Writing an essay: Doc Martin

Regional identity is constructed within the extract to highlight the stereotypical binary opposite between those who live in the city (intelligent, stressed, impatient) and people who live in the countryside (ignorant, calm, unconcerned) positioning the audience to find humour, rather than challenge traditional representations, in the differences between Doc Martin and the local residence.

The establishing shot is of a doctors surgery that is outdated, lacking in modern features that one would expect to see - this positions the audience to believe that the countryside is 'behind' when regarding technological advancement, especially in contrast to the city. This is a common stereotype of the countryside that is often presented in television drama. With the use of a wide angle shot, the audience can see a dramatic contrast between Doc Martin who represents the city (dressed in a suit and tie) and the two men dressed in boiler suits (representing the countryside). In this frame, Doc Martin is positioned higher than the two men, which could connate authority, whereas one of the two men appears lackadaisical; he is sitting down, eating and overweight. The room appears to be uncared for though the use of mise en scene: there are boxes stacked in the background and the two men are repairing the broken tap.

Holding the wide angle shot for a prolonged amount of time, as well as the lack of editing, connotes to the common stereotype that the countryside is passive and sleepy - linking to the overweight character who is depicted being lazy on the job. It also compares to the fast lifestyle of the city (Doc Martin) because the action is forced to slow down. The amount of hard editing begins to increase, however, once the water pipe is broken and stress levels begin to rise: the audience is positioned to feel Dr Martin's current stress, as the other characters are being somewhat useless and are refusing to aid in the situation - this could refer to the common stereotype that those in the countryside are unconcerned and relaxed. A high angled camera shot is used when focusing on the dog, to position the audience to think that Dr Martin is going to hurt it and we are left with a sense of pity and fear - we infer that people from the city are angry, and pose a threat. Non-diegetic sound is used when Doc Martin is threatening the dog, to create a greater foreboding atmosphere.

A medium long shot, with a wide angle, is used to depict Dr Martin walking to the police station: this suggests that, unlike the city, the countryside is much quieter. There is a significant lack of cars on his journey which suggests that the countryside is clean and free from pollution. More non-diegetic sound is used on his journey, to create a light hearted atmosphere that positions the audience to think that the countryside "plods along" slowly - highly contrasted to the erratic nature of city life. Once Dr Martin has reached the police station, the mise en scene is similar to that of the doctors surgery; this could be referencing to the lack of crime in the countryside, as there is little need for technological advancement: the computer in the background of the frame appears antiquated. The policeman's dialect is different to Dr Martin's, and we as the reader assume that he is quiescent and "dim" - especially when compared to Martin's loud voice.

The "oner" used to present the engagement between the older woman and Dr Martin is used to reinforce that there is little action in the countryside. With the use of mine en scene, the audience is positioned to think that the older woman is rich, as she is the only character in the extract to own a car. This suggests that, in the countryside, only those who are richer can afford to drive a car and thus links with the stereotype that the countryside is "backwards". 

When Dr Martin notices the younger woman in the school, a close up reaction shot is used between the two characters to suggest that both of them will interact with each other eventually - a POV shot also highlights Dr Martin's interest in the woman. This engagement between two characters is ended quickly through a cut to a wider shot that depicts an old woman with freshly grown cabbages - this mise en scene positions the audience to believe that most people in rural areas are farmers, even those who are old.

Questions on Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Who owns Lucasfilm?

Lucasflm is owned by Disney, possibly the largest film company in the world. Disney paid $4.05 billion on October 30, 2012.

Who formed Lucasfilm and when was it formed?

George Lucas formed Lucasfilm in 1971.


Who is the president of Lucasfilm?

Kathleen Kennedy is the president of Lucasfilm. She became president after George Lucas offered her the position.


What films has Kathleen Kennedy worked on?

She is well known for Schindler's list and Back to the Future, and she also worked on the Disney/Studio Ghibli film Ponyo.


Who wrote Star Wars: The Force Awakens?

