Week 9 - 'Hollywoodisation'

This blog will focus on ‘Hollywoodisation’ in relation to the Japanese Horror film ‘Ringu’ known to us as ‘The Ring’ which was remade into a Hollywood hit in 2002 with a sequel The Ring Two in 2005 (which in itself is a trait true to Hollywood films).  When I first saw The Ring, apart from being scared and not being able to sleep that night I had no idea that it was a remake of a Japanese film. This is a perfect example of a non-Western film that has been ‘Hollywoodised’. According to the Oxford dictionary ‘Hollywoodise’ is defined as “adapt (a story or series of events) so as to conform to the supposed norms of a typical Hollywood film, especially in respect of being unrealistically glamorous, exciting, or simplistic.” ‘Hollywoodisation’ occurred due to a rise in the 1990s for viewers around the world to indulge in local cinema rather then international and especially American or Hollywood. Hollywood’s response to this happened in two parts. The first Dawtrey (1995) states in Klein (2004, p. 371) “Hollywood since the mid – 1990s has moved into the distribution of local films, both within their own domestic markets and internationally.” The second Klein (2004, p. 372) comments “Hollywood’s second response to the resurgence of local film industries has been to go into business of making local – ‘foreign’ – movies.” An example of this is how MTV has spread it’s studios and distribution throughout the world and has adapted its shows to the audience they are portraying to. We know have MTV Lebanon, MTV Japan and MTV Germany to name a few.

 <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuH5FaUpFm4>.

So ‘Ringu’ was originally made in 1998 in Japan and was Hollywoodised in 2002 by being created into ‘The Ring’. Aside from the plot everything about the film had been Hollywoodised. The film was directed by American Gore Verbinski with the cast led by one of Hollywood’s leading ladies Naomi Watts. The location was changed to being based in America and the film was distributed by DreamWorks Pictures. This is a perfect example of Hollywoodisation. A film of Asian heritage that is complete remade and modeled to fit the Hollywood market. The film was further ‘Hollywoodised’ when it was made into a sequel, another feature of the American film industry. The Ring is a great film and if you’re like me you’ll spend half the time not looking at the screen but it really represents how ‘Hollywoodisation’ occurs.

Reference List:

-Klein, C 2004, ‘Martial arts and the globalization of US and Asian film industries’, Comparative American Studies, vol. 2, no. 3, pp. 371, 372.

-Oxford University Press, 2013, ‘Definition of Hollywoodize in English’, 25/9/2013, <http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/Hollywoodize>.

-The Ring [trailer] (2002), YouTube Clip, robotuku, 14 December, 25/9/2013, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuH5FaUpFm4>.

Week 8 - The Specular Economy

<http://www.underconsideration.com/brandnew/archives/facebooks_radically_new_f_logo.php#.UkQAKBajDUQ> 

 <http://ictville.com/2013/02/forget-hate-speech-and-make-twitter-a-job-search-tool/>

 http://www.djinseattle.com/check-out-my-youtube-channel/

Social Media platforms that are used today by the public and myself prove the concept of the ‘specular economy’ to be true. Marshall (2010, p. 498, 499) states “We are moving into something I would call the “specular economy” where collectively we are becoming more conscious of how we present ourselves and how other perceive us and this change is migrating to the epicenter of our knowledge economy.” To break this down the way I use Facebook, Twitter and Instagram is to produce and present the best possible version of myself to my friends and followers. Whether this is through what pictures I choose to post, the comments I present online and who I interact with. I think that this idea of the specular economy is an extension of how I present myself in the offline world. The way I talk, walk, dress and interact in society is no different to how I present myself online. This idea of the specular economy applies especially to the online world of social media and is ever increasing due to the rise and the worlds infatuation with celebrities and celebrity culture.

