In today’s lectorial, the issues around institutions were discussed. The term institutions can be used to describe a company or group of companies as well as a list of other collective organisations; it is hard to know where the line is drawn. Institutions have become quite a rather big side of the media industry, how it works and how it is run. Therefore these media institutions must set in place values which underline social, cultural, political and economic relations. Some examples of media institutions are the news, journalism, cinema, broadcast television, community radio to be broad and then the more specific companies such as the ABC, SBS and the list could go on forever. These types of institutions are quite enduring as they regulate and structure certain activities in a collective way. They develop specific working practices while employees and people associated with these institutions are expected to share their own values.

One of the institutional ideas that was explored was marriage as a social instution. There are expectations when you marry someone, that you will be faithful to them and that you will follow the vows you make to that other person ‘through sickness and through health,’ that you are monogamous within your relationship and that you will care for this person with respect. Then there is the legal side of it all; paperwork and getting a qualified celebrant to marry you and your partner, etc. There are certain rituals that people follow whether it be due to different cultures or what is seen as a ‘social norm’. And of course there is the whole commercial side of it as well. The industries which make money from the two getting married; catering, venue hire, decorations, bridal and groom party dress wear, travel, accommodation, and perhaps even bucks or bachelorette parties.

During today’s tutorial, my group members and I were finally able to discuss where we are actually heading with project 4. Our topic which was assigned to us a few weeks back now is ‘Audiences.’ We have gone into further research in this topic as we had to find five academic journal articles each for our annotated bibliography. We assigned ourselves ‘sub topics’ within this genre to each personally focus on for our research. Amalina was focusing on how using different mediums of media (social media, favourite tv shows or movies, etc.) as an audience members can shape a persons identity. Kelsey focused on how people as an audience use media to communicate. My focus was on media and youth; how the media influences decisions and behaviours of youth audiences. After discussion in class today we decided to narrow our ideas down into something a bit more specific as this will be easier in the long run for our final project. We have decided we are going to be creating an editorial style website which targets an female audience. By using our research (we may also have to do further research), our website will feature a few main feature articles, as well as some fun, kooky, interactive sections. For example we will have a quiz. maybe a photo essay and perhaps an ‘ask’ section where girls or women can write in to the magazine asking for help about any ‘white girl problems.’

Our aim is to make the website kind of ironic as we feel this would be more entertaining and perhaps more captivating rather than just talking about boring facts which we may have found in our research. For example we may write an article or a ‘guide’ showing the audience how to take the perfect ‘sexualised selfie.’ Although we have these good ideas we do have to be careful and make sure that the ironic take we will have doesn’t go too far and we do it well, as well as making sure our research comes through rather than just from the tops of our heads. Although we do need to make our opinion quite clear in our project, the project is not opinion driven as it is important to show evidence of research.

Tonight me and my boyfriend went to watch Disney’s The Lion King. I saw it once before with my family when it was showing in Brisbane at the end of last year, but it was just too good not to see again. Even the second time I was absolutely blown away by the entire show; the dancers/actors/singers (totally unfair that these people are that talented that they can do it all), the storyline and OH MY GOD the costumes! As an audience member of the show it was absolutely captivating to see all the amazing, bright colours and watch the incredibly talented performers, especially in the beautiful Regent Theatre in the heart of Melbourne’s city. One of the things I love about this show as well is the fact that one of my good family friends is actually in the show… She is the cheetah!! I grew up with her throughout most of my childhood and she was always a dancer, but now she is in the Lion King. It is so amazing to be an audience member of not only the whole show but also to be able to watch her do what she is best at! I am very happy I decided to go and see the show again as amazing shows like that don’t come around all too often. It is a must see if you haven’t already!

This weeks lectorial focused on audiences and how they are a huge part, probably even the number one reason of how and why media can succeed. Without the audiences there is no media; there is no way it could ever work or there would be no reason for it to continue on. This is why TV shows with little or no audiences get cut or why artists with little or no fans do not ‘make it’. However, media artefacts suffer even more these days with the ‘modern audiences’ or people ‘formerly known as the audience’. People have become so interactive with media now and so picky with every type of media, that they are now in control. It isn’t just watching the TV or reading the newspaper anymore; we choose what we want to see because of such developments of the internet as well as smart phones. If someone wants to watch a TV show, chances are they’re not going to watch it on the TV but whenever they feel like it on their laptop, tablet or smart phone. There is no clearing everything and making time for your favourite TV show which is on at 7.30 tonight. It doesn’t work like that anymore. Media has become so easy for users use and it is totally in their hands of how and what they use the media for.

During today’s tutorial we were given our annotated bibliography task… Oh joys. Especially when none of your other team members show up for class. But that is ok I guess as I got right into my readings and finding journals about our group topic for Project 4 (audiences). I found a few very interesting journals surrounding the idea of the influences media has on audiences. One in particular I found very intriguing which talked about how media is consuming especially the youth all day every day. More specifically young people are using a range of all forms of media for at least around 6 hours per day…… um what!?. The bibliography is due next week so I have a lot of work to do between then and now (as do my group members)! But I think I have found my 5 articles which I will base my bibliography on, so at least that’s a head start.

