Media Lecture

Media is equivilant to English literature, they are both similar as English Literature allows you to similarly think the same way as media in order to understand and create ideas on something. Also Media students are liked by employees as it shows the worker may be creative and have good personality traits.

Media is very much seen as a soft subject and people still feel that it is easier to pass and should receive fewer UCAS points. Private schools are not offering media as they want their students to choose more useful and academic subjects.

Media is studied and taught top universities and is a great subject as you need to be creative and think very hard about all different aspects involved. Being a media student allows you to be constructive. Furthermore being a media student allows you to look at things in a more creative angle and question why for example a advert was directed this way this indicates that studying media allows students to create their own opinions and become more analytic and question why  things are the way they are.

Online media is more convenient to get the news wherever you are. Instead of going to a shop and buying a newspaper. Web 2.0 affects people hugely as they are able to create blogs and share ideas. Social networks are becoming more popular especially with young people. It is easily accessible and the world is becoming smaller because of the internet. As you can effectively manage your life on the internet.

Research and planning is very much needed to create a great production. 

1) Look at real examples to compare to your own work and improve it. 

2) Look at every angle, and look different types of conventions, audiences and institutions.

Many Things will go wrong. However this is all a part of making a production, try and Record all of your planning and show the processing of your work to show what you have done. Using blogs allow you to link examples, ideas and inspiration. Evidence is key to show how you have constructed your ideas.

Always ask for new Ideas and feedback, It is good to get feedback from teachers and other students,use both the positive and negative feedback to make the best production possible. Take negative criticism on board and don’t take them in the wrong way.

Reebok Advertisement

In this particular piece of media, the rapper 50 Cent is portrayed to the target audience as a thug. This immediately connotes a message of crime to the viewers. The advert consists of Digetic and Non-digetic sounds to create a sense of negativity throughout, such as, Digetic sounds used in the advert were done by a voiceover which uttered the words “who do you plan to massacre next?” This then in turn, intimidates the audience with the use of non-digetic sounds such as, a sound of a bullet being fired as well as an image of blood dripping. This connotes the ideology of crime as the colour Red is stereotypically represented with danger.

Reebok also glamorises the ideas of crime as they show 50 cent to be “Invincible”. They do this using low angle shots showing 50 cent speaking and looking down to the camera which immediately denotes authority and power.

Furthermore, Reebok are trying to relate the advert to themselves as a company to 50 Cent. This is shown when he counts from 1 to 9, to show that no matter how many times they get “knocked down” they’ll always rise back, Just like 50 Cent did when he was shot 9 times.

Also, 50 cent wears clothes which show him to be a gangster and bad iconic figure which would create a negative impact to younger people who aspire to be like him. He also comes across as arrogant an uncaring as the question is asked of him “who do you plan to massacre next?” he laughs which shows he doesn’t concern him.

Furthermore, within the advert there are certain theories that are still traditional. This is shown when the advert portrays 50 cent in a bullet proof vest. As the stereotypical background connotes where black people would “hang out”. Hence they are tagged with the stereotypes of causing and creating the most crime.

The advert glamorises crime and violence with the use of mise-en-scene, as the dark colours in the advert create mystery and a very much urban background where crime rates are very high. The advert also uses camera angles and shots to glamorise crime and violence. This is shown when 50 Cent first appears in the advert he is shown to be looking down at the camera, this then connotes to the audience that 50 Cent is the greatest.

Moreover, I believe a global company like Reebok produced an advert which glamorises violence purposely to create controversy and divide opinions surrounding 50 Cent as many people see him as a thug, criminal, but at the same time many youths may see him as a role model and idolise him.

Hence, I believe Reebok are trying to send as message out to their competitors using the endorsement of 50 cent signifying that their company are powerful and authoritive.

However, the advert was banned due to the ASA believing that Reebok were “glamorising gun” crime. This then highlighted the fact that the 50 Cent had been shot nine times. This is why the ASA deemed the advert not suitable to be broadcasted. But in my view I believe the advert was wrongly banned as I feel it creates a lot of emotion in the advert which appeals to many people.

