http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b0078nnm/Cagney_and_Lacey_Series_4_TaxiCab_Murders/
HOW ARE WOMEN REPRESENTED IN THE MEDIA?
The women are seen as quite strong with high up jobs but when they pose as taxi cab drivers, they are verbally abused by men. One woman is younger and more attractive, she is single and so will be seen as more desirable. The other is a mother who is very domesticated although her partner treats her badly. So even though women have more strength and power here they are still treated harshly.
HOW ARE MEN REPRESENTED IN THE MEDIA?
Homefront Trailer
The men are represented as violent and gritty, the main guy is protective of his daughter. He ticks all the boxes of : sexual attractiveness, power and independence, physical strength and body image. The younger boy gets away with bullying.
Wednesday, 11 December 2013
Monday, 2 December 2013
AS Media Report
AS Media Report
For my media coursework I created two magazine covers and a double page spread.
Textual Analysis
I started analysing different magazine covers such as Vogue, Nylon and Cosmopolitan. However, my main inspiration for my magazine covers was 1883. It's very cutting edge but actually very popular in Hollywood, often having current celebrities and stories. It also combined cinema with fashion and pop culture. My magazine has a film star discussing cinema but also a section pointing out the fashion of the piece. I really liked a cover of 'V' magazine that had Kristen Stewart on the front. The colours were very metallic and sultry but it wasn't overpowering. It looked very engaging and sophisticated, it really inspired my cover colours and the models choice of clothes. I decided to make my issue as Gothic issue, although this wasn't taken from another magazine, they have been a few cases where Vogue have released Halloween and anniversary covers. Because my magazine is alternative, it had to have a specific theme due to it not holding eye catching tabloid stories. In the uses and gratifications theory these magazines would be purely entertainment.
I modelled my magazine on an issue of 1883 magazine. The background is subtle and plain, the focus remains on the model. The cover line is 'Timeless' which is a vintage theme. Cover lines have the name and a small caption underneath to show what the article will be about.
The main model (Ellie Goulding) is looking directly ahead at the audience as to pull them in. She is dressed glamourously and is quite animated in her behaviour, and so this magazine probably appeals to the B,C social economic scale. There is no gossip or tabloid stories on the cover and so it appeals to a higher socio economic group. I wanted to achieve the same look.
The title '1883' is not covered up as it is not that well known although the editors wanted there to be an interesting font on the title so that viewers would remember it that way and eventually gain more readership, it is ordered in an interested way and people may start to remember it.
Ellie Goulding attracts early 20's who are fans of chart music, this makes it more of a C on the Socio Economic scale. Although she has started to branch out into high fashion and socialising with more important A-list celebrities. My pre-production
Questionnaire
I created a questionnaire which was completed by 10 people. I found this valuable as I gathered more information about what people actually looked for in a magazine. Some of the questions were related to occupation, gender and age.
I asked 'Would you buy a magazine just for the person on the cover?', 80% said yes. I made the star of the magazine an up and coming one as to draw more readers in. 50% were also in the 18-24 age group, it is more likely that young people associate themselves with fresh new faces. 60% said they would buy a magazine that was £2-3. I wanted to make the price higher due to the target audience but decided to stick to £3 due to the popularity of other similar price range magazines such as Cosmopolitan and Glamour. An occupational question targeted 60% of students and so that cemented my idea to keep an affordable price range. The most popular genres of magazines were music, gossip, alternative and fashion. I incorporated all of these. I put music into the interview, fashion into the photos with a detailed list of the clothes used. The box of Hanna's new projects are a convention of gossip magazines and the layout is structured in an alternative way. The majority of people said that they would most likely buy a magazine if they liked the look of it and not whether it was weekly or monthly. Since it didn't really seem important I made the magazine monthly, a common convention of alternative and higher class magazines.
My production was a double page spread which had a story/interview with a new actress named 'Hanna Svertzen'. I wanted the contents to be intellectual and to be more suitable for an alternative magazine. It was made to look like a contemporary article in Vogue or Instyle.
The production page has a different image and is of a different genre, it's more skater than the cover theme. There is a 'what to catch Hanna in next' which is more of a convention of tabloid magazines. I wanted the reader to have a better knowledge of the actress and to promote her work. It also exaggerates the fact that she has a lot of projects coming up and that she is definitely up-and-coming. The background is a simple white and the font is eligible. The title is written in 'Young Frankenstein' font and is a quote directly from her 'embraced in arms of thorns'.
