Blog Post #3

Hola!

I am really sad that this class is almost over. It is one of the few classes this semester that I actually want to listen to. The telenovela I chose to analyze is called Siyah Beyaz Ask, it is one of the Turkish telenovelas Dr. Acosta-Alzuru has talked about in class. I finished watching it last month, as I was addicted to it and couldn't do anything else until I finished it. I fell in love with the main characters, so imagine my surprise when in the class about production Dr. Acosta-Alzuru showed us videos of the filming and a picture with the main character. I got really excited and I wasn't even the one that was in the set.

Siyah Beyaz Ask is a telenovela rosa. The guy is kind of a mafia man and she is a surgeon. There is a lot of drama, violence, and love. It was not the first Turkish drama that I have seen, so I knew there are restrictions with 'love scenes' but I still hoped that they would show us a bit more. It still doesn't go past kissing.

Even though they don't show us a lot of passion, the telenovela shows love through other actions. For example, he is extremely protective of her (sometimes it made me mad, sometimes I loved it). He is a very serious man, doesn't show his emotions to anybody (he doesn't even cry when he has a bullet in his leg) but he shows his emotions to her. There are also little gestures that they do that show that they really love each other.

The telenovela that I am addicted to right now is La Mujer Perfecta. When the telenovela first came out, my nanny was addicted to it, she never missed an episode. We also talked a lot about it during class, so I knew it was good. But let me tell you, it is amazing! It is interesting to see how a person with Asperger's growths up in the Venezuelan society, how everybody calls her crazy or "frita" just because she is different. The telenovela educates you about this condition, and how to treat people that have it. It also educates you about other things, like beauty standards, the age gaps in relationships, cancer, homosexuality, different social classes, corruption, and more. Even though it is a telenovela rosa, it is unique in its own way, as it is mature and informative. The novela has the couple and the antagonist, and the main character is naive because she has Asperger Syndrome, but she is actually really intelligent. She grows as the telenovela progresses, and overcomes the obstacles thrown to her with so a lot of maturity and poise.

As Dr. Acosta-Alzuru has said in class, Leonardo Padrón is an amazing writer and he manages to send messages about the situation in Venezuela through the telenovela. The scene that stuck to me the most is when the owner of the modeling academy fires one of the best professors. All the students and the rest of the professors do not agree with her decision and they start a riot.  In the end, because of the riot, the professor is allowed to come back. The characters say "There is nothing more persuasive than a riot. Democracy always wins" I was like:

This scene was a subtle way to send a message to the country. If the country unifies, starts a riot, and does not give up, we will be able to take the government down. Another thing I think is interesting is that the telenovela is videotaped and some episodes only last 30 minutes because a national message of the president started playing. You can see how the episode is suddenly interrupted with our national anthem, which meant that Hugo Chavez had something to say.

He also shows the current situation in the country by having many robberies and when people say things are too expensive. One of the social issues that is most talked in the telenovela is beauty standards and our addiction to plastic surgery. It is called La Mujer Perfecta after all and the question "what is the perfect woman?" comes up multiple times. I believe that the wife (eventually ex) of the main character represents what Venezuelan people would say is the perfect woman according to our beauty standards. She has been through many plastic surgeries, and every time she feels like she is getting fat, old or she grew uncomfortable with her boobs, she gets a retouch. The telenovela shows how common it is to have plastic surgery in Venezuela. I even had plastic surgery when I was 16 as it is considered something so normal. Is it right? No, but our society believes that you always have something to fix in order to become the perfect woman. In the end, you learn that none of us are perfect, but you are perfect in the eyes of the people who love you. 

 "Tú eres la mujer perfecta para mí

Y yo he nacido para amarte

Y esperarte

Tú la mujer perfecta"

The soundtrack of this telenovela is amazing, I 100% recommend it, here is a link to the youtube playlist:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjN02GmGvXE&list=PLLrtEeKaTVlUUlRoq7m6rM7hnR8jyeTR9

I remember people used to party to one of the songs when I was 12, that's how popular the songs were. 