Star Wars: The force Awakens was written by JJ Abrams (who also directed the film), Laurence Kasdan and Michael Arndt.


Who directed Star Wars: The Force Awakens?

The film was directed by JJ Abrams, who has previously directed other sic-fi films like Star Trek (2009) and Star Trek Into Darkness.

How many Star Wars films have there been?

Star Wars (1977)
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi (1983)
Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999)
Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (2002)
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (2005)
Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)

What is the total amount of money that they have all made globally?

The franchise has made a total of $6,553,571,883.


What does ILM stand for?

Industrial Light and Magic.


What do ILM do?

ILM focuses on visual effects and was once considered a leading company in the industry of computer graphics.


Who created ILM and why was it created?

ILM was founded by George Lucas himself, in 1975. He decided to create the company to aid in the production of the Star Wars films - many of them featured impressive visual effects.


What do casting directors do?

Casting directors are involved in the selection of actors for a particular film. They discuss with the director/producers to decide if the actor is right for the role and so they have a lot of responsibility.

Where were the first scenes for Star Wars: The Force Awakens filmed? 

The opening scenes were filmed in the Rub’al Khali desert, close to Abu Dhabi:

What format was Star Wars: The Force Awakens shot on?

The film was shot on a film format, which would contribute to the large budget of the movie - film is unfortunately quite expensive.


What types of camera were used to film Star Wars: The Force Awakens?

The predominant type of camera used to film the movie was a film-format IMAX camera - pretty f***ing expensive!

What is IMAX?

IMAX is a technique of widescreen cinematography which produces an image approximately ten times larger than that from standard 35 mm film.

How many IMAX screens was the film available on?

Although there were just under a thousand IMAX screens worldwide, Star Wars: The Force Awakens was shown on less than 400 hundred of them.

What studio was used to film a large proportion of the film?

Pinewood studios, located in Buckinghamshire (England), was used to film a large amount of sense in the movie. The James Bond franchise was also filmed in this location, which is a coincidence as Daniel Craig (the most recent James Bond) secretly featured as a Stormtrooper.

Who was the inspiration for the character of Maz Kanata?

Abrams got the idea for Maz Kanata after being inspired by a previous school teacher Rose Gilbert.

Who played Maz Kanata and what technology was used to "create" Maz?

Lupita Nyong'o (who also starred in 12 Years a Slave) played the character of Maz and, instead of just voice acting, she actually played and acted the role thanks to motion capture and CGI technology.

Who played General Snoke?

Andy Serkis played the role of Snoke, using motion capture technology once again. As he is renowned for playing characters thatneed motion capture, he provided Lupita with tips on how to get into role when covered in tiny white dots and large headgear.

Where was the final scene filmed?

The final scene was filmed on the isle of Skellig, Ireland - pictured below:

As you can see, it's incredibly impressive and a superb location to place a lost Luke Skywalker.

Who composed the film score?

The film score was composed by John Williams, who composed all of the original music for the previous films - this is the guy who made Darth Vader so menacing. Not only that, but he has also composed music for the Indiana Jones films.

How many times did John Boyega audition for the film?

The auditioning process was an epic total of 7 months and, according to JJ Abrams, Boyega auditioned 9 times within this period.

How many people operated BB8 and what type of technology was the main version  of BB8?

To bring BB8 to life, two different forms of technology were used - both of them practical. There was a puppet format of the droid, as well as a remote control version. The remote control version was extensive and needed 3 people to control it: one for the head; one for the movement, and one for the body itself. The puppet was similar but used two people to control the movement and head.

What colour suit did the BB8 operator wear and why?

The operators wore either a green or a blue suit, so that they can be easily edited out in the final
production of the film - similar to a green/blue screen.

What types of special effects were employed on Star Wars: The Force Awakens?

