Rebecca Jane Gill

Rebecca Jane Gill – Reflection

Figure 1: Science Fiction Film Shoot for Practice 1 Module

This final blog post is a reflection of my creative reflective blog looking at methodologies. This blog post first looks at the Key Research Methods I undertook. Secondly, I looked at my research area of WOMEN IN FILM. Third, I looked at my research area of MY MAJOR PROJECT. Lastly, a conclusion of this creative reflective blog.

Throughout this past semester during the Research and Enquiry Module (and my other two practical modules on my MA Film and Television Production degree), I have been further developing my researching skills and widening my knowledge of areas in my practice of Film and Television Production. The two research areas I chose were:

WOMEN IN FILM
MY MAJOR PROJECT – A feature-length screenplay

Throughout this creative reflective blog, I have not only learned a lot of new things about my practice but also a lot about myself. Partly due to this blog and the research I have undertaken, I now feel ready to start the planning stage of my MAJOR PROJECT – especially after choosing the structure discussed in my blog post Stop Procrastinating! Pick a Story Structure already!

MY KEY RESEARCH METHODS:

Practical Filmmaking
1. Pre-Production – Screenwriting
1. Production – Film shoots in the Studios
1. Post-Production – Editing in the Edit Suites
Watching Film and TV
Academic Sources
Non-Academic Sources
Personal Experience

Practical Filmmaking
1. Pre-Production – Screenwriting: With all the creative practices – the learning is in the doing. I have found that I have started to develop a confident writing style and this has improved due to research from writing gurus (seen in my blog post Stop Procrastinating! Pick a Story Structure already!), reading various types of Screenplays – films and television programmes alike – and then through writing which was helped by being put under pressure in the film shoot sessions on Wednesday afternoons where we had less than an hour to plan and write a one-two minute scene within my Practice 1 Module (described in my blog post Femme Fatales: “I’m Not Bad. I’m Just Drawn That Way” – Jessica Rabbit from Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (1988)). This key research method has helped me to be able to realise my potential as a young female screenwriter and has informed my research and my research area of MY MAJOR PROJECT – I now believe with the right amount of research (undertaken within this creative reflective blog and additional research) and practice (undertaken in my Practice 1 Module and outside of university) I now feel ready to start planning my MAJOR PROJECT – A feature-length screenplay.
1. Production – Film shoots in the Studio: I have felt like the research I have undertaken for my creative reflective blog has helped me to realise the importance of theory when it comes to practical filmmaking and understanding the theory behind genres (explored in my MAJOR PROJECT research area) and the way films are made. I also believe that these practical film shoots this semester have helped inform my creative reflective blog and further research to learn about my career and myself, and also how I want to make an impact on my practice – film and television production. This key research area method although a practical one rather than a theoretical one is extremely important and has helped to inform my blog posts.
1. Post-Production – Editing in the Edit Suites: Although my editing skills aren’t as proficient as my screenwriting skills, I have made sure to have a proficient knowledge of the ins and outs of video and sound editing – mostly due to the teaching during bachelor’s degree. This knowledge helps to inform my research and helps to make one a better screenwriter as I can image the ways my screenplays could be shot and edited.

These three key research areas are all practical-based methodologies rather than academic theoretical ones however as I am completing a practical Master’s degree – these practical filmmaking elements are key parts that inform my research and have helped my creative reflective posts what they are.

2. Watching Film and TV: This key research method might seem odd to most – people don’t believe me when I say I have to watch Netflix for research – but this is possibly one of the most important components as these inform my case studies. I have found in order to accurately evaluate and analyse films or television programmes I had to watch them at least TWICE!

3. Academic Sources: My favourite part of researching is when you hit the “Academic Jackpot” – as myself and my mum (who has recently completed an MSc in Healthcare Leadership) have called it – when you find a source that fits your point to a T and compliments your ideas. Throughout this creative reflective blog, I found myself using a similar method of analysing academic sources that I was taught during my bachelor’s degree which I used with my dissertation. I enjoyed going back to researching what academics thought of the topics I had chosen for my blog posts and how they were critically important to my practice.

4. Non-Academic Sources: For the cultural context for each topic, I also looked at non-academic texts like magazine articles and interviews. Although these are more subjective and not backed by academic facts it still provide appropriate insight due to the current and relevant ideas – for example, an academic book can take years to write – whereas an article can come out the day or the day after the film has released.

5. Personal Experience: This is probably the least objective as it’s coming from my own experiences but I have tried to keep an open mind when it comes to this blog and the research I have undertaken – In my creative reflective blog I have made it clear I have felt the discrimination due to my gender and this is why I chose to have the first of my two research areas to be WOMEN IN FILM. It is important to take into consideration how I as a researcher understand how my own personal experiences can help inform my ideas and make me into a better screenwriter and professional in my practice of film and television production.

RESEARCH AREA 1: WOMEN IN FILM

The main methodological approaches I took for this research area were:

Feminist Theory
Gender Theory

These two methodologies were crucial to my research area as it was all about gender and feminism. Within all the blog posts discussing this research area, feminism played a massive part within my ideas and reflections – gender theory was to do with the female gender. In my blog post Let’s Talk Late 20th Century Feminist Icons: Ellen Ripley and Sarah Connor, I discussed the debate of if the character of Sarah Connor was a feminist icon. I looked at both sides of the argument and the theories of Gender and Feminism helped inform the two arguments.

Individually, a few of my blog posts explored other methodologies on top of the Feminist Theory and Gender Theory such as:

Auteur Theory: Blog Post “What does a set of ovaries have to do with directing a film?” (Jeremy Renner on Kathryn Bigelow)
Audience and Reception Methodologies: Blog Post “Anyways, Busy Girl. Got to go.” – Lara Croft, a feminist icon

For my “What does a set of ovaries have to do with directing a film?” (Jeremy Renner on Kathryn Bigelow) blog post, the Auteur Theory helped me to explore Kathryn Bigelow’s directing style and her passion and determination to stand out amongst a male-dominated genre.

For my “Anyways, Busy Girl. Got to go.” – Lara Croft, a feminist icon blog post, the methodologies that look to Audience Reception informed my ideas that the character of Lara Croft has been sexualised by her audience since her release in 1996 and how this is still continuing on twenty-five years later.

RESEARCH AREA 2: MY MAJOR PROJECT

The main methodological approaches I took for this research area were:

Aesthetics Theory
Structural Theory
Audience and Reception Methodologies

These three methodologies all helped inform my reflections into the various genres I research – action, crime, science fiction, terrorism etc.

The structural theory was most prominent in my blog post Stop Procrastinating! Pick a Story Structure already!

With all of my blog posts, an element of the Feminist theory comes through due to my personal experiences and this is mentioned in my blog post MAJOR PROJECT: Terrorism in Cinema which discusses how as a woman I have been perceived as someone who couldn’t write about such a “male-dominated” genre.

Illustrations:

Figure 1: Science Fiction Film Shoot for Practice 1 Module

My photograph

Femme Fatales: “I’m Not Bad. I’m Just Drawn That Way” – Jessica Rabbit from Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (1988)

This blog post is highlighting my research area of WOMEN IN FILM. For this blog post, I will be looking at the character archetype of the Film Noir Femme Fatale. First, I will be reflecting upon what makes a Femme Fatale and how she plays an integral role within the Film Noir genre. Secondly, I will be looking at small case studies and examples of Femme Fatales. Lastly, this blog post will end with a personal reflection of two films during my Bachelor’s degree and my Master’s degree which have involved the character archetype of the Femme Fatale.

What is a “FEMME FATALE”?

‘‘From the French for “fatal woman”, a female character who uses her beauty to lure and entrap men leading to their downfall and, usually death’ (Blandford et al, 2001:95-6)’ (Neale, 2010:187)

The character archetype of the Femme Fatale is ‘a defining ingredient of noir’ (Neale, 2010:188) and fulfils an important role in the deception and manipulation of the male protagonist. Bronfen comments on how Paula Rabinwitz describes the Femme Fatale as a ‘“false… double-crosser”’ (2004:106) who will never get what SHE truly desires and ends with tragedy. Julie Grossman – who has come up multiple times during my research of the Femme Fatale – states that the character archetype is often misunderstood an in fact ‘film noir’s actual femmes fatales, [are] evil women whose raison d’etre is to murder and deceive’ (2007:19).

Brofen describes the genre of Film Noir ‘as a “male fantasy”’ (2004:113) and the character archetype of the ‘femme fatale, as the mythic “dark lady, the spider woman, the evil seductress who tempts man and brings about his destruction”’ (2004:113).

Mini Case Studies:

I have chosen four Femme Fatales to do Mini Case Studies of:

Double Indemnity (1944) – Phyllis Dietrichson

My first Film Noir film was Double Indemnity (1944) – however I had seen several Femme Fatales before viewing my first Noir film. I believe that Phyllis Dietrichson embodies the key characteristics of what a Femme Fatale must be – she is a seductive sexual villain who is also vulnerable but manipulative and opportunistic. Steve Neale (in his chapter featuring discussions of two different femme fatales) commented that the character archetype of the Femme Fatale ‘has been applied more appropriately to the character of Phyllis Dietrichson’ (2010:188) than many other femme fatales in films that supposedly are named as noir films. Neale makes an important note that some femme fatales are labelled as such but do not exhibit the correct characteristics and feeling of a true femme fatale as with Phyllis Dietrichson in Double Indemnity (1944).

Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (1988) – Jessica Rabbit

In Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (1988), Jessica Rabbit, the wife of Roger Rabbit, is a very sexualised animated character who evokes the beauty and desire of a Femme Fatale. Demonstrated throughout the film, Jessica Rabbit as a Femme Fatale is ‘a symptom of patriarchal anxiety about feminism’ (Bronfen, 2004:115). Jessica Rabbit ‘manipulat[ed] the outcome of their fatal meeting’ (Bronfen, 2004:106) (Pictured in Figure 5). She completely and utterly dominates the scene and the male protagonist who like many noir protagonists is a detective. Even as a “Toon” and not a human actress she is a seductress and entices the audience as a Femme Fatale.

Batman and Robin (1997) – Poison Ivy

Personally, Poison Ivy is one of my favourite Femme Fatales out of all the mini case studies and I love the way Uma Thurman portrayed the character in Batman and Robin (1997) (pictured below in Figure 6). Manipulation is a major part of the character’s ability to control others – especially men. Much like other Femme Fatales, Poison Ivy ‘‘beauty’ plays a part’ (Neale, 2010:187) in contributing to her character – but the character of Ivy only believes this has happened and feels able to begin her true work once she transforms into the villainous Poison Ivy.

Basic Instinct (1992) – Catherine Tramell

Sharon Stone’s character of Catherine Tramell in Basic Instinct (1992) has probably one of the most provocative and famous Femme Fatale scenes (pictured below in Figure 7) – I find when people talk about this scene, they forget what actually happens within the scene rather remembering Sharon Stone and her legs. She is seen as a ‘figure of male fantasy, articulating both a fascination for the sexually aggressive woman, as well as anxieties about feminine domination’ (Bronfen, 2004:106).

Personal Reflection 1: Bachelor’s Second Year Short Film ‘Femme Fatale’

A few years ago, during my bachelor’s, I wrote, produced and directed a short film (3-5 minutes long) titled ‘Femme Fatale’ featuring my version of a modern-day Femme Fatale who hunts down sexual predators and started off in a church (the beautiful Church in Old Hatfield right by the University which actually appeared in The Favourite (2018)), she then killed the man and ends with her going back home and crossing a name off a long list.

Figure _______: St £theldreda’s Church in Old Hatfield

Coincidentally, I worked in a film crew entirely made of women and all of us discussed how much we felt this topic would need to be done respectfully and took precautions with the way we presented the idea. Interestingly, in 2020 once the majority of the other crew members had graduated (I did an additional year in my third year), we all watched Promising Young Woman (2020) which featured a similar topic and we were glad to see a feature-length Hollywood film receive great reviews and even won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. As women who have entered the film industry (and myself who is continuing into further education within the film sector), we all found that films that speak out about important topics – especially since the rise of the #MeToo Movement.

