Netflix and Me

You will create a short vlog about identity, long form TV Drama and Netflix and/or other catch-up ‘TV’ services.

• Focus on your own identity (gender/ethnicity/sexuality/age) - is there representation on Netflix?
• Is representation better than on traditional broadcast television?
• What do the Netflix shows you watch say about you?

My opinion: I think that there is a certain representation on Netflix, that focus especially on my identity, for example most movies and shows on Netflix are aimed at a demographic of females over 15 and the two are mostly romance, such as Gossip Girl and Pretty Little Liars, and I think this is because girls around my age are conformed to a stereotype of where they're meant to be interested in romance and gossip related things. - filmed in bedroom


 Though personally, I don't think that's entirely true because not all girls are into romance or a romcom, some can even be into action, thriller or even horror. But I guess the reason why we're conformed to that stereotype is because we're supposed to be seen as weak and gentle, we're supposed to like the colour pink and all things sentimental, but then again, I'm against this stereotype of women. - filmed outside in the garden, cause a garden is stereotypically a romantic setting.


However, even though I'm against all stereotypes, I still think it's good to have representations because if people watched something they didn't relate to or have any interest in, the movie or show would be boring. So I guess it's better for movies and shows to give off representations because people would be able to relate in some way and perhaps find comfort, rather than showing movies and TV shows that are traditional, which might attract a niche audience of young people because most people might find it dull and boring and unrelatable, because today's society is all about different types of representations and stereotypes. Personally, I don't watch Netflix movies or TV shows cause I don't really like Netflix, I find that most movies and TV shows on it are quite dull and they're just not my thing. I'm more of a horror fan, so I like to watch a lot of horror movies, and Netflix has really boring ones, so it's a no from me.

Fashion Magazines.

Form + Conventions

 

• Vogue
• Dazed
• GQ
• Harper's Bazaar
• i-D

Lifestyle magazines, such as Pride, Esquire and Grazia, will include fashion editorial and advertising.

 

 i-D and Dazed

i-D: Does not have the traditional masthead that goes across horizontally, but is on the left side of the model, whereas Dazed:  Has a masthead that goes across behind the model. i-D doesn't really conform to the high-end clothing trends, whereas Dazed sort of does.

Traditional/high end fashion magazines

Conventions

• Masthead goes in front or behind the model and is usually horizontal
• Coverlines
• 3 colour scheme
• white, slim women
• Serif(feminine) typography.

Representations

• Women were white and slim.
• Sexualised usually.
• 
  

Audience

• Aimed more at an older demographic

Edgy/alternative fashion magazines

Conventions

• Masthead can be vertical OR horizontal.
• Coverlines (sometimes one e.g i-D)
• Sans serif typography.

Representations

• Doll-like? Edgy?
• Non-white
• 
  

Audience

• More diverse
• Young demographic

> Research edgy magazines like i-D and Dazed.

contents page

• roles - helps audience find contents of mag
• include ALL editorial (material created by journalists on mag, NOT advertising)
• page numbers chronological
• sub headings to organise contents into categories

TV Dramas.

Long form TV dramas - When you have to watch from the first episode in order to understand what is going on.

Soap Opera - TV programmes that are continuous and were commercially represented by soap comedies.

VHS - Big movement, because it meant that you could watch a movie at any given time.
2002 Subscription, FREE TV service(free view)
2006 First HD
2012 Netflix for the first time
2015 Catch up TV

MUSIC VIDEOS

Types of music video:

• Performance - Lip synch, live performance, choreographed/free style dance, playing instrument
• Narrative- storyline theme/motifs; linear / non-linear e.g Taylor Swift's 'love story' music video
• Conceptual - abstract set of motifs that may have no obvious link to the lyric

