ESSAY 2

2 Why Are Some Media Products Considered Postmodern

ESSAY 1

1 What is Meant by Postmodern Media

AUDIENCE ESSAY

Audience Essay

SECOND DRAFT ESSAY

PM MEDIA

VOODOO CHILD

1b media

ARTIST RESEARCH TASK

"Postmodern media manipulates time and space". To what extent does this definition apply to texts you have studied?

TASK 1:

• Topic: Postmodernism


• Aspect: Texts (film, music, games)


• Viewpoint: Postmodernism manipulates time and space


• Instruction: "To what extent..."

TASK 2

Opinion:

Completely agree with this statement due to the texts studied showing how time doesn't exist and that space can be manipulated. However it manipulates many things- time and space being just a snippet of what is manipulated.

(37 words)

TASK 3

Detailed plan:


-opinion
-past
-present
-future
-conclude

1. Intro
   i.      Opinion; agree
   ii.     Fiske; pomo media makes people see things in the way media portray it, not from our own experiences.
   iii.   Derrida; nothing belongs anywhere with anything so therefore postmodern media can (and do) manipulate things such as time and space in order to make the audience think


2.  Past (5 years)
   - Inception: no concept of time as everything happens at the same time, the time frames in the different films are all different even though they happen at the same time.
   The girl in it can manipulate space to how she wants it to look- can bend walls and create buildings and places etc
   - Inglorious Batsterds: wrong fonts for the wrong genres, wrong music in the wrong genres yet it works.
   The characters speak the native language which means that it is more believable (therefore not manipulating space as it is authentic). Does manipulate time as the ending isn't how the war actually ended.
3. Music
   DJ Shadow- manipulating songs. Remixing old crap songs (cooking with gas) to make them sound funky and cool so that the public buys into it.
   Manipulating songs from different time periods so that it can sound better. "Tears" by Giorgio Moroder (1970's) was then sampled by DJ Shadow on Organ Donor from his album released in 1996
   Adverts
   Changing the music makes it relaxing and manipulates feelings regarding space
4. Future
   Postmodernism will continue to develop and be used when manipulating time and space in order to make the audience think. The idea that things are now considered to be "like a movie" (friske) is now applied to everyday life and that will continue to happen as advancements happen in film and in technologies applied to everyday life.
5. Conclusion
   Further depth and snappy brilliant closing line

TASK 4

Postmodern Media Manipulates Time and Space

PASTICHE AND HOMAGE

• HOMAGE: Making your work deliberately like someone elses work as a way of paying tribute/paying respect to their work. In a good way. For example, Lady Gaga making her music deliberately like Madonnas in order to show respect to her as an artist and fellow musician.
• PASTICHE: Deliberately taking the piss out of other peoples work by using the worst bits to prove a point of how bad it is. For example, Scary Movie using bad bits of bad films and putting it together to make a comical and humorous.

CONTRADICTION

Post modernism is a contradiction. 

"Everything is equal and there is no absolutes" < an absolute statement regarding absolutes.

DAFT PUNK

Have the ability to take something old and transform it into something new and current. Therefore making the music they sample ageless. Daft Punk (French House duo) are heavily influenced by the music genre 'Disco' which became extremely popular before quickly becoming unpopular again due to the cheesiness of the sound. Daft Punk took disco and incorporated music from the 50's, 60's, 70's and 80's into their music making Disco sound modern as well as the music sampled within the songs.

DAFT PUNK IMAGE- HOW THEY COPY. HOMAGE.

This image which I have created shows some of the ways which Daft Punk have copied some features of space based cartoons in their video for "One More Time"

• Albator 84
• Interstellar 5555-  numbers
• Cheesiness- big grin (shown in the image)
• Ulysses 31
• Interstellar 5555- numbers
• Blue aliens
• Theme tune- similar to the sound
• Battle of the Planets
• "Campness"

"DEATH OF UNCOOL" PLAYLIST

1. UNIVERSALLY SPEAKING- Red Hot Chilli Peppers- rock

2. SEXY BACK- Justin Timberlake- pop/r&b

3. I'M NOT THE ONE- The Black Keys- rock

4. TURQUOISE- Kilo Kish- alt hip hop

5. THE QUEEN IS DEAD- The Smiths- indie/rock

6. HEARTBEAT- Scouting For Girls- indie/pop

7. DON'T SAVE ME- Haim- rock

8. SHOOT THE RUNNER- Kasabian- rock

9. ONE MORE TIME- Daft Punk- electronic

10. HEART ATTACK- One Direction- pop

11. GIRLS-  Calvin Harris- electro house

12. THE GLORY- Kanye West- hip hop

INCEPTION: POST MODERN MOVIE

POST MODERN ELEMENTS OF INCEPTION

• Can create a paradox (the stairs)
• Intertextual references
       i. Hospital bed, Space 2001
       ii. Snow mountain blow up, Metal Gear Solid
• There are 6 different narratives going on at the same time which is unusual
       1] Reality
       2] Van chase- Yusef's dream
       3] Hotel- Arthurs dream
       4] Mountain- Eames dream
       5] Limbo- Fisher
       6] Another Limbo- Saito
• The end is the same as the beginning
• It questions the viewers beliefs
       i. questions what time actually is
       ii. questions what is real- ENDING

EVERYTHING POSTMODERN IS DEPTHLESS-NESS

HAS NO DEPTH

THE PIXIES: WHERE IS MY MIND?