Personal Reflection 2: Master’s Film Noir Scene ‘Otis and Smith’

In this past semester, we have had the opportunity to explore different genres and themes on Wednesday mornings and in the afternoon on Wednesdays, we would write a short scene and film it in the studio – basically making a scene from scratch to finishing film in just a few hours. These quick high-intensity opportunities we had this semester have been absolutely amazing and I have enjoyed every second of it. We made four scenes in total: 1) Drama Dialogue from scene from What’s up, Doc? (1972), 2) Film Noir featuring detective as a woman instead of a man, 3) Science Fiction Airlock scene with sliding door, and 4) A Horror and Isolation scene depicting the importance of space (only set decoration was a sofa).

Figure _____: My Photo from the end of the Film Noir Film Shoot

For this personal reflection, I will be commenting on the second scene we filmed: Film Noir. For this scene, I wrote the scene and was the 1^st AD (1^st Assistant Director) – I wrote the scene in 20 minutes which I never thought I would be able to do in my life! But under extreme time limits and pressure, the adrenaline rush was amazing. For this scene, we were specifically told that the normal stereotype of the male detective had to change to the woman – making the FEMME FATALE the Detective. For this scene in particular, I decided dialogue was mostly going to be from the man’s side and the reaction shots with the female detective and the Film Noir lighting from the Venetian blinds. The element of the Femme Fatale was subverted and this is something I really enjoyed about these amazing filming opportunities is that we could write and make scenes which portray ideas that we want to reflect – and the thing I want to do more than anything is to subvert expectations and subvert ideas of stereotypes (much like a few of my previous reflective blog posts – e.g., Ellen Ripley and Sarah Connor, Terrorism in Cinema and Kathryn Bigelow).

Bibliography:

BRONFEN, E. (2004). ‘Femme Fatale – Negotiations of Tragic Desire’. New Literary History. [Online] 35(1) pp.103-116. Available from: https://www.proquest.com/docview/221368118/fulltextPDF/E0132FBD662444ABPQ/1?accountid=14660 [Accessed: 19^th December 2021]

GROSSMAN, J. (2007). ‘Film Noir’s “Femme Fatales”Hard-Boiled Women: Moving Beyond Gender Fantasies’. Quarterly Review of Film and Video. [Online] 24(1) pp. 19-30. Available from: https://www-tandfonline-com.ezproxy.herts.ac.uk/doi/pdf/10.1080/10509200500485983?needAccess=true [Accessed: 27^th December 2021]

GROSSMAN, J. (2010). ‘Well, Aren’t We Ambitious’, or ‘You’ve Made up Your Mind I’m Guilty’: Reading Women as Wicked in American Film Noir. In: HANSON, H. & O’RAWE, C. (eds). The Femme Fatale: Images, History, Contexts. UK: Palgrave Macmillian UK.

NEALE, S. (2010). ‘I Can’t Tell Anymore Whether You’re Lying’: Double Indemnity, Human Desire and the Narratology of Femmes Fatales. In: HANSON, H. & O’RAWE, C. (eds). The Femme Fatale: Images, History, Contexts. UK: Palgrave Macmillian UK.

Filmography:

Batman & Robin. (1997). Film. Directed by Joel Schumacher. [DVD] US: Warner Bros.

Basic Instinct. (1992). Film. Directed by Paul Verhoeven. [DVD] US: TriStar Pictures.

Double Indemnity. (1944). Film. Directed by Billy Wilder. [DVD] US: Paramount Pictures.

Promising Young Woman. (2020). Film. Directed by Emerald Fennell. [DVD] US: Focus Features.

The Favourite. (2018). Film. Directed by Yorgos Lathimos. [DVD] UK: Fox Searchlight Pictures.

Who Framed Roger Rabbit. (1988). Film. Directed by Robert Zemeckis. [DVD] US: Buena Vista Pictures.

Illustrations:

Figure 1: Jessica Rabbit

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fgointothestory.blcklst.com%2Fgreat-character-jessica-rabbit-who-framed-roger-rabbit-2d7440d70842&psig=AOvVaw1OA0nN0XWyLvRuwQyDv10w&ust=1641321207952000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCNjpgZCclvUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAr

Figure 2: Femme Fatale

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.artstation.com%2Fartwork%2FrmLy6&psig=AOvVaw2vwJldpvvcVa5fimFgkccf&ust=1641391533541000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCMDWmJGimPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

Figure 3:

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthebitchnetwork.com%2Ffemme-fatale-untrustworthy-woman%2F&psig=AOvVaw0gEZ7o-z_t7GYb1jCJVJ7-&ust=1641392184974000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCNiS4M2kmPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAK

Figure 4: Double Indemnity

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fthevintagewomanmagazine.com%2Fthe-classic-film-noir-femme-fatale%2F&psig=AOvVaw1A4AHMVxCV6sfDOsbHA9SS&ust=1641321659735000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCKj7iuudlvUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAK

Figure 5: Jessica Rabbit

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cheatsheet.com%2Fentertainment%2Fwho-framed-roger-rabbit-jessica-rabbits-voice-actor-suggested-a-surprising-change-to-the-character.html%2F&psig=AOvVaw2DHUAzuTAdso8vs86ye8iN&ust=1641321502404000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCNid86edlvUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAd

Figure 6: Poison Ivy

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fm.facebook.com%2F205705279451640%2Fphotos%2Fa.248955088459992%2F2441098402578972%2F&psig=AOvVaw3KNgOovUJ1nLd6-t5STUe-&ust=1641321797052000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCMCK26-elvUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAJ

Figure 7: Sharon Stone

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fbloody-disgusting.com%2Fvideos%2F3452506%2Fsharon-stone-just-tweeted-basic-instinct-audition-tape%2F&psig=AOvVaw2T0dN2GeBkBbNYv4v-d2fg&ust=1641321841730000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCPDD48CelvUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

Figure 8: Church

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.achurchnearyou.com%2Fchurch%2F7870%2F&psig=AOvVaw1iy3pAoyaLbWYzAkJaVMIX&ust=1641321445893000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCNjuyoKdlvUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

Figure 9: My Photo that I took

Stop Procrastinating! Pick a Story Structure already!

This blog post is highlighting my research area of my MAJOR PROJECT. For this blog post, I will be looking into and reflecting on the different types of Story Structures for which I will be researching to start planning my MAJOR PROJECT – a feature-length script. Overall, I will be researching and reflecting upon SEVEN structures (some overlap) that are held high amongst Scriptwriting ‘Guru’s’. Instead of ending with a case study, I will be ending with reflecting upon which I believe may be useful to my MAJOR PROJECT and deciding on one to take forward to start my script structure.

It was recommended by my MAJOR PROJECT mentor, Sam Snape (Screenwriter) to pick one story structure to start planning my feature length script. He advised to research various structures and then choose one to start off with.

The 7 different people’s structure’s I have chosen are:

Three Act Structure (Aristotle)

Three Act Structure ‘Paradigm’ (Syd Field)

Three Act Structure ‘Central Point’ (Robert McKee)

15 Point Beat Sheet (Blake Synder)

22 Building Blocks (John Truby)

Hero’s Journey (Campbell)

Hero’s Journey (Vogler)

Aristotle, Syd Field and Robert McKee – The Three Act Structure

ARISTOTLE

Let’s go right back at the start. Greek philosopher, Aristotle, is credited as being the person who created the Three Act Structure. In chapter 6, in his book, Poetics (Aristotle & Sachs, 2011) he looks into the importance of tragedy within stories and comments that ‘for tragedy is an imitation not of people but of actions and life’ (2011:27). The ‘Three Act Structure’ – pictured below.

Simply put, this structure looks to three parts of one story – Beginning, Middle and End.

SYD FIELD

Syd Field refers to his Three Act Structure as a ‘Paradigm’ – image of structure below:

Personally, I felt like Field’s book was quite an easy read due to the ease of his writing – he makes it simple to understand and interesting with examples.

Syd Field in his book: Screenplay (Field, 2005) explores the Three Act Structure looking at it as a SEQUENCE. He describes this as ‘a series of scenes connected by one single idea with a definite beginning, middle, and end’ (Field, 2005:103) and this makes Field’s structure a relatively straight forward to structure one’s screenplay. Beginning, Middle and End. That’s all you need to start as ‘it is the skeleton, or backbone, of your script and, like the nature of structure itself, holds everything together’ (Field, 2005:103). Field’s structure provides enough detail to structure one’s screenplay with enough detail to give the writer a good starting point but I think personally that a structure with some more detail (possibly Synder or Truby – will be discussed below) may be more useful to me than Field’s structure. Although I do agree with Field as he comments:

‘when you begin writing your screenplay, you need to know four things: the opening, the Plot Point at the end of Act I, the Plot Point at the end of Act II, and the ending. When you know what those four elements are, and have done the necessary preparation on action and character, then you’re ready to start writing’ (Field, 2005:105)

ROBERT MCKEE

Much like the previous two:

McKee’s Three Act Structure is called the ‘Central Plot’.

McKee’s Three Act Structure is slightly different but follows the three parts to the story. The only difference is that the ‘Inciting Incident’ is before Act 1 starts – pictured below in Figure 3.

McKee’s structure is a very simple structure and I feel this would be used a literal way of telling your audience the beginning, middle and end without having to go into much detail.

BLAKE SNYDER

Save the Cat (Snyder, 2005) has been a personal favourite screenwriting book of mine for the past four years when it was first introduced to me when I started university.

I find Snyder’s way of writing – much like Field (above) – easy to read and not a chore to read. Snyder makes his book interesting and a joy to read.

Snyder’s 15 Beat Sheet Structure uses the Three Act Structure as the basis.

Beats 1-5 are in ACT 1

Beats 6-12 are in ACT 2

Beats 13-15 are in ACT 3

I think that this creates an easier way to structure the story with the mix of the Three Acts and the individual ‘Beats’.

JOHN TRUBY

Personally, I feel like Truby’s 22 steps is a more in-depth version of the Todorov’s Equilibrium Theory.

Todorov looks to have a ‘minimal complete plot can be seen as a shift from one equilibrium to another’ (Todorov & Weinstein, 1969:75). The starting equilibrium and the ending equilibrium of a story are ‘similar and different, are separated by a period of imbalance, which is composed of a process of degeneration and a process of improvement’ (Todorov & Weinstein, 1969:75). Truby’s 22^nd Building Block is a “New Equilibrium” – just like Todorov’s theory. The development of the protagonist and the story in between the first and last step help to shape and form what the “New Equilibrium” will be.

As someone who procrastinates too much, I personally find Truby’s structure too much. Personally, I’m worried Truby’s 22 step structure being too intricate for myself, even though Truby makes a point that not all the steps need to be used for every story.

CAMPBELL’s HERO’s JOURNEY and VOGLER Hero’s Journey

An example of the Hero’s Journey in a film is Star Wars IV: A New Hope (1977). Michael Lee from The Script Lab delivers a solid example of how Star Wars follows this structure and also uses clips from the film to demonstrate his point. He goes with Vogler’s 12 points that break down the structure:

‘The Ordinary World: We see the hero’s normal life at the start of the story before the adventure begins.
Call to Adventure: The hero is faced with an event, conflict, problem, or challenge that makes them begin their adventure.
Refusal of the Call: The hero initially refuses the adventure because of hesitation, fears, insecurity, or any other number of issues.
Meeting the Mentor: The hero encounters a mentor that can give them advice, wisdom, information, or items that ready them for the journey ahead.
Crossing the Threshold: The hero leaves their ordinary world for the first time and crosses the threshold into adventure.
Tests, Allies, and Enemies: The hero learns the rules of the new world and endures tests, meets friends, and comes face-to-face with enemies.
The Approach: The initial plan to take on the central conflict begins, but setbacks occur that cause the hero to try a new approach or adopt new ideas.
The Ordeal: Things go wrong and added conflict is introduced. The hero experiences more difficult hurdles and obstacles, some of which may lead to a life crisis.
The Reward: After surviving The Ordeal, the hero seizes the sword — a reward that they’ve earned that allows them to take on the biggest conflict. It may be a physical item or piece of knowledge or wisdom that will help them persevere.
The Road Back: The hero sees the light at the end of the tunnel, but they are about to face even more tests and challenges.
The Resurrection: The climax. The hero faces a final test, using everything they have learned to take on the conflict once and for all.
The Return: The hero brings their knowledge or the “elixir” back to the ordinary world.’

