·Notes & Quotes document pretty much exactly
2,000 – you’ve met the first word count deadline and have an interesting
selection of books, journal articles and Guardian links so far.
·No Textual Analysis – this it Task #1 and was
due last week. It will be crucial for getting your N&Q document up to the
4,500 words for Friday. You need to select two key scenes (keep them short -
2mins or so) and do a very detailed close-textual analysis of them. Think all
the aspects of film language as well as the MIGRAIN key concepts. Obviously,
you want to focus on your issue (black representation).
·No evidence of a bibliography so far – I cannot
stress enough that doing the bibliography on Microsoft Word as you research will
make your life a thousand times easier further down the line. This will take
time – focus on research and N&Q leading up to Friday and then work on the
bibliography next week.
·New task is historical text analysis – Boyz N
The Hood would make sense following last week’s screening but there will be
plenty you could use (perhaps go even further back?)
·Media Mag, Jump Cut etc. are currently missing
from Notes and Quotes – this is a big mistake! There will be loads on your
topic across these sources so make sure you work through these. I’d recommend
doing this today and tomorrow to get it out the way and also quickly move your
N&Q word count up towards 4,500. eJump Cut is also very good. E.g. http://www.ejumpcut.org/archive/onlinessays/JC40folder/HoopDreamsJones.html
Search the archives of these for stuff on Boyz N The Hood too.
·Academic books/journals are the focus for Task
#2. Use our PDF resources on the M: drive (just added one on Boyz N The Hood),
Google Scholar and the BFI trip to develop this area beyond what you’ve already
got. In terms of theory/books in class – Gilroy is essential, I’d really go
back to these and read in depth. In addition, read Representation by Hall –
absolute gold dust for your topic! In addition, search for Alvarado and Fanon
as additional theorists (in the Representation book but also worth looking online).
·Task #1&2 – make sure you get these done
urgently for Friday’s deadline (this will help you reach the word count too).
Consider Hoop Dreams as a historical text alongside Boyz N The Hood.
·LR: Copy this into a new blog post called
‘Critical Investigation tutorial’ and write the next three steps in your
research below my feedback.
Main idea- How an ethnic minority is represented in media?
Text- Dope
Books
By the new arrivals whose experience of racism leads them to
either seek or refuse political allies and by inter-generational adaptations as
well as novel and unstable geo-political conditions
Gilroy ‘there Aint No Black in the Union Jack’
Page xii
Demographic and cultural changes have meant that the New World
histories which turned the counter-memory of racial slavery into an
interpretative device that could be applied to any example of injustice and
exploitation have lost much of their power and appeal
Gilroy ‘there Aint No Black in the Union Jack’
Page xiii
The relationship between explicitly
stereotypical portrayals of race and commercial success seems highly
problematic and contradictory.
Naturalizing Racial Differences
through Comedy: Asian, Black, and White Views on Racial Stereotypes
Page 158
Comedy as a genre essentially extends
the alleged harmlessness of interpersonal jokes, which allows controversial
content in mainstream films to be considered acceptable (King, 2002, p. 149)
As Blacks moved out of
the inner city, drugs such as heroin and crack moved in.
ANDREANA Clay / HIP-HOP CULTURE AND
BLACK IDENTITY
Page 1347
Susan Scafidi: Who Owns Culture?
Appropriation and Authenticity in American Law 2005
Chapter 5 - Claiming Community Ownership via
Authenticity (pp. 52-66)
"Taking intellectual property, traditional
knowledge, cultural expressions, or artefacts from someone else's culture
without permission. This can include unauthorized use of another culture's
dance, dress, music, language, folklore, cuisine, traditional medicine,
religious symbols, etc. “
“It's most likely to be harmful when the source
community is a minority group that has been oppressed or exploited in other
way.”
“White people who cannot fully recapture a lost
cultural heritage, like me, often experience a real sense of loss. Sure, there
might be subcultures of whites that feel attached to what they see as a
particularly American culture, like those who would claim a “Southern” culture.
However, many of us find ourselves looking at other groups and longing for the
connection we imagine they feel with their roots, their homeland, and their
culture. Many white people can be heard saying, “We don’t have culture. They
have culture.”
“The more we understand ourselves, the reasons for
our actions, and how our cultural explorations might be perceived in
relationship to an oppressive history, the more we are able to navigate our way
through challenging conversations, build authentic relationships and break down
the wounds built up over years of injury. Perhaps even more important, we might
be able to avoid enacting a disrespectful form of appropriation.”
Articles
“As
ever when movies claim “nerd” or “geek” status for their characters, there is
something very disingenuous going on. Genuinely nerdy high-school types would
be wince-makingly unwatchable on the cinema screen. Malcolm, Diggy and Job are
Hollywoodised nerds, attractive cool kids tricked out with designer geekery.”
