SUPANOVA2

Part 2: Warning! 30 minute video

SupaNova 17/06/2012

Probably one of the best experiences I've had so far. Please ignore shakiness and the obnoxious commentary. 

So survey!...or is it a questionnaire? You know I never really could figure out the difference...

What I got from that

So previous post was just notes. What I got from that was the historical to the present studies on fandoms and how it has evolved. Pretty much, fandom power and authority has dramatically increased along with the technology as it connects people all over the world who share the same love for the same series. It also allows the fans to contact the actual production, actors and all others affiliated with the fandom. It opened the doors to an infinite amount of possibilities to different ways for fan activites. You can now share your fanfiction, fan art, fan videos, conspiracies, thoughts and desires with the rest of the world.

Fandom itself is the result of popular culture which can range from music to literary works. I want to focus on televsion and film franchises. It has evolved into a prominent subculture and even a whole different society that gains more and more followers everyday. They have their own language (fanspeak e.g. shipping is supporting two fictional characters romantic relationship), their own subtle and (un)spoken/written rules of fandom society (dress codes for conventions, heirarchy), places of gathering (both physical and virtual. Online forums, fansites, real life conventions etc.) and their own forms of literature and art (fanfics, fanart, fanvids, fanmusic/filk)

Basically "fandomism" is people developing a strong bond or connection to original popular culture material and wanting to take that franchise out of the realm of fantasy and fiction and manifesting it in reality through their active participation in fandoms. Through connecting with others who share this love and need, they begin to gather and mass and create a whole community. This is made easy especially through the internet.

Here's a little thing I came up with:

1. Obsession with a fandom ->
2. Obsession with a fictional character ->
3. To obsession with the actor who plays or embodies that character ->
4. To obsession with trying to find what other works they have done ->
5. Obsession with another film/ televsion show that actor has worked in ->
6. Obsession with new character(s) in that show ->
7. Obsession with the actor who plays that character ->
8. and so on and so forth.

e.g.

1. Obsessed with the novel and film Hunger Games ->
2. Obsession with the main protagonist, Katniss Everdeen ->
3. Obsession with Jennifer Lawrence who played that character in the film ->
4. Look into what other films or shows she has done; the most popular one being X-Men:First Class ->
5. Become obsessed with the character Erik/Magneto ->
6. Obsession with Michael Fassbender who plays that character ->
7. His other prominent films include Jane Eyre, Inglorious Basterds and Prometheus >
8. Become obsessed with one of those and the process begins again.

It's a vicious cycle of fandom.

Now what I have to do is figure out how all of this influences and impacts on a personal identity(micro level) and/or the media culture (network production, actors etc. This is macro level)

So...Tutorial #2

Well technically happened yesterday. It was the last Friday of the holidays and Miss set up two days to helps us out with our writing and see how our PIPs wer getting along. Of course I did some semblance of research and work these holidays but nothing that set me off or got me into it. So after my first one on one with the teacher, I was left with a drab thesis and procrastinating time to mull over what I was really doing.

Later on I got fed up and just thought to myself, 'You know what? Screw it" and asked to have a chat with teacher.

I had this thing in my head for a while. On Thursday I watched Battleship with a couple of friends (mixed feelings about that film...) and afterwards we killed time by looking around JB HI FI.

We got to the TV section.

Now, this section is pretty broad. It's categorised by the television network and/or by genre. I noticed that for every single section we got to, we all had something to say for about at least 3 different shows. I mentioned the show Merlin and was surprised that at least one other friend followed that series and was obsessed with the same aspects as I did. We got into Doctor Who, Mad Men, True Blood, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Game of Thrones, Sherlock and that wa just he tip of the iceberg. We watched A LOT of tv. Out of all this, I noticed how much passion we had for certain franchises as well, not just tv shows but films and literature as well.

I brought this up with teacher and got into this idea that had been nagging me for a little while. Fandoms. Now, I know when it come to TV shows, I tend to get geeky and obsessive. What I love is that not only can I share this with my friends who are also avid viewers, but I could also share this with the global community. I check certain tumblrs hourly, when I can, to see the latest gif photoset based on Sherlock or Hunger Games or Buffy the Vampire Slayer. They seem to know exactly how I feel about certain aspects of the franchise.

One of my guilty pleasures since Year 7 or 8 is fanfiction. I read fanfiction almost daily. Mainly Sailor Moon, Buffy and yes, even Twilight fanfiction. I realized that through my obsessons with these films, tv shows and books, that I go to great and almost ridiculous lengths to keep this obsession alive and healthy and that I'm certainly not alone.

This quickly became a topic of interest once I tried to explain this to teacher. I began my research and found a couple of really good thesis' already. I'm not going to get into that on this post though.

I bottom line is, I've changed topic. As much as I love the dark, tall, handsome and brutally gorgeous brooding men, I want to go in this direction (early rough question):

How does fandom move individuals beyond the realm of popular culture and what influences do fandom communities have on the personal identity of fans?

