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Media Analysis:
Film
Higher and Intermediate 2
5695
August 1999
HIGHER STILL
Media Studies
Media Analysis:
Film
Higher and Intermediate 2
Support Materials
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Introduction
This document outlines a possible approach to the use of film as part of the analysis
unit at Intermediate 2/Higher. The Outcomes have been organised sequentially for
ease of reference and do not indicate the preferred route for their delivery. It is
possible to use this sequence to inform your method but your approach will be
dependent on a variety of factors. These will include the breadth of your own
experience, those of your students and the institutional circumstances within which
you are operating. The Outcomes are interrelated and interdependent and it is
preferable that teaching reflects this. However, should this not be possible, a
sequential approach must ultimately demonstrate the need for integration. It is also
worth noting the considerable similarities between the former SCOTVEC National
Certificate module in Film and the specifications for Higher Still Media Studies at
Intermediate 2 and Higher.
General Resources
Film Posters
It is not advisable to work with the moving image without having first applied the
skills of deconstruction to the still image. Film posters are an excellent resource. A
visit to your local video shop or cinema will result in an instant supply. It is also
useful to ask your students to find a stock of film posters - where they find them; the
type of poster they are given; the reasons they may be given some but might have to
purchase others; and why certain posters are unavailable should begin a fruitful
discussion. Interviewing the manager of a local video hire shop or the marketing
manager in the local cinema about the materials they are sent for display is also a
useful exercise. A great deal of information can be picked up about commercial
determinants in this way. Display as wide a range of posters as you can - it might be
helpful to contact distributors in some cases because sometimes they are willing to
provide examples of poster campaigns. They may even be persuaded to surrender
posters advertising one particular film but for different audiences - European and
American, for example. Distributors may also be prepared to offer press packs - an
excellent resource containing a synopsis, interviews with personnel, background
production information, some preview criticisms, film stills and so on. These are not
easy to obtain so don't expect distributors to co-operate freely! Unsuccessful
negotiations should not dissuade you from approaching other sources - developing
relationships with media journalists and your local cinema may also give you access
to these useful resources. The Internet is another obvious site.
Once a selection of posters has been secured, students can be introduced to still image
analysis. Deconstruction is a good tool for analysis and ensures that students consider
the image using a microscopic framework. Be wary, however! If used in a sterile
context, deconstruction can be the death of media studies! Students' immediate and
personal reactions to an image is usually the most productive and appropriate first
point of reference.
Something else which is worth mentioning at this point is the importance of actually
going to the cinema in the course of this unit of work. Depending on your
geographical location, visits to the local cinema, a multiplex and a regional film
theatre are all valuable activities. Some cinema managers will organise a tour if asked
in advance; they may even be persuaded to give a talk about what their job entails - a
priceless activity if you can access it. If you can organise these activities to take place
in a variety of venues, the amount of information students can gather about audience,
institution, technology and categories is enormous. Amongst questions about
programming and so on, ask about the POS (Point of Sale) materials which cinemas
receive. For example -
2) During the last six months, what single POS material attracted the most
attention?
5) How many weeks before the release of a film do you receive materials?
6) How many weeks before the release of a film do you display materials?
8) What do you do with the materials once they've been taken down?
It is important to negotiate with your students about the first film you choose to
analyse. To begin with a title which is familiar to them, one with which they would
engage, is in keeping with the fundamental principles of media education. The fact
that they are being involved in the negotiations - and the key word here is
negotiations! - underlines the value of their role as consumers, receivers of media
messages and active participants in the communication process.
[A Communication Model in Appendix 1 illustrates this interactive process].
Watching a film in its entirety would be a good starting point. Negotiate with the
group and seek agreement to drop all examples where there might be a problem with
certification, copyright and so on. Ideally the example selected will be relevant to
most. The process of arriving at this point is also useful - the skills of negotiation are
valuable in general terms, but particularly so when co-operative working is required.
