Audience theory - The Effect Model

This is the idea that the consumption of media texts has an influence or effect on the audience, and it is normally considered that this effect is negative. It exaplined how audience memebers are powerless and passive has they understand that they have no influence over the influence they receive - the power lies within the message of the text.

The model is also sometimes called the Hypodermic model - here the messeages from the media text are 'injected' into the audience by the 'syringe' (the media). This means the audience are numd to what they are consuming but still take it in as they are addicted.

There have been a couple of 'experiements' and tests over the years which support this theory, the most known being the 'Bobo doll' experiment:

"In the experiment Children watched a video where an adult violently attacked a clown toy called a Bobo DollThe children were then taken to a room with attractive toys that they were not permitted to touchThe children were then led to another room with Bobo Doll 88% of the children imitated the violent behaviour that they had earlier viewed. 8 months later 40% of the children reproduced the same violent behaviour"

Some problems with theory include: 

1. The effects model is often based on artificial studies They may then be observed in simulations of real life presented to them as a game, or as they respond to questionnaires, all of which are unlike interpersonal interaction, cannot be equated with it, and are likely to be associated with the previous viewing experience in the mind of the subject, rendering the study invalid. 
2. The effects model is selective in its criticisms of media depictions of violence
3.  The effects model makes no attempt to understand meanings of the media 6. The effects model is not grounded in theory

Link to audience survey

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/6QC9ZP6

Antonio Gramsci

Gramsci was the one to come up the the idea behind hegemony. msci wasconcerned to eradicate economic determinism from Marxism and to develop its explanatory power with respect to superstructural institutions.

• Class struggle must always involve ideas and ideologies, ideas that would make the revolution and also that would prevent it.


• He stressed the role performed by human agency in historical change: economic crises by themselves would not subvert capitalism.


• Gramsci was more "dialectic" than "deterministic": he tried to build a theory which recognised the autonomy, independence and importance of culture and ideology.

Shot List

Shot List

1. Low Angle shot facing door of cafe, MARTY walks in
2. Long, establishing shot of cafe
3. Copy of shot 1
4. Pov shot from Martys perspective, tracking along moving forward
5. Over shoulder shot, byt Marty is sitting down facing forwards
6. Medium side angle shot, showing him sitting down
7. Pov from Marty while he is sitting down, tracks as the waiter walks away
8. Copy of shot 5, but he is turned around
9.  Close up of Marty holding something in his pocket
10.  Marty on phone, copy of 5
11.   Marty tying shoe up, copy of 5
12.  Copy of 9
13.  Over the shoulder shot from waiter overlooking Marty sitting down
14. Over the shoulder from Marty standing up
15.  Low angle Marty turns, 
16.  Medium shot as Marty turns, zooms in on face, focus on gun in hand
17.  Long shot of Marty in middle of cafe
18.  Low angle of shot of dropped gun
19.  Close up of Marty's face
20.  Copy of 13
21.  Copy of 8
22.  Copy of 9
23.  Copy of 6

Genre of my AS film

Genre

My AS media short film would be part of the zombie genre, as this can be identified easily throughout. Over time the zombie genre has moved on from just horror and has blended with a survival type films to create its own genre. My film stays with this - it's a very modern zombie film, you will see more comaprisons with World War Z than Night of the Living dead.

The zombie genre is one that can be easily identifed, with the typical conventions such as the zombies themsleves that are only used for that particular. 

Active Audience Theory > Encoding-Decoding (Stuart Hall, 1980)

Stuart Hall suggests that the audience does not simply passively accept a text. There are, in his views, three ways in which audiences can read or decode and understand a text:



Stuart Hall suggests that the audience does not simply passively accept a text. There are, in his views, three ways in which audiences can read or decode and understand a text:

1.  Preferred Reading/Dominant Hegemonic - when an audience inerprets the message as it was meant to be understood, they are operating in the dominant code. The producers and the audience are in harmony 
2. Negotiated Reading - Not all audiences may understand what media producers take for granted. There may be some acknowledgement of differences in understanding. Audiences will understand the over-riding dominant ideologies within the text but they may not agree with all the views/ideas; audiences will make their own ground rules to get to the agreed dominant ideology (they will take a different path). 
3. Oppositional Reading/'counter-hegemonic' – when an audience understands the context of the media text but they will decode the text in a completely different way; opposing the encoded text

Hegemony related to my AS film

Hegemony

Hegemony is how one group influences another group, and in this case via the media. Whether people notice it or not, their ideolgies are reflected in their work - ithey show their own personal views to a group. 