La Mujer Perfecta sends a lot of beautiful messages that hopefully have a great impact on the viewer, I know it definitely impacted me. Also, it filled me with pride to know that it is a Venezuelan telenovela, and it made me miss my country even more. Hopefully, we will get out of this dictatorship very soon and Venezuelan telenovelas start being produced again (especially because Juan Guiado said that he is bringing RCTV back)!

Love & Light,

Nicole García

Blog Post #3

So much has happened in "Kurt Seyit ve Sura" and I am reeling!! I didn't want to give away much about the characters or the plot of the story in case anyone wanted to watch the show themselves, but I think I should give a little background at least to give an idea of what it's all about and how it relates to what I've watched in recent episodes.

Here is the basic premise of the show:

We're set in Petrograd in Russia (now modern day St. Petersburg after the Soviet Union collapses) where the main characters meet at a ball. Considering the time period and the role women played in society, the main female protagonist, Sura, is coming to this ball as an "introduction" to society. This is where she could meet her potential husband and find suitors in general. There, she makes eye contact with Kurt Seyit, the male protagonist and her future love.  They have that instant love-at-first sight kind of connection even though it takes another episode or two in order for the two of them to actually get together. The show follows the two of them firstly through their relationship against the conflict of other characters that have some kind of romantic interest in them (the former friend Petro wishes to be with Sura and the former lover Baroness Lola wants to be with Seyit) as well as the conflict that keeps that apart mainly being the war.

Where I am at now in the show, the main characters have left Russia entirely and sought refuge in Istanbul where a whole different conflict meets them. Throughout their relationship in Russia, the two of them were more in tune with each other and definitely experiencing their honeymoon phase of their relationship. However, when they get to Turkey, the complications of everything that happened before they left joined with the new insecurities that Sura has about other Turkish women in Seyit's life makes the conflict change the dynamic of their relationship. The conflicts overall have changed both of the characters in a way and the most dramatic way that it does it through is - death.

Something that I have wondered a lot about throughout our classes is the reasons why writers and producers choose to kill off certain characters. You would think that it's because it serves some kind of purpose or that it's all an element in the story. For the most part, I think that "Kurt Seyit ve Sura" does follow this outline when it comes to killing off their characters. But, the scariest thing about this show is that they are not afraid to kill off important characters. There are characters in the early episodes that you think would last until the very end because they would serve huge roles in the main characters' lives. However, the show has not only killed off influential characters, but what "Kurt Seyit ve Sura" has done is completely astounding to me. In the span of a single episode, the show killed off five influential characters. I was so shocked when this happened and I was keeping a kill count through every minute. After the first character died, I still trusted the show and I didn't expect what was to come. However, when the second and, then, third character died, I started keeping count because I didn't think it was possible for a show to kill off so many characters in a single episode. But, it happened and when it did, it really did change the entire situation of the characters going forward. I think it was a very brave move that the show did by killing off these characters because as a telenovela, the audiences are following these characters for every episode that is aired. It could have caused a lot of drama and strife for audiences and the people who love this show probably had a very dramatic reaction to all that happened.

A lot more has happened since Seyit and Sura have left Russia and have embedded themselves in Istanbul and I don't know if I'll be able to update anymore on what's going on with the two of them since this class is almost over! But, I definitely suggest this show to everyone because it honestly brings in all of the elements that we have talked about in class with extreme care and passion and the intense work done on the show really shows through. It's an impressive feat and this class has definitely made me appreciate it a lot more!

