Les Miserables - Script - Part 1.

In this task, i analysed the script of the opening scene from the musical (a film) 'Les Miserables' . 

Questions;

1. How does the script introduce the narrative, setting, time period, the characters and the genre? 

A) At the beginning of the script, it  introduces the year and the country that the film is set in, it also tells us about the film's historical background. On the script, it says;

 'The year is 1815. The French Revolution is a distant memory. Napoleon has been defeated. France is ruled by a king again.'

• In the script, in A1's screen directions, not only does it tell you the locations of where the film was set (Ahead, the port of Toulon, the home of the French navy) It also shows us  the setting and the atmosphere that the setting creates and it is also introduced to the audience. When it says 'Winter Rain' People might think of it being dark, miserable and cold.

•  In the first shot, the character, Jean Valjean, is described as being 'a great brute of a man' and 'he seems to feel nothing'. This is known to some as an enigma code because it makes us wonder why he feels nothing and comes across heartless and numb, despite being incredibly strong and brutal. The fact that the shot focuses on Valjean's character, and not the other convicts suggests to the audience that he is either a main character or a character that will show great importance further on into the film.

• The second shot shows and directs the convicts to sing their lines when it says, 'The convicts sing in time with the rhythmic pulls on the rope -'. This will show and let the audience know that the genre of the film is a musical. This caption also introduces the character, Javert, as being 'the officer in charge of the convict workforce' which shows the audience that there is a lot of power, separating him away from the other characters. It also says that he is 'expressionless' which shows that he wont be showing any remorse or guilt for the pain that the convicts are receiving. This gives us the impression that he must be the bad character or the villain of this film.

• In the third shot, the bond between Javert and Valjean appears to be strained and almost non-existent; when it says Valjean 'stares back for a beat, defying him'. This suggests to the audience that the conflict of power between the two characters could escalate further as the film progresses. This shows the audience that Valjean is not scared of Javert, and will not show any fear towards him, this will let off a sense of tension throughout the whole film.

2. How does it engage you?

• This film engages me by giving me full descriptions of the shots. This will then allow me to create an image in my head, this then makes me feel more involved and mentally and physically connected to the film, this will also make me feel more intrigued and leave me wanting more. Also, the writer of this film/musical, doesn't go into too much depth about the characters, so it gives you a brief idea on what they're like, and how they come across, but as you go further into the film, your opinions on the characters may change, as they unfold more information and characteristics of the characters.

3. How did the film-clip introduce the narrative (story), setting, time period, the characters and the genre?

• In the first few seconds of the first scene, it introduces the country and the historical context. Also, the year of the film is a lot larger than the rest of the text, this tells us that the date is being referred as the most important information. If the audience/viewers are unsure on why the date is important, it tells us why on the first half of the passage.  This Shot could be called the the opening scene. This shot is called an opening sequences establishing shot, due to the fact that it introduces the location of the film in the first scene, and it is quite clear to the audience. Even though it doesn't show the audience what the place is called, by the state of the settings and the surroundings, it is clear to the audience that this is a war-ship docks, this is also because of the size of the ships that are on both left and right sides of the camera shots.

• On another shot (a high-angle shot), it then zooms in from the ship to the cast who are pulling the ships into the dock. This shot is particularly focused on Hugh Jackman. Some who are familiar with this musical, may recognise him as being a main character (Jean Valjean); but those who aren't that interested in musicals and these types of films, may question his importance to the film, and who he is, because of the close ups that he is having. Also, his 'untidy' costume suggests that his character could be quite poor, even though he is a convict.

4. How does it engage you?

• This film engages me because of it's clear interpretation of the script. Even though i questioned all the enigma codes in the script, the film's sequence showed these enigma codes in different ways that wasn't completely directed to the audience. The photography that was created for the enigma codes, showed us the tension between two different characters and it symbolized the plotted elements. Also, the audio codes engaged me because it allowed me to understand and have a connection with the characters emotionally and physically. 

Study Of Representation

Age:
For age, i chose the film 'The Avengers'. This film varies to different age categories, and the hero's in the film, may be idols to many people; mainly young boys and girls. This film is categorized as an 'action' type of film. This film is for all members of the family, it shows some funny scenes and it uses good use of different shots and effects. This film may also attract teen girls and boys; this is because of the actors and actresses in the film. The boys may be attracted to the female hero; Black Widow, as where the girls may be attracted to the handsome heros; Iron Man, Captain America, Thor and the Hulk.

Gender:
For gender, i chose the advert for the lynx deodorant. This advert shows how the 'dominant' but clueless male is the main role, due to the fact that he has sprayed this deodorant onto himself, and then within a flash, shows a bunch of females being used as sexual pleasures due to the lack of clothing they are wearing.

Events:
In the video clip that was released in November 2013, Justin Bieber is shown sleeping in the bed of another woman who is anonymous to the press. This represents him as being a bad, irresponsible person for not behaving sensibly and casually sleeping around with any woman he pleases. Also using his fame, just for his own sexual pleasures. His fans could argue that he was possibly drugged or under the influence of something the previous night that caused him to act irresponsibly. Some could also add that just because he was in someone else's bed, it does not necessarily mean that they had sex.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCpaTwQ8gGM

Issues:
This picture is a negative representation of terrorism. This image which was taken from www.theenglishdefenceleagueextra.blogspot.com is a negative representation because horrible names are stuck all over this person's face. These names are the ones that we would think twice about calling anyone to offend them. It makes us realise that we are very quick and judgmental to go and call every Muslim those names that are on that models face, simply because we, unfortunately, see Muslims as being stereotypes of terrorism.

