Clever Advertising

This is possibly the most original advert for anything I have ever seen. The game revolves around shaking the Wii remote, which affects areas on screen. The best thing about this advert is that with every shake, parts of Youtube rattle, break apart and eventually fall off the screen, ending with the video itself falling down. After seeing it, i was convinced to click on the link to the games website, and am definitely going to have to rent it at some point. The site shows that the video was the 8th most subscribed to this month, so the advert must have been a complete success. I can't say I expect to be able to be that original for my perfume advert, but the power of originality is still worth keeping in mind.

http://uk.youtube.com/experiencewii

2009

More recently, at 11am on Thursday the 15th of January, 350 dancers, disguised as regular people performed a synchronised dance to advertise T-Mobile's mobile phone network in the middle of Liverpool Street station. The 2 minute show was captured by hidden cameras while onlookers, first confused, began to join in. Just two days after the original performance, the show was broadcast during an interval of "Celebrity Big Brother". The performance is now on Youtube, which is where I first saw the video. Again, this is a prime example of originality and innovation playing a major part in advertising. A fresh idea really seperates one advert from the crowd, for the better or worse.

Layer Cake

I just want to say that not revealing the main character's name in the whole film was one of the best ideas in a film I have ever seen. The lack of explanations in that film was a lengthened version of what I would like to use in my intro. Brilliant.

The Media Guardian - And why it is WRONG about adverts.

I was reading through Mondays advertising themed 'Media Guardian', when I spotted an interesting article about video games. "My field of expertise" I thought, unaware of the horrors I was about to read. The article begins by explaining how the popular online game 'Second Life', has been swamped with ads, critising the game with every turn "...rather than reaching out to the residents of Second Life, who are anonymous, immeasurable, and increasingly only interested in buying digital genitalia and indulging in cyber-sex". "Fine" I thought to myself, not exactly a fan of the game anyway, living a second life seems like avoiding the first one. The article goes on to explain that the revenue for games is starting to rise above that of that even Hollywood blockbusters, and that companies are starting to look at video games for a new media to suck dry. "What!?" I thought to myself, "My games, filled with cheap advertising campaigns!?" Ok, so, maybe the topic is worth discussion, (even if just so I can prove myself right) it is true that games have been carefully invaded with ads for some years now; I haven't seen a football game without Nike or Coca Cola adverts on the edge of the pitch for some time. Some, more realistic games already have billboards and adverts as a part of them, and if they're there for a reason, then fine, real life ads, relevant to the game, are a welcome. The same goes for actually using the products as a part of the game. I am a big fan of snowboarding games, and while playing 'SSX On Tour', Its hard not to notice the sets of clothing and snowboards mainly come with a tag with the logo of a popular brand, "Burton", or "Foursquare". After some research, I found out that the items were in fact, real life items, digitalised for the game. This is a good idea, it saves the game designers a lot of time, meaning an earlier release, or more items get to be in the game, which is always welcome.What I can't stand however, is that EA's cash cow, the Sims 2, recently realised two expansion packs, 'IKEA Home Stuff', and 'The Sims 2 H&M® Fashion Stuff Pack'. There are currently 15 expansion packs for the Sims 2, ignoring the various spin-offs for console systems, which I'd rather not think about. Ever. So, a game with adverts in it, well, that can be ok, but an advert which I have to pay for? No thank you. "But Tom!” I hear you cry “surely the revenue created by the udder of 'IKEA Home Stuff', and even more popular 'The Sims 2 H&M® Fashion Stuff Pack', will give EA the chance to create unique and exiting games!". Wrong. Games have been just fine without advertising scams, and the only thing EA does with its money is buy out other companies and re-release the same Fifa games with a different title each year. The Guardian goes on to explain the newest ideas for distracting our gameplay with ads. "Now that consoles like the Xbox 360 are web-connected, it's easy for advertisers to place ads dynamically" Think about it. Every time you connect to the internet, your console stops whatever it is doing and greets you with a pop-up. "Downloading adverts". Or maybe when ever you turn on your game, adverts from all the brands used flash up. I can't think of anyone who wants that.To me, it seems like everyone knows about what adverts did to second life, but see no reason to stop swamping games with ads until the technique stops working. Maybe one day this will all be normal, and adverts in games will be just as inevitable as the ones in second life, or the real one.I leave you with a quote from Futurama.

