News Article

The Ministry of Defence has been critiscised by animal rights campaigners for using bear skin for their ceremonial head gear worn by the Guardsmen of Buckingham Palace. The Independent reports that a total of 127 bearskins were ordered by Defence Officials in 2014 alone (released by the Freedom of Information Act).  The headgear worn by the Guardsmen are 18" in height and use real fur from Black bears killed in Canada. 

Personally, I am undecided on the matter as it could be argued the bear skin headgear is tradition as British soldiers have worm them for over 200 years due to representing the victory over Napoleon's bearskin wearing Imperial Guard at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. On the other hand, designers such as Stella Mcartney and Vivienne Westwood have offered to design suitable alternatives for real fur that could be as equally symbolic. 

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/mod-attacked-by-animal-rights-campaigners-over-use-of-bearskins-a6699036.html

Trip to the BFI London Film Festival

On Wednesday 17th October we attended the BFI London Film Festival, Southbank, to watch a series of short films followed by a question and answer session with the directors and producers.  The collection of short films was named 'New British Shorts' for which there were six films totalling to 43 minutes.

The first film was 'Operator' directed by Caroline Bartleet and lasted around 6 minutes. The film is about how Gemma wakes to find her and her son trapped in their house which is on fire. The film was very intense from the beginning despite the operator's calm and collected tone. The film starred two well known actresses Kate Dickie and Vicky Mclure and could be described as drama or even a thriller as the audience only hear the incident and have to imagine it for themselves.

The second film 'Otherwise Engaged' was a short comedy directed by Alicia Macdonald. The short starred Hannah Arterton and Mark Quartley. The film runs for five minutes and in that time explores the themes of social media and the role technology plays/ effect on 21st century relationships.

The third film was a four minute documentary called 'Lines' directed by Cecile Emeke. The films cast discussed the lyrics to certain songs and how a group of women interpreted them. The themes explored would be music and reflection as the individuals reflected on childhood hits such as the work of Destiny's Child, and how they're understanding of the songs have change and developed.

The next film was 'Copycat' directed and produced by Charlie Lynne. The short lasted 9 minutes and was made entirely from VHS clips. Lynne's short film explores the connection between Rolfe Kanefsky's 'There's nothing out there' and Wes Craven's 'Scream'. The film loosely resembles a documentary centered on the belief that after Kanefsky's film was overlooked so he passed it on to Craven's son, to which five years later Scream (extremely similar to Kanefsky's film) was released and a global success.

The fifth film was C.T.R.L directed by Mariana Conde.  The film is three minutes long and similar to 'Otherwise Engaged' explores the theme of technology and its impact on relationships. The genre could be consider comedy as humour is created through the film only featuring dancers and how love interests can be manipulated by a phone app as if there were characters in a game.

The final film 'Black Sheep' directed by Christian Cerami was the longest of all the shorts, at sixteen minutes. The film resembled a documentary however a very6 informal one following two teenager brothers as they attend an EDL protest. The film itself could be consider controversial due to the view points conveyed throughout.

What were your favourite films?

 My favourites would have to be Operator, Otherwise Engaged, Copycat and Black Sheep. I equally enjoyed 4of them because they were each unique and kept me engaged throughout. I liked how Operator was extremely intense and showed a side of the Emergency Services I had never seen before. In addition, Otherwise Engaged was very light hearted and made me laugh. More importantly, Copycat fascinated me as I really liked how Lynne has edited all the old recordings together, then added his own voice over to tell his story. Furthermore, Black Sheep caught my attention as it was so controversial. I appreciated how Cerami got the two boys to be so comfortable in front of the camera and we were therefore able to hear their true opinions and moreover how vulnerable and susceptible to influences they were.

What interested you about what the film makers had to say?

I enjoyed getting to hear the stories behind the film makers work however I think some were more helpful and informative than others. The directors and producers of Operator had some good advice to do with costs and casting, whilst the director of Otherwise Engaged was very helpful in discussing the pro's and con's of attending film school.

What elements of the films do you think you could use in your coursework?

 For my coursework I am looking at representation for which I think was featured in all of the six films depending on how you look at them. I am looking to investigate the representation of disability which could be quite controversial, similar to Black Sheep however less so. In this case I could look at how the director dealt with a difficult topic and the ways in which he was sensitive and tactful in delivering his message.

