'A' Grade Exam Response: Film 'Sin City'/'Fish Tank'

Here is a condensed guide of how to make use of language to approach exam questions (Film)

How typical are your three main texts of their genre?

Another convention of film noir that is evident in 'Sin City' is the constant visual iconography and noir style in the mise-en-scene. When a character appears from the shadows, wearing a trench-coat in the rain it clearly indicates conventions of the film noir genre. The use of rain in 'Sin City's mise-en-scene highlights the dark and gloomy atmosphere of the post-war American society, using pathetic fallacy as away of representing its genre. In this same way the trench-coat Hartigan is wearing also visually references film noir protagonists, making it typical of its genre.

As well as its visual references to film noir 'Sin City' also uses key visual conventions and iconography of the comic-book genre. For example the trench-coat each protagonist wears highlights their status as a comic-book hero, by referencing the long cape of a superhero. This supports the idea that 'Sin City' may be untypical of its genre, as it combines two genres to create irony: a parody of conventions, rather than being truly typical.

'Fish Tank', my third text, is more typical of its social realism genre, and unlike my other films can be defined as more typical. The film deals with real life issues and can easily recognised as typical by its themes and technical stylistics. The scene when Connor, Michael Fassbender's character, 'grooms' and then sleeps with the underage Mia in a council flat highlights a very real and controversial issue in modern day British society. This makes it highly typical of the social realist genre as previous films in the genre, such as Ken Loach's 'My Name Is Joe' have explored similar representations of how alcoholism has affected and impacted upon individuals in British society.

The use of hand held camera and depth of field in the opening sequence, when Mia is followed through the council estate in an extended tracking wide shot, reinforce the visual aesthetics of the social realist style. The style makes it appear more realistic (a typical approach), adding to the impact and sense that these types of events really occur in society: almost as if it was 'documenting' real life. This connection between the chosen style and the context make 'Fish Tank' highly typical of the social realist genre; characters portray real life social problems and the visual style gives it more 'realism': unlike 'Sin City' which is highly stylised and based on a combination (or hybrid) of film noir and comic-book genre conventions.   

Key strengths:

References to the question: Repeated reference to key words in the question show an engagement with the central issues

Use of terminology: Details of stylistic features shows an understanding of how meaning is conveyed

Develops an argument: An argument is supported by reference to key moments & issues in each film

'A' Grade Exam Response: Section A - Text (Film)

How typical are your three main texts of their genre?

The three texts chosen are a mixture of genres. Postmodern films in today's society are growing more prominent, two of the three films are hybrids of two or more genres, these two being 'Sin City' and 'District 9'. The third is 'Fish Tank', a purely social realist film.

'Sin City' is a hybrid of film noir, comic book and horror conventions which is not only postmodern but is also typical in its use of genre conventions. 'Sin City' uses classic film noir conventions such as a cynical protagonist in the form of two main characters Hartigan and Marv, rain-soaked streets, low-key lighting and a voice-over narrative. A good example of this cynical protagonist convention is Marv who states that "Hell is waking up every goddam day and not knowing why you're here" in a voice over. This shows how much he despises himself, it also shows a typical film noir genre convention in his character portrayal and the way his thoughts are conveyed. This stems from the theme of paranoia, an aspect of all film noir characters which originates from the 1940's view of society in the wake of World War II and the possibility of a new 'cold war'.

Another example of 'cold war' paranoia can be seen through Bruce Willis's character Hartigan. One scene reflects this mood when Hartigan is shot in the back by his cop 'buddy' Bob, again this displays the typical noir convention of corruption and anxiety present in such classic films as 'Double Indemnity' and 'The Maltese Falcon'. Hartigan's heroic actions are demonstrated in his desire to save the innocent girl Nancy from the corrupt Senator's son, he clearly wishes to stop evil which is dominating the powerful leaders in the city. He cannot depend upon friends and is impelled by his conscience to oppose 'sin' as a moralistic cause which leads to his demise as females tend to do in typical noir narratives.

In terms of mise-en-scene the trench coat Hartigan wears is typical of the noir genre but it also resembles the typical comic-book convention of a 'caped super-hero', making the film somewhat of a hybrid. Applying Propp's character roles within the comic-book genre in 'Sin City' we can see how the cape has been used to represent a superhero, constantly blowing in the wind. However when Marv goes to kill or hurt somebody he removes his trench coat showing he is carrying out a good deed, his character is more complex, more of an anti-hero another typical noir convention.

Noir films typically also contain a femme-fatale and 'Sin City' contains many. Each male character has contact with a female character who could, in some way, be said to resemble this common character; for Hartigan it's Nancy, for Marv it's Wendy and for Dwight it's Shelley & Gail. Wheras Wendy and Shelley are typical femme-fatales, Nancy is also seen as an innocent young girl, displaying how the genre can be made different for a postmodern audience.

'District 9' is also a hybrid genre, mixing typical Sci-Fi conventions with documentary stylistics and narrative structure. Typical Sci-Fi conventions can be seen with the use of advanced technology, aliens, robotics and spaceships. These conventions are mixed though with a documentary style approach to the narrative structure creating a feeling that the events are 'real'. The use of 'faux' stock footage of news reports and interviews with experts and civilians makes the events seem more truthful or realistic. The use of hand-held camera also reinforces this reading as this is a typical cinematic technique of a documentary.

In the opening scenes of 'District 9' we see interviews with various 'expert' witnesses giving us clear exposition to the events which have led up to the alien landings. This is important in developing a realistic documentary approach to the narrative, something that may be seen as new to the typical Sci-Fi conventions of other films such as 'The Fly' or 'Invasion Of The Bodysnatchers'. The interaction between the main character Wikus and the cameraman, when he is unable to remove his microphone from his clothing, is playful in its approach to mixing the realistic and the fictional elements of the film. This is something not typical of the Sci-Fi genre but shows how genres repeat conventions and also make them different by mixing styles.