Things to analyse -

• Camera: angles, shot size, camera movement, framing
• Editing: cutting rate/rhythm (to the rhythm/beat?) types of cut (matched, jump, cutaways(e.g singing about a text, the camera shows the text), transitions, effects (SPX)
• Mis-en-scene: costume, make-up, props, location, lighting
• Lip synch and authorage(signature basically) / star quality, which links to...
• Representation: of the star, sexuality, gender, ethnicity/culture, subculture(emo, punk, etc) and genre, personality, celebrity and consumerism
• Audience: and how the video "positions" them; the male gaze

Example: Beyoncé's "If I was a boy"

• Narrative - linear. whole day. she's imagining how it feels to be her boyfriend.
• Very closely links to the lyrics.
• Performance - Lip synching, direct address to the audience(so the audience can feel how she feels)
• Long/mid shot to show narrative, cutting rate in synch with beat.
• Black and white editing - reflects mood, gender inequality
• Masculinity and femininity gender roles.

Weapon of Choice
Conceptual























Drab colours; hotel lobby, boring suit
Bizzare dancing, "flying" using wires
Long shot
Editing rate varies according to tempo
Starts/finishes slow, builds up then down.














Finesse by Bruno Mars
Performance - choreographed & lip synch
Mis-en-scene - retro 90's RnB feeling, clothing, hairstyles,
Editing - Long shots, track shot(follows the person) dynamic(moving all the time), low angle shots; makes the person look superior & powerful
Representation - Makes Cardi B look powerful and independent


Post-modernism:

• By nature hard to define, but might include:
• A mix and match aesthetic, taking influences from a range of genres
• “Look” is as important / more important than “meaning”
• Blurring of time, space
• Unconventional, highly non-linear narrative
• Mixing up types of narration, for example first and third, which might lead to…
• Breaking the fourth wall
• Intertextuality: when there are deliberate references made to other media products, and the music video is only understood if this reference is understood by the audience. This  “poachy” and involves “remix”

Film industry revision

Genre: Different types of category for film e.g horror
Genre theorist: Steven Neale - he believes that people want a sense of repetition and familiarity in the genre

 

Genre stages:

 

Primitive - When the genre is in its infancy, when its characteristics have not been defined, when the genre is not yet accepted as popular

 

Classical - When the characteristics have been defined and people know what to expect of the genre e.g horror

 

Revisionist  - Change-up of what is typically expected of a horror movie. They add in more to the mix.

 

Parodic - One that completely changed the formula of what is expected from a horror film. Horror genre mixed with elements of comedy. The makers will rip off parts from other well-known horror movies e.g Scary Movie 3, which includes The Ring, The Others, Texas Chainsaw Massacre

 

Iconography - Mis-en-scene of the movie
Structure - From geek to princess
Theme - The need to belong to a group

 

Big Six:

• Disney
• Universal
• Warner Bros
• Fox
• Sony
• Paramount

 

Media Plurality - A diversity of viewpoints across media

 

Budget expenditure $60-100 million can be spent on:

• cast
• story rights
• producer+director fees
• VFX
• music rights

Vertical Integration: Production, Distribution and Consumption
Production means the making of the film
Distribution means marketing the movie;

Distributors will acquire a film for a fee and gain the rights to sell it (normally on all platforms)*

A % of box office will go back to producers (after they get back all the money they spend)

They will pay for the marketing of the film.

This marketing budget can vary massively. The last Transformers film cost $210m to make and $200m to market. Low budget horror films like The Purge were cheap to make (under $5m) but costly to market (more than $20m)

Consumption means exhibition, the cinemas, how the audience consumes it: licenced products(merchandise)
Synergy:  always mention when something is synergistic to something, e.g Merchandise is synergistic to a movie:

Fordism: Standardising the product, assembly line production


Antitrust laws in link to Vertical Integration - In the late 1940s, the US government brought an end to vertical integration and forced the studios to sell off their cinemas.

 

 

 

Snow White: Produced by Disney and distributed by Disney

Black Panther: Produced by Marvel, distributed by: Disney

You will be examined on:

• The methods of production, distribution and exhibition
• The ownership of the film industry
• The role of new technology in the film industry
• The role of regulation in the film industry
  Exam structure:
  • Intro - define key terms, explain case studies - indicate key differences (3 mins) (¼ page?)
  • Main Body 1 - SWSD background in p,d,e (7 mins) (¾ page?)
  • SWSD
    
    
    How was it produced?
    
