Representation of Age in Glue

My chosen area of representation is age in the episode of glue.

 Camera Angles: At the very start of the episode we see many extreme long shots and establishing shots. This gives us an introduction to our setting, environment and the time of day in each particular clip. There is also several long shots of the characters at the beginning of the episode, which gives us an idea of what the characters look like and their behaviour at the start which immediately gives us an impression of the characters. For example from their actions, which are mainly portrayed through these long shots we can see that they are behaving erratically. We also have point of view shots, for example at the beginning when we are shown the man taking drugs from a small bag that he is carrying. With all of these features put together we can already see that the characters are quite experimental and enjoy the party lifestyle. This already, in the opening scenes alone matches the stereotype of many teens and young adults in the UK. They are portrayed to be irresponsible and endanger their own lives through reckless behaviour, a common stereotype which is becoming more publicised in the media due to social networking etc. There is also several two shots between the characters when in conversation, so that we can see the relationships between characters. Through these shots we can see that the characters appear often to be quite emotionless and do not regret their behaviour. What they say often doesn't match the truth however from these two shots we can see that the characters seem quite confident in not being entirely honest. This again matches the stereotype that teens are quite unfeeling and emotionless. They are consumed in their own interests and not those of others. Furthermore, there is also several crabbing shots which show movement of the characters and helps us to keep up to keep up with their actions and behaviour. When the man is standing on the top of the large container we see a low angle shot. This shows possibly the feeling of power that the character has at that specific moment in time possibly due to the influence of drugs. When he jumps and is falling we see a low angle shot which perhaps shows his vulnerability as he is not fully aware and in control of his actions. There is also several close ups of the characters, for example when one character tells another about the news of Cals death, this allows us to see the expressions and their reactions to the news. It shows their regret at their behaviour and emphasises the stereotypical idea that teens do not think about actions and their consequences.
 Editing: When the man jumps at the beginning of the scene we see slow motion. This perhaps emphasises his vulnerability as he is not in control of his own actions and is putting his own life in danger. This again adds to the stereotypical image of young adults, the representation that they are irresponsible and do not care about their reckless behaviour. When Cal and the girl then jump in, slow motion is used again. This could be done to emphasise their behaviour and their actions.
Sound: There is several pieces of non-diegetic music used throughout this episode. For example at the very beginning there is music played in the background. It almost creates an uncomfortable feeling for the viewer as it gives a sense that something is not quite right and gives us a feeling that something is going to end badly. It almost seems to create a feeling of danger which matches the characters behaviour. When Cal is found the next morning in the field, music is also used to create greater effect and to build tension. It is used throughout to create a feeling of uncertainty for the viewer and to build tension and suspense. Diegetic music is used when the two female characters are dancing, which shows us that the characters are young and quite playful , and are just keen to explore the world and the different things on offer to them. The use of this different music may emphasise the tendency of young adults to explore the world around them. This again shows a stereotypical view of the young teenage characters.
Mise en scene: The characters throughout are stereotypically represented to be irresponsible and show reckless behaviour . They portray the idea of the ‘lost innocence of childhood’, with their frequent drug and alcohol misuse. They are portrayed to be troublesome and involved with crime, for instance in the use of the drugs or the burning of the car. This is a stereotypical portrayal of young adults which is ever growing in the media in current times. Most of the representations are negative and show only the bad stereotypical images of youths.

Areas of Representation

REPRESENTATIONS – COMMON STEREOTYPES

4 Key Areas Of Textual Analysis

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_5YoG-iXjQ
Camera Shots:
The opening shot is of the front of the car where you can see both characters having a conversation. This is a long shot as you can see the car and what is going on in the background e.g: the cars moving past, you can see that the car is parked and it looks like they are waiting.
There is a mid shot as Phil leaves the school which follows him as he moves forwards, so the camera moves backwards like in a tracking shot. You can see what is happening in the background as he moves forwards.
There is also several long shots, for example when Phil gets in the car.
There is also an over the shoulder shot when Stu is looking in the mirror.
There is several long shots when Stu and his wife are in their house, which shows their movements and actions, for example when Stu is packing his cases, we can see that he is getting ready to leave and get the impression he may be going on a trip or holiday somewhere.
When Stu and his wife are sitting on the sofa, there is a mid shot which moves into a close up to show increasing tension between the two. We can also see their facial expressions better from this which shows their emotions.
There is an extreme long shot outside the house, where we can see the environment and the two people running past. This allows us to establish the current environment and the time.
There is also a two shot between Stu and his wife on the sofa when they are having a conversation, we can see the interactions between these two characters and see the tension between them and Stu's wife's lack of trust in him due to the events of previous trips.
Sounds: There is the sound of the school children when they are parked outside the school, from this we can establish the setting.
The music is then introduced, it sounds almost mischievous and starts when Phil gets into the car suggesting that the group of them could potentially cause trouble when put together.
Mise en scene: 
In the two shot at the beginning of the scene, we can see Alan and Doug sat next to each other. Doug is in the drivers seat which perhaps states that he is the more mature and authoritative figure. He is also dressed well compared to Alan who doesn't look well groomed and is dressed more casually. Alan is placed closer to the school and perhaps all these features tied together suggests he is more like a child himself. Also when Phil enters the car, Doug does not allow him in the drivers seat, suggesting he perhaps has more of a wild side than his job as a school teacher suggests. He also carelessly jumps over the side of the car which could signify how he is himself quite chilidsh and thoughtless at times.