(The Script Lab, 2019)

Personally, I think the Hero’s Journey makes one’s script have to follow a certain path – which could make one’s script constrained to a certain type of story.

I do however like Vogler’s character archetypes:

The Hero
The Mentor
The Threshold Guardian
The Herald
The Shapeshifter
The Shadow
The Ally
The Trickster

I will keep these in mind when developing my characters.

MY PERSONAL REFLECTION OF THE DIFFERENT STRUCTURES:

Three Act Structure (Aristotle, Syd Field & Robert McKee)

In short: Beginning, Middle and End.
Inciting Incident
Pinch Points
Climax
Ends with a Resolution

15 Point Beat Sheet (Blake Snyder)

15 Beats split into the three acts

22 Building Blocks (John Truby)

A more complex version of Todorov’s Equilibrium Theory
Like Three Act – Inciting Event is here
Similarities to Hero’s Journey

Hero’s Journey (Campbell and Vogler)

12 Point Journey
8 Character Archetypes (Vogler)

DECISION:

I have decided to use Blake Snyder’s Beat Sheet as a starting point to start planning my MAJOR PROJECT of a feature-length script. I believe that this structure is the best for me at this starting point due to the way Snyder presents his 15 beats in three parts and the structure is simple enough but enough parts for me to develop my script fully to be able to start writing.

Reflection about not choosing the other structures:

I found with the Three Act Structure (Aristotle, Field and McKee) was almost too simple and not detailed enough for me to write a structure which I would be fully happy to start writing afterwards. Although Field’s idea of nailing ‘the opening, the Plot Point at the end of Act I, the Plot Point at the end of Act II, and the ending’ (Field, 2005:105) is a very important thing to do.

Truby’s 22 Building Blocks was the opposite of the Three Act Structure. I found that I would over complicate things by using Truby’s structure. However,

The Hero’s Journey – although a favourite of mine for a while due to Star Wars – is almost too structured in a sense. I felt myself finding it restrictive and having to stay within the boundaries of what both Campbell and Vogler say must happen within the Hero’s Journey.

Bibliography:

Aristotle & Sachs, J. (2011) Poetics. [Online] Massachusetts: Focus Publishing/R. Pullins Co. Available from: https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/herts/detail.action?docID=998514# [Accessed: 26^th November 2021]

CAMPBELL, J. (2008). The hero with a thousand faces. 3^rd Ed. San Franscico: New World Library.

FIELD, S. (2005). Screenplay: the foundations of screenwriting. [Online] London: Delta. Available from: https://www.vlebooks.com/Product/Index/2164571?page=0 [Accessed: 12^th November 2021]

LEE, M. (2019). The Hero’s Journey Breakdown: Star Wars. The Script Lab. [Online] 11^th October. Available from: https://thescriptlab.com/features/screenwriting-101/12309-the-heros-journey-breakdown-star-wars/ [Accessed: 2^nd January 2022]

MCKEE, R. (1999). Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the principle of screenwriting. London: Methuen.

SNYDER, B. (2005). Save the cat: the last book on screenwriting you’ll ever need. Studio City: Michael Wiese Productions.

TODOROV, T. & WEINSTEIN, A. (1969). ‘Structural Analysis of Narrative’. A Forum of Fiction. [Online] 3(1) pp.70-76. Available from: https://www.jstor.org/stable/1345003?seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents [Accessed: 17^th December 2021]

TRUBY, J. (2008). The Anatomy of Story: 22 Steps to Becoming a Master Storyteller. US: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

VOGLER, C. (2007). The Writer’s Journey: Mythic Structure for writers. 3^rd Ed. Studio City: Michael Wiese Productions.

Filmography:

Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope. (1977). Film. Directed by George Lucas. [DVD]. US: 20th Century Fox.

Illustrations:

Figure 1: 3 Act Structure

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.studiobinder.com%2Fblog%2Fthree-act-structure%2F&psig=AOvVaw1voAD0bKbiIYy_6d_dZRa0&ust=1640713878133000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCOD86dzFhPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

Figure 2: Syd Field

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fdramatica.com%2Fresources%2Fassets%2FDramatica_paradigms-0707.pdf&psig=AOvVaw2yw_oGbu41Lbvf-4ZY-ePi&ust=1640713510809000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCKi9s7DEhPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAO

Figure 3: Robert McKee

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.daisys-geology.com%2Ffeed%2F&psig=AOvVaw2yw_oGbu41Lbvf-4ZY-ePi&ust=1640713510809000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCKi9s7DEhPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAJ

Figure 4: Save the Cat

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Favfilmschool.com%2Fsave-the-cat-beat-sheet-the-15-beats-explained%2F&psig=AOvVaw1Z8AlyWhEs2upJ8UoruQaU&ust=1640713198015000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCNDHtbnDhPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

Figure 5: John Truby

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fdramatica.com%2Fresources%2Fassets%2FDramatica_paradigms-0707.pdf&psig=AOvVaw1pAgfAAXwAaeegqV3zzflA&ust=1640713618773000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCKj1seLEhPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

Figure 6: Hero’s journey

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FHero%2527s_journey&psig=AOvVaw2CyxdKrwdsji9KY9gNgL-T&ust=1640713256830000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCPjgi8zDhPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAE

Figure 7: Vogler

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fstoryality.wordpress.com%2F2017%2F07%2F30%2Fstoryality-145-five-views-of-the-mono-myth%2Fstages-of-the-heros-journey-vogler-1992-p-18%2F&psig=AOvVaw2U-WO5pwyuQabrLk9PldGh&ust=1640713724011000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCJjU95nFhPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAJ

Let’s Talk Late 20th Century Feminist Icons: Ellen Ripley and Sarah Connor

This blog post is highlighting my research area of WOMEN IN FILM. For this blog post, I will be looking into and reflecting on two major feminist icons in the 1970s and 1980s: Ellen Ripley in Alien (1979) and Sarah Connor in The Terminator (1984) – who continue to inspire new and upcoming feminist icons in media. For this blog post, I will split into three parts – two case studies and a reflection: 1) Sarah Connor, 2) Ellen Ripley, 3) Reflecting upon both characters. Starting off, I will be looking at the argument of whether or not Sarah Connor is really a feminist icon and reflecting upon my personal reasons and looking directly at both sides of the debate. Second, I will be reflecting upon the importance of Ellen Ripley for women and the science fiction genre. Finally, I will be looking at how the characters have impacted the film and television industry.

‘“Film began a new trend of female representation within the science fiction genre, marked by tough, buns-of-steel heroines, such as Sigourney Weaver’s Ellen Ripley and Linda Hamilton’s Sarah Connor of the Aliens and Terminator series, respectively.”’ (LaVigne, 2005:54)

Case Study 1: Is Sarah Connor a Feminist Icon?

There have been debates about whether or not Sarah Connor is really a feminist icon or not. I believe the idea of Sarah Connor being a feminist icon is subjective – I personally look at the character and see a woman who starts off as a normal woman just going about her day to becoming her own hero. She isn’t just the mother of John Connor (the future leader against Skynet), she is a heroine who ultimately proves that anyone can be a hero if they set their mind to it. Her transformation in Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991) is possibly one of my favourite transformations as she physically and mentally transforms to make sure she can protect her son and be able to continue fighting for him and the future – Linda Hamilton who portrayed Connor underwent rigorous training for the role as well.

Whilst rewatching the film (Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991)), I found myself noticing that the camera wasn’t objectifying the character of Sarah Connor as it did somewhat during The Terminator (1984). After watching this, I decided to see if anyone else had noticed this revelation and many had. Rae Alexandra from KQED analysed that the director (James Cameron) ‘refus[ed] to present her through the filter of the male gaze’ (KQED, 2019) and indicated that ‘Cameron putting a woman at the center of his blockbuster movie without once objectifying her was—and is—a rare choice for Hollywood, and the movie is all the better for it.’ (KQED, 2019). Personally, I agree with Alexandra here about Sarah Connor. Being brought up with films with strong female characters like Connor (and Ellen Ripley – who I will speak about next) is important for young women to see good representations of their gender and good role models – I believe that Connor is a good role model as in the second film she does everything in her power to protect her child and this is something I believe we don’t really see in cinema with mothers – willing to do absolutely anything like fight a robot to save their children. I love to personally explore debates of topics and find it interesting to see that others see Connor as something other than a feminist icon – and that is what I going to reflect upon next:

On the other hand, others have had the opposite opinion deciding upon the fact that they believe that the character of Sarah Connor is NOT A FEMINIST ICON. Freelance entertainment journalist Hanna Flint provides her opinion on the matter with the Metro – I quite enjoy Flint’s argument and understand her intentions with this article. Flint first mentions modern feminist icons like Gal Gadot and Charlize Theron (who I agree with it – look at my previous post on Theron) and then goes onto comment on how director, James Cameron, is ‘rather misguided… to describe Sarah Connor as a feminist icon’ (Metro, 2017). Personally, I believe that Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman and Charlize Theron in her many roles are feminist icons and are due to the positive feminist icons decades before them like Connor and Ripley – without a few women starting off as these female action stars we wouldn’t have these contemporary feminist icons. I do agree with Flint when she refers to Connor in the first Terminator (1984) as she starts off as a ‘damsel in distress’ (Metro, 2017) and is saved ‘countless times’ (Metro, 2017) by a man – however where I disagree is where she says she changed only in the second film. Connor defeats the Terminator at the end of the first film – going from the damsel in distress to her own hero saving herself and then going onto save her son and making sure he is safe.

Both Flint from Metro and Alexandra from KQED, comment on the same idea of the ‘Male Gaze’ (Metro, 2017). Both make the analysis that James Cameron doesn’t objectify Sarah Connor. Alexandra sticks with her ideas about Connor as a feminist icon (mentioned above). However, Flint comments ‘instead he has her do other typically masculine actives like chin-ups, fighting and shooting weapons’ (Metro, 2017). Although, here I agree with Flint that yes James Cameron does get her to do those things – it doesn’t make her any less of a feminist icon. Women can do ‘chin-ups’ (Metro, 2017), they can fight and they can use weapons, just the same as men – it doesn’t’ make them any less feminine.

Personally, I find myself leaning towards the idea of Connor being a feminist icon.

Case Study 2: Ellen Ripley’s importance for the genre of Science Fiction and for Women?

Sometimes credited as the ‘first action heroine’ (The Guardian, 2009), Ellen Ripley, portrayed by the amazing Sigourney Weaver, is one of Science Fiction’s leading feminist icons in cinematic history. We have Ridley Scott to thank for Ellen Ripley as her character was ‘a male lead’ (IndieWire, 2017) by Dan O’Bannon (Screenwriter) and Scott ‘hit upon the idea to change the character’s gender’ (IndieWire, 2017). Kate Erbland from IndieWire describes ‘the true genius of Ripley’ (IndieWire, 2017) was due to ‘the full embodiment of a “strong female character” who also doesn’t shy away from the characteristics that keep her human and relatable’ (IndieWire, 2017) – which in turn made Ripley a character that women across the world could identify with and see a positive female representation in a horror/action series. Xan Brooks from The Guardian explores how the character of Ellen Ripley was a ‘game-changer’ (The Guardian, 2009) and the subversion of expectations with ‘a horror film that has a young female character who is a survivor and a heroine as opposed to a victim’ (The Guardian, 2009). The Alien: Covenant (2017) lead heroine, Katherine Waterson, comments on how ‘“people are talking a lot these days about the progress we’re making, or storytelling with great roles for women… maybe Ridley’s not getting enough credit. He’s been doing it for a very long time”’ (IndieWire, 2017). Waterson makes it clear that Scott and the character of Ellen Ripley have ‘deliver[ed] exciting female characters’ (IndieWire, 2017) way before Waterson took on the role in Alien: Covenant (2017).

