Contextual Studies - Representation to Sex and Sexuality

Sexuality - Distinct from Gender or Biology

                - The expression of sexual identity through internal feelings and external behaviour.

                 - Can also refer to sexual activity (In particular visual representatives)

Visual Presentations of sexual expression (eroticism, pornography)

Identify representations of sexual expressions  (LBGT, Asexualsims Pansexualism)

Eroticism - Aesthetic depiction of sexuality; may not show nudity

Pornography - Explicit depiction of sexuality; usually via nudity and graphic sexual activity.

Media censorship

depictions of sex and sexuality in media traditionally mediated by external censors.

Uk -Broadcasting legislation, watchdogs (Ofcom)

US - FCC (Federal CommunicationsCommissionn)

Moral Majority also act as external watchdogs (Mary Whitehouse, National Press)

Sexual representation in tv and film historically tightly controlled until 1970's liberalistation

First portrayals of nudity and gay characters - 

Stereotypes

Libertine

Camp

Butch

Asexual

Sexuality and Iconography

Ellen DeGeneres

Feminist Gay Icon

Came out in 4th season and the show was dropped in the 5th.

queer theory

argues that gender and sexuality are social constructs informed by media and representation

Alternative to gay and lesbian critical theory which places sexuality in historical, social and political context.

Allows for reinterpretation of mainstream heteronormativity

The Unconsious - represed or sublimated sexual desire expressed through subtext

Documentary Project - Our Pitch

Are we numb?
Over 11 Million people were killed in the Holocaust, making it the biggest murder in the history of the world. But 70 years later, have we become numb to what happened?

Pitch

Story synopsis
With cases of young people disrespecting the Holocaust memorial, stealing from Auschwitz, mocking and making light of what happened during the Holocaust. Liam Alexandru travels to London to investigate whether or not the young generation really has become numb to the murder or 11 million people. Talking with experts from the Imperial War Museum on what happened during the Holocaust and traveling over to Berlin to visit the Holocaust Memorial and to talk to artist Shahak Shapira who took the internet with his project ‘Yolocaust’ to stop people disrespecting the memorial. Have we become numb? Do we think light of what happened all those years ago? Liam aims to find out.

Character profiles
Presenter – Liam Alexandru
21 years old, British, actor

Liam has had a lot of experience both on stage and in front of the camera, and will therefore be confident being filmed. He also takes a great interest in history, including the Holocaust, studying it for his A-level examinations. Liam has just got back from a trip to Berlin, with his step-sister who is studying Hebrew and Jewish Major at Barcelona University; in terms of historical knowledge he is well educated. He is familiar with the area in which we are filming, which will only improve his confidence. Liam is in the correct age bracket to be able to talk and relate to teens, who will be the target audience for this documentary.


'Yolocaust'artist – Shahak Shapira
29 years old, Israeli but lives in Germany, artist/writer


Shahak is well known for his opposition to extremism and his website “Yolocaust” where he photoshoped pictures of people taking selfies or inappropriate pictures at the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin. People had been taking pictures of themselves doing Yoga or Juggling whilst some teens had been jumping over the concrete slabs, one even captioning his picture “Jumping on dead Jews” as a joke.
He did this to a total of 12 images. His website was visited over 2.5 million times and all twelve people who were in the pictures reached out to Shahak to apologize, one stating that he was an idiot and just trying to make a joke which was in very bad taste.

Proposed locations

- Hotel lounge in Berlin (awaiting to be confirmed) For our interview with Shahak. He doesn’t want to be filmed at the memorial or his house. We have therefore decided to use the hotel lounge where we will be staying as it has a nice background and it’s quite big.
-  Holocaust memorial in Berlin (confirmed)
GV’s for Shahak’s interview, walkie talkie with the presenter and interview with an expert working at the memorial.

-  The Imperial War Museum (awaiting to be confirmed)
Filming in an office for an interview of an expert.

- Inside a car (confirmed)
Filming the presenter traveling to different locations.


- Airport
Showing pits of the presenter’s travel.

