media language (black mirror)

• Media language in San Junipero episode of Black Mirror

  • Used carefully to set the scene and indicate to audiences who people are, what's going on, and when the episode is taking place
  • Scenes of the ocean with pinks and purples color palette make it feel Americanized, exotic, and escapist
  • Extensive use of music to set the time period (e.g. "Heaven is a Place on Earth" by Belinda Carlisle, "Don't You Forget About Me" from The Breakfast Club)
  • Intertextual references to cars, film posters, arcade games, etc. cement the 1980s-1990s time period
  • Use of music, costumes, and props help signpost different time periods as characters travel through the virtual reality
• Characterisation through media language

  • Intense makeup, jewelry, and revealing costumes for Kelly indicate she's the more popular, outgoing, and confident character
  • Twist of the clock, glasses, and plain outfit for Yorkie indicate she's the more shy and less confident "geek" character
• Camerawork

  • Close-up shots of the two women getting closer together show their growing intimacy and connection
  • Higher key lighting makes everything seem brighter and more futuristic, suggesting a "heavenly" feel
  • Tracking shot through server rooms emphasizes the vast number of people in the virtual worlds
• Editing techniques

  • Shot reverse shots contrast the two female characters and their personalities
  • Transition from them undressing to crashing waves on a beach suggests sexual passion and orgasms without showing it directly
  • Fast-paced editing in the Quagmire Club makes it feel thrilling, intense, and chaotic
  • Sound disappearing as Yorkie zones out of conversations suggests she's focused more on Kelly
• Genre

  Hybrid of drama/romance and sci-fi, with elements of both love story and futuristic technology
• Narrative techniques

  • Enigma codes (e.g. why is Yorkie so out of place, why only 3 hours, how did they get to the 90s) keep the audience engaged and wondering
• Post-modernism

  • Themes of "what if" regarding futuristic technology
  • Intertextual references to music, fashion, films
  • Mixture of genres and hybridity
  • Tackles ideas of reality vs. hyperreality and simulacra