Institution Research

E4 is a British digital TV channel owned by Channel 4 Television Corporation. It was launched on 18th January 2001 as a pay-TV channel; majority of its media content aimed at 15-35 year olds. They show a variety of different TV programmes, aired from the UK and USA. How I Met Your Mother, Ugly Betty, The Big Bang Theory, Friends, are all examples of popular US shows that are viewed by the British audience. There are also British based programmes such as The Inbetweeners, Made In Chelsea, Skins, etc. These shows have a general pattern of comedy, however, they also show reality tv such as, Come Dine With Me, and used to air the BAFTA Award-winning TV show Big Brother for 9 years.
They have had large success with their current hit TV programme ‘The Inbetweeners’, as it currently holds their top 6 record of total views for 6 of their episodes with the highest being 3,721,000 views.

BBC three is a TV channel from BBC Broadcasting which has a target audience of 16-34 year olds. The institutions purpose is to provide innovative content to young audiences. It was previously known as BBC Choice prior to 2002.

The programmes that BBC three present to its audience have a wide range of genres, such as, Drama, Comedy, News, Sports, Documentaries, Music, and others. Some of BBC three’s programmes are from the USA, Family Guy and American Dad are some examples. The main genre that BBC three focuses on is Drama; they show Doctor Who, Being Human, Sherlock, etc. All these popular shows contribute to their success. BBC three has had a phenomenal amount of success in the past 6 years as they have managed to win more awards than all of its commercial rivals such as ITV2, Channel 5, E4, and others, put together for the past 25 years.

Existing Product Research (Charmed)

Charmed:

In the opening sequence of an episode of this show there is a wide range of film languages incorporated such as Mise en scene, Cinematography, Editing, and Sound.

The actors in the opening scene are introduced in interesting colours. The man at the front is wearing a red robe which connotes blood, and the man following him is wearing black which has a connotation of death and evil. You can also see other characters behind these two protagonists which seem to be wearing an armoured costume, this shows that they may be the bodyguards of the setting. Further in the scene another man is introduced hiding in a whole who seems to be the antagonist; he has a slouched back which shows his vulnerability and a staff which seems to produce magic. The makeup is effective in the clip as they show what the characters may be. The man wearing red has white makeup on his face which allows his skin to have a pale complexion as if he were dead; his face also looks very thin, which also gives the character the image of somebody who is not alive. The producers have used the lighting differently as they have only used the lighting from within the scene from the fire. By doing this they have created an eerie demonic feel of the setting which reflects to the audience as the darkness allows us to notify that they are the villains and are causing the disequilibrium. The props used in the opening scene are the book and the staff. The book is on a table at which the characters have to step up to in order to get to the book; this shows its significance and importance as the book is high up. The staff is almost the same height as the character carrying it which shows that it is very important to him, it also has a round head which signifies that it is not a weapon and is not used to harm anyone. The setting is an underground cave with candles, fire surrounding the room, and spikes, there is also markings on the floor which all lead to the book; this eerie dark setting looks evil and mystical.

There is a wide range of cinematography used in the scene. The clip opens with a high angle shot of the characters entering the dungeon, this is to show the audience the characters order of importance and who the leader is. There are then close ups of both the protagonists faces to show what they look like and their facial expressions. A point of view shot of the character in blacks view book is also shown, this allows the audience to see what he is there for; there is also another point of view shot of the man hidden in the little cave of the guards walking past, this allows the audience to be able to notify that he is hiding from these people therefore he is the antagonist. A tracking shot was also used to show the antagonist being launched against the table. A crane shot is used at the beginning of the clip to show the characters while they enter the dungeon.

A wide range of editing is used in the clip to create tension and to portray the characters. Straight cuts are used throughout the scene to show each scene in chronological order which is called continuity editing. Also, when the fighting scene starts the straight cuts are fast, which shows that the tension is building up and that there is more action. At the beginning of the clip the editing used is a fade in from a black screen. This helps create a dark evil atmosphere which the audience can then see that they are the villains.

In the opening scene sound has been used effectively to create a spooky feeling in the audience. Parallel sound is used in the clip as the scene is set in a dungeon therefore the producers have included spooky eerie music. When the book is opened a ghostly music is played to show that the book is evil. There is a diegetic sound of the man holding the staff tapping it on the floor; this allows the audience to notify that by tapping his staff on the floor it creates magic. Also, the non-diegetic sound of the music when there is action and fighting in the scene is more fast and upbeat compared to the slow creepy sound which was previously played; this is also a parallel sound as it is the sound the audience expects to hear when there is action and the scene builds up more.

Audience

Charmed is an American TV series which was run for 8 seasons long from 1998 to 2006. The supernatural US drama has a large target audience ranging from ages 16 to 35 as it is shown on E4 which has the target audience of people aged between 16 to 34.

Charmed would appeal to the audience of 16 to 35 year olds as it is a supernatural drama about three sisters who live an ordinary life with a twist, which being that they are the most powerful good witches. The show has aspects of violence, magic, action, fantasy, demons, and many supernatural events, all in the midst of a modern San Francisco. The show also allows its audience to gain a personal relationship with the characters as it is a big franchise. People within their target audience are appealed by this TV series as they enjoy the supernatural fantasy of the characters with the pretence of an ordinary life however they are discretely saving the world from evil; this allows the audience to escape reality.

Audience Theories

Hypodermic needle theory:This news article is suggesting that media content such as gaming is encouraging violent, aggressive behaviour.

Two-step flow Model:

This article shows that Jamal Edwards is an opinion leader who influenced the audience into viewing his videos. His social factors were important in posting his media (videos) of friends rapping in order for it to get the most views.

