The BBFC (British Board of Film Classification) is an independent company which was set up in 1912 and has the role of classifying films and video games. Due to the Video Recordings Act (passed in 1984), the board is designated to regulate and classify video recordings offered for sale or hire commercially in the UK. This means that their role changed from purely censorship of cinema and games to a larger proportion being classification. The board uses a set of guidelines when classifying, which enables them to successfully classify films to be U, PG, 12a, 12, 15, 18, or R18. Their classification empowers the public to make decisions themselves over the suitability of the media for themselves and those in their care. The classifications also prevent younger audiences and sensitive viewers from watching material that may cause 'harm' or upset to them.
Regulation and classification from the BBFC can have a big impact over the distribution and marketing of a film. In several cases, films have been targetted and marketed at a specific age range, eg 15, only to be given an 18 certificate. 'This is England', for example, was intended by Shane Meadows to be a 15, but was declared an 18. This meant that the advertising and content was aimed at a slightly younger audience than could actually consume it on release in the cinema. In some rare cases, however, local authorities do not comply to the BBFC's guidelines. A famous case of this was Westminster Council's decision to ban Cronberg's 'Crash', which was declared an 18 over the rest of the UK.
New ways of distributing film, such as downloads or through the internet, will be problematic in terms of regulating film. These technologies, such as downloading a film via iTunes will prove very difficult to regulate, as there is no way of proving age when doing this, which will enable younger viewers to access and consume media which they would otherwise not be able to access. Although some services including YouTube and BBC iPlayer have tried to enforce viewers to confirm they are over a certain age in order to view particular media. However, it is extremely easy to ignore, or lie, about age over these services. Other ways of distributing media like Love Film, where DVDs are delivered through the post offers younger people access films classified for older audiences, as there is no way of regulating who is receiving the films.
I found the workshop very interesting, and learnt several new things. One example of a new think that I learnt is that the BBFC is not a government body; although the government has designated it the role of classifying films, it does not have any government funding. I also found it interesting that local authorities have the power to over-rule classifications that the BBFC set, and can even remove films from showing (in the case of 'Crash') The workshop and information I have learnt from it will help with my media course, as it enables me to estimate what classification my thriller would receive, and so base my target audience and distribution possibilities around this. It will also help, as it has given an insight into what makes a film or programme a certain rating, which will help with my TV Drama exam, and also when thinking about audiences and marketing.
The BBFC workshop will also help in answering this question: 'Discuss the issues raised by an institution need to target specific audiences within the media industry which you have studied'. My essay plan for this question:
Introduction -
Role of BBFC in film industry
How ratings may effect audiences, creating specific audiences that need to be targetted
How ratings effect marketing and targeting audiences, examples
Ways that institutions may target specific audiences, examples
How ratings may effect distribution
Conclusion
Sunday, 22 March 2009
Wednesday, 4 March 2009
Radiohead -In Rainbows
On 10th October 2007, Radiohead released their 7th album as a digital download where listeners could chose how much to pay for the release. Upon its retail release, In Rainbows entered the UK Album Chart and the U.S. Billboard 200 at number one; it went on to sell three million copies worldwide in both digital and physical formats.
They began work on the album in 2005, and updated fans and followers on their blog. Before the release of In Rainbows, Radiohead toured major cities in Europe and North America, as well as performing in several clubs and music festivals, such as V. In January 2007, the band began posting photographs, lyrics, samples and videos of their progress, and in June 2007 they posted clippings of the mixed songs onto their blog. Donwood, the artist for the album’s artwork worked with the band since 1994, and also posted daily images on to the band’s website of ideas he had had for the artwork of the album.
After finishing their six album contract with EMI, Radiohead stated that they had several interesting ideas on how to distribute their new material, e.g. releasing all tracks as singles or EPs rather than as an album. The band eventually decided on releasing the album as a download for fans to pay however much they wanted, but ruled out having an internet only distribution, because Yorke believed some fans may not have the technological means to obtain the material. Radiohead retained ownership of the album, as they created it all themselves, and both the download and CD versions were both self released.
In justifying the decision that Radiohead had made to offer a free download of their album, Thom Yorke explained that ‘every record for the last four—including my solo record—has been leaked. So the idea was like, we'll leak it, then.’ The band distributed the record using the website www.inrainbows.com, and used a less-trafficked ZIP file which contained all ten album tracks. If purchased for more than 0 pence, the buyer was charge a credit card transaction fee of 45 pence. The album was only distributed in this format for 2 months – 10th October – 10th December, however the band also released a limited ‘discbox’ containing the album on CD, two vinyl records with artwork and lyric booklets as well as an ‘enhanced CD’ and digital photos and artwork, which cost £40. The album was distributed in hard copies in Japan, Australia, and America.
www.gigwise.com reported that on the day of In Rainbows’ online release, the album had sold 1.2 million copies. Sources have also claimed that around one third of people who downloaded the album paid nothing, but the average price being paid for it was £4. Apparently these sales were more profitable that the total money sales for the band’s previous album Hail to the Thief. On the week of the release, In Rainbows peaked at number 1 in the UK album charts, and reached number 1 in the U.S Billboard chart in the second week of release. In October 2008, Warner Chappell Music Publishing, the publisher, claimed that In Rainbows had sold three million copies since the album’s physical release.