"Didn't you have ads in the twentieth century?"

"Well, sure, but not in our dreams. Only on TV and radio...and in magazines...and movies, and at ballgames, and on buses, and milk cartons, and T-shirts, and bananas, and written in the sky. But not in dreams, no sirree.

http://blog.wired.com/photos/uncategorized/2008/06/04/legendad.jpg

Intro To Se7en

The one thing we do know though, is that this film is going to be very, very interesting.

Analysis Of 'Spunky, the video game influenced monkey'

The silent crime thriller spoof, entitled 'Spunky, the video game influenced monkey' is one of the last places I expected to find an influence, but while watching it, I realised that it could very useful for our thriller opening. It opens with a black and white image using a hand-held camera, possibly through the eyes of the killer, while atonal music plays in the background. The hand-held camera is a technique often used to see through the eyes of a person, and showing something through the eyes of a person without showing them can be very disconcerting. The first shot is of a staircase, and although it is not a spiralling one, the idea of the staircase and its twisting narrative still stands. It then shows an unsuspecting man watching TV, and the music gets softer, then flicking back into a louder discord when tension is built by repeating the same shot of the camera moving towards a black closed door (creating a mystery; what is behind the door?), then showing the man on the sofa again (and once again the music softens suddenly, as if to show a contrast between the two shots, and then again to the hand-held camera, each time the killer getting closer to the door, and with the last cut, the music rises one octave to suggest that something is going to happen. With the next shot, we see the darkly lit antagonist, the monkey, playing on a games console. The same technique with the door is used here, flicking from the monkey to the actual screen of the game until the monkey is seen for a fraction of a second walking past the camera, and is gone. Getting up without warning tells us that something is wrong, and the lack of speech makes the audience want to fill that gap by speaking ourselves, and trying to stop him, even though the silence tells us that nothing we can do will have any effect. We next see the black door open from the inside, and the monkey looks round. Next cut, and the monkey is walking in the direction of the camera, a sinister expression on his face, quickly getting closer until he gets out of focus. Another edit, and the monkey is side on from the close up camera , walking slowly, carefully, deliberately down the stairs like a man walking to his death, another warning that a death is going to take place. The camera switches to the man on the sofa to remind us of the victim and how blissfully unaware he is. We see the monkey walk past on the other side of some frosted glass, only his shadow visible, adding to the tension and adding a sense of mystery. The man looks around, and the camera cuts to his view, where the monkey was, who is now gone. This sequence is done very quickly, far faster and out of rhythm than the rest of the short so far,. The tension rises another notch. The man gets up, and walks towards the doorway. The camera switches to behind him, and the monkey flicks out of view of the corner of the camera, while the piano lets out a powerful discord. Long shadows are cast along the walls, and the monkey jumps onto his prey, the piano unleashing more and more discords, the camera flicking erratically to different angles to stop us seeing completely what is going on. The shadow of the man is projected onto the wall as if to show the darkness that has a grasp on him, like the shadows grasp on the wall. The music slows down as the man stops struggling and slowly falls to the ground. Harsh lighting is used to show a picture of the other side of the room, as if we were there, looking away in horror, but the powerful whites and blacks of the scene reminds us of what just took place, as the camera skips to the man, and now the louder music falls on him, the loud chimes of death. We then see a powerful shot of the man's legs and the monkey, looking down at his victim. To withhold some of the suspense, we do not see the corpse until the camera suddenly jumps to it, sprawled out in a corner with the bag on his head. The monkey then walks past the camera, getting very close to it to obscure our view, then throws himself down the stairs, so our exit shot are some short, powerful shots of his corpse from different angles. This end scene, as in many thriller films, is when we see everything about the characters, and everything is explained. This is used in detective thrillers (Sherlock Holmes), psychological thrillers(Revolver), basic thrillers (Phone Booth), nearly every thriller ever. This is the part of the film where the the bad guy is unveiled, the truth discovered. In this case, we finally get to see the entire monkey clearly, instead of rushed or blurred shots.