Approach/style
For our documentary, the style is intentionally BBC Three. BBC three produces content that has purpose, that stimulates emotions and provokes reactions, particularly from young people. For the documentary we want to approach the topic as a investigative documentary with our narrator, Liam Alexandru, finding out whether or not our generation is growing numb to the holocaust and our past. We will also test out having an Edgar Right Style to our documentary, in terms of montage and quick cuts – when our character are traveling from England to Berlin. 

For the Interviews we want to film them as a conversation, incorporating the narrator as a character rather than just a voice, this would be similar to how Louis Theroux approaches difficult subjects, and isn't afraid to tackle them.
For GV’s we’ll be doing establishing- and inside the car-shots, use archive, (possibly) some drone shots, walkie-talkie shots with the presenter, stock photos of Berlin (the wall, streets, etc).


Why are we telling this story?
The Holocaust happened over 70 years ago, and over 6 million Jews were killed. The current generation of young people may not have a connection to the second World War or have grandparents who fought in the war and therefore don’t feel as strongly about the war as they maybe should. This has led to events where young people has been taken for stealing shoes from Auschwitz, taking inappropriate selfies at the memorial etc. Are we as a generation being numb to our past?
That’s something we want to find out and something that BBC 3 has yet to cover.

Scripting And Storytelling for Documentaries - 17/03/17

 Sound
White balance
Exposure
Framing
Focus

Look for Levels - Listen for Quality

Filming in a contributors house

Ask where you can put your kit

put kit away from doors and exits

keep the contribitor relaxed, keep things organised, dress the set a little bit, ask home owners permission and dont go over the top,

You dont need every bit of kit, usually a reflector works better than bringing lots of kit

clear the details of the screen when framing up.

All programming is to a lesser or greater extent scripted

Factual Programmes face particular ethical challenges when it comes to how far they are scripted vs how much is reality

Treatment needs to be no more than one page although can be up to 3-4

outlining how you intend to tell the story

Main Characters/Interviewees

Locations
Style/format
narrative structure
prestenter

Transmission time and channel platform

Target Audience

Sequences
Interviews
REconstrucions and Dramatisations
actuality
Cutaways
Sync
Commentary
Music
Archive/Stills
Graphics

Show Me - Dont just Tell Me

Written Prior to filming
forms the template for your Finished Film

Pix -----------Sync/Comm

always start by writing your commentary and interweave with a summary of each persons sycn eg fred describes his life in london Research informs your Comm

Explore picture oppurtunity through your script

always write to pictures they should work togerhrter

Lord Privy Seal Rule

Needs to be a synergy between the words and video

Write Comm.Vo for Commentrart

SEQ sequence
ACT actuaulity
CA cut away
Sync Interview Clip
SFX sound effects

Commentary put in italics and bold - Also helps during voice over record if they are numbered.

Line and a half spacing makes it easier to read.

finding a narrative for your documentary is essential.

COMM guides and explains
fill gaps that cant easily  show
Intro Characters
Corner Turn
Tension
Selling point/expertise
information

Beware time based narratives cannot be fractured.

Investigator becomes a character in the film.

Method of story telling is appropriate for the content.

Actuality Driven

This is a term used to describemore observational type films whose structure and storytelling develops around what happens.

Sequenced have a more polished feel and are typically more formatted pieces e.e. who do you thing you are.

Scripts and shot list

Essay Workshop

Contents -

Recognize what makes a successful Essay

Identify main parts of the essay
clarify how to create an arguement
restate reasons for using source materials
analyse an essay in relation to the above points

Have you read the project brief to see what you are being assessed on?

Knowledge of historical periods and ideas
Knowledge of theoretical frameworks around perception language and meaning

Understanding through application of : Research SKills and information collation in the support and development of critical study

understanding through application of : Ability to structure arguements and present as an essay using acedmeic conventions

basic project managment skills

Virtualism

Virtualism

in media context, the simulation of the real" primarily through digital construct and manipulation

the aesthetic tension between physical and digital ; material vs immaterial ; The uncanny valley


Game of Thrones

Dramatic Elements (narrative and character) relies on realism

Fantasy (non-realist) elements relies on digital constructs.



