The different types and contents of media products!
These days, you have a lot of different types of media products.
Media products by sector (contents)
TV product types:
. Music videos.. Dramas (Downtown Abbey, Eastenders..)
. Light entertainment shows (8 out of 10 cats..)
. News programmes (Newsround, 10oclock news..)
. Factual programmes (Frozen Planet, Top Gear..)
. Adverts (Perfume, Bingo, Supermarket..)
Audio product types:
. Drama (Radio 4..)
. Recorded podcasts (The John Dredge show..)
. Movie soundtracks
. News & Current affairs (Capital FM, Radio 4..)
. Adverts
. Light entertainment
Publishing product types:
. E magazine
. E newspaper
. Fan websites
. Official websites for films http://www.imdb.com/
. Adverts
. Posters
Website product types:
. Personal http://perezhilton.com. Corporate http://www,bauermedia.co.uk
. Business http://www.ebay.co.uk/
. Promotional http://www.thehobbit.com/
Digital games product types:
. Entertainment (Grand theft auto, Fifa..)
. Educational (Brain Training..)
. Fitness (Wii Fit, Tiger Woods golf..)
. Simulations (Sims, SimEarth, SimLife..)
The purpose of media products:
The purpose is to engage the audience and to promote the product.
In this picture, we have Lady Gaga promoting her new perfume by lying there naked with tiny little men all over her. This gives off an instant sex appeal because they know they will pull you into buying it because what more can you want than Gaga naked.
In this next picture, we have another perfume advert but this time its for Rihanna. As we can see, Rihanna is also naked which yet again pulls the more teenage audience in because we all believe that society these days is all about sex and violence which I agree with for these obvious reasons.
Whenever you see a product being advertised in films and TV programmes just like Apple is in the picture below, that is what you call product placement. Its making the brand/company be seen by a much wider audience all over the world.
Purpose of content!
J
To Communicate. J To Educate.
J To Inform.
J To Entertain.
J To Persuade.
J
To Promote.
J To highlight social issues.
J To highlight social issues.
All seven of these purposes are aimed at the audience.
Fictional
TV Drama
- Top Gear, Eastenders, Mock the week, Call the midwife.Film
- Jurassic Park, Indiana Jones, Star Wars.
Narrative advert
- Creating a story around the product for example:
Nina Ricci perfume advert.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHmkqudn6vc
Carling advert.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1OKFQYzitM
For it to be fictional, it has to have the following features:
- Story - Character- Tales - Scenes
- Representations - Jokes
- Sketches - Endings
- Genre/Generic features
- Common storylines - Themes
- Common storylines - Themes
- Messages & value
- Flashbacks & Flash-forward's
Fictional programmes such as Saturday Night Live & The Two Ronnie's include the majority of the features above!
When we watch programmes and films we know they're fictional because..
- Fiction always has a structure.
- Linear - A Beginning, middle and end.- A cause and effect.
Non-Fiction
Documentaries-
- Crazy about One Direction, Educating Yorkshire.
News-
- Sky News, Fox News, E News.
Websites-
- News University, Brainy Quote.
Publishing-
- Now, Closer, The Sun, Daily Mail.
- Crazy about One Direction, Educating Yorkshire.
News-
- Sky News, Fox News, E News.
Websites-
- News University, Brainy Quote.
Publishing-
- Now, Closer, The Sun, Daily Mail.
For it to be non-fiction, it has to be one of the four above with the features below.
Features:
- Facts
- Opinions (Bias)
- Interviews
- Quotes
- Copy/Reports/Articles/Information
You know its non-fiction because…
- Non-fiction always has a structure.
- The use of headlines and images.
- The order in which the information has been written.
- The emphasis on words and equivalency.
- The instant communication (Visually)
- The genre.
Fiction/film- Pearl Harbour
Non-fiction/Documentary- 9/11
Both 9/11 and Pearl Harbour were unprovoked attacks.
Both attacks marked the United States’ entry into protracted wars.
