Focus Group

In the focus group I and my partner Daniel had to talk about the key features involved within our sequence and other stuff such as the audience groups, what time it’s going to be shown as well as the plot. After we had done all of this we answered questions from the rest of the group as well as getting advice from them to further improve our TV programme.

Aaron Alexander believed that we shouldn’t set our programme at the timing of our show on Friday as this is when people like to go out with their friends and family so as a result may have hindered our hopes of getting a large target audience. So to improve on this we may decide to move the programme to a Wednesday showing as shows such as EastEnders are not on at this time so it would not overlap with that show however football might be on at that time and so might lose a lot of male viewers.

Vinesh said that as our storyline could affect our viewers due to the violence and also the protagonist having split personalities that we should have a help line at the end of the show if anyone got affected. This would be beneficial to us as then we won’t get complaints to why there was no help if viewers were affected.

Another person also asked how we will show no violence as the programme as to be shown pre watershed. We will do this by not actually showing the murder occur. We got an idea from Kabir who said that instead of showing the violent scene happening we should show a shot of the house and then hair the sound of the weapon hitting the person getting killed. Also me and Daniel also came up with an idea of showing shadows to show the killing as this is also acceptable and will also get the message of the killing across. 

We believe our target audience would be 17-35 year olds. We say 17 year olds as the characters in the programme will be 17 year olds and the viewers that are 17 could relate to these characters. I also believe its best that E4 would be the best show to view it on as they have a wide target audience. The pshycographic group which we think would watch our programme would be aspirers and explorers as they are a mixture of young and materialstic and explorers like to seek discovery and try out new brands. The social group we believe would be 'B' group which involve creative people such as graphic people and links with our own TV programme which shows a different side to teenagers and problems they may face mentally, we also would cater to social groups such as 'C1' as this group may have a connection with the characters but mainly a 'B' social group.

Institution Research

Institution research

E4

·        The channel E4 was set up in 18^th January 2001

·        They are owned by Channel 4

·        The E stands for entertainment

·        Look to aim at 15-35 year olds - I believe their main audiences would be aspirers as they are materialistic and are typically younger and that is what the shows on E4 are all about. Maybe also explorers who value difference and look for instant effect and these shows need instant effect to draw the viewers in and they are also younger demographic students which links in with aspirers. I would also put them in the C2 and D category as these shows wouldn't cater to people who are in the higher paid jobs but more to people who are more blue collared workers and have jobs such as sales assistants.

·        They have many U.S imports such as The Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, 90210 and etc.

·        One of its most successful ever shows was The Inbetweeners which holds their most viewed episode of all time.

·        They got the rights to show coverage of “Friends” and “Big Brother”

·        They are known for comedy but also have coverage of documentaries, drama, entertainment, music and much more
     They have also won many awards. Hollyoaks and Inbetweeners the main shows that have won many awards for them

BBC3

·        BBC 3 was set up in 2002

·        It’s a television channel from the BBC

·        Target audience is 16-34 year olds - I believe the main audiences to BBC3 are similar to that of E4 in which I believe aspirers are the main psyhcographic audience in that they are young and these shows would appeal to them as it may relate to them in ways and also may be to do with 'attractive' characters. I also believe they appeal to the C1, C2, D category as again it would cater to people who work 9-5 and would want to watch these late shows as a stress relief and forget about their everyday lives. 

·        Their purpose is to show innovative content to younger audiences, focusing on new talent and new technologies

·        It is only on air from 7pm till 5am, so they do not clash with CBBC

·        They have a 60 second format in between shows for the latest in the news

·        BBC 3 HD launched in 10^th December 2013

·        One of its most popular shows is Gavin and Stacey and then shows such as American Dad! Family Guy etc.

·        Little Britain won many awards for BBC 3, also being its most viewed programme.

·        Also shows coverage of documentaries, sport and the news and showed football matches in 2008 African Cup Of Nations

·        They have won 7 BAFTA awards, 5 British Comedy awards, 15 television society awards and 5 rose d’Or awards with Gavin and Stacey being the show with the most awards.

Representation of Teenagers

Opening two minute sequence for 5 programmes

Top Boy

The first two minute scene I decided to watch was in Top Boy series 1 episode 1. I believe it relates to my groups work as it has similar things going on such as weapons and killings as well as innocence and guilt.

Mis – en – scene

So first of all from the settings you can see that it is in a rural and urban of England due to the fact that you see estates and rundown buildings being shown straight away, this will give you an idea of where everything is going to be shot and what is going to be happening preferably gangs and crime as you wouldn’t associate stuff such as romance and love in place such as this. The props are also an indication of what the plot could be about as everyone is mainly wearing dull colours such as grey and black which could connote something gloomy and eerie about to be happening, this also links to lighting has you can see that is not bright and is cloudy which connotes the opposite of happiness and maybe even fear. The facial expressions and body language also show you that it is going to be about drugs and violence due to the fact you see this happening in the very first two minutes, you see some people more scared than others which gives you an insight of different characters and their mentalities as some characters are laughing whereas others are the exact opposite. We also see that in the market the butchers are slicing fish which could connote that something else might get sliced up eventually and also you see images of dead types of animals which could also happen in the programme leaving the viewers in suspense.

Sound  

There is diegetic and non diegetic sound being played in the opening two minutes of this episode. The non diegetic sound is an instrumental type of sound and it is like it is building up steadily to an ultimatum and from the build up sound you see the first part of action appear when a range rover comes to one of the estates which also gives you an idea of what is going to happen. The diegetic sound is sound of the market where you hear different people talking this may be to give us an insight of their reality and what goes on in their everyday life. We also hear diegetic sound towards the end of the two minute scene when you see some people phone others to come and help and them and you also hear swearing which shows us what is going to be happening and gives us a fair idea of the plot. Also to take note the sound was parallel sound has it linked to what was happening however it wasn’t rap or grime music which you would associate with a programme such as Top Boy.

