TV Drama
06/01/2021
Paper 1: Section A
-You will be given an unseen extract from a TV drama to watch and analyse.
-You will be asked THREE questions about the extract and TWO about TV in general.
-You could be asked about:
-How MEDIA LANGUAGE has been used to create meaning.
-How the INDUSTRY has influenced the meaning
-The AUDIENCE's reaction to the extract
-The Social, CULTURAL, and HISTORICAL CONTEXT.
More channels
different regulators
more freedom
different genres
etc.
-Ofcom regulates TV & radio broadcasting in the UK, setting standards for programmes that broadcasters have to follow.
-Ofcom can fine broadcasters if their programmes breach (do not follow) their Broadcasting Code.
-They carry out regular reviews to see that the terrestrial channels (BBC, ITV, C4 & C5) are fulfilling their particular PSB requirements.
-In the UK the term "public service broadcasting" refers to broadcasting that is intended for the public benefit rather than for purely commercial concerns (just to make money).
-In the UK, the BBC is the main PSB channel and has a strict REMIT to follow.
-Other TERRESTRIAL channels have to follow a PSB remit but not as strictly as the BBC.
REMIT: an area of responsibility or authority
TERRESTRIAL: broadcasts using equipment on the ground rather than satellite
-Ofcom regulates the BBC externally.
-Internally, the BBC is controlled by a board of 12-14 members.
-The BBC is granted a license to broadcast by ROYAL CHARTER, which must be renewed every 11 years. The charter sets out the BBC’s public purposes.
ROYAL CHARTER: something granted by The Queen which guarantees independence and outlines the duties and purposes
The BBC has been a PSB channel since it was set up in 1922. Lord Reith outlined the PSB principles in 1925, stating that broadcasting should, “inform, educate& entertain”, and that it should be free from commercial and government pressures.
The definition of PSB has developed since then, but the BBC’s ETHOS is still based on these ideas today.
ETHOS: a set of ideas, attitudes & values associated with a particular institution
Our mission is "to act in the public interest, serving all audiences through the provision of impartial, high-quality and distinctive output and services which inform, educate and entertain".
Our values are:
Trust is the foundation of the BBC. We’re independent, impartial, and honest
We put audiences at the heart of everything we do
We respect each other and celebrate our diversity
We take pride in delivering quality and value for money
Creativity is the lifeblood of our organisation
We’re one BBC. Great things happen when we work together
Because they are funded by the public, the BBC has to meet the PSB REMIT in terms of the genre variety, audiences, representation & quality of programmes they produce.
The BBC is funded by the annual license fee which pays for BBC TV, radio, online content and for developing new programmes. The government sets the level of the license fee.
If you watch or listen to any BBC programmes on ANY media platform, including tablets and smartphones, it is a criminal offense not to pay the license fee. This also applies to watching BBC iPlayer.
License Fee: for & against
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•Independence from government
•No commercial pressures
•Don’t have to make a profit, so they don’t
have to make all popular formats
•Can make more niche, quality programmes
that appeal to a wide, diverse audience
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Against
•Outdated scheme (doesn’t match the way we consume TV now)
•Should be pay-per-view/subscription
•Still have government influence as they set the level
Commercial Channels
-Commercial channels are funded through advertising.
-ITV1, Channel 4 & Channel 5 are commercially funded channels that also have to fulfill some PSB requirements.
-E.g. C4 has a remit to deliver high-quality, innovative, alternative programmes that challenge accepted views and values.
-C4 is commercially funded but publicly owned – this means that any profits made from advertising goes straight into new programmes and not to shareholders.
-Subscription-based channels (Sky, Virgin, Netflix, etc.) have no PSB requirements.
These generally have no guaranteed income (even ITV, C4, and C5 which have a small PBS remit) therefore it is essential they are profitable. They can generate income by:
- Subscription e.g. BT Vision, Sky Sports/Movies
-Pay Per View e.g. Sky Box Office
-Sponsorship – many programmes often contain sponsor stings or sometimes “thanks to” messages on credits. Strands of programmes may also carry sponsorship e.g. ITV3 afternoons
-Advertising – companies pay for advertising slots based on programme ratings. The more potential viewers, the higher the advertising slot (£250,000 for 30 seconds during Britain’s Got Talent).
-Product Placement – since 2011 this is allowed on British TV (not during news or children’s) subject to Ofcom regulations (certain products are banned e.g. cigarettes). Companies pay to have their products shown in programmes
By the 1950s, many felt the “BBC represented a high-culture snobbery that many leftists associated with an oppressive class structure.” There was a “desire for a playful, commercial, anti-citizen address as a counter.”
-This came along in 1955 in the shape of ITV.
-As a terrestrial broadcaster, it has a PSB remit to follow. ITV is a body made up of lots of smaller companies. It is non-profit.
Part of its PSB remit it to:
-Broadcast items of national importance
-Produce a variety of programmes for a wide audience
-Produce accessible content
FUNDING:
Advertising
Franchising programmes
Premium rate phone lines
Reality TV shows
Product placement
Sponsorship
Box sets
Online services
THE DUOPOLY in the 1960s
The era of two competing broadcasters, ITV and the BBC is referred to by many as a “Golden Age” of broadcasting in the UK. The two institutions had full control over the programmes as they produced them in-house.
How might this competition and control have positive outcomes? What negative effects might this have?
Positives
•Full control of all aspects from creation to editing
•Producer/institution as an auteur (has a personal creative vision which can be followed right through without external pressures)
•Competition between the organisations led them both to strive for better content
•Allowed in-house talent and content to be developed over time and build a loyal audience
•Production became more of a business, talent was developed, and processes improved
Negatives
•Hard for voices outside of the institution to be heard (the concept of the “old boys network”)
•Ideas subject to the ideologies of those in control/political pressures
•Some argued in competing with ITV the BBC “dumbed-down” some of its content
18/01/2021
TV Audiences
Both BBC1 and ITV1 need to be popular and appeal to mass audiences. Why?
-BBC1 has to meet PSB remit and justify license fee
-ITV1 has to attract advertisers to fund the channel
-However, technology has changed how we consume TV.
Effects of Technology
-Despite being able to watch time-shifted programmes or stream TV, the majority of audiences still watch live TV on a TV set. The PSB channels are still the most popular – 85% of people in the UK with a TV watch PSB channels.
-So, if technology means we can watch what we want, whenever we want, why do we still watch live TV?
-One of the reasons for watching live TV is SECOND SCREENING: screenings that encourage audiences to join discussions on various social media during a live TV show.
-Another reason is AUDIENCE INTERACTIVITY: viewers are encouraged to vote to determine the outcome. This continued engagement increases their commitment to the programme and loyalty to the channel.
THEORY: The Active Audience
-This focus on debates as to whether an audience is ACTIVE or PASSIVE
-A PASSIVE AUDIENCE accepts and believes everything a media text tells them. They are easily influenced and don’t question any messages conveyed.
-An ACTIVE AUDIENCE interacts with a media text and makes its own decisions about whether to accept and believe everything. They question messages and may interpret meanings differently.
Why would audiences now be more active than in the 1960s?
-Much more channel competition (channel surfing)
-Different platforms available
-Second screening
-Interactivity possible
-Greater range of messages
Scheduling
-Scheduling is, therefore, massively important to both BBC & ITV. Competitive scheduling can benefit the main channels as it creates publicity.
-For example, BBC1’s Strictly Come Dancing results show was scheduled at the same time as The X Factor on ITV1.
