Genre blog tasks

Media Factsheet 03 - Genre: Categorising texts

1) What example is provided of why visual iconographies are so important?

Visuals of deep space are linked to the sci-fi genre and modern mise-en-scene combined with a person sitting behind a desk and high key lighting connote news broadcasts: so iconography helps identity genre.

2) What examples are provided of the importance of narrative in identifying genre?

Soap operas and sit coms have similar visual iconograpghies, characters and problems such as struggling with your boss at work, however the way the narrative progresses through how the characters deal with those problems would be different.

3) What is the difference between character representation in action movies and disaster movies?

Action heroes are isolated from other people, whereas disaster movies place the hero role on a group of people.

4) What are the different ways films can be categorised according to Bordwell? 

Period or Country, e.g. US films of the 1930s
Director / Star, e.g. Ben Stiller Films
Technical Process, e.g. Animation
Style, e.g. German Expressionism;
Series, e.g. Bond;
Audience, e.g. Family Films

5) List three ways genre is used by audiences.

They use prior knowledge to decide if they will like the genre of not
They can compare the text to other texts of the same genre.
They can reject the media text according to the genre if they don't like it.

6) List three ways genre is used by institutions or producers.

Genres can have loyal fan base so it easier for them to attract an audience
Genres are paradigms or templates media producers can follow.
Its easier to market the media text to those who prefer the genre

7) What film genre is used as an example of how genres evolve? What films and conventions are mentioned?

The gangster genre. The sopranos, reservoir dogs and scarface were examples mentioned and a convention is a tommy gun hidden inside of a violin case - after a while it became cliche.

Media Factsheet 126 - Superheroes: A Genre Case Study

1) List five films the factsheet discusses with regards to the Superhero genre.
The X Men Franchise
The Avengers and its Franchise:Iron Man,Thor,The Hulk
Spider man
Guardian of the Galaxy
Agents of Shield

2) What examples are provided of how the Superhero genre has reflected the changing values, ideologies and world events of the last 70 years?
X Men (1, 2 and 3)
Wolverine (1 and 2)
Spider-Man (1, 2 and 3)
Batman, Batman Returns,
Batman Forever
Batman and Robin

3) How can Schatz's theory of genre cycles be applied to the Superhero genre?
Innovation: genre codes are first established. The first superhero comics establish the idea of a character with superpowers saving the world and fighting against villains. The presentation of the genre in moving picture are established when being adapted to tv and film.

Classical: codes and conventions are repeated in film.
Parody: 1966's Batman was intentionally camp and funny; the audience weren't meant to take the superhero seriously.
Deconstruction: 1978's Superman started a new cycle with technology leading the innovation with special effects and creating more realistic visuals.

My own genre analysis

Jojo's bizarre adventure

General

1) Why did you choose the text you are analysing?
It's my favourite TV series of all time. The series is very strange, constantly surprising you with what the mangaka gets away with. For example, if the author wants to show that a character is a bad person, he will have them kill a dog (This happens a lot...).

2) In what context did you encounter it?
I had been exposed to many memes online regarding it and had heard about it through friends. It's an old and very popular anime series and so, as I got into anime, I naturally became interested in it. The 5th part in the anime adaption was being animated and thus spawned more very popular clips that I came across and was very intrigued by.

3) What influence do you think this context might have had on your interpretation of the text?
I had seen a clip from the 5th part of the series which takes plays hundreds of years after the first part, and so the initial tone and pace of the series was much different from what I expected. However, through the often parodied nature of the series I assumed I would find it very memorable. The series is infamous for being referenced in many media, including anime and western cartoons, so I already vaguely knew of the somewhat comedic and bizarre narrative of the series.

4) To what genre did you initially assign the text?
Shonen; Action-adventure. Interestingly, the genre shifts between parts in the series, such as part 1 adapting a more Gothic-Victorian horror genre compared to the later parts. There is an inherent focus on the supernatural throughout the entire series, with the first main antagonist being a vampire to the ghostly beings that represents a character's soul (called a stand) that are introduced in the 3rd part of the series.

5) What is your experience of this genre?
I had watched anime such as soul eater and My hero academia, both shonen action series, previous to watching jojo. It's definitely one of my preferred genres along with comedy.