Camerawork

We see camerawork take place in Top Boy straight away as we see an establishing shot of the different estates, so this may be where the different characters live. We then start to see various different shots of many different people; these may be the main characters in the story. The characters are also in different places in these shots. Most of the shots are medium shots of the people however some are long shots of the people has they also want to introduce the scene to us. We then get an idea of who the main characters may be has the camera starts to focus on three main characters. One character is in his house who can see everything and at one stage we see an over the shoulder shot of him and also various other shots such as close ups to see his emotion, but from this we see no emotion from the camera. We also then start to see the other two main characters who are introduced who are in the market and there are various close up shots of these two males.

Editing  

In the opening two minutes of the scene we see a lot of quick cuts being taken place. By this I mean you only see a character for no more than five seconds in which then the camera cuts to the next character, I would call these cuts quick straight cuts due to the quick cutting of camera on characters. Even at the start when the estates are introduced the estates are only shown for less than five seconds and then we move on this could be called continuity editing in where shots are in a ordered style in which everything we see is going in order this takes place at the end. However I believe before this a montage is taking place as the camera is switching from certain people to other people in the market and you don’t know what is going on, but this soon changes as it becomes continuity and everything adds up. 

Target Audience
I believe that the target audience to Top Boy would be mainly males between the ages of 16-34. I say this as the programme as to do with gangs and violence and this may appeal to teenagers. However it also may appeal to females as there are also story lines to with families within Top Boy.


Luther

Mis – en – scene

In the opening two minutes of Luther we see similarities to those in Top Boy. I say this as the lighting again is also very low and there aren’t very bright colours to be seen which suggests a gloomy atmosphere and a build up of tension. However the setting is different to Top Boy has this is filmed in the city and has nothing to do with gangs it has to do more with the police. In the first minute it is dark and you see dead people however you are proved wrong has these people are alive and then kill the police which straight away draws the viewer in to see what will happen next. It is then the next day where you see characters who aren’t smiling and look depressed, Luther himself looks like he is struggling due to the fact he his thinking about committing suicide. This could show that he is weak to us and that he is vulnerable. When you are seeing Luther the setting is also introduced as you can see the city life and the fact that he is wearing a shirt shows he is in a well paid job which could also show us something as the viewers.

Sound

In the opening two minutes of this scene we also hear diegetic and non diegetic sound. We at first don’t hear non diegetic sound which makes us feel calm as nothing is happening and then we hear diegetic sound which is a gunshot which could scare us as the viewers. Non diegetic sound then comes in to place where we hear the music building up to seeing that something might happen and it also relates to what is happening as the guy who shot the people is rushing whilst the music rushing so it is parallel to each other. We also hear it when we see Luther which could show us a build up to a sort of climax of something happening however this sound in the background is a much smoother sound as if it doesn’t want to disturb Luther in his thinking. We also hear diegetic sound such as dialogue happening and also the hearing of gunshots which shows us what Luther is going to be about. The dialogue we hear about Luther is interesting as he is a police officer and someone is getting questioned about Luther which is weird as police officers should be characters who are going against the right morals which shows that Luther is a unique and different type of character.

Camerawork

We first straight away see a medium shot of a train going by so we see that this part of the storyline is taking place near train tracks which could get the viewers worried to what just might be happening. The camera then goes down to other the train tracks where we see a tunnel sort of like an establishing shot and this is where we see the police car arrive and also the dead people appear, this shot is a wide shot as it allows us to see everything happening in the shot. The camera is then getting closer and closer to the policeman who is speaking until we see gunshots happen and we then see close ups of the individuals and what is happening as if we are in the action with them, the person who is killing all the police officers then gets up and looks as if he coming to get us until we see a over the shoulder shot of the character. There is then a tracking shot of the guy and it is as if we are following him like we are trying to solve what is happening. We then next see a high and low angle shot of him as the camera is on the ground and it makes him look big as if he has all the power and he looking down at us. We then see a behind shot of Luther and this is where you can see all the buildings and settings so it is a combination of wide and medium shot so we can see him in middle of everything. There is then a close up of Luther’s face so we get to see the emotion he is in and then a close up of shoes to show he is on the brink of jumping off. We then see a shot where we underneath him and he is looking down as if he going to jump down on us which shows how weak is as he may have done something bad.

Editing

The first part in which we see editing happen in the opening two minutes of Luther is when the guy who is pretending to be dead shoots the police officers and the camera is quickly switching from both characters to see what is happening, these shots could be seen as a jump cut as the audience could be forced to focus on something unexpectedly which in this case was the shooting. We then see cuts from the character who done the shooting in many different shots. We then see shots of Luther where we see him from different angles and the camera cuts from close ups to his face and feet to long and wide shots. In the close up of his feet we also see a dissolve shot where we are focusing on his feet and then is blurs in to the next shot which is the ground where you see buses and cars driving. You could also say continuity editing is being used as everything is going in a sequence as you can see why Luther is on the brink of committing suicide due to the fact that people are getting questioned to see whether he is guilty or not, so it all adds up.  

Target Audience
I believe that the target audience for Luther would be 16 and above. I say this as there is violence within Luther and also you have to be switched on at all times as things are always changing. It would appeal to all genders as there is violence as well as relationships within Luther.


Misfits

Mis – en – scene

In the opening two minutes of Misfits we get to see the different characters which would be involved in this programme. We see that the setting looks like it is in a normal place in London where the city is. Not bang in the city and not bang in the urban side of things either. We see that the people are wearing orange clothing to make them be noticed for something and stand out to show they have something. We automatically as the viewers would believe they would have done something wrong. The lighting is like the other two programmes I have discussed about in where it is dull colours and the lighting is low to show some sort of damage has been done, where you can see that the orange clothing stands out the most as it is bright. Each individual character had different types of hairstyles and acted in different ways in the opening two minutes this was done so each character gets their own character identity showing they are different from each other. The facial and body expression also showed that they weren’t happy and it was a serious tone to it which showed that something already has happened and we are straight away in to the plot, some of the characters didn’t even look like they were bothered which could be stereotypical as in all teenagers are like this by portraying them like that.

Sound

In the opening two minutes of the Misfits you can hear both non diegetic and diegetic sound. You can hear non diegetic sound as if it is like a build up of all the characters and this is leading up to something, the non diegetic sound sounded as if it was parallel to the Misfits as it related to what was happening in that moment. We then towards the end of the opening two minute sequence also hear diegetic sound where we hear dialogue and we hear the characters speak. Some characters are quite loud others are more quite, so this straight away gives us an insight of how each of the characters are sort of like an introduction of them.

