Downton Abbey- Analysis

Mise en scene:

Scene 1-

• Set- 1912 England the day of the sinking of the Titanic.
• Location- Downton house below stairs.
• Actors- Jim Carter (well known actors will widen audience).
• Costume- Sterotypical butler and maid outfits (black and white fabric).  Those who go above stairs are dressed in a more presentable fashion.
• Lighting- Darkly lit below stairs.
• Props- Service bells, iron, newspapers, telegram.

Scene 2-

• Set- 1912 England the day of the sinking of the Titanic.
• Location- Downton house above stairs.
• Actors- Hugh Bonneville (well known actors will widen audience).
• Costume- Intricately designed outfits made with expensive fabrics.
• Lighting- Well lit above stairs to represent wealth and opulence.
• Props- Breakfast set, lap tray, silver ware, newspapers.

The Mise en scene used in both of these scenes helps to give the audience context for the time period which the drama takes place in as well as the class and status of each of the characters involved in the scenes.  The well executed Mise en scene will allow the audience to feel a closer connection to the characters featured and so will make them more likely to watch this drama opposed to another with a poorer element of Mise en scene.

Wolf hall- Analysis

Mise en scene:

• Parchment
• Quill
• Higher class clothing
• Wooden box (hand crafted) shows wealth
• Reading and writing shows literacy and status
• Plant in back ground shows wealth
• Gold detailing on the box and chair shows wealth
• Gold and Orange coloured clothing and the material the clothing is made from shows wealth
• Time correct outfits
• The intricate beading on the women's clothing shows wealth and opulence
• Famous actors- Damien Lewis and Clair Foy

Mise en scene for context:

These components all combine to convey to the audience that the people in scene are of a high status and class which would help the audience to better understand the the story arc and the characters actions and emotions.  The use of time accurate clothing also adds a feel of accuracy and will give the audience context to the time period in which the program is set allowing the viewer to become more embedded in the program.

Mise en scene for publicity:

The use of well known famous actors will increase the viewing audience of the program.  This is due to the fact that fans of an actor are likely to watch whatever they are in even if it a program they may not normally watch.  The widened demographic will make the program more successful so will make it more profitable.

Eastenders and Coronation Street- Comparison

Sets
Both programmes have similar settings and contain very similar set types for example a pub and in house shots.

Location
Eastenders is shot in East London and Coronation Street is set in Northern England.  This is an important aspect to take into account as it may affect the dialect and view point of characters.

Episode content
Coronation Street focused on more traditional views such as single parent hood and teenage pregnancy where as Eastenders focused on issues which may be seen as more modern such as homosexuality and mental health which do not always take place traditionally in drama.  Eastenders also had a much more chaotic plot which focused on a larger number of characters than Coronation Street did.

Eastenders full episode- Analysis

Basic analysis
Episode- 02/10/15
Run time- 29 minutes 
Music- used to enhance tone 
Tone- Informal, Comic, Personal, Dramatic
Style- Conventional
Nationality- British East London
Themes- Mental health, Moving  away, Family issues, Homosexuality, Engagement 
Stereotypes:
Race- British (spend free time in the pub, cooked breakfast)

Vermisilitude
The issues touched upon in the episode would be realistic if represented separately however combining each of the issues into one episode makes it seem overly dramatic and unrealistic as a result.  Other realistic points include the setting and dialect used.

Language used
Verbal- Tone of voice is used to convey the characters emotions this can give the audience a heightened sense of knowledge regarding the character and their choices.  Tone of voice varies between each character and their respective situations.
Non-Verbal- Body language helps to further demonstrate the characters emotions to the audience and heightens the viewing experience.  It can be used to demonstrate a characters  deceit or truthful nature.

Over view of narrative
This  is an episode taken from the TV drama Eastenders which falls into the soap genre of drama.  In this episode we see various dramas taking place in the square.  Some of the most pivotal moments in the episode include the drama caused by a characters mental health and fits another pivotal moment was Phil catching his son and boyfriend in his office which lead to fight.  The fact that the show is choosing to tackle these issues which are less well represented in modern media and are seen as controversial by some shows that they are trying to make these matters more well known and improve the representation of these groups of people as well as improving people's knowledge and understanding of these matters.

Image from episode



Coronation street- Analysis

Basic analysis
Tone- Informal, Comic, Personal
Style- Conventional, Realist
Themes- Relationships, financial difficulties and single parent hood.
Stereotypes- Male heart throb is unintelligent, negative stereotype of underage pregnancy, British stereotype of spending free time in the pub, negative stereotype of the poorer people having untidy homes.
Dialect- Mention of "brew" northern phrase for tea.
Age- All ages.
Race/Nationality- Northern British.

