VideoGames

HISTORY OF VIDEO GAMES

Very first video game - created in 1962 - SPACE WAR 
developed using military technology

Computers were very new at the time, very few had them. Computers were vast and therefore very impractical.

Some of the very first video games were role playing games 

Japanese Arcade Boom

Tito (company) created space invaders and launched in 1992. Very popular game found in arcades. It is a shooting game.

Atari and Nintendo began releasing bare games - arcades became a very big deal in the 1980s

Video games became more affordable at home. Bedroom coding - teenage boys making games in their bedrooms.

ZX spectrum - console popular in UK at the time

There was a lot of different genres of games as the industry was very young and people were just coming up with anything and making them into a games . Therefore the quality was not that good.

So the video game industry crashed in the 1980s and Atari went bankrupt after releasing an E.T game.

DRAGON QUEST - roleplaying games - adventure games.

Supermario brothers - released in 1986 by Nintendo. MOST SUCCESSFUL VIDEO GAME EVER MADE. Marketed specifically towards kids.

1994 - Sony Playstation 1 Advert:
This advert is a parody. It is using a clever style of reverse phycology, using satire making fun of the idea that video games make you stupid. Tongue in Cheek.
SOPHISTACATED ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN - playstation wanted to challenge the stereotype that games were only played by nerds. They made the soundtracks more like house music and clubbing sounds in order to appeal to an older audience

Indie games - made by small developing teams for small amount of money
Major game - takes thousands of people to make. Controversy surrounding the workers that sometimes get fucked over when working hard to make these games

Controversies surrounding video games- representations. Laura Croft (main character of Tomb Raider) was made to be a woman to be more appealing to a heterosexual male audience

Digital Distribution - Download Games, Steam, Playstation store.

Who is the intended audience for video games?

This Sega Advert targets a heterosexual male audience.


Lots of innuendos - the audience is old enough to understand the jokes but also young enough to find it funny.

No attempt to target anybody who isn't a teenage boy. This assumes that other audiences, e.g. women, aren't interested at all. 

Here video games are presented as something to keep you busy.

Video games target a very core/niche audience
Assumption that video games are played by younger audiences. "Games" - associated with kids
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WHAT IS A VIDEO GAME?

Require a console
Interactive
Core Audience
The assumption that video games have a bad effect on people - if you play too many you may become violent HYPERDERMIC NEEDLE MODEL
Video games have a vastly more complicated narrative - TODORAV'S EQUILIBRUEM 
Thousands of people come together to create video games much like the film industry
Video games are very pricy

The Video game industry is a specialised industry

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ASSASSINS CREED ||| - LIBERATION

Published by Ubisoft in 2012 for Playstation Vita, then re-released on Xbox 360 and Playstation in 2014. only 600,000 copies sold. Not enough. Main character is Avaline. railer shows off the grpahics creating an imersive atmosphere

Video games are regulated in a different way to films. PEGI regulates assassins creed. It is rated 18

Assassins Creed Liberation Trailer

HOW DOES THIS TRAILER TARGET A SPECIALISED AND A GENERALISED AUDIENCE?

"It is essential for industries to minimise risk and maximise profit" - David Hesmondhaghl

• Black Female character - subverts expectation that the target for video games in young heterosexual men
• "New Missions" - appealing to audience that have already played the game, spend more money, "double dropping"
• Re-released on more popular consoles - gives more people access to it, originally didn't sell very well on PS Vita
• Tackles big ideological issues about race, slavery and colonialism - pushes boundaries, increase word of mouth sales
• Intertextual reference to Django Unchained (2012) - cult film, slavery in Antebellum America. The main character has a whip - intertextual reference to the Castelmania game
• High quality, quality animation, graphics, soundtrack, locations - has high production values. Developed by Ubisoft who have experience in creating high quality, selling Assassins Creed - The soundtrack had big ratings
• It is a multi-platform release - larger audience. Not an exclusive game. Targets a Mass Audience
• Exclusive games drives up sales of consoles
• The trailer shares conventions of high budget Hollywood film - Voice Over/Narrative. Loads of action - Proairetic codes. Soundtrack - orchestral soundtrack 
• This game is similar to the other Assassins Creed - The art/covers/advertisements all look the same - A BRAND IDENTITY IS CREATED VERY RECOGNISABLE TO THEIR TARGET AUDIENCE
• It is being re-released again in 2018 (SECOND TIME) - an easy way to make money
• Audiences who play on a PS3 receive additional content - characters and costumes - and a DLC
• The sales for Assassin's creed liberation did not meet company's expectations - hence why they re released 
• This game was not very well  critically received - mixed reviews. IT UNDERPERFORMED

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REGULATION OF VIDEOGAMES

Videogame sin the Uk are regulated by Pegi, but were previously regulated by Elspa.

