Technical Aspects Test (31) 1.Name the main 5 components of mise-en-scene (5) 2.What is low key lighting (1)? 3.Define the following shots (8): High Angle.

Technical Aspects Test (31)1. Name the main 5 components of mise-en-scene (5)2. What is low key lighting (1)?3. Define the following shots (8):

• High Angle• Pan• Tilt• Tracking• Dolly• POV• Shot-reverse-shot• Establishing shot

4. What is cross cutting (1)?5. What is match on action (1)?6. What is an eyeline match (1)?7. What editing technique might 4 and 5 be a part of? Define it (2)8. Name and define 3 editing transitions (3).9. Name and define 4 editing effects (4).10. Define the following sound key terms (4):

1. Symphonic2. Rhythmic3. Dissonant4. Synchronisation

11. “The colour red might symbolise danger”. Give 2 words that you could use instead of symbolise (2).

Possible AS Exam Question

Answer the question below, with detailed references to specific examples from the extract only.

1. Discuss the ways in which the extract constructs the representation of gender using the following:

• Camera shots, angles, movement and composition• Editing• Sound• Mise en scene

Editing

Key things to consider• The pace of the editing and how it links with any music. How does

this affect the atmosphere?– Does a faster pace create a more tense/frenetic mood, a sense of

excitement?– Do longer takes (i.e. slower paced editing) help to build a detailed

picture of characters and setting?

• How much screen time is given to characters (e.g. in shot reverse shot)?– Does this reflect their importance to the narrative?– Does it encourage the viewer to identify or even empathise with a

certain character?

• Are any unusual transitions used and why?– Dissolve explicitly connects two scenes.– Fade to black suggests the end of a scene (like the end of a chapter in a

book)

Editing (Primeval)

• Match on action on zipline• Eyeline match of hand (audience identifying with

protagonist) and of man at start• Both parts of continuity editing – makes story

seem fluid and real, so we as the audience feel a sense of tension…

• Slow mo – to emphasise the action…when women is falling down – shows she vulnerability

• Pace of editing – fast for chase scene to show danger he is in and which he escapes from

• Slower editing with Mr West

Editing (Primeval)

• Continuity editing is used to create a sense of realism (hand held camera) – the action flows in real time without any visual interruptions

• Slow motion at climax – broke tension

• Editing speeds up (synchronisation with music) during the tiger chase scene to show that the protagonist is in danger

• Continuity editing – “invisible” editing (“match on action”, “shot-reverse-shot”) – linear narrative (flash backs)?

• Rhythm – pace of editing:– Quick for action sequences?– Slow for character studies?

• Cross cutting – alternates 2 (or more) lines of action that occur in different places, usually at the same time

• Transitions – uncommon in TV drama, except for straight cuts. They explicitly connect shots in some way. Examples include:– Fade– Wipe– Dissolve

• Effects – making the editing obvious:– Motion control: speed up, slow motion, freeze frame– Picture effects: black and white, split screen (vs cross cutting), captions,

tinting, colouring

Some editing keywords

Age, Gender Ethnicity and

Class

Main ethnic groups in the UK

Age representation - key ideas

• Common stereotypes:– Young as rebellious and perhaps misunderstood– Old (often parents) as figures of authority– Elderly as vulnerable and weak– Most representations are simplified, often negative

and unrepresentative• Different age groups (e.g. teenagers and their

parents) are often presented as complete opposites:– Levi-Strauss was an academic who talked about

binary opposites – you could mention him in your essay

Gender Stereotypes

• What are some of the gender stereotypes we would associate with men and women?

• Are “binary opposites” also apparent here?

Men:

BreadwinnerNot in touch with their emotions- rationalObsessed by sport and sexPhysically strongerImmatureCompetitiveAggressiveRuthless

Women:

Emotional irrational

Gossip

Mature and responsible MaternalDomesticatedPhysically weaker Supportive and sensitive

How do we define class?

• It is a really complex issue and hotly debated– Property– Job (Socio-economic classification: ABC1C2DE)– Dialect (language and accent):

• RP (received pronunciation)

– Does wealth define your class?– Education (e.g. University educated = middle class?)– Family– Regionality – Cultural values/habits– Media consumption?

