Candidate answer
G322 June 2010
Section A (43/50)
This extract is about a group of people who are looking for a saber-tooth tiger but come across a buried body in the process. They are then interrupted by the saber-toothed and a chase begins. They eventually lose it but begin to ponder about the dead body. The extract opens with a two shot of a male and female. The males seems to be trying to console the female but it doesn’t work and she leaves in an emotional state. The male turns towards his boss and the camera cut to a shallow focus shot of the boss telling him to “let her go, she’s been through a lot.” This tells us that he is in control as the male doesn’t follow her. He is not typically dressed for a leader, wearing casual clothing, but he gives the order and the man obeys. This is also a typical representation as most leaders of groups are males. The male obviously cares for his female friend but has to obey his orders from the leader. The camera then cuts to a forest scene where a close up of a male shows them to be setting up a trap to catch something. The close up shows them to be laying out meat so the thing they are trying to catch is carnivorous. A cut is then made to a woman driving a digger and digging a hole. This challenges conventions as women aren’t usually seen as manual labourers nor doing what is commonly seen as a man’s job. Another cut is then made to a hand that has been buried under the ground. A close up of the leader shows him realise this and he orders the female to stop. This again shows him to be in charge of the situation as she immediately stops for him. There is then a handheld shot of the forest and the non-diagetic sound of a roar as the saber-toothed appears. He traps the man in the ditch so that he cannot get out. The female (rather than the stereotypical view of females is that they will scream and flee due to fear) attacks the saber-toothed distracting it for long enough so that the man can escape. He then shows bravery (which is a stereotypical view of a male) trying to save the woman by drawing the saber-toothed away from her. He does this effectively and then the fast paced editing begins during the chase. There is a high angle shot of the male as he is running showing him to be vulnerable. As he escapes onto the zip wire however, he is shown from a low angle which shows him as powerful as he is escaping. There is then a cut to the female carrying a gun, showing her to have power. This extract shows this character to be the total opposite to what the stereotypical view of females is. She is dressed in a masculine way, drives machinery that usually only men would be seen in, and is able to shoot a weapon which not many woman are seen being able to do. She is also very brave and isn’t afraid in the situation she is in.
The soundtrack during the chase is a fast-paces symbol tapping which slows down when it looks like it is about to be caught. It creates tension in the scene and makes the audience feel nervous for the male character. There is then a cut to the leader back at the burial scene showing him to be unafraid of the Saber-toothed returning as well as being unafraid to get his hands dirty in order to find things out. This is conventional as the female did not go into the hole and instead stayed in the digger where it was clean. A cut is then made as the camera zooms out on the group waling towards the grave. There is now a man in a suit which shows him to have authority of some sort and that he is not part of the team as they are dressed casually. The group consults about the grave before the well-dressed man states that a man called “West” may be taking the blame for something that he hasn’t done. The group looks to their leader for orders before he tells them to go. The scene then cuts to a well dressed woman, who is telling a man (West) about how is going to take the blame for a ‘lion’. The fact that she is well dressed and giving commands shows her to be the total opposite to the other female character in the extract. She is dressed more like a female is usually seen to be and therefore is likely to have a totally different role. The woman is in control telling the man if he doesn’t do as she tells him, she will report him anyway. It is therefore a lose/lose situation for West. This also shows the woman to be using her brain to threaten the man and he cannot fight back mentally. The constant shot/reverse shot between the two however show West to be like an animal being cornered in that the only way out is through violence. He states that he “wont be pushed around anymore” and quickly pulls a shotgun on the woman. Close ups of her face reveal sheer panic and she fears for her life. She states how they both know he is “not a violent man” before he shoots the floor to prove her wrong.Help soon arrives however as the tense music is lifted. The first female becomes stereotypical and her motherly instincts kick in and asks if the woman is okay. The female then goes from fearing for her life to quickly putting the man down again, saying that they “should of shot him. This is my best coat.”
The extract shows us that the female brain and the power of thought always seems to prevail over violence from males. The female was attempting to frame the man as she is seen walking away as the man is questioned at gunpoint.
(1,018 words)
EAA 17
EG 17
T 9
(43)
G322 June 2010
Examiner’s comments 80/100
Question 1 (43 marks)
The candidate has provided a sustained and balanced response to the question set. Throughout the response technical analysis is clearly linked to analysis of the construction of the representation of gender. This analysis is sustained and developed, focusing on gender stereotype rules through the characters’ actions, for example, male displaying his leadership through bravery. The candidate also analyses the more unconventional role of the female character who takes control of the digger and who acts as a helper for the lead male. The candidate’s confidence in analysis is evident in the exploration of the juxtaposed stereotypes used and how conventional/ unconventional representations these are. Other
representations of female gender are explored in terms of control/ authority. A range of examples has been selected and used, e.g. last paragraph.
The candidate is technically accurate with analysis with occasional lapses, for example, the hand held shot in the third paragraph. There is a balance with the use of technical areas studied - editing and sound are sustained and developed in analysis- to meet a low mid Level 4 criteria; but are not in enough detail for a high end level 4 mark. Sound could be developed further for higher notional marks. Use of terminology is accurate and sustained. The candidate discriminates well with the choice of examples used.