6) What subject matter and basic themes is the text concerned with?
Fighting against a main villain to either save the world or stop a corrupted gang leader, the themes vary throughout the parts. However, each part focuses on fate, good vs evil and supernatural forces.

7) How typical of the genre is this text in terms of content?
As Jojo could be considered a series that established some conventions of the shonen action genre, it's fairly typical. The amount of fighting and the presence of a main character and main villain in each part definitely fits the genre.

8) What expectations do you have about texts in this genre?
Fighting, power escalation, high stakes, a main villain and main hero, a rival character, and the sexualisation of female characters.

9) Have you found any formal generic labels for this particular text (where)?
By it's nature or being in shonen jump magazine, it's given the generic label of a shonen manga series. The offical website categorises it as adventure, fantasy and supernatural.
10) What generic labels have others given the same text?
Comedy (this series will definitely make you laugh), tragedy (this series will definitely make you cry)

11) Which conventions of the genre do you recognize in the text?
Fighting, superpowers, a main hero and main villain.

12) To what extent does this text stretch the conventions of its genre?
In part 4, for example, instead of taking place over many different locations around the world, takes place in a single town for the entire part. With less of a focus on adventure and more on mystery(as the main characters try to find out the identity of a serial killer while trying to live their normal lives) the mangaka challenges one of the focal genre's of the series.

13) Where and why does the text depart from the conventions of the genre?
Each part is a different story-arc focusing on a different main character (each related to each other) in a new location, with new themes, stakes and villains. The series, although always having fighting and action, strays from the adventure genre in some parts.

14) Which conventions seem more like those of a different genre (and which genre(s))?
The mangaka also likes to delve into the thriller/horror genres, drama, western, crime and mystery.

15) What familiar motifs or images are used?
The star is used as a representation of the main character's lineage - as they are all related through blood to each other - and bonds them together. This comes from the first protagonist's name being Joseph Joestar, and him having a star-shaped birth mark on his neck that each Jojo shares.

Mode of address

1) What sort of audience did you feel that the text was aimed at (and how typical was this of the genre)?
Teenage boys and young men. The magazine that Jojo was published in - Shonen jump - is a magazine targeted at teenage boys. However, in 2005 the magazine the manga is published in changed to ultra jump seinen magazine. This magazine was aimed more at young men than teenage boys.

2) How does the text address you?
Although i'm not within the target audience, many of the protagonists and characters are teenagers and so there is a way I can project myself onto them.

3) What sort of person does it assume you are?
A good person, as the main characters are fighting against an evil force in every part. It assumes you're smart, as it doesn't spoon feed you the plot. There are many mature themes in the show, such as murder, rape and crime, so it assumes you're mature.

4) What assumptions seem to be made about your class, age, gender and ethnicity?
The assumption is that the consumer is a Japanese teenage boy to young man. Almost all the main characters are male and incredibly buff, presenting a kind of power fantasy for the target audience. There are often fan service scenes where the female characters have their bodies flaunted. Although, especially later in the series, there are many strong female characters introduced and the main character for the 6th part is female. This perhaps shows an evolution in who the target audience is. Interestingly. since the beginning of the series there have been homo-erotic undertones and the male characters are all conventionally attractive, showing that the series has always been... inclusive in who it's targeted at.

5) What interests does it assume you have?
Action, fighting and battles.
The bizarre and the supernatural.
Relationships between friends, family and partners.
Death and tragedy.

Relationship to other texts

1) What intertextual references are there in the text you are analysing (and to what other texts)?
The mangaka, Araki, is a huge fan of western music. There are lots of characters named after western musicians and their music, (such as foo fighters, queen, jimi hendrix and many more) with certain characters being influenced aesthetically as well.

2) Generically, which other texts does the text you are analysing resemble most closely?
My hero academia and Fist of the north star 

3) What key features are shared by these texts?
Fist of the north star's masculine character deigns and archetypes are very similar to jjba. The brutal and bizarre violence of the series also matches jjba's very creative action scenes. Fotns is illogical and fun, definitely matching the tone of jjba.

