Spirited Away-Task 13: How are elderly witches represented.

How are the two elderly witches represented differently:

Yubaba is the evil witch and is represented as evil and cruel towards children, which is shown in her first interaction with Yubaba. We see that she uses her magic to zip up Chihiro's mouth to stop her from talking. Children watching this film would be scared and feel bad for Chihiro as they are seeing someone just like them be tormented and punished. We see through Chihiro's facial expression that she is scared that she has been treated like this. This fits in with the elderly character stereotypes like being cruel and wicked, especially towards children. At the end of that scene, we see Yubaba threaten to work Chihiro to death. This might be used by the director as a way of making parents not work children too hard and to instead, let them have a bit of fun and freedom.

Meanwhile, Zeniba is very kind towards Chihiro as well as Chihiro's friends. This might be used by the director to calm the younger audience and let them realise that not all members of the elderly are and and harmful. Zeniba portrays the other side of elderly stereotypes like being gentle, nurturing and peaceful. This is shown when Chihiro goes to meet with her, and her dialogue is much softer compared to Yubaba, who talks a lot more aggressively with Chihiro. Another example of Zeniba's and Yubaba's differences is their settings. Zeniba's house uses much brighter colours compared to Yubaba's dark office which shows how Zeniba has a much brighter personality.

Spirited Away-Task 11: Zeniba vs Yubaba

Zeniba and Yubaba character study

Description from memory:

Yubaba:
Yubaba acts very harshly towards Chihrio at the begining and doesn't want to help Chihrio at all. It shows how the elderly look down on children who appear to be lazy or slightly disrespectful. She eventually becomes kind and helps Chihrio when they clean the 'Stink spirit' but by the end of the film, she tries to trick Chirhio, so that she looses her parents.

Zeniba:
She was nothing like her sister and instead was very kind and nurturing when Chihrio and her friends arrive at her house. She shows her differences from her sister, when she forgives Haku showing how she can be quite kind when she wants.

Description from scenes:

1st scene:

Yubaba:
Impatient, despite what people are doing or think. She is intimidating and makes children feel scared. Harsh as she keeps plays tricks like zipping chihiro's mouth shut. She called Chihiro a 'Stinking, useless weakling.' which shows how she treats people she considered less than herself. Considers humans as lesser beings. She threatens children and takes pleasure from it. She is extremely mean to Chihiro, going as far as to threaten her with death. However she is juxtaposed when she goes to care for her own baby.

2nd scene:

Zeniba:
She is a lot more gentle then her sister by comforting Chihiro and her friends and trying to make them feel at home. She calls herself the exact opposite as Yubaba. She is very nurturing towards the young and is happy to help them.

Spirited Away-Task 11: The Elderly

The Elderly
Elderly stereotypes:
Vulnerable
Wise
Cruel
Weak
All-knowing
Mean
Evil
Kind
Nurturing
Helpful
Sensible
Caring
Mysterious

How characters meet these stereotypes:
Kamaji: Kind, Nurturing, Wise, Helpful
Yubaba: Evil, Cruel, Wise/All-Knowing, Mysterious
Akio: Kind, Caring, Vulnerable
Yuko: Kind, Caring, Vulnerable
Zeniba: Wise/All-knowing, Smart, Kind, Helpful, Mysterious

Kamji- Kamaji is presented as a mysterious character at first that appears to be mean, but is actually quite kind and nurturing to Chihiro, showing how the elderly are often seen as evil but are actually quite kind and gentle. During the boiler room scene, the mise-en-scene helps him appear evil but we actually see by the end of this scene that he helps Chihiro at trying to get a job

Akio- Akio is Chihiro's father and we see, at the beginning of the film, he acts quite recklessly, as he drives down a treacherous road at a fast speed and despite his daughter's fear he still eats from the buffet showing how, in this case, the elderly are actually more irresponsible than the children.            

Yubaba- Yubaba appears as cruel and cunning from the very begining, especially towards Chihiro, showing how the elderly are cruel towards the younger generations for being too lazy. The director wants to make the audience feel immediately bad for Chihiro and tries to make the viewer go against Yubaba.