The
movie’s comedy teeters uneasily between reality and fantasy-farce unreality:
occasionally it goes for a ghetto drama, perhaps like Boyz N the Hood, and then
veers wackily into comedy, with the three teens cycling around madly, as if one
of them had ET in his front basket. Gangbangers pull guns; they storm onto
school buses in scenes weirdly reminiscent of the new NWA biopic Straight Outta
Compton.
What goes wrong is doing a small
favour for local drug dealer Dom (rapper A$AP Rocky), which escalates, before
he knows it, into finding $100,000 of MDMA stashed in his backpack. Malcolm and
his two sidekicks, Jib (Tony Revolori) and Diggy (Kiersey Clemons), know that
turning themselves in is likely to get them killed: forget what it might mean
for Malcolm’s college application. Shifting it – selling it – is the only way
forward. These are smart kids. Their flair for maths and devious computer
skills make them natural internet entrepreneurs. Soon they are minor legends.
The movie
prompts all of these questions without convincing you it’s fully asking them.
When Malcolm finds himself wielding a gun at an adversary, wobbling it
uncertainly in his grip, it’s a perfect – perhaps a deliberate – metaphor for
the predicament the film is in, too. Fans will say all this jittery doubt is
the point. It might have been an interesting place to end. But the feel-good
denouement – exhilarating, but suspect – boxes everything away into a slick
package, as if it’s amply answered, or just genially forgotten, what any of its
whistle-stop themes might have been.
“Malcolm,
the main character, is definitely a kid modelled on myself,” says Famuyiwa who
like Malcolm transcended his Inglewood neighbourhood aka The Bottoms.
“Malcolm’s point of view is one of my own, not wanting to be defined or
categorized.
RICK FAMUYIWA:It starts with the idea of Black cinema itself. Part of the
problem is that it’s thought of as something specific, niche and small. I think
Black cinema is thought of in small terms. That’s where most of the problems
come from.
DEADLINE: This is such an upbeat, positive film, a
wonderful empowerment tale.
RICK FAMUYIWA Whatever
success the film has had, it’s because people relate to the honesty of this kid
even if they’re not from that environment. It’s the same way that I connected
toThe Breakfast CluborFerris Bueller’s Day Offeven though I wasn’t a white kid from
suburban Chicago.
GROSS: Rick
Famuyiwa, welcome to FRESH AIR and congratulations on the film. The essay that
Malcolm writes is also a way of showing I'm different, you know? And part of
what pop culture means when you're a teenager, the music you love, the movies
you love, is - it's a way of defining who you are. And I think you've really
captured that with this film, how pop
culture has, like, two purposes in young people's lives - just loving it but
also saying that's who I am.
RICK
FAMUYIWA: Yeah, yeah. I mean, that's so much of how we define ourselves and I think
in particularly with young kids like Malcolm who don't have a lot of positive
influences, pop culture almost becomes a larger part of that self-discovery and
how you define yourself.
And so
the idea was to sort of tell a story about the kids that not only live in these
environment but live in different environments around the country and the world
that sort of have a different point of view, that don't quite fit into sort of
the societal norms of what people expect. And so the celebration of these kids
who are geeks, who are into a lot of different things but don't necessarily fit
into sort of the accepted or sort of pop cultural norms was something that I
was thinking about doing more just on sort of a personal level in that I felt
like I was that kid.
FAMUYIWA: And there's a line in the movie about these kids have
to deal with bad and worse choices, you know, there are no good and bad choices
(laughter). Oftentimes it's sort of bad and worse.
FAMUYIWA: This is that
moment where I just made a wrong choice and we've now got pulled over by the
police and I have no idea what they're going to do or who this kid we're riding
with actually is and...
GROSS: And what he's
carrying.
FAMUYIWA: And what
he's carrying or what he's doing. And we're all going to go down because these
- you know, the police aren't going to care that I'm a straight-A student and I
have all these ambitions. They're just going to see me as a black kid in the
car with a gangster
Dope’s protagonist Malcolm, is yet another fatherless black male.
Ironically, the main character is named Malcolm, reminiscent of iconic civil
rights leader Malcolm X. Despite contemporary youth’s deprivation from the
direct leadership of men like Malcolm X, his impact, like others of his
caliber, is just as powerful in spirit. It is through this spiritual presence
of past leaders like Malcolm X, Dr. King, Medgar Evers, and George and
Jonathan Jackson etc, that I can confidently state that no black child is truly
fatherless.
Another problem in this film is
that it carelessly tosses around the “n” as a desperate attempt to appear urban
and relevant. The film wanders into the point of no return as it allows its use
by those outside the African Diaspora. There emerges an insignificant debate
between white boys overtly lustful over black culture about using the “n” word.
