These are a copy of some of the original notes I made from my film viewing for my essays.
10
- Older man, younger more beautiful woman
- Black servant
- In car scene lots of women seen objectively through the mans eyes (the male gaze to view women)
- We as the audience are meant to sympathise with the husband when his wife throws him a surprise party and he's not satisfied.
The April Fools
- Older man, business suit, going for a promotion on respectable job
- Female first seen from the male perspective - up the stairs - sexual view
- He's meant to be masculine because he doesn't like art, fashion etc.
- Wife is meant to be viewed as bad because she doesn't support her husbands job move and wants lots of material things
- Sexual freedom of the late 1960s shown through Catherine leaving with him
- They don't actually have any conversation, it's very awkward between them.
- Men do masculine activity of fencing, the women drink tea and talk
- Catherine has wanted to leave husband but only chooses to do so when she's had an experience with another man - needs someone to rely on. In constant need of a man there.
- Representation of toad is meant to be like a fairy story. Brubaker is bad before he meets Catherine, or not his true self?
- He naturally attracts women - it's not that he's sexually attractive it's the new powerful job?
- An affair is seen as okay if it's love?
- Wife is very domesticated which were meant to view as bad but Catherine doesn't have a job either - she is shown to be dissatisfied in her stagnant life though to contrast the wife
- Classical rom-com montage of spending the day together and falling in love
- Controlling husband who 'allow's her to go and flirt but tells her off when something happens and resents it - doesn't care about her happiness but clearly wants to own her and thinks he has rights over what she does and what he allows her to do
- Husband is physically forceful with Catherine - doesn't let her go when he's trying to talk to her
- He admits he had an affair but doesn't think it's wrong he did, but believes she shouldn't? Double standards and no respect for her.
- Uses adopting a child to persuade her to stay - plays on her being female and meant to be maternal. Says she would be a terrible person of she left this child without a mother.
- It's not bad that Brubakers leaving his child though? Not even mentioned?
Just Friends
- Pretty girl, chubby boy friendship cliche
- Friendzone established - nice guy, girl who doesn't notice him like that and goes for the jocks
- The nice guy has more feminine qualities - loving, crying.
- Years later and we see him as much more masculine because he's good looking and lost weight. Therefore he can get a girl, who's dressed like a 'slut' and is having a joke made at her because of it. She's an object in the film to prove his new masculinity, not a character.
- His manliness is shown through sex and sport
- Dumb blonde celebrity cliche, famous for doing nothing
- He hasn't come home since college - forgotten who he is?
- Lesbianism seen as inappropriate
- Girl is still at home, working behind a bar. Hasn't done anything with her life so were meant to view him as better now, he has the upper hand in the relationship.
- She's first seen again from the male gaze
- Treats the celebrity girl terribly because she's 'stupid' but we're still meant to view him as the nice guy. This is just comedy relief?
- He tries to act cool to get with her - playing 'mean'
- Her working behind the bar is part time to fund her career. She is very clever but he assumes he in a better job - masculine attitude to jobs. Her job is still stereotypicaly 'female'
- When he's fussy around food lots of derogatory gender terms used 'little girl' 'pussy' - terms show that being a typical girl and feminine aspects are seen as negative and something we shouldn't want to be.
- Eventually shows sensitive side to win her
- The other guy is seen as a 'dickhead' for seeing lots of women - which was what Ryan was doing at the beginning? It's now seen as bad because it involves a girl who isn't a 'slut' and who we're meant ot care about.
- Domesticated home girl with the family is seen as attractive. Not jet setting like the guy
- She's a 'prick tease' for being pretty and being best friends with a boy - idea that she knew she was playing with him and did it on purpose? Blame goes to girl.
13 going on 30
- Plain girl friends with dorky chubby guy, wants to be in with the popular pretty girls
- Girl wants to change who she is so she is cool
- Matt is sensitive and sweet which are seen as uncool and is in love with her - classic trope
- Flash-forward in New York, successful business woman, sexual freedom
- Matt has grown up, lost weight and is now 'handsome' - still artistic but this is now seen as cool
- Jenna became cool and got everything she wanted, losing Matt in the process
- Jenna is pleased she has boobs - pleasure in womanly figure, meant to be sexually funny
- The hokey player boyfriend is very masculine into sports, sex and is overly confident, can easily get any girl.
- Trope of fat woman as the bumbling assistant
- Finds out her friend is a 'bitch' so has to go it along - becomes more successful when she starts acting like her 13 years old self
- Jenna and Matt get along very naturally, conversation flowing, make each other laugh
- She's cheating and that seen as bad but him kissing her while he's in a relationship is seen as romantic?
- Matt's fiance is meant to be viewed as bad because she wants him to move for her job. Something that women do a lot for men but unacceptable and bad girlfriend when it's the other way round.