    
    How was it distributed?
    
    
    How was it exhibited?
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  • Main Body 2 - BP detailed examples (10 mins - in comparison) (1 page?)
  • BP
    
    
    How was it produced differently?
    
    
    How was it distributed differently?
    
    
    How was it exhibited differently?
    
    10 mins
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  • 
    
    
    
    Conclusion - Bring together and answer question (what main differences, any similarities?) Future question? (5 mins) (½ page?)
    
    
    
    
    
    
    What are the main differences?
    
    
    What are the main similarities?
    
    
    What does the future of the film industry hold? (1 sentence)
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  
  
  Explain the differences in production, distribution and exhibition between SWSD and BP
  
  
  Keywords to define.
  
  
  Explain case studies (1 sentence)
  
  
  Outline key differences (1 sentence)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

 

Practice question on Minecraft

Explain the impact of digitally convergent media platforms on video game production, distribution and consumption.


To answer this question, we are going to be discussing the production, distribution and the consumption of a sandbox video game called Minecraft, which was developed by Markus Notch Persson, a Swedish game designer, and was later fully developed and published by Mojang.



In terms of production, Minecraft is a sandbox video game that allows people to explore different stories and dive into different adventures, was produced by Markus Notch Persson, a Swedish game designer. Minecraft is fairly significant due to the creative and building aspects of Minecraft, which allows players to build with a variety of different cubes in a 3D generated world. This worldwide sandbox video game is also a cross-platform game, which is very significant to people who classify themselves as full time gamers; the game is widely available on Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linus,  PlayStation 4, Android and Nintendo Switch. The fact that Minecraft is available across all platforms is significant because as it's available on Windows PC, this means that users are able to download the game, instead of buying an actual disk copy of the game. This is also convenient for the company, the conglomerate Microsoft, who also owns the game as well as Mojang, because it's cheaper for them, as they don't need to make that many disk copies, when users can just get the game through downloading it.

The distribution of Minecraft is again, very wide and varied. As we've already mentioned that the game is widely available on Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linus,  PlayStation 4, Android and Nintendo Switch, this would've helped the distribution of the game very much, as it would've reached a variety of audiences. Further, another distribution is the fact that Minecraft has its own licenced products, which are widely available; consisting of toys, backpacks for school, etc that take form of 3D blocks to signify the game. There are also Minecraft magazines that are available to the audience, which includes all the tricks and tips that can be used in the game, for example how to build certain things, like tricky buildings. Moreover, Minecraft has its own marketing campaign, such as building a colossal machine inside the game to advertise a new update.

The consumption revolves around the audience. The audience will probably play Minecraft on any platform of their choice, as it's widely available on all cross-platforms. Seeing as the game allows multiplayer or single-player, players can choose to play in whichever mode they want. However, there's so much more to Minecraft that users can do. For example, there are different modes, which means users can select different types of stories, such as adventure stories and can interact differently with them. Minecraft fandom can also consume the game through YouTube, such as filming walkthroughs, teaching other users how to play and doing tutorials on how to build certain things, etc. Further, users can interact through a cultural poacher, which means they can create mods for their game, which is different types of customization added to your game. This can be done by downloading them and putting them into your games folder, or you can simply buy the mods through different trust-worthy websites. Henry Jenkins' idea of a fandom is also beneficial to Minecraft, because since it has its own fandom, users can help promote the game significantly to its success by again, the creation of different mods, fan art, fiction, cosplay and tutorials. The significance of a fandom is beneficial because it can attract different types of new audiences and lead the game to its high success.

Essay on Henry Jenkins.

DEFINE JENKINS THEORY OF FANDOM, HOW DO CONVERGING PLATFORMS AND NEW DISTRIBUTION METHODS HELP MINECRAFT FANS BECOME TEXTUAL POACHERS?

