Cumnock Media Class
Hunger Games Narrative Structure
Use this as a revision tool. Look at the pictures and text to help you remember what you need to for the analysis section of the exam.
Using the senses –
How is someone or some place in a mass media text portrayed? It’s impossible to portray every aspect of an individual in a single frame, or even in an entire film, so certain features of their personality and appearance get highlighted, and are often enhanced, when it comes to making the representation that the audience will see. When representing a person, media texts often focus on their:
Signs and symbols are used as a kind of visual shorthand. When media students decode these signs we make assumptions about who the character is. For instance, when constructing characters for a TV or movie scene the producers might give an old man white hair and a walking stick, or provide a wealthy lawyer with a three piece suit to wear and a briefcase to carry. Whilst not all old men need a walking stick and not all lawyers carry briefcases, these are easy and quick ways of telling us something about the character.
When you’re analysing representation, think about the following questions:
Are they the:
How do you know?
20th June 2012 Digital paper practice
Stereotypes
Definition
A stereotype is a fixed, commonly held notion or image of a person or group of people. For example all stereotypical Scots have red hair, a bad temper and/or wear tartan in films like “Brave” and TV shows like “The Simpsons”.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-18502247
Even the character of Shrek has a Scottish accent because he had a bit of a reputation for having a bad temper because he was an ogre. This Scottish stereotype was further emphasised by the use of the song “I’m On My Way” when he went on a journey with Donkey.
Film makers use stereotypes so that we can quickly understand what someone is like. Most stereotypes are used to make us feel we are better than, or superior to, the character we are watching.
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Here is another real question from the exam paper this year.
4. This question asks you to think about the Representations in the text you have studied.
(a) Identify one stereotype OR one non-stereotype in the text you have studied.
(b) By referring closely to the text, describe how this stereotype or
non-stereotype has been made. 10 marks
4 (a) A stereotype in the film is Lieutenant Kotler who is portrayed as being an evil German Nazi.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGLlFzgdxm4 – 6 minutes in.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfXhqUFTIis&feature=fvwrel – 1 minute 40 in.
4 (b) The stereotype was made using various cinematic techniques such as:
Costume
Props
Dialogue
Framing/camera angles
Scenery
Make up
Diegetic (natural) sound
Non-diegetic (non-natural) sound like music.
Media Analysis
Genre: Fiction – Film Posters
Follow this link:
http://www.slideshare.net/bir/analysis-of-film-poster
Film posters follow the following conventions:
Here is a second example:
http://www.slideshare.net/alexdabriel/media-poster-analysis
and a third here:
http://www.slideshare.net/kymberlyjadet/film-poster-analysis-5391288
When you are writing your answers you need to consider the purpose of the poster – which is to get people interested in paying to see the film, the colours they have chosen and what that might mean for the film, what is in the background (because it has been deliberately placed there), the rating of the film because an adult or frightening film would have an adult or frightening image (so who is the target audience?), the kind of font they have used and the colours used for the writing, the layout (where is everything placed and why) and your personal reaction to the poster.
There is more about fonts used here:
Complete the analysis task for the film poster on the screen, remembering to give as much detail as possible for each new point.
On the next page there is a larger version of the poster.