<http://www.npr.org/blogs/pictureshow/2012/08/07/157743116/does-the-mirror-reflect-how-you-feel>

A key to understanding the specular economy is the mirror effect. We are so worried about how we present ourselves instead of seeing ourselves for who we are we see our selves by the way we imagine others see us. The mirror is also a mechanism to better ourselves as we see the reflection in the mirror to be what the public see. Marshall (2010, p. 499) states “We use the mirror to point to our weaknesses and what we want to change in our body appearance and this helps produce, reproduce and maintain desire.” With this idea of mirror effect this relates to my social media use. My Facebook, Twitter and Instagram account act as a mirror to the public, it is hear that I create a new self to present to the world. Marshall (2010, p. 499) further comments “The use of social network sites such as Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, Bebo, and MiniHompy, along with parallel media specific sharing websites such as YouTube and Flikr, means that we are inhabiting spaces where we are not only on display but we think about our mediated constructed of ourselves sometimes continuously.” With the rise of the ‘celebrity’ the collapse of the private and public life this has intensified the concept of the ‘specular economy’. In relation to this Marshall (2010, p. 499, 500) comments “These boundary debates have now become central to how people are constructing their ‘personas’ in their everyday distribution of their versions of their selves via online and mobile media.” To finish this post the specular economy is vital to creating an image of myself to the world, It is hear that a new persona of myself is generated for the wider community hear people can see who I am, what my interests are, how I act in society and can impact on my future as we all know today that employees, parents, friends and strangers can all see and discover who we are by what we put online. There is very little distinction between our public and privet lives, what my own thoughts might be that I don’t spread to the offline world can come through to the online world by the way I can now present myself. This is the ‘specular economy’, the shaping of ones self through the use of social media network platforms.

Reference List:

-Marshall, DP 2010, ‘The Specular Economy’, Springer Science + Business Media, vol. 47, no. 1, pp. 498, 499, 500.

-Facebook Picture: http://www.underconsideration.com/brandnew/archives/facebooks_radically_new_f_logo.php#.UkQAKBajDUQ

-Twitter Picture: http://ictville.com/2013/02/forget-hate-speech-and-make-twitter-a-job-search-tool/

-YouTube Picture: http://www.djinseattle.com/check-out-my-youtube-channel/

-Mirror Picture: http://www.npr.org/blogs/pictureshow/2012/08/07/157743116/does-the-mirror-reflect-how-you-feel

Week 7 - Super Mario Brothers

<http://victorflynnfletcher.deviantart.com/art/Super-Mario-Bros-Logo-Fanmade-349545223>

Stuart Hall’s 1973 academic work ‘Encoding/Decoding’ focuses and distinguishes three models that are applied to understanding how people read and interpret texts such as Television and Video Games. This Blog will define and discuss Hall’s three readings, these being the dominant-hegemonic reading/preferred reading, the negotiated reading and the oppositional reading. Throughout I will relate each reading to Gender representation in the Video Game ‘Super Mario Brothers’.

The first reading defined by Hall is the dominant-hegemonic reading/preferred reading. Hall (1973, p. 59) states “When the viewer takes the connoted meaning from, say, a television newscast or current affairs programme full and straight, and decodes the message in terms of the reference code in which it has been encoded, we might say that the viewer is operating inside the dominate code.” In reference to video games this means that the player openly accepts or believes the message or representation of characters the video game is portraying. An example of this reading in reference to ‘Super Mario Brothers’ is the Princess Toadstool (the only female character) who is reliant on a male to rescue her. This view is reflective of the dominant society of the time so it isn’t challenged and seems normal as it is prevalent in our lives, or the idea is prevalent in our lives. (This is not my view and is starting to change but at the time this game was in production this view was evident and is reflected in the game).

The second reading by Hall is the Negotiated reading. Hall (1973, p. 60) comments “Decoding within the negotiated version contains a mixture of adaptive and oppositional elements: it acknowledges the legitimacy of the hegemonic definitions to make the grand significations (abstract), while, at a more restricted, situational (situated) level, it makes its own ground rules – it operates with exceptions to the rule.” In relation to Super Mario Brothers this can be seen at the time of its creation/publication that the views of society are reflected in the gender representation of the characters. The player knows that the representation reflects societal views yet don’t necessarily conform and take it on board. Just because the Princess requires Mario and Luigi to rescue her doesn’t mean that the player has to conform to this view of gender representation, the player can rather understand why there is this gender representation.

