Teenage Representation in Media

                                         Teenage Representation in Media

       A group that I would like to represent are teenagers, specifically teenagers in high school. These people would be from 14-18 as those are the ages of people in high school. I do not think that teenagers are represented well in the media. Teenagers are also made out to be disobedient, reckless, and selfish, having no regard for anyone but themselves The media also makes teenagers out to be sex-hungry and have lives enveloped in drama. This is an issue that I may want to represent in my project because as a teenager my self, I know that many of these characteristics are not true and I want to possibly prove this within my  project.

 One example of media that represents teenagers is the movie "Mean Girls". Mean Girls represents teenage girls in particular, as catty brats who only care about boys and being the prettiest and the most popular. In mean girls, there is a friend group called "The Plastics". "The Plastics" is composed of Regina, the beautiful, vindictive ringleader, Gretchen, the "gossiper" and Regina's most devoted follower, and Karen, the dumb blonde. These girls lack qualities such as tolerance and integrity, qualities that many teenagers have in real life.They are highly exclusive and act as they are above everyone else. They get away with it because their peers also believe that statement as well, going as far as copying the way that the dress. Within their school, their are many cliques and everyone seems to fall into one, insinuating that there is little individuality among teenagers. Cady Heron, the new student, ends up joining the plastics because at their school, everyone must be in a clique. They must hang out with people "of their own kind". But I know for fact that this is not true at every high school. At my school, there are very few cliques .This is because my school is extremely diverse as there are people of many different cultures. People are friends with  many different types of people form the what mean girls would make out to be the "jock' and the "art geek" . Also, mean girls represents teenage girls as "flawless".They are skinny, and have perfect, enviable bodies and have no acne. This is a huge problem because this is not representative of teenage girls in real life. Many girls have acne and are not a size 0. "Mean Girls" portrayed teenage girls in a negative light, unfairly establishing a poor depiction of this group of people.

      Another example of media that represents teenagers is the television show "Glee". This show is overflowing in stereotypes. "Glee" portrays football players as rude, cocky, dumb, and reckless. They shove the "nerds" into lockers and trashcans. They are the bullies of the school. This is a very unfair stereotype because athletes are not always the bullies. Anyone can be a bully, not just the buff foot ball players. Also, I would like to point out that I have never  in real life seen a kid at my school throw another kid into a trash can. That is very extreme and rarely happens in real life. The show dramatizes kids because it makes the show more entertaining, but then consequences arise because people then start to believe stereotypes like this. "Glee" also portrays cheerleaders to be dumb, pretty, and blonde, and drama students to be snobby and full of themselves. These are just stereotypes. Yes, some of these stereotypes are true, but they are not indicative of people as a whole. The characters also have far more drama than an actual high school student would. People are constantly cheating on each other, and stabbing each other in the back for self-gain. The teens are made out to be selfish, which I think is a very unfair statement because there are many teens that strive to help and motivate their peers. 

    There are very few representation characteristics that I would retain from "Glee" and "Mean Girls". To some extent, a lot of these stereotypes are true. However, in my project I would attempt to not dramatize stereotypes such as rude jocks and dumb cheerleaders. I think the media dramatizes stereotypes because it is more entertaining for the viewer. Many are in fact  are rude, selfish, vindictive, dumb, and other "negative" characteristics. The problem is that Mean Girls and Glee put little emphasis on the positive qualities in teens like kindness, tolerance, and integrity. I would make sure to show that every teenager is unique and does not just fall into one specific category or clique.

Horror Genre

Genre - Horror
 
      A genre that I tend to stay away from is the horror genre. However, I am still intrigued by horror movies, occasionally viewing ones that I do not think will give me persistent nightmare. The Horror films attempt to elicit fear in the audience.


Genre Conventions- Content

     Many horror films take place in an isolated area and the characters are unable to call for help or find a place to run. The setting is usually creepy, abandoned houses and forests.  A group of friends, usually a mix of boys and girls, decide to be a little "crazy" and go somewhere that they know is not safe. Or, you have a family that wants a change of scenery so they decide to buy an old abandoned house.  But then, once these people  realize they are in danger, they are upset. Its funny though, because they are the ones that put themselves in the situation in the first place. Often times, its also raining and thundering which enhances the feeling  of dread and isolation.

    Plots of horror movies usually involve spirits or monsters. The spirits possess people and cause immense havoc. The ghosts are usually people that previously lived in the location that the characters are at, and the spirits seek revenge and have evil personal vendettas. The monsters in horror films usually want to either eat, or kill the people. They are usually very large and ghastly. There will also be plenty of jump scares in these films. The audience will be tricked into thinking that everything is calm because of the calm music in the background, but then all of a sudden BAM, a hideous monster cover the screen.