In this essay, we are going to examine how converging platforms and new distribution methods help Minecraft fans become textual poachers, using Henry Jenkins' Theory of Fandom.

Jenkins' theory of Fandom is of which describes communities built around a shared enjoyment of an aspect of popular culture, such as books, movies, TV shows, bands, sports or sports teams, etc. Fan cultures are examples of participatory cultures. Participatory cultures involve fans acting not only as consumers but also as producers and creators of some form of creative media. Also, he was interested in convergence culture, which meant different types of media coming together. Jenkins makes the argument that convergence is less about a technological process and more about a cultural shift as consumers are encouraged to seek out new information and make connections amongst dispersed media content, this is completely opposite to the Hypodermic needle theory, as Jenkins here, seems to have a positive outlook on the media, whereas the Hypodermic needle theory says we are all addicted to the media, as if it was a drug to us. Furthermore, Jenkins belongs to a group of Media thinkers who are highly optimistic about the media. They view the media, and Web 2.0 as empowering to the audience, breaking down traditional boundaries of class and status. The audience is interactive and powerful. They can participate and create their own narratives, questioning messages and generating their own ideas.

An example of converging platforms would be Minecraft, a sandbox video game, created by Markus Noch Persson, a Swedish game video programmer, and was later developed and published by Mojang, who were a group of Swedish video programmers. This is particularly significant as Minecraft is a cross-platform video game, which means it is accessible through different types of platforms; Windows PC, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Android and more. This is beneficial to the audience because different types of platforms can reach different types of audiences, therefore making Minecraft successful and more fun to play, as users can make new friends with different types of people.

Minecraft's distribution is quite broad and varied. As we've already mentioned that the game is widely available on Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linus, PlayStation 4, Android and Nintendo Switch, this would've helped the distribution of the game very much, as it would've reached a variety of audiences. Further, another distribution is the fact that Minecraft has its own licenced products, which are widely available; consisting of toys, backpacks for school, etc, that take form of 3D blocks to signify the game and lastly, Minecraft had its own marketing campaign, such as building a colossal machine inside the game to advertise a new update. This is when the idea of consumption and participatory culture comes in, when users are in-game, they may think that the default style of Minecraft is quite boring, so they may want to add something into the game to make it more fun to play; mods, which are different types of customization made by different, many users. Mods can be beneficial because they make the game look more appealing and interesting to play, you can get them by downloading them and putting them into your games folder, or you can simply buy the mods through different trust-worthy websites. Further, this links to Henry Jenkins' idea of a fandom, which is also beneficial to Minecraft, because since it has its own fandom, users can help promote the game significantly to its success by again, the creation of different mods, fan art, fiction, cosplay and tutorials. Minecraft fandom can also consume the game through YouTube, such as filming walkthroughs, teaching other users how to play and doing tutorials on how to build certain things, etc. Also, users can interact through a cultural poacher, which means they can create mods for their game, etc. The significance of a fandom is beneficial because it can attract different types of new audiences and lead the game to its high success.



In conclusion, I think that converging platforms, new and different types of distribution methods, as well as Jenkins' theory of Fandom, really do help Minecraft fans become textual poachers. Like it was said, the converging platforms help Minecraft spread to different types of audiences, and the fact that it's available on all cross platforms, is even better for the gamers, cause some platforms may be easier to play on than others, or it may be just a personal preference. Minecraft's licenced products are also advantageous because it may make the audience feel happy and excited about the latest products that have come out and WILL come out in the future, etc. Mods are also a great way to consume the game, because again, it makes the game look more attractive and fun for the user to play and Henry Jenkins' theory of Fandom is also just as useful as all of those other factors here, because users can create their own fan-fictions, mods, stories, fan art, cosplay and even tutorials. So I think that converging platforms, new and different types of distribution methods, as well as Jenkins' theory of Fandom, really do help Minecraft fans become textual poachers to a great extent.

BBFC.

