Laura Mulvey Theory and how it influences my A2 productions

1. LAURA MULVEY
The Male Gaze Theory
Chloe Bowen

2. LAURA MULVEY
Born: 15 August 1941
Occupation: Professor of film and media studies
Laura Mulvey is a British feminist film theorist. She was
educated at St Hilda's College in Oxford. She is currently
the professor of film and media studies at Birkbeck,
University of London. Professor Mulvey has been awarded
three honorary degrees.

3. HER THEORY: THE MALE GAZE
Mulvey came up with a theory to suggest how to audience perceive the actors
and how they are presented. She came up with the Male Gaze in 1975. She
believes that over the years, audiences have been made to see the characters
in film through a mans heterosexual perspective. She also suggests that as
its seen through a males eyes of interest, the gazer is given power
psychologically. By this her theory suggests that women can more often than
not view it from a secondary perspective and are only viewed for physical
pleasure. Females tend not to have any importance other than how she
makes a man feel or act, meaning that females only exist when a man is
about.
Scopophilia- Meaning a sexual pleasure from watching others when they are
naked or engaged in sexual activity.

4. FOR A FEMINIST
In the eyes of a feminist, this theory can be broken down into 3 parts;
1. How men look at women- men tend to look more towards their curves rather than
other parts such as their eyes.
2. How women look at themselves- women pick themselves apart and see
themselves in a negative light due to how women are represented in the media.
This triggers low self esteem.
3. How women look at other women- comparing one another. This can be from
clothing to a woman's figure, to their hair. Men may compare one woman to
another being very unfair but its very common with women to compare
themselves to others.
There are cons of using the Male Gaze in things like film and advertisement. Examples
are; men having high expectations of a woman's body and how they think it should be
presented. Again, women looking at themselves or at other women and feeling very
insecure, due to how men look at them and how the women are presented in the
media for the male eyes.

5. FEATURES AND EXAMPLES
The camera will linger on the curves or the chest of a women for a
longer time than needed, and it will be made quite obvious what the
audience should be looking at. This is to gain a pleasure that a
heterosexual male viewer would enjoy.
Another example would be exposed on film posters, such as the
women would always be looking up to a man, maybe in a sexual
manner or an admiring manner, almost in a desperate way. On the
other hand the male could be looking at the woman in a sexual needy
way as this is how they perceive women sometimes.
Woman are made an object or a possession, with lack of power.

6. EVERYDAY MALE GAZE
Advertisement: even when the female body has nothing to do with a product being
advertised, it has been known to sexualize a woman's figure in able to sell a
product.
Both of these advertisements
are aimed at men and men's
products such as shower gel
and beer. By sexualising a
woman or the sexiness of her
figure, this is putting the
product at a higher chance of
selling. This is due to the pure
fact a heterosexual man would
see a woman in this way and in
a way of getting some kind of
pleasure or excitement out of it.

7. THE IMPACT ON MY PRODUCTIONS
A2- FILM TRAILER/ Poster/ Magazine
Thinking about the image to use of my horror poster, this would influence whether the
male and females in the image were displayed in an appropriate way. This causes deep
thought about how to pose, the camera shots and angles, and the types of clothing
used. Based on this, I will be able to find an image for my poster that wont impact on the
Male Gaze. For example, the only male in my trailer could either be the tall dominant
one, or just as equal to the 3 females. The right image will display either one.
As for making the trailer, one stock character of mine (drama queen/girly girl) will be
showing skin because of the clothes she will be wearing. Therefore the way she is filmed
on set will depend on how she is perceives when watched. E.g zooming in on her
shoulders. However, all 3 girls could be portrayed as weak and scared, making the only
male in my trailer the dominant, strong one.
When creating my magazine front cover, the Male Gaze wont really be involved due to
the genre being horror. The images of women used will be covered up or displayed in a
different way. This wont link with the male viewers have the gaze on my characters.