TV Scheduling

Q. The schedule for each day can be broken down into clear segments. How would you categorise these segments?

-Breakfast

-Daytime

-Children

-Family

-Adults

Q. Who are the target audience for these segments?

-Breakfast: More split with channels catering a specific type of genre.

-Daytime: Unemployed students, housewives etc.

-Family: Peak time.

Q. What would you say are the most popular genres on television?

News by law has to be on every channel.

However, talk-shows, films, sit-coms, soaps and game shows are the most popular genre.

Q. Who is the target audience of each terrestrial channel? Give example of scheduled programmes to support your views.

BBC1- Mixed

BBC2- Intellectual adults

ITV1- Mixed

Channel 4- Young adults

Five- Mixed, brought about in 97 to create variety

*BBC1 and ITV1 cater for the whole of the population and they are both direct competitors. Also Channel 4 is a competitor with BBC2*

Q. Roughly, what percentage of each channel's schedules is taken up with repeats? Why do you think this is?

Repeats are becoming less but they are mainly viewed around Daytime TV because they are used as it's cheap to fill up the schedules.

Q. Which channels have more imported programmes in their schedules? why do you think this might be?

Channel 4 and Channel 5 because they do not have enough money therefore it is cheaper.

Q. What do you understand by the term 'the watershed' and where does this occur in the schedules?

Watershed is at 9 o'clock. It means getting rid of the audience of kids and youngsters because it involves more adult programmes.

However it has now been shifted to 10 o'clock.

Documentary Analysis

The Millionaire and The Murder Mansion.

Type of Documentary:

Mixed.

Themes:

Death, Love, Family, Money.

Narrative Structure:

Non Linear.

Closed Narrative.

Single Strand.

Camera-work:

Interviewee: positioned left or right of the frame, eye line third way down. Filmed in medium close up or close up.

Close up of a family picture.

Tracking shot of the police driving to the mansion.

Medium close up of the police interviewing the housekeeper.

Birds eye view- helicopter filming mansion on fire.

Hand held camera showing the blood in the horse stable.

Still images of left overs from the mansion.

Tracking shot of the living room and bathroom burnt down.

Close up of police station.

Close up of the trifle and gun he used to kill his family.

Close up of crime scene tape.

Tracking shot of the cars Chris bought, range rovers etc.

Zoom of the mansion- outside view before it burnt down.

Medium close up of Chris' friend bird shooting- Chris had a passion for this.

Close up of bird dead after shooting it.

Hand held camera walking into the woods- point of view shot of him killing his daughters pets.

Uses images to convey the meaning of the story.

Tilt shot of burnt down house and burnt ash lurking outside.

Medium close up of detectives trying to find the daughter's skull fragments.

Close up of the last text the daughter sent 'sorry dad has turned the internet off'.

Medium close up of a bullet in the horses skull.

Close up of Chris' bank statements- in debt.

Tracking shot of: family at funeral, coffins, funeral flowers and the priests.

Mise-en-scene:

Background for each interviewee was either filmed in their

own homes, at the location of the mansion or where they worked. For example; the forensic scientists.

Sound:

Voice over- standard English, male, sounded sympathetic throughout the documentary.

Voice over of news reader.

Music in the opening sequence seemed mysterious.

Sound effects of flashbacks, camera noises.

Editing:

Flashbacks of still images from the past- burnt down in th

e fire.

Cross cutting of clock and shoes also burnt down in the fire.

Cross cutting and cutting is the most common element used.

Cross cutting of the gun {Chris' used to kill his family} and picture of his daughter.

Clip of Jill and Chris' wedding video which then froze to a still i

mage.

Flashback of blood leading towards the horses stable.

Archive Material:

Birds eye view of the house on fire.

Clips of the left overs from the horse and dog being shot.

Clips of forensic investigators.

CCTV footage of Chris setting the horses stable on fire.

Clips of his daughter horse riding- voice over of her nan talking about her.

Video of the police announcing they have found bodies.

Family birthday cards.

