Final presentaion-Visual Power is Stronger than Linguistic Power

Ketchup Soup

Whale

Visual Power Is Stronger than Linguistic Power

Advertising is one of the largest business industries. Today, advertising relates every single business. TV show needs sponsors which want to give money to the show and advertise their products. Olympic Games need sponsors, which want to give money for administration. Magazines have a lot of ads because they need money to create a magazine. Advertising relates to money closely. However, An advertising piece do not relate to money. It is a public service announcement (PSA), which is a non-commercial advertisement broad cast on radio or television. A typical subject is health, safety, poverty, global warming or autism. The purpose of PSA is to inform or educate public people about these issues. A scale of a topic tends to be large, so it might be a global issue. From this point of view, the advertising should be visual information. To understand visual information is easier than to do linguistic information.
People need to know culture or knowledge about language to understand linguistic information. If people want to inform something to the world, the way to do might be visual. I will compare two PSA ads. One is from the United States, and another is form Japan. Both of them are really effective advertisings for the public because they have visual power to inform the subject. I will analyze them to use Lester’s perspectives and compare them.

Ketchup Soup
The first ad’s title is “Ketchup Soup” by the Ad Council. The topic of it was poverty. A woman is looking for a packet of ketchup to get it. She goes to a first food restaurant and a restaurant which has a to go service. She collects ketchup packages, and goes to home. After that, she opens the packages to put ketchup in a pod. She pours water into the pod and heats it. Then, three children are waiting for the dinner. She serves “ketchup soup” to them. They have to eat the ketchup soup. A copy is “ 1 out of 5 children in the US lives with hunger. The sooner you believe it, the sooner we can end it.”

Personal Perspective
When I watched this ad, I was surprised that many children are suffering from hunger in the US. I did not realize what she was trying to do. I did not think she was mother, which has three children. When I saw the children, I figured out what happened. She tried to get ketchup to make soup because she did not have money to get food. I got sad feeling and I want to do something about poverty. How to create movie was fresh. The movie did not have speaking, so the strong image made me believe the poverty issue was so serious. A child said “I don’t like this soup during eating.” They have to eat it to live even if they don’t like it. I think about myself because my life is extravagant. I reconsider how my living should be.

Historical Perspective
I did not know poverty in the US was so serious issue. I could image that black people used to be suffering from poverty. In fact, one out of five children in the US were suffering from hunger. Moreover, an issue of single mother is serious problem in the US. The ad suggests both of them should be solved. According to U.S. Bureau of the Census, the poverty rate in 2005 for children under 18 was 17.6 percent and that of 18-to-64-year-olds was 11.1 percent and that of people 65 and older was 10 percent. Historically, the issue should be solved as soon as possible.

Technical perspective
First, a woman is looking for something at the restaurant. At that time, the viewer did not understand what she is actual doing and who she is. When she started cooking soup and the children wait for the soup, the viewers can understand what happened to her. The beginning scene makes the audience keep watching it. Colors were kind of dark, and lighting was also dark. The way to use darkness was really effective to inform that the issue was so serious. The director used camera shake to express a precarious living. Moreover, the director used close-up framing to shoot the faces of the children. When people watched the expressions of them, they are sorry about the children. The visual information was stronger than language.

Ethical, Cultural, and Critical Perspective
Ketchup and boiled water might be ketchup soup. The taste of the soup was bad from the point of American culture. If people who think the ketchup soup is good watch the scene, they did not understand what wrong is with the scene. People need a little cultural knowledge to understand visual information. The amounts of knowledge to understand visual information is lower the amount of that to do language. Even if people did not understand English, they can understand how poor the family is. Parents have a duty to bring up their children, so the message of the ad was a satire.

The Whale
The second ad’s title is “Whale “ by the Japanese Ad Council. The topic of it is education for children. A boy is painting out black crayon on a piece of paper. He always kept painting out black. His parents and teacher started worrying about him. They consulted a psychiatrist. The psychiatrist asked him what he drew, but he did not answer. He kept drawing by using black crayon. A counseling started after the meeting. The time had passed without result. He made many pieces of black paper. When his teacher found a piece of jigsaw puzzle from his desk, a nurse who cared him realized that he did not painted paper over. There was blank on the paper. His parents, teacher, doctors, and nurses tried to arrange black papers. The image is “Whale.” He wanted to draw a large whale. A copy is “How can you encourage a child? Use your imagination. “

Personal Perspective
When I watched the ad, I cried. The ad moved me to tears. If I were his parent, I would go to psychiatrists with him. First, I did not understand what the boy drew. The scene was so strange for me. A boy kept painting black on paper. When the teacher found a piece of Jigsaw puzzle, I thought black papers might be a puzzle. At the ending, black papers made the image of a whale. Children’s imagination and creativity are wonderful, so parents should have flexible policy about children. Every parent worries about his or her children. I think the concept of ad is to create the ad without language. It was a successful piece to inform the concept without language.