News Article

"Lion will be CUT OPEN in front of children as young as FOUR during public dissection at zoo". - The Mirror

The Mirror reports with a warning of graphic content that a Lion is to be dissected at Odense Zoo in Denmark. Through its reporting style it is implied that The Mirror are disgusted by the idea and very against it. They refer to the lion as 'the beast' and emphasise that 'children as young as four will have front row views' this is not only exaggerating slightly but again followed by the repetition of 'public dissection' to draw a reaction from the reader. The article is very informing in that it includes quotes from a zookeeper there 'We believe in sharing knowledge.'

Personally, although I think the article exaggerates the situation slightly, I don't disagree that it is very wrong. The Mirror suggests that the dissection will be on the local high street and that children are being forced to watch it, however at the end of that day it is an optional experience and it is taking place under strict conditions. I think that although it is extremely uncomforting to think about, there may be some usefulness in it to training veterinarians and zoo keepers. 

Kingsman and Skyfall Comparison

Kingsman: The Secret Service was released in January 2015 starring several big name actors including Colin Firth, Samuel L Jackson and Michael Caine. The British made film was directed by Mathew Vaugn and based on the 2012 comic books of the same name by Mark Miller and Dave Gibbons, in total generating around $412 million. Skyfall is the 23rd film in the James Bond series and was released in 2012. The film recruited Daniel Craig as Bond and also stars Judi Dench. It became the highest grossing film in the UK at the time generating over $1,000 million.

Kingsman: The Secret Service and Skyfall explore similar themes and ideas, however differ at times as well. Both films are British made, both follow Todorov's theory , and overlap in genres such as Spy and Action films. Kingsman  can also be referred to as a coming of age film as it shows the evolution of Eggsy a boy who works his way up in the secret service. It could also be listed as a comedy due to certain parts of the film being solely for humour, for example Samuel L Jackson's lisp and the 'arsehole' scene.Interestingly, CinemaBlend reports that it was Jackson's idea to have his character of Valentine with a speech impediment. He explained to director Vaugn that he has suffered with a lisp when he was younger and it drove him to want to succeed. 'If you're Steve Jobs and you've got money, you've got power and you've got everything you want - but you've still got this god damn stutter and lisp, and people aren't 100% taking you seriously, it can take you to that next level of going mad.'  Contrastingly, Skyfall explores a genre of its own in that it could be classed under Thriller or Adventure. Despite both films being Action, Skyfall seems to conform to the genres conventions more with significantly more car chases and explosion than Kingsman, none the less Kingsman does include several such as the police car chase at the beginning of the film. Amongst similar themes between the two are saving the world and becoming a hero. Both main protagonists Bond and Eggsy, although very different, succeed in 'saving the world' as it were.

The two films overall convey opposing political views. Both films showcase the dominant ideology. With Bond being a white, heterosexual, middle aged man, clean shaven and in a suit. He is also a protagonist with great power, skills and authority suggesting the dominant ideology is the criteria for his abilities. Similarly, Harry Hart is of the same nature however Kingsman is about embracing 'Eggsy' a boy despite his low social class being able to become/ being considered for a Kingsman. Vaugn here conveys social realism through Harry Hart's left wing political views and through the film in general including characters of a working class - unlike Skyfall. 

There are positive representations throughout Kingsman with disability represented through Gazelle who has blades for legs. She uses this in her favour as she fights offthe kingsman and protects Valentine, although failing to do so against Eggsy in one of the final scenes. In addition, there is also a positive representation of females throughout as Roxy a woman, much smaller in weight and height than the other contenders, manages to win the position of Lancealot showing capability over men who are suggested to be seemingly more able. On the other hand, Skyfall over sexualises women as the mysterious lady is tied up and a game made of trying to knock the whiskey from her head. Bond's colleague Eve Moneypenny is also shown to shoot Bond instead of the opposition. In addition to her being shown to not be able to do what she aimed to do, she becomes a sexual object. A scene by which Bond is shaving, a masculine act, she takes over shaving him suggesting women are below men, before he unbuttons her blouse without consent. 

News Article

From 5th October there has been a new law enforced in England that says supermarket shoppers will have pay 5p towards each plastic carrier bag they use. Personally, I agree that the new law could be successful in stopping litter and waste as intended whilst the money received does all go towards charity. 

However the TaxPayer's Alliance believes that overall it will cost families £1.5billion over the next ten years, averaging around £67 a year for each family. The Mirror newspaper have an article online stating all the ways in which families can avoid the 5p charge. Although this in a way is them discouraging giving to charity, I think it is a helpful article for most families as they suggest ideas such a reusing bags and looking out for free bags.