Dominant/Alternative Representations

Lynx Piped Pipern (The Lynx effect) - http://youtu.be/Vb8xuRATTIo

1) Lynx The body essentials company have produced this advertisement.

2) The advert shows dominant representations of women as the advertisement appears to show a man stereotypically being chased by ladies once he is use the product being advertised which is lynx body spray.

3) In the advert women are protrayed to be very sexual and weak as they are shown to be always after men. They are portrayed to be weak as it only takes one spray of the body spray from the man to make all the ladies fall for him. Which furthermore indicates a dominant ideology.

4) I believe this particular representation was selected as women are a typically subordinant group as they are stereotypically considered to be weak. This is why Lynx play on this theory and connote to their audiences that if you wear lynx you will automatically become a "ladies man".

5) I also believe The creators of this advert have used in particular,  the audiences age and social class to help the audience respond to the advert. This is because i think they have aimed this advert at young teenage students who maybe be socially inactive or shy and are therefore advertising their advert as maybe a "magic wand" which would help them make new friends, get girls and overall inrease the sense of adventure in their lives.


Tango TV Advert 1998 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPqKOfCzN20


1) Tango the refreshment drink company have produced this advertisement. However, it was banned only after 2 weeks due to complaints about the bullying of fat kids.


2) The advert shows an alternative representation of fat people as the advertisement appears to show rather stereotypically a fat man being bullied by a gang of people.


3) In the advert, fat people are protrayed to be very sensitive and weak as they are shown to be push overs. They are portrayed to be weak as they seem to be easily over powered and consequently seen as push overs.Which furthermore indicates a alternative ideology within the advert.


4) I believe this particular representation was selected as fat people are a typical alternative group as they are stereotypically considered to be weak and often jokes about fat people in the public and therefore, the creators of the advert may believe they are creating humour. However, this advert also connotes bullying and may be hurtful to a particular audience. 


5) I also believe The creators of this advert have used in particular,  the audiences age,social class and nationality to help the audience respond to the advert. This is because i think they have aimed this advert at young adults and  the middle and lower class social groups as they are more likely to drink and buy the product as well as find the advertisement funny. Furthermore, I think this advert is aimed at UK viewers only and they are more likely to get the joke than people from other nationality's who may not find this humorous.

Banned Advertisments

1) This advertisement produced by Tom Ford In the USA advertising fragences has become the Most Complained about advert in the USA.

It was banned because the ad campain breeched the Broadcasting Code of Advertsing as it was deemed to be sexually explicit and unsuitable for mainstream television.

I believe this ad campaign was rightly banned as I would feel rather awkward if I were watching television and this ad popped up with my family around.

2) This advertisement produced by the Department of Health (NHS) In the UK advertising the risks of smoking, was Banned as it can "frighten and distress children"

This ad campaign breached the Broadcasting Code of Advertising  as the code deems that Advertisements that are suitable for older children but could distress younger children must be sensitively scheduled (see Section 32: Scheduling). However, The regulators found this ad too distressing and decided to ban it fully.

I would agree with the ban as I also felt a bit frightened when i first saw this on TV and decided to change the channel. 

3) This Controversial whacky advert for Tango, was Banned in the UK in 1998, and replaced with a tamer version featuring a kiss instead of the slap, following fears that the advert was sparking copycat behaviour in school playgrounds.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YV8zGNe7Ebg

This ad campaign breached the Broadcasting Code of Advertising  as the code deems that Advertisements must not condone or encourage bullying.

I would agree with the banning as violence now known as the Happy Slap around the world first started from this advertisement.

