3. STUART HALL
The reception theory wad developed by Stuart Hall and it states that media texts (films,
TV shows) are able to be encoded (by the producer) and decoded (by the viewer). The
producer is able to put hidden messages and values into their media which the viewer
is able to decode. However everyone will decode and understand these hidden
messages in different ways, they may even see the message in the opposite way the
producer meant it. The reception theory states that there is three positions from which
the viewer can decode the text:
- Preferred Reading (Dominant) - this is how the producer wants the message to be
seen. The audience will take this view if the message is clear and the viewer is the same
age and culture, also if it has an easy narrative to follow and if it deals with ideas and
themes that are relevant to the audience.
- Oppositional Reading - this happens when the audience rejects the preferred
reading and creates their own meaning for the text. This can happen if the media
makes use of controversial themes that the viewer disagrees with. It can also happen if
the media has a complex narrative and perhaps does not deal with themes and issues
of modern day society. Oppositional reading can also occur if the viewer has different
beliefs or is a person of different age or culture.
Negotiated Reading - this is a compromise between the preferred and oppositional
reading where the audience accepts parts of the producers views but also has their
own views. It is like 50/50 and can happen if there is a mix of a) their own views b) have
different beliefs or from different age or culture c) the media is complex but has parts
that can be understood.
There are different
factors that have the
ability to change how
someone would see a
certain media text and
change them from
oppositional view to
preferred view:
• Age
• Beliefs (religious)
• Culture
• Gender
• Life Experiences
• Mood of the
person at the time
of viewing
• Social Upbringings
Encoded
message
Preferred Reading
Negotiated Reading
Oppositional Reading
4. STUART HALL
Factor Age Beliefs Culture Gender Life Experiences Social
Upbringing
Mood of
at the time
How this would
affect?
Like a lot of
things we would
understand
things differently
at different ages.
For example if
you look at
Disney movies
there is lots of
innuendos
throughout their
moves but they
are not intended
for the children,
they are for the
adults that take
them, and as the
children get
older they will
come to
understand
these hidden
phrases and little
jokes.
This is
something that
will be based off
your religion. So
there might be
certain ideas in
your religion
that restrict you
from doing a
certain thing or
maybe
understanding
an idea.
This is similar to
beliefs as it is
your culture so it
will be different
for every single
person. It is how
you would see
things and how
you'd
understand
things.
Gender
would be
something
that will
change views
for each
person. Take
a pregnancy
scene,
women who
have gave
birth before
would see
this as the
preferred
reading as
they have
gone
through this
before and
felt that pain.
An example
for men
could be the
loosing of a
close family
member, if
there have
been men
who have
went through
this then they
would see it
as the
preferred
reading.
This would be
something that
would change for
every single person
who has seen
something. If they
have went through
something like this
or similar then they
will feel how the
others do and they
will get the ideas.
For those who have
not been through
this kind of thing
they would not
understand it and
they could be
oppositional.
Social
upbringing is
something that
will change how
people view
things. This
could be maybe
a certain thing
they watched as
they were
younger or
something that
as they grew up
they did.
This is
something that
changes how
everyone feels.
You might be on
edge to see the
final show of the
season and you
could be ready
to go or you
could be bored
of waiting and
this could affect
how you see the
things which
could happen.
5. SYMBOLIC CODES
Setting
The setting is usually how we establish the place and time of the
narrative. When you talk about setting you can describe the
setting of the whole movie or just a certain scene. Setting sizes
can range from a small room to the Australian outback. Setting
is also able to create an atmosphere and a certain frame of mind
for the viewer.
What is the mise-en-scene?
The mise en scene is basically anything you can see on the screen such as props, actors actions, the set
and lighting. The list is endless as when watching something there is so much on the screen but it is split
into different things.
The basic list of things in the mise-en-scene are:
• Sets
• Props
• Lighting
• Costumes
• Actor Blocking
• Shot Composition
6. MISE-EN-SCENE
Facial Expression
Facial expression will often tell us how characters feel. It can
also help us decide what the mood of the scene is. There are
lots and lots of different facial expressions such as anger,
disgust, fear, joy, sadness, surprise and contempt as well as
many many others but these are the main seven.
Body Language
Body language can change how you see someone else. For example if they are stood with
their arms crossed you can infer that they are angry or annoyed. But if they are stood there
with their arms in the air and with a big smile on their face you’d be able to work out that
they are happy about something and are in a good mood. It is a great non-verbal form of
communication as it requires no words and you can sometimes get more across by just
standing there. Body language can include the movement and positioning of your eyes,
hands, arms, legs and anything you can get to move. It is very expressive and is often used
in a lot of movies so there is no words needed to be used.
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00115/
full
7. COLOUR
SYMBOLISM
Colour Symbol Connotation
Red The colour red can sometimes mean
passionate love and seduction, but it can also
mean violence danger and anger.
