Active Spectatorship, Frameworks of interpretation, Intertextuality, Media literacy, Social networking and Conditions of reception.

1. Me and My Movies
Films can influence someone in many ways, for instance, the
theme of the film, cast or the genre. Majority of the individuals
are influenced by film defining theme by the genre, it could be
action-thriller genre, instantly you think of films like ‘Taken’ and
‘James Bond’. These films included the conventional articles like
damsel in distress, guns, violence etc. Which is typically why
someone would like this genre since they would know all other
films of the same genre which will feature these factors that they
like.
The theory of active spectatorship is that when you want to sit
down to watch a film, and you aren’t sure what you are in the mood for so you end up picking your all-time favourite
film. You know what to expect from the film and you know you are going to enjoy it. Active spectatorship is when
you willingly watch a film, just because you feel like it. The chosen film delivers some sort of emotional response that
you want to experience again and you feel involved in the film so personal connection would be natural, connection
with either the story or the characters, or perhaps both. A films initial idea could be from a book first, such as Nicholas
Spark novels. Several of his novels have been blockbuster movies and all feature the recurring genre- Romance Drama.
A few of his well-known films are ‘The Notebook’ (2004) which was an audience favourite and won Nicholas Sparks
few awards. ‘Dear John’ (2010), ‘The Lucky One’ (2012) and ‘Safe Haven’ (2013). This is also active spectatorship since
the audience are a fan of the Nicholas Spark’s particular style. The film is based on Spark’s novels all featuring the
same characteristics, layouts and themes. Blumler and Katz ‘Uses and Gratifications’ ‘theory’ information would link in
this section because, Social media has gotten so big through the years and there are a lot of people who share their
thoughts and ideas on social media. One social media app which a lot of people share their thoughts and opinions is
Twitter. After someone watches a film 50% of the people will make a tweet sharing their thoughts about the film. The
reason on how I got so into Drama films was when it would be shown on TV. Whenever I watch a film, the first thing
I always do is look at the genre and see what it is based on. Normally I would only watch romance or comedy but I
started to try out drama and after watching the pursuit of happyness I wanted to watch more and more films related
to that.
The theory Framework of Interpretation relates to your own personal connection with a movie, the way a mind
interprets a film or a scene and then compares it with the way how said mind thought about it, before actually
watching. After having a life experience comparable to the one in the film it doesn’t matter where or who you are
watching the film with, you will always feel that emotional connection. When you watch a new film, you wouldn’t
know what to expect so you are unbiased about it. It could be a well-recommended film or something you picked up
in store since it was cheap. The framework comes from the reference points, the parts that relate to your life
experiences and how personal it feels to you and gives you a strong reaction. The interpretation part is the actual
analysis, the understanding of the film. For instance, in Lion there could be oppositional readers to the graphic scenes
like the scene when the little boy is placed in a home and you can see that the workers are dragging the children and
they are being treated like animals and unfair. This links to child welfare issues. Some of the audience (Social workers)
watching this may be against the films and some of the issues which occurred in some scenes. They may feel like
people will believe that whatever is shown on films, they society will think that is what actually happens. Many drama
films are realist films so while watching the film you are going to get many oppositional readers.

2. Intertextuality is the theory that “nothing is new”. It is a key element in
persuading an existing audience as well as promoting/persuading to raise
awareness a new audience to watch a film. When a film references another
film, amid the filming. It is normally the latest film paying homage who the
older film. An example of this is between these two films:
 Battleship Potemkin (1925);
 The Untouchables (1987).
Chris Gardner wrote a story based on his own life that soon became the hit
film ‘Pursuit of Happyness’. Will Smith plays the main character’s role (Chris
Gardner), this would instantly catch the eyes of the viewers since he has been
on several hit drama films like ‘Seven Pounds’, ‘Concussion’, ‘Ali’ and many
other hit films. It informs the viewers that he is normally known to be on
drama films and is most suited playing the roles in the genre of drama. And
as previously stated, the film ‘Lion’. The main character is played by Dev Patel
who has been featuring in several other hit TV shows like ‘Skins’. He plays a
character called Anwar who is quite ambitious and serious and he also played
the character Jamal in the blockbuster hit film ‘Slumdog Millionaire’. Where he plays in the Indian version of ‘Who
Wants To Be A Millionaire’ and before he answers each questions they show flashbacks on how he got there. His
mother also dies this creates additional tension and distress. When an actor/Actress features continuously on the same
genre it tells the audience that that’s the genre which the audience is most played at. This known as a Typecast.
Media Literacy refers to critical thinking
and critical analysis, where a film is encoded by the Director and decoded by the audience. It is then encoded by the
audience, and then decoded by the analyser. For instance, in the opening of Skins (2007) sequence when the audience
are introduced tow the main characters for the first time, we see the main character, Tony. It is introduced with a
close-up of his face and then slowly zooms out to see that he is in his bed. The producer and directors wanted to
show the audience the type of character he is right away, and by the visuals we can see he is a teenager. But the
decoding of the scene shows that he isn’t a ‘conventional’ teen, first based on the fact that his room is way too neat
for a teenager. He is lying in a very ‘adult’ duvet.
The audience will recognise that he is not a conventional teenager, and he could wither be very mature for his age, or
the right opposite. Due to the fact he has naked people on his duvet. Critical thinking is what the audience does a
render a message about a character, and majority of the audience would do it involuntarily. Sam Mendes directed was
American beauty. The film American beauty is about a sexually frustrated suburban father has a mid-life crisis after
becoming infatuated with his daughter’s best friend. He had a good job but he was bored and he quits his job and
then decides to start pot-smoking. The film itself is every dramatic and intense. I love how a good story line he always
brings towards different films which he directors. He always makes the film look realism and productive which he

