Pirates of the Caribbean

1. Pirates of the Caribbean Media Unit

2. Pirates of the Caribbean - Summary A good plot summary needs to answer: • Who - characters • Where & When - setting • What – plot, main points only

3. What is ‘mise-en-scène’? Misé-en-scène is the term for everything that is on the screen to help us believe what we are seeing is real. It includes:

4. Sound - Music Music is used in the film in order to create different feelings (mood). Try and match the following moods to the pieces of music.

5. Sound - Diegetic Not only does a film include music, but it also includes sounds called “diegetic sounds”. These are the sounds that would naturally occur were what was on the screen actually happening. This includes sounds like voices (both of the characters and in the background), footsteps, wind, animal noises, telephones ringing, etc. All these sounds need to be present to help us believe that the action is realistic. When diegetic sound is not present it is to create a specific effect.

6. Genre Genre is a term that refers to the type, sort or kind. Some types of films fit solidly into a genre, whilst others are not so easy to define. Genres are identified through a number of elements. Setting, plot and character types are probably the easiest to identify. Look at the chart on the next page and fill what you would expect each genre to contain.

8. Generic Hybridity Different genres of films appeal to different audiences. In order to enable film to appeal to as large an audience as possible, different elements of genres can be combined. One genre, however, still tends to dominate. An example: Goal (2005) was a film based on a football player (sport genre), but he also becomes involved romantically during the film (romantic genre). Whilst the sport remains important, the romance element enables girlfriends to relate to the story as well… Supposedly.

9. Comedy Comedy is hard to classify as a separate genre as it appears in many films of many genres. Even in films dominated by comedy, the comedy works better through other genres, e.g. the romantic comedy (or, at extreme, the horror-romantic-comedy, e.g. Sean of the Dead). However, despite the difficulty in categorising comedy, it is one of the most central areas in film and television, and often appears in some guise in most films (especially as comic relief).

10. Copy the diagram into your jotter. Add in evidence from the film to support the idea these genres appear in the film. Remember to think about all aspects of mise-en-scene.

11. Audience Different films (and TV programmes) are often aimed at different audiences. It is clear to see from TV schedules what is aimed at who. Task 1. Find a programme that would be suitable for: • Pre-school children • Young adults • Senior citizens • Mrs Elrick 2. What times in the schedule are you most likely to find these programmes?

12. Audience – “Pirates of the Caribbean” • This film was very expensive to make and the company behind it (Disney) was determined to make money. Therefore the film was made to appeal to as many different people as possible. Task Think about the different elements of PotC. Try and work out which audience element would be attracted to them. HINT: Start with gender and age group.

13. CEL Choose a film which contains a variety of different genres. Describe which genre categories it fits into and how the filmmakers have used film techniques to create these genres. Explain why, in your opinion, the filmmakers have combined these genres. Refer closely to the film.