Virtual news sets are purely representational
Simulated Reality we decode by genre symbols

Aesthetic tension
What is real?
what is Created?
Analogue (pratical) or Digital
How do we percieve difference

Uncanny valley when something is almost real by not quite

the perceptual gap between that which is percieved as real and that which is almost real, or a close simulacrum

provokes aesthetic sense of discomfort, eerieness or revulsion

Contextual Studies - Representation to Sex and Sexuality

Sexuality - Distinct from Gender or Biology

                - The expression of sexual identity through internal feelings and external behaviour.

                 - Can also refer to sexual activity (In particular visual representatives)

Visual Presentations of sexual expression (eroticism, pornography)

Identify representations of sexual expressions  (LBGT, Asexualsims Pansexualism)

Eroticism - Aesthetic depiction of sexuality; may not show nudity

Pornography - Explicit depiction of sexuality; usually via nudity and graphic sexual activity.

Media censorship

depictions of sex and sexuality in media traditionally mediated by external censors.

Uk -Broadcasting legislation, watchdogs (Ofcom)

US - FCC (Federal CommunicationsCommissionn)

Moral Majority also act as external watchdogs (Mary Whitehouse, National Press)

Sexual representation in tv and film historically tightly controlled until 1970's liberalistation

First portrayals of nudity and gay characters - 

Stereotypes

Libertine

Camp

Butch

Asexual

Sexuality and Iconography

Ellen DeGeneres

Feminist Gay Icon

Came out in 4th season and the show was dropped in the 5th.

queer theory

argues that gender and sexuality are social constructs informed by media and representation

Alternative to gay and lesbian critical theory which places sexuality in historical, social and political context.

Allows for reinterpretation of mainstream heteronormativity

The Unconsious - represed or sublimated sexual desire expressed through subtext

Scripting And Storytelling for Documentaries - 17/03/17

 Sound
White balance
Exposure
Framing
Focus

Look for Levels - Listen for Quality

Filming in a contributors house

Ask where you can put your kit

put kit away from doors and exits

keep the contribitor relaxed, keep things organised, dress the set a little bit, ask home owners permission and dont go over the top,

You dont need every bit of kit, usually a reflector works better than bringing lots of kit

clear the details of the screen when framing up.

All programming is to a lesser or greater extent scripted

Factual Programmes face particular ethical challenges when it comes to how far they are scripted vs how much is reality

Treatment needs to be no more than one page although can be up to 3-4

outlining how you intend to tell the story

Main Characters/Interviewees

Locations
Style/format
narrative structure
prestenter

Transmission time and channel platform

Target Audience

Sequences
Interviews
REconstrucions and Dramatisations
actuality
Cutaways
Sync
Commentary
Music
Archive/Stills
Graphics

Show Me - Dont just Tell Me

Written Prior to filming
forms the template for your Finished Film

Pix -----------Sync/Comm

always start by writing your commentary and interweave with a summary of each persons sycn eg fred describes his life in london Research informs your Comm

Explore picture oppurtunity through your script

always write to pictures they should work togerhrter

Lord Privy Seal Rule

Needs to be a synergy between the words and video

Write Comm.Vo for Commentrart

SEQ sequence
ACT actuaulity
CA cut away
Sync Interview Clip
SFX sound effects

Commentary put in italics and bold - Also helps during voice over record if they are numbered.

Line and a half spacing makes it easier to read.

finding a narrative for your documentary is essential.

COMM guides and explains
fill gaps that cant easily  show
Intro Characters
Corner Turn
Tension
Selling point/expertise
information

Beware time based narratives cannot be fractured.

Investigator becomes a character in the film.

Method of story telling is appropriate for the content.

Actuality Driven

This is a term used to describe more observational type films whose structure and storytelling develops around what happens.

Sequenced have a more polished feel and are typically more formatted pieces e.e. who do you thing you are.

Scripts and shot list

Doc Research - Airport Baggage and Filming Rules

I called Stansted Airport to check if there are any rules or regulations we should be aware of when taking equipment through security.

