Analysis of a Media Product P2(a-g)

Meaning and Purpose

Dreamworks products provide family entertainment on a global scale, they have a very distinctive brand which they protect and promote in synergy with other companies such as McDonalds, Itunes, 20th Century Fox and in doing this all companies benefits from the publicity and profits made.

Purpose - the aim that someone wants to achieve, or that something is intended to achieve.

Genre - a particular style used in cinema, writing, or art, which can be recognised by curtain feature.

Style - how something is done or how it happens.

Meaning - Languages allow information to be conveyed even when the specific words used are not known by the reader or listener. People connect words with meaning and use words to refer to concepts. A person's intention affect what is meant. Meaning as intent harkens back to the Anglo-saxon and is associated today still.

Audiovisual - Slide-tape presentations, films, and television programs are examples of audiovisual presentations, as are most major church services and other live theatre productions. Business presentations are also often audiovisual. In a typical presentation, the presenter provides the audio by speaking, and supplements it with a series of images projected onto a screen, either from a slide projector or from a computer connected to a projector used in presentation software.  

Camera shot - A camera shot is the amount of space that it seen in one shot or frame. Camera shots are used to demonstrate different aspects of a film's setting, characters and themes. As a result, camera shot are very important in shaping the meaning of a film.

Camera angles - It is important that camera angles and camera shots don't get confused. Camera shots are used to demonstrate different aspects of setting, themes and characters. Camera angles are used to position the viewer so that they can understand the relationship between the characters.

Camera movement - Composers of films also use camera movement to shape meaning. The following are some examples of common camera movements: A crane shot, A tracking shot or a Panning shot.

Editing - is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible and film media used to convey information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, organisation, and many other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate and complete work.

Sound - Sound can propagate through compressible media such as air, watch and solids as longitudinal waves and also as a transverse waves in solids. The sound waves are generated by a sound source, such as the vibrating diaphragm of stereo speakers.

Mise-en-scene - When applied to the cinema, mise-en-scene refers to everything that appears before the camera and its arrangement, composition, sets props, actors, costumers, and lighting. The mise-en-scene, along with he cinematography and editing of the film, influence the verisimilitude of a film in the eye of the viewers.

Special effects - are traditionally divided into the categories of optical effects and mechanical effects. With the emergence of digital film making tools a greater distinction between special effects and visual effects.

Narrative - can be organised in a number of thematic and or formal/stylists categories: non-fiction, Journalism, creative non-fiction, biographies and historiography. Narrative is found in all forms of human creativity and art, including speech, writing, songs, film, television, games, photography, theatre, role play games and visual arts.

Dreamworks Animation - How to train your Dragon 

How to Train Your Dragon is a 2010 American 3D computer-animated action-fantasy film by DreamWorks Animationloosely based on the British book series of the same name by Cressida Cowell. The film was directed by Chris Sanders andDean DeBlois, the duo who directed Disney's Lilo & Stitch. It stars the voices ofJay Baruchel, Gerard Butler, Craig Ferguson, America Ferrera, Jonah Hill, T.J. Miller, Kristen Wiig, and Christopher Mintz-Plasse.

The story takes place in a mythical Vikingworld where a young Viking teenager named Hiccup aspires to follow his tribe's tradition of becoming a dragon slayer. After finally capturing his first dragon, and with his chance at finally gaining the tribe's acceptance, he finds that he no longer has the desire to kill it and instead befriends it.

Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third is an outcast, misfit, and what his peers call a loser. His intellectual ability and wry humor is considered useless, and his lanky weak physique doesn't help him impress any of his fellow vikings, including his father Stoick. But he is proven to be brave in a very different way: by befriending and flying the rarest dragon species of all, a Night Fury. He eventually names his dragon Toothless, and they form an
inseparable friendship. Eventually he gains respect from fellow vikings, Stoick, and Astrid by displaying his loyalty to Toothless and defeating the giant dragon that is a threat to both dragons and vikings. He loses a limb in battle, which matches Toothless's tail handicap.

 Astrid is the promising young viking: tough, determined, and smart in battle. With that, she is also beautiful, making her the object of her peers affections, especially Hiccup. Although she's the only teen to pay particular attention to Hiccup, the poor outcast, she's rather unfriendly and doesn't act on it, or seem to want to interact with the others. When Hiccup begins to take over her spot as best in class, Astrid is washed over with jealousy and becomes dangerously suspicious of Hiccup's behaviors. When she knows the truth about him and his story, she softens up and lowers her guard, growing into a good friend and protector.

Toick the Vast is Hiccup's father and the short-tempered chief of the Hairy Hooligan tribe. He hopes his son will mature and become strong enough to be chief himself one day, but fears that he is not suited to the Viking life. Stoick has a large horned helmet (supposedly one half of his wife's breastplate in the film) and is a friend to Gobber the Belch. Stoick the Vast is also the creator of The Viking Song. In the film, he is voiced by Gerard Butler.

These screenshots above are taken from the annual report in 2013: 

from http://www.dreamworksanimation.com/2013ar/Dreamworks_2013_Annual_Report.pdf

Production Process at Dreamworks Animation:

This clip shows, the behind the scenes actions that happen at Dreamworks, with editing and effects that they have to do in an animated movie. 













Now I will analysis some shots of this sequence. There are 4 areas which I would like to cover: 

Camera

Editing

Sound 

Mise-en-scene

This is the sense of which I toke the picture from.
 
Camera:This is a wide shot which gives a huge impact on the viewer by showing the full dragons body compared to the boy'd boy, while he is dancing and the light makes the colour brighter in this sequence. Camera is not moving, which make a viewer look straight in the middle of this scene. 

Sound: The sound from this scene various as the boy gets scared to start with, os the sound is quite tense and jumpy, but as has realises that the dragon doesn't want to hurt him, the sound lifts into a more positive beat. 

Mise-en-scene: In this shot, you can see the dragon and the boy meeting for the second time. There is a lot of space around them including a small river and some rocks as well.