The most powerful and interesting idea used in this video is the two different scenes, the monkey and the victim. The shots used are more erratic, as is the music, while the monkey (or related scenes) is shown, whereas they suddenly calm down for the shots with the man in. Another technique is the camera constantly changing position while the hectic murder is taking place, which reminds me of the effect used in 'From Dusk Till Dawn' (see "First Ideas"), which I would like to use in my own intro.

Shot Types

The Bird's-Eye view shot can be used to make the viewer see everything from overhead, like the title suggests, a birds eye view. This can make the viewer seem superior, almost godlike, with everything you can see seeming insignificant. However, it can also be used to make a person stand out very clearly if used well, for example, if a crowd of people are moving to the left, whereas one person moves to the right. The problem with the shot is that it is incredibly hard to use, as it is hard to get high above a person without a crane, especially if away from an urban area.

The close up shot can be used to box in a character, making it easier to study their expressions. The shot is often used to show what the character is thinking, through the use of narration, diegetic speech, or expressions. The shot is also used to show who the main characters are in a film, the close up on their face showing importance. For these reasons, the close up is often used with another type of shot to insinuate something, for example, when it is used in "Reservoir Dogs" with a slow zoom to box in the character and make him seem boxed in, creating a claustrophobic effect.

The mid shot is roughly waist up, showing the entire person, although this can vary. Used to show the body language of a person, as the face is not clear enough from this distance.

The long shot is mainly used to show the whole person, or set of people. Seeing as it is not used to show expression in the same way others might, it is a very neutral shot, leaving the scene to be uninterrupted by camera angles. It is mainly used to show the people or things in the beginning of a scene, so the watcher knows who is involved, before moving in a bit closer to study the characters.

The extreme long shot is mainly used to either view an entire area, much like the Birds eye view, or to show a person from far away, often in order to make them a mystery, as it hides their key features from the viewer.

The high and low angle shots are primarily used to make a character seem more or less important. As the high angle shots make the body of the person in the frame seem smaller, and therefore insignificant, it is used to make either the character seem weaker and intimidated. It also works in a similar way to the high angle shot, making the viewer seem godlike. It is not just the viewer that is made to seem superior though, as it is often used in first person, looking down at a person. This is best shown in this clip from an episode in "Scrubs"

From this, you can clearly see how Carla has the upper hand on the delivery man due him looking far shorter than her.
This extract also shows how the opposite of the high angle shot can be used, the low angle shot. Being lower down is generally accepted to have a negative effect, something which works on a number of things, from social hierarchy to ratings. It works on the same principle as the high angle shot, but has the negative effect, making things seem intimidating. This is because it puts more emphasis on the lower things of the object or person, for example, making somebody's shoes seem bigger, whereas the face, the part to communicate to, is far smaller, and far further away.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomkail/sets/72157607470200618/
This link contains several images we took which show some of the different shot distances and techniques.

The Thriller Genre - Initial Ideas

The thriller genre. As old as cinema itself, thrilling moments take place in most films, from the latest bond film to the most terrifying of horrors. To thrill is to create suspense, anticipation, uncertainty and tension. To create this effect, there are hundreds of techniques to be used: red herrings, private eyes, enclosed spaces, long shadows, femme fatales; the list is endless. For my media film project, in groups of 3, we must create an intro to a thriller. To prepare for this, I have been watching different thrillers to get a better understanding of the genre.