-Peak viewing time is 6pm – 10.30pm
-AUDIENCE RATINGS are measured by the Broadcasters’ Audience Research Board (BARB).
TASK: go to BARB.co.uk and see whether BBC or ITV got better audience ratings for last week.
The BBC got better audience ratings.
The Watershed
What and when is it?
-Overseen by OFCOM, the watershed is between 9pm & 5.30am.
-During these hours, broadcasters can show content that is not suitable for children up to the age of 15. -18 rated content cannot be shown until after 10pm.
-Unsuitable material includes sexual content, violence, graphic or disturbing imagery, or language.
Serial TV Drama
What is the difference between a TV Drama & Serial TV Drama?
DEFINITION: Serial TV drama is defined as any television drama that is organised into a series of episodes (as opposed to one-off dramas). Typically, a series contains between 3 and 12 episodes.
A serial has a continuing plot that unfolds in a sequential episode-by-episode fashion. TV Dramas typically follow main story arcs that span an entire season; they often contain complex narratives and key characters that evolve as the season continues.
What sub-genres can you divide TV drama into?
Most popular:
Crime drama-
Criminal Minds
Period drama-
The Crown
Teen drama-
Umbrella academy
Medical drama-
Scrubs
Science-Fiction drama-
The Jetsons
Fantasy drama-
Attack on titan
Political drama-
The West Wing
20/01/2021
-Youth slang and fashion changes
-Paper dresses
-Hippie culture
-Individualism
-Psychedelic culture- surrealism, hallucination, colours
-Music centralized
-Civil rights movement- Martin Luther King Jr
-An age of 'Hippy' culture
-Still impacted by WWII.1939-1945 (Rationing, poverty, geographical, people still frightened)
-New music
-Moon landing
-Colourful fashion-Patterns, skirts shorter,
-In the 1950s, the USA invented the term teenager. (before, 4-21 you were still a child) as a term of who to market to. Teenagers felt different and rebellious, they bought more products more catered to their stereotype.
-The anti-war protest ('Hippy'. smoked marijuana, wore colourful weird clothes, wore the ban the bomb peace symbol)
-60's was a time of youth rebellion.
-The UK had three subcultures. Hippy, mods, rockers
-Followed 'The Beatles' fashion, "McJagger"
-Contraceptive pills introduced.
-Free love, sex out of marriage, sex and relationship with the same gender(legal 1968, however still discrimination), Sex made legal at 16(Gay sex at 18, discrimination)
-Britain was multicultural but racist. The first interracial kiss and first homosexual kiss showed in the late 70's early 80's.
-LSD was designed in the Vietnam war as a drug to enhance soldiers' performance by the US military.
-The Beatles were caught for using recreational drugs "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds"
Popular artists-
The Beatles
The Rolling Stones
Bob Dylan
The Beach Boys
The Jimi Hendrix Experience
Led Zeppelin
The Who
Ray Charles
-Concerns over the COLD WAR
In 1965, the Cold War was at its height. Britain was a part of NATO – a group of 12 western countries who agreed to support each other in the face of a Soviet attack. In retaliation, The Soviet Union formed a pact with seven other communist countries. Europe was divided into two armed sides
-Threat of Nuclear War
Anxieties about nuclear war were common as both the Soviet Union and the US were building up their armies and weapons.
In 1962, The Cuban Missile Crisis took place over a terrifying week when the two countries took the world to the brink of a nuclear war.
-Espionage
Both sides in the Cold War used ESPIONAGE – as a way of finding out what the other side was doing and as a way to plant false information. A number of double agents were found guilty of spying in the early 60s and either defected or were imprisoned.
This meant that espionage was a common theme in films and TV programmes.
ESPIONAGE: the practice of spying or using spies
1/02/2021
1)Which institution (Channel) produced the show? ITV
2)Who was the primary and secondary audience? Mainstream adult audience
3)When did the first episode air? 7th Jan 1961
4)How many seasons were made? 6
5)What date/year was the last episode aired? 1969
6)What was the budget for Series 4? £56,000 per episode
1)The fourth series was different to the third due to a $2million deal with ABC. It was shot on film. What did this mean in terms of: locations, production values, editing, camerawork & sound?
2)Who were the stars of Series 4 Episode 1: The Town of No Return? Name the actors, include images and background information on them e.g. age, gender, previous roles.
3)ITV was seen as the working class channel, compared to BBC’s middle class. How did The Avengers compare, in terms of the representation of rising youth culture, compared to the BBC’s flagship drama: The Forsyte Saga?
1) The increase in budget meant that the general quality of production all around would be much higher. With more budget, they can afford to travel to different locations, hire out venues for filming, make their own sets, etc. to create an immersive and high-quality episode. Further, they would be able to afford to hire the workers with the most experience, therefore the editing, filming, and sound quality would increase. Also, as film was expensive, it would often be that the final cut will include mistakes to ensure that minimal film is wasted, but with a higher budget, this means that they can afford to retake scenes if mistakes are made, further increasing the production quality.
2)
Patrick Macnee- John Steed
Daniel Patrick Macnee (6 February 1922 – 25 June 2015) was a British film and television actor. After serving in the Royal Navy during World War II, he began his acting career in Canada. Despite having some small film roles, Macnee spent much of his early career playing small parts in American and Canadian television shows. In 1961 he landed the role of secret agent John Steed in the British television series The Avengers. The show was a success running for eight seasons from 1961 to 1969 and was revived in 1976 as The New Avengers. The show was a major breakthrough for Macnee and led to his roles in many films including A View to a Kill and This is Spinal Tap as well as continuing to appear in both Britain and US Television shows up until 2001.
Diana Rigg- Emma Peel
Dame Enid Diana Elizabeth Rigg DBE (20 July 1938 – 10 September 2020) was an English actress of stage and screen. Some of her notable roles were as Emma Peel in the TV series The Avengers (1965–1968); Countess Teresa di Vicenzo, wife of James Bond, in On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969); Olenna Tyrell in Game of Thrones (2013–2017) and in her performance as Medea on Broadway and in the UK.
Alan MacNaughtan- Brandon
Alan MacNaughtan was born on March 4, 1920 in Bearsden, Dumbartonshire, Scotland. He was an actor, known for To Serve Them All My Days (1980), Department S (1969) and The Sandbaggers (1978). He died on August 29, 2002 in London, England.
Question 8) Example answer
British television did compete on the world market, with prestige productions such as The Avengers being sold to many countries overseas (90 countries by 1969). A lucrative deal with the American Broadcasting Company (reportedly $2 million) required the fourth series of The Avengers to be shot on film and allowed high production values for television of that era. Previous series were very studio bound, as was conventional for television of that era, and so appear to be very ‘stagey’ by contemporary standards. Videotape editing was a difficult and costly process so most television was mixed live, with mistakes and fluffed lines left uncorrected. Many programmes were lost as expensive videotape was re-used for new programmes. Shooting on film for a higher budget enabled more sophisticated camerawork, greater use of locations, more controlled editing and a more sophisticated soundtrack, with a through-composed score.
Question 10) Example answer
The BBC was slowly weaned away from its stuffy ‘Auntie’ image by the rigours of competition with ITV. However, channel loyalty tended to split on class lines, with ITV seen as the more working class channel – at a time when, with the rise of youth culture, it was suddenly ‘cool’ to be working class – and the BBC seen as more middle class. Thus the BBC’s flagship drama of the mid 1960s, The Forsyte Saga, was a serialisation of a set of novels by Galsworthy, a Nobel prize-winning British author. In comparison, ITV series such as The Avengers appeared much more daring, youthful, irreverent and sexy.
