Week 6: Peer Evaluation

Declan’s “Introduction to Editing” work for this week is very good as he has taken screen grabs and explained them all on the process of setting up an edit. His “Working Practices” work is very detailed and has a clear differentiation between positive and negative points by him bolding the negatives. For the “Introduction to Narrative” work he has done a good list of all the different techniques that can be used to tell a story in a movie and has then done a good analysis of 2 scenes and analysed them using the techniques. Declan has put in a lot of effort for his “Research Project” and even done a survey for others to answer to get to the answer for his question; he has researched into online debates that talk about his question and done a suitable conclusion.

– George Bradley

Week 5: Peer Evaluation

Declan has done good work this week going into a lot of explanation in his work. For the Introduction to Audio work he has written up and explained what each polar pattern does thoroughly. For the Sound and Meaning work he has gone into a phenomenal amount of detail about the scene he has chosen and explained it very well. The How to Become a Sound Engineer piece is very detailed and descriptive and gives a good explanation of what a sound engineer does and how to become one.

– George Bradley

Week 7: Representation in the Media: Unit 4

In this post I am going to look into the ways that different groups of people are portrayed in film and also look into positive representations of some of these groups.

 

How people are portrayed in the media:

• Stereotypes
• Positive or negative

Hegemony

Hegemonic principle

Examples of positive representations of different groups in film.

Race – Jurassic World, East Enders, Coronation street, Skins, The Avengers

Sexual orientation – Skins, Coronation street, Emmerdale, Brooklyn nine nine, Glee

Disability – Breaking Bad, Glee, Bad Education, Covert Affairs

Age – Glee, Taken, RED

In Brooklyn nine nine the Captain of the team is both gay and black, this shows a positive representation of both race and sexual orientation. A big racial stereotype is that black people tend to be the bad guy which isn’t true and isn’t the case in this programme as he is in the Captain of a police station.

 

In Forrest Gump (1994) there is a debate whether Tom Hanks’s character Forrest Gump actually has a disability, however he is said to be slow as he has a lower than average IQ. His disability doesn’t effect the story apart from making his character silly as the genre of a film is comedy. Overall it is a positive representation as it shows that he is a nice person and it doesn’t make a difference whether he has a disability or not by not making it clear.

In the programme The Walking Dead there is a character called Aaron who is gay, it has no relevance to the story and isn’t revealed until a while after the character is introduced. It shows a good representation of them as no one is offended by this or discriminating him for it.

 

This work was interesting because as a class we found it surprisingly difficult to find a positive representation of minorities such as race, disability etc. but once I found a few it was clear there are a lot of examples. 

 

 

 

 

Week 7: My Career Timeline: Unit 3

For this post I am going to write a rough timeline of where I want to end up and how I would proceed to get there after I finish the current Film and TV course I am attending at Canterbury College.

 

After College –

An Internship/Apprenticeship – http://www.indeed.co.uk/cmp/Radium-Audio-Ltd/jobs/Video-Editor-Animation-Intern-352a53a63219408f?q=Video+Editing+Internship This is so I can continue to learn while earning money in a profession I am interested in.

Freelance – After that I would look into Freelance work so that I can still continue to learn anything to make me better with the software I am working with.

Full time/Self employed – Move onto something with a more frequent income.

 

It’s interesting to look into the paths I could take in the future.

 

 

 

 

 

Week 6: Research Project: Unit 2

In this post I am going to research a question I have thought of by using many different research methods and find out the results.

 

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/9V26VFN

This is a survey that I created to be answered based on my question, ‘Do stereotypes ruin film and television’. General stereotypes of people are used quite a lot in Film and TV but is it ruining it?

There is a lot of stereotypes towards people however for this question I am going to focus on the most commonly used ones which are racial, gender and sexual orientation.

I also ask about peoples age, gender and occupation in the survey, this is because it could effect they’re opinion. If they are older they might have been brought up in a different way to someone who is younger, also depending on the occupation of this person they could have better knowledge of stereotypes and the people there aimed at.

Out of everyone who answered the survey the majority said they didn’t mind stereotypes in films. One response had a really good point, they said ‘You don’t need so much background on some characters if you can form an opinion about them by their appearance and behaviour. And it can also be handy as a plot twist when the character surprises you by being or acting differently to how you interpreted them.’

An example of this is the film ‘The Usual Suspects’, the main character has a disability which we as viewers decode at the beginning of the film as him being weak or at a disadvantage. However it turns out that is what the character was trying to do the whole time, he actually is the villain that everyone is worried about but no one expects someone with a physical disability to be bad which is stereotyping.

 

http://www.debate.org/opinions/is-stereotyping-wrong

This website is where people of any race, gender etc. can post they’re opinions and debate about them. The majority of people are saying stereotyping is wrong but there are some good reasons on both sides. An example of a good point on why stereotyping is good is that we use it to recognise who we would fit in with and most likely have similar interests with.

