Digital Media 2025

Reader, Critical Analysis and Blog Posts

[alnajathsharoonmohammed]

Critical Analysis

Chan, M. (2014) Virtual Reality: Representations in Contemporary Media. New York, NY: Bloomsbury Academic.

In her book "Virtual Reality: Representations in Contemporary Media," Melanie Chan offers a scholarly framework upon which can be based an understanding of this profoundly revolutionary technology that has characterized the first part of the twenty-first century. whereas Virtual Reality (VR) has been summarily characterized in popular culture as a " gadget," Melanie Chan instead identifies it as a computer-generated world that has two overlapping but fundamental components: interactivity and immersion. In this way, Chan offers a completely new understanding that has far-reaching implications specifically in the field of digital media that completely transcends semantics and has rendered "storytelling" (in which the observer is a witness) passe in favour of "story-living" (in which the observer instead takes part).

The history of virtual reality is a rich one that runs from the allegory of the cave that Plato wrote down to the optical illusion paintings of Trompe L'oeil and the 3D gaming that we know today. It is particularly important for Chan (2014) to highlight the role of the 1980s and the 1990s because it was a time when the fictional construct of cyberspace was portrayed in tech discourse as a 'wondrous technology that envisioned the transcendence of the constraints of the body.' It was an illusion that Chan argues is warped in its very conception because the body was never something that needed to be overcome but something that defined the virtual reality identity.

Chan (2014) posits that interactivity is rooted in the user’s ability to manipulate and influence the environment; it is the "action" component of the experience the feedback loop between the human agent and the machine code. Conversely, immersion is described as the sensation of being "enveloped," a psychological and sensory state where the user’s consciousness shifts from their physical surroundings to the digital realm. From a designer's perspective, this distinction is revolutionary because it suggests that a system can be immersive without being highly interactive, such as a 360-degree cinematic film, or highly interactive without being fully immersive, such as a complex text-based strategy game. However, the "gold standard" of VR and the central goal of my own professional practice is the seamless fusion of both. Chan’s work suggests that for a virtual world to be truly effective, it must address both the body’s need for agency (interactivity) and the mind’s need for presence (immersion).

One of the most profound impacts of Chan’s theory on my own work is the shift in design priorities. In digital media production, there is a constant temptation to focus on high-fidelity graphics and "spectacle," often referred to in the industry as the "cool factor." While visual polish contributes to immersion, Chan’s framework forces a realization that "cool" is not a functional design requirement; it is a byproduct of successful execution. By prioritizing interactivity, I am forced to ask how the viewer engages with a scene. If a beautifully rendered virtual forest is non-reactive, the immersion is fragile. If the player can neither touch the leaves nor hear the footsteps, then the "enveloping" that Chan speaks of ceases. Hence, the design procedure shifts from creating a static image with paints to creating a responsive system that involves the viewer itself.

Chan’s academic rigor paradoxically offers a "simplified approach" to the design process by breaking down the complex phenomenon of VR into manageable categories. This creates a checklist for the developer: encompassing constraints, which involve the sensory "wrap-around" like field of view and spatial audio, and engagement constraints, which involve the physics of the world and how objects respond to the user. In my own goal for creating immersive experiences, these terms act as a compass. When a project feels "off," I can now diagnose whether the failure lies in the immersion, such as artificial lighting, or the interactivity, such as clunky controls. This analytical clarity elevates the design process from guesswork to a disciplined craft.

While Chan provides an excellent structural definition, consider how these elements impact the human psyche. Much like the work of Drakett et al. (2018), who explore how internet memes can reinforce outdated social norms and gender discrimination, digital media is never neutral. If a VR environment is highly immersive and interactive, the "ideological" weight of that environment increases. For instance, if a VR simulation reinforces social biases or lacks inclusivity, the "immersion" makes those biases feel like reality. As a designer, I have to realize my power to "envelope" a user is also an ethical one. Chan’s definitions provide the tools to build the world, but what the intent of that world remains in the hands of the creator. The ability to "interactively engage" with a scene means the user is practicing behaviors within that space, and we must make sure those behaviors are constructive.

Additionally, embodiment is an important theme that is continued here. If we recognize that the involvement of VR is not to be about escaping embodiment in the first place, then in order to create meaningful propriaception the type of cues that allow the observer to sense his or her embodiment within the virtual world game designers will be forced to abandon the ‘distorted ideas of transcendence’ that were present in the classic visions of VR. This means instead that instead of being "a ghost in the machine," it will be necessary to generalize that the observer is instead "a bodily self "which insists on sensory consistency when the elements of the game are clearly in sync with the observer’s physical movements.

In conclusion, Melanie Chan’s (2014) contribution to the study of contemporary media is indispensable for practitioners and academics alike. By isolating interactivity as the mechanism of engagement and immersion as the state of being enveloped, she provides a language that allows designers to move beyond superficial aesthetics. My own work has been significantly shaped by this dual-focus, teaching me that a successful digital environment is not just something you see, but something you inhabit and change. Chan’s framework simplifies the daunting task of "creating a world" into manageable design constraints, ensuring that the virtual spaces of the future are not just "cool," but are deeply resonant, functional, and presence driven. As we move forward into an era of increasingly sophisticated digital media, the balance between agency and presence will remain the defining challenge of the craft, reminding us that the most powerful virtual experiences are those that ground us in our own humanity rather than those that attempt to leave it behind.

