Suture

Suture is "classical Hollywood narrative and editing 'sutures' or positions the audience in certain ways making only one reading possible, however uncomfortable the audience is of that position.

This is closely linked with Laura Mulvey's feminist theories, and correctly so on many levels.

For example, many films are about murderers and criminals. Sometimes these characters are the focus of the story, and we sympathise with them because of this. However, they are criminals and in normal society they would be imprisoned and dealt with through a punishable system, but we do not side with them in real life.

Take for example the film 'I Love You Philip Morris' starring Jim Carey. He commits fraud and steals numerous times, gets out of jail on several occasions and we as viewers will him to do so. This is Suture, the audience being in a fixed position where it is hard to take an alternative view on what is shown.

Again, this does not relate heavily to our video as it is light-hearted and does not deliver a deep philosophical message. It uses surface level humour and is there for pure enjoyment, nothing deep is to be taken from it and nothing is heavily expressed throughout. This means that suture does not relate to our video.

Reception Theory and Our Music Video

We, as producers, according to this model, have encoded our music video with a message for the audience to decode and receive. The audience will either agree fully with that message by receiving it as preferred or dominant, receive it partially by being negotiated or reject the message by being opposed to it.

As the producer, the message of our video is simple. The song and its lyrics speak of a woman, connected to the singer, who also talks to other men, and perhaps the man's misinterpretation of what she is doing, coming off as jealousy. Therefore, with the semi-serious but upbeat song combine with a jolly light-hearted video, the message is basically:

"Being trusting is better than being jealous, so reserve judgement and be light-hearted about matters for a happier time'

I know it doesn't sound too philosophical, but that's the message :)

This, as the theory says, could be taken one of three ways.

The audience could...:

Receive it as Dominant

This means the audience will agree with this message, perhaps even change their current

behaviour to suit it. This makes the video, in my eyes, more successful as it has been received light-heartedly and perhaps had a positive effect on someone.

Receive it as Negotiated

This means that the audience could refine the message to suit their own views. For example,

someone could pay more attention to the lyrics, or pay particular more attention to the video and receive either the upbeat or the aggressive message more strongly.

Receive it as Oppositional

This means that the audience will totally disregard the message due to cultural, political or idealogical reasons. For example, if a Muslim man heard it, they would most likely be disgusted at the thought of a woman talking to more than one man as their culture forbids it. He will most likely then disregard the message of the whole video.

Reception Theory

Reception Theory addresses how texts are ENCODED by a producer and then DECODED by the audience.

The theory suggests that when a producer constructs a text that it is ENCODED with a message or meaning and this is received and understood by the audience upon its use.

However, sometimes the audience may misunderstand or reject the message given by the text and its producer.

Stuart Hall (the theory's creator) identified three types of Audience Readings (or decoding) of a text:

1. Dominant or Preferred
2. Negotiated
3. Oppositional

Dominant is where the audience decodes the message as the producer wants them to and broadly agrees with it.

E.g. Watching a political speech and agreeing with it.

Negotiated is where the audience accepts, rejects or refines elements of the text in light of previously held views.

E.g Neither agreeing or disagreeing with the political speech or being disinterested.

Oppositional is where the dominant meaning is rejected because of cultural, political or idealogical reasons.

E.g. Total rejection of the political speech and active opposition.

The Uses and Gratifications Model and Our Music Video

This has much more in common with our music video. Our video is much more likely to inspire someone to do something positive than go out and terrorise due to the upbeat and positive nature of the video and the music.

The audience would watch our video to feel better about themselves and to bring a smile to their face, perhaps make them be a bit more light-hearted. Its something you might watch in a family setting for a bit of a giggle. It fulfils this need and will be watched for this purpose.

It helps people to escape their normal everyday lives for 4minutes and 13seconds at a time. Similar to this, I watch a band called 'Ok Go'who make really inventive videos that bring a smile to my face. Below is an example of one of their videos.

I think we would have an affect on audiences the same way as Ok Go does, both videos are imaginative and fun and take you away from what you're doing for 5 minutes to have a breather.

Although our video cannot be used to compare relationships or sexually stimulate a person (unless you're into cross-dressing?) it can be used for other reasons.

It can be used to relax for a short period, or fill up some time if you have a period of waiting at all.

It can help to emotionally satisfy a person; if someone is feeling particularly down a quick view could bring a cheeky smile to a persons face.

Also, and perhaps most crucially, it deals with themes of personal and social identity. The detective is a character that is out of his depth in modern settings and could be described as a social outcast. However, in this video he is cheering up all people who watch. If a person could draw parallels between themselves and the detective, that is a positive attribute that they could apply to themselves. Its an uplifter, and in my opinion is the best part of our video, its uplifting.

The Uses and Gratifications Model

The Uses and Gratifications Model is the opposite to the Effects Model.

The Audience is ACTIVE and USE the text and not the other way round.

The Audience uses the text for its own Gratification or Pleasure.

In this model, the power lies with the audience and not the producers, and it focuses on what audiences do with the text and how and why they use them.

The audience is free to REJECT, USE or PLAY with media meaning a they see fit.