Black Black can be associated with power, elegance,
formality, death, evil and mystery. Black can
also be associated with the unknow, due to
their links to black holes. It is usually a
connotation for example: blacklist, black
humour and black death. In heraldry, black is
the symbol of grief.
White White is usually associated with light,
goodness, innocence, purity and perfection. It
can also represent a successful beginning.
Green Green is usually the colour of nature. It can
symbolize growth, harmony, freshness and
fertility. Can also have a strong link to safety.
places like Ireland it can be linked to luck.
green is commonly linked with money.
Yellow Yellow is linked with joy, happiness intellect
and energy. It can also product a warming
effect and arouses cheerfulness as well as
stimulates mental activity and generate
energy.
Blue Blue is the colour of the sea and sky and is
often linked with depth and stability. It can
symbolise trust, loyalty, wisdom, confidence,
faith, truth and heaven. It can be strongly
linked with tranquillity and calmness.
Gold Gold is a colour commonly linked with
illumination, love, compassion, courage,
passion, magic and wisdom. It can also be
linked with wealth, grandeur and prosperity.
well as linking with sparkle, glitz and
8. MISE-EN-SCENE
The Set
When it comes to analysing parts of the mise en scene, the set is
usually quite a big part as it is where a lot of the action takes
place and where a lot of things happen that you see. There can
be many different types of sets. Sets can range from real life
sets, like Harry Potter being filmed in Oxford Uni and Scotland,
as well as made sets in studios such as Pinewood Studios and
Warner Bros. Studios, Leavesden.
Props
There will be no movie or TV show you will watch where there is no props used, this could
be something as small and insignificant as the actor picking up a sandwich and taking a
bite out of it or taking a sip from a cup of water. There can also be bigger props like
weapons such as guns, machete's and swords. For different genres of movies props will
change for example if you looked at a Pirates of the Caribbean you’d see the pirates using
Flintlock pistols and swords when they fight but when you look at a movie like Mission
Impossible you see them fighting with guns, tanks and their fists.
There is also something called a key prop, an example could be the spinning top out of
Inception,, and the idea behind this was if it kept spinning it means he was still dreaming
but when it stops and falls it means he was no longer dreaming. There is also other movies
such as Harry Potter that use key props which help give meaning to things and also creates
9. MISE-EN-SCENE
Lighting
Lighting is the way that the scene is lit, and there is usually 3 different types of lighting.
These are natural which come from natural sources such as the sun, moon, stars and sky.
There is set lighting which allows the creative team to decide where things will be lit and
how much and there is directional lighting which is similar to set lighting in the way that it
can shape a character for the purposes of allowing you to see them as part of the storyline.
See next slide for
Movement
This links in with other parts of the mise-en-scene in regards to how we see the actors and
characters. Movement is often split into 3 parts. Part one is how someone is positioned
(positioning). Part two is how someone is acting and what their body language tells us
about them (body language). Part three is how someone expresses themself (facial
expressions.)
10. LIGHTING
Directional Lighting
Natural Lighting
Set Lighting
Directional lighting is when
the lights are aimed in a
certain way. In most cases
they are aimed to the back
of the actor to create a
silhouette which makes a
creepy feeling in the scene.
Natural lighting is something that
isn’t always able to be controlled. In
most cases natural lighting can be
used while shooting out in the open,
for example in a chase through the
streets of NYC. Things such as blinds
and curtains are able to keep the
light in its natural location.
Set lighting is something you would
see being used if there was scenes
being shot indoors and in a made
set. For example scenes out of things
like the Office or Brooklyn 99 would
also make use of set lighting as its an
indoor built set.
11. LIGHTING
Artificial Lighting
High Key Lighting
Low Key Lighting
Artificial light is human-made and
can emanate from sources including
fire, candlelight, gaslight, electric
lamps and so on. Today however,
the term 'artificial lighting' generally
refers to lighting that emanates from
electric lamps.
High-key lighting is a lighting design
that uses fill light and backlight to
create low contrast between brighter
and darker areas. Back in the 1950s
and 1960s, the lighting technique was
done through multiple light sources
when lighting a scene.
Low key lighting is a style of lighting that
will often have emphasis on the shadows.
The style is achieved by using hard
source lighting within the scene. It makes
use of shadows and dark tones. Shadows,
deep blacks and dark tones are all
characteristics of low key lighting. There a
little to no whites and mid-tones.
12. MISE-EN-SCENE
Costume
Costume is another key part of the mise-en-scene. It is
something that allows the audience to see where the character
is from, what they do and what kind of character they are. Over
the years costume has changed a lot and this can be linked to
technology advancing how they are made. An example can be if
we compare the costumes from Batman Returns (1992) and The
Dark Knight Rises (2012)
Makeup
Makeup is something that helps an actor to express themselves. There are 2 different types
of makeup, there is naturalistic and expressionistic. Naturalistic is something that you
would see day to day out on the streets, hence the name natural looking. Expressionistic is
something that is more theatrical and something more in your face. A perfect example of
this would be the Joker out of the Batman movies. His makeup is very over the top and
very in your face. Through different films the makeup has changed and if anything it has
got more crazy.