Ethnicity:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1454029/?ref_=nv_sr_1 -

This films theme is about the black and white social class divide. This film represents black people as being lower in a social class than the white. According to history - although is does not promote racial quality if the film was based in present day - this is an accurate representation of black people. Some may argue that Viola Davis' character; Ailbileen Clark, is a countertype of black people in this film because she aspires to be accepted.

The Help (2011





National and Regional Identity:
For this factor, i chose the TV series; "The Valleys". This show is a British reality television series based in Cardiff, Wales. This show a bunch of Welsh youngsters living their wild frantic lives, and whilst being filmed and living the dream, they also give 'Wales' a bad name, although, it is quite amusing to watch them make fools of themselves.
 

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DVD Poster and Cover - Analysis

The Genre i have picked to do my production on Chick Flicks. The film cover and poster that i have decided to analyse is 'Mean Girls'.
This film is one of my favorites and i know the ins, and outs, and i could even quote the film word by word.
This film mainly appeals to teenage girls, from the ages 12 and up. This film is about a bunch of girls, who'm of which may be role models to some girls; why? Clearly because they are flawless, although, all they do is gossip about one another.

 On the poster and dvd cover, a lot of pink is used. Pink is a stereotypical feminine color, so this would probably attract mainly girls. Also, not to mention the fact that the pink and the purple colors connote that there will be some romance in the film, so this could also appeal to - maybe - older females.
Lindsey Lohan is on her own, while the other three girls are in a group, this shows that there will be a lot of conflict and tension between them and other characters.
Lindey's name is the only actresses name on there, this might be because young girls or teenagers may like films with her in, because they might see her as a role model type figure and may aspire to be like her. Also, the group of girls are in feminine colors and clothes, whereas Lindsey (the girl on her own) is in bold colors and is quite covered up. This shows how different she is to them, although, during the film, she does end up turning into one of the 'Plastics' (the name of the group of girls).
The 'Mean Girls' title is placed sideways, this represents a barrier between the group of girls, and the single girl.
All the characters in the poster and in the film, are mainly teenagers, this makes the target audience able to relate to them and the film.
Also, you may notice the very large 'Watch your back' sign under the group of girls. This represents the bitchy side of the film, and shows that there will be betrayal and a lot of back stabbing going on during the film. This makes it all the more exciting and intrigues the audience.
Even though the actresses on the poster may have been airbrushed, this may make the targeted audience aspire to be like that, also, it makes the actresses reputation look much better.
As you can see, all the characters on the poster and cover are all females, this indicates that the film is a 'Chick-Flick'.

Harry Potter Studios

Warner Bros - Harry Potter Studios Evaluation

On the 7th of October, my Media class, some of the year 13's Media class and other students that either took Art or Performing arts all went on a trip to London- Watford; to go on the Warner Bros (Harry Potter) Studio tour. The reason why we went was to learn how a film was created, how they used different techniques, such as; green screen, use of camera shots and different angles etc. Also to learn how to market a film, such as advertising, posters and so on.

When we arrived at the Studios, we walked into the main entrance, where there were portraits of different characters placed around the room, there was also the flying car hanging down from the ceiling in the corner of the room. It was truly amazing. After having a five minute toilet break, we were all given these orange key ring things to put around our neck, just to show that we were all in the same group/school, she then handed us a ticket each, and a small passport, so when we walked around, we could collect stamps. Once we had all got organised, we all excitedly stood in a que, ready to start the tour.The first part of our tour started with us all going into a rather dark room, where one of the staff members explained to us all what we were going to do that day, and how the Harry Potter films started, and how they were published. After the talk, we went into a huge cinema room, where the actual tour started. On the screen, we had a talk from the main characters from the Harry Potter films, Daniel Radcliff, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint. Once they had finished, the cinema screen rolled up, to reveal the doors of the great hall; we all slowly entered the doors, where we were greeted by another staff member, who told us to explore the great hall, and explained that the costumes and everything else that was in that room, were the actual costumes that were worn by the characters. There was so much detail in the room, most of which you wouldn't notice in the films, it was incredible. After taking a few pictures, we then entered another huge room which contained most of the stuff that you would remember from the Harry Potter films, such as; costumes, props used in the film- wants, doors, trophies, etc.

We were told that everything that was in this studio, were the actual sets that were used in the Harry Potter films. We were told we could go and explore the place, until the rest of our group came back and had a look around, and then we had to meet by the gates to Hogwarts (only the gates, because obviously Hogwarts; sadly.. Isn't a real place) So we could go and do a workshop with another staff member, who was quite bubbly. He told us that we were going to make up a basic plot for a film, and wrote it all out on a white board, and he explained what movie marketing was. He also told us that they were filming a movie across the road, and explained that Chris Hemsworth and Russel Crowe were the actors that were being filmed, so as you can imagine, most of us girls were a bit over whelmed. After the workshop had finished, we were allowed to tour the studios in our groups for another hour or so, and then we would meet and go outside to eat our food. Outside, there were more Harry Potter memorabilia outside such as; Tom Riddle's grave, The Hogwarts wooden bridge and the purple bus (that was for wizards that were out on the streets, as shown in the last Harry Potter film). After we had our lunch, we went into the second part of the tour, where we walked fown Diagon Alley and saw more props, and models, such as; Dobby, The worf, Buck Beak, and a few others. We then walked into another part of that room, which was the final part of our tour, where there was a huge model of Hogwarts, it was absolutely incredible, there was so much detail! I'd love to go again