Wedding of Jill and Chris.

Graphics:

Font: white and red title, symbolises fire and danger.

Interviewee had a name and underneath it explained who they are.

Sans serif.

Cutting Edge: The 9/11 Faker.

Type of Documentary:

Mixed.

Themes:
Fraud, Events of the 9/11, Religion, Survivors, Investigation, Power of the Media.

Narrative Structure:

Non Linear- goes back to the past of different events from Tanya's experience.

Closed Narrative Structure.

Single Strand.

Camera-work:

Interviews- left or right of the frame, eye line third way down. Interviewee was filmed in close up or medium close up.

Zoom of still images- Tanya, American flag, 9/11 building,

Panning of church and people walking outside, the church is used for the survivors to share their experience.

Some images shown in out of focus.

Close up of somebody typing on the keyboard.

Cross cutting of builders reconstructing the sight- American flag shown on the tractors.

Zoom of 'The Surviving Network'.

Extreme close up of a hand writing- from Tanya's extract.

Tracking of the Politicians and Press.

Hand held camera- high angle- filming the press instead of being apart of it.

Medium close up of Tanya telling the press her experience.

Tracking shot of still images of the boy who didn't survive, nicknamed 'red bandanna man'.

Low angle of the twin towers.

Out of focus- long shot- of somebody buying a newspaper with Tanya's article.

Close up of a school in Barcelona, where Tanya was teaching/hiding instead of being in hospital.

Tilt shot of a picture revealing her real identity- not a US citizen.

Zoom out of some interviewee's.

Mise-en-scene:

The background of the Interviewee's was set in their own environment. For example; set at the interviewee's home or where they worked.

Chromakey background of news paper articles.

Sound:

Voiceover- standard English, older male could anchor Tanya's age.

Diegetic sound of people screaming.

Voiceover of Tanya reading her e-mail.

Music- tense.

Another voiceover of Tanya reading a different e-mail about the press conference, seemed excited about it.

Sound effects- camera flash and camera sound conveying the press.

Voice over of a news report reader.

Editing:

Cross cutting is the most common element of a documentary.

Flashbacks of traffic during rush hour etc.

Also fast motion was used during another clip of the traffic in New York.

Two voice overs of Tanya and a news reporter reading out her e-mail.

Use images to tell the story.

Moving clip of Tanya and the press, froze to a still image.

Archive Material:

Clips of Tourists outside ground zero.

People playing music in a church, representing the 'red bandanna man' life, they do this every year.

Articles about Tanya being a fraud.

Cross cutting of different press wanting an interview.

Foreign news- her parents had gone to jail years ago in Barcelona for fraud.

Twin towers falling down.

People running around the streets screaming, firemen trying to help.

Two girls giving a speech and their dads funeral.

Firemen carrying out dead body bags.

Graphics:

White, Sans Serif, Capitals, Bold.

Name of the interviewee and why they are important to the documentary.

That Thing.. Lara Croft.

Type of documentary:

Mixed.

Themes:

Success of Lara Croft, video games, representation of women, power of the media influencing people's thoughts about the representation of women.

Narrative Structure:

Closed, non linear, single strand.

Camera-work:

Interview- eye line third way down, left or right of the screen, medium close up and big close up.

Variety of shot types used on the interviews. Some used in low angle. Whip pans across the room.

Tracking shots- downstairs in the cafe looking at people playing on the video games.

Extreme close up of keyboard.

Mise-en-scene:

Chromakey background- game in the background was out of focus so the audience does not get distracted.

Front projection over the interviewee's face.

Film clips also used in the background.

Sound:

Voice-over: calm, clear, male in about his 20's, this is used because the age is relevant to the programme, it is somebody who would play the game.

Sound from the game- music and added gun effects.

Voice of Lara Croft.

Madonna music- one of the interviewee's talked about her being powerful and a dominant woman.

Editing:

Effect- shot of the guy being interviewed, edited on a computer screen -he was the creator og the game.

Fast motion- walking into the cafe etc..