<<- 1992
2012-
>>
Different types of costume can be authentic
costume, stylized costume and coordinated
costume. Authentic is when it linked to the TV
show or movie. Stylized is when the costume is
made to look very fancy and show off.
Coordinated is when it links with the setting, an
example could be if they were in a desert it would
be camo for the desert.
You can see the big changes
in costume from the 90s to
the 2010’s
13. MISE-EN-SCENE
Shot Composition
Shot composition is how things line up in the shot through a
viewfinder on the camera. This can have close links to the rule of
thirds in photography as this is where you put certain things on
hotlines of the image that will attract more attention. See some
examples below.
In this image we see the
woman, fully stood up, in one
of the main hot spots and we
also see the man, knelt down,
in the other hot spot. This will
keep peoples attention on
those certain characters and let
them do their scene with all
attention on them.
Actor Blocking
To put it into simple terms, actor blocking is working out the details of how the scene will be shot in
relation to the actors and the camera viewpoint. It can be seen as the choreography of the scene and it
will include small detail changes but in most cases will flow smoothly and will include things like main cast,
extras, props, crew and equipment.
You will also hear of the 180-degree rule and this is a basic guideline regarding on-screen spatial relationship
between one character and another or an object. By keeping the camera on one side of the axis it means the 1st
character is frame right of the 2nd.
In this image we again see
shot composition being
used. In this image
specifically it is the one
character who is stood there
but all attention is drawn
onto him.
<< 2001: A Space Odyssey
(1968)
^^ Rear Window (1954)
14. White head covering matches
the white text of the show
title.
Red representing danger,
sacrifice and courage.
White also representing
purity, knowledge and
learning.
The figure stood poking out at
the side of the screen gives an
idea of power over these
women and that they need to
be kept in line.
Could all the red stuff on the walls be
blood? Blood of the women who
didn’t stay in line and so as they were
told?
White text against the grey background
with the streaks of red – contrast of the
two colours. Also gives info as to who
stars in the show/movie
Same as above, the white contrasts the
darker background but the title of the film is
much bolder and more eye-catching
As much as this could be seen
as one of the main characters
you are unsure as all of the
women look the same in their
same outfits – red and white.
Gives
important info
– date of
premiere
Branding –
important to allow
the viewer to see
who made it. They
may have
preferences
Key information seems to be
displayed all over. There is no
unneeded information, and it is all
relevant.
16. TECHNICAL CODES
Editing
All of the editing is done post-production, after the clips have
been shot. Editing is the process of cutting together clips,
images, sound and anything else you would add into a movie.
Before computers were made the film tape would be physically
cut together and would be added onto a reel where it would be
watched from. An example of editing is in movies where there is
text over the screen. This is very simple editing however things
can be made more complex with things such as image in text or
text fading out.
Sound
There are two different types of sound – non-diegetic and diegetic. Non-
diegetic sound is sound that does not appear in the world of the movie,
an example of this could be sound effects added in during post
production or a sound track overlayed. Diegetic sound on the other hand
is sound that emanates from the world of the movie. So this could be
during a car chase the screech of tyres or the honk of a horn. Something
to keep in mind is that both audio and video are of equal important in
terms of creating meaning as they both add something to the scene.
Sound is able to enhance the audiences emotional experience. Think
about this, Jaws but with no music. It is also able to help by underlining
psychological refinements, this can be things like the unspoken thoughts
of characters or the unseen implications of a situation. But quite a large
thing is the ability to use sound to identify characters, a great example is
the use of soundtracks for the good and the evil in the Star Wars
There are many different
types of editing software
such as Premiere Pro,
Final Cut Pro, CyberLink
and Premiere Elements.
17. MISE-EN-SCENE
Camera Shots
There are many different camera shots that can be used in
different ways in filming to put across different ideas. Some of
the most known shots can be close up shots, POV shot, ariel
shot and over the shoulder shot.
Camera Angles
Some of the different angle types you might hear of are: eye level, low angle, high angle, ground level, Dutch
angle and overhead. Like camera shots they will be used in different ways to get certain things across such as a
feeling or a unspoken thought from a character. For example a high angle shot makes the characters appear small
and weak whereas a low angle shot looks up on the characters creating a sense of power and might. See below 2
examples from Avengers (high angle) and Home Alone (low angle)
18. Shot Example Description
Establishing shot This shot is used to allow the director to
introduce where they are and what the
surroundings looks like.
Extreme close up This shows us a certain area of the actors face,
for example the eyes or the mouth, a specific
area.
Close up This shot shows us a larger area than an
extreme close up but it still in a general area.
Medium close up shot This is half way between a close up and a
medium shot. It brings in more parts of the
image, such as the upper part of the
body which allows for the expressions to be
shown more.
Medium shot This shot gives us more detail than a
medium close up shot and can sometimes be
called a cowboy shot.