Because of the additional money from ABC,
The show could afford much higher production values: more location shooting, all shot on film etc.
Each episode had a budget of around £56,000. Today, that would be the equivalent of…
£928,000!!!
3/02/2021
Summary-
On a beach a shifty man is attending to his lobster pots when a man emerges from the tide concealed in a water tight black covering; he walks up the beach, removes the covering, and says good morning to the man and walks off.
After a bout of fencing at Mrs. Peel's flat, Steed and Mrs Peel leave on a train to visit Little Bazeley by the Sea, a village in Norfolk where agents have been reported to go missing. On the train they share a carriage with a portly gentleman, Jimmy Smallwood (played by Patrick Newell, who would later become a semi-regular Avengers cast member playing spymaster "Mother"), who is going to visit his brother the local blacksmith. On arrival Steed, Peel and Smallwood are shadowed by the shifty local man from the beach. At the local inn, the Inebriated Gremlin, they are served by landlord Piggy Warren, who introduces them to Mark Brandon, the school inspector, and Jill Manson, a teacher. Mrs Peel announces herself as a new teacher, assigned by the ministry to the local school. When Smallwood leaves to visit his brother the blacksmith, several strange men in boots with rifles depart through the inn and follow him. Meanwhile, Steed and Mrs Peel find their rooms in a shabby state, with the shutters nailed shut. Smallwood fails to find his brother, and heads for the church, followed by the shifty local. Later the shifty local is seen hunting Smallwood across the landscape with bloodhounds. This is heard back at the village and dismissed by Piggy as "badger hunting".
The following morning Steed and Mrs Peel examine strange footprints leading out of the sea and up the beach, and find Smallwood dead and buried in the sand.
Mrs Peel visits the school and finds it and the teachers very unusual. She discovers that the school has been unused for years and a large number of adult sized Wellington boots are stored there. She visits the local church where the vicar shows her the parish records, of which several decades are missing.
Meanwhile, Steed investigates the old wartime airfield and finds it in a similarly derelict state. Steed discovers a mention of a pilot, killed in 1942, named Piggy Warren: the name used by the pub landlord. Both Mrs Peel and Steed learn that the village folk are impostors and are hiding something. They seek out Smallwood's brother and find the shifty looking local who owns the bloodhounds pretending to be the blacksmith. Earlier they had seen a photo of Smallwood's brother so they know that he too is an impostor.
While Mrs Peel is investigating the school, an elderly man – the real School inspector – runs in, pursued by the phony school inspector and the shifty local, and says little but "below, below" before dying. Mrs Peel revisits the church and confronts the vicar, who suddenly pulls out a gun and reveals he is also an impostor. Mrs Peel is tied up in the blacksmith's until Steed arrives, overpowers the shifty local and frees her.
In the school, Steed and Mrs Peel discover enough food to feed an army. Mrs Peel reveals a diagram on the back of the old blackboard of Britain and a submarine in the North Sea. Wondering where have all the people gone, they surmise that this is a gradual invasion by a foreign power: small groups have been dispatched from a submarine located in the North Sea, explaining the bootprints at the beach and adult sized Wellington boots at the school, replacing the locals one by one until only the invaders remain.
Heeding the dying man's words, they head to the old airfield's underground bunkers. There they discover a small army of enemy agents and a big supply of explosives and some high tech equipment. Steed and Mrs Peel are eventually found by some of the impostors; a fight ensues before they overpower them and leave after sealing the invaders permanently underground. They depart the village on a motor scooter driven by Mrs Peel.
Audience Appeal (U&G)
Why might this programme have appealed to the audiences at the time?
Think about the Uses &
Gratifications theory
of Blumler & Katz:
Personal Identity
Information
Entertainment
Social Interaction
Personal Identity (U&G)
Could identify and empathise with the upper-class role models
Could explore and/or reinforce their own views & values
Could identify with the ‘English Gent’ – Steed. Cool, calm and unruffled.
Could identify with a tough, intelligent and equal female hero – Emma Peel.
Information (U&G)
Could gain information about the world of the upper class.
Could gain information about the world of espionage/spies.
Could feel reassured that there were highly capable agents protecting Britain from a foreign threat. (Despite pastiche element)
Entertainment (U&G)
Could enjoy the escapist plots
Could de-stress by losing themselves in Avengers’ world.
Could enjoy the danger of the heroes’ situations and how they escape with style, humour & sophistication.
Could enjoy the familiarity of the repetitive narratives; a different villain each week that the heroes defeat.
Social Interaction (U&G)
Could watch the programme together as a family (only have one TV per household)
Would enjoy discussing episodes; friends and co-workers would feel left out if not seen.
Could build a personal relationship with the familiar characters of Steed & Peel – almost a substitute for real life interaction.
A sense of Britishness gained in Britain and abroad from the programme.
10/02/2021
1960s context- What were the major concerns at the time?
Cold War
Threat of nuclear war
Threat of foreign invasion
Espionage
Fifth Columnists were a group of people who secretly support the enemy and undermine a country from within.
Who were the fifth columnists in this episode?
The imposters- Piggy Warren, School Inspector, Principal
This episode references World War II films like Went the Day Well? from 1944. In both cases, the English country village is an illusion, as sinister intruders are impersonating stereotypical British characters.
Who were these characters and how were they shown to be stereotypes?
Piggy Warren- Stereotypical British innkeeper/bar-man, polite, friendly, well-liked
School Inspector- Stern, cold, judgmental
Priest- Friendly, Accommodating
Many national concerns could be seen in some of the films released in the early 60s. Look at the list on the next slide – how could these have influenced The Avengers?
They could take inspiration from the framework of some episodes. Most crime-solving tv shows follow the same general conventions- fight scene, suspicion, dramatic irony, solving the crime, victory
The Ipcress File: an unglamorous spy film with Michael Caine as a British agent.
Thunderball: the fourth James Bond film.
The Spy Who Came in from the Cold: Cold War spy film.
The War Game: fiction film on the effects of a nuclear attack on Britain.
It Happened Here: fiction film about occupation of Britain by the Nazis
The Man from U.N.C.L.E: American spy thriller TV series
The Cold War & Espionage
The opening sequence of the episode symbolises the theme of the episode, which can be summed up as the attempted invasion of Britain supported by ‘The Enemy Within’. Saul, who apparently represents the stereotypical British fisherman (?!), is not alarmed by the strange arrival of the imposter Mark Brandon from the sea in a waterproof bag, but directs him to Lower Bazely as if a smartly dressed ‘English gentleman’ wading in from the sea were an everyday occurrence!
This alerts the 1965 audience to familiar themes linked to spying: disguise and impersonation.
Reassuring The Audience
As a light-hearted spy thriller, the show would need to reassure the audience that, while the threat existed, the enemy was not efficient enough to succeed.
A good example is the scene where Emma Peel explains the planned invasion to Steed on the blackboard, whilst he sits behind a child’s desk. This is given very little screen time; Steed’s position adds humour; they both have a cool, calm response. All this helps to undermine the seriousness of the threat and reassures the audience that any threat is not as serious as the threat in the early years of WW2, and that the country is safe with agents like Steed and Peel.
Explain how social contexts influence television programmes. Refer to The Avengers from 1965 to support your answer.
