Semiotics

Roland Barthes- mythologies

“Semiology is a science of forms, since it studies significations apart from their
content.” - (Barthes,1991)
“This is the case with mythology: it is a part both of semiology in as much as it is a
formal science, and of ideology in as much as it is an historical science: it studies
ideas-in-form. Let me therefore restate that any semiology postulates a relation
between two terms, a signifier and a signified” (Barthes, 1991)
Semiology is to do with signs and the way we study them and the words we use to
explain things. It's also about what the words they connote too. This theory is
remarkably interesting to learn about. Certain things symbolise emotions too.
Essay that talks about Roland Barthes and his semiotics theory
This essay talks in depth about semiotics. It also talks about semiotics of everyday
life and how it is not just limited to films. An everyday example would be traffic lights,
we learn that we need to stop when it's red and go when the light is green. This
essay has appeared to use books and the internet for their research and wide range
of resources always helps research.
In this essay the student discusses how certain films use the theory that Roland
Barthes has. The essay introduces lots of symbolism that films use and what that
communicates to the viewer due to the connotations that certain things have.
YouTube video that discusses semiotics.

This video was very insightful for me to watch as I haven't learnt much about film
theories as I studied photography before this lens-based media course. It's not too
busy with this information, it allows me to be able to research more.
Semiotics is to do with us recognising that certain symbols or ‘signifiers’ can be
denoted to give us the meaning, connotations then tie in too. Sometimes the way we
are raised can change our ideology of the sign. Factors like where we live can
change what we think of the signs. Most signs have many meanings.
The example they discuss helped me realise that moods can be shown through
different things, such as the characters, the place it is set and the quietness and tone
of voices. In the example they take out sounds at one point and it helps the viewer
feel that it is dangerous.
The signs you use can affect your audience's reaction. As my work is unable to use
any sounds other than the songs, I must think about how the visuals are going to be
interpreted by the viewers and if they are going to understand the story that I am
telling. Some symbolism is subjective so it is different depending on the person. For
example, some people will see my music video for ‘She’ as a romantic relationship
whereas others could see it as a platonic relationship. It just depends on how they
interpret the song and the footage. Some viewers may be reminded of certain times
in their life, maybe they were in the same situation.

Mise-En-scene
Mise-en- scene. Written by Alex Ferari on February 4th, 2021.
This was good to research as Alex has explained very well. He also discusses how
the crew can approach mise-En-scene and how they also work together to make
sure everything communicates how they would like it too. I have completed all my
filming but throughout the filming process I have thought about how certain things
could be viewed.

Masterclass. What Is Mise-En-Scène?

It's what is visible within the framing of a film, the contents of the scene and the
overall presentation.
I had more control over the environment for the desk scenes rather than the outdoor
scenes. I can't control what the sun/moon looks like, so I had the choice to film when
it looked similar to how I want or just go with how it looked, however, I had control
over the framing of the camera. I was also in control of the way I sequenced the
clips.
Even though I have conducted this research about semiotics and Mise-En-Scene
after my filming it was still useful as I can use the information in later work that I
make. I can remember these terms and research them further If I need to. In a way I
thought about Mise-En-Scene before I knew its definition, also I have learned about
the meaning behind signs/signifiers aka Semiotics my entire life as it is not just
limited to film. All the pieces of theories I have looked at have improved my
comprehension. I grasped all the information, but I could have delved deeper.
Water analysis
Water is used in films to show sadness as it represents tears. My video uses raindrops on a
window and the raindrop falls just like a tear would on someone's cheek. The sea is also in
my music video for ‘She.’ Water can show that danger is on its way.

Summary of studying these theories.

Researching into these different pieces of theory helped me understand the meanings
behind the things I included within my music video. It expanded my knowledge. I am now
more aware of the way the viewers interpret certain items with the film. I learnt about
semiotics, mise-En-scene symbolism in films, LGBTQ+ representation and women in the film
industry and colour theory. Everything I learnt I was able to incorporate into my music
videos.

The idea of the sun and the moon

In one of my rough edits my teacher asked if the comparisons between the sun and moon
were meant to signify something within the relationship that the film explores. I pondered this
thought and realised yes, the way that I have included them both in this video about
relationships, it was meant to signify the differences but also how one can't live without the
other.
For a long time, I have believed that in every relationship one person is the sun, bright
bubbly and the other is the moon who is a lot more reserved, quieter, and even a little hidden
away. From the outside of the relationship, I think it is possible to distinguish who is which.
The sun and moon coexist. Everyone knows the sun and the moon. Everyone looks at the
sun and moon.
The two actors in the music video are separated physically but connected via sun and moon.
They see the same sun and the same moon.
It only takes one wrong step for the moon to be burned by the sun. Although it seems never
possible, in a relationship someone usually gets hurt through a breakup, loss of trust or
death. One person from the relationship always must live with the damage. On earth, we can
only see the sun during the day and the moon is there at night, but we know there's light and
light can't exist without darkness. An absence of something must mean it used to exist.
Every day we see this, the earth moves, and we see the sun during the day and the moon at
night. The absence of the sun at night makes some people miss the light and some people
miss the darkness when it is light.
It’s personifying these things in the solar system but I think it is a cool analogy.
I decided to take a deeper look into this as it's very intriguing to research.
The links I looked at are in my bibliography.
The dark pixie astrology- the sun and moon in love
This site focuses on the astrology section of the sun and the moon. Along with star signs
people also have sun and moon signs and that can affect things like moods and personality.
It was helpful in my research, but it didn’t field the results I am searching for.
Sun and moon in poetry
The comparisons between the sun/moon to human relationship is rather easy to find in
poetry or writing about relationships. On March 5th 2021, expression babble posted this
piece of poetry. They talk about the sun and how losing a partner in a breakup feels like you
have been plunged into the cold. The sun gives off heat and once the moon appears at night
it gets cooler.
Sarah (2021):
‘funny how when you lose someone, they’re suddenly
everywhere in everything you do, everything you feel,
everything you see. You wake up and suddenly even the
warmth of the sun reminds you of them – maybe that’s why
we romanticize the moon, the stars and the past memories
because we want things that we can’t have, things that are
out of our reach, things that are far from us, a notion that
doesn’t exist in real life but only in our own world of make
belief.’
As a writer myself I have also used the sun and the moon while referring to people.
In my music video for ‘she’ I used clips of the moon and sun because I felt as though it fits
the theming. I zoom in on them, with the video call static shots, in the editing I have zoomed
in on them so that they correlate to the sun and moon clips.