1b, theorists

Audience:

McDougall - Niche, mass, mainstream and alternative audiences. In this online age it has become hard to identify an audience.

Hall - Encoding and decoding.

McQuail - Uses and Gratification theory, Information, Personal identity, social interaction, entertainment, aesthetic dimension and  thrilling dimension. High low culture.

Ang - ''Audiences only exist as an imaginary entity, an abstraction , constructed from the vantage point of the institution, in the interest of the institution.''

Hartley - They must know their audience in order to to target them effectively.

Representation:

Klapps - Distinction between stereotypes and social types(representations of those who 'belong' to society) is helpful.

Mulvey - Woman are objectified for the camera, in order to sell to a male audience using male gaze (voyeurism). The audience are positioned in a male POV so we HAVE to accept this.

Berger - Way's of seeing 'men act, women appear' ' men look at women, women look at themselves being looked at'

Baudrillrd - Hyper reality and simulacra. He argues we are now in a place of simulacra, e.g Disney land.

Dyer - 'How we are seen determines how we are treated, how we treat others is based on how we see them. How we see them comes from representation.' The matter of images. 

Media Language:

Genre:

Abercrombie- The boundaries between genre are changing/shifting, he is concerned with modern television dismantling genre.

Altman - Set of pleasures, Visceral (gut), emotional and intellectual puzzle.

Mittel - Argues that genres are cultural categories and are used to sell to an audience. Allows an audience to make a choice.

Neal - Not a structure but a process, no pleasure without difference.

Chandler - Genre is instances of difference and repetition, how we define genre depends on the purpose. The setting (mise en scene), contributes to the purpose therefore the genre.

Buckingham - 'genre is not simply given by the culture, rather, it is a constant negotiation of change' -  Genre is constantly changing

Narrative:

Todorov - Equilibrium, Dis-equilibrium and New equilibrium.

Cook - Cause and effect within an engima resolution (Hollywood narrative).

Levi-Strauss - Binary Opposites, e.g Evil vs Good, Villian vs hero, Colour vs black and white and light vs dark.

Barthes - Enigma/Hermeneutic code and The Proairetic code - Action that implies a further narrative (suspense). We do this because it's the opening to our film, so we show the dis-equilibrium at the start, a jump in time, talk about this how we have to show time in a 90 mins film etc.

Propp - Character Types - Villain and the Victim in 'The Red Caller'

Sophie Bishop - Creativity exam 1a

1a. Explain how your skills in the creative use of digital technology have developed over time. Refer to a range of examples from your media production in your answer.

The more we became aware of postmodern convention within digital technology the more creative we were. We became more creative over time in the following ways, we were original, superficial, used bricolage, used intertextual references, used simulation and consumerism. 

In the research and planning of our foundation portfolio we made an opening for a thriller, we used google and youtube to research possible intertextual references, in order to be inspired. We used youtube to watch Schindler's List, which was one of our main intertextual references. This gave us the idea of using the Pleasant Ville effect, an effect which excludes any colour apart from red, which I used Youtube to learn the effect and After effects and Final Cut to practise this for when it came to post production later in the project. This made our thriller opening hyper real, and represented danger throughout the only colour being red. We also completed some preliminary tasks such as recreating the title sequence to Dexter, so we used a camera and exported the footage onto final cut pro and edited this, this developed our skills to our advanced portfolio the next year. We also used blogger to present our portfolio, and after effects to create some of our effects and our production logo sequence.

In our advanced portfolio we made a music video we had the skills of using digital technology that we had developed throughout the foundation portfolio. We were able to then use more technologies in our research and planning. We again used Youtube, Google final cut pro and After effects, but this year we also used the television using MTV as research, we used Youtube to gains some intertextual references, including the 1975, using their Music video to chocolate to learn abut shot types for a music video, as well as their dull colour grading, which we practised on Final cut pro and After effects, also their website, we practised by researching how to use tools on Wix and also their digipak. We practised and researched different digipaks including Ellie Goulding and Taylor swift, so we had practise with the camera, exporting and Photoshop. So we had immensely developed from last years research and planning we were able to use more digital technologies and use ones we had previously used with more skills and confidence to make our preliminary task which was a remake of a Hot Chip music video.