The double page is very simple and therefore does not bombard and overwhelm the reader with pointless art to make up for the lack of interview- which is common in contemporary magazines these days. The interview is fleshing out the actress and instead of taking an unbiased view; it wholly focussed and truthful. There is an element of everything in there. An embarrassing story, a discussion about hollywood, foreign films and music. This allows the reader to relate to the star and potentially become a fan if they weren't already. There isn't a lot of design in there and so it appeals more to the A-B demographic due to them reading more often.
There are some weaknesses. The interview is quite long and so the articles picture is not very large.
Layout
The layout was inspired by V magazine, the metallic greys lent itself to my work. On the first cover I had metallic grey and duck egg. The layout is quite simple and very understated. Although grey can have very dull/dreary connotations, I thought it made the cover more elegant and more professional. I used a different layout to most magazines by putting two colours together and separating them with a line. This made the cover more like a painting and more artistic. The model is in the centre of the cover and has an issue themed outfit on.
Images
I took inspiration from Vogue with the original photography. I didn't edit the photos to a massive extent, instead I thought I would leave them as they are. The images are mid shots and the clothes are black for the Gothic themed issue. The connotations are scary even Addams family-esque, maybe even an alluring 'darkness' feature. The colours work better with the minimalist background, it seemed very unfeminine and I used a rah-rough dress sense to support that. I wanted the images to look alternative but ones that wouldn't look out of place if they were presented on a Vogue cover; this would make the audience of the A-B demographic more susceptible to buy an issue.
For my media coursework I created two magazine covers and a double page spread.
Textual Analysis
I started analysing different magazine covers such as Vogue, Nylon and Cosmopolitan. However, my main inspiration for my magazine covers was 1883. It's very cutting edge but actually very popular in Hollywood, often having current celebrities and stories. It also combined cinema with fashion and pop culture. My magazine has a film star discussing cinema but also a section pointing out the fashion of the piece. I really liked a cover of 'V' magazine that had Kristen Stewart on the front. The colours were very metallic and sultry but it wasn't overpowering. It looked very engaging and sophisticated, it really inspired my cover colours and the models choice of clothes. I decided to make my issue as Gothic issue, although this wasn't taken from another magazine, they have been a few cases where Vogue have released Halloween and anniversary covers. Because my magazine is alternative, it had to have a specific theme due to it not holding eye catching tabloid stories. In the uses and gratifications theory these magazines would be purely entertainment.
I modelled my magazine on an issue of 1883 magazine. The background is subtle and plain, the focus remains on the model. The cover line is 'Timeless' which is a vintage theme. Cover lines have the name and a small caption underneath to show what the article will be about.
The main model (Ellie Goulding) is looking directly ahead at the audience as to pull them in. She is dressed glamourously and is quite animated in her behaviour, and so this magazine probably appeals to the B,C social economic scale. There is no gossip or tabloid stories on the cover and so it appeals to a higher socio economic group. I wanted to achieve the same look.
The title '1883' is not covered up as it is not that well known although the editors wanted there to be an interesting font on the title so that viewers would remember it that way and eventually gain more readership, it is ordered in an interested way and people may start to remember it.
Ellie Goulding attracts early 20's who are fans of chart music, this makes it more of a C on the Socio Economic scale. Although she has started to branch out into high fashion and socialising with more important A-list celebrities. My pre-production
Questionnaire
I created a questionnaire which was completed by 10 people. I found this valuable as I gathered more information about what people actually looked for in a magazine. Some of the questions were related to occupation, gender and age.
I asked 'Would you buy a magazine just for the person on the cover?', 80% said yes. I made the star of the magazine an up and coming one as to draw more readers in. 50% were also in the 18-24 age group, it is more likely that young people associate themselves with fresh new faces. 60% said they would buy a magazine that was £2-3. I wanted to make the price higher due to the target audience but decided to stick to £3 due to the popularity of other similar price range magazines such as Cosmopolitan and Glamour. An occupational question targeted 60% of students and so that cemented my idea to keep an affordable price range. The most popular genres of magazines were music, gossip, alternative and fashion. I incorporated all of these. I put music into the interview, fashion into the photos with a detailed list of the clothes used. The box of Hanna's new projects are a convention of gossip magazines and the layout is structured in an alternative way. The majority of people said that they would most likely buy a magazine if they liked the look of it and not whether it was weekly or monthly. Since it didn't really seem important I made the magazine monthly, a common convention of alternative and higher class magazines.