In Rainbows was ranked as one of the best albums of 2007 by many music magazines, including Mojo, NME, Q, Rolling Stone and Pop Matters’. The album was nominated for the short list of the 2008 Mercury Music Prize, the 51st Grammy Awards: Album of the Year, Best Alternative Music Album, Producer of the Year, Best Boxed or Limited Edition Package, as well as three Grammy nominations for the song and music video ‘Houses of Cards’.
The band was successful due to their use of technologies. They used their blog to promote and attract fans and their release as primarily an MP3 download was also using new technologies. The band produced the record themselves, therefore also using recording studio technologies.
After the release of the record, Radiohead embarked on a tour of North America, Europe, South America and Japan, which lasted from May 2008 until October 2008. The album, In Rainbows had acted as a kind of advert for this tour, as this is where the band gained the majority of their profits, as ticket prices were around £40 at a large variety of big venues.
For this reason, the audience was particularly important, as the album needed to impress the demographics enough to influence them to buy tickets for the tour. Radiohead also had to use enough advertising to involve their target audience and to ensure they were aware of the release. This, however, would not have been difficult, as Radiohead have a large fan base, especially as this release was to be their 7th album.
(statistics from www.wikipedia.org)
They began work on the album in 2005, and updated fans and followers on their blog. Before the release of In Rainbows, Radiohead toured major cities in Europe and North America, as well as performing in several clubs and music festivals, such as V. In January 2007, the band began posting photographs, lyrics, samples and videos of their progress, and in June 2007 they posted clippings of the mixed songs onto their blog. Donwood, the artist for the album’s artwork worked with the band since 1994, and also posted daily images on to the band’s website of ideas he had had for the artwork of the album.
After finishing their six album contract with EMI, Radiohead stated that they had several interesting ideas on how to distribute their new material, e.g. releasing all tracks as singles or EPs rather than as an album. The band eventually decided on releasing the album as a download for fans to pay however much they wanted, but ruled out having an internet only distribution, because Yorke believed some fans may not have the technological means to obtain the material. Radiohead retained ownership of the album, as they created it all themselves, and both the download and CD versions were both self released.
In justifying the decision that Radiohead had made to offer a free download of their album, Thom Yorke explained that ‘every record for the last four—including my solo record—has been leaked. So the idea was like, we'll leak it, then.’ The band distributed the record using the website www.inrainbows.com, and used a less-trafficked ZIP file which contained all ten album tracks. If purchased for more than 0 pence, the buyer was charge a credit card transaction fee of 45 pence. The album was only distributed in this format for 2 months – 10th October – 10th December, however the band also released a limited ‘discbox’ containing the album on CD, two vinyl records with artwork and lyric booklets as well as an ‘enhanced CD’ and digital photos and artwork, which cost £40. The album was distributed in hard copies in Japan, Australia, and America.
www.gigwise.com reported that on the day of In Rainbows’ online release, the album had sold 1.2 million copies. Sources have also claimed that around one third of people who downloaded the album paid nothing, but the average price being paid for it was £4. Apparently these sales were more profitable that the total money sales for the band’s previous album Hail to the Thief. On the week of the release, In Rainbows peaked at number 1 in the UK album charts, and reached number 1 in the U.S Billboard chart in the second week of release. In October 2008, Warner Chappell Music Publishing, the publisher, claimed that In Rainbows had sold three million copies since the album’s physical release.
In Rainbows was ranked as one of the best albums of 2007 by many music magazines, including Mojo, NME, Q, Rolling Stone and Pop Matters’. The album was nominated for the short list of the 2008 Mercury Music Prize, the 51st Grammy Awards: Album of the Year, Best Alternative Music Album, Producer of the Year, Best Boxed or Limited Edition Package, as well as three Grammy nominations for the song and music video ‘Houses of Cards’.
The band was successful due to their use of technologies. They used their blog to promote and attract fans and their release as primarily an MP3 download was also using new technologies. The band produced the record themselves, therefore also using recording studio technologies.
After the release of the record, Radiohead embarked on a tour of North America, Europe, South America and Japan, which lasted from May 2008 until October 2008. The album, In Rainbows had acted as a kind of advert for this tour, as this is where the band gained the majority of their profits, as ticket prices were around £40 at a large variety of big venues.
For this reason, the audience was particularly important, as the album needed to impress the demographics enough to influence them to buy tickets for the tour. Radiohead also had to use enough advertising to involve their target audience and to ensure they were aware of the release. This, however, would not have been difficult, as Radiohead have a large fan base, especially as this release was to be their 7th album.
(statistics from www.wikipedia.org)
Monday, 9 February 2009
Audience Profile
From our group's research into audience (audience research 1 and audience research 2) we have drawn up a plan of who will be our film's target audience.
Age Group: From looking at both of our questionnaire results, it is obvious that the target audience for our thriller should be aged between 15 and 25. I think this is obvious, because that specific age group tend to be more attracted to action and able to identify with male lead characters.
Gender: More males would be attracted to this film, due to the action and adventure portrayed in the film, and will look up to the male protagonist. Also results from our questionnaires suggest that more males than females prefer thrillers, primarily action thrillers, to other genres. However, we intend to capture a wider audience, as we have cast a lead female role, and would plan to have our film distributed world wide and be accessible to other countries and continents.
Occupation: The majority of the film's audience would probably be students, due to the target age range, however no particular occupation has been targetted during the creation of the product.
Ethnicity: We plan to have a mixed audience, as not only do we intend to have a mix of races in our cast, but we would hope to distribute our thriller not only in Britain, in order to capture a wider range of audience.
