Formats
Series
A series TV show is a programme that runs for a set number of episodes typically airing once a week. A series show may further run for more then one series if there was a large popularity with the first series, and will normally create a narrative arc across the entire series perhaps in the form of an ongoing problem.Game of thrones would be an example of a TV series show, as it has 7 series or seasons, with 10 episodes in each series. Game of thrones has increased in popularity as the seasons have gone on, with season ones average viewers at 2.52 million compared to season 6 which was 7.69 million. we further see the narrative arcing across the seasons which can be seen at the end of season 5 Jon Snow dies, but it is only until episode 2 in season 6 that we see him come back to life.
One advantage of a series TV show would be, that the broadcaster will always get an audience, if the programme is popular then they when the series returns there will be a good rating as well as bringing in new viewers. Much like Game of thrones, the viewer ratings show that when the series returns it brought with it a bigger audience each time. Furthermore, by having a popular TV series, the broadcaster has the opportunity to feature a new show after, where by they will already have a big audience to watch it.
However, with a series whilst the audience and people involved making the show, whilst everyone wants it to keep continuing there has to be an end point. Much like the writers of game of thrones, David Benioff & D.B.Weiss who announced that game of thrones would finish after season 8. Moreover, with a series there maybe some narrative changes which the audience dont like and thus seeing a decrease in ratings. As such in Game of thrones, with Bran living in the tree, it was a controversial decision to leave him out of the season for a number of episodes, which caused some disappointment in the fans.
Serial
A serial TV show is one that runs for the entire year, it will air for the full 52 weeks of the year with often a low budget to maximise profits. Serials are different to series in the fact that they dont stop or take a break to record the next series, instead it is just one episode after another. One example of a serial Tv show would be Eastenders, which runs for 52 weeks of the year uninterrupted. The programme does not take breaks, instead they record produce release and do this every single week. The BBC produce Eastenders in quartets, which means that they start filming on a Tuesday taking nine days to record. This further means that in one day they can produce roughly 25-30 scenes, and can get as many as 12 episodes filmed within a matter of weeks. Eastenders annual cost in its first year of production was around 35 million but in the most recent year it has cost 29-30 million.
One advantage of a serial Tv show is the fact that it guarantees the broadcaster an audience. Each week the broadcaster will always know that an audience will be brought in by this serial, with Eastenders they bring in million of viewers each week and during some episodes such as the episode on the 2nd of January brought in 8.1 million viewers for the BBC. Another advantage would be that a serial is almost 'cheap & cheerful' in the sense that for what they cost is considerably less for what they bring in. If the BBC decides to air some programmes which may not be as well received, they will always know that they can full back on Eastenders to bring in the money that they may have lost.
Although, because serials do run for 52 weeks each year, it does become harder to constantly be creative. There is only so many times, characters in Eastenders can leave then comeback, or if there is a house fire, or explosion. Furthermore, the production is very long and hard, which this could reflect on some of the episodes. Perhaps some of the early episodes in Eastenders are a lot better performed then some later ones in the year.
Single Drama
Single Drama's are a one time TV programme, they do not have a series or spin off afterwards but rather left as just one programme. Single Drama's typically have a high budget as they need to tell the narrative through a single show, which also means that they last longer then the typical TV show. Single Drama's in fact last between 90 mins to 120 mins.
Please don't take my baby would be an example of a TV single drama, as it was a one off programme filmed in 2 locations, a hospital in middlesex and some studios in london. Whilst the programme did only have a run time of 60 mins it did not have a carry on of another episode on the same subject.
One advantage of a single drama is that it does bring something new and fresh to the channel and broadcaster. Please don't take my baby does was a BBC exclusive which again added to the originality of BBC 3 which continues to aim and produce some eccentric single dramas. Furthermore, it is a bigger novelty for the channel to have these single dramas which can form how they want the audience to perceive them and further allows for an audience to be brought in and watch these more different, niche single dramas that cant be seen any where else, much like please don't take my baby.
However Single dramas don't typically bring in a big audience because they are not publicised as well. Please don't take my baby whilst was a very emotional single drama was not advertised much and so not many people actually knew to watch it. Thus these single drams tend to pick up viewers across a long period of time because an audience will stumble across the programme. Moreover, the single dramas do have a lot of resources invested in them, they have to tell a narrative in one single programme which can cost a lot. Please don't take my baby although maybe one of the more simple single dramas to produce, still cost a great deal to make, which raises the question if it is worth producing it.
