Wednesday, October 30, 2019

All of us learn from our failures as well as successes. What is Essay

All of us learn from our failures as well as successes. What is something you gained from an unsuccessful experience - Essay Example With a borrowed capital from my father, I ventured into the business of selling candies and ice-creams. At the beginning, I seemed to make some meaningful progress. However, the number of customers began fading away and I could hardly make any sales. I was prepared to remain in business hoping that the business will eventually pick up. My parents encouraged me to keep on trying and they would help in preparing some of the candies at home. After five weeks, the business was not making any profits. Actually, it became increasingly difficult to break even on my capital investment and therefore, I eventually gave up. My father summoned me and we had a conversation in which he told me the reasons why my business failed. According to him, I was not adequately prepared to do any business since I did not have any background knowledge in business. He indeed encouraged me to put a lot of effort in school especially in business related courses if my aspirations are to become an entrepreneur. From this experience, I learned the importance of education in life. Knowledge is overwhelmingly important in every aspect of

Sunday, October 27, 2019

The marketing strategy of business network transformation

The marketing strategy of business network transformation By definition, Business Network Transformation (BNT) is a marketing strategy in which companies will adopt a different path which normally companies would follow in order to be more competitive in this dynamic business world. The two major phenomenons that are most important from any companys perspective would be faster technological innovation with respect to products services and being a reliable supplier. Extension model: Companies adopt the extension model to spread out their business to gain new piece of business with increasing demand. The following are the important aspects of Business Network Transformation   Ã‚     Value proposition: It is important to explicit the type of products or services the company provide to its customers. Moreover, it gives a unique value between a business and prospects of the business. It is also a strategic asset which forms a basis for Market and its strategy , Business Planning , Partner and competitors strategy , operations, Customer service and Pricing . Customer Interface   Ã‚     Target customer: This describes how the customer segments are targeted to achieve a profitable growth.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Distribution channel: This describes how the product reaches the customer by various routes. Relationship: This explains how the firm is linked with the customer through its various customer segments. Infrastructure Management   Ã‚     Value configuration: It specifies the way in which the various activities and resources of the business are arranged Core competency: This defines how the core competencies required in a business model are executed.   Partner network: This describes how to collaborate with business partners to harvest the benefit out of it. Normal way of running a business is to extract value from companys network which is a tangible asset that bridges the enterprise and consumers in terms of its connectivity capabilities. However, as explained in the definition, now the companys started adopting different way of doing their business by adopting different models whereby value is extracted from intangible assets like e-commerce initiatives, targeted advertising that will eventually generate service fees from performed transactions or commissions. This methodology of obtaining value from intangible assets will certainly outperform tangible asset -based connectivity revenues. The two terms, Present Mode of Operation (PMO) and Future Mode of Operation (FMO) are so vital in current business world. What is required from enterprise point of view is to have additional business models which will a best fit for enterprises Future mode of operation that leads to increase in revenue growth of the company and reduction in companies operational expenses by measuring the intangible assets of the business. Alcatel-lucent, a Tele- communication service provider company has been taken as an example. The company has invested in new IP, IPTV and IMS technologies in order to compete with other service providers who have expanded their network to convergence of voice, data and video services across fixed, wireless and satellite networks. In order to sustain in the competition, some of the service providers are making their current services less expensive, faster and better. Forming new Business Transformation Strategies are inevitable in current business scenario. However, there exist some inhibitions in the minds of service providers that these rapid changes in the business model might disturb current business models revenue. It has been estimated that voice and data subscription services contributes 80% of current revenue. It could be seen that a level of saturation is reached for