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.