Before Viewing: Submarine

• What sort of feeling and impact can music videos have and what effect could a music video-style sequence achieve in a film?

Music videos tell a story. The most common music video style is narrative and the aim of this music video is to tell a story which quite often corresponds with the lyrics/mood of the music. Some music videos do not tell a story but express some kind of message and there is always an intention behind what it trying to be portrayed but the visuals and music. The effect of having a music video-style sequence in a film would be almost like an aside from the plot of the film. It could tell the story of the background of the characters in the film, it could show flashbacks or it could just emphasise a moment in the film (e.g. a honeymoon or a character mourning the death of a loved one. The music corresponds to the mood of the character and highlights the emotion you're meant to feel also.)

• Can you think of other films which feature extended montage sequences that are quite like music videos?

In '500 Days of Summer' after you see the 500th day of Summer it starts back at day number 1. There is then an opening montage sequence involving split screens of the two main characters (Tom and Summer). This opening montage is set to 'Regina Spektor - Us' and helps tell the story of the characters past. It shows them in contrast and their different upbringings. This helps set the mood for the plot of the story and is a nice way to open the film and introduce us to the characters. There is another scene in this film in which Tom is very happy after spending the night with Summer so there is a sequence of him dancing around a park which looks like it could be a music video:

There are also opening scenes to films in which motion graphics are used to music such as in 'Superbad':








The Superbad intro tells us a little bit about the characters and how they're a bit goofy and also the dominance one character had over the other by pushing him about a bit. It's a fun and simple intro which I feel sums up the entire film as it's a simple concept and plot yet it's very funny. The Juno introduction shows her taking a journey which could also be a metaphor for the journey she takes in the film as she matures. It's quite artsy, simple and shows her enjoying the simple things in life which I think sums up the film quite well.
I feel the openings to these films really introduce us to the characters and the plot and feel of the film. They're often only a few minutes but it sums up something that you'd gather from narrative in a more engaging, exciting way. The video from the middle of 500 Days of Summer highlights a key high in one of the characters moods and also contrasts with the extreme lows and the journey he has in these 500 days.

• Take a look at Ayoade's music videos for Kasabian's 'Vlad the Impaler', The Last Shadow Puppets' 'My Mistakes', Vampie Weekend's 'Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa' and Arctic Monkeys' 'Fluorescent Adolescent'. As you watch consider the look and feel of these texts. To what extent are they cinematic?

Kasabian - Vlad the Impaler: I like how the method of filming isn't traditional and doesn't have the feel of it being professionally made (it's not HD, widescreen and perfect shots). It has a sense of realism and makes you feel like you can relate to the video more. It has a comic effect and the main character adds to this humorous element. The effect of the hand-cam gives it a sense of realism but it also looks as if an amateur film maker could have made it (even though I think it's a very good video). This had a slightly cinematic feel but it feels like it should be a short film if anything and if it had no music it should be a silent film. I don't feel there is need to have narrative, it works well visually.

The Last Shadow Puppets - My Mistakes: The links I can see with the previous wide is that there is a sense of very random things occurring but they all interlink very smoothly. Both videos look as if they could have been filmed on a film camera as they look very vintage yet are still of great quality. This video has a much smoother feel to it as it's not jumpy and is made to look as if it's all filmed in one go through very clever techniques used to merge the scenes. I feel this is kind of cinematic, to me it feels more like a music video that stands alone but I feel it has the potential to branch off to tell a story but it's a bit vague.

Vampire Weekend - Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa: As said before, very vintage feel. For modern videos they seem a lot older yet they still seem modern due to the music and the smoothness of them and the sometimes random aspects. This video has a clearer narrative though. It also has humorous aspects as 'Vlad the Imapler' did. As before, I feel this is slightly cinematic and that it has the potential to branch off into a longer narrative but to an extent it does tell a mini story in the video.

Arctic Monkeys - Fluorescent Adolescent: Slightly vintage feel. Once again the humorous element, it reminds me of the conflicts between Mods and Rockers but with clowns and another group instead... this video is random but it's easier to draw a message from it than some of the other videos. I feel this is sort of cinematic, I feel it stands alone well as a music video and find it hard to envisage a serious plot that could surround it.

• Now watch the trailer for Submarine. Do you see any similarities in terms of visual style? Can you identify any stylistic or thematic motifs across these texts?

The notion of it being very vintage and being produced with film is present in parts of the trailer. It has the essence of a real classic movie with a modern twist, the traditional french music and the lighting, composition and everything combine to make something very interesting. The quotes lead us to make assumption of the kind of character Oliver is and although the locations and dress have an older feel to them they also feel very current with present trends being similar in some respects. There is quite a craze with vintage right now and being able to do it well means that your work will stand out and generate more interest, this is true to a lot of creative practices. There does seem to be some notion of having a past and a relationship that has faults and flaws across the different texts. The four music videos all featured a main character who seems to have had a relationship break down... with Vlad the Impaler he has his entire social relationship break down and in the other videos it's a romantic relationship or a friendship. This trailer shows a relationship that is romantic and also a family relationship and the struggles Oliver faces.

Are you a Mod or a Rocker?

I just stumbled across this beauty. An actual article from back in the day which is very relatable to the same kind of rubbish you find in (especially teen magazines) magazines today. (e.g. are you a girly girl or a tomboy?). 