the traditional model. Due to this saturation limit , the company Alcatel-Lucent decided has decided to go in for the advanced business model not only withstanding to allow the service providers to tap new revenue but to distinguish themselves from competitors by subscription-based businesses. Service providers have to perform critical assessment of Tangible and intangible assets within the legal boundaries in order to evaluate current business model. Return on Investment (ROI) is a main focal point for the service providers which can be achieved by tactical assets selling Real-world Business Model Innovations Due to market demand in communication industry there is increasing pressure from service providers to adopt new business models in order to penetrate through the existing market. The following are Business models in the fields of innovation Sponspered communications M-banking Broadband Community Centres Hosted Platforms Wholesaling Outsourcing Asset-sharing Content Aggregation and Brokering Targeted Advertising UGC and Communities Fulfilment E-Commerce and m-Commerce Sponsored Communications: Advertising through funded calls is one of the important innovations in the field of Telecommunication. There is appreciable change foreseen while comparing the conventional subscription model. Sort of incentives in the form of more talk time and paying lesser are the added benefits extended to the users if they accept to receive advertisement messages. Initially this methodology was put in to use by a UK Based company who manages to offer these sorts of benefits to targeted customers in the age group between sixteen to twenty four year of people, eventually this approach has yielded a reduction in end user access costs to a range between 20 to 50 % M-banking: Due to various socio-economical reasons , it can be seen that in most of the countries may not be having basic banking service to its people , on contrary using mobile faculty is so common in most of the countries . It would be rather difficult and rather expensive to manage transactions for especially for those having smaller accounts through the existing banking system due to inadequate number of branches exist in nations where population explosion is on the drive, especially in the rural areas. These shortcomings can be addressed through the M-banking which uses mobile technology. The technological advancement rather the strategy in the Mobile industry is to develop Mobile pre-paid payment engines that manage real time small transactions by the use of SMS (Short Message Service) which is really a less expensive measure to the Mobile users. This service of Mobile banking has been very successful in many countries especially in growing countries like India and China. A classic example can be quoted from a leading service provider of Telecom situated in Philippines , named as Global Telecom, who introduced a service called G-Cash service which has got electronic valet facility through which the user can send and receive electronically and payments can be made through short message texting . Due to its easiness in use it has been predicted by World Resource Institute that due to its demand, with in 5 years Mobile banking services will be extended to billion customers. Broadband Community Centres: Singapore is one of the typical examples for this feature. Community centres provide Internet facility to its residents there by offering services like e -government Tax payment, application forms, etc . In some countries like Australia, Broad band community centres assume the roles of Bank branches or government agents. Basically these centres serve the residents as a platform in which more industries and social organizations have a greater reach to the people, which become a cost effective measure for the people as well. Hosted Platforms: This approach is implemented by Alcatel-Lucent company in an African country Senegal where it hosted a mobile data centre where the service providers from four other parts of the world make use of it by providing GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) applications that run at a speed of 115 kb/s. Due to this service facility it becomes possible for the service providers are able to provide services to the end user at much shorter time period of 3 months. The main advantage in this business model can be seen from the fact that the service providers those who are in this need to pay to the host company Alcatel-Lucent as and when they use the platform. This is indeed a real benefit for countries which are under developed like Africa where the country may not sufficient users to attract Telecom companies to invest on stand-alone platforms to deliver advance services in the arena of Telecommunication in an efficient and cost effective way. Wholesaling: This type of approach is followed mostly in the developing countries where the network operator resells excess net work capacity to a retail service provider VNO (Virtual Network operator) who in turn offer services to consumers or commercial institutions Outsourcing: This approach becomes more common in most of the countries. Day to day work functions and managing the resources