Please don't take my baby would be an example of a TV single drama, as it was a one off programme filmed in 2 locations, a hospital in middlesex and some studios in london. Whilst the programme did only have a run time of 60 mins it did not have a carry on of another episode on the same subject.
One advantage of a single drama is that it does bring something new and fresh to the channel and broadcaster. Please don't take my baby does was a BBC exclusive which again added to the originality of BBC 3 which continues to aim and produce some eccentric single dramas. Furthermore, it is a bigger novelty for the channel to have these single dramas which can form how they want the audience to perceive them and further allows for an audience to be brought in and watch these more different, niche single dramas that cant be seen any where else, much like please don't take my baby.
However Single dramas don't typically bring in a big audience because they are not publicised as well. Please don't take my baby whilst was a very emotional single drama was not advertised much and so not many people actually knew to watch it. Thus these single drams tend to pick up viewers across a long period of time because an audience will stumble across the programme. Moreover, the single dramas do have a lot of resources invested in them, they have to tell a narrative in one single programme which can cost a lot. Please don't take my baby although maybe one of the more simple single dramas to produce, still cost a great deal to make, which raises the question if it is worth producing it.
Genres
Period
Period dramas, are typically TV shows that are set in the past, during a certain time period. Periods, tend to have a high cost for the mise-en-scene to set the particular style hat they need. Moreover, Period drama will be shot on location as often as possible and deliberately try to use simple yet specific camera movements.
The Pacific would be an example of a period drama as it was made in 2010 yet it tells the stories of the 2nd World War. The pacific took over $200 million to produce the series of 10 episodes in this period drama. The pacific was filmed for 1 year all across Australia to get the right mies-en-scene for the various battles that were portrayed in the series.
At 0:14 we see a long shot of the battle field, with the soldiers falling and trying to escape from the on coming fire. The camera is constantly shaking to add this heightened anxiety tone to the scene. The shot allows the audience to see the scale of the battle, whilst they are made to feel sympathy for the enormity of whats happening, they are further made to feel this heightened anxiety as they see soldiers dropping down dead. The shakiness of the camera extends the emotion that the audience are made to feel, whilst more specifically making them feel this very raw sense of reality and engagement because it almost seems like amateur filming.
At 1:10 we further see a close up of a soldiers leg being blown off, whilst the edit is quick to cut away, it does linger for a second to allow for this very gory visual, with the blood squirting out. The close up allows for the scene to carry a sinister horror tone with it, as we do get to see a lot of the blood squirting out. As the audience are made to see this violent visual, they are manipulated to initially feel this overwhelming sense of shock, but secondly are made to feel this sense of reality because it is something that happened during the war. The fast pace editing though does move the audience swiftly along and taking their attention to something else happening, again adding to this overwhelming feeling.
Lastly at 1:17 we see this single solider, standing alone in a crowd of fallen bodies, he is covered in dirt and blood, which is pouring down the side of his head, as well as his hand being blown off. The camera then further tracks him falling down dead, as the scene carries on. The edit decides to dwell on this single solider, fighting to stay alive and keep moving, but we see him fall loosing hope and the battle. The audience are almost made to feel nothing but sadness and sympathy for this solider that we never got to meet, but almost feel the closest person to him. The audience are manipulated into feeling nothing but hopelessness as we can do nothing to help him, this picture is almost the pinnacle of emotion for the audience as they are totally overwhelmed at this point. It perhaps is the saddest part of this montage, as it almost sums up everything that was wrong with the war.
The Pacific would be an example of a period drama as it was made in 2010 yet it tells the stories of the 2nd World War. The pacific took over $200 million to produce the series of 10 episodes in this period drama. The pacific was filmed for 1 year all across Australia to get the right mies-en-scene for the various battles that were portrayed in the series.
At 0:14 we see a long shot of the battle field, with the soldiers falling and trying to escape from the on coming fire. The camera is constantly shaking to add this heightened anxiety tone to the scene. The shot allows the audience to see the scale of the battle, whilst they are made to feel sympathy for the enormity of whats happening, they are further made to feel this heightened anxiety as they see soldiers dropping down dead. The shakiness of the camera extends the emotion that the audience are made to feel, whilst more specifically making them feel this very raw sense of reality and engagement because it almost seems like amateur filming.