Medium long shot This gives us an idea of what the
surroundings looks like but also includes the
main character usually.
Long shot This shot puts the character into context with
the background and the foreground.
19. Extreme long shot Extreme long shot is all about showing the
world in which the story takes place. In an
extreme long you will see large landscapes in
the frame.
Wide shot This shot shows the subject with their
background and again gives detail and ideas of
where they are and what is happening around
them.
Two shot Pretty simple, a shot that includes two
characters next to each other.
Ariel shot An aerial shot is a shot that's taken from an
elevated vantage point than what is framed in
the shot. Aerial shots gives viewers a
deeper understanding of what is happening
below, both literally and metaphorically.
Point of view shot A point of view shot is a film angle that shows
what a character is looking at in the first
person.This is usually the character looking
at something or someone else.
Over the shoulder shot This shot is most commonly used to
present conversational back and forth between
two subjects.
20. Throughout many different TV shows and movies, directors use many different symbolic and technical codes to create different representations.
As seen in the following clip there are many ways that they can be used to push the ideas that a director wishes for.
In the beginning of the clip we can gather using a high angle shot and a wide shot, the director has aimed to get all of the room and all of the
characters into the shot, this allows for the viewer to get a good idea of the location of the hostage situation and how intense it is, as well as a
brief look as to who is in this scene. The use of post-production shot reverse shots and regular cuts adds to the feeling of tension and suspense.
We are also able to get the feeling with the positioning of the camera, it is almost as if it is a CCTV camera looking down on them and recording
what is happening. This adds to the idea of them being watched. Looking at the immediate scene and those in it we first get the idea that this
could be very secretive and the guard he is with is in all black which pushes the idea of darkness and evil to the viewer. We can also add the fact
that the guards were wearing a mask to the idea of anonymity and trying to be hidden from what is happening. To include the sounds in this clip
we can look at the non-diegetic music added in post-production. The use of this is to create a more tense and scary atmosphere which will
inevitably make the viewer be fearful and worried about what is happening or about to happen. The music added in post-production also adds a
sense of tension which helps drag out scenes. Still sticking with music, when the woman is shown the picture of the spy it goes quiet and then
a sudden bang noise, this can be linked to a bullet shot which is how the spy died. To link with the camera shot and type of camera used, we can
see that throughout the whole clip there is a range of close ups, wide shots, medium shots and two shots but something that is not as well know
would be the fact it uses a handheld camera to make more tension in scenes. We can infer this by the fact in certain scenes the camera is shaking
quite a lot, all this intentional and made to get a reaction from the viewers.
Moving to look from the view of this terrorist holding the British hostage we can see that it is a large stereotype that because he is
a Muslim man, he is a terrorist and he is going to cause problems and hurt people, but that is not always the case, but here it is. Also looking at
the idea of this man, although he might be a terrorist it is not shown in the way of what he is wearing. You would expect that they would wear
their local dress, but this man is wearing what seems to be a very fancy and expensive work suit and this goes against the stereotype. Something
else that goes against this stereotype is the fact that he seems very educated and his English is very strong, as you would expect for a terrorist
not to be very knowledgeable and also have a poor quality when it comes to speaking English. He can also be seen wearing jewelry which can
point out that he does have money and that he could be considered rich and wealthy. The fact he is wearing a suit points out to his
sophistication and how smart he may be, after all he has caught two British spies. As it comes near to the end he begins to talk about how a
unnamed drone' would be sent to 'ruin and destroy a wedding party.' From this we can pick out that it has been something that has happened
to him as be does speak about this very strongly and it could have been something that has affected him with trauma.
Looking at the woman who has been caught we can see clearly that she is a very strong woman as she does not react to being held hostage by
this man. This goes against the common stereotype of women being the ones who need to be saved and the 'damsel in distress'. She speaks very
strongly, and she does not react nor show any emotion to him. Her face has no emotion, and she is stuck to her cause. The idea of the woman
being the one to read the message and words to the camera instead of a man is more thought provoking due to the fact the woman can be seen
as more emotionally vulnerable and someone who could be broke but to back up the previous point of her breaking the stereotype, she does
How is meaning
created?
21. JUSTIFICATION
To help us with the creation of our trailer and
movie posters we will be able to use the
knowledge of different camera shots, angles,
different editing techniques and lighting
techniques. The camera angles and shots will come
in use when we film the clips, and the editing
techniques will be useful for the post-filming of
our clips.
We will also be able to use skills developed during
our AS coursework when it comes to editing the
trailer and the creation of our movie poster.
23. MOVIE CASE STUDY
We used the 2 films as part of our case study;
Before I Fall and Beauty and the Beast. We
spent time researching and learning about the
3 major aspects of a movie; the production,
the marketing and the exchange of it. The
production element included the different
technology they used, the cast and how the
budget was spent on them and the overall
idea of how the $414million budget was spent.