We used final cut pro and after effects (the pleasant villa effects) to edit, add effects and colour grade our Thriller opening sequence, we developed our skills here so we could use this more confidently in our Music video. But we also used more technologies such as Wix and photoshop for our digi pak and website. We had more freedom in our advanced portfolio because we didn't have to stick to a code for a thriller, therefore we could use what every style, genre and image. We used the 1975 because they were also Pop Rock, had a rebellious image and had a target audience of 18-30 year olds, so we had a black and white colour scheme, this was because we knew the 1975 sell to our target audience, so if we followed this our product would sell to the consumer too. We developed the our style too so the video can be hyper real and superficial, so we learnt to use a green screen, and I learnt how to replace the green on photoshop, to make our character look like he is being reborn by falling in a cross position onto rail tracks, which makes this part look simulated as this is not realistic similar to a professional film or a video game. In our Advanced portfolio we need to be able to beat edit and lip sync, which we did not with our thriller, so we practised these skills in our preliminary task, hot chip edit.

We only used social media last year to receive feedback in our evaluation  but this time as well as the evaluation we used social media within the planning and research. Using Twitter to look for our target audience, to gain information on image, we also used Facebook in the evaluation. Our project this year was more post modern and developed our creativity by using different forms of media including social media. In our evaluation we used Survey Monkey then sent this to our target audience on Facebook and Twitter, we found out our target audience were too rebellious, shown by the low key lighting and dark costume, we found this  through audience members of The Archetypes by looking at their Twitter's friends. This made out campaign sell to our consumer, helping us with the style over the substance.

We had to develop our digital technology from last year, because contrasting to last year our brief was to create a campaign for an artists, so we had more freedom and didn't have to follow the conventions of a thriller. Our music video was a narrative conceptual so it was hyper real so we could challenge and break boundaries of artificial and real. There were also more techniques to learn so we had to develop our existing skills. The media i.e our music video is artificial and this is what sells, our world revolves around fake commodities.

10/03/15

1. C grade - apply the PoMo concept - Jameson and style: Intertexuality, simulacra, style over substance, hypereality

B grade - analyse it - purpose and reason why is that PoMo - say why interetxuality is PoMo

Audience and text

Sophie B Avatar

Sims 4 case study

Immersion - A virtual reality. - a blur of reality vs artificial - imagination

Flow - A flow of material - the game challenges the gamer, harder but pleasurable too.

Fluid Identities - Identities are changed and are not set.Facebook

Simualcra - Simulation of reality.

Ironic Position - Involvement in text

Detached Position - viewers watch something to be apart of something within a group.

Sandbox games - A sandbox is a style of game in which minimal character limitations are placed on the gamer, allowing the gamer to roam and change a virtual world at will. In contrast to a progression-style game, a sandbox game emphasizes roaming and allows a gamer to select tasks. Instead of featuring segmented areas or numbered levels, a sandbox game usually occurs in a “world” to which the gamer has full access from start to finish. 

Avatar - A hyperreal character in a simulation

Sims 4:

Sims (short version of simulation) allows users, to create their own world and characters, it is a simulation of reality. This sandbox game allows players to immerse themselves within the game, sometimes becoming confused and this is were reality vs artificial is blurred.

Modern:
Some grand narratives - nuclear family

Pomo:
Technology vs human - robots etc.
Real vs artificial
Hyperreality
Intertextual references to the sims, etc.

Style - Simulacra, a simulation of reality - careers, phones etc.
Theoretical - intertexual references
Historical - still includes some grand narratives

Foucault - Panopticon - we are watching and controlling the avatars. 

Dubord - style over substance

Baudrillard - simulacra, hyper reality

Essay Plan - To what extent is WIR a post modern text?

Plan:

Jameson
Intertexuality
Bricolage
Nostalga
Hybridity
Parody
Pastiche

Lyotard
Grand Narrative

Baudrillard
Hyper reality - Simulacra - WIR Animated 

Foucault - Surveillance -Penoption

Dubord - Society of the Spectacle

Commodification - something becomes valued £ example valentines day  and charity 

In white bear justice is commodified

Black mirror looks at the theoretical approach  and is deliberate 

This is a text which deliberately feeds into post modernism. 

How does wreck it Ralph and black mirror compare. 

