Digital Content

Meme + meaning project

Research the origins of a well-known meme, then create your own iteration of your chosen meme using Photoshop. For this project, the meme must fit into 1 of 2 categories, as described in the project details, and must not convey any racist, hateful, violent or threatening ideas or messages.

Review Project Details below for all requirements and instructions.

Categories

Category 1:

A specific, defined base image paired with the corresponding textual script. Examples include “The Most Interesting Man in the World” image paired with the script “I don’t always____, but when I do, I ____” and the Boromir / Lord of the Rings image paired with the script “One does not simply_______”. Most of the texts in this category reference the meaning of the original script, maintain a common syntax (or word order) and share key phrases or words among different iterations.

Category 2:

A specific, defined base image paired with a corresponding textual situation, usually involving a set-up or lead-in and an outcome or resulting action. Examples include the defined “Socially Awkward Penguin” image or “BBQ Becky” image paired with the corresponding set-up and outcome scenario. The texts in this category directly refer to - or signify - the symbolic conceptual meaning implied by the base image, and tend to be a bit more flexible in syntax and allow for more diverse situations and scenarios than those in Category 1.

Memes that are more singular - ones that include both a unique image and unique text - but fit into a broader meme category (such as LOLcats) will not work for this project. These convey meaning that is usually tied to unique individual images and less about the larger symbolic meaning of the meme script and/or base image.

Content restrictions

These memes must not convey racist or hateful messages or threatening or violent content. In lecture, I will generally discuss how these types of memes impact the digital media landscape, as they do exist and are important to be able to identify, however, I do not want to bring them into the section space. If you have any questions about the appropriateness of a meme, please check in with your TA PRIOR to starting the project.

Project Details

For the meme that you select, submit the following:

1. A short paragraph about the origin of the meme, including the original context of the source image, a description of the image’s symbolic meaning and the syntactical rules of the text (as applicable). Include any additional information that you find interesting or relevant.

2. A verbal description of the meme - imagine you are trying to explain the meme to someone who does not use the internet and does not recognize the references in the images. How would you communicate the meme as a narrative or story?

3. Create your own iteration of the meme text in Photoshop. Your version should address or relate to a concept, theme, reading or other topic presented or covered so far in this course, or a particular social justice topic. Create 2 versions, one with traditional Impact font, and one with another font and style that you feel matches the tone of your meme. Memes must not express hateful, violent / threatening and/or racist themes or ideas.

4. Why did you choose the font you did? Does this font influence the overall meaning of the meme in a way that the standard Impact font does not?

Instructions

Open a copy of the original blank image. Select the Type tool in the lefthand tool bar, and click once within the frame to set your cursor location. Input your text - you will be able to move and edit the text, and change the font, size and color at any point.

In order to move the text, make sure the text layer is selected in the layers panel, then select the Move tool from the lefthand tool bar (shortcut key V).

In order to edit the text, double click on the T thumbnail image on the left hand side of the layer, in the layers panel. This will automatically highlight all of the text. Change the options in the top menu bar.

Once you have set your text, export two versions, one with Impact font, and one with a font and style that you believe matches the overall tone of the meme. Either duplicate the text layer by ctrl-clicking the text layer in the layers panel, or simply export one image at a time.

Save as a Photoshop file in order to keep the layers editable. Export as a JPG in order to submit. File > Export As…and set all options as below, except for the dimensions, which will be whatever your original image was - this is fine to keep as is.

If you have extra time, you can experiment with a third version where you apply different filters to the text - in order to do this, you must either rasterize the text layer or convert it to a smart layer (which will make it un-editable as text) . Make sure the layer is selected in the layer panel, then Layer > Rasterize or Layer > Smart Objects > Convert to Smart Object.