Theoretical research

By Morgan Glover and Jake Foulkes

Auteur theory relates to a directors influence over a production or media text.
It was introduced in the 1950’s when film was still developing into an accepted art-form by French film directors.
One director in particular, Francois Truffaut, introduced the idea that some directors are able to have such a
distinctive style that they can be considered an auteur. In one of his famous quotes, he states that “there are no
good and bad movies, only good and bad directors.”
Becoming an auteur means having a very unique and recognisable style attached to the films they produce. It
also means having a level of expression and art in a film that is uncommon and stands out among many other
directors. It can be likened to a painter, whose styles and subsequent visual results can differ greatly (Van Gough,
Jackson Pollock, Picasso etc.).
Style is often a huge part of a film, and can influence anything from source material, to scripting, camerawork
and sound. This can vary depending on auteur however, with different directors taking greater interest in
different areas. One filmmaker may focus heavily on sound, on may focus on cinematography, another on
performance or editing and so on.
Media theories are often explained much better through example, none more so that the Auteur theory.

One of, arguably, the most unique and recognisable styles in modern cinema is Wes Anderson’s.
Anderson loves symmetry in his films, and loves to divide each and every single one of his shots into thirds, with
each third showing a unique and interesting subject. When actors move in his frames, they often move from left
to right in a very pantomime-like way. His films are all very comedic, and the colours and lighting is always very
bright and saturated. He takes a refreshingly light-hearted approach to many themes within his films.
His latest feature, The Grand Budapest Hotel, includes a huge amount of visual comedy. There are superb
performances from all the cast in the film, but Anderson’s unique visual style takes these performances and
makes them even more hilarious. The Grand Budapest Hotel includes very bright saturated colours, and a
consistently innovative use of composition and staging to generate to aforementioned visual comedy.
From all the evidence above, it is clear that Wes Anderson is an excellent example of a modern day auteur.

When creating our piece, our will group will definitely think about the Auteur theory during the pre, post, and
production stages themselves.
This will include searching for a unique style. I think the best option will be looking into cinematography and
narrative in terms of areas for innovation. This may include shooting longer takes, as many student films get
caught in a loop of very quick cuts, or maybe using more stable tracking shots, as many student films also tend
to rely on tripods and/or shaky handheld camerawork during production.
Before we look to develop our own style, however, I think I will be most important to bring the piece up to
specific level of quality. This will be quality in not only sound, camerawork and editing, but also in our planning
and post-production. If we generate a plan that allows us to put our production up to a certain level of class, we
then have the platform to add in more stylistic features that take our final production that extra mile.
In terms of applicable stylistic features, I personally was interested in using tracking shots and stable camera
movement as seen in many of Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Films (see ‘Influential Figures’ post for more details).
While this would certainly prove a challenge -long tracking shots take an incredible amount of co-ordination and
detail to set up- I think the overall result would not only be very unique compared to other productions, but also
be much more thematic and immerse the audience in our piece. Overall, our group will definitely keep Auteur
Theory in mind when moving forward with the research and planning stages.

Genre Theory relates to the study of films to categorise them into different recognisable genres.
The genre of a film can be defined by its narrative structure, typical character types, director and audience
expectations among others. Its repertoire of elements can also be a defining factor for which genre a film is in.
Steve Neale, a professor of media at Exeter University, argues that genre is only a “series of repetitions and
differences” and that the differences in films are “essential for the economy of genre”. This means that directors
often follow conventions set by other films, and, if this becomes a far too prevalent trend, it can damage the
genre that the film is in. This suggests that when films differ and break conventions, they are able to vary the
genre and keep it interesting for the viewer base, but, when companies continually produce media that is
iterative and adheres to conventions it may eventually lead to a diminishing viewership of that genre.
It is also important to note that genre theory has adapted according to the evolution of film and media. In its
early days, Hollywood produced movies whose genres and conventions where very fixed; there were the Ancient
epics (Ben Hur) , the dance films (Singin’ in the Rain) and slapstick comedy films (Modern Times). This genres
would’ve been very fixed, with virtually no overlap between them. In contemporary media, however, genre’s have
become much more fluid and adaptable, with many different sub-genres and hybrid-genres.
This is where the problem with genre theory lies; it is being forced to continually adapt itself according to the
constant overlap and new fluidity of modern films and media.