'Fish Tank' however is not a hybrid, it follows the codes and conventions of the social realist genre very closely. Its kitchen sink style relates to well established generic techniques and themes. It revolves around topical social issues (family dysfunction & underage sex), makes use of hand-held camera and can be viewed as gritty and realistic in terms of its representation of British social life. The mise-en-scene of a working class council estate can be seen in the opening sequence and is typical of the genre. In this scene we can instinctively conclude that this is of the social realist genre as Mia shouts "Tell your old man that I think he's a c*nt". This alone clearly shows her working class upbringing; but the use of long takes, hand-held camera and use of only diegetic urban sounds as she quickly walks through the estate can be seen as typical stylistic conventions of the social realist genre. Her brisk walking continues throughout the film and suggests a character who is going nowhere fast. Original social realist films of the 1960's such as 'Saturday Night and Sunday Morning' and 'A Taste of Honey' dealt with similar social issues and also contained similar techniques, but they tended to include non-diegetic music to support the action and emotional context to appeal to a mainstream audience. This shows how the genre has developed over time, as all genres do, but 'Fish Tank' has pushed the genre to new depths of realism by attempting to create more realistic representations of social situations. 

The narrative issue of 15 year old Mia's desire for a sexual relationship with Connor, her mother's boyfriend, could also be seen as a controversial topic in today's society to spark debate, a regular consequence of the generic conventions of social realism. 

In conclusion, all three texts are very typical of their genres, using many classic conventions from each different genre. In some cases these may be mixed with other genres to develop a wider audience and create difference for modern audiences.      

MS4 - 'A' Grade Exam Response: Text, Industry & Audience

B4. ‘Most media texts target a range of different audiences.’ How true is this for your chosen texts? 

It is true that most media texts target a range of different audiences by making themselves suitable for more than one type of person, by selecting, constructing and anchoring its meaning, spreading out to a wider population. This can be said of the three film texts that I have chosen, Neil Marshals’ ‘Dog Soldiers’, Richard Curtis’ ‘Bridget Jones’ Diary’ and Edgar Wrights’ ‘Shaun of the Dead’. Whilst these three films certainly have a particular audience in mind whilst being created, they also have traits and go to certain lengths to make sure that they target a range of audiences, in a means to attract more people to the box office, resulting in a higher gross profit for the film in question.

Neil Marshal’s British horror feature film Dog Soldiers is a typical horror film. It involved werewolves, gun fire, action and gore. And yet it received strong attention at the box office from a range of audiences, including young women as well as men. The film did particularly well within the United Kingdom as well as being very well received within the United States too, something almost unheard of for a British horror film.

Dog Soldiers manages to attract its multiple audiences in a number of ways. The action is set around a group of British marines who are sent on a training exercise in a remote part of the Scottish countryside. Soon they realise that all is not what it seems and a pack of hungry mythical creatures are after them. By setting the action within Britain, with an entire British cast, enables the film to grab the attention of the aforementioned, not just British audience, but a foreign one too. British audiences wish to see this film because it has a strong, likeable British cast, whilst Americans wish to view it because the idea of a successful horror film coming out of the UK was almost unheard of in this decade at that point.

Dog Soldiers received both praise and higher audience figures because of its gritty realism, which had begun to disappear in the American horror figures, which favoured over the top gore over reality. The film touches not only on the horror genre, but of the survival, thriller genre too, gaining wider recognition from audience members who perhaps would not have normally gone to see a horror picture.

The film manages to attract a female audience by including the female character of Claire. She is the only female featured within the film, and is portrayed as sensible, strong and courageous., subverting horror stereotypes that all women must be weak, damsels in distress, which appeared to be a female audience drawing them in to watch the film. As a whole, this film works well to attract different types of audiences, both genders, as well as overseas viewers.

Bridget Jones’ Diary, which follows the title characters mishaps and triumphs within her love life was a box office hit, and managed to target a wide range of diverse audience members. The film achieved this in many ways, starting with its initial stages such as casting the film. To attract a female audience, the casting team had to select an actor that would entice to women. They found already formed British heartthrob Hugh Grant, whose success with previous box office hits such as ‘Four Weddings and a Funeral’ and ‘Notting Hill’, guaranteed them an audience percentage. The director and costume designers then constructed Hugh Grant to make him seem even more irisistable to a female audience, by dressing him in well tailored, expensive suits and made him look perfect on screen with the aid of clever make up and lighting. Finally, to anchor the preferred reading of the character to the audience, Hugh Grant is given, as the character of Daniel, seductive lines which he will read in his coy British accent, guaranteed to entice a female viewer. The male audience is attracted both by casting Renee Zellwegger in the lead role, already a hit with the male audience, but also by advertising the film with such slogans as ‘the perfect date film’ ensuring that men take their girlfriends to see this film.

Along with a thoughtful script that provides love and romance for a female audience, and crude innuendos and sexual imagery for men, Bridget Jones is able to target both genders as well as appealing to overseas markets. The film takes a quaint look on British life appealing to American audiences, as well as the British sense of humour that they love so much. In all Bridget Jones’ Diary, is successful in targeting different types of audiences through both script and casting.

 Finally, Edgar Wright’s zombie comedy ‘Shaun of the Dead’, released in 2004, was a worldwide hit, managing to target a vast range of audiences including men, women, horror fans, comedy fans, as well as fans of his previous television series, ‘Spaced’ broadcast several years previous on channel 4.

Whilst the script was certainly strong enough to attract a large majority of audiences on its own, the film did not just rely on the strength of its plotline. Special attention was taken to construct a strong cast of likeable personalities that would appeal to the public, as well as different audiences, gaining a higher profit at the Box Office. 