In the marketing section we looked at the
different ways that such big companies like
Disney can use their power and status to
ensure their product is advertised to all
platforms and all areas of media. For the final
section, exchange, we looked at the ways in
which the final product was sent out to
audiences, this included the use of streaming
platforms, in cinema and by DVD and Blu-Ray..
We also spent time looking into the big-name
company who made Beauty and the Beast, a
company valued at over $130billion, and
allowing the movie to make a box office of
$1.3billion dollars. With Before I Fall, it was
created by a smaller independent production
company called Awesomeness Films, a
subsidiary of Viacom CBS who are valued at
$25.29billion.
24. THE BIG 5
The 'Big Five' are major film studios active since Hollywood's Golden Age. Paramount
Pictures and Warner Bros were the two original members of the Big Five but
Universal Pictures and Columbia Pictures were part of the 'Little Three' a tier down.
Walt Disney Productions was an independent production company during the
Golden Age and then become a mini-major in the 50s and became a major in the mid
80s.
Net Worth: $4billion
CEO: Jim Gianopulos
Net Worth: $6billion
CEO: Ann Sarnoff
Net Worth: $3.95million
CEO: Steve Burke
Net Worth: $628million
CEO: Tony Vinciquerra
Columbia Pictures is owned
by Sony Pictures
Net Worth: $201.55billion
CEO: Bob Chapek
25. BBFC
What is the BBFC?
The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) is an
organisation founded by the film industry in 1912 and is
responsible for the national classification and censorship of
films exhibited at cinemas and on any movies released in the
United Kingdom.
Classification and Rating
There are 6 different types of ratings, U being the lowest and
suitable for all ages, and 18 being the highest and only
suitable for those 18+.
Rating U PG 12A 12 15 18
Movie • Shrek the
Third
• Finding Nemo
• Beauty and
the Beast
• A Bug’s Life
• Jaws
• Home
Alone
• Night at
the
Museum
• Jurassic
Park
• The Lego
Movie
• The Dark
Knight
Rises
• Ready
Player
One
• Wonder
Woman
• Tenent
• Kong: Skull
Island
• Guardians
of the
Galaxy
• Cloverfield
Lane
• 21 Jump
Street
• John
Wick
• Wrath of
Man
• Lucifer
• Handmai
ds Tale
• Wolf of
Wall
Street
• Deadpo
ol
• Last
Tango
In Paris
• Shame
27. TYPES OF GENRE
In the media world there are MANY different genres, there are the key
genres such as:
• Horror
• Action
• Romance
• Comedy
Then we split off into sub-genres of action:
• Bank heist
• Cops vs robbers
• War movies
• Disaster movies
And going even further there is hybrid genres which is a mix of the main
genres such as:
• Rom-Com
• Horror-Comedy
• Comedy-Drama
• Superhero-Future
As we move forward in time there is more and more different sub genres
and different hybrid genres being created. There is no possible way that you
would ever be able to list every single one of them, and this is where genre
theories come into play.
As a reader and viewer we often think that genre is the style of writing, like
the above genres. We also look for conventions and certain hallmarks for
these specific movies. An example of this will be in horror movies we look
for blood and gore or in action movies we look for car chases and gunfights.
INTRO TO GENRE
THEORY
28. GENRE
THEORISTS
Rick Altman
Altman suggests that genres can be decided by their semantics,
this being the different elements, such as location, costume,
lighting, body language and actors. The other way it was
decided was by the syntactics, this is the plot lines and story
ideas. Use the example of a action movie like Fast and Furious.
When looking at semantics we can identify guns, fast cars, big
houses and explosions. Looking at the syntactics of an action
movie we can identify the ideas of a good guy and a bad guy, a
damsel in distress and someone saving the day. Another
example could be a romance movie, the semantics would be
wine, candles, flowers or heart shaped chocolates. The syntactics
are things would be a date in a romantic Italian restaurant in the
city or a quiet walk through the city park.
David Duff
Duff uses the idea that we can put movies into a certain genre as we recognize it
from another movie, for example we can classify films such as James Bond movies,
Mission Impossible movies and Bourne movies as action movies due to their similar story
line. Other examples can be
29. GENRE
THEORISTS
Robert Stam
Stam was someone who said, 'should genre analysis be descriptive or
proscriptive?' His idea is that genre is something that is now way too
broad and is something that is constantly growing over time. An
example of a change of genre could be the movie ‘The Exorcist' going
from a very scary horror movie to a pretty cringy and funny movie,
under the comedy section. In a conclusion he thinks that
genre doesn't exist. Another factor is the growing amount of sub
genres and hybrid genres. As time goes on more and more will be
created and his theory will become more known and a more agreed
upon thing. An example here could be all of the Star Wars movies, or all
of the James Bond movies, they all add to the big list of genres.
John Hartley
Hartley was someone who said that genres always change
over time. Like mentioned above the Exorcist is a perfect
example, going from a horror movie to a funny
and comical movie. These changes can be due to culture
and location. An example of this could be one movie
could be seen as funny in India but in China it could be
seen as offensive but then going to the States it might be
seen as unusual. Every single country will see it differently
because of beliefs and the way of life in that country.