It would appear that I am a Rocker? I don't know how that happened as I gave way more answers as 'A'. I think this, like many modern ones, has quite a few flaws. Anyway, just thought I'd share this as it amused me.

Rockers.

The 60's Rockers were a huge part of British Youth Culture, here is my presentaion giving more information on them, their style and the theories behind youth sub-cultures.

Rockers Presentation

View more presentations from hannahwintermedia

Hello, yes, please can I order a spaghetti bush?

1st April 1957


Some people would identify this date straight away as being April fools day but that didn't stop the BBC fooling the entire nation that Spaghetti grew on trees/bushes. See:




An article on the BBC's website (recently added) concerning this documentary reads:


"The BBC has received a mixed reaction to a spoof documentary broadcast this evening about spaghetti crops in Switzerland.
The hoax Panorama programme, narrated by distinguished broadcaster Richard Dimbleby, featured a family from Ticino in Switzerland carrying out their annual spaghetti harvest.
It showed women carefully plucking strands of spaghetti from a tree and laying them in the sun to dry.
But some viewers failed to see the funny side of the broadcast and criticised the BBC for airing the item on what is supposed to be a serious factual programme.
Others, however, were so intrigued they wanted to find out where they could purchase their very own spaghetti bush.

Exotic delicacy
Spaghetti is not a widely-eaten food in the UK and is considered by many as an exotic delicacy.
Mr Dimbleby explained how each year the end of March is a very anxious time for Spaghetti harvesters all over Europe as severe frost can impair the flavour of the spaghetti.
He also explained how each strand of spaghetti always grows to the same length thanks to years of hard work by generations of growers.
This is believed to be one of the first times the medium of television has been used to stage an April Fools Day hoax."

Above I have highlighted some reasons given by the BBC as to why this probably fooled people, however here are 5 reasons why I believe this documentary fooled the nation :

1. Television was used for important announcements, this would have been seen as something serious to many people.
2. The narrator was Richard Dimbleby who was a distinguished broadcaster.
3. Dimbleby remains calm the entire time and has a very serious tone, he talks in detail about the crop, the process and the problems they face.
4. Their is actual footage to accompany Dimbleby's speech, it shows Swiss woman reaching to pick the crop and laying in in baskets and they look fully serious during the entire film. 
5. This was a feature of 'Panorama' a prestigious British program which was always very serious so people had no reason to believe this was a false broadcast.

Personal Susceptibility (Cantrill, 1947)

How susceptible a person/a nation is to believing something is real (when it is fake) is said to be down to these seven things:

1. Social insecurity (unemployment, political oppression.)
2. Personal phobias.
3. Amount of worry.
4. Lack of self confidence.
5. Fatalism (belief in fate, destiny).
6. Religiosity (belief in faith).
7. Frequency of church attendance. 

This could be applied to this incident in that:

1. Social insecurity - not much, Priminister of this time Harold Macmillan actually said that most people in Britain had "never had it so good". There could have been personal problems at home however for many people and of course there would have still been unemployment.
2. Personal phobias - I wouldn't say that phobias would come into this incident so much but a lot of people were unaware of where Spaghetti came from and as it said in the BBC Article a lot of people saw it as a 'foreign dish'. So I guess it could play on peoples fear of the unknown?
3. Amount of worry - if people believed it was true and then spoke to other people who believed it was true it was more likely to confirm peoples beliefs. This wasn't something with a high level of worry which could have possibly made it more believable? 
4. Lack of self confidence - People with low self confidence may be more susceptible to believing things because they have a lack of faith in their own judgement?
5. Fatalism - if people believe in destiny then they may not see that people are making jokes and believe that this information is being given to them as part of their journey and they have no reason to doubt it.
6. Religiosity - it could be said that if people believe in God they would also believe highly regarded things such as news broadcast to them.
7. Frequency of church attendance - as stated in above points, if people are religious and believe something to be true (that a lot of people would have seen) then when they go to church it is a chance for people to discuss it which encourages the belief. If you don't attend as frequently you may not talk about it with as many people.

So, according to Cantrill these are the reasons why people may be susceptible to believing things that are untrue. This can be applied to the example I've given in some respects so it would be fair to say that his theory has points that are quite frequently proven true.

And now to finish this post... a fun, short video that I found that highlights 10 hoaxes that have successfully fooled large amounts of people:

More posts shall be coming shortly, most have been saved as drafts for a while and just need tweaking then shall be up! Apologies for the blog traffic to come in the next couple of days!

British Film Study

The Inbetweeners Movie (2011)

The film focuses on a typical British 'lads holiday' to Greece. There are four main characters called Will, Simon, Jay and Neil. Will serves as the main narrator in the series and in the film. The nationality of all the characters are British and they are well known in Britain as they have all stared in the TV series "The Inbetweeners". The film was directed by Ben Palmer who directed the TV series also and he is also British.

The characters are played by: Simon Bird Joe Thomas James Buckley Blake Harrison

I would place it in the comedy genre.

Jay Catwright

Characteristic: Obsessed by sex but frequently lies about his experiences. He is actually very awkward around females but is always showing off to try and impress his mates. He is actually a very insecure character and is always trying to be noticed, it is mentioned in the TV series that he often steals and it is referenced that he may have been sexually abused by his neighbour (a "game" that was "played") but Jay denies this. He has a good heart but has strange ways expressing this.

Semiotis: Fairly 'chavvy'... wears sporting clothing and usually speaks in a manor which could be considered as 'chavvy'.