Research and Visual Essay
30/11/17
How to select a topic or theme
Write a list of words/topics that interests you
Films
Graphic design
Design elements
Bands
Friendship
Family
Self love
Self belief
Optimism
Miracles
Self doubt
Growing up
Expectations
Environments
Inner values
Morals
Your ability
Realism
Concealing emotions
Stability
Ethics
Fake emotions
Feel good
Motivational
Uplifting
Inspirational
Chick flicks
Rom coms
What questions can you think of relating to any of these words?
-What effect does design have on your emotions?
-Does watching inspirational films give you false hope?
-False hope for the future? -Growing up?
Film examples?
-Love, Rosie - A more realistic rom com, they marry other people, have kids with other people
-Legally Blonde
-10 things I hate about you
Does watching romance films growing up affect your beliefs as an adult?
Does watching inspirational life films growing up give you false hope for the future?
Do some more research
-Books
-Films
JSTOR
-Internet
-Suggested reading
-Google scholar
Non-academic sources
-Film and TV
-Articles
-Radio
-Music
-Newspapers
-Magazines
-Poems
-Plays, theatre
Make sure to do a bibliography - Harvard referencing
What are some unrealistic rom coms
-50 first dates
-How to lose a guy in 10 days
-Love actually
Don’t go into the history of romance films. Pick key moments where you think it's changed.
04/01/18 - Essay structure
3,000 words
Question - referencing - format
Introduction
History
Styles and conventions
Notable figures
Innovations
Future
Conclusion
Break these down
Language needs to be clear and concise. Not too wordy
Troupes? Common occurrences with the films
What do these films have in common?
Example - Early music videos
Introduction
History - 60s, 70s, 80s
Styles - Flatness, aesthetic, subjects, storyline, experimental
Industry - companies? independent
Conclusion
Visual Essay
Use images and video clips to help show your thinking idea. Visuals help you present this
Rom coms? Everyone is beautiful which is kinda unrealistic. Visual will add to this
Fonts will matter. Think graphically about the design. Make it look interesting.
___________________
Intro: 250-300 words
Key points: 600 words each X4
Conclusion: 250-300 words
Primary research
-Films you critique
Secondary research
-Books
Reviews
Articles
Journals
Pitch Presentation Research
As a woman, could watching romantic comedies in your youth affect your expectations for future relationships?
Why this question?
-I like romantic comedies
-I know a lot about them
What do I want to find out?
-Does it affect relationships?
-Do woman actually think men are like that in real life?
What films?
-Old and new
Old
-Clueless
-10 things I hate about you
-Love Actually
-Mean Girls
New
-Love, Rosie
-Table 19
-Me before you
-What if
Who am I going to look at?
Bjarne. M. Holmes
Psychology program director
He’s very interested in the influence of popular media on teenagers regarding their relationships
Psychology paper was written by him and Kimberly Johnson
Media exposure to relationships
Media messages
Study Case
Will being in a relationship versus not at the time of the study moderate the influence of participants TV consumption?
123 students - 63% in relationships
2 groups - 26 men - 35 woman
They were shown separate films
-one romance film
-once family film
Manipulation condition - romantic comedies
Control condition - family film
People who watched the rom com had a belief in romantic destiny to a greater degree than the people who watched the family film. It was the people who were in relationships that had that belief. Less satisfaction and a lower belief in romantic destiny.
Presentation
(08/01/18)
Essay Structure Plan
Films to watch:
Mean Girls
Love Actually
Clueless
Romy and Michele's High School Reunion
13 Going on 30
About Time
Ten Years
Love, Rosie
Bridget Jones Diary
Two Night Stand
Notting Hill
(Research Into Richard Curtis)
Bridget Jones Diary
-A spinster, age 32, unmarried
-Smoker
-Borderline alcoholic
-Wants to lose weight as is slightly overweight
This film ignores real life.
Is this making younger viewers think they’ll end up like Bridget if they have no men in their life? And if not, there will still be 2 men chasing after her. Even if one of them only wants sex as he knows she’s ‘easy’.
She’s very un-Hollywood looking. Embarrassing and shameless are two words I’d use to describe her. However, I think this is a more accurate representation of what women are like in real life. They burp and fart too. Not all women are ladylike and you don't need to be primped and proper to attract a man. You can be yourself.
Love, Rosie
‘Good things, like dreamy boys, sometimes do come to those who wait’
The two characters are constantly missing each other. Missed chances and bad timing.
Teenage pregnancy
Marriage with other people
Richard Curtis Troupes
- Adorable Swearing
Unconventional ways of swearing. It's not threatening - comedic.
-Wacky sad female friends
Scarlett - Four Weddings and a Funeral
Katherine (Kit Kat) - About Time
-Bad friends
Rhys Ifans - Notting Hill
Tom - Bridget Jones Diary