Historical Perspective
Parents worry about the growth of children. In the ad, the parents care their children too much. They should have a flexible thought. Parents tend to say “Study hard” historically. Children feel pressure from their parents, and they cannot exercise their imagination or creativity. To develop the imagination of children, children should grow up without pressure.

Technical Perspective
When the viewers watched the scene that the boy kept painting in black colors, they cannot understand what he was doing. The viewers cannot help watching the ad because they want to know the ending. The lighting was a kind of dark. The dark lighting suggested that his internal characteristic might be dark. The using colors were also dark. It suggested the parents had anxiety about him. Moreover, music helps to create a dark atmosphere. When everybody understood that he wanted to draw the picture of a whale, dismal music change to music, which have a cheerful mood. Visual and auditory information have strong power to inform something. The way to create movie without language was really successful because of the visual and auditory effects.

Ethical, Cultural and Critical Perspective
Parents have a duty to bring up children. Parents tend to say to their children “Study hard”. Then children feel pressure form parents, and he or she cannot grow healthy. He or she looses his or her imagination and creativity. It is a national family issue. The message of the ad is that parents should respect children’s personalities. Language is one of the cultural aspects. The creator did not use language, so everybody who did not understand Japanese can understand what happened and what should people do.

Characteristics of these ads were to create movie without linguistic information. For example, people who did not understand English can understand the meaning of the ad. Moreover, people did not understand Japanese could understand how people should bring up children. Furthermore, it is difficult to guess how the result and the ending might be. It is good visual and compositional techniques. Difference between an American ad and a Japanese ad was ending. In Ketchup Soup, the dismal mood was kept from the beginning to the ending. Ketchup soup surprised the viewers, but the result did not surprise us. On the other hand, in Whale, the ending and the result surprised us. We cannot expect how the result will be. Both of them were really successful advertisings to inform public and educational concepts. The concepts of these ads are about family. They argued a serious issue about family, such as poverty and education. Therefore, visual communication has strong power because people do not need a specific cultural knowledge such as language. The visual power to inform an idea or a concept is stronger than the linguistic power.

U.S. Bureau of the Census, “Poverty in the United States.” Aug. 2005 at
http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0104520.html: Internet

CNN International VS Al Jazeera

I chose a story about spreading virus in China. China will have Olympic game in August. Everybody worry that Olympic game can be held safety or not. China has a problem about disease and to make matter worse, China had a problem about air pollution.

CNN International

The image was that a Chinese nurse injects a child infected by Enterovirus in Fuyang City. The child was crying. The mother was looking her with a concerned look. CNN’s picture made us understand how the scene was.

Al Jazeera

On the other hand, Al Jazeera’s picture was that the doctor was checking his throat. Somebody hold his head hard, and his face rigid face with fear suggested that he was afraid of the doctor. When the sentence was put on the picture, the sentense should relate to the picture. For example, CNN’s picture had “A Chinese nurse injected a child infected by Enterovirus 71 in Fuyang City”. The sentense expressed what happened at the image. At the Al Jazeera picture, it had “The Olympic Games are unlikely to be affected by the virus. ” I think the picture did not fit the sentence. The article said that the virus will stop spreading in June or July. The article and the picture was incoherency. If the writer wanted to say the virus should be no problem, he or she should used the picture which had a bright atmosphere.An Al Jazeera  writer’s way to use tha picture was not good. The newspaper should be accurate and objective. Moreover, Al Jazeera’s article did not have a source of information. In the article, the writer used “officials said”, so a reader cannot understand who the official were. Because of it, Al Jazeera is not reliable media. The number of Al Jazeera was doubtful. At the CNN, the number of the authoties reports was 15,799 on Monday. At the Al Jazeera, the number of it was 1,482. The difference between Monday and Tuesday was too large, so the number of Al Jazeera was so doutful. If the number was increased, the virus problem must be so serious. It is difficult to have Olympic Games safely. In fact, CNN had a same picture of Al Jazeera, but the way to use it appropriate. In visual communication, of course, a composition, colors, lighting, and subject matter are important, and how to use a image is also very important.

Japanese Advertising-Visual Communication Is Stronger than Language

A Fire Man

Best Partner?

A black Picture

That’s Questionable!

