The Use of Representation

The use of representation is extremely important in the world of media. It is what allows companies to have long lasting impacts on their audience through various factors such as color, sound, gender, race, sexuality, religion, different styles, and so much more. Today, I will be discussing the use of representation and its importance in two commercials from the company's H&M and Axe.





First, let’s go over what is happening in this brands commercial. In this 2006 ad from Axe, hundreds of women of different races in bikinis are depicted charging through the wild. These women's physical features fit society's beauty standard at the time. As seen a few more seconds in, they are running towards a white male using the new Axe body spray with a grin across his face. There are a multitude of slow motion shots of the women's breasts as they continue to run his way up until the very last few seconds of the commercial. Now that we have established what is shown in the commercial, let’s explain how the use of representation is used and how it is impacting the audience.


The male seen using the spray is starting to smile as he sees the amount of women running towards him. He starts to aggressively spray more and more as the women appear causing him to indulge in their presence. The men watching this at home are being shown that if they use this spray, huge quantities of women will be attracted to them. This is emphasized by all of the different ethnicities of women depicted. The satisfaction on his face is also demonstrating to them males watching that this should be their all time goal.


The male audience isn’t the only one being influenced here as the women are also being affected. The women in this commercial are automatically seen as animalistic and showing that their utmost desire is to be with the man using the spray. This commercial is degrading and dehumanizing towards the women as it insinuates that they are only valued for their physical features and sexual prowess. It also illustrates the concept of women serving men in society. The unrealistic beauty standards shown can have severe effects on the females of all ages watching at home as they begin to internalize the idea that they are only valued for their physical beauty and that they should be competing with others for a man.


Overall, the use of representation in this commercial can have severe negative effects on its audience. It was insensitive to its audience.





This brands commercial is in polarity with the first. This ad depicts an enormous array of people showing off clothes from the brand in different places. They included a person narrating the ad encouraging individuals to step out and be themselves. Unlike the first commercial, this ad is one of the most inclusive I have ever seen as it uses representation to display people of all different sizes, ages, genders, ethnicities, class, styles, and more.


This use of representation has a positive impact on its viewers as it is encouraging them to dress how they want and show off their personality to the world. The use of various kinds of people is emphasizing that no matter who you are or where you come from, do not be afraid to do what you want. This ad utilized the power of representation to the fullest and is instilling a message of love to people everywhere.


After completing this analysis, my only message to my readers is to use the second ad as a role model and to be inclusive. :)

Thriller Research

    What's a thriller? Being that it is still Spooky Season, I feel that thrillers are the perfect genre to research and talk about on a deeper level.

    Thrillers are the one of the most popular genres for a reason. Although feeling scared and confused may not seem so appealing, these movies find a way to leave their audience wanting more. This genre's target audience are those 18+ due to them being more capable of understanding the disturbing content better than those of younger age groups. They also are described as thrill seekers, making these movies and shows perfect for them.

    Some of a thrillers content: A thriller consists of various sub genres including action thrillers, crime thrillers, and my personal favorite, psychological thrillers. This genre of film is characterized by the mood and emotion that is reflected from the screen on to the audience. More specifically, feelings of suspense, excitement, anxiety, fear, anticipation, confusion, and so much more. The incorporation of these emotions is extremely important as it leaves people on the edge of their seats. This creates a sensation of curiosity that is simply irresistible.

    A good movie example of this is the movie Jaws directed by Steven Spielberg. This film has a very well driven plot as it follows the story of a town being invaded by a gigantic killer shark. The shark is a beast killing innocent people and it was up to the protagonists to capture him. Spielberg wanted to make the viewers feel the fear of the townspeople and build suspense throughout the movie. He wound up succeeding as Jaws is one of the most famous movies of all time.

    Viewers enjoy this kind of content because of the emotional rollercoaster that the plot takes them on. The audience gets to play the guessing game of what will happen next and feel fear in a controlled manner. It leaves people wanting more and for this reason, it is one of the most popular film genres to date. Now let’s dig a little deeper.

   Some production techniques: At a foundational level, thrillers pose a series of questions that the audience expects to be answered and the suspense is the anticipation for that answer. This kind of film requires a variety of production techniques to perfect so let’s talk about a few of them.

