Super. Human: initial representational analysis

Who and what is being represented in this promotional video?

• Athletes with a wide range of disabilities 

How is this representation constructed through media language?

• The fast paced editing constructs a a positive and varied ideology around people with disabilities. Fast paced editing is typical of sports movies, and therefore communicates to the audience themes of sport. By contrasting themes of sport , exercise and also disability, the advert encodes themes of difficulty and persistence. This therefore constructs a representation that those with disabilities are strong, powerful, and resilient.
• The choice of soundtrack is upbeat, informal and presents a positive ideological perception of those with disabilities
• In addition to the musical soundtrack, a number of jarring sound effects are including, including alarms blaring, crowd noise, mechanical sounds and so on,. This has the effect of positioning the target audience through a confusing and even annoying mode of address. This provides the audience with valuable insight in to the lives of Paralympians, and further reinforces the ideological representation that life for people with disabilities is challenging. 
• Frequent use of low key lighting throughout the promotional video symbolises a dark, depressing and tough moments that these athletes must suffer through. This is further reinforced through the performance of the athlete slumping her shoulders as if carrying a heavy weight. Picked out with a high key light, the emphasis is made on her facial expressions, which emphasises her as a normal person, which can be relatable for the target audience
• Rapid fire montage of various internal organs and extreme close ups of bleeding body parts constructs an intimidating and even horrifying mode of address for the target audience, forcing them to question exactly why the athletes in this trailer would even participate in this. This therefore represents Paralympians as ruthless and tough. A highly subversive representation of people with disabilities. 
• The MES of blood is used throughout the trailer, in particular in an ECU of a bloody tooth hanging in a socket. This odd tooth has symbolic connotations of differentiation, and clearly depicts how Paralympians are viewed and stereotyped by wider society. 
• Another way in which disabled athletes are represented is being tough and strong. This is most notably constructed through the montage of extreme closeups of the performers faces, which connotes the humanity and personality of the individuals, and how they matter as much as anybody else
• There is a focus on the athletes as individuals, as opposed to including MES of prosthetic limbs and so on. 
• There are a number of unflattering and even grotesque elements of MES, for example an ECU of a camera going down the throat of a performer. This positions the audience literally internally, and able to see the internal organs, as well as the literal blood sweat and tears of the athletes. This connotes that the athletes are truly human.
• A longshot, underwater shot of an athlete swimming while dragging an enormous and heavy medal is lit through low key lighting, which connotes the uncertainty ahead for the athlete. This positions the audience in a relatable and exciting mode of address. 
• A significant contrast between low key training sequences and high key performance sequences functions as a symbolic code, suggesting both the high points and the low points the athletes are facing
• A significant binary opposition is formed between the exciting MES of performance shots, and the dull, depressing MES of the café. where the performer is unable to get over the step of the café on her wheelchair. This contrast reinforces the difficulty that disabled athletes face in everyday life
• Lexis of "you might as well quit" constructs a theme of defiance against common advice, again reinforcing the ideological perspective that these athletes are both human, and...
• Stock footage of armies marching, which presents a reference to discipline and even war, and also uniformity, which creates a complex and even contradictory representation of people with disabilities 

These brief notes are a mash-up of P block and T block's notes. Go you!