The Final Girls?

At the end of The Terminator (1984) and Alien (1979), the only main characters left are the women who have held their own against their antagonists – Sarah Connor V the Terminator and Ellen Ripley V the Xenomorph. Alien (1979) ends ‘with its heroine proving victorious, while still knowing full well what she’s had to sacrifice to get there’ (IndieWire, 2017). American professor, Carol Clover, coined the term “THE FINAL GIRL” and Brown in his article references how Clover’s theory of The Final Girl is ‘a perfect example’ (Brown, 1996:58) in reference to the character of Ellen Ripley.

Clover’s theory: ‘The Final Girl is the stock character who “not only fight(s) back but do(es) so with ferocity and even kill(s) the killer on their own, without help from the outside” (Clover, 1992:37)’ (Brown, 1996:58).

Brown analyses Clover’s academic piece and comments that ‘the Final Girl is clearly marked as a masculine character via her ability to survive agonizing trials, rise to the occasion, and defeat the monster with her own hands and cunning’ (Brown, 1996:58). The constant idea that in order to be a strong heroine one needs to take on ‘masculine’ traits are very much ideas from a patriarchal society defined by gender stereotypes of what a woman SHOULD do rather than what any woman CAN do. Everyone has the Fight or Flight instincts whether you are male or female. (At the end of this blog, I will do a personal reflection in regards to this).

Reflection of Sarah Connor and Ellen Ripley:

The interesting point that I came across whilst researching the two characters of Sarah Connor and Ellen Ripley was the idea that for a woman to be able to be an action hero, they have to embody a man: ‘the action heroine is just a sheep in wolf’s clothing, rather than a legitimate role for women’ (Brown, 1996:53) and ‘the hardbody heroine as a male impersonator’ (Brown, 1996:53). Over the course of my four years of my Bachelor’s degree and this past semester of my Master’s degree, I have written a number of academic pieces on feminism within film and television production and this particular reflective blog has really opened my eyes as to what back in the end of the 20^th century society thought about women who were taking on these action heroine roles as society now doesn’t speak of action heroines (for example like Charlize Theron) as a ‘woman who behaves in a manner so heavily coded as masculine must be a man in drag’ (Brown, 1996:54) but as a strong female icon proving themselves within the action genre. This particular article where these quotations came from was published in 1996 – so is around 25 years old, however, still stands for what some unfortunately still believe and see in society – that these character ideals would be ‘normally reserved for male protagonists’ (Brown, 1996:56) and ‘women [are] passive’ (Brown, 1996:52).

‘The development of the hardbody, hardware, hard-as-nails heroine who can take it–and give it–with the biggest and the baddest men of the action cinema indicates a growing acceptance of non-traditional roles for women and an awareness of the arbitrariness of gender traits’ (Brown, 1996:52)

PERSONAL Reflection of this topic in relation to what I have felt and seen:

I was born in 1998 and I spent the entirety of my childhood being told by society of what I should be doing and what I shouldn’t be doing. My parents in particular didn’t want to limit me to what was expected of my gender – they had me try out a load of different extra-curricular activities including Ballet and Judo. Ballet was all girls. Judo was all boys and me. After a year of both at the age of 4-5 years old, ultimately, my parents let me decide for myself what I wanted to do. I decided that Ballet wasn’t for me and stuck with Judo for another 13-15 years – and for the majority of that time was underestimated due to being a female amongst males. However, I never let my gender define what I was capable of – I learned the same techniques as the males in my class and was able to perform them just as they could. It is upsetting to still see that gender stereotypes of what a female SHOULD do is still around in 2022. Forty-odd years after the release of Alien (1979), women are still being told what they SHOULD be doing according to their gender. The “SHOULD” needs to stop! Even now whilst doing my Master’s, I have had men suggest that I shouldn’t tackle a subject like Terrorism and Science Fiction for my MAJOR PROJECT due to my gender. I am really looking forward to proving these people wrong and subverting the expectations of others in society who believe this.

Bibliography:

ALEXANDRA, R. (2019). The Timeless Feminism of Sarah Connor in ‘Terminator 2’. KQED. [Online] 18^th July. Available from: https://www.kqed.org/pop/112098/the-timeless-feminism-of-sarah-connor-in-terminator-2 [Accessed: 11^th December 2021]

BROOKS, X. (2009). The First Action Heroine. The Guardian. [Online] 13^th October. Available from: https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/oct/13/ridley-scott-alien-ripley [Accessed: 13^th December 2021]

BROWN, J.A. (1996). ‘Gender and the Action Heroine: Hardbodies and the “Point of No Return”’. Cinema Journal. [Online] 35(3) pp.52-71. Available from: https://www.proquest.com/docview/1298005225/fulltextPDF/A6850E2A2289407BPQ/1?accountid=14660 [Accessed: 13^th December 2021]

ERBLAND, K. (2017). ‘Alien’ Revisited: Nearly Four Decades Later, Ripley is still the Boundary-Busting Heroine we Deserve. IndieWire. [Online] 16^th May. Available from: https://www.indiewire.com/2017/05/alien-ripley-heroine-ridley-scott-sigourney-weaver-1201817775/ [Accessed: 11^th December 2021]

FLINT, H. (2017). Terminator 2: Sarah Connor isn’t the feminist icon James Cameron thinks she is… but she could be. Metro. [Online] 4^th December. Available from: https://metro.co.uk/2017/12/04/terminator-2-sarah-connor-isnt-the-feminist-icon-james-cameron-thinks-she-is-but-she-could-be-7110534/ [Accessed: 13^th December 2021]

LAVIGNE, C. (2005). ‘Space Opera: Melodrama, Feminism and the Women of Farscape’. Femspec. [Online] 6(2) pp.54-64. Available from: https://web-s-ebscohost-com.ezproxy.herts.ac.uk/ehost/detail/detail?vid=0&sid=2828c5af-2ed2-4809-aebd-dc8a13d5c914%40redis&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#AN=21626837&db=hlh [Accessed: 13^th December 2021]

Filmography:

Alien. (1979) Film. Directed by Ridley Scott. [DVD]. US: 20^th Century Fox.

Alien: Covenant. (2017) Film. Directed by Ridley Scott. [DVD]. US: 20^th Century Fox.

Aliens. (1986) Film. Directed by James Cameron. [DVD]. US: 20^th Century Fox.

Terminator 2: Judgement Day. (1991) Film. Directed by James Cameron. [DVD]. US: Tri-Star Pictures.

The Terminator. (1984) Film. Directed by James Cameron. [DVD]. US: Orion Pictures.

Illustrations:

Figure 1: Connor and Ripley

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.themarysue.com%2Fsarah-connor-ellen-ripley%2F&psig=AOvVaw30toXs2BweYe4EvaPlMYsm&ust=1641130538879000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCLjr7u3VkPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAN

Figure 2: Sarah Connor

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fgoat.com.au%2Fmovies%2Flinda-hamilton-got-so-lean-for-terminator-dark-fate-she-was-given-a-fake-butt%2F&psig=AOvVaw0oYEG3CBwUB8-NqBHqJ_ZY&ust=1641130682697000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCNCR0rfWkPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAI

Figure 3: Sarah Connor

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.digitalspy.com%2Fmovies%2Fa859985%2Fterminator-6-linda-hamilton-sarah-connor-picture-photos-61%2F&psig=AOvVaw0CehfrTgqnd3dj_7IuK_PK&ust=1641130441872000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCLiJ-L3VkPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAO

Figure 4: Ripley

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.denofgeek.com%2Fmovies%2Fellen-ripley-alien-and-the-rise-of-the-modern-ripleys%2F&psig=AOvVaw0-oF-mO_YJvBGhrhxgg6s5&ust=1641131242633000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCNjn0brYkPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

Figure 5: Ripley

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.independent.co.uk%2Farts-entertainment%2Ffilms%2Ffeatures%2Falien-40-anniversary-ridley-scott-sigourney-weaver-ellen-ripley-a8801066.html&psig=AOvVaw2-dopc4hTECSOlh29ahisx&ust=1641131123341000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCNiBg4zYkPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAR

Figure 6: Sarah Connor

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nydailynews.com%2Fentertainment%2Ftv-movies%2Femilia-clarke-cast-sarah-connor-terminator-reboot-article-1.1547891&psig=AOvVaw37ecCoJNyY723kp1XFej7m&ust=1641131358030000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCJDK3oHZkPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAE

Figure 7: Ripley Gif

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.themarysue.com%2Fbye-bye-ripley%2F&psig=AOvVaw0EH9qt39SdoD3wykYY8b8Y&ust=1641131033667000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCMCl3rDYkPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

‘It’s not a very forgiving genre when it comes to women’ – Charlize Theron (Marie Claire, 2020)

This blog post is highlighting both my research areas of WOMEN IN FILM and my MAJOR PROJECT. For WOMEN IN FILM, I will be looking at actress Charlize Theron and for my MAJOR PROJECT I will be looking at genre of Action. For this blog post, I will be first looking Charlize Theron as an actress in the male-dominated genre of Action. I will be looking into and reflecting on the how Theron has risen as an Action heroine, specifically a female action heroine and female action antagonist, and the difficulties for women in this male-dominated genre. Additionally, looking at how Theron stands up against her male counterparts and stands her ground – Theron as a female icon and role model for young women, subverting ideas of what women should be like in the action genre, either as a heroine or antagonist. This blog post will end with a case study of Theron as a female action antagonist, specifically in The Fast and Furious franchise (2001-Present).

Charlize Theron – Rising Action Heroine:

One of the reasons I decided to write a blog post for this module on Charlize Theron was due to how she has stood out to me personally over the past decade. As a lover of action films, it is vital to me to see representation that I can relate to – which Theron provides. It is also fascinating that Theron portrays both heroines and antagonists in these action films, and all the characters are different – Theron is definitely not a one-trick-pony. Theron provides a stunning range of characters and ‘has smartly charted a diverse action profile that can’t be rivalled by her peers’ (EW, 2020).

Charlize Theron has been gracing the screen since the mid-90’s and has risen as a female action star. I first saw Theron in The Italian Job (2003) – the reboot of Michael Caine’s classic The Italian Job (1969) and was fascinated by her (and MINI’s!). She stood out in the film and owned her role amongst the likes of Jason Statham and Mark Walhberg who have already found success within the action genre.

In the last few years with Mad Max: Fury Road (2015), Atomic Blonde (2017) and The Old Guard (2020), Theron has pushed what I had hoped a female action star would be. It has been exciting to see her in these roles and leading these films as a strong female icon. The main reason I wanted to watch The Old Guard (2020) – apart from it sounding like a fantastic concept, which I found it to be – was because Theron was heading the film. She led the group and proved it didn’t matter what gender you are to lead in an action film.

Theron is an icon for all women, young or old, she ‘refuses to stay silent about uncomfortable subjects’ (Marie Claire, 2020), like sexism and ageism (will be discussed below) in Hollywood and the Gender Pay Gap. Theron has been campaigning for women, especially in male-dominated genres like Action. Theron speaks out at how ‘female action stars don’t get second chances’ (Marie Claire, 2020) and female action stars don’t have ‘the same rights as [their] male counterparts’ (Marie Claire, 2020) in the same films.

Interestingly and not surprisingly, Theron rejected the role of Wonder Woman’s mother in Wonder Woman (2017) as Theron and Wonder Woman actress, Gal Gadot, are only a decade apart in age – she was in her early forties when she was offered the role. Theron in an interview with Vanity Fair described how she thought she was being offered the role of the titular character of Wonder Woman and it was revealed in fact they were looking for Theron to play her mother. She said: ‘“This is a great example of how Hollywood slaps you in the face when you start aging.”’ (Vanity Fair, 2019). Theron stood her ground against this Hollywood ageism and proved just because she’s over forty doesn’t mean she has to start playing older roles.

