Audiences revisited

Learning objective:
To understand the relationship between the audience and the media text.

Key terms:
Text out-This relates to the strategies the text uses to attract an audience rather than referring to how the audience may respond.
Narrow cast-This is where a text, for example a magazine about sea fishing, will target a very specific, narrow audience.
Ethnicity- The upbringing and beliefs of different ethnic groups may affect their response to, for example, a news report on the troubles in Syria.
Culture and cultural experience-The upbringing and ideologies of the audience as well as life experiences will affect how an audience responds to a text.
The text itself may also shape the experience of the audience. For example, you may never have been to America but your perception of it may be shaped by films, newspapers and television.
Cultural competence- This also links to age, experience and gender. Some audiences may have different cultural competencies than others. For example, older people may be less comfortable accessing information through digital technology.
Situated culture- Where you are and who you are with will affect how you respond to a text.
Acquiescence- The reluctant acceptance of something without protest.

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Audience Revisited

No media text can be analysed without considering the concept of audience. 
Unlike previously thought, audiences are not mass, they are made up of individuals whose responses are influenced by a range of factors.

All media industries are aware of the importance of the audience and use a range of strategies to attract and maintain them.

Consider the following:

Who is the target audience of the text?
How do media texts target and appeal to an audience?

This is a text out approach and addresses what the particular text does to attract an audience.
In order to understand how the text appeals to an audience you must first be aware of the target audience for that text.
Different texts will adopt different approaches  - some texts narrow cast and others will try to attract a broad audience.

How do media texts position audiences?

Texts place audiences in a particular position in order to encourage and manipulate them into accepting the messages contained (encoded) within the text.
This is achieved through:

Technical and audio codes
A close up of a character's face in an emotional scene involves the audience and encourages them to empathise with the character.

Tense music in a thriller combined with a shot from the POV of the main protagonist will also make the audience feel more involved with the action.

Task 1: Read this article and write a paragraph or two in your orange books on how film-makers manipulate our emotions with music?

Consider: The impact of audio, the differing soundtracks of a variety of genres, the most powerful audio-visual texts you know and how the soundtrack played an important role in making that text memorable.

Language and mode of address
The way in which the text speaks to the audience will place them in a particular position.
The chatty, colloquial style of a teenage magazine will makes the young reader feel part of the community.

Construction
Media texts, through their construction, are said to create an idea of their audience or user. 
For example, certain magazines and documentary television programmes tell the audience what is important and how they should live their lives.

Context
Where you are and who you are with will affect how you respond to a text. This is to do with Situated culture. For example, a film watched in the cinema may be responded to differently if it is viewed in the living room with family and different again if it is viewed on a tablet alone.

Positioning

How do media texts position audiences?
The relationship between media and audience is fluent and changing
Audiences are not a mass and their responses are complex and sophisticated
Audiences are made up of individuals either PASSIVE OR ACTIVE

Active Audience
This audience responds to and interprets the media text in different ways and actively engages with the messages.

Passive Audience
This is an audience that does not engage actively with the text. They do not question the text and therefore accept the preferred reading without challenge. 
They therefore might be more affected by the messages contained within the text.


When discussing the mode of address there are several aspects to consider.

Textual Investigation:

Saga is a monthly edition magazine which targets both men and women but of an older age. 

A direct mode of address has been used with the subject of the main image engaging the reader with his gaze.

It provides a minimal layout, this is most likely because unlike most gossip/celeb or fashion magazines, it doesn't need to be eye catching in order to stand out from its competitors. The market for older people's magazines is a niche one so it can focus more on the issues that are important to it's readership. 

The main image is of the actor Michael Caine who is known for being an elderly gentleman still very successful in his acting career. 

He is instantly recognisable and therefore relatable for the magazine's target audience. His opinion would be accepted by the majority of the preferred target audience.

The Anchorage for the image is the largest cover line; 

'There was crime when I was growing up. But I cant remember people being terrified to go out'. 

The image is a long shot, zoomed out showing Caine in his surroundings. 

He is standing on what looks like a pavement in a confident pose which signifies that he is 'braving' the outdoors. 