Whilst I was researching a friend who lives in America told me that ''We are now a stronger nation because of 9/11 and Pearl Harbour.'' This isn't hard to believe as 9/11 had been in fact called the new Pearl Harbour. In these two events, over 6000 American's had lost their lives.
in the 9/11 documentary such as people being 'pushed' or 'jumping to their death' from the two buildings. When you watch it, you actually feel sick and still upset to this day that this actually happened to your everyday people. In Pearl Harbour, you see the heartache of the people who lost loved ones and people close to them. They are both quite emotional and very real, especially 9/11 since the majority of that was shot on a handheld camera which makes you feel as if you were stood there watching the place you loved the most get bombed and attacked. Anybody could sit down, watch Pearl Harbour and actually feel effected and emotional by it. Teenagers aged sixteen and over would understand more and to me, its very realistic so that just adds to the sense of being there and going through what everyone there went through.
As we know the Pearl Harbour attack was resolved when the strike planes returned to their carriers, and departed. However, still to this day 9/11 hasn't been resolved. Even after the attack 12 years ago, America still haven't forgiven and forgotten. 9/11 will probably never be resolved in our lifetime because it was such a tragic time and many people will have those memories in their mind till the day they die.
9/11 and Pearl Harbour before and after.
Section two
You get many different styles of media products, for example:
Realist- Movies which have a realistic feel to them. The Break-Up and The Savages are good examples of realist movies because they're both about families and relationships with breakups and makeups, very relatable to pretty much everybody.
- Urban: Movies which are set in a certain environment and locations which are familiar to the target audience from ethnic minorities. The Godfather & Kidulthood are good examples of urban movies because they have gangsters and gangs.
- Modern: Movies which are continuously evolving since their early stages. Modern films have new and bold storylines. Toy Story & Harry Potter are good examples of modern films because there's more than one because the technology has vastly improved in each of the films.
Use of style
- To connect with the viewer by showing features the target audience can relate to. TV programmes such as Glee and Pretty Little Liars because these two programmes have your typical high school students. Popular people, nerds, goth's, sporty people etc.
- To connect audience to the genre. The Harry Potter movie poster looks as if its a horror movie of three teenagers running in the woods at night. By using this poster, its widening the audience to show that Harry Potter can be more than just a fantasy film. The audience for Harry Potter would be male and females around fourteen/fifteen plus. This specific film was rated a 12 in the UK.
- To combine style with content to reinforce message. Blair Witch Project is a great example because most of the film was done on a handheld camera, showing you the points of view of the three girls who went missing. You feel like you are in the jungle with them. The audience for BWP would be teenagers both male and female around sixteen years old. Another good film would be 127 Hours because a lot of that film consisted of James Franco using a handheld camera and videoing himself stuck in the rocks. The audience for 127 hours would be teenagers both male and female aged 16 and over since it involves swearing and James cutting his arm.
Using style to communicate
The Hunger Games is a film where one boy and one girl aged 12-18 from each twelve districts battle to the death, one person surviving. The audience for this film would be both male and females, aged thirteen plus. Since the main characters in the film are sixteen years old, its effective for the audience because a lot of people around this age could relate to the characters and they'd feel more connected.
Camera work-
Camera work-
Certain shots are used to emphasize what is happening in the picture.
Wide shots are used to provide an overall view of the whole scene. If the shot contains a person, the whole body is show. Here we have a wide shot showing the location of where the character Effie is. As we know, she is in District 12.
Long (wide) shots are used to show a great deal of background, be it the set, the landscape or the venue. They are also known as establishing shots. Here we have the whole community who live in District 12, this is a powerful image because its very dark and gloomy and shows that its not the best place to live.
Close up shots are used to create a sense of emotion and help the audience connect with the subject. They are typically shot just showing the face and shoulders with a little head room above. Here we have a picture of Rue, a lot of emotion spread over her face because this was her death scene in the movie.
Two/Three shots are often medium or wide shots, these shots are of two or three people in one scene. They are good for establishing a relationship between characters/subjects. Here we have a picture of Katniss and Peeta with their mentor Hamish.
Medium shots are from the waist up and they are ideal when the character is speaking or delivering information. They're also used when people are gesturing with their arms but they don't necessarily show as much detail as a close up would. Here is a medium shot of Katniss and Peeta, even though we can only see their top halves, you can still see emotion on their faces and what their body language is like.
Mise En Scene:
Costume, hair, makeup, props, setting.
Lighting-
Lighting-
The lighting in the movie was surprisingly good despite the fact the it was mainly set in the forest during the day and at night. You could always see what was happening, even with the darkness of night-time. The characters emotions were always visible which makes the movie seem very professional and well planned.
In the scene where Katniss and Peeta sit on the rooftop talking, the bright lights from outside are the only lights which were used. They make it look a lot more natural than having lights above them or beside them giving off fake light.