[alnajathsharoonmohammed]

READER

1.

Aarseth, E.J. (2004) ‘Genre trouble: Narrativism and the art of simulation’, in Wardrip-Fruin, N. and Harrigan, P. (eds.) First Person: New Media as Story, Performance, and Game. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, pp. 45–55.

Going into this lecture I thought games were another way of telling stories. If movies and novels can tell stories why can not games tell stories too?. But learning about narrative theory challenged that assumption. Traditional storytelling relies on linear progress, causation, and closure, but in playing ,I do not just sit there and watch the story like I do with movies and novels. I am actually playing games. Making things happen so I am shaping the experience of playing games through the things I do in games.

This became more evident with Silent Hill. The game does not try to make everything feel perfect and real. It does the opposite. All these things actually make it harder to get fully into the game because the "Silent Hill" represents how games can build meaning through interaction, discomfort, and player agency rather than a traditional narrative structure.

2.

Manovich, L. (2001) The Language of New Media. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

This lecture made me think about how the existence of media as clearly defined entities is now in question. The old notion of medium specificity, as advocated by people like Greenberg, asserts that each medium needs to capitalize on what it can do uniquely. But modern media, such as video games, are now amalgams of graphics, audio, story, performance, and interactivity.

The idea of the post medium era was helpful in understanding the lack of luminescence regarding this amalgamation. Writer Manovich, in The Language of New Media, writes about how new media permits the coexistence of different media while also retaining strong ties to old media types, like the movie. His emphasis on ties, especially the influence of people like Dziga Vertov and Russian Constructivism, gives new media history instead ofrupture. As someone with interests in animation and new media, this view sparks creativity, not concerns.

3.

Jenkins, H. (2007) ‘Transmedia storytelling 101’, Confessions of an Aca-Fan, 22 March. https://henryjenkins.org/blog/2007/03/transmedia_storytelling_101.html

Henry Jenkins defines transmedia storytelling as a process where integral elements of a fiction are dispersed across multiple delivery channels to create a unified entertainment experience. He argues that this approach shifts the focus from individual characters to complex fictional worlds that can sustain many interrelated stories, encouraging an ‘encyclopedic impulse’ in the audience to master every detail of that universe.

Reading this has completely changed how I think about narrative structure. Rather than just telling a self-contained story, I can think about ‘worldbuilding’ and leaving intentional gaps for the audience to explore or fill. This is such a great resource because Jenkins is basically the authority on how franchises work. For my movies in the future, I would like to apply these concepts to ensure that the movies are more than just the ending credits because the audience needs to be engaged beyond the screen.

4.

Hills, M. (2002) Fan Cultures. London: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203361337

In this text, Matt Hills introduces the concept of ‘hyperdiegesis’ to describe the creation of a vast and detailed narrative space. He argues taht in many modern media franchises, the audience only encounters small fraction of the story and the entire world appears according to its own internal logic and history. This creates a sense of an 'extended' story that exists beyond what is explicitly shown on screen.

Being an animator and storyteller, this is useful to me as it changes the emphasis from simply telling a story to creating a thriving culture. The role of “intentional gaps,” which inspire the viewer to ask questions and seek answers, . This is a high quality source which gives me the academic terms to describe how things such as Star Wars and the Marvel universe manage to provide consistency in their immersion and how I can achieve the same thing in my own animations.

5.

Fiske, J. (1990) Introduction to Communication Studies. 2nd edn. London: Routledge.https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203134313

Fiske’s structuralism theory is actually quite useful in understanding how we make meaning of the world around us. Fiske's theory is that in reality, cultures use conceptual frameworks in which to place these perceptions of reality, which basically means we are able to read these frameworks of meanings like a language. This is not simply referring to word meanings, though that’s exactly what it sounds like.

As an animator, this text is incredibly grounding. It reminds me that every visual choice from character silhouettes to colour palettes acts as a signifier for a deeper concept. Understanding that meaning is produced through these hidden structures helps me be more intentional with my designs. It’s a high quality source because it offers a foundational framework for any creative professional looking to communicate complex ideas through visual symbolism.

6.

Bolter, J.D. and Grusin, R. (1999) Remediation: Understanding New Media. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. https://doi.org/10.1108/ccij.1999.4.4.208.1

In this seminal text, Bolter and Grusin explore the concept of ‘transparent immediacy’—the desire for a medium to become so realistic that it effectively disappears, leaving the user in a direct relationship with the content. They track this through history, from photography to VR, suggesting that each new technology promises a more unmediated experience than the last.

For my practice, this is a bit of a lightbulb moment. Though, as a person involved in the field of animation, I usually feel the need to work with such high levels of realism, the article has helped me understand the fact that immersion, as far as paper and pixels are concerned, has little to do with the technology factor and more to do with the ‘effacing the technology’. Of course, this article is a good quality resource because it has given me the necessary theoretical background on the history behind immersive media.

7.

Chan, M. (2014) Virtual Reality: Representations in Contemporary Media. New York, NY: Bloomsbury Academic.

