Representation of Ethnicity

Black

Desperate Housewives: Betty Applewhite
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLgKIcfHq0E

Betty Applewhite and her family join Wisteria Lane in season 2 of Desperate Housewives. The Applewhites are the only African-American family on the street making them different from everyone else. the Applewhites are a classic example of stereotypical subtle racism on TV Drama. Immediately, the family do not fit in with the rest of the community. Betty does not play poker with the rest of the female characters and she does not join in on the gossip with other characters either leaving her an outcast from the rest of the society. This is a stereotypical representation of someone with her ethnicity.

Chicago Fire: Chief Boden
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYgBwnMvNbE 

Chief Boden is an example of a countertype of a black character in TV Drama. Chief Boden has authority and power over the other characters as he is the chief of the firehouse. Wallace Boden often displays his bravery in fires and rescues in the show.

Orange is the new black: Crazy Eyes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6a62WrSJhD4

Crazy eyes acts neither as a counter-type or a stereotype for black people in TV drama. She is not seen as an outcast or as different in the show because Orange is the new Black features women in a prison who are segregated into their ethnic groups meaning she fits in with those who have the same ethnicity as her. She may be considered to be represented in a stereotypical way as it is made clear to the audience that she is not as intelligent or mentally stable as the other characters.

White

Gossip Girl: Blair Waldorf
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNCOKmeVc-U

Blair Waldorf is an example of a stereotypical Spoilt upper class white teenager. She comes from a rich family who provide expensive accessories and designer outfits for her. Blair stereotypically represents the idea that white people are ranked socially higher than any other ethnic group.

Desperate Housewives: Gabrielle Solis
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AV21CJy9WbE

Skins: Effy Stonem
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SqInVEFNdJc

Chinese

Orange is the new black: Chang
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjfu6YlL7Ng&list=PLOJflsdA-V98czEExvrOU1MOrmp1jP3ji

Desperate Housewives: Vern
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1iIIoJzISs 

Asian

Skins: Anwar
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cq2gC3w300

Awkward: Becca

Awkward: Ming Huang

Representation of Disabled characters

Mise en Scene
Costume- Carlos is wearing a suit - countertype - stereotypically, disabled person doesn't usually wear this kind of clothing. the suit seems expensive
- gabrielle is wearing an expensive silk dress - sexy and well dressed appears clean
- many posessions can be seen - countertype - disabled person usually wouldnt be seen to own many expensive things like this
Lighting
-  lighting gets darker and more shadows to show tension when gabby goes upstairs. this is when carlos is downstairs which may imply that he cannot be in on the drama because he is blind
- lighting changes when downstairs with carlos. less action because hes blind
setting
- expensive house - counter type - they have money

Editing
- continuity editing used to make it seem like one big flowing sequence of shots 
- shots use a simple straight cut
- quicker transitions between shots show that the action is building
- each shot has a short duration which convey action and urgency

Sounds
Camera editing, angles, movement and composition
camera movement = fairly quick - countertype - tense and drama filled scene may imply that Carlos may not be able to do anything


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LIENSF0--ls

Monsters University

Why did Ex Machina succeed at the box office

Traditionally, the film Ex Machina should not have succeeded at the box office however, due to the well-judged release pattern the film was a success. It was expected to do poorly at the boxoffice due the dissimilarities it shares with a typical Hollywood blockbuster. A commonly successful Hollywood blockbuster features large explosions, extensive CGI and acclaimed actors. Whilst Ex Machina lacks these expensive set pieces, it still succeeded at the box office.

 Pre-production of the film including casting, source material and budget allowed for a limited action plot. Ex Machina stars unacclaimed actors; Alicia Vikander and Domhnall Gleeson as Ava and Caleb. At the time of being casted, these actors were relatively unknown until landing subsequent roles in the 2015 Star Wars movie. This may have caused the film to do poorly at the Boxoffice as unknown actors would not have drawn attention from the target audience of the film and generated talk or stir with regards to the film being at the cinema. Commonly amongst acknowledged Hollywood Blockbuster movies, recognized actors are casted by directors in the belief that they will drive the film to success and generate talk throughout the target audience. Notable Hollywood Blockbuster Men in Black stars Will Smith whom was also the star of numerous other Blockbuster films including Independence Day and I am Legend. Whilst some may have seen this to contribute to the films predicted unsuccessful release, others may have seen that new actors may play as a strength. Ex Machina used unaccredited actors for the leading roles which again heightens the new take of a Hollywood Blockbuster. Instead of watching the same actors over and over again the audience could enjoy fresh actors with their own individual acting styles. Not all films featuring acclaimed Hollywood actors are successful at the Box Office. Many are critiqued that the use of famous actors took attention away from the films plot leaving the audience uninterested. 