[10]
You should aim to write about 3 or 4 paragraphs.
Make sure you start with a sentence answering the general question first.
Use the PEEL structure.
The Cold War and Espionage
Feminism
Fashion -Peak British Representation- Steed's steel enforced Bowler Hat, Peel's slim glasses and effortless beauty, fencing outfit has sex apPEEL but also conservative and well suited to fighting
-Threat of Nuclear War
Anxieties about nuclear war were common as both the Soviet Union and the US were building up their armies and weapons.
In 1962, The Cuban Missile Crisis took place over a terrifying week when the two countries took the world to the brink of a nuclear war.
Firstly, scenes in The Avengers 1965 can be linked to the social context at the time- like The Cold War and tensions about espionage. Tensions between the USA and The Soviet Union were at an all-time high, with the development of hydrogen bombs, and threats of nuclear warfare. Cold War espionage was utilized meaning intelligence gathering activities during the Cold War (circa 1947-1991) between the Western allies (primarily the US, UK, and NATO) and the Eastern Bloc (primarily the Soviet Union and allied countries of the Warsaw Pact). This reflection of Cold War espionage is shown in the opening scene where an imposter posed as a "school inspector" emerges from the sea in a water-tight suit. Having this link from the Cold War in the episode would have made the audience feel highly suspicious and have the threat have a greater impact on the viewers.
Secondly, feminism was becoming a larger movement around this time- which is backed by scenes in The Avengers. The women's rights movement, also called the women's liberation movement or the diverse social movement, in the 1960s and '70s, seeking equal rights and opportunities and greater personal freedom for women. It coincided with and is recognized as part of the “second wave” of feminism. Having Emma Peel as Steed's companion, with similar if not equal abilities and intelligence presented a strong female character to the audience that women could look up to, and feel empowered by. Having Emma Peel, in this episode, taking up major responsibilities and even explaining the enemy's plot to Steed, shows her as a powerful and very important character- as Steed may not have been able to complete the job on his own. Further through the show, Steed is accompanied by several powerful women, portraying a feminist message that women can be and are as strong as men. Therefore, the massive feminist movement clearly influenced the show.
The 1960s can be defined by many as an individualistic, cultural, and fashionable decade- with outbursts of new fashion developments and the surge of hippy culture. This can be clearly reflected in the outfits worn in the episode by Steed, Peel, and other characters. Steed is presented as the stereotypical high-class gentleman- whilst also maintaining a cool elegance with the steel enforced bowler hat, which was very popular business attire at the time, sported by previous PM Winston Churchill. Peel is shown in a variety of outfits- ranging from glamourous fencing attire to short dresses with slim sunglasses- all of which present her as powerful and classy, and with sex appeal despite the outfits being generally conservative. The representation of fashion would attract the audience as British culture is being represented at its peak of glamour.
Finally, the threat of nuclear war influences the episode of The Avengers as presented in the underground bunker scene where Peel and Steed find high amounts of explosives. Anxieties about nuclear war were common as both the Soviet Union and the US were building up their armies and weapons. In 1962, The Cuban Missile Crisis took place over a terrifying week when the two countries took the world to the brink of a nuclear war. This inclusion of the idea of the characters fighting against enemies with copious amounts of explosives would have created tension for the audience.
24/02/2021
1.Which political party was in power in 2015? Who was PM? What was the relevance of UKIP being so popular?
David Cameron- Conservative
UKIP have the following results:
Seats:1
Gain:1
Loss:0
Votes:3,881,099
Vote Share:12.6
There had been major shifts in attitudes and values since the 1960s: The Equality Act in 2010 meant any discrimination was illegal; Britain was a far more MULTICULTURAL country; attitudes towards sexuality were far more accepting.
Using the information you have found and your own knowledge of our culture today, explain the differences you would expect to see from a police drama in 2015 compared to one from 1965.
Consider:
Representations – sexuality, gender, religion, age, class
Threats/Issues
Potential storylines
I would expect that a TV Show from 2015 was much more progressive and far less discriminatory in comparison to one from 1965. You may see more people from different backgrounds and with different sexualities, gender, religion, age, and ethnicity included in the police force, and probably less racist stereotyping of criminals presented.
03/03/2021
How many channels are there available to watch FOR FREE on UK TV?
80 free
What different ways are there to watch TV now?
TV, Online (Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc), Apps
What would make you want to watch a new TV series?
The cover, The actors, The plot, Recommendations, Reviews, Adverts, Posters
What different methods do producers use to keep audiences interested in a show?
The plot, Cameos, New seasons, Merch, A community
What elements did the producers choose to include and why?
Inclusivity(men, women, POC, homosexual relationship, etc.)- To attract a wide audience, and promote equality.
How have they represented police life?
Dramatic, Intense, Lack of respect
How have they represented personal dramas?
Moral conflicts impacting mental health.
How have they used Media Language (editing, sound, MES, camerawork) to make it appeal to the target audience?
Quick jumpcuts between action scenes and talking to represent the face-paced life. The music is very suspenseful. Pan shots across police-people to show the range of people (diversity)
Part of the winter schedule for 2015: aired October 2015, typically, a time aimed at wider family audiences. E.g. Apprentice & Strictly
Scheduling: broadcast 8pm on a weekday. Peak viewing time.
Pre-watershed Cuffs targeted a broad family audience of 16-65, similar to that of Casualty & Waterloo Road.
Offered range of characters and storylines to appeal to as many segments of demographic as possible
Format/Appeal: Fits modern post 2010 populist series format – everyday relatable storylines with a consistent set of troubled characters with different issues.
Narrative: Weekday winter pre-watershed formats are intended to be engaging but not threatening to mainstream audience values. Storylines tend to be covered superficially and lack depth of darker post-watershed series like Luther or Sherlock.
The BBC is expected to encourage competition for producing programmes, as part of its remit, so many programmes are produced by independent companies.
Answers: Production & Cuffs
Tiger Aspect productions has a long track record in both comedy and quality drama: Peaky Blinders, Benidorm, Ripper Street, Bad Education, Robin Hood, The Vicar of Dibley, Gimme, Gimme, Gimme & Murphy’s Law.
The BBC wanted a programme to replace Waterloo Road, whose audiences were declining. The slot – 8pm Wednesday – was pre-watershed prime time, so required family-friendly mass entertainment and was the one day when the schedule was not held up by Eastenders, putting extra pressure on the programme to deliver large audiences.
Cuffs offered the possibility of reproducing the success of The Bill, a pre- watershed police drama that had been the mainstay of the ITV early evening schedules for many years. Cuffs offered the same combination of a soap-opera style ensemble cast in a character-led narrative with a mix of humour and serious drama, in a similar mould to the BBC’s successful serial hospital dramas – Casualty and Holby City.
8/6/2021
Conventions of TV Dramas
-Intensity
-Violence
-Investigation
-Intelligence
-Serious tone
-Dark themes
-Suspense
5 crime dramas and their brief storylines.
-Deadwater Fell
When a doctor (David Tennant) loses his wife and three children in a mysterious house fire, no-one is beyond suspicion. As the fractures begin to show in a life that once appeared idyllic, the spotlight turns on Tennant, his late wife and their best-friend neighbours; policeman Steve (Matthew McNulty) and his girlfriend Jess (Cush Jumbo). The darkness that lurks beneath us all takes centre stage in a story that commands edge-of-your-seat viewing.
Deadwater fell is set in the fictional Scottish village of Kirkdarroch, but most of the filming took place in the very real East Ayrshire village of Dunlop, as well as Kilbarchanin in Renfrewshire.