Camerawork  

In the opening two minute sequence of Misfits we see close up used a lot to introduce the different characters and how different they are from each other. We see close ups of the boys and how they are on their phones or looking serious as boys are stereotypically known as ‘the superior’ race and you then see the girls sorting their out and sorting out the way they look, which again is stereotypical of what you see girls doing. This also gives us an insight of the different characters. When they go outside you see a wide shot of all the characters sort of lined up beside each other and again you get to see how different each character is due to their different poses. You then again start to see close ups of different characters to see their emotion being shown and yet again see another insight of each character. You could also say a panning shot is being used due to the fact the camera goes from side to side of the characters to see what they are saying to each other.

Editing

In the opening two minutes of Misfits you see a lot of cuts being taken on from the characters, sort of like in Top Boy. I say this because I believe cuts that are quick and fast are being used so that you get to see each character but not for a long time as the producers do not want to give much away. You see each different character for a maximum of five seconds and then it cuts to the next character. There is then a straight cut where you then see the characters lined up outside where you see dialogue happen. I would say this would be continuity editing due to the fact that it is all going in a sequence where the characters are getting introduced at first and then we hear dialogue which again gives us an insight of what these characters have done wrong.

Target Audience
The target audience of Misfits would be similar to that of Top Boy in the age category of 16-34 olds. I say this due to the ages of the main protagonists who are relatively young and teenagers could relate to these characters. I would also believe that it appeals to both males and females due to the protagonists being a mixture of males and females and again they could relate to these characters.
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Dexter

Mis – en – scene

In the opening sequence of Dexter you get a setting which is inside of his house. But due to the camerawork and editing it makes us feel as if he is somewhere else. As it is in the morning the lighting is bright and looks like a normal day for him in which he is having his daily routine: having a shave, having breakfast as we all would. We only get to see one character in this scene who is Dexter so obviously the main character is Dexter. We get to see him properly at the end of the two minute sequence where he looks normal and smiles, so there is nothing really suspicious thus far, but also this could mean he is good at hiding and lying about things. This is his facial expression and body language which looks confident. We see lots of things such as him eating and cooking as well as shaving which also gives us an idea of what type of guy he is, so far you would think he is a normal guy.

Sound

In the opening two minute sequence of Dexter we hear both diegetic and non diegetic sound. We hear non diegetic sound throughout most of the sequence and it is a sound where it is building up to a certain thing happening. Also has this is playing in the back ground we hear diegetic sounds such as him slapping an insect which is on his arm, to him shaving and to him cooking. We hear these sounds over the non diegetic sound at it makes you worry has readers as if you weren’t looking at the video clip and you could only hear what was happening you might think something drastic is going on. I think the non diegetic sound is also parallel as it is morning and it is calm but also at the same time contrapuntal where this music is smooth and calm from where you see the diegetic sounds being violent so it doesn’t go together which adds to the tension of what is going on.

Camerawork

In this opening sequence of Dexter we see extreme close ups of Dexter and everything in his daily life, we see a lot of attention to detail. This might scare and worry the viewers as we are sucked in to the detail of him and the close ups and then all of a sudden he slaps the insect which might scare you (this happens in the start of the sequence). We then see extreme close ups of him shaving in which he starts bleeding this could be connoted in he has made someone else bleed and he then covers it up with a tissue which could mean he is covering up what he has done to someone. We then see him slicing up meat and other types of food such as oranges which could also signify something such as he has done something in sort of slicing stuff, these all give us hints of what Dexter might be about. We also in the sequence see him with some sort of laces or rope where he looks as if he going to strangle someone, this could have many meanings which the producers are trying to send to us. We also in this sequence see an over the top shot of food being grinded sort of as if something else is being grinded and it looks as if he knows what he is doing like he some sort of expert at this which could also mean something.

Editing

In the opening sequence of Dexter we see a lot of straight cuts going from one shot to another. So has soon as we see Dexter do an action it goes on to the next action where we see him doing something else. There are smooth cuts which are continuously going from one shot to the other to see different types of things Dexter is doing. I also believe it is continuity editing due to the fact that it is going in a sequence such as he is waking up going have a shave then eat his breakfast which is everything a normal person would do in their lives. We see that these types of edits create a certain type of atmosphere as to him it is his normal daily routine but due to the fast editing we see a lot more than we should do which draws the reader in and make them want to watch more. 

Target Audience
I believe the target audience of Dexter would be similar to that of Luther. I say this as the story line of Dexter would be complexed and you would have to know what is going on at all times so I would say again 16 and above. I would also say it appeals to both genders due to the violence and relationships but more so males due to the protagonist being a male.

My Murder

Mis – en – scene

In the opening sequence of my murder you can see that a black boy has been stabbed but you don’t know why. Also during the opening sequence you can that other characters are being introduced gradually. A mysterious girl is introduced first and at first sight us the audience may believe she’s the one who stabbed him. The setting looks as if it similar to that of Top Boy in urban and rural parts and places where it is hard to make a living for yourself. The lighting is similar to those I have already mentioned such as dark and dull colours and that nothing in the opening sequence is happy or bright so they want us to feel a certain mood towards the show. The facial expression and body language of the different characters tell different stories there is a black woman who looks as if she is blaming someone for something and then towards the end of the opening sequence you see a black boy who looks confident and is happily telling his story.

Sound

There is both non diegetic and diegetic sound in the opening sequence of my murder. Straight away as we watch the show we hear diegetic sound and it is someone on the phone to the police and we then start to hear screaming to show that someone is struggling. We then hear a black woman saying ‘I thought she cared’ numerous times as she wants to get that certain message across to us. We then hear a guy who is about to tell us a story of something and he looks confident whilst he is telling it. There is also non diegetic sound throughout the opening sequence and it is a song, if you listen to the lyrics is contrapuntal to what we are watching however the song is slowed down in to a slow pace so it is as if it is parallel to what we are watching so it sounds as if it is going with the sequence. There is also a sound bridge that takes place where we see a black girl not speaking and showing no emotion to another girl who saying he trusted her, so you can tell from this that the black girl who had no emotion was the girl who he trusted.