Chan provides a precise definition of Virtual Reality as a computer-generated environment characterised by interactivity and immersion. She distinguishes between the two.According to Chan, interactivity involves the interaction with the environment, while immersion involves the sensation of being enveloped by the environment.

It is a crucial aspect I consider in my work within the realm of digital media. It forces me to look beyond the design requirement of a scene needing a ‘cool’ factor and more toward how the scene can be interactively engaged with by the viewer. In my own goal for immersive experiences, I understand the concepts associated with the encompassing and engagement design constraints associated within the design process. Work done by Chan is a quality source within the realm of academia since the terms can now be used for a more Simplified approach at the design process for the virtual world.

8.

Gregg, M. and Seigworth, G.J. (eds.) (2009) The Affect Theory Reader. Durham: Duke University Press.

This text dives into the abstract world of 'affect,' describing it as intensities or visceral forces that pass between bodies and worlds. Unlike fixed emotions, affect is relational and ongoing; it’s about a body’s capacity to affect others and be affected in return. It represents a shift in media studies from looking at what things 'represent' to how they actually 'feel' on a sensory level.

This has opened my eyes to a completely new way of thinking about character development and storytelling. It is a high-quality source because it gives a very sophisticated route to analyze the ‘stickiness’ of digital media in relation to emotions and the physical sensations it gives the consumer, which is a key concept in making animations impact heavily.

9.

Allison, T. (2021) ‘Race and the digital face: Facial (mis)recognition in Gemini Man’, Convergence, 27(4), pp. 1004–1020. https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565211031041

Allison’s research into facial recognition technology highlights a disturbing reality: these systems often misrecognise or misidentify Black faces due to inherent biases in their programming. The article details real world consequences, from social media algorithms mislabelling people as animals to wrongful arrests based on flawed AI matches.

This text is a quiet reminder that technology is never neutral. As someone working with digital tools and AI, it’s a call to action to be critical of the software I use and the data it’s trained on. This reading has helped me understand that “situated knowledge” is a resource that I need to learn from evaluating who implements this technology and possibly what biases are imbedded in this process. This source has high merit because it translates the political and social implications that technology has in its applications from a digital perspective.

10.

Berger, J. (2008 [1972]) Ways of Seeing. London: Penguin. https://doi.org/10.1093/hwj/dbaa020

John Berger’s classic text argues that 'vision implies points of view' and that images are never innocent; they always offer a particular, constructed view of the world. He critiques ‘ocularcentrism’ the Western tendency to conflate seeing with knowing and explores how our visual culture is shaped by specific power dynamics.

In an era of deepfakes and digital manipulation, Berger’s message that ‘seeing ≠ believing’ is more relevant than ever. For my work in animation, this reinforces the idea that every frame I create is a choice that carries a specific perspective. I would say it’s an encouragement to think more critically about the representational politics and ‘scopic regimes’ which I might inadvertently confirm or enact. There’s no way to overestimate the quality and importance of this source, which is fundamental and despite the date, obviously highly relevant to the issues involved in our contemporary culture’s extreme visualization.

[alnajathsharoonmohammed]

Blog Post #10 - Games Don’t Tell Stories — We Make Them

One thing from this week’s lecture has really stuck with me is my game actually a story? At first I thought the answer for this will be yes. Games like The Last of Us or Disco Elysium feel completely driven by story. But the more I thought about them and about what we’ve learned in narrative theory make a decrease in my confidents.

Traditional storytelling, from Aristotle to Todorov, is all about moving in a straight line, a beginning, a middle, and an end. That structure works well for books and films. Games don’t really work like that. When I play a game, i feels like is something real ,that i am seeing through the screen and I’m using my own skills to play the game in the direction I want. As Aarseth argues, games are about me, the player, more than they are about the character on screen. The character becomes a tool I use to act in the world. That feels very different from sitting back and being told a story.

something i find interesting is the idea of embedded narrative versus emergent narrative. Many games give you a world, a backstory, or a set of events that already exist that’s the embedded narrative.But the ones that stick with me the most are those that occur while I’m actually playing the time when I attempted to sneak past an enemy but got caught or the battle when I managed to triumph despite thinking that I would surely lose. Such occurrences are not scripted. They happen because of how I play. My choices whether I help someone, explore a certain area, or take a risk become part of my version of the story.

So in a way, a game’s narrative isn’t something the game simply contains. It’s something the game creates through my interaction with it. The story becomes personal when we fails in attempts, lucky wins, and moral decisions because the one who is playing it's me.

I don’t think narrative and interactivity are opposites. Too much story can feel restrictive and some feel empty. The games I love most sit in that fuzzy space between rules and fiction, where meaning comes from play rather than being handed to me. For me, games aren’t traditional stories they’re experiences that turn into stories once I start playing.

Reference

Aarseth, E. (2004) ‘Genre trouble: Narrativism and the art of simulation’, in Wardrip-Fruin, N. and Harrigan, P. (eds.) First Person: New Media as Story, Performance, and Game. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

Bordwell, D. and Thompson, K. (1993) Film Art: An Introduction. London: McGraw-Hill.

Juul, J. (2001) ‘Games telling stories?’, Game Studies, 1(1).

Manovich, L. (2002) The Language of New Media. London: MIT Press.