Aspirations: By looking at our questionnaires, we plan to target audiences that aspire to be educated and to attend university. The vast majority also claimed that they want to travel, which shows that they take an interest in the world. From this, we have decided that our audience will have high aims in life and education.
Interests: Our audience will have stereotypical interests for males, such as enjoying sports, socialising etc. By looking at our questionnaires we discovered that the target audience enjoys action and comedy TV programmes and films, and they will also enjoy listening to music such as pop. Our questionnaires also showed our audience will enjoy listening to the radio, primarily radio stations like Radio 1 and Kiss. However, about only half of our participants said they enjoyed reading Newspapers and Magazines, but the participants who did enjoy reading Newspapers said they did pay attention to the news, therefore indicating some more of their interests. Films that they may enjoy include 'Layer Cake', 'Essex Boys' and television shows such as 'Spooks', as these are all examples o action thrillers, with lead male protagonists.
Age Group: From looking at both of our questionnaire results, it is obvious that the target audience for our thriller should be aged between 15 and 25. I think this is obvious, because that specific age group tend to be more attracted to action and able to identify with male lead characters.
Gender: More males would be attracted to this film, due to the action and adventure portrayed in the film, and will look up to the male protagonist. Also results from our questionnaires suggest that more males than females prefer thrillers, primarily action thrillers, to other genres. However, we intend to capture a wider audience, as we have cast a lead female role, and would plan to have our film distributed world wide and be accessible to other countries and continents.
Occupation: The majority of the film's audience would probably be students, due to the target age range, however no particular occupation has been targetted during the creation of the product.
Ethnicity: We plan to have a mixed audience, as not only do we intend to have a mix of races in our cast, but we would hope to distribute our thriller not only in Britain, in order to capture a wider range of audience.
Aspirations: By looking at our questionnaires, we plan to target audiences that aspire to be educated and to attend university. The vast majority also claimed that they want to travel, which shows that they take an interest in the world. From this, we have decided that our audience will have high aims in life and education.
Interests: Our audience will have stereotypical interests for males, such as enjoying sports, socialising etc. By looking at our questionnaires we discovered that the target audience enjoys action and comedy TV programmes and films, and they will also enjoy listening to music such as pop. Our questionnaires also showed our audience will enjoy listening to the radio, primarily radio stations like Radio 1 and Kiss. However, about only half of our participants said they enjoyed reading Newspapers and Magazines, but the participants who did enjoy reading Newspapers said they did pay attention to the news, therefore indicating some more of their interests. Films that they may enjoy include 'Layer Cake', 'Essex Boys' and television shows such as 'Spooks', as these are all examples o action thrillers, with lead male protagonists.
Sunday, 8 February 2009
'The Godfather' Opening Sequence Analysis
'The Godfather' was produced in 1972 by director Francis Ford Cappola and stars actors such as Al Pacino and Marlon Brando.
The opening begins with a very slow jazz soundtrack, which is typical of thrillers. A plain black background, which connotes wealth, death, mystery, and evil, is contrasted with white writing, which has connotations of coldness, fear, reverence, and again, death. The writing simply says 'The Godfather' with puppet strings attached to the word 'father'. This symbolises the control that the godfather in the film has, and, as the audience will discover, how he controls people below him like a puppeteer controls his puppets.
The title disapears and the audience is left with a black screen, emphasising the connotations of the colour black, and also adding mystery and suspense - we don't know what will follow. A male voice-over begins in an italian accent with the line "I believe in America", suggesting where the film is set, and we fade in to see the man (Pacino) who is speaking. The camera begins with a close up as he talks to the camera and the camera zooms out very slowly whilst he tells us about his daughter's rape. This is a thriller signifier as we instantly know a web of crime and corruption will be involved in the narrative. The mise en scene at this point is all dark, with only the man's collar being the only colour of white, reflecting the title screen with white contrasting with black. As we zoom out, however, we discover with the technique of an over the shoulder shot, that the man is infact talking to someone else. The shot now reveals brown mise en scene - a wooden table, with a couple of papers on, making it seem to the audience like some kind of office. The camera stops zooming out, and Pacino begins to cry, and is given a drink by another man (presumably alcoholic) which shows the audience the flaws of the protagonist - his emotion for his daughter, and his drinking habit. This sequence also reveals that our first thought that there was only one person present was incorrect - there are at least three men present, but it is still unknown where this is set and who the men are. The camera then tracks to focus on a close up of the two men whispering to each other, but we are unable to hear what they say.
After this sequence, the camera's position changes to show, using a close-up, the second man that was introduced (Brando). We see that he too is dressed in a black suit, and also can see typical thriller mise en scene, consisting of slatted blinds. The camera moves location again to show the entire scene - revealing four male characters, all dressed in suits, all brown mise en scene, and the only light coming from the slats in the blinds. Another over -the -shoulder shot is used to focus upon Brando, this time as a mid shot, and a red flower can be noticed clipped to his suit, giving connotations of disguised danger. We also see him playing with a grey cat, making him appear powerful as he doesn't give his full attention. The cat connotes cunningness, independance and suspicion, whilst the grey colour has connotations of respect, strength and wisdom.
Throughout the sequence, a range of shot types are used. These vary from slow zooms outwards, which draw the viewer in, to over the shoulder shots which are an innovative way of depicting a conversation. They add variety for the audience, as well as being very effective.