The unfolding of Kill Me, Heal Me

Hello! 
It's Suley Rostro and I'm back with more of a detailed review of the Korean drama I'm watching, Kill Me, Heal Me. As the story progresses, Do Hyun constantly has times where a certain environment or phrase triggers memories from his childhood that are very vague. These memories slowly become more detailed, he is in a dark basement surrounded by toys, and a figure comes in and he covers himself as if he was going to be hit. 
Then we have Ri Jin becoming the cause of these memories being triggered, she even says "I have a fear of fire and basements" which then you can conclude that Do Hyun and Ri Jin were childhood friends. 

These are all of Do Hyun's different personalities.

Today I'll focus on connecting the society of South Korea with the drama and the production.

• Do Hyun is always hiding his disorder from everyone including his family. The reason he does this is because he knows he'll be ostracized by them, so he himself chooses to stay away from them. He avoids forming new friendships, out of fear that they could discover his disorder and meet one of his personalities and become afraid of him. 
• I've looked into mental health in South Korea and found that there is a huge stigma against voicing your own struggles with mental health. As the country with the the second highest rates of suicide, the amount of people seeking help and treatment is very low. While reading an article I came across this phrase, "...it is not seen as a clinical issue...rather, seen as a burden on a family's reputation." This really resonates with Do Hyun's situation, if his family discovers that he is even going to therapy, that is enough to have him shamed and looked down upon. 

This drama shows you that a portion of South Korean society, especially the elite and rich, are only really interested on their own reputation and how to maintain their good and posh appearance to the public. 
http://www.intheforefront.org/in-korea-there-is-no-mental-health-barriers-to-treatment/
(This is the link for the article that I referenced) 

Currently, there is a lot of suspicion towards Do Hyun, with his grandma (aka the Chairwomen) hiring spies to look into his movements and into Ri Jin's past. Even his own cousin, that is after Do Hyun's future position as CEO, found out where his psychologist works and pressured the doctor to expose Do Hyun's condition (which thankfully the doctor read the situation and did not speak on Do Hyun's condition). 

• One thing I've realized through today's class is that many Korean drama shoot/film outside of studios, similarly to Turkish dramas. These are some videos in which you can see the actors practicing and all the crew filming in public.

1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-p37Tvroxs
2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73_VUh0w6wE
3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqSNr9qXVJ4

• Another interesting fact that I found out through research of the production of South Korean dramas, is that much of the budget goes to paying these very well-known actors and actresses. Similar to what we learned today, that executive producers see actors as commodities, especially if you have a famous actor or actress that has a huge following that brings in high ratings. Around 55%-65% of the budget to make these dramas goes toward paying these popular actors and actresses. On average an episode cost around $200,000 or 250 million won. 
• They are famous for shooting as many scenes as possible in a day, this results into actors and actresses admitting to receiving IV therapy while on set. 
• While majority of scrip writers are female, the crew including the director are mostly men. 

This is all for this blog post! 

Thank you all, 

Suley Rostro

Blog Post 2

Hola Clase!

I'm at the point of my telenovela where I am at a crossroads. I really want Teresa to think about the consequences of marrying Arturo, and not being with Mariano, but I really want her to get what she wants. It's crazy to want the antagonist (Teresa) to win and get what she wants, but it makes sense because she is technically the protagonist also. Naturally, you want the protagonist to be happy, but in this case her happiness comes with unhappiness of other protagonist. Also, I see so much of myself in Teresa, which makes me want to root for her, but I also want her to understand that her happiness should not be at the cost of others. Like Teresa, I have this strong desire to be more than my background and have power over my life. "Ser o no ser, yo soy!" To be or not to be somebody, I am somebody, speaks volumes to me. For this reason, I have such a strong pull towards the main character. I am waiting for the novela to get to the point where Teresa realizes she's wrong and decides to change, but I heard that she doesn't realize it until the last two episodes. 

