What I Learned 20/09/2011

Media Language
That the language we learn about in media, isn't just written or spoken, it is what is portrayed by the media, such as how angles of a camera are like a language for us, how we know what when a camera from above looking down on someone is too make you feel bigger than them, or to show that they have done something wrong etc, or how without hearing a phone conversation, by the looks on the receivers face, we can have a guess at what the conversation is about, and what is being said, whether it is good or bad etc.

Form and Style
How all the 'micro' elements combine to give the form and show the style of the drama. The micro elements are those such as dialogue, sounds effects, editing and ambience.

Convention
Conventions are the 'ingredients' that make up the 'recipe' for that certain genre. All convetnions are those that in the certain genre drama, they are the things that you would expect to see or to happen.

Signification
Signification is applied within a theory called 'semiotics' (the study of signs). This is where a sign has a denotation and a connotation. The connotation is what the sign means, and the dennotation is what the sign actually is. For example, a skull and cross bones, well that is the denotation, however the connotation is danger, or pirates, or death even.

Representation
That representation is how the media text wants to present a certain factor. That what a media text presents something as, may not be how it really is, it is how that media text wants to represent something. This is representation.

Audiences
That a media text may be justified to suit the certain target audience, so that it is best agreed or interested to the audience. And that many media texts are suited to the secondary audiences, more than to the primary.


Narrative and Genre
Every drama must have a narrative - this is the story line. Without a narriative, the media text would be compleyely pointless, and no one would watch it. A narrative is what gets everyone intised in the drama and watch each episode together. The genre is the 'type'. It is how each media is classed, for example in magazines there are music, gossip etc, for music rock, reggae, pop etc and films there are comedys, romance, horror etc! The genre is classed on the conventions which each thing in the media text include.

Creativity
This is the 'performance descriptor'. Every media text has a kind of creativity that has been used within it. 2 Levels: first is the ability to use the digital technologies and the second is the ability to engage the audience!

Connecting the micro to the macro
Micro elements are all those small simple things that add up to the macro element. The Micro elements could be props used, or lighting, or editing, and the macro element is what each of the micro's add up to make.