“How does your media product represent particular social groups?”

Evaluation Question 2

The gender of my character

For my opening scene, I decided that I wanted a female character to star in the leading role. I chose this as I wanted the female to go against the stereotypical representation of being weak and vulnerable. I wanted her to be seen as a powerful, strong character, who wasn't reliant upon a male. The reason why I didn't have a male in the opening scene was because I wanted a powerful female, but also because I felt that my opening scene would have been seen as a 'damsel in distress' movie, and I didn't want that. Although the character had been living rough for several years, she has managed to survive and isn't dependant on anyone else. However, her slight vulnerable side is shown when she is seen to be getting upset over an image of her family. This shows that even though she is seen as tough, she does have an emotional side. Furthermore, her old looking makeup is also there to suggest that she hasn't had the supplies to wash herself, and represents that she has been living in a post apocalyptic world. However, if I were to change anything, I would ensure that she didn't have nail varnish on, as this would have been something which wasn't available during a post apocalyptic world.

Ethnicity 

In my opening scene, my character is within the white British ethnicity. This was because, typically, throughout my friendship group and within my school, this ethnic category is the most present. I dont think that this has affected my opening scene, as anyone from any background or ethnic group could've played the role.

Her ethnic group doesn't play a massive role within the opening scene, as she is a typical white female playing a character. If I would've had another character within a different ethnic group, it wouldn't have mattered in my opinion.

Age

Furthermore, my characters age is fairly young, as this is the age of my friendship group, but also the age we wanted to represent. I wanted my opening scene targeted at a younger but mature age group, as I felt that this linked in well. I think that if I were to have used an older character, it would've represented her independency more. For in the film 'The Road', the young child is represented a helpless, dependent on his father and unable to fend for himself. I didn't want this to be shown through my character, as I wanted her age to be represented as vulnerable, but also strong and independent.  

Additionally, the use of the teenage age also represents the stereotype of a teenager being independent and wanting to do things without an adult.