Attack the Block: Textual Analysis

 Attack the Block: Textual Analysis

Summary of Shot Types/Music & Audio choices and imagery/symbolism of the first 12 minutes:

Moses: Main lead character of the gang (hero)

Sam: Women whom the boys attack (other hero/side kick/heroine?)

Group of boys: Separate protagonists 

Group of girls: Separate protagonists 

Main Girl from their group: Love interest/damsel in distress?

Old women: Possibly the dispatcher to the hero or the helper whom gives advice to the hero

• 1:30 - Dolly of the stars in a master shot - transition of music from extraterrestrial to fireworks going off - contrast from alien to human life
• 1:35 - Birds eye view/master shot of London Setting - establishing setting
• 1:53 - Medium Shot of audience meeting female, white character - interchanging with the the credits 
• 2:01 - Over the shoulder shot of character with cars flashing by - shown on the phone talking to another character possibly going to be introduced
• 2:08 - Dolly movement and long shot of watching the female character walking - slow pace establishes pacing and setting. Character is dressed in warm winter clothes and hat, connotations of winter and brisk weather. 
• 2:20 - Low, almost worms eye view of her walking - contrast from busy setting to dark street - example of mise-en-scene of eerie, unsettling neighbourhood as well as kids playing with fireworks establishing type of setting
• 2:25 - Birds eye view shot - establishing setting
• 2:30 - Music change to more high pitched audio, thus having connotations of danger - behind shot - no one in the shot but her (she is alone and possibly vulnerable)
• 2:36 - Pan movement to graffiti on brick wall - physical symbolisation of gangs in London (mise-en-scene)
• 2:38 - Fireworks still going off in the same rhythm of the music - flashes of light create tension - moving from a medium close up to a long shot of characters face demonstrates clearly she is scared
• 2:58 - Music change to a more dramatic tone - contrast to a close up of the female character and dark, shadowy figures in a long shot - sense of fear
• 2:59 - Huddle of dark figures in long shot - leading lines of street draw our eyes and attention to these new characters
• 3:03 - Change in mood of characters face - scared and worried 
• 3:05 - Whispers of audio heard from this gang - dark hoodies and jackets as well as face masks hiding their faces has strong symbolisation of danger and 'thugs' 
• 3:13 - Over the shoulder of women - we are on her side (in her position) as music gets more suspenseful 
• 3:24 - Music goes to an all high - shot quickly changing from female character to the gang circling her - gangster/animal imagery (stalking prey - predator VS prey)
• 3:26 - "Ah fuck" line is a strong connotation of danger - we know as an audience something bad is going to happen 
• 3:27 - Loud bang of music audio as the female character turns around to see one of the members of the gang (other main character) - Tall, black male with hooded clothes and broody features 
• 3:31 - "gimme the phone"/ "money" - we quickly understand this is a robbery - quick pase of camera movements symbolises fear from the female character 
• 3:42 - Close up of blade held in the male characters hand - connotations of danger/murder - the low shot of the shot two demonstrates the audience is the observer in this scene 
• 3:50 - Interchange of quick shots - tension built up as the female character falls to the ground in fear - looking down on her shot demonstrates the gang is above her in power
• 3:53 - Low shot, same level as the women, thus demonstrating we are on her side - the gang circles around her, consuming the square angle of the shot - taking up space - demonstrates there are many of them and she is outnumbered 
• 3:58 - The line "fuck the feds" is a demonstration of the films political stand point - possible underlying  theme of film 
• 4:04 - Quick interchange to long shot of the sky - music becomes louder and more dangerous - beam of star falling out of the sky 
• 4:07 - Loud crash and blaze off commit crashes and destroys car - the gang of boys run away out of shot (symbolism of law crashing down on them for their actions?)
• 4:20 - Young women runs away - this is what the gang of boys are focused on and not the explosion, thus demonstrating their priorities 
• 4:30 - "bare valuables in there" - fuelling idea that the gang of boys are broke that they willing to loot an explosion - need to steal
• 4:33 - dolly shot of the main gang character looking into the cars with out of focus parts of the car in the foreground - eerie music foreshadowing what will happen
• 4:49 - Close up high pitched scream of an alien - close up of its face screaming into the camera (almost like a jump scare) - design if monster possible intertextual reference to the movie 'alien' 
• 4:52 - Scream of boy screaming with the scream of the monster on top of the main gang character 'Moses'
• 4:57 - Close of switchblade we saw before but now in an attack on the alien that Moses attacks (mini version of Todorov's Narrative Stages already over e.g. hero kills monster)
• 5:02 - classic music high pitch fade as monster runs away 
• 5:05 - Circle of shape of the wire in which the monster ran through - evokes dangerous size of the creature - tunnel vision of shot - everything out of focus on the sides of screen but this