The quaker graphic reminds the consumer of the company’s link to its oats breakfast cereal product, but also conveys a modern, for ward-looking message. (Page 155, figure 9.4)

The graphic was a kind of old, so I don’t feel that it was modern. The word of modern is changing because the fashion od the world is also changing. The creator or designer should know what fashion is and how is the world, and be responsive to their field. At this article, the word of modern was not suitable. He should say that it was used to be modern.

That’s Questionable!

Machiko Hasegawa, one of Japan’s best-loved news paper, motion picture, and television cartoonist, died in 1993. Her death might have ended public concern about the artist, except that grave robber dug up Hasegawa’s remains and demanded a ransom for thier return.

Her famous cartoon is Sazae-san. It is a drama about love of family. First, Asahi newspaper started Sazae-san as a serial cartoon. The theme of the cartoon was about current affairs. The cartoon had a heartwarimg atmosphere.The last sentence of the paragraph was questionable becuase I am a big fun of the cartoon but I did not know that.

Contemporary Depictions of Evil

I chose the picture which is the cover of the Japanese Historical comic. The comic is to teach the history to children like junior high school students. The title of the comic is “The World History-The House of Terror. The subtitle is Evil Sorcerer Hitler-Europe.

• Personal Perspective

When I watched the picture, I feel sudden fear. First, the face of Hitler was scary. I could not see his eyes, so I did not understand what he was thinking of. Hitler wore a grave expression. I knew atrocious history of Nazi and Hitler. An ominous silence made me feel fear. The posture suggested his terrible policy. The trade mark of Nazi reminds me of the cruel history.

• Historical Perspective

Adolf Hitler  was Germany Politician during WW1 and WW2. He was a leader of Nazi. His tyrannical politics was one of the historical events. He used various way to control the world. For example, he uesd the media such as a radio, a television, and a movie to appeal his strength. It was a good exmple of propaganda. Today, the comic was one of the media.  In Japan, the cover of the comic was Hitler. It was irony.

• Technical Perspective

The key light was coming from the right, and the fill light was coming form the left. At the face, lighting was from the straight above can give a broody and menacing look. It emphasised bone structure and the depth of the eye sockets. The composition was so strong. His posture had a strong power. The colors of the Nazi trade mark spotty. Moreover, The strain of the mark made the strange atmosphere.

• Ethical, Culture and Critical Perspective

In Japan, a lot of children read the comic. They might think that Hitler was horrible person even they did not kow the history. The visual communication has a strong power to make people believe it. People need the information and knowledge to understand language, but visula information was easy to understand. If the comic was released at world war, it might be a propaganda. Visual information which had bias was dangerous because it was so strong.

That’s Questionable!!

Will people continue to go to movie theaters? Of course they will. Humans are social animals and simply enjoy the company of one another too much to stay home for long.( Page 309)

That’s definitely questionable. Humans were not simple animals. Each people have a characteristic, so what people want to do was depends on people. If a man do not want to be stay home for long, he can go to anywhere he want to go. One possible answer is a movie theater. Today, people have a good home theater system such as DVD, blu-ray disc, 5.1 ch sound system and HD TV. If people can enjoy watching a movie by using the home theater system, they  would want to go theater. A owner of the movie theater have to think of  how to get audience. The number of the audience of the movie theater is decreasing.

Arab Femininity

Veil of Tears

Whatever happened to Arab feminism?

French MPs vote for veil ban in state schools

I found the picture form the article about the freedom of Muslim women. The article refers that the history of the Arab feminism and the hijab which is a woman’s head and body covering.

• Personal Perspective

When I watched the picture, I thought the characteristic of Arab women was changed. Before watching the picture, I thought the characteristic of Arab women was calm and quiet. In Japan, the characteristic of the Japanese women was same as the Arab. Today, Japanese women are becoming stronger and stronger. I think Arab women are still quiet and calm. I did not imagine that an Arab woman make a piece sign to appeal for her opinion. Her posture was really strong and her face has a bright smile. My thought about Arab women has turned 180 degrees around. She was looked like active and strong. The picture made me think of Arab Feminism. Arab feminism seems to be becoming better and better gradually.

• Historical Perspective

In fact, Arab feminism is not advanced in Middle East. In 1976, the rate of women workers was 6 percent. In 1995, the rate of that was 23 percent. In Saudi Arabia, women must not drive. Moreover, it is difficult to change women’s thought that men are superior to women. For example, in Kuwait, women can stand for Parliament. However, women did not vote women candidates because of the education. Education made Kuwaiti women have the idea of predominance of men over women. Historically, Arab women were not active and did not want to say something about feminism; however, this picture show the new style of Arab women.