WIR - does it do it knowingly ? style yes, theoretical no, lyotard grand narrative yes religion nuclear family, historical yes and no  1982 tron to WIR 

BM - Charlie Brooker, understands post modern theory so deliberately puts these theory's in, yes stylistic hyper reality , simulation reality v artificial, historical no grand narratives individuals

Jameson you can't make anything real- cultural recycling white bear- the purge, saw, the Truman show, Big Brother, Jurassic park, west world 

15 Million merits intertexual reference- Britain's got talent, X factor, sims, wii characters, big brother, Facebook.

Both BM and WIR very stylistic 

WIR strongest intertextuality does not weaken the grand narratives however the barrier between reality and artificial had collapsed weakened 

BM strongest simulacra and hyper reality. Does weaken grand narratives, 

Black mirror is more post modern 

BM 3 WIR1 1/2

Black mirror is more post modern than Wreck it Ralph. Black mirror is post modern in terms of historical, theoretical and stylistic. Whereas Wreck it Ralph is only postmodern in stylistic terms and some historical terms. BM and WIR use Intertextuality references, such as Mario cart and halo for WIR and the Truman show and big brother for BM, simulacra snd hyper realty. But only BM follows theoretical theory of PM, because WIR is By Disney, and BM is made by Charlie Brooker because he understands the post modern theory. They both hold some historical theories, BM more because it weakens grand narratives, there is no morality or belief in family or religion. But WIR does not weaken these grand narrative because their is belief in God and the nuclear family. WIR is slightly post modern because of it relating to Tron which merged the wall between reality and artificial.

Black mirror wins!

WIR

• Structures are blurring/breaking, lack of belief and rejecting traditional ideas.
• Genres are merged together from the different games.
• Representation of gender, Felix is feminine Calhourn is masculine
• Grand Narrative - good beats evil (Disney) technically - but Ralph is bad to begin with
• Audience vs text - No its a film modern
• Jameson
• Lots of interetexuality - Heros Duty - Halo/COD and Sugar Rush - Mario cart
• Bricolge - lots of games come together to create original ideas
• Parody - Alcoholic meeting - counseling with all the evil characters
• Pastiche - to older games to reach parents and middle aged people 90's games
• Hybridity - in terms on the genres mixed together
• Lyotard
• Empty/meaningless - lack of belief - Religion - out of order sighn, high angle, god like power, nuclear family - Felix and Calhourn marry and patriotism Venvelope - princess - but not stereotypical one
• Style over substance - Retro games?
• Baudrillard
• Hypereality - cartoon, Calhourn has emotion - husband to be is killed by the bug machines

Simulcra - simulation of reality

• Hyper reality simulacra - Baudrillard - Jameson
• Disney so can not deliberately fedd post modernism into the texts
• Grand Narrative - morality, Nuclear family, religion and Marriage
• Intertexuality

Baudrillard, Dubord and Foucault - SB

Baudrillard - Simulacra and Hyper Reality

Baudrillard was a controversial Philosopher whose main ideas and concepts have been used to understand the effect of living post modern environment of our perceptions of reality. He had a book called 'Simulacra and simulations', which became of basis for the Matrix films.

 Foucault:
The representation of reality is meditated through the media.
Manufactured Consent
Reality TV reflects a voyeuristic pos modern society.
social network give us control of voyeurism
The Panoption - the perfect prison, constantly under surveillance - Big Brother. Your phone allows the government to know everything!

Dubord:
Style over Substance, superficial and Super Fat v Super skinny, the appearance, so obsessed about appearance we don't care about whats inside, the brand of an artists rather than their songwriting.

Q. How is WIR post modern?

Intertextual references in WIR:

Mario cart

Halo/Call of Duty

Pac Man

Fix it Felix

Q*bert

300 word micro essay

Wreck it Ralph breaks down structure, uses a lack of traditional ideas and has a lack of belief in human progress. WIR includes many intertextual references, such as Mario Cart, Halo, Call of Duty, Pac man, Fix it Felix and Q*bert, showing it is post modern. This is post modern, because in the post modernity age we have a lack of belief that we can create original ideas, so a bricolage or cultural recycling has to be built to create a new idea. The audience includes the mainstream young target audience because it is a Disney pixar film and their target audience is children, but also adults who lived through the 90's, because of the nostalgia of the familiar games they played as children, teens and adults. To the older audience the film is richer, because of these memories of these games, other members of the audience may see it as style over substance because of the way it looks 'retro'. WIR also uses some of Jameson's theory's, the text shows pastiche and parody, it pays homage to some of the games such as Fix it Felix, but parody to Q*bert in the way it shows the characters from that game comically.

Having all of these intertexual references means structure which were widely used in modernity are collapsing which is also making this text post modern. The genres of each reference are different, Halo is an action/shooter game whereas Wreck it Ralph is an arcade genre, as Ralph from Wreck it Ralph enters the Heros Duty these boundaries are literally blurring together to create a bricolage and a new idea. Disney usually create very modern texts, this one has to be post modern in order to relate to a wider audience, it also has added more context to the characters to relate and create more meaning this this older audience. Cowhorn has emotion and too is masculine(a post modern representation of gender), as do the rest of the characters, she looks back to her wedding day, characters of video games can't hold emotion but these can, making the film hyper real and a simulacra, following Baudrillard's post modern theories.