My production was a double page spread which had a story/interview with a new actress named 'Hanna Svertzen'. I wanted the contents to be intellectual and to be more suitable for an alternative magazine. It was made to look like a contemporary article in Vogue or Instyle.
The production page has a different image and is of a different genre, it's more skater than the cover theme. There is a 'what to catch Hanna in next' which is more of a convention of tabloid magazines. I wanted the reader to have a better knowledge of the actress and to promote her work. It also exaggerates the fact that she has a lot of projects coming up and that she is definitely up-and-coming. The background is a simple white and the font is eligible. The title is written in 'Young Frankenstein' font and is a quote directly from her 'embraced in arms of thorns'.
The double page is very simple and therefore does not bombard and overwhelm the reader with pointless art to make up for the lack of interview- which is common in contemporary magazines these days. The interview is fleshing out the actress and instead of taking an unbiased view; it wholly focussed and truthful. There is an element of everything in there. An embarrassing story, a discussion about hollywood, foreign films and music. This allows the reader to relate to the star and potentially become a fan if they weren't already. There isn't a lot of design in there and so it appeals more to the A-B demographic due to them reading more often.
There are some weaknesses. The interview is quite long and so the articles picture is not very large.
The layout was inspired by V magazine, the metallic greys lent itself to my work. On the first cover I had metallic grey and duck egg. The layout is quite simple and very understated. Although grey can have very dull/dreary connotations, I thought it made the cover more elegant and more professional. I used a different layout to most magazines by putting two colours together and separating them with a line. This made the cover more like a painting and more artistic. The model is in the centre of the cover and has an issue themed outfit on.
Images
I took inspiration from Vogue with the original photography. I didn't edit the photos to a massive extent, instead I thought I would leave them as they are. The images are mid shots and the clothes are black for the Gothic themed issue. The connotations are scary even Addams family-esque, maybe even an alluring 'darkness' feature. The colours work better with the minimalist background, it seemed very unfeminine and I used a rah-rough dress sense to support that. I wanted the images to look alternative but ones that wouldn't look out of place if they were presented on a Vogue cover; this would make the audience of the A-B demographic more susceptible to buy an issue.
Friday, 8 November 2013
Pre Production Progress
October 2013
Background
For the colour of the background I was inspired by V magazines 'Pure and simple' shoot, with their metallic grey background.
Background
For the colour of the background I was inspired by V magazines 'Pure and simple' shoot, with their metallic grey background.
But as I finished with the main model image, I decided to go for a more pail grey and placed a duck egg colour for the puffs. This wasn't inspired by anything but I didn't want to make the typical glamour magazine cover as it is meant to be an alternative magazine, therefore pushing the norms. After i finished with the cover background, I started looking at anniversary specials of Vogue and they had very abstract patterns and backgrounds so I made my issue a gothic themed one. My main inspiration for the magazine is '1883' magazine, it's very intellectual and very cutting edge.
Original Photography
This photo shoot of Kristen Stewart for V Magazine inspired my photos, it looked very simple and clean cut but I wanted it to have a gothic edge so the clothes I wore were black and lacy.
The next set of photos were punk/rock inspired and the ones I didn't include were Hollywood glamour. The grey background made me want a pale grey/duck egg colour for the front cover.
Second Front Cover
This cover is more minimalist, there isn't any puffs and there is only the model, title and barcode with the date/time. I actually prefer this cover due to the graphology, it looks a lot more alternative.
The Double Page Spread
1883 inspired this for me, I didn't want interview style questions but I wanted it to be more of an expose.
The picture was very punk inspired, I wanted the issue to have a general dark tone, with the issue being released so close to halloween. This coincided with the genre of the pictures I took : gothic, punk and hollywood glamour. I didn't use hollywood glamour as I felt that the gothic/punk theme should stay intact.