Cutting between shots.

Archive material:

Adverts, newspapers, magazines, clips of the film and the video game.

Interview of Angelina.

Websites about Lara Croft.

Graphics:

Every graphic had 'that thing' at the end of it.

Lower case font, white, Sans Serif.

The Music Biz -Marketing of Meatloaf.

Type of documentary:

Mixed.

Themes:

The marketing of music, creation of image, power of the media to influence

the audience's behaviour.

Narrative Structure:

Non linear, closed, single strand.

Camera-work:

Interviews- frame to the left or right of the screen, medium close up or close up. Eye line is third way down and the camera-work is conventional.

Variety of camera-work shown such as close up of magazin

e covers and CD covers.

Different shot types and camera movement. Panning across the newspaper headline. High and low angle also used.

Point of view shot used when someone walked into a betting office, this shows creativity.

Hand held camera used behind the scenes of Meatloaf filming his music video.

Meatloaf was interviewed in four different locations.
The media was also filmed instead of being apart of it.

Mise-en-scene:

Chromakey (blue or green screen). Background of the chromakey is archive or actuality footage which reflects what the interviewee is talking about.

Sound:

Voice over- Sarcastic, male, spoke standard English- Sco

ttish accent. Calm and clear delivery.

Used actuality footage to complete the voice over.
Meatloaf's music, used under the voice over and certain footage.

Editing:

Interviewee's dissolve in and out.

Three different interviews inter-cut together to make sense about w

hat they are all talking about - constructing the narrative, shows good planning.

Chromakey background- video in background of interviewee, then it froze to a still image so the audience does not get distracted.

Clips of behind the scene of filming video then it when to a footage of the finished music video.

Slow motion was also used.

They shown bad editing in some bits, for example- they flipped the interviewee over to suit the background, this shows laziness.

Archive material:

Old magazine covers, CD covers, still images and clips of Meatloaf pe

rforming music videos. Brit and Grammy awards.

Newspaper headlines and magazine reviews.

Clips of Mr Blobby and The Village People.

News footage.

Archive material was used all the way through including constructing the mise-en-scene for interviews.

Graphics:

Moving images on to a front cover of a magazine.

Series logo, anchored the appearance and meaning of the programme- arranged to the left or right of the screen. Very clear and white.

Used italics and capitals. Font- Sans Serif.

I used Mealoafs music video as I could not find a clip from the documentary 'The Marketing of Meatloaf.

The Devil Made Me Do It - Public Enemy No.1

Type of Documentary:
Mixed.

Themes:

Devil, Worship, Murder, Crime, Religion, Culture, Investigation, Youth, Society, Power of the Media.

Narrative Structure:

Open Narrative Structure- exploring motivation behind the structure.

Non Linear- goes back to the nuns funeral.

Camerawork:

Interviews- close up, medium, close up from left to right of screen, low angles on Marilyn Manson which makes him appear visually powerful.

Eyeline has to be third of the way down.

Two shot- couple sat on couch, point of view shot of police inspector. Close up of face. Lots of stock footage- Churches, Religious, Iconography, Bell Towers, I crosses.

Low/High angle (creatively filmed)

Tracking, panning, zoom, crane, establishing shots used to establish the location.

Point of view of a fan in the crowd at gigs.

Mansons press conference shows the camera observing.

Birds eye view of the grave yard.

Mise-en-scene:

Clip of police officer on table, low angle shot- creatively constructed.
Focused on the most outrageous Marilyn Manson fans. Lighting (most important)

Stock footage- very dark but there is a deep orange glow. Low angle of Manson- dark lighting adds to his image- half dark face/half light (connotations, saint or a sinner).

Visual image of a split personality.

Sound:

Voice over is the glue that holds the narrative together.

Voice over - male narrated, standard English- very calm in his delivery.

-Mansons music,

-Choral religious music.

-Sound effects used.

'I spend a lot more time talking to the kids, than they do.'

Editing:

-Stock footage.

-Priest being called to the train: don't see the interview at all.