The film changes the way you see the text, it targets an older audience to a children cartoon film, by using intertextual references and creating a bricolage and giving the characters emotion so they become realistic. The lack of belief and collapsing of structures, makes this text post modern, yet there are still some ideas which are modern such as the nuclear family and patriotism. WIR also is traditional in the way it has a belief in religion, with the high angle and god like power, as the out of order sign is placed on the arcade machine. This goes against Lyotard's theory of their being a lack of belief in post modernity. Other scenes, such as when Cowhourne and Felix get married shows they have a belief in the nuclear family, again against Lyotard's theory. WIR is post modern in how it represents good vs evil, traditionally Ralph is evil because he is disruptive and he is also shown to be 'grouped' with other villains from other games. Shown in a counseling group, much like an alcoholics anonymous group. But this gets complicated, as this modern structure collapse, as Ralph helps Venvelope build her car and saves Felix. So this grand narrative is blurred in turns of the binary opposites of Good vs Evil.

Although there are a lot of modernist structures still, there are also a lot of post modernist points, but has Disney done this on purpose? I think they have in order to reach the larger audience. So yes WIR is a post modern text, because it wants to gain a larger and older target audience.

How is WIR a post modern text?

• Structures are blurring/breaking, lack of belief and rejecting traditional ideas.
• Genres are merged together from the different games.
• Representation of gender, Felix is feminine Calhourn is masculine
• Grand Narrative - good beats evil (Disney) technically - but Ralph is bad to begin with
• Audience vs text - No its a film modern
• Jameson
• Lots of interetexuality - Heros Duty - Halo/COD and Sugar Rush - Mario cart
• Bricolge - lots of games come together to create original ideas
• Parody - Alcoholic meeting - counseling with all the evil characters
• Pastiche - to older games to reach parents and middle aged people 90's games
• Hybridity - in terms on the genres mixed together
• Lyotard
• Empty/meaningless - lack of belief - Religion - out of order sighn, high angle, god like power, nuclear family - Felix and Calhourn marry and patriotism Venvelope - princess - but not stereotypical one
• Style over substance - Retro games?
• Baudrillard
• Hypereality - cartoon, Calhourn has emotion - husband to be is killed by the bug machines
• Simulcra - simulation of reality

Notes post modernity

1. You need to understand modernism to understand post 

2. Breaking the structure of modernism

3. Binary opposite which belongs in modernism 

So you need to understand use modernism to do post modernism, but postmodern wants to throw that away and forget 

Post modernism is a paradox and is ironic 

Wreck it Ralph is modern in terms of prosumerism and interactivity audience vs text

Self for filling idea 

Period of time - rejected modernism when ? 

Stylistic - stronger than 1980's looks like? 

Theoretical - thinks like ? 

Lyotard - truth has to be deconstructed - when, period of time - collapse in structure 

Baudrillard - theoretical thinks like? - hyper reality and simulacra 

Jameson - looks like, stylistic - 1980s strengthens - intertexuality - simulacra 

We live in post modernity now 

Wir is post modern because : 

Baudrillard - simulacra and hyper real 

Breaking representation  of masculinity - collapsing of structure candy saga 

Lack of belief in progress - dystopia - halo rip off 

It was made in a post modern era - uses intertexuality - pac man, halo

traditional theories 

Starts in 1980s - computers audience v text 

1960s 

Post modern is a teenagers all about me 

Modern beliefs - religion belief patriotism nuclear family

Baudrillard - is it using post modern ideas on purpose - a Disney film? 

Linear 

Happy ending 

Good over evil but it's complicated 

More notes 

1. Collapsing of structures 

2. Rejecting of traditional ideas 

3. Emptiness and lack of belief 

The Japan nuclear bomb made humanity lose trust, because any second the world can be gone by a bomb. Technology was too advanced and could end the world. This was the start of post modernism because of this event. 

Technology was advanced during the 80's, leading to a lack of belief, no future. Post modernism was growing stronger, hyper reality becoming more popular. People were rejecting traditional ideas, and developing reality into hyper reality. An example of people starting to become trapped by a game. No emergency services. Lost trust in both emergency services police and government. Being reborn so a post modern representation. 

This film is a Dystopia film and is so popular because of a lack of belief that anything can get any better. The collapsing structure of theories is shown here, through hyper reality, to show the future. 

