Assignment 26.2 Old Films to New 

Introduction:Films are often seen are loved by many around the world, all movies have satisfied their audiences in one way or another. However, there are some movies that are loved by many and, directors and old fans are able to spark excitement in again. These are known more commonly as a remake. Remakes have been an ongoing tradition since the late 1950’s. With loved movies have come sequels which are on-going stories. However, a remake differs from that, they take anything the fans love about the original and make the same movie again in a more modernised fashion to suit the current audience generation.  The story may seem similar however there are other significant changes such as character names, or locations. 

In this report I’ll be taking a look at, an original movie and its remake. I’ll be having a look at the relationship these movies as well as the producers share, furthermore to back up my statements as evidence I’ll be looking to use screenshots of each movie to back up my points. The movie I’ll be looking at is, The Karate kid which had saw its debut in the year of 1984, followed by two more movies, then in the year 2010 Karate kid saw its way back to screens as the remake of the original movie.

The original Karate kid, was released in the year of 1984 (as aforementioned), and was directed by John G. Avildsen, someone who was known for directing movies such as, the Rocky movies five and one, as well as Happy New Year (1987). As opposed to the 2010 remake, the producers of the movie included talent such as actor Will Smith, as well as producers Ken stovitz and Dany Wolf. There was also the use of international talent involved, as a Chinese producer also worked on the film the Chinese producer went by the name of, Haicheng Zhao and worked as a part of the China Film Group. Meaning there was a use of international co production that saw the US working with China to make this film. This shows that the movie was filmed in multiple locations whereas, the original movie has been filmed primarily in the US. The relationship between the producers of each film is unknown. 

Within each of the following films there are stars that have featured within the course of each film, following a similar storyline with differences within each remake. The most prominent of these changes would be the martial arts learnt by the main character, in the original it's evident that the protagonist in this movie (played by, Ralph Macchio) the martial art learnt is Karate, and in the remake or “reboot”, the protagonist (Jaden Smith), is seen learning Kung Fu in opposition to the original Karate Kid. The story of the original movie is as aforementioned filmed in the US primarily and follows the story of a boy, who's been bullied and taught Karate as a form of self defence. The remake in turn does the same thing in the sense that the storyline is the same however only a small remainder of the film is filmed in America whereas the rest is filmed in China. This is a good example of locations and international filming which brings more of a realistic feel to the movie's storyline. 

Semiotics homework

HWK Semiotics

 1. The two linguistic philosophers the term originates from a greek term that means "observant signs" and was used as an English term by Henry Stubbes, the creator of the word was a Swiss linguist, "Ferdinand de Saussure". Pierce is the second. 

2. Roland Bathes is the French structuralist that enforced the idea of semiotics in the 1960's


3a.  The two particular methods include Denotation and Connotations (this is to do with a meaning as to what something implies). Also the use of Anchorage is also used within this type of analysis.

3b.

4. meaning that the heart of experience is to do with the amount of experience as a human someone may gain .

5. Importance on the role of the reader, in an open or closed text.

6. "Polysemic" is the tother term used when referring to open texts

7.  Open texts

8. Anchorage is the term for using words, logos to direct the reader to a meaning.

9. Preferred meaning

10. (a) Dominant- Is when the reader accepts the full preferred reading of the text.
      (b) Negotiated- Where the message of a message is adapted to a fit a specific social role.
      (c) Oppositional- Where dominant reading is contested.


11. "Point Of View" this simply means that films use various forms of "language" within that specified text to communicate with the audience.

12. The use of camera shots in a sexist manner to benefit the male audience.

13. The study of signs their roles and also the construction of meaning.
a. They can be used in the music video as signs as well as various meanings can be put in place whether it be with lyrics actions, signs, all for interpretation, and as a means of communication with the audience.

Script

Throughout the course of this essay I will be looking at, how music videos use various styles and how the following music videos follow these specific styles as well as various techniques used within these music videos.

