TV Drama Shot Types

Semiotics

Camera Shots

The Bridge

Bristol Hill: My TV Drama

For my title sequence the show introduces a fictional text, the show is set in Bristol but the events that happen are fictional - the name Bristol Hill is a fictional name to represent the area in which the events take place. The Tone I aimed for was light-hearted, fun and upbeat as I wanted it to appeal to teenagers therefore it needed to catch their attention rather than if it was a serious tone. The function of the text is to entertain the audience instead of overload them with information, it will have a few on screen titles but it won't be over the top, it will just be enough to keep the viewer entertained by looking at the shots of Bristol;Specifically to the audience in Bristol it will represent some familiarity.

The audience I aimed to address were teenagers ages between 15-19 therefore I aimed to make it more entertaining, in the scenes within the opening titles it will show some things that the teenagers will have done i.e. shop, hang around at the shop etc. Therefore from this they can relate to the chracters in the show without actually seeing any of the events featured in that episode. I think it would appeal more to people in the south west as that is where the show is based compared to attracting an audience from the north east. I think it will appeal to more women than men as typically more women watch more TV drama's however this show will have a few events which will cater to the male attention and so it could have a good male following to accompany the female base.

The sequence is made up of live action shots of the scenes, i.e. people throwing a ball or shopping which will capture the everyday life therefore will get more attention as opposed to being seen an animation as it wont be as relatable or might not grab the attention. The title sequence will have been editied so it is quite fast moving and wont last very long as otherwise people may start to lose interest if it lasts a long time, the fast moving scenes will ensure that the audience stay around to watch.


The title sequence will last around 30-40 seconds as I don't want it to be too long also there will be a clear division to when the sequence ends and the text starts because I don't want the viewers to feel like it moves too fast and they may have missed something.

The opening sequence links to the program as it shows the establishing shots to where the show takes place i.e some scenes from the show may happen in the shots in the sequence - This is due to the fact the show is based in and around bristol. The iconography will be things related to the image of teenagers i.e. fun, carefree, shopping etc - Therefore in relation to the text it will represent some of the teenagers and their lifestyles.

The music to ensure this will be more like neighbours or hollyoaks than it will be eatenders or corrie, this is due to the fact I want to attract a younger audience therefore the music being upbeat will ensure that it reflects the kind of music the audience will listen to i.e. pop. Some sound effects could be added in like the sound of the train, or chatter at the park just to make it seem realistic compared to the music just silencing everything else.










It can relate to other TV Dramas like hollyoaks, waterloo road and neighbours. This is because they're all shows based on teenagers and young people and attract a similar audience, they have similar music i.e. upbeat, happy, fast like the one mine will have. Also in the titles is shows some of the scenes in which the show is set but also they move quite fast paced in a bid to keep the attention of the audience.

Corrie Soap Opera Conventions

Storyline or Plot (Narrative) Look for the multi-strand narrative, open narrative and closed narratives (Some narratives may come to an end).	Peter and Tina having an affair hiding it from all of their friends cover up stories, back tracking. Roy is missing so fizz and Tyrone try to track hem down. Dennis and Rita fighting so Gloria is trying to worm her way in, he goes crawling back to Rita but she isn’t having any of it. Todd is trying to come between Marcus and Maria, because he wants Marcus all to himself. Using sympathy to get on Maria good side. Deirdre is trimming a dress for Tracy.
Characters Quick description of the range of characters e.g. male/female, age, job, position at work.	Tina-Female-early 20’s-works as barmaid-the feisty young woman. Gloria-Female-Mid 70’s- works in Bistro. Peter-Male-mid to late 30’s-works as manager in factory- represented as being the jack the lad figure as has been married a lot of times and cheats on all the women he’s in relationship with. Chesney-Male-late teens to early 20’s-works as manager in Kebab shop. Dennis-Male-mid to late 70’s-Music manager. Maria-Female-late 20’s-works as hairdresser-young couple as in a relationship with Marcus and has their problem of trying to find a house and the problem of Marcus falling for Todd. Todd-male-early to mid 20’s-unemployed. Rita-Female-early 80’s- owner of and works in corner shops- the grandparent figure. Steve-Male-early 30’s-owns pub and works in there. Simon-male-9/10-school boy. Tracey-Female-early 30’s-owns electronic shop and works in there. Tyrone-male-early 30’s-works as mechanic in garage. Michelle-Female-early 30’s-owns pub and works as barmaid in there. Tony-early 40’s- Carla- female-late 20’s/early 30’s- owner of the factory- represented as being the strong woman.
Length of scenes Roughly how long is each scene?	1:25 minute –Tina 1:30 minutes - in café 2 minutes – musician 1:30 minutes – in café 30 seconds – Tina 1 minute – bistro 1 minute – rovers 20 seconds – street 1:20 minutes – rovers 1:30 minutes – Barlow’s house 45 seconds – street Tina 30 seconds – looking for Roy 1:15 minutes – rovers 1:25 minutes – Barlow’s 35 seconds - out looking 1:45 minutes – Barlow dinner 1:45 minutes - bistro 1:30 minutes- bistro meal 1:05 minutes- fiz Nothing above 2 minutes Nothing less than 20 seconds
Setting Where does each scene take place?	11. Street 12. Canal 13. Rovers 14. Deidre’s House 15. Canal 16. Peters House 17. Bistro 18. Fizz’s House 19. Credits 1. Peters House                    2. Roy’s Cafe 3. Bistro 4. Roy’s Cafe 5. Peters House 6. Bistro 7. Rovers 8. Street 9. Rovers 10. Deidre’s House
Theme What central themes are being explored? Love, conflict, secrets, skeletons in the cupboard.	Love and Deception and Secrets between Peter and Tina Sadness, ,misery, upset, ,missing between Fizz, Chesney and Tyrone. Because they are missing Roy. Conflict and Sarcasm between Rita and old lady Lies and secrets between Carla and Peter Love between Todd and Marcus
Verisimilitude Explain elements that make the programme feel realistic.	Costumes the same as real police officers, sounds of cars passing on the street, sets for the outside of the houses look like real houses o a street, sounds of the plastic bags over exaggerated
Costumes This links to characters. How can you tell the position of the characters from their costumes?	Tina- Naked opening scene, sexy/feminine female character. Clothes- small vest top Rita- patterned blazer, pearls- sophisticated and well respected character Maria- Floral dress, long curly hair- pretty and innocent girl on the street- middle class Dennis- shirt, trousers, big coat- dapper, smart, old fashioned

The Cops

In TV drama The Cops it uses the Stedicam/Handheld camera shots as it makes the audience feel as if they are part of the drama themselves - as if they are there with the cops following along with them what they do. However it can seem a bit jumpy or some of the shots are shaky though you could argue that it adds to the effect the audience gets from this i.e. more lifelike.