• 5:19 - Intention of the next part of the scene set of by the hero - he will kill the monster as music picks up again
• 5:22 - Music met with the pace of the gang walking towards the monster (low shot)
• 5:28 - Classic chase music met with eerie alien music when characters face and monsters face are shown
• 5:29 - Huddle of boys while the monster is in a corner - man VS monster imagery - light up of fireworks (red lights has imagery of danger) - throw a firework cracker into the aliens small space
• 5:50 - Alien has run into a dark enclosed space of an abandoned cabin - sympathy for the alien as it is scared 
• 5:55 - Enclosed space lit up with the light fo the firework in contrast to the faces of the gang
• 6:02 - Crying of alien - met with fireworks in dark and bright light imagery with close up shots of the aliens face - sympathy and empathy for the alien as it is scared and in pain
• 6:12 - Gang of boys run into the small cabin this being met with the screams of the monster - illusion that they are killing the alien 
• 6:35 - Long/master shot of the boys leaving the small cabin as the screams of the monster fade away 
• 6:49 - Speech establishes it was an alien from another world - all expressions of the similar side characters are the same childish looks while the main character (the hero) is in a serious, broody expression
• 7:03 - The gang of boys lift up the alien in the air - savage/barbaric imagery - the line "nobody fucks with the block" - possible slogan of the film? - this is met with gangster, London music of the film and audio of fireworks going off as the camera pans upwards to the sky 
• 7:13 - Night sky shot of the creates feeling that there may be another creature 
• 7:20 - Another bright light meets this question as we realise there is another creature coming down to earth
• 7:29 - Camera zooms in as music picks up to imagery of multiple comets/stars falling down to earth - symbolism of an alien invasion 
• 7:31 - This imagery is met with the title of the film - Star Wars intertextual reference as the font and size of the text is imposing and is much like the Star Wars style font - music is similar to the large, overbearing style of the font
• 7:45 - Interchange with the lights of the sky to a building with blinding lights
• 7:50 - Camera pans down to reveal a large building from the stars - mise-en-scene of the setting as a sign reveals the setting name, this being 'Wyndom Tower'
• 8:00 - Music calms down as we pan right to see the women from before walking home
• 8:02 - Close up of an old women seeing if the other main female character is okay - she is out of breath and has a terrified expression
• 8:12 - Old women invites her to her flat - long shot of them walking together - theme is comforting and safe from a woman's point of view
• 8:13 - Instant change to close up main female characters hands shaking holding a glass of water (demonstrates impact of gangs in London)
• 8:24 - Imagery of flashing fireworks and audio reminds us of earlier scene 
• 8:34 - The line from the old women "If there were a war out there you wouldn’t know the difference" - ironic what just happened in the narrative
• 8:45 - Commentary of Police - political stand point of the film - the police do not help
• 8:49 - The old women makes the comment about the gangs on the streets, "great big dogs like they own the block" - ironic as a dog like alien is taking over the block
• 8:54 - Again the line, "monsters" is ironic (dramatic irony)
• 8:58 - After this line there is a immediate change in shot to the gang of boys dragging alien in a close up - shape and form of alien is gritty, slimy and unearthly
• 9:09 - High pitched sound - music is unconventional and almost irritating 
• 9:26 - The line "Beast of Brixton" is heard - sense of irony
• 9:35 - Contrast between characters phone calls - one gang member is on the phone bragging about the murder of the alien and one is calling his mother - demonstrates they are nothing but little boys at the start of the film - line "I'll be back by 10"
• 9:59 - Change to more electronic music - behind shoulder shot of the group of boys entering a new setting
• 10:08 - Contrast to group of girls in a circle commenting on the alien
• 10:19 - Comments about the creature are not scared but almost grossed out by it - desensitised to horrific things - maybe because of the brutal area they are in
• 10:30 - Sexual/childish comments from the group of female characters demonstrates their demeanour 
• 10:49 - Conversation between main male and female character of both group has an almost romantic quality - setting up stereotype she is the 'princess' needing to be saved
• 11:03 - Switch to longer/medium low shot of boys walking over a bridge - one character saying he can jump a height but fails - seemingly pointless scene but may be a reference to something that may happen later 
• 11:11 - We switch to a close up of two young boys throwing things in a lit up trash can 
• 11:41 - The young boys are wanting to be apart of the gang - the group fo older boys are a bad representation for younger children (significance for age rating?)
• 11:43 - Change in music - more scary and powering in quick shots of worms eye view of audience looking up at the building 
• 12:11 - We switch a pan/dolly of a white, young man listening to music - pan up from his feet to his face - listening to a conventionally 'black' song - stereotyping black and white culture.

