Media Arts Concepts
Representation and story principles
Structure
- developing ideas and story structures through the manipulation of media and genre conventions for a specific audience experience and expectation
Intent
- constructing and communicating ideas, beliefs and values through representations in a personal, social and cultural context for a specific purpose
Character
- the characteristics and motivations of fictional and non-fictional identities portrayed through the manipulation of physicality, voice, costumes and props and using direction, design or actuality
Settings
- the chosen or constructed environment and the impact of that environment on situations and characters
Genre conventions
- the established and accepted system for constructing and deconstructing meaning in a particular form or style
Points of view
- perceiving and constructing stories and ideas from an alternative, objective or subjective perspective
Media conventions
- manipulating techniques within established media forms to create new and hybrid media artworks
Representation: The act of representing or constructing a character, place, idea or image based on shared social values and beliefs
•All forms of media are representations or or constructions of
•character
•place
•idea
•or image
•based on shared social values and beliefs
Languages: elements of media arts (technical & symbolic) = codes and conventions
Composition
- the manipulation and combination of the technical and symbolic elements in images, sounds and text to affect audience expectation and experience through the control of production
Time
- the manipulation of the experience and perception of time through the ordering, duration and depiction of actions, ideas and events
Space
- the depiction of place and environment through the manipulation of subjects, objects, sounds or text and the surrounding or negative space in a two- or three-dimensional context
Sound
- manipulation of sounds, voice, dialogue, music and motifs for impact and effect
Movement
- the expression, perception and depiction of moving action and rhythm or design flow for effect
- the design of navigation and interaction with images and text
- the creation of movement through sound, continuity and rhythm
Lighting
- intensity and quality of light, shadow and colour to create surface, perspective, highlighting and atmosphere
Technologies
- designing, manipulating, editing and producing images, sounds and text or a combination of these using selected media technologies, processes and equipment
Audience
- analyse the ways audiences make meaning and how a range of audiences engage, interact and share different media artworks
Film terms glossary
‘SWAT’ codes – symbolic, written, audio and technical – [along with concepts such as mise‐en‐scene]
Juxtaposition
- in a film, the contiguous positioning of either two images, characters, objects, or two scenes in sequence, in order to compare and contrast them, or establish a relationship between them; see also sequence, symmetry, and composition.
Jump Cut
- an abrupt, disorienting transitional device in the middle of a continuous shot in which the action is noticeably advanced in time and/or cut between two similar scenes, either done accidentally (a technical flaw or the result of bad editing) or purposefully (to create discontinuity for artistic effect)
Motif
refers to a recurrent thematic element in a film that is repeated in a significant way or pattern; examples of motifs - a symbol, stylistic device, image, object, word, spoken phrase, line, or sentence within a film that points to a theme.
Insert Shot
a shot that occurs in the middle of a larger scene or shot, usually a close-up of some detail or object, that draws audience attention, provides specific information, or simply breaks up the film sequence (e.g., a quivering hand above a gun holster in a Western, a wristwatch face, a letter, a doorbell button, a newspaper headline, a calendar, a clock face); an insert shot is filmed from a different angle and/or focal length from the master shot
Institutions: individuals, communities and organisations
- the social and cultural contexts, both locally and globally, shaping purpose and processes to produce media artworks
- the social and ethical role and behaviour of individuals, communities and organisations making, using and sharing media artworks, and the associated regulatory issues in a networked culture.
Institutions: The organisations that enable and constrain media production and use
Documentary: The documentary genre has radically evolved in recent years and so it's not a surprise that there may be some confusion about "what exactly is a documentary!". A documentary is a broad term to describe a non-fiction movie that in some way "documents" or captures reality. Documentaries are often used to reveal an unusual, interesting or unknown angle. Topics are limited only by one's imagination.