Pegi stands for  Pan European Gaming Information. So they regulate in Europe too.

Pegi is an advisory classification system.

REGULATION OF VIDEO GAMES in UK has NEVER been EFFECTIVE. Parents can easily buy games for children.As well as this digital technology has an impact on this - you can just go online and create accounts and pretend to be older than what you actually are

PEGI RATINGS

The content of games with a PEGI 3 rating is considered suitable for all age groups. The game should not contain any sounds or pictures that are likely to frighten young children. A very mild form of violence (in a comical context or a childlike setting) is acceptable. No bad language should be heard.

Game content with scenes or sounds that can possibly frightening to younger children should fall in this category. Very mild forms of violence (implied, non-detailed, or non-realistic violence) are acceptable for a game with a PEGI 7 rating.

Video games that show violence of a slightly more graphic nature towards fantasy characters or non-realistic violence towards human-like characters would fall in this age category. Sexual innuendo or sexual posturing can be present, while any bad language in this category must be mild. Gambling as it is normally carried out in real life in casinos or gambling halls can also be present (e.g. card games that in real life would be played for money).

The adult classification is applied when the level of violence reaches a stage where it becomes a depiction of gross violence, apparently motiveless killing, or violence towards defenceless characters. The glamorisation of the use of illegal drugs and explicit sexual activity should also fall into this age category. 

This rating is applied once the depiction of violence (or sexual activity) reaches a stage that looks the same as would be expected in real life. The use of bad language in games with a PEGI 16 rating can be more extreme, while games of chance, and the use of tobacco, alcohol or illegal drugs can also be present.



PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS
Within my research i noticed that there is a very specific iconography presented within all of the promotional materials.
It's really hard to differentiate between the different games and the franchise. One of the criticisms of the franchise - It's  oversaturated. All of the games are very similar and not that distinguishable

There are certain items of merch that will only appeal to a niche audience

AUDIENCE THEORIES - FANDOM - HENRY JENKINS

ASSASSINS CREED FANS - 'THE CREED"

FANS DO STUFF WITH THEIR MEDIA PRODUCT. TEXTUAL POACHING (AUDIENCE IS TAKING AWAY THINGS THAT THE PRODUCER NEVER INTENDED)- DIFFERENT TO AUDIENCE

Manifestations of Fandom

Benifits of fandom - cosplay/conventions - gives the opportunity to have social interaction. People bunch together with similar interests

What happens when you play too many video games?

- your attitude and opinions change

- you become stupid

- loose out on social interaction - becoming anti social

HYPERDERMIC NEEDLE MODEL - AUDIENCE IS PASSIVE - ASSUMES AUDIENCE IS MINDLESS - NEGATIVE THEORY. 

To what extent does Assassins Creed 3 present a threat to both the target audience and secondary and unintentional?

Video games are universally violent and violence is presented as the only way of solving things. 

CULTIVATION THEORY - GEORGE GERBNER  

ULTIMATE DOOM - 1993
First person shooting game. First of its kind

Ultimate Doom - played by the kids that committed the Columbine Massacre 

moral panic - an event is over exaggerated to create fear within the public
If we see violence over and over again we become desensitised to it

Stuart Hall - RECEPTION THEORY

encoding - when the producer places a message/ideology within a product

decoding - audience receives the message.

