Realism is a complex concept that depends on multiple factors. The same representation may appear realistic to some audiences or from some perspectives but not others. Realism is influenced by the intentions of the creator, the experiences and expectations of the audience, and the broader cultural and historical context. There is usually no single, objective answer to whether a representation is realistic.

1. Area of Study 1 - Representation
On completion of this unit, students should be
able to describe the construction of specific
media representations and explain how the
process of representation reproduces the world
differently from the direct experience of it.

2. Area of Study 1 - Representation
Key knowledge
• Media representation and its relationship to the selection and
construction of reality in various media forms
• The nature of codes and conventions evident in media productions,
and the meanings they create
• The nature and role of audiences in reading media representations
• notions of ‘realism’ in media texts
• Representations within the context of values such as those related
to gender, age, ethnicity, culture and socioeconomic status
• The influence of institutional and social practices on the nature of
representations, and their availability and accessibility
• Representations within the context of media history and culture,
including the emergence and development of stereotypes, styles
and generic conventions within media

3. Unit 1 – Representation and
Technologies of Representation
Key Skills
• Describe representations in media texts
• Compare the construction of representations in a range
of media texts and across media forms
• Use concepts of representation, selection, omission
and construction in the evaluation of media texts
• Discuss how audiences make judgments about how
realism is represented in specific media texts
• Analyse representations within the context of
institutional practices, media history and cultural
values.

4. REPRESENTATION LIFE CYCLE
Selection & Selection &
Omission Omission
Author Audience
(Sender) Rep (Receiver)
Values Values
Using Codes & Using Codes &
Conventions Conventions
Cultural & Cultural &
Historical Historical
Context Symbolic Symbolic Context
Audio Audio
Technical Technical
Written Written

5. DEFINITION
The act of ‘re-presenting’ or attempting to
depict reality. The creator constructs a
representation that attempts to portray reality;
this is mediated in a number of ways by the
process of selection, omission, construction, and
interpretation by the receiver.

6. TYPES OF REPRESENTION
Representations can appear in many different
forms. They can depict:
• Individuals (celebrities, historical figures)
• Social groupings (families, ethnic groups)
• Institutions (the law)
• Ideas (freedom)
• Events (war)
• Issues (terrorism)

7. REPRESENTATION & MEANING
An image does not carry meaning in itself; it is
the reader that creates meaning within an
image.
The audience plays an essential role in the
creation of meaning behind a representation.
Audiences read and interpret a representation
based on a number of factors.

8. CONNOTATION & DENOTATION
• Connotation is the meaning is attached to an
object
• Denotation is the name attached to an object

9. SYMBOLIC & CULTURAL CODES
• Meaning is also attached to images through
references to, and within, culture or society.
• Meanings are specific to the society or culture
in which they are viewed.
• Meaning is attached via what Barthes called a
‘cultural code’, which is knowledge gained
from living in, absorbing and consuming
products of a culture.

10. COLOUR CONNOTATION
Red Power, excitement, energy, and physical
courage.
Green Money, envy, environment, Mother Earth,
universal love and youth.
Blue Trust, integrity, and communication
Purple Quality, luxury, and decadence
Black Glamour, sophistication, exclusivity
Gold Wealth and prestige
Yellow Happiness, optimism and friendliness
Orange Fun, playful and joyful social interaction
Pink Love, nurturing, and caring (light pink);
sex appeal (brighter pink)
Brown Warmth, safety, reliability, and
dependability

11. CODES & CONVENTIONS
The word ‘code’ refers to any system of signs
that are used to communicate meaning.
‘Conventions’ are well-established ways of
constructing texts.

12. Activity
1. Create a table
2. Look at the following advertisment
3. Write down the denotative and connotative
content
Denotative Content Connotative Content
The man is wearing a dark suit, white He is wealthy and has a high-paying
shirt and a brown and black striped tie job: he is a businessman
The man has short brown hair that is He is a conservative person who has to
slightly combed to one side look ‘respectable.’ As the cut is no
longer in fashion, it suggests that the
ad is from the 80s

14. Codes & Conventions
• Systems of generally accepted signs that help
create and communicate meaning
• Audio/Visual codes can be categorised into four:
– Index
– Symbolic
– Written
– Audio
– Technical
* Codes don’t work in isolation *

15. Index Signs
• Index - An Index signs is a sign where there is a
direct link between the sign and the object.
The meaning is derived from the
context/situation in which the sign is read.
• The majority of traffic signs are Index signs, as
they represent information that relates to a
location.