Wednesday, 9 October 2013
Abigail Remmer Audience Task
Pretty Little liars
1: Intended Audience
Teenage girls - 13-18
Students at school
Suspense fans (actually a thriller TV show)
2: Uses and Gratification
Entertainment - its a thriller/ suspense show, so it is entertaining to watch
Social Integration- friends watch it and then you feel the need to keep up with the storyline, to find out who 'A' is.
maybe even personal identity- some people may identify with the two characters or maybe they have been in a similar situation and can relate.
3: How is it constructed/mediated?
It's constructed to have the main focus on the two characters here.
Visual.technical.Audio codes
Inglorious Basterds clip
Visual Codes
Clothing - Red dress which connotates passion and danger
He is wearing a Nazi soldier suit- shows his occupation
Gesture and Body language
Shosanna clearly wants Fredrick to leave as she is planning something and he is getting in the way, they both seem very edgy and nervous.
Facial Expressions
Her facial expression is desperate and annoyed whereas his is full of admiration which turns into anger.
Setting
Cinema projection room
Use Of Colour/ Connotation
Shosanna is wearing a rainbow of red, red nails, lips and dress which is passionate and dangerous. The room is quite dark. When she is shot the debris of the dress flies around the room like red blood cells.
Technical Codes
Shots- A few close ups to show their facial expressions, most are mid shot and some are wide leading to a tilted Birdseye view of the two. When Fredrick is shouting at her there seems to be seem low angle shots to show he is more powerful than her.
Camera Movement
The camera is moved to a low angle shot when the two are arguing symbolising that he has power over her. The camera cuts to Shosanna and Fredrick and back again. The camera pans up to show the two dead.
Editing
It has been edited so you can see that the cinema reel that the audience are watching.
The pace of the text
The start is quite slow but as the conversation gets more heated and the pace and atmosphere of the film speeds up.
Lighting
Most of the scene is spent in low key lighting however we can still see there face. At the start there is high key lighting to show that he is the angelic one wanting to woo the girl but as he becomes more angry there is red glow over his face to perhaps show his demonic side and that he is the enemy now. When he has been shot and she begins to feel sorry for him, there is a white light shone on him.
Mise- en -scene
We can tell he is a high ranking officer because of his uniform with an iron cross but he is not wearing the Nazi emblem. She looks very dolled up for the premiere night- the red dress has been chosen because she is both dangerous and passionate in this scene, it also blends in well with blood.
Audio Codes
Diegetic- There is diegetic sound of dialogue, the door being swung open, the gun shots and the film reel.
Non Diegetic- When Fredrick is shot a piece of classical music begins to play and it has the tempo of a somber song but also a final showdown song, it's almost like a 'this didn't have to happen' song.
Visual Codes
Clothing - Red dress which connotates passion and danger
He is wearing a Nazi soldier suit- shows his occupation
Gesture and Body language
Shosanna clearly wants Fredrick to leave as she is planning something and he is getting in the way, they both seem very edgy and nervous.
Facial Expressions
Her facial expression is desperate and annoyed whereas his is full of admiration which turns into anger.
Setting
Cinema projection room
Use Of Colour/ Connotation
Shosanna is wearing a rainbow of red, red nails, lips and dress which is passionate and dangerous. The room is quite dark. When she is shot the debris of the dress flies around the room like red blood cells.
Technical Codes
Shots- A few close ups to show their facial expressions, most are mid shot and some are wide leading to a tilted Birdseye view of the two. When Fredrick is shouting at her there seems to be seem low angle shots to show he is more powerful than her.
Camera Movement
The camera is moved to a low angle shot when the two are arguing symbolising that he has power over her. The camera cuts to Shosanna and Fredrick and back again. The camera pans up to show the two dead.
Editing
It has been edited so you can see that the cinema reel that the audience are watching.
The pace of the text
The start is quite slow but as the conversation gets more heated and the pace and atmosphere of the film speeds up.
Lighting
Most of the scene is spent in low key lighting however we can still see there face. At the start there is high key lighting to show that he is the angelic one wanting to woo the girl but as he becomes more angry there is red glow over his face to perhaps show his demonic side and that he is the enemy now. When he has been shot and she begins to feel sorry for him, there is a white light shone on him.
Mise- en -scene
We can tell he is a high ranking officer because of his uniform with an iron cross but he is not wearing the Nazi emblem. She looks very dolled up for the premiere night- the red dress has been chosen because she is both dangerous and passionate in this scene, it also blends in well with blood.
