Post 5; Audience theory & My short film

In lessons we have developed our knowledge on Audience reception theory and critical thinking. We need to consider this theory when creating our own short film, and what requirements are needed to get across a good message to certain target audiences.
The first short film i watched was the film strangers.(2004) It lasted for 7 minutes and 11 seconds and was directed by Erez Tadmor and Guy Nattiv. This short film does not consist of any dialogue just movements and actions of the characters.

Dominant hegemonic representation-The message in this short film is hard to get across and make sense of because no dialogue is being formed, yet character action and movement can be established. The message in this short film shows a diverse group of people, on a train, running away from fears and issues in life. The message could then be fore shown as a racial divide between the Jews and Arabs.

oppositional hegemonic Representations are when the audience understands the message being put across, yet they do not agree with the message.- The audience in strangers, would be action/adventure audiences which could understand the message being created for the issues in someones life, yet they would not agree that as a result discrimination is the answer.
Negotiated Hegemonic- The audience may be able to understand the character's issues in the stranger, due to the background they come from, yet the may not understand why their actions are unreasonable. They do not agree with the meaning and interpret the meaning differently, so they may have interpreted the film to establish the issue of crime and violence more then the issue of racism.

Moral panic- From the audiences perspective they know that something exciting is going to happen, by the facial expressions and camera movements. The camera does close ups of the different characters eyes, to explore the tension being created. With no dialogue reinforces the tension, leaving the audience wanting to know more, even though they May be in a state of confusion. The tension ends, in a man being chased off the train, thinking he is going to get hurt.

Mode of address- There is a relationship between the adresser and the addressee constructed in the text. The producer makes assumptions about the audience, for example: the producer assumes the audience would expect tension therefore produce close up of their eyes. The producers are trying to get across a message to the audience to interpret it, the audience interpret the films through what they whiteness through screen, they do this through camera movements, characterization and many more techniques.

Profile the target audience- The audience need to be targeted when producing a film, in order for it to become a success. Strangers, did not do so well and was not a hit. Audiences may have found it hard to understand and relate to this type of film, as immediately you do not notice one person is a Jew, and the other is Muslim.

Viewing environment- Viewing environment determined on what places enjoy and would be able to interpret the film. The environment i think this would have a huge impact on would be London. Being a part of London means that crime on the underground is very common, and often violence occurs in the central parts of London. This means they would be able to relate and interpret this film better then someone living a life in sunny California.

About a girl- was an award BAFTA winning short film made in 2001. It was directed by Brian Percival. The film lasts for 9 minutes and 52 seconds.

Dominant hegemonic- About a girl is purposely meant to shock the audience, and their expectations of what happens. The message gained is that teenagers are alone in life, and as life goes on teenage issues such as pregnancy are growing, without the help from family. The message in this film also leads us on to ask questions such as why cant she tell her mom? why did she throw her baby in the lake? and so on...

Oppositional hegemonic- The young population can relate to stories like this, maybe through personal experiences, but the message being conveyed can be interpreted in many different ways. Although several audiences may sympathise with the message being put across, different audiences may have different interpretations of the short film, some people may feel it is her own fault no one Else's, others may blame the mother, so many different audiences can interpret the message differently.

Negotiated hegemonic- Similarly, audiences can have different interpretations leading us to ask questions about what will happen in this girls future. The audience may be able to understand the message that this girl is isolated and alone, due to her background, nevertheless others may believe the message is a warning about teenage pregnancy.

Moral panic-About a girl shocks the audience, leading us wanting to know more. From the minute we hear the girls dialogue, we notice she is from a rough background from stereotypes in our everyday lives. The expectations may be different due to the different audiences and when the girl is standing by the lake with a plastic bag, it was unexpected she was going to throw a baby in the lake. Immediately after that different audiences will have different views and questions to ask about the whole situation, which may differ to what part of society you are from.

Mode of address- the relationship of the adresser

Profile the target audience- This short film won 4 awards as well as a BAFTA award for the best short film, as it was well known for conveying a powerful message. It also won a prize at the London film festival. Compared to the film strangers we notice immediately that this film, is of much better quality, and has definitely reached the target audience, and was a huge success.