3. knows that the audience would enjoy. The work and films that Sam Mendes has produced is not grand and conceptual,
but draws its impact from his ability to match actor and text. Certain people might watch a film not because they like
the genre and only because they like the actors who are in it.
In an interview, He stated that the things which he knows this about himself. “I am not a masterclass director,” he
says. “I am not a teacher. I am a coach. I don’t have a methodology. Each actor is different. And on a film set you have
to be next to them all, touching them on the shoulder saying, ‘I’m with you. I know exactly how you’re working. Now
try this or that…'”. Directors would normally use star appeal of an actor / Actress to bring in secondary audience. For
example, Johnny deep typically appears on Fantasy/Adventures film’s (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Pirate of the
Caribbean, Alice in Wonderland). However later on Johnny Deep featured in a drama film(Chocolate) which was
released in 2000. The fans of Johnny Depp would be fans who are into Fantasy films which he would normally appear
on but however because he will appear in a film which he normally wouldn’t, his fan would watch the film just because
he is on it.
Most of us watch films because of others hyping about them. Social networking promotes films to those who may not
have necessarily heard of them and attracts a wider audience for the films. The theory of social networking is when it
is related to the media and its film, it is the theory that people or groups can utilize films to communicate and to
connect with other people or groups. For instance, there are several ways someone can pitch their opinion on a film,
this can lead other to agree or disagree on said opinion. Some people uses blog or another method could be two
individuals talking about their favourite film or even 2 or more strangers talking about which scene was their favourite
from a new blockbuster. There isn’t a limit for one to express an opinion. Social networking is the biggest thing
because without social media people wouldn’t really know which films will be out or information about the film. When
the film trailer or poster goes viral on social media all the audience look at it and then they will share it to their friends
/ family or their social networking sites. This way the promotion of the film will reach out to other people and more
and more people will be aware about the film. The ‘Theory of Everything’ (2014) by James Marsh, is based on the love
life of Stephen Hawking and his wife. It was a genuine ‘childhood sweethearts’ concept and it was heart-warming to
watch. It was interesting to watch his medical condition progression and how extraordinary it is that he is still alive
with a superhuman intelligence. If it weren’t for social networking I wouldn’t have thought twice to watch this film,
which I am glad that I didn’t because it has been pitched so beautifully and to know the life of one of the great scientist
that still exist.

4. Conditions of Receptions is how you feel about a film
when watching it, how your surroundings and your
moods can alter the feeling and the message of a film you
watch. It typically depends on where you are watching it
and why. This theory is based on how you perceive the
film can change. An example of this could be due to the
location you are in. You are more likely to watch a film if
you are in the mood for it, and if the location you are in
sets the mood. It is vital that fans enjoy the content and
the storyline which the producers make. When realising
a film, it is all about how the way which the audience
respond and how they feel after watching the film. There
are positive and negatives ways on which the audience
may respond or approach the film.
Conditions of Reception can massively impact the feelings of the audience
about a film, whether they want to watch it or not, based on the film they
want to watch or where they want to watch a film. ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’
came out on Valentine’s Day 2015. Men around the world won’t be as
interested in the film as women were, and they might say they aren’t stirred
by the hype or they generally do not agree with the concept. However, there
are men that watched it, but in private or in a more comfortable
environment to avoid embarrassment. Thus, these men are not likely to go to
a cinema to watch the film, and will wait for its release on DVD and then
buy it via the internet, and watch it at home, in private.