Visual affect in films: a semiotic approach

Semiotica ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 (239) ◽  
pp. 99-124
Author(s):  
Yi Jing
Keyword(s):  
Facial Expressions ◽  
Visual Media ◽  
Meaning Potential ◽  
Action Film ◽  
Semiotic Approach ◽  
Semiotic Perspective ◽  
Affective Meanings ◽  
Live Action

Abstract This study investigates affective meanings expressed in facial expressions and bodily gestures from a semiotic perspective. Particularly, the study focuses on disentangling relations of affective meanings and exploring the meaning potential of facial expressions and bodily gestures. Based on the analysis of over three hundred screenshots from two films (one animation and one live-action film), this study proposes a system of visual affect, as well as a system of visual resources involved in the expression of visual affect. The system of visual affect makes a further step in the investigation of affective meanings afforded by facial expressions and bodily gestures, and can provide methodological insights into the examination of affective meanings expressed visually. The system of visual resources provides a more meaning-motivated framework for systematic tracking of the visual resources, which may be applied to the analysis of other visual media apart from films.

Who said it? Voices in news translation, from a semiotic perspective

Semiotica ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 (207) ◽  
pp. 411-441 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rovena Troqe ◽  
Jacques Fontanille
Keyword(s):  
Translation Studies ◽  
Think Aloud ◽  
News Production ◽  
Think Aloud Protocols ◽  
Semiotic Approach ◽  
Semiotic Perspective ◽  
General Method ◽  
The Way

AbstractIn Translation studies, it has long been understood that when translation is integrated into journalism, concepts such as equivalence and authorship become highly problematic. However, there is still no reference to a general method that might explain why news production impacts the very process of translation and affects the translated texts themselves. In this paper, we introduce a new semiotic approach that measures shifts in translated texts by using semiotic modalities and relates these shifts to axiologies by actants of the practice of translation. Translated texts by an Italian weekly magazine are adopted as a case study and an analysis of the textual corpora is coupled with think-aloud protocols by editors. The semiotic approach reveals that the actantial dynamics are conflictual: while the translators’ performance is compatible with the equivalence value, journalists endorse values that result in the content of the original being altered. The divergence between the axiology of the actant initiating the practice and the axiology pursued by the translators affects the way the concept of translation is generated.

scholarly journals Children’s ‘eye views’ of an archaeological site: A multimodal social semiotic approach to children’s drawings

2018 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 334-351 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sophia Diamantopoulou ◽  
Dimitra Christidou
Keyword(s):  
Archaeological Site ◽  
Educational Programme ◽  
Children's Drawings ◽  
Children’S Drawings ◽  
Semiotic Approach ◽  
Educational Task ◽  
Semiotic Perspective ◽  
Embodied Engagement

This paper presents eight-year-old children's ‘eye views’ of the archaeological site of the Agora in Athens, Greece, based on drawings made during an educational programme on site. Complementing a significant body of research on drawings, we introduce a multimodal social semiotic perspective to explore drawings as ‘designed’ accounts of children’s ‘eye views’. We argue that each account arises as an agentive response to their interests and prompts in the environment framing their experience, such as features of the site and the educational programme. Based on four drawings, we identify salient elements of children’s experience in their representations which we analyze as material realizations of (i) their interests and agency, (ii) their visual and embodied engagement with the archaeological site, and (iii) the framing of the educational task and overall programme. Our findings contribute to research on the importance of visual in learning.

scholarly journals Eisenstein’s Aesthetics in Semiotic Perspective

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 8-19
Author(s):  
Nikolai Andreyevich Khrenov
Keyword(s):  
Present Article ◽  
Philosophical Approach ◽  
Sign System ◽  
Initial Stage ◽  
Semiotic Approach ◽  
Russian Cinema ◽  
Semiotic Perspective ◽  
Modernist Studies ◽  
Vyacheslav Ivanov ◽  
Academic Interests