Camera angles and movements combine to create a sequence of images, just as words, word order and punctuation combine to make the meaning of a sentence. You need a straightforward set of key terms to describe them. Describing Shots When describing camera angles, or creating them yourself, you have to think about three important factors — The FRAMING or the LENGTH of shot — The ANGLE of the shot — If there is any MOVEMENT involved When describing different cinematic shots, different terms are used to indicate the amount of subject matter contained within a frame, how far away the camera is from the subject, and the perspective of the viewer. Each different shot has a different purpose and effect. A change between two different shots is called a CUT. Framing or Shot Length 1 . Extreme long shot This can be taken from as much as a quarter of a mile away, and is generally used as a scene-setting, establishing shot. It normally shows an EXTERIOR, eg the outside of a building, or a landscape, and is often used to show scenes of thrilling action eg in a war film or disaster movie. There will be very little detail visible in the shot, it’s meant to give a general impression rather than specific information. The extreme long shot on the left is taken from a distance, but denotes a precise location – it might even connote all of the entertainment industry if used as the opening shot in a news story. 2. Long Shot This is the most difficult to categorise precisely, but is generally one which shows the image as approximately “life” size ie corresponding to the real distance between the audience and the screen in a cinema (the figure of a man would appear as six feet tall). This category includes the FULL SHOT showing the entire human body, with the head near the top of the frame and the feet near the bottom. While the focus is on characters, plenty of background detail still emerges: we can tell the coffins on the right are in a Western-style setting, for instance. 3. Medium Shot Contains a figure from the knees/waist up and is normally used for dialogue scenes, or to show some detail of action. Variations on this include the TWO SHOT (containing two figures from the waist up) and the THREE SHOT (contains 3 figures…). NB. Any more than three figures and the shot tends to become a long shot. Background detail is minimal, probably because location has been established earlier in the scene – the audience already know where they are and now want to focus on dialogue and character interation. Another variation in this category is the OVER-THE-SHOULDER-SHOT, which positions the camera behind one figure, revealing the other figure, and part of the first figure’s back, head and shoulder. 4. Close-Up This shows very little background, and concentrates on either a face, or a specific detail of mise en scène. Everything else is just a blur in the background. This shot magnifies the object (think of how big it looks on a cinema screen) and shows the importance of things, be it words written on paper, or the expression on someone’s face. The close-up takes us into the mind of a character. In reality, we only let people that we really trust get THAT close to our face – mothers, children and lovers, usually – so a close up of a face is a very intimate shot. A film-maker may use this to make us feel extra comfortable or extremely uncomfortable about a character, and usually uses a zoom lens in order to get the required framing. 5. Extreme Close-Up As its name suggests, an extreme version of the close up, generally magnifying beyond what the human eye would experience in reality. An extreme close-up of a face, for instance, would show only the mouth or eyes, with no background detail whatsoever. This is a very artificial shot, and can be used for dramatic effect. The tight focus required means that extra care must be taken when setting up and lighting the shot – the slightest camera shake or error in focal length is very noticeable. Camera Angles The relationship between the camera and the object being photographed (ie the ANGLE) gives emotional information to an audience, and guides their judgment about the character or object in shot. The more extreme the angle (ie the further away it is from eye left), the more symbolic and heavily-loaded the shot. 1. The Bird’s-Eye view This shows a scene from directly overhead, a very unnatural and strange angle. Familiar objects viewed from this angle might seem totally unrecognisable at first (umbrellas in a crowd, dancers’ legs). This shot does, however, put the audience in a godlike position, looking down on the action. People can be made to look insignificant, ant-like, part of a wider scheme of things. Hitchcock (and his admirers, like Brian de Palma) is fond of this style of shot. A cameraman, raised above the action, gets a high angle shot 2. High Angle Not so extreme as a bird’s eye view. The camera is elevated above the action using a crane to give a general overview. High angles make the object photographed seem smaller, and less significant (or scary). The object or character often gets swallowed up by their setting – they become part of a wider picture. 3. Eye Level A fairly neutral shot; the camera is positioned as though it is a human actually observing a scene, so that eg actors’ heads are on a level with the focus. The camera will be placed approximately five to six feet from the ground. 4. Low Angle These increase height (useful for short actors like Tom Cruise or James McAvoy) and give a sense of speeded motion. Low angles help give a sense of confusion to a viewer, of powerlessness within the action of a scene. The background of a low angle shot will tend to be just sky or ceiling, the lack of detail about the setting adding to the disorientation of the viewer. The added height of the object may make it inspire fear and insecurity in the viewer, who is psychologically dominated by the figure on the screen. 5. Oblique/Canted Angle Sometimes the camera is tilted (ie is not placed horizontal to floor level), to suggest imbalance, transition and instability (very popular in horror movies). This technique is used to suggest POINT-OF-View shots (ie when the camera becomes the ‘eyes’ of one particular character,seeing what they see — a hand held camera is often used for this. Camera Movement A director may choose to move action along by telling the story as a series of cuts, going from one shot to another, or they may decide to move the camera with the action. Moving the camera often takes a great deal of time, and makes the action seem slower, as it takes several second for a moving camera shot to be effective, when the same information may be placed on screen in a series of fast cuts. Not only must the style of movement be chosen, but the method of actually moving the camera must be selected too. There are seven basic methods: 1. Pans A movement which scans a scene horizontally. The camera is placed on a tripod, which operates as a stationary axis point as the camera is turned, often to follow a moving object which is kept in the middle of the frame. 