Representation !

1.  Describe a group, issue, or event that you may want to represent within your project.  

In my project I would like to delve into the representation of Latinos. Although my partner and
I have not come to a conclusion on what exactly we want our film opening to be about we have
discussed making it a love story hopefully with an ethic lead.

To be Latino you must be from Latin descent meaning you come from central or south America.
Many people get confused with Hispanic vs Latino but it is actually quite easy to distinguish, to be
Hispanic you must be from a Spanish speaking country therefore, someone from Spain is Hispanic and
not Latino, someone from Brazil is Latino and not Hispanic and someone from Mexico is both Latino
and Hispanic.

Some people have found that the word Latino is too gendered since it ends in the masculine “o” whereas
the feminine version is Latina ending in “a.” So how do you refer to a group of people of different
genders who are from central and south America? People have opted for the term “Latinx,”  it is gender
neutral and can also be used to refer to someone who does not identify with a binary gender.

2.  Analyze two examples within the media of how this group, issue or event is already represented.  

My first example of Latinos in the media is Sofia Vergara’s character, Gloria, in “Modern Family.”
Gloria is one of the most stereotypical Latino written characters in television today.  She is a loud
and family-oriented lady who is sexy and curvy. She has a heavy accent that is sometimes a
communication barrier for those around her. The other characters in the show sometimes think
she is not as intelligent as them but this is because she cannot express herself in English as easily
as is able to in Spanish, this obviously frustrates Gloria as it minimizes her as an educated human.

Another way Gloria represents Latinos is that she married rich so she could continue to live her
“expensive lifestyle,” if you watch the show you will know that Gloria really does love her husband
Jay but, at first glance this may not be easy to tell since Jay is much older than Gloria so she appears
as a “gold digger.”

My next example focuses on the gang or thug aspect of Latino representation. In the movie “West Side
Story” it focuses on two rival gangs a Caucasian one and a Puerto Rican one. Representation like
this is extremely harmful to Latinos because people believe what they consume and in this movie they
are consuming the fact that all Latinos are dangerous and do not abide by the law. This stereotypes
also does not effectively showcase the entire Latino population. “West Side Story” also emphasizes
the Latino need to immigrate to the United states for “better opportunities” in this case Latinos are
shown as low status and almost dirty in comparison to “real Americans” “West Side Story” perpetuates
the stereotype that Latinos who speak broken English are awful criminals who need to invade the U.S..

Other television shows and films that criminalize Latinos include: “Orange is the New Black,”
“Mi Vida Loca,” and “American Me”

3.  How do you feel about these representation characteristics?  Are they fair? Correct?

When someone thinks of Latinos in the media there are a few words that generally come to mind:
loud, uneducated, sexy. And, although these are subjective to whether those terms are “good” or
“bad” it is safe to say that those terms are one dimensional and cannot account for every individual
in an entire ethnicity. Obviously there are some Latino people who are loud in fact there are many
Latinos who are loud but, being loud and talking “weird” is not a personality.

Western media has the tendency to depict Latinos as alien and bad, of course there are a few
exceptions to this the movie “Coco” has excellent representation and celebration of Latino
culture, the Netflix show “One Day at a Time” is another show that celebrates and normalizes
the idea of Latinos simply doing things so does the musical “In the Heights,” who’s writer, Lin
Manuel Miranda, created the show to be able to showcase a variety of different Latinos living
their everyday lives that are not any different to anyone else’s life.

For some reason Latinos do not have many “good” characteristics that are represented in the
media.There is not one ethnicity of race that has a trait which can be attributed to its entire
population whether the trait is good or bad. Every person is unique with their own flaws. As a
Latina myself I find it very special when a Latino gets quality representation in the media.

4.  Which representation characteristics would you retain?  Which would you challenge?

I hope to challenge many of the representation characteristics of Latinos in my film opening. My
Latino character will definitely not be involved in a gang of any sort. They will be educated and will
not be subjected to being the maid.

The casting has not been chosen yet for the film opening so whether the person who is casted has an
accent or not will not be a deciding factor of the final casting decision. The same goes for whether they
are loud or not. The same goes for the character's body type.

In summation the representation characteristics that my partner and I chose to depict in our film
opening will not depend on the ethnicity of the character but rather the personality of the
character. So there are no characteristics that I will “retain” aside from maybe the idea that
Latinos are sexy/attractive because if it is a romance film the leads will most likely be
conventionally attractive to fit with the genre representation.

-Andrea :)

Genre research pt.2

As part of my genre database I have chosen a genre I hope to include in my film opening.

Genre Database #2
- Genre: Romance
-Genre conventions- content: Romance films generally follow a set sequence of events.
First there has to be a certain dynamic between the two central characters that the story
will follow, this dynamic between characters usually falls in the category of being polar
opposites or being basically the same person. Next is a conflict, character usually experience
a “bump in the road” that makes them question their relationship. After that the audience is able
to see what Dracula from “Hotel Transylvania” refers to as a “zing,” the moment in which
characters realize that they are in fact mean to be together. -Sometimes at this point in the movies
the characters will have some time where they are not together but thi is not the case for every film
of this genre-  nevertheless by the end of romance movies the characters are subjected to one of
two fates: ending up together or breaking up.