Any practical/production work will demand such skills. Having watched the film the
group could be divided and asked to talk about it - whether they enjoyed it, why they
enjoyed it, what was of particular interest and so on. During a report back session,
their responses should enable you to find a 'way in' that does not follow a sequential
approach to the course requirements but instead allows for the integration of key
aspects and an integration of practical and analytical features or aspects.
Context
The background to this unit on film is important in so far as it details a more
integrated and student-centred approach than the structure of these materials will
suggest. The students were beginning their fifth year and this particular group had
achieved Standard Grade English at level 3 and above. They had had considerable
experience of media education throughout their school career but this had been
constrained by the needs of the English curriculum. In S1 they worked through a
short course on print advertising; in S2 they progressed to a short course on television
advertising, thereby covering print/non-print and mastering basic technical/cultural
codes (Constructions in 5-14) at the same time as dealing with representation,
narrative, institutions, audience and categories (Genre in 5-14). At Standard Grade,
these short courses were developed into more medium specific units.
One of the adverts collected was a Tennents lager advert. Its intertextual reference is,
of course, "Whisky Galore". The advertising agency had referred to it as “Tennents
Galore”. A film and a director of whom they had never heard. They watched and they
seemed to enjoy it. They did some integrated analysis work on language,
representation and audience. A recording of "Local Hero" immediately followed it on
the same tape because "Whisky Galore" had been part of a Sunday afternoon double
bill on BBC2. The students had studied "Gregory's Girl" in S3 but none of them was
familiar with "Local Hero". They watched it initially as a comparative exercise -
looking at language, representation and audience. The students themselves generated
a great deal of heated discussion around the film and used it, ultimately, as an
assessment item.
Performance criteria
a) Description of medium, purpose, form, genre and tone is accurate and justified
by reference to the text
b) Categorisation is related appropriately to institutional and audience contexts
Outcome 1 (Higher)
Analyse media texts in terms of categories
Performance criteria
a) Selection of categories is appropriate to the media text
b) Application of selected categories is clear, valid and justified by relevant
textual and contextual references
Film clips are an essential resource when teaching film. Building a collection of films
on tape is an ideal objective but it's one that takes time, particularly when a wide
range of films is required.
In order to deal with this Outcome, a group problem solving approach might be an
interesting way forward. Depending on the size of the whole group - access to a few
video players and monitors is desirable. Should your institution be flexible enough,
these might be available in different locations - one in a classroom; one in a resources
centre; one in a flexible learning unit, for example. It is possible to undertake this
activity with a few players and monitors all in the one room. Volume becomes an
issue, however, in this circumstance.
When reporting back - after each group has seen all the clips - ask that they consider
why they categorised the clips as they did - some thought should be given to who
made the film and for whom. Fruitful questions to begin with in such an exercise
could be -
An alternative approach is to put students into groups and give them practical tasks.
Identify an audience and give them a purpose. They are to use film to educate an
audience of 5 year olds about the alphabet or to use film to inform a general audience
about a forthcoming horror film based on a Stephen King story, for example. Each
group could be given the same or different tasks. They should work out a plan of how
they would go about this. You might want to introduce the idea of storyboarding here
- not to be too concerned at this stage about technical codes. Sketches of what we
might see and a rough idea of what we might hear will suffice. They must be clear
about the purpose, form, genre and tone they intend to adopt giving reasons for their
decisions. This could be retained for further work later - to consolidate learning on
technical/cultural codes, for example. It might even be the beginnings of the work
required in the production unit.
Performance criteria
a) Explanation of technical codes is accurate in terms of denotation and
connotation
b) Explanation of cultural codes is accurate in terms of denotation and
connotation
c) Explanation is accurate in terms of the ways in which meaning is anchored
Outcome 2 (Higher)
Analyse media texts in terms of language
Performance criteria
a) Analysis is accurate in terms of description and interpretation of technical and
cultural codes
b) Analysis is accurate in terms of description and interpretation of anchorage
Practical work will alleviate what could be a dry and potentially difficult outcome.
