HOW DOES YOUR MEDIA

PRODUCT REPRESENT

PARTICULAR SOCIAL

GROUPS?

Evaluation – Question 2

SOCIAL GROUPS

Social groups are the different groups by which people are separated.

Within a social group there can be other social groups. Teenagers are an

example of a social group, as are criminals, older people, men, women and

so on.

Our media product represents a more adult and mature, professional

social group of both men and women. These can be represented through

various different ways such as cinematography, which is the camera shots,

mise en scene which is the make up, props used, costume, lighting, set

design, performance, and even sound and editing.

CINEMATOGRAPHY

In our media product, cinematography represents our

social group through the use of camera shots such as long

shots which show the interior of the house and how wealthy

the characters are. Also, through the long shots showing the

Mercedes pulling up on the drive and again insisting on

wealth and financial security as you see the electronically

powered gates closing behind.

MISE EN SCENE - COSTUME

Mise en scene represents our social group particularly

through costume as the characters appear to be dressed well in

fairly luxurious and expensive clothing and therefore are

conforming to the connotations of white, older men and women

having money and being flash and stylish. Also, that young

adults take a lot of pride in their personal appearance and are

quite vain which is also seen through the use of make up and

well groomed hair and overall how they look.

MISE EN SCENE - SET

The use of the set design and location again links to the ideas

of wealth and money as it's in a large, well decorated and quite

modern house and is a sort of show home looking. It represents

the typical, white 'desperate housewife' living on 'Wysteria Lane'

in a perfect looking house with nothing out of place. Or so it

seems, as in fact through the plot within my film and various

plots within 'Desperate Housewifes' it becomes apparent that

their lives are not so perfect after all.

MISE EN SCENE - PROPS

Through the props we used, like the bottle of beer and

bottle opener, these are typically props which you are likely to

be using if you're eighteen and over, and so again,

represents the connotations of a young adult who has the

ability to drink now and so takes full advantage of this at

every given opportunity. Also represents the middle class of

the characters as they have the aptitude to just drink a bottle

of beer when they please despite the occasion.

MISE EN SCENE - LIGHTING

The lighting we have used is quite bright and cheerful as

they've just left the typical dreary, grumpy, moody teenage

years who sit in the dark in their rooms and so now, as an

adult are enjoying living the high life and have come out of

that stage.

MISE EN SCENE –

PERFORMANCE

The performance of the actors enhances the connotations of

how adults don't tend to look down on people who they class in

the same class grouping as them and so feel they are of equal

status which would explain why the characters are so welcoming

and friendly towards each other. This is shown through the

welcoming on Nancy's behalf as she welcomes Will into her

home so openly and caters for him quickly by offering him a

bottle of beer.

EDITING

Within the editing of the film we tried to make sure that

each character was on the screen for roughly as long as

each other, this was to show the little difference in class and

status between the two characters as we wanted the initial

thoughts of the audience to be that our characters are of a

similar class and show share a likeness and something in

common.

SOUND

The impression of an upper class man and women is continued

through the use of sound, particularly spoken dialogue in which both

characters are fairly well spoken and use correct grammar and syntax

with good pronunciation.

Also the use of no background traffic noise, this represents a quiet

neighbourhood rather than the characters living on a busy, bustling,

noisy main road again showing prosperity and wealth as they’re able

to afford a house in a nice area.

FURTHER INFORMATION

Many of moments in the few minutes of the opening scene

suggest security and wealth using many different aspects.

This idea of security and wealth links to the representation of

middle class men and women and having this life which looks

so perfect from the outside. Many TV programmes are used

to signify this for example ‘Weeds’, ‘Desperate

Housewives’, ‘Gossip Girl’ and so on.

MOOD BOARDS

I have constructed two mood boards, one portraying

typical, middle class women in the 21st century, and another

conveying typical, middle class men in the 21st century.