2. Tilts A movement which scans a scene vertically, otherwise similar to a pan. 3. Dolly Shots Sometimes called TRUCKING or TRACKING shots. The camera is placed on a moving vehicle and moves alongside the action, generally following a moving figure or object. Complicated dolly shots will involve a track being laid on set for the camera to follow, hence the name. The camera might be mounted on a car, a plane, or even a shopping trolley (good method for independent film-makers looking to save a few dollars). A dolly shot may be a good way of portraying movement, the journey of a character for instance, or for moving from a long shot to a close-up, gradually focusing the audience on a particular object or character. 4. Hand-held shots The hand-held movie camera first saw widespread use during World War II, when news reporters took their windup Arriflexes and Eyemos into the heat of battle, producing some of the most arresting footage of the twentieth century. After the war, it took a while for commercially produced movies to catch up, and documentary makers led the way, demanding the production of smaller, lighter cameras that could be moved in and out of a scene with speed, producing a “fly-on-the-wall” effect.This aesthetic took a while to catch on with mainstream Hollywood, as it gives a jerky, ragged effect, totally at odds with the organised smoothness of a dolly shot. The Steadicam (a heavy contraption which is attached a camera to an operator by a harness. The camera is stabilized so it moves independently) was debuted in Marathon Man (1976), bringing a new smoothness to hand held camera movement and has been used to great effect in movies and TV shows ever since. No “walk and talk” sequence would be complete without one. Hand held cameras denote a certain kind of gritty realism, and they can make the audience feel as though they are part of a scene, rather than viewing it from a detached, frozen position. A crane in use, following the path of a balloon floating into the sky 5. Crane Shots Basically, dolly-shots-in-the-air. A crane (or jib), is a large, heavy piece of equipment, but is a useful way of moving a camera – it can move up, down, left, right, swooping in on action or moving diagonally out of it. The camera operator and camera are counter-balanced by a heavy weight, and trust their safety to a skilled crane/jib operator. 6. Zoom Lenses A zoom lens contains a mechanism that changes the magnification of an image. On a still camera, this means that the photographer can get a ‘close up’ shot while still being some distance from the subject. A video zoom lens can change the position of the audience, either very quickly (a smash zoom) or slowly, without moving the camera an inch, thus saving a lot of time and trouble. The drawbacks to zoom use include the fact that while a dolly shot involves a steady movement similar to the focusing change in the human eye, the zoom lens tends to be jerky (unless used very slowly) and to distort an image, making objects appear closer together than they really are. Zoom lenses are also drastically over-used by many directors (including those holding palmcorders), who try to give the impression of movement and excitement in a scene where it does not exist. Use with caution – and a tripod! 7. The Aerial Shot An exciting variation of a crane shot, usually taken from a helicopter. This is often used at the beginning of a film, in order to establish setting and movement. A helicopter is like a particularly flexible sort of crane – it can go anywhere, keep up with anything, move in and out of a scene, and convey real drama and exhilaration — so long as you don’t need to get too close to your actors or use location sound with the shots.
http://gaudini.wordpress.com/2012/03/26/the-hunger-games-as-moviegoing-experience/
The Capitol citizens, for instance, were designed to look as alien to our culture as possible, in garish costumes and makeup, while the District’s residents are depicted as much more familiar. The latter’s clothing and general appearance, while plain, is neither outlandish nor exotic. The effect is that the audience easily identifies with the oppressed peoples of the Districts (and our protagonist, Katniss) while reviling the strange, foreign Capitol citizens…
…moviegoing audiences pay their $10 to laugh and cry at the expense of the characters on the screen in the same way that the Capitol citizens seek emotional stimulation through watching the Games, under Caesar’s guiding commentary. The connection is made even more blatant when Haymitch carefully explains to Katniss and Peeta that the Hunger Games are really just an elaborate show, and advises them on ways to improve their narrative, in order to get their audience emotionally attached to them — and also to attract investors…
…those in the Hunger Games’ control room. Visually, this team is more reminiscent of the District peoples than the Capitol citizens (they are not done up with whacky, neon-colored hairdos, for instance), but their dress is still sufficiently sterile and foreign to signify that they are not quite familiar either…
…Cato’s confusion is also striking. In the end, he finally realizes that he has absolutely no control over his life. As a career tribute, Cato was trained from birth to be a killing machine; as a character in a film, Cato was manipulated into performing horrific acts as one of the film’s antagonists. Indeed, all of the film’s characters were designed for the specific purposes of eliciting an emotional response from the audience — notably Rue, the small girl whose death is orchestrated so that we might sympathize with Katniss’ loss and isolation.
This realization makes Cato’s brief moment of self-awareness all the more tragic, as he recognizes the powerlessness of his role and then proceeds to accede to it.
Behind the scenes…
Jennifer Lawrence
Codes – hair and make up
ps – Remember that no-one signed up for the study day on 5th April so that has been cancelled. Study at home!