My hero academia is similar in the supernatural elements that both series share. The extent of creative superpowers and abilities match closely to jjba, where superpowers are common throughout the series.

4) What major differences do you notice between them?
Jjba changes the main protagonist each part, following the descendants of the first jojo. Fist of the north star's central protagonist fights many rivals throughout the series, however jjba has a focus on one villain for each part that the protagonist has to face at the end.

My hero academia's setting is completely different, as it stays within the bounds of Japan and the school that the characters attend.

Semiotics

ENGLISH

1) What meanings are the audience encouraged to take about the two main characters from the opening of the film?

The two main characters are represented as rebellious and threatening. The scene at the beginning in the park connotes the characters to be menaces on society, with the way they disturb the elderly man and don't stop until forced. Through costume, the two characters can be associated with gangs and so the audience is encouraged to see them as bad young people.

2) How does the end of the film emphasise de Saussure’s belief that signs are polysemic – open to interpretation or more than one meaning?

The ending reveals that both characters are deaf, and so gives newfound context and meaning to the short. The scenes where they ignore various people calling out to them, such as the old man, the gang and the shopkeeper, could initially be interpreted as the boys being rebellious and rude. However now it simply shows that they couldn't hear them. This portrays the main characters as being much more sympathetic and likeable than without the context of them being deaf.

Media Magazine theory drop: Semiotics 

1) What did Ferdinand de Saussure suggest are the two parts that make up a sign?

The signified and the signifier.

2) What does ‘polysemy’ mean?

When one signifier has multiple meanings.

3) What does Barthes mean when he suggests signs can become ‘naturalised’?
when the connotation is so well established we don’t consider other meanings

4) What are Barthes’ 5 narrative codes?
Hermeneutic, Proairetic, Semantic, Symbolic, and Cultural

5) How does the writer suggest Russian Doll (Netflix) uses narrative codes?

Icons, indexes and symbols

1) Find two examples for each: icon, index and symbol. Provide images or links.

Icon:



Index:



Symbol:
 


2) Why are icons and indexes so important in media texts?
They give media actual meaning, as fundamentally everything is build upon the language of icons and indexes. The famous painting The Treachery of Images by René Magritte brings this into light through stating that a painting of a pipe is not actually a pipe, it is simply a representation of a pipe.

3) Why might global brands try and avoid symbols in their advertising and marketing?
Symbols can mean different things in different societies, and so to avoid meaning being misconstrued they will avoid symbols.

4) Find an example of a media text (e.g. advert) where the producer has accidentally communicated the wrong meaning using icons, indexes or symbols. Why did the media product fail?

The ad conveys a sexist narrative that women need to act like men in order to be successful at their jobs.

5) Find an example of a media text (e.g. advert) that successfully uses icons or indexes to create a message that can be easily understood across the world.

Reception theory

1) What are the preferred, negotiated and oppositional readings for the adverts you have studied?

The 50 cent ad's preferred readings are that your past doesn't define you, and encourages the target audience to carve out their identity as they are who they are. An oppositional reading could be that the company is encouraging a life of crime and criminal/gang activity. The fingerprints and use of the celebrity 50 cent, who was involved in criminal activity, may imply that you can't escape a life of crime as it is always linked to "who you are". Furthermore, the preferred reading that everyone has a second chance at life may also be misinterpreted, as 50 cent infamously survived 12 gunshots. This fact may imply the idea that you'll be able to survive a life of gang activity. In summary, the negotiated reading is that your past doesn't define you, and you should take advantage of the opportunities that life gives you. However a past of criminal activity will stay with you for life.



The axe ad's preferred reading is encouraging bonding and fun, and implies that the axe body spray will cause you to be a free person who will be able to find love. An oppositional reading could be that the ad encourages illegal use of fireworks, or perhaps encourages "disturbance of the peace." Therefore, an negotiated reading is that the ad pushes the idea that using axe body spray will open up new opportunities and cause sparks to fly between men and women, however it encourages perhaps illegal or immoral "chaos".

2) Do these adverts provide evidence for the idea that audiences are free to interpret messages in a variety of ways - including rejecting them?