There are very few cover lines and lots of the space is left blank in order for the audience to see the background and understand the main story clearly. 

The main article is also reinforced with the words 'mean streets' 'he doesn't like what he see's'.

This approach places the audience in an acquiescent role asking them to accept without protest.

Saga goes for the unique selling point of being 'the UK's best selling monthly magazine' this is printed above the masthead in bold, sans serif font and colour. 
The text/audience relationship can be considered to be semi formal and the articles are 

It makes lot's of references on the cover to being older, mentions many legendary older people and also discusses 'ageism' it is a very subtle mode of address because if the magazine used a less familiar mode of address when dealing with the topic of age it would risk alienating its audience who dislike being told what to think. 

The mode of address is also rather casual, it doesn't need to 'shout' at audiences with overuse of exclamation marks and bright coloured fonts, it also doesn't need to mislead audiences to make stories seem more exciting than they are. The cover lines are exactly what they say on the tin when you read on about them and therefore meets audiences expectations.

Task 2:
Study the front of GQ Magazine below.
Suggest two target audiences for the magazine.
In about 200 words explore how audiences have been targeted.

Representation revisited

Learning objective: 
To apply key questions about representation to specific media texts

Key terms:
Mediation - This is the way in which a media text is constructed in order to represent the producer of the text's vision of reality. This is constructed through selection organisation and focus.

Window on the world - This is the idea that media texts, particularly those that present aspects of reality, for example news programmes, are showing the audience the real world as it happens.

Ethnocentric - If a newspaper is ethnocentric then it tends to be concerned with issues that are close to home and will more directly interest the readers. For example, a local newspaper may only run a national story if a local person is involved.

Understanding the concept of representation is essential, this understanding must be developed at A2 and must go beyond a simplistic discussion of, for example, how stereotypes can be harmful.

In order to analyse representation in media texts you must be aware of both the context and the purpose of the representation contained within the text.

These are some of the key questions you need to consider:

1. How is the world represented in the media text constructed?
2. Who is in control of the text and how are their ideas and values communicated in the text?
3. Who is the target audience of the text? 
4. How may different audiences respond to the representations contained within the text? 
5. Who would accept and who would challenge?
6. What messages are contained within the text? 
7. How might these messages impact upon the audience?
8. For example, lifestyle magazines represent women as thin, beautiful and desirable. What effect might that representation have upon a young female reader?

1. The aspects that make up any media text will have been constructed to achieve an effect. This finished construction, particularly in factual texts, gives an illusion of reality that becomes accepted by the audience as the truth.

The documentary, fly on the wall section of a programme like Strictly Come Dancing constructs a narrative that positions the audience through the editing of the film footage. The hours of film have been edited down to present a particular view of a character or situation in order to manipulate the emotions of the audience .

Task 1: Write a paragraph about the selected representation that is Educating Essex (below).

Consider:
How the cameras have been positioned.
What characters have the creators focused on? Why focus on these types of characters?
To what extent are we seeing a reality?
To what extent are we seeing a re-presentation?

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More related key words and terms:

Idealism of youth - The unrealistic belief in or pursuit of perfection.

Hedonism - the pursuit of pleasure; sensual self-indulgence.

Representation as a media concept

The producers of a media text encode ideas and messages within the text through representations. The aim of the producers of the text will be to communicate their ideology to the audience.
Audiences then decode the messages and respond to them in different ways.

All media texts are constructed and all representations contained within the texts are constructed. This gives an illusion of reality which some audiences will accept as the truth without challenge.

Representations are constructed through technical and audio codes, layout and design and language and mode of address.

The context and purpose of the representation is important. The representation of young people in The Inbetweeners is constructed to make an audience laugh because it is a situation comedy.

Stereotypes are constructions which are made up of over exaggerated and easily recognisable character traits. They are used to convey information rapidly as audiences will have expectations of how certain stereotypical characters will behave.
Not all stereotypes are negative.

Stereotypes and prejudices need not necessarily be negative.