In the scene where Katniss and Peeta sit on the rooftop talking, the bright lights from outside are the only lights which were used. They make it look a lot more natural than having lights above them or beside them giving off fake light.
Sound
Sound refers to everything we hear in movies/adverts and TV programmes. Words, sound effects, and music. Sound is used to heighten a mood, provide us with information about the location of the scene, advance the plot, and tell us about the characters in the story.
There are two categories of sound and film: Diegetic and Non-Diegetic.
Diegetic sound refers to the audio elements that come from sources inside the world we see on the screen. Non-Diegetic sound refers to the audio elements that come from outside of the fictional. In the Hunger Games, the majority of the sounds used were Non-Diegetic such as: The footsteps in the forest, the announcements over the speakers, as well as the background noises which increased tension in the movie. There were no Diegetic sounds throughout the whole movie.
The Hunger Games film and The Hunger Games online website.
Website: http://www.thehungergames.co.uk/
The Hunger Games, a film based on the novel by Susanne Collins. The film is about 12 people fighting to live, only one coming out alive. To be able to win the Hunger Games, they have to use a lot of skills. They have to have strength and speed. Also being able to set traps and being able to hunt for food is what they need to do to survive.
On the website, you can have a go on a game and see If you could survive the Hunger Games. For all its not real, I think its a good opportunity to see if you would be the only one to survive or not.
You have to answer 8 questions and at the end, it gives you a percentage and if you would win or lose. Apparently I lost.
The Hunger Games, a film based on the novel by Susanne Collins. The film is about 12 people fighting to live, only one coming out alive. To be able to win the Hunger Games, they have to use a lot of skills. They have to have strength and speed. Also being able to set traps and being able to hunt for food is what they need to do to survive.
On the website, you can have a go on a game and see If you could survive the Hunger Games. For all its not real, I think its a good opportunity to see if you would be the only one to survive or not.
You have to answer 8 questions and at the end, it gives you a percentage and if you would win or lose. Apparently I lost.
You can buy The first Hunger Games on the website along with Catching Fire and the books.
Whilst playing the two games, theirs music playing in the background which actually feels like its creating tension when you choose the answer you think is right. You feel on edge because if this was real, it was a matter of life and death.
You feel like Katniss and Peeta when it comes down to choosing the right pathway because you think if this was real, what would you actually choose?
Section Three
Messages of media products and their effects on audiences!
Denotation means what are we exactly looking at. Connotation means what does this mean to you, how do you feel when you see/watch things such as music videos and adverts.
Here are two music videos which have been made to gain popularity, notoriety and fame:
Miley Cyrus - Wrecking Ball.
In this video we are seeing Miley swinging around on a wrecking ball, naked and smashing all four walls around her. Miley is ‘‘hurt’’ over her ex-boyfriend Liam Hemsworth so decides to try and catch his attention in the worst way possible. (Denotation)
The majority of people who look up to Miley Cyrus are young girls who have liked her since she was Hannah Montana. When Wrecking Ball came out, it was extremely sexual and not like Miley so her younger fans around ten years old would probably not like her as much. Miley's showing she has grown up and this video definitely shows that.
Rihanna - Stay.
Rihanna’s video is fairly similar to Miley’s video. In Stay, Rihanna is naked in the bath also singing about her ex-boyfriend Chris Brown. Its as if Miley and Rihanna are trying to prove a point that men will always hurt you no matter who you are.(Denotation)
This video is also showing us what society is like these days (sex and violence) They’re both speaking from a females point of view about the love they had and the pain they‘re now going through. Another one of Rihanna‘s songs (S&M) got a lot of attention due to the lyrics since they’re basically all about sex. (Connotation) Rihanna has more of an teenage fan base mostly girls from around fourteen and over. When Stay came out, a lot of people weren't that surprised because Rihanna has always been nude in the majority of her videos.
Since both of their videos have sex appeal, they know its going to pull teenagers into watching them because that’s what people enjoy seeing these days, celebrities either naked or in skimpy outfits.
Its not just these two artists who have songs with a certain side to them, there’s also people such as Jason Derulo with ‘’Talk Dirty‘’, Christina Aguilera ‘’Your Body’’ and even Bruno Mars with ‘’Gorilla.’’ Its not just females, its also males who are using sex to get a wider and bigger audience. All of these singers mentioned have young to old fans. The younger fans probably don't see the sexual sides to the songs/music videos but if you look into it, you can see it clearly.
