Representation.

REPRESENTATION.

To study and understand how these technical elements create specific representations of individuals, groups, events or places and help to articulate specific messages and  values that have social significance. Particular areas of representation that may be chosen are:

1-Gender

2-Age

3-Ethnicity

4-Sexuality

5-Class and status

6-Physical ability/disability

7-Regional Identity

1) GENDER:

Things seem different and mean different from a man's view than from a woman's view.

-31 functions of narrative of Vladimir Propp:

ABSENTATION: A member of a family leaves the security of the home environment. This may be the hero or some other member of the family that the hero will later need to rescue. This division of the cohesive family injects initial tension into the storyline. The hero may also be introduced here, often being shown as an ordinary person.

INTERDICTION: An interdiction is addressed to the hero ('don't go there', 'don't do this'). The hero is warned against some action (given an 'interdiction').

VIOLATION of INTERDICTION. The interdiction is violated (villain enters the tale). This generally proves to be a bad move and the villain enters the story, although not necessarily confronting the hero. Perhaps they are just a lurking presence or perhaps they attack the family whilst the hero is away.

RECONNAISSANCE: The villain makes an attempt at reconnaissance (either villain tries to find the children/jewels etc.; or intended victim questions the villain). The villain (often in disguise) makes an active attempt at seeking information, for example searching for something valuable or trying to actively capture someone. They may speak with a member of the family who innocently divulges information. They may also seek to meet the hero, perhaps knowing already the hero is special in some way.

DELIVERY: The villain gains information about the victim. The villain's seeking now pays off and he or she now acquires some form of information, often about the hero or victim. Other information can be gained, for example about a map or treasure location.

TRICKERY: The villain attempts to deceive the victim to take possession of victim or victim's belongings (trickery; villain disguised, tries to win confidence of victim). The villain now presses further, often using the information gained in seeking to deceive the hero or victim in some way, perhaps appearing in disguise. This may include capture of the victim, getting the hero to give the villain something or persuading them that the villain is actually a friend and thereby gaining collaboration.

COMPLICITY: Victim taken in by deception, unwittingly helping the enemy. The trickery of the villain now works and the hero or victim naively acts in a way that helps the villain. This may range from providing the villain with something (perhaps a map or magical weapon) to actively working against good people (perhaps the villain has persuaded the hero that these other people are actually bad).

VILLAINY or LACK: Villain causes harm/injury to family member (by abduction, theft of magical agent, spoiling crops, plunders in other forms, causes a disappearance, expels someone, casts spell on someone, substitutes child etc., commits murder, imprisons/detains someone, threatens forced marriage, provides nightly torments); Alternatively, a member of family lacks something or desires something (magical potion etc.). There are two options for this function, either or both of which may appear in the story. In the first option, the villain causes some kind of harm, for example carrying away a victim or the desired magical object (which must be then be retrieved). In the second option, a sense of lack is identified, for example in the hero's family or within a community, whereby something is identified as lost or something becomes desirable for some reason, for example a magical object that will save people in some way.

MEDIATION: Misfortune or lack is made known, (hero is dispatched, hears call for help etc./ alternative is that victimized hero is sent away, freed from imprisonment). The hero now discovers the act of villainy or lack, perhaps finding their family or community devastated or caught up in a state of anguish and woe.

BEGINNING COUNTER-ACTION: Seeker agrees to, or decides upon counter-action. The hero now decides to act in a way that will resolve the lack, for example finding a needed magical item, rescuing those who are captured or otherwise defeating the villain. This is a defining moment for the hero as this is the decision that sets the course of future actions and by which a previously ordinary person takes on the mantle of heroism.

DEPARTURE: Hero leaves home;

FIRST FUNCTION OF THE DONOR: Hero is tested, interrogated, attacked etc., preparing the way for his/her receiving magical agent or helper (donor);

HERO'S REACTION: Hero reacts to actions of future donor (withstands/fails the test, frees captive, reconciles disputants, performs service, uses adversary's powers against him);

RECEIPT OF A MAGICAL AGENT: Hero acquires use of a magical agent (directly transferred, located, purchased, prepared, spontaneously appears, eaten/drunk, help offered by other characters);

GUIDANCE: Hero is transferred, delivered or led to whereabouts of an object of the search;

STRUGGLE: Hero and villain join in direct combat;

BRANDING: Hero is branded (wounded/marked, receives ring or scarf);

VICTORY: Villain is defeated (killed in combat, defeated in contest, killed while asleep, banished);

LIQUIDATION: Initial misfortune or lack is resolved (object of search distributed, spell broken, slain person revived, captive freed);

RETURN: Hero returns;

PURSUIT: Hero is pursued (pursuer tries to kill, eat, and undermine the hero);

RESCUE: Hero is rescued from pursuit (obstacles delay pursuer, hero hides or is hidden, hero transforms unrecognizably, hero saved from attempt on his/her life);

UNRECOGNIZED ARRIVAL: Hero unrecognized, arrives home or in another country;

UNFOUNDED CLAIMS: False hero presents unfounded claims;

DIFFICULT TASK: Difficult task proposed to the hero (trial by ordeal, riddles, test of strength/endurance, other tasks);

SOLUTION: Task is resolved;

RECOGNITION: Hero is recognized (by mark, brand, or thing given to him/her);

EXPOSURE: False hero or villain is exposed;

TRANSFIGURATION: Hero is given a new appearance (is made whole, handsome, new garments etc.);

PUNISHMENT: Villain is punished;

WEDDING: Hero marries and ascends the throne (is rewarded/promoted).