Essentially, this outcome should enable students to understand the principles of film
style - that shot + editing = style. It is likely that, at this level, the style of films you
will engage with will be predominantly mainstream. Indeed, one of the methods for
differentiating between Intermediate 2 and Higher would involve a more eclectic
range of product for analysis at Higher. Students would be introduced to styles other
than mainstream. Mainstream films are usually created for entertainment and profit
and associated with "Hollywood" regardless of where the film is made. In
mainstream film we participate in the "suspension of disbelief" in order to experience
the pleasures of watching film. It presents us with an illusory reality. At this level,
then, we are concentrating on how that illusion is achieved. An understanding of
technical and cultural codes can be gained by an awareness of how we look at the
frame (camerawork); what we see in the frame (mise-en-scene) and how the
arrangement of frames forms a continuum (editing).
A frame by frame analysis of the opening sequence of most films will reveal valuable
information about the style of product, its purpose(s), its anticipated audience, its
institutions and so on. A useful exercise is to take those opening sequences used in
Outcome 1 and perform a close analysis of them using shot sheets. Students must be
exact in their identification of camera technique, mise-en-scene and editing style.
They will find that this microscopic analysis will not only deliver a body of
knowledge but will also provide much more information with which to underpin
Outcome 1 in addition to providing an introduction to Outcome 2 – the interrelated
nature of these outcomes becoming thus apparent. The performance of this exercise
is, in fact, crucial to an in-depth appreciation of all the key aspects.
Students could return to the practical exercise they completed in Outcome 1 and build
further detail to storyboards. They should, this time, concentrate on their use of
technical and cultural codes.
Camerawork
(Technical Codes)
* Generally -
Angle: High
Straight On
Low
Canted
Distance:
frames body from waist up, gesture and expression more visible
Close up (CU)
Focus: Sharp
Classic
Soft
Movement:
Tracking/dolly
Pan/tilt
Steadicam
Hand-held
Cinema-verite effect
Zoom
* framing: the way in which subjects and objects are framed within
a shot produces specific meanings - the rule of thirds.
Frame size and shape can guide the spectator's
attention. Size, volume and position in the frame says
as much as dialogue. Rectangular frame is standard but
there are other frame shapes, multiple and split screen.
The frame selects an image for us to see (on-screen) but
we sense that a world exists beyond (off-screen).
key light
fill light
back light
* Joins - Cut
Fade out
Fade in
Dissolve
Wipe
* the filmmaker has the choice of 4 basic areas of control when linking shots -
1) graphic
2) rhythmic
3) spatial
4) temporal
* continuity editing
establishing shot
shot-reverse-shot
eye-line match
match on action
* rhythmic relations -
* graphic relations -
Have a look at the opening Houston sequence of "Local Hero" and compare it with
the sequence of shots which first establishes "Ferness".
Students should note that the opening titles establish institutional details - "An
Enigma Production for Goldcrest". Key production personnel appear at this point and
these should be noted in the order in which they appear. Discussions later can tease
out the reasons for the order, the size of the lettering, the length of time for which it
appears on the screen, what else occupies the frame and so on. A rigorous analysis at
this point will be helpful to students at other points in the unit.
The difference between the levels here is that a more mechanistic approach might be
expected from an Int 2 student - to be able to identify and describe what they see in
the frame and interpret its meaning A Higher analysis should be more detailed than
an interpretation and should include a wider consideration of myth and ideology.
All students should be able to identify the camera techniques used to track the white
Porsche. They should be able to understand the effects of these techniques. They
should be able to say something about the light and the environment. They should
pay attention to what they can hear and be aware that we are listening to a radio - they
might speculate where the sound is coming from - and this anchors the viewer in
North America. They should also take note of the buildings, the other cars and the
road system which are further anchoring devices. Students should also be encouraged
to use a more general knowledge and try to identify the exact location; the type of
music, the DJ's accent can be used as clues. The DJ later reveals that we are in
Houston. The cut to a medium shot inside the Porsche reveals further information
about the driver - a white male, wearing spectacles and a dark suit - who is listening to
the car radio. Int 2 students should be able to interpret the car as a status symbol.
