Wednesday 26 November 2014

Blumler & Katz - Uses and gratifications theory

The uses and gratifications theory (1974) posed by Blumler & Katz suggests that an audience will actively use a form of media text to fulfill the needs of the user.

- Diversion provides a sense of escapism for the audience as a means of entertainment.

A high-concept big budget film such as Gravity would provide the audience with the pleasure of engaging in an outer-space fantasy - one which is unfathomable by the mundane consumer.

- Personal relationships can be formed via using media to develop empathy/affection towards a character/celebrity by the audience.The film Street Dreams provides a narrative based on the protagonist Derrick Cabrera for whom the audience is inclined to feel affection towards as well as feeling a part of the protagonist's journey.

Another example could also be Boardwalk Empire which evokes sympathy within an audience for the teenage boy who strives to earn money to combat an abusive father and support a sick younger sister. As well as a magazine such as VIBE which discusses issues within a particular music genre with direct address to the audience via the use of rhetorical questions.

- Personal identity is established with an audience as they can find reciprocity with themselves and a media text which exhibits and reflects similar values or lifestyles.

The constructed reality TV show exhibits the drama in the lives of Chelsea residents. An audience may familiarise themselves with particular characters who reflect certain characteristics with which a consumer can identify oneself.

- Surveillance is also a factor of gratification achieved when an audience uses a text to acquire useful information such as weather, news and other updates.

BBC News is an example of media used for surveillance as it is recognised as the UK's leading news channel providing live updates on current affairs, weather, sport etc.

Monday 24 November 2014

Film language test - Learner response

Feedback - Mr Halsey

WWW

- Many good points to just get you an A grade - the media language and theory is particularly impressive

EBI

- All four questions could have a little more focus. Notetaking and topic sentences will help here - make it easy for the examiner to award you the top level.

- Choose Q2/Q3 to rewrite on your blog

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Camerawork

- How is camerawork used to introduce the two characters in the opening scene

The scene is exposed with a close-up displaying the prop of a matchbox used to light a flame, creating an enigma code to the audience which develops speculation regarding the character who possesses this item connoting danger with potential for destruction. A gradual vertical pan is used to display the character's facial expression and him smoking a cigarette via a medium close-up which serves as the audience's initial acquaintance to the character. Familiarisation occurs as a personal relationship is established due to the camerawork being dedicated to this particular character who is made to most frequently accommodate the frame. As a result, a sense of empathy is created to evoke inquisition about the character's identity and past, as well as the following events in the narrative. More close-ups are used to show the character's activity of setting fire to the matches and the camera pans along to direct the audience's sight correlatively to the fire's progress. The flames approach a dead boy displayed via a medium close-up which, despite its severity, is marked irrelevant as it is occupies very little of the frame, does not utilise a camera angle such a close-up to familarise the audience with the character, and is only featured for a limited number of times.

The camera pans to follow the flame which continues to pan vertically upwards as urine is displayed coming down from an unknown character stood in a position of higher altitude than the audience is set to occupy, via the usage of a lower angle to connote the superiority and egotistic nature of this anonymous character. The camera then forth pans downwards to follow the character's journey down a staircase which is exhibited with a long-shot in order to maintain distance between the audience and evoke speculation about this character constructed to be mysterious. Close-ups are used frequently when displaying the involvement of this character in this scene and restricts the overview perspective of the audience to create discretion about what is happening. Furthermore, throughout the scene there is a complete lack of any shots displaying the character's face so his identity continues to remain a mystery.

During the interaction among the two characters, there is no panning as the camera remains stationary and exchanges shots along the characters' lines-of-sight. Extraordinarily however, this is executed from contrasting angles to establish a difference in superiority and power as the mysterious character is seen from a lower angle from the one who is eventually killed. Multiple close-ups follow through onto a shot of a handgun to create an action code of a gunshot to be anticipated by the audience, continuing on to not display the victim of the kill, but alternatively with the employment of an establishing shot, the audience witnesses the death narrated by the use of thoughtful camerawork.