The article is devoted to the semiotic interpretation of the theoretic heritage of the film director Sergey Eisenstein by Vyacheslav Ivanov whose jubilee has been recently celebrated. Sergey Eisenstein foresaw the structural methodology that became so popular after the 60s. Vyacheslav Ivanov is known for his vast range of academic interests. The present article is focused on his interest in cinema, in particular - the theoretic heritage of Eisenstein. This interest may be explained by Vyacheslav Ivanovs assertion, that Eisenstein tended to see cinema as a language or, more specifically, a sign system. This fact couldnt escape Vyacheslav Ivanovs notice, since the formation of semiotic methodology in Russia is closely connected with Eisenstein. So it is quite natural that Vyacheslav Ivanov reflects on the prehistory of semiotics too. As for cinema, prehistory in question is closely connected with Sergey Eisensteins aesthetics. The author of the present article also touches upon applying semiotic methodology to cinema as a sign system in general. Due to this purpose, the author refers to the period, when Russian cinema theorists were involved in semiological analysis introduced with the influence of structuralist and post-modernist studies in humanities. Some theoreticians attacked semiotic approaches in favor of philosophical and, in particular, phenomenological one. Nevertheless though these approaches are appropriate and efficient, they do not replace the semiotic one. The author argues, that such attempts to refuse from the semiotic approach in the cinema field were ill-timed and superficial. Vyacheslav Ivanovs semiotic works on cinema, especially his book Eisensteins Aesthetics, simultaneously affirm a philosophical approach to this topic. Interpreting the meaning of the title, the author of the present article argues, that the concept of semiotics was already created at the initial stage of the development of aesthetics as a branch of philosophy.

scholarly journals Roses in Amber: Gendered Discourse in Disney’s 2017 Adaptation of Villeneuve’s Fairytale Beauty and the Beast

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Atoof Abdullah Rashed ◽  
Laila. M. Al-Sharqi
Keyword(s):  
Fairy Tale ◽  
Film Adaptation ◽  
Cultural Appropriation ◽  
Beauty And The Beast ◽  
Diversity And Inclusion ◽  
Action Film ◽  
Feminist Discourse ◽  
Gendered Discourse ◽  
Live Action ◽  
Made In

This study considers the dialogic relationship between the 2017 Disney live-action film Beauty and the Beast with Gabrielle-Suzanne de Villeneuve’s fairy tale and Disney’s 1991 animated version. Drawing on cultural and feminist discourse, the study seeks to examine Disney’s live-action film for incidents of cultural appropriation of gender representation compared to Villeneuve’s fairy tale and Disney’s 1991 animated version. The Study argues that the 2017 film adaptation reverses the traditional patriarchal notions and embraces a transgressive feminist discourse/approach as part of Disney’s strategy of diversity and inclusion of gender, race, class, and sexual orientation as constantly evolving cultural categories. This study finds significant alterations made to the physical and psychological attributes of the 2017 film’s three characters: Beauty/Belle, the Beast, and the Enchantress, changes that align with the film’s gendered discourse. By reversing the characteristic privileging of the male and the empowerment of the female, the live-action succeeds in addressing the contemporary audience demands of diversity and inclusion. The study concludes that the changes made in the 2017 film adaptation displace the oppressive patriarchal notions and stereotypical modes of representing the male and female as they have been perceived in the original fairy tale, for they are no longer compatible with contemporary cultures’ assumptions on gender.

The Meaning of Da’wah in Rich Short Films Without Wealth

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 185-200
Author(s):  
Defa Tri Arnetta
Keyword(s):  
Human Life ◽  
Field Research ◽  
Visual Media ◽  
Short Film ◽  
Digital Era ◽  
Short Films ◽  
Semiotic Approach ◽  
The World ◽  
The Media ◽  
The Times

Da'wah is an activity to spread knowledge of Islam to all corners of the world. With the development of the times, it becomes a challenge for the da'i so that their da'wah can be enjoyed and disseminated more widely. In this digital era, visual media is the most effective tool used to spread da'wah. One of the media that is currently popular is YouTube. The ease of YouTube's popularity needs to be put to good use, such as creating and displaying educational content with Islamic elements, such as films of the religious genre. The researcher analyzed the da'wah contained in rich short films without religious genre treasures on the YouTube channel of Muslim filmmakers to find the meaning of denotation, connotation and myth in the film. The research method used is descriptive qualitative with Roland Barthes' semiotic approach. The type of research used is field research, researchers observe the object directly. The results of this study are that the meaning of denotation in this study is about the description of human life in facing various trials of life in family, neighbors and friends. The meaning of the connotations in the short film Kaya without treasure is that sincerity, gratitude and patience will make us calmer and accept what is. The meaning of the myth in the short film rich without wealth is that alms will make us more grateful for what Allah SWT has given us. The message of moral da'wah is more dominant in this film.

The Artist and the Poetic Provocations in the 1980 Bulgarian Live-Action Film Illusion

2021 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 229-248
Author(s):  
Maria Panova
Keyword(s):  
Modern Art ◽  
Action Film ◽  
The Aesthetic ◽  
Live Action

This text highlights the aesthetic explorations of Bulgarian cinematographers from the 1980s, specifically those aimed at people of art. The article offers, first, a brief overview of films that examine the symbolic potential of the artist, which defines the consideration of an established and meaningful tendency in the development of Bulgarian cinema. The article focuses then on the live-action film Illusion (1980, directed by Lyudmil Staykov and written by Konstantin Pavlov) and examines the figure of the artist in the piece. The presented interpretation supports the view of the film as a morally valuable expression of modern art.