Yes, the advertisements provide evidence that audiences are free to interpret messages in a variety of ways. For example, the 50 cent ad has preferred readings that Reebok tried to convey. They wanted to push the message that your past doesn't define you and encourages carving out your own identity, as explained above. However some may chose to interpret the ad as endorsing gang violence, thus rejecting the preferred reading and proving that audiences are free to interpret the messages that adverts provide.

Reading an image

• The connotation of the fingerprints is crime and identity; 
• The page layout being split down the middle reflects the two sides of 50 cents life and the life he chose to pursue. The text being cut off on each side can further emphasise his current identity and who he is today because of what he experienced. The page layout is similar to a book, implying the new page he turned on his life.
• The grimy green colour and dramatic lighting frames 50 cent's serious expression as determined, especially the focus on his eyes. The medium-close shot connects the viewer to 50 cent and creates understanding.
• The subject matter is clearly on 50 cent's identity, with the text reading "i am what i am" and the quote which focuses on his past.
• The army hat he wears can connote fighting, perhaps liking him to a soldier.

The open door can connote new opportunities for the man, and the bright, pastel colours that contrast with the mustier colours of the garage frame the woman to be a shining light or saviour to the man's usual life. The colours also indicate the woman's personality as being bright, fun and excitable, further accentuated by her bright clothing and the fireworks in her bag. This contrasts with the man, wearing darker and duller colours. However, the fire in the middle of the two of them implies a spark that has been caused between them. The long shot makes the viewer seem like an outsider looking in, which may have purposely been done to demonstrate the opportunities that the body spray brings. The fireworks and the fire obviously make the viewer piece them together in their brain as to what the two people are going to do - set off fireworks together. The target audience is specifically for both men and women, as showcased with the slogan on the top right corner and the two people in the ad being a man and a woman.

My media consumption

Newspapers

• Which daily newspapers (if any) do you read?

I don't read newspapers, but very rarely I see them in shops and read the covers or flip through the front pages.

• What sections of newspapers do you turn to first, and why?

Probably the sections that the front cover advertise.

• What sections do you never read, and why?

A lot of them.

• What kinds of stories do you usually read and why?

Probably stories relating to politics.

• Do you, or someone else, buy the newspaper you read?

Neither.

• Do you look at the online versions of any newspapers? Which newspapers? Why do you visit their website and not others?

I do occasionally, but they're mostly one-off news articles detailing something that happened recently that I was interested in, so I don't really have favourites.


Magazines

• What magazines (if any) do you buy regularly?  Why?

None.

• What sections of the magazines do you read and not read, and why?

None.


Television

• Approximately how many hours a week do you spend watching television?

A couple hours?

• What times of day do you usually watch television?

Night time / evening 

• What programmes do you like best and why?

It's usually whatever's on. The tv shows I watch on my laptop are usually cartoons.

• Do you watch alone or with others? If you watch with others, who decides what you will watch?

With whoever's watching tv.

• Do you watch 'live' TV or on-demand/catch-up? Do you use any other devices to watch TV (such as laptop or tablet?)

I use my laptop to watch tv series I can't watch on TV.

Radio

• Do you listen to the radio?

Not anymore.

• If yes, what stations do you like best and why?

I used to listen to music stations

• Do you listen to podcasts?

Yes

• If yes, what podcasts have you listened to recently?

Podcasts relating to video games, mostly

• Approximately how many hours a week do you spend listening to podcasts or radio?

It depends on what's going on in the community mostly.

• What times of the day do you usually listen to podcasts or radio?

Usually in the evening.

• Where do you listen to podcast or radio?

Youtube

• What other activities (if any) do you do whilst listening?

Drawing

• Does anyone else in your house listen to the radio or podcasts? If so, when do they listen?

No.

Film

• What films have you seen in the cinema in the last month? 

None.

• What films have you seen in other places – for example, through Netflix, Amazon Prime, satellite/cable film channels (free or otherwise) or streaming?

I watched venom and into the spider-verse when I was visiting my dad, using some streaming service I think, and I watched the steven universe movie recently on my computer.

• Who else watched the films with you?

My dad and brother, but I usually watch films alone.

• Who decided what films to watch?