Spirited Away-Task 10: Questions

Questions:
1. How does the Director of Spirited Away blend realism with fantasy?
The main setting is the Bathouse and Chihiro is very quickly sent to work. We are shown multiple workers, and places like a kitchen or the boiler room. These are all real places that would be included in a Bathhouse, but the director uses their real setting but, uses fantastical characters like the spirits that visit the bathouse or the workers such as Kumaji. This gives the audience a chance to see a mundane real location, turned magical.

2. What life lessons does Chihiro learn from her experience?
Chihiro evolves to not needing to rely on her parents and instead she becomes responsible and becomes determined to save her parents as well as look after everyone in the bathhouse like Haku.

3. Even though the setting is fantastical, what everyday struggles does Chihiro face?
Chihiro still has to go through the struggles of finding and maintaining a job all on her own. She has to do a lot of mundane work. She also has to deal with people controlling her and being a boss and controlling her.

4. Pick out three conventions of 'Coming of Age' films that are present in Spirited Away and explain how they are used in the film.
- Chihrio has to spend time without their parents, which allows her to have to deal with her problems dead on.
- Chihiro goes through character growth and changes the way she acts and approaches difficulties.
- Chihiro has to go through a challenging event that allows her to evolve.

5. What message do you think director Hayao Miyazaki wanted to send to young girls?
He wanted to show that girls don't always have to rely on other people and that they can do anything along as they believe in themselves.

Spirited Away-Task 9: Coming of Age in Spirited Away

Spirited Away is a Coming of Age film:
- Chihiro has a massive change in character from the beginning of the film to the end, such as her determination and responsibility.
- Chihiro is put on a specific mission which allows her character to grow.
- Chihiro is accompanied by specific character types like: a mentor (Kamaji), a best friend (Haku) and a villain (Yubaba).

Spirited Away isn't a Coming of Age film:
- The film doesn't have as many obvious Coming of Age conventions as it does Fantasy.

Spirited Away-Task 8: 'Coming of Age' movies.

'Coming of Age' are films that focus on the growth and transition of children and teenagers, who go through an event that changes them.

Famous 'Coming of Age' films:
1. Juno
2. The Breakfast Club
3. The perks of being a Wallflower
4. Ferris Buller's Day off
5. Rebel without a Cause

Ferris Buller's Day Off:
Conventions of Content:
-Ferris is a Rebe and cool-kidl- character type
-Cameron is the best friend- character type
-Sloane is the love interest- character type
-Mr Rooney is the opposite of a supporting teacher- opposite character type
-Settings of: A school, a car, a city, a house.
-Props: The Ferrari
-Story: Three teens skip school in order to  enjoy their childhood and have fun in the city.
Sloane and Ferris repeatedly discuss their future and what they will do after school.

Spirited Away-Task 7:Assessment

How are young female characters represented in Spirited Away?

At the beginning of Spirited Away, Chihiro is represented as a timid and scared little girl who clings to her parents for everything. This is shown as when she moves into the tunnel, the camera is a close up on Chihiro which is kept at her eye level, cutting off her parents head. This shows that they are a lot more powerful than her as they are posed higher up than her. This is reversed by the end where her parents can be seen in full, symbolising her no longer having to rely on her parents.

At the beginning, we hear dialogue between Chihiro and her parents about how she is nervous about starting a new school and moving house. This shows how she is scared and it implies that children are often scared about having to start a new life and not having much confidence. But by the end, the last line in the film is 'I think I can handle it' showing how she has grown braver and more confident over the film, which represents how young people get braver with time.

Throughout, the film we see her get more and more confident and do more dangerous activities without the need of her parents, but we also get to see her care for others, which challenges the stereotypes of teenagers being a bit arrogant. For example, at the beginning Chihiro dislikes her school without ever going there and sticks her tongue out at it, showing her displeasure with it, but by the end she is focused on trying to save Haku after being injured, (accidentally) setting Haku free from Yubaba and even going as far as to meet with Zeniba, to ask her to forgive Haku for stealing her seal. As well as that we also see her care for Boh and Yubaba's bird while they are in animal form.

Spirited Away-Task 6: Questions.

