Monday, 30 September 2013

Youtube video analysis


You tube video analysis 



In this scene there are many elements that show it's conventional to an action/adventure genre for example the Iron man suit referring to technology in the future making it a convention of an action genre as well as being an element of a SC-FI genre. There were a few camera techniques used in this scene for example a Mid-shot including Tony stark, P.O.V. shot showing Tony Stark reading the newspaper of him being dead linking back to the previous scene of the Mandarin attack, over the shoulder shot with the boys back towards the audience this shows the comparison between both characters ie. Tony being older than him as well as being more experienced. 

The color scheme has many colors however the main ones are red and yellow which is a connotation to blood, death and hope, linking back to the denotation of the Iron man being destroyed / damaged in hope to fixing it back to go back home. During the whole scene there is no empty silence you can always hear diegetic sound's for example: the cracked wooded floor, I assume it was achieved by a Foley artist as its a very delicate sound it cannot be registered by the camera, the metal bending sound when the boy is turning the Iron man suit's head.

 During the whole scene the volume of dialogue changed a lot for example: at the start the boy shouting out 'Oh my god...' was very loud as he moves toward Tony Stark his voice goes lower and lower as though he's moving further away from the audience. There was a dramatic change when he gets to Tony and hands him the newspaper of him being dead during the Mandarin attack. As well as being a action/ adventure movie this scene contains a small part of comedy, during the conversation between both Tony and the boy for example, this keeps the audience entertained also a bit of curiosity as the audience might associate it to something bad happening in the next scene.

Monday, 23 September 2013

Camera Shot's Homework


Scene Homework

Meanings of  Shot techniques:

Long-Shot

A long-shot contains landscape but gives the viewer a more specific idea of setting. A long shot may show
the viewers the building where the action will take place.
The audience can maybe guess their nature from the characters posture, maybe also estimate the protagonist or antagonist.



Mid-Shot


A Mid-shot contains the characters or a character from the waist up. From this shot, viewers can see the characters' faces more clearly as well as their interaction with other characters. This is also known as a social shot.





Close-Up Shot

A close-up shot contains just one character's face. This enables viewers to understand the actor's emotions and also allows them to feel empathy for the character. This is also known as a personal shot.




Extreme Close-up Shot

An extreme close-up contains one part of a character's face or other object. This technique is quite common in horror films, particularly the example above. This type of shot creates an intense mood and provides interaction between the audience and the viewer.




P.O.V (Point Of View) Shot

This shot shows a view from the subject's perspective. It is usually edited in such a way that it is obvious whose Point Of View it is.






Low angle


A low angle is a camera angle that looks up at a character. This is the opposite of a high angle and makes a character look more powerful. This can make the audience feel vulnerable and small by looking up at the character. This can help the audience feel empathy if they are viewing the frame from another character's point of view.



High angle


A high angle is a camera angle that looks down upon a subject. A character shot with a high angle will look vulnerable or small. These angles are often used to demonstrate to the audience a perspective of a particular character. The example above demonstrates to us the perspective or point of view of a vampire. As a viewer we can understand that the vampire feels powerful.



Establishing shot

An establishing contains a large amount of landscape. It is often used at the beginning of a scene or a film to establish general location (setting). This is also known as an establishing shot.




Bird's eye view



A bird's eye angle is an angle that looks directly down upon a scene. This angle is often used as an establishing angle, along with an extreme long shot, to establish setting.




Dollying

Sometimes called TRUCKING or TRACKING shots. The camera is placed on a moving vehicle and moves alongside the action, generally following a moving figure or object. Complicated dolly shots will
involve a track being laid on set for the camera to follow, hence the name. The camera might be mounted on a car, a plane, or even a shopping trolley (good method for independent film-makers looking to save a few dollars). A dolly shot may be a good way of portraying movement, the journey of a character for instance, or for moving from a long shot to a close-up, gradually focusing the audience on a particular object or character.


Mise-en-scene

Mise en scene refers to all the objects and characters in a particular frame. More specifically, it refers to the composition of the frame. When you use the term mise en scene, you are discussing where the composer or director has placed all the elements of the scene within the frame.



Examples from Iron man:

Long-Shot


Showing the machine-gun shooting Tony Stark's house down this shot technique is very effective during the scene as it makes the machine-gun vulnerable to the background, furthermore it may also be a P.O.V shot as it is a shows a 'person on a helicopter aiming towards Stark's house,' this creates tension and allows the audience to judge between good and bad.The color scheme for this scene is brown which is an connotation to soil, in this sense making his house crumble to small grains of soil. 