Last week in class we learned about telenovelas being used to make awareness. I never thought about writers working in messages into their novelas, but now when I watch them, I will definitely think about it. In Teresa, I definitely think that the message is about the importance of happiness. It's starting to be very clear to me that money is not worth happiness. I know (because I spoiled it for myself) that Teresa ends up with money and power after defeating her enemies, but she is left alone with nobody to spend it with and nobody to love her. Aside from my novela, writers putting messages in novelas has made me think about how American television can discuss important topics in a entertainment form to educate the public, similar to telenovelas. The only issue with that is that American's don't watch the same things. In Latin, Central, and South America telenovelas take over and capture the population until the finale, while in the United States people watch completely different programs. I do think that during American Idol, they could have caught the attention of many Americans. 

This week, I learned "muchisimo muchisimo" about production. I still have so many questions about it though, so if anyone wants to comment below and answer them or add their input, feel free!

1. Telenovela actors makes significantly less than hollywood actors. Why? Telenovelas have up to or sometimes even over 200 episodes and they have to film over 20 scenes a day, compared to Hollywood actors that only film around 20 (at the most) episodes. I just don't see the correlation. Maybe because the Hollywood industry is bigger, but I feel like there is more money in the telenovela industry.

2. What happens during a novela if they are in the middle of filming and the actor or actress can't make it because they are sick or if they get hurt?

3. How do these actors memorize their scripts so well if they have to film over 100 episodes in one season and around 20 scenes a day?

-Tiffany Mukundi

Post #2: Luciana vs Juan de la Cruz vs Cristina vs Victor Manuel

Hey guys! I have decided to talk a little today about how El Privilegio de Amar has so far fulfilled the Cenicienta style. It's something I noticed a little early on and really clicked when we talked about it in class. I really want to talk about this in my essay at the end of the semester. First, a little background. Luciana was a maid working for the family of future priest Juan de la Cruz. Luciana was completely in love with Juan de la Cruz and he wanted to make sure he experienced all of life before devoting himself to God. The night before Juan de la Cruz left for the convent, he and Luciana spent the night together and Luciana ended up pregnant. Fired and thrown out of the house by Juan de la Cruz's mother, Luciana is forced to abandon her newborn daughter if they are to survive. Years later, Luciana still suffering from the loss of her first daughter, she brings her troubles into her marriage with her actor husband Andres and their children's lives, stepson and expert womanizer Victor Manuel and rebellious Lisebeth. Luciana buries herself in her work as a famous fashion director. The trouble begins when orphan Cristina, an aspiring actress, begins to work for Luciana and catches the eye of Victor Manuel. Long story short, there are a lot of affairs, secret loves, blackmails and love triangles.  In here there are two main Cenicientas, Luciana and Cristina. Luciana starts out as a maid, pure of heart and kind. She then vows to become a powerful woman who will stop at nothing to get what she wants. Here, there is a simple woman who looses her kind demeanor after she is "corrupted" by her night with Juan de la Cruz. Now, she is even more powerful and wealthy than her husband, a theme very present at all times. On the other hand, Cristina (who is very obviously Luciana's lost daughter) is defined by her life as an orphan because, although she was happy, she longs to know why she was abandoned by her family. She worked various jobs and is now an aspiring model for Luciana's company. She shares her apartment with a couple other girls (who have their own roles in the drama) and her strong demeanor catches Victor Manuel, of course the eldest in a very wealthy family. There are a lot of parallels between Cristina and young Luciana. They are both complemented by their natural beauty and "pure" eyes. Both characters navigate through the plot solely on how the characters around them act. They're not defenseless women, if they were they would not have made it this far, but they are often described on basis of their looks and less often, their stubbornness.  So far, I think they've done a really good job of taking those well known character traits and giving them new depth especially since they show the after in the Cenicienta transformation. Luciana is seen struggling in her role of powerful woman. There is a complex discussion of sexism, especially when Andres starts to fall from grace and Luciana continues to grow in fame and wealth. Andres often expresses his unhappiness, saying that it's due to Luciana's workaholic nature but when they argue, his true feelings emerge. When Luciana talks to Lisebeth, she often hints at the disadvantages and extra obstacles women face in their careers. This is something that I, at least, have never seen. The idea that Cinderella would have too much fame, more than her husband, plays out in a very interesting way. I think this specifically is what I'm going to keep focusing on. I like the subtle discussion about inequality in the workplace and how it transfers to society. So far I've focused on Luciana but I'd like to focus more on Andres and Cristina. From Andres' perspective,  there is the conversation about rivalry between spouses and on the other hand, Cristina is a Cenicienta but the twist is that she has a mother role model in Luciana. I think this is all very key in the development of the plot.
Until next time!
Pamela