The first music video I have chosen is Eminem’s “Venom” (2018), this specific music video can be described as a “Illustrative or Interpretive” this also uses animation specifically the use of CGI, to simulate the Symbiote from the movie, meaning an element of animation is used. In the past this idea has been used before, an example of this would be the music video by “Massive attack, young Fathers”- Voodoo in my blood (2016). Which uses a similar CGI (Computer Generated Imagery) effect. Another example used further in the past is Bjork’s “hunter”, which used CGI as a face mask for the singer. Since then technology has advanced and the CGI is designed to look more realistic, a technique that’s now well associated with modern day movies, to make things look realistic. Furthermore, lighting has also improved and in comparison to the aforementioned example of “Hunter”, there is the use of more locations that make the music video more and more effective to the audience. The convention that this specific music video uses is Allusion, this is simply because the entire music video is used to promote the new Marvel movie, “Venom” (See Images).

The Music video also uses a chroma key effect which involves the characters having their, faces being overlapped by the artist’s face making the characters seem possessed by the artist.  (See image one). In terms of techniques that the music video uses, lip syncing is the most evident one as, the characters as well as the artist, are seen in the video to be mouthing the song’s lyrics. The camera angles used were mainly normal angles that use a tracking shot, that follow the characters as they lip sync to the music. High angles are used in the music videos to show the power the symbiote has over the characters. Furthermore lower angles are used for smaller objects for instance the dog in the music video, to show how small it is. This uses Allusion as well as the music video makes references to the characters, Eddie Brock, Venom and also make references to Marvel all through the use of lyrics. By doing this, not only has Marvel overall their movie promoted through  a big artist, also Eminem may have received more and more recognition as an artist as well as drawing a niche audience to listen to the music that he’s produced. Meaning that “Kamikaze and Venom” both are being promoted through the song the artist has produced meaning an audience will be drawn in that are more inclined to listen to the music.

The next music video that I will be analysing will be, “Good Guy” (2018) by Eminem, this particular music video uses the style of popular music genres. Furthermore, another style used in this music video is Narrative. This particular style has the audience involved within a story told within the music video. This particular music video uses many conventions mainly the use of Links to other artists and also “Extending or consolidating song’s meaning”. The music video follows each style as first off the video features artist, Jessie Reyez.  So it has links to other artists calling for further promotion, so the convention here is an allusion which means that there is another featured artist for more promotional material. Music videos like these have been made over the years and a common example would be the Disclosure album, “Caracal” which uses a narrative in the music video to tell a story just like this music video. In this video the use of red and dulled colours are to connote, danger, hate, and death (SEE IMAGE 1). whereas the greyish dull colour scheme used in this music video is to suggest, emptiness, depression and sorrow (See Image 2). Which does show throughout the music video in the form of the artist’s actions, and use of facial expressions to get emotions across more clearly. The music video does utilise many different shots including tracking shots with a steady cam as the characters move in the video. There are also low angled shots to connote power, between both artists.   The use of lyric interpretation is strong in this specific music video as it links to the theme of the song, which foreshadows the breaking up of the couple and the situations that both are going through. The use of far shots ( see IMAGE 2) is a clear representation of the artist that give the audience a full shot of the artist. The use

Of a tracking shot in the first scene of the video allows the audience to follow the story as if we were walking with the characters.

The final Music Video I’ll be having a look at is again by Eminem and is named “Without me” and was produced in the year 2002. This music video follows the style of, a pastiche/parody. These specific music videos are usually to pay homage or mainly to “mock” another form of media. In this case, Eminem’s “Without me”  does that by putting a comical twist on the music video, paying it’s respects to the Batman and Robin television series, (also a use of intertextuality as it makes references). The comical colour schemes (as aforementioned) give off a jokey tone and colourful vibe that makes the audience feel at ease. Many common techniques are found in the making of this music video, as aforementioned the use of the technique “intertextuality” is to  make a reference to another media text and this music video does have, references in the form of the video’s use of “Mis-En-Scene” which is the inclusion of the batmobile, and the signature costumes both belonging to Batman and Robin. (See Image one)

Furthermore, in terms of angles used in this music video, there are an array of angles that range from mid shots that goes to far shots that mainly express how the characters in the music video is. The use of a low angle is to show the power the character has over others whereas, if a more high angle was used, then it’s to emphasise either how small the character is or feels in the world.