This is the original song by Pixies which was released in 1988 and was the seventh track from their album Surfer Rosa. It became their most popular, successful song and so has since been used and remixed for different purposes.

The 1999 film Fight Club used the song in the end credits which featured more prominent drums and electric guitar making the sound of the song more powerful and have more of an impact on the audience watching the film and listening to the song. 

The song was then used in a holiday advert produced by Thompson in 2011. It was then modified to have no words and just have the tune played by a piano which made the song sound more relaxing and peaceful which reflected the context of the advert.

A second version of the advert promoting the same thing also used the song, however this time it was a cover version of the song by a female which, like the previous advert, makes the song sound more relaxing an calm to reflect the context of the holiday. Missing out the verse and skipping straight to the section describing fish has a link to holidays (sea, fish, Caribbean, etc) which again links well with the advert.

POST-MODERN ADVERTS

Unlike normal, modern adverts which want the audience to believe that what they are presenting in the advert is true, post modern adverts tell the audience that they are being deceived and that what they are watching and hearing isn't actually true.

The adverts play on the viewers emotions, therefore making them feel a certain way before making them realise that what they think actually isn't what they think at all.

This is the Kelloggs advert which is advertising their cereal bar "Squares".

The advert intrigues the viewer before announcing that they have been lying and that the advert isn't true, therefore following the principles and showing that it is a post modern advert.

 

This IKEA lamp advert makes the audience feel as though the lamp they see in the advert is sad from a combination of the sad background music and the dark shots showing the lamp all on its own. The man at the end telling the viewers that they are stupid to feel sorry for the lamp because its replacement is better shows the advert following post modern principles.

WHAT MAKES AN ADVERT POST MODERN?

These are the 4 points which make an advert post modern. These would be the things to analyse when a post modern approach is taken by advertisements:

1. Emotions 
   The advert will often play on the viewers emotions and make them believe that something is real or something can happen when it actually isn't. 
2. Audience beliefs and their identity
   Making the audience believe that they are all the same and can all have the same experiences regardless of anything. Everyone is the same and the advert will convince the audience of this.
3. Irony
   Something that shouldn't suggest something that does. Using one thing to present an idea that is completely opposite.
4. Intertextuality
   Making references to other media examples which the audience (film/music/tv geeks) will understand and connect themselves. 

FIRST UNDERSTANDING OF POST-MODERNISM

• Nothing is new or original. Everything is a copy of something
  "We don't mind the fact that everything is copied, as long as we are the ones doing the copying"
• Everyone (viewers) and everything (media products) are all the same and nothing is better than anything else. Everything is equal.
• Hyperreality- the inability to distinguish reality from a form of reality.
• Nothing is real.
• All ideologies eat themselves

"SIMULACRUM" AND AUTHENTICITY IN MUSIC AND ADVERTISING

SIMULACRUM

A copy of something that has no original

HWK: post

What do I know about simulacrum and authenticity in music videos and advertising:

1. Post modern adverts present adverts which sell us products in situations which do not really exist- They are NON EXISTENT
2. The adverts play on viewers emotions making the audience forget that the situation/story being shown to them isn't real. EMOTIONS
3. Some post modern adverts take the piss out of the audiences emotions at an advert and make it very obvious that the situation isn't real and that the emotions being felt by the audience are silly and unnecessary. TWISTING
4. Authenticity is never really present in adverts as the majority of the situations are never actually real. FAKE
5. The products which are being advertised are often image based. AESTHETICS
6. The adverts make the audience question their own mind and beliefs. THEORIES
7. The adverts can often mimic pre-existing ideas has by the audience. IMITATION

The word which I would use to describe post modern television adverts would be UNOBTAINABLE

POST MODERNISM 2

CLAUD LEVI-STRAUSS

Saw any text as constructed out of recognisable "debris" from other texts. Texts produced throughout the process used either:

1. Addition
2. Deletion
3. Substitution

FRACTURED IDENTITY

• Certainties of class, gender, place (etc) fade
• Emphasis on lifestyle means that identity is dynamic
• Globalisation and the internet
• Ethnicity, race, sexuality, age (etc) are recognised as significant

IMAGE RICH

• Style over substance
• Hyper-reality
• Representations dominate
• SIMULACRA: the idea that everything is a copy
• Boundaries between high and low culture are no longer fixed

WHAT IS A REMIX?

