In today's lesson we learnt about Semiotics, the connotations and denotations you draw from them and Stuart Halls Theory, and how there are preferred reading and opposition reading with everything.
In class we analysed a poster advertising Glee the TV program about a choir and tried to draw connotations from the poster about the characters, their involvement with the story, why they are dressed a certain way how colours effect the interpretation of them etc.
Now I am going to analyse a different poster from a film...
Denotations
A poster promoting the film Whiplash.
A teacher stares/concentrates on student playing drums.
Student is playing drums quickly as seen by blurred drumstick.
Teacher is dressed all in black.
Student wears blue jeans with black t shirt.
Student is sweating.
Brown drum kit in the center.
Connotations
Teacher is crouched down and is tense like a crouched predator/animal ready to pounce, like the teacher is looking for anything to go wrong in the other character and can jump on them with anger and ferocity. This can be seen by the concentration on the teachers face staring at the student its not a happy stare it is a stare down waiting for something to go wrong almost like the teacher is angry at the student before he has even done anything wrong.
The student is playing the drums quickly as seen by the blur so he wants to impress the teacher and is trying his hardest to do so. This concentration can also be seen on the students face and how he is sweating so he really want to play these drums well.
The teacher is dressed all in black and is only illuminated by the light that is on the student therefore the teacher is actually in the dark like a shadow of the student and devil on his shoulder willing him on. Being dressed all in black could also have connotations of evil, the teacher could be seen as evil in the way he teaches his student.
The student is dressed in blue jeans and a black shirt so on top maybe he is hard and like his teacher but underneath (in legs with the jeans on) he is actually blue i.e emotional and has a soft side that he doesn't show his teacher in case he would take advantage of this softness, so the student is split.
The drum kit is in the center so the film centers around the drum kit, drums and playing the drums, the drum kit is also where both characters gazes are crossing and how they are either side of it looking shows they both will have a relationship with drums in the film.