Through the use of colours there are comical yellows that connote joy, innocence and there are blacks to show the darkness, stealth and mystery. The red in the music video is to connote how rich someone is, romance, also loyalty (in this case the way Robin is to Batman).

In conclusion, Eminem has proven that his music has covered many different aspects of music and has shown that through the use of his Music videos. Such as Narrative, Interpretive and also having an allusion whilst all sticking into the “pop” genre as his music does seem popular for all sorts of audiences.

(My video)

Assignment

In this report, I will be discussing the purposes that music videos and how they been consumed by audiences of today. 

As Music videos have become popular in the modern era, there have been many ways to watch music videos and these concepts and ideas have evolved over time. The concept of the use of the CD's were mainly used in the late 90s, and the early 2000's. As technology progresses younger audiences and modern day audiences are able to consume music videos through things like the internet, by using platforms like YouTube and Music Video websites such as Vevo.  These services nowadays are popular as they receive the most views on the internet, an example to suggest this is Luis Fonsi’s song “Despacito” has received the most views on YouTube, giving the artist more and more popularity and make it so that it not only engages a certain audience, but also creates a secondary audience, that would then increase the number of views, soon making a platfrom rise to fame. An example would be Psy’s Gangnam Style thanks to the video’s popularity it soon made Youtube the number one place where artists can post music videos and have confidence that they receive, enough views to gain a following , as well as generating a revenue. 

-- (These are some examples of Music streaming services used in modern day)

This allows people to now see videos on the go on any device the user wants meaning that in terms of access, by doing so these services have been able to bring in a wider audience and, generate more profit for things like premium subscriptions allowing users in that audience to have anything a normal user would. In addition, nowadays audiences are able to watch events and performances live via streaming capabilities that now allow users to carry these acts out. Meaning, that there are many ways due to technology that enable a user to watch videos more efficiently. Furthermore, in order for audiences to listen to music, there are streaming services that allow people to listen to music on the go on any device examples include, Spotify and Soundcloud.  Back then in the 90’s music videos were mainly televised and later were used making  DVD’s in the early 2000’s and now in modern day (as aforementioned), we now have the use of the internet to watch music videos.

Over the last few years, music videos have helped music record company gain income and have generated revenue mainly through means of advertising, on platforms, as well as generatinga viewer count that would then help then generate profit for both the artist to share this generates profit through a certain amount of people viewing the video. For example if a video on Youtube has hit a certain amount of views then the channel artist will receive a generated revenue from the platform, if a video hits around 20,000 views on a video the artist, can consider to have money being generated.  An example of this would be Taylor Swift’s music video “Look what you made me do”. As of its recent release the music video was able to gain a massive count of, 586 million views on platforms such as YouTube. Furthermore the teaser for the music video, had 4 million views on the site. This would end up bringing Taylor and her record label a profit, of   $868,000. Furthermore the money would be split between the artist and the record label. Whereas Ed Sheeran’s song “Shape Of You” received a total profit of, $5.62 million, some of the profit generated from the video and lyric video themselves. In addition artists may have already directly generated a profit themselves and have got themselves the income. Record labels often generate profit a lot more than standard artists do when a music video has been released.  Record labels will generate profit and with that money, they will then split the profit between the people who have brought the music video together. Examples include producers, actors, editors and the artists. Music Videos mainly generate income for record labels through, engaging techniques, this includes things such as, having a narrative (story) within the music video.  This is mainly done to gain some exposure to audiences, and help them expand on their fanbases. Normally the bigger the fanbase the more income is most likely going to come. For example, the song “Scream” by Michael Jackson and Janette Jackson managed to generate a profit of, $10,834,025. 

-- Ed Sheeran’s “Shape Of You” generated a profit, making it one of the most successful music videos to do so. 

