Section A. Toyota Corolla ad

Media forms

Techniques used in the start of the advert are long shot to show the setting of the scene or advert. Shows it is in a home environment. No non diegetic sound as this creates a more realistic environment as there are only background noises and dialogue from the characters. The cat whimpering as to say its hurt to the owner and the owner replies with ‘’come on’ ’Shows us the relationship between the characters as well. Close up shots used on the characters as well to show their facial expressions and for the audience to recognise the characters. New shot that shows the car that is being advertised. Long shot used here to show the environment and the sophisticated neighbourhood. The non- diegetic sound then begins with a slow guitar, this is used to set the mood. To make it out as if the cat has fallen in love with the new car. This is because a point of view shot is used to imitate the cat gazing at the different components of the car. This shot is useful to audiences as it shows clearly what the vehicle consists of, the types of gadgets it has and how it would look if you were to sit inside of it. It gives all audiences a chance to almost experience sitting in the car. There is another close up on the face of the cat to show us the facial expression of it. At the same time the cat is purring, cats usually purr when they are comfortable, they like something or are enjoying themselves. This confirms for us that the cat has fallen in love with the car. There are various shots shown of the cat looking at the car, then looking at something that can cause an injury and then the final step of the process the cat being taken into the car. During this a close up is frequently used on the cats facial expression. Although we cannot see much of an expression we can guess that he is determined to find a way into the car again. Point of view shots used to show the cat looking at the car then the danger it is about to throw itself into. This lets us know exactly what is happening, and how the cat manages to get itself into the car. This helps reveal the story to the audience. Long shots frequently used to show how the cat gets itself into the accident, e.g. when the cat jumps off the wall onto the ferocious looking dog. Near the end of the advert the music becomes faster and upbeat, almost to say it has reached the main part where something dramatic or devastating is about to happen. Builds suspense to the audiences about what is about to happen to the cat now.

Media audiences

The advert would suggest to the audiences that the vehicle has a very satisfactory quality finish that even animals such as cats would injure themselves to take a ride in the car. The uses of shots and slow point of view shots that let us gaze of the components would make people who drive cars think about whether they like or dislike the components. It would save time for car buyers as they already know what the inside looks like now so instead of going out to a shop and sitting in the vehicle for a long time studying the components in more detail the audiences have a rough idea of what the cars aesthetics are inside. The advert would attract people who drive or are looking to buy cars. Social class of A,B and C as this car seems as though it may be expensive due to the famous brand name Toyota and the components. As well as bearing in mind that if you own a car you have to be able to spend a lot of money on it paying the road tax etc. Both genders would be targeted although a woman is shown frequently driving the car. The advert also has user and gratifications of entertainment and information for audiences. Entertainment because it is quite amusing the way the cat throws itself into so much danger that it ends up taking its own life just to be able to sit in the car. Information as this is done by the point of view shots giving information to audiences on what the car consists of inside.

Media Representations

The car in this advert is represented as something to die for. This is shown through the cat’s weird behaviour and intentions of injuring itself constantly just to have a ride in the new car. This clearly gives the impression to audiences that when you sit in the car once you will want to constantly sit in it. The high key lighting of the advert creates a positive and happy atmosphere which also helps audiences see the car in a positive light, whereas if there was low lighting you would not really find the car as attractive as you usually would. The unique colour of the car also makes audiences think there is something different about this car as it separates the car from all other cars that you see every day. The cat purring in the car also pushes the idea of the car being to die for. The cat is purring because it is comfortable which tells audiences what the car is like inside instead of viewers having to imagine what the car would feel like inside. The advert is also called ‘feels good inside’ which also explains why the cat purrs inside the car and risks its own life so much. This exaggerates in a humorous way for audiences how amazing this car is.

Media institutions

The company of the car Toyota would be shown as an institution that creates cars to die for. It shows high production values this is because the advert has probably used animatronic puppets in some parts of the advert for the cat, because you cannot have a real cat jump into all that danger. There is also use of CGI at the end of the advert for when the cat pushes its paw out of the dirt. The use of these things shows that the company would have spent a lot more money on the advert than a regular company would to make the cat look more realistic. This car makes the institution look as though they are the experts of car making, lets us know that professionals are handling the making of these cars so they would be up to standards. The institution is also selling a high social class lifestyle to audiences it is almost saying to the audience if you purchase this car then you will have a fancy lifestyle. This is because of the atmosphere and environment; we are shown long shots of the car, and every one of these long shots show a nice presentable background.