Camera work:

The camera work of the first the minutes of the film consist of many long/master and medium close up shots, these vary from birds eye view and worms eye view angles. These are used to establish the setting and characters within the narrative, many of them hold emotion of the characters facial expressions and tone of the dreary setting. Moreover, the Director uses many pans and dolly's throughout the opening, establishing symbolism form the alien invasion in the upper sky shots to, panning to symbolic graffiti on walls, the forms of the characters and alien as well as moving with the character to establish the pace of the film so far. 

The camera technique's change from the robbery scene to the flat in which the character 'Sam' is invited too by the old women. The robbery scene is fast paced and filled with tension and action, the camera shots and movements consisting of mash cuts, cutting and extreme close ups, close ups, medium shots and long shots, all always directed towards the characters. I find it interesting the Director chose to use a lower works eye view from the women point of view when looking up at the gang of boys, demonstrating subtly she is lower than them and not treated as an equal; this is also done to the audience to create a sense of fear of them. In contrast to this, the flat scene is much more calm and slow pased, this is because we see the 'Sam' and the old woman having a conversation on a sofa, this having connotations of safety and security compared to the outside setting of London.

Editing:

The editing of the first the minutes is build in small acts, first used to establish the female, white character 'Sam' and then the group of boys, the main character being 'Moses'. The editing is used to show fast paced action between quick moving shots and keep the flow of the narrative going; from watching the opening three times over I understand there was no conjunction break between scenes as there was always an action/speech happening. As well as this the setting of the scenes are all at night, as filming at night can produce pixelated, unclear footage, the filming must have been done during the day and then in editing a filter of dark, blue tones must have been overlaid on the footage.

Mise-en-scene:

Within the first 10 minutes of the film there is various demonstrations of mise-en-scene, this including the fashion and outfits of our characters. The first female character we meet is dressed in typical winter clothes, easily conveying the setting is cold and in the season of December; as these are typical clothes we do not see her a threatening character but more relatable and average. Next, we have the group of boys, they are displayed to be in dark, hooded clothing, from track pants and hoodies with caps and masks hiding their faces; these have connotations of danger and 'gang' like fashion. Through this, we understand the characters are threatening and the possible villains or antagonists off the narrative. Moreover, we see the main character of this group 'Moses', holding a switchblade, this having obvious connotations of death, murder and violence, evoking the idea that they are a dangerous group. To add to this, most of these characters talk in stereotypical London slang, conventionally we can label this group as 'road-men' type protagonists. The setting gives us an easy idea that they are in a dangerous part of London as there is many uses of audio of fireworks and screaming teenagers; this evokes the idea that the target audience is meant for teenagers also. Lastly, the appearance and design of the alien like creature is very much similar to that of the 'alien' movie, this could be an intertextual reference to this and or the movie 'Gremlins'. 

Sound/Audio:

The majority of the music is used to build up tension within each scene, ranging from stereotypical London music to orchestra theatrical of loud, booming music when there is an action scene. Also, the music changes to more electronica, extraterrestrial music when the images of the alien or the sky is shown on screen, both of these are an example of 'diegetic music'. Other audio is used for the dialogue of the characters, this is similar to most films and doesn't vary; however, from the beginning of the narrative most fo the dialogue consists of slurs and swears, thus creating an unsettling and mature tone. We also hear sounds of fireworks throughout, these boom across the screen and create a tension within the narrative when there is a dramatic action scene. 

There is also a great use of sound effects, this being when the alien crashes down onto the car, the audio of an explosion is used as well as the sound of fire crackling; this is commonly used in action scenes that involve explosions and bombs. 

Working and Middle Class: 

Throughout the first ten minutes of the film, we understand that each of the characters shown are either middle or lower class in terms of their geography, this can be evidenced through the dreary setting London and the possible council houses shown, as well as the clothes that they are wearing which is typical of this behavioural geographic. 

London:

The setting of Brixton, London is stereotypical of the mix of the 'gangster' type groups and wealthy groups of individuals, thus creating a great contrast between different geographic's and behavioural of characters. London is a central symbol of the UK and is used commonly is film as a stereotype for the UK. Brixton, however is a commonly known lower class burrow of London, it's stereotypes involving 'ravers and rioters'. Many online quotes from the internet entail it to be, “It's south London's living-it-large capital,” claims Lewis, “It's got so much from a music and clubbing point of view that the well-paid Australians are leaving Clapham and graduating here.” 

Youth:

Youth is a strong theme within the narrative so far, nearly all characters are teenagers and or young adults, this is then a direct reference to the target audience. Youth is a common trope within London and establishes some of the themes that may be set up for the rest of the narrative, this being: drugs, partying, alcohol, sex, crime, friendships/relationships and more.

Race:

Race is also a large part of the narrative so far, the main character being British black, as well as many of the side characters being this also. There is a contrast between the white female lead who is stereotypically well mannered and behaved, this then could be a problem for the film racially profiling people as those of different race are demonstrated as thugs and gangsters.

P1: Generating Ideas

 P1: Generating Idea

Theories to help me with creating a Drama:

Todorov's Narrative Stages: In this theory, Todorov mentioned that there are 5 stages that a character will go through; those are Equilibrium, Disruption, Recognition Repair the Damage and Equilibrium Again.

Propp's Spheres of Action: The seven spheres of action are: 'the hero', who are usually male, is the agent who restores the narrative equilibrium often by embarking upon a quest (or search), saves the princess and wins her hand, 'the helper' aids the hero in the task of restoring equilibrium, 'the Villain' creates the narratives disruption, 'the donor' who gives the hero something of importance (advice, an object) which helps restore the equilibrium in the narrative, 'the princess/prince', this character is namely the victim and needs to be saved form the villain by the hero, 'the dispatcher' sends the hero on their quest thus starting the narrative and finally the 'false hero', a character which pretends to be good but is revealed at the narratives end they weren’t. 