Auteur Theory: There are three premises to 'auteur' theory: the technical competence of the director, the director's distinguishable personality and interior meaning. He says that three concentric circles can represent the three premises, of which the outer one represents technique, the middle one - individual style and the inner one - interior meaning. The director's interrelated roles can be designated as the roles of the technician, stylist (metteur en scene) and the 'auteur' respectively.
Relevant DRAMA CONCEPTS
Freeze-frame: a frozen image created by an actor, or a group of actors, that can be a symbolic, or a naturalistic interpretation of a scene, emotion, character, theme, photograph etc.
Tableau or tableaux: a situation where a group of actors hold a pose. In drama, tableaux can be used to bring story points to life or capture moments in time.
Representation and story principles
Structure
- developing ideas and story structures through the manipulation of media and genre conventions for a specific audience experience and expectation
Intent
- constructing and communicating ideas, beliefs and values through representations in a personal, social and cultural context for a specific purpose
Character
- the characteristics and motivations of fictional and non-fictional identities portrayed through the manipulation of physicality, voice, costumes and props and using direction, design or actuality
Settings
- the chosen or constructed environment and the impact of that environment on situations and characters
Genre conventions
- the established and accepted system for constructing and deconstructing meaning in a particular form or style
Points of view
- perceiving and constructing stories and ideas from an alternative, objective or subjective perspective
Media conventions
- manipulating techniques within established media forms to create new and hybrid media artworks
Representation: The act of representing or constructing a character, place, idea or image based on shared social values and beliefs
•All forms of media are representations or or constructions of
•character
•place
•idea
•or image
•based on shared social values and beliefs
Languages: elements of media arts (technical & symbolic) = codes and conventions
Composition
- the manipulation and combination of the technical and symbolic elements in images, sounds and text to affect audience expectation and experience through the control of production
Time
- the manipulation of the experience and perception of time through the ordering, duration and depiction of actions, ideas and events
Space
- the depiction of place and environment through the manipulation of subjects, objects, sounds or text and the surrounding or negative space in a two- or three-dimensional context
Sound
- manipulation of sounds, voice, dialogue, music and motifs for impact and effect
Movement
- the expression, perception and depiction of moving action and rhythm or design flow for effect
- the design of navigation and interaction with images and text
- the creation of movement through sound, continuity and rhythm
Lighting
- intensity and quality of light, shadow and colour to create surface, perspective, highlighting and atmosphere
Technologies
- designing, manipulating, editing and producing images, sounds and text or a combination of these using selected media technologies, processes and equipment
Audience
- analyse the ways audiences make meaning and how a range of audiences engage, interact and share different media artworks
Film terms glossary
‘SWAT’ codes – symbolic, written, audio and technical – [along with concepts such as mise‐en‐scene]
Juxtaposition
- in a film, the contiguous positioning of either two images, characters, objects, or two scenes in sequence, in order to compare and contrast them, or establish a relationship between them; see also sequence, symmetry, and composition.
Jump Cut
- an abrupt, disorienting transitional device in the middle of a continuous shot in which the action is noticeably advanced in time and/or cut between two similar scenes, either done accidentally (a technical flaw or the result of bad editing) or purposefully (to create discontinuity for artistic effect)
Motif
refers to a recurrent thematic element in a film that is repeated in a significant way or pattern; examples of motifs - a symbol, stylistic device, image, object, word, spoken phrase, line, or sentence within a film that points to a theme.
Insert Shot
a shot that occurs in the middle of a larger scene or shot, usually a close-up of some detail or object, that draws audience attention, provides specific information, or simply breaks up the film sequence (e.g., a quivering hand above a gun holster in a Western, a wristwatch face, a letter, a doorbell button, a newspaper headline, a calendar, a clock face); an insert shot is filmed from a different angle and/or focal length from the master shot
Institutions: individuals, communities and organisations
- the social and cultural contexts, both locally and globally, shaping purpose and processes to produce media artworks
- the social and ethical role and behaviour of individuals, communities and organisations making, using and sharing media artworks, and the associated regulatory issues in a networked culture.
Institutions: The organisations that enable and constrain media production and use
Documentary: The documentary genre has radically evolved in recent years and so it's not a surprise that there may be some confusion about "what exactly is a documentary!". A documentary is a broad term to describe a non-fiction movie that in some way "documents" or captures reality. Documentaries are often used to reveal an unusual, interesting or unknown angle. Topics are limited only by one's imagination.
Auteur Theory: There are three premises to 'auteur' theory: the technical competence of the director, the director's distinguishable personality and interior meaning. He says that three concentric circles can represent the three premises, of which the outer one represents technique, the middle one - individual style and the inner one - interior meaning. The director's interrelated roles can be designated as the roles of the technician, stylist (metteur en scene) and the 'auteur' respectively.
Relevant DRAMA CONCEPTS
Freeze-frame: a frozen image created by an actor, or a group of actors, that can be a symbolic, or a naturalistic interpretation of a scene, emotion, character, theme, photograph etc.
Tableau or tableaux: a situation where a group of actors hold a pose. In drama, tableaux can be used to bring story points to life or capture moments in time.
Media are constructed from combining five systems of communication
(5 semiotic systems)
Linguistic
Visual
Colour
placement, saturation, tone, media, opacity, transparency
Texture
tactile memory
Line
quality, type, actual or implied, angles
Shape
visual outline
Form/juxtaposition
boundaries and relationships
Point of view
Artist or viewer
Framing
cropping, close-up, medium or long shot
Focus
sharp or soft
Lighting
soft, bright, subdued, dull, spotlighting and direction
Editing
speed/pace, transitions, storytelling, parallel cutting, inserts
placement, saturation, tone, media, opacity, transparency
Texture
tactile memory
Line
quality, type, actual or implied, angles
Shape
visual outline
Form/juxtaposition
boundaries and relationships
Point of view
Artist or viewer
Framing
cropping, close-up, medium or long shot
Focus
sharp or soft
Lighting
soft, bright, subdued, dull, spotlighting and direction
Editing
speed/pace, transitions, storytelling, parallel cutting, inserts
Spacial
Position in space
left - right /top - bottom / centre - margin/
foreground (close) - background (far)
Orientation
angle
high - low - eyeline / front - back / straight - skewed
Framing
selection and focus
left - right /top - bottom / centre - margin/
foreground (close) - background (far)
Orientation
angle
high - low - eyeline / front - back / straight - skewed
Framing
selection and focus
Audio
Volume and audibility
loudness, softness
Pitch
High or soft or variations
Pace
fast, slow, phrasing, use of silence
Use of voice
modulation, articulation, timbre, intonation (pitch), stress
projection (audibility)
loudness, softness
Pitch
High or soft or variations
Pace
fast, slow, phrasing, use of silence
Use of voice
modulation, articulation, timbre, intonation (pitch), stress
projection (audibility)
Gestural
Body contact
type, position of contact, touch
Proximity
space between objects and between people
Orientation/body position
how bodies relate to other bodies
Appearance
face and body shape, hair style, complexion/colouring, clothing, jewellery/accessories, make up, props
Head nods
angle, tilt and number
Facial expression
eyebrows, eyes, shape and position of mouth, nostrils
Kinesics
movements of head, arms, hands, legs, feet
Posture
the ways a person stands, sits, lays
Gaze and eyemovement
where and how gaze is directed
type, position of contact, touch
Proximity
space between objects and between people
Orientation/body position
how bodies relate to other bodies
Appearance
face and body shape, hair style, complexion/colouring, clothing, jewellery/accessories, make up, props
Head nods
angle, tilt and number
Facial expression
eyebrows, eyes, shape and position of mouth, nostrils
Kinesics
movements of head, arms, hands, legs, feet
Posture
the ways a person stands, sits, lays
Gaze and eyemovement
where and how gaze is directed
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