Many stereotypes attribute positive qualities to an entire group, such as the ‘athleticism of Black people’, or the ‘warmth and charm of the Irish’, or – in the case of young people – the ‘idealism of youth’. 

Often such stereotypes can be seen to ‘romanticise’ the group in question. While this might seem harmless enough, it still amounts to a simplification of a complex social reality, and in many cases is patronising in tone and disempowering in effect.

Stuart Hall stated:

People who are in any way different from the majority – ‘them’ rather than ‘us’ – are frequently exposed to [a] binary form of representation. They seem to be represented through sharply opposed, polarized, binary extremes – good/bad, civilized/primitive, ugly/excessively attractive, repelling-because different/ compelling because strange and exotic. And they are often required
to be both things at the same time!

(Hall 1997: 17)

Task 1: 

Watch the above trailer for The Inbetweeners 2 movie.

Indicate how audiences identify and recognise the representation of young British men in the clip.

Task 2: 

Read the article from The Telegraph (9/7/2015) and the comments thread that follows.

Answer the following question:

To what extent are the characters in the film The Inbetweeners 2 a true reflection of young, British men today.

Consider how versions of the real world have been re-presented.

Task 3: 
Give an example of a positive stereotype and write a paragraph about it.
Consider:
How the stereotype has been constructed. Consider behaviour and appearance.
Who benefits from the stereotyping?

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All media texts go through a process of mediation.
They are not windows on the world. Through construction and selection the texts are interpreted for us and the representation of the issue, event and social group is presented in a particular way through this process.

Mediation - Relates to construction and selection and is the process that a text may go through before it is consumed by an audience.
In the riots of 2011, the news of events came from different sources and then appeared on the front page of newspapers. With a story like this, the audience at home have to rely on how the event is represented and mediated as they cannot witness it first hand.

Mediation processes: The London riots 2011.

Aspects of the event are captured by a camera and this immediately gives a focus through what is included and what is left out.

One of the main front page images used was that of a youth wearing a track suit with a hood in front of a burning car, this was then anchored by the caption suggesting how the audience should view this image.

A headline gave further interpretation, in this case through the use of emotive and hyperbolic language, including lexis like yobs, feral and mob rule.

Within the newspaper, the editorial may offer further opinion offering a representation of the event.

The way in which the event was mediated through the images, text and representation of young people affects the way in which the audience may respond.

Representation A2 


Ideology

Task 3: How does the construction of these texts suggest an audience should respond to this event?

Narrative revisited

Learning objective: 
To identify narrative structure in media texts.

Key terms:
Back story - This is part of the narrative and may be the experiences of a character or the circumstances of an event that occur before the action or narrative of a media text.
It is a device that gives the audience more information and makes the main story more credible.

Suspend disbelief - here, the audience may be aware that where they are positioned by the camera, for example, is impossible, but they do not challenge and instead believe it because it enhances their involvement in the story.

Intertextuality - Using one text within another. For example, the use of a fairy tale within a music video. Gwen Stefani uses the narrative features of Rapunzel in her music video The Sweet Escape.

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All media texts whether they are fact or fictional, print or audio visual, have a narrative structure.
The producers of media texts employ a range of narrative techniques to develop the story arc and hold the attention of the audience.

Narrative techniques in audio visual texts

Manipulation of time and space - the narrative can move the audience around within a given time frame. For example, a crime drama may employ a non linear narrative where it starts with the discovery of a crime and then moves back in time to show the lead up to the crime.
See the TV series Columbo for example.

Three strand narrative - this is the most common form of narrative structure whereby three different story lines are introduced in the beginning and then these narratives interweave throughout the programme.
Some will begin and end in one episode, others will continue on. In this way both loyal and one off viewers gain some pleasure from the programme.





Flexi narrative - this is a more complex narrative structure that is consequently more challenging for an audience. Here the narrative is made up of a series of interweaving story lines involving more complicated scenarios and plot situations. There will often be narrative twists and enigmas until the final exposition.

Narrative conventions in audio visual texts

Flashbacks - these are often used to give the audience the backstory and can serve to develop the audience understanding of a character or their motivation within the storyline. Audiences are given clues when time and space are being manipulated, for example a change in clothing, iconography or the style of the filming.