    Death is very prevalent in horror films. More often than not, someone will die in a horror movie, so you have to walk into the theater knowing that one of your favorite naive charters is going to die within the next hour and a half.  Characters in horror films typically start out as very full of themselves and naive, such as the "jock" character and the "blonde cheerleader". They think that everything is all find and dandy, but when ghosts or monsters appear, they become scaredy cats. Often, you will have a movie about a group of friends. But by the end of the movie, only 1 will be left standing and their clothes will probably tattered and covered in blood. Film makers like to have a large cast because it makes the audience guess who will be picked off first, creating more suspension which is a key element of the genre.


Genre Conventions- Production Techniques

The same props appear in many horror films such as knives, axes, and  chainsaws. This is probably because these objects are brutal and can cause very bloody deaths which is what also occurs in many horror films. People for some odd reason like to see people get hurt, so these weapons are perfect for giving people that blood, gruesome image that the audience desires.

   The colors used in horror films are normally dark dreary colors like dark blues and blacks. This is because these colors insinuate that there is danger and mystery. These colors aid in making the film more suspenseful. Lighting is a very important mise-en-scene element in horror films. Often, there is a flickering light to let the audience know that something bad is bound to happen. The lighting is usually very dim which establishes feelings  of uncertainty as the audience does not know what is responsible for it.

   The costumes in horror films are usually stereotypical representations of the characters. If you have a "jock"character, he will probably be wearing his prized letterman jacket to let the audience know that he his "tough" and "macho" and "strong". The dumb blonde cheerleader will probably be wearing a cleavage bearing shirt and shorts. Audience members, for some odd reason, love to watch a pretty girl get torn up or brutally murdered.  Many times, the wicked character usually wears a mask. This is usually because the person behind the mask is just an average person, so wearing the mask makes the film scarier and adds more suspense because it makes the audience wonder who the person is under that mask.

   Horror films also use lots of non-diegetic sound which enhances the intensity of a scene. It lets the audience know that something bad is about to happen, thus creating tension. The diegetic sound in the movie is also very exaggerated such as creaky floor boards and a door opening. This creates an eerie affect which horror film producers strive for.


Film #1- It (2017)



The film starts out with a little boy name Gerogie being severed and dragged into a sewer by a killer clown named Pennywise. The colors during this scene are very dark and blue insinuating feelings of mystery and suspense with potential sadness. It is also raining which is a popular element in horror movies. The first few moments of the film already have the most prevalent element of horror films- death. The following summer, Georgie's brother and his friends are still haunted by the disappearance of Georgie. The friends then learn that their town has been plagued by unexplained tragedies and child disappearance for centuries(even more death). They begin to investigate and search for answers regarding the disappearances. Trying to find answers is a very common convention of horror films.  Each member of the group encounters the terrifying phenomena in various forms: the clown that attacked Gerogie, a headless boy, a fountain of blood, a diseased, rotting man, a creepy painting that comes to life, parents burning alive, and a phantom Georgie. They realize they are all being terrorized by the same being. They then find out that "it" wakens every 27 years to feed on the children of their town. Monsters eating people is very popular in films of the horror genre.  One of the friends gets taken by "it" and the boys go into the sewer to confront it and get their friend back. They end up, after a serious battle with "it", taking their friend back. However, "it" is not killed and retreats back to the sewer and will starve during its hibernation. The friends vow to go back when they are older to fight "it" if it returns.



Film #2- The Conjuring

Roger and Carolyn Perron move to a broken-down farmhouse with their five daughters. Right away, the film embodies the genre of horror because they move to a dilapidated, deserted house. Within the first few nights of staying at the house, paranormal events begin to occur. Spirits are very prominent in horror films as they are absolutely terrifying and create immense turmoil. All of the clocks stop at exactly 3:07 pm, birds fly into the windows, and their dog Sadie is found dead in their backyard. A death of a character in a horror film, very surprising indeed. The children encounter the spirit many times and one of the children claims that the spirit wants the family dead. A vengeful spirit is a common element of horror films. The family ends up hiring demonoligists and they inform the family that the house that they bought used to belong to an accused witch. She sacrificed her baby to the devil, cursed all who took her land, and then killed herself. It was also discovered that there had previously been many deaths on the property. A haunted house, very typical of the horror genre. One of the children becomes possessed and she needs to have an exorcism performed on her to save her life. Once the exorcism is complete, they are able to lift the witch's curse forever.



Other Horror Film Examples-



1. Psycho


2. Halloween



3. Hereditary



4. Cabin in the Woods



5. The Visit