The women on the phone told me that there is very little problems with taking equipment through, although the larger lithium batteries may have to be separated into our suitcases and not be allowed in our carry-ons. I also asked whether it would be possible to film some GVs/ Cutaways in the airport itself, she said there would be no problem with that.

Documentary Commission 08/03/17

hcurston@ucreative.ac.uk

Introduction to factual programming and the documentary genre

Angle
Commentary
Archive
Interview
Characters
Actuality
Sequences
Narrative
reconstruction

Fictional and Factual Programmes borrow from each others style and treatment.

All films - Fictional and factual - are constructed to some degree - i.e. whether it is in the pre, production or post-production stages - human intervention is unavoidable

Interventions affect the treatment of Reality and Truth.

Different genres of factual programmes, in particular, documentary films, involve different degrees of intervention.

In 2007 the BBC's reputation was seriously damaged by revelations of "fakery"

Competition Winners, in particular, had been 'faked' (e.g. blue peter and radio 1)

Fined nearly half a million

This led to more revelations and a complete review of the BBC's handling of competitions and factual programme-making

The degree of accepted intervention is as follows

Current Affairs

reporter led
relying less on character and actuality
factual programmes are an important part of the democratic process

Purpose of documentaries

has to be public interest, rather than just voyeurism,

Documentaries provide a particular view, interpretation or understanding of the evidence which they put before us.

Poetic
expository
educational
observational
reflexive documentaries
participatory
performative

Drama-Doc
Docu-Soap
Reality TV
Fact-Ent
Structured Reality
Multi-Camera observational

Bill Nichols

Formatting

Multi Cam
Presenter led
Magazine
Authored
Discussion/Debate

Conventions

Style - Shooting and Editing
Structure -
Format
Shots - eg handheld
Commentary
Narrator
Music
Experts
Conventions are often subject of satire - exposing the established methods by which stories are told but possible also limited.

Tension - Helps audiences stay interested

Revelation
Entertainment
Storytelling
style and content

Documentary - Ideas and how to find them - Zoe Sale

Zoe Sale

You have to come up with an idea, lots each week.

You write them up -  sell them to the controller or commissioner - and often produce a short tape to show the idea.

The School that Turned Chinese - Idea about the Chinese education system taking over half the school.

An Idea needs Characters - Chinese Characters were funny - playing up to expectations,

Caring about characters makes a good story, even in factual based film you should have protagonists
or antagonists.

How do you have a good idea?

Curiosity - Follow up on things that fascinate you

The whatever happened to question?

Searching for Sugar Man

Anniversaries - good starting points

the 2011 film Dreams of a life by Director Carol Morley was inspired by an article she read about a dead woman in a local newspaper who lay undiscovered in her bedsit for 3 years before she was found.

Sources - Contacts - Keep a book for contacts
Other Media - Look in papers that the rest of the media don't read, read the letters pages.

Get behind the headlines - scoop up all the key interviewees, about a seminal moment.

Browse the best seller list - what are people reading for pleasure? What are they watching online?

TED TALKS

Robert Neuwirth

Slum Survivors

Fish out of Water - Hidden Worlds

Brain Storming Say and think the unsayable - Sometimes pretending to be someone else

Locations - come up with an interesting location and generate an idea or film around it.

Investigate

Go digital - Media, Google Advanced search can help source original material.

Ensure its Genuine and the people authentic.

Amazing Footage - User generated or intimate archive the internet has a huge range of Tools that can help you find content.

A good title or a well-worn format

What is it in the story that is going to leave the audience in anticipation, what is it that they will want to find out and see resolved? Why are you telling me this now? The Rule of Three

The Hook - Audiences need to want to commit their limited time.

A Strong central Character/s = Eyewitness or personal testimony, whose story is it? who is the character, or characters that will lead and guide your story? what's driving them emotionally.

Universal themes/ relateable.

does it make audience angry/happy play on fears

A strong Narrative and structure a beginning middle and end sustain the duration- normmaly you need some conflict a decision to be made a turning point.