Audio Codes
Diegetic- There is diegetic sound of dialogue, the door being swung open, the gun shots and the film reel.
Non Diegetic- When Fredrick is shot a piece of classical music begins to play and it has the tempo of a somber song but also a final showdown song, it's almost like a 'this didn't have to happen' song.
Magazine Textual Analysis
- Subtle plain background, the focus is on the model
-Cover line is 'Timeless' a vintage theme for the magazine
-The main model (Ellie Goulding) is looking directly ahead at the audience as to pull them in. She is dressed glamourously and is quite animated in her behaviour, and so this magazine probably appeals to the B,C social economic scale.
-Cover lines have the name and a small caption underneath to show what the article will be about.
- Barcode is in the corner and not in the way of anything.
-The title '1883' is not covered up as it is not that well known although the editors wanted there to be an interesting font on the title so that viewers would remember it that way and eventually gain more readership, it is ordered in an interested way and people may start to remember it that way.
- Grey background
- Cover line 'Shame' is the title of the film, the magazine relies quite heavily on the title.
- the actor 'Michael Fassbender' is the star of the title film and so his profile is taking up 75% of the page to draw attention.
-the puffs are lined in an orderly fashion next to the main model and each have a specific title and caption underneath.
- The logo is in front of the model because it is not that well known and therefore needs to stand out more.
-The barcode has the BFI logo underneath.
- The social economic scale is more B,C as it is an international film magazine.
Dazed & Confused magazine
-The models are taking up about 80% of the magazine cover, they have interesting makeup on and it is clear that this is an alternative fashion magazine, the models look unknown as well which isn't a convention of popular fashion magazines
- The cover title is in front of the models as it is not that well known, there is no barcode (probably on the spine or the back)
- The main cover line is 'Smile!' which is emphasised by the models makeup
-The puffs are dotted around everywhere with some in the corner and some in the bottom middle. The caption is 'fashions new optimism' and that's why its about smiling.
-The social economic scale is B,C as it does look quite expensive but does not look up to Vogue standards.
- The model 'Bastian Ninabar' is the main model and he is only taking up 30% of the cover.
- The logo is not being covered and therefore is not well known.
- The Guerilla Issue is the main cover line and so the magazine has a theme. It look's monthly.
- There is no barcode and so it is probably on the spine or the back- it avoids the price?
- The background is very subtle and minimalist showing the shadow of the model.
- A special issue for Vincent Cassel 'the more ultra man'
- The logo is being half covered but is still evident showing it may only be slightly popular however it does use italic font which could be anything.
- The puffs are ordered in an organised fashion. The main cover line is in a completely different font and this stands out more.
- The model is looking directly ahead at the audience and this draws them in.
- It's like the french GQ and so the social economic scale is B,C
- The extra details such as colour show velvet red: it's meant to show him as passionate and sensual and other men should aspire to be like him. It also looks like cinema seats as well, enforcing the the cinema issue.
-There is no barcode so it is probably on the back or spine.
- He's wearing a wet look tank top and so is attracting the audience (even though the audience is men and they want to look like him)
Sunday, 15 September 2013
Abigail Remmer's representation task
The Catherine Tate Show is portraying the youth to be ignorant and disrespectful, having a total disregard for anyone telling them what to do. Whereas the majority of young people wouldn't be driven to fury over someone telling them to tuck their chair in or pull their tie up.
Gender in TV
There are two types of gender representation for women in TV - one, the strong female (quite rare for TV) such as Claire Dane's in 'Homeland' or the other such as the 5 women in 'Desperate Housewives' who enjoy a life of cocktails, men and shoes- this also links in to another topic of sexuality; the girls all have very strong hetrosexuality.
The divide here means that women watching can either aspire to be the kind that are very glamorous and cosmopolitan or steely and strong, which typically flouts social convention.
Claire Danes in 'Homeland'
Sexuality
The girls from 'Sex and the City' have a very strong straight sexuality
This doesn't have to be classed as negative or positive , they are middle aged woman trying to have fun with potentially younger men therefore being known as a 'cougar' but it doesn't have to comment on the fact that people with strong sexuality always go for what they want.
All the values that are pinned down by the producers are acted on because of what the public are being feeded and what they get fed they respond to either in a positive way or a negative way.
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