Camerawork

In the opening sequence we see many medium and close up shots of characters being introduced. At first we see a type of clothing in a garden and then a black boy struggling for strength on the floor in the garden this is to show where the setting is. We then see a upside down shot of the black boy where it could connote to us that this black boys life is now turning upside down due to his stabbing. We then see an over the shoulder shot of someone who is phoning the police about the stabbing and see the guy on the floor at the same time. We then again see a close up of the black boy to see his emotions and how much he is struggling at this moment. We then see a close up of black girl who is showing no emotion and it makes us think she is the one who killed him. We then see a side tracking shot of a black boy where it is as if we are following his tracks and following his story. The camera then stops and he walks off crossing the road and we then a wide shot of him and in the back ground you can see a setting being introduced which is like an establishing shot.

Editing

In the opening sequence of my murder we see a lot of straight cuts taking place. We see shots happening for longer periods than other shows which I have talked about, so we get to see the full emotion of the different characters. We then see a fade out from one character to the other where the screen goes black to show that something has happened. After the titles we see the screen go black again and has the beat drops another character we see is walking, so it creates some sort of tension that makes us think what is happening. We then see another straight cut from where the guy is introducing himself to a school hall, so another place is being introduced. This straight cut was to change the type of scene so we see something different to make sure the story progresses and moves on. 

Target Audience
I believe the target audience to my murder would be 16-34 year olds but mainly teenagers due to the characters being teenagers and being about their lives. This could relate to many teenagers, so it would attract a more younger audience. It would appeal to both males and females due to the fact of families and heartbreak as well as violence which would appeal to both genders.

Audience Theory

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2246478/Playing-violent-video-games-just-20-minutes-day-encourage-aggressive-behaviour.html

How can you link this news article to the hypodermic needle theory?
I can link this article to the hypodermic theory has these types of violent games can send a message across to the the game players sort of like injecting them with information which they should take in to the real world. The message would then be accepted by the game players and they believe they could do these actions in real life. It is sort of like taking over your mind and hypnotizing you in to doing what they want. You could even say game players are helpless whilst absorbing all of the violence and basically believe anything they see. This could relate to me but in a less severe way as I play a lot of FIFA therefore after I finish playing I really feel like playing football which could relate to people who play these fighting games would feel like to have a fight with someone. 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-24801980
How can you link Jamal Edwards to the two-step flow model?  
The two step flow model could link to Jamal Edwards has he became big by himself and had no support at the time. His story says he just started with a camera and filming his mates. He then became really big and got his big break and now has his own broadcasting company which is very popular 'SBTV'. The way in which he relates to the two step flow model is that he is one of the opinion leaders of mass media out there right now which is the first step. The second step is where opinion leaders pass on their own interpretation which is what Jamal is doing and who they influence, in the article he makes it clear that he tries to influence 13-30 year olds and with this he tries to help singers and rappers become big, he does this by getting his opinion cross on trying to stay grounded and work hard. 

Uses and gratifications theory

Diversion



I believe that I'm a celebrity get me out of here relates to diversion has it I personally believe it lets you escape from your every day life and problems it includes. I say this as firstly it comes on at a late time so it is on when everyone is at home and lets you 'cool' down after a long day at work or school. It is also entertainment as it includes 'bush tucker trials' where you see celebrities undergo difficult tasks which include animals in it. This could be seen has pleasure for the viewers as these celebrities are now not in their comfort zone and obviously it is funny which helps you relieve the everyday stresses that you have. 

Personal relationships



I believe that a character such as Michael Moon from Eastenders can relate to personal relationships. I say this because I myself felt a certain type of liking towards Michael Moon and would only watch the soap for him as I found him to be an interesting and manipulative character. I wouldn't say I had an emotional attachment to him but I would say I liked him as an actor as he was different and unique to everyone else. Like he wasn't the usual typical character you would see on a soap, he was evil but you could see why people would have affection towards him as he was interesting. He also didn't have the best of lives before he died so some people could relate to him with this as they would feel the same about their lives. 

Personal Identity 



I believe that Top Boy could relate to personal identity. I believe this because it is like teaching us a way of how different types of people live. Obviously this type of living was through gangs and living the more risky way of life e.g. selling drugs. It shows us the behaviour and values of different the way they live and seeing if we could fit in the way they live. You would say that it is not the easiest way of living and that they do not live in the best parts of the country and through this we can learn about how tough life is for them and whether us ourselves could live the life they are living. 

Surveillance 



I believe that BBC Sport could relate to surveillance for myself. I believe that BBC Sport could relate to me myself has sport is something that is in my every day life and it shows me information in which I would want to know about. I go on BBC Sport to check the latest and main stories that are happening especially in football has these are my main interests. So I believe for myself not for everyone just myself this gives me information that is useful for living as Sport is something heavily involved in my life and something in which I would like to pursuit further on in my life and for personally it is important to know the main stories that happen daily in Sport and BBC Sport would help me achieve this. 

1) I myself primarily use the media for entertainment and information. I use it for entertainment with social networking sites such as Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. I know believe these social networking sites play an important role in my life, I also believe that it overlaps with information as on Twitter you have a trending page and you get to see the main stories and this helps me see what is happening around the world such as if anything drastic has happened so it is sort of like the news for me by giving me information and as it is on Twitter it allows me to see different peoples opinions and views on the stuff happening in the world. I also use media for information as it would help me in every day life such as work if I find something I am stuck on I would check the internet or even to see what I have done for work is right or not or even just everyday life such as checking the weather or sports.

2) I do feel dependent on the media. This is because nowadays my phone plays an important role in my life and when I am checking my phone I am checking social networking sites and also going on Whatsapp to interact with different people. So media is a way of interacting with different people also which I believe I am now getting more and more dependent on. However you could also say that you are not that dependent on the media as before I have broken my phone and have gone a couple of days without going on my phone and as the days went by I got more used to it, but I would say I am dependent on media. 