Point of view shot - this helps to involve the audience in the narrative as they view the action from the point of view of a particular character.

Audience positioning - this is where the camera or audio codes place the audience in a particular position. This may more literally as a murderer stalking a victim or emotionally as where the music may cause the audience to feel tense or sad.

Apparently impossible position - this is another type of audience positioning wherby the camera places the audience in an unusual position to view the action. For example, viewing the operating table from the ceiling in a hospital drama. Audiences will suspoend disbelief if their involvement in the narrative is enhanced.

Privileged spectator position - here the audience is involved in the narrative as the camera shows them what the other characters cannot see. This allows the audience to anticipate how the story will unfold.

Enigma codes - these are evident in both audio visual and print based media texts.
They are a way of restricting narrative information given to the audience, the purpose being to make the audience watch or read on. For example, the use of teaser trailers that divulge minimal narrative clues is a main technique in film production.

Action codes - something a character does allows the audience to anticipate how the narrative will develop. For example, the writing and delivering of a letter giving important information.

Audio:
Voice over - this can be used in certain media texts to fill in gaps in the narrative or give clues to what the audience might expect from the storyline, for example in a film trailer.

Dialogue - a converstion between two characters fro example can be a rapid way of filling in background information and establishing character motive within the narrative. Dialogue may also serve to to give the audience expectations about how the narrative will unfold. Selected sound bites of dialogue are used in film and television trailers to give clues to the narrative.

Music videos - the narrative music video.

One type of music video is the narrative music video.
Here, the performer's aim is to take the audience through the story of their music in some of the following ways:

Filming and editing that tells the story featured or suggested in the lyrics. This narrative may surprise the audience by giving a different interpretation than the one most obviously suggested in the lyrics.

The construction of a narrative that may involve the performer playing themselves or a character that they have created. Alternatively, the artist may not appear and the characters in the story may all be actors.

The creation of a narrative that is like a mini film. The production values may be high depending on the previous success of the band or performer. It may have a clear linear structure or may be a series of of seemingly unrelated narrative events.

A narrative that may contain enigmas which maintain the attention of the audience.

Stereotypical representations of characters that communicate the story effectively to the audience.

Elements of intertextuality.
Music videos can use well known narratives as a framework for the video and can establish clear stereotypes using this method.



Task 1:
Deconstruct the narrative within the video embedded below using the correct terminology.

Elements of intertextuality. Taylor Swift's music video for her song You Belong With Me uses the Cinderella story and establishes clear stereotypes of American high school teenagers and a 'femme fettle'.

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Narrative conventions in print based texts

Print texts can also have a narrative structure. In this format, narrative refers to the codes and conventions that are recognisable to audiences as belonging to that text.

These include:

Headlines - in quality newspaper the headline gives information about the story that is to follow. In the popular press these may be more dramatic than informative. the purpose of both is to encourage the audience to read on.

Cover lines - in magazines these appear on the front cover and suggest the content. They usually contain enigmas and the audience has to buy the magazine to get the full story.

Images and captions - the purpose of images used in print based texts is usually to suggest or develop a narrative. The caption that accompanies the image interprets the meaning for the audience. For example, advertisements use images and copy to place us within a particular, often aspirational, narrative in order to persuade us to buy the product.

Language and mode of address - this can give information about the genre and what the audience might expect. The written information on the back of a DVD cover will encapsulate the narrative of the text, often using genre specific language in order to draw the audience in.

Enigma codes - these are also a feature of print texts. They appear in taglines, headlines and cover lines. Their purpose is to restrict the narrative - the audience have to access the text in order to read the whole story.

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The Newspaper Industry and Narrative

The narrative of a newspaper can be discussed in terms of the structure of the publication.
The audience for the text will have an expectation of the this structure and what appears where; this will have been built up over time.The narrative commences with the front page which tends to have a conventional house style and a brand identity which remains consistent for that newspaper and is recognised by the audience. This is then followed by the regular placing of other internal pages.
The narrative is also conveyed through:

Language and mode of address:
The mode of address of The Independent is formal, colloquialisms and slang are rarely used.
There is often use of subject specific lexis elated to a story or feature and an expectation that the reader will understand this. For example, 'Call for amnesty on illegal immigrants.'