[alnajathsharoonmohammed]

Blog Post #9 - Thinking Through Virtual Reality: Affect, Games, and My Creative Practice

In the early 1980s Jaron Lanier coined the term "Virtual Reality". He was a computer scientiest worked at Atari(VRgloves & goggles).He was founded the VPL labs.

When I think about Reality I do not think of it as something that is trying to be like the real world. To me Virtual Reality is about how it makes me feel and how I interact with it. I like to think about Reality in terms of Virtual Reality and how it affects my body and my senses. This is what I find interesting, about Reality and digital media and design. Virtual Reality is good because it gets my body and senses involved which makes me feel things before I even think about them. This is why some Virtual Reality experiences are really meaningful even if they do not look like life.

I really like the game Beat Saber. It is an example of how you can use movement and sound and color and rhythm to make a game feel real without actually being realistic. As someone who is studying media I think Beat Saber is really interesting because it uses interaction design to make the game fun rather than just telling a story or having nice pictures.

When I play Beat Saber I do not think about how the game works I just play it. The reason Beat Saber is much fun is because of the timing and the motion and the feedback not because it is trying to be like real life.Beat Saber is a game and it shows how important interaction design is and how it can make a game, like Beat Saber really fun to play.

I think this way of thinking about feelings is more helpful to me than ideas about things that seem real or technology that is just, for show. It shows how the design of Reality shapes what people experience by using their senses and getting them to take part. When I use this idea in my art projects I can see how Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality or Mixed Reality could make my work more interesting by taking it outside of the computer screen. Of making something for people to just look at I could make places for people to go into move around in and really feel like they are there. So for example animation can be something that happens in a space. This means that media projects can do things when they hear a sound or when someone is close, to them. Media projects can even respond to the way someone moves.

However, there are risks. VR can easily prioritise immersion over meaning, or exclude users who cannot access or physically engage with the technology. As a designer, I need to think critically about who the experience is for and what kind of feelings it creates. For me, extended reality isn’t about pushing technology, but about using it thoughtfully to create embodied, affective experiences that support my creative goals rather than overshadow them

References

Chan, M. (2014). Virtual Reality: Representations in Contemporary Media. New York: Bloomsbury Academic.

Massumi, B. (2014). ‘Envisioning the Virtual’. In The Oxford Handbook of Virtuality. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Gregg, M. and Seigworth, G. J. (2009). The Affect Theory Reader. Durham: Duke University Press.

[alnajathsharoonmohammed]

Blog Post #8 - Emotions-The visceral side of digital media.

Feeling Before Meaning: Affect in Her...

The movie Her from 2013 is something that really made me think about how people feel and get emotional. When I saw it I noticed that I felt things deeply before I even thought about what it meant. I did not try to figure out the story or what it was trying to say away. The film Her made me feel a lot of things. I felt close, to the characters I felt comfortable. I felt a kind of quiet sadness when I watched the film Her. The movie had lighting and a warm colour palette. This made the film feel gentle. The slow pacing of the movie also helped to create a mood that stayed with me throughout the film. The film was gentle. The experience of watching the film was emotionally heavy, at the same time. I think the movie and its mood really stuck with me.

What really got my attention was the way the film uses sound and the voice of Samantha to make me feel something. The voice of Samantha feels really close and personal like she is talking to me. I started to care about Samantha even though I knew she was not a person but an artificial intelligence. This shows how feelings can be strong, without being an emotion. The film does not tell me how I should feel it just sets things up so my feelings can happen on their own.

The movie Her really gets to you because it uses things that happen every day. It does not need dramatic things to happen to make you feel something. You see Theodore being lonely and quiet and doing things and that makes you feel like you understand how he is feeling. I did not just sit there and watch his story I felt like I was a part of his feelings. The movie Her made me think about how I use technology and how easy it's to get attached to things like computers and phones. The movie Her is really good, at making you feel things and it made me think about my life and the movie Her.

For me, affect in Her “does” something important. It shapes how I connect to the characters and makes the boundary between human and technology feel blurred. The film uses emotion not just to entertain, but to make the viewer feel unsettled, reflective, and emotionally involved. That lingering feeling is what makes the film so powerful and memorable.

References

The Affect Theory Reader 2: Worldings, Tensions, Futures

Gregg, M., & Seigworth, G. J. (2009). The Affect Theory Reader. Durham: Duke University Press.

Ahmed, S. (2004). The Cultural Politics of Emotion. New York: Routledge.

Manovich Lev the Language of New Media

In this book Lev Manovich offers the first systematic and rigorous theory of new media. He places new media within the histories of visual a

Manovich, L. (2001). The Language of New Media. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

[alnajathsharoonmohammed]

Blog Post #7-When Algorithms Decide Who Matters..

We want to believe that technology is fair. We think that computers and machines do not have opinions and that they do not pick favorites.. Then we have facial recognition. This facial recognition thing shows us that this is not true.People like recognition because it is fast. They also think it is accurate. They say it is based on science and that facial recognition is unbiased.