No progress distopia 

1980 explores simulation and hyper reality 

Must refer to an earlier text tron to wreck it Ralph 

Notes 6/1/15 

What is post modern: 

After modern age - not modernist theory's 

Breaking structures and collapsing 

Not traditional rejects traditional ideas doesn't conform to modernism 

Emptiness and lack of beliefs 

After ww2 nuclear bomb Japan - no trust no belief 

Simulacra - technology be someone else  consumerism - imagine 

No progress

 A theory but it is just a theory .... 

First paragraph - define and explain 

60's traditional ideas were breaking 

Hippies tv women's rights 

Gradual change weakening from 45 to 60's a relationship 

The strengthening what the exam is about 

Shown through media texts 

New media 

Now convergence - combined into 1 

Prosumers - we can make videos youtube 

Sophie Bishop Screen shots

Human and Technology 

The structure between human and technology has collapsed in WIR, because the 'human' characters (but cartoon), are controlling the 'games' and the simulacra at the start of the film, but the technology control themselves within the arcade cases. There is no human, because it a simulation of the real world.

Real and Artificial 

WIR is not real, in it's style, because it is cartoon, simulacra. It is artificial because of the hyper reality and simulacra, Baudrillard and Jameson. It is a Disney film so will not be true to the real world, because it is targeted at children.

Good vs Evil 

Ralph starts of as the evil character type, but he was never shown as  evil, like the king of the candy game is. But out of Ralph and Felix, Ralph was evil. But Ralph was good, as he helped the girl in the candy game.

Male and female

The representation of gender has blurred together. Felix is feminine in his high pitch voice, and his behaviour, whereas the woman from Heros Duty is very masculine, action chick.

Genres

The genre boundaries blur together, for example Heros Duty blurs with Wreck it Ralph, as Ralph enters Heros Duty. Also The woman from Heros Duty goes into Sugar Rush, blurring those genres together, action/sci fi and fantasy.

Sophie Bishop

Wreck it Ralph:

It looks postmodern, because it is a modern technology, animated, so the style is very colourful and hyper real. Jamerson's theory of nostalgia, is used, the many video game characters shown in the film, create the sense of nostalgia. Hyper reality is a huge theme within Wreck it Ralph, Baudrillards hyper reality. The cartoon/animated style is post modern and hyper real. The film does not follow modernist theory's and theorist, but post modern. The 'grand narratives' such as bad v good, and the hero always wins, is deconstructed in the film. As Ralph is sympathized, and becomes a hero figure. Following Lyotards's beliefs, that truth needs to be deconstructed.

Bricolage - The process of adaptation or improvisation, aspects of one style are given different meanings. Post modern because they are taking a modern theory, and creating a new one.

A car made out of different sweets, theme of the game.

Parody - Referring to existing texts, making out of them, or the creator. Post modern because they are referring to sometimes modernist texts, and making fun our of them.

Ralph is at a group meeting with all villains from different games, alcoholic anonymous parody.

Pastiche - Homage to existing texts. Post modern because they are using existing texts, and sometimes use them as interetexuality.

Homage to Wreck it Ralph

Hybridity - Combining of two genres, thriller + horror. Recycling old. Post modern because they are taking a modernist theory, and creating a new genre.

Sci Fi + Action

Hyper-reality - Unrealistic, Photoshop an image. Post modern because of the post modern style, allowing you to alter real texts into an enhanced reality.

The 'real life' the arcade is cartoon/animated as well as inside the machines.

Intertextuality - A reference/apart of an existing text in a new text. Post modern because it is reusing previous texts to create new ones, and to have a sense of familiarity/nostalga.

Pac Man

Style over Substance - the look over the content, music video. Post modern because now with bands such as One Direction, the style the way they look is seen over the actual substance/music.

Retro

Self-reflexivity - constructed simulation or reproduction. Using hyper reality and using it to make reference. Post modern because it includes hyper reality and simulation.

Prosumers - An amateur/audience who creates their own music or other media texts. Post modern because a production company and music labels are not needed (professionals, with technology now an amateur can do it themselves.

Nostalga -  sense of familiarity in a text, a past text relived, warm feeling happy. Post modern because it is using intertexuality.

Wreck it Ralph

Grand- Narrative/Meta-narrative - History, science, politics and religion theories combines, allows us to come closer to the absolute/perfect world. - Lyotard distrusts this, and wants us to deconstruct the truth. Post modern because Lyotard want to dismantle this modernist theory.

Popular (low) culture - mass appeal

Simulacra - realist forms of media, part of hyper-reality. Reality it's self is saturated. Post modern because it includes hyper reality.