Some stereotypes are apparently ‘good’, however many people disagree with this. An example of a stereotype that is widely used in film is that ‘all Asians are smart’ although it is a positive message it is not necessarily good as it sets the bar unrealistically high and they are expected to be smart and if they aren’t then it might make them feel bad about themselves.

 

Overall I found based on my research that it all depends on the genre of film, some genres you can get away with it as using a mild stereotype accentuates the character but some for example a true drama would be offensive which ruins the whole film.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Week 6: Introduction to Narrative: Unit 4

For this blog I am going to choose scenes from films and explain how they use certain techniques to tell the story.

The techniques that some may use are below:

Narrative – The Story/How it is told (conveys meaning) =

• Semiology (props, locations, body language)
• Genre (expectations)
• Mise-en-scene
• Technology (lighting, camera work, audio, special effects)
• Narrative techniques (voiceover, idents)
• Narrative techniques (Structures) = Open narrative: finished on cliff hanger, Closed narrative: finished with the end, Single stranded: one main story, multi stranded: lots of stories, Realistic: feels normal, non-realistic: everything else, linear: chronological a-b-c, non-linear: not in order c-b-a, flashbacks

– The Usual Suspects (1995)

This is the ending scene from The Usual Suspects, it has an amazing plot twist where the character we believed to be the victim actually turns out to be villain we were looking for the whole time. The use of Semiology incredibly clever, the main character Rodger ‘Verbal’ Kint is believed to have a physical disability throughout the whole film. All the other characters refer to him as the cripple and this shows he is powerless and not feared. But it begins to click that he is the villain all along once he is released from custody then begins to stretch and walk away perfectly. Another thing that adds to this is the voiceover, it a police officer thinking over everything that Roger told him and realizing that all it was lies.

 

 

– Pulp Fiction (1994)

This scene is from Pulp Fiction it uses both the structure multi stranded and the use of flash forward. During this scene the character Butch kills another main character in the story who is Vince, however they show this in the middle of the film and we continue to see Vince throughout the rest of the film. This is because there are two sub stories within the main story, one that follows Butch and one that follows Vince and his partner Jules. During this scene we are following Butch so this explains why we continue to see Vince after his death as we then switch to his story.

 

There are reasons the film is made the way they are an I found this interesting to research, I feel that I have a better understanding of all the techniques such as voice overs and how to use them for my own productions in the future.

Week 6: Introduction to Editing: Unit 1

This is a link to a word document with a step by step of what I had to do on Avid and explanations of each part.

 

introduction-to-editing

 

I found that editing the actual footage is a simple task once you understand what you are doing and what every button does. There is also a lot you can experiment with and I have covered hardly anything yet.

Week 6: Working Practices in the Media Industry: Unit 3

I am going to research all the different working practices available and make an informed decision on which one I feel is the best option.

 

(Bold = Negative)

Freelance – Is were someone is self employed but does not work for the same people long term, they move from job to job as and when they are needed. They tend to get paid more than permanent job roles do however they have less work throughout the year.

There are many pros and con of working Freelance. (Negatives are in bold)

• Flexible (different types of jobs), there are a lot of different jobs you can choose to do or choose not to do.
• Skills base improves, there is a wide range of different jobs involved whilst working Freelance so you gain a lot of skill and experience.
• Lack of security, you only work (1/3 of the year) therefor could be out of work for long periods of time.
• Need to network.
• Interesting, you have a variety of different jobs to choose from so if you get tired of a certain thing you can choose not to do it.
• Independent, you have unlimited freedom therefor you can pick and choose which jobs you wish to take.
• Saying no, it is hard to say no as you don’t know for sure when your next job will be.
• Organised, you need to stay organised to keep a good reputation in the industry.

http://www.indeed.co.uk/Freelance-Media-jobs This website has example of Freelance jobs that you can apply for and tells you everything about the job and how much you will get paid. There is one for a Freelance video editor, it is located in London, the hours are not said however you can get in touch to find out and the pay is negotiable.

Contract (permanent) – Is were you work for a company permanently and get paid by a day rate and work on all there projects.

There are many pros and con of a Permanent Contract. (Negatives are in bold)

• Regular pay, unlike working Freelance you are hired permanently and get paid at a day rate.
• Regular hours, again unlike Freelance you work the 9 till 5 every weekday however it may vary depending on the project you are working on.
• Repetitive, it can tend to be the same thing day in day out. For example if you were a camera man working for the shopping channel then you would be on set recording that all day  
• Same subject.
• Safe, you are assured work all the time you are employed by that company so you don’t have to worry about being unemployed.

http://www.indeed.co.uk/cmp/Film-AM/jobs/Camera-Operator-9646623fa9cbc0e1?q=Full+Time+camera+operator This is a full time job application for a camera operator/video editor, the salary is dependent on your experience and the location is in Nottingham however they accept people form Derby, Loughborough and Mansfield.