 

The call

Camera Shots
There is a lot of close ups used in this clip, possibly to show the increasing tension as time closes in and the action begins. These shots shows Jordan's (the call operators) facial expressions. Such as at the beginning when she rapidly goes from looking quite happy and content to suddenly very focused and concerned when she gets the call from a young girl.
There is also lots of point of view shots for example on the computer, we can see Jordan's actions, for example when she is typing in the address of the girl onto the screen.
There is also a close up of the young girl when she is on the phone. We can see in the background that something is happening. We also get a point of view shot here, for example when she turns to look around the wall and hears the glass smashing we can see what she would see from where she is standing. This puts us in the characters position and makes us feel as if we are there, which increases the anticipation in the scene and builds action and suspense. It also gives us a sense of the fear that the young girl is feeling at that moment.
We also see a crab shot when Leah is running up the stars so that we can keep up with the action.
Again there is several point of view shots so we can see what Leah sees and get a sense of her fear and vulnerability.
There is also a long shot of the man when he is in the corridor in the house. This shot is quite eery as we can only see the outline of the man but can establish that he is a lot more powerful than Leah who we mainly only see close up and can see from her facial expressions that she is fearful.
When the young girl cries 'i think he heard the phone ring' we see a zoom into Jordan, This almost shows impending doom and we can see the terror and dread on her face as the shot moves inwards. It almost gives a sense of what is to follow and makes us feel like something is closing in.
Just before Leah is taken we have an extreme close up where we can see her eyes in detail. This is quite intense for the viewer as we can see nothing that is going  in on the background and therefore her scream comes as a shock and builds the action in the scene. It also allows us to see the vulnerability in her eyes.
The shot where Leah is pulled from underneath the bed is a tracking shot, the camera moves forwards as Leah is pulled out so the camera closely follows her and we can see her facial expressions at all times which makes the viewing more intense for us.
Sounds
We can hear the sounds of Jordan typing underneath the narrative, This creates a sense of urgency as she quickly tries to find a resolution to the problem and keep things under control. There is also the beeping noise as the light turns to red, This sound may signify that there has been a change in the environment, and shows us how the room has gone from being relatively calm to an emergency situation. The sound of the breaking glass as the man enters increases the tension and also adds to our fear for Leah as the viewer. The sound of music in the background almost predicts doom and again builds tension as Leah desperately tries to find a place to hide and get out of dangers way, The scream at the end rounds of the action for that scene.
Editing 
Some editing may have been used in this scene. For example the writing on the screen could have been done by using special effects to make the software look professional and to allow it to fit the context of the film,
Mise en scene
We can tell almost immediately that Jordan is a dedicated worker by the way her character seems to change as soon as she hears the girls voice on the other end of the phone. She seems to switch from relatively calm and laid back to suddenly very alert. This may also represent her intelligence and knowledge of the job as she seems to immediately know that the situation is very bad and we can tell this by the expression of her face and the sound of her voice. We can also tell that she is a caring person that is dedicated to her job and wants to help people. She uses a very kind and soothing voice when she talks to the girl and does all she can in her power to make her feel a little bit of comfort in a horrible situation. This may also show how she is good with children and younger people by the way she seems to speak to Leah.

Basic Camera Angles

Media - Film Roles by laurenamyharriman

Areas of Textual Analysis and Camera Shots

http://downieasmedia.blogspot.co.uk/2014/09/4-key-areas-of-textual-analysis.html

                                  Media Representation

What media figures do you consider similar to you and why?