ASSASSINS CREED READINGS

PREFERRED READING - AGREE WITH THE READING

NEGOTIATED READING - AGREEING WITH PARTS OF IDEOLOGY

OPPOSITIONAL READING - REJECTING IDEOLOGY

ABERANT READING - NOT UNDERSTANDING THE READING

DOMINANT IDEOLOGY/PREFERRED READING/ANCHORAGE OF ASSASSINS CREED

VIOLENCE IS ACCEPTABLE AND ALSO THERE ARE GOOD GUYS AND BAD GUYS IN LIFE (BINARY OPPOSITION) - SIMPLIFIED LIFE VIEW

WOMEN ARE CAPABLE OF ANYTHING - GENDER EQUALITY

THE GAME IS ABOUT SLAVERY AND FREEDOM - ANTI SLAVERY

AUDIENCE REJECTS IDEOLOGY -
violence shouldn't be used to solve problems
Not enjoyable

AUDIENCE NEGOTIATES IDEOLOGY -
boring but good messages

Video games are more negotiable than any other media form

LORE - the story behind video games, story lines that are not apparent 

VIDEO GAMES are predominantly violent and are made to be fun.

The 25th Ward: The Silver Case - VideoGame

ATYPICAL GAME - text narrative. INTERTEXUAL REFERENCES TO POKEMON. APPEALS TO A MINORITY AUDIENCE

COMPLETE LACK OF GAMEPLAY AND STRUCTURE. There is the argument that this is not even a video game. No continuity whatsoever. NO ENDING. excessive use of strong language. Lots of violence and mature topics such as sex work

VIDEO GAMES FORCE AUDIENCES TO NEGOTIATE READINGS IN WHICH FILM DOES NOT

END OF AUDIENCE THEORIES - CLAY SHIRKY

Audiences are no longer passive anymore. They interact with the producers and media products. Audiences don't just watch stuff, they produce stuff too - becoming producers. Audiences are part of the marketing and apart of the product. Audiences are part of the way of making money.

Death Stranding - Upcoming VideoGame

No release date.

Features the likenesses of several famous Hollywood Actors - All friends with the producer. Producer (HIDEO KOJIMA) is famous for very eccentric games e.g. Metal Gear Solid. His games break rules. POSTMODERNISM 

DEATH STRANDING TRALIER Premiered at Game Awards 2017

Within this trailer Kojima creates an audience.

ANALYSIS - How does this trailer construct audiences?

• Intentionally bizarre iconography, and completely lacking genre conventions. This presents many invitations for active audiences to create "Fan Theories". However this can be disappointing for audiences when they do not get what they expect.
• Famous Hollywood actors - high production values. 
• Sony funding and extremely expensive and likely to fail video game in exchange for exclusivity (game only available for playstation)
• Little merchandise options - a direct contrast to Assassin's Creed, and little opportunity for DLC or multiple sequels.
• Very immersive array camera shots - audience positioned directly with actors - single take: exceptionally hard to achieve in film, though possible with CG

ASSASSINS CREED FRANCHISE IS ALL VERY SIMILAR AND ONLY OFFERS A SINGULAR IDEOLOGY

Xmas Holiday Work/Questions

TIDE ADVERT:

In what ways does this product use media language to encode the ideologies of the producer? (30 mins)

INITIAL IDEAS:

ideologies - women should enjoy cleaning
b=gesture codes - her body language
heart doodles
red and white colours - purity and rommance - love for this product
this is what women should look like and act like - sense of community if youre not like this youre an outcasst/ not a woman
illusrations
aspirational image - mid shots
tide is the best product in the world
language - superlative and hyperbole to emphaise thsi

theories - semiotics - roland barthes 
proairetic codes - 
symbolic codes - 
hermanutic  codes - slogan - audience wonders
Male gaze theory - lisbet van zooonen
 TARGET AUDIENCE - mainly housewives - 20 - 30 y/o also men
they want their wives to be like this

The 1950s "Tide" advertisement uses a variety of media language to encode the ideologies of the producer. Ideologies are the beliefs and ideas of a producer and within this poster the belief that Tide is the best cleaning product consumers can buy is very present throughtout the poster. Additionally representations of women also dominate this poster, evoking ideas of an aspirational image ( the housewife herself) to which the 20-30 year old women target audience should aspire to be like.

Langauage id used witghin this poster to convey the idea that Tide is the best cleaning product out there. The slogan, "Tide's got what women want" clarifys that this product is what women, like the housewife mascot we see in this poster, need in their life in order to be happy. As well as this hyperbole is used in this media product to really emphaise how good Tide is as it is the "worlds CLEANEST wash!". This is not facts and the advertisement is clearly biassed, however this section within the advert where these three statements are made is a proiaretic code, as the audience reads these statement and thinks of trying out the product themselves to test it and sew  if it does live up to these exagerated statements. Additionally, the ideoligy that Tide is the best product is further developed through the use of images and illustrations in this poster, such as the illustration of the washing machine using the cleaning product, showing that Tide is infact very effective as it produces a lot of bubbles.