Commission: Documentary 06.03.17

Expectations - Email Blog URL

hcurston@ucreative.ac.uk

A mixture of theory, screenings, and Critique/discussion, student research and development, practical workshops, formative assessed work.

Visiting Professionals
Preparation is Key
Failing to Prepare is preparing to fail.

Helen worked in factual programmes within BBC

The Unit builds on skills and experience from the first stage

Broadly speaking a documentary is real stories, real people in real situations.

The challenge is to get access to all of these things.

 Show me don't tell me


Story Telling

As with all filmmaking, the story is at the heart of a good documentary film - Originality is Key

Must be able to answer WHY?

You need to carefully research, develop and construct your documentary to tell this story.

All Filmmaking contains similarities

The unit aims to

PRomote understanding of commissioned work and the synthesis of relevant siles
enable understanding of the ethical concerns in the impact of representation in documentary production
to facilitate research which supports develops your ideas sand storytelling
to support the development of relevant professional production


10-minute film must think who it is for

BARB viewing reports, trendspotting etc

Pitch as a group within your production teams and to each other as well as a panel, recieve development feedback from tutors and peers througout the process.

Assessment considers not just the final product but the preparation and development and exploration of the genre the individual input and work of team members.

Emphasis on research

BULLET POINTS AND SUB HEADINGS

Demonstrate ability to synthesise creative skills in response to brief
develop broadcast straegies for clients and audiences paying due refard to relevant ehtical concersn/representation
employ research methods
depolor managment and technical skills

125 hrs scheduled activity
175 hrs indepent activity

Individual Assessment - different people in groups


Contextual Research

REference material
Testing ideas
input into pitch
output from workshops and critcal reflections

1 Documentary filmmake rto explore in depth and informa nd inspire your own work.

1 Documtary TV programme to review, deconstruct and contextualise with reference to your own documentary.

Project Eval

Research to find solutions

2 entries per week
detail own work what you learn what you watch and read, your indicudal contributions.

Assessment will include
Workshop materails
final film and all development work and associated work.

Target

by end of week 10 ideas lab work & Pitches uploaded

BBC 3 Online

difficult subjects centered around a young person

Health and wellbeing
family and relationships
science and technology - limbs - prosthetics
wildlife enviroment
community and social affairs
music arts culture
history


Treatment - What format, style and storytelling mechanisms you will adopt

interviews alone will not be enough.

shooting sequences, set ups, GVs and actuality

Viablility

Contributors and Locations must be aware and agree to Youtube Broadcast

Visual References

In the preproduction of my scene I looked at stills from various films, firstly I rewatched Memento to look at the colour scheme, The film is quite high key in most areas

These are then offset but the flash back scenes which are in black and white, I decided that I wanted my scene to be quite dim and bland since the main locations would be  a run down home and hotel.

I made a mood board of the colour scheme I wanted in my project, these were mainly low saturation shots, with maybe a small splash of colour.

I also wanted to have a few Close Ups or Extreme Close up shots of Leonards face and eyes as he struggles not to forget, I thought that watching his eyes as they change from frustration to confusion would be a nice touch.

I also want to get a close up of a clock, I like the idea of Ticking distracting Leonard or almost luring him into a trance making him forget the past few minutes. The ticking also represents the urgency of his situation, perhaps contrasting his frantic searching with a steady constant ticking.

J.J Abrahms - Film Director

J. J. Abrams

Abrams was born in New York on the 27th June 1966, He is a man of many hats, working as a Director, Producer, Screen Writer and Composer. He has worked on both Television and Film.

His major Directing credits for Film include:

Mission Impossible III (2006)

Star Trek (2009)

Super 8 (2011)

Star Trek: Into Darkness (2013)

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)

He has created several TV Drama series:

Felecity (1998-2003)

Alias (2001-2006)

Lost (2004-2010)

Fringe (2008-2013)

J.J began his career in film as a Producer and Writer, he worked with big names such as Micheal Bay on Armageddon before making his way into the Televison series industry, he worked on several series cuch as Felicity, Alias and Lost.