Case Study: Theron in The Fast and Furious Franchise (2001-Present)

Theron’s emergence as the antagonist in The Fast and Furious franchise (2001-Present) was a brilliant example of how Theron isn’t stuck in an action heroine box. As the character of Cipher in Fast 8 (2017) and Fast 9 (2021), Theron stands her ground and more against heavyweight action stars: Dwayne Johnson, Jason Statham, Vin Diesel and John Cena. Theron commands all the scenes she is present in, even when she is in captivity in Fast 9 (2021). This can be evident in the way she is filmed. Low angles emulate the power and authority within the scene and the mix of medium shots and medium close ups project her character’s command of the other characters in the scene. Theron’s Cipher holds her own and proves to be a worthy antagonist against the Fast family.

Bibliography:

BRADLEY, L. (2019). Wonder Woman Seriously Asked Charlize Theron To Play Hero’s Mother. Vanity Fair. [Online]. 3^rd May. Available from: https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2019/05/charlize-theron-wonder-woman-mother-age/amp [Accessed: 6^th December 2021]

LAWRENCE, D. (2020). With The Old Guard, Charlize Theron continues her reign as Hollywood’s top action star. Entertainment Weekly. [Online]. 13^th July. Available from: https://ew.com/movies/old-guard-charlize-theron-action-star/ [Accessed: 6^th December 2021]

PROUDFOOT, J. (2020). Charlize Theron speaks out to explain why female action stars don’t get second chances. Marie Claire. [Online]. 8^th July. Available from: https://www.marieclaire.co.uk/news/celebrity-news/charlize-theron-action-stars-703467 [Accessed: 6^th December 2021]

Filmography:

Atomic Blonde. (2017). Film. Directed by David Leitch. [DVD]. US: Focus Features.

F9. (2021). Film. Directed by Justin Lin. [DVD]. US: Universal Pictures.

Italian Job. (1969). Film. Directed by Peter Collinson. [DVD]. UK: Paramount Pictures.

Italian Job. (2003). Film. Directed by F Gary Gray. [DVD]. US: Paramount Pictures.

Mad Max: Fury Road. (2017). Film. Directed by George Miller. [DVD]. Australia: Roadshow Films.

The Fate of the Furious. (2017). Film. Directed by F Gary Gray. [DVD]. US: Universal Pictures.

The Old Guard. (2020). Film. Directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood. [Streaming]. US: Netflix.

Wonder Woman. (2017). Film. Directed by Patty Jenkins. [DVD]. US: Warner Bros. Pictures.

Illustrations:

Figure 1: Old Guard

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fmovieweb.com%2Fthe-old-guard-2-sequel-filming-2022%2F&psig=AOvVaw39ZqBdeibvK0XJHEISnFc2&ust=1640861062172000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCIClvIHqiPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAE

Figure 2: Mad Max

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.polygon.com%2F2015%2F10%2F12%2F9506385%2Fmad-max-fury-road-sequels-wont-star-charlize-theron&psig=AOvVaw2RZ_huEojN296tojfII43h&ust=1640861142561000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCMDU3qHqiPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

Figure 3: Fast and Furious

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwegotthiscovered.com%2Fmovies%2Ffate-furious-star-charlize-theron-no-idea-cipher-will-appear-future-instalments%2F&psig=AOvVaw32vhMH6cpuHMLShENGnou1&ust=1640861212405000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCLi2y9DqiPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAS

MAJOR PROJECT: Terrorism in Cinema

This blog post is highlighting my research area of my MAJOR PROJECT. For this blog post, I will be looking into and reflecting on how terrorism is presented within my practice. Starting off, I will reflect upon my MAJOR PROJECT and why I have chosen this genre and how I plan to thoroughly do research into the genre to make sure I portray it authentically in my screenplay. Next, I will be looking into the types of terrorism. Then I will be looking towards my practice of film and television and look at what has been done and what I want to do differently with my MAJOR PROJECT. Instead of ending with a case study, I will be ending with reflecting upon why I want to break stereotypes of the genre and how I want to create solutions to the overdone elements and breaking out of the pattern that is already in my practice.

My Major Project:

My Major Project for my Master’s degree is a Feature-Length Screenplay. I have chosen one of the key themes – along with crime and science fiction (Genres discussed in previous blog posts: ‘Once Upon a Crime…’ and ‘Read my Blog, You Must’) – is Terrorism.

I personally find war, crime and terrorism interesting subjects. I wrote my BA Film and Television Production Dissertation on World War II, specifically: Putin-Era WWII Russian-language based on true story films, as WWII is one of my favourite subjects and I wanted to push myself out of my comfort zone by doing something niche choosing Russian-language films instead of stereotypical westernised films from the UK or US. For my Major Project, I wanted to venture into an area where I know some but not all, which is terrorism.

My father is a Police Detective and he has got me in contact with people who deal with Terrorism as an everyday job. Having contacts within the Counter-Terrorism branch within the UK Police has enabled me to have an understanding of what types of terrorism they deal with, how they deal with it, and what is next in terms of the terror level in the UK. When speaking to a Detective Superintendent in the Police, he pushed me into thinking about the Fifth Wave of Terrorism (The Waves of Terrorism will be discussed below). He said to not go to the stereotypical Post 9/11 Islamic Terrorism route (The Fourth Wave of Terrorism) but to instead look towards the ever-emerging and ever-present Far-Right Terrorism. It is predicted that the Far-Right domestic terrorism, in both the UK and the US could be the next wave of Terrorism – The Fifth Wave. For my Major Project, I will specifically looking at Neo-Nazi’s as this hasn’t been something seen in a lot of film or television. This contact advised me to start with academic scholar David Rapoport and learn the ins and outs of the different forms to get a true understanding of everything.

For this blog post, I am first going to look into the different forms of Terrorism – specifically David Rapoport’s Waves of Terrorism – and then look how it looked at in my practice, film and television.

David Rapoport and Waves of Terrorism:

David Rapoport is a key theorist of Terrorism.

The theory of the Waves of Terrorism as described by it’s theorist, David Rapoport, is made up of four waves. Below I will name the four waves and their key components to the Wave:

The Anarchist Wave – 1878-1919

The Anarchist Wave – 1878-1919
1. Nationalist elements and Assassinations
1. ‘Spurred by democratic and egalitarian ideals of the French Revolution’ (Auger, 2020:88)
The Anti-Colonial Wave – 1920’s-Early 1960’s
1. Seeking ‘self-determination’ (Rapoport, 2015: 219)
1. ‘Embraced the post-World War I ideal of national self-determination’ (Auger, 2020:88)
The New Left Wave – Mid-1960’s-1990’s
1. ‘A cold war product’ (Rapoport, 2015:220)
1. Hostage taking and Plane jacking
1. ‘Inspired by Marxist-Leninist ideology and reaction against the Vietnam War’ (Auger, 2020:88)
The Religious Wave – 1990’s- Present
1. Suicide bombing
1. ‘Self-martyrdom’ (Rapoport, 2015:221)
1. ‘Initiated by several developments in the Muslim world, especially the Iranian Revolution and Soviet invasion of Afghanistan

Interestingly, this article is a response to someone ‘critique of the Wave Theory’ (Rapoport, 2015:217) and Rapoport sharply rebuke’s the comments on his theory describing the critique as ‘wholly inadequate’ (Rapoport, 2015:217) and on the second page of Rapoport’s journal article he comments: ‘Since “Four Horseman” [The Article that critiqued Rapoport’s theory] avoids describing my view of “modern terrorism”, I will explain it now’ (Rapoport, 2015:218) and goes on to explore his theory of the Waves of Terrorism. He then ends his journal article with a critique of his own theory admitting the Theory ‘needs more work’ (Rapoport, 2015:223).

For my MAJOR PROJECT, the most important point of this article is that Far-Right Terrorist groups ‘have been present in every wave’ (Rapoport, 2015:222).

Terrorism in Cinema:

After gaining a brief understanding of the different forms of Terrorism, I made the move to reflect upon what the genre of Terrorism has been portrayed like in my practice of Film and Television.

When researching academic papers on Terrorism in Cinema, two journal articles really stood out to me out of the many I read. The first was Ali Serdouk’s journal article: Hollywood, American Politics, and Terrorism: When Art Turns into a Political Tool, which specifically looked at the argument of both Hollywood and the US government unjustly stereotyping Arabs and Muslims within cinema and therefore pushing a biased agenda onto their audiences. The main reason this journal article stood out to me was due the way Serdouk was making a really important point about the negative stereotypes that films depicting Islamic terrorism and this resonated with my argument for not choosing to go with Islamic Terrorism as my antagonists but rather Far-Right Terrorism as this is becoming more and more present in society and hasn’t been over done like Islamic Terrorism films – I also like to always push the boat and go against the grain and do something different so I think by doing Far Right Terrorism Groups as my antagonists for my screenplay I won’t be further adding to the intensely long list of films that depict the only type of terrorism Post 9/11 as Islamic Terrorism (which is actually factually incorrect as Islamic Terrorism isn’t the only form of Terrorism that has taken place in the last twenty years).

Additionally, Far-Right Terrorism – especially Neo-Nazis – isn’t particularly shown in cinema or in the media but is something that is ever-present and actually on the rise. And – this is what leads me onto the second Academic Journal Article that stuck with me due to its topic of Far-Right Terrorism. Paul B. Rich’s journal article: Hollywood and Cinematic Representations of Far-Right Domestic Terrorism in the US, stood out to me due to how Rich’s argument about the lack of correct portrayal of US Domestic Terrorism in cinema and how the societies lack of knowledge of ‘Far-Right Terrorism is an issue of growing significance’ (2018:180). This article looks at US Far-Right Domestic Terrorism which is still a useful insight even though my screenplay is directly looking at UK Far-Right Domestic Terrorism. The journal article looks at how pre-1990’s films concentrate on the KKK (Klu Klux Klan) and post 1990’s looks more to Neo-Nazis and newer types of Far-Right Domestic Terrorism. This article in particular highlights how these films that are depicting Far-Right Terrorism could be ‘accused of seriously misleading general audiences on the complexity of the Far-Right Terror Threat’ (Rich, 2018:179)

Let’s break those stereotypes!:

For my MAJOR PROJECT, I wanted to make sure I wrote something that wasn’t like anything else. The Detective Superintendent I spoke to along with my research around the subject have pushed me towards the idea of have antagonists that come from the Far-Right Terrorism Groups.

My plan is to break stereotypes of what is usually presented in cinema of Terrorism and the way I can do this is by looking at the potential ‘fifth’ wave of terrorism. Vincent Auger in his journal article looks at Rapoport’s theory speculating on the possible fifth wave. Auger looks towards the idea of the Fifth Wave being connected the Right-Wing Terrorism. Auger indicates that the murder of MP Jo Cox was ‘by a white supremacist who considered Cox a “collaborator” bringing non-whites to Britain’ (Auger, 2020:90).

Auger presents the different academic’s ideas of what the fifth wave may concern:

‘D. K. Gupta suggests that if a fifth wave arrives, it “should exhibit a collective consciousness based on ethno-nationalism, religious identity, or economic class. In all probability it wouldcontain elements of all three.”’ (Auger, 2020:88)
‘Jeffrey Kaplan suggested that the fifth wave would be composed of ethnic utopians trying to remake their societies, following the example of Cambodia’s Khmer Rouge.’ (Auger, 2020:88)
‘Jeffrey Simon asserts that no single ideology will dominate a fifth wave, but instead a “Technological Wave” will emerge, characterized by “lone operators” using the internet, cyber tools, and weapons of mass destruction to wreak havoc.’ (Auger, 2020:88)
‘Honig and Yahel argue that “terrorist semi-states” that control territory but continue to launch terrorist attacks internationally (such as the Islamic State) may be the next wave.’ (Auger, 2020:88)

Out of the articles on Terrorism in Cinema, three Quotes in particular stood out to me – whcih have helped me to choose my antagonists for my MAJOR PROJECT:

Ali Serdouk in the journal article: Hollywood, American Politics, and Terrorism: When Art Turns into a Political Tool, indicates that ‘American cinema often links the concept of terrorism to Arabs and Muslims, especially after the 9/11 attacks’ (2021:26).