 This product rewards its consumers, which we can see through the use of a midshot of the housewife who is clearly so in love with her Tide product and couldn't be happier, as she smiles ear to ear whilst hugging her product. The doodled love hearts on this poster further reinforce this love for the Tide product, as well as adding to the overall jolly feel of the advertisement that replicates the feeling consumers feel when using Tide. The use of colour further develops these ideologies. Red is used within the poster as a symbolic code of love for the cleaning product, as well as the white colour which embodies the background as well as a variety of other aspects of the poster, such as the costume of the housewife. The white colours are symbolic of the cleanliness and purity this product blesses your life with when you use Tide. Additionally, the idea that Tide builds a community is present within this poster. The colloquial language such as "Sudsing Wiz" and the repeated use of the word "women" both create this idea, as women who do not use Tide may feel inclinded to buy the product in order to be able to talk with other "women" about the product and how amazing it is, like in the comic strip illustration we see in the bottom right corner of the advvert.

As well as targetting a specific female audience, this poster also targets married heterosexual men of a smimilar age. The housewife mascot is an aspirational character for other housewives to aim to be like. She is pretty, well kept and loves cleaning clearly. Therefore through the male gaze theory this advertisement targets men as they look at this poster and believe that this is what their wife should look and act like. This may lead them to buy Tide in the hopes that their wife will also be like "the housewife".

KISS OF THE VAMPIRE 

What are the genre conventions of this product, how dO they work and how are they developed? (30 mins)

initial ideas:
horror genre conventions - dark setting night time setting

vampire costume - very stereotypical. High social status 
christopher lees dracula alaso released by hammer films
Damsle in distress - submissive women who need to be protected and are often the first victims.
dark colour pallete - scary conventions

full moon and fog - symbolic code of amystery a dnt eh suprnatural
title - wooden stake/vampire fangs - red spalshed of colour like blood dripping
genre iconography - conflict 
thi is a sotry of thre supernatural - binary opposition of of dead and the lving.

The "Kiss of the Vampire" film poster is made up of a variety of different elements that make it a very typical and conventional horror movie poster. Genre conventions are codes that are found within media products, these codes 

The dark, nightime seting found in the background of  is high conventional of the horror genre. ( resume at 25 mins)

Newspaper Ideology and Representation

Newsworthy - If something is worthy of being in the news.

Some newspapers believe different things are news worthy, not all the same.

"If it bleeds, it leads"

Broadsheet - More formal, aimed at the middle class audience

Tabloid - is more gossipy and focuses less around global news, more around celebrities. Can also be called a "red top"

Local news paper - more specific to a certain area.

Intertextuality - When a media product makes sense only through it's reference through other media products.

Barthes also referred to this process as referential codes - e.g. in a horror film one character might say " what is this, a horror film?"

"What have they done?" Daily Mirror Paper:

• The language used here is deliberately referring to something very drama " 7 killed in speeding tram crash" - thriller and action

• The day after tomorrow - tsunami hits New York. Genre - Apocalypse/ Disaster. Suggesting Trump's election is a disaster.

• Statue of liberty - looks like a weeping angel (popular villain) from doctor who. British Paper. We can only deduce that his election is wrong.

• Biblical ideas of the apocalypse - red and black - fire and death.
• Planet of the apes reference.

Ideology refers to a system of ideals and beliefs but often used to describe the ways in which those in power use their power to distort meaning. And ideology can be used to normalise the dominant ideas of the ruling class.

Left wing ideology - Left-wing politics supports social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy and social inequality.In the UK the main left wing parties are the Labour Party and the Green Party. 

They believe in making laws that protect women, ethnic minorities, and gay people against discrimination. 

They believe that we should tax rich people more to support people less well off, and they believe we should regulate big businesses so they serve people’s interests. 

They believe that a good welfare system means people are healthier, more able to work, and will put more back into the economy.

 They also typically believe country-wide tax-funded action on climate change is necessary.