will be given to an external supplier. The business functions that will be offered will be diverged in nature. The external supplier will take care of related work functions of Data storage, financial accounting, Supply Chain management and HR functions like pay roll etc . The major advantage of outsourcing lies on the reduction in the total cost of ownership and extending timely service to the consumers Asset-sharing: The main advantage of this model is sharing overlapping tangible assets between services providers operate same networks in order to eliminate infrastructures that are overlapping among them. Due to this asset -sharing model the service providers can expand the area of coverage and reduce impact on environment to a greater extend. This approach again reduces the total cost of ownership and more innovative services can be provided to their consumers. Content Aggregation and Brokering: The main driver for this business model approach is the concept of UGC (User-generated content) and premium content. The user can directly purchase copy righted multimedia files through video-on-demand and pay-per-view models. What is important in this model is to ensure the integrity of the content that is purchased by the user by adopting digital rights management technology to verify the authenticity of the content. Targeted Advertising: This type of model encompasses interactive connection between people and the type of brands they are looking for through multimedia screens like TV, Mobile and Computer etc Due to the current technological advancements, these multimedia sectors become the essential revenue generating opportunities for the service providers. Premiums paid by the advertisers in this multimedia will add on to the revenue growth to the service provider which is quite substantiated. UGC and Communities: This model is growing day by day in the field of communication. The examples for this model are social network sites like Face book. MySpace, people information sites like TripAdvisor and YouTube. In these user is allowed to generate multimedia content which is distributed instantaneously to the other users. Once the content is created in these applications it can be amended, rated and commented by many group of users. The following are the common types of UGC that includes new sites, Photo sharing sites, service review sites, trip planners, social network sites, boards, blogs and gamming sites. In this concept, forums are used as the platform to share the users knowledge, experience on a topic of interest. The industry which has reaped the benefits out of this model is the broadcasting industry which has gained momentum due to persistent consumer interaction and better service orientation. Another mile stone in this model is getting the users feedback directly by introducing the option of voting via internet or mobile device so that pulse of the user is measured instantaneously. Fulfilment: This model ties the service provider and the user in terms of billing relationship leverage once the transaction is completed and service is delivered to the end user on third parties behalf. A typical example would be downloading a music album to mobile phone via internet E-Commerce and m-Commerce: This model envisages an electronic transaction in terms of buying and selling operations in the mobile services. The following electronic transactions are the typical examples for this model, consumers can use the wireless network infrastructure for Internet banking electronic funds transfers, Internet Marketing, SCM (Supply Chain Management), on line trading and electronic data interchange M-Commerce provides the end user an opportunity to pay for goods purchased using their mobile device. In other words, mobile phones are considered to be Virtual Credit Card with the usual securities in place to avoid tampering in any sort. It can be inferred from the above business model that the main drivers are reduce operational cost and increase top-line revenue. Either of the above action will lead to increase in business margin. Consultative Approach to Business Transformation It is also a newer approach being followed by Alcatel-Lucent to its service providers there by suggesting a right strategic direction by developing a structured and consultative frame work in the form of simple process Step 1 Identifying our customers PMO. Step 2 Understanding the customers top priorities and objectives Step 3 Identifying the customers intended FMO Step 4 Identifying the appropriate products, services and solutions It is anticipated for a failure if the steps are not followed which may lead to negative impact to the business results in a increase in the cost and decrease in the revenues and low margins. Failure to do so can result in negative consequences in the form of a negative spiral of growing costs and flattening or decreasing revenues and margins. The real transformation of PMO to FMO will happen after the service providers going through a transition phase in which the cost for operations will certainly increase due to deployment of new IP based system in terms of legal maintenance . Comprehensive approach to transformation has yielded good