I look up to several images in the media, however mainly them belonging to the music industry because i enjoy music and spend a lot of time listening to different types of music.
For example influential and well known figures such as Rihanna, Beyonce and Kanye West. I do not necessarily consider them to be similar to me, however i follow the trends that these celebrities represent, such as in their clothing, their music, and many other things. I also find myself conforming to some of the trends that those in reality TV shows portray, such as the Kardashians. I tend to follow the trends that they set and portray both on their shows and in social media, such as on instagram and twitter. I believe i am similar to all of these in some ways as i enjoy similar music and like the clothes they wear etc. However ,i believe that all we see in the media, such as on magazines, through social media, on TV programmes and the news influences us to dress, behave and generally influences us  to be the way we are. I believe some people subconsciously model themselves on these stars, however others purposely try to follow the trends to fit in with society. In contrast i believe that some people, model themselves on stars and influential figures in the media to stand out, look different and separate themselves from the norms of society. For example people such as Paloma Faith portray a different kind of style, something that some of the UK tribes may follow in a bid to be different.

I think i am closest to the Tribes: Stylers and Creatives from UK tribes. For example, the creatives like things such as music, photography and art. I particularly enjoy music which could make me fit into this category. I enjoy writing and composing music which would also make me fit into the creatives. The stylers are also similar to me. They are also particularly into music and style. Influential icons for them are people such as Rihanna, Beyonce, Kim Kardashian and Kanye West, which i also believe to be some of my influential figures. The stylers favorite brand is predominantly River island, also my favorite high street store and favorite networking site twitter, which is also my preferred site. River island has sold a Rihanna branded selection of clothing in the past, which fits in with the stylers theme. I believe that i am predominantly similar to the townies tribe. I believe that i am individual and i don't purposely follow the trends in music or style but simply go with what i like, which does often tend to be things that are in trend. I believe that i am quite content to take aspects of different tribes and like to follow things in the media and to keep up with social media and networking. I believe that i could take aspects of several different tribes and for that reason am most similar to the townies who are quite laid back and go with what suits them most.

I believe that we sometimes conform to behave and look the way that the stars are represented in media to fit in with society. Some people also follow specific figures for the opposite reason, for example to stand out and look different as discussed previously. I believe that people like to fit in with the norms to a certain extent and can do this by following stars and public figures. Furthermore i also believe that the development of social media and technology has possibly led to an increase in the number of people who would fit into the 'townie' tribe. This is due to how easily we can access and see what is going on in the media and can see a clearer trend in styles etc.

5 x 5

5x5- Media

5 Favourite albums

1.        (What’s the story) morning glory?- key tracks include wonder wall, don’t look back in anger and champagne supernova.

2.       Favourite worst nightmare- key tracks include Brainstorm and fluorescent adolescent.

3.       Sunny side up-Key tracks include coming up easy, candy and pencil full of lead.

4.       Inside in/inside out- key tracks include naïve and she moves in her own way.

5.       Songs in A minor- key tracks include fallin’.

I enjoy a wide variety of music; however these are some of my favourite albums. My favourite two genres of music are indie rock and R&B. I believe that some of the songs on these albums, such as oasis’ wonder wall are songs that will never grow old!

5 favourite films

1.       The holiday

2.       Taken

3.       Leap year- I particularly like this film because of the different scenery and music (set in Ireland), which makes it quite individual.

4.       Bridesmaids- The comedy in this film is of a good quality and is enjoyable.

5.       Gone

I enjoy a large range of films but my two favourite types of films are rom-com/ chick flick and action thrillers. They are very contrasting genres but I enjoy the variety of watching such differently themed films.

Favourite Magazines

1.       Sun on Sunday, Fabulous

2.       OK! Magazine.

3.       Cosmopolitan

4.       Heat magazine

5.       Hello magazine

I enjoy reading all of these magazines although I believe that some of the stories are exaggerations of the truth, if not on occasions made up. They mainly feature music stars, TV reality stars and actors/actresses and keep us updated on the gossip surrounding the lives of these people. I also enjoy reading them for the pictures and to see the latest fashion trends and styles that these magazines portray and also often advertise.

5 Favourite music artists

1.       Alicia Keys

2.       Paloma Faith

3.       Paolo Nutini

4.       Oasis

5.       Arctic Monkeys

I like a mixture between R&B artists, and rock and indie and alternative bands and soloists. I particularly like some of Alicia keys older songs and Oasis’ first singles which contrast quite widely however are still some of my favourites.

 

5 Favourite TV Programmes

1.       90210- This programme gives an insight into the lives of some of the wealthy young people of Beverly Hills. I also enjoy it because it is particularly aimed at a young audience, mainly elder teens.

2.       Hollyoaks

3.       Scott and Bailey

4.       Sherlock

5.       EastEnders

I enjoy all of these programmes, ranging from soaps to TV dramas. They vary in genre but I enjoy keeping up with soaps which have an ongoing storyline and also dramas with a more specific them and plot.