Ashamae Swyer

Representations
In short, representation refers to the ways in which factors such as communities,
experiences, ideas or topics are categorised from a particular perspective. For
example, women in the media are often portrayed as sexual objects, most likely an
opinion of men. With the constant advancements in the media, however, the
representation of anything can be altered depending on the viewer.
The seven main identities that topics in the media are represented as are as follows:
Age
Gender
Sexuality
Regional
Class/Status
Disability/Ability
Ethnicity

All of these identities can be represented in very different ways to different viewers.
For example, young people are represented as violent and impulsive by the media.
However, there are many teens that would oppose this opinion, therefore this opinion
can be referred to as a stereotype, or a generalised preconception about an
individual or group of individuals.

Theories of Representation
Laura Mulvey The Male Gaze
Ashamae Swyer

Laura Mulveys famous theory suggests that women are objectified and represented
in terms of sexual prowess in the media, with the idea that their portrayal is a view
through the eyes of men, hence the term Male Gaze. Mulvey theory proves to be
very accurate and has been for many decades, as many publications such as
Western fashion magazines (i.e. Glamour magazine) still portray the ideal woman
as incredibly slim, white, dressed in very revealing clothing and placed in suggestive
positions, which is clearly an inaccurate representation of women in the Western
world. However, the popularity of the medias perception of women can prove to be
dangerous, as it gives the viewers a false idea of what real women are and how
they conduct themselves in the real world.

Representations in our short film

In many ways the protagonists play along to the stereotypical representation of
teenagers in the media, but they are still both quite unique in their own rights.
Karina could arguably be seen as quite a stubborn character, with a clear emotional
vulnerability as she refuses to give in to the pain of losing a loved one until the end of
the short film. This supports the representation of teenage girls as being all
consumed by emotions, with no rational way of coping with this influx of different
emotions.
Much like with Karinas character, Hayden is stereotypically portrayed as being
distant in the relationship and doesnt appear to show any emotions throughout the
film, except for short moments where he appears to completely give in to his feelings
for Karina. He is also shown to be protective over Karina, as he understands her
mental state better than anyone. However, as his character is present as a figment of
her imagination, there is no real way of knowing what his character was like, as the
audience only get to see the portrayal of him through Karinas eyes.