St. Paul’s Catholic College

Center Number: 64770

Candidate Number: 6146

Candidate Name: Liam De Costa

A2 Media Studies

Unit G324: Advanced Portfolio in Media –

Production Log

Evidence of Planning & Research

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Aims and Objectives

AO2 – Assess candidates’ application of knowledge and understanding in evaluating their own work, showing how meanings and responses are created.

AO3 – Assess candidates’ ability to plan and construct media products using appropriate technical and creative skills.

AO4 – Assess candidates’ ability to undertake, apply and present appropriate research.

Brief Chosen

A 45 second – 1 minute 30 second trailer for a NEW Soap Opera

that will be exhibited on at 8:30pm (after Eastenders) that will appeal to a Male and Female audience.

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Contents

Textual Analysis

Eastenders

- Soap Opera Codes & Conventions- Multi Strand Narrative

Coronation Street

“..the home, the family, domestic tribulations and the strong woman, and as such, it has long been said to appeal to the female viewer”

‘Masculinity and Popular television’ – Rebecca Feasey (2007)

- Is this evident and how is this presented to the audience?

Research

Purpose of a Trailer Multi-Platform promotion Textual Analysis – Coronation Street and Hollyoaks

Deadlines – Production Work

Filming Dates:

Edited Trailer – Complete:

Promotional Poster – Complete:

Promotional Magazine Cover – Complete:

Evaluation – Complete:

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Soap Opera Codes & Conventions – Lesson 2

1) What are some of the Codes & Conventions of this genre?

The Soap Opera genre can be categorized by the ‘repeated’

Soap opera codes

Usually end with a cliff hanger(suspense)

Multi-stranded narrative

Located on a street or street square

Large cast

-Protagonist-Antagonist-Multi cultural-Range of ages-Families

Small community

Mainly targets a female audience

LOTS of drama

Conflict

Romance

Crime

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(S t e v e N e a l e ) elements of:

1. Romance

2. Family relationship and/or conflict

3. Focus on working class communities

4. Antagonism and conflict within community

5. Realism

Eastenders (1985 – Present)

Key information regarding this text:

Exhibited on BBC1 and repeated on BBC Three

One of the UK’s highest rated programmes (averages 6m viewers per episode)

Set in the ‘Kitchen Sink’ setting of fictional Watford, East London

Textual Analysis Task

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ye51O8WBVVM&feature=related -

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In your opinion, according to Hartley’s Seven Subjectivities, what is the target audience for Eastenders?

Age Teens-Adults 16-30

Gender Female

Nationality British

Trailer 1) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADNwkxrCtd4

What is the Focus of this trailer?

The trailer focuses on the main characters who are suspected to have killed Lucy.

Code &

Convention

Evidence

(Verbal, Non-Verbal, Technical)

Impact on the Audience

(Katz, Maslow, Hartley)

RomanceNon-verbal – MaxMax was in a relationship with Lucy.

Hartley - Audience will be shocked with the age difference between these two characters as it is not socially acceptable. In relation to the age subjectivity, both Max and Lucy would stereotypically have different priorities in their life, which would show in their relationship; possibly leading to its downfall.

Family relationships and/or conflict

Non-verbal – IanLucy’s father Ian presents feelings of tragic loss towards the event.

Katz – Viewers who have lost a relative or a close friend would empathise with the character through this tragic event through personal identification. This scene is very relatable as death is a part of life and everyone will experience it in their lives.

Focus on working class communities

Non-verbal – Taking out the trash, making tea in a café.

Hartley – The working class community presented within the trailer can relate to the nation in which it is set. It allows viewers to understand and relate themselves to the community of Eastenders, as they may live a similar way of life to the characters involved.

“Multi-Stranded Narrative”

The narrative focuses on the death of Lucy and who murdered her.

Maslow – Audiences will want to expand their knowledge of the current plot line within the soap. This is an example of a social climber and viewers will be driven to watch the latest episode of Eastenders in order to know what exactly has been

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happening.

