Ill Manors music video

1) Media forms

How is it typical of a music video?

Immediately from this video we can apply Medhursts theory of stereotyping with people in the video being from council estates and causing damage to peoples property. This video just reinforces peoples negative stereotypes against people from council estates. Also the use of montage editing fits the profile for a music video as it is typically fast paced and includes various different shots to help establish some sort of narrative. Moreover, the props and costumes are appropriate for the type of genre and medhursts theory can also be applied here because of the costumes worn here the audience may think that young people or people who dress like this are going to exhibit antisocial behaviour. 

Furthermore, this is typical of a music video because it features the artist who wrote the song and the film as well as featuring characters from the film. Also the song and video was inspired by the London riots and actual footage was taken from that as well as politicians in the news for various but usually negative reasons. This links to levi Straus's theory on representation and ideologies as the people in the video and in reality from council estates tend to share the dominant ideology that all politicians are bad, however the middle class and beyond have the opposite dominant ideology and that is that 'chavs' are bad and disrespectful.

2)Media representation

How does it represent London riots/rioters?

In this music video we see scenes from the real London riots and staged ones. The use of establishing shots in the beginning of the music video (to show London "burning") makes you see the full scale of violence that was caused. This music video therefore shows a negative representation of London as it is not what the rest of the world and un-informed domestic audiences see London as, they see it as a place of wealth and tourism and are unaware that it is surrounded by these council estates which are all assumed to be bad because of shorthand stereotypes linked to Medhursts theory.

The rioters are also represented in this music video but as the way most people would expect to see them as you wouldn't expect to see a middle class white man joining in in the London riots and this reinforces that. The reason why we see the rioters as "chavs" and people on "council estates" is because these representations are formed from the ideologies that have been passed down form the opinion leaders which are usually the government and higher class white people. This links to Levi Strauss's theory on representation and ideology. Strauss also wrote about the producer of the text holding the set of values and beliefs but this doesn't link well with what Plan B may have been trying to communicate as his views of the politicians in the music video are overshadowed by the erratic violence caused by the rioters which he is saying is the government's fault. As a result we may see Plan B being hypocritical as what he is trying to resolve may cause further violence as he is showing what fun could be had of looting and rioting.

In this music video we see two types of people being represented in their own way by one opinion leader; Plan B. He states that on the one hand the politicians are the blame for the behaviour of the misguided youth which was a big factor in the riots but on the other hand the music video also portrays the group of people he is standing up for and representing as negative. Although true what he says about politicians never listening it contradicts himself and the people represented in the video as it shows stereotypes that are true about them. All together the way London is represented and the way the rioters were represented is done in a way to scapegoat the government as multiple people were to blame for the riots but the rioters were unable to accept responsibility.This idea of binary opposition is featured in music video but the audience will be split on who is good and who is evil between the politicians and the rioters which are frequently shown throughout the video. 

3) Media audiences 

What audience pleasures does the video offer?

The gratification that can be seen the most is personal identity as Plan b's audience would consist mainly of people in the c1/2 and lower bracket of social classes. With personal identity many people in the social class brackets can see themselves represented in the video and agree with the lyrics. Also the behaviour in the video can be similar to what some of the people in real life do and this just reinforces bad behaviour. This also links to the two-step flow model in which people will tend to listen to opinion leaders and a major one would be Plan B and his audience will often take in what he says without really thinking about it.

Because of this specific audience different groups of people will get different feelings about this music video. For example the groups in the lower part of the socio-economic classifications would get different pleasures out of this video than middle/higher class citizens. For example an 18 year old male may feel like Plan B is communicating with him directly due to the direct address and because he may idolise him as an artist making him and his loyal fan audience followers from an opinion leader. This is based on the two step flow model which also suggests that the opinion leader (Plan B) is influenced by the mass media but in this case we see it being subverted as Plan B doesn't seem to follow what the media says, especially about the working and lower classes.

Media institutions 

How does the music video help to promote the film?

