Group Issue Representation Blog Post

A group that I would like to discuss are transgender people. Transgender people have a gender identity or gender expression that differs from their assigned sex. Transgender people are sometimes called transsexual if they desire medical assistance to transition from one sex to another.This group of people are represented through many magazines, protests and short films. Contrasting there are way more people in which who are against the rights for transgender people. There is a case called such Fields v. Smith which has helped to make progress for the transgender rights movement. This case helped defined medical necessity of treatment as being the individuals choice. I feel that the representation through the media about trans people are fair if they are positive on the other hand I do not agree with the media that is against the whole process. I believe everyone should have the right to be the gender they feel they are inside. No harm is done to others while others are transitioning.

  I would retain the representation characteristics that are positive like movies that support them and articles. I would challenge the media that is against transgender people that create negative media products such as articles against transgender people.

Comedy Research Blog-Hailey Goff

Comedy

Genre conventions – content


The setting of a comedy film depends on the specific movie but usually the film takes place in bright places, towns, cities, and well populated areas. Teen comedies are often in high schools or small towns while social comedies take places in bars or a home. Comedies are based on bright colors like blue, green, and yellow. Lighting is usually bright also these films usually go throughout one day or day to night, making it clear to the audience. The character development throughout comedy movies are typically idiots, blonde, clumsy, very social people who talk a lot which creates humor or regular people with sarcastic moments. The makeup that's shown in comedy films is also usually more clean and colourful as opposed to the gritty, darker coloured makeup. This make-up technique is also used to set the tone of the film, making it seem more light hearted and positive. There are often two main characters in which one of them “the sidekick” will add comic relief to the film. The narrative of these films are often multi-strand which is several storylines going on at the same time. Comedy themes are often Gross-out, anarchic comedy, parody, romantic comedy, Screwball comedy, and slapstick. Satire is often used in these film, Satire works to mock and attack another person.











Genre Conventions- production techniques


Production techniques in the comedy genre of films are very specific. To start, the camera angles are close-ups to capture characters expressions, mid shot to capture stance and background, long shots focus on location of the characters which may be of importance to the plot, a zoom between shots can be used in humour, such as long shot to close-up showing a characters responding expression, or a close-up to long shot to reveal odd location or costume. For the editing process, these movies are often made with fast cut editing. Usually no special effects are used because these films typically take place in a real life situation. The sound used in comedy films are upbeat and happy because these movies are made to make the audience happy and laugh. A deliberate wrong choice of music genre for a scene could also be used to create a comedy moment. There may also be some use of slapstick sound effects when someone is injured.








Film/magazine sample #1





21 Jump Street (2012)


The comedy 21 Jump Street created in 2012 directed by Phil Lorde and Chris Miller fully embodies the genre of comedy in every way. The film takes place in a high school which is for age groups around 17-25. The main character has a sidekick in which lightens the mode and brings relief to the film. The editing within the film is fast cut and long shots which focus on the location of the characters. Sarcasm and satire are used throughout the whole movie which brings the laughter from the audience. The film goes from day time to night time making it clear to the audience.








Film/magazine sample #2





Bridesmaids (2011)


The film Bridesmaids was filmed in 2011 and completely embodies the comedy genre. To start the characters are dumb blondes and social people who talk a lot with sarcasm through the film. The film is from day to night and focuses on two different things happening at once. This movie is about a single woman whose own life is a mess, but when she learns that her lifelong best friend, she has no choice but to serve as the maid of honor. Comedy often makes jokes out of a terrible situation which is shown throughout this whole film.





Examples:








Crazy Rich Asians (2018)








The Hangover (2009)








Mean Girls (2004)





We’re the Millers (2013)











Step Brothers (2008)

Media Studies Portfolio

Horror

Genre

A horror film is a film that seeks to elicit a physiological reaction, such as an elevated heartbeat, through the use of fear and shocking one’s audiences. Horror films bring suspense and excitement to the audience. While watching a horror film you are always on the edge of your seat.

Genre Conventions - Content

The target audience for horror films are people ages 15-23. This is the most common age group because teens and young adults enjoy thrills. The mise-en-scene of a film in the horror genre are either a dark isolated setting or forest/abandoned building. Isolated settings create a feeling of being trapped making it apparent the characters cannot escape. High and low angles are used to connate fear and even nightmares. Point of view shots are very effective in this genre because it puts the audience in the perspective of the victim or monster.

