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overall, I'm interested in writing & directing, so I'd like to explore areas to do with representation on-screen. I'm also very interested in female-led stories, so this could be a good lead for me and my practice.

I really enjoy the horror genre, as well as gory practical effects- therefore something rooted in the representation of women in horror / body horror involving female characters would be a root of interest for me.

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we were set the task of finding different debates in our current field of interest, so I found:

"Following from Wood's perspective, many horror films are about anxieties over masculine performance, with women as the victims of male aggression. However, Carol Clover has argued that horror is potentially empowering for women. Her emphasis on the one female, or "final girl," who often survives the killer's rampage in slasher movies, transforming from terrified screamer to active heroine, killing the killer, has influenced numerous readings of horror films from Halloween to Alien (1979) and its sequels."

Read more:
http://www.filmreference.com/encyclopedia/Criticism-Ideology/Horror-Films-CRITICAL-DEBATES.html#ixzz7RTnDGMlA

The debates surrounding the Final Girl are multi-layered- in some cases she is displayed as a feminist hero, in others, a victim of sexualisation and oppression.

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The monstrous-feminine : film, feminism, psychoanalysis

by Creed, Barbara

Men women and chainsaws : gender in the modern horror film

by Clover, Carol J

IDENTIFYING: Clover's book as a main basis for my research, she is essentially the 'creator' of the trope, despite it existing on screen before she made the connection

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Learning how to differentiate between academic / non-academic sources:
- looking at language / arguments / popular opinions
- academic writing should be references / peer re-viewed
- google scholar- a search engine for academic book / articles
- look at the title of the writer & the kind of publication it's in
-some books are academic whereas some aren't
- not every book counts as an academic source
what would make a good popular source?
- need to represent an appropriate viewpoint, need to be aware of the perspective
- if a popular source is easy to change, it's not worth using due to it being unreliable / untrue
- something like wiki: references are worth looking at and reading for a good overview
- go to sources and references direct, use as a signposting tool
-difference between academic personal writing vs. something peer reviewed
-experts using more popular mediums such as podcasts or TED talks
- read the abstract before the article
-free to join the british library
-tracking down books on google books
-libgen: file sharing site

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Debating about ...
- the need for primary research?
- asking for primary research in the right place / looking for a writer / producer in industry - an expert / industry insider
- (personally) for video nasties - a look into an era I didn't experience
-normally in the form of an interview / questionnaire
-interviews are flexible, if someone goes in a certain direction you can follow it with another question
- you can also ask for a further explanation if you aren't sure
- an interview can lead to unexpected and helpful results
- a phone / email interview is still useful
- interviews aren't a representative source, but a singular / specialist opinion
-representative of a wider view: need to include lots of different groups of people
-sending out a questionnaire: not everyone would answer
-it's a very limited form of information gathering
-considering sensitive topics
-ethics / offer anon / fake names
-keep open / allow expansion

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here is my presentation that I delivered for formatives week:
It outlines my current lead question, research areas and possible debates to tap into surrounding my topic

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CURRENT:
- (strategically) reading 'men, women and chainsaws' as well as 'the monsterous feminine'
- further researching on the debates on the 'final girl'

BY THURS 19TH:
- have chapter plan complete
- started main points and evidencing them

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GOALS FOR THE SUMMER
- continue reading sources relevant to the 'final girl'
- re-watch many iconic horror films from 70's-80's
- find a combination of 'popular' resources
- start a dissertation first draft

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SEPTEMBER: DISCOVERING 'THE FINAL GIRLS' PODCAST

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SEPTEMBER: DISCOVERING 'THE FINAL GIRLS' PODCAST

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I discovered a helpful podcast for my reseach topic: 'The Final Girls'
- the show is lead by a host, the topics range from 'female monsters' to 'vampires' - the podcast looks at horror from a contemporary, female orientated angle.
- often, the show goes in depth about specific films, I thoroughly enjoyed listening to their episode on James Cameron's 'Aliens' - as this helped expand my ideas on the concept of 'The Monstrous Feminine', that I had been reading about.

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I settled on 'To What Extent Is The 'Final Girl' Trope Outdated For A Contemporary Audience?'

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I began to create a bulk document of ideas, research, references and images that related to my dissertation topic.
- I could re-draft and change this document based on my dissertation tutor's advice
- I could start gathering references
- I could think about images that would be useful 'figures' in my writing

This document has changed a lot since I began using it!

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NOVEMBER 2022 - REVISITING MULVEY'S THEORIES 

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NOVEMBER 2022 - REVISITING MULVEY'S THEORIES 

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I was already aware of Mulvey's theories and especially her writings on 'The Male Gaze' - however I used this time to revisit her writing in greater detail, especially when looking at the relationship between the viewer and the subject.

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Laura Mulvey is Professor of Film and Media Studies at Birkbeck College, University of London, UK. She is the author of Death Twenty-four Times a Second: Stillness and the Moving Image (2006), Visual and Other Pleasures (1989; 2009), and the BFI Film Classic onCitizen Kane (1992; 2012).

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The essays collected in this book reflect some of the commitments and changes during the period that saw the women's movement shift into feminism and the development of feminism's involvement with the politics of representation, psychoanalytic film theory and avant-garde aesthetics.

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Something incredibly helpful to me in forming my structure was looking at the trope in 3 different ways:

- HOW SHE WAS PRESENTED TO BE EMPOWERING
- HOW SHE WAS PRESENTED TO BE REPRESSED
- HOW SHE HAS CHANGED

a huge reference for me in examining the final girl of today has been Ti Wests' slasher 'X' - it interestingly explores the re-vamped final girl, as well as a female coded victim, which is rare in the trend of the slasher film.

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using my chapter plan that I have been developing with my dissertation tutor - I started to write the introduction of my dissertation, while being able to consider the research methods and rationale for structuring my dissertation this way.

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December into early January was a difficult time for me writing my dissertation, as I was working on multiple FMP productions, however once these wrapped I was able to continue with piecing my dissertation together.

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JANUARY: FINISHING THE BULK OF MY DISSERTATION 

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JANUARY: FINISHING THE BULK OF MY DISSERTATION 

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throughout January, I have been able to proof read my dissertation with the help of other friends and family. I was able to make the finishing touches I needed, meaning I could move onto finishing my references and formatting.