Levi Strauss Binary Opposition: The theory of 'binary opposites' entails that the majority of narratives in media forms such as books and film contain opposing main characters. These binary opposites help to thicken the plot and further the narrative; and introduce contrast. For example, in a superhero film this could be good vs. evil, in a horror film this could be human vs. supernatural, and in a comedy this could be young vs. old. At their simplest, binary oppositions give us stories in which good battles evil, but there are countless other formulations of conflict found in media products: humanity versus technology, age versus youth, brawn versus intelligence.

Attack the Block: Case Study

Attack the Block: Case Study

Release Date: It was released on 11th May 2011

What did it make & how much does it cost: The movie cost 13 million dollars to create but only made 6 million dollars at the box office, thus making only less than half of what it took to create the film. The opening week of the film made £1,133,859 in the UK. 

Box Office value today: However, due to its growing fame, the new box office value of the film today is 4.1 Million, this I feel is because many audiences today were too young to watch said film and the hybrid of genres was confusing to many viewers in the 2010's but is now a regular mix of genre today.

Starring: 'Attack the Block' stars John Boyega, Jodie Whittaker, Alex Esmail, Leeon Jones (this was their big break that go these actors noticed)

Who Directed and wrote it: The Director and Writer of the film was Joe Cornish, a British creator who has worked on numerous other projects such as: Little Britain Series 2, Video Diaries for 'Hot Fuzz' & 'Shaun of the Dead'. Cornish has worked with Edgar Wright, Nick Frost and Simon Pegg.

Executive Producer: 'Edgar Wright' was the executive producer for 'Attack the Block'; he later then helped create scripts for upcoming films such as, The Adventures of Tin Tin: The secrets of the Unicorn' with Cornish and then later worked on larger films such as 'The Astonishing Ant Man' for Marvel Studios

What Genre is this: 'Attack the Block' is a mixture of genres, this can be called a hybrid of genres such as: science fiction, action, horror and comedy.

How was it Distributed: The film was directed towards the teen/youth market; essentially the market audience was the media campaign. However, the secondary audience was fans of the Director and writer himself (which I think is a kind of obnoxious form of distribution). Distributed on social network sites and also had a large TV and print campaign. The film is a standalone film (not involved with conglomerates) however was distributed by 'Optimum Releasing' and it's Production Companies were: StudioCanal Features, Film4 UK Film Council, and Big Talk Pictures.

Did they use CGI: Cornish wanted to make something you could really 'see' on screen and so the creatures within the film are not CGI but instead are performed by quadrupeds. 

Where was it filmed: The location within the narrative of 'Attack the Block' is Whyndam House in South London, however when shooting it was a mixture of the Heygate Estate in Elephant and Castle and Islington. 

Awards: The film won numerous awards such as the BAFTA Awards 2012 as a Nominee, Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA 2012 Nomination, Won the Austin Film Critics Association 2011,Won the B-Movie Film Festival 2012,Won the Black Film Critics Circle Awards 2011, Black Reel Awards 2012,British Independent Film Awards 2011 and Central Ohio Film Critics Association 2012.

Reviews: At the time the film gained a 75/100 on Metacritic and a 90% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Synergy: As the film was a stand alone/independent film, the production team lacked financial funding to advertise the film to its' intended target audiences. However, some forms they were able to use were: DVD, Blue-Ray, Soundtrack and a Game. 

 

Unit 1: Responding to the Brief

 Unit 1: Responding to the Brief

In response to the brief, my task is to plan and create a drama TV show pitch for BBC3 Studios; its target audience will be between ages 16-21 (most common age rating for BBC Broadcasts) and will be aired from 19:00pm to 04:00am. The BBC3 executives have asked me to plan ideas's for this brand new television drama series and given me this specific age group target audience in order to appeal to more younger audiences and tempt them to watch this on TV. 

Moreover, the production budget will be low for this series however I must ensure that that the programme pitch fits the BBC3's content, this including: ethos, style and target audience. To elaborate, 'ethos' is the persuasive technique that appeals to an audience by highlighting credibility; it's overall aim is to convince the audience that the advertiser or the superior/main character is reliable and ethical. Again, the 'style' recommended by BBC3 will need to fit into its target audience, as this is mostly within the demographic group of teenagers and young adults,  the show will benefit from more relatable content; conventions of this could be 'edgy', 'indie' characters in the target audiences age group and important themes that are relatable to the target audience such as high school, mental health, friendships, relationships, etc. The setting again will need to be suitable for it's audience, this possibly being a high school, a home setting, a party, etc.

To complete this unit I will need to:

• Generate ideas from the client brief
• 'Flesh out' and produce original ideas 
• Create a proposal and client documentation to support the pitch
• Create a formal pitch
• Pitch my idea's to the client 
• Adapt/change my idea's according to questions/feedback and critical criticisms from the client(s) 

I will present my work using a range of medium's for the planning, production and post production stages; this can/will include photographs, audio commentary, and or written notes to evidence my progression and development of the production through it's stages. 