3) Yes, I believe our dependence on the Media has changed over the past 10 years. I believe this because of the ever changing technology, from iPhone's to tablets. Media such as this now plays an important role in our everyday lives. Our school Greenford even realises this this due to the fact they now hand out tablets to every student in our school. You wouldn't have got this privilege 10 years ago. You could also say I myself wasn't dependent on Media 10 years ago has I was only 7 so I wouldn't have known what to have done with technology at that time and would have rather have asked my parents instead of going on the internet and also the fact that 10 years ago technology wasn't as good. However if you ask this question to 7 year olds now in 10 years time their answers would be different as I have seen 7 year olds who can access iPod's easily and play with them which shows they are already becoming dependent on technology and the media.  

Preliminary exercise evaluation

Preliminary exercise evaluation

In my preliminary exercise I worked with Daniel and Rohail, in our task we had to create a minimum of 30 second shot which had to include match on action, shot reverse shot and the 180 degree rule.

So overall I and my group were satisfied with our work there were some positives as well as some negatives. I am first going to start off with the positives. The positives were that we got used to the new video camera straight away and it was easily accessible as a result of this our filming was not a problem, we completed our filming in just under 3 periods this was a bonus as we then got more time to do editing, whilst filming we got to understand how the video camera works such as focus and zoom, with this in mind we tried numerous shots. We tried shots such as close ups, tracking shots, over the shoulder, medium shots and wide shots. All these shots were used for different purposes. The first shot was as if the camera was following the protagonist to see where he was going as he got to the door to open it, the shot switched to outside and we see him opening the door from the other side, this was our match on action shot, we believed this was the highlight of our filming as it was smooth and everything flowed. The next shot was of the character going down the stairs and has he was we done a close up whilst he was going down the stairs to keep the suspense up. It then went back to a wide shot where the next character was introduced and I personally believe this was our best shot as it shows a side shot of the new character and then the protagonist joins him to show they are some part of a team working together. The protagonist then turns around and so does the other character and they nod to show that something has happened there is then dialogue between the characters and the shot reverse shot takes place and the 180 degree rule is not broken. So we believed that was a success as when editing everything fitted and clicked together.

However we also believe there were some downsides to our filming as when we watched the film back the main problem was the audio and sound. As we filmed outside this caused a problem as you could hear winds in the background and couldn’t hear the dialogue as much, so this will help us in the future as if we were to film outside again we would pick a day where it is less windy or even just film elsewhere. We also nearly broke the 180 degree rule as at the end of the dialogue the protagonist walked off however we did edit this out so the 180 degree was not broken. So we will learn from this in the future. Also in one of the shots in the close up of the shoes going up the stairs the focus was not correct and also the camera kept on shaking so as a result the focus next time needs to be sorted out so it looks more clear and the filming needs to be more perfected. 

Resigned

For this task in which I did with Kabir I got a C
WWW: Well presented, key concepts noticed
EBI: Some information wasn't true such as newspapers and also images.

Adverts and psyochographics

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8QrL-SWqlfaR3ExZ2FvcC1vR1E/edit?usp=sharing

Psyhographics C's

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8QrL-SWqlfacDlJQUtIWC1tN2s/edit?usp=sharing

Disney Powerpoint

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8QrL-SWqlfad3UtNjJpa1NZZTQ/edit?usp=sharing#

Parallel and Contrapuntal images

Young and Rubicam test

So as you can see I got my majority in Control from the Young and Rubicam 4 C’s test, also Status being close behind it. From the feedback from Control it showed me that whatever I do in the future I will feel comfortable in doing by feeling ‘right at home’. Also that I am well motivated with a great work ethic and confidence which I agreed to at a certain extent however they also said I am very organised which I had to disagree on as I believe I am not one of the best organised people there are, also saying I wear clothes that are ‘prestige’ which I also tend to disagree with. However they also said I would be in the top of the working hierarchy which is what I am aiming to do. So therefore before I took the test I would have said I wanted to be a control/ succeed and the test agreed with me. In a near second was also Status saying stuff like I care about my image and that I am fun and friendly which I strongly agree with. So I can see why status was second in my test results. 

Brand Values

Brand Values

Nike – Nike are one of the main leading sports brands there today. They innovate in athletic footwear, equipment and accessories. They would fit into many of Dyers lines of appeal: Elite people or experts for instance has they have many famous sports people advertising their brand for e.g. in the UK Rooney and Ronaldo get advertised a lot has they are well known here. Another would be self importance and pride where if you buy these products you’d feel confident has Nike is one of the leading brands out there today.

The Nike brand is about offering the best for you

One word: Unique

Superdry – Superdry are steadily becoming one of the leading clothing brands out there today, especially in the UK. Their influences are from Japan and try to create urban clothing for all ages. Dyers line of appeal:  Rich luxurious lifestyles this is as Superdrys clothing costs a lot of money and as a result of this you would believe you are living that rich lifestyle. Glamorous places, as I said before their influences are Japan which is a glamorous city lifestyle in which they are trying to promote through their clothing.

The Superdry brand aim to differentiate themselves from the rest

One word: Differentiation

McDonalds – McDonalds are one of the biggest franchise restaurants out there today, their main objective is to provide goods and services at a good quality. They would fit into Dyers line of appeal: Happy families as everyone in the family can eat from McDonalds as they cater for all ages and also for luxurious lifestyles where you feel happy when you are eating your burger for e.g.  And finally they could also fit into the idea of glamorous places as they are all over the world for everyone to eat even in the most glamorous places.

The McDonalds brand is about offering the best possible quality

One word: Quality

Sky Sports – Sky sports are the leading sports channel around today. They provide us with many services as well as the biggest live games there. In the UK football is the dominant sport in which Sky sports provide a lot of biggest live games. They would fit into Dyers line of appeal: Successful careers as for e.g. they have David Beckham advertising them now who are considered as a role model to many people also elite people or experts as they have lots of pundits and commentators who have their expert opinions on matches being played.

Sky sports aim to be to the best sports provider

One word: Greatest

Ewing Athletics – Ewings Athletics aim to provide people with the best of basketball gear. Ewings Athletics were named after the famous basketball player Patrick Ewing, and now provide trainers, snapbacks, clothing etc. They would fit into Dyers line of appeal: successful careers as they have many basket players and singers wearing their products and advertising it for them for e.g. The Weeknd, which would make you want to buy it also.  Also rich luxurious lifestyles as Ewings clothing costs a lot of money and as a result of purchasing their products you would feel confident in what you are wearing.