I've wanted to watch into the spider-verse for ages, because the animation and general aesthetic of the movie is phenomenal from what I saw of it - so I chose that one. My brother wanted to watch venom and I honestly don't remember much of it.

• What devices do you typically use to watch films: TV, laptop, tablet, phone etc.?

Typically my computer using a totally not illegal website.


Online

• How often do you access the internet?

Most of the time.

• Where do you access the internet?  At home, at college or school, or at work?

Home and school.

• What are the main sites that you access?

Youtube, Discord, Twitter, Various art-sharing websites.

• What are the main reasons for accessing these sites – for example, for information, to make purchases, communicate with friends or for entertainment?

Mainly for communicating with friends and entertainment. I also like to share and sometimes post art.

• What other activities (if any) do you do whilst accessing the internet?

Games, watching tv shows.

• What different devices do you use to access the internet? What is your primary device for accessing the internet?

Laptop and phone

• What social networks do you use regularly (e.g. Twitter, Instagram)? Why do you belong to these networks in particular?

Twitter and discord. They're both used to communicate with friends and for entertainment.

Reflection

• How can you develop the amount and variety of media you consume?

By finding new interests.

• What will you change in your media consumption habits this year as a result of studying A Level Media?

Watch a more varied array of tv series and movies.

• List three sources of media (websites/newspapers/apps/TV programmes etc.) that you will start to access this year that you haven't engaged with previously.

Newspapers, film and television 

First blog task

1) Why did you choose A Level Media Studies?
It seemed like a fun and digestible subject that matches my other subjects well and is something I thought I would enjoy. My future career is undecided but media may help open up opportunities and career paths I wouldn't have had the chance to explore without picking A level. I also consume a lot of media such as TV shows, cartoons, anime, podcasts and various content creators on Youtube for fun and I'm interested in working on a cartoon or TV show in the future.

2) Did you take GCSE Media Studies (either here at Greenford or a different school)?
No

4) What grade do you hope to achieve in A Level Media?
An A - A*

5) What are your current thoughts about your next steps after A Levels - university, apprenticeship, work?
I don't want to go to university so I assume work or an apprenticeship is what's next to me. I might change my mind though because I'm still not certain on what I want to do in the future.

6) What do you think the biggest media story of 2019 has been and why?
Brexit is definitely the one I've been exposed to the most. It's probably the biggest political event that's going to happen to Britain in a very long time and also an issue that's divided the country. It's impossible not to know about it, and as another extension is almost guaranteed, it's a possibility the issue is going to carry over into it's 4th year.

7) What media sources do you use to find out about news and current affairs?
Websites like twitter and youtube make news and current affairs known. The TV is also on in the background a lot so I can pick up on news from there. Also social media like discord lets my friends tell me about things I may have missed, plus my mum talks to me a lot about current events relating to politics.

8) What was the last film you watched?
The steven universe movie, essentially a really long episode of the show steven universe. I had lost interest in the show after the first few seasons, but after seeing a clip of one of the ridiculously catchy songs from the movie on twitter I was really intrigued and ended up watching it. The villain was definitely one of the best in the series.

9) What is your favourite ever TV series?
Jojo's bizarre adventure, an anime I only started watching not too long ago (around April?) It's the still-airing anime adaption of one of the best selling manga of all time in Japan, started in 1987 and still ongoing on it's 8th part. Each story arc follows the adventures of a different main character - each related to each other through blood and the star-shaped birth mark on their back - who's name can be abbreviated to 'Jojo'. The anime started in 2012 with a 24 episode adaption of the first two parts of the series and just recently finished airing the adaption of the 5th part (and my current favourite part): Vento Aureo. I'm currently waiting in anticipation for the 6th part of the series to be announced (which will probably take up to 2 years) and possibly suffering from withdrawal symptoms.It's absolutely worth watching!!!

10) How many hours do you spend online in an average day? Is this too little, too much or about right? Why? (If you have an iPhone you can use Screen Time to get an accurate figure of how much you use your phone).
I spend most of my life online. Essentially, if not busy with something I'll be on my phone or on the computer. I assume my hours will decrease once the workload from A levels starts setting in.