-How is the score of Spirited Away to portray Chihiro?
The score often reflects Chihiro's amazement, for example when she is working to clean the 'stink spirit'. The score is very upbeat and fast tuned, which mirrors the on-screen magic and wonder that Chihiro is facing.

-What is the most Significant change in Chihiro's character? How does the director, convey this.
Chihiro goes from being a scared girl who heavily relies on her parents, to a strong brave girl, who is able to do things without needing help from others, including her parents. Hayao Miyazai uses sound and the score to try and signal when major changes in her character happens, for example when she tries to clean the 'stink spirit' on her own, or when she first meets Kamaji.

-Give one example of cinematography used to present Chihiro’s character? Make it clear what scene it is in, and explain what the director intended to do. As Chihiro, throws the piece of coal into the fire, in the boiler room scene, the shot is a low-angle shot and it gives Chihiro a sense of power for the first time in the film.

-Give one example of editing used to present Chihiro’s character? Make it clear what scene it is in, and explain what the director intended to do. When she is trying to clean the 'stink-spirit' there are lots of shots that cut between Chihiro, and the workers who all pull together to help her, which shows how she has inspired them all to work hard.

-Give one example of mise-en-scene used to present Chihiro’s character? Make it clear what scene it is in, and explain what the director intended to do. Chihiro's facial expression and movement shows the bravery and ressiliance that she has developed throughout the film, for example her determination, to try and help save Haku.

Spirited Away-Task 5: Annotating key scenes.

 This is a close-up shot at Chihiro's eye-level, showing her facial expression, which shows how she is scared and relies heavily on her parents.

 This is a low angle shot which makes Chihiro seem powerful and brave, which is a major difference to the beginning of the film.

 This is a medium shot, which shows the danger and trouble Chihiro is in, and so it shows the bravery she has.

 This is an eye-level, medium shot, which shows how humble Chihiro is, as she doesn't want to take the gold.

 This medium shot shows Chihiro trying to help save Haku, which shows her bravery and how kind and nurturing she is to the people.

This is a wide shot that allows us to see both Chihiro and No-face in a location. We can see Chihiro being brave and helping the workers from someone who poses a threat.

Spirited Away-Task 4: Key scene analysis

Scene 1: In this scene Chihiro and her family are moving to a new house. We see that Chihiro isn't happy about starting a new life, but her parents, try to show her the positives. They get out of the car and explore an over-grown tunnel. Chihiro is represented as scared, timid, and stroppy. This is common in young girls as they show them as being weaker than older characters.
While she is in the car, it zooms in on her face (close-up shot), allowing the audience to see her expression. The director uses facial expression (mise-en-scene) to show how grumpy Chihiro is about moving and how hesitant she is about going into the tunnel. As Chihiro and her parents are going through the forrest, there are lots of shot-reverse-shots (editing) used to show Chihiro's reactions to the statues around her. Which shows how she is both scared and in wonder of the mystery around her. Dialogue (sound) between Chihiro and her parents show how she is nervous about both starting a new life and adventuring within the abandoned forrest and tunnels.

Scene 2: Haku is sent to the boiler room to try and get a job from Kamaji, she is scared at the beginning representing young girls, but she eventually becomes amazed and in wonder of the events that are happening to her, which is an opposite to the common negative stereotypes. When Chihiro first encounters Kamaji, a high angle shot (Cinematography) is used to place Kamaji as a more powerful character showing that not only are older male characters more stereotypicly powerful, but that Chihiro is very weak around these new people. The dim lighting (mise-en-scene) is used to show the eraieness and master and wonder around the bathhouse. Shot-reverse-shots (editing) are used to show how Chihiro is focused on what is happening and despite her fear, she is trying hard to get a job and paying attention to her surroundings. The boiler room has a faint score that is used to add a sense of magic and wonder to the creatures carrying around coal.

