producers – Wikipedia is a good example of this.

What is the advanced version?

In the ‘old’ media, centralised producers addressed atomised consumers; in the ‘new’ media, every consumer is now a producer. Traditional media producers would ‘filter then publish’; as many ‘new’ media producers are not employees, they ‘publish then filter’.

These amateur producers have different motivations to those of professionals – they value autonomy, competence, membership and generosity. User-generated content creates emotional connection between people who care about something. This can generate a cognitive surplus – for example, Wikipedia can aggregate people’s free time and talent to produce value that no traditional medium could match.

‘The Audience’ as a mass of people with predictable behaviour is gone. Now, behaviour is variable across different sites, with some of the audience creating content, some synthesising content and some consuming content. The ‘old’ media created a mass audience. The ‘new’ media provide a platform for people to provide value for each other.