Furthermore, artists also own their own record labels, benefit by distribution in many countries that push forward the idea of, advertising. They can be used as outlets to distribute their own music more efficiently and have more of an advantage, as record labels can be seen as an international business. This means that, record labels can generate more money.

Music Videos can be used as prime methods to promote a song that an artist has. These methods are often successful as the audiences, feel involved in the music. An example of this would be Luis Fonsi’s Despacito, by using a music video as well as a platform as popular as the internet, an artist is going to gain a following that may generate them enough profit. As if an artist hits a certain number of subscribers then they can generate profit. However, in terms of promotion, Despacito was known as the most watched music video of 2017. By giving it this title, it meant that this song was later, spread and watched by many people giving the song, around 5-6 million views on Youtube and one of the most liked videos at around 30 million. This gave the song the publicity it needed as well as deserved, by methods of advertising music videos are the most effective, as they convey a feeling that can be felt by audiences, both primary and secondary audiences.   

  

Music videos can be used to promote an artist’s album this an example could be an ongoing narrative within the music video. An example of this could Disclosure’s songs Jaded, Omen and Holding on. These three songs host a narrative that involves the audience. By using a narrative, audiences that aren’t into that specific type of music, could then eventually be enticed into the music and may seek pleasure from watching the experience first-hand and therefore may want to continue listening to their album. 

Labels as well as artists, use synergy in a music video, to generate revenue as well as publicity for promotional values. This mainly works both ways as the primary media form will take publicity from it. An example of this would be, “Bumps Gonna Goose ya!” by Jack Black ft. Malik Forte. This music video is used to promote the movie “GooseBumps”, starring Jack Black. By using a music video it meant that the video as well as the artist (in this case is Jack Black) will gain a lot of publicity, due to extra promotional material.  Another example of this would be Adele’s Skyfall from the movie 007 Skyfall. By using promotional soundtracks both sectors of media are aiding one another, when it comes to promotion.

-- (Jack Black’s promotional music video for the hit movie Goosebumps)

The use of promotion in a music video is a good way of convincing an audience to consume a certain brand. An example of this would be Gangnam Style where PSY is where there is a car parked up promoting the car brand and model. Another example is Drake’s song Hotline Bling where the brand of clothing he wears is something that is pricy and is something that fans may want to wear due to the fact that they wish to be like their Idol. 

References:

1.   Uknown . (Uknown). Music Videos become more popular and more revenue is generated. Available: https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/magazine-feature/8006801/music-videos-grow-important-revenue-streams-directors-adjust. Last accessed 6/11/2018.

2.   https://www.thrillist.com/entertainment/nation/most-viewed-youtube-videos-music

3.   Coy Janderu. (Uknown). Unbelievable music videos . Available: https://www.ranker.com/list/best-movie-tie-in-music-videos/coy-jandreau. Last accessed 7/11/2018.

Complaints

There are many complaints that are often made within the general public of issues such as adverts that aren't supposed to be aired, perhaps for a specific reason. There are organisations that are in charge of taking that responsibility, and making enforcing these complaints, the two main organisations are the ASA and Ofcom. In this document I'll be covering how the general public make complaints that are pushed forward to the organisation. 

Firstly if a company is to take in a complaint from the public that specific person would have to, complete a complaint online meaning they'd have to submit it using online resources to do so. 

However for the complainant to do so they need the following aspects, in order to make it so their argument is deemed valid, by the company:

• The Information for the ad (Including when and where the complainant witnessed it).
• They are further required to place a screenshot or any other visual representation as a strong form of evidence. 
• They'd be then required to fill a form in (as aforementioned) to be able to complain online.

However, there are certain requirements the complainant needs in order to go with, constructing their online complaint further. Here are the two main requirements that they require:

.

• They are a member of the public, or if they potentially work for a competitive market and wish to report their rivals. (Can be enforced through the use of the technique "fair play")
• If it may be something that the organisation does cover then the complainant, only has to worry about making three valid points to enforce their beliefs. 

*All information was taken from the following website as a source:

Uknown. (Uknown ). ASA complaints. Available: https://www.asa.org.uk/make-a-complaint.html. Last accessed 19/10/2018.

