Representation

 Hi blog, and welcome back

Today I want to discuss representation in the media, since that is one of the important topics I have to answer not only for my film opening, but for my creative critical reflection. The lead character of our film is a female, which is something rarely seen in science fiction movies. The women roles in science fiction movies typically take on the "damsel in distress" role, like in Star Wars A New Hope (1977). In this particular movie, Princess Leia is held captive by Darth Vader, and she is later rescued in the film by the main, male character. 

Another role females in science fiction movies typically take on is, surprisingly, the antagonist. One example of this is in the 2014 movie Ex Machina. Although she is not an outright evil mastermind with an army like portrayed in other movies, she is shown as a very manipulative person throughout the movie, where she uses her intelligence to harm others.

In our film, we wanted to represent a more niche character that is almost never seen in science fiction movies, which is a female lead that uses her intelligence for the greater good. Our female is portrayed as a protagonist. Not only is that aspect of it not common in science fiction, but "women in Stem" (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) are also not often represented in movies. Our character, Tina, is a character that is much more intelligent than the average person. However, instead of using this intelligence in a manipulative way, she is shown solving important patterns in history that are vital for the government and people of the world to be aware of. 

In general, the portrayal of women in media has been a controversial subject for many decades. Many movies tend to portray them in a stereotypical matter, for example being obsessed with the color pink, shopping, and gossiping (Mean girls 2004).

As the years have gone by, women have started to ask for more variety in the representation they receive, since men are seen portrayed in such various ways in movies. Our character is something not typically seen, which may be beneficial to women who have wanted a portrayal like the one seen in our film. Specifically in movies that center around adventure and problem solving, they have been a male-dominated field for many years. Our goal is to normalize a woman solving a factitious problem in our movie and going through an adventure, like seen in many science fiction movies with men as the lead before.