Cinema and home video releases are regulated by the BBFC (British board of film classification) a self regulatory body established in 1912

Every film is sent (they pay the bbfc obviously) to the BBFC so that they get an age rating.

Exam structure.

Exam structure:

• Intro - define key terms, explain case studies - indicate key differences (3 mins) (¼ page?)
• Main Body 1 - SWSD background in p,d,e (7 mins) (¾ page?)
• SWSD
  How was it produced?
  How was it distributed?
  How was it exhibited?
  
  
  
  
  
  
• Main Body 2 - BP detailed examples (10 mins - in comparison) (1 page?)
• BP
  How was it produced differently?
  How was it distributed differently?
  How was it exhibited differently?
  10 mins

• 
  
  Conclusion - Bring together and answer question (what main differences, any similarities?) Future question? (5 mins) (½ page?)
  
  
  What are the main differences?
  What are the main similarities?
  What does the future of the film industry hold? (1 sentence)
  
  
  
  
  
  

Explain the differences in production, distribution and exhibition between SWSD and BP

Keywords to define.

Explain case studies (1 sentence)

Outline key differences (1 sentence)

Henry Jenkins. (Media theorist)

Henry Jenkins.

• American media scholar
• Convergence Culture - Different types of media converging together.
• Jenkins is interested in media, the online world, or media 2.0. (web 2.0, current state of online world/technology as it compares to the early days of the web e.g 90s)
• Jenkins makes the argument that convergence is less about a technological process and more about a cultural shift as consumers are encouraged to seek out new information and make connections amongst dispersed media content.‘ <---- He makes a positive statement about media, whereas the Hypodermic Needle Syringe is pessimistic about media.
• Media Audience Theory; - Media Convergence, -Participatory Cultures, -Collective Intelligence

Participatory Cultures - (1) A change whereby rather than media producers and consumers occupying separate roles, they now interact with each other ‘according to a new set of rules,’ which nobody as yet fully understands. • Some consumers have a greater ability to ‘participate’ in this emerging culture than others. (2) Participatory culture is an opposing concept to consumer culture — in other words a culture in which private individuals (the public) do not act as consumers only, but also as contributors or producers


Collective Intelligence - Media causes a buzz in consumer communities which are of increasing value to media producers. • Subsequently, consumption has become a collective process by which we pool our resources and combine our skills.

Jenkins belongs to a group of Media thinkers who are highly optimistic about the Media.  They view the Media, and Web 2.0 as empowering to the audience, breaking down traditional boundaries of class and status. The audience is interactive and powerful.  They can participate and create their own narratives, questioning messages and generating their own ideas.

Jenkins, Shirky and others clearly contrast with the more traditional media effects theory models, which see the media as powerful and the audience as passive.

Fandom - Basically a group of people dedicated to a specific thing in the media, e.g a film, an artist, etc

How might gamers be textual poachers? - basically how can gamers be active

Through this "poaching", the fans carried out such creative cultural activities as rethinking personal identity issues such as gender and sexuality; writing stories to shift focus onto a media "storyworld's" secondary characters; producing content to expand of the timelines of a storyworld; or filling in missing scenes in the storyworld's official narratives order to better satisfy the fan community.

Gamers can interact by creating their own characters and customizing them, they can also choose what story they want to play, for example, in Minecraft. They can also interact by talking through their headpiece set. Gamers can also create mods or download mods into their game.

HOMEWORK DUE 12TH MARCH - 500 WORDS; DEFINE JENKINS THEORY OF FANDOM, HOW DO CONVERGING PLATFORMS AND NEW DISTRIBUTION METHODS HELP MINECRAFT FANS BECOME TEXTUAL POACHERS?

• definition and dates for jerkins' theory
• converging platforms - minecraft cross-platform gaming, can be accessed on a range of platforms and devices
• Distribution - how the audience gets the game e.g pay for it? a free copy? are there mods? < participatory culture
• media 2.0
• synergy: allows for convergence
• e.gs of textual poachers