Firstly, there is lots of evidence of synergy between the video and the film including the use of characters from the film in the music video for example Chris is featured in both as a kingpin. Moreover, As an act of moral panic, the way that the news companies portray the youth is a way to create moral panic. The London Riots was a form of moral panic as there was a lot of rebellious actions and a lot of injured people which cause the streets of London to call for serious action on penalties and precautions for those that tried to harm and those who were innocent. A moral panic that much of society is afraid of is that youths and youngsters will run the streets of London making it less safe and becoming more out of control however, this hasn't and is less likely to happen.

Ill Manors broadcast

Ill Manors broadcast 

2) Plan B talks about the youth being ignored by society which leads to them having no respect for authority.
I think that the audience are not of which Plan B is used to
may have felt ignored by society
poetry being a powerful tool in his fight for his opinion
reference to the word "chav", showed a strong dislike towards it
comes from hard backgrounds with dysfunctional families
they didn't respect anyone else's authority

3)Plan B's ideology/political ideas

Looking at Plan B's songs you could say that they are quite political and you can really see how he's trying to show off the negatives of his and others community to show the harsh reality to what needs changing and what the politicians are ignoring. In his song Ill Manors he makes references to certain politicians in particular which shows his aversion to the government. A quote that Plan B had in his film Ill Manors "we are all products of our environment" is quite significant as it shows not all environments are the same and he believes the one he came from and which so many other are coming from is not stable enough to support these humans as it will just turn them out how everyone sees them as thugs and "chavs" but the believes more can be done to help the environment that they come from.

4)The target audience is unusual in this case as a typical Ted audience would be for people that fit into the psychographic group of aspires and explorers and they may not be Plan B's typical audience as some of the groups that may fit into is struggler's who aren't necessarily an audience for Ted lectures, however this could be good as the people at the Tedx lecture would need to be ones educated about this matter so they don't just see one side of what the mass media has to say and stereotype they can hear it first hand and un-changed. I think that that a usual demographic for Ted lecture may be a higher percentage of females, roughly 55/45% or 60/40%. You could also suggest that the audience may be slightly older, approximately around the 40-50 mark, this is because they may just have more spare time and be more interested in new topics than younger people.

Learner response to mest 1 exam

The Grade: 29-C

WWW:A solid set of well-organised that mainly focus on the questions. You are not far off the top grades.

EBI: Lack of depth and detail is keeping you out of the top grades. Need wide variety of responses with detailed responses to the text.

Question 3 re-write:

Family is represented as a seatbelt as they physically act to save the man by wrapping their arms around him but this is also an emotional seatbelt as they will stay with him as comfort for after the crash.

Furthermore, gender stereotypes are seen in this clip with the male of the family driving the car and the two females taking a back seat and ending up saving him. Moreover, Richard Dyers power stereotyping theory is also applicable to this clip as there is no real negative stereotype against the white male driving the car. This is also seen as quite traditional with families all over the globe with the father driving and accompanied by a partner and child who protect each other.

Another, way that family is represented in the clip is by being portrayed as protection. This is evident when the wife and daughter both wrap their arms in around the father/husbands body. This personification of the hands being represented as seatbelts really delivers a strong message to the consumer/audience who watch this video/clip. This clip follows Dyers family line of appeal as the audience will feel as if they want to be protected by family and this falls under the category of family in the 13 lines of appeal. Moreover, the clip counters the stereotype as it is the man who is being saved by the woman and girl. Traditionally, in the stereotypes, it is the man who is the saviours, but in this clip it is the women who are saving the man. In addition, the young wears a 'fairy' outfit which connotes that she's the rescuer who is going to save the man. Overall, the clip represents family as a form of unity and holds a strong bond with one another.

ill manours TRAILER review

1) Trailer conventions
-Institutional information, actors/directors, studio/production company
- Title (at end of the film) also the release date
-narrative-disequilibrium, characters
-action sequences/ dramatic moments, action codes
-voice over/ text on screen to establish narrative
-promotional information via social media links
-reviews and quotes
-tag line

2) How are trailers distributed
- typically we can see trailers being shown in cinemas before films but now-a-days trailers are shown and shared via social media such as links on twitter and instagram directing you to you tube video. Also trailers are shown via adverts in between tv shows.