- Matt refuses to back out of his wedding even though he likes Jenna and has kissed her - is the cowardliness shown as chivalrous?
- Film ends with Jenna making the right decision but the flash-forward we see them as domesticated in the suburbs with her unpacking boxes - comfortable view of a woman to end a film as the loving wife not in a new job etc. after an 'adventure' we must return to our classical feminine spheres.
For the second wave feminism film I chose The April Fools because it was set in a better era than 10 and fitted the brief better. For the post-modern feminism film I chose 13 going on 30 as it has a lot of the tropes I want to focus on - the sensitive nice guy, the career 'bitch' character, the classical ending whereas Just Friends has some of these but they're a little more blurred and I especially wanted to focus on the career path that 13 going on 30 has.
Sunday, 20 February 1994
Wednesday, 24 February 1993
Foam Latex Research
Foam latex is a popular from of prosthetic appliance because it gives a high amount of performer comfort. Materials such as silicone do mimic the texture and appearance of human skin a lot more realistically, but silicone has no breath-ability and an actor wearing silicone appliances will perspire a lot under the prosthetics when worn for an extended period of time. Gelatin, being another option, may start to melt. Foam latex is also a lot lighter than the other two options so a full-face appliance will likely weigh less than an ounce and when applied, it is almost undetectable by the actor wearing it. Although foam latex is the lightest and most comfortable appliance to wear, it is probably the most difficult material to work with overall.
Problems
- Foam latex is opaque. Silicone and gelatin can be coloured intrinsically to be semitransparent or translucent, similar to real human skin. Therefore to create the idea of translucency, the appliance has to be painted with numerous transparent layers of pigment, most often with an airbrush, to look like real skin.
- Foam latex requires a heat cure in an oven and it can't be a normal kitchen oven.
- Foam latex gives off toxic fumes during the heat cure
- Foam latex is time and temperature sensitive, meaning it has to be watched closely, can go wrong very easily and can turn out different between each batch.
- Foam latex can shrink, the thicker the foam the more it shrinks
- Foam latex is delicate so rarely survives removal in one piece at the end of the day meaning there needs to be fresh appliances every day for the performer.
History of Latex
- Latex is a natural liquid that comes from the hevea tree grown in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines and other tropical countries
- The tree is tapped and a small amount of latex (a few ounces) is collected from each tree before the cut on the tree congeals and heals itself. Each tree is only tapped once every two days.
- Over 95% of all natural latex is concentrated by a method called centrifuging. The result is a high quality product containing 60-65% solids.
- The remaining latex, which is less than 5% of the worlds production, is concentrated by another method called creaming were ammonium alginate is added to the raw latex, causing separation. The watery 'serum layer' is drained from the vats, leaving a higher concentration of latex.
- As latex is a natural product, its composition is dependent on different environmental conditions. The hevea tress and the latex are affected by how much rainfall there is in a given season, how many sunny days, how young the tress are etc. Therefore the quality of rubber varies from season to season, year to year and month to month.
- These fluctuations can be very difficult for makeup effects because the latex will behave differently every time. For this reason when GM foam purchases creamed latex it calibrates its own latex base. It adjusts the pH balance, then conditions the latex with additives and finally makes a special blend with other types of latex. This means GM foam can carefully control the cell size, foam volume, flow and gel time.
Debreceni, T (2009) Special Makeup effects for stage and screen. Oxford: Focal Press (pg. 169-72)
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| 57 |
Problems
- Foam latex is opaque. Silicone and gelatin can be coloured intrinsically to be semitransparent or translucent, similar to real human skin. Therefore to create the idea of translucency, the appliance has to be painted with numerous transparent layers of pigment, most often with an airbrush, to look like real skin.
- Foam latex requires a heat cure in an oven and it can't be a normal kitchen oven.
- Foam latex gives off toxic fumes during the heat cure
- Foam latex is time and temperature sensitive, meaning it has to be watched closely, can go wrong very easily and can turn out different between each batch.
- Foam latex can shrink, the thicker the foam the more it shrinks
- Foam latex is delicate so rarely survives removal in one piece at the end of the day meaning there needs to be fresh appliances every day for the performer.
History of Latex
- Latex is a natural liquid that comes from the hevea tree grown in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines and other tropical countries
- The tree is tapped and a small amount of latex (a few ounces) is collected from each tree before the cut on the tree congeals and heals itself. Each tree is only tapped once every two days.
- Over 95% of all natural latex is concentrated by a method called centrifuging. The result is a high quality product containing 60-65% solids.
- The remaining latex, which is less than 5% of the worlds production, is concentrated by another method called creaming were ammonium alginate is added to the raw latex, causing separation. The watery 'serum layer' is drained from the vats, leaving a higher concentration of latex.