The mise en scene is made up primarily of a brown palette, which represents wealth, fascism, and boldness. The brown palette is very typical of American Gangster thrillers, which hints to the audience the genre of the film. The lighting use is simplistic - only coming from the slatted blinds, and a small light to the right of the frame. The clothes the characters wear are suits, indication wealth, superiority and a kind of professionalism within them. It can be noted that the character played by Brando is the only one to wear a red flower, and also can be noted wearing a wedding ring, suggesting that he is a trustworthy man, even though he seems to be the leader of this group of men, who appear to believe they are above the law, as Brando asks Pacino why he went to the police first to sort out his daughter's rape, rather than him. This, teamed with their accents, make it seem to the audience like some kind of mafia.
Overall, I found this opening very effective, as it set the scene well, and engaged the audience using its fantastic camera work and mise en scene.
The opening begins with a very slow jazz soundtrack, which is typical of thrillers. A plain black background, which connotes wealth, death, mystery, and evil, is contrasted with white writing, which has connotations of coldness, fear, reverence, and again, death. The writing simply says 'The Godfather' with puppet strings attached to the word 'father'. This symbolises the control that the godfather in the film has, and, as the audience will discover, how he controls people below him like a puppeteer controls his puppets.
The title disapears and the audience is left with a black screen, emphasising the connotations of the colour black, and also adding mystery and suspense - we don't know what will follow. A male voice-over begins in an italian accent with the line "I believe in America", suggesting where the film is set, and we fade in to see the man (Pacino) who is speaking. The camera begins with a close up as he talks to the camera and the camera zooms out very slowly whilst he tells us about his daughter's rape. This is a thriller signifier as we instantly know a web of crime and corruption will be involved in the narrative. The mise en scene at this point is all dark, with only the man's collar being the only colour of white, reflecting the title screen with white contrasting with black. As we zoom out, however, we discover with the technique of an over the shoulder shot, that the man is infact talking to someone else. The shot now reveals brown mise en scene - a wooden table, with a couple of papers on, making it seem to the audience like some kind of office. The camera stops zooming out, and Pacino begins to cry, and is given a drink by another man (presumably alcoholic) which shows the audience the flaws of the protagonist - his emotion for his daughter, and his drinking habit. This sequence also reveals that our first thought that there was only one person present was incorrect - there are at least three men present, but it is still unknown where this is set and who the men are. The camera then tracks to focus on a close up of the two men whispering to each other, but we are unable to hear what they say.
After this sequence, the camera's position changes to show, using a close-up, the second man that was introduced (Brando). We see that he too is dressed in a black suit, and also can see typical thriller mise en scene, consisting of slatted blinds. The camera moves location again to show the entire scene - revealing four male characters, all dressed in suits, all brown mise en scene, and the only light coming from the slats in the blinds. Another over -the -shoulder shot is used to focus upon Brando, this time as a mid shot, and a red flower can be noticed clipped to his suit, giving connotations of disguised danger. We also see him playing with a grey cat, making him appear powerful as he doesn't give his full attention. The cat connotes cunningness, independance and suspicion, whilst the grey colour has connotations of respect, strength and wisdom.
Throughout the sequence, a range of shot types are used. These vary from slow zooms outwards, which draw the viewer in, to over the shoulder shots which are an innovative way of depicting a conversation. They add variety for the audience, as well as being very effective.
The mise en scene is made up primarily of a brown palette, which represents wealth, fascism, and boldness. The brown palette is very typical of American Gangster thrillers, which hints to the audience the genre of the film. The lighting use is simplistic - only coming from the slatted blinds, and a small light to the right of the frame. The clothes the characters wear are suits, indication wealth, superiority and a kind of professionalism within them. It can be noted that the character played by Brando is the only one to wear a red flower, and also can be noted wearing a wedding ring, suggesting that he is a trustworthy man, even though he seems to be the leader of this group of men, who appear to believe they are above the law, as Brando asks Pacino why he went to the police first to sort out his daughter's rape, rather than him. This, teamed with their accents, make it seem to the audience like some kind of mafia.
Overall, I found this opening very effective, as it set the scene well, and engaged the audience using its fantastic camera work and mise en scene.
'The Bill' Analysis
‘The Bill’ is a television crime drama which follows the police fighting crime in an area of London. ‘The Bill’ is shown at 20:00 on ITV and was first broadcast in 1984. The extract we watched is from the 24th series and is the first part of ‘The Forgotten Child’ story line.
The extract began with an establishing shot, which panned down to follow a car driving down an alleyway, which appears claustrophobic and dark. We hear diegetic sounds of police sirens, and focus on a pastel yellow pub, indicating to the audience that this is where the action is. The camera looks up to the police officers using a high angled shot, as we hear them discuss the time (it is 5 am) and walk towards the crime scene. The mise en scene used here is realistic, as is the lighting, as we see the bleak urban setting. We see police tape, and follow the main investigators as they look on to the crime scene. Point of view shots of the police are used to look at the girl – which tend to be close ups in order to emphasis points to the audience, such as the use of drugs and self harm. The scene is set as the audience would expect as crime scene – dreary, lots of police, police tape and diegetic sounds of sirens and police discussing the situation. The point of view shots used are from the perspective of female detective Jo Masters, and, using the same camera technique, we approach another group of policemen who are interviewing the owner of the pub who appears to not care about what has happened. The point of view shots help the audience to connect and engage with the action, as they feel more involved and as if they are another policeman.