Mid-Shot

The Mid-shot is used in this scene showing 'Tony Stark' and 'The Iron Suit' from waist to head, the purpose of using the mid-shot is for the audience to focus on the facial expressions and the dialog, it also gives more information/ characteristics to the audience. Aligning with 'Tony Stark' and 'His suit' was a very good technique as it shows the bound between them two. The color scheme used is red, yellow and blue, red is a connotation of blood and violence, on the other hand yellow is a connotation to peace and being calm, blue also is a connotation to  being calm.

Close-up Shot

They used a Close-up shot here to show his facial expressions, it shows him being very surprised and anxious, this can also be analysed as two-shot as it shows him and her both looking at each other. 'Tony Stark' is saved by his girlfriend Pepper inside the Iron man Suit, the helicopter had attacked Tony's house which were sent from the antagonist this created a lot of tension which was then balanced out with Pepper saving 'Tony'. The color scheme here is brown, red and peach.

Extreme Close-up Shot

The technique used here is an extreme close-up shot, this was used here to show how he feels and looks inside the Iron Man this technique was mostly used during fights to see the scares and his reaction to the environment as well as showing the high technology used inside. The color scheme used is blue which is a connotation to technique and electricity. 


P.O.V (Point Of View) Shot


The P.O.V. shot is used here to show what he's seeing through the Iron man suit, furthermore the high-technology associates to it being in the future linking back to the movie genre. The color scheme here is mostly white associating to peace this links back to the fight between Iron man and Ivan which created tension, which was balanced out with Iron man destroying him and his heart piece, which was included in the scene.

Establishing shot


The shot used here is the Establishing shot this was when Iron man defeats Ivan in Iron man 2, this gives a massive view to the audience when the robots are self destruction and Tony taking Pepper to safety. This can also be interpreted as a Point Of View shot as Iron man is in the air. The color scheme here is very colorful with many colors this is a connotation to a celebration or victory this is reason why its effective after the battle, also can suggest the end of a movie.


Low Angle

The shooting technique used here is Low angle, this shows the robot has more power over pepper this shot can also be interpreted as over the shoulder shot showing the robot is the antagonist of the movie,i can say this because of the shape of the robot and the was it's looking associating to danger and death,  this is very effective as it shows the connection between them both furthermore it may mean human creations can maybe be a threat to the human race. The color scheme here is blue which is a connotation to mass energy.

360 Degree Dolly Shot

The shot used in the video is a 360 degree shot which was achieved by using a Dolly which goes around the character on a Dolly trolley,  this is used here when Tony stark is being equipped with the armor this can also be interpreted as a close up shot, as it shows facial expressions which is one of the elements that apply to a close up shot.This technique is effective as it shows the detail as well as fitting in withe scene itself for example whilst hes equipping his armor the camera rotates around him however it was very fetal that the camera was rotating around him making the audience dizzy. The color scheme is white and red, which is a connotation to war and violence which is a connection it to the next scene.

Camera Shot's Poster



Saturday, 21 September 2013

Film & Sub-Genre Table Homework

Film & Sub Genre Homework


Film & Sub-Genre:

Red (Crime)

Main Colors Used:

Red, Black and Orange

Main Actors:

Bruce Willis
Morgan Freeman
John Malkovich
Helen Mirren

Age Rating:

15

Synopsis:

When his peaceful life is threatened by a high-tech assassin, former black-ops agent Frank Moses reassembles his old team in a last ditch effort to survive and uncover his assailants.


Main Images Used on Poster:

Serious/angry facial expressions, guns

Conventions of Action/Adventure Used:

Color red, guns, big named actors, CIA

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Film & Sub-Genre:

Thor (Fantasy) 

Main Colors Used:

Black, Blue and Gray

Main Actors:

Chris Hemsworth
Tom Hiddleston
Natalie Portman

Age Rating:

PG-13

Synopsis:



Faced with an enemy that even Odin and Asgard cannot withstand, Thor must embark on his most perilous and personal journey yet, one that will reunite him with Jane Foster and force him to sacrifice everything to save us all.


