AGE ON TV

The representation of people of different ages has changed massively over the years. Up
until the 1950s, there were really only two age groups shown in films and television (adult
and child). This was because that most children left school at a young age and went
straight to work and became adults. In the 1950s more young people started staying in
education and began leading very different lives from both children and adults and so
developed the idea of the teenager
Having said that, there are still some stereotypes associated with different ages:

Children often shown as being young, innocent, naive, pure, sweet, helpless,
powerless

Teenagers Often shown as being aggressive, moody, lazy, criminals, hate school,

20s-30s Often shown as the ideal age for love, parties, fun, making money, being
glamorous and attractive. In films the heroes are often this age group.

Middle Aged often shown as being past it, unattractive, not aware of popular
culture, uncool, boring lives, dominant over others, no real connection to their kids,
grumpy. In films the villains are often from this age group.

Elderly often shown as being unattractive, slow, weak, ill, confused, pathetic,
powerless, not important, dependent on others.

If you get age as an issue in the exam, you should be thinking about the following things
when watching the clip:

Can I identify what approximate age the characters are?

Are people from different age groups shown as having different interests,
personalities, attitudes, behaviours? If so, how?

Is their age represented as being important in their life?

Are people from particular age groups portrayed as being better, more powerful,
than others?

Are people from particular age groups portrayed as being abnormal /weaker/ more
pathetic than others?

How do other characters in the clip treat the characters from different age groups?

What is the message the clip is trying to portray about age?

Technical Terms
Signify - It refers to the implied meaning behind something.
Connotes - To suggest or imply in addition to the literal meaning.
Stereotype - Talked about above
Mise-en-scene - French for whats in the frame includes production design: location,
set design, lighting, colour design, props, costume and make up.
Camera Terminology
Describing Shots
The FRAMING or the LENGTH of shot
The ANGLE of the shot
If there is any MOVEMENT involved
Camera Angles
Birds-eye view - shows scene from directly overhead.
High Angle - not as extreme as birds eye view but the camera is lifted on a crane.
It is designed to make objects or characters look smaller.
Eye Level - A fairly neutral shot and is positioned as if it was an actual human
observing.
Low Angle - These can be used to increase the height of actors ( such as Tom
Cruise and James McAvoy). The low angle also helps give the viewer a sense of
confusion.
Oblique/Canted Angle - sometimes the camera is tilted to suggest imbalance or
instability (popular in horror movies) effective in POV shots.

Editing Techniques
1.Cut
Sudden change of shot from one viewpoint or location to another. On television cuts
occur on average about every 7 or 8 seconds. Cutting may:
change the scene;
compress time;
vary the point of view; or
build up an image or idea.
There is always a reason for a cut, and you should ask yourself what the reason is.
Less abrupt transitions are achieved with the fade, dissolve, and wipe

2. Matched cut
In a matched cut a familiar relationship between the shots may make the change
seem smooth:
continuity of direction;
completed action;*
a similar centre of attention in the frame;
a one-step change of shot size (e.g. long to medium);
a change of angle (conventionally at least 30 degrees).
*The cut is usually made on an action (for example, a person begins to turn towards
a door in one shot; the next shot, taken from the doorway, catches him completing
the turn). Because the viewers eye is absorbed by the action he is unlikely to notice
the movement of the cut itself.

3. Jump cut
Abrupt switch from one scene to another which may be used deliberately to make a
dramatic point. Sometimes boldly used to begin or end action. Alternatively, it may
be the result of poor pictorial continuity, perhaps from deleting a section.

4. Cutting rate
Frequent cuts may be used as deliberate interruptions to shock, surprise or
emphasise.

5. Cutting rhythm
A cutting rhythm may be progressively shortened to increase tension. Cutting rhythm
may create an exciting, lyrical or staccato effect in the viewer.

6. Cross-cut.
A cut from one line of action to another. Also applied as an adjective to sequences
which use such cuts.

7. Cutaway/cutaway shot (CA).

8. Reaction shot.
Any shot, usually a cutaway, in which a participant reacts to action which has just
occurred.

Sound
1.Diegetic sound
Sound that we think is part of whats going on on the screen horses hooves, the sound
of thunder, and so on even though many of these will have been added later by a
Foley artist.

2.Non-diegetic sound
Sound that we know is not part of whats on screen, such as music (unless theres an
orchestra in shot!) and voiceover.

3.Sound bridge
This uses sound to link two scenes, by having the picture and the diegetic sound
change at different points. Usually the sound from the second scene is heard before
we start to see the picture from that scene.

Lighting
Lighting can be high or low contrast and can vary in colour and direction.

1. High-key
The lighting is bright and relatively low in contrast often used for Hollywood musical
comedies.

2. Low-key
Much more pronounced shadows and dramatic contrasts.

3. Lighting from below

4. Backlighting

Produces a halo effect around the edges of the subject.

5. Colour
Cold or blueish lighting can convey a sense of cold, alienation or technology, while
warm or yellowish lighting can be used to convey comfort, sunset and so on. If
colours are very rich and intense they are described as saturated.
Black-and-white or sepia can be used to show that a scene is set in the past, or to
connote sophistication.