-The Fall
The Fall centres on a serial killer (Jamie Dornan) who’s wreaking havoc upon the young women of Belfast – in a particularly horrible string of home murders. But the hunter is also being hunted, as a leading detective (Gillian Anderson) enters the fray, determined to find out who is breaking, entering and killing with intent. What follows is a tantalising chase, with each party ready to outsmart the other; though the killer must also keep up his appearance of an everyday family man.
The Fall is a crime drama television series filmed and set in Northern Ireland. The series, starring Gillian Anderson as Detective Superintendent Stella Gibson, is created and written by Allan Cubitt and features Jamie Dornan as serial killer Paul Spector.
-Killing Eve
Villanelle (Jodie Comer) is a deadly assassin who leaves a trail of mutilated bodies in her wake. But her Achilles Heel is Eve (Sandra Oh), the British intelligence officer charged with tracking her down. The two embark in a bloody game of cat-and-mouse, the boundaries of which are never entirely clear to a legion of captivated viewers. Fiona Shaw co-stars as Eve’s boss in a dark comedy-meets-crime drama that should be top of your watch list.
Several scenes in Killing Eve's first ever episode were set in the Tuscan region of Italy, when assassin Villanelle is sent to kill a mafia boss. Bar Garibaldi in the small town of Colle di Val d'Elsa, near Siena, was used for filming that famous ice cream scene.
-White lines
Jumping between a 20-year timeline of Manchester drug raves and Ibizan party culture, the series follows the story of bereaved sister Zoe (Laura Haddock), as she visits the Balearic Island to find out what happened to her sibling Axel (Tom Rhys Harries) – a wannabe DJ who vanished on the island in seriously shady circumstances two decades prior. Cue: hedonism, cocaine and sun-dappled violence aplenty. Plus some excellent retro ‘90s vibes.
White Lines is the hottest new murder mystery show on Netflix, and it's set around the beautiful party island, Ibiza. Just off the coast of Spain, the island is home to a legendary clubbing scene, and has been since the 90s, which is when this series was set.
-The Stranger
A happily married father of two finds his life in turmoil after a stranger tells him a devastating secret about his wife. This adaptation of Harlan Coben’s bestselling thriller relocates the story from the States to suburban Manchester. The stranger in question (played by Hannah John-Kamen) is intent on exposing a series of scandalous lies – but how many people must die as a result? A gripping whodunnit told by an excellent cast, including Downton Abbey’s Siobhan Finneran and Jennifer Saunders in her debut drama role.
The 2015 Harlan Coben novel The Stranger is set in Cedarfield, New Jersey, with the eponymous stranger popping up across the United States.
Common conventions of TV Crime Dramas
-The narrative will usually be centered around a detective trying to solve a crime - often a murder. There will be an investigation taking place which involves clues and red herrings. The killer's identity will often be revealed at the end of the episode. The narrative includes a crime that needs to be solved.At the end of the episode/series the crime is solved, criminal usually is punished. Lead characters will often have a back story, and will weave their personal life into the narrative. There is usually mystery involved, or some sort of puzzle, so that the audience can try to figure it out themselves. Almost always ends on a cliffhanger to keep the audience watching the next episode.
Generic conventions of crime dramas- camera shots
- The camera shots used in crime dramas are tilt shots (to show the importance of a certain character), close ups (to show the facial expressions or even the damage due to a fight of the character), point of view shots to show weapons etc), establishing shots (to show the setting/set the scene), over the shoulder shots (in a conversation etc), an arial shot to (to show a character if they are on the floor) and other basic shots to keep filming simple and prevent confusion the the audience.
Generic conventions of crime dramas- characters
A convention is that the lead character will have a major personality defect such as, failed marriage, alcoholism, gambling addiction etc. John Luther has a failed marriage.
Characters:
- Crime solvers
- Criminals
- Victims
- family/friends of victim.
The main character usually has a sidekick that looks up to him/her the sidekick is usually more inexperienced, they would have different strengths and weaknesses.
There would be a gang that would work for the leader or in this case detective.
Killing Eve trailer conventions
-Hitchcock zoom- Creates suspense around a character.
-Repetitive use of crossfades and exponential fades between shots, cuts to black, to create tension.
-Swift jumpcuts to present fast-pace
17/03/2021
Cuffs: Series 1, Episode 1
LO: To analyse the narratives and characters constructed in an opening sequence.
-Main characters
-Storylines: episodic and individual/ overarching:
-Setting:
Seaside urban town.
-Overall tone/ appeal
Police are friendly
Watch and take notes:
-Names and details of main characters
-Names and details of main characters
-Different narratives constructed and how they develop.
Cuffs
Characters and how they are presented:
PC Ryan Draper-Accompanying Jake on his first police outing, lecturing him on why he should want to be an officer. He has a son. Ryan argues with Jake alot. Faces racist prejudice.
PC Jake Vickers- New police officer indoctrinated. Jumped the queue, and is going on his first police outing. His dad is a politician. He is naive and continually makes mistakes. Internal conflict when he sees people's condition. He impresses Ryan by talking to Nathan (addict taken in). He makes a mistake with the callouts and the wrong car is caught. The car contained another criminal who had abducted a child. Other officers think that Jake only got the job because of his dad's high position. Gay and is interested in the solicitor
DS Jo Moffat- She wants to talk to the only witness of the crime, but they are a child and his father doesn't want him to. Internal conflict when "Debbie" is mentioned.
Chief Superintendant Robert Vickers-Serious, Jake's dad, Respected
DC Carl Hawkins-Didn't see much of him in the first episode.
DI Felix Kane-Conflicted, Stoic
PC Donna Prager- Clever, Reasonable
PC Lino Moretti- Less fit than the others, Likes to eat, Seemingly the comedic relief character.
Uses and Gratifications
| Entertainment and diversion | Audiences consume media texts to escape from their everyday lives. They choose entertaining texts that allow them to divert their attention from the real world, perhaps by watching a fantasy film like Harry Potter or reading a fashion magazine like Vogue. |
| Information and education | Some media texts are consumed by audiences when they want to be informed and educated. Newspapers, news programmes and current affairs documentaries educate and inform. They help the audience to find out what is happening in the world. |
| Social interaction | Some media texts like The X Factor or I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here provoke interaction with the audience. Social media can now spark an immediate reaction and get people talking while the action is still happening. |
| Personal identity | Some audiences like to watch or read media texts because they can compare their life experiences with those represented in it. Audience pleasure comes from empathising and identifying with characters or content represented in them. Soap operas or lifestyle magazines can offer audiences this kind of enjoyment. |
Entertainment-High tense situations that are compelling and interesting to watch.
Information-The social realism offers a sense of informing the audience about police work and the criminal world.
Social interaction- You get invested in a team, you can discuss with peers who are also watchers.
Entertainment and social interaction
22/03/2021
Cuffs: Series 1, Episode 1
LO: to annotate the narratives and characters in the opening episode.
PC Ryan Draper-
He worked hard for his position, and doesn't like Jake because he believes that Jake only got his position because of his father. He clearly knows how to do his job, and is inconvenienced by Jake's presence and naivety. After being attacked by a racist, and saved by Jake- he feels more compelled to like Jake, despite him believing that he only got his job because of his father. The audience may want to continue watching to watch the relationship between Ryan and Jake grow.