Main Images Used on Poster:


Thor

Magical Hammer
Lighting / Thunder

Conventions of Action/Adventure Used:

Magical powers
Mythology 
Hero

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Film & Sub-Genre:

Monster Universe (Animation/Comedy)

Main Colors Used:

Green, Purple and Blue

Main Actors:

Billy Crystal
John Goodman
Steve Buscemi

Age Rating:

G

Synopsis:

A look at the relationship between Mike and Sulley during their days at Monsters University -- when they weren't necessarily the best of friends.


Main Images Used on Poster:

Monsters

Different colors
Fills whole poster

Conventions of Action/Adventure Used:

Adventure
Journey 

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Film & Sub-Genre:

Pacific Rim (Sc-Fi)

Main Colors Used:

Orange, Gray and White 

Main Actors:

Charlie Hunnam
Rinko Kikuchi
Idris Elba

Age Rating:

PG-13

Synopsis:

As a war between humankind and monstrous sea creatures wages on, a former pilot and a trainee are paired up to drive a seemingly obsolete special weapon in a desperate effort to save the world from the apocalypse.


Main Images Used on Poster:



Massive Robot 

Flying Robots
Ocean  

Conventions of Action/Adventure Used:


High technology
Hero and Villain
Guns
Robots (from Future)


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Film & Sub-Genre:

The Dark Knight Rises (Fantasy)

Main Colors Used:

Black, Orange and Red

Main Actors:

Christian Bale
Anne Hathaway
Tom Hardy

Age Rating:

PG-13

Synopsis:

When Batman, Gordon and Harvey Dent launch an assault on the mob, they let the clown out of the box, the Joker, bent on turning Gotham on itself and bringing any heroes down to his level.


Main Images Used on Poster:

Batman
Batman sign in fire in the background
Color scheme: black and fire orange 

Conventions of Action/Adventure Used:

Powerful Gadgets 
Hero
Muscular and strong

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Film & Sub-Genre:

Jack the Giant Slayer (Romance)

Main Colors Used:

Green, Brown and Red

Main Actors:

Nicholas Hoult
Ewan Mc Gregor
Eleanor Tomlinson 

Age Rating:

PG-13

Synopsis:



The ancient war between humans and a race of giants is reignited when Jack, a young farmhand fighting for a kingdom and the love of a princess, opens a gateway between the two worlds.

Main Images Used on Poster:



The antagonist and protagonist facing each other which is a connotation to a battle or war between human kind and giants.  

Conventions of Action/Adventure Used:


Hero and Villain
Magical Weapons
Blood
Journey to the clouds


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Questions:

1) What similarities can you note between the sub-genres?

The most common sub-genre is Romance and Fantasy as it fits in well with the Action and Adventure genre.

2) What differences can you note between the sub-genres?

None
3) Although they have different sub-genres, do the plots contain any similarities? How do they follow the codes and conventions of an Action Adventure film?

4) Watch the trailers for each of your chosen films. How do you know that these sub genres are a part of Action Adventure films? Think about sound and the pace of the editing. 

Monday, 16 September 2013

Action/Adventure Convention Analysis


Action/Adventure

1) What is the title of the film, when was it released, who directed it and stars in it ?

The movie I chose was 'The Avengers' which was released in 2012, 'The Avengers' was directed by 'Joss Whedon' staring 'Tony Stark' as iron man, 'Steve Rogers'  as Captain America, 'Bruce Banner' as 'Hulk'...

2) What is the Sub-genre of the film ? What signifies reveal this to the audience ?

The Sub-genre of 'The Avengers' is Sc-Fi as there is a lot of High-technology such as 'Iron-man' and the guns.

3) What  is the plot of the film ? What is he/she like ? Is he/she a conventional hero ?


The plot of the movie was to get earths mightiest hero's together to save earth the he was a conventional hero.


4) Who was the protagonist of the film ? Is he/she a conventional hero ?


The protagonist of 'The Avengers' was the heroic team of Iron man, Hulk, Captain America and Thor... The team was called the Avengers and was assigned by S.H.I.E.L.D. 'Nick Fury'  he was a conventional hero as he had the same features as every other hero's such as saving earth and having super human strength.


5) Who was the antagonist of the film ? Is he/she a conventional villain ?


The antagonist of the film was 'Loki' he was a powerful cleaver and full of magical powers, he was also a conventional villain as he has all the features of a villain such as super human strength and intelligence.


6) Are there any other conventional characters in the film ? Who are they and why are they conventional ? 