30.
31. SEMANTICS &
SYNTACTICS
Lets use a horror movie to look at as that is usually filled with different things and can
be good to look into.
Syntactics
On the other hand syntactics are the 'elements in the narrative or ideology of the genre.’ In
a horror movie, the narrative as expected will be the first thing that influences the storyline,
something along the lines of the survival of the main characters. Most times we will only
see one survivor, if any. Second to this we expect to see a creature of person to be after
the main character. There will always be some feeling of unknown which adds to the
element of anxiety and fear which becomes more prominent as the narrative goes on,
getting closer to the end of the movie. Horror movies have been designed to induce
emotion and adrenaline into the audience, as well as also leaving them in utter suspense.
However this is an appealing factor as even though their is fear the audience know they
are personally safe as this is a movie, not a real life scenario.
Semantics
In a horror movie some of the semantics you would expect would be
things like: the spooky location, the main character who is also part of a
secret killing cult and then the main character has lots of different
weapons in the back of their car to kill anyone who gets in their way.
The semantics give the movie their genetic genre traits. Some other
examples would be isolated areas or characters with nowhere to run
which will increase intensity of a chase scene. A big stereotype of the
horror genre is low key lighting in the middle of the night in a
rainstorm. If you look at the connection between the dark and the
unknown makes the audience think they can prepare themselves for
what could happen next.
32. SEMANTICS &
SYNTACTICS
Horror Action Romance
Semantic •Isolated House
•Darkness
•Dark forests
•Ghosts
•Empty houses
•Low key lighting
•Blood & gore
•Action hero
•Damsel in distress
•Cities
•Super powers
•Kiss scene
•Supportive friend
•Group of friends – complete
opposite
•Happy ending
Syntactic •Paranormal Activity
•Evil
•Isolated
•Forbidden area
Starts off with a big
action scene and then
introduces the characters.
There is some woman
who becomes the eye
candy of the whole movie.
The main character falls in
love with the eye candy and
it ends all well with the
bad guy dying or leaving.
Two main characters always
meet in a comical way.They
have their differences. Most
plots often include
one character having to
chase the other, there is lots
of obstacles in between.They
fall in love and there is many
ups and downs in the
relationship.
34. REPRESENTATION
THEORISTS
Laura Mulvey
The Male Gaze Theory states that women in media are seen
through the eyes of men and that they are portrayed as passive
subjects of male interest. This comes after years and years of
directors and cinematographers being men. Even to this day
only around 10% of women are directors and 6% are
cinematographers. This philosophy can be seen from a
viewpoint of a feminist in three different ways: how men see
women, how women see themselves and how women see other
women. According to the theory, the male gaze rejects women's
human identify and reducing them to objects and to be praised
for their physical presence. Examples of this can be seen in Bond
movies with all the Bond girls or in Modern Family with Gloria,
also linking to Alvarado's Racial Stereotypes Theory with the 4
different types of women as seen through the eyes of the
media.
John Berger
John Berger's theory was based around feminism and the way
that women are portrayed in the media. He said that 'men act
and women appear. Men look at women. Women watch
themselves being looked at. This determines not only most
relations between men and women but also the relation of
women to themselves.’ There are many different gender
opposites, have a look in the table.
Male Female
Active Passive
Dominant Submissiv
e
Hard Soft
Intelligent Intuitive
Rational Emotional
Strong Weak
Impulsive Thoughtfu
l
35. REPRESENTATION
THEORISTS
Bell Hooks
Bell Hooks believes that upper class white men control the
media industries. This can include news companies, film
companies and TV companies. She also thought that what these
white upper class men believed in and their values and beliefs
are what we would see in media. This means that if you were
not one of these upper class white men then your values and
ideas would never be seen. It also means that whole groups of
people such as black people, Hispanic and many other ethnic
minorities would be misrepresented or ignored. Hooks also
believed that it would create prejudice and discrimination
towards these groups. She also heavily believed that black
women were seen as the lowest in media texts because of their
ethnicity and gender - a mix of misogyny and racism. It also
comes from historical slave issues but this has never left.
Michel Foucault
Michel Foucault was someone who began to attract a lot of
notice as one of the most controversial thinkers of his day. He
was a French philosopher and social theorist. His theory was
that people don't have a 'real' identify within themselves. He
said that it was just used to describe a person. An 'identify' is
communicated to others in your interaction with them but it
can change. He also said that people don't have power
naturally and that it is gained. A movie that supports his
theory is Toy Story and the character of Buzz Lightyear. He is
defined by the way he interacts with other characters. He is
shown to be funny but he doesn't intend to be. He talks about
how he is an astronaut hearo but he comes across as
The whole idea of the Feminist Theory is
based around feminism and this is a
moment to end patriarchy, patriarchy
being a society ran by men for men.
Things you'd include would be sexism,
sexist exploitation and oppression of
women.