Scene 3: Chihiro is sent to clean the stink spirit, on her own, which shows how hard-working, brave and resilient she has become compared from when she first started working at the bath house. These traits of being extremely hard-working and determined and often shared amongst stereotypical teenage girls, making Chihiro seem even braver and resilient to viewers. There are multiple wide shots of the bath house used to show the hard work that all the workers are doing. We can see the bathhouse interior quite well, which adds to the wonder of the environment. The bathhouse ((setting)mise-en-scene) looks beautiful and amazing which shows the magic of the bathhouse. The scene uses lots of long cuts to show all of the workers working together and getting inspired by Chihiro. The musical score has a fast pace adding to the hard work that the workers and Chihiro are doing.

Scene 4: After saving Haku and arriving back at the bathhouse, Chihiro must choose which of the pigs are her parents and will be set free. She succeeds and her and her family leave the bathhouse and go back to their new home. After all of the events that she has gone through, Chihiro, has completly changed into the opposite of a stereotypical young girl like she was at the beginning of the film, and is now represented as strong, brave, adventurous and determined. The "boos" from the workers show how they have now come to like Chihiro and want her to succeed at going home, showing her as becoming an inspiration icon, so their facial expressions (mise-en-scene) show anger towards Yubaba.

Spirited Away-Task 3: Representation of young girls

Stereotypical Young girls:
Weak, timid, scared, ignorant, unintelligent, obsessive, laid-back, rude, obsession over body image, rebellious

How Chihiro is stereotypical and against stereotypes:
For:
At the beginning, Chihiro is extremely timid and scared. She doesn't want to adventure through the tunnel. When she sees that her parents have been turned to pigs, and sees all the spirits heading towards the bath house, the believes it to all be a dream and doesn't want it to be true. This shows her as being very ignorant, but she looses this trait soon after.

Against:
When her parents tuck into the buffet, Chihiro doesn't want to eat anything as she is worried that she will get in trouble. This shows how she goes against the trait of being rebellious, and instead her parents take that trait instead. Throughout the film she shows how brave she is, for example, when she tries to help Haku, after he has been injured.

Spirited Away-Task 2: Applying knowledge- Baby Driver

Baby Driver- The opening scene of Baby Driver follows a team of bank robbers escaping the cops in a fast-paced getaway scene.

Shot 1:

 This is a wide shot that shows us a city bank. From this we can immediately tell that these setting is a big city, and we can safely assume that some sort of robbery is about to be committed. It is also the establishing shot which shows how much of this film is dependent on robberies and crime.




Shot 2:

This is a close-up shot on a character's face. This is followed by three other close-ups on other character's faces, showing how these are going to be the main characters throughout the film. From this shot we can see that the character is feeling a mix of determination, fear and anger. We can apply this to the establishing shot and now, it is certain that they are involved in a bank robbery.



Shot 3:

This is a wide shot, used to show the fast paced action going on. We see Baby perform a very impressive and reckless drift to escape the cops, which shows us that he is extremely skilled driving but also takes risks, which is shown how seconds later, the car is inches away from hitting the camera.

Spirited Away-Task 1: Identifying cinematography.

1. This is a medium shot that shows the two characters in a scenario. We can tell that one character is injured or ill, and that they are in a cold place. We fell sympathy for them as we can see that they are children stuck in a very cold place.

2. This is a close up shot used to show expression on the character's face. We can see that he is feeling somewhat displeased and upset about something, but also has a look of determination on his face.

3. A medium shot on a character, that is used to show us the character's clothes and location, so we can tell that the character is wealthy or important.

4. This is a close up shot that shows the character's facial expressions. We can tell that the character is  feeling happy or excited about something. We can also see bit of his clothing showing that he is most likely a pirate.

5. This is a low-angle shot that is used to make a character seem powerful or important. From this we can tell that the character is important to the story or has more power or wisdom than other characters.

6. This is an extreme wide shot, that shows the full body of a person as well as a large portion of a location. They are often used to show a major location or a very large prop used in a scene. We can tell that the city are amazed about this object and are celebrating it. We feel amazement as we see this giant statue in its entirety within the cities walls.

7. This is a medium, high-angle shot that is used to show the cat running around the courtyard. We feel more powerful over the cat. We can tell that something is happening and that the cat is seen as prey to some other creature, that we are put in the eyes off.

8. This is an extreme close ups shot, that is used to show just the characters face, (mainly the eyes). We can tell that the character is ver focused on something.