result for the enterprise. Strategic Impact Analysis The company Alcatel-Lucent has worked with both kinds of operators the modernizers and the comprehensive business transformers. . Not with standing to the fact that both operators yielded good result , however their strategies will be different . The operator Modernizers gives at most importance to technical details with tactical execution, where as the another operators emphasis is on emerging business needs and implementing strategic objectives . Creating Convergence The challenges are growing as the technology grows, hence the strategies being adopted by the enterprises and service providers should take a realistic and feasible approach in order to move forward with the transformation initiatives that nurtures Consumer relation and profitable growth . Hence creating convergence becomes so vital on the current business environment.. The following layers should be bounded together in order to bring IT and network environments connected at each and every layer of the network User exposure Business process Service abstraction Application Physical / Technical base It is not expected to have one-size-fits-all approach to transformation, however it is imperative to have each transformation initiative evaluated based on respective strategic direction thereby assessed according to its own characteristics and further tailored to meet the need .In this context what is more important is to have clear understanding of Present Mode of Operation (PMO) and to develop strategies to reach required Future Mode of Operation (FMO). Ensuring successful transformation also means finding a knowledgeable, committed network integrator partner that can act as a trusted adviser every step of the way. The best partner brings expertise and experience in IT and networks, as well as a comprehensive services methodology built on best practices and experience to mitigate risk, minimize complexity, capture new revenue, reduce costs, and position organizations to reap the business transformation benefits going forward. Today, the service provider delivers traditional voice and data services while introducing new, innovative media and entertainment offerings that generate new streams of revenue over a common network infrastructure. In addition, the service provider is reaping full advantage from Alcatel-Lucents field-proven solutions and integration expertise, enabling the provider to meet its strategic network and business transformation goals as well as commercial and operational objectives. Conclusion It can be seen from the strategies implemented by the company Alcatel-Lucent clearly exemplifies that business growth was seen by Business coordination, adopting network transformation and extending customer services. It is imperative that the organization and the service providers should start adopting non-traditional ways to monetize their intangible assets e.g. community, location and billing relationship that could be influenced to enhance Consumers trust and confidence The strategies adopted by their service providers determine the emerging demands and define key business drivers that will lead to transformation. Furthermore, these strategies pave path way for a market winning situation by adopting new technologies

Friday, October 25, 2019

The Stagecraft of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead Essay -- Rosen

The Stagecraft of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead  Ã‚      â€Å"†¦a poor player, that struts and frets his hour upon the stage, and then is heard no more†¦Ã¢â‚¬  This quote from Macbeth is a perfect summary of the plot of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead. The dramatisation of the lives of these two unremarkable and virtually extraneous characters from Hamlet is an unlikely foundation for â€Å"one of the most†¦engaging of post-war plays† (Daily Telegraph). However, as with Samuel Beckett’s absurdist play â€Å"Waiting for Godot† the originality of Stoppard’s concept is not enough in itself to create a masterpiece and it is the brilliance of the stagecraft and writing that establishes this play as a classic. The presentation of these two characters is an important feature of the stagecraft. Neither Rosencrantz nor Guildenstern ever leave the stage during the play until their deaths. They are the central focus which directly contrasts with their relative unimportance in Hamlet. The visual effect of their being dressed in Elizabethan clothing is cleverly juxtaposed with their contemporary style of speech. It is comic that their identities seem to be interchangeable; Guildenstern himself investigates this point in Act II, Guil: Rosencrantz†¦ Ros: (absently) What? Pause, short. Guil: Guildenstern†¦ Ros: (irritated by the repetition) What? Guil: Don’t you discriminate at all? While the other characters such as Gertrude and Hamlet seem to be unsure who takes which name, the fact that they themselves are similarly confused augments this humorous idea. How they act and what they do are both important factors in establishing their personalities and Stoppard includes comprehensive stage directions in the script. In Act II there a... ...ey