To understand more about my target audience I have researched the most popular TV drama's within this age group of 16-21 year olds, the gender being both male and female as this is not an aspect of the demographic I have decided on yet. 

'Normal People' -- The show was adapted from Sally Rooney's award-winning novel, following a young couple in an emotional Irish Drama. From this I have learnt that this target audience watches narratives based around couples and relationships; this being something I could include within my pitch.

 'My Left Nut' -- The show is based on an award wining play of a young boy coming of age in this comedic, drama on friendship, family and grief. From this show I have found that this similar target audience likes to watch comedic drama that surrounds family and friendships.

'In My Skin' -- This drama follows a young teenagers through their journey of coping with anxiety's, insecurities and mental illness. From researching this show I have found that this target audience has liked watching journeys of their own age group on their journey of coping with mental illness.

Furthermore, other popular shows on BBC3 (some that may not be drama's) include: 'Fleabag', 'Killing Eve', 'Normal People', 'We are who we are', 'Stacey Dooley', 'RuPaul's Drag Race' and more. 

Codes and conventions of drama will include: 

• Mise-en-scene (lighting & colour, costume & makeup, setting and props)
• Editing
• Cinematography 
• Characters
• Narratives
• Music
• Audio
• Iconography
• Drama should exhibit real life situations with realistic characters, setting and stories
• Portray journeys of character development 
• Intense social interactions
• It's purpose is to move the audience emotionally

Main points within a Drama:

• Many drama's include conflict (heart of the drama)
• Conflicts will include inner/outer struggles depicting relationships, difficulty and pain
• The audience can relate to the characters - this will then follow the Halls Theory
• The narrative is structured with climatic events and anti climax to keep the audience emotionally attached and keeps the tension going
• A form of catharsis or realisation at the conclusion of the series 

To make the show relevant and consistent within today's times I could include the current situation of COVID 19 and many of the struggles society faces in this pandemic, this could include the struggles of isolation, quarantining, feeling lonely, relationships with others and more. Again, to make the show appealing it needs to fit within the target audiences likes and preferences within TV, the most popular shows (that may not be on BBC3) are shows such as:

• Riverdale
• Euphoria
• The society
• On My Block
• Baby
• The 100
• 13 Reasons Why
• Looking for Alaska
• Daybreak
• Sex Education
• Trinkets
• The end of the f**ing world
• Atypical 
• Everything Sucks
• Fate: The Winx Saga
• I am not okay with this
• Teen Wolf
• Skins

From this I have learnt that main conventions within these series/programmes are: relationships and their struggles, mental health, friendships, murder, politics, societal problems, sex and love, fantasy, drugs, partying, alcohol, high school, education, etc. However, I have found the main competitor for BBC3 within this genre of TV and target audience is Netflix, a main and conglomerate company that dominates a lot of teen drama as produces it itself or buys other works.

Production Costs:

To ensure the production costs are low I will plan the story to be in a near by and accessible setting/location, low amount of characters, accessible and easily used props, relatable and casual fashion/outfits. I will need to do this as I am currently creating this on a one women team and so the production of the Drama will need to be accessible for one person to produce, pre-produce and create post production as well as this, the equipment that is going to be used is moderate but not high end camera equipment. 

Legal Requirements:

Legal requirements for the production and final product will need to include an approval from 'Ofcom' (The Office of Communications), this office has wide-ranging of powers across the television, radio, telecoms and postal sectors and is the regulator for the communications services that we use and rely on each day, such as: broadband, home phone and mobile services, as well as keeping an eye on TV and radio. To get an approval from 'Ofcom' is to demonstrate that the show and pitch is suitable for its target audience and the content within the series is also suitable. As well as this, I will need a BBC Remit, meaning that, in return for a payment of a license fee that all viewers will need to pay, the BBC and or BBC3 provides it's audience with a service of programmes with wide appeal that also conforms to it's public service remit to 'inform, educate and entertain'. My pitch will then need to conform to this by following it's regulations of informing, educating and entertaining its audience, thus meaning my show needs to inform a certain opinion or theme, educate on a matter or subject and entertain this audience well on conventions aimed towards them.

Unit 1: Syngery Case Study

 Synergy: Film Productions

Marvel Studios: Engame

Release Date: 25 April 2019

Production Budget & Box Office: The Marvel Comics movies are notorious for their high production budgets, but the highest on record is the staggering 356 million U.S. dollars it cost to produce 'Avengers: Endgame'. Luckily, the film performed impressively at the box office, earning over 2.7 billion dollars worldwide.

Who distributed it: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

How did they use Syngery: Disney Video Games, Toys (e.g POPS, action figures, Hot toys, board games, etc), Cereal Boxes, Food Marketing, Comics, Books, mini games, etc. 