Hook explains that 'intersectionality'
refers to the intersections of gender,
race, class and sexuality to create a
'white supremacist capitalist patriarchy'
whose ideologies and beliefs dominate
the media. This links back to the idea
that rich, upper class white men run the
media and what they think is passed
down to everyone in the public eye.
She also argues that black women
should develop an 'oppositional gaze'
that would refuse to identify with
characters - the 'gaze' is political for
black Americans as they were punished
for looking at their white slave masters
(this again links back to hundreds of
years ago with the slave trade)
37. AUDIENCE
THEORISTS
Passive & Active Audiences
There are two different types of audience – passive and active.
Passive, on one side, are the people who will watch something
and believe it and they won’t question it. An example of a
passive audience was the people who listened to the radio when
the Halloween War of the Worlds broadcast went out, people
were running round like crazy because they thought the world
was being attacked by aliens, it wasn’t but this is what they
believed because anything they heard on the radio they took for
fact. On the other side of the scale is active audiences and they
are people who engage, interprets and respond to media text in
different ways and are capable of challenging the ideas that it is
encoded in, this links to Stuart Hall’s Reception Theory.
Moral Panic
The moral panic theory was created by Stanley Cohen in 1972 and it is a theory that
suggests moral panic occurs when someone or something is defined by the media and
that it is a threat to something they value or something society values. Moral panic can
play a large part in enforcing alarm and it can be triggered by just a little news report. An
example of this can be the way that the media reported the Ebola outbreak or another
example can be when news papers or media outlets make something seem worse than it is
like knife attacks or little attacks which have little or no significance to the wider
community and the world. An example from now could be the Covid outbreak and how
the media reported this and how they made it seem to be such a big thing when it could
be dealt with much smaller and didn’t need to be reported as crazy.
38. AUDIENCE
THEORISTS
Cultivation Theory
The cultivation theory was created by George Gerbner in the 60s
and it examines the long term effects of television. It suggests
that the more times a person stays in the world of television the
more likely they are to believe that their own reality aligns with
the reality in the television. Gerbner also suggested that those
who stay in front of the TV for long hours would see the real
world as a mean and scary place and would be scared to go
outside. An example could be if a movie they watched had
violent messages it will effect someone who lives in a city with
high crime rates, a movie example could be Batman: Dark
Knight. The person will be scared to go outside as they will think
what they saw in the movie was real and could happen to them.
Uses & Gratification Theory
The Uses and Gratification Theory
is an approach to understanding
why and how people actively seek
out certain media to satisfy specific
needs. The theory is an audience
centred approach to understanding
mass communication.
The theory also suggests that there
are certain reasons why an
audience responds to media texts
differently, see the table.
39. AUDIENCE
THEORISTS
Reception Theory
The reception theory is the way that the audience take
in a media text. There is three ways, dominant reading,
negotiated reading and oppositional reading. A prime
example of reception theory is on International
Women's Day when Burger King tweeted out this. It was
a very risky thing to do but in the end of worked very
well, as it would attract a lot of attention which is exactly
what the Marketing Team would have wanted, attention
from this tweet.
Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs
In order to better understand what motivates human
beings, Maslow proposed that human needs can be
organized into a hierarchy. the theory states that
these five categories of human needs dictate human
behaviour. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is split into
5 different section:
• Self-actualization
• Safety needs
• Love and belonging
• Esteem
• Psychological needs
41. IDEOLOGY
Marxism
Marxism is the political and economic belief that there is no
social classes and that every person within the society works for
a common good, and class struggle is theoretically gone. The
theory is that this will eliminate the social gap between the
bourgeoisie and the proletariat and this will eventually lead to
communism. the person who created this theory is Karl Marx.
Marxism was founded in September 1844.
Capitalism
Capitalism is an economic system in which private individuals
or businesses own capital goods. The production of goods
and services is based on supply and demand in the general
market—known as a market economy—rather than through
central planning—known as a planned economy or command
economy. Capitalism first began around the 17th century
when merchants would start to gain profits from the products
that they were making and selling, meaning they were
earning more money. Many of the western countries such as
Britain and America have implemented a capitalist system in
their governments, since it began, however, during the
second World War it caused many problems due to the
Looking at politics
we see that the
First Female Prime
Minister, Thatcher,
was pro-capitalist.
On the other side
of things we see
that Winston
Churchill was a
very capitalist
person and based
his administration
on capitalism.
Movies such
as The Hunger
Games portray
capitalism in a
bad light.
Movies such as
Parasite,
Hustlers and
Snowpiercer
are based on
capitalism.
42. IDEOLOGY
Socialism
The historic root of socialism goes as far back as the Grecian times
by philosopher plato in 360 B.C. The concepts of the "Utopian
society" depicted by Thomas More during the sixteenth century
speaks of a society where trade with currency is abolished and
people work within a commune to help run the society. Socialism
itself was a response to large scale capitalism where the owners of
companies and factories become wealthier overtime while the
working class stayed within poverty.
