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Subject: Media and Information Literacy Quarter: 2 Week: 10

Topic: Three Axis of Conventions Notes: 10

Notes 10 – What is genre?

- comes from the French word meaning 'type' or 'class‘

- can be recognized by its common set of distinguishing features (codes and conventions)

What are codes and conventions?

CODES are systems of signs, which create meaning

SEMIOTICS are study of signs

CONVENTIONS are the generally accepted ways of doing something

Types of Code
 Technical
 Symbolic
 Written

TECHNICAL CODES ways in which equipment is used to tell the story (camera techniques, framing,
depth of fields, lighting and etc.)

SYMBOLIC CODES show what is beneath the surface of what we see (objects, setting, body
language, clothing, color, etc. )
Title: Symbolism In Film

WRITTEN CODES use of language style and textual layout (headlines, captions, speech bubbles,
language style, etc. )

HOW DO ELEMENTS COMBINE IN MEDIA PRODUCTS?

As proposed above, a convention is a combination of elements used to construct media. So,
how exactly can elements be combined? Looking at a wide range of conventions apparent in media
forms, I believe that combinations of elements are apparent in three distinct ‘dimensions’ of a media
form. I will refer to these dimensions as axes of conventions.
My three axes of conventions are;
 Temporal
 Spatial
 Simultaneous
Depending on a media form, conventions may exist through one or more of these axes. That is, a
convention may form through time or order, space or visual composition and/ or through the layering
of image, type, moving vision and/ or sound.

TEMPORAL
The conventions of film and TV are a great way to get started because moving image media
forms involve sequences of sound and vision. The temporal axis refers to the order of actions or
events that are combined in a media product. In an intangible media product like a TV show, this
order of events is like, ‘this comes before that and ‘this comes after that, whilst in tangible media
products like a magazine, the order can refer to the sequence of articles, editorials, photographs, and
advertising.
In every media form there are conventions (don’t forget – usually accepted rules or practices) about
the ways components are ordered to create meaning.

SPATIAL
My second axis of conventions refers to how components are arranged in a two-dimensional
plane. In art, this plane is referred to as a ‘picture plane’. All media forms entail some kind of visual
format. Be it a cinema screen, a TV, a mobile phone, computer monitor, newspaper, photograph,
magazine or even a hologram. The study of visual composition refers to the ways elements relate to
each other and to the format within which they sit. All visual products require some kind of visual
composition. Print and web-based conventions are evident through the usual practices and rules used
in typography and layout. However, cinematography also uses many conventions of visual
composition to organize and depict subjects within their frame.

SIMULTANEOUS
My third axis within which conventions can be found is simultaneous overlay of media
elements. This refers to which elements are seen and heard at the same time and how their
prominence, volume or opacity is managed to create meaning. There are many conventions around
the layering of diegetic, non-diegetic, A-roll and B-roll sounds and vision in film and TV. Radio has
also heaps of conventions regarding the layering of sound. In addition, print media and photography
layer images and information to build meaning.