Analysing and Media (jungle book)

Analysing and Media (jungle book)

media text is any media product we wish to examine. Every description or representation of the world, fictional or otherwise, is an attempt to describe or definereality, and is in some way a construct of reality, a text.
Media Language means the way in which a text is constructed to create meaningfor a reader or viewer of the text.
 Representation  Refers to the construction in any medium (especially the mass media) of aspects of ‘reality’ such as people, places, objects, events, cultural identities and other abstract concepts. Such representations may be in speech or writing as well as still or moving pictures.




media language 4 aspects:
editing 
wrong and scene
camera wok
sound media 


4 aspects              L anguage 
of the                            I   ndustry 
theoretical                    A  udience 
framework                    R  epresentation 


•Know:  Recognise how the media language of the jungle book (1967 & 2016) has changed over time

•Know: Recognise how media representations of the jungle book (1967 & 2016) has changed over time

•Do: study the social and cultural contexts that influence how media representations are created

•Do: construct an essay on the Junglebook,s film trailer and advertising poster

•Show: evidence of thee completion of the essay in blogger



                                                                

    

Some differences 

1967 poster  is a cartoon picture mad by lithography this is aimed towards younger children as the bright bold colours stand out towards the audience ,whereas, in the 2016 poster CGI  and a green is involved creating the image to look realistic which makes it more suitable for wider audience at a older age.One of the main visual difference is the newer poster is darker with muted colours showing the corrupted side of the film. The camera is behind the main character Mowgil while the animals (darker figures) look at the young boy, creating a more sinister atmosphere.



  Iron man director and studios of  pirates of the Caribbean  Jon Favreau




Jungle Book 1967

              Created by Walt Disney

•Based on Rudyard Kipling’s book THE JUNGLE BOOK (1894)

•Kipling’s narrative contained “darker themes” and content which were judged to be unsuitable for a Disney film.

•Walt wanted a film that was “light, fun, and entertaining with happy song - good stuff, fun stuff.”

•The story was modified by Larry Clemmons, who was given, a copy of Rudyard Kipling’s novel but told him that ‘The first thing I want you to do is not to read it’. To turn the book into a successful film many of the original characters and situations were cut out, creating a clear storyline.

•At a superficial level the cartoon should not be offensive to anyone.

Baloo

•band leader & Comedian-singer Phil Harris was cast for the role Baloo – ‘Harris put the lines of dialogue into his own vernacular, (way of speaking) and brought the role to life’‘In The Jungle Book we tried to incorporate the personalities of the actors that do the voices into the cartoon characters

Shere Khan

Designed to resemble his voice actor, George Sanders, renowned in Hollywood for playing elegant villains, but his movements were based on live action big cats:

•Disney and many American filmakers have a tract record of using the English accent to represent villainy see the following link and add the reasons why below.

Actors who use Queen’s English are more likely to appear untrustworthy, experts have suggested, as it immediately suggests that they are from the upper classes.They also come across as more intelligent, making it more likely for an audience to believe their complicated revenge plans.

King Louie 

(played by Italian American Louie band leader Prima)

The character King Louie, who seems to some viewers to offer a racialized portrait of jazz culture that conflates “swingers” (presumably African American jazz musicians) with monkeys.Louie, the Monkey-People’s, orangutan ruler. wants to learn how to make fire so that he can be like a man. This could easily be interpreted through a racial lens; the monkeys could be depictions of Africans wanting to learn how to be “civilized” equals of the white man. The representation is further reinforced through the use of African American accents (however) the role was played by an Italian AmericanSocial context: America was a segregated society during the 1960’s where Black people were actively fighting for Civil rights (equality).

1964- African american use in the 2016 not african american 

             Describe the intertextual link associated with the Jon Favreau’s representation of King Louie.

                         In what way does this representation avoid any association with black identity. 

1964- African american use in the 2016 not african american completely different characters 
"Orangatans are not really indigenous to India,"

The crew created something that wasn't readily identifiable by audiences, but that was still based on the physical natural of an orangatan using as much research as they could find.
"Much like Francis Coppola did with Marlon Brando in 'The Godfather,' [we] made him a larger-than-life character and treated him that way,"
He now have the accent of a new york ganster and he now looks sinister trying to scare others. 




In the classic film, during Brando's iconic horror speech, the actor enters a dimly lit room, shrouded mostly in darkness.


Female representation 
No representation in the 1967 version of the Jungle book which can make them feel as though theyre not important.