‘Disequilibrium’ (Todorov)

Death of a character Hartley – Due to the fact that the character who has been murdered was a female, it would stereotypically gain more attention from viewers, especially as the character was a young adult. Because of this, the audience may feel more sympathetic towards her and her family.

Trailer 2) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWyB6Nqfhv8

What is the Focus of this trailer?

This trailer focuses on the ‘Secrets’ of individual characters that relate to the narrative.

Code &

Convention

Evidence

(Verbal, Non-Verbal, Technical)

Impact on the Audience

(Katz, Maslow, Hartley)

RomanceVerbal code diegetic dialogue “That didn’t stop you from sleeping with her!”

Hartley – Audiences will be shocked as this character has had sexual encounters with the younger character as it is socially unacceptable. This can also relate to gender as it can be imposed that the older male character could have taken advantage over the fact that the female character was much younger than him.

Family relationships and/or conflict

“I just want to tell him I love him”

Hartley – The scene involves a broken relationship between a distant mother and son. Domestic issues are a key focus of soap operas as they challenge these problems with individuals from a working class community, allowing for a more relatable approach for viewers.

Focus on working class communities

Non-verbal – shaving at barbers

Hartley – Men prefer to maintain their self image and shaving is a prominent part of that. Male viewers would understand that in many areas of work, maintaining a self image is key in order to appear respectable.

“Multi-Stranded Narrative”

Lucy’s murder

Shirley and Mick

Maslow – Audiences would want to be explorers, driven by the alternative representation of the characters within the soap. The multi-stranded narrative allows viewers to relate to more than one given situation, in this case, different narratives.

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‘Disequilibrium’ (Todorov)

Murder Katz – Murder is a key element of soap operas, as it is something that they try to inform and educate the viewers on. They do this by approaching the external factors, allowing for viewers to understand the impact of something as tragic as murder.

Multi-stranded narrative

A Multi-stranded narrative can be defined as…..

-Telling a story from more than one persons point of view

-Telling multiple stories about multiple characters in an open narrative episode

Multi-stranded narrative Family relationships and/or conflict Focus on working class communities ‘Disequilibrium’ (Todorov) Romance

Code & Convention Evidence Impact on the audience Multi-stranded

narrativeIan and woman

Phil and Shirley

Albert bar

Questioning motives and Ian’s affairs with mysterious woman.

Possible love between both characters.

‘Caregivers’ (Maslow) Family

relationships and/or conflict

Phil and Shirley

Conflict at bar

What is their relationship and whether there is an underlying love for one another.

Questions to what and why the character Sharon has been attacked.

Focus on working class communities

Sirens

Young pregnancy

Relatable to real events on a day to day basis.

A common social issue that is always being raised in local communities.

Disequilibrium’ (Todorov) Conflict at bar & Ian’s predicament

The problems that arise from these events shake the balance of peace in the community by affecting

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individuals. Romance ‘first time you fell in love’ The audience could

possibly relate to this comment , being that they have heard it before in their lifetime or even provoke them to recollect their ‘first love’

Katz

Soap Opera Codes & Conventions continued – Lesson 3Textual Analysis

According to Rebecca Feasey in ‘Masculinity and Popular television’ (2007), the Soap Opera genre tends to focus on:

“..the home, the family, domestic tribulations and the strong woman, and as such, it has long been said to appeal to the female viewer”

1) – Do you agree?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8_ApPT6isY (First 5 minutes)

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Code & Convention Evidence Impact on the audience

Rebecca Feasey (2007) Ideology:

1. Family

2. Financial issues at home

3. Strong woman

4.

5.

“Multi-Stranded Narrative” Family at breakfastMum and childIn convenience store

Family relationships and/or conflict

Old woman ordering family‘Keep your trap shut’-conflict between family membersStrong front to kid

Focus on working class communities

‘Wish we had more money’ – a common domestic issueHelping each other outSlang

Disequilibrium’ (Todorov)Conflict between the brother and sister

Romance None

Other Themes & Issues represented:

None

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Soap Opera Codes & Conventions continued – Lesson 4Textual Analysis

1) What is the purpose of a trailer?