TASK:Symbolism in movies

For this task I was asked to watch a movie of my choice and then make analyse the following:

-Genre

- Colours 

- Actors

- The Mis-En-Scene (props, lighting, costumes codes and conventions of a movie).

The movie I have chosen to analyse is Mission Impossible Fallout (2018).  The base genre of the film is action however spy works as a sub genre making the movie a spy action movie. It's evident within the movie that the movie is a spy-action film. This is because of the codes and conventions that are featured within the film.  It's mainly evident through action scenes and car chases as well as a helicopter chase sequence with explosions. Furthermore the narrative or plot of the film is similar to the formula that is "recycled" by producers and Directors, when they may make an action film, and by also taking adaptations and then applying them to their films. 

For example the colour that is mainly featured throughout the duration of the film, is black. This is particularly because it enforces the stereotype of, stealth (which is a basic feat of being a spy). It's obvious that most if not all characters will end up wearing some form of black to enforce the stereotypes that spy's are supposedly working "underground", and undercover to hide the fact that their doing anything dangerous.  Red is also a prominent colour mainly featured in this particular genre of film. The red in this sense is to connote blood or death of characters as there are many death 

In terms of actors the lead or protagonist, is played by Tom Cruise  (plays the character Ethan Hunt),  The character portrayed by Tom Cruise matches the genre and the theme of the movie franchise to be secretive and outgoing. To audiences Ethan Hunt is regarded as the embodiment of the Mission Impossible Franchise. 


Mis En Scene helps us as the audience to identify the essentials of a movie identify it as whatever genre it is. This is evident within Mission Impossible, as for the Mis-En-Scene, there are props such as guns, technology, cars, and weapons like knives. Furthermore there's mostly two organisations that are always associated with the plot. These codes and conventions help the audience identify the main genre to be an action movie with spy elements. 

What Have I learnt?

Over the course I have learnt different aspect of Media that I haven’t known before however this specific unit I have learnt mainly the fundamentals of Genres, I also learnt about the 10 sectors of Media and also things I should look for when making a Music Video. 

10 sectors-

The following are the 10 main sectors in media that should relate when creating a media product:

1-      Radio

2-      Television

3-      Film

4-      Publishing

5-      Video Games

6-      Interactive media (Apps)

7-      Papers and Magazines (Press)

8-      Animation

9-      Advertising and Marketing

10-   Media photo image.

I also have learnt that there are three main stages of Media production the three main stages are:

·         Pre Production

·         Pro Production

·         Post Production

Genre:

I had mainly learnt that the word means type in French and that Genre was to mainly categorize markets so that people are able to consume it. 

I have also learnt that within genre there are many types of sub genres that branch off the original genre, for example Horror, Thriller. Furthermore I have also learnt about Hybrid Synergy which is two or more, genres coming together to form one new genre in general.


In genre  I have also learnt of things such as Iconography, Cross-over genres and newer terms such as intertextuality. Which all play a part in mentioning that media texts have either crossed over with another one, or there have been instances where there have been references made to other media texts.



Audience:
There are two types of main audience research for someone to know about, Primary, and Secondary audiences. Primary meaning that the content is mainly provided and aimed towards that specific group of people, or social class of people.  Secondary audiences are audiences that mainly come across the content and are being introduced to it for the first time for them to consume. That or they could be a different person to the original target audience.


I learnt about the Technical aspect of working in a Music Video as well by learning the term MESC.FX I was able to now identify the technical aspects of a music video the next time I analyse one.

- Mis-En-Scene (Props, codes and conventions that enforce a genre)
-Editing (The cuts and edits of the video if there were any).
-Sound (Non Digetic and Digetic sound including other things like backing tracks and original audio)
-Camera(Different shots used in a music Video).
-FX (Special effects implanted within the music video to make it look eye catching and enforce the thought of Audience gratification.)




As the course goes on I will be learning some more ideal fundamentals needed in media studies mentioned above were only some if the key aspects that I have fully understood as well as worked with.