The central protagonists are Shaun and Ed, played by Simon Pegg and Nick Frost already fairly well known for their work on aforementioned television series ‘Spaced’ and whilst were not ultimately household names at the time, their likeable personality and ability to play off one another proved vital to attracting a young male audience, whose relationships with close male friends were not unlike that of characters Ed and Shaun. The character of Dianne is portrayed by actress Lucy Davis, acclaimed for her work as character Dawn Tinsley Ricky Gervais’ hit comedy ‘The Office’, already a great success. Her well known face helped to secure Shaun of the Dead, both a female audience as well as fans of The Office. Penelope Winton and Bill Nighy were cast to give an older perspective within the plot, and aided the film as they managed to secure the film with an older target audience, who enjoyed the more mature characters outlook on the stories zombie attack. 

The film worked well to target both fans and of the horror and comedy genres, giving equal measures to each within the film, providing light comical relief within moments of terror and vice versa. This is reflected within the films advertisements; where the film posters and trailers are both comical as well as chilling, appealing to both audiences drawing them into watch the text. The fact that one of the films tag lines was ‘a comedy with zombies’ ensures that it will receive the target audience it requires whilst including the older and female characters on advertisements too will also ensure that a larger target audience is received.

In conclusion all three film texts work well to gain a large diverse, target audience gaining both genders, different ages and different countries to create a stronger box office total.

Sin City students response with Feedback.

Very Good Sample Response A/B: Industry/Music

B4. Explore how your chosen texts use digital technology in their marketing.

My three texts for this section are Lady Gaga’s 2011 album ‘Born This Way’, Radiohead’s 2011 album ‘The King of Limbs' and Nirvana’s 1991 album ‘Nevermind’. Each of my artists took different approaches to marketing with and without the use of digital technology.

Gaga uses digital technology such as the internet to sell her albums as well as making a retail copy. Her 2011 album ‘Born This Way’ sold 440,000 copies within two days via download on the Amazon website for a price of only 99 cents. A consequence of this new digital system and method for obtaining music is that fans can illegally download/ leak the album before the intended release date. Oxford band ‘Radiohead’ found a way around this problem when self-releasing their 7th album ‘In Rainbows’ (2007).

Breaking free of major labels and embracing digital technology Radiohead set up a website where they released ‘In Rainbows’ allowing their fans/ everyone to pay what they wanted for a digital copy, which let the fans decide how much the music was worth to them. This proved highly profitable for the band themselves and set a new industry model whereby the artists gained more profit and more control.

Lady Gaga is also well known for using Twitter to communicate with her social networking, teenage fans on a regular basis, creating a parasocial relationship with them. Overall the singer/ songwriter has 41,482,584 followers on the social networking site as well as other followers on other sites such as Facebook and Google+. The connection she has with her fans via the use of social media allows her to cultivate and reinforce a personal relationship with her fans to preserve her popularity and mainstream pop status. Digital technology therefore allows wider access and increases potential sales in the modern digital market.

Gaga’s success and popularity increased as she became more globally known through the use of digital technology. She released 5 singles over an 8 month period all accompanied with a music video, which can be found on her own YouTube channel. Repeated views increase her market value and maintain a level of popularity. The high production values together with the glamorous and provocative appearance of Gaga herself also made her videos compulsive viewing for her fans (Little Monsters as she calls them) on YouTube. She gains millions of hits per video and this encourages countless fans to create viral copycat productions which have increased her online presence immensely.

A band who didn’t follow this modern, mainstream method of marketing was Radiohead, an indie/ alternative rock band from Oxford, UK. Their self-promotion and self-releases of albums ‘In Rainbows’ (2007) and ‘The King of Limbs’ (2011), via their website allowed the release(s) to occur globally and at the same time see an increase in sales due to their established fanbase, cultivated via their major label EMI. ‘The King of Limbs’ sold an estimated 300,000 to 400,000 copies through the website alone. The experiment they conducted with the release of album 7 ‘In Rainbows,’ limited the possibility of illegal recordings/ leaks being distributed allowing the band more control in their output. This unique form of marketing resulted in positive and negative press coverage as a result of bypassing and not conforming to the usual record industry models. For the band themselves it allows more freedom and more profit, they have stated that they earned more money from their self-released albums – something the industry have historically depended upon.

As the band already had an established fan base, they didn’t accompany their 2011 album ‘The King Of Limbs’ with a tour and only released a niche, low budget, DIY music video for one track ‘Lotus Flower’, solely targeting their pre-existing fan base. Both Gaga and Radiohead gained and have sustained their fan bases and promoted their work(s) through the use of digital technology.

A band that didn’t have access to digital marketing during their career were ‘grunge’/ rock three-piece Nirvana. For their 1991 album ‘Nevermind’ they were totally reliant upon marketing via their major record label Geffen. Coverage from music press such as ‘NME’ and ‘Rolling Stone’ magazines, helped promote the bands profile but ‘word of mouth’ was essential in spreading the message about the bands work pre-internet as well as TV appearances and live touring. Due to this it took the band 5 months to get to number 1 on the Billboard 200 charts, whereas both ‘The King of Limbs’ and ‘Born This Way’ went straight to the top of the charts in their first week proving the effective use of digital technology in the music industry in todays modern marketplace.

Digital technology was not available during these times but their popularity is now widely promoted via ITunes and other online sites such as Facebook as a form of nostalgia for both those that enjoyed their music at the time and new fans. The suicide of lead vocal Kurt Cobain and the rise in sales post-death poses the statement that ‘artists make more money/ get more recognition once they’re dead’. This can be proven due to release of albums such as ‘Nirvana’s Greatest Hits’ released via online stores for the 20th Anniversary of Cobain’s death, promoting their work further with the use of digital technology.

Digital technology is highly used in order to market and promote artists in the music industry today as it has an immediate impact on fans and allows fans to access and download their work(s) in high quality, reducing the costs of production and distribution for music labels. The use of digital technology also allows for new artists to become widely known through social networking sites.