Class stereotypes• Class is often strongly associated with regionalism in TV Drama• Upper class: Snobbish/socially ignorant, property (landed gentry – hunting), live in

south of England, well educated, RP, inherited wealth and titles (old money, baron, sir, lord…), aristocratic connections, horses, croquet, polo, social networking, sloanes, very small minority of population, public school (Eton, Harrow, Westminster…)

• Middle class: well educated (University), second property (have money), assets (disposable income), professional (e.g. doctor, lawyer…), children at private schools (upper middle), aspirational, “cultured” (e.g. theatre, classical music, literature, read broadsheets), language (broad vocabulary…), property (big house, kitchen/diner), intellectual, “green” – environmentally conscious,

• Working class: various jobs at same time, often struggle to pay bills, single parent family or lots of kids, chavs (bling) – ostentation, read tabloids (red tops – Mirror, Sun and Star), council estate, terraced houses, often live in towns or cities, public schools (comprehensive schools), blue collar/manual labour, accent (colloquial terms), uneducated, social problems (drug taking, gambling, alcohol, burglars, other petty crime), drink and smoke?, white van man, uncouth (unsophisticated, bad manners)

• Under class: live in poverty on fringes of society, might be shunned or not accepted by society (e.g. illegal immigrants)

Essay writing tips

• Introduction:

• Don’t make any grand generalisations• Refer to the language of question • Give some context to the text

• Conclusion:

• Briefly summarise your main points• Don’t introduce any new points• Make it interesting and stand out (e.g. ask a provocative question, evoke an image, use a quotation)• Don’t just repeat introduction!

connotes

represents

symbolises

subverts

stereotypes

archetype

stock type

constructs

audience

post-feminist

post-modernantagonist

protagonist

complex

multi-faceted

patriarchal/matriarchal

status/power

portrays

subservient

passionate/dispassionate

tensionmood

atmosphere

appropriate

hybrid

tyrant

(anti) hero

reinforces

Words to connect technique to audience

• This technique – suggests….– implies….– shows….– connotes….– develops….– establishes….– might symbolise….

• Some comparative connectives: – Having said this– Although– Whereas– Despite – Moreover– Furthermore– Nevertheless– Additionally– However– As well– Indeed– Instead– Rather– Elsewhere– Alternatively

Extract Analysis1. Survivors2. Doctor Who

• Survivors (gender)• http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p006hp34

Survivors

• Long shot• Mid shot• Over the shoulder shot• Handheld camera• Shot of bodies through door then pan to female

character• Eye-line match (sudden pan movement to scientist)• Long shot• Two-shot mid-shot• Slow zoom• Close up

• “The use of the handheld camera creates a sense of both chaos and immediacy. It draws us into the scene, suggesting that Abigail is in danger. This presents her as a fearless women, subverting traditional female stereotypes.”

• “A continuity editing effect, shot-reverse-shot, is used to capture the confrontation between Abigail and the lab technician. It focuses equally on either character, implying that they are both important to the story.”

Doctor Who

• 0 to 10 seconds:– Describe how the mise-en-scene of the

“master” constructs his representation as a male.

• 10 to 20 seconds:– Describe how the mise-en-scene of Martha

and cinematography constructs her representation as a female.

Opening 10 seconds

“The antagonist wears a white shirt and black tie and suit, showing that he is professional. The top button of shirt however is undone and his shirt untucked and tie loosened, showing contrasting signs of rebellion. Mise-en-scene in terms of costume is important in the construction of this character and his gender, conforming to many of the typical male stereotypes, such as being less sensitive/caring, dominate and powerful. We can see that it is a patriarchal society as the antagonist is male, standing high on a raised platform, with a weaker/submissive, obedient “lady in red” behind him.”

10 to 20 seconds

“As the female chucks the device, the clip cuts to another of the antagonist catching it, allowing match-on-action. As the female is told to kneel, this reinforces the status between the two characters and the camera tilts down on her. As they converse, the female character is shown at a high angle as though looked down upon, symbolizing weakness and a lower status. Through mise-en-scene this character is constructed to look like an independent, strong, maybe even a post-feminist. With hair tied back and a professional/fashionable jacket, the female is shown to be significant to some extent. However, during the first half, she subverts the traits of a post-feminist, accepting lower status over men and kneels down before the antagonist”

Doctor Who

“From the very beginning of the clip we are shown a shot in shallow focus with the antagonist shown clear in the foreground and a female blurred out entering the area. Through framing and composition, the antagonist is shown to be on a higher platform than the female walking, showing higher status and the classic male trait of dominance.”

Doctor Who

“As the female character continues to walk slowly through the area, point of view shots are used followed by mid-close shots to show her expressions and reactions to what she can see. She looks left and right to see hostages which could be her companions. Conforming to typical female stereotypes of being weaker, she cannot do anything to help them.”