Year 13 mest 3

Mr. Bush’s media work

Working title

To what extent do American institutions of vampire genres (e.g. Twilight and vampire diaries) use codes and conventions as a way to target enigmatic younger audiences?

Angle

How is the influence of these supernatural vampire genres on the audience becoming so popular? Why is Blumler & Katz uses and gratifications theory specifically connects with these younger audiences?

Hypothesis

Vampire genres have the ability to attract younger audiences because of the modernized codes and conventions, and the power and the fantasy a love story has on a potential female audience.

Linked production piece

Two short clips of the disruptions of vampire diaries and Twilight (moving image).

MIGRAIN

Media language

Darker lighting creates enigma (e.g. key lighting and top lighting- silhouettes/ glamour/ making face whiter.
Iconic props for danger- daggers, bullets, knifes, blood- also creates enigma.
Costumes- Males costumes more dominating, use of black to convey intimidation and stereotypes them as the typical ‘bad boy’. Yet, females (such as the damsel in distress – Todorov) wear lighter colors to reinforce their innocence and vulnerability.
Star appeal is important as it allows audiences to familiarize themselves with the characters. Protagonists vs. antagonists always conveyed as the most important. Antagonists always conveyed as foreign.
Setting- is always in a murky place in America. (E.g. mystical falls, Manhattan/ forks. Always dull, never much sunlight (also creates enigma.)

Institution

· Institutions are most generally combined.

Vampire diaries- The CW network, warner Bros and CBS Corporation.

Twilight saga- Summit entertainment and lion’s gate.

· Both texts originate from books/ Stephanie Meyers and L,j smith. Gives way for product placement, whilst advertises and reinforces both the films and books.

· Mainly younger audience demographics

Vampire diaries- 18-34 audience.

Twilight saga – 12-30 audience (but slightly changes, depending on the film. (Can be further emphasized by the certificate of the movie).

· Twilight is targeted globally as it’s conveyed as a ‘nationalistic’ film and has displayed a world cinema. Vampire diaries is also popular as it is shown on The Cw who then took partnership with Itv2. Whilst, it’s easily downloadable online.

· Audience psychographic- vampire diaries and twilight- explorers (as targets younger audiences) and aspirers.

· Directors- Twilight saga – Twilight- (Catherine Hardwicke), New moon- (Chris Weitz), Eclipse- (David Slade)

Vampire diaries- Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec.

Genre

· The vampire diaries genres – Drama/ Fantasy/ Horror

· Twilight- Fantasy/ Romance.

· Codes and conventions of Horror- (angles) extreme close ups, tilt, tracking, handheld, Point of view. Atmospheric settings, Dark Music, good plot, the antagonist has a pattern in the way they work or kill, good vs. evil montage editing, lead character usually slays the antagonist.

· Codes and conventions of Fantasy films- mystical creatures (e.g. vampires, fairies, dragons), trailer appears dreamlike, dark and mysterious- isolation, modern world is dependent on the mystical one, short snippets of action, lots of dissolves, fade in and out black cuts, dramatic music.

· Codes and conventions of dramas- The Structure- to grab the audience’s attention and makes the audience become emotionally attached. Have to include climaxes and anti-climaxes. Lots of peaks and troths in the storyline, character must be easily accessible, form of realization at the end, relationships, realistic story lines, some form of journey and a happy ever after.

Representation

Traditional values- vampires (outdated, go by traditional values), the way no sex before marriage, men has to always be the protector.
Todorov props characters- Twilight/ vampire diaries- protagonist/damsel in distress- Kristin Stewart/ Nina Dobrev. Antagonist- Klaus/ the volturi/ the hunters. Helpers- the main vampires. Antagonists always foreign.
Sexual and heterosexual ideologies- male gaze and female gaze. What impact it has on the audience. (E.g. protagonist always seen as the price, desirable.)
Representations of themes- vulnerability, loss, love, emotional attachment, sex.
The protagonists always get hurt in some sense.

Audience

· Audience demographics, C1.C2

· Survivors- in relation to protagonist’s character.

· Uses and Gratification theory (Blumler &Katz) Informing the audience of recent happenings and information on characters, educated about the different between the humane and inhumane, escapism from reality, entertained- Humorous (Alvarado’s theory), Self-identification, with characters, aspiring to be like them.

· Star appeal and the identification of the

· Lean forward and back ward Medias. Leaning forward and consuming the information then reproducing their own. (E.g. Fan sites, Articles, trailers, spoofs etc.)

Ideology

· Ideologies link well with my vampire genre because of heterosexual ideologies conveyed between the characters. The patriarchy governed by the men’s dominance and sexual intimidation towards the women. There are also matriarchal ideologies by the transitions of the humane women turning into immortal vampires (e.g. Candice Accola in The vampire diaries and Kristen Stewart in the twilight Breaking dawn part 1).

Narrative

Equilibrium, disruption, attempt to repair, restoration.

Narrative mostly has enigma and action at the beginning or action in the middle and a cliffhanger.
Climaxes always contained at the beginning. Around three in each episode and all the way through the ending.
Always follows the protagonist’s point of view, feel emotion from the protagonist’s point of view.
Always in the same setting, but various accidents within setting.

Issues /Debates

Issue and debates – codes and conventions of the vampire genre and how it directly appeals to a younger audience.

Representations and stereotyping

· The exploration of characters and stereotyping them using Todorov’s character typing theory.

· The expected stereotyping of the audience. (E.g. forbidden love, action. Etc.)

· Representations of good vs. evil within the genre.

· Stereotyping using clamps (costume, lighting, actors, makeup, props and settings). Mainly applies to actors and how they will be stereotyped on what they wear and how they act.

