Racial steryoptypes

this is a clip i like from an old film called blazing saddles, i thought i would use it to demonstrate how racism has changed over the years. today such a thing would not be socially or legally acceptable. i also think this is quite a funny clip.

LOL

favourite songs and ting

we have to create a power point showing our favourite songs and genre of music. the PowerPoint talks about how and when we listen to music. my favourite song is a Mr brightside cover by "Boyce Avenue". i prefer this cover because of the acoustic and more natural sounding to it and the singers voice goes with the song much better than the lead from the killers in my opinion.

comedy

i am uploading this just to show why i am against the idear of comedy. most people would find this disturbing and not funny, whereas i find it hilarious.

researched continued continued

http://video.aol.co.uk/video-detail/28-days-later-london-deserted/272887761
i could not find this video on youtube and therefore i couldent embed or tubechop it, so a link is the best i can provide for the time being. i have uploaded this link because it is what i consider one of the best scenes of all time. the dramtic irony in the scene of the charecter not knowing why london is abbandoned and reading bits of torn up newspaper and being confused about the nature of the situation. i also think the music in the scene goes very well in an eerie sense. with mise en scene i like the camera angles that suggest someone is watching him e.g. from high up places.

coursework research

i am working with Alex Farnell and we are currently researching film openings for our coursework project. we must film a 2 minute film opening to a genre of our choice which demonstrates all our knowledge and skill in filming and editing and how different techniques are used to develop different aspects of the opening scene. so far we have not chosen which genre of film we want to base the opening on, however we have been sharing with each other the openings of films we like and techniques we may like to use for our own project, for example Alex likes the opening to the film Juno because of the cartoon effect and how it switches to a real shot smoothly. I like this opening myself having watched it a few times and it is possible it may appear in our project when we come to filming, however something like this would be hard to create and was done by extreme professionals of filming and editing, therefore we need to continue to search for other openings to base our own on. a film opening i like is "snatch", directed by Guy Richie.
i like this opening because of how the shots switch smoothly to one an other in different places with different characters and introducing them one by one. this is a good way to start the film because of the cultural codes of the audience (mostly English or American viewers, familiar with types of theft) which will suggest due to the studying of the diamond and the disguises they are wearing they are thieves and gamblers because of the poker game. we therefore know the basis of the film withing one minute and 20 seconds, which is the general idea of a film opening: to introduce the film quickly and efficiently, and to deploy action codes and possibly enigma codes. another part of this opening that i like is the way in which that at the end of the title sequence the shot returns to the diamond from the start of the sequence.

Vladimir Propp

Vladimir Propp was a ussian critic and litery theorist who in his career analysed over one hundred fairy tales in the 1920's. He proposed that it was possible to classiy the charecters and their functions into clearly defined roles and functions e.g. starwars; the princess, the hero etc. However, things such as pulp fiction do not match this, the model however, is sill useful as it difines differing between stories.
charector roles

• the hero (seeking something)
• The villain (opposes the hero)
• The donor (helps the hero with a magic object)
• The dispatcher (sends the hero)
• the false hero (Falsley assuming the role of the hero)
• The helper (provides support)
• the princess (reward for the hero's success, but also needs protection from the villain)
• the farther (gives away the princess to the hero)

narrative structure

Vladimir Propp also propossed a three part narrative structure seperated into three catagories:

the begginning (equilibrium) the middle (disequalibrium) the end (new equilibrium). the equalibrium is a a state of normatlity within the storyline. the disequalibrium is something which disrupts the equalimbrium, and the hero/protagonist has to set out to correct it. the new equalibrium is when the problem is resolved and a new state of normality is created.

