Tv drama exam- Anna Tyler

TV Drama: a definition

A story that is presented in a dramatic way and explores a range of genres, from soap opera to science fiction to costume drama 

A piece of film that engages with the issues of the day in an accessible fashion, i.e. Through believable characters, through fantastic locations or plots

Framework for analysis

Step1: look for significance of (gender, ethnicity etc)

-character 

-behaviour

-story situation

Step2: relationship of power (who is subordinate and who is dominant)

Step3: difference (how are they represented as opposites)

Step4: is this reinforcing or challenging stereotypes, are they acting how we would expect them to act

Four technical areas: 

-camera shots, angle, movement and composition 

-editing

-sound

-mise en scene

Things we analyse and explore within tv dramas:

-construction and representation

-sexuality

-gender

-ethnicity

-social class

-a reflection of reality? 

-is it a marketable product

-influence on society

Key skill requirement:

-Use variety of technical and Symbolic elements at a micro level to create representations at a macro level

-Characters

-Narrative

-Genre

Consumption: how you access tv dramas

-iplayer

-youtube

-tv

How will you be assessed?

-20 marks: analysis of argument

-20 marks: use of examples from clip

-10 marks: use of terminology

Tv drama sub genres:

-teen dramas: this relies entriely on the audience empathising with the story and characters (usually through authentic characters, age-specific situatuions and anxieties, e.g. Skins)

-soap operas: never ending; audiences usually accept these as 'socially realist' and convey a sense of real time e.g. Coronation street

-costume dramas: usually linked to classic novels or plays and offer an alternative set of pleasers to dramas set in our modern world with our own concepts and times e.g. Sharpe

-medical/ hospital dramas: usually deploys soap dram a conventions but play upon our pleasure at witnessing trauma and suffering with a rnage of characters of doctors and patientsand relate to the staff e.g. Holby city

-police/ crime drama: work in the same way as medical/ hospital dramas but substitute the health context with victims and criminal activity e.g. The bill

-docu-dramas: these are set apart by the fact that they dramatise significant real events which usually have human interest, celebrity focus, or political significance e.g. Horoes and villains

7 groups of representation:

-class

-sexuality

-disability

-regional identity

-age

-ethnicity

-gender

Clip: the street representation of social class

Parents fighting

Children affected by the sounds 

Blaming the children

Close ups on the mum and dad and children throughout the clip to make audience empathise with the characters as the expressions are vivid 

Track pan makes the audience follow their movements so it is relating the audience to their emotions

The woman is dressed in tight clothes to emphasis her femininity but is portrayed as the weaker person due to the rough edge and masculinity of her husband. She is shown to be a typical, stereotypical housewife.

When the main pipe bursts and begins to flood the house she is shown to be strong as she tries to fix it but then conveys her weakness as to not being able to stop the flooding main pipe. Could be a metaphor for the way her marriage is falling apart and that she is helpless and will not be able to stop the flood of events that will unravel and ruin her life. 

She has to ask a man across the street to help her out which emphasises the point that women need a man to help them out. He stops the flooding pipe and the close up on their faces emphasises that there is a chemistry between them before they pretty much jump on one another... It helps the audience relate with the build up of sexual tension between them before it breaks free. 

The way the camera tracks across the back of sofas with the rustling of clothes and giggling voices shows that they are having relations with one another. The reveal of a medium shot showing the two of them wrapped up in a sheet highlights that the two of them indeed had relations. Him eating her sandwich conveys the fact of how women are represented as housewives- this woman stereotypically portrayed as she is happy with him taking her own sandwich. 

The close up on their faces and their whispering and sharing a sandwich show how they are happy with being in one anothers company even though it is a blatant affair. Both families argue all the time which shows that both the man and the womean are trying to find an escape from their argumentative and stressful lives- almost taking them back to being teenagers again and making foolish decisions driven by their sexual and inibitious desires. 

A man collapses in the middle of the street and everyone comes out of their homes to help him, people calling an ambulance etc. the use of medium and close up shots show the bond within the community but the man who stays in the car with an awestruck expression on his face is portrayed as out of the circle of the community- selfish and driven by motivation for what will benefit him.

This whole sequence of events is due to the fact that the man is feeling guilty at cheating on his wife and is trying to make a swift escape but knocks over a young girl as he is not watching his surroundings. The man is in shock which is why he stays in the car. Man faints in the street because he witnesses the young girl getting run over rather violently. The community become abusive towards the man in the car who is basically having a panic attack. The girl is badly almost fataly injured and turns out to be the daughter of the woman the man had an affair with. The woman comes round the corner and notices that the man in the car is the man she had an affair with, but rather than blaming him, she blames her husband. The girl was at home with her father which gives the suspicion that she could've run out of the house because her father was having a go at her about something.

The editing between cutting of a close up on the woman's face and a close up on the man's face show that they do not know what to do in their situation. The hectic sound and shouting of men and women add to the chaos of the situation. The editing is fast and tracks movement which is easier for the audience to emphasise with. 

The family that appear first are arguing about money which shows that they are most likely a  lower working class family where the other family are arguing about school which most likely means they are middle to higher working class- the difference in dress of the husband and man the woman had an ffair with is quite drastic as her husband looks quite gruff dressed in jeans and a vest where the man is clean shaven dressed in a suit. This shows the feud between the working classes and how opposites attract when there is friction within their own households. 

The street is stereotypically known to be a london street which the uk audeince can easily relate to as it can be believable and the lighting is a musty bright effect which is usually associated with england due to our cloudy days that are very popular. The location is very middle-working class due to the style and layout of the street. The camera shot that is most common is viewing from the side of the street of which the woman comes from so that the whole scene of the car, girl, man that fianted and people trying to help is clearly seen so that the whole atmosphere can be captured correctly and efficiently. 

Woman is submissive towards her husband but wants an escape into the realism of a childish fantasy that is possible with this man. The fact that she is disloyal but says she is happily married shows that she is contradicting herself with her actions and what she says. 

These notes of analysis show that 'the streets' is a soap opera due to the family drama and relatable mise en scene that is used.