Media Studies

Genre helps to minimise risk and predict expenditure. This is important because companies require a predictable income and need to budget. Genre creates familial pleasures – we see what we expect and enjoy watching the things we like. Genre satisfies our needs for entertainment and escapism.  However... Genre can also lead to repetition of the same conventions, leading audiences to become bored. In order to maintain an audience’s interest, producers will need to maintain some conventions of the genre and use them in a traditional way, whilst also creating difference in others.  Steve Neale -  Repetition and Difference The idea that: Genres may be dominated by repetition, but are also marked by difference, variation and change. Genres change, develop and overlap with one another. Difference is essential to the economy of genre. For example, he discusses the growing sub-genres of music which appeal to wider audiences.  Hybridity  ...

How does the Lucozade 2013 'I Believe' Campaign use Media Language to promote the brand? Lucozade started off as a medicinal, health drink when it was created by Thomas Beecham in 1927. It was created in order to re-hydrate during one's illness until its re-branding in the 1980s. Within this re-branding, the company changed their labelling from a 'health drink' into an 'energy restoration drink', swapped their glass bottles/ packaging to plastic, and they were no longer sold in pharmacies. The medicinal qualities behind Lucozade were stripped from the brand. This is important when discussing the 'I Believe' campaign as it reconciles with this forgotten accusation. The Campaign uses a wide range of technical conventions and techniques to persuade in order to promote their brand, such as, celebrity endorsements, a bright/ vibrant colour palette and unfinished claims. The celebrity endorsement by Gareth Bale, paired with his costume of a spo...

Technological Changes in Film  Its important to consider all stages of the film-making process: Production Distribution Exhibition The main changes in technology on the production side of things have impacted visual and audio effects JB1967 Multi-plane animation created a rudimentary 3D effect Xerography quickened the animation process as it allowed animator's drawings to be photocopied onto a screen rather than the slow process of 'hand-inking' JB2016 Advanced CGI - John Favreau still wanted to emulate the style of classic Disney movies from the 1930s and 1940s All animals and landscapes created digitally Blue screen, puppets and actors Lots of post-production editing Film Distribution has massively transformed by the digital distribution JB1967 Physical film reels were costly to produce and had to be transported from cinema to cinema. JB2016 Cinemas can digitally download the film – allowing saturation distribution at lo...

Vertical integration is a strategy whereby a company owns or controls its suppliers, distributors, or retail locations to control its value or supply chain. Vertical integration benefits companies by allowing them to control the process, reduce costs, and improve efficiencies. Horizontal integration is the process of a company increasing production of goods or services at the same part of the supply chain. A company may do this via internal expansion, acquisition or merger. The process can lead to monopoly if a company captures the vast majority of the market for that product or service. Saturation distribution is a situation in which a product has become distributed within a market; the actual level of saturation can depend on consumer purchasing power; as well as competition, prices, and technology. Free market capitalism is a society in which an open market sets prices for the sole purpose of profits. This type of society operates on the principles of supply and demand. Pr...

Audiences feel that adverts offer us an idea of the ‘us’ we could be if we acquired their product. Celebrities offer role models, aspirational figures A celebrity endorsing the use of a product offers us a chance to be more like them This idea is termed intertextuality or, more correctly in the case of celebrity, borrowed interest.   Kevin Hart - Influencer Hartbeat Production is an entertainment company created by comedian Kevin Hart. the company produces, film, TV, live and digital entertainment for distribution across all digital platforms including theatrical, television, and emerging digital technologies. Kevin Hart’s What Now? tour, has become the highest grossing comedy tour ever reported to Billboard Boxscore, selling more than 600,000 tickets and grossing $35 million in less than one month. Instagram - 80.1m Followers Charity work:   Clara Lionel Foundation  Make-A-Wish Foundation  National Breast Cancer Foundati...

Media Language Conventions: Technical Conventions - This refers to the actual technical construction of the advert, for example colour palette or the shot type Techniques to Persuade - This refers to content, or the message created by the combination of technical elements, that persuade the audience to buy into the product

It was created by Thomas Beecham in 1927, produced by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) , and is now owned by Suntory - a Japanese company.  The original purpose was to help re-hydrate during illness. The different drinks produced by Lucozade include Lucozade Energy and Sport. The 1980s Re-branding Changed from being a medicinal drink to being an energy drink No longer sold in pharmacies The bottle changed from glass to plastic The 1998 Lucozade campaign used the fictional figure of Lara Croft from the globally successful Tomb Raider Video-game series The iconic figure of Lara featured in a series of TV adverts and print poster campaign all aimed at establishing that Lara - a figure associated with vitality, strength, endurance, mental sharpness, and independence - relied on Lucozade to help her sustain that level of endurance and energy.  The campaign was seen as a logical evolution of 1980s Thompson campaigns. The target market has clearly evol...

Media ownership is the concept of studying who controls what is produced in the media and how this affects audience experience of the media. Theory - Curran and Seaton Patterns of ownership and control are the most significant factors in how media operates Media industries follow the normal capitalist patterns JB67 -- They never thought of making it a 'box office smash', they wanted to make 'Walt happy' and 'finish the movie' Walt Disney's Politics   Supported Democratic Party until he switched to the Republican party He produced war-time training films and anti-Nazi propaganda films Founding member for the Motion Picture Alliance for the Preservation of American Ideals Against the rising tide of communism, fascism and kindred beliefs Testified against former animators that were accused communists Some see him as a patriot, folk artist and champion of American culture Accused of antisemitism  Accused of perpetrating racist stereot...