The debate ends with one white character getting a free pass on using the term
when lead black male, Malcolm encourages its use.
This scene is a problem because it
is yet another testament to this film’s attempt to “be cool.” This scene was
probably conjured up as an attempt to address white conflict with the “n” word,
a concern that I would strongly argue has no place in a film that is supposed
to be about black youth.
GROSS: The three main characters at the center of the movie are, as we've been discussing, deep into '90s hip-hop. They're into retro (laughter) hip-hop. They dress in '90s style. They love punk rock. They're in a punk rock band that's kind of part punk, part hip-hop. And one of the three characters is a lesbian, and I'm wondering if you had a close friend who was a lesbian in the '90s when you were in high school, or if you just wanted to write the lesbian character in there? She's a great character. Tell us how you created her.
FAMUYIWA: No - yeah, I didn't have a friend that was gay growing up, but as I was thinking about these three kids, and especially telling a story that I felt was about kids growing up today, I wanted to include that, and I wanted to have that voice sort of be a part of this crew. So, for me, it was important to get that - that voice in there, because I feel like that's where our world is going, that we're all sort of - that the barriers and things that divided us and what we consider mainstream and normal, I think, is changing and changing for the better.
Although the film does not go out to glamorise the drug, its very inclusion promotes interest in that substance.
·We live in a hedonistic generation where people are seeking pleasure from various sources, and increasingly these are be found in the most illicit forms - Hedonistic= engaged in the pursuit of pleasure; sensually self-indulgent
·Showing the horrendous impact of crystal meth and drugs in general can have a boomerang effect and cause curiosity among some viewers who might think 'that must be good – Another way the media can influence audiences is through glamorising certain things in such a way that it makes the audience curious and want to actually go out and do it.
·The fact millions of people have watched the movie and been entertained by it almost instantly glamorises its subject matter, whether deliberate or not. - The fact that so many people have had access to it means it may have reached groups of viewers whom the show wasn’t targeted at, the type of genre may be new to them and they may see it as something intriguing
This scene is a very important scene in dope. To back track malcolm and his friends just have to prove to a underground gangster to give them and convert the bitcoins that they have made, by selling drugs in to actually money. The money was concealed, with the use of the prop, inside the bag that is shown. The use of the distraction of the people cheering whilst in the car would give the audience a sense of revilement for malcolm and his friend due to the fact that they have the money and they are going home. Cleverly, the use of the pan reveals that Malcolms bully has spotted him and is looking to steal something of his, unaware of what Malcolm has on him. The aggressive tone of which he said "What'up blood" the use of this would make the viewers feel powerless due to the fact that it could signify that Malcolm could loss the money that he has just got to his bully. The costumes that the thugs are wearing signifies that they are in a gang because they are colour coordinated brandishing the colours of red. once, the thug picks up the bag with the money in it and opens it to see whats inside you could hear diegetic sounds of the characters of the bullies saying "oh shit" and then they suddenly pause this is because malcolm has just pulled a gun out. this action code creates an enigma code to the audience asking themselves what is Malcolm going to do? the nervousness of him holding the gun up means that he is shaking. you could tell that Malcolm is kind when he said "give me the bag please" this highlights to audiences that he is what he says he is which is a 'geek' and he still is respectful and kind and he hasn't changed as a person.
https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=fUdFAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA124&dq=social+media+drugs&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi4luOj6ZfQAhVrLcAKHUKDA80Q6AEITzAG#v=onepage&q=social%20media%20drugs&f=false
This book examines the history of popular drug cultures and mediated drug education, and the ways in which new media - including social networking and video file-sharing sites - transform the symbolic framework in which drugs and drug culture are represented. Tracing the emergence of formal drug regulation in both the US and the United Kingdom from the late nineteenth century, it argues that mass communication technologies were intimately connected to these "control regimes" from the very beginning. Manning includes original archive research revealing official fears about the use of such mass communication technologies in Britain. The second half of the book assesses on-line popular drug culture, considering the impact, the problematic attempts by drug agencies in the US and the United Kingdom to harness new media, and the implications of the emergence of many thousands of unofficial drug-related sites.
