The post modern 'Hand-held' camera effect is self-referential

In post modernist filming (TV drama and films), the use of the hand hold camera effect is often used as a post modernist touch. This is quite self-referential, as the audience can relate to this, as it is simular to their ammature homemade videos. Examples of this effect is the TV series of 'The Office', where the hand held camera moves to film one person and then to another in coversation, creating a sense of humour, due to the many delay's and unprofessionalism of it all. Another example of this post modernism 'hand held' camera effect used for a differnt purpose, is the films 'The Blair Witch Project' and 'Cloverfield', where the use of the hand held camera is to create a scary effect; as the audience can view the footage from the characters point of view, creating a sense of reality to the film, as 'we' as an audience would film. (Talking into the camera, running with the camera- capturing footsteps, and what they are running into etc).

Jean- Francois Lyotard & Jean Baudrillard

'Lyotard and Baudrillard both share the belief that the idea of the truth needs to be 'deconstructed' so that we can challenge dominant ideas that people claim as truth, which Lyotard describes as 'Grand Narratives'. In the postmodern world, media texts challenge ideas of truth and reality, removing the illusion that stories, texts or images can ever accurately reproduce reality or truth, suggesting that there are always competing versions of the truth and reality, which post modern media products engage with.

Post Modernism - 'Hyperreality'

'The distinction between media and reality has collapsed, and we now live in a reality defined by images and representations- a state of simulacrum. Images refer to each other and represent each other as reality, rather than the actual reality of it which exists before the image represents it, this is the state of 'hyperreality'.' (something tnat has been distorted and blown out of proportion, is what the audience only recieves). An example of this 'hyperreality' idea, is of the theorist 'Jean Baudrillard', who claimed that 'The Gulf War Never Happend'. Or rather, the gulf war and the World Trade center attacks that came later can only be understood as media events. He sees the events of 9/11 in terms of image, suggesting that this is all we recall when it is mentioned- the endless images, and television video clips all merged into one news broadcast, that at the time was regularly repeated. It obviously was real, however the media jumped on the opportunity to make it a 'hyperreal' event to shock the world. -the edited short clips, photographic images collaged, voice overs of different news reporters, phone calls from people inside the towers etc all added to create this effect.