1. 'Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels' has an interesting intro scene, explaining the rules of a variation of poker, using a dark room to cast long shadows on the faces of the actors, as well as an extreme close-up to prevent the audience getting a good look at them. Both techniques help to create an air of mystery and suspense, vital to a thriller film. I will bear in mind that an intro should give away as little vital information as possible.

2. 'Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels' also has one interesting camera shot which I noted more than any other; when climbing a staircase, the camera follows them from behind, closely following their feet. This would create a very powerful opening shot, instantly creating a mysterious atmosphere.

3. Spiral staircases are often used in the more generic thrillers (so much that a film was even made around the idea ‘The Spiral Staircase’), such as ‘Vertigo’. The staircase, or spiral shape (spirals are also used in the intro sequence), is a metaphor for the twisting nature of thriller films. This effect is used in a lot of films, such as Leon.

4. 'Reservoir Dogs' uses the camera to zoom in on a persons face to make them seem isolated, and therefore create an enclosed space for them, another common tension building technique. I would like to experiment with this, maybe using a black border to close in instead of the camera.5. The first 'Lord of the Rings' film uses a fascinating zoom technique where the length of a passage seems to move into the camera to create a claustrophobic effect. This is something I will need to look into further, as it could be useful later on. This effect is combined with the staircase in ‘Vertigo’ to make the stairs look far more menacing.

5. From what I observed from last year's students intros on Youtube is that to create a colour filter, they used coloured lights, which in my opinion created a tacky, unprofessional finish, as other colours were still too visible in the mise-en-scene, combining with the coloured lighting to make clashing colours, instead of the clean, polished look of a professional film. Although I would have to test this, I think it would be easier and cleaner to add a light filter after filming using film editing software.

Note the lack of any strong colours besides green in this image; if it had a person dressed in red, they would stick out, which is something i could use to make a person look important, a technique used in many films, especially in Sin City. (Left)

6. In the first half of 'From Dusk Till Dawn' When the lead character first sees a body on a bed, the camera zooms in on him, like in Reservoir Dogs, but instead of showing the audience what he sees, we only get flashes of the scene and atmospheric music, which is far more disturbing than seeing the body, as it creates an unnerving moment, and is far more scary for it. This same effect of showing a single frame very quickly, almost subliminally, is used in 'Se7en', when Mills realises what has happened and thinks of his wife in the last scene. The effect is used here to be the turning point, if he had not seen the image, he may have done something different, and the director wanted to make it clear what it was that was going through his head, seeing as the last part of the film was all very physiological.

7. Sound can create a very tense atmosphere if used correctly. The sound of feet and heavy breathing while not showing who is making the sounds can be very unnerving. This is an effect that I could use effectively, as it requires no special effects, although I might want to record the sound effects separately from the video.

8. One of the best amateur videos I found was this one, created by a comedian who goes by the name of 'Ashens'. Although the video itself is a spoof, the techniques and quality of picture were better than many of those presented as coursework. I will have to examine this video more closely later on.

9. Another popular technique used on the crime side of the thriller genre is a narrative, only heard by us and the narrator, often the protagonist. As a common idea in thrillers is to use a flawed protagonist (The violent types in Sin City, or the Lead in 'Vertigo' with his fear of heights). 

10. Thrillers normally have ambiguous messages, for example in films such as "The Dark Knight" or "Se7en". This is often caused by the flawed characters; in "Se7en", if Mills hadn't killed Doe, would true justice have been done? In becoming Wrath, he does exactly what the antagonist wants him to do, and so can true justice ever be done? In a lot of other thrillers, we are given a criminal as a protagonist, and often leaves us with no choice but to like that character, which bends the rules of society, where criminals are seen as "evil". This is shown in a very large number of thrillers, such as "Pulp Fiction" and "Reservoir Dogs"

11. Thrillers nearly always revolve around crime. "The Godfather", "Sin City" and "The 3rd Man" are good examples of this. This is possibly the most important point yet, and so I must ensure that our thriller is based around crime.