Certain studios may only be targeting a certain type of film - for example my AS film is a zombie production - and would likley be picked up by a studio like AMC , who aim for that sort of show (The walking Dead for example). The zombie genre is at its peak in popularity, which can be seen in the number of films, tv shows and video games that have been around for the past few years. The studios know what is popular- the current trends- a will keep on that trend, pushing it on until the audience finds something new. A big studio like AMC is more likley to take on a show from a popular genre (zombies, superhero,etc) rather than take a risk with a show that has a worn out or forgotten genre (western, etc). 

Signifiers and Signified

What the audience see at first is the connotations and in this grab, we can the basic connotation as being a man cutting up an owl for food. The denotation of this is that it shows his desperation – an owl is animal that is not normally eaten but here the hero has to settle for it and there is nothing else available to eat, it’s also an extremely small animal and it shows that he is struggling to survive. The bow and arrow being right next to him shows how he always needs to be ready and that danger is always around and you have to be prepared for anything. 

This scene shows the anger of main character, he is stabbing a zombie more than he has to – he is angry at not just the zombie but the world and what it has become.

Films Similar to mine - The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

Although my film is not an out right comedy, it still has some similar themes to the film The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.

"The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" tells the story of the aging Walter Mitty on a trip into town with his overbearing wife, Mrs. Mitty. Walter is inept at many things; he is an absent-minded driver, he can't handle simple mechanical tasks, and he forgets things easily. What makes Walter exceptional is his imagination.

This is where the comparisons lie - my film has a similar scene the main character, Marty daydreams something that may be imposible in real life, in this case shooting someone. In the life of Walter Mitty the daydream sequences are over the top and obviously fake, where as my film will make the daydream sequence seem 'real' and the audience will believe that what happens is actual.   

Influence - The Coen Brothers

Influence - The Coen Brothers

One influence of mine was The Coen Brothers. Their combination of dark humour and undelining  tines is somthing i want tyo replicate in my film. Here is a review I did of thier 1998 film, The Big Lebowski. 

Just like in Fargo, Barton Fink and any other of their notable greats, the Coen Brothers have created a film that is not only a great viewing for anyone looking for a great comedy/action film, but a piece that has a range of underlining messages and themes that can be explored once we step into this wacky, unique, but still very human world.

When "The Dude" Lebowski (Jeff Bridges) is mistaken for a millionaire Lebowski (David Huddleston), two thugs urinate on his rug to coerce him into paying a debt he knows nothing about. While attempting to gain recompense for the ruined rug from his wealthy counterpart, he accepts a one-time job with high pay-off. Along the way he enlists the help of his bowling buddy, Walter (John Goodman), a gun-toting Jewish-convert with anger issues, who despite his often seemingly negative outlook and actions, still remains a good friend. Deception leads to more trouble, and it soon seems that everyone from porn empire tycoons to nihilists want something from The Dude.

It can be easy miss due to the seemingly fast pace and urgency the story is pursued, but this film is largely about an attitude rather than focusing on a narrative. All The Dude wants to do is go bowling with his friends. Unlike many others around him, he does not want to seek the ‘American dream’ as he is already living in it. He is content and happy with what he has in his life, even when visits his rich and powerful namesake he does not go looking for money, but just wants to replace his rug because it “tied the room together”. He’s an unemployed layabout who he spends his days drinking and has not motivation whatsoever to find a job - and we love him for it. Alongside his best friends Walter and Donny (Steve  Buscemi), we meet many other colourful characters along the way, from rival bowler Jesus (John Turturro), rich Lebowski’s trophy wife Bunny (Tara Reid) and his ‘arty’ daughter (Julianne Moore). It’s a classic Coen brothers cast, using typical American stereotypes we have seen in hundreds of other films and gives them a new lease of life; throwing them into this rollercoaster of a world that we, the audience will be there to enjoy every turn and loop.