Audio is shown whilst he is driving along a dark empty road looking tired. This connotes that he has been affected by it.

-Use images to tell the story- i.e when describing telephone conversation - image of telephone.

-Editing in sound effects on confession to infer story.

-Nuns heartbreak in the background- goes faster, then slower, then to a stop.

*door closing, whispering, dog barking, banging, slamming, church bell*

Archive Material:

-News footage of different events.

-Italian TU talkshow.

-American TU coverage.

-Websites.

-Newspapers.

-Still images- self harming girls.

-Various Manson concerts.

Graphics:

-White Sans Serif Font- name of person. Relevance to the topic of documentary.

^ anchors the meaning of the Gothic and Stylised title.

Dates and locations- white text: close the narrative of trial- credits: strolling conventionally up-screen.

Codes and Convetions of a Documentary Genre.

-Interviews

-Still images and videos- Archive Material

-Cutting from each clip - most common edit- does not distractwhat is going on screen

-Voice over- Narrative Structure

-Themes

-Music in background

-Graphics- usually white, sans serif- positioned left or right

-Credits at the end

-Norammly single strand narrative

-Editing techniques may be used on actuality footage and archive material

-Gender is sometimes relevant depending on topic

-Creative and caried camera work- Conventional framing on interviews- camera usually held on a tripod

-Archive material; newspapers, magazines, websites- use camera movement

-if chromakey is used it should not distract from interview- mise-en-scene is carefully structed

-Relevant music

-Well paced- not see an interview lasting one minute- other visuals are used over the sound of an interview

Structure of Documentaries.

Narrative Structure:
Open- there are loose ends which are not tied up at the end, audience makes their own mind up about the situation.
Closed- there is a definite conclusion to the narrative, the conclusion is very clear towards the audience.


Linear:
Follows chronological order, events follow order of time.
Non Linear:
Things are not in time of order, example- flashback or flashforward.


Circular:
Usually one which is open. The start is the same as the ending.


Visuals:
Television is a visual medium. The programme needs to be visually stimulated. The makers need to make the informative programme entertaining: archive material, street scenes, open countryside, close up of faces = stock footage.


Interviews:
Most important aspect of a documentary. A interview can be held anywhere but the mise-en-scene does affect the meaning.


VOXPOP:
Voice of the people. This is when the interviewer will go out on the street with a camera and ask people passing by the same question.

Construction of Reality:

Gatekeeping:
Producer selects and rejects certain information and facts for their documentary.

Editing process:

It is where gatekeeping happens in a documentary. Voice over can also affect the meaning.

Different types of Documentaries

Fully narrated:

A voice over is used to convey the exposition. The voice over is used to make sense of the visuals and dominates their meaning, example- natural history documentaries.

Fly on the wall:
Draws on the French Film Movement 'cinema vente'. The camera is unseen or ignored - simply records real events as they unfold.

Mixed:

A combination of interview, observation, actuality and archive material/footage and narration to advance the argument/narrative.

Self reflexive:
When the subject of the documentary acknowledges the presence of the camera and speaks directly to the person behind the camera.

Docudrama:

Re-enactment of events.

Docusoap:
Combination of documentary and soap opera. A group of central protagonist.

Features of Documentaries

John corner - University of Liverpool said there are 5 central elements of the documentary genre.

Observation:

The programme makers pretend that the camera is unseen or ignored by the people taking part in the events, the audience is positioned as an eye witness.

Interview:

Most important aspect, people give opinions and information throughout. They use actuality footage. Documentary relies on this aspect.

Dramatisation:
All documentaries use a sense of drama through the observation element or dramatic reconstruction.

Mise-en-scene:

(Put in the picture) Documentary makers carefully construct shots.

Exposition:
The line of argument in a documentary. It is what the documentary is 'saying'.

Documentaries

The purpose of a documentary is to document, that is to report with evidence something that has actually happened.