The truth is that facial recognition shows us how our digital world is based on old ideas, about what people should look like. Facial recognition is an example of this. It shows us that our digital world is not as fair as we think it is. Our digital world is full of things that show us what people think is important. Facial recognition is an example of this. It shows us that technology is not always fair. Facial recognition is something that people use to identify faces. The thing is, facial recognition is not perfect and it does not work the same for everyone. Facial recognition is a part of our digital world and it proves that our digital world has been shaped by ideas, about whose faces are important.

We use recognition all the time now. For example when we unlock our phones. When we tag our friends on social media. We also use recognition when we walk past security cameras. The police use recognition too when they are doing their job. Facial recognition is so common that we do not even think about it anymore. So what is going on behind the scenes with this system that we do not see? The thing is, it is based on a kind of face. This face is usually a face and usually a face that is cisgender. Facial recognition is based on this face. Facial recognition is around us. It is using a kind of face as the standard for facial recognition. The facial recognition systems are basically using this face as the model, for recognition.

Facial recognition technology has a lot of trouble with people who do not have a face that looks like what most people think is normal. It makes a lot of mistakes when it tries to identify people, especially Black people with very dark skin. It also gets things wrong when it looks at womens faces because the systems that run this technology were mostly trained using pictures of men. This is a bigger problem for trans people and people who do not identify as just male or female because the technology thinks it can figure out someones gender just by looking at their face. Facial recognition technology also has trouble with people who have disabilities or faces that look different, from what's considered normal and it often misidentifies them or leaves them out. These problems are not just mistakes they are the result of decisions about whose facesre important. The people who make these systems decide whose faces matter. When the police or other people use these systems to watch us the mistakes they make can really hurt people. Make things unfair, for some groups. These systems can make the inequalities that already exist even worse. The mistakes are a problem when they are used for policing or surveillance and they can cause real harm to people.

Facial recognition can be made better by using a variety of people in the pictures it looks at. It should also be tested on different faces, men and women and people of different colors.. This only fixes the problem a little bit. The main issue with recognition is that it thinks that the color of your skin and whether you are a man or a woman are simple things that can be seen and measured. Facial recognition needs to put people into groups but people are not that simple. Facial recognition is based on the idea that people can be easily categorized. People are actually complicated and can be different things in different situations. Facial recognition relies on the idea that race and gender're easy to see but they are not. They are things that people decide. They can be different, for different people. The thing is, this issue might not be something that we can completely fix, especially when it is used to keep an eye on people control them or punish them. Sometimes the right thing to do is not to try to make the system better but to ask ourselves if the surveillance system should even exist or be used in the place and that includes questioning the surveillance system itself.

When I think about this technology I start to think about my way of creating things and using digital tools. I do not want to be biased. That does not mean I think I am completely neutral or objective. The truth is, everything I learn and know comes from my point of view which is the technology.

I ask myself who is the focus when I am working with the technology and who is not included in the technology. I try to remember that one persons experience with the technology is not the same as everyone Experience, with the technology. This technology makes me think about my creative and digital practice. I have to think about other peoples points of view not just my own. When I am designing something I need to think about how it will affect people rather than just adding that in later. I also need to remember that the things I create can affect how people see the world.

I have to keep checking my thoughts and ideas and think about the bigger picture. This technology and my creative and digital practice are connected in my mind. I have to keep thinking about what I'm doing and why and how it fits into the world around me. My creative and digital practice is important, to me. This technology is helping me to think about it in new ways.

Facial recognition technology shows us that things like cameras and computers are not just machines. They are made by people. That means they can be unfair. The people who make these things have their ideas about what is normal and what is not. They might not even realize they are doing it. These ideas get put into the technology anyway. When some people are seen as normal everyone else is seen as different. This is a problem because when we put this way of thinking into technology, like facial recognition technology it does not just show the problem it makes it worse. Facial recognition technology makes the problem bigger because it is used by machines and machines do what they are told so they make the same mistakes over and over. The challenge, then, is not to pretend we can remove bias entirely, but to stay critical, self-aware and willing to question the systems we are asked to accept as normal.

[alnajathsharoonmohammed]

Blog Post #6-Representation, Visual Culture & Identity in Digital Media

AI-generated image...

In the world we live in today images really matter. They help us figure out what is real and what is not. I learned something in class, which is that images are not always totally honest. Every picture shows us the world from the persons point of view and it kind of tells us how we should look at things. Images are never completely neutral because they can change the way we think about things. So what we see in image is often affected by the people, in power the culture we live in and the values of our society. Image shape how we see the world and images influence our thoughts.

The things we see every day are a part of our visual culture. This includes things like ads, movies, posts on media, video games and a lot more. John Berger says that the way we look at things depends on who we're where we are from. Sometimes we think that just because we see something we know what is going on. That is why pictures and images can really affect what we think is true.. With digital media people can change pictures add filters or even make them from scratch. So what we see is not always what is really happening with culture and the images we see. Visual culture is, around us. It is made up of all these images.

Representation is also closely connected to identity. Media doesn’t just show identity it helps create it. Stuart Hall says identity is always changing, not something fixed. The way media represents gender, race, sexuality, and culture can influence how people see themselves and how others see them. Sadly, many films and games still use stereotypes, which can lead to harmful or limited portrayals, especially for women and LGBTQ+ communities.