If there is one small criticism, it is that the focus on character and dialogue can sometimes subtract from the plot, you may even get the feeling that sometimes the story ‘gets in the way’ of the brilliant conversations riddled throughout. That’s not to say nothing happens in the story, it has kidnapping, ransom money, a porno king, a reclusive millionaire, a runaway girl, the Malibu police, a woman who paints while nude and strapped to an overhead harness, and a fight seen between an overweight Vietnam vet and three bumbling gangsters. By those who re just looking for film like this, it can still be watched as a basic humour filled flick, although it would seem much weaker if ‘consumed’ in this way.

For those who are fans of the Coen Brothers (and if you aren’t, you really should be, it’s a perfect, pure film, 

full of the quips and quirks we have to come to love to love from the two brothers, Joel and Ethan. Even if this is your first dipping into this brilliantly mad style of film, it’s still a beautifully shot, wonderfully scripted piece. To fully appreciate the film, it may take more than one viewing, but do this and you’ll be able to fully immerse yourself in one of the all-time greats.

Best Bit: The dialogue scenes between The Dude and Walter can be anything from hilariously true to surprisingly motivating

Worst Bit: The story may seem weak compared to some other films, as the characters take a central stage.

 5/5

Treatment

Treatment 

Jacob (protaginst) walks into a cafe, and sits down expecting to be seved soon by the waitress. The waitress, however keeps going to seve the person sitted behind Jacob and he is unsure why. 

He tries to get the attention of her, but misses his chance everytime as he is  on his phone, tying his shoe up, etc. As his frustartion grows we see various shots of him reaching for something in his pocket, and the shot is replicated evertime he is annoyed. He eventually stands up and grabs the waitress to get her attention but is told "Just a minute". He gets annoyed and pulls out a gun, shooting the waitress. He then turns around and guns down the other customers in short space of time. He drops the gun and returns to his seat. 

After sitting for a while we hear the waitress ask him a questiuo, and it is revealed that the shooting was a daydream, and he about to be served. 

Genre Theory - Part 2

Genre Theory Continued....

To state that films of the same genre are all the same, and have differences, is vastly understating the genre theory. Steve Neale declares that 'genres are instances of repetition and difference' (Neale 1980, 48). He adds that 'difference is absolutely essential to the economy of genre': mere repetition would not attract an audience. Texts often exhibit the conventions of more than one genre. John Hartley notes that 'the same text can belong to different genres in different countries or times'. 

Genre Theory- Part 1

Genre Theory


"for most of its 2,000 years, genre study has been primarily nominological and typological in function. That is to say, it has taken as its principal task the division of the world of literature into types and the naming of
hose types" - Robert Allen defining 'genre. 

In the past, before it was studied and expolred, genre was decided solely on the base conventions we see on screen (horse + guns = western. for example). Even though what we see on the front is ususally correct, sometimes eploring the film, acessing not only it's basic conventions, but also what makes up the film for what it is (structure,etc) and what sets it apart from others allows us to expand the idea of genre and make it so that we are able to seperatew films that may seem similar on the front, but differ at the core.

Daniel Chandler said: " Conventional definitions of genres tend to be based on the notion that they constitute particular conventions of content (such as themes or settings) and/or form (including structure and style) which are shared by the texts which are regarded as belonging to them."

In the past, genre has been regarded as a fixed form, but theorits in more recent have argued that this no longer the case, that films differ in their function and form, so we cannot label a film based on a sole genre. David Buckingham said something similar about this topic: "Genre is not... simply given by the culture: rather, it is in a constant process of negotiation and change."

Storyboard Draft

Here is my hand drawn draft of the storyboard, with the actula one being posted soon.

Short film setting

 As stated in my pitch, I want my short film to be set in typical cafe,  I want the audience to be able to identify that it is a cafe within the the first shot of seeing it. This would require it too look more sterotypical, and would means using some genreic aspcets to get showcase the setting easier. Here are some inspiartions for my setting (the narratives of the ones used here does not reflect mine).