This film used a mix of practical effects and computer generated images (CGI). Practical effects were used in majority to create an authentic feel to the movie and to create a slight nostalgic feeling. For me personally, I love it when films use practical effects - it feels so much more real and it's genuinely impressive. CGI is used to create specific characters, settings, light sabres etc.

How many people were behind the monitor watching the scene when Han and Chewie returned to the Millennium falcon?

Over 200 people gathered behind Abrams to look at the monitor; considering that this is a fairly prolific scene, it's understandable!

Why was Simon Pegg thanked in the credits of Sta Wars: The Force Awakens?

Simon Pegg was thanked in the credits because he played to role of Unkar Plutt.

What was the age rating of the film in the UK?

The film had an age rating of a 12 in the UK.

How much money did the UK government contribute to the production of Star Wars: The Force Awakens? 

The film received tax relief during production, which saved £20 million (approx. 25%) of its first budget. In total, around $170 million was saved.

How much was Harrison Ford paid to reprise his role as Han Solo?

Ford was paid a gargantuan $25 million to play his famous role and was also given 0.5% share of the profits - that's a lot of money!

How much were Daisy Ridley and John Boyega paid for their roles?

They both received $460,000 (which is still a large amount) as well as a share in the profits of the film. It's interesting to think that the actors who play the most prominent roles are paid less, because they aren't considered A-List.

Ethnicity On Television

Ethnicity in: Hotel Babylon

Identifying ethnicities

It's fairly easy to identify what ethnicity a person is on television, because of the extreme stereotypes that feature in dramas. In this extract from Hotel Babylon, many of the characters are portrayed as their stereotypes that, when analysed, are actually extremely racist - despite the fact that it's a BBC production!

This female character is dressed in white clothes, with blonde hair and, most likely, has blue eyes - fitting with the common stereotype. She also has the line of: "brain like a sieve" when referring to the black character, which fits with the television drama "rule" that white characters are sometimes racist. Not only this, but the woman is strong-willed and is dominant over those who are of ethnic minorities and is portrayed as a good person.

This Asian character is shown to be in a low-budget bat cave setup surrounded by technology. According to the rules of TV drama, all Asian people are "nerdy' and love computers and other geeky items; remember, if it's on TV it must be true! The fact that this character is using a computer, the audience may link her ethnicity with Asian even before hearing her speak. Asian characters are often "submissive" (yes, really) and this can be seen within the extract: she is the first person out of all the characters to say "thank you", despite being considered in a higher position than them in the hotel. 

Despite the fact that the character's are from different ethnic backgrounds, they still aid one another in this extract. Adam (a black character) saves the life of an Eastern European character, by feeding her jam (who knew jam was so useful?). This sense of unity suggests that the ethnic minority groups treat each other with respect and are like a large community.  

Four Key Themes in Racial Representations

There are four key themes that need to be acknowledged when analysing racial representations;

1. Exotic - yes, this is as incredibly racist as it sounds. I guess it's like comparing a character to a piece of fruit??
2. Dangerous - does the character pose any danger because of their ethnicity?
3. Humorous - is any humour evoked because of the character's ethnicity?
4. Pitied - are we supposed to pity a character because of their ethnicity?

In the extract from Hotel Babylon, there is a black character (Ibrahim) that is presented as "exotic" (or tribal) and we feel pity for him. In the image below, taken from the extract, the audience can presumably see Ibrahim's family; they are dressed in what looks like traditional dress and it seems to fit with the tribal stereotype.

By picturing this tribal family, suddenly Ibrahim's character becomes more exotic. As an audience, this doesn't appear to be racist of any sort: it helps us to identify his ethnicity/origin and merely enhances our pity for him. It is only with clear analysis that we realise this is stereotypical - just because a person is black, it doesn't mean they have a tribal family back home!

Ibrahim is also presented as a weaker character, compared to other characters in the extract. There is a particular scene in which Ibrahim is apprehended by three white characters - suggesting that, because he is black, he is weaker.