are merely actors. At one point in Act I, Rosencrantz stands at the edge of the stage looking at the audience and remarks that the idea of being a spectator could only be made bearable by the â€Å"irrational belief that somebody interesting will come on in a minute†. In Hamlet Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dull characters. Whatever wit they may possess pales beside Hamlet’s intelligence, they are unable to adequately spy for Claudius and their contribution to the plot is two extra corpses and a few laughs at their expense. However in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead Tom Stoppard has managed to make these characters interesting. The addition of the more three-dimensional character of the Player, several inventive uses of staging and the imaginative links with Hamlet itself establishes an original masterpiece of a play around two minor Shakespearean characters.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Bullfighting & history

Since civilisation, humans entertain themselves in typical and traditional ways. Bullfighting is one of them and a part of Hispanic culture. Bullfighting is a national sport and spectacle of Spain. It is called the corrida de toros in Spanish; the bullfight takes place in a large outdoor arena known as the plaza de toros. The object is for one of the bullfighters (toreros) the matador to kill a wild bull, or toro, with a sword. At best, the term â€Å"bullfighting† is a misnomer, a confused, maimed, psychologically tormented, and physically debilitated bull. Supporters justify the act by calling it a tradition.Opponents maintain that no matter what its history, bullfighting is the torture, mutilation, and slaughter of animals for entertainment. Bullfighting can be traced back to ancient days. They were popular spectacles in ancient Rome, but it was in the Iberian Peninsula that these contests were fully developed by the Moors from North Africa who overran Andalucia in AD 711. Bullfighting developed into a ritualistic occasion observed in connection with feast days, on which the conquering Moors, mounted on highly trained horses, confronted and killed the bulls.The Minoans of Bronze Age Crete practiced bull leaping as part of religious ritual, and later Greek and Romans also had rites that involved the slaughter of bulls. The Moors, who fought bulls from their horses and killed them with javelins, probably introduced the sport to Spain (c. 11th cent. ). Originally the central figure in the Spanish bullfight was the mounted torero; Francisco Romero is generally credited with being the first (c. 1726) to fight on foot. Bullfighting is also popular in the Latin American countries of Mexico, Peru, Colombia, Venezuela, and Ecuador, and in S France.The Portuguese practice a style of fighting from horseback in which the bull is not killed in the ring. Critics contend that bullfighting is an inhumane spectacle of animal torture; aficionados respond that it is a c omplex ritual central to Spanish culture. In Spain the bullfight is called the Fiesta National (The national Sport). There are few places in Spain where a bull-ring can not be found within a short drive. It is the most common thing associated with Spain, and rightly so for its origins date back to 711AD when the first bullfight (corrida) took place in honour of the crowning of King Alfons VIII.Every week, all over Spain, many thousands of Spaniards flock to the nearest bullring, but not all Spaniards agree with the sport, or like it. It is reported that each year, within Spain, 24,000 bulls are killed in front of an audience of 30 million people. The bullfighting season runs from March to October. Felipe V prohibited the nobles from practicing the sport as he felt it was a bad example for the public's education. From then on the commoners took on the sport, facing the bulls unarmed, dodging and taunting the bull then eventually placing small spears into the bull, the origin of the b anderillas of today’s bullfights.Around 1724 the sport was transformed from horseback to foot. The bullfight is literally a dance with death. The bullfighter has to carefully examine and study the movements and strengths of the bull. One wrong move and he will end up gored or seriously injured. It is certain though that at the end of the show, the bull will die, yes, it is literally a show. The bullfighter has to demonstrate his skills to the audience in a dramatic and enthusiastic way. If he makes a good job of it and gets a good round of applause at the end, he could be bestowed the ultimate honour by being presented with one of the bull's ears or its tail.If he has been really good he may even be carried round the arena. One variation of the traditional bullfight is bull running where bulls are released into the streets and masses of participants do their best to avoid them and stay alive. Pamplona is the best place to see this. One of the oldest bullrings in Spain is loca ted in the hilltop village of Ronda in Andalucia, southern Spain. It is the venue for one of the most spectacular corridas of the year. In early September the ring hosts a week-end of bullfights in celebration of Pedro Romero, the Saturday corrida being staged in Goyesc costume for which tickets are very hard to obtain.The bullring in Ronda is open to the public, with a small admission charge. The bullring also houses an interesting museum dedicated to the sport. A modern bullfight consists of three stylized parts (tercios). When the bull enters the ring, toreros wave capes to prod it to charge; then the picadors administer pic (lance) thrusts, which tire the animal and cause him to lower his head; in the second part, the banderilleros come out and, while on the run, plant banderillas on the withers of the bull; these often spur him into making livelier charges.In the final segment the matador, almost always a man, although some women have entered the sport in recent decades, amid c ontroversy, holds the muleta, a small cloth cape, in one hand, and a sword in the other. Feet Square on the ground and head hung low; the matador must then approach the bull from the front and kill him by thrusting his sword between the shoulder blades and into the heart. A matador's performance requires great skill and courage and successful matadors reap immense awards in money and adulation. Fighting bulls are bred and selected for spirit and strength.One of the biggest supporters of bullfighting is the tourist industry. Travel agents and bullfight promoters portray the fight as a festive and fair competition. What they do not reveal is that the bull never has a chance to defend himself, much less to survive. The bulls are intentionally debilitated with sandbags dropped on their backs. (1) One of Spain’s bullfighting critics, Joaquin Vidal of El Pais, wrote of drugged bulls at one bullfight, â€Å"There was nothing in the arena to fight. The bulls were mostly moribund.â⠂¬ (2)A study conducted by scientists at Spain’s Salamanca University found that 20 percent of the bulls used for fighting are drugged before they step into the ring. In the sampling of 200 bulls, one in five had been given anti-inflammatory drugs, which mask injuries that could sap the animal’s strength. One common practice is to â€Å"shave† the bulls’ horns by sawing off a few inches. (3) Bulls’ horns, like cats’ whiskers, help the animals navigate, so a sudden change impairs their coordination. Shaving is illegal, so a veterinarian sometimes inspects the horns after a fight.But in 1997, the Confederation of Bullfighting Professionals, including Spain’s 230 matadors, went on strike in opposition to these veterinary inspections. The bulls aren’t the only victims of the arena. The horses used in bullfights are blindfolded so that they don’t become frightened of the charging bull. They are often gored. At the Barcelona Olympics, The Philadelphia Daily News reported, â€Å"One time last night, the bull charged the horse, knocked off the rider, knocked over the horse and got his horn tangled up in all the padding.The frightened horse, still blindfolded, kicked furiously as it lay on its side. The bull pushed and pulled, shoved and yanked, unable to free itself from the horse’s padding. † (4) American author Ernest Hemingway, famous for romanticizing the bullfight ritual, once described the scenes of horses being gored: â€Å"I have seen these, call them disembowelling, that is the worst word when, due to their timing, they were very funny. This is the sort of thing you should not admit, but it is because such things have not been admitted that the bullfight has never been explained.Selective breeding has enabled ranchers to create a bull who will die in a manner most satisfying to the public. Mexican bullfighting also includes â€Å"novella,† or baby bullfights. The bulls that are used are all less than 3 years old. (5) The Portuguese bullfights that are legal in many U. S. states involve people’s teasing and attacking the bull. Eight men, known as â€Å"grabbers† line up in front of the bulls to grab the bull’s horns, piling on top of the animals and tackling them until they fall to the ground. (6) In Portuguese bullfights in many countries, the bulls are still stabbed with banderillas and have their horns shaved. (7)Although tormenting and abuse is part of the show, killing must be done outside the arena. In Colombia, there is an annual festival in which solitary bulls are tormented by thousands of people who think they are testing their â€Å"bravery† (aided by a festive atmosphere and large quantities of alcohol). â€Å"If nobody gets killed, it’s boring,† laments Carlos Perez, head of the committee that organized the contest in 1996. But even Colombian bullfighter Luis Cuadrado admits, â€Å"It’s just one bull against a thousand. morons.†Cuadrado prefers to sit on the ground until the bull is close enough to stab with a lance, after which Cuadrado promptly scurries away to safety. These festivals last four or five days, with at least 35 victimized bulls each day. Pope St. Pius V decreed that bullfights are â€Å"altogether foreign to piety and charity. † He wished that â€Å"these cruel and disgraceful exhibitions of devils and not of men be abolished† and he forbade attendance at them under pain of excommunication. 