PC Jake Vickers-
New to the position, naive, and eager to prove himself. He's aware that his coworkers think that he only has his position because of his father, and as a result of this, he is desperate to impress the people around him, but fails multiple times with the addict, road signals, medical help etc. Ryan is often disappointed in Jake and has to do his job for him, which aids the conflict that Jake only got his job because of his father.
DS Jo Moffat-
She is a strong, intelligent and respected female character. However she is vulnerable due to her affiliation (affair) with Robert Vickers, which will be continued throughout the story. This association with men as her weakness has been stereotypical of female characters since television began, and therefore isn't surprising or progressive for a female character.
Chief Superintendant Robert Vickers-
He appears cold-hearted, careless and distant. His carelessness is also presented through his unapologetic bias of his son as an officer. This may present a conflict later in the series between Jake and Robert, as Jake may feel as though his status is tainted by his father's clear bias. He also is having an affair with Jo, which implies a lot about his character- he isn't morally correct despite his high position in the police.
DC Carl Hawkins-
Independent and powerful and optimistic. He was attacked in a house invasion, and still manages to make a joke by the end of it that he can get the person done for assault.
DI Felix Kane-
He appears reserved and introspective when talking to others and reflecting on his choices. He deals with turbulent people- the grief-stricken mother of the child and the suicidal father. He also seems thorough with his methods of solving crimes, after rewatching a clip several times to find a small clue which led him to the hotel. However, he seems slightly naive in that when he found the clue to where the girl would be, he went on his own and didn't take anyone with him, in case the father would have been violent etc.
PC Donna Prager-
Humourous, confident and risk-taking. She seems like the strongest female character, she is one of the fittest in the final training scene alongside her male counterparts, and she is also witty and funny.
PC Lino Moretti-
Humourous, confident and risk-taking. He appears to be the comedic relief character, but he isn't stereotypically goofy and clumsy as such. He is also a relatable character, which may attract an audience.
As a whole, there is at least one character an audience member can relate to. There are women and men, people of different ethnicities and religions, different sexualities etc. Jake, who is the main protagonist, is gay- but it is not his whole character that he is a gay man. it is more of a detail about him that is explored as a side-plot.
Personal identity notes task:
Why someone may identify with each character-
Jake-
He is starting a new job and feels out of his depth.
He is gay.
He feels undermined.
He has internal conflict.
Ryan-
Single father.
Hard-working and resilient.
A POC in a high position.
Faces racial prejudice.
Jo-
Strong female character.
She is vulnerable.
She is determined to reach her goal.
Robert-
He is in a high position in his field and is respected.
He is determined.
He hides his vulnerability.
Carl-
He is optimistic and funny.
He comes out on top at the end.
He is resilient and powerful despite being attacked.
Felix-
He is silently intelligent.
He is consistent and thorough.
He is empathetic and can handle vulnerable people.
Donna-
She is strong and independent.
She is equal to her male counterparts.
Lino-
He is funny and relatable.
He enjoys a lot of food.
He is unfit.
Social realism-
Racism- in the stabbing in the shop. Close up shots used to show this.
Treatment of the police- Opening scene, no respect, humourous situation, Ryan being hit by one of the stag group.
Mental health- The addict takes his life, and we see the police regret not doing things differently. Addresses how mental health is not taken seriously enough, and people aren't educated well enough of the topic.
Entertainment-
Exciting scene- The car chase scene.
Jake and Ryan in the car chasing the criminals, high tensity moment of weaving in and out of cars- danger.
We see Donna and Lino place car spikes along the road to puncture the tires of the vehicle(peak of tensity), but it gets the wrong car as Ryan makes a mistake with the road signs. The vehicle gets away and Ryan is angry with Jake. The car which is punctured by accident contains the abducted child from earlier in the story (dramatic irony because the audience know that he is a wanted criminal, but they don't). Donna reads the numberplate over the radio for compensation for the man, but they find that he is a wanted criminal (high intensity moment). Donna turns around to capture the criminal, but he is gone. This moment of dramatic irony and frustration is entertaining to the audience, as they will be shouting at their screens at the characters who haven't realised that he is a criminal.
Social interaction
How does Ryan and Jake's relationship grow?
What happens between Jake and the solicitor?
What is going to happen between Robert and Jo?
What is Felix's story, why does he end up in a brothel in the end, and what does this say about his character?
What happened to the criminals that got away because of Jake's mistake?
Will Jake be respected?
24/03/2021
Cuffs and Social contexts
LO: to analyse representation and influence of social and cultural contexts in cuffs.
How was the stereotypical English seaside town represented in Episode 1?
Consider:
Characters-
Ryan approaches the beach
Robert makes a professional speech about the hardships of being a police officer.
Props-
The men on the stag do look stereotypically British in their clothing and manner (the hats and sex doll)
Character interaction-
Ryan is assaulted, he walks in alone- he is brave and dedicated.
Roberts speech shows how the police are the "cornerstone of the justice system" and that they are respectful and resilient.
Dialogue-
Over radio. Shouting on the beach to demonstrate the lack of respect and danger. What Robert is saying contradicts with what is happening on the beach to Ryan (he gets punched, RObert is saying they are respected and high power)
Stereotypes-
Stereotypical British group of men on a stag-do, probably drunk- swearing, being loud and rude etc.
Far more gender equality
Class structure supposedly disappeared
Acceptance of a range of sexualities
Attitudes to outsiders/foreigners
Patriarchal society less evident
Multicultural society- Qualities act 2010
Changing attitudes towards the police
Long establishing shot to set the scene.
Where can you see:
Stronger roles for women reflect gender equality:
Jo, Donna and Misha, many women in the team.
Changing attitude toward masculinity. Different male roles presented in a positive light:
Felix Kane- stoic and not confrontational, quiet.
Traditional 'masculine' and 'feminine' qualities no longer reserved for particular genders:
Jo goes straight into the raid and starts arresting people, equal to her male counterparts.
Female representation:
Donna- She is powerful in her position, and equal to her male counterpart, Lino. We consider Lino and Donna as equals- and maybe Donna as even more powerful than Lino despite their same position, because she is physically fitter as displayed towards the ending in the training scene.
Misha- Despite being threatened by the criminals, she is brave enough to call out the crime on the radio- displaying how she is a powerful female role.
Male representation-
Jake-
Naive
Inexperienced
Weak- Over confident
Dedicated
Robert-
More traditional male stereotype
Dominant, controlling
Authoritative
Patriarchal
Lino-
Comical
Eating- is as focus- as joke
Dedicated, experienced
Respected
Jake-
Strong, confident, emotional
Anti-stereotypical
Lino-
Comical, Confrontational
Stereotypical
Carl-
Aggressive, confrontational
Stereotypical
Felix-
Calm, Sensitive
Anti-stereotypical
Ryan-
Determined and focused, emotional and caring
Slightly both.
Changing attitudes on sexuality:
Jake and the solicitor. Jake being gay doesn't impact his performance or the opinions of his coworkers on him. Him being gay isn't his only character trait. He isn't hiding it either, he tells Ryan in the opening scene that he is gay, and Ryan doesn't react- normalising the discussion of sexuality.
Multiculturalism:
Differences in ethnicity are accepted (characters are from varied ethnic backgrounds), discusses that racism still exists (the racist attacking Ryan in the alleyway and the attack in the shop). The racist group are represented very negatively- uneducated, drink and drugs. The powerful anti-racist message reflects societal attitudes- racism is outdated.
31/3/2021
The Avengers
Watching the avengers.