Insolence Advert Analysis

Insolence. Guerlain. In powerful upper case, the advert tells us what it is, while a confident, angelic woman gives us an integral, solid look, completely sure of herself despite, or maybe even because of her nudity, her shimmering hair flowing behind her, the image of true confidence. This audacious woman is the key to this advert, instantly pulling your gaze towards her, with no distractions. The slightly low angled shot tells you that this woman is better than you, because she is all the things you want to be. The answer? Insolence. Even the name of the fragrance, “Insolence” is meaningful, straight forward and clear, literally meaning boldness and contempt. This advert is very clear in its purpose and concept- to be powerful, like the independent woman of today should be. The dark background, pierced by a holy light, is symbolic of this, breaking a boundary, held back by nothing. The bottle, a slick masterpiece of curved glass, shines in the light, its refection captured in the bright white light coming up from the bottom-left hand corner. The chiaroscuro lighting is used powerfully in this advert, banishing the otherwise dark background in streaks of light. This is chosen very carefully, no natural light pierces the darkness so perfectly, which too, is a metaphor for what you become after using this perfume, breaking any boundary you want. The dark veils of shadow sliding out from the side of her neck and hair are also symbols, this time of hidden power, maybe you could unveil these with the piecing light of the perfume? Asking all these questions instantaneously, the advert holds power over the potential customer, making them feel that this is what they need, to be insolent.

Wii Advert Analysis

The Nintendo Wii, one of the most successful games consoles ever created, and partly responsible is its style. The sleek, white, fashionable games console was designed to seek out new audiences with games, especially through its low price and 'Touch! Generations' series of games, which have all been massively popular. The entire marketing campaign is based not at one specific audience, but nearly all people, from toddlers to people in their 80's, featuring different games to suit these targets. This advert, however, is aimed at a younger target audience, at a glance, likely women in their 20s to 30s. However, the advert is carefully designed as to not rule out any other potential viewers of the advert.

Set in a clear, modern, open plan room, the advert features two people both all too clearly using the Wii controller, with an expression of joy and humour on both faces, especially in the young woman in the foreground. She is central to the advert, and is instantly seen to be a pretty, sporty, independent woman, which is a very popular idea in today's society, appealing to men and woman alike, as a potential girlfriend or role model respectively. At the end of her reach is unmistakably a Wii remote, the sole link the ad has to the console at all, cleverly used to stop the viewer looking straight for a logo and moving on; most people already know what a Wii is. Instead, the adverts central image is the girls face, the first thing the audience will look at. Upon seeing this, they will proceed to moving along the length of her arm (cleverly lengthened with the camera positioning) and see the Wii remote subtly placed there. The Wii is no longer just a name, it is now an object which they could be using, enjoying just as much as her. For females, the advert is asking them is this is the sort of thing they would like, to be that perfect woman clearly enjoying herself on the fashionable console, with a man in the background to share the moment with. For males, the pretty young woman is going to have a similar effect, but will want to know more where to get the woman than the console, but upon seeing the two linked, they will ask themselves if a Wii is the right way to go. The man in the back of the image is the person they will relate to; laid back, having fun, and in good company. Notice that to emphasize this, his remote is pointed discretely at the girl, as if to ask “would you like her?”. To appeal to the stereotypical housewife, the Wii is seen more as a fashion accessory, and a way to bring enjoyment into the home, so well furnished and lit- just like in the magazines. To them, the Wii then becomes a mean of accomplishing this. Everything about the Wii responds to this advert, even the name, 'Wii', using the successful iPod tactic (which too, has a very wide target audience, meaning their advertising schemes often work in a very similar way), using personal pronouns to directly question the buyer, but changing it to create a more social image, just like the one in the advert.

