Fandom in Forbrydelsen and Stranger Things

 Forbrydelsen:

One massive aspect of fandom in Forbrydelsen was with Sarah Lunds jumpers. The character played by Sophie Grabol had a set of distinctive jumpers. These were made by the danish brand Gudrun & Gudrun who still promote these on their website as "the one jumper everyone is talking about." These sold out very quickly after the show was first aired. Many fans began to knit their own Sarah Lund jumpers. In addition to this, some took the style of her jumpers to knit other things, including this knitted teddy. 

Another example of fandom in Forbrydelsen was the actress Sophie Grabol who played the lead roll Sarah Lund. Because the show challenged conventions by having a female detective, Grabol received a lot of media attention. When it was shown on BBC4 in the UK, the show received a BAFTA which saw her popularity sky rocket.

Stranger Things:

The fact that each season of Stranger Things was released at once on Netflix promoted binge watching. In turn this induced mass fandom. After watching the whole series the fans wanted more material to watch which can be seen on Netflix's YouTube channel with blooper reels. This cleverly makes the fans feel closer to the cast. 

Another aspect of fandom with Stranger things comes from the merchandise. There are hundreds of designs of t-shirts and hoodies and so many other items like mugs and even novelty items available. The demand for this shows how big the fan base of this show is. Owning a piece of merchandise makes you feel a bigger part of the show but it also shows other people you are a fan.

 This turns the audience into prosumers as they become involved with the show. Another way fans discuss the show is through online forums including multiple fan pages on facebook that have over 10,000 members. 

According to Jenkins, fandom can be focused on a celebrity. This is true for Stranger Things as all of the actors have become celebrities. Most notably Millie Bobby Brown who plays 11. She was virtually unknown before and now has over 43 million followers on Instagram. She has also become a producer as well as an actress on different projects as well. 

How is street life presented in 'Heaven'

 Street life is a strong representation in Sande's music video Heaven from the very first to the very last shot. 

The opening shot shows Sande stood alone in front of a window. This shows the urban background, suggesting on of the key representations of the video will be on the other side of the window out on the street. The window is a physical barrier between her and the street but still allows her to see the situation. Sande is also looking down in this shot. This could suggest that a part of the street life she has seen out of the window has had an affect on her and she is silently reflecting, but then it becomes too much to keep inside which is why she sings about the situation. 

Street life continues to be represented before the singing has begun through several shots with a low average shot length, making the viewer feel like everything is happening so quickly. In a small amount of time it zooms in on several individual stories on the street. These include a woman in a red dress walking down a dark alleyway. This raises questions such as : why is she there? and who is she meeting? Each shot leads to the viewer asking more questions about street life than answers being given. 

 The very clever mise en scene helps to present street life in Heaven. During the first chorus there is a shot of a girl in front of graffiti that looks like angel wings. This not only presents the different religious ideas in the street life but the act of graffiti makes it look run down and dirty. In addition to this, the angel wings could be a metaphor of death and how you are worse off living on 'the streets' than elsewhere as there are more risks/temptations as seen later in the video.

 The lyrics work with the visuals to present street life well. When Sande sings "will you recognise me" there is a long shot of a silhouette stood underneath a bridge. This could suggest that he has lost his friends but also lost himself and feeling isolated.  It looks like he is holding something in front of him but the viewers don't get to see. It could be another link to drug use in street life. The video ends with Sande in the foreground of this shot looking like she is going to help but walks away like what she has witnessed is a dangerous eco-system that needs leaving to its own devices.

Music Video Emeli Sande : Star Persona

 

My initial thoughts on Sande's character is that she is stepping out and trying to be different by breaking stereotypes. One of the key ones is her hair which is an unnatural colour and and unusual style, with the sides shaved. She was born Adele Emily Sandeeps but chose to use Emeli Sandeeps as her stage name. This unusual spelling could be seen as rebellious and breaking stereotypes. Many of her album covers feature her with a pose that matches the music on the album. Also, many of the covers are in black and white. This  creates a sense of nostalgia and reflection. She also features, as a performance role, in most of her music video which sells her and her ideas as an artist.  

First magazine cover using In Design

 

Research of a front cover

 

The model on the cover, Rita Ora, is looking right into the camera. This is a convention of magazines as it is as if she is looking at the viewer. The medium long shot highlights her costume, a short, pale pink dress. It looks relaxed and playful. This cleverly matches the colours on the background and on the fonts. Her make up is natural apart from the eyeshadow and lipstick which is pink to match the mise en scene. The photograph is perfectly central and is in front of all the text, representing her importance. The masthead is right at the top and it in a different pink hue. This highlights the readers attention to the brand. All the fonts on the page are san serif which is neat and easy to read for the older teen and young adult target audience. All the text on the cover is in the same font and is one of three colours, black, white or pink. This creates synergy on the cover. There are also faint divides between the articles on the cover to separate it. The "H" at the bottom shows the publishing company Hearst. In addition to this, the only £1 in the white circle stands out because it is cheap for a magazine. This also links to the target audience of teen girls as this is easy to afford. 

Changes to Music Videos

 There are three types of music video:

1) Performance:

When the band / singer is performing. Usually the star exploiting their power.

2) Narrative:

Fragmented, small sections of a story.

3) Concept:

Ideological power and themes.

1975 - Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody

This is one of the earliest music videos. As you can see from the two images, it is performance all the way through. There is no hint of story in it at all. This was done to promote the band which is clear through all of the close up shots. It was also done to allow people to see the band performing as if it was live as in the 1970's, bands and artists such as Queen didn't tour and do shows as often as modern artists. 

1980 - The Buggles - Video Killed the Radio Star

This music video also contains performance. You can the the singer overlaid on the background on the image. This is still done to promote the band, as later you see other members of the band performing. The difference with this video is that it is conceptual as well. It highlights their concern for the industry with the introduction of video, saying it will "kill the radio." This is also seen through the futuristic mise en scene.  

1984 - Madonna - Material Girl

This music video changed peoples perception on what a music video could be. It incorporated Narrative with the performance. The performance includes choreography to match the music. This is highly voyeuristic. The narrative part works with the lyrics as well. The start of the video contains dialogue and not the song which was something completely new which has been continued until today. 

 

1999 - Backstreet Boys - I Want It That Way 

This video highlights the rise of the boyband. There is a very minor narrative with the airport but it is mostly performance. This is seen through the close up of the singers and the choreography to match the music. This is still done to have the same affect as in the Queen video, to advertise the band and please the fans. This can be seen at the end of the video when all the fans join in the video. 

2009 - Lady Gaga - Telephone 

The video, like Madonnas, starts without the song and complete music. This narrative lasts for almost three minutes. This is when the performance and concept start. It is highly voyeuristic which would attract a certain type of audience. The music and the video work together with choreography, with Gaga by herself and with other dancers. This video also contains allusions. The clear one is to Kill Bill with the font at

the start and the car they leave the prison in. There are more subtle references, such as the big shoulders and dance moves which link to Micheal Jackson.  

Photograph analysis

 

In this photograph, the horizon line is in the upper third of the photography where the eye is first drawn to. The eye follows this along to the land on the right hand side which leads to the foreground. The wooden pillar is just of the centre to the right, following the rule of thirds in composition. The shutter speed is low on this photograph which makes the water blurry, creating the feeling of speed and action. 

Framing is used very effectively in this photograph. This sun can be seen through the archway. This creates a silhouette of the person walking down the stairs. The curvature of the stairs creates eye movement from left to right as if the viewer was walking down the stairs.