Example Clip - Hustle

Make notes on the sequence:

• background music in the first scene to create the mood
• shot reverse shot - not talking to her though
• close up on the ring then pans to her face
• pans up to her to show she’s in control of the scene
• over the shoulder - props of cigar
• music creeps in
• both take a drink at the same time
• upbeat music
• point of action on bag
• close up of her freaking out
• shot reverse shot again
• sudden music stop
• looks at the camera and talks - direct mode of address
• close up  of man
• man, acting like a posh commoner
• upbeat music of men having a drink
• over the shoulder shot reverse shot
• mid-shot of them talking
• man walks up to the camera then looks and talks to it - direct mode of address
• switches to her talking to him on the phone
• shop owner is a greedy man (shocked at the £5000 offer)
• woman is all suited and so is the shop owner to show it's a posh shop
• picks a black dress - she's a sneaky dark person
• blonde wig - ditzy to lose her ring. powerful husband overpowers her
• woman is using sexuality and physical self to get what she wants, man in the other shot is using his intelligence to get the man on his side to hustle him
• woman in a clothes shop, man in a pub - stereotyped
• poorer woman helps give the richer woman impact that she's rich - binary oppositions
• camera angle of the shop assistant is looking down on the poorer woman
• transactions to show that the narratives are all happening at the same time and intercutting
• pan up to the blonde man who scams him - shows he's powerful, low angle
• shop assistant seems bored and rude
• second scene you're looking at the men talk through the fog - noisy
• close up on the man working on the alarm
• men moved to a more comfortable spot and laughing chatting with loud music
• shop keeper represented to be camp
• man with the bomb, shows he's powerful
• end scene, woman gets a phone call saying she'll have to 'occupy' him for a few more hours. she's still being used within the group
• no music when the men are in the bar because what he's saying is more important
• assistant at the beginning, the camera angles where on his level
• when hustler man comes into the shop the camera angle goes more on his level
• when the men are talking, it’s a two shot
• rich lady has pronounced English which shows she has money
• she’s playing the role within the program, knowing that she’s picking a role that is stereotyped
• connoted, woman shopping in the day
• but when she loses her husband’s ring she freaks out showing he’s in charge
• ‘late for my hairdressers appointment’ typical dialogue

(first time of taking notes)

Media Terminology

Semiotics - The science of signs (Roland Barthes, 1964)

Denotation: Rose - flower/garden plant (what it actually is)

Connotation: Rose - love, romance, passion (what it represents/meanings you asociate)

Micro -

Mise en scene: clothing, props, make up, hair, lighting and location

Sound: accent/dialect, music, sound effects and editing.

Camera Angle: movement and position.

Macro -  (all impact on one another)

• Narrative
• Representation
• Audience
• Genre

Four Focus Areas: Sound, Editing, Mise en scene, Camera angle etc.

Verismilitude - Realism
Proximity - Where they are on screen
Diegetic Sound - Sounds that are natural and part of the sequence (sound effects)
Non- diegetic Sound - Sounds that have been put on during editing (soundtrack)
Mode of Address - The way we talk to eachother
Direct mode of Address - Talking straight  to the audience

Example Sequence:
Micro Analysis:
Sound

• Mode of address is accentuated and flirtatious (stereotyped blonde)
• Music reflects the atmosphere, instrumental, seductive and flirty.
• Other woman is unsure what to say, awkward.

Editing

• Shot reverse shot, reaction shot and contrivertial shot.
• Length of shot/length of take.
• Establishing shot
• 180 degree rule
• Eyeline shot

Mise en scene

• Silk dressing gown
• Social class - kitchen, dress and necklace
• Lace lingerie
• One is in the kitchen (housewife) other is beautiful blonde (stereotype)

Camera Angles

• Close up - reaction
• Mid-shots - naked lady
• Over shoulder shots to see it from the woman's point of view of the blonde woman

Stereotypical and Non-stereotypical Character Examples

Leonard Hofstadter

A male example of a non-stereotypical masculine character is Leonard Hofstadter (Johnny Galecki) - he plays a geeky character in the comedy drama 'The Big Bang Theory', he one of the four main masculine characters in the comedy; however the character Galecki plays isn't the normal role a main male character would play in a TV program. As shown in the photo; the glasses, clothing and style of the hair shows that he isn't really a fashion conscious character who wants to grab peoples attention for the right reasons. Ironically, it's his total lack of ability with woman and total 'nerdyness' that creates a lovable character and keeps audiences gripped.