Content:
The Independent is less concerned with gossip stories related to the rich and famous and more concerned with news and current affairs. the lighter aspects of the paper will focus on lifestyle and arts. Often the newspaper will have an ongoing narrative related to a particular story and will include follow up reports.

The front page:
This is instrumental in establishing the overall narrative of the paper. Through its front page stories it will set out the agenda of the newspaper and what the reader can expect. It will set out the agenda of the newspaper and what the reader can expect. It will also use narrative devices such as enigmas, these are evident in the headlines and subheadings and encourage the reader to buy the newspaper to find out the rest of the story.

The Images:
In newspapers the images also have a role in developing the narrative. They give the audience a visual depiction of the story and can capture a moment in time effectively.
This is particularly true with regard to news stories where the reader has not experienced the event first hand and has to rely on the newspaper report for their information. The caption that accompanies the image anchors it and mediates the image and therefore the story for the audience. This constructing of the narrative can manipulate the readers response to the story. Images in newspapers can be very dramatic and can often tell a story much more effectively than words.
This is done with consideration given to the visual and technical codes.

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Analysing the front page of a newspaper. The Independent.

Learning objective: To analyse the front page of a modern newspaper.

Key terms:

Splash - The story that is given the most prominence on the front page of a newspaper.

Sister paper - One that is published by the same company and has links to other papers in the brand.

The Masthead - is in a strong, large, blocked font with connotations of stability and reliability.
the use of the colour red signifies power and is dramatic and eye catching. The suggestion pf power is further enhanced by the logo of the bird of prey delivering the paper.

The central image - of a fertilised egg cell is large and thought provoking and is typical of the style of this newspaper in that it is also enigmatic and takes up most of the page.
It is unusual not to personalise the story, further suggesting the concentration on serious, ground breaking stories.

The headline and sub heading - anchor the image and explain its relevance. Although not essentially dramatic, the headline is portentous or significant.
The use of the word our makes the story relevant to the reader.

Enigma - is used ; babies with three parents.

The copy - associated with the main story is relatively dense for a front cover and uses technical and specific lexis: 'legislation to allow the use of mitochondrial replacement could be passed by parliament ...' the expectation is that the reader will understand or want to find out more about this story, signifying the target audience and their concerns.

The plug/puff - focuses on food and drink. The expectation is the reader will recognise Gordon Ramsay and understand the intertextual headline. the other plug items refer to punch and the 10 best rose wines. This suggests a middle class target audience.

The secondary stories - remain with serious news items including Leveson and the funeral of James Gandolfini, the star of The Sopranos. The subheading 'Back to Homs' assumes the readers will know that this is about the Syrian conflict.

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Task 1: 

Answer the following question in your orange books:
Why is it important that the genre of the newspaper is recognisable through for example, the front page?



Task 2: 
Analyse the front cover of the i newspaper which was published on the same day as the above text.

Consider:

• Layout and design
• Masthead
• Sister paper
• Slogan
• Price
• Story topics
• Central image
• Positioning of audience
• Brand identity

Genre revisited.

Learning objectives: 

• To identify genre conventions on magazine covers.
• To discuss auteur theory through a film director of choice.

Key terms: 
Symbiotic-
A relationship of mutual benefit or dependence.
Sub genre -
this is where a large 'umbrella genre is sub divided into smaller genres each of which has their own set of conventions. For example, horror genre can be sub divided into slasher horror, zombie horror, horror comedy etc.
François Truffaut - Auteur theorist

Hybrid genre -
These are media texts that incorporate elements of more than one genre and are therefore more difficult to classify. Dr Who is a science fiction/fantasy television genre text.

It is important that you transfer the skills you have learned at AS level into your A2 year.
The final exam is synoptic and you are expected to bring to it all the knowledge and skills you have learned over the whole course.