It can show this by using actuality footage ('real' footage of actual events) or reconstruction. It can use a narrators voice over to anchor the meaning or rely on the participants themselves with perhaps the occasional interjection by the nature.

The term was first used by John Grierson - General Post Office Unit in 1930's.
He defined documentary as 'the creative treatment of actuality' (or reality)

Evaluation of Interview

In class as a whole, we got set a task to make our own interview. However, we got given the topic and the questions as a head start which helped a lot. This made us focus more on the actual filming and editing. We worked in groups of 3 and by evaluating the final product, I feel it has many strengths and weaknesses. Moreover, afterwards the class gave us feedback and they stated that our strengths is the cutaways. They agreed that they were creative and relevant and they said the same for the mise-en-scene. What they also said is that the interviewee gave detailed explanations towards each question.

Furthermore, there are many things I would do differently when I produce another interview. This leads to the weaknesses of the mobile phone interview which in some ways isn't a bad thing because it makes people learn from mistakes. The aspects that need to be improved on are the sounding levels so the music bed does not affect the interviewee speaking. Also what needs to be improved is the framing of the camera which came across as quite messy in my final product.

I feel that the final product was at high standard because working as a group helped eachother by listening to others opinions. And our ideas came together which produced good work. Also I feel sometimes working as a group is beneficial if someone gets stuck using one of the tools, someone else in the group who has had experience will be able to help. Therefore we learn from eachother.

Overall, the first interview produced, I thought worked really well which has gave a confidence boost to do better in others in the future. It has also let me work with programmes I haven't used for a while such as Adobe Premier Pro, which helped me gain my knowledge again.

Mobile phone interview

This is the finished product of my interview:

Filming Our Interview

In our groups, we came up with a plan before filming our interview. We drew sketches of 13 cutaways to go with our 14 questions that was going to be asked about the topic of: mobile phones. After our plan we began filming our interview, following the codes and conventions. We thought carefully about the mise-en-scene and came up with a creative idea of filming infront of a board with a mobile phone in the background to relate to the interview. Moreover, each of our cutaways also related to mobile phones. Our recordings uploaded to Adobe Premier Pro were we edited our work - again, following the codes and conventions. After we finished our work, we decided on a music bed and we carefully chose a song that would be suitable to the work we produced.

Youtube Videos

Here are the interviews we looked at in our first lesson of A2:

We came to the conclusion that these specifically follow the codes and conventions of filming and editing interviews and we should try to follow this in our own pratical work of making an interview.

Codes and Conventions of Filming and Editing Interviews

In our first A2 lesson we expanded our knowledge of the course in detail and we also went over the Codes and Conventions of filming and editing interviews, to create a better understanding. However, as a class we also looked at youtube videos of interviews and made individual notes that related to the codes and conventions.


Codes and Conventions of filming and editing interviews;
- Interviewee positioned to left or right of frame.
- If more than one interview, it alternates.
- Interviewees filmed in medium shot, medium close up, close up.
- Questions are edited out.
- Mise-en-scene: background reinforces the content of the interview which is relevant to the interviewee, providing more information about them in terms of occupation or personal enviroment.
- Graphics are used to anchor who the person is on screen and relevance to the topic.
- Interviewee looks at the interviewer not directly into the camera.
- Postioning of the interviwer is therefore important - if the interviewee is on the right of the frame then the interviewer is on the left of the camera.
- The interviewer should sit or stand as close to the camera as possible.
- Framing follows the rules of thirds - means the eye line of the interviewing is third of the way down the screen.
- Interviews are never filmed with a light source behind the interviewee, i.e infront of a window or with the sun behind them.
- The light is always infront of them/behind the camera.
- Cutaways are edited into interviews for 2 reasons: to break up the interviews/illustrate what they're talking about and to avoide jump outs when questions are edited out.
- All interviewees are sat down which makes a consistent filming.
- Cutaways are either archive material and also suggested something said in the interview and therefore are filmed with another camera.
- Sometimes aspects of the interviewee are filmed with another camera such as extreme close up of eyes, mouth and hands and used as outaways.