    One major technique is sound. Sound is used to build suspense and keep the viewers on the edge of their seat as well as giving goosebumps and intensifying scenes. Many directors like to include a famous sound illusion that is referred to as a Shephard tone in their productions. Shepard Tone is a popular illusion that creates a constant feeling of rising/falling in the pitch of a soundtrack. It is also referred to as a barber pole because it looks like it is always going up but in reality it is not. It is utilized in many films to induce feelings of anxiety and stress to manipulate the audience not only mentally but physically as well. Directors like Christopher Nolan and composers like Hans Zimmer have become synonymous with this method to give their audiences adrenaline and make their films more intense. It can be seen in many films such as  The Dark Knight and Interstellar.

    Another popular production technique is the editing of the scenes as well as the camera angles used in them. Film makers like those mentioned above, like to use fast and rhythmic cuts in their films to increase the pace of what's going on. This translates on to the audience by keeping their attention grabbed. The quick cuts emphasize the high amount of energy in the scenes as well as making the events seem more chaotic. They also like to focus a lot on the kinds of camera angles they are using. Popular ones include over the shoulder shots to show something the protagonist may not see yet along with close ups to convey the characters emotions better to the audience; usually those such as fear, stress, confusion, etc.These techniques work to manipulate the audience's emotions by again keeping them on edge.

    Its marketing: All of these techniques for creating thrillers would be useless if the movies are not marketed correctly to their target audience. Directors have to conduct research to ensure their productions include all the elements possible that will attract consumers. Popular ways that movies are marketed are on TV on commercial breaks and in previews in theaters. When campaigning movies, directors need to make sure that the trailers have all the components necessary to attract viewers before the release of the movie. Trailers are used to give possible consumers insight on the characters, the setting, tone, and plot of the whole movie without giving away too much. This form of marketing is used to gain enough curiosity from an audience so they invest their money and time into watching the movie.

    Some iconic samples of thrillers:

    The movie Psycho by famous director Alfred Hitchcock is a prime example of what thriller is. This movie follows secretary Marion Crane after stealing money from her employer to run away from her abusive boyfriend. While she was at the Bates  motel, she winds up left alone to die. Hitchcock incorporated a multitude of elements such as sound and suggestive camera angles throughout the film y to ensure that his audience was on the edge of their seats. The combination of these techniques had aided him in creating one of the most famous movies in history. He managed to manipulate the audience's emotions and convey a theme of madness and suspense which is what a thriller is truly about.

    

    The movie Seven is a crime thriller from the mid 90s directed by David Fincher. It follows two detectives that are trying to locate a murderer whose motive comes from the seven deadly sins. Though the movie does not have too much of a deeper meaning, Fincher managed to give the illusion that it has one. One of the main techniques that Fincher incorporated into this piece was Mise En Scene. This movie is very dark and had a lot of low lighting that was used to set an eerie tone for the audience. Fincher made sure to cast shadows against the bright light to create a sense of suspense and anticipation for the viewers. To the viewers, the killer could be lurking anywhere creeping in the darkness. This also works to get the viewers to feel uneasy and work to create the feeling of anxiety within the audience. By leaving the viewers guessing, he leaves them on edge and encompasses what a thriller is all about.

    A few other favorites I HIGHLY recommend :)

Intro

   
Hello! My name is Lorena, but I prefer to be called Lore. I am a senior in high school this year and I am working to finish my AICE diploma. I am currently taking the AICE Media Studies course and I am having a lot of fun with it. We get to learn about the art of films, TV, social media, and so much more. My favorite kinds of films are thrillers, romantic comedies, and action packed ones. This is my first time making a blog so I am excited to share my work as well as my thoughts with you!

I am creating this blog so I can have a platform to document my work for my Media course. This makes it easier for my peers and judges at Cambridge to see my work. I plan to use this as a platform to talk about my progress in my projects as well as my expressing my thoughts on the entertainment industry.

Stick around to learn and grow with me as the year goes on. Everyone is free to comment on my posts and talk to me about anything. Happy to chat with you :)