Year 12 Media Studies Questionnaire

Year 12 Media Studies Questionnaire

My name is Tom Kail, age 16, blood type O, and I'm not very sure how to start this essay, so, straight in, my GCSE results are as follows:
A solid D in art, although I like to think the D stands for 'distinctive'. Given the chance I could rant for hours about the pretentiousness of art, but it seems a bit petty, (for now) I digress. More of the arts; music this time, a C, so I get the feeling I don't have a knack for the arts, which probably isn't the best impression I could give considering this class, but at least for music I can honestly say I enjoyed and tried hard, something that seemed to fall in proportion to my grades in art; but it is hard to get a good grade without much musical talent. Next, CBV, English A and Maths, B. No real surprises here, although maths was let down entirely by my coursework project, which is a bit annoying, especially as we were the last group to have to endure that particular tier of hell. Next, the A grades, ICT; Graphics; English Literature; Science and Additional Science. I was happy with these, as they are central to getting my choices for A level; English Combined, Media Studies, Physics and Computing. Lastly, one lonely A* in French, which is in no way linked to my French heritage. Overall, I got my choices and more A's than anything below it, so in my eyes, I earned my holiday.

Of course, the holiday itself was a bit boring, but I had plenty of time to do what I wanted, namely, computer games, reading and guitar (dry slope skiing was put on hold due to a broken wrist obtained roller blading). In particular, I rediscovered Calvin and Hobbes; in my eyes, some the most beautiful comics ever written, read the newest Stephanie Meyer book and discovered roller blading.
Now, to the useful bit: Media. Newspapers, I can't say I read as a habit, but when given the choice between an essay and the guardian, the game of politics becomes so much more interesting. I tend to read magazines aimed at the less trendy of teenagers: The Nintendo Official Magazine or Edge- although I haven't thought a magazine to be worth £5.99 in some time. As for why, they interest me, the battles between Nintendo and Sony are my equivalent to the feuds between Barack Obama and John McCain, albeit less serious. (I always though of Nintendo as left wing)
Radio...mine has been gathering dust since the disappointing conclusion to the hitch-hikers guide, but I listen to whatever is playing when I go downstairs in the morning for breakfast; normally the latest political debate, which always seems a bit too much like sensationalism to be taken seriously, which is why I try to avoid politics.

For me, music is a big part of my life; I tend to have something playing in the background while I do most things. (right now, Street Spirit by Radiohead) As for a specific favourite genre, I can't say I really have, although there are some things that I try to avoid: Rap, R n B, Soul, Jazz, Trance. I find I have at least on song from each of these genres, although only songs I really like, or have a meaning to me. Recently, I stumbled upon 'Dan Le Sac Vs Scroobius Pip', through their song 'Angles'. (http://www.myspace.com/lesacvspip ) As well as having the best accent ever, Scroobius Pip sings about lives that all come together, which reminds me of the film 'Crash'. After some research, I found that Scroobius Pip has some brilliant opinions, many of which he has put into the form of song, like his views on knife crime “I was listening on the news to all the knife crime stuff.
For any non-UKers, knife crime is rising at an alarming rate over here right now. Its a very serious issue. It occured to me that the government seem to be taking loads of measures to make sure kids dont have knives. Then it occured to me that, this isnt the issue. Kids have had knives for years (scouts and all that lark). The issue is a new generation of young men thinking they can act how they like. This is partly due to the fear mongering of the UK press. The whole nation seems petrified of, what are essentially, children. Im not saying we should put ourselves at risk but if, as communities we stood up to this behaviour instead of living in fear of it we might be able to sort things out abit.”
This, to me, is a perfect summary of what needs to be done about not just knife crime, but other problems, too. Its been some time since I've been able to walk past an person with a group of friends in the street and not have them walk out of out way, the fear keeps them in check- which is awful, how an entire generation of people are feared. The problem really does lie in the few psychos who do all these things.
Anyway, I think I've drifted way off topic, so, video games. I tend to spend a good hour playing games daily, and have come to think of some games as forms of art. My favourite games would be Chrono Trigger, Zelda: The Ocarina Of Time and Beyond Good And Evil, however, it is not those games that would have what is considered to be a negative influence, each having serious morals, and fighting to protect good in the battle against evil ect. The games I play tend not to play on stereotypical representations of gender, using a mixed group of central characters, with plenty of clothing each. Recently, however, I found an old game cheap in a second hand shop, and bought it mainly for the blurb, which I thought was hilarious, and perfect for an English essay one day. You may want to consider the stereotypical gamer first. Ok, here we are, the blurb to 'Beach Spikers: Virtua Beach Volleyball'
“It's hot! It's tense!
It's beach volleyball!
Only razor reactions, Olympic agility and solid commitment can take your team to the top. This fast, furious all girl action could leave you breathless, but you mustn't let your playmates down!”
Try to count the euphemisms, I keep loosing track of what number I was on. Still, I think its very clear that this was not aimed at women.
To me, the internet is an all purpose tool, and I know it has taught me a lot, but I do wonder if I would have learnt more if I had never discovered it. However, media-wise, most of what I know I have learnt off the internet, so in this case, it has paid off. For example, I like to find out more about a film I really enjoy, such as Donnie Darko, which has a plot that really interests me, so I read an interview with the director about the film. I also use the internet to find film reviews, if I'm interested in seeing a less mainstream film or one that seems interesting, such as 'The Rise to Power of Genghis Kahn'' (I missed it though...)