They should also be able to interpret the appearance and demeanour of the driver in
terms of where he is going and the type of work he might be involved in. A Higher
level student should be able to say something about the type of society of which he is
a part. Some reference to the trappings of capitalism would be appropriate. Such
students might also be able to speculate that this is a conformist, a conventional
character who lacks individuality. He may be wealthy in a materialistic sense but he
has little imagination or creativity. Astute students will also have noted the reference
to pollution and be able to develop their ideological analysis further. Dialogic
analysis during the scene in the boardroom will also reveal ideological inferences.
Such a microscopic analysis is very demanding and one of the most successful ways
to complete it is to think of it as a jigsaw. To map your planned sequence, note only
one type of information at a time on a blank storyboard. Groups can be organised to
perform different tasks and share the information through a report back activity.
Performance criteria
a) Explanation is accurate in terms of narrative structure
b) Explanation is accurate in terms of narrative conventions
Outcome 3 (Higher)
Analyse media texts in terms of narrative
Performance criteria
a) Analysis is accurate in terms of narrative structure
b) Analysis is accurate in terms of narrative codes
When we refer to the narrative of a film we are concerned with the way in which the
filmmaker has organised the material so that the audience will take meaning from it.
Narrative does not have to be fictional. Students at both levels should be able to
determine 2 levels of meaning in a film; its referential meaning (the story) and its
explicit meaning (the 'moral' of the story). Students at Higher level should be able to
identify an implicit meaning (the underlying meaning) where such exists.
* style: the techniques used to construct the plot - shot and editing
The identification of who, what, where, why and when should be relatively
straightforward in classical narrative mode. Students might also be asked to recount
the story of a film they know well to others in the group. Are there differences
between the way they have told the story and the way it is told in the film? Can they
give reasons for these differences? Students at both levels will understand the
difference between story and plot. A film's style is also important when determining
its narrative mode. The use of trailers is a useful device in this activity.
Films may share a narrative pattern, but each film will demonstrate difference
according to its genre, the way it is made (its style) and the message the filmmaker
wants to communicate (its motivation).
Editing in classic narrative film tends to create a coherent and credible fictional world
and establishes relationships between narrative space and time - maintaining the
continuity of space and time in the finished film. If audiences did not understand the
conventions of continuity editing, fiction films would be incomprehensible.
Classical Narration
* realistic motivation
* the beginning of the film will put into place an event that disrupts an
apparently harmonious order which in turn sets in motion a chain of
events that are causally linked
* the audience asks what will happen next and how will it end? Cause
and effect serves to move the narrative along. At the end the
disorder is resolved and order once again in place
* continuity editing
* reality is ordered and made to appear natural - "Life's just like that!"
The narrative is goal-oriented and so are the characters.
* the audience asks why the story is being told and what does it mean -
what is the meaning behind the film?
* these films tend to be character rather than plot-led but there are no
heroes. An absence of heroes is an important feature of art-cinema
Segmentation is the process by which a story can be broken down into its constituent
parts. This division should reveal the distinct phases of action occurring within a
relatively unified time and space. Students could be asked to make notes on the
narrative events in a film. The production of a segmentation is a first step in
considering questions of narrative structure -
Segmentation can also deliver the basis for work on other aspects of film such as
genre, ideology and the audience.
Students could be asked to plot the narrative of a favourite film - one they know well -
using the process of segmentation and see how well it conforms to classical
characteristics.
The Russian writer, Vladimir Propp, claimed to have identified types of character who
always appeared in Russian folk-tales and also a set of actions and events. His basic
characters were -
Intermediary/Messenger
Helpers Henchmen
Heroine Temptress
Society
It is instructive to analyse "Local Hero" using this model! How do we map out the
functions of the characters? Accounting for the different perspectives students will
bring to the exercise is also an important point of discussion.