· The representations on what the vampire genre has on the audience (Why has it become so popular).

· Self-identification and aspirations the audience will have on the characters (leading to start appeal- Blumer &Katz)

· Representations on the horror, fantasy and supernatural drama.

Media effects

· The hypodermic model- how the institutions are syringing fake messages into audiences, extracting emotion and terror. Vampire genre, gives the audience something to hold on to – love. We watch it because of the unrealistic love that many young teens desire. Gives the audience a sense of escapism and allows them to dream and conjure up their own love fantasy for themselves.

· Moral panic- the feeling that the protagonists life is out of control during the disruption compared to the equilibrium and how a life can be threatened by lack of choice.

· Uses and gratifications (Blumler & Katz) - The vampire genre allows a sense of escapism because of the unrealistic fantastical references. Whilst, being entertained and aspiring to be like the characters within the moving image.

· Reception theory- What the audiences do to the media- Within the vampire genre they soak up the information then use this to create their own lean forward media (e.g., fan blogs and pages.)

Media technology and revolution

Media technology is a very important aspect of the vampire genre as it’s used as a way to differentiate classic horror from the modern day sophisticated horror. An example of this is: Androids, Gadgets, fast cars, guns. However, they will challenge this with traditional objects like Journals, as a way of making it seem more personal to them.

· Vampire genre institutions need to use technological references as a way to keep up to date with their younger targeted audience. By seeing these Gadgets with their favourite stars, will not only evoke star appeal but also aspire them into buying these appliances to be like the actors.

Ownership and control

· Vampire genres are mainly independent low budget films or subsidiary institutions, so they tend to collaborate with bigger institutions and television networks. This way they have to split profit and divide advertisement up, so they can get the most out of their targeted audiences. This includes moving image advertisements, print advertisements and radio advertisement.

· Regulation and censorship- As many vampire genres, whether series or films are certified at a 12 or over. Institutions have to make sure that these series are shown during a prime time line-up or any sex references are obliviated during any advertisement.

Theories

· Semiotics-Links to Levi Strauss’s theory of Binary opposition.

· The binary opposition of good vs. evil of the characters (e.g. protagonist, antagonist)

· Binary oppositions of humans vs. mystical creatures and how the humans will always look inferior to these beings.

· Binary opposition between the vampires past (always has a murky past within the vampire genre) and their modern future (always mostly change for the better e.g. Stephen Salvatore in The vampire diaries.

Gender and representations

· The representations of the differences between mortal and immortality. The antagonists always seem to be foreign, yet the protagonists always seem to be American (Links to Todorov’s character types).

· Gender- Mostly seen as white character (linking to Edward Said’s theory of west vs. the west. However, this can be challenged by the fact that throughout the vampire genre, there will be one consistent sidekick who will be Asian or Black. This further links to the idea of prop’s character typing of “The Dumb sidekick”.

· Dominating representations- Barthes preferred and opposional readings. This can apply to appearance or surroundings. (e.g. Twilight, Wickery Bridge, night time, with the moon up, building up enigma (Barthes), audience can tell something bad is about to happen.

Audience theories

· Demographics/socio economic model- c1, c2, as targeting a younger audience.

· Psychographics- survivors- want some direction and to be taken by escapism and Mainstreamers, go with the crowd (links to the vampire genres popularity.

Uses &Gratification – being informed (being kept up to date with the story line, inspired (by the actors/actresses within the story), educated (by the vampire genre), entertained (innuendoic humour)

· Genre theories

· Codes and conventions of fantasy and horror- hybrid genres joining to target a larger audience. Fantasy targets a younger audience because its sense of escapism (Blumler &Katz)(main conventions are adventurous settings, mystical creatures. Horror targets an older audience and its main conventions are iconic symbols (props, knives, blood).Whereas, the supernatural drama conventions mainly link to the fantasy genre of the mystical creatures and settings, whilst adding more of an updated storyline.

Media texts
Twilight (2008)

· The Vampire Diaries (first started 10^th September 2009)

Other media texts

· Being human

· Buffy the vampire slayer

· Vampires suck

· True blood

· Dracula 1931
TV documentaries
bbc- why vampires bite

· Bbc4 the worlds of fantasy

· Bbc2 magic, murders and monsters

Academic texts/books

(A minimum of five, including author/full title/year, e.g.)

Myth, legends and reality of vampire existence: A study upon the vampires in folk and modern novels. (Author: Emanuli Kryazev 15^th Nov 2010)

Masochistic men and female vampires: A new approach to Rape fantasy: An exploration of Rape fantasy through the female vampires of romantic and Victorian periods. (Author: Burcu Genc 13^th march 2011)

Interdisciplinary Approaches to Twilight: Studies in fiction, media and a contemporary cultural experience. (1 Nov 2011)

Feminity Between fantasy and reality: Escaping to wonderland (Author: Andreea-Maria Sanclean 13 August 2012)

Rating the audience, The Business of media-(Author: Marks Balnaves and Tom O’ Regan 1 Nov 2011)

Approaches to audiences: Bloomsbury Academic 1998

Touched by a vampire Beth Felker jones

Internet Links

1. At least FIVE from Media Guardian or Guardian Culture or another newspaper website.

Death, sex and vampires.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/03/opinion/sunday/abraham-lincoln-vampire-hunter.html?n=Top%2fReference%2fTimes%20Topics%2fSubjects%2fV%2fVampires

I know Twilight is awful, but…

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/filmblog/2011/nov/24/twilight-breaking-dawn-teenage-girls

In the beginning, there was fan fiction: from the four gospels to Fifty Shades