16. Index Signs
• Colours are frequently used to reference meaning, but
the context in which a colour is perceived plays a big
part in the meaning it carries (Indexical)
• Write down two different meanings for each of the
colours below and two different contexts/settings that
change the meaning:
– Black
– White
– Blue
– Red
– Green

17. Symbolic Codes
• A symbol has no logical meaning between it and the
object
• Flags are symbols that represent countries or
organisations
• Film clips often operate by using symbolism to
communicate meaning
• Watch the film clip ‘November Rain’ and write down as
many symbolic references under the headings of:
– Props & Costume
– Setting
– Colours

18. Props & Symbolic Setting Symbolic Colours Symbolic
Costumes meaning meaning meaning
Broken Sinner not saint Derelict Abandoned by Grey Danger/sadness
Crucifix house God to come
Empty Drowning Rain Foreboding Red Passion, love,
whiskey sorrows tragedy/ sadness life, irreversible
bottle damage
Short Lustful bride, Church Loss (death), Joy Black Mourning
wedding Passionate (marriage)
dress relationship White Loss of vitality
Smoking Wild/fearless
Lifestyle Or
stupidity
depending on
Values*
Casket Death

19. Written Codes
• Can be very powerful at creating meaning
• Almost impossible for text on screen not to be
read
• Written statements are credible as our culture
respects the written word
• Can intro setting, time, place or work to
anchor the meaning of an image
• What is written (How it is written = Technical
Code)

20. • How important is setting/context in the way
codes are read by an audience?
• Choose one code and provided a different
meaning by deconstructing it from a different
perspective

21. Written Codes
• The following is the film clip Everybody Hurts
by R.E.M.
– How have they used written codes?
– What effect does it have?
– How did it make you feel?
– In what other ways could this technique be used?
– Same video, different text = changed meaning

22. Written Codes anchor meaning
This image of a Big Mac could have any number of meanings depending of the
it appears with.
Write a caption that clearly anchors the meaning of this image.
E.g. Take a good look because you won’t see this when you buy one.

23. Audio Codes
• Audio codes are used to enhance the illusion of
reality. The filmmaker can use music, sound
effects or dialogue to assist in this deception,
even though these sounds weren’t present when
shooting took place.
• Diegetic Audio – Audio that takes place in the
world of the representation. The characters can
hear it, react and interact with it.
• Non-diegetic Audio – Audio that takes place
outside the world of the representation. Only the
audience can hear it.

24. TV & Movie Themes
Track 1 – Raiders of the Lost Ark Track 5 – Pulp Fiction
(adventure) (crime/thriller)
Track 2 - E.T. Track 6 - Schindler’s List
(family/adventure) (biography/drama/history)
Track 3 – Halloween Track 7 - The Crow
(horror/thriller) (action/fantasy/thriller)
Track 4 – Monty Python and the Holy Grail Track 8 – The Godfather
(comedy) (crime/drama)

25. Duck Amuck
• Often, we take audio codes for granted, accepting that
what we hear is just what should be heard. What about
when we watch an animated cartoon when all we’re
watching are thousands of drawings providing the illusion
of reality? How are the audio codes used then?
In this Warner Brother’s cartoon, notice how
– Music
– Sound effects &
– Dialogue
are all used to construct reality and to make the audience aware
that it operates under different conventions.

26. Technical Codes
• Codes of the profession, these codes are the
techniques of construction
• They can be broken down into any of these
production elements:
– Camera
– Lighting
– Editing
– Mise en scene/Visual Composition

27. Technical Codes
• Tech codes are interested in the reasons
behind certain shots / composition / lights /
editing has been used

28. The Matrix
• In groups, examine:
– Camera
– Mise en scene
– Lighting
– Editing
What has been used? Why has it been used? What
meaning does it communicate?

29. Stereotypes
• An oversimplified version of a representation
is called a stereotype. These can often be
quite negative as they don’t give a detailed,
accurate portrayal of the truth
• These representations are used mostly in
advertising

30. Stereotypes
• Stereotypes are quick and easy to use, as they
are easily assembled and easily understood
– Write down a group of commonly stereotyped
people
– Write down five stereotypical objects/qualities
that could be used to identify them
– Beware the Wog – The Late Show

31. Values
• Society is held together by beliefs and ideals
• Values are ideas that people hold to be ‘true’
or ‘important’ and society reflects these
beliefs
• Media products reflect these beliefs as they
are created within a particular time and
society
• Values are expressed as attitudes towards an
idea, e.g. Education is important

32. Values

33. Realism
• The reality of a representation is influenced by
the point of view of the author and the
experiences of the audience

34. Realism
Is this realistic?