Phoebe Waller - Bridge : new Bond film must 'treat woman properly' - even if he doesn't How is James Bond attempting to fit into a post 'Time's Up / Me Too' world? Waller - Bridge has been recruited to polish the script in order to present and treat women properly, making them feel like real people. In order to keep Bond's 'charm', they are not changing the way he treats women, keeping him true to his character, and focusing on how the film presents them. Can it work? Should the James Bond franchise be abandoned? Yes. It should work as, without changing the attittude and recognition of the iconic character of James Bond, Waller - Bridge is modifying the gender presentation and treatment. Advertising and Marketing Advertising  Types: Billboard TV  Radio Flyer Panphlet Social Media Website Magazines Poster News Article Purpose Inform of product Pursuade to buy / watch / read etc. (convince) Entertain  Enhance t...

1910 1930 1950 1980 2010 From the early 20th century to modern day, many advertisements have focused on female objectification (although it has started decreasing ), over exaggerating product use and glorifying their products. The presentation of  adverts have become more bright, vibrant and filled with reviews, anchorage text, mastheads, emotions, large images etc. that encourage consumers to buy their products. Advertising Campaigns Successful brands don't just sell their products. They encourage consumers to adopt a certain lifestyle and to make a series of decisions based on emotions. Companies create experience, perceptions and emotional investment. This deepens our brand affiliation, which in turn leads us to become loyal customers and refer family members and friends. Advertising Techniques Colour Colour is present in the background, photography, fonts, visual accents and branding elements Consi...

Age Ratings: UK: Uc -- U -- PG -- 12A -- 12 -- 15 -- 18 -- R18 US: G -- PG -- PG-13 -- R -- NC-17 What Determines Certification? Violence Strong Language Drug Use Sexual Content Racial Content and Discrimination Film regulation is the process of certifying or classifying films to determine the appropriate age of audience members. Each country has a different system and dedicated board who determine the ratings of every film that is released to audiences at cinemas and through home exhibition channels. In the UK, we have the BBFC (British board of film classification (used to be censors)). This is a non- governmental organisation. In the US, the MPAA established the Code and Rating Administration. Film ratings were introduced in 1968 in the US and have gone through several changes. How have social changes through history affected how films are regulated? Production code of regulation embodies anxieties and intolerances from a different historical period ...

Exhibition is divided into two sections: Cinema -  The distributor is paid by the cinema for a copy of the film. Home -  The distributor is paid by the company who is selling the film for a copy. A films success is often decided on the amount of money made during its cinema release. This is known as Box Office Takings . Home Exhibition is becoming an increasing valuable and varied source for distributors to increase profits. Cineworld and Odeon are the two biggest multiplex in the UK In America there is a lot more choice There are very strong laws in America about the separation of Production Companies and Exhibitors. Different stages of release: Promotional Screening -- Cinema -- Hospitality -- DVD Rental -- Pay TV -- DVD Retail -- Fire TV -- Library JB1967 Cinemas Not many copies Re-release Goes on tour DVDs Re-release with bonus features Vaulting Withholding VHS JB2016 Saturation Distribution DVDs Blu Ray Dig...

Psychometric audience Profile Media producers define and categorise their audience through demographic profiles. A demographic audience profile defines groups based on things like age, gender, income, education and occupation. My Movie Poster - The Explorer I went for an   art-house themed recreation of The Iron Giant. I have translated it to Portuguese and included the 'Festival de Cannes' logo to encase this ideology and showcase the artistic, low budget quality of the movie. 

Roland Barthes is the main theorist. This is theory known for calling attention to the formal structures of significance, of meaning-making in culture. It can be used to reveal the arbitrary or constructed nature of the meanings we use in our everyday lives, semiotics is also a form of social criticism. This is a famous painting by Rene Magritte called "The Treachery of Images."  Magritte's caption says, (in French) "This is not a pipe.". Actually, it's not a famous painting by Magritte; it's a digital image of the painting. Or, to be even more precise, a digital image of a photograph of the painting. This illustrates Magritte's point, which is simply that an image or sign of a thing is not the thing itself . The same point could be made for any number of images, signs, and symbols.  We forget that the signs and symbols all around us are just that  and not things themselves. Denotation - Literal  Connotation - Meta...

Windrush Day Special with guest editor Baroness Benjamin The Windrush generation and their descendants have contributed so much to contemporary Britain, and as we prepare for the first ever Windrush Day Baroness Floella Benjamin guest-edits our very special edition. From fashion to food, sport to entertainment, we turn the spotlight on the Caribbean pioneers who changed Britain for ever. In this week’s issue: Historian Mike Phillips examines why the Windrush’s arrival in the UK led to a social transformation Baroness Benjamin speaks to workers on the front line who try to keep youngsters of all races and backgrounds away from gangs Olympic hero Linford Christie writes a Letter to his Younger Self about how a part of him will always be Jamaican Sir Lenny Henry explains how more diversity in the media will help preserve the stories of the Windrush generation and other minorities Ainsley Harriott recalls how the Brits once baffled by mangoes are now eating far more interesting ...