The action then cuts to a 2 shot within the police station where DC Masters and another worker are sifting through files, looking for the girl’s identity. The 2 shot emphasises the pair working as a team, showing the importance that working as a unit plays in the police. However, once the file is found it is useless, as the information reads “Kelly Kong, brother King, lives in the jungle”. The office mise en scene is typical – lots of files and papers, which reflects the female DC as she is quite unorganised – she admits that she didn’t follow up the lead about Kelly at the time.
The camera uses a tracking shot in order to follow the DCs through the building, and a great deal of hand held camera shots seem to be used. The camera changes between being in front of the policemen, being next to them, and being behind. This adds variety, whilst giving the audience an insight into the setting. The mise en scene is typical – straight, bright corridors with lots of people walking. We see one shot through slatted blinds, which is a key thriller signifier, as this episode of ‘The Bill’ could be classed as a crime-thriller, especially as it includes key concepts such as mystery and intrigue, violence, the theme of good vs. Evil, and a shot of spiralling stairs – a more modern version of those used in Hitchcock’s ‘Vertigo’. As the police officers stop, we are shown shot reverse shots in order to follow the conversation and action.
The next scene takes place outside the police headquarters, as the camera pans down from the top of the tall, gray, urban building to the bleak looking scene at floor level. The camera focuses on the British signifier of a red phone box, and we see two police officers walking down the rainy street towards a woman who is sitting next to the phone box. Diegetic sounds of sirens are can be heard, as well as cars and car horns, signifying that this is set in an urban area. The conversation between the woman and the police officers are shown using point of view shots, with us looking down at the police, and up at the distressed woman. The audience will have the upper hand in this situation, as they will instantly realise that the woman is Kelly’s mother, however tension is built as we can see the woman does not know what has happened to her daughter. When Kelly’s mother tells the officers that Kelly is her daughter, close ups are used to show their shocked expressions.
The audience is then taken back into the police building, and into a childlike room, obviously used to break news to family members, which is emphasised when we see DC Masters and Kelly’s mother here. The shot is set up with DC Masters in the foreground, holding the most power as she has to inform Kelly’s mother that her daughter is dead. The shot uses a mid shot, even when we see Kelly’s mother in tears over the news. The room is silent apart from the woman’s crying, which makes it a lot more intense and emotional. The scene is realistic, using natural mise en scene, and not making the sequence exaggerated or over the top.
Several representational issues are obvious in this sequence at a macro level. Firstly, we see the youth as being victims, seeing as we are lead to believe that Kelly’s overdose was not her own fault. The fact that we see scars from her self-harm also suggests that she was stuck in a situation of which she felt there was no way out – resorting to self-harm as a way to escape her prostitute way of life which she had been forced into. Youth and also Kelly’s mother are shown to the audience sympathetically; we are not intended to blame either of these characters, and instead come to the same conclusion as the police officers.
Another representation we are shown is of the police force. We see that they are organised and modern – using technologies such as power point presentations, and remembering cases they have looked at before. However, they are also portrayed as being vulnerable, and perhaps a little unprepared as DC Masters confesses that she didn’t follow the previous case with Kelly up. DC Masters, along with the other female police officers, are shown as being dominant, which contrasts with the female character of Cartwright in ‘Life on Mars’ who is seen as ‘sweet’ and doesn’t head up action. The women, however, appear glamorised – the majority are blonde, wear a lot of make-up, and wear tight fitting clothes, which is a contrast to the kind of police women that we see every day.
The extract began with an establishing shot, which panned down to follow a car driving down an alleyway, which appears claustrophobic and dark. We hear diegetic sounds of police sirens, and focus on a pastel yellow pub, indicating to the audience that this is where the action is. The camera looks up to the police officers using a high angled shot, as we hear them discuss the time (it is 5 am) and walk towards the crime scene. The mise en scene used here is realistic, as is the lighting, as we see the bleak urban setting. We see police tape, and follow the main investigators as they look on to the crime scene. Point of view shots of the police are used to look at the girl – which tend to be close ups in order to emphasis points to the audience, such as the use of drugs and self harm. The scene is set as the audience would expect as crime scene – dreary, lots of police, police tape and diegetic sounds of sirens and police discussing the situation. The point of view shots used are from the perspective of female detective Jo Masters, and, using the same camera technique, we approach another group of policemen who are interviewing the owner of the pub who appears to not care about what has happened. The point of view shots help the audience to connect and engage with the action, as they feel more involved and as if they are another policeman.
The action then cuts to a 2 shot within the police station where DC Masters and another worker are sifting through files, looking for the girl’s identity. The 2 shot emphasises the pair working as a team, showing the importance that working as a unit plays in the police. However, once the file is found it is useless, as the information reads “Kelly Kong, brother King, lives in the jungle”. The office mise en scene is typical – lots of files and papers, which reflects the female DC as she is quite unorganised – she admits that she didn’t follow up the lead about Kelly at the time.
The camera uses a tracking shot in order to follow the DCs through the building, and a great deal of hand held camera shots seem to be used. The camera changes between being in front of the policemen, being next to them, and being behind. This adds variety, whilst giving the audience an insight into the setting. The mise en scene is typical – straight, bright corridors with lots of people walking. We see one shot through slatted blinds, which is a key thriller signifier, as this episode of ‘The Bill’ could be classed as a crime-thriller, especially as it includes key concepts such as mystery and intrigue, violence, the theme of good vs. Evil, and a shot of spiralling stairs – a more modern version of those used in Hitchcock’s ‘Vertigo’. As the police officers stop, we are shown shot reverse shots in order to follow the conversation and action.
