Roland Barthes's Enigma Code in my Film Opening

Hey there Cambridge!

Now that I know what my film, Focus on the Past, is all about, it is time to research a media theory to include in my film! I chose the Enigma Code by Roland Barthes since it is perfect to create a sense of mystery in a film.

Roland Barthes

    Roland Barthes studied classical letters, grammar, and philology at the University of Paris. His theories were inspired by Ferdinand de Saussure's linguistics and led Barthes to the work he became most known for. The Hermeneutic/Enigma Code was introduced in Barthe's S/Z (1970) as he analyzed a short story by Balzac. He argued that multiple codes are incorporated into a narrative, one being the Enigma Code.

    This code explains how information is kept away from the audience in order to raise questions about the context and story, best known as developing mystery. This curiosity is what fuels the audience to keep watching. 

    This theory can be applied to my film opening as the audience, and even protagonist, is clueless as to why the janitor himself is pictured on the cover of a magazine for a strange experiment and what it reveals of his past. This mystery generates questions like "Why is he on the magazine?", "What doesn't he know about the featured company?", "What does this mean for him?".

Reflection:

I honestly think Barthes's Enigma Code is perfect for my mystery thriller. It outlines how a sense of mystery will be developed in my film.

Citation:

• Media-Studies.com. (2025, August 5). Action and Enigma codes. Media Studies. https://media-studies.com/action-enigma-codes/
• Roland Barthes (1915–1980). (n.d.). Lapham’s Quarterly. https://www.laphamsquarterly.org/contributors/barthes
• Enigma Codes. (2021, February 1). Eesha Saeed’s AS Media Blog. https://eeshasaeedmedia.home.blog/2021/02/01/enigma-codes/

Yours Truly, 

Macie 💗