The third and final reading by Hall is the Oppositional reading. Hall (1973, p. 61) presents “it is possible for a viewer perfectly to understand both the literal and the connotative inflection given by a discourse but to decode the message in a globally contrary way. He/she detotalizes the message in the preferred code in order to retotalize the message within some alternative framework of reference.” This reading is the view the player ignores or disagrees what is being represented. In relation to Super Mario Brothers the oppositional view and the one I agree with is that women aren’t objects, there is no need for a women to rely on men to be rescued or saved.

Reference List:

-Hall, S 1973, ‘Encoding/Decoding’, in S Hall, D Hobson, A Lowe and P Willis (eds), Culture, Media, Language, Hutchinson, London, pp. 51-61.

-Picture: <http://victorflynnfletcher.deviantart.com/art/Super-Mario-Bros-Logo-Fanmade-349545223>

Week 6 - The Blog

Blogs and blogging seem to be ever increasing in our day-to-day life. Even at University, for this course (ALC 215, Globalisation and the Media) the assessment task once would have been to write an academic essay has now changed to a weekly blogging task. Robertson (2011, p. 1628) states, “blogs can be seen as a convenient way to produce and share a reflective learning log and secondly, they can offer an audience for student writing within the safety of a learning community thus offering opportunities for collaborative learning.” Roberts (2011, p. 1643) further states, “as well as providing opportunities to practice self-directed learning, the blogs enabled students to express their emotional experiences of learning and to exchange social and cognitive support with their peers.” This analysis is a perfect example of what this blogging exercise is about, the publication of ideas on a space where learning is fostered and supported.

In recent years the rise of the Internet and new media for most people has been revolutionary for communication and presenting views online. The fact that sites such as Tumblr, Pinterest, Blogger, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter can serve as a platform for discussion on any topic of their choosing.  Bruns et al (2011, p. 283) states “Twitter, Youtube, or Facebook are frequently characterized --- or trivialized --- as tools for individualistic self-expression or social networking, they are also at the same time playing an increasingly significant role in global public communication.” It is evident that it isn’t just the public or an individual with a vested interest on a topic that has taken to blogs; big businesses such as magazines have ventured onto the blogosphere. An example of this is New York Magazine. They now are not only a printed and online magazine but they have their own YouTube channel, Twitter account, Facebook account, Instagram account and also blogs that cover restaurants, nightlife and fashion. Blogs change the way readers interact with information, now anyone can comment, share and repost. Bruns et al (2011, p. 284) further comment “This demonstrates a significant change in how everyday communication and personal media figure in public communication.”

As I have mentioned Blogs have changed the way University students learn and how big business and its public interact. The blogosphere has opened up a new way for communication to flow. Anyone who has access to the internet can be a Citizen Journalist, part time blogger or make a career blogging. It is an expression of ones self and ones ideas. It creates a public forum where time and location around the world stands still. I think at the moment this is just the beginning as technology continues to improve and is ever more accessible to citizens of the world the blogosphere will take off greater then it already is today.

Hear is a clip on blogging at a Tertiary Level.

Source: <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrfxKCb2OHQ> 

Reference List:

-Bruns, A, Burgess, J, Highfield, T, Kirchhoff, L & Nicolai, T 2011. ‘Mapping the Australian Networked Public Sphere’, Social Science Computer Review, vol. 29, no. 3, pp. 283, 284.

-Robertson, J 2011, ‘The educational affordances of blogs for self-directed learning’, Computers & Education, vol. 57, no. (not provided), pp. 1628, 1643.

-Using blogs & wikis in higher education 2011, YouTube Clip, Jeremy Friedberg, 22 February, retrieved 6/9/2013, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrfxKCb2OHQ