Blog Post 2

Hi guys, at the beginning, I hope you all have good week and exams. I am still working on my final report. And the telenovela I choosed before named Home Temptation. I just finished watching the 40th set. The hero in this telenovela named Shixian Hong, and the heroines in this telenovela are Pinru Lin and Li Ai. At the begining, Pinru Lin was Shixian Hong's wife. Li Ai was Pinru Lin's best friend. One day, Li Ai falled in love with Shixian Hong, and broke Pinru Lin's marriage. Pinru Lin decided to revenge. She was very shy and cowardice before, but after this condition, she changed.


This is a photo that Shixian Hong meet Pinru Lin in a big party. Pinru Lin also changed her name as Shanshan Gao. The woman in red dress is Pinru Lin, also is Shanshan Gao. And the man who was calling is Shixian Hong.
I just finished watching this part. And that is really an amazing Chinese telenovela. It is very popurlar in China before. I hope you can find and watch it.
Good luck for your reports!

Blog Post: Two

Mabuhay, or “welcome,” to my second blog post! Since my last entry, I have diligently watched and completed my telenovela, Bridges of Love. To give you an overview about the characters and storyline, the show begins with two orphan brothers who initially ran away from their abusive, alcoholic father. Unfortunately, they are separated by a tragic bridge collapse - the older brother, Gabriel “Gael” Nakpil, believes his brother is dead while the younger brother, JR Nakpil, actually survived the fall, was adopted by his father’s ex-best friend and successful business mogul, and changed his name to Carlos Antonio. Already with this situation established in the first three episodes, the audience follows along their lives: one who lives in a poor socioeconomic status yet works hard on his dream to become a successful architect, while the other is able to experience the luxuries of life and yet carries anger and bitterness from his past. It seems that their lives would never cross again...

Although these brothers are separated, the female lead of the show - Mia Sandoval, initially a strip club dancer who finds success as an up-and-coming jewelry designer - brings them both together through her love for each person. Neither one of three know that Gael and JR/Carlos are actually blood brother throughout the majority of the show, and this is only one of the elements of the show that creates tension. Other factors which build the drama include: a spurned lover who, after being tricked to betray her husband by Carlos, is after revenge on the Antonio family and company by using inside information from her marriage to Carlos’ adopted father to blackmail other characters; the Nakpil brothers’ parents have their own conflict with President Antonio that lasted since before the brothers were born; a female colleague who holds unrequited love for Gael and destroys his and Mia’s long-distance relationship while Gael is held prisoner after an architectural project in Saudi Arabia; Carlos and Mia’s friendship and business partnership turned romantic couple; and many close instances when the truth of the Nakpil’s brotherhood were nearly revealed before the end of the series.

About the characters and their archetypes...

The character in Bridges of Love who most closely fits the “Evil Mother-in-Law” archetype is Alexa, the woman who was first scorned by Carlos and later marries his father and becomes his stepmother. Although she engages in questionable actions throughout the teleserye (the Tagalog/Filipino word for telenovela), such as marrying her lover’s father, changing the Antonio’s business transactions to reflect illegal activity that wasn’t there in the first place, and manipulating Gael, Mia, and Carlos’ schedule so hope that grudges and jealousy would arise, I still felt pity for her as part of the audience because I could understand where she was coming from (SIDENOTE: they did not mention her age, and I know there’s the saying “age is just a number,” but just think if your *slightly* older significant other gets in a relationship with one of your parents…). When we experience betrayal, I think it’s natural to experience emotions of sadness and wanting to get justice for the wrongs committed against you; it’s just that in Alexa’s case, she took her plans for revenge onto another level.