Students at Higher level should understand and be able to identify the following
narrative codes -
• proairetic (action code) - organises the sequences of events within the narrative
• hermeneutic (enigmatic code) - constantly poses and reposes the central enigma
- it arouses and sustains the viewer's interest until the story is resolved. It works
from the disturbance of the equilibrium to the restoration of that equilibrium
• cultural - "what everybody knows". This involves the reader’s existing cultural
knowledge and explains how we are able to make sense of any given narrative.
The cultural code suggests how popular narratives not only draw on common
knowledge and ideological positionings but actively reproduce them
It is not essential they commit the terms to memory but they should be aware of the
part they play in the structure of narrative.
Students at this level must also be able to understand the ways in which the narrative
structure and style relate to the reinforcement of myths and ideologies contained
within the film.
Performance criteria
a) Explanation is valid in terms of selection and portrayal
b) Representations are related appropriately to the perceived cultural
assumptions of a target audience
Outcome 4 (Higher)
Analyse media texts in terms of representation
Performance criteria
a) Analysis is valid in terms of selection and portrayal
b) Analysis of representation is valid in terms of ideological discourses
The cultural oppositions in "Local Hero" are established mainly through the
representations of "Ferness" and Houston and those of their inhabitants. It is
important that students at both levels understand how these representations are
constructed as well as the implications they hold.
One very straightforward way of establishing the idea of representation and ideology
is to list as many "Scottish" films as come to mind. Students will probably have a
contemporary knowledge of such. Showing brief extracts from a selection ranging
across time would be a good starting point - particularly if "Brigadoon" and the Bill
Douglas trilogy is available to you! This particular teaching group had knowledge of
the Tennents advertisement, "Tennents Galore" and "Local Hero" so they were well
on the way to a definition of stereotype! Comparing characters - their appearance,
dress, behaviour, roles, speech and so on; locations and 'moral' to the stories being
told gave the students valuable ideological insights. They tracked characters across
all three products and were surprised by their results.
They should also have noted that the company logo is of geometric design, has hard
edges with metallic blue and silver hues. Its cold, harsh and determined character
thus connoted. The title of the promotional film they are watching - the opportunity
to discuss this different type of product is useful - signifies certain success "A Knox
Industries Film for The World". Dialogue will further underline the character of the
company, revealing it to be arrogant "Look after Africa while I'm gone" and racist
"...you'll be dealing with your own people...you won't be dealing with a bunch of
Indians".
Students should not ignore the establishment of a "special" relationship with Scotland.
In very general terms, the representations of Houston and "Ferness" - which will, in
turn, be read as North America and Scotland - have been established in order to create
a series of binary oppositions and students should be able to draw up a fairly extensive
list of those oppositions. In this way it will be possible to move towards an
understanding of ideology. The attempt to identify binary opposites is a useful
exercise with any film.
Students could also look at the representation of women and youth - they will find
that these are not as progressive as a cosmopolitan "Ferness" might lead us to expect!
This type of exercise is also very useful when interrelated with work on audience and
institution.
Int 2 students are asked to make this relationship with a target audience explicit in
PC b.
Higher students must demonstrate that they recognise ideological discourses at work.
When thinking about the ideology of a film, we are concerned with the values and
beliefs we can identify within its structure. Ideologies are expressed through
discourses. At its simplest, discourse means verbal expression. The term has evolved
and encompasses the social process of creating meaning as well as the end product of
that process. Discourse analysis, therefore, refers not only to the study of language
and linguistic patterns, but also to images, sounds and design used on the presentation
of media texts. A search is made for coherent patterns of meaning - for the 'typical'
representations and narratives found in texts.
Students should list the values and beliefs they can identify in a film. They should
then set about working out the ways in which these values/beliefs are communicated
to them using the work they will have done on representation so far.
Students could be asked to select a film of their own choice and analyse how beliefs
and values are communicated through representation and narrative. A presentation to
the group using their own clips would consolidate their learning. Students could use
this opportunity to learn how to edit clips together using any technology which is
available to them - desk editor, computer programme, 2 VCRs and so on. They will
also re-visit the importance of context.