Editing plays a huge role in creating the suspense of movies. In the horror genre creating minimum cuts for a long period of time creates the feeling that something is bound to happen. Frequent cuts create an intense dramatized view of a scene. Pathetic fallacy, a kind of personification that gives human emotions to inanimate objects of nature, are used in horror films such as thunder and rain are used to create a vibe.

Character development is expressed through costume design.  In many horror films, the killer would have a special costume to accommodate the personality of the character. The colors used throughout costumes are usually black or red. Black represents fear, unhappiness, evil, sadness, remorse, anger. Red represents death and blood.

Lighting throughout horror productions is dull and includes flickering lights and shadows to bring more suspense to a scene. Low key lighting is mostly used in horror films because of the effects it creates. Low key lighting includes Lights that move when the actor is placed differently in order to gain the correct shadow effect.

    Production Techniques

    The 5 main elements of the horror genre is fear, surprise, suspense, mystery, and foreshadowing. The producers mainly want to keep you on your toes even though you can probably tell what is going to happen next.The mysterious fogs often used in these movies and grey lighting are archetypes that everyone associates with this genre. The music used in these films adds to the suspense and makes you anticipate that jump scare that gives the viewers that rush of adrenaline. The foreshadowing forces the viewers to pay attention to the film and makes you kind of guess what will happen next, it’s sort of like a game. Some studies say that people love spoilers in movies and it keeps them interested in what they are watching. All horror movies follow the same basic archetype, however the thrilling thing about each one, is that they have no rules to follow.

How Is Genre Marketed

Horror films are like no other genre and are marketed through advertisements and props. Horror movies are even marketed in haunted houses around halloween time. For example, Halloween horror nights in Orlando Florida is a huge tourist attraction and hosts a huge haunted house every year that thousands of people attend, Each house is inspired by a certain horror film bringing more people in to see that film. Social media makes a huge impact on potential viewers considering 77 percent of the United States uses social media. Snapchat has in the past put a special filter for an upcoming horror film which in return got a lot of people excited for the film premiere.   

Film Example #1

Hereditary (2018)

The film hereditary completely embodies all of the conventions of a horror film. Pathetic fallacy is used throughout the film with the dark skies and rain. The lighting within the film is dull and creates a scary vibe. The colors black and red are used in the costume design symbolizing danger and death. The movies setting is in a big house isolated for the main part of town and the main character is trapped in a state of mind in which he cannot escape creating the feeling of being trapped. Events take place during the movie in which cause extreme suspense and causing the audience to sit at the edge of their seat.

 

Film Example #2

Would You Rather (2012)

The film Would You Rather was created in 2012 and produced by David Guy Levy, Maura Anderson, and Zak Kilberg shows all of the components of a horror film. The location of the film is in a big house completely isolated from any other people and the house itself is locked down with no way to get out. Close up shots are used throughout the film to show the pain and suffering of the actors/actresses which brings more emotions to the audience. The lighting of the film is dull and props are used throughout the movie to express danger and pain. Blood is used to bring the scenes to life. The music in this film adds to the rush and adrenaline.

Blair Witch Project (1999)

Insidious (2011)

Childs Play (1988)

Terrifier (2018)

Jigsaw (2017)

About me

About Me

My name is Hailey Goff and I have created this blog to express my love for the film industry. I had a hard time choosing between drama and horror for my new blog post, but many factors lead me to choose my all-time favorite genre, horror. My whole life I have always been interested in horror films and how they are created. Horror has always been one of the most popular genres in film. One of the reasons why people are so fascinated in horror films is the excitement that it provides.

I am excited to share my knowledge on the composition and process of creating these movies. I remember I was thirteen years old when I saw my first horror film and it was Insidious directed by James Wan. The suspenseful nature of the movie made me wonder about the mise-en-scene of creating a film with such an impact to the audience. I love the feeling of adrenaline; haunted houses are some of my favorite places to go. Nothing beats the feeling of anticipating a zombie, corpse, or something of the sort jumping from behind a wall and feeling your heart drop…