NARRATIVE AND CAUSALITY (Lessons 3+4 of 7 on Narrative)

In a moving image text sequences are joined together in a pattern/ chain which is called causality one thing leads to another, which leads to another. For example, as you watch any film you should be able to plot the pattern of causality throughout it, watching a structure develop of events providing the seeds for other events throughout the narrative. We naturally try to connect the events to make sense of what is happening, to see a line of cause and effect. Certain shots in a certain order can create different moods and atmospheres, to help build a picture in our minds.

The Kuleshov Experiment For the 1920s Russian film-maker Lev Kuleshov, the essence of narrative cinema was editing, the juxtaposition of one shot with another. To illustrate this principle, he created what has come to be known as the Kuleshov Experiment. In this now-famous editing exercise, shots of an actor were inter-cut with various meaningful images (a casket with a dead woman inside, a bowl of soup, a child, and so on) in order to show how editing changes viewers' interpretations of images. The audience interpreted the actors expressions as being sad, hungry, affectionate, even though the actors expression never changed. This is because our brains try to make continuative sense of what we see. The placing together of images is called montage.

NARRATIVE AND IDEOLOGY

As we have discussed with regards to Genre... Ideology is the thoughts, ideas and beliefs of a text in short, what the text is trying to say: Jaws nature is dangerous Trainspotting anti-heroin Fatal Attraction anti-single women

The last example is depressingly common i.e. the problem is a woman that has to be sorted out. In Victorian times most novels ended with the loose ends being tied up and the problems resolved by a marriage. this was the ultimate solution for their society. How will people look back at 90s society which is represented in films which end with the violent deaths of women who were different as in Fatal Attraction and Thelma and Louise. Ideology is a key concept of the A2 so remember that the examiner will notice if you do not mention ideology All media products have an ideology Look at the representation of main character in Twilight: The shots used (soft focus close ups), mise-en-scene (brooding alone in dark empty settings/ looking longingly), editing (quick/ abrupt to highlight the elusive mysterious nature of the character), soundtrack (emo/ introspective indie), lighting (low key/ chiaroscuro effect to suggest duality of personality) etc. all reinforce the idea of Edward as a misunderstood outsider and therefore helps inform the films ideology: THE IDEOLOGY OF (ADOLESCENT) DESIRE/ WAITING/ YEARNING FOR TRUE LOVE The examiner will not be looking for a right answer - They will simply be impressed to see that you are thinking ideologically and that whatever point of view you take, you are able to back it up with the detail of your analysis. Here are some common ideologies that are used in media products: THE IDEOLOGY OF FAMILY AND FAMILY VALUES Ideally children should grow up with two married heterosexual parents and one or two brothers and sisters Marriage is the ideal kind of relationship Sex outside of marriage is a bad thing, particularly when it is casual THE IDEOLOGY OF MATERIALISM/ CONSUMERISM Buying things and having lots of money are ways to achieve happiness THE IDEOLOGY OF WORK ETHIC Hard work is not just a way of becoming successful, but it is a good thing in itself. Those who choose not to work hard should be looked down on work shy layabouts THE IDEOLOGY OF SELF DETERMINATION People should not rely on anyone else or society to help them through life, they should achieve things for themselves It is quite possible for anyone to be successful if they are willing to try THE IDEOLOGY OF DEFERENCE We should have respect for those who are in authority over us. THE IDEOLOGY OF SEXUAL DIFFERENCE Women and men have very different abilities in almost everything they do. In general the abilities of men are greater when it really matters. ACTIVITY 1: BRIEFLY SUMMISE THE IDEOLOGY OF YOUR OPENING SEQUENCE PRODUCTION FROM THE AS:

FILM TRAILER PRODUCTION FOR THE A2:

Little Red Riding Hood:

EQUILIBRIUM (Todorov) or ACT ONE Setup (Field) A state of equilibrium in the calm world of the home as Little Red Riding Hood is given a task to perform and an instruction keep to the path and dont talk to strangers. The moral of that we should listen to our parents. DISEQUILIBRIUM (Todorov) or ACT TWO Confrontation (Field) Little Red Riding Hood meets a wolf in the forest and decides to trust him. The technique of dramatic irony is used here because we know that she is in danger, but she doesnt. This reinforces a second moral that nature is dangerous NEW EQUILIBRIUM (Todorov) or ACT THREE Resolution (Field) Little Red Riding Hood is saved by the woodcutter, this reinforces the moral that children should rely on adults and introduces a new one that men are stronger than women and can protect them. These morals which would be either consciously or subconsciously learned by the audience of the fairy tale are what we call ideology. Criticism could be focused on the passivity of young girls in fairy tales waiting to be rescued (e.g. Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel), the encoded binaries in a text that equate beauty with goodness (Attractive is good/ Ugly is bad), the representation of evil stepmothers (family values), and the closures which seal a girl's dependency on a prince (sexual difference). The narrative of a story, whether they be fairy tales or television programmes is a kind of journey that the audience go through where every important point in the narrative reinforces the ideological message of the story.

Activity 2:
i.

What are the Binary Oppositions in Little Red Riding Hood? VS. VS. VS. VS. VS.

ii.

What is the ideology of Pinocchio?

ACTIVITY 3: GET INTO YOUR GROUPS AND CONTINUE TO PLAN/ PHOTOGRAPH/ EDIT YOUR STOP-MOTION ANIMATION WHICH MUST INCLUDE AT LEAST ONE OF THE NARRATIVE THEORIES WE HAVE COVERED IN CLASS SO FAR e.g. Todorovs Equilibrium Levi-Strauss Binary Oppositions Fields Three Act Plot Structure CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING Materials required Equipment needed Sketches/ rough storyboard Time scale (15-20 seconds max) No. of frames required WHEN YOU HAVE THAT DONE Photograph your sequence Edit it Add sound track USE THE SPACE BELOW FOR NOTES