Paul Rich, in his journal article: Hollywood and Cinematic Representations of Far-Right Domestic Terrorism in the US, debates that ‘there has been a relatively poor framing by Hollywood on far-right domestic terrorist movements and organisations compared to those that are externally based’ (2018:163).

Within Rich’s journal article, he discusses how film analyst Thomas Riegler ‘accused Hollywood of failing to present any balanced or accurate assessment of terrorism’s impact on American society’ (2018:164).

Bibliography:

AUGER, V.A. (2020). ‘Right-Wing Terror: A Fifth Global Wave?’. Perspectives on Terrorism. [Online]. 14(3) pp87-97. Available from: https://www-jstor-org.ezproxy.herts.ac.uk/stable/pdf/26918302.pdf?refreqid=excelsior%3Acf24ae9e7c217c257874018c732de742 [Accessed 8th August 2021]

RAPOPORT, D.C. (2015). ‘It Is Waves, Not Strains’. Terrorism and Political Violence. [Online]. 28(2). Pp. 217-224. Available from: https://www-tandfonline-com.ezproxy.herts.ac.uk/doi/full/10.1080/09546553.2015.1112278 [Accessed 8th August 2021]

RICH, P.B. (2018). ‘Hollywood and Cinematic Representations of Far-Right Domestic Terrorism in the US’. Studies in Conflict & Terrorism. [Online]. 43(2). Pp 161-182. Available from: https://www-tandfonline-com.ezproxy.herts.ac.uk/doi/full/10.1080/1057610X.2018.1446295 [Accessed 9th August 2021]

SERDOUK, A. (2021). ‘Hollywood, American Politics, and Terrorism: When Art Turns into a Political Tool’. Arab Studies Quarterly. [Online]. 43(1). Pp. 26-37. Available from: https://www.proquest.com/docview/2489775465?accountid=14660&pq-origsite=summon [Accessed 4th September 2021]

Illustrations:

Figure 1: Strike Back

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fuproxx.com%2Fsepinwall%2Fstrike-back-review-cinemax%2F&psig=AOvVaw1E2zcgPf0PUk-BBYhodoZj&ust=1636464169426000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCICAsKbuiPQCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

Figure 2: Rapoport’s Four Waves

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.uu.nl%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2Fterinfo_utrecht_university_educational_letter_utrecht_shooting.pdf&psig=AOvVaw2wz4mIzAi_ax1dTgiFyOAK&ust=1636312132175000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCIDutfK3hPQCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAJ

Figure 3: Homeland

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.digitalspy.com%2Ftv%2Fustv%2Fa32346301%2Fhomeland-boss-teases-revival-season-9%2F&psig=AOvVaw1MuK4fE-hlhtSgu7EYhNof&ust=1640700816335000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCJiRoIuVhPUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAJ

“Anyways, Busy Girl. Got to go.” – Lara Croft, a feminist icon

This blog post is highlighting my research area of WOMEN IN FILM. For this blog post, I will be first looking at the character of Lara Croft within her original media format of video games. For this blog post, I will be looking into and reflecting on the positive fictional female role models and icons, specifically how Lara Croft has evolved over the years. Then I will be looking towards my practice of film and television with the intent of looking at adaptation from video game to film with the character of Lara Croft – This blog post will end with a case study of Angelina Jolie’s adaptation of Lara Croft.

Lara Croft in her element:

As far as fictional feminist icons go, Lara Croft is one of the top leading ladies. Miluka explains that even though Lara Croft is ‘another female ‘creation’ by a male ‘creator’’ (2003:82), however, she ‘symboli[ses] ‘adventure, independence, possibility and strength’’ (2003:81).

Personally, as a female gamer, having female characters who we can identify with is an important part of interacting within a game. For me, it doesn’t matter whether the main character is male (Like Cal Kestis in Jedi Fallen Order) or female (Like Lara Croft), it’s whether the characters and stories are written well. For me, it is hard to believe that some video game companies believe ‘that girls ‘often dislike violent video games and prefer personalized, role playing games’ (Mayfield, 2002); and the ‘girl games’ which multiplied on the market since the mid-1990s almost exclusively focused on shopping, fashion, dating and appearance’ (Mikula, 2003:81). However, where these companies are wrong is that it doesn’t matter what gender you are to play a video game, no matter the genre as ‘women’s experiences of the game are quite different from men’s’ (Mikula, 2003:81).

Now let’s talk Lara Croft:

The character of Lara Croft first appeared in 1996 as the protagonist of the video game, Tomb Raider (1996).

Lara is a British Female archaeologist typically known to have brown eyes and brown hair in a plait. Depending on which Game “Era” (of which there have been three since her first appearance) you’re playing Croft’s background changes. First Era, Croft is the daughter of a Lord and was disowned after she became an adventurer. Second Era, Croft is the daughter of an archaeologist and her mother disappears after a plane crash. Third Era, Croft went on archaeological adventures with her parents until her mother disappears and her father dies. Although the initial backstory of Croft changes throughout the three different Eras, the core values and key Croft ideals are kept in place. She remains a strong female icon throughout. The important thing about the character of Croft is she is her own hero – ‘‘She doesn’t rely upon any male character to lead her around, or to rescue her if she were to break a nail.’’ (Mikula, 2003:79). Helen Meriel Thomas from NME comments that even in 1996, Croft ‘was strong, smart and had an amazing job: she was already a role model’ (NME, 2018).

Even though, Croft is featured as a strong feminist icon, her body gets brought up more than her heroine iconic characteristics. Aja Romano from Vox explores why Lara’s body has been the main talking point about her character and why we as gamers are looking for a conversation about the character herself not her looks. Romano explains how Croft’s character is seen as a sex symbol and was ‘designed as an adolescent male fantasy’ (Vox, 2018). The Lara Croft creator ‘said that when he designed Lara, he’d wanted to create “a female character who was a heroine – cool, collected, in control,” never intending to make a Page Three pinup. But the marketers behind the franchise knew there was money to be made in exploiting her figure’ (NME, 2018). This – not surprisingly – annoyed fans and players of the game.

Moving towards my practice – Film and Television and Case Study: Angelina Jolie as Lara Croft

Adapting characters and stories from video games to films and television programmes is a more recent area. Live-Action wise Lara Croft has been adapted with two different actresses, two films with Angelina Jolie in the early 2000’s adapting from the original Lara Croft games and once with Alicia Vikander in 2018 adapting from the newer types of games.

‘‘Tomb Raider is the world of Lara!’’ (Mikula, 2003:81)

Personally, my favourite out of the two Lara Croft live-action actresses is Angelina Jolie. Although I think that Alicia Vikander did a good job in the 2018 version of Tomb Raider, I feel like Jolie hits the mark in terms of adapting Croft to film. Vikander’s adaptation marries up well with the new revamped look of Croft with the long trousers, bow and arrows and more up-to-date feminist icon look, but for me, when I think Lara Croft, I think of when I used to play the Tomb Raider games on the PlayStation 2 and when I think of that Croft – I think of Jolie.

Angelina Jolie has the ‘girl power role model’ (Mikula, 2003:84) vibe as Lara Croft. According to Jolie: ‘Lara is ‘a bit of everything. She’s like every kind of sexy Italian actress I’ve ever watched, and yet she’s also that guy in Crocodile Hunter in Australia – completely in love with danger’’ (Mikula, 2003:82).

Whilst researching Lara Croft and Angelina Jolie’s adaptation, the body of Croft was brought up a lot more than I ever thought it would be – which to me was very disappointing. I felt like the things the media should be talking about in regards to the character of Croft and the adaptation by Jolie should be about the character as a female icon. In Romano’s article in Vox and Thomas’ article in NME, they both talk about Croft being objectified as a sex symbol and how Croft’s breasts and their size are a major talking point.

Romano highlights the different ways in which Croft’s breast size has been a major talking point about the character rather than being strong feminist icon. The part of this article that stood out to me was this quote:

‘In 1997, the Independent lightly examined the way tabloids had been ranking potential actresses who could play Lara based primarily on their breast size’ (Vox, 2018)

This quote looks to how society sexualised the fictional animated character and also real life women who could hypothetically portray Croft in an adaptation and in a way looking at how society has spoken about Croft over the past twenty odd years I’m not surprised this quote is real – although it is devastating that it would come to this.

On being criticised for not being ‘chesty enough’ (NME, 2018), Jolie commented that ‘“Lara doesn’t apologise for herself, and for having that, you know, recognisable shape. So, I’m not going to apologise for her either,”’ (NME, 2018)

Bibliography:

MIKULA, M. (2010). ‘Gender and Videogames: The political valency of Lara Croft’. Continuum. [Online]. 17(1) pp.79-87. Available from: https://www-tandfonline-com.ezproxy.herts.ac.uk/doi/pdf/10.1080/1030431022000049038?needAccess=true [Accessed: 15^th November 2021]

ROMANO, A. (2018). Why we’ve been arguing about Lara Croft for two decades. Vox. [Online]. 17^th March. Available from: https://www.vox.com/culture/2018/3/17/17128344/lara-croft-tomb-raider-history-controversy-breasts [Accessed: 16^th November 2021]

THOMAS, H.M. (2018). Second coming: how Tomb Raider’s Lara Croft went from trapezoid-boobed pinup to incontrovertible feminist icon. NME. [Online]. 18^th March. Available from: https://www.nme.com/blogs/the-movies-blog/tomb-raider-2018-lara-croft-feminist-icon-2251438 [Accessed: 16^th November 2021]

Filmography:

CORE DESIGNS. (1996). Tomb Raider. [DISC]. Playstation2. UK: Core Designs.

Lara Croft: Tomb Raider. (2001). Film. Directed by Simon West. [DVD] US: Paramount Pictures.

Lara Croft: Tomb Raider – The Cradle of Life. (2003). Film. Directed by Jan de Bont [DVD] US: Paramount Pictures.

Tomb Raider. (2018). Film. Directed by Roar Uthaug. [DVD] US: Warner Bros. Pictures.

Illustrations:

Figure 1: Lara Croft Evolution

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.digitalspy.com%2Fvideogames%2Ftomb-raider%2Fa808158%2Fthe-changing-faces-of-lara-croft-are-fascinating%2F&psig=AOvVaw0rM0ccnSB4676zVuNiZJEX&ust=1635848712421000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCMDGlcD59vMCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

Figure 2:

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FLara_Croft%3A_Tomb_Raider&psig=AOvVaw0HMIZNRMyo_nwnJrIyzMZe&ust=1635848921188000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCKCSxqz79vMCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

Figure 3:

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.denofgeek.com%2Fmovies%2Fthe-behind-the-scenes-issues-of-the-1st-tomb-raider-movie%2F&psig=AOvVaw0FtUdmk_Bj2wnHdRjivNPp&ust=1635849002304000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCKirhrX79vMCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAd

Figure 4:

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pinterest.com%2Fpin%2F404198135279720346%2F&psig=AOvVaw0FtUdmk_Bj2wnHdRjivNPp&ust=1635849002304000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCPCfvc769vMCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAX

Read My Blog, You Must

This blog post is highlighting both my research areas of WOMEN IN FILM and my MAJOR PROJECT. For this blog post, I will be looking into and reflecting on the genre of Science-Fiction along with Women with that genre, specifically in the Star Wars universe (1977-Present). There have been many great female role models within the Sci-Fi genre and through this blog post I will be reflecting on Leia and Padme. This blog post will end with a case study of women in the Star Wars universe (1977-Present).

Science Fiction, or commonly known as Sci-Fi, is a genre that provides me with escapism in the most unique way. Travelling through space and time, meeting new species and using current day issues and challenging them in a way that doesn’t feel forced. Star Wars (1977-Present) is possibly my all-time favourite franchise and continues to be a part of my everyday life. For me, Star Wars (1977-Present) is more than just a franchise. Since the day I watch A New Hope (1977), I have been enthralled with the saga. Star Wars merchandise, Star Wars LEGO, Star Wars video games, Star Wars memes. Not a day goes by when I’m not thinking about Star Wars (1977-Present).

Figure 2: The Most Misquoted Line of All Time

Personally, Sci-Fi is one of my favourite genres as I have been brought up watching it with my dad. The original trilogy of Star Wars (A New Hope, 1977, The Empire Strikes Back, 1980, Return of the Jedi, 1983) was one of the first groups of films I remember watching around the age of five. My dad told me that watching me see the Darth Vader Father revelation in The Empire Strikes Back (1980) is still to this day one of the funniest things he had seen. I was in utter awe and disbelief that this character who was the bad guy was in fact the good guy’s (Luke Skywalker) father. “No, I am your Father!” Even if it is possibly the most misquoted line of all time… He is glad I watched the original trilogy first. He wanted to see my reaction. So many people now know that Vader is Luke’s father – it’s just common knowledge. But for five-year-old me – I saw it on the screen. We feel Luke’s pain, disbelief, and agony as he learns that Vader is his father. He killed Obi-Wan and his father – or so Luke thought.

Figure 3: Ahsoka Tano (Animated and Live Action)

Case Study: Star Wars (1977-Present) and the Representation of Women

Throughout all three trilogy’s, the numerous series (animation and live-action) and other films, the Star Wars saga (1977-Present) has given its female audience some amazing female role models. Although few in number, these female role models – and icons (for me, Princess Leia) – have graced the screen over the past forty-odd years and shown what they’re made of. The three female role models I’m looking at are Princess Leia, Padme Amidala, and Ahsoka Tano.

“Well, somebody has to save our skins!” (Princess Leia – A New Hope (1977))

Princess Leia, portrayed by the late Carrie Fisher, is possibly one of my personal favourite female role models in film and television history. Leia commands the scene and she grabs my attention. She is confident in herself and doesn’t let anyone think otherwise. When the rescue mission in A New Hope (1977) by Luke, Han, and Chewie goes wrong, she takes control of the situation (as seen in Figure 4 above). This isn’t the only time when Leia goes from being a Damsel-in-Distress to the heroine and hero of the scene. In Return of the Jedi (1983), Leia is captured whilst attempting to rescue her love interest, Han Solo, from Jabba the Hutt. This resulted in the infamous ‘Gold Bikini Scene’ and ends with Leia ‘“Strangl[ing] Jabba the Hutt with the literal chains of the patriarchy”’ (The Guardian, 2015). Frustrating for women, she is objectified in this scene, possibly for the male audience, which is an anomaly in Leia’s character arc and development. It has been widely known that Carrie Fisher herself was upset with this decision. Leia was one of three named speaking roles in the entirety of the original trilogy (1977-1983), which were Leia (in all three of the trilogy films), Aunt Beru (A New Hope (1977)), and Mon Mothma (Return of the Jedi (1983)).

“I will not condone a course of action that will lead us to war” (Queen Amidala – The Phantom Menace (1999))

Queen in The Phantom Menace (1999) and Senator in Attack of the Clones (2002) and Revenge of the Sith (2005) Padme Amidala is portrayed by Natalie Portman. The Quote featured in Figure 5 is one of my favourite lines of a female character in the Saga.

Padme is a ‘hands down feminist icon’ (Brown, 2018, p.339). She is strong willed and persistent in her fight to do what is best for her people – the people of Naboo. Much like Leia from the Original Series, she is the main female character in these three films (The Prequel Series) – having two female characters that the female audience can see as role models in SIX films is a disappointment for me personally. It is also a massive disappointment that Padme Amidala was the ONLY female character to have a speaking role in the entirety of Revenge of the Sith (2005). The only thing I personally don’t like about her character is the writing of the character in the third film. Cole Bowman looks to the unfortunate way that Padme’s character arc was destroyed in the third film in the Prequel series. Bowman describes her role as ‘just a vessel of motherhood’ (Bowman, 2015, p.168), being the mother of Luke and Leia – the protagonists in the Original Series. It is damaging from the character that ‘her importance in [Revenge of the Sith] can be seen as being reduced to the births’ (Bowman, 2015, p.165).

Just on a side note. The reason for not including Rey in this list:

Personally, I cannot put Rey from the Sequel Series (2015-2019) in this list. After writing an in depth essay in my second year of my Bachelor’s degree on Fan Culture: ‘‘Somebody has to save our skins’: Star Wars and the impact of the female representation on female fans’, the character of Rey has completely gone down in my expectations and isn’t a role model I would want my future children, especially daughters, to look up to. A reasoning for this is due to the fact her character is completely unrealistic. When watching any film, whatever the genre, I need to believe in what I am seeing on the screen – the world, the people, the story – it is realistic in the sense that that is real in the universe it is created in. In the case of Rey, she is a ‘Mary Sue’. Christopher Lindsey explains the definition of a ‘Mary Sue’: ‘“fictional character who is so competent or perfect that this appears absurd.” (This character type is not limited to females. The male equivalent is called a Larry Stu.) A Mary Sue can do things that should be beyond her natural abilities’.

I felt Rey was made as an attempt to attract female audiences, but not in the right way. The female fan base that is already ever present don’t want a character who doesn’t have any stand out flaws and learns how to become a jedi in a matter of days and weeks – going back to my point about Rey being a stereotypical Mary Sue. The female audience want strong female characters – but ones we can relate to – ones that make mistakes and ones who have flaws and show them. Leia and Padme aren’t perfect know it all’s – they’re stubborn, they’re emotional, they’re gutsy and smart – they’re HUMAN – and that’s what we as an audience want to relate to.

Also – Force Healing… NO!

Bibliography:

BOWMAN, C. (2015). ‘Pregnant Padme and Slave Leia: Star Wars’ Female Role Models’ In: Eberl, J. T., Decker, K. S., Irwin, W. (Eds.) Ultimate Star Wars and Philsophy: You must unlearn what you have learned. The Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series. New Jersey: Wiley.

BROWN, J.A. (2018) ‘WheresRey: Feminism, Protest, and merchandising sexism in Star Wars: The Force Awakens’. Feminism Media Studies. 18 (3) p. 335-348

LINSAY, C. (2021). Why Rey is a Mary Sue: Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015). Available from: https://christopherjohnlindsay.com/2021/07/04/the-force-awakens/ [Accessed: 25^th October 2021]

THE GUARDIAN (2015). The ‘Slave Leia’ controversy is about more than objectification. [Online] Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/nov/05/slave-leia-controversy-star-wars-objectification [Accessed: 3 February 2020]

Filmography:

Star Wars: Episode I – A Phantom Menace. (1999). Film. Directed by George Lucas. [DVD]. US: 20^th Century Fox.

Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones. (2002). Film. Directed by George Lucas. [DVD]. US: 20^th Century Fox.

Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith. (2005). Film. Directed by George Lucas. [DVD]. US: 20^th Century Fox.

Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope. (1977). Film. Directed by George Lucas. [DVD]. US: 20^th Century Fox.

Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker. (2019). Film. Directed by J.J Abrams. [Cinema]. US: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.

Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back. (1980). Film. Directed by Irvin Kershner. [DVD]. US: 20^th Century Fox.

Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi. (1983). Film. Directed by Richard Marquand. [DVD]. US: 20^th Century Fox.

Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens. (2015). Film. Directed by J.J Abrams. [DVD]. US: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.

Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi. (2017). Film. Directed by Rian Johnson. [DVD]. US: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.

Illustrations:

Figure 1 – The Clone Wars from Google Images

https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/starwars/images/c/ca/ReportFromFalleen-DOAD.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20120612164141

Figure 2 – The most misquoted line ever from Google Images

Figure 3 – Ahsoka (animated and live action) from Google Images

Figure 4 – Princess Leia Quote from Google Images

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.redbubble.com%2Fi%2Fipad-case%2FSomebody-has-to-save-our-skins-by-MissElphie%2F29555901.MNKGF&psig=AOvVaw147Fu51Bh_Tw8i2O33Glhx&ust=1635449424587000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCMDT_5Cq6_MCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

Figure 5 – Padme Amidala Quote from Google Images

Figure 6 – Identity Theft is not a Joke, Rey! From Google Images

Once Upon a Crime…

This blog post is highlighting my research area of my MAJOR PROJECT. For this blog post, I will be looking into and reflecting on the genre of Action and Crime. Specifically, I will be looking at the Television programme, The Wire (HBO, 2002-2008) as it has said to be one of the most authentic showings of crime within my practice. For my MAJOR PROJECT, I am writing a feature-length script around science-fiction, crime and terrorism. I will be looking into how my practice presents the genre of action and crime, and how both sides of the law are portrayed. This blog post will end with a case study of The Wire (HBO, 2002-2008).

Conflict. Conflict is one of the major things that interests me as a writer. Creating this conflict within a script is imperative to engage the audience in the drama. The Dilemma and Choice is such a conflict. What does the protagonist want/need? What is stopping the protagonist from getting it? How far is the protagonist willing to go to get it? So far, in planning my Major Project, I have been asking myself these questions, as should any writer of a drama.

The genre of crime in both film and television has always been a popular way of portraying conflict. Whether this is through a cop drama, a cowboy western or a historical true crime drama, conflict from both sides of the ‘law’ (the good guys V.S. the bad guys) is exciting and pulls the audience in. We want to watch something that we can escape to.

Figure 2: Film genres ranked by box office revenue in the United Kingdom (UK) and Republic of Ireland in 2019 in million GBP)

As seen in figure 2, the genre of action is one of the most popular, in that is the subgenre of crime. TV in particular has grown in popularity and in doing so this ‘popularity has resulted in the production of so many crime shows’ (CineVue, 2020). TV crime dramas in particular look towards ‘adopt[ing] long-form storytelling techniques’ (CineVue, 2020), which engages the audiences adrenaline whilst watching due to ‘the build up of suspense from one episode to another’ (CineVue, 2020). The audience therefore wants to continue watching the entire series to find out the ins and outs of the story and indeed the ending. More and more of these long-form storytellings in television programmes are making their way onto screen, although series with single episodic stories still take place in many programmes. Personally, I prefer long-form storytelling, much like in The Wire (HBO, 2002-2008) where there is one major storyline throughout each series, especially for the crime genre. For some genres, like Science-Fiction, specifically the series: Star Trek: Voyager (Paramount, 1995-2001) there is one overarching arc of the crew getting home from the Delta Quadrant, but each individual episode could be watched as a single episode with a single storyline within the overarching arc of the crew of the Voyager on the way home. Television programmes like these I find the best to watch for easy-viewing with the idea of just being able to put something on without completely having to concentrate on the story.

Crime has always been a genre that has interested me. The Good Guys V.S. the Bad Guys. The Gun Fire and Car Chases. In many cases, we are rooting for the police, like in Bad Boys 2 (Bay, 2003). We want Detective Mike Lowry (Will Smith) and Detective Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence) to win and get the bad guys at the end. But in some cases, like in The Fast and The Furious (Cohen, 2001), we want Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) to win. We want him to escape the police at the end and get out safe, even though he is a criminal. When Brian O’Conner (Paul Walker) hands over the keys and lets Dom go, we cheer as Dom flees the scene of the crime. That’s where The Wire (HBO, 2002-2008) is rather interesting. I found myself rooting for different people on different sides of the law. When watching the programme with my parents and brother, we all found ourselves drawn to the character of Omar Little (pictured in Figure 1).

Figure 3: *The Wire* background from Google Images

Case Study: The Wire (HBO, 2002-2008) – Gender, Race and Sexuality

Race, Gender and Sexuality are main themes within The Wire (HBO, 2002-2008).

The series ‘brings gay identity to the forefront’ (Guastaferro, 2013:268) and isn’t afraid to present it openly in the series through a number of characters, specifically through the character of Detective Greggs. Detective Greggs, an openly gay African-American woman, embodies all the themes of race, gender and sexuality. As a woman, and one of the few we see on the police force, she is in a minority of women to men, further to that she is a black woman in a minority as a woman of colour. Additionally, to that, she is a lesbian and at many times blasted at with derogatory terms to do with her race, gender and sexuality, including the term “dyke” (The Wire, 2002-2008). Throughout the series, ‘women are regularly objectified’ (Guastaferro, 2013:267) and some presented as low-life prostitutes and strippers. However, Detective Greggs’ character is one of the few female characters that isn’t sexualised, apart from when she goes undercover in season one.