From first glance, the female lead, Mia, does have the elements of the “Cinderella” archetype; she’s poor, beautiful, and pure despite her nighttime profession as a club dancer. She overcomes socio-economic hardships through help from connections. However, she is not completely naive. She carries herself with dignity and is not easily swayed by money as a means to “buy” someone’s affection. There is also the “sexy” side to her, similar to the lead in Todos Quieren con Marilyn, when they show shots of Mia dancing in the club with sparkling outfits except that she has chosen for herself not to have sex until she is married. 

Gael was the first man in Mia’s life and in the show to court her, and while he does not fit the “prince” archetype coming from a poor family himself - he is hardworking and determined; he continues his schooling to achieve his dream to be an architect; he is aware of his surroundings; Gael is presented as the man with high morals and rarely makes mistakes - he perseveres in his courting towards Mia, even when she rejects him multiple times in the beginning because of her abandonment fears from childhood. In this relationship and with Gael’s help from his employer, she is able to pay off her debt from her father’s medical expenses. Ironically, it was Gael’s employer’s deal to help them with the debt if Gael worked in Saudi Arabia for a few years that ultimately ended their romantic relationship since during Gael’s wrongful imprisonment, his colleague impersonated him and “ended” his relationship with Mia via Facebook. For me personally, I thought they were both their best selves when they were together; they were able to help the other overcome their personal obstacles as a couple. It was the lack of communication when Gael was abroad that lead to their breakup…

On the other hand, Mia’s relationship with Carlos began when he was about to “sell” her to one of his business partners so that she could repay another set of unexpected hospital bills, and although he did not decide to follow through the with the transaction, it felt like their romantic relationship continued to worsen when Gael works in the Antonio Company as their lead architect on a prominent project of a national bridge. As the intellectual “prince” who rescues Mia from her economic hardships, Carlos is able to be her saving grace, but he accomplishes that through hidden tactics - bribing other people like Mia’s potential employer with large sums of money so that they wouldn’t help her. As his girlfriend, Mia nearly serves as Carlos’ mother and therapist, two roles which can be a burden for anyone in a relationship. On top of Carlos’ jealousy, insecurity, and many drunken nights, she is forced to deal with Carlos’ unpredictable change in emotions and paranoia as he tries his hardest to keep Gael and Mia apart by carefully monitoring her activities, assigning bodyguards to her at all times, and almost forcing her to have sex with him, a scene which carries undertones of possible harassment. While does redeem himself successfully in Mia’s eyes to the point that they become a couple again, I’m *slightly* frustrated with how events turned out in the end of the telenovela. 

My personal frustrations with the ending (BUT the show’s redemptive qualities)...

We briefly talked about music as a tool to develop romantic attraction, and when I learned that, I paid more attention to that element in my telenovela. Nearly every time Gael and Mia were together, their theme song, the title translated loosely to “you are right for me,” would play on the screen complete with slow-motion action so that the audience could appreciate the moment on-screen. Personally, I thought that the song title and lyrics “I won’t forget you” foreshadowed that Gael and Mia would marry each other at the conclusion of the show. Instead, Gael ends up marrying his lawyer who helped him win against the Antonio’s unjust litigious case towards him, and Mia and Carlos are a couple again after they take a break when Mia was in the United States briefly for work. 

Despite not seeing my favorite characters end up together, the telenovela did develop the theme of forgiveness and redemption within family. However, I felt like not having the ending I wanted is a reflection of real life, how sometimes people are put in your own life to help your personal growth. The novela used a modification of the Cinderella model to convey these themes, and audiences were able to increase their awareness about life through the entertainment provided by the love triangle.

Till next week...