The Seven Key Areas of Audience and Institutions - Star Trek Into Darkness

The Importance of Cross Media Convergence and Synergy in Production, Distribution and Marketing:

Paramount was the distributor and Production Company for Star Trek Into Darkness.

To co-inside with the film’s release and to generate more money and profit it means that Paramount had to work to get Star Trek more into the public eye (more so than it already was). It means that they had to make content that was all around the public eye, for example they made a video game and also an iPhone and Android app. Also because they were in charge of making sure the film was publicized and distributed enough to make sure that they got back all the money that they had spent creating the film in the first place, it was crucial that they decided to create the right media to ensure that the public interest was influenced by the marketing to actually decide to see the film in the cinema.

Paramount essentially took the lead in marketing the film; however they did also have a part in creating the film as well.

A game was created during the making of the film star trek, it was a single player action game with a co-operative game play option, and this allowed players to connect and either play Spock or Kirk. The person who created this game was named Steve Sinclair delivered his E3 pitch, and others described it as “bro-op”. Disadvantages about this game are that it doesn't allow players to switch characters between the different chapters; it also doesn't allow fellow players to “drop-in” and play alongside co-cooperatively.

Paramount would have created the app for I phones and devices as it would have been a good marketing point for the film, also it would have attracted a wide age range audience which then could encourage users to go ahead and watch the film.

The Seven Areas of Representation

DEFINITION OF AGE - the period of time that a person, animal, or plant has lived or is expected to live 

STEREOTYPES ASSOCIATED WITH THE AGE - there are many stereotypes in age;l most of these lie within the 'teen' age bracket. A variety of ages are found within all programs and all genres. Mise – en – scene plays a key role to represent age: teens wear hoodies; adults dress smartly; old people wear dated textured clothing and children dress immaturely in bright colours that don't co ordinate.Most perceptions of different ages are true – except some are unfair. Like not all teenagers are ‘chavs’ and intimidating, and not all old people are clumsy and short.Feelings have changed over time, especially within teenagers who are now represented in a much more negative light to years ago. 

A SELECTION PT TV DRAMAS THAT INCLUDE THE STEREOTYPE, AGE - There are many different kinds of shows on television today and these are able to present different kinds of images. Some shows present news and current affairs stories, trying to report on actual events in a realistic way. Other shows will create fictional drama or comedy situations that are designed to reflect real life. Commercials are made to sell products to specific groups or target audiences in society.

All of these types of television can use stereotypes as part of their presentation. Some of the main kinds of stereotypes used on television include:

· Gender

· Age

· Ethnicity

· Disability

Stereotypes can be used in positive or constructive ways, however there has been research that shows many people base real life opinions on how different groups are shown on television. An example of a stereotype in a TV programme is Coronation Street.

ANALYSIS OF HOW THE STEREOTYPES ARE REPRESENTED - People organize their knowledge about the world around them by sorting and simplifying received information. Therefore, they create cognitive schemes, which are certain representations of the reality displaying its most typical and fundamental elements and properties. These schemes are responsible for defining the essence of our worldview and have a significant influence on social cognition – understanding, anticipation, situation and emotion control.

IMAGES FROM THE TV DRAMAS YOU USE TO ILLUSTRATE YOUR POINTS -

ISSUES OR PROBLEMS THAT ARISE FROM THE REPRESENTATION OR THE 

STEREOTYPE INVOLVED - One of the main issues that is brought up with the representation of age, especially amongst the younger generation, is that if the writers stereotype too much then many people could take offence and complain to the producers and writers of the show. This means that when writing very stereotypical characters you shouldn't go too far into that representation to cause offence and starting to generalise about what the majority of the population is like at a certain age.

FORDASMEDIA- Age isn't necessarily straightforward: there are many sub-categories beyond young v old: teens, children,infants, 30-somethings, mature, middle-aged, elderly/pensioner, and even the mid-life crisis type.