Who are the audience for short film? - part 2

Succeeders

Succeeders are the people who often have the higher wages, the people in higher positions, the ones with the important jobs. In terms of film industry this would be the producers, the coparte ones. They are normally intersted in short film for the money opportunities

Aspirers

Apirers are the creative people, the ones who have a vision in thier head, they would like to be working on something creative. Whilst they want to be succesful, money is not always theor ultimate goal, they would rather have their name out their. In terms of the film industry this would be the writers, the directors, etc. 

Individualists

These are the people who want to stand out among others, they will go off and do their own things, something tha is opposite to the mainstream. They care more about creativity than getting famous, and will try to bring across what they want. In the film industry, these would be the indepent film makers, who wouldn't their product altrered by bigger companies for the sake of getting more money. 

Poster Research 2

Poster Research 2 

Minimalist poster style

Who are the audience for short film? - part 1

Demographics


When describing an audience, we can do so by describing the certain 'demographics' that make up the viewers. The audience for short film is very different to those of major, big budget more mainstream films. We can normally describe the audience to be one of two people - those in the industry (Critics, other filmmakers, etc) and unemployed students whop are looking too take inspiration and make a break into the industry. 

Social Groups

The employed professional part of the audience would probably be part of the A to C1 social group. These are people who are looking for potential 'investments' to be made, looking for the latest up and coming director who will be their next market project, for their respective company. The students would more than likely be part of the E social group, as they would have a minnimun income, but their parents would be form the A to C1 group. Part of the reason they are an audience for short film is because makin their own one would likely be part of their course, and viewing others films would help them in their reasearch. 

Rick Altman - Genre Theory

Genre Theory

In 1984 Rick Altman set out to end the contradiction and vagueness that had prevouly been around when there was a study on film genre. He had said how genre was almost always discussed in wither an 'inclusive' way or an 'exclusive' on, meaning that people had been only pointing out, for exaple, if a film is not of the action genre or not, there was no discussion into the points. This is why Rick Altman  proposed the semantics/ syntactic aproach to film genre. 

Semantics

The idea behind the semantics approach is one that was a lot like what previous critics had used prior to Altmans theory. It's basically the generic converntions of a film; what the audience can expect going into a fim. For example, in a western film, the audience expects the film to be set in the American west some time between 1840 and 1900. They expect to see horses, gunfights and cowboy hats. This is where we can identify the 'stock' characters, setting, props, etc. Its the basic things that the genre will use to help the audience identify the genre of the film they are watching, and allows the director/scriptwriter to use this as a base of creating something original whilst still being original. 

Syntactics 

The syntactics part is Rick Altmans main point of his theory, it deals with the realtionship between the generic conventions we see in the film (semantics), and what makes the film unique - the story, structure and componts of a film. For example in a zombie film we will see the same basic story (there will be an outbreak, hero will have to find a cure) but what sets films apart and makes them them different to one another is the whole point behind the syntactics theory. For example, World War Z is very differnt to Dawn of The Dead despite them both being in the same genre. Yes the film has to has some basic structure and story line elemnts that stay the same other wise it will dismissed by the viewers, but the film is still allowed to bring i some new elements as long as it fits within the genre conventions. 

Influence scene analysis

Influence scene analysis


One influence for my short film is the film Falling Down, and in particular this famous scene. The whole films narrative can essentilay be explained via this once scene. Michael Douglas' character, D-Fens  is frustrated after being told that he cannot order breakfast from a fast food restaurant as he is too late. He ends up pulling a gun on the manager as a means of getting his meal.

One part of the extract that I want to reflect the shock of the other people in the scene when he pulls out thye gun. The manager probably has to deal with situations like this everyday, so he will be used to angry customers, but he isn't used to people actually taking action, so that explans his shock. The scene is about halfway through the film so that fact that he pulls a gun out may seem a bit over the top, but this a the point in the movie where mundane things have pushed him over the edge in to the point of insanity. This is something I want to captur ein my film, but I have to do so in the 5 minute span rather than 90mins of build up.

This scene also contains some comedic elements which is something I want to incorporate in my film. It isn't over top, laugh a minute comedy, but rather a comedy that adds to the story. The comedic in my film will be used in a way that almost mocks the central character, something that adds to insanity. As I don't have a lot to show the full story, the comedy parts will help to show the changing mental stage of the character. 