There are many different forms of socialism that were purposed
through history but the most well known and generally accepted
version of socialism is the “Utopian” Socialism which is a concept
where the general public share wealth and work together to
accomplish tasks, they all work equally, every person would be
treated equally and everything would be shared among the
community equally.
Liberalism
Liberalism is a political philosophy or worldview based and founded on ideas of liberty and
equality. Liberalism stands for:
- freedom of speech
- freedom of the press
- freedom of religion
- free markets
- civil rights
- democratic societies
- gender equality
44. T O D O R O V ’ S N A R R A T I V E
S T R U C T UR E
Point Equilibrium Disruption Recognition Attempt to New
equilibrium
Example Opening to
the story,
could be a
happy family
living in a nice
house in the
city.
The father gets
kidnapped
during the
night and no
one knows.
The family
wake up and
find the father
missing.
They call the
police and ask
for help. The
kidnappers
give a ransom
call.
The police find
the father and
arrest the
kidnappers,
The storyline could be something as simple as what is
in the table, but it still covers and takes into account
Todorov’s Narrative Structure as it ticks all the 5 boxes.
Most movies you watch will use the Narrative Structure
which is why they can sometimes become a bit boring,
because it seems like you’ve seen it before, but you
haven’t, it’s just the same idea it uses.
45. P R O P P S C H A R A C T E R
T H E O R Y
CharacterType and Image Explanation
The Hero The hero is usually the character that is looking for
something and sent out by the Dispatcher.There is no
boundaries as to it being a man or woman or even an animal.
The Helper The helper is the character that helps the hero.They
will usually work for the hero on their mission or help them in
a way we don't see, but in the end, it will help the hero
to succeed in their mission.
TheVillain The villain is the character who attempts to stop the hero
and the helper from succeeding in their task.They will do
whatever it takes to stop them.
The False Hero The false hero is the character who takes the credit for the
actions of the hero and tries to make it seem like they did all
the work but they have done nothing in the end!
46. P R O P P S C H A R A C T E R
T H E O R Y
The Donor The donor is someone who gives the hero something to help
them with their mission, this could be powers to let them fly
or a car to help them drive across the country to get to their
destination.
The Dispatcher The dispatcher is the person who send the hero and the
helper out on their mission.This could be a family member or
even sometimes the princess's father who sends the hero to
go and rescue the princess. Sometimes the dispatcher can be
linked with another role, an example being the false hero
who trails behind and waits to pounce and get what they
sent the hero to do.
The Princess's Father The princess's father is the authority figure in the movie and
is also the person who officers the hero a reward, in the case
of Shrek, for rescuing his daughter.
The Princess The princess is the person who the hero must rescue, or they
can also be called the damsel in distress.The common idea
for this is that the hero is sent on the mission to find them
and once they do, they complete their quest.
47. L E V I S T R A U S S ' B I N A R Y
O P P O S I T E T H E O R Y
Levi Strauss, a French anthropologist in the 1900s, proposed
a theory of 'binary opposites' which entails that the majority
of narratives in media forms such as books and film contain
opposing main characters. These binary opposites help to
thicken the plot and further the narrative; and introduce
contrast. For example, in a superhero film this could be
good vs. evil, in a horror film this could be human vs.
supernatural, and in a comedy this could be young vs. old.
A problem with binary opposites is that they may often give
off negative stereotypes. For example, if the binary opposite
was man vs. woman, according to gender stereotypes, the
man may be portrayed to be 'strong' whereas the woman is
the 'damsel in distress'. It is important to see how these
stereotypes have changed in media forms over time. This
links to the idea of how women can be portrayed in the
media.
49. T R AILER – 3 ACT
S TRUCTURE:
Establishing
In the establishing this is when the main characters, main set and plot line is introduced. In a crime
trailer this could be the introduction of the killer through a series of clues, the introduction of the
victim through a closeup of a dead body in a police surrounded crime scene or a family dinner
that goes wrong and the host dies.
Problem
This is when the problem of the show arises, the main reason for you watching the media is to see
the problem and what happens. In this you will also see the resolution to the problem and how it
is solved. An example of the problem could be a murder, a dead body uncovered or another
issues within the plotline.
Montage
In the montage this is when you'd expect to see numerous different shots and scenes from
throughout the movie, this could be police chases, arrest scenes or a battle between cops vs
robbers.
52. N OW YOU S E E
M E 2 -
B R ANDING
In the posters, social media pages and trailers on YouTube,
you can see many similarities and unisons between them.
For example, in the posters and social media pages, you
see snapshots from different parts of the trailers which also
come from the movie. On the poster you can see the clear
name of the movie, this also applies to the social media
page where it is shown as a page title, on the profile
picture and on the actual background image of the
page. On both products you are able to see a common
object used, you can see the card being used as a way of
the symbolism of the movie. The movie is about a big
magic trick and the use of cards in magic tricks is very
common and well known.