•The Director Jon Favreau in the 2016 version chose to caste Scarlett Johannson as Kaa providing a more Seductive/beguiling voice compared to the comedic representation of the 1967 film

Intertextual references

•refers to the way aspects of a particular media product relate to another and thus accrue additional significance.

Essay 

Task 2: 

Part (a)

Comparing the 1967 and 2016 versions of Walt Disney`s Jungle book (posters 

and film trailers), using media language discuss how the representations of the characters have changed.You will need to explore the changes in social and cultural 

contexts and impact 

of technology as [art of your essay.

           1967 poster  is a cartoon picture mad by lithography this is aimed towards younger children as the bright bold colours stand out towards the audience ,whereas, in the 2016 poster CGI  and a green is involved creating the image to look realistic which makes it more suitable for wider audience at a older age.One of the main visual difference is the newer poster is darker with muted colours showing the corrupted side of the film. The camera is behind the main character Mowgil while the animals are almost darker figures looking  at the young boy, creating a more sinister approach.

          In the newer version,no faces are shown creating more of a mysterious and dark atmosphere,the anonymity shows how technology has improved and that the audience is aimed at a older age,which could be because the children at 1967 would have now been adults.This allows them to watch it and also children.The animals are more realistic due to the CGI in the 2016 version  thus can be seen as more scary,on the other hand , in the 1967 version  it is more basic structures and shapes looking as though it is a colouring book which then refers to younger kids. The font in both of these are serif although the 1967 is larger than the 2017 and is thicker making it more appealing to younger kids,on the other hand,the newer version is yellow and a much smaller font which can be seen as happiness, energy and positivity but has contrast with the dull colours, reflecting the mystery.

           Scarlett Johnson who plays Kaa the snake is a sly and suspicious character.Who voice is English which can reflect on stereotypical of being untrustworthy.The diegetic sound of the snake hissing is constant throughout the trailer as though she is trying to aware the audience that she is lurking around.The seductive and soothing voice ,however  intensions are milieus and sinister.Her being a female tries to fulfil the roll of a innocent,motherly snake as she acknowledges the young bog is all alone and is searching for a parentally figure.The enigma in the trailer creates older audience to be entertained as it is unpredictable.The snake only appears in the middle of the trailer  in dark and muted settings creating a alarming atmosphere which makes the audience believe she is an antagonist character.She is seen as being massive compared to Mowgil as the length of her is continuos looking suffocating.  In the 1967 trailer the snake is a male Sterling Holloway.His animated character is mores of a comedically character who is dark grey and black,compared to the other brighter colours characters,which can be portrayed as representing her evil character. Kaa is seen hypnotising Mowgil in the trailer which shows how manipulative  he is in the film against the vulnerable young boy.In the 1967 it is seen as being more obvious that he is a antagonist ,whereas,the newer version the character is more discrete thus makes it harder for the audience to analysis their intentions.The main change in this character is the gender, the change to a female voice allows the film to have more variation,furthermore her stealthy voice and elusive movements sure brings the more captivating and creepy movements of the movie.Additionally, Kaa being a female gives her more of an  advantage of manipulating the boy as the isolated child seeks a "caring " female who can be seen as a motherly figure to the boy.

          On the other hand,the character King Louie,who seems to some viewers to offer a racialized portrait of jazz culture that conflates 'swingers' (presumably African American jazz musicians) with monkeys.The lyrics "i wanna be like you" had deceptions of the representations of African Americans wanting to be civilised  equals to the white man.Ironically,King Louie was represented through an African Americans accent however,the role was played by a Italian American,in the 1960s America was a segregated society where Black people were actively fighting for Civil rights to have equality.In the 2016 version King louie now has an new york 'gangster accent' which is seen as very intimidating towards the young boy Mowgli. Furthermore,the orang-utan appearance has changed (a non-native animal in India) ,although exaggerated his size to look larger like an orange version of king kong.This avoids the negative feedback on race,as the animal is unfamiliar .He looks more sinister in the 2016 than strange,as he is taken more seriously as he is more powerful.

          Shere Khan appeared creeping in the 2016 trailer,as though he is scheming to catch his prey.The audience doesn't see his face but his paws creating suspense as you question what he is sneaking up on.He is identified as being dangerous as he chases after the young boy.This shows the audience he is an antagonist. The role is played by Idris Elba who is known to acting in "Luther" who is known for  being involved in a dark and intimidating atmosphere. In 1967 George Sanders played Shere khan who has the accent of a upper class English accent and bass voice.The CGI has made this character more villainous as it is more realistic,the vicious fictional Bengal tiger is more scarier.