To inform the audience and therefore potential viewers of a media product before it is released.

2) What are the benefits of Multi-Platform promotion of a media text?

Reach a wider audience

Gain popularity

Ultimately, some form of C o n v e r g e n c e is important when promoting a text to the target audience.

3) Textual Analysis –

Next Page - YOU MUST make notes on the following areas when deconstructing this sequence from Coronation Street:

Multi-stranded narrative Character dilemmas ‘Personal Identification’ (Katz)

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Multi-stranded narrative-Wedding – The trailer focuses on the forthcoming wedding of two characters who are shown to be getting dressed.-Male character looking upset with older female character – shot reverse shot could suggest sexual tension due to a past affair.-Facial expressions of concern from the assumed bride’s parents which signify their disapproval with the man she is marrying.

Character dilemmas-Marriage – The groom appears stressed and doubtful in contrast to the bride who is presented to be extremely happy with getting married. This could suggest that the decision to get married was the female’s, revealing underlying intentions.-‘Good luck’ – emphasis on the word ‘luck’ suggests that there is a lot of doubt with the forthcoming marriage.-‘perfect date for a perfect wedding’ – Friday 13th is supposedly a day of bad luck.-Both characters are alone before the ceremony which can connote that their friends do not agree with the wedding and possibly do not support them.

Diegetic sound“This is my lucky day” – The lyrics of the trailer present binary opposition as the characters are shown to not be as happy as the bride. This clearly foreshadows that something bad will happen at the wedding.

http://www.channel4.com/programmes/hollyoaks/4od

The above link will take you to some of the latest episodes of Hollyoaks.

1. What are the connotations of the ident for the popular Channel Four Teen Soap Opera Hollyoaks (1995 – Present)?

-Focus on relationships/problems (promiscuity)-Dealing with modern issues eg. Abortion-Male VS female colour scheme

Next Page - Hollyoaks – “White Wedding Trailer” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bu2sW-r9Vb4

2. YOU MUST make notes on the following areas when deconstructing this sequence from Hollyoaks:

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Binary opposition of the non-diegetic music Symbolism of the non-verbal code of the tear Representation of Pregnancy Any other examples that would impact the audience

The theme of black symbolizes death and power which can be indicated by the drop of the china doll, suggesting the idea of a miscarriage.

The rose that is pinned to the groom is black which contrasts the fact that roses are stereotypically presented as a symbol of love. This could indicate that there is no love between the bride and groom.

The bride is clearly presented as being heavily pregnant, this could suggest that the wedding has been conducted due to this reason. The bride is also shown to be resting her hand on her stomach, revealing that she is possibly afraid for her baby.

The use of low key lighting, shown by how the light is restricted access into the church by boarded windows. This could symbolize the feelings of the bride, how she is possibly trapped and is struggling to break out into the light.

This scene could also be seen as a representation of how she views the wedding, how she thinks others view her and what she believes will be the likely outcome of the wedding.

The diegetic sound of the soundtrack is a binary opposition of the presentation of the trailer. ‘nice day for a white wedding’ juxtaposes the black theme of the wedding that is demonstrated in the trailer.

The statue, which can be seen as a statue of Jesus on the cross, is shown to be covering its face. Due to the fact that marriage is a Christian sacrament of God, it can be connoted that God himself does not agree with this wedding as it could suggest that they are not getting married for the purpose in which marriage was created.

Production Work

1) What is the role of a Producer?

Oversee all aspects of the production across the 3 stages: Pre production, production and post production.

Manage everyone and ensure everything is in place in order for the text to look fit for purpose.

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2) What is the role of a Director?

Oversee the creative aspects of the production.

Direct people in front and behind the camera.

3) Institution research –

YOU MUST research the institution that your trailer will be exhibited on.

Tips: Programming, Target audience, Audience figures, History of the channel.

Average daily reach = 11,900

Launched April 20, 1964

Screens highly praised and prestigious drama series

Memorable for its numerous idents

Funded by the television license = commercial free

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