Taking a franchise out of the realm of fantasy and fiction and manifesting it into reality through active participation in fandoms (cyber and physical communities) and how it effects the personal identity.

Jon Kortajarena - The Pilot

So I sort of piloted a section of my survey. I Facebook asked Mila to help judge the images from the Jon Kortajarena post I did. Here's how it went (copy and pasted Facebook Chat messages and edited to keep this short, not to exclude information)

Me: Ok so I''m going to send you a link with pictures of the same guy. I need you to tell me what emotion/vibe you get from him, rate each picture out of 10 (10 being best) and tell me which one you like best

 

 

Mila: What do you want me to say about vibe? Like the emotion he makes me feel or how he feels?

 

 

Me Both :D

Mila: I give the first one a 9 and I think he feels like excited and he makes me feel his adorableness seeping through the photo.

 

 

The second one 7 and it's just sexy. Or like suggestive of something more.

The third one I think 8 cause he looks intrigued and it makes me like him cause he looks nerdy and cute and is reading and I like that.

 

 

The next one 10 cause it makes him look approachable and nice and I like it alot better when he's smiling and being natural then when he's all brooding.

The last one an 9 too cause I dunno it makes him look vulnerable and like he needs and hug and it makes me wanna give him a hug and be nice and have a nice deep conversation.

 

 

So I found this very helpful and interesting especially from all my research pointing out that women are more physically attracted to cocky or brooding guys.

 

 

The first image, I classified as the cocky/confident image. She gave it a 9, got excited and loved his "adorableness"

Second image, I classified as the angry/intense/brooding image. She gave it a 7, calling it "sexy" and "suggestive"

Third image, I classified as semi-brooding/thoughtful image. She gave that one an 8 saying that his thoughtful expression and that the newpaper reading was a nice "nerdy" touch.

Fourth image, I classfied as the happy/cheerful/smiling picture.This got her highest rating of 10. The smile made his "approachable" and "natural". I liked it in particular when she said:

"I like it alot better when he's smiling and being natural then when he's all brooding."

Fifth image, I classified it as the more sad/pensive/melancholy-type of brooding than number 2 and 3. The vulnerability of the image appealed to her maternal-like instincts, to try and help and comfort him. A sense of sort of approachableness comes through as she felt they could "have a nice deep conversation."

Overall, very helpful and hopefully I can clean up and distribute the survey by tomorrow night.

What Makes Damaged Heroes Hot?

Love Romance Passion

What Makes Damaged Heroes Hot?

by Keira

On the outside a damaged hero is a tough-as-nails-and-probably-eats-them-too masculine figure. Inside though is a whole different story. I think that’s one of the biggest reasons why damaged heroes appeal to female readers. We want to care for, nurture, and heal him. It makes the heroine (and through her us) feel needed. A damaged hero’s heroine is crucial to his fundamental wellbeing.

There are many types of damaged heroes. He usually gets classified as one of them when readers and reviewers talk about him. These classifications are:

• Scarred
• Wounded
• Tragic
• Tortured
• Burdened

Scarred –

A scarred hero is an exteriorly damaged hero. His body has suffered a lot and is usually covered in scars. Most authors either scar his body or his face, rarely both at the same time. The lost of his looks is a real blow for this type of hero.

Wounded –

A wounded hero can also have scars, but he also is facing physical damage. He has disabling headaches or limited mobility and even potential loss of limbs. He could also have lost one or more of his senses.

Tragic –

A tragic hero in romance is an emotionally damaged hero. He’s lost family, friends, careers, purpose, and drive. He is almost always a recluse and a shut-in. He doesn’t want to love again. Getting hurt again just might kill him.

Tortured –

A tortured hero is a damaged hero at the end of his rope. He is already at his lowest point and feels like he can’t get any lower. He may have been emotionally or mentally abused. He could have been neglected or badly treated by someone in his past resulting in wild crazy theories on how worthless he is.

Burdened –

A burdened hero is a damaged hero who acts alone. Over the years he’s learned to rely on himself and not to trust others. This means he doesn’t connect very well to the heroine at first because he’s so set in his thinking. A burdened hero may have been living with a dark secret for a long time. He could be seeking vengeance, revenge, or absolution.

What type of damaged hero is your favourite and why?

This was exactly what I was thinking of and as I asked my friends to list their favourite Tall, Dark, Handsome and Brooding (TDHB?) characters, I was forced to explain the type of character I was looking for. I mentioned tortured sensitive souls, heavy burdens, guilty pasts and general whining. Judging by descriptions, to my mind, the Tortured and Burdened man is the most attractive and is what we see most of in pop culture today. Take the poll on the site!


Amazingly though, as I voted for burdened, the poll results from 111 votes gave me this:

Burdened was right at the bottom. People prefer the pitiful, sensitive tortured soul and the physical scarred heroes over the burdened one. Interesting.