Left wing is for EVERYBODY & SOCIAL EQUALITY

Distribute wealth & close gap between rich and poor

Right wing ideology - value tradition, they are about equity, survival of the fittest, and they believe in economic freedom. They typically believe that business shouldn’t be regulated, and that we should all look after ourselves. Right wing people tend believe they shouldn’t have to pay for someone else’s education or health service. They believe in freedom to succeed over equality.

Right wing is more about YOURSELF & PERSONAL RESPONSIABILITY

THE TIMES IS PUBLISHED BY NEWS UK

Television Industry

Television is a specialised industry

approx 6-8 episodes in UK drama series

6 episodes in UK comedy series

Humans was made in England, there is 8 episodes, drama series


TV in 21st century


global, rather than national industry
increasingly commercial 
HBO home box office, global success
the tv industry has totally fragmented
channels "narrowcast", which means they target more niche audiences 
audiences consume television in a variety of different ways 


television was the first example of mass media


nazis used it for propaganda - assumed audience could be manipulated and were passive (passive audience theory)

DISTRIBUTION, CIRCULATION AND MARKETING

DISTRIBUTION - how the product gets there

CIRCULATION - how many people see it

MARKETING - how the product is sold/promoted

WATERSHEDS - the time for shows that are not seen as 
appropriate for younger audiences are shown at this time. After 9pm.

Television has always had a negative reputation. Ideas of it making you lazy. Other concerns debates the mass media.

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Ofcom regulates tv

They try to limit harm and offence on television.

Regulation of television now is very infective.

Livingston and Lunt - theories of regulation. It is getting harder to regulate tv.

HARM AND OFFENCE IN HUMANS

Leo attacks Sadiq - Violent scene, ideas of hate crime/racial violence

Kidnapping Scene - Disturbing. Limp Bodies. Triggering possibly.Short close up shots of the body being dragged. 

Gun in Background. In this scene there is a black synth who is picking fruit. Alluding to slavery.

Potentially traumatic scene - Taboo. Sexual Assault. Rape. Man having sex with a robot.

Synth shot to the floor. Depiction of death.

Reception theories

STUART HALL
Dominant/Preferred reading - agreeing with producer's ideologies
Negotiated reading - agreeing with parts of the producer's ideologies
Oppositional reading - disagreeing with producer's ideologies

Les Revenants (2012)

LES REVENANTS EPISODE 1

As you watch the first episode, consider the following:

Cinematography
Editing
Soundtrack
Performance, character archetypes and characterisation
Setting
Representation
Hermeneutic codes and enigmas
Generic conventions and atypical features. Zombie? Drama? Mystery? Cult? Horror? 'New French extreme'???
Intertextuality
'Frenchness' 
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LES REVENANTS FACTS

Les Revenants is a hybrid genre

It is a French,Supernatural Drama

Hybrid Genres attract a wider audience

First broadcast in 2012 on Canal+
UK broadcasted in 2013 on Chanel 4 - Humans was also broadcasted on this channel

Les Revenants is internationally distributed

2 series, 8 episodes each 

Based on the French film "they come back"

Created by Fabrice Goberrt

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There is many different story arcs within Les Revenants 
Todarav - Theories of the Disruption of the Equilibrium 

Les Revenants has an unconventional narrative. This is potentially an issue for audiences as you never fully understand it or solve any mysteries. 

This makes the audience want to carry on watching the show as it is based on a series of hermeneutic codes.

This show also makes use of heavy intertextuality. References to the Omen (the little creepy boy)

Avant Garde is experimental. In many ways Les Revenants is experimental, through the use of its non linear narrative.

Cult TV - something that gets an intense audience/ passionate fan bases. Invites the audience to interact with it. They can make games and all this

Cult Tv Shows creates a different and new world and that is why so many people rate them.

What makes Les Revenants different from normal supernatural shows? - it looks at a middle classed family and more - like a soap opera .

Comparing Les Revenants to Night of The Living Dead

- The zombies look more alive and attractive in Les Revenants (iconography)

- The Night of the Living Dead - stereotypical representations of zombies

- We are supposed to feel scared by The Night of the Living Dead whereas in Les Revenants we feel confused.
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Exam Practise

"In the 21st century, it is essential for TV shows to offer multiple meanings" - evaluate this statement with reference to Les Revenants  

Introduction scenes, bus crash, costa having a snooze and Camille going home -

Establishing shot - mountains on the road - bus 
Alps - french settings
Camille- wearing coat, scarf, costume 
Black screen - present day 

Slow zoom from exterior to interior of house
slow zoom into the butterflies - one of them comes back top life as well.
Camera slowly tracks butterfly looking down on a high angle shot to an older character - binary opposition between young and old.