Ewing Athletics aim to offer the very best products

One word: Distinctive 

Test feedback

WWW:

Some seriously impressive detail and some excellent points, especially early on.

EBI:

Editing is a weakness; most of your answer refers to camera work or sound. Remember pace, transitions. Slow motion etc. is what you are looking for.

Some good notes but more, and more organised will help you.

A big one? PARAGRAPHS. It’s very difficult to separate your points and that will cost you.

L/R: To improve I need to focus on improving drastically on editing  and on making more detailed and organised notes.

Psycho and The Conjuring

Psycho
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WtDmbr9xyY

The Conjuring
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrFT6L4jxdI

Psycho (1960) – The Conjuring (2013)

The two extracts in which I will be comparing are going to be ‘Psycho’ and ‘The Conjuring’. The movie Psycho was made in the 1960’s and the movie The Conjuring was made in 2013. The two movies were made in separate times and are classed as thriller/horror movies. The clip from Psycho will be from where the lady gets killed by someone unexpectedly whilst she is having a shower and the clip from the conjuring will be where the mother and daughter are playing a game and the mother hears something but it’s not what she thought it was...

The clip in Psycho shows the lady taking off her clothes and it is a medium shot of her. She then gets into the bath tub and sighs, this could show us that maybe it has been a tough day and that she wants to wine down with a shower. Also to make a note she is in a close up where you can see her face and her shoulders only, this is due to back in the 1960’s you weren’t allowed to show naked bodies of women (neither now as well), but back then it would have caused more of a stir has this was the first movie to this so it was controversial, This was due to practical reasons.

The lady then puts on the shower and looks up at it and whilst she is looking up at it the camera then goes to shower to show that we are looking up at it and as if the shower is coming down on us and we are in the ladies situation, this is called an eye line match. This is where you see someone looking at something and the next shot we see it for ourselves. We then see different angles of the lady having a shower and it looks as if this shower was needed to relieve some sort of stress. We then see the shower again in a close up showing that something could happen. We then see a more of a medium shot of the lady when she is covering herself with her arms and you see the curtain, the curtain must signify something to us which may happen soon to the lady.

Has I said above the showing of the curtains must have meant something has we now see something happening behind the curtain, it is like someone has opened the door of the bathroom. We then see it coming closer and the camera then goes away from the lady having the shower and focuses more on the person coming closer to the curtain, this could be a panning shot where the camera moves slowly on its axis side to side which could be used to emphasise our attention on a viewpoint and in this case it was this mysterious person coming closer to the lady who is unaware of their presence.

Has the mysterious person comes closer and opens the curtains we hear parallel music which could make the audience jump and we see a knife as the lady turns around she also screams, we then see close ups of the woman and then an extreme close up of the ladies mouth to show her screaming and to show that something is going to happen. We then see many shots of the woman getting stabbed by this mysterious person but we don’t actually see it happening due to practical reasons which is linked to what I explained before of the lady not allowed to be shown naked, likewise to this part where we are not allowed to see her getting stabbed numerously. We also see a shot of the woman where it looks as if we are looking down on here which connotes that she has now lost all of her power as she has now been found out and is most likely going to die, so this shows she is in a vulnerable situation.

We then see numerous shots of the camera switching from the lady and mysterious person where she is trying to protect herself, we see many close ups of the two individuals. We eventually do see that the lady has lost the battle as the camera now focuses on the bath tub where we see blood running down which is most likely the ladies. The ladies head then turns away to show us that she has died and the next shot shows the mysterious walk away, so we don’t get to see who actually did it we only see the back of them. This could have been done to keep up a suspense of who done it. We then see the ladies hands look as if she is trying to stay alive for dear life in an extreme close up and the music in the back ground is getting slower which could show that the ladies life is getting slower and she is about to die.

We then see a medium shot of the lady and she is looking straight with no emotion, after this she tries to reach out which could mean that she is trying to reach out for help but no one is there to help her. She then puts her hand upon the curtains for some support but the curtains eventually fall and she falls with them to the ground which shows the last amount of hope she had is now gone with these close ups of her hand against the curtains, showing how desperate she is. We then see shots of the shower again to show that it is still running and then shots of her legs and we then see the blood and water flowing to the tap to show that her time is up and that her blood is running away from her and she is slowly going down the drain like her blood. We see this by seeing extreme close ups of the water and blood going down the drains.

We then see a straight cut where we see the drain and straight after we see the ladies eye and the camera starts to spin around her eye and whilst it is doing this the camera is zooming out of the ladies eye to where we eventually see the whole of the ladies face. The spiralling could have been used to show the ladies life spiralling out of control to where now she has no life.

In the clip from The Conjuring we see a medium shot of the upstairs of the house, sort of like an establishing shot where we see their upstairs. We can see that it is new has there aren’t many things upstairs and also the upstairs looks a bit olden and spooky and not what you would associate with something in the 21^st century. We also hear something in the background but aren’t sure what it is, we then hear the mother who is outside one of the doors say ‘first clap’ has she is playing a game with her daughter.

We then see the back of the mother as if we are doing a tracking shot of her and this is also another medium shot where see a different part of the large hall way. It’s as if we are the ones that are going to do something to the mother; also the game in which the mother and her daughter are playing is with a blind fold so the mother cannot see what’s happening. We then also start to hear some sort of bells ringing in the back ground which adds to the tension within this scene, showing that something could be building up to happen. There is no music being played but we could sense something happening due to the parallel sound of the bells which are also diegetic. We then see the mother hit into many things such as a table and the banister and again we see this from behind as if we are the ones tracking her. Also we see that she hurts herself has she asks for the second clap, this is due to the fact that the house they are now living in is new and it will take time for them to settle hence why she is always banging into things. 