'A' Grade Exam Response: Nirvana

How effectively were your three main texts marketed?

Nirvana had to rely upon upon their major record label Geffen to gain them mainstream popularity in the 1990's as the internet was in its infancy. Their 1991 release 'Nevermind' was released by Geffen at a time when to achieve widespread success in the music industry it was essential to be signed to a global label as they had the marketing and distribution capabilities to promote artists. At this time critical acclaim, through reviews, and 'word of mouth' enabled artists to become popular and established on the independent circuit, but this restricted worldwide success due to lack of revenue - this is why Nirvana chose to ditch their independent label Sub Pop and sign to the major label Geffen. 

Their use of a strong visual rebellious iconography; long-hair, ripped jeans and punk rock attitude had already created a hardcore audience which had allowed them to successfully market themselves to not only metal fans but also more alternative genres. This attitude can be clearly seen in the 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' music video. In the opening shot we instantly see the 'Converse All Star' baseball shoe a typical clothing signifier of teen rebellion. The videos mise-en-scene of a high school basketball court with teenagers 'moshing' in slow-motion was also highly evocative of Nirvana's cultural ideology and potential audience appeal.

Nirvana's DIY, punk attitude was already well-established from their time at Sub Pop, but maintaining this with the move to Geffen increased their marketing potential as they hadn't 'sold out' to their hardcore fans. On the UK promotional tour for 'Nevermind' Kurt Cobain, and the rest of the band, maintained their authentic attitude and image on several TV shows such as Jonathan Ross and Top Of The Pops. On the Jonathan Ross show in 1991 they were expected to play their new single 'In Bloom' but instead chose to play one of their heaviest metal genre songs 'Territorial Pissings'. This created  a buzz around them and people wanted to see them live and this also increased the sales of their album 'Nevermind'.  This would have been viewed as a highly effective marketing strategy in the early 90's before the progression to internet marketing as their popularity was increasing through reviews and 'word of mouth'. 

However, since the demise of Cobain and Nirvana the internet has now enabled their legacy to continue through iTunes and youtube and their music can still be marketed at a young rebellious audience. The ability to target audiences through iTunes with links to other artists has allowed marketing approaches to successfully reach appropriate audiences without the added costs of promotional and live touring. The internet has also allowed new audiences to discover Nirvana and buy their album 'Nevermind' as witnessed for the 20th Anniversary re-release via iTunes. This has now allowed the album to achieve over 26 million sales worldwide since its release in 1991.     

     

Sin City (2005): A Grade Response

Sin City (2005)

A2. How typical are your three main texts of their genre?

My three texts studied within this industry are ‘District 9’, ‘Sin City’ and ‘Fish Tank’. All three texts use certain genre conventions and stylistic features but they are all fairly typical of their respective genres.

Sin City can quite easily be established as postmodern due to it being a clear collaboration of a number of genres, creating hybridity within the text. The opening sequence, however, conveys genre conventions that can strongly be associated with the film noir genre. An establishing shot is used to, at first, frame an unknown ‘assassin’ (The Man) on a balcony in a cityscape, this mise-en-scene highlights the urban environment commonly employed in film noir films from the 1940’s. Further film noir conventions can then be seen with the inclusion of the ‘lady in red’ who displays the characteristic features of a major noir element, the femme-fatale – with red lips, cigarette in-hand and slinky dress. This character is also lit using low-key lighting, a commonly used technique in film noir to suggest deception or deceit. Audiences familiar with the genre would therefore make assumptions about her narrative role by relating her to similar characters seen in classic noir films of the 40’s, such as The Maltese Falcon and The Big Combo.  

The Maltese Falcon (1941)

Sin City, though, then breaks away from the stereotypical femme-fatale character when ‘The Man’ shoots the ‘lady in red’. This plays with the normal narrative convention and provides genre difference to the text, making it untypical. This adds a shock for the viewer and could be regarded as a way to keep the genre fresh for the audience. Further film noir conventions though can be seen later in the film when the more established noir protagonists arrive in the form of the heroic ‘flawed’ males – Hartigan, Marv and Dwight. Each of these male characters is cynical, damaged and ‘hard-boiled’ like the original noir heroes from the 40’s features I mentioned earlier. Marv, for instance, states in a voice-over narration (another typical characteristic of the genre), that “Sometimes I even wonder why I’m on this earth” - therefore expressing a cynical viewpoint on his existence and his worth in the world. As with all the scenes throughout Sin City, Marv is regularly framed at a ‘dutch tilt’ angle and in stark high contrast black and white to not only represent his skewed view on the world but also his strong moral views of what is right or wrong.

The merging of genres in Sin City, to create a hybrid, clearly makes the film untypical of the original genre though. The continuous use of comic-book conventions, such as Marv’s ‘superhuman’ strength, establishes the fact that Sin City, although displaying many opposing conventions, is in itself a text which is both noir and comic-book; a comic-noir if you like. Evidence of this can be seen with the persistent use of comic-book framing and over-exaggerated actions. Hartigan’s shooting on the docks, by Bob (his cop-buddy), clearly shows signs of both noir and comic-book features when John is shot multiple times but still manages to save Nancy and express his feelings through a voice-over; again a noir convention. Another noir/comic-book hybrid, The Spirit, was released 3 years after Sin City that merged elements of each genre showing how genres adapt and change over time.

The Spirit (2008)

MS4 - Text, Industry & Audience: Television: Strengthening Exam Responses

Exam Responses: Guidance 

• Developing more thorough responses to exam questions is a key skill that needs to be developed in preparation for the exam. 
• Below are sample paragraphs of A and D grade responses to a Television/Audience question from a previous paper. 
• These highlight the contrasts in content, detail and discussion that is required to get the highest grade possible. 
• Strengthening your exam skills and technique to create better responses is not difficult if you can recognise your weaknesses and change your approach to answering questions from a more critical perspective rather than largely descriptive. 

(Section B)
Explore the different ways in which your chosen texts attract their audiences. 

'D' grade response

My second text is Mad Men, this show is aired on a cable channel AMC in America. So it is not as mainstream as programmes shown on BBC or ITV channels and therefore more niche in target audience. The target audience is males and females but may be tipped slightly more aimed at males but they didn't want to eliminate the female population, people in their late 20s to a much older generation due to the complex script involved. Mad Men is a long running narrative that invests in characters so will attract viewers that are less passive and will invest more time and thought into the series. There is a scene of promiscuity in the text I have looked at that shows the audience they want to attract is an adult audience and also implies that it is a male audience they are targeting the show at also. The series is set in the 1960s so will attract predominantly viewers that understand this decade, it uses many conventions like colour connotations and mise-en-scene to show the genre and era of this show.

Comments

Lacks detail - has a tendency to generalise - lacks confident use of audience terminology - does not relate a scene in the text to how an audience will be attracted

'A' grade response

The opening episode to Mad Men Season 4, see’s an extended conversation between Don Draper and an interviewer take place, something that a younger audience – 16-25 – may find unappealing. The younger audience would not find the topic of conversation about Ad agencies interesting or engaging as it fails to relate to their own interests, therefore it would provide no gratification and have no use for them as viewers or their peers. A younger audience would be more used to fast paced editing and simple narratives concerning gossip and relationships, such as TOWIE or Made In Chelsea, as they can personally identify with such issues or aspire to their ideals.  It is therefore clear that the target audience for Mad Men is a middle class male demographic. The highbrow nature of the show lends itself to a middle class audience, as it is often reviewed in newspapers like 'The Guardian’. 

Comments

Includes detail - does not generalise - uses appropriate audience theory/terminology - relates theory directly to the text - is confident

Strong Exam Responses:

• Include detail 
• Don't generalise 
• Use Media language 
• Apply appropriate theory 
• Are written with confidence 
• See the interaction between text and audience as a complex relationship

MS4 - A Grade Exam Response: Text, Industry & Audience

Explore the different ways in which audiences and/or users respond to your chosen texts.

Television programmes will have a target demographic that the programme will be aimed for. It is how the programme appeals and captures the audiences’ attention, whilst fulfilling their needs that will determine if the programme will be a success.

In the American programme ‘Lost’ by ABC, the directors and producers have made sure that the show attracts the largest demographic possible by having a 14 strong and frequently speaking multicultural ensemble cast. What is interesting about ‘Lost’ is that its main protagonist is a white, middle-aged American doctor called Jack, as the ‘hero’ element in Propp’s character theory.  This theoretically appeals to the strongest demographic in the US, the white male being the more dominant. The main female protagonist is a strong white good looking American named Kate therefore appealing to the female gender. The first two-part episode called ‘Pilot’ was the highest costing first episode ever, costing around $10-14 million dollars and set up the range of characters that make up the ensemble cast. This means that the audience can relate to a member of the cast and fulfil the personal identifications aspect of the uses and gratifications theory.

Also the neutral location of a desert island strengthens the programmes wide demographic as it also appeals to the escapism aspect of entertainment in the uses and gratifications theory. As ‘Lost’ functions around strong enigma codes the audience will tend to stick with the series and become regular and committed viewers.

The programme uses enigma codes for example ‘where have they landed?’, ‘why did they crash?’.  This encourages the audience to carry on watching the series, as Cultivation theory suggests, through its six season life span and also generates discussion and debates on fandom sites such as ‘Lostpedia’, the lost website, forums and social networking such as ‘Twitter’ and ‘Facebook’, by fans known as ‘Lostaways’ or ‘Losties’. This mix of media forms to promote and show TV programmes is an example of the way that convergence theory works. Lost was also the first series to be uploaded onto itunes.

‘The Wire’ itself is a crime genre set in Baltimore USA where the majority of its inhabitants are working/lower class black drug dealers in their teens or at school. I found ‘The Wire’ particularly difficult to watch due to me relating to no personal identity within the programme. I took a very oppositional reading and found myself watching passively as an 18-year-old English white student rather than a white middle-aged male which is ‘The Wire’s’ target demographic. ‘The Wire’ has now become a cult programme with box sets now available in stores such as HMV after being shown late into the night on BBC 2. The programme has developed a large cult following through ‘word of mouth’ and critical acclaim via its appeal and constant referencing by TV presenter Charlie Brooker on ‘Screenwipe’ and The Guardian.

Clearly hitting a more highbrow audience has led to many awards for its challenging narratives and non-stereotypical character constructions. Indeed many of the characters overturn familiar crime conventions by using non-actors who have really experienced the situations that the programme depicts. Its writers too have generally experienced these real-life situations which make the events much more authentic. In the episode that I watched (Season 4 Ep 1) very little actually happened, the dominant criminal character Omar, in the pre-credit sequence, was seen in bed with another male (a clear indication of challenging stereotypes in this genre). He left his house wearing pyjamas and went to local store to get breakfast cereal, therefore creating an enigma. The expectation was that he would encounter trouble or violence, a typical convention of the genre, but this didn’t occur. My response was disappointment, but the target audience would have appreciated this break with convention as more active viewers. 

Also on BBC, Louis Theroux’s Gonzo style documentaries on ‘The Worlds Most Hated Family’ encourages an active participation from the audience as the controversial topic provokes argument and debate. Theroux can be seen as good example of how the BBC remit is fulfilled as his programmes ‘educate, entertain and inform’. They are also extremely popular across the world, winning awards and establishing the BBC as a producer of high quality broadcasting.

Due to Louis Theroux’s style of journalism being subjective he encourages the British demographic to agree with his point of view, taking an oppositional view of his subject- The West Borough Baptist Church. Many viewers will watch Theroux’s interactive documentary style for entertainment, which is unusual due to classic documentaries primary purpose being to inform, another aspect of uses and gratifications theory. Theroux immerses himself in the environment of his subject and allows them reveal themselves; either negatively or positively. This creates tension within the audience and encourages expectation. In this episode Theroux followed the family on its regular and frequent demonstrations against, what they argue are, Un-American activities. The uncomfortable nature of this situation is highly watchable, which is part of the appeal, only later in the programme does Theroux challenge his subject matter. This is the standard format of his documentary style and is key to its popularity, he doesn’t have an agenda and lets things just happen.    

What I personally found that people watched ‘The Worlds Most Hated Family’ was to fulfil their social integration, as Uses and Gratification suggests, so that they could feel a part of a wider community both at college and on social networking sites, and it was successful at achieving this. Many of my peers had viewed the programme and it was a popular source of debate. My other chosen texts Lost and The Wire provide similar gratifications but to vastly different audiences. Lost is far more mainstream entertainment and The Wire can be regarded as highbrow viewing. All programmes though have found their individual target audiences and won critical acclaim as a result. 

MS4 - Text, Industry & Audience: Film

'A' Grade Exam Response

Section A: Text

To what extent are your chosen texts typical of their genre? [30]

The three chosen texts that I have analysed are 'Sin City', 'District 9' and 'Fish Tank'. All of which use different genre codes and conventions to create an interesting text that communicates a unique message to its audience.

'Sin City' is a product of postmodernism and is a hybrid of comic book and film noir conventions. This film focuses and is influenced mainly by the film noir genre and takes the feelings and attitudes felt at the time of the cold war, post WW2. These feelings include mistrust, paranoia, corruption and depression. This could also be linked to how film noir protagonists are cynical. For example, Marv says “I don’t even know why I’m on this Earth”. This is clearly a sign of depression that adds to the cynical attitude that Marv has throughout the film. A good example of the corruption within the film is the scene where Bob (John Hartigans partner) shoots John in the back because he wants to stop the senator’s son from hurting Nancy (a young girl).

Another convention of film noir that is present in 'Sin City' is the use of voice over narration. These are used only for the main protagonists to allow the audience to gain a deeper insight into that they are feeling at that moment in time. An example of this is when Dwight is talking about how he misheard his girlfriend saying, “Stop” when she actually said, “Cop” after the women in Old Town had just killed him. With this narration it helps guide the audience into what is happening with each interweaving storyline within the film and is typical of classic film noir from the 40's.

Other typical conventions of the film noir genre is the consumption of alcohol, prostitution and smoking. This is shown throughout the whole film. For example, the scene where Marv gets kidnapped in the bar, when he is drinking. The scene whereby Dwight has just fought off the cops with the women, he is clearly shown to smoke. Finally the scene whereby JackieBoy is trying to pick up one of the girls in old town hints at the idea at prostitution and perverse sexuality, clear indications of noir conventions.

All of the above are typical conventions of the film noir genre, however 'Sin City' also includes comic book conventions to create a more modern and interesting film that would appeal to a wider modern audience. For example, the protagonists have superhero powers often found in comic book/films. A scene which shows this well is when Bob shoots John in the back 5-7 times after he tries to save Nancy from the senator’s son. After getting shot this many times he still doesn’t die, instead he falls to the floor and continues talking - a reference to superhuman abilities, typical of the comic book genre.

Within 'Sin City' there are clear hero/villain roles, a convention often seen in comic book/films. The character of Marv, Dwight and John are seen as heroes by saving the princesses (regarding Propp's character theory) i.e. Nancy and Goldie. The most obvious villains within the film are Kevin, the villian who ate many prostitutes and the ‘Yellow Bastard’, the person who kidnaps Nancy near the end of the film who finds sexual pleasure in his victims screaming so then he can rape them.

Another film that could be considered postmodern for its experimentation with genre conventions is the sci-fi film ‘District 9’. The film contains conventions of the science fiction genre and a documentary approach to many of its stylistics, in effect it takes a similar approach to ‘Sin City’ in adopting new conventions. The film could be seen as science fiction, for its use of intertextuality within the genre. The scene in which Wikus begins to transform, biting off his own nails in the mirror, is a visual reference to David Cronenberg’s film ‘The Fly’. This is postmodern for its use of intertextuality and therefore makes it typical of the sci-fi genre. However, there are also more blatant science fiction conventions that could also be mentioned. For instance during the final scenes of the film, Wikus fights the MNU soldiers in a giant robotic suit, displaying his ability to use new alien technology. The use of new and futuristic technology here is a key element of science fiction, a genre that is heavily influenced by the realities of modern scientific discoveries. This action sequence is also reminiscent (and a convention) of many other science fiction films, most notably ‘Aliens’ when Ripley fights the alien creature in a similar way. The genre also lends itself to long futuristic action sequences, something that a sci-fi audience would expect. As well as this, District 9 features a completely new social and cultural way of living. The scene that depicts a street sign saying ‘No non-human loitering’, is an example of how the social way of living has adapted itself to alien life. This convention is typical of the science fiction genre, as it takes a futuristic way of life and combines it with reality. It is reminiscent of the science fiction film ‘Serenity’ which combines a futuristic setting with genre conventions of a western.

Despite its heavy science fiction influence, ‘District 9’ also takes conventions of the documentary format, thus making it less typical of the science fiction genre. As with ‘Sin City’, the film’s exploration in convention dilutes it from being considered one genre alone, making it postmodern. For example, its use of on- screen graphics and news montage is a convention of documentary, applied to a fictional text to give it the illusion of reality. In the opening sequence, an on screen newsreel reading ‘Aliens riot in the streets of Johannesburg’, accompanies news footage of rioting aliens. Blomkamp is using irony here, to reflect the reality of the themes and representations: the aliens represent the black people during the apartheid in South Africa. By giving something so obviously fictional a realistic documentary convention, it makes it postmodern, again making it impossible to identify it as one genre. Another example of documentary conventions.

'Fish Tank' is more typical in its use of social realism conventions and could also be considered very much a 'kitchen sink drama'. Social realism conventions include the use of predominantly diegetic sound, hand held camera work, a narrow depth of field, working class lifestyles and social problems, but it also presents a linear narrative for the audience making it appear more realistic. Hand held camera work can be seen throughout the film, it helps to show to the audiences Mia’s point of view, it helps to track her movements and constantly follows her round in the film. At the start of the film the audience sees Mia walking around on her own, the use of a wide angle shows that she is comfortable in the environment she is in and shows that she is in touch with the environment. This stylistic quality clearly makes 'Fish Tank' appear the most realistic representation of the texts I have studied and sets it apart from the other films discussed as it has more relevance to 'real life' than the fantasy aspects of both 'Sin City' and 'District 9'.

The locations and regional accents also help to reinforce social realism conventions, it helps the audience recognize that Mia's from London, this can be identified through the accent and the language they use “tell her that her old mans a c**t”. The mise-en-scene helps to establish the location of the film; working class council flats, which are also a regular convention of the genre.

Fundamentally when analysing to what extent a film is typical of its genre, it is important to look at the codes and conventions used within the text. With this in mind, many films can experiment with conventions, creating a hybrid of genres showing that many modern films are now considered postmodern. Both 'Sin City' and 'District 9' mix elements of genres and style whilst 'Fish Tank' could be said to be more typical of its use of classic conventions.

How To Construct An 'A' Grade Response - MS4 Section: Text

MS4 - 'A' Grade Exam Response: Text, Industry & Audience

A1. To what extent are your chosen texts typical of their genre? 

The three texts that I have chosen, from the television industry are the well received mainstream BBC science fiction programme, ‘Doctor Who’, the not as well received sci fi series ‘Firefly’ and the recent BBC crime series ‘Luther’. Whilst two of the texts are completely different to the other in terms of genre, they all have one certain thing in common, in the ways that they are typical of the genre, in both conforming and subverting visual conventions.

BBC’s mainstream hit, Doctor Who, conforms to many of the conventions associated with the science fiction genre. When an audience tunes into this programme, they immediately, if not soon realise that they are watching a science fiction programme. The main theme of Doctor Who, forming a recurring plot line, is the central character of the Doctor, a protagonist, and his ability to travel through time and space. This concept, whilst not particularly original, works strongly within this television format, allowing endless plot lines to be conceived from the initial idea. The concept of space travel, which Doctor Who uses so well, is strongly associated with the science fiction genre, so much so that it is hard to imagine one without the other. Again the idea of time travel, with its links to HG Wells, is also a strong convention of science fiction, something that Doctor Who utilises, the Doctor and his human companion travelling to the past and future, using the aid of the Doctors time machine, another strong recognisable convention of the science fiction genre.

It is in these ways that Doctor Who can be seen as typical of its genre along with the stereotypes of having a white male to play the Doctor, the hero of the plot. The series also makes use of exotic, colourful outer space locations, a trait one usually associates with this genre, as well as the series of alien creatures such as the daleks, cybermen and slifheen. Whilst these monsters would surely look out of place within most other genres, within science fiction, they fit perfectly.

Finally, Doctor Who is typical of the science fiction genre because of its use of plot and technology. Within each episode, usually a 45 minute slot (occasionally a two part 90 minute episode) the series conforms to a pattern that most science fiction stories do. Which a disruption is caused the hero arrives, and resolves the problem, bringing peace, mirroring that of Todrov’s theory. Technology, whilst sometimes a bit old; (pieces of the Tardis console being formed with a typewriter and bicycle pump) are usually integrated within each episode, sliding electronic doors, motion scanners, even the Doctor’s trusted sonic screwdriver, playing a part within most plot lines and whilst this is sometimes subverted, episode set in the past using little of no technology at all, the concept of high tech gadgets is still lodged in audiences minds, because they remember that they are of course watching science fiction.

Joss Wheden’s sci fi drama, ‘Firefly’ failed to grab the attentions of the mainstream audience and was eventually dropped by Fox network. However this piece of sci fi similarly to Doctor Who, uses the same sorts of conventions what make it typical to the science fiction genre, whilst interestingly, also subverting many too.

 The way in which Firefly is a typical science fiction programme is to do with its setting. The stories action takes place upon a firefly spaceship, called Serenity. This ship flies through space with its crew, captained by protagonist, white male hero Malcolm Reynolds, as they search for work as smugglers. The very concept of the setting the programme aboard a space ship connotes to the audience that this is a science fiction programme. However, Firefly is keen to take many of these science fiction conventions and alter them, even to subvert them. Weaponry is used throughout the series linking to the series other genre, the western. Old age western guns are present, although slightly altered; these Wild West weapons now shoot lasers instead of bullets, through the aid of the sound departments clever sci fi sound effects. Most characters within this universe speak with a slight southern American accept, again, connoting to the audience a hint of the western genre.

Whilst Firefly’s action is predominately set aboard a space ship, Joss Wheden subverts the expectations slightly. Most would assume, when watching the science fiction genre, that such spaceships would be new, pristine and shiny. Wheden subverts this by crafting a spaceship cobbled together from pieces of junk and scrap metal, giving the series a more earthy gritty realism needed to mirror some of the more harrowing story lines. Whilst planets are shown, similarly to that in Doctor Who, they differ enormously; the planets within the Firefly universe are neither colourful nor exciting, usually made from dusty streets and scrap yard looking areas. Gone too are monsters and alien creatures, the stories instead favouring to focus on character progression rather than sci fi spectacle. In this respect, Firefly subverts conventions by letting the science fiction aspect take a back seat, never letting the setting govern the story line.

BBC’s police drama, ‘Luther’ is a strongly typical of the police drama series. Set around the life of police detective John Luther, the series follows many of the conventions used within this genre, reminiscent of similar texts such as ‘Cracker’ and ‘Silent Witness’. Firstly, the series adheres to the crime series genre by using the familiar narrative of the police force catching the criminal. Throughout the series, new criminals are introduced only to be brought down by Luther and his team, creating peace, equilibrium, again taking Todrov’s theory into account. Interestingly Propp's idea of the hero character, here clearly defined as John Luther himself, is portrayed by black actor Idris Elba, subverting the stereotype that the hero must be a white male. However, the hero soon begins to display stereotypes and conventions visual to the television crime series, as we discover that John Luther is a troubled man, has anger issues and recently split up with his wife. This trait, the troubled cop, is heavily used throughout the series, drawing similarities to other crime dramas, such as Cracker, where the hero Fitz, played by Robbie Coltrane, has problems with alcohol and gambling.

The good cop, bad cop stereotype is played upon in the form of good policeman Justin Rifoley, playing off Luther’s bad cop temper. Most characters speak with working class accents, DCI Rose Telser utilising a slightly dodgy cockney twang, which is a convention of most crime dramas, adding a gritty, realistic tone shying away from unnatural Received Pronunciation. Finally, the series lead setting, the police station, connotes to the audience that they are watching a police drama and not a romantic comedy, providing sufficient realism whilst enabling the writers to fill in any holes simply by pointing to a chart in the meeting room.

In conclusion, these three texts are typical of their genres, strongly conforming to the conventions laid down by series within the same genre that have come before them, adhering to character, setting and iconography traits, and whilst in places this is occasionally subverted, on the whole, it remains similar.

MS4 - Text, Industry & Audience: Music

'A' Grade Exam Response

Section B: Industry & Audience

B4. Explore how your chosen texts use digital technology in their marketing. (30)

Digital technology such as the internet and online stores such as itunes all present new ways for a consumer to discover or buy new music.

Lady Gaga is a perfect example with her first album/CD 'The Fame' selling over 12 million copies with many of these downloaded from the internet and thus making it the most downloaded release of all time. As a consequence of this new digital system and method for obtaining music, fans of artists can now retrieve albums quickly without the need for going to a music store such as HMV. The internet was also used to promote her album sales with posters and the ability to listen to several of the tracks earlier than their official release on youtube, therefore promoting sales and interest to fans who will then go to buy the physical version of the album. Sites such as itunes also marketed 'The Fame' by creating billboards over their webpage and adding links to the itunes store to the Lady Gaga album once it was made available to boost sales to the consumer via convergence. Lady Gaga is also well known for using Twitter to communicate with her social networking teenage fans on a regular basis, in this way she continually cultivates and reinforces a personal relationship with her fans to preserve her popularity and mainstream pop status.

Her popularity gradually increased through successive single releases such as 'Just Dance', 'Papparazzi' and 'Pokerface'. The high production values together with the glamorous and provocative appearance of Lady Gaga herself also made her videos compulsive viewing for her fans on youtube, where she now has her own channel.  She gains millions of hits per video and encourages countless of fans to create viral copycat productions that have increased her online profile immensely.

A band, however, who did not follow this modern mainstream method of marketing was Radiohead who are an indie/alternative rock band from Oxford UK. Instead of using this same method as artists in the mainstream such as Lady Gaga, Radiohead themselves marketed their new album release 'In Rainbows' by self-promotion through youtube with a number of tracks played live. They also made their album available via download only through their own website and allowed the fans/consumers to pay whatever price they wanted to including nothing and download the recording quickly and immediately and in high quality without even leaving their homes. Releasing the album in this way also allowed the release to occur globally at the same time, increasing overall sales (1.2 million copies) and limiting the possibility of the illegal recordings being distributed. Although this unique style of marketing did not initially produce a profit for the band, they gained a great deal of negative, as well as positive, press coverage as a result for bypassing the usual record industry models. Live performance appearances also helped promote the release on the SkyArts satellite channel to a more adult highbrow audience in direct contrast to the way that Lady Gaga was marketed.

After its initial download only release, 'In Rainbows' was released with a more mainstream physical CD release available in music stores and other online sites such as itunes. The release, even though initially only available as a download, still gained chart success and also became the bands most successful release to date. Clearly allowing the fans/audience to pay whatever they wanted to did not damage physical or chart sales and signalled a warning to the record industry who are presently struggling to recapture a sales market that is falling due to digital file sharing and bootlegging.

A band that did not have access to digital marketing during their heyday was 'grunge'/metal three-piece Nirvana. For their releases in the early 1990's, such as 'Nevermind', they were totally reliant upon marketing via their major label record company Geffen. The underground music scene and music press coverage also helped promote the bands profile but 'word of mouth' was essential in spreading the message about the authenticity of the band and their blistering live performances in the days before online technology became commonplace.

Digital technology was not available during these times but their popularity is now widely promoted via itunes and other online sites such as Facebook as a form of nostalgia for both those that enjoyed their music at the time and new fans. Clearly the suicide of the lead singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain has continued to assist the mythology of Nirvana and generate sales of all of their releases on the internet and perpetuate the appeal for 'grunge' music in general. After his death albums such as 'Nirvana's Greatest Hits' were released on online stores and with the 20th Anniversary of his death looming the internet is likely to spread promotion further.

Digital technology is highly used in order to market and promote artists in the music industry today as it is cheap, immediate and of a high quality reducing the costs of production and distribution for music labels. It allows for new artists to become widely known through social networking sites as Arctic Monkeys did with Myspace.