Analysing

Beck- Room 302

The show starts off with non-diegetic, mysterious music playing with instruments such as drums to create a sense of tension in the viewers watching. The first thing you see as the show begins is an establishing shot as it shows the audience the location- this being some buildings at night before then showing two people trying to steal a car. The lighting in these shots is low key as it is filmed at night so the light is minimal- only being shown by natural light such as the moon and stars. The two thieves are shown to be wearing dark clothes in order to seem more mysterious and unknown. After this, the camera angle then changes to show a man walking out of his house- later known to be the owner of the car, Peter Ahre. The camera angle is low to show the difference of status of those in this situation- from the two thieves being lower down in society to Ahre who is shown to be wearing business clothes showing his importance in society in comparison to the people stealing his car who is shown of less importance due to how the camera is positioned. Due to the show being from another country, subtitles have been added into the show for viewers to understand what is being said. Once all of these characters have been introduced, the two thieves then notice Peter as he speaks and a close up is used to show the mans reaction as he is grabbed by these people and is patted down to show any of the valuables he has on him such as his watch that is shown in an extreme close up in order to show the audience what is being taken. A range of diegetic sounds can be heard throughout this such as the characters voices, the mans painful scream as he is hurt by one of the thieves, the car unlocking as well as Ahre dialling the phone and the person on the other end speaking- these are all diegetic as they are all seen on the screen and is intended to be heard in the actual scene. Some of the non-diegetic sounds include the music that is played in the background to increase tension or curiosity in the audience from the beginning of the show where the two thieves are shown as well as the music change as Peter is asked where the incident happened from the person on the phone. This change in sound is softer as it is showing some important information in the storyline- making the audience notice what Peter is saying at that point of the show. Each shot that is shown throughout this point is edited so that the audience does not realise that the shots have been edited- this continuous editing makes the various shots look smoother as they are edited.

The next shot that is shown is of a woman exiting an elevator while pushing a tall metal trolley down the corridor. The diegetic sounds that can be heard here are of the elevator doors opening and the woman humming as she walks away from the camera that is positioned close to the floor in order to see her walking away from the camera. The lighting in this shot is realistic and soft as you cannot tell that there has been any unnatural lighting used, only the light from the window shown to the left of the screen can be seen as the source of light, creating a soft shadow of the woman on the opposite wall. A change of shots the shows a close up at a side angle of a man rubbing his eyes- causing the audience to believe that he is tired. The lighting here is realistic, yet slightly dark due to the closeness of the camera- this shows a darker shot even though when the shot then focuses on a woman walking in, the lighting is realistic due to it being neither too light or dark, but how you assume the lighting of a room to be. The woman who walks in at this shot is dressed very professionally with a blazer and trousers, showing the type of establishment she works in- a name tag is also shown on her blazer that allows the viewer to grasp an idea of what type of place she works in- this being a hotel. The woman that was previously shown walking down the hall is now shown through a mid shot side angle of the woman stopping her trolley outside a room- here, you see that she is a cleaner due to the cleaning supplies shown on the top of her trolley. In order to create tension in the audience, an extreme close up is used to show the cleaner knocking on the hotel room’s door before using her card and entering. A mid shot is then used to show her walking in from the room’s interior before jumping to a point of view shot to show the audience what the cleaner would see in the room- creating the sense that they themselves are in the room. The room has been shown with clothing around the floor, indicating that the occupiers have had sex. With the point of view shot, you also see the woman looking to the bed where there is a woman in bed faced down- at this point both the audience and cleaner assume that she is simply asleep until the camera follows her lifting the quilt to see that the woman is dead. A reaction shot is used here before changing to a close up of the dead girls face. Sounds such as the trolley, cleaners voice, knocking on the door and it unlocking is all diegetic as you can see them going on in the shots- however the music which starts to play at the end of the shots is non diegetic as it has been included in order to increase tension in the audience.

Representations

Divergent- Film

Divergent is a wide selling book turned film, it represents the middle class through the types of people based in the film, from the main character’s (Tris) family working high up in their society and then Tris and her brother going on the work in the society separately. The film represents young adults aged between 16 and 21 as they complete education and start to find their place in society and the world. Tris, the main character is primarily represented as being strong and independent- not needing help from other as she finds her place- however, she is shown to be accepting help from those around her, representing people her age needing help from others as well as themselves. This representation also defies the typical stereotypes as the main character is a woman who is strong and uses guns, as well as taking part in combat- something that is not typical of women in movies. However, the stereotype is also reinforced as it is shown that she has a love interest with a strong, dominant figure in the movie. The representation that she is strong is reinforced through the clothing, location and positioning of characters in this image. Both of the characters in this image are wearing combat styled clothing, a common representation of those joining in with combat. You can see many buildings in the background of this image, showing that they are high up on another possible building that shows the skyline from the height they are seen at- this shows their fearfulness of heights, reinforcing their strong characteristics. Finally, Tris can be seen in a powerful posture, whereas Four is also seen in a powerful pose, but us kneeling down instead- this shows the representations being created as powerful and strong.

Supergirl- TV Series

The Supergirl series poster represents Kara Danvers (Melissa Benoist), also known as Supergirl as a strong woman. Kara is 24 years old, representing what women of that age would usually do through their work and social lives. Kara is a personal assistant to the founder and CEO of a large media conglomerate, showing her high job type- her job shows the class that she is represented in also, this being the middle class as she has got a well-paying job high up in a large firm. This representation defies the stereotypes of the modern society as it shows Supergirl as a strong woman and hero, therefore contradicting the overall stereotype in society that women are seen as the “damsel in distress” that needs saving by a man, instead, she is shown as a smart and tough woman who ends up saving others. The dominant representation is shown by the clothing she is seen to be wearing in the image- commonly known as her superhero outfit. This outfit goes towards the representation as although it is feminine, it also includes the same colours worn by superman- her cousin that signifies her strength as well her family legacy. The pose that she is seen in here is the same as Superman’s, displaying a very positive and leading role, backing up this representation of leadership and strength. The location in this shows the tops of various buildings, reinforcing the idea that she is flying as Supergirl. These representations all enforce the idea that she is a strong woman and superhero.

OK! - Magazine

This magazine represents Kate Middleton as she has become a mother and wife in the royal family. Originally, Kate was middle class however as she has married into the British royal family, she is now upper class. As a fairly young woman, Kate is shown to be doing well for a woman her age with a nice house and family- both of which many women her age would be looking for as they turn 35. As this magazine is primarily aimed at women, Kate is represented as a strong woman who is doing well in her life. This representation is stereotypical of the royal family as it shows how much wealth they have and how much they can afford in luxuries such as a nice home- shown in this article. This representation is being created through both the clothing, text and props. The clothes that she is wearing and how she looks in the cover all help to create this representation of her being a mother, wife and part of the royal family.

Audiences

The Fox and The Hound- Film

The Disney film “The Fox and the Hound” is aimed at young children aged between 3 to 6 years of age, the film is also aimed at both girls and boys. Due to this being a children’s film, the type of audience that this film is targeted does not fit into the socio-economic model. Children would take the preferred reading from this film as they are the intended audience and would understand the film as it has been created to be understood. This text attracts the audience’s attention as it includes aspects that would draw their attentions to the film or film cover such as the animated look of the film and the animals shown on the cover as children often see animals as fun. It is a very appealing film for children of a young age as it focusses on both entertainment and narrative aspects, from creating an enjoyable story for the children to enjoy as well as various important things such as friendship and companionship. The Uses and Gratification for this audience is entertainment as they would watch it for their own enjoyment.

NCIS: Los Angeles- TV Series

The detective TV series “NCIS: Los Angeles” is aimed at adults aged between 18-34, the series is aimed at both genders as there are a mixture of both male and female character in the show for audiences to relate to, such as males relating to Sam and G, while females relating to Kensi and Nell. This text attracts the audience as the guns create an interest in the viewers as to what the show is about. The target audience for this show would fit in the C, D and E categories of the socio-economic model as they are the people who would usually watch these sort of shows that are on channels such as sky, as well as students and the unemployed watching the repeats throughout the day. People would watch this show for both entertainment and social integration if they have friends who also watch the same programme. A criminal or someone who does not obey the law is someone who would take an oppositional reading of this as they would not agree with the good guys but instead want the bad guys to win.

Cosmopolitan- Magazine

The last text is the Cosmopolitan magazine, aimed at women aged between 18 and 34. Those fitting into the B and C category would buy this as they would both have the money and would be interested in the product. Women would read this magazine for entertainment, information personal intelligence and social integration with other women who may or may not read the same magazine, as well as relating to some of the articles it includes. Women would have a preferred reading to this magazine as it is aimed towards them so they would understand what is being said in it, however men would have a negotiated or oppositional reading toward the magazine as they may understand some but not all of the articles included- or just none at all. The text attracts women as it includes texts that would both interest and inform women of this age group, from articles about sex to clothing tips. At this age range, women would still be finding the right man, settling down and finding their own styles, so many of the readers would be attracted to this sort of magazine. The celebrity on the cover (Kaley CuoCo) is shown as being happy and beautiful, as many of the readers would also want- making them want to see how she “lives the dream” as it says on the front cover.