The next scene takes place outside the police headquarters, as the camera pans down from the top of the tall, gray, urban building to the bleak looking scene at floor level. The camera focuses on the British signifier of a red phone box, and we see two police officers walking down the rainy street towards a woman who is sitting next to the phone box. Diegetic sounds of sirens are can be heard, as well as cars and car horns, signifying that this is set in an urban area. The conversation between the woman and the police officers are shown using point of view shots, with us looking down at the police, and up at the distressed woman. The audience will have the upper hand in this situation, as they will instantly realise that the woman is Kelly’s mother, however tension is built as we can see the woman does not know what has happened to her daughter. When Kelly’s mother tells the officers that Kelly is her daughter, close ups are used to show their shocked expressions.
The audience is then taken back into the police building, and into a childlike room, obviously used to break news to family members, which is emphasised when we see DC Masters and Kelly’s mother here. The shot is set up with DC Masters in the foreground, holding the most power as she has to inform Kelly’s mother that her daughter is dead. The shot uses a mid shot, even when we see Kelly’s mother in tears over the news. The room is silent apart from the woman’s crying, which makes it a lot more intense and emotional. The scene is realistic, using natural mise en scene, and not making the sequence exaggerated or over the top.
Several representational issues are obvious in this sequence at a macro level. Firstly, we see the youth as being victims, seeing as we are lead to believe that Kelly’s overdose was not her own fault. The fact that we see scars from her self-harm also suggests that she was stuck in a situation of which she felt there was no way out – resorting to self-harm as a way to escape her prostitute way of life which she had been forced into. Youth and also Kelly’s mother are shown to the audience sympathetically; we are not intended to blame either of these characters, and instead come to the same conclusion as the police officers.
Another representation we are shown is of the police force. We see that they are organised and modern – using technologies such as power point presentations, and remembering cases they have looked at before. However, they are also portrayed as being vulnerable, and perhaps a little unprepared as DC Masters confesses that she didn’t follow the previous case with Kelly up. DC Masters, along with the other female police officers, are shown as being dominant, which contrasts with the female character of Cartwright in ‘Life on Mars’ who is seen as ‘sweet’ and doesn’t head up action. The women, however, appear glamorised – the majority are blonde, wear a lot of make-up, and wear tight fitting clothes, which is a contrast to the kind of police women that we see every day.
Saturday, 7 February 2009
Life on Mars analysis
‘Life on Mars’ is a two series police drama which follows Tyler, the protagonist who is from the present day but taken back in time to the 1970s after an accident. During this episode from series 2, an Irish man, O’Brien, is wrongly accused of planting a bomb.
The extract starts with non-diegetic rock music, as the camera zooms through a washing line of shirts. We are shown typical run-down, working class mise en scene and setting, with the washing hanging out in the street indicating that it we have entered a poor but close knit society. Suddenly Hunt and Tyler drive into the shot in their brown Ford Cortina, which has become famous for its popularity during the 1970s; emphasising the era to the audience. The car is driven quickly by Hunt, and is shown crashing into a bin on the pavement. The characters, however, do not appear to care which shows the arrogant attitude that policemen during the 1970s are represented as having.
The two policemen are shown, in a long shot, tilted to look up to the policemen, both literally and metaphorically, getting out of the Cortina. Tyler, the policeman who is used to modern day practises, lets O’Brien out of the car whilst Hunt walks, seemingly trying to ignore the situation. We view the following exchange in a series of 2 shots and 3 shots, as Tyler rouses Hunt into apologising to the innocent Irish man. The camera shot then changes to focus on O’Brien as he makes bold remarks about the racism that the Irish population were met with. Using a close up, we see his beaten face with the camera slowly zooming in as he gets angrier, intensifying his rage to the audience. This is followed by a focus pull to see him walking away to speak to others who presumably also live in the grotty area. We then return to a 2 shot of Tyler and Hunt, contrasting their facial expressions - Tyler looks guilty, whereas Hunt looks unimpressed and cynical. Tyler’s exasperation is again shown as we see an Asian man proudly taking a television to his new house, which he is only too happy to tell Hunt when he challenges him. This shows his representation of being racist, as not only has he wrongly accused an Irish man, but he is also shown not trusting the Asian man, probably due to his ethnicity. To reinforce this idea, the camera pans round to show the exterior of his house and his wife wearing a Sari. The camera returns to the 2 shot of the two policemen, followed by Hunt’s remark – “Bit parky to be out in just a nighty”, with Tyler’s expression of frustration, and embarrassment. The entire sequence is typically 1970s Manchester – the brown outfits of the characters, the Cortina, the terraced houses and the long hair. A sound bridge is used in order to move from this scene to the next.