Audience pleasures - 

The pleasures offered by genres can be very immediate and non-intellectual. We often go to receive sensation, an immediate emotional response. The adrenalin of adventure, the anxiety of a thriller or the release of tension through comedy. In the two most extreme genres, horror and erotica, critics argue (Clover 1987) that we want to watch our deepest desires and fears being played out.

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Genre - revisited

This is a way of categorising media texts through a set of easily recognisable conventions or repertoire of elements.  These genre conventions are repeated over time and are therefore familiar to audiences. categorising media texts in this way is not always straightforward - some media texts belong to sub genres and some are hybrid genres.

Genre conventions can be divided into key areas: Narrative, characters, settings, codes.

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Narrative - this is the structure of a particular genre, how its story is told.
Some narratives have a straightforward linear structure, some are more complex incorporating
multi-strand narratives that challenge and hold an audiences interest.
In discussing and analysing narrative it is important to be aware of how that narrative is constructed through a range of techniques.

Task 1: Write out and answer the question below:
How has narrative been constructed in the print based ad below?

Characters - specific genres tend to have recognisable characters that help to establish the genre. Audiences become more familiar with these 'stock' characters and can predict their role within the narrative and how they will behave. Stars may become associated with a specific genre through playing the same or a particular type of role. This can help with the promotion of the text.

Task 2:
List 2/3 characters that are usually associated with three of the following film genres, state the texts they are associated with:

• Action
• Horror
• Sci-Fi
• Sport

Setting and iconography - certain genres are recognisable through the use of setting. Establishing shots can be used quickly to transmit information about where a programme or film is set through the use, for example of iconic landmarks. Certain genres have specific objects linked to them, these help to establish the genre for the audience. Print texts will use iconography to establish genre, for example the front cover of a heavy metal music magazine.


Task 3:
Identify 3 iconic landmarks and write the connotations associated with them.
For example: Buckingham Palace.

The picture is of Buckingham Palace in London England, the official home of the Monarch. suggests that England  is a stable country with a well respected ruling king or Queen, who comes from a tradition of established monarchy but is not dominated by the monarch – compare this quite discrete palace to any one of Saddam Hussein’s many enormous palaces.

Somehow this picture represents aspects of Great Britain that are attractive to people from abroad. It also connotes patriotism and pride to many English people. Many well known buildings work hard to express a variety of connotations – can you think of any other famous buildings that symbolise more than just the use of building.

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Technical and audio codes - some genres employ a particular style of filming that makes them recognisable, for example slow editing and tense none diegetic music of a thriller. 
Signature tunes for television programmes, for example Dr Who, may have been modernised but have remained constant over a period of time because they are recognisable to audiences.
Particular shots are associated with specific genres, for example the use of a close up in tense, emotional situations in a soap opera or teen drama.

Homework: 
Answer the question within an illustrated Ppt presentation of between 2-4 slides.
Look at the magazine front covers shown below and choose two to analyse for genre conventions.





How do the front covers of the magazines below (Instyle, Fangoria and MixMag) establish the genre?
Consider: 
Characters, 
Setting and iconography, 
Technical and Visual codes, 
Target audience, 
Mode of address.

Instyle has a masthead that is recognisable to its established target audience.

It always employs the same font style which is an essential part of the branding of the magazine.

Cameron Diaz is known through her star persona as a girl next door type in addition to being a pinup celebrity through films like Sex Tape and Something About Mary.

Through the use of this main image, Instyle are implying that by buying the magazine the reader can learn the secrets of looking like a natural woman yet retaining the sense of fun and sexiness that Cameron Diaz is known for.

The mid shot shows Diaz in a 'chocolate box' pose in a blue embroidered dress without cleavage showing. This can appeal to a target audience of sophisticated, young, adult women who would buy the magazine in order to construct their personal identity. The image uses a direct mode of address and a smiling facial expression which connotes that the magazine is a friend.

The cover lines tell the reader that they can find additional information about Diaz inside in the form of her personal life and love. 