His first major motion pictuer was Mission Impossible III in 2006, Abrams seems to have a tendency for reviving a franchise, having moved on to do similar things with Star Trek and Star Wars two of the biggest franchises in the history of film and television.

His next film after Mission Impossible was Star Trek, this is one of my personal favourite movies and one that kicked my drive for film making into overgear, I remember going to the cinema to watch the film and walking out with ideas and inspiration flowing through my veins.

After the success of Star Trek, J.J then went on to direct Super 8 alongside Steven Spielberg, which is a story about a young boy who decides to make a zombie film for a competition, he and his friends witness a truck drive into a train and it crash. They then are found and told at gunpoint to forget what they saw.

Reviewing the footage they see an alien escape the train. The film then follows the group as they investigate missing people and electroinics, it is a great film reminicent of older movies.

J.J's style usually consists of high contrast, such as filming in a brightly lit corridor such as in Star Trek or then having someone in darkeness with sparks flying up around them from gunfire, He also likes to use Lens Flare,  often having crew members shining lights into the lens of the camera to get the desired result.

His films often have the death of a parental figure in them, such as in Star Trek (Kirks Father) Super 8 (Main Protaganists mother) Star Trek Into Darkness (Father Figure), the main reason for this in my opinion is to show the growth of a character, having them learning without having the guidance of a parent.

I like Abrams films as they match my own interests very closely, I love films with a sci-fi genre or with action scenes, I also like Fringe for its outlandish concepts and ideas, If I was to take anything from this Director it would be his penchant for high contrast shots, I find these do give a sci fi film a advanced and brightly lit look.

Jack Bender - TV Director

Jack Bender

Best known for his work on Lost, The Sopranos and Game of Thrones, Jack Bender was born in 1949 and in his career has accrued over 70 credits as a Director, this is a massive achievement as many Directors only gaining a dozen or more (J.J Abrams has 12 credits as Director)

Bender started out his career as an actor and then in his twenties when he became a theatre director, He wrote and directed a short film called "A Real Naked Lady" that won some awards. He then caught the attention of John Hausman who was a big name back then, he gave Jack a job as dialogue coach and eventually got him his first directing job and his career started from there.

After a while he moved onto directing films along with TV shows, he co-produced lost and directed numerous episodes including the finale, Bender states in his AMA that his attitude to directing is if he is compelled by the story and the characters, then he is interested in the project.

Bender prefers to spend his time directing focusing on powerful imagery rather than pretty visuals or clever use of camera movement, one of his favourite shots is in the Tv show Lost he was asked to direct the episode Exodus Part 1, in one of the episodes one of the characters is leaving the island, he had the idea of having Vincent the dog swimming after the raft, knowing it would be a heart breaking scene, He had the dog trainer guide the dog to swim after the raft.

Jack Bender also likes to film things in threes, he states that it comes from a time before digital footage became the common medium and if you wanted to increase the size you would see all the grain, because of this he would film three different close ups. I like this idea as it gives you more freedom in the final edit.

What becomes more apparent about Jack Bender’s style is he doesn’t always focus on visuals, he does not focus on camera movements, colour contrasts or visual effects, Bender focuses on the story and the act of telling that story on a television medium, he states at a keynote speech in Rio that he see’s Television as “Telling A Vision”.

Bender also likes to work with Mise-En-Scene, such as in the series lost he wanted the flashbacks of a character to be a dull beige, he instructed the prop department to have no plants or anything green or blue in the shot, since these were the main colours of the island, this way there was a bigger contrast between the past and the present.

Jack feels that a good show or film doesn’t believe in style over content, he believes that they should merge together rather than have a film with really cool and interesting shots but nothing  happening within the scene.

When asked about stress Bender talks about his way of working is to just put one foot infront of the other and if you make a mistake or screw something up, do better the next day, I like this way of thinking as I realise a problem for me is getting over setbacks.

What I would like to take from Bender is his attention to detail and story, rather than focus on cool shots or clever uses of camera movement to also spend some time working on the story and making what’s happening in the scene important instead of spending all my time and energy on the camera.