       The american actor Bill Murray who plays Balloo,is a comedian and writer.He is previously known for playing in ghostbusters,dumber and dumber and Garfield having the representation of a laid back,gentle and clumsy characteristics. Balloo is a sloth bear who is native in india,which is portrayed as lazy and laid back which is seen at the end of the 2016 of him floating down the river.The relaxed animal is more complicated in the 2016 as he is more realistic due to the CGI .In the 2016 trailer he is seen scaring the animals off to protect Mowgli   this shows he is protective other the young boy but has violent characteristic.Whereas,in the older version played by Phil Harris,a comedian, he is seen as being very energetic as he is dancing and singing.In this version you don't get t know as much about the character except a fun and silly animal.

              Created by Walt Disney

•Based on Rudyard Kipling’s book THE JUNGLE BOOK (1894)

•Kipling’s narrative contained “darker themes” and content which were judged to be unsuitable for a Disney film.

•Walt wanted a film that was “light, fun, and entertaining with happy song - good stuff, fun stuff.”

•The story was modified by Larry Clemmons, who was given, a copy of Rudyard Kipling’s novel but told him that ‘The first thing I want you to do is not to read it’. To turn the book into a successful film many of the original characters and situations were cut out, creating a clear storyline.

•At a superficial level the cartoon should not be offensive to anyone.

Marketing 

above the line marketing- widespread brand-building advertising.
bellow the line marketing -highly targeted direct marketing focused on conversions

ATL stands for Above The Line, meaning that the advertising is going to be deployed around a wider target audience, e.g. television, radio, or billboards. ATL is most applicable when a product is directed for a broader spectrum of consumers, for example a soft drink company might contract an ATL advertising agency to develop ads targeting a broad audience.

•These include conventional media as we know it, television and radio advertising, print as well as internet.

•This is communication that is targeted to a wider spread of audience, and is not specific to individual consumers. ATL advertising tries to reach out to the mass as consumer audience.

BTL, or Below The Line suggests that the advertising is going to target a specific group of potential consumers.^[1] BTL advertising agencies will be hired to help companies to develop ads and promotion strategies directed to certain groups of people, using tools like direct emailing, or direct product demonstrations for a specific group of people, like giving away vitamin samples at the door of a famous gym.

•For certain markets, like rural markets where the reach of mass media like print or television is limited, BTL marketing with direct consumer outreach programmes do make the most sense. 

All the animals and landscapes etc were created on computers, mostly by the British digital effects house MPC

•

Give several examples of how the Jungle Book was marketed in 2016

•Disney made several smart marketing choices during the lead-in to the release of The Jungle Book that helped build hype and buzz for the movie. They combined typical marketing approaches, special opportunities available only to Disney, and a few unique techniques and messaging particular to this film

•

•Mention any special promos, stunts, law of the jungle, theme parks, sand sculptures etc 

 Toss Red Meat to the Base:

•In August, Mr. Favreau bounded onto a 7,800-seat arena at a Disney fan convention in Anaheim, Calif and showed sneak-peek footage from his film. He hobnobbed with three “Jungle Book” stars on stage, including Neel Sethi, who plays the man-cub Mowgli. Thousands of movie posters were handed out. This was the first marketing stunt for “The Jungle Book,” which cost roughly $175 million to make. By going to happy, peppy Disneyphiles first, Disney ensured that the movie’s initial blast on social media would be a positive one.

Theme Park Armies, Activate

•> Various corners of the Disney empire pitched in to promote “The Jungle Book.” A New Year’s Day stunt on the Disney Channel, for instance, was used to portray the film as one of the year’s first blockbuster offerings for families and children.

•

•> But the synergistic heavy lifting was done by Disney theme parks. During the jam-packed spring break weeks, park theaters in Florida and California offered sneak-peek footage of the movie, with Mr. Favreau providing introductions.

•How did they attract the male demographic?

•

•Generally speaking, women and girls see Disney’s magic castle logo on a trailer and are pulled closer. The opposite can be true with guys. So Disney aggressively and repeatedly pitched “The Jungle Book” to male audiences.

•Commercials on ESPN portrayed the movie as coming not from the studio that made “Cinderella” but “from the studio that brought you ‘Pirates of the Caribbean.’” An extended 3-D trailer for “The Jungle Book” was attached to “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” which had an audience that was 58 percent male.

•And Disney rolled out an action-oriented trailer during the Super Bowl.