We are then in front of her with the camera as if she is coming to us, which could show that she is vulnerable due to the fact she is wearing a blind fold. However at this moment the mother believes she has found her daughter in the game and starts to smile. We then also start to hear a clock in the back ground to show that her time is up and that something is going to happen. She then enters the room and we see the room in a wide shot as she enters, this shot is an eye line match where we see that she is about to go in to that room and the next shot we see her in that room.

We then hear the mother say ‘April I’m coming to get you’. Has she is saying this it is as if she is possessed and it makes us scared like she is some sort of monster who wants to cause harm, and has she is in a blind fold her arms are out and this adds more to the tension has she looks like a zombie and that something is going to happen in this wide shot we are seeing of her in the room. We then see her coming to the camera as if she is coming to get us and then we see the doors in one of the closets behind her open by themselves in this wide shot.

The mother then turns around and is acting as if she knows she has found her daughter, she then asks for the third clap and the clothes in the closet move about and these hands then give the third clap. We then see the mother come to us as if she trying to catch us again and we see a close up of her and we then hear footsteps coming in to the room. From where it changes from a straight shot to her taking her blind fold off and we then hear some sort of non diegetic sound which adds to the tension within the scene and all of a sudden her daughter speaks saying she lost the game. We see from this wide shot that the mother is freaked out over what has happened has she also says she could hear her daughter breathing when it wasn’t her daughter it was something else. We then also hear music in the background speeding up for some sort of climax which is also non diegetic.

The two clops from the movies add tension in different ways, from their different types of camera shots and camera movement. Both clips show close ups at various times so that we see the different types of emotions from the characters, however one of the clips showed more close ups than the other whereas one decided to focus more on medium and wide shots so we get a feeling of everything in the room and see every detail and see what different things might pop out from everywhere. Even though the films are fifty years apart the older movie still shows great editing from where the drain moves swiftly on to the ladies eye. The other clip showed many more tracking shots as if we were in the movie to build our nerves up and increase our anxiety. Both clips involved diegetic and non diegetic sound, where you could hear music in one and in the other you can hear screeching sounds the diegetic sound included clocks in the background and the sound of water and the lady screaming in the other, one had dialogue also has the other didn’t. You couldn’t tell the colour in one due to it being black and white but the other clip had mainly dull colours and it was a day where it looked as if it were winter and this added to the tension. So overall both clips try to add tension in both similar and different ways.     

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=My2FRPA3Gf8

An extract edited in a distinctive way – Miley Cyrus Wrecking Ball

The extract in which I have decided to talk about that was edited in a distinctive way is a song called ‘Wrecking ball’ by Miley Cyrus. I have mainly chosen to talk about this song is due to the deep meaning behind the video and not what everyone else thinks it is (a naked girl showing off her girly bits for views).

The video starts off with Mileys face in a close up, and you then see a tear come down from her eye so you can tell that this song is going to be emotional about a break up and that she is heartbroken over someone. It takes 9 seconds into the video before Miley actually starts to sing, this could be a sign that she isn’t feeling confident due to what has happened to her and that she is in a fragile state and therefore could be nervous about this song. She is in a close up of her face until the 31^st second of video, and has she is singing you can see that something drastic has happened to her as she shows no emotion just a straight face.

After her close ups she is then in a close up but it is less zoomed in and you can see she is holding a sledge hammer behind her. We could connote from this that she is vulnerable and that she could do something with this sledge hammer that she could regret. She is also whilst holding the sledge hammer looking up, this may be because she is looking up to the heavens and thinking what has she done to deserve this. You then see other shots of her with the sledge hammer where she is looking at it as if she doesn’t want to be holding it but has no choice to has her life has been ruined.

The video then goes back to a close up of just Mileys face again, so again we get to share the emotion of Mileys, this could be to feel the pain Mileys in and share it with us. Also the music in the background to this point has been really slow, as you would expect with a song like this so the music is parallel to the video.

But after her close up goes you see a medium shot of Miley and the music has a sudden change, you can see that Miley is trying to get rid of the pain and heartbreak she is going through as now the music is at a faster tone and she is standing in this place made of stone walls and has she is walking away you see a massive wrecking ball break the walls has she is going past, that could be to connote what has happened to her world that is has gone crashing down in just an instance. So at first the song was calm and slow which could have been her life at first but after this mishap in her life it is now fast and surreal after the music change goes to a faster pace.

Throughout the video the video shows extreme close ups of Miley as have done from the beginning of the video. She is then standing on top of the wrecking ball and in some parts is also naked, this could show that it could have been her fault to why her life has been wrecked has she is on top of it so she could have controlled what happened to her. She also decided to lick the sledge hammer in a weird way, some could say she is crazy but it could also mean that she has no one left but this sledge hammer and doesn’t want to show her real emotion and try and stay strong.

You see a change in emotion from Miley has the video progresses and it could show that she has grown more confident over the video, this could relate to her real life has at first she was finding it hard but since then she has progressed. You can see this by the extreme close ups have been changed to close ups and she is now blaming her other half for what has happened. She also goes back to the stone wall part which has been ruined and lies on the broken parts of stone, this could be shown has it shows that she is back to the place where everything is ruined and seeing everything again one last time.

However towards the end of the vide Miley starts crying again her extreme close ups and covers her face with her hands, this shows she still is not in the right place as she emotional and has a mixture of feelings and she doesn’t know how to explain them. She goes from blaming him for what has happened to blaming herself, she doesn’t know what has happened and it has finally hit her.

So to conclude this video I believe was made to show a story in to Mileys life and the heart break she has gone through recently. I believe this is true due to the fact that she recently broke up with her fiancé who she was close with for many years, so she is sharing her story with us and showing how vulnerable she is with prime examples being that she is naked in some parts and has been stripped of all her masculinity. We also see that she is too young and weren’t prepared to lose the love of her life and that she is trying to move on.  