Penny

A female example of a stereotypical feminine character is Penny (Kayley Cuoco) a ditzy blonde who dates just about every hot guy she can get her hands on. She is shown as a pretty face who knows nothing and her relationships always ends with the man dumping her. Even though she is the only female lead in the drama, she is still undermined by her lack of brains, good upbringing and ability to hold a steady relationship. The only reason the audience stays gripped by her is because of the vast personality difference between her and Leonard whom she fancies.

Go Hye Mi & Yoon Baek Hee

There are two characters that I believe reflect me, Go Hye Mi (Suzy) & Yoon Baek Hee (Ham Eun Jung) from the Korean TV Drama 'Dream High', Suzy plays the stuck up main character who has a simple image and simple way of doing things, if she doesn't get her own way she gets annoyed and grumpy; her fashion sense is simple and mainstream and she fits in with the crowd. Whereas Jung plays the pushover best friend who follows Go Hye Mi around at her every need but finally steps away and changes her appearance (cutting her hair short) and fashion sense (becoming more unique). I believe these character both represent me because I can be quite arrogant at times but I can also be a huge pushover.

Gender Representation Cont.

Laura Mulvey spoke about the 'Male Gaze'
Influenced by Freud and Jacques Lucan; when film and literature is dominated by the male point of view. Her belief is that the world is a patriarchy and that men have the 'active' roles and women have the 'passive' roles.

Traditionally; men play active roles which drive the narrative. Women play passive roles and are seen as erotic objects which slow the narrative. Female roles are sidelined and lead roles for women are scarce.

Women are stereotyped; blonde bimbo's, female physical attractions such as figure and breasts to overpower the male, easy, housewife or mother. They could have some signs of intellect but are willing to settle down.

Male Gaze: two distinct modes - voyeuristic and fetishistic.
Mulvey argued that women where given two character types - sexually active female and powerless female.
Films presented images of women that where produced simply for the gratification of male viewers.
Various studies in the 1970s found men to be the dominant characters and decision makers in film and TV production.

Importance? When women had important roles they were far more likely to be shown as:

• Frightened
• In need of protection and direction
• Offering support to the male lead character(s)
• Not independent or self driven
• Generally weaker
• Still objectified sexually

"Women, in any fully human form, have almost completely been left out of film..." - L. Mulvey

Changes in society: As women's roles change so does media representaion. Still objectified but also likely to be:

• Career driven
• Intellegent
• Confident
• Empowered
• Able (violent)

Changes may be made synically and in order to make money rather than to change ideologies.

Misogyny; Against women, really sexiest. 
"There will never be a woman prime minister as long as I have a hole up my arse" Gene Hunt - Life on Mars.

Overview of the Exam

Section A - Media and Textual analysis skills and understanding of the concept of representation using a short unseen moving image extract.
Section B - To assess your knowledge and understanding of media institutions and their production processes, issues concerning audience reception and consumption of media texts.

Examination: 2 hours (including 30 minutes veiwing of the extract which is watched 4 times)
Questions: Two compulsory questions - out of 100

There are two sections to this paper:
Section A - Textual Analysis and Representation
Section B - Institutions and Audiences


Section A: Textual Analysis and Representation:
Area of focus:

• Camera angle, shot, movement and composition
• Mise en Scene - Everthing in the scene: chothing, props, lighting, setting, make-up, hair
• Editing
• Sound

Areas of Representation:

• Gender
• Age
• Ethnicity
• Sexuality
• Class and status
• Physical ability/disability
• Regional identity

Marking Criteria (Section A and B)

• Explanation/analysis/argument (20 marks)
• Use of examples (20 marks)
• Use of terminology (20 marks)

Representation in the Media

Definition:
By definition, all media texts are re-presentations of reality. This means that they are intentionally composed, lit, written, framed, cropped, captioned, branded, targeted and censored by their producers, and that they are entirely artificial versions of the reality we perceive around us.

When studying the media it is vital to remember this - every media form, from a home video to a glossy magazine, is a representation of someone's concept of existence, codified into a series of signs and symbols which can be read by an audience.

However, it is important to note that without the media, our perception of reality would be very limited, and that we, as an audience, need these artificial texts to mediate our view of the world, in other words we need the media to make sense of reality.