How did they market it: The Avengers End Game Marketing Budget is actually higher than the average Hollywood movie budget. Marvel partnered with some huge brands to promote the film such as Audi, McDonald's, Coca-Cola, Google, General Mills and Ziploc. They marketed the film through TV Adverts, Trailers on Youtube and video platforms, Instagram, FaceBook, Tiktok, Bus posters, physical film posters, sneak peaks of the film, etc.

Technological Convergence: Due to the pandemic nearly all of the Disney Films and their partners have been distributed on Disney+, a streaming platform.

Notes:

 

Unit 1: BBC Research:

 BBC Research:

Who are the BBC?

The BBC is a UK public service broadcaster, funded by the licence free paid by UK Households; this service provides ten national TV channels, regional TV programmes, an internet TV Service (BBC3), 10 National radio stations, 40 local radio stations and a website for its audience. The service was established by Royal Charter. 

What is BBC3?

BBC Three is a UK Internet television service operated by the BBC, this was launched on the 16th of February in 2003, serving as a replacement for the linear BBC Three television channel, this service was discontinued on the same day BBC Three was released. This service provides numerous streaming television shows and web series, the services remit was to provide innovative programming, most of these being aimed at the demographic of 16-34 year olds; most of its work focusing in comedy and documentary programming genres. Successful programmes from BBC Three can include: FleaBag, 15 Storey's High, Nighty Night, Catterick, Him and Her, Bodies and many more; 90% of the BBC Three's content is made up of output that originated from the UK.

What are the audience considerations:

The BARB (Broadcasters Audience Research Board) is responsible for delivering the UK’s television audience measurement currency, in which they commission research companies to collect data that represent the viewing behaviour from the BBC3 audience. On their website they describe that they find:

• Who is watching?
• What are they watching?
• When are they watching?
• Which screen are they watching on?
• How did the content get to the screen?

As well as the website described they have two sources of data, one being 'people based' and the other being 'device based census data for online TV viewing'. 

Below I have included research from their website, what shows were most popular by genre, demographic, age group, time of day (or events, e.g. Christmas), multichannel's and pre-broadcasts.  (https://www.barb.co.uk/trendspotting/analysis/annual-viewing-report/)

What is a TV Drama?

A TV Drama is a genre of a show that runs in series and episodes that continues a plot from each one, this is not always the case however, for example shows such as 'Black Mirror' never follow on from their last episode and start a new narrative. Episodes in a TV Drama may be self contained or stretched out over numerous episodes; many plots within a TV Drama follow a main character and their story within their life. Common TV Drama's that are popular are: Death in Paradise, All creatures Great and Small, Gentleman Jack, Your Honor, Line of Duty, and mroe many more.

BBC Three's Competitors:

BBC Three's competitors consist of ITV, Sky, Fox News and CNN, most of these being news channels and TV Show providers. All of these provide similar or even the same content by streaming the same shows or newscasts but just only in different locations, different character/presenters and possible narratives but told in the same way. BBC Three's competitors are not only in the UK and so demonstrates their competitive filed is large and so they're broadcasts need to stand out.

Conventions of Television Drama:

Theorists:

Vladimir Prop suggested that there are seven different roles in a show, these being: 'the hero', this character is created to restore the equilibrium within a narratives problem, 'the villain', a character who's only task is to disrupt the equilibrium in the narrative, 'the donor', a individual who gives the hero advice, information or a object that will help them on their journey to restoring equilibrium, 'the princess or prince' is the character who is in need of help or saving from danger of the villain, 'the dispatcher', the character who essentially starts the narrative by sending the hero on their quest and finally the 'false hero', a character who soul purpose is to undermine the hero's quest by pretending to aid him, for example the character 'Iago' in the play 'Othello', they are then often unmasked or they're true identity/motives are revealed at the end of the plot. 

Moreover, 'Tzvetan Todorov' suggested there are five components in a narrative that make up the plot, this being: 'the equilibrium', a sense of normality and calm before a disaster strikes, 'the disruption', the point in which the story changes due to a tragic event that will then drive the hero, 'the recognition', this being the realisation of the disruption and the realisation that it needs to be fixed, 'the attempt', this category suggests the hero tries to repair the disruption and restore peace and normality and finally the 'restoration of a new equilibrium' is as simple as it sounds, the category being the plots dilemma's are solved and all goes back to normal.

Moreover, the theorist, 'Claude Lévi-Strauss' suggested that in literature and film alike, they're narratives will always be binary opposition’s; this meaning that opposite things such as characters, settings, dilemma's, objects, are working against each other to create tension. This can be seen in symbolic terms of good vs evil, dark vs light, weak vs powerful, etc.

However, the most basic structure of TV Drama can be: 

The basic conventions of a TV Drama would be to have a set of characters (if it is not soley  based around one singular protagonist), these will drive the story and become key parts of the show depending on their importance within the plot. These can then range from the basic conventions of a character: the antagonist, the protagonist, the love interest(s), the confidant, the deuteragonists and a foil. We then have narrative, a crucial part of the drama, although each film or show has one, I feel in drama the plot is the one thing that makes the show worth watching; wether it be a scandal, murder mystery or any sub genre that will  provokes drama or thrill to its audience, it's the most poignant part of a script that makes us want to watch it. Next, we have the dialogue, the speech between characters develops the story and allows us insight into what is happening, in well done drama's this will consistently be interesting and drives us to feel connected to our protagonists. Moreover, we also experience sound and music, sound differs from music by being the background or foreground audio, this could range from being for a example, a car crash, a tree branch falling, or even a cup being put down; music then creates an emotive reaction from its audience, if its sophisticatedly done that is, within a drama the music will be detrimental, a catalyst for the build up of the narrative. Lastly, there is the setting, this influences the mise-en-scene on camera; the setting will establish where and when the narrative is set and can be used in many ways to hide symbols, easter eggs and metaphorical uses of cinematography to establish underlying themes within the plot or characters. 

The structure of a average TV Drama episode or series of episodes can be broken down into:

• The Teaser - This will usually be a short opening that introduces you to a character, setting, object, etc. This can be exemplified in the short opening of the Walking Dead, in which the main character Rick Grimes begins to understand the situation he is when he wakes up from his coma induced state to an apocalyptic, zombie ridden world.
• Act 1 - This introduce the current story at hand. You’ve teased the peril, struggle, conflict, or situation that the episode will tackle, but now you’re getting things really started by setting the stage as far as where the characters are and what is leading up to the point of the next act where they will be confronted by the situation at hand. The end of the first act also offers a chance to leave a solid first cliffhanger or hook as well, which is what you really want to do to create an interesting narrative.
• Act 2 - This is where the characters are dealing with the conflict, they're trying to figure what to do and struggling with the situation. Much like the beginning of the second act of a feature film script, the characters often still have some hope or chance. By the end of this act, the audience feels like the characters may figure things out — until, that is, another hook is introduced that flips that hope or chance on its head, forcing the characters to face the fact that they may not succeed.
• Act 3 - This is where the characters are at their lowest point and the bad guys or conflict is winning. Where the second act gave the audience hope that they’d figure it out, all too often the third act is where that hope was proven to be false. By the end hook of this act, audiences will want to tune in to see how the characters will prevail despite such odds against them.
• Act 4 - This is where the characters, against all odds, begin to prevail again. They start to triumph and win. They’ve likely learned from their missteps in the first and second act and now they’re applying that to the conflict at hand.
• Act 5 - This is the closure. Some shows actually end with the fourth act while others end the fourth act with a significant cliffhanger or hook and then use the fifth act to close things up with a finale of sorts.

Unit 1: TV Dramas & Case Studies

 Your Honor - TV Drama Series

What is a Drama? 

A drama is a fictionalised narrative  shown on the television medium that follows the lives of characters in a fictional world that often, but can also be non-fictional, and reflects the real world.

What are the typical conventions of TV Dramas?

The basic conventions of a TV Drama would be to have a set of characters (if it is not soley  based around one singular protagonist), these will drive the story and become key parts of the show depending on their importance within the plot. These can then range from the basic conventions of a character: the antagonist, the protagonist, the love interest(s), the confidant, the deuteragonists and a foil. We then have narrative, a crucial part of the drama, although each film or show has one, I feel in drama the plot is the one thing that makes the show worth watching; wether it be a scandal, murder mystery or any sub genre that will  provokes drama or thrill to its audience, it's the most poignant part of a script that makes us want to watch it. Next, we have the dialogue, the speech between characters develops the story and allows us insight into what is happening, in well done drama's this will consistently be interesting and drives us to feel connected to our protagonists. Moreover, we also experience sound and music, sound differs from music by being the background or foreground audio, this could range from being for a example, a car crash, a tree branch falling, or even a cup being put down; music then creates an emotive reaction from its audience, if its sophisticatedly done that is, within a drama the music will be detrimental, a catalyst for the build up of the narrative. Lastly, there is the setting, this influences the mise-en-scene on camera; the setting will establish where and when the narrative is set and can be used in many ways to hide symbols, easter eggs and metaphorical uses of cinematography to establish underlying themes within the plot or characters. 

How do these Dramas follow those?

The TV Drama, 'Your Honor', is a show I have not seen yet on but from researching the show I have found this show fits into the conventions of a drama. This being the characters within the narrative being interesting and well designed; the main protagonist is thrown into an uncomfortable situation due to his own actions (his own hamartia) and relies on his father, the secondary yet vital character, to help fix his life altering mistakes through his high status. 

Furthermore, the narrative is said be constructed beautifully, it follows the young son and his guilt, as well as the father whom anxiety, stress and love for his son is projected onto the audience. The narrative is compelling and ironically does, 'leave you on the edge of your seat'; as well as follows the structure of a grim, unpleasant plot of what could feasibly happen in reality and how one would react to this events. However, many critics do say one of the main leads, 'Brian Cranston', was playing off his last, most notable role as 'Walter White' in the hit show, 'Breaking bad', this being of the only bad reviews of the show I have found. 