STEREOTYPES: It is a commonly held BELIEF about specific social groups or types of individuals.

--> THEORIES ON GENDER REPRESENTATION:

-Judith Butler; He said "Gender is constructed" And, "Our performance of gender is artifice in the sense that it is created by us and not 'natural'"

-Richard Dyer ;He states;

i) Representation is selective- one person represents a group

ii) Representation is culture specific.

iii) Representation is subject to interpretation.

-Water Lippmann; Functions of Stereotyping;

1. Ordering process: He says "Partial knowledge is not false knowledge, it is simply not absolute knowledge"

2. Short cut.

3. Reference.

-Stuart Hill; Encoding/decoding theory. Messages are interpreted differently.

FACTORS THAT CHANGE THE REPRESENTATION IN A SOCIETY:

Culture

Family

Ethencity

Generation

Body

Nationality

Religion

Influence in childhood.

Textual Analyses.

TEXTUAL ANALYSIS.

To analyse a moving image extract in terms of technical codes and representation. For this section of the exam we must know how to analyse and discuss technical aspects of the language and conventions of the moving image medium in relation to TV drama in order to discuss the representations of people.

1) Camera shots, angle, movement and composition;

SHOTS:

Aerial shot- A camera shot taken from an overhead position, Often used as an established shot

Close up shot- A head and shoulders shot often used to show expressions/emotions of a character. Also can be a shot of an object, fimled from close to the object or zoomed in to it, that reveals detail.

Exteme close up- A shot where a part of a face or body of a character fills the whole frama. Also can be a shot of an object where only a small part of it dominates the frame.

Establishing shot- A shot that establishes a scene, often giving the veiwer information about where the scene is set. Usually appears at the beginning of the scene.

Medium shot- The framing of an obejct from waist up.

Two shot- A shot of two characters engaged in a conversation.

Point of view shot- Shows a view from the subject's perspective.

Over the shoulder shot- Looking from behind a character's shoulder, at a specific subject.

Overhead shot- A type of camera shot in which the camera is positioned above the character, action or object being filmed.

Reaction shot- A shot that shows the reaction of a character either to another character or an event within the sequence.

ANGLE:

High angle- A camera angle that looks down upon a subject. Often used to make the subject appear small.

Low angle- A camera angle that looks up upon a subject, Often used to make the subject appear powerful.

Canted angle-A camera angle that makes what is shot appeared to be skewed or tilted.

MOVEMENT:

Pan- Where the camera pivots horizontally, either from left to right or right to left to reveal a set or setting. (A long continuous horizontal shot)

Tilt- Where a camera scans a set or setting vertically.

Track-A shot where the camera follows a subject/object. It includes smooth movements forward, backward, along the side of the subject, or on curve but cannot include complex movement around a subject.

Dolly

Crane- A crane shot is sometimes used to signify the end of a scene/film.

Stedicam- A stedicam is a stabilising mount for a camera which mechanically isolates the operator's movement from the camera, allowing a very smooth shot even when the operator is quickly moving over an uneven surface.

Handheld

Zoom- Using a zoom lens to appear to be moving closer to(zoom in) or further away from(zoom out) an object when in fact the camera may not move.

COMPOSITION:

Framing

Rule of thirds

Depth of field- Deep and shallow focus, focus pulls.

30 degree rule

80 degree rule (crossing the line)

2) Editing. Includes transition of image and sound- continuity and non-continuity systems;

CUTTING:

Cut:

Shot/reverse shot: Edits which switch back and forth between two characters interacting with each other.

Eye line match: A type of edit which cuts from one character to what that character has been looking at.

Graphic match.

Action match.

Jump cut: A cut between two similar shots, usually done to create discontinuity for artistic effect.

Cross cutting, intercutting or parallel editing: The editing technique of alternating, interweaving, or interspersing one narrative action with another.

Cutaway: A brief shot that momentarily interrupts continuous action by briefly inserting another related action.

Insert.

OTHER TRANSITIONS:

Dissolve.

Fade in.

Fade out.

Wipe.

Superimposition.

Long take.

Short take.

Slow motion.

Ellipis and expansion of time.

Post production visual effects.

SOUND:

Diegetic Sound- Sound that can be heard by the characters within a scene

Non Diegetic Sound- Sound that the characters cannot hear and is not part of the imaginary world of the story.

Synchronous sound.

Sound effects- Sounds that are added to a film during post production stage

Sound motif- A sound effect or combination of sound effects that are associated with a particular character, setting, situation or idea.

Sound bridge- Can lead in or out of a scene.

Dialogue- Words spoken by a character.

Voiceover- When a voice often that of a character in the film, is heard while we see an image of a space and time in which that character is not actually speaking.

Mode of address/ direct address.

Sound mixing.

Sound perspective.

Score- The musical component of a program’s soundtrack.

Ambient sound- The background sounds which represent a scene or location.

3) Mis-en-scene- Everything in the frame:

PRODUCTION DESIGN;

Location- The place where the scene is shot

Set design- The way the set has been decorated in order to express particular characteristics.

Costume- The clothing the character speaks volumes about their personality.

Make up.

Colour design- A scene's colours are very carefully selected in order to give off certain connotations.

Gesture and Posture- Character's physical movements and what that says about them.

LIGHTING:

High key lighting- Which appears to be natural(but very rarely is).

Low key lighting- Using a lighting system which intensifies shadows and gives a moody or scary effect.

Back lighting- When a character is lit from behind, thus silhouetting them.