My further research on visual style within the media has shown me that there is a clear link between this and narrative style. The two themes are almost intertwined in some aspects which I found interesting as this creates a more complex sense of each of these. An example of this is related to the medium of a text. The medium is very much a key part of a narrative as, for instance, written texts may be able to gain more insight into the thoughts of characters, however my research showed that the medium is crucial within a visual style as well. The area I found interesting about this was the difference between novels and their cinematic adaptations specifically. Within novels, an author might give an in-depth description of a character, yet ultimately it is up to the reader’s interpretation to what this character looks like. Visual style differs when it comes to a visual mode, however, as actors need to be cast in texts in order to portray these characters. A key example of this is in the television fantasy programme Game of Thrones, with many characters differing slightly to their written description. An instance of this is the character Tyrion Lannister, portrayed by actor Peter Dinklage on screen, who is described to be far stranger looking and hideous in the novels. (A Blog of Thrones, 2017). There are a variety of reasons behind this. Firstly, in terms of production, creating a character to the exact description within a novel may be incredibly impractical to create unrealistic elements. Also, film adaptations allow a producer to create/ adhere their own unique visual style and leave a sense of individualism within a media text, and so changes may occur based on what this creator wants their visual style to be. Whilst this idea of mediums shows how a narrative can effect a visual style, I also discovered that this works in the opposite way through different techniques. One of these is mise-en-scène, a technique based around elements that appear within a shot/ costume etc. and is based around common connotations and denotations. (the Elements of Cinema, 2014). Instances of this range from stationary supplies on a desk, to British police characters wearing high-visibility jackets. This is crucial to visual style as it creates a sense of realism within a shot due to the associations that the audience make with the context and items in the scene. In addition, this can be subverted to create an individual visual style and a sense of individuality. This is also an example of how visual style effects a narrative, as aspects of mise-en-scène may be genre specific, for instance life support machines in a medical drama. The mise-en-scène can therefore be seen as key towards creating a genre, and therefore a narrative. In conclusion, visual style can be impacted by a narrative, but can also impact upon narratives itself.

References:

A Blog of Thrones (2017) How 15 Game Of Thrones Characters Are Different Than Their Book Version [online] available from <https://www.ablogofthrones.com/15-game-of-thrones-characters-difference-than-book-version/> [6 December 2019]

the Elements of Cinema (2014) Mise-en-scène [online] available from <http://www.elementsofcinema.com/directing/mise-en-scene-in-films/> [6 December 2019]