Message of the clip

The audience can infer that white characters in the television drama have more power over ethnic minorities. There certainly appears to be a mix of conflict and unity between ethnicities: the conflict between the white Immigration Officers and the staff of the hotel is large. But then there is a unity of many different ethnicities within the hotel, for example - the asian woman takes responsibility when helping to hide the hotel staff, despite them being a completely different ethnic minority to her.

Since the BBC is considered to be a fairly liberal broadcasting station, it is likely that Hotel Babylon (in this clip particularly) is supposed to be highlighting the differences in ethnicity and create pity for ethnic minorities. As a little extra, I began to think about the name of the television program itself: Babylon is said to be the most important cities in the Ancient Middle East and is often referenced in the Bible. Christianity is a religion that is widespread among different ethnicities - perhaps Babylon was chosen to suggest that the large variety of characters, with different ethnicities, are all working together?

Relating Perkins' assumptions to Hotel Babylon

Tessa Perkins used her academic roots in sociology to create ideas about stereotypes in film. She decided that stereotypes can be challenged, and identified five assumptions that can be objected:

1. Stereotypes aren't always negative - not all stereotypes are negative, for example: British people are typically linked with the Queen and are considered to drink lots of tea.
2. Stereotypes aren't always about minority/less powerful groups of people - we often stereotype politicians or upper class people.
3. Stereotypes can be about your own 'group'.
4. They aren't rigid or unchanging.
5. Stereotypes aren't always false.

Stereotypes aren't always negative:

It is a common stereotype that migrant workers are hard-working and committed. In this screenshot we can see Ibrahim, a migrant worker, cleaning the carpet and staying focused. This links with the stereotype that migrants are hard-working but also challenges the stereotype that Black people are lazy.

Stereotypes aren't always false:

It is a stereotype that Asian people are often smart and more intelligent than other ethnicities. Even their school systems are based on working hard and that's why many are successful. 

Stereotypes aren't rigid or unchanging:

If this television program was made 40/50 years ago, the manager of a hotel wouldn't be a female character. Now that out society has evolved, so ha our stereotype of women: it is now completely acceptable for a woman to be in a high up position with power in her hands. This proves that stereotypes can evolve and change, especially when society changes as well.

Camera Shots in Hotel Babylon

This clip lacks a substantial establishing shot because the audience doesn't really learn anything from it; the only thing we can see in the establishing shot is a close up shot of a man in a suit. 

However, this close up shot soon becomes a medium long shot, suggesting that this man now has a larger perspective on what is going on - thus increasing our perspective as well.

During the scene in which Ibrahim is tackled by the Immigration Officers, a close up reaction shot is used, to present the character's fear more clearly to the audience. This particular shot is also a zoom shot, increasing drama and excitement - it also appears to be a handheld shot, as there is a slight shakiness to it. The use of a handheld shot brings realism to the scene, and we get a sense that the Immigration officers are now running at the character. 

Surprisingly (or perhaps not surprisingly) there aren't many "exciting" shots that evoke feelings towards ethnicity; there is a significant lack in low/high angled to portray a shift in power, which is clearly an easy way to represent the imbalance in ethnicity.

Researching Star Wars: The Force Awakens

A German movie poster for Star Wars: The Force Awakens (notice the lack of Stormtroopers)

Star Wars: The Force Awakens is a Hollywood blockbuster film, directed and produced by JJ Abrams. Abrams' production company Bad Robot teamed up with Lucasfilm to produce the movie, including his team of producers: Kathleen Kennedy and Bryan Burk. Abrams has previously worked on other large films - mainly of the sci-fi genre - and so is no stranger to large productions. He is probably most famous for the latest Star Trek films, however he also directed 10 Cloverfield Lane and Super 8. Due to his experience with larger sci-fi films, he is certainly suited to the role of director for this latest film in the Star Wars franchise. Abrams was also involved in the screenplay of the film, as well as Laurence Kasdan and Michael Arndt.