At 1:10 we further see a close up of a soldiers leg being blown off, whilst the edit is quick to cut away, it does linger for a second to allow for this very gory visual, with the blood squirting out. The close up allows for the scene to carry a sinister horror tone with it, as we do get to see a lot of the blood squirting out. As the audience are made to see this violent visual, they are manipulated to initially feel this overwhelming sense of shock, but secondly are made to feel this sense of reality because it is something that happened during the war. The fast pace editing though does move the audience swiftly along and taking their attention to something else happening, again adding to this overwhelming feeling.
Lastly at 1:17 we see this single solider, standing alone in a crowd of fallen bodies, he is covered in dirt and blood, which is pouring down the side of his head, as well as his hand being blown off. The camera then further tracks him falling down dead, as the scene carries on. The edit decides to dwell on this single solider, fighting to stay alive and keep moving, but we see him fall loosing hope and the battle. The audience are almost made to feel nothing but sadness and sympathy for this solider that we never got to meet, but almost feel the closest person to him. The audience are manipulated into feeling nothing but hopelessness as we can do nothing to help him, this picture is almost the pinnacle of emotion for the audience as they are totally overwhelmed at this point. It perhaps is the saddest part of this montage, as it almost sums up everything that was wrong with the war.
Dramadoc
Drama-docs are TV programmes that feature, real life events but in a more exaggerated, dramatised way. Whilst they try to stick close to the real stories, they do twist it slightly to add either a film or documentary style.
At 1:30 we see low angle, mid shot of Pablo standing in the doorway as the general talks to him. The low angle is used to make pablo look big, it promotes power and makes the audience see that pablo didn't care who he was talking to he did and said what he wanted. The mid shot extends this position of power as the audience can see that he doesn't have to walk straight to the generals desk, instead he stands in a controlling position. This is where he can choose to either walk in further and slower or he could walk out, either way the shot gives Pablo the choice and not the law.
Furthermore, at 2:32 we see the close up Pablo's face as the episode and season is coming to the end. The Close up puts the whole focus on Pablo as well as leaving him in a field where there is no other subject but himself. The shot type allows the audience to perhaps see the greatness of the man at this stage in his life. We can see that at the moment Pablo is in the best position he has ever been and we end up first seeing the empire that this man has created but moreover, the fall that is to come for this man.
Lastly at 6:48 we see a long shot tracking out, which depicts 4 dead men being strung up on a tree with a message posted on the tree. The edit first kept the camera on Pablo as he was taking pictures, the camera then cut and exhibited this big reveal of what he was taking pictures of. This shot makes the audience see the madness that has come to this man and the cartel. Whilst throughout the programme the audience are made to keep thinking they have seen the worst of Pablo, we next see this. Whilst we should be used to the brutality of the cartel, somehow the audience are still shocked of what Pablo does. Perhaps this shot is the crux of the madness that Pablo has achieved, at this point he has lost control and the audience somewhat can never fully understand the extent of the lengths he will go to.
At 1:30 we see low angle, mid shot of Pablo standing in the doorway as the general talks to him. The low angle is used to make pablo look big, it promotes power and makes the audience see that pablo didn't care who he was talking to he did and said what he wanted. The mid shot extends this position of power as the audience can see that he doesn't have to walk straight to the generals desk, instead he stands in a controlling position. This is where he can choose to either walk in further and slower or he could walk out, either way the shot gives Pablo the choice and not the law.
Furthermore, at 2:32 we see the close up Pablo's face as the episode and season is coming to the end. The Close up puts the whole focus on Pablo as well as leaving him in a field where there is no other subject but himself. The shot type allows the audience to perhaps see the greatness of the man at this stage in his life. We can see that at the moment Pablo is in the best position he has ever been and we end up first seeing the empire that this man has created but moreover, the fall that is to come for this man.
Lastly at 6:48 we see a long shot tracking out, which depicts 4 dead men being strung up on a tree with a message posted on the tree. The edit first kept the camera on Pablo as he was taking pictures, the camera then cut and exhibited this big reveal of what he was taking pictures of. This shot makes the audience see the madness that has come to this man and the cartel. Whilst throughout the programme the audience are made to keep thinking they have seen the worst of Pablo, we next see this. Whilst we should be used to the brutality of the cartel, somehow the audience are still shocked of what Pablo does. Perhaps this shot is the crux of the madness that Pablo has achieved, at this point he has lost control and the audience somewhat can never fully understand the extent of the lengths he will go to.
Crime
The crime genre is where the programme is based all around criminal activity, this can stem from a a main base of criminal characters that continue to perform criminal acts or perhaps the same end point that detectives would have to work back from and find the criminals. Most crime shows will follow the detectives or policing organisation rather then the criminals themselves, although there maybe certain episodes where we will follow the criminals.