Power has an impact on how we look at the world through images. The way we usually see things is often influenced by things like capitalism, patriarchy and colonialism. This means that some types of people are shown in a light while others are ignored or shown in a bad way.

With the rise of Artificial Intelligence and new digital technologies it is getting harder to see these influences. Artificial Intelligence and these technologies quietly affect what we imagine and what we think, without us even noticing it. Power and these systems are still at working in shaping our ideas about the world and the people, in it and Artificial Intelligence is a part of this.

From my perspective, learning about representation has made me more aware of how I interact with images every day. Instead of accepting everything I see at face value, I now pause and ask questions like ,Who created this image? Whose point of view does it represent? And who is being left out? This awareness matters because images don’t just exist to entertain us. They influence how we see the world around us and even how we see ourselves.

Reference Links

John Berger – Ways of Seeing (BBC):

Learning to See (Visual Culture Video):

Stuart Hall – Representation and the Media:

Pratyusha Ria Kalluri on AI and Power:

About me

[alnajathsharoonmohammed]

Blog Post #5-Semiotic Analysis of Nike’s “Just Do It” Campaign.

The media object I have chosen is Nike’s “Just Do It” advertising campaign. At first, it looks like a normal sports advertisement. However, when we look closely, we can see that it has many hidden meanings. The words and images used in the campaign send messages about motivation, confidence, and believing in yourself.

It was Started as Blue Ribbon Sports in 1964, becoming Nike, Inc. in 1971, named after the Greek goddess of victory

The slogan “Just Do It” is short but powerful. On the surface, it gives motivations for people to exercise or play sports. However, at a deeper level, it suggests taking action in life and overcoming personal fears. In my opinion, the slogan works well because it feels direct and personal,to do the things you like without any fear.

Nike reintroduces "Just Do It" to today's generation with "Why Do It?" campaign — NIKE, Inc.

After nearly four decades of inspiring athletes to reach their dreams through "Just Do It", Nike is reintroducing the iconic rally

The campaign usually shows athletes who look tired, sweaty, and pushed to their limits. I like that, because it focuses on real effort instead of perfect bodies or flawless moments. It feels honest and relatable a reminder that success comes from hard work, not from looking perfect. The simple backgrounds and strong contrast also make the message stand out, keeping all the attention to the determination in each image showing the athletes.

The goal of this campaign isn’t just to sell Nike products it’s also selling a whole identity. It gives the idea that wearing Nike means being active, strong, and determined. A lot of these messages are subtle and not obvious at first, which actually makes the campaign more powerful. It’s a good example of how media uses symbols and imagery to shape the way people think and feel.

Reference Images

Nike “Just Do It” Campaign:

Nike. Just Do It

Nike delivers innovative products, experiences and services to inspire athletes.

Nike advertisements (Unsplash):

500+ Best Nike Pictures [HD] | Download Free Images on Unsplash

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[alnajathsharoonmohammed]

Blog Post #4- Strategies Of Realism

On Realism of Art.....

Lately I’ve been sitting with the idea of realism not just as an art style, but as a way of seeing. When I look at the creators I admire, I notice how many different versions of “real” exist. Some artists chase accuracy. Some chase emotion. Some chase the quiet truth hiding between the lines.And honestly, all of them feel valid in their own way.

Different Flavors of Realism I Keep Noticing in my life.

The Emotional Painter in Me - Realism Today

Contemporary Realism > The more I’m burdened with the technical aspects of painting, the less I see so before I lay my first brushstroke I..

There’s emotional realism, where the feelings hit harder than the visuals.

Realism Art: A Visual Guide

Lighting Design

There’s visual realism, where every shadow and texture feels like a mirror.

Dive into Social realism, an influential art movement that emerged in Global during 1929. Explore its impact on creativity and its enduring

There’s social realism, grounded in everyday life and its messy beauty.

From Surrealism to Magical Realism

Salvador Dalí , "The Persistence of Memory" (1931) From Surrealism to Magical Realism byCathy Locke   The Surrealist art movement, which eme

And then there’s surreal or magical realism, where the world feels familiar… until it doesn’t.

I love how each one succeeds differently. Some make you feel seen. Some make you feel grounded. Some make you feel like you’re dreaming with your eyes open.

Two Mediums, Two Truths

What is Realism in Film? Cinematic Realism Explained

Realism in film is a subcategory that many refer to as “slice of life.” Cinematic realism is rooted in the realism of art & philosophy.

I keep comparing film realism and illustration realism in my head.

Film realism feels like watching life unfold without filters natural light, imperfect dialogue, real spaces.

Illustration realism feels like remembering life softened edges, chosen details, a truth filtered through someone’s hand.

One observes. One interprets. Both tell the truth in their own language.

When I think about my own work, I realise I’m drawn to emotional realism more than anything else. I don’t need something to look real need it to feel real.

For me, realism is:

honesty

small details

the quiet moments people overlook

the things we feel but don’t always say

I like capturing the soft chaos of everyday life. The imperfect parts. The human parts.

AI is definitely shifting things

AI can create perfect images, perfect lighting, perfect scenes. But that perfection makes me more protective of the imperfect. It reminds me that realism isn’t about accuracy it’s about sincerity.

AI pushes me to define realism as something deeply human: a feeling, not a filter.