Viewing environment-The environment this film would have the most powerful effect on would be London as it has high rates of teenage pregnancy as well as single parent households. Viewers from that era would be able to relate to this text again through personal experiences, and through the condition of their society. On the other hand a wealthy family would not see this film as acceptable and would not be able to relate to this type of film.
Black Hole- This film is about a sleep deprived office worker. He discovers a black hole whilst photocopying, and he uses the black hole in a creative way, which could cause trouble.

Dominant hegemonic- The message in this short film is difficult to identify. One interpretation could be never to take risks on something you are new two. The black hole is a new discovery which could always end in trouble, creating tension for the audience.

Oppositional hegemonic-The audience may get the message never to take risks, but not necessarily agree with this interpretation. Others could argue that it is an opportunity, maybe something good could come out of it, nevertheless the audience would not agree with the overall message.

Negotiated hegemonic- Negotiated hegemonic interpretations are hard to explore with this type of film, as it only lasts 2 minutes audiences may not be able to gain a real feel and relate to a type of film. Some audiences may argue it is more like an advertisement on the television rather then a film.
Moral panic- It is hard to gain a moral panic on a 2 minute sort film, even though the audience can feel the tension, wanting to explore more. As the man is fascinated by the black hole, we want to establish what is going to happen to him, and the audience can also feel a fear of what will happen next, then when he gets stuck in the vending machine it leaves the audience in suspense and an also be argued confusion.
Mode of address- The mode of address for this type of film must be a quick short message, the producers are assuming that audiences want to see a quick film that will establish a clear message. The producers want to gain a relationship with the audience, which is why they are crating tension, and like abut a girl, leave the audience asking questions and wanting to know more.
Profile the target audience- This short film was not as successful as about a girl, mainly because the message was clearer in about a girl, and it was longer for the audience to relate to the film. A specific target audience for this type of film is hard to identify, but we could relate this type of short film to the office workers and the older generation.
Viewing environment- The viewing environment for this type of short film would be adults in the business industry. Even though it is set out and can be interpreted as an advertisement, the people who are in the working class could relate more to this type of short film, rather then a group of teenage girls.
Snap. It was directed by Monalo Celi in 2003, and lasted for 4 minutes and 28 seconds.

Dominant hegemonic- The message given out in this short film could be associated with trust. The camera could also be a symbol for something powerful in the story. The man with the camera taking pictures of the family, ran away once the man of the family wanted to have a look at the picture, a message to be noticed from this short film could be don't trust anyone.
Oppositional Hegemonic- The audience may be able to receive this message about trusting certain people, and the camera being a symbol for trust, yet they may not agree with this interpretation. For example the audience may feel as though the message is based on something different other then trust, which could be fun and harmless banter.
Negotiated hegemonic- The audience could understand both interpretations of the film being about trust and friendly banter, but again not necessarily agree with the interpretations, they may include their own views, from personal experiences within life.
Moral panic- The moral panic within this film is a good one to analyse. The music plays a big part in this short film as it Set's the scene for something drastic, and shocking will happening, leaving the audience intrigued. The pace of the music is fast, upbeat and the colours are bright indicating the scene. The music stops when the man is taking pictures, and when the other man goes to look at the picture and the camera man runs off, the music starts up again, fast paced and lively and the audience are being created with a moral panic.
Mode of address- The mode for address for this type of film, can be produced from the producer trying to create a relationship with the audience, through mode of address. The producers gain a relationship with the audience through the music, and the audience are pulled in wanting to know more. A relationship occurs when the audience have related to the film, gaining the message wanting to be received from the producers.
Profiling the target audience- Snap was a miniature film made for the entertainment industry, it won several awards for this quality. It was a successful short film, meaning it should have met all the requirements, meeting the target audience, funding and so on. For entertainment purposes, the audiences would have had to relate to the film in a positive way, and laughed at the fact the man ran away.
Viewing environment- The viewing environment for this type of film would have to be in the united states of America, even though some English audiences may have been able to relate to it. It would mainly appeal to the American audiences because it was filmed near Miami beach, and the style would suit American society. It also had Latin American actors/ actresses which would again appeal to the American audience.