Western films used to dominate Hollywood. Classic, simplistic stories of good and bad, and of flawless heroes
and unredeemable villains used to the most prevalent genre in American filmmaking.
At their peak, the genre was able to produce timeless classics such as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The
Good the Bad and the Ugly, The Magnificent Seven and The Searchers. These films are now revered as some of
the best in Hollywood history and at the time where revolutionary in terms of their impact on cinema. Westerns
began to diminish, however, due to the increasing repetition from which Hollywood studios produced the films.
This relates to the ‘health’ of a genre; Westerns became far too repetitive as various directors thought they could
produce blockbusters just by copying previous classics. This led to an eventual fall-off in terms of viewership,
until Westerns have now only become infrequent and often stylistic films (Django Unchained, Hateful Eight) or
remakes (The Magnificent Seven, 2016).
THE
GOOD
THE
BAD
AND THE
UGLY

For our piece, we looked at placing it in the Thriller/ Psychological Thriller genre.
This gives us a nice lenience, as the Thriller genre is one the most adaptable in filmmaking. The nature of the
genre itself means that new films that break conventions are constantly being made, and therefore the ‘health’ of
the genre is at an all time high.
Thrillers are especially popular with a modern and mature audience. By using the psychological aspect we have
the creative freedom to shape and adapt of film to either follow very typical conventions or break them entirely. I
think this is especially good for our low-budget production, as having minimal funding tends to restrict groups
on what they can and cannot achieve during their planning and production stages. With the psychological thriller
genre, we are tapping into a category that is not only at the forefront of many mainstream modern films, but also
into one that the audience does not have many assumptions of.
If we were doing a Western, as a pure example, the audience would expect historically appropriate props, setting
and performances. As we are on a low budget, providing these things would be next to impossible. By operating
in a genre that the audience has no real pre-existing expectations of, we not only have much more creative
freedom, but also are not as pressured to acquire genre-specific props or settings.
Overall, we’ll make sure to understand the genre we are operating in, and look to similar films in this category for
information.

Audience theories relate to the study and understanding of how various audiences receive and react to media.
These theories is very widely used, as it allows companies to target specific demographics and understand how
this group is most likely to view their media. It is not only applicable to film, but also to nearly faucets; TV, Live
Shows, Print, and many more. In fact, understanding how your potential audience likes to view media is nearly as
important as understanding how to create the media itself.
Audience theory has been well-documented over many years by different theorists and professionals. The model
grew from crude, initial ideas to fully-blown psychiatric studies, whereby the desires of the individual are taken
into account. Understanding the audience is vital, as it allows for the marketing of your film or other media text
to target specific groups and platforms within society to make sure the right viewer streams are exploited. This
increases viewership, and, in the case of many investing companies, profit.
Audience theories can be broken down into four main models, two of which are both modern and very useful to
our own piece. These are the Hypodermic Needle model, the Two-Step Flow model, the Uses and Gratifications
theory and Psychographics.
Our group will many study the latter two, as they are most relevant to not only what we plan to do, but also
contemporary modern media as a whole. It will also be essential for use to focus our target market, as, being a
low budget student film, we only have access to a niche audience.

The Hypodermic Needle model dates back to the 1920s, and was the first attempt to explain how mass
audiences react to mass media. This is clearly a very crude model, as it suggests that audiences receive the
information transmitted via a media text without challenging it in any way.
However it is important to note that this theory was developed in an age when mass media were still fairly new
and governments had only just discovered the power of advertising to communicate a message. This theory was
particularly popular in Europe during the First World War and its aftermath, as it attempted to explain how so
many Germans were convinced of Nazi ideals through the usage of propaganda.
Additionally, while the needle is crude, it still does apply in some areas today. For instance, media scares/debates
such as the Y2K and, more recently, Ebola scare in western countries, (especially America) instilled a panic in the
wider populace. Moral panics are less scares as they are debates. The media, especially the American news, often
brings up things like religion and violence as a way to create a moral panic.
Media
text/messag
e
Passive and
unfiltered
acceptance
of this
message.