Vermisilitude
The events which take place in this are dramatised versions of real life situations meaning that they are not overly accurate representations even though the issues which they are attempting to represent and realistic.

Language used

The verbal language used contains a stereotypical Northern accent and dialect.  Some of the most obvious non-verbal language used would be the body language and eye contact.  The avoidance of eye contact helps to give the scene a deceitful feel.  The lack of eye contact used can also be used to demonstrate a character who is busy or distracted.

Over view of narrative

The scene is taken from the TV drama Coronation street which falls into the soap genre of drama.  Several issues are frequently mentioned such as teenage pregnancy, single parent hood and leaving the North to work in London.  These are much more traditional soap topics compared to Eastenders storylines.

Image from scene

Glossary

Media terms
Mise en scene- everything that appears in the scene.
Vermisilitude- the believability of the scene.
Archetype- a character who's behaviour and appearance falls into a stereotype.
Stereotype- a widely held oversimplified version of a group of people.

Textual analysis
Code- A system of signs which can be decoded to create meaning.
Convention- What you expect to see in a particular genre e:g. a convention of fantasy could be unicorns and other fictional and fantastical aspects.
Technical- camera angles, movements, shots.
Symbolic- clothing, colours.
Written and audio- music etc.
Medium- print, television, radio, film, internet.
Purpose- to inform, to entertain, to persuade, to educate, to gain profit.
Form- drama, light entertainment, above/below the advertising line, newspaper.
Genre- science fiction, soap opera, documentary, game show, broadsheet, medical, fantasy.
Tone- serious, comic, ironic, formal, informal, objective, personal, scientific.
Style- realist, expressionist, conventional, unconventional, traditional, modern.
Other categories- nationality, target audience, director, star, public sector.

Audio
Diegetic- Sound visible on screen.
Non-diegetic- Sound not visible on screen.

Camera techniques
180 degree rule- You cannot cross the 180 degree line when taking a shot unless you are taking a panning shot when the line is crossed.
Match on action- An action begins in one shot and is then continued in the next shot.
Shot/Reverse shot- A character is shown looking at another character who maybe be off screen and then there is a reversal of the shot showing the view from the perspective of the other character looking at the first character.

Production and Consumption
Production- The making of the film; pre-production and funding; shoot (format); post-production (SFX).
Distribution- The making of the film; pre-production and funding; shoot (format); post-production (SFX).
Marketing- The process of raising awareness; targeting an audience; creating publicity through various methods.
Exibition- The way we view; getting the film to a paying audience.
Convergence- The combining of two or more mediums for example e:g tv, film, video games, toys.


 

Eastenders scene- Analysis

Basic analysis
Tone- Informal, Comic, Personal
Style- Conventional
Nationality- Jamaican, British East London
Themes- Racism

Stereotypes
Age- Negative towards teenagers (attitude of surprise towards knowledge).
Race- Jamaican stereotypes e:g. reference to rum.

Language used

Verbal- Tone of voice overly joking manner in an attempt to mask closed non-verbal communication,

Non-Verbal- Body language suggests trapped nature e:g. avoiding eye contact and looking away.

Over view of narrative

The scene is taken from the TV drama Eastenders which falls into the soap genre of drama.  In this scene the main character Patrick reminisces about his past in Jamaica whilst being questioned about the more dangerous elements of his life in Jamaica.  We also see a joking mockery regarding the intelligence of youth and particularly teenagers.

Image from scene

Types of TV Dramas

A TV Drama is a dramatic television show.  It can be represented in a variety of genres some of which are listed below with examples.


Sci-fi drama:

• Orphan Black
• The 100
• Star Trek
• Doctor Who
• Terra Nova
• Fire fly

Soaps:

• Eastenders
• Coronation street
• Emmerdale

Comedy:

• Big bang theory
• How I met your mother

Crime:

• Breaking Bad
• Dexter
• CSI
• House of Cards
• Criminal minds
• Sherlock

Comic Book adaption:

• Daredevil
• Gotham
• Agents of shield
• The flash
• Arrow

Medical:

• Casualty
• House

Horror:

• Scream
• The walking dead
• Supernatural
• Penny Dreadful
• American horror story

Fantasy:

• Game of thrones
• Merlin

Historical Period:

• Downton Abbey
• Larkrise to Candelford