Film and media studies dive into the world of storytelling through screens. From movies to video games, we'll explore how these stories are made, what they mean, and how they shape our culture.

We'll learn the lingo of film and media, like "cinematic language" and "mise-en-scène." These terms help us understand how creators use visuals, sound, and storytelling tricks to make us feel and think certain ways.

Key Terms and Concepts in Media Studies

Essential Terminology and Concepts

• Film and media studies analyze the production, content, reception, and cultural impact of various media forms (film, television, digital media, video games)
• Media texts are individual works or content being studied containing embedded meanings and messages shaped by the medium and cultural context
• Cinematic language refers to technical and creative elements of film (mise-en-scène, cinematography, editing, sound) that communicate meaning to the viewer
• Narrative and storytelling conventions in media establish common structures, archetypes, and audience expectations within and across different media forms (hero's journey, three-act structure)

Authorship, Genres, and Representation

• Authorship in media can be analyzed in terms of the creative vision and style of directors, showrunners, or other key figures shaping the text (auteur theory)
• Genres are categories of media texts that share certain conventions regarding content, style, audience affect, and storytelling patterns (science fiction, romantic comedy, horror)
• Representation refers to how media texts construct depictions of people, places, events, ideas, and experiences that shape cultural meaning (gender roles, racial stereotypes)
• Media representations can perpetuate, subvert, or offer alternative perspectives on dominant cultural assumptions and ideologies

Media Texts: Types and Characteristics

Traditional Media Forms

• Films are motion pictures that tell stories or communicate themes through moving images, typically experienced in a theater setting, and of set running times (feature films, documentaries, short films)
• Television programs are episodic or serialized audiovisual content broadcast over the airwaves or through cable/satellite services (sitcoms, dramas, news programs, reality shows)
• Traditional media forms often adhere to established industry norms, production practices, and distribution models (studio system, network television, theatrical releases)

Digital and Interactive Media

• Streaming media refers to film and television content distributed over the internet to computers, mobile devices, and digital media players (Netflix, Hulu, YouTube)
• Video games are interactive, typically digital, texts that involve gameplay, narrative, and audiovisual experiences shaped by user input (console games, mobile games, virtual reality games)
• User-generated content (UGC) refers to media texts created and shared by users on social media and digital content platforms (vlogs, memes, fan fiction, online reviews)
• Augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) create immersive media experiences that blend or replace the user's physical environment (Pokémon Go, Oculus Rift)
• Digital media often enables greater interactivity, customization, and user participation compared to traditional media forms

Transmedia and Convergence

• Transmedia storytelling uses multiple media platforms to deliver different elements of a narrative in a coordinated, interconnected way (Marvel Cinematic Universe, Star Wars franchise)
• Media convergence refers to the blurring of boundaries between different media forms, industries, and technologies (smartphones as multimedia devices, cross-platform releases)
• Transmedia and convergence strategies often seek to create immersive storyworlds, engage audiences across multiple touchpoints, and exploit intellectual property

Analyzing and Interpreting Media Texts

Formal and Aesthetic Analysis

• Mise-en-scène analysis examines the arrangement and design of visual elements within the frame, such as setting, lighting, staging, costumes (German Expressionism, film noir)
• Cinematography analysis considers camerawork, visual composition, color, depth of field, and other expressive qualities of the moving image (long takes, close-ups, handheld camera)
• Editing and montage theory examines how the assembly and juxtaposition of shots creates meaning, establishes pacing and rhythm, and shapes viewer response (continuity editing, Soviet montage, jump cuts)
• Sound analysis attends to the role of dialogue, music, and sound effects in creating a full audiovisual experience and conveying narrative information (leitmotifs, diegetic vs. non-diegetic sound)

Narrative and Semiotic Analysis

• Narrative analysis considers elements of storytelling such as plot structure, characterization, themes, and patterns of conflict and resolution (three-act structure, character archetypes, narrative closure)
• Semiotic analysis treats media texts as systems of signs to be deciphered, interpreting denotative and connotative meanings of media's audiovisual language (codes, syntagmatic and paradigmatic relations, polysemy)
• Narrative and semiotic approaches often examine how media texts create meaning, convey ideas and emotions, and invite particular audience interpretations and responses

Cultural and Ideological Analysis

• Ideological analysis interrogates how media texts reflect, reinforce, or challenge dominant cultural assumptions, beliefs and power structures (Marxist critique, feminist theory, postcolonial analysis)
• Theories of media effects consider how exposure to media shapes attitudes, behaviors, and social norms over time (cultivation theory, agenda setting, social learning theory)
• Reception studies examine how diverse audiences interpret and respond to media texts differently based on their social identities, cultural backgrounds, and viewing contexts (active audiences, oppositional readings, fan cultures)
• Cultural studies approaches situate media texts within broader systems of power, identity, and representation, considering their role in shaping and contesting cultural meanings

Language and Terminology in Media Studies

The Role of Precise Terminology

• Precise and well-defined terminology allows scholars to discuss and analyze media with clarity, specificity and a shared understanding of key concepts
• The language used to describe media shapes perception of its formal properties, storytelling strategies, cultural significance and effects on audiences
• Academic and critical discourses around media use language to categorize texts, identify patterns and trends, and make evaluative judgements (film criticism, television studies, game studies)

Theoretical Frameworks and Methodologies

• Theoretical frameworks and methodologies have their own terminology that reflects their approaches and underlying assumptions about media (psychoanalytic theory, structuralism, formalism, phenomenology)
• Terminology can also reflect specific historical, national, and cultural contexts of media production and reception (German Expressionism, French New Wave, Bollywood, Nollywood)
• Interdisciplinary approaches to media studies often borrow and adapt terminology from fields such as linguistics, sociology, anthropology, and psychology (semiotics, ethnography, parasocial interaction)

Evolving Language and Contested Terms

• As media forms and platforms evolve, new terminology continually emerges to account for emerging technologies, genres, and cultural practices (social media, streaming, transmedia, VR/AR)
• Debates within film and media studies often center on contested terminology and the implications of how key concepts are defined and applied (auteur, genre, realism, identification, agency)
• The language of media studies is not neutral or fixed, but rather a site of ongoing negotiation and struggle over meaning and power (canon debates, identity politics, cultural appropriation)
• Engaging with the terminology of film and media studies requires ongoing critical reflection on the assumptions, limitations, and consequences of the language we use to understand media