 

Media Awards Trailers

The first media Trailer which I admired at Media awards very much was “A Night of a Thousand Lies”. The reason I admired the trailer a lot was because the group intertwined the two genres of romance and horror really well to represent the male and female attitudes to the audience. Also, the group showed horror in the trailer really well with the use of the settings and surroundings the trailer was filmed in as for example, a dark alley way creates mystery in the trailer really well.  Furthermore enigma codes within the media text are used fantastically to show love and romance between the characters in the trailer. The target audience for the trailer is young adults aged from 15 upwards. Also, the trailer shows effectively a sense of dramatic irony where the audience know something the characters do not.

The Second movie trailer which I thought was very well constructed was “One step 2 Far” as it uses a lot of non-Digetic and Digetic sound to create the mood of horror within the trailer which also includes an equilibrium, dis-equilibrium and also a new equilibrium. The group also shows horror by using close-ups effectively to show the characters feelings within their facial expressions. The trailer ends with a cliffhanger which leaves the audience in suspense as the horror scenes created within the media leaves the target audience on the edge of their seats.

Transformers 2

Transformers 2 Video Link - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=maPFhlFfJG8

The action movie that I have chosen to analyse using narrative theories we have engaged with is the hit film produced by Michael Bay which is the Transformers 2.

Transformers 2 is an immediate hit with its target audience as it is action packed throughout the whole storyline. This is due to the various enigma codes used within the film to create mystery during the narrative whilst keeping the audience interested. The director creates these enigma codes by showing something at the beginning of the film which the audience may think is just a minor detail within the film but really, it is the key which unlocks all the mysteries throughout the rest of the film.

For example, In Transformers 2 the enigma code which created dramatic irony within the film was a small metal piece broken off an alien cube it also could connote to the audience of troubled times for the main character, Sam Witwicky. This was also both an enigma code and an action code as the audience knows that it is a particularly important event in the film however, it is also a enigma code because it keeps the audience interested throughout the duration of the film and creates mystery during the narrative.

The plot of Transformers 2 revolves around Sam Witwicky who is portrayed to the audience as a nerdy/innocent teenager. This immediately makes Sam a likeable character as the audience sympathises for him as he is the human caught in the war between the Autobots and the Decepticons. 

The main character, Sam is caught right in the middle of the conflict as he has visions of Cybertronian symbols, which leads him to being hunted by the Decepticons under the orders of their long-trapped leader known as The Fallen.

As the movie progresses, we see the importance of the metal piece called (The Matrix) which we have indentified as an enigma code. It becomes more and more important as the movie progresses as the Decepticons seek to get revenge on Earth by finding and activating a machine called the Matrix of leadership, using the enigma code (The Matrix) which would then provide the Decepticons with an energy source, destroying all life on the planet in the process.

Furthermore, Transformers 2 is a linear narrative as the film progresses forward towards a resolution which consists of a Begging, Middle and End.

The structure of Transformers 2 also includes a Equilibrium, Disequilibrium and a new equilibrium, devised by Tvzetan Todorov. However, when the film begins it starts of with a New Equilibrium as it gets straight into the action when we see conflict between the Autobots and the Dcepticons which ends with the Good (Autobots) defeating the evil (Deceptions), this gives the audience a sense of achievement as they feel positive about the film straight from the beginning.

But then we see a Equilibrium as there is partially an existing state of harmony as we see Sam’s love life with his romance with Makaila who is the Second main character within the film which also sends out a warm vibe to the viewers as romance is a happy feeling.

Halfway through the film we experience a disequilibrium as the flow of the film is disrupted by unfortunate events as Optimus Prime (Leader of the Autobots) is defeated by the Decepticons. At this point of the movie, the audience will have felt heartbroken and tearful as they have seen their idol and the leader of the Autobots being defeated. However, at the finale a new equilibrium occurs as Optimus Prime rises again with the help of Sam Witwicky and then defeats the Decepticons leader (The Fallen) once and for all which gave the audience a feel good factor as we also see Sam and Makaila cuddling in a sunset backdrop.

In Conclusion, I believe Transformers 2 engages with its target audience fantastically and delivers an action packed bonanza which has made it a immediate success with all audiences.