Next, the dialogue fits into the conventions of being a drama; this is plausible as the characters are written to have dramatic, powerful and striking dialogue, each scene and line bouncing off each other. Moreover, the music we hear throughout the drama is thrilling and consistently dramatic, following the musical conventions to be labelled as diegetic sound; playing off the plot in a sophisticated way that exaggerates the narratives twists and turns. Lastly, the setting within the show is seen to be set in the New Orleans, obviously a non-fictional setting, as well as uses interesting and well known architecture and other settings such as the Orleans Parish District Court, Crescent City Connection (the iconic twin bridges over the Mississippi River), and Lafayette Cemetery No. 1. (found in New Orleans' Garden District neighbourhood). To add to this, the show follows a serialised, lengthened, continuous story; this being that the show is split up into 1 hour or less episodes with a narrative that follows on from each episode.

Trailer for the Drama, 'Your Honor'

Personal Relationships: 

The father and son within the drama are the two main protagonists, the son being the young, scared and almost idiot teenager we expect in many television character conventions, while the father is a high status, wise, yet anxious struck figure whom leads the plot. Their relationship within the show can be seen as relatable as they follow a loving, trust worthy relationship in which the father fends for his son and helps him when in crisis; for many audiences this is relatable and germane to watch and so their relationship is enjoyable to watch for its target audience. 

Diversion: 

Moving onto 'diversion', the show does follow this audience pleasure as many of the scenes are gory and thrilling, a genre that many audiences may enjoy, however it is not a 'comfortable' show to watch and requires attention when doing so. Action and gritty scenes are included but aren't a key factor of the show that drives the narrative, however, these scenes such as the death of a side character, finding/hiding deceased bodies and the killing of a key character is essential to the plot as well as makes it more entertaining to its audience. 

Personal Identity: 

The use of personal identity I feel is extreme within this drama; I feel we can all relate to the terrible anxiety and fear the teenage boy felt within the plot when faced with actions he did not mean to commit as well as the love and protection the father gave to this character through his actions, the character consistently trying to hide his son from 'unearthly' deeds to protect his mentality and life. These relatable themes of fear and loving protection I feel all audiences can relate to and so fits within the 'personal identity' category of being able to make sense of ones own identity. 

Surveillance:

The drama then follows of being a form of surveillance, as an audience member we watch the events of the narrative play out and almost be a 'fly on the wall', watching the characters delve into their dilemma's. 

Within this clip below, we see one of the catalysts within the show in which the stereotypical crime leader villain is seen on television (also a use of voyerisom) state to press what has happened and builds up fear within the main protagonist that he may be caught within his sons crimes, this can be exemplified to be the inciting incident. This can be categorised as  form of 'surveillance' as we watch the beginning downfall of one of the lead characters. 

Again, in the clip below is the final scene of the drama, in which we get an understanding that all their efforts throughout the narrative were pointless due to the death of the son, leaving the father figure alone with pain, guilt and regret. This can be then seen as a use of the characters personal relationships in which we feel the pain of the protagonist, leaving the audience with an emotive cathartic ending. 

                                                      Fleabag - TV Drama Series

How do these Dramas follow those?

The drama show, 'Fleabag', distributed on BBC3, follows a female led protagonist whom uses commentary of her comedic yet sad life; this was adapted on the popular award winning play about a young women trying to cope in London life whilst coming to terms with a recent tragedy in her life. 

Drama TV Show 'Fleabag' Trailer 

Personal Relationships: 

While watching the main female protagonist struggle to cope with the tragic grief of losing her best friend through melancholic comedy we create a personal relationship with the protagonist by being able to make a connection with the character. Through her struggles and relatable modern women views such as views on the male dominated world, maintaining her own business and the impossibility of relationships we feel connected to the character in her struggles; as well as this we see how the character reacts to others within the show and so compare our own relationships with hers.

Diversion: 

The show doesn't specifically follow the convention of 'diversion' as it is not a visually thrilling narrative, this being in context to murder, fight scenes or action but does fit into diversion by having numerous sexual scenes in which the target audience may find exciting. 

Personal Identity: 

The show definitely follows the convention of 'personal identity' as the character was almost created to be a strongly relatable modern female lead, in which many audiences can fit to their own identities. The main target audience of the show being aged from 16-34 women, the character fits to meet the audiences criteria of every day personal struggles such as dealing with modern day relationships, pain and grief as well as sexual problems within relationships and working in a 'hussling' business world, especially on ones own.

Surveillance:

We gain an insight onto how the lead character lives, while not being a 'fly on the wall', as the protagonist breaks the fourth wall by using asides to let the audience gain insights onto what the character is thinking, feeling and what she may do later.

The clip linked below gives examples of the characters commentary and how she interacts with the audience to fit within the comedy drama genre. This includes breaking the fourth wall in asides to the audience, this then being an example of a form of surveillance and personal relationships.

Again, below is a clip of moments within the show that demonstrate examples of personal relationships with other characters, relating to personal identify through her views and commentary, a use of diversion in action scenes such as fight scenes and sexual scenes and finally a use of surveillance through her fourth wall breaking asides to the audience. 

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