THE HUNGER GAMES

1. THE HUNGER GAMES 2012 Directed by Gary Ross

2. PLOT OVERVIEW: • The Hunger Games is a 2012 American science fiction film directed by Gary Ross. The story takes place in a dystopian post-apocalyptic future in the nation of Panem, where boys and girls aged 12–18 must participate in the Hunger Games, a televised annual event in which the "tributes" are required to fight to the death until there is one remaining victor. The protagonist, KatnissEverdeen, volunteers to take her younger sister's place in the games.

3. THEMES • Materialism, preoccupation with image and beauty • Desensitisation due to overexposure to violence by the media and obsession with reality television programmes. • Abuse of power and repressive governmental control • What examples from the film show these themes?

4. THEME QUOTES: • “Remember this? My favourite year…This is a moment you never forget. When a tribute becomes a victor” • “A little hope is good. A lot of hope is dangerous…contain it” • “Welcome to the 74th hunger games…are you excited” • “It’s a television show. And being in love might just get you sponsors”

5. Suzanne Collins: “When I was a kid, my dad fought in Vietnam. He was gone for a year. Even though my mom tried to protect us—I’m the youngest of four—sometimes the TV would be on, and I would see footage from the war zone. I was little, but I would hear them say “Vietnam,” and I knew my dad was there, and it was very frightening. I’m sure that a lot of people today experience that same thing. But there is so much programming, and I worry that we’re all getting a little desensitized to the images on our televisions. If you’re watching a sitcom, that’s fine. But if there’s a real-life tragedy unfolding, you should not be thinking of yourself as an audience member. Because those are real people on the screen, and they’re not going away when the commercials start to roll.”

6. Links to real life events • America’s increasing use of plastic surgery and focus on image. • Obsession with game shows in which real people are exploited for the sake of entertainment. E.g The Bachelor, American Idol, Survivor, The Amazing Race. Audiences are so overexposed to violence and reality television that horrific acts no longer gain a reaction. The line between fiction and reality is often blurred • Increasing poverty in America – The contrast in America between extreme wealth/opulence and widespread poverty. Increasing number of homeless and unemployed. • War in Iraq – Reference to President Bush’s decision to send young American men and women to fight in an unpopular war in which many have lost their lives.

7. SFX technology • Budget - 78 Million • The use of green screen and CGI is apparent throughout the film resulting in realistic and impressive special effects. • The antiseptic feeling of the control center and the use of holograms were all intended to make the arena feel 'constructed' even when you weren't seeing the control room. The control room in the film appears very high tech and is filled with people 3 dimensional holograms and multi-touch interfaces in which they can alter the landscape and natural features of the Hunger Games arena.[

8. SFX technology • The control room is completely created through the use of CGI and green screen. The set consists simply of bare desks and actors who mimic movements which are later matched which computer generated images.

9. SFX technology Examples of CGI can be seen when one gamemaker creates a fireball in the control center and then pushes it towards Katniss. Another gamemaker creates a hologram of a mutt on a touchscreen interface and places it in the arena near Katniss and Peeta. Both the fireball and the Mutts are created with CGI but look extremely realistic.