8) Even supporters cannot deny that the practice is barbaric.The Mexican author Eduardo del Rio glorified the maiming of bulls, candidly described bullfighting as â€Å"a stumbling block for the humanization of man. † Lyn Sherwood, publisher of a pro-bullfighting magazine, proudly declared, â€Å"I have no moral problem promoting something I consider morally unjustifiable. † Most forms of the practice are illegal in the United States because of its inherent cruelty. But tourists, especially from the U. S. , keep bullfighting in business. . According to a 2002 survey by InterGallup S. A. , 69 percent of Spaniards show no interest in bullfights, up from 30 percent in the ’90s. (9)At the same time, more young Hispanic people are protesting the crude ritual. In 1995, Madrid was besieged with 5,000 Spanish demonstrators calling for an end to the practice. Many anti-bullfighting groups have sprung up worldwide, including the Spanish Alternativa para la Liberacion Animal, the Mexican Pena Antitaurina Mexicana, and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Tijuana and Mexico City. Spain’s Green Party has been working with the country’s Association for the Defence of Animal Rights (ADDA) to have bullfighting banned.In 1993, a petition drive by the coalition garnered more than 1 million signatures.References: 1) Phil Davison, â€Å"Matadors on Horns of a Dilemma,† The Independent , 12 Feb. 1994.2) Reuters, â€Å"One-Fifth of Spain’s Fighting Bulls Drugged? † 28 Nov. 2000.3) Al Goodman, â€Å"Machismo vs. Money: Whose Bull Is Gored? â€Å" The New York Times, 9 Mar. 1997,p E6.4) Bill Lyon, â€Å"A Slaughter That Is Really a Slaughter,† The Philadelphia Inquirer, 27 Jul. 1992, p. C1.5) Tony Hendra, â€Å"Man and Bull,† Harper’s Magazine, Nov. 1996, Vol. 293, No. 1758, p. 69.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Baz Lurhmann describes ‘Moulin Rouge’ as ‘audience participation cinema’. Analyse the techniques he uses to remind ‘us we are watching a movie’

Baz Lurhmann describes ‘Moulin Rouge' as ‘audience participation cinema'. With close reference to the opening of the film analyse the techniques he uses to remind ‘us we are watching a movie' From the opening of the film, we can see that Baz Lurhmann uses several techniques such as music, camera angles, set design, costume and lighting, to help create the feeling that we are ‘watching a movie'. He creates this feeling from the idea of making everything unrealistic and stylised, it shows that it could not possibly be real life, therefore reminds ‘us we are watching a movie'. Baz has a wild imagination which is captured in Moulin Rouge; he shows this through techniques such as characterisation, editing, and colour. Even from the very beginning, with the conductor, we can see that the film is unreal. The conductor has theatrical movements which are totally over the top; this does show and remind us that ‘we are watching a movie'. Also the setting of having the large, heavy, red curtain and gold plated frame still gives the ideas of being fantasy and unreal. You can read also Audience Adaptation Paper When we are introduced to Christian, Baz Lurhmann uses several camera techniques to create the stylised effect. He does this when Christian is writing the story; he has a dolly following the text that has been written. It cuts to his face crying and then cuts back to the typewriter. This is emotional; it shows how he is reacting to telling the story of him being in love. The audience are already struck by this and feel as though they already know the character. This helps the film to be â€Å"audience participation cinema†. Whilst Christian is still telling us the beginning of the story and typing, there are cuts of inside Moulin Rouge; this is effective because it simply reminds us that we are watching a movie. Inside the Moulin Rouge, there are bright colours (saturated colour) and vibrant movements but all this is shown through slow motion editing. Outside the Moulin Rouge there is desaturated colour. To end this section of the film, the camera zooms into the words that the character is typing, like a fade or dissolve. When Christian is typing about one year ago, when he first came to Paris, the camera zooms out, rapidly over Paris from his room, and then zooms in to the train station where he is standing. This keeps the audience reminded that the ‘we are watching a movie' because it zooms so rapidly that it's unreal and almost like a dream. There is also a part where is he walking up the to the hillside town of Montmarte the ‘village of sin'. As he walks up there the scenery that he is ‘walking through' is changing. This is obviously unreal and therefore has the same effect of â€Å"watching a movie†. When we first meet the Bohemians' we see different techniques being used. We see Baz Lurhmann using costumes, colour, set design and camera angles in this section. The Bohemians all have different costumes; all their costumes are made of several layers of clothes, with any colour and material. This gives them an idea of them being below people such as Zidler who wears suits. There is an unreal design about them; this reminds us we are â€Å"watching a movie† There is a mid shot, in which we can see all the characters involved with the scene including the unconscious argentine. When they are deciding