I must be the only 16 year old that doesn't watch TV. I used to, and if there's a show that I'm really into on I might try to remember to watch it, but I haven't spent much time watching TV for anything but films since The IT Crowd ended. Although I don't watch much TV, I do have a fair few box sets of programs such as Spaced, Heroes or Buffy. I own nearly everything Graham Linehan, who I greatly admire, so I guess I like comedies more than TV dramas, although I haven't watched many, so I can't really judge, or more correctly, shouldn't.

As with TV shows and music, I don't have any genres that I adore much more than others, my collection ranging from Finding Nemo to Lock, Stock. I have preferences more for directors, Rodriguez and Guy Richie being my favourites, both show a brilliant sense of humour in their films, unlike films directed by Judd Apatow. (I will never shell out another fiver to see one of his generic teen movies, unless it stars Will Ferrell. Well, I happen to like him.) As for favourite films, it might take a while to think it all through, so, off the top of my head: Desperado, Sin City, Anchorman, Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Oceans Eleven (and on that note, lets all pretend there was no Oceans 12), Phone Booth, Pans Labyrinth, Spirited Away (as well as nearly all Miyazaki's works) Donnie Darko, Love Actually and Clerks. I'm sure there's loads more I've missed, but that's fine for now.
As for actors, my list of favourites would be: Steve Buscemi, Jason Statham, Graham Norton, Mark Heap, Samuel L Jackson, Quentin Tarantino, Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman . As for bad actors, I detest: Adam Sandler, Steve Carell (Besides in Anchorman) and Seth Rogen.
I rarely go to the cinema nowadays, completely due to the price (£6.40 in the VUE last I checked), but if there is a film that really strikes me as interesting, I might grudgingly cough up the money to see it, a good new star wars film or a new Guy Richie film for example. (although only the latter is likely to happen any time soon) I tend to rent or borrow films, (we have a much abused Lovefilm account) occasionally buying them from cash converters. I guess the trend here would be price, I don't like to spend much on a film, for a maximum of 3 hours entertainment, the usual prices seem a bit high, when I could buy a new game, book, instrument or whatever else with a far better price to time ratio, or even better, keep my money and borrow off of a friend.
That's another thing. I really like watching films with my friends, and I really don't know why, it isn't like it makes a difference. If anything, it just delays me, I nearly missed batman because of it, and much as the films always disappoint, I really love batman. (new one was pretty damned good though). Basically, my view is that the luxuries of the cinema are only worth it if the film is good.
I think it's a real shame that no cinema shows older films, even if it were just to see lord of the rings again, but I'm sure there's a reason behind it. I tend to see bigger films in the VUE, mainly for practical reasons, but many of my favourite films have first appeared in Cinema City, Pan's Labyrinth and Spirited Away included, although I probably would barely know of its existence if my dad didn't used to have a part-time job there, which I think is a shame, although there are some pretty pathetic films there too.
In a film, the only thing I ask for is to be entertained, and in that I can see why all films, even 'Meet the Spartans' is entertaining to some (although few) people. The only thing I really hate is when a film sacrifices being entertaining for the moral or message, which is why I hate art and 'Death Proof'.

