SuperHuman representation

Question 1

Who created the advertisement “Super. Human.” for the 2020 Paralympic Games?

Answer 1

Bradford Young, Channel 4’s in-house creative agency 4Creative, Serial Pictures, and Somesuch.

Question 2

What editing techniques are used in the advertisement to convey the athletes’ experiences?

Answer 2

Close-up shots, slow motion, and muting sound for dramatic effect.

Question 3

What cultural narrative does the advertisement construct about disabled athletes?

Answer 3

It presents them as ordinary sports men and women facing extraordinary challenges, making their stories more accessible and compelling.

Question 4

How does the advertisement use sound effects to enhance its message?

Answer 4

Sound effects like grunts, groans, and tape being applied underscore the music, emphasizing the battle of training.

Question 5

What narrative technique is used to show the binary opposition between sport and family life?

Answer 5

The sequence where an athlete tries to sing ‘Happy Birthday’ to his daughter on a mobile phone while training on a bike.

Question 6

How does Claude Lévi-Strauss’s theory of binary oppositions apply to the advertisement?

Answer 6

The advertisement contrasts gruelling training regimes with celebratory images of success, and dreamlike sequences with the harsh reality of daily life.

Question 7

What song is played throughout the advertisement and from what film?

Answer 7

‘So you want to be a boxer’ from Bugsy Malone

Question 8

What is the purpose of using the soundtrack “So You Want to be a Boxer” from Bugsy Malone in the advertisement

Answer 8

To communicate the struggles of the disabled athletes while giving the advertisement a positive feel.

Question 9

How does the advertisement use visual codes to communicate meanings?

Answer 9

By using iconography and settings related to the athletes and their sports, juxtaposed with domestic scenes of everyday life.

Question 10

What were the 2 previous Paralympic advertisements called?

Answer 10

‘We’re the SuperHumans’ and ‘Meet the SuperHumans’

Question 11

What was the main focus of the “Super. Human.” campaign compared to previous campaigns?

Answer 11

To emphasize the “Human” rather than the “Super” and to show the realities of the athletes’ lives.

Question 12

How does the advertisement challenge stereotypical representations of disabled athletes?

Answer 12

By avoiding negative stereotypes and presenting athletes as high-performance individuals rather than victims or heroes.

Question 13

What impact did Channel 4’s coverage of the Paralympics have on viewers’ perceptions of disabled people?

Answer 13

65% of viewers felt it had a positive impact, and 82% agreed that disabled athletes were as talented as able-bodied athletes.

Question 14

How does David Gauntlett’s theory of identity apply to the “Super. Human.” advertisement?

Answer 14

It offers a more diverse and inclusive range of role models and identities, allowing disabled people to see themselves represented positively.

Question 15

How does Stuart Hall’s representation theory apply to the “Super. Human.” advertisement?

Answer 15

The Super. Human advert actively avoids common stereotypes created by the mass media. This could be a result of using Bradford Young to help produce the advert.

Question 16

How does the advertisement avoid negative stereotypical representations of Paralympians?

Answer 16

By presenting them as high-performance athletes and focusing on their challenges and achievements rather than their disabilities.

Question 17

What is the significance of the on-screen graphic “To be a Paralympian there’s got to be something wrong with you”?

Answer 17

It creates a conceptual binary opposition between audience perception of Paralympic athletes and the reality, challenging misconceptions.

Question 18

How does the advertisement use humour to convey information?

Answer 18

Through recognisable visual signifiers like the hamster on the wheel and the ‘puke bucket’, and animated sequences that insert aspects of the comic into the athletes’ gruelling regimes.

Question 19

How does the advertisement’s representation of disability differ from traditional media portrayals?

Answer 19

It avoids portraying disabled athletes as victims or heroes, instead showing them as high-performance athletes with relatable lives.