Sex is everywhere in the music industry and its simply been put there to do some of the following things:
- To fulfil a vested interest to get more views.
- To influence people (The audience)
- Thoughts/Decisions (The audience)
Two media products with two positive and negative effects:
Grand Theft Auto - Video Game
GTA is a game where you do missions, drive around in pimped up cars and shoot anybody you like. As we know, GTA is a very violent game because you can have any weapon you can think of including things like crowbars, baseball bats, golf clubs, grenade launchers etc. Not only is it violent, it also contains a lot of graphic sexual scenes including rape. The age group for GTA would definitely be teenage boys, a lot of people who play this game tend to be under fourteen years old even though the game is rated a 18. It's as if the young boys get a buzz from being violent on the game and I think that's why so many people play it.
Grand Theft Auto is also very realistic which makes everything more 'fun'. I think games like this are down to more crimes happening because teenagers and whoever else who plays this, think its ok to walk down the street with knives and pistols.
This game and many other killing games are rated 18 yet people aged 7, 8, 9 and 10 are playing it too. Rockstar the creators of GTA posted on their website, “Rockstar games does not condone or support this type of behaviour, and it should not be tried for real.”
Even though Grand Theft Auto is a negative game, its one of the best selling games in the world. It sold over 12.5 million copies. It has also said to increase optical skill and English skills. I came across a website which had kids who played this game and their opinions. I did read one from a boy who was 12 years old.
http://www.commonsensemedia.org/game-reviews/grand-theft-auto-iv/user-reviews/kids
He does agree in saying, yes GTA is a violent game but their are ways to avoid wanting to be like one of the men/women in the came. After reading this and a few others, I've realised Grand Theft Auto isn't all bad. You can play the game and easily mute the TV, or just drive around instead of shooting people.
http://www.commonsensemedia.org/game-reviews/grand-theft-auto-iv/user-reviews/kids
TV programmes -
Just like Grand Theft Auto, television programmes can get just as violent which young children can easily watch. Programmes such as WWE Wrestling. Even though WWE has became more PG rated in the recent years, it still has men in tights beating each other up which is viewed by thousands. Children are going to think they can wrestle people just like the men in the ring. Both GTA and WWE have women putting themselves all over the men which you don't want your child seeing.
A lot of programmes after a certain time include a lot of swearing and sexual content. Programmes such as Benidorm and Misfits contain very strong language. Benidorm is about a family going on holiday so some children aged 12+ could easily watch this and pick up on the swearing.
However Misfits is on around 10pm because of the high sexual content and bad language but I somehow came across it when the first series aired when I was only twelve.
A lot of programmes after a certain time include a lot of swearing and sexual content. Programmes such as Benidorm and Misfits contain very strong language. Benidorm is about a family going on holiday so some children aged 12+ could easily watch this and pick up on the swearing.
However Misfits is on around 10pm because of the high sexual content and bad language but I somehow came across it when the first series aired when I was only twelve.
Even though a lot of TV programmes are negative, there are still positive programmes. You find the majority of these on channels for children such as CBBC and Cebeebies. Here we have an example of a children's programme, Numtums. Numtums is all about teaching children aged one and over there alphabet and how to count up to ten. This is one of many children's programmes and it definitely has a positive effect on children. The animals dance along to the songs and its generally fun to watch, even as an adult with your child. I used to always put this on for my nephew who's nineteen months old and he can now count to six. The audience is definitely children around one years to two/three as they tend to want to watch more exciting things when they're toddlers.
Wildlife programmes are also something positive about television. Anybody could sit down and watch things like Bear Grylls and Frozen Planet. Since Bear Grylls is typically a survival programme, you tend to get a lot more male viewers since he's a middle aged man, eating strange things and making shelter out of a dead animal's skin. Young boys around fourteen and over find this interesting and its effective because they're learning many different ways on how they would survive if they ever happened to be in that situation. Frozen Planet on the other hand is showing you how animals in the wild survive, not people. Any age group could watch this, ranging from young teenagers to the elderly in their eighties. Frozen Planet it a very entertaining programme as you see thing's you would never be able to see in person. Its also effective as its showing you how animals live and their way of life, you're being informed on how they feed and how they find shelter.
Beth Adamson.