Basically, that just annoys me. There are far easier ways to get a point across. A film without a message for a backbone isn't nearly as bad as one with one with nothing but the moral in mind.
Looking at the list of offences in films, the first film that comes to mind is Borat. It pushed back the lines of controversy in the same fashion as Jimmy Carr. The comedy aspect made everything about it so much more acceptable (I really don't know if thats good or not), and its amazing how few complaints there were considering. Personally, I thought it was a brilliant film, it took a risk, and did it well. I personally wasn't at all offended, but I'm sure there are some who would be. To point at interesting media, I'd have put it at the top of the list.
I picked Media studies because it looked like it would be fun, which, in my opinion is what life is all about. I also knew all the teachers were good, which I think is incredibly important. I really look forward to learning about the different techniques of film making, and although I have no finalised plans for the future, and it is a bit out there, I always did want to direct or write the scripts for films. I've seen far too many bad films and often with I could have done it myself. I am very much the sort of person who will feel strongly about something, and try to do something like it. I guess the term is ambitious.
For the intro to the thriller, I did have some different ideas which I've talked over with the people I hope to be in my group. I thought that a simple intro would be easiest, considering our non-existent budget, props and actors (Oceans Eleven would have been a bit different with teenagers), either in the style of Tarantino, where characters discuss something very simple or quirky and then go to rob a bank ect; or in the style of 'I, Robot', where a short explanation is shown along with footage that keeps skipping out and changing. I had other ideas based on very straight forward thrillers such as 'Phone Booth' or 'Panic Room', but none of the intros really tell the audience what sort of film it is. I could do something like the intro to 'Speed', in the lift, but something like that requires a budget and actors, which comes back to the main problem.
If I was just asked to “Construct a media text”, there are a series of books that I always thought deserved a film, only not a bad one (Harry Potter). I would make the films of the 'Mortal Engines' series, and I have thought before what it would be like. (not that it would happen on my budget) They are a fantasy steampunk quadrilogy, and my opening shot would be the city of London chasing a town (traction cities are one of the books key aspects). It would enter with a black screen, and a robotic voice would open with the words “It was a dark, blustery afternoon in spring, and the city of London was chasing a small mining town across the dried-out bed of the old North Sea” This is the intro to the first book, and outro to the last, spoken in a robotic voice in the last book. This would create a look connecting the films, and would make a brilliant ending. Fading in from the black screen, the camera would start watching the small mining town, and rotate while zooming out to get a better view of the city (an establishing shot). You would hear nothing but the pump and creak of the steam engines and the thump of the city on the ground (the same noises as used in 'Howls Moving Castle'). When the camera swivels round some more, you see another city chasing it, and at this point, music and the title screen would kick in. As the town-eat-town system and moving cities are represented as great things at the start of the book, so I would have it set on a nice day, and have the camera followed by birds, to symbolise peace and nature.
I would try to follow the book closely, and not skip any scenes or add anything. It is always a disappointment for fans, even though they'll already know the story, I expect that's the reason they'll be watching it. Either way, I could happily make a script of it (actually, I think I will), but a 4 page essay is long enough, so I think I'll stop here.

My First Post

This is the first entry to my CNS AS Media blog, and in just a few months, i will have created an intro to a thriller and a poster advertising perfume. Hopefully I'll be able to look back at this and smile.