A Semiotic Approach to Dimensions of Meaning in Translation

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 596
Author(s):  
Xian Xiao
Keyword(s):  
Two Dimensions ◽  
Meaning Potential ◽  
Metaphorical Meaning ◽  
Translation Practice ◽  
Semiotic Approach ◽  
Special Occasion ◽  
Different Dimensions ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship

This paper attempts to follow the thoughts of Saussure and Peirce, and take their thoughts as beacons to analyze the different dimensions of meaning. Signs exist for representing the objects either in reality or in imagery, and during the signifying process, two dimensions of meaning come into being, signification and significance. Signification internalized in the structure could be understood from the perspective of structuralism. In Contrast, significance is the effect of what is referred to in a synchronical dimension as meaning potential related to the outside systems, which may be further classified into three aspects: metaphorical meaning, implicature and associative meaning. Moreover, the relationship of signification and significance is dynamic, not static characterized by hierarchy, convertibility and coexistence. Moreover, this paper also discusses how to achieve equivalence based on the dimensions of meaning in an optimal way in real translation practice, which includes signification equivalence, significance equivalence and signification\significance equivalence which is an intersection sandwiched between signification and significance. Signification equivalence and significance equivalence highlight the ability of indicating and creation of signs whereas signification\significance equivalence, accompanied by the developing signifying process focuses on the pragmatic fuzziness brought by the speakers or writers on special occasion on purpose

Transmedia storytelling and transmediated bodies in Fullmetal Alchemist (2017)

Asian Cinema ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 187-202
Author(s):  
Kukhee Choo
Keyword(s):  
Popular Culture ◽  
Comic Book ◽  
Border Crossing ◽  
Fan Culture ◽  
Transmedia Storytelling ◽  
Cross Border ◽  
Action Film ◽  
Racial Performance ◽  
Live Action ◽  
Globally Distributed

Hagane no Renkinjutsushi (Fullmetal Alchemist) (2001, Hagaren in short) is a Japanese comic book franchise that not only expanded into a larger supersystem through its transmedia storytelling on multimedia platforms, but also through the global fandom of cosplay (the Japanese term for costume play), a form of popular culture that is heavily promoted by the Japanese government’s Cool Japan policy. Hagaren is set in an unidentifiable European landscape, a common depiction in many Japanese manga and anime, yet, in the 2017 live-action film that was globally distributed on Netflix, audiences witness a full Japanese cast performing European characters. This cross-racial performance, or yellow washing, challenges the border-crossing narrative and global viewership of the Hagaren’s manga and anime franchise. By examining how Hagaren’s supersystem developed out of the interplays of media industries, fan culture and broader governmental policies, this article aims to excavate the multifaceted politics of not only cross-border consumer identities, but also cross-racial performances propagated by the transmediation of Japanese popular culture on the global stage.

Adaptation in Japanese media mix franchising: Usagi Drop from page to screens

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 143-161
Author(s):  
Rayna Denison
Keyword(s):  
External Factors ◽  
Media Culture ◽  
Action Film ◽  
The Media ◽  
Adaptation Practice ◽  
Internal And External Factors ◽  
Adaptation Processes ◽  
Adaptation Practices ◽  
Media Mix ◽  
Live Action

Abstract Japanese media franchising is normally discussed in relation to long-running chains of serial transmedia production known in Japan as 'media mix'. I argue that this focus on the biggest of Japanese franchises is over-determining how we conceptualize the flows of adaptation in Japanese media culture. Therefore, in this article, I focus on a short-lived franchise based around Yumi Unita's manga Usagi Drop (literally, Bunny Drop, 2009‐11) in order to think about the media mix as a set of relational adaptation processes. In the space of just a few months in 2011, this manga about a young man adopting his grandfather's illegitimate daughter became the seemingly unlikely source of a transmedia franchise that included television animation and live action film. Focusing on such a short-lived cycle of production allows me to reconsider how Japanese franchise media texts relate to one another, and to decentre anime as the defacto core medium in Japanese franchising. Expanding the view of Japanese media mix adaptations, I consider how both internal and external factors can influence media franchising and adaptation practices in contemporary Japan. Retracing the production discourses around the creation of the Usagi Drop franchise therefore allows me to reconsider the concept of media mix as adaptation practice and process in Japan.

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