From a feminist perspective the magazine has used an airbrushed image to create an unattainable image with content that limits the interest in women to their personal affairs and physical appearance.

the fonts used on the front of the magazine are a combination of serif and sans serif within a limited palette of feminine, pastel colours. 

The facts and figures used on the cover suggest that the information provided inside the magazine is factual and therefore the truth. This connotes that the mag contains informative articles based on fact rather than opinion.

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Fangoria is a niche magazine specifically for horror fans, meaning that the advertisements of the films that feature have to be extremely persuasive in order for the audience to be lured into watching the film.

The main image for this magazine issue dominates the page and attracts the reader's attention instantly due to the iconic prop of a mask being used. The main image is seen as the protagonist due to antagonist wearing a pale blue mask, pale blue connotes nature which correlates with the title as it is set in the woods. This is slightly strange as red is the main theme or horror yet the blue has been used, indicating that the film may be of a strange nature and not be as we as an audience presumed.  

Due to it dominating the whole page, this portrays the idea that the narrative is again the main feature of this film, that there is no need for any sell line or persuasive text as the narrative itself speaks for itself. The image displays an irregular antagonist who is wearing an unusual mask, which takes the form of a childlike face, perhaps showing that the protagonists of this horror may be of a younger age. The antagonist is wearing a suit, which the readers would normally associate with for formal events or even a job, signifying to the audience that the antagonist's main job or ambition is life is to be the antagonist. 

There is no stock location shown on this front cover, meaning that the readership are not supposed to know too much about the film, as they would expect the location to the in the woods. Keeping it up to their imagination. The film poster for The Cabin in the Woods does not share a correlation with the magazine front cover, as the poster portrays a cabin that has been in fact victimized and fallen protagonist to an antagonist within the woods. The colours are or a cold pale nature, to sense normality which will later be ruined within this slasher. The only links between the two are the use of pale colours, showing no such symbiotic link. 

This may be due to the magazine front cover too frightening for everyday marketing, that can be placed anywhere in public whereas the readership of this magazine have signed up for the sole purpose of horror and are available for any graphic or scary imagery. No part of the storyline is revealed, persuading the readership to go ahead and watch the film to find out if their thoughts match to the narrative. A medium shot is used to gain a greater physical view of the antagonist, direct address is also carried out in a way that the antagonist is staring straight at the readership, but we as the readers are unable to look into the characters eyes due to the mask. The mask itself is the only way the readership are able to understand which genre this horror belongs to, as masks are mainly commonly used by an antagonist within slashers.

The masthead is the largest text of the page signifying this is what should catch the reader's attention immediately. This is also the main amount of text on the page other than a sell line placed above the masthead which gives the readers a slight snippet into the world of the movie. Pale blue is colour that is used as the masthead, which is the same pale blue as the villains mask. The name also fits in well with the genre, as the fan enjoy gore, thrilling, and violence which will directly appeal to this readership as the film featured belongs to the slasher sub genre. 

The brand identity of the magazine is not reinforced within this issue, as there are no sell lines, but however the smaller images that are shown as small snapshots in a slideshow form is placed along the left hand side of the page instead of the bottom but still there. The red and white is still used in some way on the front of the issue showing what film genre it belongs to whilst outlining its brand identity. The masthead colour has been adjusted purely because of the film it features, proving that it is a promotional tool and will help the audience be persuaded into watching the film.

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Genre and technical codes

Technical codes are all the ways in which equipment is used to tell the story in a media text, for example the camera work in a film.

How codes and conventions apply in media studies
Codes and conventions are used together in any study of genre – it is not enough to discuss a technical code used such as camera work, without saying how it is conventionally used in a genre.

For example, the technical code of lighting is used in some way in all film genres. 

It is a convention of the horror genre that side and back lighting is used to create mystery and suspense – an integral part of any horror movie. 

Shot size

It is important that you can recognise the different shot types and know why they are being used. Here are some examples and why they are used:

Establishing shot - will establish the setting for the audience

Aerial shot - A shot taken from a crane, plane, or helicopter, restricted to exterior locations.
The trailer for Psycho starts with an aerial shot of Hitchcock outside The Bates Motel.

Long shot - A type of long shot that includes the human body in full, with the head near the top of the frame and the feet near the bottom.It makes for a relatively stable shot that can accommodate movement without reframing. Marlon Brando in 'On the waterfront'.

Mid Shot (M/S): The mid shot is the most popular shot in movie-making, and includes the subject and a little bit of the environment around it. Included in the mid shot is the two-shot, which includes two actors facing the same direction in the shot, as well as the 0ver-the-shoulder shot, which is used to show a conversation with the actors standing opposite each other. This shot shows the actor who is speaking, and usually a little bit of the shoulder of the actor to whom he is speaking in order to establish spacial awareness for the viewer. Kate and Leo in Titanic.

Close Up (C/U): A close up shot, usually of an actor’s face, is used to add variety, and will often be cut to from a mid shot, at the same angle, to add dramatic effect.  The subject will take up most of the frame, so care must be taken so that the subject does not move around too much.

Extreme Close Up (EC/U): This shot is often an effect shot used to draw attention to important details such as a shot of just the actor’s eyes with tears welling up in them or to show a text message on the subject’s cell phone.

CAMERA ANGLES

Bird’s Eye: This angle is gives a direct overhead view and can be used similar to an extreme wide shot to show the entire environment from straight overhead.

Eye Level: If the cameraman were talking to someone face-to-face, and he were looking through the camera, he would have an eye-level angle. Viewers expect this angle to create a parallel between the bottom edge of the frame and the horizon, otherwise it will seem off, and will make the audience uncomfortable.

High Angle/Low Angle: These angles show the subject from above or below (around 45 degrees from eye level). This is often used for dramatic effect. For example, a low angle could be used to imply greater dominance of a physically imposing character by looking up at him. However, the high or low angle require greater planning, as a high angle could throw off the lighting or show unwanted parts of the scenery.

Dutch Angle: The Dutch angle is what you get when the camera isn’t level. The horizon will not be parallel to the lower edge of the shot, which can be used to create an unsettling or anxious effect on the viewers.

Lighting

Low Key
Dramatic, moody - can be used to convey sorrow

High Key
Bright and exciting - can be used to convey happiness

Low contrast
Not many different colours, everyday

High contrast
Dramatic, volatile

Coloured lighting 

can convey excitement 

Film lighting, light and colour part 2 

Focus

Deep
Look at everything

Selective
Looks at most important subject

Soft
When edges blur together

Denotation and connotation

Remember to keep the actual image separate from the interpretation of it.

Denotation
What is literally in the picture

Connotation
Different interpretations which might be associated

Auteur theory

In his 1954 essay "Une certaine tendance du cinéma français" ("A certain tendency in French cinema"), François Truffaut coined the phrase "la politique des Auteurs"

At first glance, auteur theory is deceptively simple; its basic premise is that a movie director, in certain circumstances, can be assigned the title of 'author'. Sadly, it is far more complex than that. It can perhaps be best explained by US film critic and leading proponent of the theory, Andrew Sarris:

The strong director imposes his own personality on a film; the weak director allows the personalities of others to run rampant.

So who is an auteur, and how might they be recognised from a 'normal' film director?

Case Study: Tim Burton

One example of a director that could be considered an auteur, Tim Burton's films have a very distinct style, and he often deals with similar themes in his work.

In general, the lead character is separated from the norm of society in some way - a misfit. In the character of Edward Scissorhands, this idea is taken to the very extreme: the main character cannot even touch another person.

Other examples of this character type include Batman, Beetlejuice, and to a certain extent, Jack Skellington from The Nightmare Before Christmas.

Burton's movies also have a distinct style, generally sporting a very Gothic feel. In addition, Burton is known for using stop-motion animation in his films, the prime examples being The Nightmare Before Christmas and Corpse Bride.

He is also known for reusing actors and actresses, in particular Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter. Danny Elfman regularly provides the right music for the soundtrack.

Tim Burton has directed many movies, each of which can be examined and compared for similar styles and recurring themes.

Task 1: 
Apply Auteur Theory to a film director of your own choice.