Audiences therefore use media texts to gratify needs for:

• Diversion
• Escapism
• Information
• Pleasure
• Comparing Relationships and Lifestyles with one's own
• Sexual Stimulation

Consumption of the texts helps peoples issues with:

• Learning
• Emotional Satisfaction
• Relaxation
• Help with Issues of Personal Identity
• Help with Issues of Social Identity
• Help with Issues of aggression and violence

Controversially, the theory suggests that the consumption of violent images can be helpful rather than harmful. It also suggests that audiences act out their own impulses through the consumption of media violence. The audiences inclination towards violence is therefore sublimated, and they are less likely to commit violent acts.

For example;

The theory suggests that if a person is feeling especially angry with a colleague, instead of going and hitting them, they could watch 'Die Hard', watch Bruce Willis 'cook a few fools' and their anger would have decreased as they have relinquished their anger by watching the film. This is the total opposite to the Effects Model which suggests they are more likely to then go and give their colleague two black eyes a busted nose.

The Effects Model or Hypodermic Model and Our Music Video

Does this Model relate to our Music Video at all? The answer is Yes, but not by a great deal.

The purpose of our music video is to promote the song by 1984, and we've done this by creating a light-hearted humorous video, and hope that this transfers to the song so as the audience feel the same way and will enjoy it. The Effects Model focuses largely on the negative effects that a media text could have, and ours is simply humorous and fun and doesn't require much deep thought. However, the only way that the audience could receive our video wrongly, and take any of it negatively, is if they took humour too far.

For example;

In our video, the detective is chased by a dog, only for about 3 seconds, but it does happen, and it is meant light-heartedly and to be humorous. This could, however, backfire. If a child with a pet dog saw this and found it really funny that a man in a stupid costume was being chased by a dog, he may try to re-enact the event. The child could perhaps set his dog on a friend simply because he finds it 'fun'. This is the only plausible negative effect that our video could have, in my eyes. Who knows, if it becomes a huge hit we may find out more.

The Effects Model or The Hypodermic Model

This model tells us the consumption of media texts has an EFFECT or INFLUENCE upon the audience.

It is normally considered that this effect is NEGATIVE.

Audiences are PASSIVE and powerless to prevent the influence. They are MANIPULATED by the text.

The power lies with the message of the text.

Also known as The Hypodermic Model as the messages in media texts are INJECTED into the audience by the powerful, SYRINGE-LIKE media and the audience is powerless to resist.

Therefore, the media works like a drug and the audience is DRUGGED, DOPED and DUPED and the audience can become ADDICTED.

Key Evidence for the Effects Model

1.The FRANKFURT SCHOOL theorised in the 1920's and 1930's that the mas media acted to restrict and control audiences to the benefit of corporate capitalism and governments.

2. (DOMINANT THEORY)

The Bobo Doll Experiment

This is a very controversial piece of research that apparently proved that children copy violent behaviour.

Conducted in 1961 by Albert Bandura

In the experiment:

• children watched a video where an adult violently attacked a clown toy a Bobo Doll
• The children were then taken to a room with attractive toys that they were not permitted to touch.
• The children were then led to another room with Bobo Dolls.
• 88% of the children imitated the violent behaviour that they had earlier viewed. 8 months later 40% of the children reproduced the same violent behaviour.

THE CONCLUSION REACHED WAS THAT CHILDREN WILL IMITATE VIOLENT MEDIA CONTENT

(Criticisms of Bobo Doll experiment:

-does it really prove that children imitate violent media content?

-all children were from the same American nursery in a time of racial and class division; so it is hard to generalise the results

- children seemed to be encouraged to hurt the bobo doll

-children were enticed and made more aggressive by putting them in a room with toys they could not touch)

3. Murder of James Bulger in 1993

Two children aged roughly 10 took 3 year old James Bulger from a shopping centre to a railway track whilst torturing him (e.g. stuck batteries into his anal cavity, cut him and threw stones at him). They then put him on the tracks and waited for a train to run him over. The cause of this was put on the film "CHILDS PLAY 3" (featuring the famous Chuckie Doll) as the children were said to have watched it.

4. The Murder of Stefan Pakeerah in 2004 by his friend Warren LeBlanc

The murderer was said to have imitated practices from the obsessive game "Manhunt".

5. The film "A Clockwork Orange" (1971) apparently had influence over a number of rapes and violent attacks.

6. The murder of Simon Everitt is said to have been related to the film 'Severance' (2006)

In each of these cases there was a media and political outcry for the texts to be banned. In some cases laws were changed, films banned, and newspapers demanded the burning of films. Subsequently, in each case it was found that NO case could be proven to demonstrate a link between the text and the violent acts.

Other Examples include...

The effects of media advertising; Go Compare, Compare The Market, We Buy Any Car, Shake and Vac, Cilit Bang, Money Supermarket.

The Effects model contributes to MORAL PANICS whereby:

- The media produce inactivity, make us into students who wont pass their exams or 'couch potatoes' who make no effort to get a job

-The media produces violent 'copycat' behaviour or mindless shopping in response to advertisements.

The Effects model (backed up by the Bobo Doll Experiment) is used by politicians, some parts of the media and religious organisations in attributing violence to the consumption of Media texts.