The Game

I and my partner Kabir decided to do our narrative based on football. The protagonist within the story is someone called Conrad Garcia. Who is half English and half Spanish. Conrad Garcia is a footballer who plays for Barnsley in the championship. This is when the equilibrium is put in place. It is the Championship playoff final and the winner of the match will get promoted into the Premiership. Unfortunately Barnsley lost on penalties, however Conrad who is a striker did score a goal during the match and converted his penalty and was also named man of the match. Due to his performance in the final and throughout the whole season a host of premier league clubs were tracking him when eventually Tottenham signed him for 7 million pounds. It was middle of the season and Conrad hadn’t played many games due to the quality of players within the Tottenham squad. Tottenham were playing a home match against Manchester United they were losing 1-0. Andre Vilas Boas the Tottenham manager needed to make a substitution quickly. He decided to take their star striker Soldado off and bring on Conrad, the Tottenham fans were booing and getting very abusive.. Until the 90^th minute where Conrad was fed in one on one he shoots he scores!

That one goal changed his life completely, now Conrad would get noticed everywhere he goes, sponsorship deals you name it. But more importantly he was starting instead of Soldado the best player at the club. Due to the fame and his big step up Conrad wanted a new contract worth a lot of money, however his agent who had been his agent since he first started playing football professionally told him he should wait. Conrad didn’t like what his agent had to say and this resulted in conflict between the pair and eventually he sacked him and hired a new well known agent, who was also the agent of Soldados. The disequilibrium is now being introduced. Has Conrad has with many premier league footballers personal life was beginning to take a toll on his image has he was always partying and cheated on his girlfriend who he had been with from a young age. He got the lucrative contract he wanted but at a cost has he had lost all his friends and lost respect from the people closest to him. You could see this wasn’t affecting him on the pitch has he was still scoring goals. However Soldado didn’t like Conrad due to him taking his place in the team and had a word with his agent, has Soldado was the agents’ favourite client he decided to help Soldado. It was the penultimate weekend of the premier league and Tottenham were going for 4^th place, they were up against Sunderland. Lee Cattermole another one of this mysterious agents clients was playing. During the match you could see Cattermole was man marking Conrad and towards the end he had fouled and injured Conrad this caused a fight between the two payers causing Conrad to get sent off and also injured for a large amount of time. Cattermole then looked to the stands where the agent was and winked and just Conrads luck his replacement Soldado scored the winner.

After long rehab, Conrad decided to try fix things up with the people closest to him, this worked and he eventually re hired his ex agent and forced a move away from Tottenham and joined Arsenal their rivals.. His career was back on track but for how long...

Villain: New agent

Donor: Mum

Helper: Close friends/ girlfriend/ old agent

Princess: Girlfriend

Dispatcher: Mum

Hero: Conrad Garcia

False Hero: New team mates and agent

Good Vs Bad

Hope Vs Fate

Top Boy

I have decided to analyse episode 4 of series 2 of the street/crime series which is ‘Top Boy’. To summarise what happened in the final episode of series 2 of Top Boy is that Dushane who is the protagonist throughout the whole of the series gets caught up into many situations. One of those situations is where he is trying to plead not guilty to killing someone as well has helping a friend whose son is getting bullied by a man from China. Dushane has an uneasy friendship and partnership with a former close friend Sully but in this episode they join forces to get money off of these Albanians who are said to be everyone’s rivals. Within all of this Dushane whose girlfriend is a solicitor gets caught up in Dushanes world has to try and protect Dushane from the police. By this she could be risking her job eventually Dushane and Sully get the money they want but at the end one of Dushanes so called apprentices gets killed by the Albanians by getting thrown off the top of the flats.

Theories and codes

Throughout the episode you could see many action codes developing but the main action code was towards the end of the episode in which Michael (the young kid who eventually gets killed) was in the room with the Albanians but they didn't know he was there, you could sense that something was going to happen has they were searching around the house until Michael ran out to try and protect Dushane from he got thrown off the flats balcony. This then progressed has the Albanians found out where Dushane was and tried shooting him.

I’d say that the storyline goes in a non linear narrative where things seem to not go in order. Has it was the last episode of the series you would expect a happy ending after where Dushane and Sully get their money back from the Albanians but as we know it doesn’t end there and Michael eventually dies and Dushanes life hangs in the balance. This is the opposite to a linear narrative where the conflict and problem has already occurred and everything is over with. This then in turn creates an enigma has it has created mystery of what is going to happen next. You could also say that a multi strand narrative is being done in the Top Boy episode has Dushane just doesn’t have the Albanians to consider has he also has that ‘China man’ to deal with and also his case against Kumali who he killed but yet is pleading not guilty. This could be a multi strand narrative however it is all to do with one person so at the same time it might not be.

Todorovs theory includes equilibrium, disequilibrium and a new equilibrium. But this doesn’t go to plan in Top Boy has there is really no equilibrium taking place due to the many problems Dushane was encountering. But there were many disequilibriums which were taking which I have explained: Albanians, China man, court case. Throughout these events Dushane took part in many conflicts affecting the lives of his closest friends as well has his girlfriend and family. A new equilibrium does take place for a short while where Dushane gets his money back from the Albanians however this is short lived due to his former best mate Sully saying he doesn’t want to come back to Dushanes ‘gang’ and then when the Albanians kill Michael which sends out a message to him that they are coming for him.

Propps theory includes the role of characters within story lines. There are many villains within Top Boy you could say that the Albanians are for what they did to Dushanes money, the police for causing chaos for Dushane and his ‘gang’ you could even say Dushane was a villain in many ways has he broke the law many times. There are many helpers within Top Boy also, Sully for one who helps Dushane get his money back and his girlfriend also who helps his case and fights for him many times. The donor could be Michael has he helps Dushane before he dies by shouting Dushanes name and therefore risking his own life. The princess in this storyline could be Ra’nell and Gem who get saved by Gems dad has the China man was doing bad stuff towards the kids. So you could say they got saved by a so called hero even though he stabbed him. The dispatcher would be Ra’nells mum who gives Dushane the task of sorting out the China man even though Gems dad got there first. The hero you could say was Gems dad for saving the kids but at a price and also Dushane for getting his money back for him and his ‘gang’. The false hero could be Dushane has you could say he is doing all of this stuff just for himself for e.g. having the solicitor has his girlfriend just so it helps him stay out of prison also calling back Sully to help get his money back and not really care for him. But you could also say Michael was the false hero has in the other episodes he told the police about what Dushane had done to kill Kumali (their so called rivals), but he also helped Dushane at the end by shouting out his name to warn him the Albanians were there and by doing so got killed.