Diegetic music from a juke box in a smoky pub is played, as the camera pans up from a close up of a glass filling up; setting the scene. The camera pans upwards to show Tyler walk in. He appears as a silhouette – backlit and bleached out to make him appear as a kind of superhero, and to reinforce the idea that he is from another time period. As the camera pans round to show the rest of the team clapping Tyler, we see a typical warm, cosy pub, with archetypal mise en scene and lighting. We are shown the police drinking and smoking through a series of long shots, over the shoulder shots, and 2 shots. We witness, through the means of a panning close up, the team united in raising their glasses to Tyler. This feeling of the team being united ends abruptly, as we see a focus pull to see a red telephone, and hear the diegetic sound of a telephone. We track Tyler approaching the phone and answer it, hearing sounds of a heart monitor and circling the character. This effect makes us feel as if we, as the 21st century, are trapping him as we presume this phone call is to do with his time travel. The sound of the heart monitor makes the audience believe that it is from the present, and we see this realisation dawn upon Tyler as we circle him.
Throughout the extract, we see several representations of the 1970s. Through Cartwright, we see the sexism that was rife in the police force at the time, as jokes are made about her underwear, and also her comment about having a female prime minister, which is met with a lot of perplexed expressions by her colleagues. At this macro level, we can also see how Hunt is presented as being arrogant, racist and sexist, a complete contrast to both Cartwright and Tyler, who act as police in our contemporary Britain are expected to behave. The piece relies on the audience having enough cultural knowledge to be able to distinguish between the two time periods, as we see the idea of a female prime minister being unheard of, jokes being made about Irish people bombing pubs (which of course did happen), exotic Asian clothing, and a very different style of policing.
The extract starts with non-diegetic rock music, as the camera zooms through a washing line of shirts. We are shown typical run-down, working class mise en scene and setting, with the washing hanging out in the street indicating that it we have entered a poor but close knit society. Suddenly Hunt and Tyler drive into the shot in their brown Ford Cortina, which has become famous for its popularity during the 1970s; emphasising the era to the audience. The car is driven quickly by Hunt, and is shown crashing into a bin on the pavement. The characters, however, do not appear to care which shows the arrogant attitude that policemen during the 1970s are represented as having.
The two policemen are shown, in a long shot, tilted to look up to the policemen, both literally and metaphorically, getting out of the Cortina. Tyler, the policeman who is used to modern day practises, lets O’Brien out of the car whilst Hunt walks, seemingly trying to ignore the situation. We view the following exchange in a series of 2 shots and 3 shots, as Tyler rouses Hunt into apologising to the innocent Irish man. The camera shot then changes to focus on O’Brien as he makes bold remarks about the racism that the Irish population were met with. Using a close up, we see his beaten face with the camera slowly zooming in as he gets angrier, intensifying his rage to the audience. This is followed by a focus pull to see him walking away to speak to others who presumably also live in the grotty area. We then return to a 2 shot of Tyler and Hunt, contrasting their facial expressions - Tyler looks guilty, whereas Hunt looks unimpressed and cynical. Tyler’s exasperation is again shown as we see an Asian man proudly taking a television to his new house, which he is only too happy to tell Hunt when he challenges him. This shows his representation of being racist, as not only has he wrongly accused an Irish man, but he is also shown not trusting the Asian man, probably due to his ethnicity. To reinforce this idea, the camera pans round to show the exterior of his house and his wife wearing a Sari. The camera returns to the 2 shot of the two policemen, followed by Hunt’s remark – “Bit parky to be out in just a nighty”, with Tyler’s expression of frustration, and embarrassment. The entire sequence is typically 1970s Manchester – the brown outfits of the characters, the Cortina, the terraced houses and the long hair. A sound bridge is used in order to move from this scene to the next.
Diegetic music from a juke box in a smoky pub is played, as the camera pans up from a close up of a glass filling up; setting the scene. The camera pans upwards to show Tyler walk in. He appears as a silhouette – backlit and bleached out to make him appear as a kind of superhero, and to reinforce the idea that he is from another time period. As the camera pans round to show the rest of the team clapping Tyler, we see a typical warm, cosy pub, with archetypal mise en scene and lighting. We are shown the police drinking and smoking through a series of long shots, over the shoulder shots, and 2 shots. We witness, through the means of a panning close up, the team united in raising their glasses to Tyler. This feeling of the team being united ends abruptly, as we see a focus pull to see a red telephone, and hear the diegetic sound of a telephone. We track Tyler approaching the phone and answer it, hearing sounds of a heart monitor and circling the character. This effect makes us feel as if we, as the 21st century, are trapping him as we presume this phone call is to do with his time travel. The sound of the heart monitor makes the audience believe that it is from the present, and we see this realisation dawn upon Tyler as we circle him.
Throughout the extract, we see several representations of the 1970s. Through Cartwright, we see the sexism that was rife in the police force at the time, as jokes are made about her underwear, and also her comment about having a female prime minister, which is met with a lot of perplexed expressions by her colleagues. At this macro level, we can also see how Hunt is presented as being arrogant, racist and sexist, a complete contrast to both Cartwright and Tyler, who act as police in our contemporary Britain are expected to behave. The piece relies on the audience having enough cultural knowledge to be able to distinguish between the two time periods, as we see the idea of a female prime minister being unheard of, jokes being made about Irish people bombing pubs (which of course did happen), exotic Asian clothing, and a very different style of policing.
Thursday, 5 February 2009
Thriller Sub-Genres
Thrillers are a wide genre which often encorporate other subgenres into the narrative. Thrillers are hybrids with a wide range of subgenres; ranging from crime, to western, to comedy. I have chosen to research into subgenres of thriller in order to get a wider, better understanding of it.
Action thriller - Action thrillers generically contain a lot of violence, guns, and explosions. The subgenre often brings a in race against time aspect, and also includes chases which are the obvious action. The subgenre has a key antagonist, with notable action thriller films including : 'James Bond' films and 'The Transporter'.