As a child, especially as a little girl, there wouldn’t be many who grew up without hearing all of the old fairy tales. I remember while I was growing up, my parents would read me the classic Little Golden Books. There was, and I believe still is a huge range of these books, some of my favourites being from from the Disney set. Included were stories like the Little Mermaid, Sleeping Beauty and Peter Pan. They are still adding to the collection with recent disney stories such as Frozen. Going further into my childhood they began to make the Disney cartoon films which were just like the Little Golden Books but you could now see these astonishing stories! However, even further along, in the recent years, filmmakers are now creating remakes of the old Disney classics. However, most of these spectacular projects have had little glitches or changes to the storyline slightly to create a ‘new’ or moderately more appealing story suited to an older audience. Examples of this are the film Red Riding Hood from 2011 which plays on the original story with a spooky edge, as well as Maleficent, the 2014 film which tells the ‘untold story’ of Sleeping Beauty’s iconic villain.

However, the recently released remake of the classic, Cinderella, was different. As soon as I saw the sparkly, outstanding costumes in the trailer, I knew that the film was going to be astonishing. And was I right… I absolutely fell in love with everything about the film. From actors, to the costumes, to the sets and even to the iconic glass slipper, everything was just perfect and everything I ever hoped it to be. I feel that part of the reason for the high success of the film was that it is one of the few Disney remakes that hasn’t been so Americanised. It really just stuck straight to the original story.

As a little girl, Cinderella was by far one of my all time favourite stories, and would be to many others I’m sure. The way the story connects with the audience, women especially as well as their  young daughters is truly unique. The nature of Cinderella herself as well as the morals the story portrays are simply divine. Early in the film Cinderella’s mother tells her something she remembers forever; ’have courage and be kind’. Whether someone is horrible to Cinderella or something dreadful happens to her, no matter what, she doe not retaliate but instead, looks back on what her mother told her and continues to stay gracious. Throughout the story you see how her wicked step sisters and her vile stepmother behave towards her but she is still loving towards them. The way this is conveyed through the story, especially in the film, to young girls is something that is quite special. It teaches them a very important message from a young age, that you should treat people the way you want to be treated.

Dan’s lectorial today was on narratives and storytelling and must I say was probably the most engaging lectorial yet. However, still after walking away I was a bit like “uhhh so what just happened?”, especially after watching the short film by Daniel Askill ‘We Have Decided Not to Die’. Honestly it was probably one of the strangest things I have watched but obviously was very interesting and would have taken a lot to master some of the techniques which went on through the film. But one of the big questions was, is the film actually considered to be a narrative (a story) or is it a non-narrative (a piece of art)? I compiled a few examples of why it could fall under either category.

Narrative:

• It has a beginning, middle and an end
• There are development of the character/s
• There are sequences through the film
• Patterns of representation to link
• It goes from one place to another which takes the audience on a sort of journey
• The title ‘we have decided not to die’ shows that the characters have made a choice not to die therefore they are performing an action

Non-narrative:

• There isn’t really a plot at any stage
• Not really any link between the three ‘rituals’, they just go from one to the next
• It is emotionally intense the whole way through, there is no up and down like a narrative should have
• There isn’t any sense of closure, the last man jumps out of the window and then it goes back to the pool – no real ending or resolution
• The people are more like props rather than characters

So it is quite difficult to say whether or not it is a narrative, but if you would like to make up your mind on this dilemma, take a look at the whacky film:

(video source: https://youtu.be/UIg8bHnW9vk)

During today’s tutorial we viewed everyone else’s portraits (project 3). Like the previous projects, it was quite nerve-wracking showing my work to everyone else but also very interesting to see everyone else’s work. We were put into smaller groups and were to give feedback on our group members projects.

In my group was Kelsey McGowan and Amalina Youssoff who both did great jobs at their project brief 3. Below is Kelsey’s portrait which was quite unique. It was a portrait of a friend of hers who was talking about her dream. It is hard to tell but her friend is German and in the background was dialogue of her friend telling her dream but in German. I thought this was an interesting touch, however was quite subtle which worked really well, as you wouldn’t pick up on it unless you were told about it. Kelsey is quite good at using Adobe After Effects so she was able to include her found footage on her friends face. I really really liked this element of the video and was very unique as no one else did anything like it in their films, which shows the skill she possesses. Go on, have a watch:

(video source: https://vimeo.com/125744479)

After the hustle and bustle of SITG 2015, I have gained tickets!!! As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, I did not think I would be able to make it! However, after getting some savings together I have acquired a ticket as have all of my friends… Last year there was a huge group of us, over 30 people, all camping together and it was honestly a few of the best days of my life. The vibes of all being together and celebrating some amazing music is quite unique. Although I believe the line up isn’t as good as last years, there are still some killer acts that will blow us all away. Florence and the Machine, The Wombats, Peking Duk, FLIGHT FACILITIES!!!!!, Thundamentals, MS MR, SAFIA and Japanese Wallpaper are just a few acts that I cannot wait to see. The whole experience of a festival, especially one that stretches over a number of days is just mind-blowing. The way each and everyone one of these performers connect with their audiences cannot be found at many other places as Splendour in the Grass is one of the most unique festivals I’ve heard is out there and I am also lucky enough to have been to (not that I have been to every festival) and am lucky enough to go again!! I honestly cannot express how much I am looking forward to the experience of Splendour all over again.