Super.human. Flashcards
First seconds of the advert
(scene one)
- montage of dramatic music, ambient sound (eg. news broadcasting), low key lighting and smoke
- creates excitement and drama
Kadeena Cox is in centre frame, making her appear important and powerful
Montage of audio commentary
(scene one)
- creates tension, suggesting the we are during a race
- emphasises Cox’s power and important of the event
“already won two gold”
“set her sights on Tokyo”
image of a tunnel
(scene one)
“tunnel vision” visually represented with a wide shot
- connotes the athlete’s mindsets
binary opposition of success vs failure
gunshot sound effect
acts as a transition from the tunnel to real life
reality after dream
- shows kadeena wearing conventional sleep attire for a black woman (bonnet) - familiar item of clothing
- representing an aspect of black women’s lives which are often underrepresented
reality vs dream sequence
visual binary opposition created
- dream like sequence contains dramatic images, music and a rich colour palette
- reality contains ambient lighting and the strident sound of an alarm clock
montage of early morning realities
- shows a diverse range of genders, ethnicity and abilities
pros of showing a diverse range of people
- allows people to relate to them as disabilities are so often unrepresented in media
- makes disabilities more visible, accepted and normalised
- allows audiences to be SEEN on screen
criticisms of portrayal of disabled people
- people believe that the advert focused primarily on representing physical disabilities (eg. wheelchair users)
Ellie Simmons at the swimming pool
- features a wide shot, emphasising her small stature
- competing against herself - a visual metaphor for how she is competing against her own anxieties and the fear of loosing
auditory code of strapping joints and using tape + grunts and groaning
- creates a sense of drama and intensity - similar to preparations for battle
- hyperbolic noises, emphasises the strain and pain of athletes
sound effects underscore the music - emphasising the battle of training
jump cuts of training (montage)
- emphasises the hard work and dedication
- sick bucket acts as comedic effect but also emphasises the idea that they are training to and beyond their bodies limits
realities of athletes lives outside of training
- eg. balancing parenthood whilst being a sportsperson
- shot of a man singing happy birthday to his kid through a phone, he is having to miss important events to focus on his sport (tunnel vision)
- eg. normal events such as childbirth
- humanises the athletes, showing they have families and shows they are normal people
pov shots of cyclist
- creates a sense of inclusion
- sparks flying, indicate the speed
- man flying, makes it feel like an action film
- emphasises the danger and drama of the sport
animated and archive footage
- used to oppose the real life actions
- introduces humour and reinforces the narrative
- used in contrast to the gruelling routines of the athletes
ultra close up shots of bruises and blisters
- emphasises the pain and danger the Paralympians face
- reinforces the idea that these sports are very dangerous and emphasises how hard the athletes have to train
obstructions in reality for people with disabilities
- café step
- despite the success Paralympians have in the world of sports, they still face discrimination and difficulties in the outside world
- juxtaposition between being at the peak of athletic power and the inability to go into a café, tells a shocking story simply
revisit to Kadeena Cox in tunnel
- surreal image, chasing a medal represents her dreams of success
- nightmarish tone, suggesting that her dream is so important to her it haunts her sleep
- stylised dream sequence, announces the postponement of the Olympics, shows the impact: athletes fall off the edge of the track
revisit to Ellie Simmonds in the swimming pool
- nightmarish imagery of Ellie being weighed down by a medal
- shows the pressure of athletes
- Dutch angle, creates a sense of unease and uncertainty - reinforcing tension
fast paced editing
- highlights a range of narratives and athletes with different disabilities, disciplines and challenges
“you might as well quit” Boris Johnson
reflects Channel 4s values as being more predominantly anti establishment and has an alternative political perspective
split screen montage of close ups
- emphasises the potential injuries and internal damage athletes gain from the sport
“to be an Paralympian there must be something wrong with you”
- play on words which challenges the outdated mindset
- suggests that to put yourself through such struggles and pain to be an athlete on top of the training for your sport you need to be incredibly determined and resilient
audiences perception of athletes VS reality
conceptual binary opposition
- challenges how language is used against the reality of the positive images in the advertisement
- this binary opposition is what the director encourages the audience to reflect upon
images of cheering crowds
- creates a sense of success and winning
- representation of Paralympians as successful, this can help change the audience perception of disability
soundtrack
- Bugsy Malone, So You Want To Be a Boxer
- familiar to all audiences (modern cover of an older song)
- adds a touch of comedy and nostalgia
‘Super. Human.’
super= smashed
- the breaking of the word ‘superhuman’ to ‘super.human.’ helps to connote the idea that athletes are human
- further smashing of the word ‘super’ emphasises the human element of the catchphrase
previous paralympics campaign
- ‘meet the superhumans’, criticised for treating disabled people as superbeings, elevated above humanity
- previous advert glamorised what it meant to be disabled
Stuart Hall, stereotyping
- focuses on athletes as ordinary people trying to achieve a goal with their own personal motivations (three dimensional)
- visible positive recognition of disabled people - positive rep of disabled people in media
David Gauntlett, identity
- offers a wide range of more diverse and inclusive range of identities, broadens what it means to be disabled as an athlete
Stuart Hall, dominant ideologies
- personification and positive rep of the event and the athletes encourages the audiences to accept the ideologies portrayed and the intended meaning
- the use of real athletes creates a preferred reading that the audiences should invest in their narratives and subsequently watch the games