Short term contract – You work for a company but only for a fixed amount of time and on certain projects.

There are many pros and con of a Short term Contract. (Negatives are in bold)

• Work on more than one project, you work on more than one project with the company rather than being permanently employed.
• Regular pay, you are on a regular pay check so don’t have to worry about not being paid enough.
• Regular hours, you are given regular hours so are not out of work certain days.
• Fixed length of time, you are not employed permanently by the company but are employed for certain projects and once they are done you look for other work.

Project contract – You are employed for one project and have regular pay and hours during your employment.

• Working on one project, unlike being on a Short term project you are employed for one project and then are done after that.
• Similar to freelance but longer so more secure, you work regular hours and get regular pay while you are employed for that certain project.
• Less pay, it less pay than Freelance however there is more reliable work, therefor safer as you are less likely to be unemployed.

Self employed –

• Own business: video/film, you can start your own business and choose your hours.
• Your the boss, your always in employment if you have clients.
• More stable(ish)
• You work you earn, you can work whenever you want if you work longer hours then you earn more.
• You find the client, if you can’t find anyone to do work for you will be unemployed until you do. 
• You are responsible for everything, You are in charge of getting everything organised. You have to find the clients and also people to work for you.
• Pressure, as you are in charge there is pressure to find clients and people to hire.

 

I think after researching all the types of working practices that being Self employed is the best, I would have chose Freelance however I think that self employed being more safe and reliable work it makes it the better option.

Week 5: Introduction to Audio: Unit 1: Mike

In this blog I am going to explore Foley Operators, I have been given a task to create sounds using object that I have available to me so I am going to experiment with different objects to try to recreate sounds.

 

We looked at Foley Operators and the types of things that they do, we had to go out and try to recreate certain sounds using the environment that we are in.

The sounds we had to create were:

• Human voice
• Footsteps
• Running water
• Rain
• Spaceship
• Horseshoes

The main problem with this was the environment we are in is Canterbury College, therefore it is very loud for the whole duration of the day and is rarely quiet. This meant that me and my group found it hard to find a quiet place to record so that all background noise is eliminated. We did manage to find a quiet room, however another problem occurred which was that there was reverberation for at least 1 second. This meant that the sound from us talking bounced around the room for around 1 second before stopping which lowered the quality of recording.

You can find our recordings below.

mikes audio lesson Foley noises

 

I found it was surprisingly difficult to recreate sounds using objects found in the area and it was also difficult to find a quite place to record these different noises.

Week 5: Sound and meaning; an analysis: Unit 4

For this post I’m going to pick a scene from a film were the sound used conveys meaning, I’m going to explain why and how they have used that certain techniques over anything else. I’m also going to describe the use of Semiology, Genre, and mise-on-scene in the scene and how the sound relates to all three techniques.

 

The film scene I have chose for this post is the amputation scene from 127 hours (07 Jan 2011). This film follows a man after a boulder falls onto his arm trapping him in a canyon in Utah, there is no civilisation near by and he’s been trapped for almost five days and is forced to take action in order to survive.

It starts fairly quiet apart from some low music. By having no background noise it shows that he is isolated from any kind of civilisation, he is alone and relying on himself to survive. The character is quiet and calm which could suggest he is concentrating and you as a viewer can understand what he is thinking and what he is about to do. The mise-en-scene also supports this idea as the character is staring back and forth between his knife and his trapped arm, he also seems skeptical over what he’s about to do however understands that this is the only thing he can do to escape.

The music fits the theme of the film which is Thriller, however it is also slow paced which fits perfectly with what’s on screen as the character may be starting to get drowsy because of the pain and the loss of blood. I also think the music represents determination as he’s gone this far and there’s no going back, he needs to do this if he is going to survive and he understands that.

Then when he tries to cut something in his arm a sound plays every time he touches it, it’s an intense, alarming screech which suggests its a nerve as that is a very painful and sensitive thing. It is similar to the game operation as when you touch something wrong it makes a really horrific sound. Once he cuts the nerve the noise plays for longer and is the only thing we can hear, this shows he is in unimaginable pain and could be on the verge of passing out.

Towards the end the determined music starts playing louder, this suggest he is at the end of the fight and has got to continue for a little longer. As well as the music playing louder the mise-en-scene also plays a big part in showing determination as we see a hallucination of what could be the characters son which drives the character to complete his task. Then once he is free the music cuts quickly which could show relief that the hard part is over and that he is going home. As a viewer this is a horrific scene to watch, but what makes it worse is the genre which is that its a Biography which makes people feel bad for the person who went through it who was Aron Ralston.

The sound in this scene does a really good job of describing what it would have been like to be in that situation and works well with the Mise-en-scene to create a immersive scene.