1 Contents page Purpose of the study guide Why study Australian cinema? Key Terminology Candy is one of Australia’s more under- The support of the public is greatly important ground productions, showing an intimate in keeping Australian films being produced. Narrative Purpose of the study guide 2 side of Sydney and Melbourne. Actors such This lack of support for the industry has In VCE Media, narrative is used to describe as Abbie Cornish, Heath Ledger and Geof- been a major contributor to the downfall of the selection, sequencing and construction frey Rush have received acclaim for their Australian cinema. In studying Australian of the relevant events from a story, whether Why study australian cinema 3 performances in Candy as well as their other cinema, the support will allow Australian it be fictional or non-fictional. In narratives, roles, though remarks were made about their stories to be understood, and continue to be the term ‘story’ refers to both the explicit and appearances preventing the topic of drug produced. An overwhelming amount of Hol- implicit events that contribute to the under- Key Terminology 3-4 addiction in the movie from being all that lywood Films are distributed and consumed standing of narrative. compelling. Regardless, the film has taken an by the masses in Australia. Because of this, otherwise very personal story and given it a audiences have been deprived of exposure to Codes face and a voice, loosening the stigma sur- Australian films, and by studying them we Synopsis 4 Codes are technical, symbolic and written rounded by drug addiction in Australia. can preserve our identity as Australians. tools used to structure and suggest meaning in a media text. Drawn from the study of Narrative structure breakdown 4-6 The aim of this study guide is focused to- wards VCE Media students covering Austra- constructivist semiotics, codes function as lian stories in unit 1 of study. The film will be Activity 1 the building blocks of meaning. They can be either: Characters 6 explored in depth, identifying elements such as narrative structure, codes and conventions Refer to alternative media forms and create employed by acclaimed theatre director Niel your own list in the space below of Australian Symbolic cultural customs/values that can be repre- Symbols are signs, shapes or objects that are Focus on filmmaker 7 Armfield and writer Luke Davies, who’s novel ‘Candy: a novel of love and addiction’ in- sented through film used to represent something else. In film spired the film’s plot. Also covering the mak- these are often associated with the mise en • scene in terms of the use of colour, props, Reception of the film 7 ing of the film and the climate of society at the time it was made, The study of Candy will • costume and performance (facial expressions provide VCE Media students with further • and body language). • Genre 7 knowledge on Australian film culture. Topics/ Technical themes covered will also be relevant to stu- • Technical codes encompass anything about dents studying VCE english or psychology. • the technical craft of creating a media prod- • References 9 uct. For film, this often involves the use of • camera, performance(the acting craft such • as accents, etc.), mise en scene, editing tech- • niques, lighting design, sound design. • • Written • Any written aspects of the media product • that conveys meaning. In film, this often includes the title sequence (font, colour), credits, any title cards used throughout, and dialogue spoken by characters.
Inforgraphic via Screen Australia 2 3 Key Terminology Synopsis Narrative convention Climax Following protagonist Dan (Heath Ledger) The inciting incident in Candy is when Can- his love for Candice or ‘Candy’ (Abbie Cor- dice (Candy) overdoses on heroin while Conventions nish) and addiction to heroin, the film brings taking a bath. We get a view from the per- Conventions are rules or commonly accepted the pair down a cycle of borrowing money, spective of Dan. The focus on his reaction to ways of constructing a media text/product to buying drugs, and attempting to get clean. the incident gives us the impression that he suggest meaning.These rules may be related Throughout the film their attempts to tack- will be the protagonist and much of the sto- to the media products: le addiction are continuously inhibited by ry will centre around his perspective, like it their old friend and primary provider Casper does in this scene. This scene shapes the way Form (Geoffrey Rush), their difficult relationship their relationship plays out in the rest of the Conventions of form are the technical char- and lack of hope in a promising future. narrative, as they continuously reach compli- Narrative convention acteristics common to a medium, such as the cations with each other and one must rely on Candy is represented in this scene by her use of hyperlinks in web pages and the alloca- the other to hold everything together. voice narrating her writing as Dan is reading tion of rewards to encourage players to move Narrative structure break- it. Commonly when characters are communi- through a video game. In feature films, this cating with each other while apart, for exam- relates to the aspect ratio, duration of screen down Technical codes ple the various letter scenes in The Notebook The washed out lighting and colours of the time, editing, etc. The narrative of the film follows the typical (2004), a voice over by the writer will be used three act structure, and among each act are bathroom have been used to represent the to indicate their expression/tone. At the same Genre repetitive cycles of inciting incident, climax energy draining from candy. The loud dia- Conventions of genre include any sequence time this scene shows the miscommunication and resolution. The development of the char- logue and fast paced music carries the sense of codes that are common to a particular in their relationship and how it’s causing it to acters is non-linear, and as relative to the of urgency of the situation. genre, and are often used to identify a film as deteriorate. The state of the house is a visual subject of the narrative, we see the characters belonging to a particular genre. Most recently indicator that things are degenerating. cycle back to their initial state in the same in contemporary cinema, conventions often Symbolic codes way a drug addict relapses after recovery. associated with genres are subverted and Candy appears very pale and white, indica- Technical codes tive of her innocence/purity when it comes to played around with, establishing genre hy- The handheld shots of the room tell us we drug use, in comparison to Dan. The broken brids such as the film The Host (Bong Joon- are seeing things from Dan’s perspective. The tiles above the bath are symbolic of the dam- ho, 2006). layering of audio while Candy is narrating age caused by the overdose, and the future further emphasises the chaotic tone of the Narrative damage drugs will have on their relationship. situation. It also replicates racing thoughts as Conventions of narrative can be understood Dan is wearing a red shirt which stands out they are going through someone’s mind. as the fundamental building blocks and prin- against the bleak colours of the bathroom. ciples of storytelling that span across media Red often symbolises passion and ener- forms such as literature, radio dramas, films Inciting Incident gy, something he brings to the relationship Symbolic codes and video games. Narrative conventions span whether it’s nature is positive or negative. Red The bright colours and messy handwriting the cause and effect sequencing of events; the can also represent danger, which ties specif- are representative of the chaos of the situation opening, development and resolution of nar- ically to the events of this scene being that and what is going on in candy’s head. Dan’s rative arcs; the point of view from which the Candy’s life is in danger. slumped body language indicates he’s at a loss narrative is experienced from; whether the or feels like he’s given up. He also desperately narrative has multiple storyline; the establish- Written codes tries to wipe off the writing on the walls as if ment and development of characters; the use trying to solve a tough situation by avoiding The strong language and swearing (Dan’s use of setting to convey meaning; the structuring it completely. of slang word ‘fuckin’ before almost every (or rather re-structuring) of time. other word he says) tells us about the charac- ters and their personalities, as well as increas- ing the intensity of the scene.
4 5 Written codes Characters The scattered wording of Candy’s writing (“ev- erything was gold… one night the bed caught Symbolic codes Abbie Cornish - Candice/ ‘Candy’ Geoffrey Rush - Casper fire… he was handsome, and a very good Candy is shown walking into the bright natu- criminal…”) shows us that she’s unstable and ral light of the outside, showing she is moving no longer able to control her on to a positive and hopeful life. Resolution Written codes Candy telling Dan ‘i’m here now’ tells us that she felt absent during their relationship while drugs were involved and her mental health was declining. Now that she has become clean and taken the time to look after herself, A strong willed, fun-loving artist, who some- she feels that she can truly be there with Dan, what fits the ‘manic pixie dream girl’ con- A chemistry professor who serves as a fa- and not have her presence damaged by exter- vention. Her character in this film is Dan’s ther-like figure to the young couple, giving nal issues such as drugs or mental illness. love interest, represented in the same way his them the money and drugs they need but addiction to heroin is. struggle to get on their own.
Heath Ledger - Dan Narrative convention The resolution of Candy involves the final scene, where Candy and Dan meet after a while and decide to go separate ways. This breakup scene is often shown towards the end of romance movies, and in this narrative it serves as closure for both the characters and the audience. The fact that neither of them explicitly say that they should break up shows that they are now both on the same page and Tony Martin - Mr. Wyatt are ready to move on. A kind man who is accepting of his daugh- A gentle yet intense man in his twenties as- ter’s relationship and lifestyle, though un- piring to be a writer, with little to look up to aware of her or Dan’s drug habits. Technical codes in his life apart from his love for Candice and The camera is held on Dan as Candy leaves using heroin. He maintains a rather uncon- the restaurant, so from this we can assume ventional appearance/nature and struggles to that they won’t be seeing each other any Noni Hazlehurst - Mrs. Wyatt place himself in society in the way he is ex- A protective mother who is a little less lenient longer and will continue on with their lives pected to. when it comes to Candy’s lifestyle, and wants separately. The room is low-lit and shadowy, what is best for her daughter. showing Dan is taking the damage from their separation. The long shot emphasises the dis- tance between them.
6 7 Focus on filmmaker Reception of the film References The story of Candy (2006) was nothing new En.wikipedia.org. 2020. Candy (2006 Film). [online] Available at: in the context of cinema at the time, so the
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