Below is a link to some PowerPoint's that we produced in class. Our teacher gave us all different Theories to look at and we had to produce a PowerPoint in groups to break down the relevant points which would give off good information to the rest of the class.

Our student PowerPoint's

Post 4; Genre as a media concept

Robert Altman is a theorist who had a strong opinion on Genre Theory.

Genre Theory....
Genre can be identified and explained in many different ways. Theorists, such as Daniel chandler, have their own personal views on how to define genre, as media students we are to explore the different ways genre can be interpreted and the theorists views on the word Genre.

In class we looked at different films, and how they can be categorised into genre's and sub genre's. We also thought about the "big question" which is why do we need genre theory?

For independent study we were asked to look at three different web links which have different views, and opinions on genre.




The first one was the media department in the Robert Smyth School.
A theorist called Barry Keith Grant stated that "Genre movies have compromised the bulk of film practice, the iceberg of film history beneath the visible tip that in the past has commonly been used as film art"I agree with this statement as Movies which have been categorised under a genre have been successful, even in the past and more importantly today's society,they are also easy for audiences to watch, and for them to make a choice of which film they would want to watch depending on their interests. He also stated that film has commonly been used as film art, and by the use of genre he has formed the argument that genre could be the make of film being classified as "Art".

Altman another theorist has other views concerning genre. He encourages us to consider the following:




-That genres are defined by producers and easily recognised by audiences.




This can be argued as true as the producers who make the film, target the audience to which specific genre, (usually the most popular at the time) making it easily recognisable for the audience, helping them to decide if they would like to go and watch the film.





-That texts belong "clearly" to a particular genre in each case.




People May disagree with this statement as there are many films that can fall into two different Genre's or sub genre's. For example: white chicks could be classed under the "comedy" category and also come under the chick flick genre.




-That genre's develop in predictable ways.






-That texts in a genre share key characteristics




This can be shown by the amount of films that come under more then one genre/ sub genre's. they must share some of the same features in order to categorise under more then one Genre.






-That genre's are ideological




This statement creates an assumption that a particular idea, that has been put in place for a reason, which people should aspire to. In terms of media, the idea would come first, then it would need to have people to back it up, and then it would result in power. For example: the idea could be a horror film, which would then have people to support it, which would be the audience, who go and watch it, then in power would be the producers and directors who made the film, who created a box office hit!






-That they are not specifically located in history











-and crucially, that genre critics are distanced from the practice of genre, or its working.




This statement is true as the critics are an audience just like us, and are put behind the work of the producers and directors, meaning they are distanced from seeing what really goes on, meaning they are distanced.

(Altman R) asks the question... should we read genre as a noun or an adjective. There are specific differences between a noun and an adjective. A noun is a doing word, whereas an adjective is a describing word.
I think that audiences would say that Genre is an adjective, a way in which to describe a particular film, and its qualities.
On the other hand, producers, directors and people who work in the industry could class it as a noun, because they think of a specific genre, and atchually make the film.

WIKIPEDIA....I have also looked at wikipedia's version of the word "Genre" and it said that the definition from dictionary.com states "a class or category of artistic endeavour having a particular form, context, technique, or the like"

Genre's according to Daniel Chandler, create order to simplify the mass of available information. He is saying that having the Genre theory creates order and prevents chaos.

Another theorist Amy.J Devitt focuses on rhetorical genre. She says that viewing Genre as a rhetorical device gives the author and the reader more freedom and "allows for choices". I agree with Amy as she is saying that Rhetorical situations define Genre, and i think that having a genre theory does allow for more choices, less chaos and more order within the film industry.

DANIEL CHANDLER....I already know Daniel Chandlers views in a basic form. He thinks that the word Genre creates order and prevents chaos. He believes that the word Genre comes from the French which is originally Latin and its meaning is "class""Contemporary Media genres tend to relate more to specific forms more to the universals of tradegy and comedy's"I think he is saying that Genre nowadays is more complex, and are more specific and popular rather then just the ordinary tradegy and comedy's.Daniel Chandler also believes that films are routinely classified nowadays (e.g television listings in magazines) as "thrillers" "westerns" and so on.