LO: To watch and recall the Avengers
The opening scene (introduction) is very telling of the period. (the music, imagery, fashion)
Mrs Emma Peel- Strong, Confrontational
Steed- Stereotypical Uses&Gratification- Women may identify with her personality.
Narrative:
Foreshadowing, mystery
***REFERENCE BACK TO 3/2/2021
Summary-
On a beach a shifty man is attending to his lobster pots when a man emerges from the tide concealed in a water tight black covering; he walks up the beach, removes the covering, and says good morning to the man and walks off.
After a bout of fencing at Mrs. Peel's flat, Steed and Mrs Peel leave on a train to visit Little Bazeley by the Sea, a village in Norfolk where agents have been reported to go missing. On the train they share a carriage with a portly gentleman, Jimmy Smallwood (played by Patrick Newell, who would later become a semi-regular Avengers cast member playing spymaster "Mother"), who is going to visit his brother the local blacksmith. On arrival Steed, Peel and Smallwood are shadowed by the shifty local man from the beach. At the local inn, the Inebriated Gremlin, they are served by landlord Piggy Warren, who introduces them to Mark Brandon, the school inspector, and Jill Manson, a teacher. Mrs Peel announces herself as a new teacher, assigned by the ministry to the local school. When Smallwood leaves to visit his brother the blacksmith, several strange men in boots with rifles depart through the inn and follow him. Meanwhile, Steed and Mrs Peel find their rooms in a shabby state, with the shutters nailed shut. Smallwood fails to find his brother, and heads for the church, followed by the shifty local. Later the shifty local is seen hunting Smallwood across the landscape with bloodhounds. This is heard back at the village and dismissed by Piggy as "badger hunting".
The following morning Steed and Mrs Peel examine strange footprints leading out of the sea and up the beach, and find Smallwood dead and buried in the sand.
Mrs Peel visits the school and finds it and the teachers very unusual. She discovers that the school has been unused for years and a large number of adult sized Wellington boots are stored there. She visits the local church where the vicar shows her the parish records, of which several decades are missing.
Meanwhile, Steed investigates the old wartime airfield and finds it in a similarly derelict state. Steed discovers a mention of a pilot, killed in 1942, named Piggy Warren: the name used by the pub landlord. Both Mrs Peel and Steed learn that the village folk are impostors and are hiding something. They seek out Smallwood's brother and find the shifty looking local who owns the bloodhounds pretending to be the blacksmith. Earlier they had seen a photo of Smallwood's brother so they know that he too is an impostor.
While Mrs Peel is investigating the school, an elderly man – the real School inspector – runs in, pursued by the phony school inspector and the shifty local, and says little but "below, below" before dying. Mrs Peel revisits the church and confronts the vicar, who suddenly pulls out a gun and reveals he is also an impostor. Mrs Peel is tied up in the blacksmith's until Steed arrives, overpowers the shifty local and frees her.
In the school, Steed and Mrs Peel discover enough food to feed an army. Mrs Peel reveals a diagram on the back of the old blackboard of Britain and a submarine in the North Sea. Wondering where have all the people gone, they surmise that this is a gradual invasion by a foreign power: small groups have been dispatched from a submarine located in the North Sea, explaining the bootprints at the beach and adult sized Wellington boots at the school, replacing the locals one by one until only the invaders remain.
Heeding the dying man's words, they head to the old airfield's underground bunkers. There they discover a small army of enemy agents and a big supply of explosives and some high tech equipment. Steed and Mrs Peel are eventually found by some of the impostors; a fight ensues before they overpower them and leave after sealing the invaders permanently underground. They depart the village on a motor scooter driven by Mrs Peel.
Audience Appeal (U&G)
Why might this programme have appealed to the audiences at the time?
Think about the Uses &
Gratifications theory
of Blumler & Katz:
Personal Identity
Information
Entertainment
Social Interaction
Personal Identity (U&G)
Could identify and empathise with the upper-class role models
Could explore and/or reinforce their own views & values
Could identify with the ‘English Gent’ – Steed. Cool, calm and unruffled.
Could identify with a tough, intelligent and equal female hero – Emma Peel.
Information (U&G)
Could gain information about the world of the upper class.
Could gain information about the world of espionage/spies.
Could feel reassured that there were highly capable agents protecting Britain from a foreign threat. (Despite pastiche element)
Entertainment (U&G)
Could enjoy the escapist plots
Could de-stress by losing themselves in Avengers’ world.
Could enjoy the danger of the heroes’ situations and how they escape with style, humour & sophistication.
Could enjoy the familiarity of the repetitive narratives; a different villain each week that the heroes defeat.
Social Interaction (U&G)
Could watch the programme together as a family (only have one TV per household)
Would enjoy discussing episodes; friends and co-workers would feel left out if not seen.
Could build a personal relationship with the familiar characters of Steed & Peel – almost a substitute for real life interaction.
A sense of Britishness gained in Britain and abroad from the programme.
Steed- traditional James Bond figure, reliable, strong, dependent.
Reminds those who fought in WW2 as Steed fought.
Those who know someone who fought in WW2
Mrs Peel- married, has a career, strong, independent, powerful, aspiration to the audience, New generation
Could gain information about the world of the upper class.
Could gain information about the world of espionage/spies
Could feel reassured that there were highly capable agents protecting Britain from a foreign threat.
Could enjoy the escapist plots
Could de-stress by losing themselves in the Avengers' plot world.
Could enjoy the danger of the heroes' situations and how they escape with style, humour and sophistication.
Could enjoy the familiarity of the repetitive narratives; a different villain each week that the heroes defeat.
Family event due to the fact that in the 60s, there would be one TV per household if you were lucky. It was a social event that people discussed each week.
19/4/2021
Analysing an extract
LO: To analyse the use of language in a TV Drama extract.
How has music been used to create meaning?
How does music create effect in film?
-Intro theme is somewhat goofy and curious to match the image of the man emerging from the ocean.
-Subtle elegant music plays to create a calm, friendly environment.
-Sound effects and ambient sound of the ocean and birds to emphasise the scene.
-The music goes silent at revealing moments to emphasise the scene. It then picks up in a different way to show the change in tone because of the reveal.
-When the title of the episode comes up high suspense music occurs to emphasise and to create tension within the viewer.
-Sinister non-diegetic sound which is contrapuntal to create tension on an ideal beach setting to suggest that they're are hidden elements that need to be investigated.
-Intro sound is modern but still holds a mysterious element which demonstrates the target audience. (fast paced young modern etc.)
-Parallel sound of the seagulls and ocean to match the location and emphasise the setting which juxtaposes the mysterious sinister non-diegetic music.
-Dialogue juxtaposes the situation. He just emerged from a bag in the ocean and has a conversation about the weather. This presents that this will be a funny episode not based on reality.
-He pulls up an umbrella which creates a humourous tone as he just emerged from the ocean.
How has sound been used to create meaning?[5]
Firstly, sound has been used to create a sense of humour through dialogue. One way in which this is demonstrated is when he emerges from a bag in the ocean and makes a comment about the weather to a fisherman "Looks like rain". This humour is backed up by the imagery of him pulling out an umbrella, to contrast with the fact that he just emerged from the ocean. This presents that this will be a funny episode not based on reality. The audience may find this character strange and mysterious, and they may laugh at his mannerisms.