Realism isn’t a single style. It’s a conversation between the world and the artist. And as tools evolve, so does our definition of what feels true. But the heart of it stays the same trying to capture something honest.

[alnajathsharoonmohammed]

Blog Post#3: Intertextuality Transmedia.

In this blog,i was talking about transmedia and it refers to the interaction between different forms of media leading to convergence, as well as to the transfer of the contents of one form of media to another.

I was talking about Pokemon as a Transmedia Franchise: Exploring Limits and Creative Possibilities

Transmedia storytelling is a way of telling stories across multiple media platforms, where each platform adds something new to the overall story rather than repeating the same content. According to Jenkins (2006), transmedia allows audiences to engage with a story world through different forms such as games, films, television, and digital media. One of the strongest examples of a transmedia franchise in the gaming industry is pokemon.

Pokemon began as a video game franchise developed by Nintendo in 1996. Over time, it expanded into animated television series, feature films, trading cards, mobile games like Pokemon GO, manga, and merchandise. What makes Pokemon truly transmedia is that each medium contributes a unique experience. The main video games focus on player choice and exploration, allowing players to create their own journey as Pokemon Trainers. The animated series, on the other hand, focuses more on storytelling, character relationships, and emotional development. Pokemon GO connects the fictional world to real life locations, encouraging physical movement and social interaction. Together, these platforms build a shared and expanding Pokemon universe.

While transmedia storytelling offers many advantages, it also places certain limits on creativity. Pokemon follows a fixed set of rules, such as Pokemon types, evolution systems, and world logic. These rules help maintain consistency across different media forms and make the franchise easily recognisable. However, they can also limit how far creators can experiment with new ideas. Despite this, such boundaries are necessary to ensure that the franchise does not lose its identity.

At the same time, transmedia opens up many creative possibilities. Audiences can choose how they want to engage with Pokemon by playing games, watching the series, or using mobile apps. This flexibility attracts a wide range of age groups and cultures. Transmedia also supports fan participation. Fans create artwork, stories, videos, and online discussions, which further expand the Pokemon universe. This active participation strengthens audience engagement and keeps the franchise relevant over time.

A transmedia version of my own creative work would also use multiple platforms to tell a connected story. For example, it could start as a story based game inspired by Indian folklore. The same story could expand into digital comics explaining character backgrounds, short animated clips for social media, and a blog discussing the cultural meanings behind the characters. Each platform would add new information while remaining connected to the main narrative.

In conclusion, Pokemon is a successful example of transmedia storytelling because it balances clear narrative rules with creative expansion. It shows how transmedia can limit and guide storytelling while also creating new opportunities for audience engagement. For students and creators, transmedia provides a useful framework for developing rich and meaningful story worlds across different media.

References

Jenkins, H. (2006). Convergence culture: Where old and new media collide. New York: New York University Press.

Nintendo. (1996–present). Pokemon [Video game franchise]. Nintendo

[alnajathsharoonmohammed]

🤖 AI's Impact on 3D and VFX Artists Blog#2

The introduction of generative AI is causing a major, rapid change like a tidal wave for artists working in 3D and Visual Effects (VFX). New AI tools can now create complex things, such as 3D models and detailed visual assets, sometimes just from a simple text command. This is completely transforming the way these artists do their work. Because of this massive shift, there is a mix of excitement about the powerful new technology and deep worry among professionals regarding the stability of their future careers.

Recent Strike of artist against AI

In December 2022, a significant protest by artists against AI-generated artwork occurred on the online portfolio platform ArtStation. Artists flooded the site with an image featuring a red "no" symbol over the letters "AI" and the caption "NO TO AI GENERATED IMAGES" to voice their concerns about AI using their work without permission. 

More broadly, this 2022 protest was an early and influential event in the ongoing conversation surrounding AI and artists' rights. It contributed to:

Increased awareness of the issue among the public and the media.

The development of tools like Glaze and Nightshade, which help artists "poison" their work against AI training data scraping.

Subsequent, more formal actions, such as the major SAG-AFTRA strikes and Writers Guild of America (WGA) strikes in the following years, which included AI-related protections as a core part of their negotiations.

Multiple legal battles between artists and tech firms over copyright infringement, such as those against Stability AI and Mid journey. 

By 2030, 14% of employees will have been forced to change their career because of AI That's 14% of the global workforce, or 375 million workers

We can discuss some positive and negative side of Ai

The Positive Side: AI as a Workflow Supercharger

For 3D and VFX artists, AI is primarily acting as a powerful efficiency tool, not just a replacement.

Rotoscoping and Tracking: Automating the frame by frame isolation of elements in footage.

Denoising and Upscaling: Improving the quality of rendered images faster and with less manual effort.

Initial Texturing/Material Creation: Generating base textures and procedural materials from simple inputs.

Tools that convert text or 2D images into rough 3D models allow artists to quickly visualize concepts and explore iterations.

AI can simplify the creation of highly realistic simulations, such as fluid dynamics or crowd scenes, making previously unachievable effects accessible to smaller studios or individual artists.

AI integrates with real-time engines (like Unreal Engine) for instant rendering and iterative design, which is key for Virtual Production a rapidly growing field

The Negative Side: Job Displacement and Creative Concerns

While AI offers immense benefits, the threat of job disruption is real, particularly for certain roles.