Paul Lazarsfeld, Bernard Berelson, and Hazel Gaudet were the masterminds of this theory. They analysed voters'
decision-making processes during a 1940 presidential election campaign and published their results in a paper
called The People's Choice. They suggested that the information does not flow directly from the text into the
minds of its audience unmediated, but goes through an opinion leader first. These opinion leaders communicate
their views to their less active associates, over whom they have influence. This, in effect, diminished the power of
the media in the eyes of researchers, and caused them to conclude that social factors were also important. This
later gave way to further developments in the study of not only social factors, but individual preferences as well.
Examples of opinion leaders may include;
• Celebrities; Set fashion trends. For instance, Kanye West and his clothing lines.
• Fashion Magazines; Often tell people what is in and what is not. For instance, Vogue
• Critics; Tell people what to watch, and what to avoid. For instance, Rotten Tomatoes, IMDB
• You Tuber's/Web 2.0 personalities; Set trends and sometimes promote products. For instance, a technology
reviewer on YouTube recommends a certain phone, therefore his followers may buy it.c

This study was made during the 1960's. During this time it became apparent to media theorists that audiences
made choices about what they did when consuming texts. An early suggestion in 1948 by lasswell said that
media texts have the following four functions: Surveillance, Correlation, Entertainment, and Cultural transmission.
A later study by Blulmer and Katz expanded this theory in 1974. They suggested individuals might choose media
texts for these following reasons:
Diversion/entertainment - escape from everyday problems and routine.
Social solidarity – some of our personal relationships centre around the media. We might chat to people about
about what we watched on the TV the night before, or become friends with people who enjoy the same music or
films… Chatrooms and social media brings people together (in a virtual way) and provides them with a space to
discuss/debate and communicate about things that matter to them.
Personal identity – we use the media to create or maintain a sense of who we are. Lifestyle magazines; seeing
role models in the media; seeking help from manuals, self-help books and magazines.
Surveillance – using the media for information which could be useful for living (e.g. weather reports, financial
news, holiday bargains, local and global news) and for personal education.

Psychographics is the most modern way of classifying audience types. Suggested by Young & Rubican
Advertising company, it places people entirely on their personality, which is usually dependent on other factors

When applying the various audience theories shown above, our group will most likely focus on the Uses and
Gratifications theory and Psychographics.
We are heavily considering these two as they the most contemporary ways of devising a proper target audience.
The other two theories feel far too broad and non-specific (and also outdated) for us to really consider.
When looking at the Usage and Gratifications theory, our piece will most likely fit into the
‘Diversion/Entertainment’ section, This is because our brief has asked us to produce a film opening, and we are
not doing a documentary (which would fall under the ‘surveillance’ category). This means we should focus on
entertaining the audience more than anything, which we will try to do so through our tension and quality of the
opening scene.
Furthermore, one of the key theories that we will consider for our piece is Psychographics. The two main types
we’ve considered are the ‘Reformer’ and ‘Explorer’ groups. We’ve chosen the ‘Reformer’ as this psyche often
searches for non-mainstream indie films. Our piece can definitely be considered an indie film, and also does not
have many narrative themes or ideas that could considered ‘mainstream’. Ultimately, we will be targeting a niche
audience, the make of which is mostly of the ‘Reformer’ type.
In addition, we have also selected the ‘Explorer’ persona as a key area of focus, as individuals with this outlook
often look for new and exciting media pieces that break typical genre conventions.

Narrative theory relates to the way in which the story of the media is represented.
These theories often apply to most films as most of them have conventional narratives and characters. These
theories allow the audience to look deeper into the film and find common occurrences that flow in most films in
a particular genre. Narrative theories are integral for building the basis and structure of the story for the film.
Conceptualize the whole theory as the foundations of a “building”. Without these foundations the narrative
would collapse, so we have to have these theories to strengthen the narrative. The aspects that the theories
explore are theoretically the decorations for the “building”, examples of this would be the character type. These
“decorations” support the theories and make the narrative look better.
Over the years, many theorists have come up with their own theories on how the narrative has been represented.
The strongest theory in the narrative is “Todorov’s theory” which consists of showing the way in which the
narrative is shown to the audience.
Another useful theory is Propps theory which delves into the idea that films have reoccurring character types to
help the narrative.