Mise en scene

Mise en scene is the french term for what can be seen on screen at any point, this includes films, photos, adverts etc. Mise en scene includes:

• lighting - the effect of the lighting, the significances of where the lighting is, the effect on the scene that the lighting causes e.g. if there is little light the scene may be considered evil or sinister.
• setting - the area where the scene is taking place and what it suggests. the setting is usually shown through a series of establishing shots from distance and up close.
• characters acting/ facial expression - the expression and posture of the characters, connotating what they are doing and how they are feeling in the scene for example: a withdrawn pose with a scared expression will suggest to he audience that the scene is one of horror, and that the characters are reacting to it accordingly.
• costumes/props - the theme of the clothing and the props which are being used, for example if we someone dressed in a prisoners uniform with handcuffs around there wrists, we become immediately aware that this character is a prisoner.
• camera angles - the angles and different kinds of shots which are being used in the scene which develop certain aspects of emotion or suggest action codes, for example if we see soldiers running through a battlefield approaching each other wearing different uniforms, we know there is about to be a fight.

Roland Barthes- Narrative theory

Roland Barthes split narratives up into two categories: open and closed. an open narrative is a continuous thread which does not come to an end e.g. a soap. a closed narrative is a plot which ends, for example a film or a film and it's sequels. also covered in the lesson was the difference between a series and a serial: a series is a constant on going show every week for example, a serial is a set of episodes e.g. a series or lost or south park. within open and closed narratives there are also 5 codes to analyse:

• action code: applies to any action that implies a further narrative action, for example, when we hear the drums in eastenders, we know the credits are about to roll
  
• enigma code: refers to any unexplained part of a story which provides a constant question for the audience which demand answers.
  
• the semantic code: something in a narrative which implies further or additional meaning through connotation
  
• the cultural code: any part of a story which refers to a body of knowledge, e.g. something that will appeal to groups of people in different ways, for example, we would see a man eating pork as something casual, however people who were brought up as Muslims may find it offensive.
  
• the symbolic code: works with binary opposites.
  
• Binary opposites: the idea that an idea only exists because it is paired with its opposite, and that things can only be defined in relation to the opposite of itself. for example, there is only such thing as a hero because of the existence or cowardice
  

also, we covered a mediation, which is the way an individual interprets a text, and an ideology, which is a set of beliefs and ideas bound together to a person.

Camera shots

we covered several different kind of angles which are used by professional Filmer's and armature's for all different kinds of situations, for example, a long shot may be to give the perspective of someone being on there own or standing out from a crowd, it may give the effect of someone looking through binoculars or the sight on a rifle. here is a list of all shots other than long shots and their uses:

• establishing shot: one or more of theses shots are often used in the opening of a scene to show the setting, the characters in the scene.
  
• Medium shot: a shot which is neither extremely close up or far away, it is the most often used shot, also known as a normal shot.
  
• close up: a close up shot is usually used on the face of a person to show someones reaction to something, for example a woman's reaction to being proposed to.
  
• a point of view shot: this is used to show the surroundings through a characters eyes. a brilliant example of this is the opening scene to Saving private Ryan. the scene involves several shots through a hand held camera as the soldiers progress up the beach.
  
• two shot: this is a shot in which there are two people placed in the frame.
  

• Titled shot: a shot with a title featured in it, usually placed in the centre of the shot.
  

we also covered the following concepts of camera angles:

• zoom: to zoom in closer to the subject of a shot or to zoom away from it
  
• pan: to follow a subject across the scene and move the camera in accordance.
  
• tracking: a single camera shot lasting as the camera moves along a set out track
  
• hand held: a camera which is held like a basic home camera, also used in saving private Ryan.
  

this is the contents page of my magazine

this is the front cover of my magazine

magazine evaluation :D :D :D :D

who did you work with and how did you manage the task between you?
i worked on my own for the magazine cover and contents. i started out planning a colour scheme and fonts for the front cover page and its basic layout. after this i started actual work on the magazine cover before moving onto the contents page.
how did you plan your magazine? what inspired you?
i planned my magazine on a piece 0f a4 paper with basic colours and titles. i then planned a picture on the magazine and other various things that will be happening on the cover of the magazine.
what technology did you use for the magazine? how did it help?
i used photoshop to edit the photos onto the page and to insert titles in etc. it was useful because it was easy to use with colours and fonts. it was also useful for cutting out the pictures i used with the magnetic lasso tool.
what factors did you have to take into account when planning?
I had to bear in mind my pathetic amount of skill using photoshop, and how that would effect the general efficiency and professional touch to my magazine cover.
how successful was your magazine? with hindsight, what would you change?
i think my magazine was fairly successful with an appropriate look to it. i would like to change the accuracy on the pictures cut out .
what have you learnt from completing this task? how will it be useful for your foundation coursework?
by completing this project i have gained a better understanding of photoshops abilities and how to use it.