Users and Gratifications theory:

Media Text	How it fits
Diversion: Big Brother	Big brother is a Reality TV Show that places people in a house full of cameras where they are then voted for eviction by members of the public. This is Diversion as it allows the audience to escape problems and become entertained.
Personal Relationships: Fast and Furious	Fast and Furious is a famous car racing film franchise where a group of illegal street racers become one of the most experienced elite driving crew in the world. This is Personal Relationships as there have been many movies which allow the audience to develop an emotional interaction and bond with the characters.
Personal Identity: Educating Yorkshire	Educating Yorkshire is Reality TV show about a school in Yorkshire where cameras are placed in classrooms and around the school to produce an entertaining documentary of how school children are. This is Personal Identity as we are students who can relate to the people within the show and we can find ourselves reflected in the media text.
Surveillance: Crimewatch	Crimewatch is a TV show that informs the public of any current crimes produced by criminals that are still at large and need to be found. It also gives advice to the public of any support that is available. This is surveillance as people are being informed of bad crimes that have taken place which is useful for living as people can then report if they see criminals.

Dependency theory:

1. I primarily use the media for communication.
2. We are completely dependent on media because without it, people would not be able to communicate with the world. Without it information would be minimalistic.
3. Our dependence on media has increased rapidly over the past 10 years as people are more dependent on media and socialisation to entertain them, inform them, communicate with others, etc. People would feel nonfunctional without it.

Film Language Test

Teacher Feedback:

WWW: Well-paced, covering all questions effectively.

EBI: Develop analysis to include specific references to audience.

Overall Grade:   B   (32/48)

Learner response:
Identify a sentence in each question where you could add the effect on audience - rewrite these.

1. He then pulled out a silver gun which also showed that he was the villain. The audience then felt at unease due to the shot of the gun being pointed at them which showed the point of view of the victim on the floor.
2. The director had cleverly introduced the villain. He had done this by using a low angle shot of the camera looking up at the man dressed in black. By allowing the villain to be above the audience, looking down on them, the audience felt less important than him. It also shows that the villain has more power than the audience which makes them identify that he is of higher stature.
3. The loud diegetic sound of the gunshots towards the end of the scene caused the audience to feel discomforted ad there were 2 gunshots. The audience could identify by the sound of the first one that the victim was dead, however shortly afterwards the second gunshot came along. This shows that the villain is merciless and cruel, which made the audience feel shocked in terror.
4. The editing is effective in creating an enigma code. The villains face is not shown in the scene which creates a series of suspense and tension in the audience. They begin to question who the villain is. Also, the unknown is what creates the most terror and the villain is unknown.

Preliminary Exercise

Self Evaluation:

My groups preliminary exercise was very well structured, and had a variety of film language incorporated within the short clip. Mise en scene was used well as the costumes used were casual to represent the two characters meeting up casually, the whole room was very well lit so you could see everything that was happening, the actors used in the clip were very composed and acted well, and the props used in the clip were the phone, the chairs, and the table. The main prop which was also the plot device, was the phone.

There was a wide range of cinematography used. There was a close up of Anjali’s face and the phone, there was a medium shot of Anjali hugging the boy, there was Anjali’s point-of-view shot of the room when she enters it, there was a shot-reverse shot of Anjali walking in the room, there was also a high and low angle shot of when the boy stands up and looks down at Anjali. In the narrative there was panning when Anjali is walking in the corridor towards the room, there was also a tilt of when the boy stands up towards the end.

The short narrative film was edited in continuity editing.

Sound was used in the narrative, however not much was used; there was a non-diegetic sound of the phone vibrating on the table.

Strengths:

A wide range of shots were used in the narrative and the clips were very well edited together. Also, mise en scene was used effectively.

Limitations:

There wasn’t much sound used in the narrative and lighting was used effectively to help build an atmosphere.

WWW:

• Good steady camerawork.
• Match on action was effective.
• The 180 degree rule was followed.
• Shot reverse shots were used well.
• Plot device of phone was purposeful.
• Editing was effective.
• Good Acting performance.
• Technology was used well.

EBI:

• More attention was paid to detail.

Mr Bush's Review:

WWW:

• Good Performance.
• Steady Camerawork.
• Simple Storytelling.
• Match on action Effective.
• 180 degree rule followed.
• Effective plot device - Phone.
• Post production - editing.

EBI:

• Sound dialogue not clear.
• Continuity error - phone on desk.
• Attention to detail.

Results:

1. Creativity:                          4/5
2. Use of Technology:           3/5
3. Production Process:         4/5
4. Codes of Convention:       4/5
5. Fit for Purpose:                 4/5
6. Attention to Detail:             3/5

Overall Grade Achieved:      3.7/5

Sequence for Media

Shot No.	Shot	Length
1	Anjali walks to the door in a happy mood. Medium long shot, panning.	3 seconds
2	Close up of the handle.	2 seconds
3	Long shot of when she walks in.	4 seconds
4	Shot reverse shot of when Anjali looks at Ajay and he looks at her. Whilst greeting each other.	6 seconds
5	Medium shot of Anjali and Ajay hugging.	3 seconds
6	They both then sit down, using the 180 degree rule showing them sitting down.	5 seconds
7	Shot reverse shot over Anjali’s shoulder of Ajay speaking.	4 seconds
8	Then extreme close up of Anjali’s phone vibrating on the table.	2 seconds
9	Medium shot of Ajay asking Who had messaged her using the 180 degree rule.	3 seconds
10	Then shot reverse shot of Anjali replying nobody with a smile, over Ajay’s shoulder.	3 seconds
11	Then a shot over Anjali’s shoulder of Ajay snatching her phone and seeing a picture.	4 seconds
12	Then a close up of Ajay standing up asking Anjali who that person was.	4 seconds
13	Then a close up of Anjali silent.	3 seconds
14	Finally a extreme close up of the phone.	2 seconds