The jobs most at risk of consolidation or replacement are those involving highly repetitive or lower-complexity tasks. Entry level roles like junior modelers, texture artists for background assets, and rotoscope artists are facing the most immediate impact.

If AI can generate a library of basic 3D assets (chairs, trees, generic buildings) quickly and cheaply through text to 3D or image to 3D tools, the demand for human artists creating these commodity assets will drop.

Generative AI models are trained on vast datasets of human created work, often without consent or compensation. This raises serious ethical and legal concerns about using AI generated assets in commercial pipelines, as studios and clients are increasingly hesitant to sign off on work with questionable ownership.

AI still struggles with client-specific, nuanced direction and maintaining visual consistency across an entire sequence or film. The output often gets an asset 80% of the way there, but the final 20% the artistry, refinement, and problem solving still requires a skilled human artist.

The Future Role: The AI Director and Refiner 💡

The consensus among industry leaders is that AI will not eliminate the need for 3D and VFX artists, but it will fundamentally transform their roles.

Future artists will need to be skilled in "prompt " knowing how to instruct AI tools precisely and, more importantly, curating, refining, and integrating AI generated work into complex production pipelines.

By offloading the tedious work, artists will have more time to focus on the creative, conceptual, and directorial aspects of their craft, such as storytelling, lighting design, technical problem solving, and quality control.

New job titles will emerge, focusing on integrating AI into production pipelines, such as AI Workflow Supervisor or Generative Asset Integrator.

[alnajathsharoonmohammed]

Blog Post #1-Narrative and Media Analysis of Life of Pi

November 21,2012

In this blog post, I will analyse the film Life of Pi (2012) using key concepts from narratology, media theory, and narrative structure. I will study how the film uses visuals, environment, sound, and symbolism to communicate story.

Figure 1: Life of Pi (2012) Official Poster

Life of Pi, directed by Ang Lee, is one of the most visually striking and emotionally powerful films in modern cinema. The film tells the story of a young boy named Pi Patel, who survives a shipwreck and is stranded on a lifeboat with a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker. The movie explores themes such as survival, faith, storytelling, and the line between reality and imagination.

Narrative Elements in Life of Pi

In Life of Pi, the narrative elements connect directly to Pi’s emotional and spiritual journey after the shipwreck. The story is not only about physical survival on the ocean but also about Pi struggling with faith, loss, loneliness, and hope. The film raises questions about truth and storytelling, especially when Pi shares two versions of his storyone symbolic with animals, and one realistic with humans. This makes the audience decide which version they believe, showing how stories help people understand difficult experiences. The connection between Pi and Richard Parker, the tiger, also adds meaning, as it represents both fear and motivation that keeps Pi alive. Through these elements, Life of Pi becomes a story about survival, faith, and how humans use stories to cope with reality.

Environment as Narrative

In Life of Pi, the environment itself plays an important role in telling the story. The ocean, sky, storms, and even silence communicate emotions without using any dialogue. When the ocean is calm, it shows hope and peace in Pi’s journey. During storms, the environment reflects danger, fear, and the emotional chaos he is facing inside. The glowing bioluminescent sea creates a sense of spiritual wonder and makes the moment feel magical. At the same time, the endless horizon shows Pi’s loneliness and isolation in the middle of the ocean. Through these natural elements, the film uses the environment as a powerful narrative tool to express Pi’s feelings and struggles.

Narratology vs Cinematic Technique

Even though Salen & Zimmerman talk about narratology and ludology for games, the ideas still help us understand Life of Pi because the film depends completely on narrative structure and cinematic rules instead of gameplay rules. The movie follows a strong causeeffect story where every event leads to Pi’s emotional and spiritual growth. Since the film is told almost fully from Pi’s perspective, the audience experiences the journey through his eyes, which strengthens the narrative. The visuals, such as the ocean, storms, and the tiger, follow consistent cinematic patterns colour, symbolism, pacing that make the fictional world feel believable and emotionally real. This is similar to Juul’s “half-real” idea, because even though Pi’s story may not be fully realistic, the movie presents it with clear visual rules and emotional logic. This makes the audience accept the story and engage with it deeply. So, the connection is that Life of Pi uses narratology and cinematic techniques together to create a meaningful, believable, and emotionally powerful story world.

Cinematic Techniques Supporting Narrative

Single-camera perspective makes the story intimate

Colour grading shows emotional states

Symbolic visuals (tiger, ocean, light) represent belief and spirituality

Sound and silence create atmosphere

VFX animals and environments make the world believable

Conclusion

Life of Pi (2012) is a powerful example of how films can combine narrative, environment, symbolism, and visual storytelling to create emotional meaning. Using Juul’s “half-real” idea, the film blends fictional elements with believable cinematic rules. .It remains one of the best films that represents the power of storytelling itself.

References

Life of Pi. (2012). Directed by Ang Lee. Fox 2000 Pictures.

Juul, J. (2005). Half-Real: Video Games between Real Rules and Fictional Worlds.

MIT Press. Salen, K., & Zimmerman, E. (2006). The Game Design Reader: A Rules of Play Anthology. MIT Press.