Conspiracy thriller - The key aspect to conspiracy thrillers is a conflict in which the protagonist encounters an enemy whose true extent is only known by them. Thrillers including 'Three Days of the Condor' and 'JFK' fit well into this genre.
Crime thriller - These films tend to focus on the criminals rather than the authorities, and are made up of action surrounding crimes or failed crime plots, including crimes such as murders, robberies and shootings. Examples include 'The Godfather', 'Reservoir Dogs', and 'The Asphalt Jungle'.
Disaster thriller - This hybrid features a main conflict of some kind of natural disaster, such as an earthquake, volcano eruption or flood. The 1974 film 'Earthquake' is a good example of this genre.
Drama thriller - These tend to be slower paced and involve a much more character development and plot twists than typical thrillers. Some examples are: 'The Illusionist',and 'The Prestige'.
Erotic thriller - Since the 1980s this genre has been on the rise, taking aspects from both genre. One key erotic thrillers is 'Fatal Attraction'.
Horror thriller - These films are based on the theme of fear; for both the characters and the audience. These films tend to be from the point of view of the soon to be victim, making the audience directly feel the fear. Recent examples include the 'Saw' series and '28 Days Later'.
Legal thriller - These involve narratives in which lawyers have to confront their enemies both inside and outside the courtroom in order to let 'good' prevail.
Medical thriller - Films such as 'Awake' are involved in this genre. The protagonist tends to feature as a doctor trying to solve an expanding medical problem.
Political thriller - The film 'Agency' encapsulated this genre, which features plots etc within the government, and the protagonist working with or against these and trying to ensure the stability of the government.
Psychological thriller - Numerous Hitchcock films fit into this genre, as well as films including 'The Talented Mr Ripley'. The conflict between the main characters exists mentally, emotionally and psychologically as opposed to being based around physical feelings.
Spy thriller - These tend to be based around some kind of government agent who is required to fight against threats such as terrorists. The 'Bourne' series is a good example of the genre.
Supernatural thriller - Supernatural thrillers are based around conflict between the protagonist and some form of creature with paranormal force or powers. It encorporates some aspects of basic horrors, but does not focus on the theme of fear. 'Torchwood' is a television series which fitted this genre.
Techno-thriller - Techno-thrillers typically focus on the military, but essentially just technology, which needs to be understood in detail in order to follow the narrative.
After researching these subgenres, my group and I held a discussion in which we chose to focus our thriller on being an action-thriller, as we intend to use signifiers such as chases, guns etc.
(list of thriller genres from www.wikipedia.org)
Action thriller - Action thrillers generically contain a lot of violence, guns, and explosions. The subgenre often brings a in race against time aspect, and also includes chases which are the obvious action. The subgenre has a key antagonist, with notable action thriller films including : 'James Bond' films and 'The Transporter'.
Conspiracy thriller - The key aspect to conspiracy thrillers is a conflict in which the protagonist encounters an enemy whose true extent is only known by them. Thrillers including 'Three Days of the Condor' and 'JFK' fit well into this genre.
Crime thriller - These films tend to focus on the criminals rather than the authorities, and are made up of action surrounding crimes or failed crime plots, including crimes such as murders, robberies and shootings. Examples include 'The Godfather', 'Reservoir Dogs', and 'The Asphalt Jungle'.
Disaster thriller - This hybrid features a main conflict of some kind of natural disaster, such as an earthquake, volcano eruption or flood. The 1974 film 'Earthquake' is a good example of this genre.
Drama thriller - These tend to be slower paced and involve a much more character development and plot twists than typical thrillers. Some examples are: 'The Illusionist',and 'The Prestige'.
Erotic thriller - Since the 1980s this genre has been on the rise, taking aspects from both genre. One key erotic thrillers is 'Fatal Attraction'.
Horror thriller - These films are based on the theme of fear; for both the characters and the audience. These films tend to be from the point of view of the soon to be victim, making the audience directly feel the fear. Recent examples include the 'Saw' series and '28 Days Later'.
Legal thriller - These involve narratives in which lawyers have to confront their enemies both inside and outside the courtroom in order to let 'good' prevail.
Medical thriller - Films such as 'Awake' are involved in this genre. The protagonist tends to feature as a doctor trying to solve an expanding medical problem.
Political thriller - The film 'Agency' encapsulated this genre, which features plots etc within the government, and the protagonist working with or against these and trying to ensure the stability of the government.
Psychological thriller - Numerous Hitchcock films fit into this genre, as well as films including 'The Talented Mr Ripley'. The conflict between the main characters exists mentally, emotionally and psychologically as opposed to being based around physical feelings.
Spy thriller - These tend to be based around some kind of government agent who is required to fight against threats such as terrorists. The 'Bourne' series is a good example of the genre.
Supernatural thriller - Supernatural thrillers are based around conflict between the protagonist and some form of creature with paranormal force or powers. It encorporates some aspects of basic horrors, but does not focus on the theme of fear. 'Torchwood' is a television series which fitted this genre.
Techno-thriller - Techno-thrillers typically focus on the military, but essentially just technology, which needs to be understood in detail in order to follow the narrative.
After researching these subgenres, my group and I held a discussion in which we chose to focus our thriller on being an action-thriller, as we intend to use signifiers such as chases, guns etc.
(list of thriller genres from www.wikipedia.org)
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