Tzvetan Todorov is a Bulgarian philosopher and structural literary critic who came up with the idea that all fiction
films follow the same narrative pathway. This theory consists of five main stages that will guide the narrative on
throughout the film.
Equilibrium: This is where the world in which the narrative is set in is in a normal state and everything is the way
that it should be.
Disequilibrium: The second part of the theory features a problem in the narrative that will change the
protagonist or the world in which the narrative is set in. It will often disrupt the happiness of the story.
Realisation: This is the part of the narrative when the protagonist(s) realises that something is wrong.
Restored order: this part of the theory consists of the main characters attempting to fix the problem that was
caused by the disequilibrium.
Equilibrium Again: Where the order has been restored and the protagonist will often be changed.

Clip from the opening scene of the Hunger Games. It shows the normal
environment that the protagonists are used to therefore showing the
equilibrium.

This is the disequilibrium because the main character has volunteered to
take part in an annual killing competition.

This scene shows a reaction shot that shows the realisation that they are going to be in grave danger
within the next few days

In this scene the two protagonists have been told that only one of them can survive, so in an
attempt to repair the situation they act like they are going to both eat poisonous berries and
as a result they would both die. However the rules get changes so that they can both come
out alive therefore the problem is resolved.

In this scene it shows that the problem has been resolved and the characters are about
to go back to their every day life's, therefore creating a new equilibrium.

In the movie “Starwars” we follow the lead protagonist Luke Skywalker on
his quest to find Princess Leia who has been abducted by the superior
Imperial force.
This character is the hero because he is fighting for the good and the
audience can relate to him as they understand what he is fighting for.

Darth Vader is the iconic villain from star wars.
He has a menacing look which gives the
audience the idea that he is doing wrong things
that could be affecting other people.

Ben Kenobi is like a father figure for the lead protagonist
and he aids Luke on his journey by fighting with him and
also giving him his most powerful tool the iconic
Lightsabre.
A donor is the character who gives something to the hero
to help them on their journey.

Han Solo is the character form starwars who helps the protagonist
as a sidekick. He guides Luke on his journey by providing useful
skills that Luke does has not acquired over the years such as
flying.
The helper aids the hero on their quest to restore the equilibrium.

The princess is the character who the quest is set
out to get. In starwars, the princess has been
captured by the imperial force and is in need of
saving by the hero and his sidekick.

These theories are great theories if you were going to make a full feature length movie because it allows the
audience to establish all of the equilibriums and character types. However we are only making the opening
two minutes of the film which makes it hard to put across the characters and equilibriums.
How will we apply Todorov’s Theory?
In our media piece we want to break conventions, so we are going to start off in the Disequilibrium. We are
going to do this because it makes the audience wonder what is going on and why the character is running
away from something.
How will we apply Propp’s Theory
In our piece we are planning to have three types of characters. We are going to have a hero as the lead
protagonist, we are also planning on having the father figure who guides the protagonist in the scene. We
want to have villains as well so the audience can piece together as to why the protagonist is in a worried
state

Representation Theories are the theories in which it explains how and why characters or genders are represented in
the way they are in the media whether that be film, magazine or Television.
There are two main theories that revolve around this and they are the “Mulvey Theory” and the “Gauntlett Theory”.
Both of these theories talk about how the role of genders are represented in the media.
Other representation considerations in film and television would be the use of:
• Stereotypes
• Hegemony/Pluralism
• Ideology
• Mediation
Another use of representation in the media could be the representation of colour in film, most notably used in
Fincher films. It is used to show mood and atmosphere in the picture or film.

Laura Mulvey is a British feminist film theorist who came up with the idea of the “Male
Gaze Theory”.
The overall concept of this theory is the way in which the audience views the people
that are been presented on the screen. As Laura Mulvey is a feminist, her theory is
seen in the following ways:
• How men look at women
• How women look at themselves
• How women look at other women
Her theory suggests that the camera lingers on the curves of the female body, and
events which occur to women are presented largely in the context of a man’s reaction
to these events.
She suggests that this relegates women to the status of objects. The female viewer
must experience the narrative secondarily, by identification with the male.
This can go back to 1920’s Hollywood when the directors were all male and were
most likely sexist by using the female body to attract people to the film.

Theoretical research

More Related Content

What's hot

Similar to Theoretical research

More from Jake Foulkes

Recently uploaded

Theoretical research