Representation of black lesbians
the immense pride of knowing exactly who you are, the power and magic of love between women, the joy of knowing you are fighting a system simply by existing. These women do not shrink from identifying the ways their straight black families have failed them, the homophobia they routinely encounter in the intimate sphere, but neither do they disavow the communities and families to which they persistently, insistently, actively belong, or the material experience of blackness that they all share. We will be looking at the self-narratives of these women, the places of impossibility they are forced to navigate, and the varying strategies they use to do so.
as a film constitutes a visual representation of black lesbians on their own terms, which makes it unique. As Angel puts it, “Black women, period, are left out” of media. As Michelle M. observes, “We are the voiceless, faceless group.” Even when they are visible, both black women and lesbians as a whole are rarely represented in non-sensationalist, non-pornographic ways, with very real consequences for girls still forming their identities.
the reason why i have black representations of a lesbian is because one of the main character is and this is very rare to see what is actually happening.
thirteen ways of looking at a black film– 2014 – Heather Ashley Hates and Gilbert B. Rodman
The identity side of the equation depends on the notion that “race” is a natural phenomenon that can be used to accurately place the peoples of the world into discrete, non-overlapping categories.
In actual practice, however, such categories vary significantly over time and across space—which makes them cultural and historical fictions, rather than universal, scientific facts. Moreover, as the growing population of self-identified multiracial people, should remind us, those categories overlap a great deal. Racial identity is more of a finely granulated spectrum than a simple binary choice, which, in turn, makes it impossible to anchor the identity end of the essentialism equation with any precision.
To understand “black film” in this context is to insist that any film worthy of the label do significant work toward identifying, condemning, and dismantling systemic and institutional racism. It also necessarily opens the door for “fellow travelers”—political allies who are not black—to make “black film.”
This is not to advance some sort of simple “colorblind” claim in which racial identity is wholly irrelevant to someone’s capacity for making black film.
Undoubtedly, it is much harder for white filmmakers (be they directors or not) to make “black film” than it is for black filmmakers to do so, since most white people have never had to face the harsh realities of systemic racism in the way that people of color (filmmakers or not) are forced to every day.
Historical text analysis and research
E-jumpcut
Hoop Dreams
this documentary says much about race and differential opportunity in the United States and the role that sports, as the only viable option to a better life, plays in shaping the lives of two typical inner city young black males. This film, like no other recent production, shows how basketball becomes a sense of obligation rather than a game. In many instances, the athletic success or failure of these inner city black kids literally becomes a matter of life and death.
Hoop realities
by Lee Jones
from Jump Cut, no. 40, March 1996, pp. 8-14
copyright Jump Cut: A Review of Contemporary Media, 1996, 2006
Within it lie simple stories about the strength of the often fragmented families, the importance of the extended family in the African American community, the love shared at family celebrations and gatherings, the tremendous resilience in the face of too frequent setbacks, and the role that black women play in maintaining the family unit under conditions of near Third World poverty. These themes take us on a journey to the other United States, capturing real human stories that remain ignored within popular debates about inner city pathology.
Hoop realities
by Lee Jones
from Jump Cut, no. 40, March 1996, pp. 8-14
copyright Jump Cut: A Review of Contemporary Media, 1996, 2006
The film gives a specific example of deindustrialization. Arthur Agee's father Bo previously held a good manufacturing job but was laid off. He stumbled through a number of jobs but none were permanent nor paid the wages that the factory job did. Finally, he fell into the trap of drugs in effort to salve his wounded self, damaged by what he perceived as his failure to provide for his family.
Hoop realities
by Lee Jones
from Jump Cut, no. 40, March 1996, pp. 8-14
copyright Jump Cut: A Review of Contemporary Media, 1996, 2006
"Surviving the Hood"UniverseOverall Story Throughline
Everyone in the hood is stuck in a bleak situation that appears hopeless (e.g. violent crime, drugs, harassment by the police, and so forth).FutureOverall Story Concern
During his gentrification speech in Compton, Furious points out to Tre, Rick, and the others they must start thinking about their future; as parents, Furious and Reva are concerned for their son’s future; Brandi is concerned with her future college education; Rick is concerned about his future in college and football; Tre is concerned with his future in college and a future with Brandi; Brenda Baker is concerned for her son Rick’s future, and believes her son Doughboy’s future is hopeless.ChoiceOverall Story Issue
The story explores the choices that everyone in the hood makes: does one “go to blows” over a wisecrack remark or delay until cooled off; Tre and Brandi must choose to give in to sexual desires or wait until marriage; Ricky must decide whether to join the army for college funding now, or wait and see if he is accepted to USC. Delay Overall Story Counterpoint
Overall Story Thematic Conflict
Choice vs.Delay
Temptation Overall Story Problem
Everyone is tempted by sex, drugs, easy money, and the power generated from violence and vengeance. Tre is tempted by sex; Ricky dreams of becoming a football player but doesn’t take into account the necessity of academics, which tempts him to forego taking the SAT test and join the army for college funds; Doughboy is tempted by power and money; all these temptations directly or indirectly lead to problems for the characters.ConscienceOverall Story Solution
Foregoing the immediate benefits of engaging in unprotected sex, easy money earned by selling drugs, or stealing because of future consequences, will solve the Objective Story problem.