Short Film Logline

A man walks into a cafe/restaurant and tries at numerous attempts to place an order. After being frustrated with the lack of service he lashes out at the staff and other customers, shooting them with a gun before sitting down back in his original seat.

It is then revealed that he was daydreaming that whole event and is about to be served.

Audience Profile - AS

AS

The demographic for my target audience for my film are a range of people ranged from the ages of 15-30, in D to C1 social group. The reason for this is that, because I was doing a zombie film, a now mainstream genre, the most 'common' audience, people who aren't necessarily huge fnas of film and cinema, but people who may only see 3-4 films a year. In the past, films of the zombie genre may not have been as popular and mainstream, and instead target a more specific, 'diehard' audience, who know about the established zombie genre. This has changed because of the recent influx of Zombie themed televsion shows and films, so now the target audience covers a larger base. 

In terms of age, a zombie film would almost certainly always be targeted for a 15 rating at the least, with many of them leaking over into the 18 film. This is because of convention of the genre is gore and blood, and lowering the targeted age would have to affect the type of the film, and may cause the film to lose a big part of the audience, even though it is trying to widen it.

The majority of the audience would probably be male, as they a re typically the main fans for the zombie genre. As zombie films have bcome more into the mainstream however, the audience has become more split, with an increasing number of female fans becoming a core part of the audience. 

Key Concept Analysis - Genre

Genre

Genre is how we define what the 'type' og the film is The conventions of the film; the characters, the story, the soundtrack, etc. These elements are what seperate a romantic comedy from a horror. You wouldn't typically see a happy monatge in a slasher film, just as you wouldn't expect a jump scare in a family comedy. Following a genre is an almost 
certainty in mainstream, feature length cinema. Whereas it is not in short film.

Poster Research 1

Poster Research 1

One part of the coursework is designing a poster for the film, and here I have done some research into the different styles of posters before I decide on the final product of mine. 

Django Unchained (2012)

Here is an 'old school' 1960s style poster for Django Unchained, a film from 2012. There has been an increasing trend in bringing back old syle posters, especially in genes like the western. It has the 'hand drawn' look to it, but if I choose this particular style, it could be replicated in photoshop.

The upside to choosing this style is that it would stand out and be recognisble if done in the right way.It would also be unique to my film because the genre of my film isn't really associatedwith the poster style. The downside to it is that the poster may just simplify not suitbale for my film, it's a poster that relies a lot on a typically action packed story and numerous characters, two things which my film does'nt have. If done wrong way it may also lose it's effect as a movie poster and become more an apprent photoshop piece. 

Key Concept Analysis - Narrative

Narrative

The narrative of the short is one that differs a lot from the feature length film, it does follow a set of conventions however, and this can be seen is a range of short films. Short films establish the problem within the first few minutues as they do not have the time of feature length films. They have limited progression, and it is normally done quickly and makes a big impact rather than a long build up. Short films are made up of only the essentials and cannot dwell on one subject for too long, so it must be quick and to trhe point but remain as a effective as a major film.

Short Film Pitch

Key Concept Analysis - Audience

Audience 

Short Films have a smaller, more niche audience compared to the feature length film. A big part of the short film audience comes from collegeg/ university students who may have started on their own film and are looking for inspirations. Students make short films as a way of getting noticed by bigger companies, who might be looking for the next reakout filmmaker. 

The other part of the audience are the people who go to film festivals, such as the Encounters festival (http://www.encounters-festival.org.uk/). The people who go to these festivals are generally fans of short, independent films, critics and the bigger companies. Film festivals are a way of promoting and showcasing a film to a more 'qualified' audience, rather than posting it on the internet for everyone to see. 

The audience for shor film can be very small, but if promoted in the right way, it can reach a wider, more mainstream one. 

Short Film Syntax and Semantics

Syntax and Semantics

One piece of coursework we did was a Zombie film, a genre that, while we can see the same semantical conventions from the films of past, we can also see how the syntax of the genre has evolved and changed overtime. Looking at a George Romero zombie, and then looking at a more modern film, such as 28 Days Later, the comparisons are easily seen at first. There are the same, stock type characters, the same basic story elements, the same technical elements (crane shots showing a zombie hoard, for example).  The way the story is told in the modern films is what makes it different from the past films. An example in our film is that the zombie’s stortline has been set up and has begun, but not as part of the film. Typically the film would begin with the origin of the Zombie outbreak, or at least have some sort of explanation scene in the beginning as to what has happened, but our film changes, leaving the explanation down to the audiences prior knowledge to the genre, but also leaving the core elements of it ambiguous.

