Key Media Theories

Key Media Theories/Features

Laura Mulvey - The 'male gaze' theory

She believes that in film,  audiences have to 'view' characters from the perspective of a heterosexual male. 

Features of the male gaze 

The camera lingers on the curves of the female body/appearance and events which occur to women are presented largely in the context of a man's reaction to these events. Relegates women to the status of objects, seen as an object for male pleasure/fantasise. The women in the shots/feature of the camera tend to be looking away, which allows the male gaze of them being able to look upon the women in a voyeuristic manor. Mulvey attacks the way that the dominant system in film presents only certain types of pleasure, arguing that the narrative fiction film creates images of women which are used for the gratification of men. 

Andrew Goodwin - Music video theory

Goodwin says that music videos more often tend to include a demonstration and typical genre characteristics being easily definable to the audience. Music videos may also link to film genres, this is know as intertextuality. For example many heavy rock songs are influenced by horror films and may contain a story inside which follows a similar narrative. There are frequent references to the notion of looking and voyeuristic treatment of the female body. Voyeurism is the sexual interest of spying on people engaging in intimiate behaviour such as undressing, sexual activity or other actions, this type of behaviour is usually aimed at males as this is typically the angle in which the scene is shot/aimed for. Men are able to watch the female without her noticing for example mirrors, television screens, cameras, telescopes, binoculars are commonly used to do this. Andrew also states that there is a obvious relationship between music and the visuals. The record label in which the artist is assigned too tends to have certain demands, needing for lots of close ups of the artists and will have the same constructed image 'visual style' in which will continually recur across their work and music, a similar theme. There is often references just like 

intertexual references in alot of music videos not just heavy metal, they may make references to films, tv programmes or other music videos, maybe mocking them, for example in Blink 182's song 'All the small things' they have made a parody of a number of pop music videos at the time and most notably boy bands such as Backstreet boys and West-life and also female artists like Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera. 

James Baker (2007)

Selection - Much more will have been left out than what appears on the screen, making audience made their own judgement to reasons behind why things were done the way they were. 

Organisation - Various elements are organised in a way that real life is not.

Focusing - Medication always ends up with us. Audiences are encouraged to concentrate on one elements of the text and ignore others. 

Tim'O'Sullivan (1998) 

Tim states that all media texts tell a story in some way or another. Media texts offer a way of telling us stories about ourselves, about our cultures and beliefs without actually targeting any individuals or us personality through ideologies. Also believing that all narratives have a common structure to which most will follow. Establishment of the plot or theme which will then develop to a problem/enigma, increasing the tention. There will then be a resolution of a plot, the narrative does not have to be in sequence, either being linear or structured in chronological in order of events which happen. 

Carol Vernallis (2001) (Features of a music video)

Narrative 

- Disjointed/fragmented narrative.

- May not be a clear resolution at the end.

- Video may pose unanswered questions leaving the audience wondering certain things.

Diegesis (inside the music video itself)
- Diegesis is slowly revealed to the audience.
- The characters/objects move in time with the music
- Some frames may be more important than others.

Camera Movement and Framing

- Camera will move in time with the music.

- Alot of close up and master shots are used.

Editing
- Jump cuts.
- Breaking 180* rule.
- Juxtaposed shots.