Cast

Harrison Ford - Han Solo

Ford is a Hollywood hero and has previously starred in the Indiana Jones films.

Carrie Fisher - Princess Leia

Fisher has been a face for the Star Wars franchise and makes her return in this latest installment.

Mark Hamill - Luke Skywalker

Famous not only for being Luke Skywalker, but also the voice of the Joker in cartoons and video games.

Daisy Ridley - Rey

Ridley was a relatively unkown actress prior to this new role as protagonist. 

John Boyega - Finn

To me, Boyega is one of those people who looks like they shoud star (no pun intended) in a Star Wars film; his passion for the role is superb, as well as his charisma.

Adam Driver - Kylo Ren

Driver makes his star wars debut in style as the new bad guy - Kylo Ren

Budget and Box Office

According to The Numbers, Star Wars: The Force Awakens had the largest budget for a Star Wars film to date: $306 million! On this website, it is classed with the second highest budget for any film (with Avatar being highest) and made $247 million on its domestic opening weekend - clearly this is a HUGE film.

Currently the film's total world wide box office is at a monumental $2,058,662,225, and is close to the total box office of Avatar. It's total domestic (US) box office is another massive number: $936,662,225 - almost $1 billion from just one area. The film's total gross from the Chinese box office was $124,159,138, which is understandably smaller than the gross from Western countries, since Star Wars was only introduced in China recently, and has therefore not become part of their popular culture - unlike places like Europe and the US, where Star Wars has been incredibly popular since the late 70s.  

Greenlight Date and Screening Numbers

The greenlight date for the film was 30th of October, 2012 - after Lucasfilm was bought by Disney. It was screened on an approximate total of 5,500 screens (worldwide) on its opening weekend - its peak for the first four weeks of it being shown. The film was shown in cinemas for about 22 weeks worldwide.

Critical reaction

The film was generally well received by critics and the public, especially since it is part of perhaps the most famous film franchise of all time. It was unsurprising that people would fall in love with the film and it gained a rating of 92% on Rotten Tomatoes, 8.2 on IMDB and 81% on Metacritic.

Music

The soundtrack for Star Wars: The Force Awakens was composed by John Williams - who previously composed the Indiana Jones franchise soundtrack.

Locations and SFX

The first scenes of the film (Jakku) were filmed in the Rub’al Khali desert, close to Abu Dhabi - United Arab Emirates. 

This is the planet Takodana, filmed and located in the Lake District - England. 

The final scene, involving the mysterious Luke Skywalker, takes place in the Skellig Michael island in Ireland.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens uses a variety of practical effects and CGI. The film aimed to use less CGI and more practical effects, because Abrams felt that the practical effects would give the film the authenticity of the original Star Wars. CGI was used for objects such as space ships and some characters (like Maz) but Abrams aimed to use scale models over computer generated locations - once again adding to the levels of authenticity.

  
Simon Pegg appears in the film as the character of Unkar Plutt - a character who is certainly... interesting in terms of visual appearance. The fact that Pegg wasn't simply voice acting but actually playing the role really adds to the realism of the film.

Marketing and Tie-in products

As with every Star Wars film, there's always a huge craze that comes with it - this one was no different! Probably the most popular Star Wars: The Force Awakens product was Lego: there seemed to be an endless amount of Lego sets and collectable figures.

Not only was there Lego action figures, but also a Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens video game!

BB8 was an extremely popular character from the film and there have been many renditions of him within tie-in products - such as this remote control toy.

The film was marketed using trailers, teasers, posters etc. The first teaser trailer was released on 28th November 2014 - over a year before the film was actually released in cinemas! This obviously generated excitement and increased interest in the film:

Issues

Almost all films have issues when filming and unfortunately many of them are difficult to prevent. In the filming of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, there were four main issues, with two of which involved Harrison Ford: the actor broke his leg after a door from a Millennium Falcon set landed on him, and he also managed to crash his plane during filming. Daisy Ridley had apparently considered quitting, after she faced pressure from Abrams who thought her acting was stale - he was trying to get her to "open up". Not only was there issues regarding the cast, but also concerning the rights of the film, due to the fact that they were transferred from Lucasfilm to Disney.