evaluation :D

who did you work with and how did you manage the task between yourselves?
i worked with Alex, Liv and Laura. Alex filmed the acting of Laura and Liv and then uploaded the footage onto the computer at which point we began editing it. we noticed that one of the shots was not correct so we used a jacket i had with me on the day to make it look like it was Laura's hand.
how did you plan your sequence? what element inspired you?
we planned our sequence with a storyboard we had drawn. I was inspired by Mr fords incredible leadership.
what technology did you use to complete the task? how did it help you?
we used a common hand held camera to record the acting and mac's with imovie to help us edit the footage and make it fluent. Imovie also allowed us to remove all the shots of Liv laughing.
what factors did you have to take into account when planning, shooting and editing?
when planning we had to remember that we were only supposed to be using 12 shots in the task. we also had to remember how many people we had working on the project.
how successful was your sequence? with hindsight, what would you change?
i think our sequence was highly successful as it flowed well and was well edited. it had accurate shots with very little shaking of the camera. i would like to have helped out more with the sequence shooting however i was away at the time it was done.
what have you learnt from completing this project? how will it be useful in future for foundation coursework?
i have learnt several skills to be used on imovie for editing etc. i have also learnt how to draw out a storyboard correctly. these skills will be useful for my actual movie opening when i come to do it because it will help me to edit the footage and plan it better.

the male gaze continued

today with mr smith we continued our work on the male gaze by analyzing a provocative underwear picture featuring a model posing in underwear. one of the main things picked up today was how the camera takes the view of a man and how women are reduced to almost inanimate objects and all personality and human features tend to be removed.
however, today the idea that some women may like to be looked at as an attractive object of desire or lust was also displayed. several other theories were also displayed, as we also noticed that the posture of the women suggested power or stauts in wearing the underwear and as the advert was advertising to women this could have been the intention. the clever advertising method had allow them to appeal to women in this way as well as men as it would make men think that buying this for their partners would make them look like the model. these connotations are all cultural and semantic codes, e.g. if we take the fact that she was wearing high heels in the advert which makes her appear taller, this connotates power in a taller person, in our society.

this is my presentation

http://www.slideshare.net/reecehowardasmedia/michel-gondry-2219298
michale gondry presentation

the male gaze

the male gaze theory was created by Marjorie Ferguson in the 1980's and was a study of how the male audience perceives female image and interaction in media. The theory on pictures was based mainly around 4 sections, chocolate box, invitational, super-smiler and romantic/sexual. these categories are about what kind of image the photos of the women in British women magazines were suggesting, for example, what clothes they were wearing, their facial expression, the type of camera shot etc. IN the 1990's Trevor Millum contributed to the theory with his 5 own categories of photo which applied to men and women these were . I am going to apply the theory to my photo on my preliminary task, the magazine.
my photo of shanghai when applied to the male gaze theory matches the category of comical by Trevor Millum. she is holding a scarf to her face, looking scared of jumpy in a silly way.the photo would be called silly and ridiculous and she is "acting the fool". this photo is useful because it stands out, is different and may intrigue people who see it and make them want to read it. The other photo i used of shanghai falls mostly into the chocolate box catagory, utilizing the following attributes; half/full smile, lips together/ slightly parted, teeth barley visible and full/ three quaters of the face to the camera. shanghai has most of her face facing the camera, she has a half smile, concealing her teeth.

preliminary exercise

im currently working on my preliminary excercise creating a magazine cover and contents page. i have used 2 photos of a friend for the magazine which were both medium shots of her. this excersise is proving very useful for extending my using of photoshop for future reference. today i also performed a presentation with two other people on a director called Michael Gondry notourious for his work in music video's. i was at first slightly nervous about talking infront of people and a camera, but afterwards became okay with it. i think it was useful to make me prepared for future