• Technical Perspective

The lighting source is sun. It is coming from the left. A piece sign might be a index vector. The sign pointed “Islamic Hijab”. A viewer of it can focus her piece sign and the words. The framing was a medium shot. The words made two graphical vectors. The viewer could not see every words, so he or she had to imagine what other words were. The colors of her cloth were really traditional, but the words were not traditional. The difference between tradition and new was interesting.

• Ethical, Cultural, and Critical Perspective

Her fingers means two denotation-ally. The two fingers means piece connotation-ally. Moreover, a piece sign means active connotation-ally. The sign changed the personality of Arab women. Arab women used to be calm and quiet; however, a piece of the image change the old tradition. Historically, a law banning the hijab, which is a women cloth covering a head or a body, and Islamic head-scarfs tend to be passed. Hijab was a symbol for predominance of men over women, however, she was proud of her Islamic hijab. It was a kind of “New Movement” for Arab feminism. Arab women should be more active to say their opinions like her. The key for Arab feminism might be aggressiveness.

That’s Questionable!

Drive-in theaters have been virtually aliminated as places for showing movies. Nevertheless, the screens of many are still in demand as advertisement spacefor swap meets.(P 293. Figure 13.17)

Today, the lands for drive-in theaters should be another fasility. The sign of the advertising is not effective way to promote a product or a service. The adverting by web, TV, radio is more effentive that that of sign. The screen should be removed and the place which used to have the screen should be other place to do something.

Analyze ONE Movie Scene.

Back to the Future II

Beat it!!

Back to the Future 2 follows the continued adventures of Marty McFly and “Doc” Emmett Browntime-traveling De Lorean, which is now capable of flight, to travel to a retro-futuristic version of 2015, an alternate 1985 and the principal setting of the first film in 1955.

I selected the scene that Michael J. Fox(Marty McFly) met Thomas F. Wilson(Griff Tannen) who was the friend of Marty’s son at 80’s cafe. Michael J. Fox refuse the promise in behalf of his son.

• Personal Perspective

I love this movie so much. I have watched this movie many times. When I watched part 1, I really wanted to watched next one. The ending of the part 1 made me want to watch this movie. I had a plastic model of De Lorean, and played with that toy. When I was child, I was excited a flying car. Moreover, I got a skateboard to want to be like Michael J. Fox. In the future, a skateboard will become a hover board. It was one of the future products. This movie, Back to the Future 2, suggested me how future life would be. For example, Michael J. Fox had Nike shoes and a jacket which had a function to adjust the size automatically. Cafe 80s had a lot of aspects in 80s. At Cafe 80s, Computer Graphics of Michael Jackson and Ronald W. Reagan were waters, and they took the order. When I was child, I did not know Michael Jackson, Ronald W. Reagan. When I became an adult, I realized the scene was really interesting.

• Historical Perspective

When Michael J. Fox got in Cafe 80s, the tune was Beat it by Michael Jackson. Computer Graphics of Michael Jackson and Ronald Reagan took the orders. Back to the Future 2 was released in 1989. Beat it was released 1983. Reagan was inaugurated as president of the US in 1981. The audience could realize these scene related 80’s life. And, interior decorations was also 80s. He played electro-mechanical arcade game, Wild Gunman. The game was released in 1974. An update video game version of it was released in 1984, so people who had played the game recalled playing the game. The director of the movie really understood the history and the fashion in 1980s. The director created the atmosphere at that time.

• Technical Perspective

The combination of the colors was really pop to create the future world. For example, the colors of clothes were really vivid. The lighting source was coming from the window, so the audience could care of the outside. When the audience looked out of the window, the scene from the window made them expect what happened next. Michael Jackson, Ronald Reagan, Wild Gunman, and interior design reminded us of 80s life. It was really effective way to create the scene. Moreover, the scene that Michael J. Fox started fighting with Thomas F. Wilson had good music. At that time, the words were “No one wants to be defeated”. And also, J. Fox’s punch was guarded by Thomas. At that time, the words were ” It doesn’t matter who’s wrong or who’s right. Just Beat It”. When next “Beat it” was heard, J. Fox kicked him. Those were good timings. This scene was really polished.

• Ethical, Cultural, Critical Perspective.

The scene had a lot of historical and cultural aspects. For example, Ronald Reagan conflicted with a Arab man looked like Usama bin Ladin. It was a political issue and caricature. The scene had a smash hit song, the president, the popular video game, and so on. Moreover, the director had to create the future scene with old atmosphere. The combination of the future aspects and the old(at that time) aspects was really well-balanced, so the future and the old was compatible. The director understood the 1980s fashion and, culture, and he also understood how to create the scene.

The scene was really successful and polished.