Ex Machina contrasts a typically successful Hollywood blockbuster. The film presents little action or large fight scenes. The peak action scene of the film displays alluring robot Ava using her artificial intelligence to deceive the other two main characters killing and potentially starving them. The scene has limited drama and a meager amount of sound and editing to create tension. There is little reaction from the main character after being stabbed which some may argue shows a more realistic reaction than a typical Hollywood blockbuster where drama would be exaggerated for the sake of entertainment. It may further be argued then that this contributed to the film’s success as some viewers may have enjoyed a 'fresh' take on a high tension scene. Typically, a Hollywood Blockbuster movie would have used exaggerated CGI, non-diegetic sound and character reactions to display a drama filled event and keep the audience interested and on edge. This can be seen in 2012 blockbuster, The Avengers. Here, the main fight scene of the film explores extensive CGI and loud background music to create tension. When compared with The Avengers, Ex Machina's lack of action may suggest that it would not do so well at the box office as the audience may become bored and uninterested in the films plot if the peak action scene was not fast pace enough. It may be considered that Ex Machina gives Hollywood a new take on Sci-Fi films. The Film focuses more on script and plot than action and visual effects. This means that the audience can focus more on the actual story line of the film therefore falling deeper into the plot and events of the film.

Production including the location of the film set, time spent shooting and problems faced by directors and producers may have led Ex Machina to be unsuccessful at the box office. The

Slow Editing of the film created a gradual pace for the plot contrasting the characteristics of a typically successful Hollywood Blockbuster movie proposing that Ex Machina may not do so well at the box office. Ex Machina was filmed in a short six weeks. Measured against a typical Hollywood Blockbuster, this is a very condensed time. This may imply that Ex Machina may not do so well at the Box Office as it may be argued that in this short time, it is not possible to make such a great film. Ex Machina also had a limited budget which left little money to spend doing retakes and scenes over again. This emphasizes that the film may not have done so well as the film had to be shot twice for robotic character Ava to appear translucent. This left little time for producers and directors to explore different ideas and expand or improve the plot again accentuating that the film may struggle to succeed at the box office.

Marketing and distribution of Ex Machina set the film up to be unsuccessful and small scale.

The film had a wide target audience allowing it to be viewed by many different groups of people. Ex Machina's marketing did not take full advantage of this. Marketing was narrow and directed at only one group of people. Ex Machina is an independent science fiction cult film. This may infer that the film would only be viewed by those interested in that genre however, the films plot and story line appeals to many more viewers than these. The film was marketed in a small area of Texas at a local festival event. This only targeted the film towards a very small number of people when it could've been much larger scale. Marketing also consisted of a false Tinder account on which a computer generated compliments and 'flirted' with different people using Tinder.  This marketing may be considered clever and useful. Many people who use Tinder may fall also fall under the category of a cult film watcher. This allowed for Ex Machina to be targeted at a group of people who may enjoy the films plot.

Ex Machina was not directed by an accredited Hollywood director. Ex Machina was directed by Alex Garland who also directed: Never Let Me Go, The Beach, 28 Days Later. Garland was relatively unknown as a director until the release of Ex Machina. A typically successful Hollywood Blockbuster is usually directed by a well known already successful director. Stephen Spielburg is often hired as a director or producer due to his recognized films including; Jurassic Park, Saving Private Ryan and AI. This again differs Ex Machina from other Hollywood Blockbuster movies leading us to believe that it will not do as well as these other films.

Traditionally, the film Ex Machina should not have succeeded at the Box Office due to the well-judged release pattern the film was a success. Ex Machina was released in the UK at a similar time to the new Avengers film however not the exact same time. It was decided that the two films would not be released at the same time as only one film would succeed and that would be the Avengers due to it being a sequel that was already well recognized. Ex Machina caught the action sci fi genre wave at just the right time. As people were talking about the release of the Avengers film they were getting more interested in film and watching for release dates. This allowed for Ex Machina to be successful as it was viewed by so many of the Avengers fans.

Mise en Scene

Definition
Mise en scene is a French word which basically meas composing the scene. It describes how everything is positioned and designed in the set.


Luther



Mise en Scene deconstruction:
Setting and location
The setting and location in which the two characters are standing presents them in an insignificant way. They stand (as shown at 0:09) to the bottom left. They appear small and minor in comparison with the large buildings in their surroundings. Similarly, the busy road also seen in the background (0;23) has a similar effect. The characters appear unimportant when compared with the busy road. The interior setting appeared to be high up, contradicting the idea that the pair are insignificant and unimportant. The interior had a very plain and bland colour scheme making the characters, who were in dark clothing, stand out. the interior included various props such as a telescope and black hole model. These features of the interior setting in the scene hint that the woman, whose flat the characters are in, may be different to a stereotypical woman. The flat does not follow the stereotypical expectations of a woman's flat.

Clothing and Costume
The characters clothing and costume represents them in different ways. The woman in the scene is wearing business attire and high heels. This is in contrast with the way she is presented at the beginning of the scene as this style of clothing implies she is important. Along with the features of the interior setting, the clothing and costume may indicate that the woman is in a highly regarded job or play a significant role. Similarly, the man wears dull clothes mostly of a grey and black colour. He is wearing a heavy thick coat to accentuate is great size. The coat also amplifies the way he carries himself. His hands mostly stay in his pockets and his back hunches over.

Hair style and make up
The man in the scene has a plain and practical hairstyle. It appears that it is 'normal' and fits in with the stereotypical representation of a middle aged man. The woman has neat hair that appears to have been curled. She is wearing everyday make up with a dark lip colour. From this, it can be inferred that the woman has clearly made an effort to look attractive. This may suggest that she likes the man in the scene therefore wishes to impress him however it seems more likely that she is using her good looks to seduce the male and keep him under her control.

Camera Shots/angles

Mean Girls - camera shots and angles

Over the shoulder shot

A shot that gives us a characters perspective but includes part of the other characters shoulder or side of their head so the audience is aware of who's point of view we are looking at the shot from. 

The image above shows an example from the film 'Mean girls'. The example is an over the shoulder shot. The frame shows Regina's expressions from the point of view of Cady.

High angle shot

A high angle shot shows the characters and mise en scene from above. The camera is angled down having the effect of diminishing the subject making them appear less significant or submissive

This example from the film 'Mean girls' implies that the two characters shown are insignificant and less important than the point of view of the character. In this case, Janet and Damian are the less significant characters being looked down upon by 'the Plastics' who are regarded more socially significant than them. 

Low angle shot

 

A low angle shot will increase height and sometimes give a sense of motion. The angle creates confusion and disorientation. 

 Here, a low angle shot has been used to portray confusion. The shot is taken from the perspective of Cady who at the time is young and starting school. The shot is used to imply to the viewers that Cady is a little disorientated as she is 17 and its her first day at mainstream school. 

Stages of film production - The wolf of wall street

The Wolf of Wall Street

Writer: Jordan Belfort

Jordan Belfort is an American Author whom the film The Wolf of Wall street was based upon and written. Jordan Belfort actually lived a similar story to the stockbroker Jordan Belfort (played by Leonardo DiCaprio) lives in the film. Belfort worked on Wall Street earning hundreds of thousands a year, living a life of luxury before being arrested and convicted for fraud. After spending 22 months in prison, Jordan Belfort shared his unique story by writing 'The Wolf of  Wall Street' as a book that was shortly made into a film.


Producers: Leonardo Dicaprio, Martin Scorsese, Riza Aziz, Emma Tillinger and Joey Mcfarland

The film had multiple producers due to its large size and busy scenes. The Wolf of Wall Street is a very long film where scenes are very busy and full of action. This would be a lot of work for only one person so multiple producers were hired. Martin Scorsese is a very successful producer and has produced or co-produced numerous other films including: Hugo, Raging Bull, Taxi Driver, Shutter Island and Casino. Similarly, Riza Aziz has also produced other films such as; Friends with kids and dumb and dumber 2.

Casting Director: Ellen Lewis

Ellen Lewis is also a very successful casting director known for picking actors for specific parts. Ellen has worked closely with Martin Scorsese on many films and has worked as a casting director for numerous other films including; Goodfellas, Departed and extremely loud and incredibly close.

Director: Martin Scorsese

Martin Scorsese is known as a very significant director in Hollywood. He is known for his unique take on directing films. He is mostly known for his signature techniques; starting a film with a section from the middle is used widely in many of the films he has directed, making a lot of use of slow motion, (In the Wolf of wall street this is done frequently to show the effect drugs have on the characters)  freeze frames, narration, extraordinary levels of bad language and  using Rolling Stones music.