Use of music - as the camera zooms in on the butterfly the music crescendos- music getting louder-  key moment, key symbolic code - helping the audience to understand the whole concept of the show

Low key, desaturated colour gradient emphasises to the audience that something eery is going on - a potential hermeneutic code. Forces the audience to negotiate their own perspective on the narrative. This enforces a polysemic reading of the text

Camille on the bus - she has more screentime on the bus and is consistently framed in a montage of close up shots. Creates the idea that she is an important character to the story. Positions the audience with the young Camille. Camille's age allows teenage audiences to invest in the complicated narrative.

The sudden and mysterious dip to black following the long shot of the traumatic bus accident is symbolic of not only the audience's own confusion and the show's primary theme of death and finality.

The establishing shot and the subsequent long shot of the bus establishes an isolated and exotic setting (exotic for the secondary english audience). This emphasises the importance of Les Revenants adopting a polysemic narrative. It must mean different things to audiences of different nationalities.



The combination of these 3 scenes creates a lot of mystery.

Genre codes and conventions 
Genre theory 
Genre fluidity
Camera work - framing and composition shot types, angle, position, movement 
Lighting and colour
Editing – pace, type of edits, continuity
Narrative construction, related to narrative theory
Sound – dialogue, music
Mise-en-scene – setting and location, props, costume/dress, hair/make-up 

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REPRESENTATION - The re presentation of something

Representation is needed as it allows the audience to relate with characters, audience learns about the world, not real, CONSTRUCTION OF REALITY

REPRESENTATIONS CONSTRUCT REALITY - they change what we think of other people

Ideologies are always presented through representation. Representation confirms these ideologies or challenges them.

BIAS - having an inclination towards one thing - being in favour of one thing.

All of these images are staged for promotional shots. What ideological perspective is being presented?

Camille - young female teenagers. Midshot infront of yellow flowers. Supposed to be a bright and bubbly teenager so this creates a binary opposition as she frowns Pale Skin, Ginger hair, not a lot of makeup - in France minimal, natural makeup is the style. She was casted for this role as she is younger. Atypical and complex representation - smartly dressed - binary opposition. Her complicated character reflects the complicated storyline. Audience empathises with her, she seems well rounded.

Claire - representations of a middle class mother. stereotypical aspirational mum. Low Key chic costume.

Representations of rural French life - Atypical French setting for international audience, all white cast in image. France is more ethnically diverse than the UK. Ls Revenants is targeting a white middle class audience.  

Mme Costa - older women. Her costume is a brown jacket - reinforces a stereotypical representation of old people

Julie - early 30s, working class, she looks nerdy. The heavy eye/tired almost ill look is attractive in France. Messy hair - effortlessly pretty

Simon - Young man, mid 20s, dark features, long hair, curly, natural. stereotypically attractive for a French audience. Sharp jawline. He looks like a renaissance sculpture.Very stereotypically French.

John Berger - "Ways of Seeing" - book. In this book he was mainly studying painting but then he applied this to tv shows - argued that men act and women appear.

Themes and Allegorical Perspective:

It is important for Les Revenants to be allegorical so that a larger audience can relate to the themes within the media product. 

Les Revenants is about death and how people deal with it.

ABJECTION - to have something cut off

Les revenants deals with abjection. 


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LES REVENANTS SOUNDTRACK

Glasgow Megasnake - Mogwai


Mogwai - Scottish Post Rock. Instrumental Rock Band. No lyrics. This track is more like Metal rather than rock. Distorted guitars. Their songs tend to be very long timewise.

Mogwai lack a frontman. Their is no lead person.

Mogwai are renound for being fairly plain looking guys. Not exactly photogenic.

They own their own record label - 'Rock Action'

Why select Mogwai to create the soundtrack for Les Revenants?

By selecting Mogwai it attracts a preexisting audience - Mogwai Fan

Synergy - 2 media products coming together and working well.

By having Mogwai creating the soundtrack this allows Mogwai to target an international audience.