At this level, students will be concentrating on how dominant systems of values and
beliefs are communicated. It is important that they realise there are also oppositional
ideologies in society and to think about how these are expressed.
Performance criteria
a) Definition and description of a target audience is justified by reference to the text
b) Different audience reactions are inferred and explained
Outcome 5 (Higher)
Analyse media texts in terms of audience
Performance criteria
a) Analysis is valid in terms of target audience, mode of address and preferred
reading
b) Different audience reactions are inferred and explained in terms of differential
decoding
• Ask students to interview older friends or household members in order to find out
about their cinema habits in the past.
• Which cinemas did they go to?
• Who did they go with?
• How often did they visit the cinema and in what context?
• A further research activity which will establish film-watching in a historical/social
context involves finding out where cinemas used to be and note how the buildings
are used now.
Students could undertake a survey of how films are watched in their own households.
• How do individuals choose which films they will watch?
• Account should be taken of the criteria used when selecting films which are
delivered through different means - terrestrial television channels, satellite/cable
channels, video, cinema.
• Which films do people watch together, which films do people watch alone?
• What are the differences between individuals' and collective tastes and
preferences.
• Can they be accounted for?
Contact with video shop managers will reveal which films are hired out most and
whether any patterns can be established. How do they target their audiences?
Returning to film posters, students might analyse how their construction will appeal to
audiences with particular interests.
Students could map the marketing of just one film in terms of its pre and post-release
publicity and how audience appeal is constructed. Work on teaser trailers and full
launch trailers can be very useful here.
2. The British Film Institute will also conduct research on a particular film on your
behalf - they will point you in the right direction with regard to reference material
as well.
4. The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) will also provide information
about its role with regard to audience.
Students will have to work harder describing a target audience for a relatively
unfamiliar film. They will have to consider textual and contextual elements in greater
depth. The certificate awarded any film for public exhibition is a good starting point.
"Local Hero" was given a PG rating when it was released for public exhibition in
1983. It was delivered on a relatively low budget - £3 million - and can be described
as a whimsical comedy. Directed by Bill Forsyth, shot mainly on the north-east and
north-west coasts of Scotland, produced by David Puttnam and starring Burt
Lancaster, its main subject is culture clashes and the oil business. It would seem an
unlikely project!
Performance criteria
a) Description of ownership and external controls is accurate
b) Effects of ownership and external controls are identified and explained
Outcome 6 (Higher)
Analyse media texts in terms of institutional contexts
Performance criteria
a) Description of internal and external controls is accurate
b) Effects of internal and external controls are described and explained
Students will be able to begin researching the institutional contexts of films by paying
attention to the text on posters, for example. Here they will find key personnel - or
what is perceived as 'key'. Students should select a number of posters or video jackets
and note down the type of information given in these sites.
They should also pay close attention to a variety of credit sequences, opening and
closing, and note down the information they find. Students should be encouraged to
make a note of any role description they do not understand – Key Grip, for example –
and use reference material to find a definition.
Film Posters
Picking up clues
5. What information does the result of your analysis of film form and film making
provide about the overall nature of the film? What can you predict about its
characters, the genre, its style, cultural background, narrative structure, etc?
6. Select one extract you would like to use for a report back on your findings.
What additional knowledge do you bring to your understanding of what you are
watching?
1. Which story events are directly presented to us in the plot and which must we infer?
2. What is the earliest story event of which we may learn? How does it relate through a
3. Has order, frequency or duration been manipulated in the plot to affect our
understanding of events?
4. Does the closing reflect a clear-cut pattern of development that relates it to the
beginning? Do all narrative lines achieve closure, or are some left open?
5. How does the narration present story information to us? Is it restricted to one or a few
characters’ knowledge, or does it range freely among the characters in different spaces?
mental states?
6. Does this film belong to a particular genre? If so, what conventions of that genre does
7. How closely does the film follow the conventions of the classical Hollywood cinema? If
it departs significantly from those conventions, what formal principle does it use
instead?
Position:
Angle:
Movement:
Duration of shot: