Blog task: Maybelline 'That Boss Life' case study and wider reading
Work through the following tasks to make sure you're an expert on the Maybelline CSP and particularly the wider social and cultural context.
'That Boss Life' close textual analysis
Use your notes from class to write about the connotations and representations created by the following technical and audio codes. Write at least a paragraph on each:
1) Narrative & genre: narrative theory and sub-genre
The narrative presented in this advertisement is that it tries to show how good this mascara is, and Maybelline does this with the use of bet-en-scene, cinematography and enigma and action codes. The narrative is a very simple one, which is effective, especially with the use of characters as they have chosen a "gay man" to make this advertisement, which subverts men's stereotypes as being masculine, as well as being the protagonist.
2) Cinematography: camera shots and movement
There are various close-ups used in this advert is used to effect, especially from the extreme close up on the eyes of the two protagonists allows the audience to see the mascara which is this advertisement's main selling point, to promote this mascara. Also, a close up is used in the golden suitcase to empathize again with the mascara's importance.
3) Mise-en-scene: costume & props
Costume use is used to make it effective. This is done by using glamor and eye-catching colors. The use of golden suits and the glittering outfits, for example, makes it stand out, which captures the audience. The use of props had to be used effectively, as the entire advertisement is basically based on a prop, mascara, and the use of color and glittering effects makes it more eye-catching
4) Mise-en-scene: actors, setting, lighting and colour
They used a "gay man" to promote this ad, this is very good from Maybelline as it subverts gender stereotypes as male and also, advertising like these always tends to be just female, but two of the characters are male, undermining gender stereotypes. Using setting, as set in New York, is used to represent how glamorous the mascara is.
5) Editing: pace, transitions and visual effects
It places additional effect on the mascara as the editor wants to focus on it. When applying the mascara, the use of sparkling effects is used, which may have connotations of how you feel better when applying the mascara.
6) Graphics: text/graphics on screen
Near the end, the big slogan of "Big Shot Like A Boss" appears on the screen to present the brand, and essentially engages people to buy it as, it suggests subtly if you use it if you're going to become a "boss." It also appears throughout the ad, for example on the suitcase.
7) Sound: dialogue, music and sound effects
Fast-paced background music creates an upbeat mood for the audience. Throughout the advertisement, using the glitter sound effects is used to show how good the mascara is. Manny's use of dialog is over-exaggerated, indicating how incredible he thinks the mascara is. The use of music matches the paced editing of the face.
Maybelline 'That Boss Life': wider reading
Read the following articles on this campaign:
Glamour: Manny Gutierrez Is the First Man to Star in a Maybelline Campaign, and It’s a Huge Deal
Your Story: Cosmetics giant breaks gender stereotypes by choosing male model as a face of the brand
Adweek: Maybelline Recruits Manny Gutierrez as Its First Male Beauty Star
Complete the following questions/tasks:
1) Why was this campaign such a landmark for beauty product advertising?
The fact that they used male beauty star subverts the idea of gender stereotypes that there must be a female that's advertising cosmetics, as well as subverting the stereotype that men must be masculane, this shows how society has progressed from what it used to be.
2) What do the articles suggest regarding the changing representation of sexuality and masculinity?
It says in the article that masculinity is changing and the pressure on men to be a certain image is lower. Maybelline typically showed their campaign stars as females, so the fact that they're using a male make-up artist shows they're adapting to change; understanding that make-up is no longer strictly for girls.
3) Read this WWD article: Maybelline Taps Digital Makeup Influencers for New Mascara Campaign. Why might 'digital influencers' be so attractive to companies?
Digital influencers seem attractive to these companies because they tend to have a lot of social media outlets like YouTube, Insitagram, etc. Due to their huge fanbase, brands can advertise their products to the mass market while maintaining a "younger, more digital fanbase" as well.
4) Why do you think Maybelline chose to use MannyMUA and MakeUpShayla in particular?
5) What does the WWD article suggest is the crucial factor for brands regardless of whether they use influencers or more traditional celebrities?
Media Magazine: The Changing Face of Masculinity
Now go to our Media Magazine archive and read the feature 'The Changing Face of Masculinity' in MM63 (page 15). This will allow us to compare our two advertising CSPs - the Score hair cream advert and the Maybelline digital campaign. Answer the following questions:
1) What message does the article suggest the Score hair cream advert is trying to communicate to the 1967 audience?
The article suggests that the Score hair cream advertisement's main message was: men can conquer, dominate, and have power that ultimately also makes them more desirable.
2) How does the article suggest the Score hair cream advert uses narrative to sell the product?
The' Score' ad uses a large image of a grinning man dressed in the crook of his arm as a hunter with a rifle. Five women dressed in sexualized hunting costume are holding him aloft on a tiger-skin platform: short skirts, tied-up shirts and ammunition belts. Four women watch him with adoration.
3) What 1967 stereotypes does the article suggest the Score hair cream advert reinforces?
They believe that this reinforces gender roles, and the power men have over women. The advert is using female sexuality to show men they can have power: you can conquer, you will be desired. The females are directly below the male and hold him up, suggesting that they are socially below males and somewhat subordinate to men in society in the 1960s.
4) Applying Stuart Hall's reception theory, what does the article suggest the preferred and oppositional readings could be for the Score hair cream advert?
A preferred reading may be that this hair product will make you more appealing to women, making you look more desirable and receiving more attention from women. An oppositional reading, however, would focus on the way in which the females are represented in an overtly sexual manner compared to the man.
5) Moving on to the Maybelline advert, why is the background of Manny Gutierrez and Shayla Mitchell significant?
YouTubers ' background is important because it helps to highlight how much the advertising industry has changed and developed over time. Also, a Mexican-Spanish-American beauty vlogger and sensation of Instagram, Manny Gutierrez. The video ad deals with issues related to gender representation, ethnicity and lifestyle, which has been a major point of discussion in society.
6) What is the narrative of the Maybelline advert?
The Maybelline advert follows the two YouTubers as they use a brand new line of Maybelline's Big Shot mascara. When they use this mascara, they transform into glamorous stars, that enable them to do anything they please (like getting into a really popular nightclub).
7) What does the article suggest the Maybelline advert's message is?
Like its counterpart in the 1960s, the ad uses an aspirational image that shows two friends who do not conform to male and female ideals but are nevertheless powerful: happy in their own skin, confident in their bodies and sexuality. This shows the 1960s contrast, score cream advertisement, showing a clear men's bias view.
8) The final section of the article focuses on masculinity. What do the Score advert and the Maybelline advert suggest regarding the changes in society and media between 1967 and 2017?
I feel like the change in advertising was one of the main aspects of this ad, to show how much the idea of masculinity and men had changed over the years. Males were often considered more dominant or valued higher than females, but we see both males and females enjoying a product together with the same positive reactions on the same level as each other in the Boss Life advertisement.
Work through the following tasks to make sure you're an expert on the Maybelline CSP and particularly the wider social and cultural context.
'That Boss Life' close textual analysis
Use your notes from class to write about the connotations and representations created by the following technical and audio codes. Write at least a paragraph on each:
1) Narrative & genre: narrative theory and sub-genre
The narrative presented in this advertisement is that it tries to show how good this mascara is, and Maybelline does this with the use of bet-en-scene, cinematography and enigma and action codes. The narrative is a very simple one, which is effective, especially with the use of characters as they have chosen a "gay man" to make this advertisement, which subverts men's stereotypes as being masculine, as well as being the protagonist.
2) Cinematography: camera shots and movement
There are various close-ups used in this advert is used to effect, especially from the extreme close up on the eyes of the two protagonists allows the audience to see the mascara which is this advertisement's main selling point, to promote this mascara. Also, a close up is used in the golden suitcase to empathize again with the mascara's importance.
3) Mise-en-scene: costume & props
Costume use is used to make it effective. This is done by using glamor and eye-catching colors. The use of golden suits and the glittering outfits, for example, makes it stand out, which captures the audience. The use of props had to be used effectively, as the entire advertisement is basically based on a prop, mascara, and the use of color and glittering effects makes it more eye-catching
4) Mise-en-scene: actors, setting, lighting and colour
They used a "gay man" to promote this ad, this is very good from Maybelline as it subverts gender stereotypes as male and also, advertising like these always tends to be just female, but two of the characters are male, undermining gender stereotypes. Using setting, as set in New York, is used to represent how glamorous the mascara is.
5) Editing: pace, transitions and visual effects
It places additional effect on the mascara as the editor wants to focus on it. When applying the mascara, the use of sparkling effects is used, which may have connotations of how you feel better when applying the mascara.
6) Graphics: text/graphics on screen
Near the end, the big slogan of "Big Shot Like A Boss" appears on the screen to present the brand, and essentially engages people to buy it as, it suggests subtly if you use it if you're going to become a "boss." It also appears throughout the ad, for example on the suitcase.
7) Sound: dialogue, music and sound effects
Fast-paced background music creates an upbeat mood for the audience. Throughout the advertisement, using the glitter sound effects is used to show how good the mascara is. Manny's use of dialog is over-exaggerated, indicating how incredible he thinks the mascara is. The use of music matches the paced editing of the face.
