media coursework review

Media practical production evaluation

I feel that I have achieved the ability to portray typical soap conventions and techniques through my contribution in the making of ‘Sheringham Way’; a 5 minute clip of a soap opera. I feel that I have achieved this skill because of the array of ideas I have suggested. I have put forward my opinions, both negative and positive, and I have also helped with the camera angles, movements, mise-en- scene e.g. in Bruce’s house the connotation of the bottles of alcohol in the background could be that he may like a drink. I participated in the filming as I filmed the scenes where Jess is tied up and where we witness the brief encounter between her and Rob. The scene consisted of a range of camera angles and intense moments which automatically grip our target audience of about 15-27.

The element of action that is the main narrative drive appeals to our target audience as many of our questionnaire participants aged between 15-27 said they preferred the sub-genre of action, however quite a few people said they preferred mystery and romance, which is why we incorporated these genres, along with other sub-genres into out soap opera. This helps to ensure that the majority of our target audience enjoys watching the 5 minute clip. I also edited the scene which includes the characters of Bruce and Johnny at Bruce’s house; where the aggression and physical violence occurs. I edited the scene so that the shots were quick but with great precision and conveyed typical soap camera angles. In addition the audience will become hooked straight from the beginning of our clip. Steph, Josh and Lars all partook in the film by starring in it. As well as this Steph filmed the action scene which included Bruce and Johnny as well as editing the romantic scene, Josh helped edit the action scene and film the romantic scene and Lars contributed in the editing of the 5 minute clip as a whole.

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There are many uses and gratifications which we have tried to include into our soap and they are: personal identity- finding reinforcement for personal values, information- finding out about relevant events and conditions in immediate surroundings, society and the world, Integration and Social Interaction- gaining insight into circumstances of others; social empathy and entertainment- escaping, or being diverted, from problems. It is these uses and gratifications that we have to consider when we make a soap opera, as it is what the audience need to help socialise them, because after a soap opera, people like to talk about the current events that have unfolded in front of them. The benefits of the uses and gratifications in our soap are: it is a regular part of domestic routine and entertaining reward for work, it’s a launch pad for social and personal interaction, it helps to fulfil the individuals needs: a way of choosing to be alone or of enduring enforced loneliness, it helps us with the identification and involvement with characters, it helps the audience to focus on the debate of topical issues, and it is a kind of critical game involving knowledge of the rules and conventions of the genre and is used to gratify our needs or wants. These factors help us to meet the needs of our specific audience as we are giving them not only what they want, but what the need.

We could use Roland Barthes’ five codes to try and breakdown the 5 minute clip as many of his codes relate to our soap. The enigma Code- which refers to any element of the story that is not fully explained and hence becomes a mystery to the audience and the Proairetic Code- which also builds , referring to any other action or event that indicates something else is going to happen, and which hence gets the reader guessing as to what will happen next work as a pair to develop the story's tensions and keep the reader interested. This is relevant because the audience get minor hints as to why Jess has been kidnapped; however the full truth of the matter is never really discussed, leaving more to be uncovered, however the intense action shows the audience that this scene is important to the main narrative.

Due to the wide use of camera angles we have helped the audience to establish the institution in which the filming took place e.g. the establishing shot of the sign ‘Sheringham Way’ and of the factory in an urban setting gives the audience some indication of where the film is based. Our soap consists of representations which focus on the entirely artificial versions of reality that we perceive around us. There is also the representation of the weak and vulnerable as Johnny comes across as a very strong and manipulative person, however, we see him hit rock bottom when trying to relocate his wife. In contrast, Bruce is portrayed and represented as the tough boss figure with the power to control anyone and everyone.

There are many strengths included in my soap which include the different character types such as Bruce- boss figure and Rosie- strong woman. Also as I have mentioned, the use of typical conventions such as the problematic theory which runs on the main story line of Jess being kidnapped and Johnny trying to uncover her whereabouts; also at the beginning of the soap we see the confrontation between Bruce and Johnny and this creates enigma for the audience and the fact that it is an open narrative and Jess has been kidnapped helps to create enigma as the audience want to know why she has been Kidnapped and it’s not until the end we find out why she has been taken.

We have taken advantage of the equipment and material that we had and therefore we have created a sense of realness in our soap.

There are, however, some negative aspects of our soap which include the setting of the romantic meal between Malcolm and Rosie as there isn’t that much of a romantic atmosphere. We could have improved this by spending more time on that particular scene, I also think that we could have used a wider variety of shots such as over the shoulder shots and close ups as it would have helped the audience see the facial expressions and they would be able to see it from the others point of view. We also experienced some difficulties with the lighting in Jess’ scene as it was dark, so we had to use night vision. This is a let down as it is not a typical soap convention, however there wasn’t much we could do about this. Also we didn’t manage to include the part of Delilah walking down the stairs and confront Johnny and Bruce. This would have played a significant part as she would have been the reason for Bruce admitting

where Jess was; nevertheless the clip now ends on a cliff hanger which would be more enticing for the audience. Also, in the scene where Jess is tied up, it looks and feels

In conclusion, I would say that my overall performance in our practical production was valuable and worthwhile as I managed to achieve what I expected to; create a piece of work that will magnetise my target audiences’ attention. I am pleased with the overall outcome of our soap opera as I think we managed to grab and keep our audiences attention.

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