No there are no other conventional characters in the film.


7) What are the main signifies used in the film to reveal it is action/adventure to the audience? Think about locations used and the mise-en scene ?       


There was a lot of action for example: The battle between Thor and Hulk , Thor and Iron man there was a lot of conflict going on between the hero's, the guns and explosions, it was a adventure movie as it has the mission set up from Nick Fury to destroy Loki.


8) Think about one of the action-sequence in the film. What diegetic and non-diegetic sounds do you hear ? Are these conventional ?


There was a lot of diegetic sounds such as the inside of Iron man when he's inside the suit also the sound during the battle.


9) Think about one of the action-sequence in the film. What type of camera shots do you see ? Is the editing slow or fast-paced ? Why do you think so ?


It was mainly Long shot and close up shots in the film, also slow editing when Hawkeye jumps off the building and shooting the enemy down. This is to create more effect and make it more interesting.


10) Does the film break any conventions of the action/adventure genre ? If yes, why do you think it has done this ? If no, why do you think it stuck to the conventions ?


Yes, it does as Thor is Loki's brother whom was a villain, I think this is done because to crate a bit of family scene's. 

Summer Term Homework


Media Studies Homework:

Iron man 3 (2013):

The protagonist of ‘Iron Man 3’ was ‘Tony Stark’, playing the main character as the superhero and saviour ‘Iron Man’ whom was a metal suit that was created by ‘Tony Stark’, throughout the movie it was very straight forward to recognize the male protagonist as he had the all the features of the male hero also appearing in many of the scenes. There were two antagonists in ‘Iron Man 3’ whom were ‘The Mandarin’ and ‘Killian’; it was very confusing on who the main villain was at the beginning of the ‘Iron Man 3’, seeing that ‘The Mandarin’ was represented as a terrorist, hacking into the satellite and threatening the ‘President’. After discovering ‘The Mandarin’ was serving ‘Killian’ ‘Iron Man’ went after him, this is also another reason, why I think Killian was the main antagonist, furthermore capturing ‘Iron Man’ was the biggest hint on him being the villain.

There were many elements in ‘Iron Man 3’ in which proved it was an action adventure film: Using CGI for the Iron Man’s suit flying in air as well as the blasts linking back to it being an action film, the ultra-heat resistance in the body making them immoral to fire, linking back to the disadvantage of metal in this case Iron Man’s suit, the locations of Iron Man 3 made it look like a journey or a quest making it an adventurous movie. There were many locations picked throughout the movie for example: ‘Tony Stark’s’ house, in the sky and a factory.

Men and women were represented equally for instance ‘Tony Stark’ the male protagonist killed and saves many life on the other hand his girlfriend ‘Pepper’ had killed ‘Killian’ in the end. This is one of my favourite movies, furthermore I would recommend it to others.

The Gladiator (2000):

The male protagonist in ‘The Gladiator’ is ‘Maximus’, whom was a very strong and the hero of the movie. ‘Maximus’ was a general who became a slave who then became a gladiator killing ‘Commodus’ who was the antagonist of ‘The Gladiator’. There were many elements in where they showed the audience who the hero was for example: him riding on a horse symbolising he was a leader and a killer at war, he was seen very differently to others as didn’t use a sword at training camp and took hits from a wooden sword showing he was tough and vulnerable to others. The villain of ‘The Gladiator’ was ‘Commodus’ whom was a betrayer and a murderer killing his father for the thrown of Rome this showed he was a corrupt son.

There were many components in which made ‘The Gladiator’ a successful action adventure movie: the voyage in which ‘Maximus’ faced being a gladiator furthermore the action was taken place in many parts of the movie for example the arena in which he had to face a tournament with combat including a lot of blood and death. The place of the movie was mostly at Rome, which is seen as a very ancient, historical and cultural place linking back to the movie being about historical, roman type movie which was a reason on why they named the movie ‘The Gladiator’. They didn’t use CGI frequently throughout the movie as it made it more realistic, CGI was mostly aimed at the blood and the environment/props. Characters had armour and the king had a very precious and ancient crown.

There were more men than women in the movie. Men were represented as strong and healthy men which when to war and fought all their lives there mostly bet for winning and the people enjoyed men dying on the field this shows death and violence was a type of entertainment. I enjoyed watching this movie as it was full of suspense.

Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001):

The protagonist of the movie was ‘Lara’ whom was signified as a tough, intelligent and fearless female Tomb Raider, it was very simple discovering who the heroine was as it is written in the heading of the movie, also she was seen at the start of the movie attacking heavy-duty robots which shows the audience she was the protagonist. ‘Lara’ discovers a clock and receives a letter on the following day from her father to finish what he left, this is where the quest starts for ‘Lara’. The antagonist of ‘Lara Croft: Tomb Raider’ was ‘Manfred Powell’ he was first seen at his house were ‘Lara’ had arrived to ask him about clock. There was conflict going on between ‘Lara’ and ‘Powell’ as ‘Lara’ didn’t seem to trust ‘Powell’ this links back to ‘Powell’ represented as the antagonist, there was also another clue in where he was symbolised as the villain:

There are many element that prove it was an action/adventure movie: the fighting going on with the ‘Lara’ and her rivals including guns and shooting going on, traveling to different places made it an adventurous movie as well as the temple, dead land and Lara Croft’s mansion. They used CGI for the creatures made of stone at the temple linking it back to it being an adventure movie, the gear on ‘Lara’ was full of high-tech gadgets: guns, knife, grenade, lights. There were many props used thought out the movie, however the main 3 were: the clock, 1st piece of the triangle, 2nd piece of the triangle they were very powerful ancient artifacts that can control time and change the past, each piece symbolised the past and the present.

Men were represented differently from person to person for example ‘Powell’ was an evil villain on the other hand ‘Bryce’ ‘Lara’s’ companion was symbolised as a helpful and caring friend. Women were represented as strong and clever heroines furthermore Tomb raiders.

Star trek into darkness:

The protagonist of ‘Star trek: into darkness’ is ‘Captain Kirk’ we could tell he was the hero as he was the leader of the enterprise, and communicated with the crew as well as co-operating and respecting their views. The antagonist of the movie was ‘Khan’ whom was detected as the action he did and betraying ‘Captain Kirk’. ‘Khan was first seen on a different planet from earth fighting aliens, this shows he was brave and courageous. ’Khan’ seem to have been a calm and intelligent person with gave the audience a clue that he was the antagonist, and something was going to go wrong.

At the start of the movie the setting was very unusual as everything was red and people where very different, there was also a volcano in which was about to erupt, there spoke was introduced for the first time, he was seen as an heroic saviour. There was a lot of CGI used in ‘Star trek: into darkness’ however mostly aimed at the ship and space, it was really hard to recognise the CGI taking place as it look very real, they also focused it on the monsters. Weaponry was very advanced: The enterprise (ship), the guns, furthermore the indestructible cage in which ‘Khan’ was captured in. The setting of the movie was in space and inside the enterprise (ship). They used different types of sounds to create the feeling of the enterprise going at hyper speed furthermore the aliens had their own language.

Men were represented as the leaders and the tough, intelligent and great leaders. Women more men in the movie to women. Women were represented as cleaver, educated and helpful on of them had the ability to read and understand the language the aliens were speaking in this was very important throughout the movie.


Stardust:

The male protagonist was ‘Tristan’ he was shown as a caring whom loved ‘Victoria’ at first, the way the audience recognised the protagonist: the way he was seen for example his speech and the way he acted. ‘Yvaine’ was also a main character however she was were differently seen to other movies as an important part of the movie, she was described like a shooting star. The antagonist of ‘Stardust’ were: ‘Lamie’, ‘Mormo’ and ‘Empusa’ they were named after demonic creatures from Greek mythology. They were dressed as 3 ugly witches that were cruel and full of black magic, furthermore they killed stars for their hearts, in which it was the key to their fake beauty.

There were many elements which proved it was an action adventure movie was: there was not much CGI used however it was mostly aimed at the black magic and setting including the falling star. There were two settings in the movie that were significant: the flying ship that collected thunder from the clouds and stored them in containers for weaponry, and land they separated the land into 2 arts one in which the ‘Tristan’s’ hometown was and the other where it was forbidden to go. Characters had weapons in there hand on a public street furthermore they used masks for the witches to show their real self.


Men were seen as heroic and strong, furthermore they were different from character to character for example: ‘Tristan’ as a romantic and caring saviour, on the other hand women were represented as wicked and dangerous characters whereas ‘Yvaine’ was a beautiful and cleaver and independent. This was a very interesting movie, I enjoyed watching it.

Convention

Convention