At 0:12 we see a close up of the characters hand as it highlights the ring he is wearing, the shot becomes more significant when the audience realise that the ring had been brought up prior to the episode. Through this shot the audience are made to be on Patersons side, as she has discovered that was the mole within the FBI. Moreover, the audience can further expect to see a tense confrontational scene between both characters which will result in sme sort of violence. The scene prior to this shot had a more slower editing pace, but as it cuts into this close up there is a signifcant increase in edit pace. This in turn makes the audience feel a surge of anexiety and keeps them on edge as we move into the big climax of the episode.
Furthermore, at 0:28 we again see a close up which is used to evoke more of an emotional esponse in the audience. As we now see the facial expression and reactions to Paterson finding out the secret, cutting back to Borden's face as he has just been caught. The close up manipulates the audiences emotional response as they now have to watch him lie to her face, this in turn makes us feel a real sense of loyalty to Paterson and a great dislike to Borden .
Lastly at 4:20 we see a series of fast paced close ups of the 2 characters almost in a shot-reverse-shot. This is the final scene of the episode and the episode is ending with a big climax to see who gets shot. This shot denotes, a close up of Paterson's face in shock, the edit then cuts back and fourth from Paterson's face to Borden's as they both give off the same reaction making the ending of the episode very ambiguous. By using a series of fast close-ups, it allows for the ambiguity to be created, the audience now do not know who has been shot, leaving the episode open and on a cliffhanger. The audience are made to feel a great sense of horror and shock. This shot further entices the adience and makes them have to come back for the next episode, because they are emotionally invested they now 'need' to see the end point.
At 0:12 we see a close up of the characters hand as it highlights the ring he is wearing, the shot becomes more significant when the audience realise that the ring had been brought up prior to the episode. Through this shot the audience are made to be on Patersons side, as she has discovered that was the mole within the FBI. Moreover, the audience can further expect to see a tense confrontational scene between both characters which will result in sme sort of violence. The scene prior to this shot had a more slower editing pace, but as it cuts into this close up there is a signifcant increase in edit pace. This in turn makes the audience feel a surge of anexiety and keeps them on edge as we move into the big climax of the episode.
Furthermore, at 0:28 we again see a close up which is used to evoke more of an emotional esponse in the audience. As we now see the facial expression and reactions to Paterson finding out the secret, cutting back to Borden's face as he has just been caught. The close up manipulates the audiences emotional response as they now have to watch him lie to her face, this in turn makes us feel a real sense of loyalty to Paterson and a great dislike to Borden .
Lastly at 4:20 we see a series of fast paced close ups of the 2 characters almost in a shot-reverse-shot. This is the final scene of the episode and the episode is ending with a big climax to see who gets shot. This shot denotes, a close up of Paterson's face in shock, the edit then cuts back and fourth from Paterson's face to Borden's as they both give off the same reaction making the ending of the episode very ambiguous. By using a series of fast close-ups, it allows for the ambiguity to be created, the audience now do not know who has been shot, leaving the episode open and on a cliffhanger. The audience are made to feel a great sense of horror and shock. This shot further entices the adience and makes them have to come back for the next episode, because they are emotionally invested they now 'need' to see the end point.
Soap Opera
Soap operas, are a melodramatic, exaggerated world, that tries to deal with real life problems each week. Soaps are set in the present day often keeping the same permanent set that the programme revolves around.
At 1:27 we see a long shot of someones feet, the camera then pans up to reveal a new attractive girl that the audience would have never seen before. The shot denotes a match on action at the start as the ball rolls over to her feet she then stops the ball and the camera starts to pan up to reveal who she is, the scene takes place in front of the school before school has started. The shot puts a real emphasis on the subject, whilst at the start we don't necessarily think that it will be anything special, the camera movement engages the audience more because we now know that there is a reveal about to happen. The long shot further makes the audience focus fully on her and really take in the detail of her. This reveal makes the audience understand that this character will be special in the coming episodes because it does dwell on her for a longer time.
Furthermore, at 3:50 the shot denotes a close up of a girls elbow breaking the window at the front of the school. The scene denotes 2 characters who we have never met before, but seem to have a history together, which the audience understand that they both will play a bigger role. Whilst the edit pace does increase, the scene actually cuts to 3 separate shots in quick sucsession of her elbow smashing through the glass. Whilst from an audience perspective, we get to see some action very early on in the episode which initially grabs us.