Both Les Revenants and Mogwai are very moody and freaky. They gain subcultural capital. Both Les Revenants and Mogwai share the same ideology.

The Soundtrack is contrapuntal - it goes against the show

Les Revenants Trailer:

How is this trailer targeting its audience?

Targets an International Audience as all of the writing is in English.

Including Quotes and Reviews from British newspapers such as the Sunday times which quotes " Must watch ... the best drama of the year."

This trailer uses montage to sell the tv show as a lot more exciting then it actually is. Face paced editing - from the whole first series. The trailer insinutes that Les Revenants is super exciting.

Les Revenants is an atypical horror show that is very hard to sell.

STURAT HALL theories

Les revenants encourages audiences to take an active reading

Les Revenants invites its target audiences to negotiate their reading

One of the key themes within this show is the binary opposition between the dead and the alive and a lot of the art/posters/covers advertising the posters  convey this idea too. 

The Title is split in the middle and distorted showing the different between dead and alive. Reflection of the image.

There is also a book of Les Revenants produced after the tv show - say you really like the tv show then it ends it gives you something else to do.

More merchandise - t-shirts soundtrack and more . Shows that you're a super fan. 

CANAL+ Research

Ideology: They are a Premium channel - you have to pay for it. Their ideology is based on this idea of quality.

Funding: Creative Europe - Allows European tvshows to be funded. Had to be payed for using grants.Also funded by the Alps tourism board - increases tourism in the Alps. 

Scheduling: 8:50pm in France, 9pm in England

Ownership: Vivendi SA - massive conglomerate

Notable Releases: all shows are made for a domestic audience

Ethos: 

Conglomeration

Imports: Tellytubbies, Vampire diaries and game of thrones
Exports

Canal +

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END OF WEEK EXAM PREP

"It is essential for a TV programme to simultaneously target both mass and specialised audiences"

Explore this statement with reference to Les Revenants

Thirty minutes

Knee jerk reaction: Yes! Les Revenants expertly targets both 'casual' and 'devoted' audiences, by providing the audience with a range of polysemic readings

Key theory: Stuart Hall's reception theory

MICHAEL'S TOP TIP - how useful is this theory really? Does Les Revenants even have a preferred reading? Surely it lacks one, instead focusing on confusing the audience as much as possible with a range of hermeneutic codes and complex use of intertextuality?

Do we think that shows really have mass audiences anymore?

There is now a diverse range of choices in Tv so No.
Initially there was only 1 channel when TV was first made a thing. 

1982 - Channel 4

Until fairly recently we have only had a few channels. Previously tv shows had to appeal to a mass audience as it had limited options/choices as there was less channels.

Moved from Broadcasting to Narrowcasting. 

Mass audiences do not exist anymore.

Stuart Hall

Preferred reading - the audience agrees with the ideology of the producer

Negotiated reading - every other possibly reading

Oppositional reading - the audience disagrees with the ideology of the producer

The whole point of Les Revenants is that we need to make up our own mind. It's polysemic Therefore we don't think that Les Revenants has a preferred reading.

Emotional Response, Intellectual Response, Loving it and Hating it.

Producers force the audience to think of their own responses so the audience becomes an active audience - which makes the audience talk about their opinions and all - gives the show more clout

Camille and Claire Reunion

Intellectual responses: a clear subversion of horror genre. The dark atmospheric music anchors this. 

Enjoyment at genre conventions exploded. Camille does not look like a typical zombie. Her costume looks very casual and normal.

Enjoyment of Claire's atypical response - a fully fleshed out character. Subverting character archetypes 

The tracking shot of Claire running up the stairs. Intertextuality to Phsyco and Halloween

Thinking it is clever use of foreshadowing - mother is in Camille's room then she comes home

Oppositional response: Dislike to reading subtitles. This scene is very quiet and boring. There's nothing much going on. The montage of Camille walking home is too long. 3 longshots in a row. Lack of definitive action and fast paced editing.

The foreshadowing is cliche 

This is nothing like the trailer.

Emotional Responses: Close up shots of Claire's upset facial expressions, far too uncomfortable.

Camille is a brat.

Excited at the many questions the show is asking. How did Camille survive?!

People might take pleasure in Camille's character. She is a gobby teenager. Relatable character.

Claire is attractive