- As latex is a natural product, its composition is dependent on different environmental conditions. The hevea tress and the latex are affected by how much rainfall there is in a given season, how many sunny days, how young the tress are etc. Therefore the quality of rubber varies from season to season, year to year and month to month.
- These fluctuations can be very difficult for makeup effects because the latex will behave differently every time. For this reason when GM foam purchases creamed latex it calibrates its own latex base. It adjusts the pH balance, then conditions the latex with additives and finally makes a special blend with other types of latex. This means GM foam can carefully control the cell size, foam volume, flow and gel time.
Debreceni, T (2009) Special Makeup effects for stage and screen. Oxford: Focal Press (pg. 169-72)
Wednesday, 26 February 1992
Weaving Chignons
Making a Template
- Draw a pattern of the size of the chignon required using cling film, sellotape and a marker pen.
- Place the pattern onto a malleable block
- Taking string or wool follow the pattern starting from the middle, working outwards. Pin as you go
- The length of the string that you use will give you the overall length of weft you require.
- The length of the outer circle needs to be marked/measured on the string too to give you 2 measurements - 1) the length of the outside circle and 2) the overall length of weaving.
Setting up the weaving frame
- You will need to add 30-40cms extra to each length of silk and wire
- Set up the weaving frame with a measured length of silk in the top notch and in the bottom notch of the weaving pole. The silks are made from 3 ply strong thread that has been coated in bees wax
- Draw both silks across towards the left side to meet the weaving pole that has the nail on it and tie the silks together by making two knots 2-3cms apart.
- Hook the silks over the nail between the knots and tighten the frame
- Remember you will need to add 30-40cms extra to the overall length of wire
- Wrap the measured length of weaving wire around the middle notch of the weaving pole in the same direction as the weaving silks above and below
- Draw the weaving wire across the frame and wrap the end around the nail to secure.
- Place hair into hair mats
- Commence with starting knot
- Using flat weft weave the length of the outside circle using the 'flat weft' method.
- Weave the rest of the length using the 'wig weft' method
- Finish with a finish knot
Removing the weft from the weaving frame:
- Cut the two silks leaving about 8cms excess on each silk and knot the two silk threads tightly together against the end of the weft
- Using pliers cut the wire leaving the excess of 1-2 cms
- Fold the excess wire back on itself flat against the weft (fold inwards so the wire weft will hold)
- Cover the shine/appearance of the bare wire ends by over sewing to match the colour of the weft
Sewing Up
- Start from the inner circle using your template as a reference and make the circle with the wig weft end and work outwards
- Sew each meeting point or 'stitch point' as you construct the shape
- The outer circle should be the flat weft as this appears as a neat weft edge
- Sew a hair comb to the inside of the chignon to secure the hairpiece to the head.
- Draw a pattern of the size of the chignon required using cling film, sellotape and a marker pen.
- Place the pattern onto a malleable block
- Taking string or wool follow the pattern starting from the middle, working outwards. Pin as you go
- The length of the string that you use will give you the overall length of weft you require.
- The length of the outer circle needs to be marked/measured on the string too to give you 2 measurements - 1) the length of the outside circle and 2) the overall length of weaving.
Setting up the weaving frame
- You will need to add 30-40cms extra to each length of silk and wire
- Set up the weaving frame with a measured length of silk in the top notch and in the bottom notch of the weaving pole. The silks are made from 3 ply strong thread that has been coated in bees wax
- Draw both silks across towards the left side to meet the weaving pole that has the nail on it and tie the silks together by making two knots 2-3cms apart.
- Hook the silks over the nail between the knots and tighten the frame
- Remember you will need to add 30-40cms extra to the overall length of wire
- Wrap the measured length of weaving wire around the middle notch of the weaving pole in the same direction as the weaving silks above and below
- Draw the weaving wire across the frame and wrap the end around the nail to secure.
- Place hair into hair mats
- Commence with starting knot
- Using flat weft weave the length of the outside circle using the 'flat weft' method.
- Weave the rest of the length using the 'wig weft' method
- Finish with a finish knot
Removing the weft from the weaving frame:
- Cut the two silks leaving about 8cms excess on each silk and knot the two silk threads tightly together against the end of the weft
- Using pliers cut the wire leaving the excess of 1-2 cms
- Fold the excess wire back on itself flat against the weft (fold inwards so the wire weft will hold)
- Cover the shine/appearance of the bare wire ends by over sewing to match the colour of the weft
Sewing Up
- Start from the inner circle using your template as a reference and make the circle with the wig weft end and work outwards
- Sew each meeting point or 'stitch point' as you construct the shape
- The outer circle should be the flat weft as this appears as a neat weft edge
- Sew a hair comb to the inside of the chignon to secure the hairpiece to the head.
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