Tuesday 25 September 2012
Wednesday 19 September 2012
Plot devices that feminists don't like
Plot Devices that Make You Roll Your Eyes
- a woman character is raped or is in danger of being raped -- the eternal rapability of female characters
- a female character dies in childbirth
- "convenient" circumstances prevent a female character from going through with her decision to have an abortion (cf. Robin in V, whose alien hybrid fetus's invasive vascularisation made it impossible to remove without killing her; spontaneous miscarriages and so forth) -- therefore rendering women's reproductive choices inconsequent when that oh-so-controversial subject is broached
- using female characters to voice misogynistic and/or patriarchal ideas because it would be "too obvious" to use male characters — victim-blaming, in short
- using evolutionary biology or the selfish gene theory as the primary reason a male and female character are drawn together sexually (Darwin's Radio by Bear), or why a female character cannot possibly resist the man's man that will make the best sire of her children (Lucifer's Hammer by Niven)
- the competent female needs rescuing by the man
- damsel in distress / perils of Pauline - women set up merely to be rescued
- Women in refrigerators (see http://violetcorona.blogspot.com/2006/10/women-in-refrigerators.html ) — female characters of whatever level of characterization depicted as more apt to be rescued, more in need of rescuing, more often in physical danger, deaths or physical assaults more horrible or graphically described
- innocent and universally loveable female characters that do not develop a sex drive or sex appeal until they turn evil (Doppleganger Willow from earlier in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Fred from Angel (TV series)) — where the sex drive is correlated with the amount of cleavage/leg shown.
- alien women of ANY species will inevitably be irresistibly attracted to the only mid-30s male on a particular starship (Star Trek, I'm looking at YOU) — even if it causes an interstellar incident
- related: females of alien species always have extremely large breasts, located in the exact same location as those of human females (i.e. they look exactly like human women except for a charming set of pointy ears, forehead ridges or swirly haircut that serves only to make them more exotic to the male characters)
- a man's casual slap (or threatened slap) of a woman that is scarcely worth mentioning again in the story and apparently does not actually bother the woman; or maybe she likes it because he has now shown himself to be a real man. Seen in Frank Miller's "Sin City" (she liked it); Rob Reiner's "The Princess Bride" (He raises the back of his hand threateningly; she flinches. "That was a warning, Highness. The next time, my hand flies on its own, for where I come from, there are penalties when a woman lies."). This is entirely distinguishable from a man and a woman involved in a physical fight, as in Joss Whedon's "Firefly" between Mal and Saffron, or Buffy and Spike, or any slayer and various villains. "The Slap" is often stated plainly as a representation of patriarchy, as when the woman has crossed a boundary; the man may say he doesn't like to hit women but he'll make an exception, or she's crossed a line, etc. An obvious use of gendered violence to police patriarchal rules, present in both representations of the protagonists and villains.
- The female member of the team whose skill or superpower is (by comparison) passive, defensive, weak, or underutilized; her real role is as token or love interest to the leading male characters. (See TvTropes' Faux Action Girl)
- The trade-in granddaughter or descendant: A long-lived or immortal male starts a relationship with the hot young descendant of his former lover (or occasionally his own hot young descendant)
- Simply grabbing the upper arm or shoulder of a superheroine or female fighter renders her helpless. (See TvTropes' Standard Female Grab Area)
Tuesday 18 September 2012
Useful Links
Being successful in the media is all about what you know and who you know.
Here are some useful links to get you started with doing both!
How do people get jobs in the industry? They join websites like these.
Shooting People
Talent Circle
These websites are also useful to check out the news and events of these sites for, screenings competitions etc.
Here is a selection companies that show short films.
Animate!Animate!, the experimental animation production scheme, runs screening events and talks in London and around the UK.
www.animateprojects.org
BBC Big Screens
The BBC Big Screens show (mainly local) films and video content in major cities around the UK. They also run a touring screen during the summer which travels all over the UK to events and urban spaces.
www.bbc.co.uk/bigscreens
Future Shorts
One of the largest exhibitors of short film in the UK, Future Shorts runs short film screening events at cinemas and venues across the UK and Europe.
www.futureshorts.co.uk
Secret Cinema
This is a monthly gathering of all that love challenging and groundbreaking cinema, screening mystery films in extraordinary locations.
http://www.secretcinema.org/
Lux
Lux is a not-for-profit company promoting artists' moving image work. Lux online includes a calendar of upcoming screening events and links to filmmakers' websites.
www.lux.org.uk
onedotzero
Adventures in Moving Image: a touring international festival of moving image featuring animation, short films, motion graphics, music videos and interactive art.