3) How does the Ill Manors trailer use trailer conventions?
-The ill manors trailer features several conventions such as review quotes eg: from 'Time out' also it features the may of the characters but none in detail and it throws the audience off a bit by showing more about 'Kurby and Chris' but in the actual film Ed and Aron are the main protagonists. Moreover, there are many action codes with guns being pointed at different people. There are also social Media links shown at the end as well as the release date. Dialogue from the film is also used to give the audience a better understanding of the narrative.

4)Who is the target audience? Does it have a unique selling point or use particular techniques to appeal to the audience? Consider the way the scenes are edited together – does the trailer give away any clues about the narrative? Are the main stars visible in the trailer? Is there information about the director of the film? Is there information about the release date? Is a narrator’s voice-over used? Why?

-(some points mentioned in previous bullet point) the target audience would be from 16 although the film is rated 18 the violence would attract a younger teenage audience. In terms of the narrative the trailer doesn't give much away as the different scenes are put together in a montage and the audience doesn't understand the connection between the scenes just from the trailer. Plan B's music is played in the background which is kind of a narrative because the songs relate to the film.In my opinion I think that the target audience for this film trailer should be between 13-30, however it may not be suitable for the younger ages as their is a lot of gratuitous violence and inappropriate scenes and themes including the prostitution side of the film, gang culture/violence and drug abuse. For these reason I would expect the BBFC rating would be at least an 18 rating, this would be based on the sexual references, violence and frequent bad language.

Almost all of the main characters and ones featured in the film are in the trailer, making it hard to see who would be the protagonist, however the use of slow-motion and super 8 editing on some of the clips could have been used to show some of the main characters in more detail and their past. I think that the unique selling point (USP) for this film is that it is relate-able and endorsed by celebrities such as Plan B, the director of the film. This would also help appeal to the films specific target audiences as Plan B is successful in the eyes of young teens and adults who follow his music.
5) How has the genre of the film been represented through characters, settings, lighting, colour, music/dialogue, camera shots/movements/angles and editing?

- The genre of the film is modern/urban crime and with it being urban its set in the most densely populated cities in England-London. It focuses more on the backstreets of  London which help emphasise the genre. Furthermore, various social classes are represented here with canary wharf being seen in the distance of several shots suggesting people in the a/b bracket are separated from people in the c1 bracket, and this is where the film is set in council estates. Also the council estates reinforce the genre of modern crime because the media often associates crime to be sourced from low-income areas which although does occur is exaggerated.

Moreover, the dialogue is significant in establishing the genre because the colloquial language of east London is specific to that area and makes it seem more urban and authentic. Also, the film addresses many modern issues through the dialogue and filming such as prostitution and poverty. The colours are simple with mainly dark colours produced from a constant gloomy sky. Also,  in the film trailer we see the use of many close-ups, for example the close up of the cocaine which is edited in a which show off how someone may feel after taking it as it looked quite grainy almost like a super 8 film. Also there is some black and white footage in the trailer, this then leaves the audience to speculate what the genre could be as it would've been a new twist on a modern crime dramas.

Institutional context

1) There are several tests needed before a film can culturally class as British:  Cultural context eg, If the film is set in the UK, cultural contribution so reflecting British culture, cultural hubs so the post-production will be British such as the music and cultural practitioners, which include screenwriters and producers being British.

3.The main problem for the British film industry is that British film distributors cannot afford to finance and provide synergy for the film so they may then end up becoming bankrupt. Bigger Hollywood distributors are able to sell the film in North America and internationally as they are usually part of a conglomerate so can provide synergy between businesses. Also, big named American actors are drafted in so that there is an appeal for people to watch the films even though they are British.



4.The three strengths of the British Film industry is that they have outstanding facilities and that is has outstanding creative skills presented from its Directors, this is evident from films like Twelve years a slave which was directed by someone British



5.As funding is hard to come by British film productions may have to co-produce their films with American companies in-order to get the essential funding and distribution needed. They may also need to produce smaller budget films aimed at a primarily British nice audiences for it to show off cultural balance and typical British societies.