There are different movies tropes that can be integrated in romance films such as
enemies to lovers, slow burn, childhood friends, or forbidden love. There are also
popular ways of combining genre in romantic films for instance, romantic comedies
and romantic dramas.

-Genre conventions- production techniques: Romance films are always extremely
visually appealing, they focus heavily on color and lighting to make the story seem
desirable. There are usually elements of red to signify passion and of course love
and there are also varying shades of red like pink. Another important element of
production in romance films is the sound/soundtrack. In romance films non-diegetic
sound is most common so that the mood as well as the tone of the plot can be developed
it is also used so that the audience can get a feel for the emotions of the characters.
The casting of these films is also an important aspect because consumers of romantic
films want to watch someone who they can fall in love with along with the other
characters as if they were living vicariously through them so an attractive actor/actress
is always in demand.

       -Film/magazine sample #1: “La La Land” (2016) follows Sebastian, played by Ryan
Gosling and Mia played by Emma Stone, two conventionally attractive actors loved by Hollywood,
on their journey to find stardom while navigating the intense world of Los Angeles. It is a movies
about pursuing your dreams that contains a raw love story on top of it. The two characters end
up content with their lives at the end in their own way even though their relationship ended, it
is bittersweet but an honest depiction of real life. The movie itself is beautifully produced the
incorporation of bright colors gave the movie it’s vintage feel and made it easier for the audience
to fall in love with the story as well as the characters. Not to mention the soundtrack was stuck
in everyone’s head for months and made the film even more enjoyable.

         -Film/magazine sample #2: “50 First Dates” is about a man, Henry who is afraid of
commitment until he meets Lucy who has short term memory loss, he falls in love with her and
sets out to woo her everyday because she cannot remember who he is.The story is extremely
endearing and sweet as an audience member you find yourself rooting for Henry and his relationship
with Lucy. The casting for this movie shows that it is not a typical romance movie since Adam
Sandler who plays Henry is not exactly what someone would consider a Hollywood heartthrob,
yet you can’t help but fall in love with his character because of how much he truly loves and cares
for Lucy and how willing he is to work incredibly hard so that their relationship can work out.

   6.    Other romance films:

“Crazy Rich Asians” (2018) “To All the Boys I've Loved Before” (2018)

“Call Me by Your Name” (2017) “Amelie” (2001)

“Love Actually” (2003) “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World” (2010)

Genre Research

1. Genre: Fantasy
2. Genre conventions - content: Fantasy films generally feature a made up world, for instance Neverland in ‘Peter Pan’ or Narnia from ‘The Chronicles of Narnia.’ They will usually have a simple narrative that is easy to follow. Elements such as magic, made up creatures, and the supernatural are often seen in fantasy. The ending/resolution of fantasy films are usually happy and positive. Fairy tales are popular types of fantasy films and, many tend to take place in Medieval Times. Generally, in fantasy films a hero embarks on a journey where at the end they must go up against a villain/antagonist.
3. Genre conventions - production techniques: Fantasy Films rely heavily on color to give it the fantastical feel and to show which characters are good (usually blue) or bad (usually red or green); the darkness or lightness in both lighting and colors (of costumes) of a character or their surrounding environment can also give way to a characters inherit nature and also create contrast between protagonist and antagonist
4. Institutional conventions –  how is genre marketed: The target audience of fantasy films are younger people - children, teenagers, young adults- however, there are plenty of fantasy films that appeal to an older audience as well as the intended younger audience. Fantasy films are generally marketed as an escape from reality.
5. Film/magazine sample #1: “Alice in Wonderland” (2010) is a movie about a girl, Alice, who in this version of the story follows a familiar white rabbit down a rabbit hole and into the world of Underland which she has not been to since she was a child. In Underland Alice meets many characters such as The Red Queen, The Mad Hatter, and the Cheshire cat, which are all made up characters who could never possibly exist. This movie was marketed as a nostalgic and familiar tale so that people would be more inclined to see it since they’d be reminded of their childhood.
6. 
   Film/magazine sample #2: “Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children” (2016) is about a group of children with special powers or “peculiarities.” In the film the main character, Jacob Portman, travels back in time and ends up staying in a house with other children his age who like him have special abilities, some of these abilities include: being weightless, controlling fire, controlling nature, and being filled with bees, all of these are attributes that a real person would never have thus, giving the film it’s fantastical element.
7. Other Popular Fantasy Films:

“Enchanted” “The Princess Bride”  

(2007) (1987)

“Mary Poppins” “The Wizard of OZ”

(1964) (1939)

“Twilight”(2008) “Coraline”(2009)

The Start of Something New !

Hello and welcome ! My name is Andrea Briseno, I am 17 years old, I dance and do theater, and this is the start of my creative journey. I’m extremely excited to create this film opening and I cannot wait to document the entire process. As of right now my partner and I have to real idea of what we want our film to be, however, we know that we want to focus on colors and sets that are pleasing to the eye, and I would love for our film to have a vintage element. I want our film opening to stand out and mean something to all who see it and to be honest that’s really all I have for right now so until the next post here are some films that I love and would like to draw inspiration from for my own creation: Girl Interrupted (1999) , Lady Bird (2017), IT (2017),  Call Me by Your Name (2017). :)