the lyrics to the song, the camera cuts to all the characters, creates the idea of confusion and hysteria – so many people talking at the same time. We see a close up of Christians face when he bursts into song about the hills being alive with the sound of music. This is very illusory and still reminds us that we are watching a movie. When we first see the Moulin rouge, we see vibrant colours, saturated colours; these stand out well and help illuminate the idea of Moulin Rouge being a theatre – loud, over the top, energetic and alive. The lights and colours are vivid, glitzy and jazzy. Again it has the unreal idea attached to it. Baz Lurhmann didn't want anything to be normal; he wanted wild, lively movements and shots. This again seems unreal and therefore has the stylised approach. Inside the Moulin Rouge it's lively and upbeat, contrast to outside which is dull and boring. Inside there's fast dancing and lots of actions and over the top dance moves. All the characters in Moulin Rouge all have individual identities – dancers, courtesans. They all have their own stage personality and their own costume. This is overwhelming because all the women are over dressed, and area all playing to what the men want. The idea of having all individual costumes to fit the ‘stage' character is effective. We also see characters, inside the night club, of boxers, mermaids, and an even woman with a snake, this is all very unreal and shows that it is too unreal and therefore the audience must be â€Å"watching a movie†. There is a special effect on one section where Zidler does the flips all the way through entrance of the Moulin Rouge to the actual stage area. This is very unreal we can see being super imposed onto the screen but yet it strikes the audience and reminds them about the movie. When Satine retreats from the ceiling, the club turns black. This is to create tension of when she does arrive. Also for lighting the bits of shiny silver sparkle. Satine had an original costume compared to the other girls in the club. Satine wore a diamond outfit – tailed jacket with fishnet tights and a bowler hat. Her lipstick was bright red and it was very feminine. I think that Baz Lurhmann was trying to get across that she was as famous as Marilyn Monroe because she wore that ‘look' too (bus stop look). The swing which she sat on even had diamonds, shows that she better off than the other Moulin Rouge dancers. All the dancers were known as ‘diamond dogs' whereas she was known as ‘the sparkling diamond'. The audience feels they have to watch her because partly of what she is wearing but also because the camera does. And the camera follows her around because she is the centre of attention. Harold Zidler was another colourful character; he wore a bright red jacket, with big boots and white shirts etc. almost like Father Christmas. He had jolly, fluffy hair in forms of a beard and moustache too. The moustache was curled up at the ends; this gave his character more livelihood about him. He looked as though he was the ring master of the circus, in some ways he was. All the costumes were over the top and they all have the unreal attitude with them. This is because they were all original and exaggerated, therefore unreal and stylised. This will remind the audience that what they are watching could not be real life hence it is a movie. The elephant is the centre of the courtyard just outside MR. it's where Satine lives- exclusive and powerful. Its interior is all to do with India – ideas generate for spectacular spectacular. The colours inside the elephant are blues, yellows and reds. Music in the Moulin Rouge was very important. There was always music in the background or the characters were singing a song. Throughout the film music was used in different ways, it created different atmospheres. When Christian first came to Paris and he was talking about never being in love, the music created a comedy effect. Also inside the Moulin Rouge, the music was very upbeat, the can can, it had to be to go with the costumes and dancing, and was a contrast to the music anywhere else in the film. Baz Lurhmann also used different contexts of music, some songs were modern and some were fairly old. The lyrics and songs tell the story of the Moulin Rouge. This is effective because it's different. People don't go around telling stories of their life in song, so this to the audience would remind them that they â€Å"were watching a movie†. Throughout the film there were different genres of music being used. There was hip hop when the dancers all sang Lady Marmalade, rock when Zidler sang the Show must go on, and even pop such as Your Song and Material Girl. All the songs used in the film kept the audience involved and they felt as though they could sing along, which is the audience participating – â€Å"audience participation cinema†. All the techniques that Baz Lurhmann used created the unreal atmosphere that he wanted to create to remind the audience that they were â€Å"watching a movie†. All the elements in each technique was exactly what Baz Lurhmann wanted, when put together all the elements and techniques created an emotional, contrasting film which I thoroughly enjoyed.