Bibliography:

ANOM. (2020). The Enduring Popularity of TV Crime Dramas. CineVue. [Online]. 29^th June. Available from: https://cine-vue.com/2020/06/the-enduring-popularity-of-tv-crime-dramas.html [Accessed: 20^th October 2021]

GUASTAFERRO, W.P. (2013). Crime, The Media, and Constructions of Reality: Using HBO’s The Wire as a Frame of Reference. College Student Journal. [Online]. 47(2) pp.264-270. Available from: https://web-b-ebscohost-com.ezproxy.herts.ac.uk/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=2&sid=4c3185d3-ec19-44cb-8754-5be62f0a5ccd%40sessionmgr103 [Accessed: 19^th October 2021]

Filmography:

Bad Boys 2. (2003). Film. Directed by Michael Bay. [DVD]. US: Sony Pictures.

The Fast and The Furious. (2001). Film. Directed by Rob Cohen. [Blu-Ray]. US: Universal Pictures.

The Wire. (2002-2008). Created by David Simon. US: HBO.

Illustrations:

Figure 1: Omar Quote from Google Images

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.magicalquote.com%2Fcharacter%2Fomar-little%2F&psig=AOvVaw2z-qGtDwZ3DDf-CoNvCe1J&ust=1634663579393000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCNjvpcy61PMCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAI

Figure 2: Film genres ranked by box office revenue in the United Kingdom (UK) and Republic of Ireland in 2019 in million GBP)

https://www.statista.com/statistics/296656/film-genres-ranked-by-box-office-gross-in-the-uk/

Figure 3: The Wire background from Google Images

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fabcnews4.com%2Fnews%2Fentertainment%2Fjacket-from-the-the-wire-sold-at-auction-to-a-real-mcnulty&psig=AOvVaw2OG4-Q7gAA-wWHtX7-p26A&ust=1634664098790000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCJjYnsS81PMCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

Figure 4: Stringer Bell from Google Images

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.reddit.com%2Fr%2FTheWire%2Fcomments%2F9dm245%2Fhappy_birthday_to_stringer_bell%2F&psig=AOvVaw2yVhciWtkCuRX7CQZa1rmX&ust=1634663922520000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCJDPme-71PMCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAQ

“What does a set of ovaries have to do with directing a film?” (Jeremy Renner on Kathryn Bigelow)

Figure 1: Kathryn Bigelow at 2010 Academy Awards (Including: Best Director and Best Picture)

This blog post is highlighting my research area of WOMEN IN FILM. For this blog post, I will be looking into and reflecting on Kathryn Bigelow, the first woman to ever win the Academy Award for Best Director. Personally, I strive to be a great creative in my practice, looking up to women who have succeeded, especially in the male-dominated area of Action films. I will be looking at how she delivers as a director and how she has broken stereotypes of what women do in my practice. This blog post will end with a case study of her Academy Award-winning film, The Hurt Locker (2008).

Possibly the best answer to a question about a woman making a film was by the lead actor in The Hurt Locker (Bigelow, 2008), Jeremy Renner, as he brilliantly states; ‘“What does a set of ovaries have to do with directing a film?”’ (Mayer, 2020). As a woman in the industry this answer makes me smile. Renner encapsulates exactly what should be said about a woman in the film industry, to be treated as an equal filmmaker just like our male counterparts.

At the age of eleven, I remember when the first female had won the Academy Award for Best Director and I was shocked that in the eight-one years before the 2010 Academy Awards there had never been a female winner of the Best Director Award. Before Bigelow’s nomination only three other women had ever been nominated for the Best Director Award. Throughout the time between Bigelow’s nomination for the Awards season (including the Golden Globes) and her win at the Academy Awards, she was in the media more for being in “competition” with her ex-husband, James Cameron, who was nominated for Best Director for his film, Avatar (Cameron, 2009). With some of the press choosing to focus on the topic of their rivalry, instead of the fourth woman to be nominated (and first to then win) the Best Director Oscar, it seems some of the press were more interested in an ex v.s. ex story than the historical female success story. One tabloid chose the title of their article ‘And the Oscar for sweetest revenge on the ex? James Cameron won the divorce… but Kathryn Bigelow got the top prize’ (The Mail Online, 2010) focusing on the rivalry instead of the historic moment that the first ever woman won one of the most prestigious award in the film industry.

For me, being a female has nothing to do with making a film. Most of my favourite directors and screenwriters are men. But this makes me look to why? Are most of my favourite filmmaker’s male because of the lack of representation from their female counterparts? And when a female filmmaker does stand out, do we, as young females, gravitate towards them because of their success looking for a female role model? These have been questions I have been asking myself for years.

As mentioned before in my First Blog post: ‘As a young female screenwriter…’, the genre I gravitate towards – for watching and for writing – is the Action genre. I have always been worried that as a female I would never be able to hold up against my male counterparts in the genre, as I had been told that action films, especially films to do with crime, sci-fi and terrorism is a ‘male’ genre. The person who taught me otherwise was my dad. He told me that anyone can watch anything and therefore can make anything, and that my gender does not define who I can be or what I can do. Along with Renner’s earlier statement, it gives me hope that as a woman in the industry I can strive to do what I want, no matter the genre or role.

Deborah Jermyn argues that the ‘‘Bigelow Look’’ (Jermyn, 2021:370) breaks the stereotype barrier of what a woman filmmaker should be making. Jermyn indicates that some other scholars believe that Bigelow ‘has adopted a mode of ‘muscular filmmaking’… [in order to]… ‘win the respect of a male-dominated industry’’ (Jermyn, 2021:371), implying that in order to survive in the genre as a director she had to become one of the ‘‘hyper-macho bad boy[s]’’ (Jermyn, 2021:371). I believe this to be untrue of Bigelow. Much like Jermyn indicates Bigelow has instead broken those stereotypes and stayed true to herself and her vision of what her action films should be.

For me, Bigelow was one of the Women in Film who inspired me to seek out a career in Film and Television as she is ‘a female pioneer in the male-dominated world of action movies’ (The Guardian, 2010). Over a decade later, Bigelow is helping women, like myself, to push the boundaries and expectations and create action films. The stereotype that only men create these gritty, violent action films was smashed the day Bigelow won that Academy Award. But what if she didn’t? What if in 2010, James Cameron or Quentin Tarantino won the award instead? Would the stereotype still have been broken? In a sense, we as women needed just one person to break the barrier so that we could show the world what we are made of. Just over a decade later, the second woman and first woman of colour, Chloé Zhao won the Academy Award for Best Director for Nomadland (Zhao, 2020).

My LinkedIn post, about women nominations this year, was featured in the LinkedIn Editor’s pick Post. I was one of twelve posts mentioned and I was among writers from The New York Post and Netflix. (Figure 2: Link Below)

https://www.linkedin.com/feed/news/women-directors-break-oscar-drought-5030268

Figure 3: Still from *The Hurt Locker* (Bigelow, 2008)

Case Study: The Hurt Locker (Bigelow, 2008) – Character

Bigelow’s film, The Hurt Locker (Bigelow, 2008) won many awards at the Academy Awards including Best Picture and Bigelow’s Best Director Award. I believe that The Hurt Locker’s (Bigelow, 2008) success was down to the writing and directing of the film. For this small case study, I will be delving into the topic of CHARACTER.

Christa van Raatle examines the characters in Bigelow’s films through how they’re presented and how certain themes are shown through them. van Raalte explores the ‘obsessive, single-minded, enigmatic hero’ (van Raalte, 2021:275) that is ever-present in Bigelow’s characters and specifically her protagonists. Sergeant (Sgt.) First Class William James, portrayed by Jeremy Renner, embodies van Raalte’s description. Obsession is the key theme when it comes to Renner’s character. van Raalte examines the idea that Sgt. James ‘is motivated less by cause or country than by his own, perpetual drive’ (van Raalte, 2021:261) which is evident in relation to the theme of obsession through Renner’s character. Sgt. James’ heroic actions in defusing IED’s are overshadowed by James’ reaction. He portrays pleasure and treats the dangerous job as a game, even though it is a life-or-death situation, such shown by the opening death of Thompson. Caetlin Benson-Allott implies the James’ character ‘block[s] access to his emotion’ (Benson-Allott, 2010:43) and therein emphasises the obsession of war. At the beginning of Bigelow’s film, she uses Chris Hughes’ quote ‘“War is a Drug”’ (Benson-Allott, 2010:43). The war correspondent’s quote delves into idea of obsession and addiction, which is exactly what Bigelow presents through her protagonist. Benson-Allott indicates that when James is home from war he is ‘suffering from withdrawal symptoms and ready to return to his addiction’ (Benson-Allott, 2010:43), the addiction being war. James needs war, without it he doesn’t feel whole. He desires the violence, adrenaline, the danger and cannot live without it. Bigelow successfully presents James’ obsession and creates a sense of authenticity, allowing the audience to have a possible insight into the horrors of war, and how some people are drawn to it.

Bibliography:

BAMIGBOYE, B. (2010). And the Oscar for sweetest revenge on the ex? James Cameron won the divorce… but Kathryn Bigelow got the top prize. The Mail Online. [Online]. 9^th March. Available from: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1256505/James-Cameron-won-divorce–Kathryn-Bigelow-got-Oscars.html [Accessed: 18^th October 2021]

JERMYN, D. (2021). How does she look?: Bigelow’s Vision: Visioning Bigelow. New Review of Film and Television Studies. [Online]. 19 (3) pp. 367-382. Available from: https://www-tandfonline-com.ezproxy.herts.ac.uk/doi/pdf/10.1080/17400309.2021.1952036 [Accessed: 18^th October 2021]

MAYER, J. (2020). ‘Why Kathryn Bigelow is a trailblazing director’. Videomaker. [Online]. 35 (3). Available from: https://www.videomaker.com/how-to/directing/why-kathryn-bigelow-is-a-trailblazing-director/ [Accessed: 11^th October 2021]

VAN RAALTE, C. (2021). ‘The Poetics of Obsession: Understanding Kathryn Bigelow’s characters’. New Review of film and television studies. [Online]. 19 (3). Pp. 256-276. Available from: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/17400309.2021.1957629 [Accessed: 11^th October 2021]

WEAVER, M. (2010). Kathryn Bigelow makes history as first woman to win Best Director Oscar. The Guardian. [Online]. 8^th March. Available from: https://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/mar/08/kathryn-bigelow-oscars-best-director Accessed: 7^th October 2021]

Filmography:

The Hurt Locker. (2008). Film. Directed by Kathryn Bigelow. [DVD]. US: Summit Entertainment.

Avatar. (2009). Film. Directed by James Cameron. [Blu-Ray]. US: 20^th Century Fox.

Illustrations:

Figure 1: Bigelow Academy Awards from Google Images

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.esquire.com%2Fnews-politics%2Fa7105%2Fkathryn-bigelow-acceptance-speech-030810%2F&psig=AOvVaw3bS5F_xO7Jrf2hzeajWlhj&ust=1634637439114000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCJj9-ZnZ0_MCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAT

Figure 2: Link to LinkedIn Editor’s Post

https://www.linkedin.com/feed/news/women-directors-break-oscar-drought-5030268

Figure 3: Hurt Locker still from Google Images

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.britannica.com%2Ftopic%2FThe-Hurt-Locker&psig=AOvVaw3uQAri6-E4AXEIbkyjRZv2&ust=1634637759877000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCIj_q7Xa0_MCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

Figure 4: Hurt Locker quote from Google Imageshttps://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fquotesgram.com%2Fdrugs-hurt-quotes%2F&psig=AOvVaw2jpff8SdVMagLovbPqZMJ6&ust=1634647036661000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCLittPr80_MCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD