Sound in Secret diary of a call girl

The first piece of dialogue we hear is quite awkward. The girl’s sentence becomes slow and trailing at the end questioning who the unexpected man is. The fact that there is no sound is a little bit uncomfortable and quite noticeable. The lack of sound means we can clearly hear footsteps and the sound of the wheels squeaking on the wheelchair which also makes the audience feel more awkward.

The characters sound quite weak in their voices, making the dialogue a contributing factor to the representation of disability because it enhances the awkwardness. They are also using short sentences, which usually remained unfinished and in a question format, so there is no flow of conversation, which is important for us as an audience to feel comfortable.

Sound effects used to emphasise the sound of the locks on the door being locked up are used to make clear the discomfort Blake feels. Again, dialogue shows us that the characters are still feeling awkward as the girl is unable to finish her sentences. At this point there is no dialogue from Blake to show he is feeling uneasy.

Asynchronous sound is used to accentuate that the music does not suite his mood, and at this stage nothing will. A series of jump cuts including sound effects show how awkward the dad feels, having to wait. A sound bridge is used to move on to the next scene. The music played is quite sad sounding, and a harmonica is used to create a blues feel. The reason that this is done is to make the audience feel pity towards Blake because he is disabled and will never get to experience life as a normal boy of his age. This is common representation of disability in British TV and film.

Representation - Disability in Secret diary of a call girl

Eye-line match shows awkwardness. First she looks at the dad, then Blake, and the dad is looking at the girl then Blake, and then the shot cuts to Blake emphasising the use of eye-line match making the pace of scene slower. He doesn’t know what to do; he has to be told by Blake to get the envelope accentuating the awkward atmosphere. It takes longer than necessary for the dad to shuffle through the bag to find the envelope and Blake pulls an uncomfortable face.

The action match is fluid, as he is picked up and put down in the same foetus shape which illustrates his vulnerability. They are both feeling uneasy sharing a father son moment which led them to the situation they are currently in. The frame hard cuts to the girl walking in on their moment, and going to walk away, but she is seen, which makes the scene feel more tense so she stays, and the awkward silence followed by the difficulty striking conversation continues to add awkwardness.

As his dad leaves she clears her throat, a sign of discomfort, and a shot-reverse shot is used after she has locked the door to display his vulnerability; the uncomfortable expression is a sign of this to her, and the conversation is also quite awkward.

Long takes are still being used to slow the pace and make the encounter more uncomfortable which is emphasised by the lack of sound (we would usually expect to hear a soundtrack). Eye-line match is used again.

Eye-line match also shows the dad looking at the pent house then a cross cut is used to show what the dad is getting up to, while waiting, he has lots of time and a series of jump cuts show how awkward he feels while waiting.

Non diegetic sound (music) is introduced and the atmosphere becomes slightly less awkward however the verbal and non-verbal communication shows elemets of unease still. The mastershot is privileged over individual shots, but the girl is higher in the frame than Blake to show she is in control.

Camerawork for Monarch of the Glen

The first scene begins with a dolly shot which shows us men working with manly tools and moves onto an establishing shot where the camera pans to follow Amy, and spots with her on mid-long shot. This is done to show the audience her clothes as they are significant in us realising that she is young. A close up is used to show that she is confused when in the car, as she has been asked to drive and she doesn’t know how. This lack of knowledge results in a crash which is shown to us using an establishing shot, which also shows that the scene has changed.

A mid-long shot shows the clothes of the head teacher which compared to the mid-long shot of Amy, shows he is very old. In this shot he is in the background, behind the car crash, which could be representative of the conflict in the scene. While Amy’s true identity is revealed, we see a shot reverse shot to catch what everyone is saying and see the reactions of the characters to the news.

The camera pans down from the man to Amy’s eye level, and then we seem to stay at her eye level from quite some time. This is done to show how young she is, and how small she feels. It also helps to get the audience to identify with her.

And establishing shot shows the scene has changed to the two men in the old looking room, and while they converse we see a close up shot reverse shot used in their conversation. A wide shot shows the change of scene again and then a montage is used to show the skills the men are using in a condensed version of time.

A tilt reveals the goodbye note and then pans to the next note. The camera pans the room and zooms into the photos which are all done to show she is young. The camera shows the window from the outside to represent that Amy. Medium close up shows that the woman has moved back to the man’s eye level.