Therefore representation is a fluid, two-way process: producers position a text somewhere in relation to reality and audiences assess a text on its relationship to reality.

Hypodermic Needle Theory:
The media can just inject ideas and messages straight to an audience; very controversial.

Stuart Hall (1950)
Created this audience theory --> ENCODE + DECODE
Producers want us to read their media text with a 'Preffered' meaning. If we decode their encoded TV texts, we'll most likely agree with what they're saying. 
e.g. the Yorkie bar; specifically advertised that it's 'Not for Girls' so instantly woman decided to go against this 'ban', they hit the hidden meaning and went out and bought the chocolate bar that was meant to be for men.


In order to fully appreciate the part representation plays in a media text you must consider:

• Who produced it?
• What/Who is represented in the text?
• How is that thing represented?
• Why was this particular representation (this shot, framed from this angle, this story phrased in these terms, etc) selected, and what might the alternatives have been?
• What frame of reference does the audience use when understanding the representation?

Representations of women across all media tend to highlight the following:

• Beauty (within narrow conventions)
• Size/Physique (again, within narrow conventions)
• Sexuality (expressed by the above)
• Emotional (as apposed to intellectual) dealings
• Relationships (as opposed to independence/freedom)

Representations of men across all media tend to highlight the following:

• Strength - physical and intellectual
• Power
• Sexual Attractiveness (which may be based on the above)
• Physique
• Independence (of thought, action)

Gender Representation

Masculine	Feminine
Arrogance Dominating Strong Protective Brave Exercise Omniscient (Thinks they know everything) Vain Paternal Proud Independent Brash	Fragile Vain Headstrong Maternal Influential Home Improvement Committee Jealousy Organised Stubborn Optimistic Bitchy Trying to Impress
Football Beer/Alcohol Food Bed Office Job Builder Architect Dogs Gym Cars/Mechanics DIY Landscape Designer Paparazzi Sofa Boobs	Clothes Shoes Bags Fashion Industry Journalism Office Job Babysitting Kitchen (Cooking) Accessories Make Up Cats Creative Arts Cleaning Mirror Nurse

(STEREOTYPICAL)

Nature VS Nuture

Production Rules

180° Rule:


180° Rule

 The 180° rule is a basic guideline in film making that states that two characters (or other elements) in the same scene should always have the same left/right relationship to each other.


Match on Action:

Connects two shots cut together by having a character finish an action in the second shot that was begun in the first shot, making the sequence flow. 
For instance, if a character lights a match in the first shot, the same character will draw it up to a cigarette in the second.


Continuity Editing:

An editing style that aims to present the text in a linear and chronological manner to emphasize the real-time movement of the narrative and to create a sense of realism for the viewer by giving the impression of continuous filming.

Referred to as invisible editing, so that the whole sequence looks natural.

Shot Reverse Shot:

Shot reverse shot (or shot/countershot) is a film technique where one character is shown looking at another character (often off-screen), and then the other character is shown looking back at the first character. Whether verbal dialogue is used or not.

Eye-line Match:

This feature of continuity editing involves two shots in which a character in the first shot looks offscreen at another character or object. The next shot then shows what that character is looking at from a position that reflects, in its angle, the character's position and the direction in which he or she has looked.

TV Drama Examples

TV Dramas	Genre	Narrative (Storyline)	Channel	Time
CSI	Medical	Murder	Channel 5	10:00pm
Desperate Housewives	Adult/Family	Relationships/ Murder	Channel 4	10:00pm
One Tree Hill	Family Drama	Relationships	E4	9:00pm
Hollyoaks	Soap	Relationships	Channel 4	6:30pm
Shameless	Teen Drama	Drugs and Sex	Channel 4	11:00pm
Skins	Teen Drama	Adolescence	E4	10:00pm
Misfits	Teen/Sci-fi	Rebellion	E4	11:00pm
Fringe	Sci-fi	Parallel Universe	Sky1	10:00pm
90210	Teen Drama	Relationships	E4	9:00pm
Downtown Abbey	Period	War/Drama	ITV1	9:00pm
Grey’s Anatomy	Medical	Casulties	Living/E4	9:00pm
The Bill	Crime	Police	ITV1	9:00pm
Eastenders	Soap	Relationships	BBC1	7:30pm/8:00pm