Moreover, at 7:51 the shot denotes a 2 shot of the headteacher and new assistant head, whilst in the foreground of the shot there is one of the main characters from the previous scenes, although she is slightly blurred. The shot allows the 2 teachers to have a conversation talking about a specific incident or student but not specifically saying their name. Equally the audience understand the context of the conversation but we don't know whether the assistant head will tell the truth or lie and when we do see that she lies the audience gain a respect for her. The shot further allows the audience to see the emotion of the characters more, we can see the expressions of the student and the role that the assistant head may play in the future.
At 1:27 we see a long shot of someones feet, the camera then pans up to reveal a new attractive girl that the audience would have never seen before. The shot denotes a match on action at the start as the ball rolls over to her feet she then stops the ball and the camera starts to pan up to reveal who she is, the scene takes place in front of the school before school has started. The shot puts a real emphasis on the subject, whilst at the start we don't necessarily think that it will be anything special, the camera movement engages the audience more because we now know that there is a reveal about to happen. The long shot further makes the audience focus fully on her and really take in the detail of her. This reveal makes the audience understand that this character will be special in the coming episodes because it does dwell on her for a longer time.
Furthermore, at 3:50 the shot denotes a close up of a girls elbow breaking the window at the front of the school. The scene denotes 2 characters who we have never met before, but seem to have a history together, which the audience understand that they both will play a bigger role. Whilst the edit pace does increase, the scene actually cuts to 3 separate shots in quick sucsession of her elbow smashing through the glass. Whilst from an audience perspective, we get to see some action very early on in the episode which initially grabs us.
Moreover, at 7:51 the shot denotes a 2 shot of the headteacher and new assistant head, whilst in the foreground of the shot there is one of the main characters from the previous scenes, although she is slightly blurred. The shot allows the 2 teachers to have a conversation talking about a specific incident or student but not specifically saying their name. Equally the audience understand the context of the conversation but we don't know whether the assistant head will tell the truth or lie and when we do see that she lies the audience gain a respect for her. The shot further allows the audience to see the emotion of the characters more, we can see the expressions of the student and the role that the assistant head may play in the future.
Comedy
Comedy TV show often come in the form of sitcoms, which are a 30 minute episode, with a small and simple character base able to easily relate to its target audience. Sitcoms will further have a problem each episode that needs to be resolved and very rarely will the dilemma continue into another episode.At 0:02 we see a mid shot in slow motion of Barry Goldberg walking into school, dressed as Boy George going to meet up with his girlfriend and sister. The purpose of the mid shot is to firstly frame Barry in the center to create a more humorous tone as the audience can absorb what he is wearing, and secondly it allows for more action ot happen in the background and see the other students laugh at him. This therefore makes the audience laugh at him because we understand that the stupidness of his actions. However at this point we may feel some sympathy for him because we still know that Barry is a very naive person with the right intentions. Moreover the slow motion again adds to the comical effect. The slow motion allows for the shot to become a lot longer, which connotes how everyone is mocking Barry. Furthermore, the slow motion gives the audience permission to laugh at him as well, because the slow motion lingers on him so can we.
Next we see this continuation of mockery of Barry as now he interacting with other students, at 0:10 there is a 2 shot, which shows a character that Barry has just said hi to, as well as another student standing talking. The shot connotes Barry saying hi to another student to which the edit then cuts to the student Barry was talking to and will then cut back to Barry. By allowing the visual to follow the audio is primarily allows the audience to easily see whats happening and who is being talked too. But secondly the audience are forced to see other students reactions of Barry, which exhibits how everyone thinks he looks Stupid. Again by showing this cameo character we can compare Barry to other students and can really see far down he is regarded at this point. Lastly as with the majority of the opening to this scene, the edit pace is again in slow motion which allows the audience to again laugh at Barry.
Lastly at 0:54 we see a shot reverse shot which denotes Barry talking to Laniey about their relationship and how she fooled him into tricking and humiliating him because he has been too 'needy' as of late. The shot further sees Barry say Boy George Quotes to make Lainey feel guilty for what she did. Whilst the shot is a simple stationary shot-reverse-shot it is done with pace, which extends the humor of this scene. As it is fast not only does it allow Barry to say more quotes, it shows Lainey to be very embarrassed that he would go to such lengths of idiocy. From an audience perspective we side with Lainey and feel the levels of cringe and embarrassment that Barry has just put us through, whilst there is a small part that does feel sympathy for Barry is is greatly over powered by the laughing stock that Barry has made himself.
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