Mise en Scene for Monarch of the Glen

In the first shot we see many middle aged men using tools, these tools connote age because they require hard work and skill to use. The men are wearing work clothes which are mostly dull colours, which shows they have the knowledge not to wear decent clothes when working, and the dullness is also representative of age. The younger characters however wear more casual clothing, and the girl in particular wears bright clothes which imply she is young. When asked if she can drive the girl says she can, because it is assumed that everyone on the farm can drive, but since she is too young, and doesn't want to be found out she lies. Her confusion about what to do in the car is displayed by her non-verbal communication (using a confused expression) and verbal communication (talking to herself to assure which pedals do what in the car). After a hesitant start, she drives off but then crashes. Her reaction to the crash is hiding behind the man, but this is the same reaction a child would display, therefore we assume again, that she is young.
The headmaster shows that he is old with his full-face beard, and tweed jumper, which we might assume has leather elbow patches. These are connotations of an old fashioned teacher, which is why we can draw a conclusion that he is old.The office room is a very mature looking which indicates ‘oldness’ by the wooden  panelling on the walls, the dark coloured furniture and pretty much everything in the room. Oldness is further confirmed when the man offers the headmaster Brandy, not from a bottle, but from a decanter which is very old fashioned. Also in this scene low key lighting is used.
Her body language when being told off seems to indicate how young she is with a pleading look in her face. The man then starts to point and wag his finger in her face as if she is a child being told off. Here we notice that we are at Amy’s eye level when looking at her, and it is as if we are also looking up at the man, which makes the audience feel intimidated, or as if they are in Amy’s shoes. Finally once told she has to leave, Amy makes a really childish gesture of throwing her hands down and running off.
Props used in Amy’s rooms, such as the teddy bears, magazines, pink lanterns and even her girly handwriting on the goodbye notes are representative of Amy’s youth. Her action of running away is the type of thing you expect a child to do.

Representation - Ethnicity in Eastenders

http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=Mw34Nf61oUk

In this scene we find a black girl (Mercy) and a mixed race boy (Fatboy), both teenagers, in a chip shop in the E20 area of London. The owner of the chip shop, a white man (Ian) is serving customers. In the clip, Mercy asks "We'll have some chips," using a hand movement as body language representative of black girls, while fatboy continues her order with "And two lamb paties please." Giving a subtle wink as he finishes his sentance. The camera cuts to Ian explaining in a neutral tone "Paties? I'm sorry we don't do those here" and smiling to the customers, who look shocked. Fatboy questions "You don't do those here (using a 'd' to pronounce the 'th') ? Oh I see how it is" pointing his finger at Ian, trying to gain the power in the situation. To which Ian replies "What you talking about?" As the tension is rising Fatboy rhetorically asks Mercy "How can he not do lamb paties?" Then turns to Ian "Are you open for the BNP bruv, your a wasteman"  the language reinforcing the sterotype, while Mercy begins to explain to Ian "What he means is that you should cater for all people who live in your area" Fatboy rants "He ain't gonna do dat, the mans a blatant racist" staring him up and down. Offended business owner Ian answers with "You what!" Fatboy interupts, "Ah just gimme the chips man" while Ian defends "Nah 'old on a minute mate, I am not a racist" Then Fatboy storms off saying "You know what, just save it for the judge".

Media Key Concepts

Four key concepts of AS media are media language, representation, audience, and institution.

Media language refers to cinematography, for example shot types and angles. Editing, which includes transition and speed of cuts. Sound which can be diegetic (which the characters and the audience hear, such as speech) or non-diegetic (which only the audience can hear, such as a soundtrack), and Mise en Scene, which is everything in the shot, an example is lighting.

Representation refers to people or groups who are represtented by the show or film. Examples of what can be represented include age, gender, sexuality and so on.

These two concepts are the content included in exam part A. Media language is tested by the analysis of a five minute clip from a British TV Drama. Representation is tested by a textual analysis (essay style format).

Audience refers to how why and where people see films, an institiution refers to the producers and regualters of the media. These two concepts are the content for exam part B. They are tested by making an in depth and detailed analysis (known as a case study) prior to the exam, in order to answer the relevant section in the exam.