Maybelline 'That Boss Life': wider reading
Read the following articles on this campaign:
Glamour: Manny Gutierrez Is the First Man to Star in a Maybelline Campaign, and It’s a Huge Deal
Your Story: Cosmetics giant breaks gender stereotypes by choosing male model as a face of the brand
Adweek: Maybelline Recruits Manny Gutierrez as Its First Male Beauty Star
Complete the following questions/tasks:
1) Why was this campaign such a landmark for beauty product advertising?
The fact that they used male beauty star subverts the idea of gender stereotypes that there must be a female that's advertising cosmetics, as well as subverting the stereotype that men must be masculane, this shows how society has progressed from what it used to be.
2) What do the articles suggest regarding the changing representation of sexuality and masculinity?
It says in the article that masculinity is changing and the pressure on men to be a certain image is lower. Maybelline typically showed their campaign stars as females, so the fact that they're using a male make-up artist shows they're adapting to change; understanding that make-up is no longer strictly for girls.
3) Read this WWD article: Maybelline Taps Digital Makeup Influencers for New Mascara Campaign. Why might 'digital influencers' be so attractive to companies?
Digital influencers seem attractive to these companies because they tend to have a lot of social media outlets like YouTube, Insitagram, etc. Due to their huge fanbase, brands can advertise their products to the mass market while maintaining a "younger, more digital fanbase" as well.
4) Why do you think Maybelline chose to use MannyMUA and MakeUpShayla in particular?
5) What does the WWD article suggest is the crucial factor for brands regardless of whether they use influencers or more traditional celebrities?
Media Magazine: The Changing Face of Masculinity
Now go to our Media Magazine archive and read the feature 'The Changing Face of Masculinity' in MM63 (page 15). This will allow us to compare our two advertising CSPs - the Score hair cream advert and the Maybelline digital campaign. Answer the following questions:
1) What message does the article suggest the Score hair cream advert is trying to communicate to the 1967 audience?
The article suggests that the Score hair cream advertisement's main message was: men can conquer, dominate, and have power that ultimately also makes them more desirable.
2) How does the article suggest the Score hair cream advert uses narrative to sell the product?
The' Score' ad uses a large image of a grinning man dressed in the crook of his arm as a hunter with a rifle. Five women dressed in sexualized hunting costume are holding him aloft on a tiger-skin platform: short skirts, tied-up shirts and ammunition belts. Four women watch him with adoration.
3) What 1967 stereotypes does the article suggest the Score hair cream advert reinforces?
They believe that this reinforces gender roles, and the power men have over women. The advert is using female sexuality to show men they can have power: you can conquer, you will be desired. The females are directly below the male and hold him up, suggesting that they are socially below males and somewhat subordinate to men in society in the 1960s.
4) Applying Stuart Hall's reception theory, what does the article suggest the preferred and oppositional readings could be for the Score hair cream advert?
A preferred reading may be that this hair product will make you more appealing to women, making you look more desirable and receiving more attention from women. An oppositional reading, however, would focus on the way in which the females are represented in an overtly sexual manner compared to the man.
5) Moving on to the Maybelline advert, why is the background of Manny Gutierrez and Shayla Mitchell significant?
YouTubers ' background is important because it helps to highlight how much the advertising industry has changed and developed over time. Also, a Mexican-Spanish-American beauty vlogger and sensation of Instagram, Manny Gutierrez. The video ad deals with issues related to gender representation, ethnicity and lifestyle, which has been a major point of discussion in society.
6) What is the narrative of the Maybelline advert?
The Maybelline advert follows the two YouTubers as they use a brand new line of Maybelline's Big Shot mascara. When they use this mascara, they transform into glamorous stars, that enable them to do anything they please (like getting into a really popular nightclub).
7) What does the article suggest the Maybelline advert's message is?
Like its counterpart in the 1960s, the ad uses an aspirational image that shows two friends who do not conform to male and female ideals but are nevertheless powerful: happy in their own skin, confident in their bodies and sexuality. This shows the 1960s contrast, score cream advertisement, showing a clear men's bias view.
8) The final section of the article focuses on masculinity. What do the Score advert and the Maybelline advert suggest regarding the changes in society and media between 1967 and 2017?
I feel like the change in advertising was one of the main aspects of this ad, to show how much the idea of masculinity and men had changed over the years. Males were often considered more dominant or valued higher than females, but we see both males and females enjoying a product together with the same positive reactions on the same level as each other in the Boss Life advertisement.
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