This is what differs the film from others of the genre, the syntactical arrangement of the story keeps it fresh and different, whilst still being a recognisable Zombie film. Many Zombie films/ television shows are ever changing their structure, as the genre moves past its horror roots and becomes one of its own.  This was one of the main points when we were making our film; we weren’t doing a horror film, we were doing a Zombie one. 

Our film would carry across the elements from past Zombie films, when they were part of the Horror genre, and warp it into it’s one media and being, it would be both familiar and original at the same time.

Key Concept Analysis - Institutions

Institutions

Typically, short films get there first exposure through the internet, using sites like Youtube and Vimeo as means of broadcatsing the film worldwide to a vaired audience. Some short films may be sent off and are given a showing in an independent showing or a film festival. 

Funding for short films are brought in many different ways. Sometimes the people making the film may pay straight from their own pocket, which is normally the case with College/university productions where a high budget is  not needed. Larger compaines may decide to back a short films as a way of winning over a director for future productions, ledning 'favours' in a way.More recently however, independent film makers have been sourcing money from the audience using sites like Kickstarter which allow users to 'back' projects by paying an amount they wish into the making of a film, normally getting a reward (DVD, producer credit, etc) that comes with the donation. 

Sites like this allo filmmakers to showcase their project to the audience before they start projection, meaning there is aless of a chance of taking a risk as the soiyte allows you fiond out if there is an audience or not. More importantly, however is that this way of getting funds means that the filmmakers are able to retain complete creative control over the film, where they might not have if a big company was backing the film.

Key Concept Analysis- Media Language (Codes and Conventions)

Media Language (Codes and Conventions)

In terms of cinematography, short films are normally more varied, they use a range different camera angles, rarely repeating and using the same type of shots, because there is less time to tell the story. so every shot used has to be necessary and effective. There are also a lot of effects used which are rarely done in major productions such as jump cuts, which is a way of showing that a long time has passed, even though the scene may only been a couple of seconds long. Some effects are used because of time restarints, but others are done for artistic effect, such as when an actor looks directly at the camera, an effect which isn't done a lot in regular films, but is common use in short films. The use of camera shot/ angles is one way that allows directors to set apart their short film, and make it different to the regular film.

A large percentage of short film do not use dialogue, and some rarely use any sound at all. The story in short films are told through what happens, for example in this particular one, "2AM", no dialogue is used. There are sound effects however, and these are used with an emphasis (the footsteps) wich add tension to the film. This effect is a common feature of the horror genre. 

   

For a film like this, it is vital that the genre (in this case horror) is easily identiable for the audience. This is the same case with genres like comedy, zombie, etc.

Key Concept Analysis- Representation

Representation

Short film is telling a story/ giving a message to the audience in the same way a feature length film would, but doing it a different way. Short can be seen as almost a differnt medium to feature length productions, which can be seen in everything from the structure of the film, to the characters. 

Unlike a feature length film, short films are normally more focused on the message and the story rather than the characters. In a feature film we have time to see a characters backstory, and motivations, if the audience do not connect with them staright away, they may do so later on in the film. Short stories have no time for that, which expakins why many of the characters are very basic, almost like 'stock' characters. The core audience for short film is a less mainstream, typically more intelligent one, meaning the characters back story can be ambiguous and left up for the audienc to decide. Just like we can see in this short film, Still Life: 
We don't the know the motivactions are reasoning behind why the character is crzzy, but we can make a guess.



The ideology of the short film is that, there does not have to be too much informationj behind the charcters and their reasoning, as long as the audience can understand the main message behind the film, the characters do not matter that much. 

One main difference between feature length and short films, is that the audience is expected to know that with a short film, there may not be a very clear story; it doesn't follow conventions, you never know what to expect with a short film.

A2 Blog Hub

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Short Film- Example

Matt Healey