1. What is a remix?
   To combine or edit existing materials to produce something new
   
   
2. What style of music was it most commonly associated with?
   Hip hop
   
   
3. Who and what did the Sugar Hill gang sample?
   "Good Times"- Chic
   
   
4. Which two other artists have used the same sample?
   Daft Punk, Will Smith
   
   
5. Which band formed in 1968?
   Led Zeppelin
   
   
6. What term is coined in Paris in 1961?
   Heavy Metal
   
   
7. What novel did it come from and who wrote it?
   
   
   
   
8. What were the band formed in 1968 labelled as?
   Knock offs
   
   
9. "Stairway to Heaven" was based on which song?
   
   
10. Whats the 'problem' with what Led Zeppelin did?
    Claimed it as their own and made no amendments to the lyrics
    
    
11. Whats the difference between a cover and a knock off?
    A cover says that it has taken the idea/sound/lyrics and references the other artist, a knock off claims it as their own with no reference to the actual creator
    
    
12. What do most box office hits rely on?
    Existing material
    
    
13. How many films out of 100 are sequels/remakes/adaptations?
    74
    
    
14. What is a 'genre' movie?
    Traditional, not copied. Follows the conventions of the genre
    
    
15. List 4 sub genres of horror
         i. Slasher
         ii. Zombie
         iii. Creature Feature
         iv. Terror Porn
    
    
16. What happens to their standard elements?
    
    
    
    
17. List the elements of Star Wars:
    
    
    
    
18. Which 2 genres were huge sources for Star Wars?
         a] Flash Gordon
         b] Yojimbo
    
    
19. What does creation require?
    
    
    
    
20. Who is now the most movie saturated director?
    Quentin Tarrentino
    
    
21. What are the myths of creativity?
    Original ideas added to existing materials
    
    
22. Why do we need copying?
    Copying is how we learn
    
    
23. When was Guttenburg's printing process created?
    1440
    
    
24. What elements were combined to create the model T in 1908?
    
    
    
    
25. What are the basic elements of creativity?
         i. Copy
         ii. Transform
         iii. Combine
    
    
26. Who invented the PC?
    XEROX- early 70's
    
    
27. What is multiple discovery?
    The same innovation coming from different places at the same time
    
    
28. What is evolution?
    Genes copying, transforming and combining
    
    
29. What is the term for this culture?
    Social evolution
    
    
30. What is this called?
    
    
    
    
31. What doesn't the law acknowledge?
    The nature of creativity
    
    
32. What was the side effect of a market economy?
    Original inventions cant compete with other pre existing products
    
    
33. What was the point of the copyright and patent act?
    Inventors earn a profit after excessive amounts spent on research and developments
    
    
34. What term was created to protect ideas?
    
    
    
    
35. What is loss aversion?
    People preferring to avoid losses rather than acquiring gains
    
    
36. How did Disney use the public domain?
    Had the term of copyright on concepts such as Snow White prolonged
    
    
37. "We have no problem with copying as long as..."
    We are the ones doing the copying
    
    
38. Which song did George Harrison subconsciously copy?
    "He's So Fine"- The Chiffons
    
    
39. What connects Kanye West to "It Must Be Jesus"? 
    Gold Digga beat based on the original song
    
    
40. What is a patent?
    The blueprints of how to make a product
    
    
41. What is a software patent?
    Broad, vague descriptions of what it could be like
    
    
42. What % of patent lawsuits are over software?
    
    
    
    
43. How much wealth is estimated to have been lost?
    
    
    
    
44. What are sample trolls and patent trolls?
    
    
    
    
45. Who is the most famous sample troll and why?
    Bridgeport Music
    
    
46. How long was the sample from 2005, where was it from and where was it used?
    2 seconds
    
    
47. Why has this been bad for hip hop?
    They can no longer sample music- the original reason and creation of hip hop
    
    
48. Why are patent laws bad for postmodernism?
    Doesn't allow anything to be used which has been used before. 

POST MODERNISM

A BRIEF HISTORY OF TIME

• Grand narrative: God
• People believed that they would "look out" and God would answer all questions
• 1800's: Romanticism
• People had the idea that God may hold you back
• Arrived from personal experiences in France
• Industrialisation- disconnected from God and everyone else
• 1922: Machines for living in
• 1925: Bauhaus set up in Germany

POST MODERNISM

A rejection of modernism to make sure that everyone saw everything and everyone else as being equal in all areas and that nothing was better or more special than anything else.

GRAND NARRATIVES

Jean-François Lyotard

Favours the 'micro-narratives' that can go in any direction that reflect diversity that are unpredictable.

THE END OF GRAND NARRATIVES

The cause of the end of grand narratives include...

• Morality is personal
• Relative truth (is not fixed)
• Decline of traditional religion
• Political cynicism
• Science and technology is fallible
• Authority is untrustworthy
• Marxism and capitalism is flawed