 I’d advise you to avoid the terms ‘old’ and middle-aged’, stick with mature or elderly where appropriate.However, in most regards the key binary opposition is young v old, where the young are stereo typically less responsible, perhaps criminal, out of control (it wasn't like this in my day/young people today…), scholastically/academically weak – yet perhaps also cunning and conniving. Innocent, pure and naive can also apply  especially to younger children and infants.When children are portrayed as quite adult this is usually meant as critical, and bemoaning the ‘lost innocence of childhood’. Look out for narratives revolving around new media technologies; older generations’ ignorance of new media has led to recurring moral panics over use of the web, violent video games etc.The older are also negatively stereotyped though as slightly dim, with romantic or sexual plot lines often used for cheap laughs. Older people can also be represented as essentially childish.Consider non-diegetic music used and how it may reflect a target audience of a certain age range (eg jazz older,dance music younger). Clothing codes. Language used, especially slang.KEY WORDS: ir/responsible (possibly criminal); im/mature or foolish v wise/sensible; innocent v cynical;

The Male Gaze

Definitions:

• Chocolate box - 'noun - (informal) sentimentally pretty or appealing'

Marjorie Ferguson defined 'chocolate box' as - "half or full-smile, lips together or slightly parted, teeth barely visible, full or three-quarter face to camera. Projected mood: blandly pleasing, warm bath warmth, where uniformity of features in their smooth perfection is devoid of uniqueness or of individuality."

• Invitational - Marjorie Ferguson defined it as 'emphasis on the eyes, mouth shut or with only a hint of a smile, head to one side or looking back to camera. Projected mood: suggestive of mischief or mystery, the hint of contact potential rather than sexual promise, the cover equivalent of advertising’s soft sell.'

• Super smiler - Marjorie Ferguson also defined this as 'full face, wide open toothy smile, head thrust forward or chin thrown back, hair often wind-blown. Projected mood: aggressive, ‘look-at-me’ demanding, the hard sell, ‘big come-on’ approach.

• Romantic or sexual - 'a fourth and more general classification devised to include male and female ‘two-somes’; or the dreamy, heavy-lidded, unsmiling big-heads, or the overtly sensual or sexual. Projected moods: possible ‘available’ and definitely ‘available’.'

• Seductive - Trevor Millum said that this look is 'when the eyes are slightly wider eyes, perhaps shaded, the expression is a slight smile but still self-sufficient and confident.'

• Carefree - Trevor Millum also said that this look is 'nymphlike, active, healthy, gay, vibrant, outdoor girl; long unrestrained outward-flowing hair, more outward-going than the above, often smiling or grinning.'

• Practical - Millum also said of the practical look 'concentrating, engaged on the business in hand, mouth closed, eyes object-directed, sometimes a slight frown; hair often short or tied back.'

• Comic - Millum said of this 'deliberately ridiculous, exaggerated, acting the fool, pulling faces for the benefit of a real or imaginary audience, sometimes close to a sort of archness.'

Analysis of Male Gaze in Film:

This is a scene from the film 'Who Framed Roger Rabbit', it introduces Roger's wife, Jessica Rabbit. Even though the majority of the characters in this film are cartoon, in this instance especially they have really exaggerated the features of certain characters so we get a general idea of who they are and what they are about. In Jessica Rabbit's case we can plainly see that the animators of the film have tried to create an 'ideal' woman possibly in the eyes of men, especially in this first scene with her in because of the fact that she is in quite a revealing dress and singing a slow and seductive song. At points in the scene it does focus on her and fixates upon points of her body, such as the exaggerated hips. However she also has a very sultry and seductive facial expression which is also an example of trying to attract the male gaze. The thing with this character though is that she is meant to be looked and gazed at because she is the 'sex object' of the film and pretty much the majority of the rest of the characters are either jealous or attracted to her. Even though she is a cartoon I think the effect of the male gaze is definitely still there and the animators creating the character would have intended to create and very invitational and almost 'chocolate box' kind of character.