6.If the British film industry were to side with their American counterparts then i believe some spectacular Hollywood like action films may be produced but they may also want to show off of Britains typical cultures that the rest of the world want to see, such as our Royalty and old heritage.

film review

Review

(film planning not posting)

Ill Manor is an Urban-crime drama set in East London, there are two central protagonists, Ed Skrein 

and Riz Ahemd. Specifically in East London it was set in Forest Green which made a suitable location to film because of the dilapidated buildings and streets alike.  The film was written and directed by musician Plan B who had previously written a film called ‘Michelle’ which was about the prostitute who acted in the feature length version ‘Ill Manors’. This film also has a tracklist created by plan B.

Ill Manors starts with a drug deal and just drugs in general being shown throughout the film. Ed and Riz are on a corner selling drugs when the police intervene and Ed is kept over night in a cell, Although the Police were prevalent at the beginning throughout the rest of the movie they cease to exist until the end when the Russians are raided by armed police. For many people in Britain who live normal lives they wouldn’t have seen drugs being sold or used and for a small (ish) area, drug use is a little exaggerated. This is also the case for the amount of violence and gun crime, seeming as firearms are illegal to own in the UK a lot of people seem to have them as though they are toys. The film is said to reflect social-realism, granted in many scenes it does however the violence is over-exaggerated for a London area.

The film has an accompanying soundtrack with 28 songs all created by director Plan B. The songs that feature in the movie were explicitly created for it and the lyrics talk about the events going on in the scene in a little more detail than what the scene will initially give. The film was inspired by the London riots in 2011 which were very vivid and this gave the writer lots to put in the script as well as the songs. The album is a ‘cross promotion’ with the film because plan B’s musical audience are being pointed towards his film and the people watching his film are being directed towards his music.

The film is fairly low budget but managed to rake in a profit of over £400,000 in the 8 weeks that it was in the British box-office. Plan B managed to save money by hiring some pretty un-heard of cast members, there was only a couple of actors that have a higher profile- Riz Ahmed who has featured in many other films such as nightcrawler ect… and Ed Skreins who his plan B’s childhood friend and acted in a short film made by plan B prior to Ill Manors. Theses two actors were also the main protagonists and throughout the film the audiences opinion changes of them as in the beginning Ed can be seen as a villain and a thug but towards the end the audiemce will be more sympathetic towards his as he gives his own life to save a babies life. Moreover, throughout the film Aron played by Riz is seen as a compassionate ‘drug dealer’ as where others may not think twice about doing something wrong Riz would do the opposite as he felt sorry for the girl being prostituted and took care for the baby when the mother left it on the train, and despite selling it (which was as a result of Ed)  he went back to retrieve it which shows to the audience that he has a sense of right and wrong.

The target audience for this film, in my opinion would be from 15-25 despite it being rated an 18 by the bbfc. It was also made for an Art house audience but not a typical middle class/ middle aged white audience but a newer type of audience who could relate to the situations in the film. It may be equally suitable for male and female, however it may be a more predominantly male audience due to the violence and rap music which is usually associated with boys. This film is also more suited for a British audience as it is a fully British film and funded by British money (Micro Wave films London).Audiences may also see London of a place to avoid, this is because there were various shots of characters around the new olympic park in 2012 (the time that it was filmed) so people may have been put off to see how much violence there actually was around a highly protected sporting event.

BFI factsheet

1) A British film is made of things not wholeheartedly British but contains mostly of things that are, for instance a film does not need to be filmed entirely in Britain but needs to contain a British cast and crew, including director and funding.

2) The most significant difference between 'hollywood' and a British production would be the budget as Hollywood films would have a large budget whereas a British production would typically have a much lower budget.

3) The James Bond franchise started in the 1960's.

4) From the 70's and 80's sexual content became much more prominent in British films and as a result censorship in the forms of age ratings dependent on the violence and sexual content.

5) In British film youth are regularly represented typically in a council housing estate and gang related, this is evident in films such as 'attack the block'. Moreover women are frequently mentioned in British film often in a sexual way for instance in 'confessions of a window cleaner'.

6) The factsheet implies that people may want to view British film for British culture as they can almost see an interpretation of their own lives in the film.