Film Production

Behind the scenes of the making of The Shining

There are several stages to the production of a film:

Development 

Development is simply the process of 'finding' a story. Ideas for films come from a variety of sources, they can range from novels, real life events to computer game adaptations. Once there's an idea, someone will write a pitch which is then taken to a film producer in an attempt to get some funding to make the film. At this very early stage, a very clear idea of who the film is aimed at is needed - so elements that will appeal to them can be included.

Pre-production 

Once funding is achieved, the budget of the film is established and a film crew can be organised. The script can also be made in a storyboard format and then broken down into individual scenes and identify all the locations, props, cast members, costumes, special effects and visual effects needed.

Production 

Production is the process of 'making' the film.' Film' is very expensive and difficult to store, so an increasing number of film makers are using digital cameras to save money.

Post-production

During this stage, all the 'film' that has been shot is given to a film editor - who will then begin putting it together. Special effects will be added, a soundtrack will be added, any missing dialogue will be re-recorded and added resulting in a 'rough cut'. This will be shown to the director and a test audience who will offer feedback. Often this causes scenes to be filmed and added or removed.




Darth Vader looks slightly less menacing in this behind-the-scenes pic

Roles in film production

Writer

A screenwriter (screenplay writer) is a person who writes scripts for films, as well as other mass media like television programs or video games. Most screenwriters are freelance and are integral for a film to be successful: they provide imagination and creativity to the planning of a film - coming up with ideas that some would be incapable of creating.

Producer

Producers plan and coordinate various aspects of film production, including: selecting the script, coordinating writing, directing and editing, and arranging financing. They are considered important in the film production, as they hold so many responsibilities.

Director

Directors are given the task to creatively translate he film's written script into actual images and sounds on the screen. Essentially, they are responsible for a film's artistic and commercial success or failure. Not only this, but they also manage the technical aspects of filming including the camera, sound, lighting, design and special effects departments; its a heavy role to play (they deserve their name on the front of the DVD box).

Casting Director

Casting directors organise the casting (selecting) of actors for all roles in a film. They arrange and conduct interviews and auditions with artists, as well as negotiating fees and contracts for the actors who get the part. Casting directors also work with the director and producer to understand their requirements.

Film Finance

The role of a financial controller is challenging. They are responsible for controlling the accounting, taxation and financial analysis for all of the work a company does, including development, production and distribution. The finance of a film is spent in a variety of different ways and needs to be managed sensibly, in order to ensure that the budget of a film isn't broken.

Camera Operator

Camera operators carry out the director's instructions for shot composition and development and, during shooting, are responsible for all aspects of camera operation. Camera operators are important because whatever they film will appear in the final cut - therefore they must be expertly trained in the use of cameras and need to show somewhat artistic talent.

Editor

The editor works closely with the director crafting the daily rushes into a coherent whole and ensure that the story flows effortlessly from beginning to end, each shot is carefully chosen and edited into a series of scenes, which are in turn assembled to create the finished film. Editors select the best takes and edit them together to create scenes. In some cases, an improvised line or an actor's interpretation of their role may create some on-screen magic that can be developed into a new scene.

Production designer

Production designers are major heads of department on film crews and are responsible for the entire art department, they help the director achieve the look and feel of a film; the look of a set or location is vital in drawing the audience into the story and making a film convincing.

Marketing

Marketing is often an area where lots of money is spent, because its role in making a film successful is huge - it essentially dictates how well the film will do and can increase box office results. It's hard to market a film well because the film is usually being marketed to the whole world; different people enjoy different things, and therefore the film will need to be marketed in different ways.

Exhibition

Exhibiting a film is the process of showing it to a wider audience and is a form of distribution. It is important that a film is exhibited well because popularity should increase.