www.onedotzero.com
Bug
Successor to the popular Antenna, Bug runs a showcase of music videos at the BFI Southbank. Find out about future Bug events.
www.bugvideos.co.uk
Exploding Cinema
A coalition of filmmakers committed to developing new modes of exhibition; from DIY screenings in all kinds of venues to low/no budget film tours.www.explodingcinema.org
Short & Sweet: London
A weekly London showcase of short films, music videos and animation from around the globe.
www.shortandsweet.tv
You should also be aware of all the film festivals, to know about the latest films and successes and the failures
Major International Film Festivals
Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival – JanuaryFrance | Shorts
One of the largest and most important short film festivals worldwide. Renowned for its Short Film Market, programming, events and competitions.
www.clermont-filmfest.com
Clermont-Ferrand shorts on Film Network
Sundance Film Festival - January
USA (Utah) | Shorts & Features
Alongside Cannes, Venice, Toronto and Berlin it is one of the most prestigious film festivals in the world and one of the best for establishing links in the US market.
www.sundance.org
Palm Springs International Film Festival - January
USA | Shorts & Features
This festival regularly attracts a strong filmmaking community.
www.psfilmfest.org
International Film Festival Rotterdam – January/February
Netherlands | Shorts & Features
A highly-attended festival and Cinemart, the largest co-production market for film projects. Includes experimental and visual arts programmes.
www.filmfestivalrotterdam.com
Berlinale International Film Festival – February
Germany | Shorts & Features
Considered to be one of the top three festivals in the world, alongside Cannes and Venice. Holds the prestigious Golden Bear Awards.
www.berlinale.de
Tampere International Short Film Festival – March
Finland | Shorts
A highly-regarded shorts festival and market with a focus on promoting international and Finnish up-and-coming new talent.
www.tamperefilmfestival.fi
Tribeca Film Festival – April/May
USA (New York) | Shorts & Features
Founded in 2002 by Robert De Niro, this festival has rapidly established itself as a major festival worldwide. It focuses upon New York filmmaking as well as upcoming international talent.
www.tribecafilm.com/festival
Cannes International Film Festival – May (THE BIG ONE!!)
France | Shorts & Features
One of the world's oldest, most influential and glamorous festivals. The most prestigious award given out at Cannes is the Palme d'Or ("Golden Palm") for the best film. If your short isn't one of the lucky ones to make it into competition, there is always the Short Film Corner (www.shortfilmcorner.com), the short film market and meeting place.
www.festival-cannes.org NPA: Cannes Survival Guide 2007
Oberhausen International Short Film Festival – May
Germany | Shorts
The longest-standing short film festival in the world. The festival runs a number of competitions and has a prestigious market place.
www.kurzfilmtage.de
International Short Film Festival Hamburg – June
Germany | Shorts
Well-regarded short film festival that holds a number of competitions and awards including: an International Competition for new, high-quality short film productions and a competition for international No-Budget films made without public funding.
www.festival.shortfilm.com
Annecy International Animated Film Festival – June
France | Shorts & Features
One of the most popular festivals dedicated to animation. The festival includes categories for features, shorts, student films and films made for television, the internet and advertising. The festival also includes an international animated film market.
www.annecy.org
Capalbio Cinema Short Film Festival - June/July
Italy | Shorts
An international competition for films 15 minutes or less.
www.capalbiocinema.com
Vila do Conde International Short Film Festival – June/July
Portugal | Shorts & Features
An international festival of short films, with national and international competitions for fiction, documentary and animated shorts.This festival keeps a keen eye on, and showcases, emerging trends in cinema.
www.curtasmetragens.pt
Karlovy Vary International Film Festival – July
Czech Republic | Shorts & Features
One of the most significant festivals in Central and Eastern Europe. It is also one of the oldest festivals in the world. Known for its feature film and documentary competitions.
www.kviff.com
Melbourne International Film Festival – July/August
Australia | Shorts & Features
The largest and most acclaimed film festival in Australia.
www.melbournefilmfestival.com.au
International Animation Festival – August
Japan (Hiroshima) | Animated Shorts
One of the four major International Animation Festivals (alongside Annecy, Ottawa, Zagreb). The biannual festival aims to promote animation within the Asia Pacific region.
www.urban.ne.jp/home/hiroanim
Venice Film Festival – September
Italy | Shorts & Features
The oldest film festival in the world and one of the most prestigious. Awards include: Leone d'Oro (Golden Lion) for best film and the Coppa Volpi (Volpi Cup) for best actor/actress. Participation can be dependent on invitation from the Biennale council.
www.labiennale.org/en/cinema
Toronto International Film Festival – September
Canada | Shorts & Features
An outstanding event on the festival circuit and one of the top festivals in the world. Regarded as a good festival for films to start their Oscar race.
www.torontointernationalfilmfestival.ca
Festival do Rio - Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival – September/October
Brazil | Features
Organisers describe it as "The largest and most charming film festival in Latin America".
www.festivaldorio.com.br
New York Film Festival – September/October
USA | Shorts & Features
A highly selective festival featuring emerging and established filmmakers.
www.filmlinc.com/nyff/nyff.html
Corona Cork Film Festival - October
Ireland | Shorts & Features
This festival has been championing short films for over 50 years.
www.corkfilmfest.org
Zagreb Film Festival- October
Croatia | Shorts, Features & Documentary
Relatively new film festival which includes awards (called Golden Prams) and a market. During the Festival the Student Centre transforms into a hub of festival activities.
www.zagrebfilmfestival.com
Rio de Janeiro International Short Film Festival – November/December
Brazil | Shorts
Supporting short film both in Brazil and internationally.
www.curtacinema.com.br
Major UK Festivals
Edinburgh International Film Festival - JuneUK (Scotland) | Shorts & Features (incl Docs, Mirrorball Music Videos & Mclaren Animation)
Alongside London Film Festival, EIFF is the most prestigious UK film festival. It is also the longest continually-running film festival in the world. The festival generally require premieres, so often filmmakers start their festival circuit submissions with Edinburgh.
www.edfilmfest.org.uk
EIFF shorts on Film Network
EIFF Mclaren animation on Film Network
Cambridge Film Festival – July
UK | Shorts, Features & Documentaries
One of the most popular UK film festivals, it is renowned for showing high-quality international features and shorts.
www.cambridgefilmfestival.org.uk
Cambridge Film Festival shorts on Film Network
The Times bfi London Film Festival – October/November
UK (London) | Shorts & Features
The highly-regarded festival presented by the British Film Institute. Like Edinburgh Film Festival, most of the films they show are premieres.
www.lff.org.uk
London Film Festival shorts on Film Network
Encounters International Short Film Festival (merger of Brief & Animated Encounters) - November
UK (Bristol) | Shorts
'The UK's most important short film festival' - The Guardian. It is also one of the largest UK short film festivals. The festival supports emerging and established filmmakers and is a great place for filmmakers to network with the industry.
www.encounters-festival.org.uk
Encounters shorts on Film Network
Seagate Foyle Film Festival – November
UK (Derry) | Shorts & Features
Major Northern Irish film festival promoting Irish and international filmmakers.
www.foylefilmfestival.com
Other useful/interesting sites
Mark Kermodes blog (He is the king of film reviews)http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/markkermode/
BBC's site for film and short films. You can watch films, get advice from professional film makers, or submit your films to the site.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/
Internet Movie Database is excellent for finding out those questions; who was that actor in that film, or when was that film released?
http://www.imdb.com/
Want to find out what films have been nominated for the raspberry awards?
check out
www.rottentomato.com
Monday 17 September 2012
Is TV better than Film???
An interesting article that debates whether current TV programs or Films are better.
Tuesday 11 September 2012
Cultivation Theory
USES AND GRATIFICATIONS THEORY
Explanation of Theory: Blumler and Katz’s uses and gratification theory suggests that media users play an active role in choosing and using the media. Users take an active part in the communication process and are goal oriented in their media use. The theorist say that a media user seeks out a media source that best fulfills the needs of the user. Uses and gratifications assume that the user has alternate choices to satisfy their need. Theorists: Blumler and Katz Date: 1974
Agenda Setting Theory
Explanation of Theory:
The Agenda-Setting Theory says the media (mainly the news media) aren’t always successful at telling us what to think, but they are quite successful at telling us what to think about. Theorist: Maxwell McCombs and Donald L. Shaw Date: 1972/1973
Inspirational Interviews
These are extracts from some of the most important and interesting interviews of the 20th century.
Have a listen, think about how the interviewer phrases their questions.
This is the introduction to the series.
Richard Nixon interviewed by David Frost (1977)
John Lennon interviewed by Jann S Wenner (1970)
Dennis Potter interviewed by Melvyn Bragg (1994)
Diana interviewed by Martin Bashir (1995)
Francis Bacon interviewed by David Sylvester (1963)
Sex Pistols interviewed by Bill Grundy (1976)
concluding thoughts of the series
Tuesday 4 September 2012
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