Secondly, sound has been used to create tension through the non-diegetic music. One way in which this is presented is in the opening scene where he emerges from the ocean and the loud, upbeat, trumpet music goes silent for a brief moment, to emphasise the weird and abnormal behaviour on the screen. This brief silence creates emphasis because it makes the audience feel as though something is about to happen, it places intense focus on the sound- as the deafening silence may be interrupted with something vital to the plot, so they will be intently listening. This silence is followed by the same music, to create a weird feeling as the lack of change in soundtrack makes you feel as though nothing has changed and nothing is abnormal with the scene.
*
Watch this scene and explain how social contexts influence television programmes. [10]
One way in which the sound in the opening reflects the context is through the tension it creates. During this time, there was a lot of threat involving invasion and espionage, and so this mysterious, tense music paired with the imagery of the man emerging from the ocean creates a tense feeling for the viewer.
21/04/2021
*
Another way in which sound has been used to create meaning is through the theme tune in the beginning. The way the images follow the sound to display the characters in the beginning suggests a new, modern form of television, as well as the upbeat, modern music paired with it, shows us that there was a younger audience that watched this show. However, the classic tone on the song, paired with the imagery of stereotypical British gentlemen may suggest an older audience. We know that at the time, households would have only had one television, so we can assume that because of this diverse target audience hit by the theme tune alone, this show would have been a family event for all ages. As a whole, the happy, upbeat theme tune creates an exciting atmosphere for all viewers, and definitely presents the genre of the show because of its quick pace and subtle mystery.
Watch this scene and explain how social contexts influence television programmes. Refer to The Avengers from 1965 to support your answer.
One way social contexts are displayed in this scene is through the reference to the threat of foreign invasion that was prevalent at this time by having a discussion about invading the country. During this time of the episode coming out, the Cold war was at its height- meaning that the idea of espionage within the country was not unknown, and was widely feared. Through Steed and Peel talking about invasion in this episode, it may hit home to viewers more, and they may feel more likely to identify with them. This idea of espionage is emphasised through the imagery presented of the underground bunker and large groups of soldiers, all of which were overcome by only two British spies. This theme, along with the series as a whole, of two British spies overcoming all problems (Steed and Peel) may make the viewer feel safe within British soldiers, even though Steed and Peel aren't real.
Another way social contexts are presented in this scene is through the use of Peel as a strong female character. She is presented in multiple fight scenes throughout, all of which she wins- regardless of the opponent. This coincides with the feminist movement occuring at the time,
28/04/2021
CONTEXT- The Avengers: The Town of No Return
LO: to analyse representation and influence of social (cultural) context in Series 4, Episode 1
How was Gender represented in Episode 1:
-Consider:
-Characters
-Setting
-Props
-Character interaction
-Dialogue
-Stereotypes
Characters-
Mrs Peel- Strong, independent, equal female role. Peel is seen explaining the plot to Steed in the classroom, so this presents that they are of equal status and power.
Principal- A woman in a powerful position. Despite this, however, she is overlooked by her male counterparts (inspector) as was common at the time. Although she is presented in this high power position, this male dominance is not surprising.
Steed- Intelligent male main character. He is in co-dominance with Peel, despite the fact that she's female, presenting a progressive mindset. Peel is as smart and strong as he is, however, Peel is still seen to be a damsel in distress despite her equal intelligence- through them capturing her and tying up her in the barn.
Setting- Little Baisley, a rural seaside town. In the whole episode, only two women are shown- the principal of the school, and Mrs Peel- both of whom are overshadowed by their male counterparts (Steed and the inspector)
What to write about in an answer:
-Media language to discuss in an answer
Camera (shots, movements, angles)
Sound
Mise-en-scene
Editing
-Representation
-Audience- who, how is attracts them
-Industries- who made it, when was it on television
-Contexts- What was it like at the time.
-Female roles and inequality
-Class structure
-Changing views on sexuality
-British manners/traditions
-Attitudes to outsiders/foreigners
-Patriarchal society
-Stereotypical ideas of rural life
-The Queen of England (1953) was just put onto throne.
A new breed of tough. intelligent women-
Peel is presented throughout as a strong women, taking on men in hand to hand combat to quite literally present that she's as strong as men. She is also seen teaching Steed about the plot, showing that she is equal if not more intelligent than Steed.
Women as sex objects-
The outfits throughout present her in a very sexual manner. She is seen wearing skin-tight leather catsuits, mini-skirts, small dresses etc. so present that she is an object to be perceived by men.
Ideological tension about gender roles-
She is a Mrs to appease the older audience that may believe that women NEED men to function.
Industries- Diana Rigg left the Avengers because she was being paid less than the camera man
How was Gender represented in the Avengers to reflect the attitudes and values of the 1960s?
Gender is represented in contrasting ways throughout to appeal to the wide target audience. One way in which the values of the time are reflected through gender representation, is through the mise-en-scene of Peel's outfits throughout which present her as a sex object. In the opening scene where Peel is introduced, she is wearing a skin-tight, black, leather catsuit- which very clearly presents an erotic, overtly sexualised object. This is done likely to appeal to a male audience. Later, she is presented in more conservative clothing, a summer dress and a beret, which simultaneously appeals to the older audience as well as the young audience, as the older audience may feel as though her as a character being presented in a sexual manner, would lessen her value, but the younger audience may feel attracted to this modern, French fashion style. This idea of Peel being sexualised, however, is emphasised through the camerawork, where when she turns around, the camera zooms in on her backside- which is a clear representation of how women were viewed.
Another way in which views on gender is represented in the Avengers, is through the use of the opening fencing scene. Straight off the bat, he criticises her stance- which emphasises the idea of a patriarchal society- but she manages to be the main offence in the fight, not showing weakness, and even getting him pinned down in the chair- presenting the she is somewhat stronger than him which is an anti-stereotype. However, he ends up winning the fight as she lets her guard down- to reemphasise the fact that Peel is strong, but Steed is stronger- likely due to the fact that he is a man.
Another way in which the views on gender roles is presented is through the representation of Peel and Steed's relationship. In the opening scene, there seems to be a flirtatious tone between the two characters- presenting that women are only deemed as accompaniment to men. This idea is further emphasised by the fact that Peel is "Mrs Peel", she is married- perhaps to appease the older audience that may believe that she needs male accompaniment to be of any value. This lack of equality of treatment of men and women is shown through the industry behind the scenes also. Not only is this sexist ideal presented in the episode, but through the payment of the actors. Diana Rigg- actress of Peel, eventually quit the show as she was being paid less than the cameraman.This clearly shows how there was a lack of equality between men and women.
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ReplyDeleteExcellent notes, well done, keep up the work.
18/1/2021: Fantastic notes.
ReplyDeleteTarget: To take this further you could answer the question on Duopoly from 13th Jan lesson and try to answer using full sentences to argue your points.
20/1/21- excellent notes well done, keep up the fantastic work.
ReplyDelete20/1/21- good notes here, well done.
ReplyDelete1/2/21- Excellent notes, well done.
ReplyDelete3/2/21- Please complete the work for this lesson. If you are struggling then just ask and I will help you with it.
ReplyDeleteFantastic notes now completed here and in depth analysis of the text, well done.
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ReplyDelete10/2/21- excellent notes and analysis points here, well done.
ReplyDelete22/2/21- Excellent notes here, try to attempt the exam style question.
ReplyDelete24/2/21- Good notes, well done.
ReplyDelete3/3/21- excellent notes and completion of tasks for this lesson.
ReplyDelete8/3/21- Excellent notes on your return to lessons, well done, keep it up.
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