Questions; 1. What are your plans for your future tv channel, what things do you plan to show, to what audience, and how will improve awareness and profits of your company?
2. How is the closure of the UK film council affecting your future plans?
3. Have you got any future plans for 3D?
4. Why did you chose to create a different ending in Atonement to the book?
This is an article about the importance of working title for the british film industry.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/2821801.stm
Thursday 31 March 2011
Tuesday 29 March 2011
Comment on the representation of Englishness in Midsomer Murders
Midsomer Murders is a unique TV drama as it uses Englishness to differentiate itself from other British crime dramas. The mise-en-scene is a large part of the programme, for creating specific shots of representations of England, such as establishing shots of thatched cottages, old women, and people riding bicycles.
The landscape setting is one of the most important parts of Midsomer Murders' representation of Englishness. There are always several shots of fields and quaint villages, that are very traditional and have little modernisation of the present day apart from cars and such. This image that the setting is presented is very stereotypical of England, and although we all know that villages are not really like that anymore, it is immediately apparent that it is definitely set in England. Props also play a big part in representation. Glimpses of 'English' things like land rovers, horses, cottages, post offices and old fashioned telephones create an immediate recognition of the location. The actual characters also add to the Englishness. Men in chequered shirts and hats driving land rovers; typically displayed as farmers, old women with wicker baskets riding bicycles added to the background scenes create a typical rural English village look. Almost all characters speak with a proper English accent, unless their character requires other. In fact, many rural areas tend to have a regional accent, rather than proper English, which is more associated with the upper class. However, people who are not English tend to stereotype English people as being posh and upper class, so this is in keeping with others' estimations of Englishness.
Camera angles are used mainly as establishing shots, especially during opening sequences. This is to emphasise the true Englishness of the location. Also, many of them are long shots or mid shots, to capture the Englishness in the background, instead of focusing on the characters' facial expressions less often. The creators of the programme seem to pay specific attention to things in the shot that represent Englishness, such as extra cottage views in the background of foreground action.
Sound is another important part of representing Englishness. there is a lot of non-diegetic sound, upbeat, slightly classical music which mirrors the calmness and peacefulness of the village, and eerie tension-creating music, which sounds out of place with the calm music, so it suggests that there is something going on that is out of place. There are also several diegetic noises, such as birds, cars and leaves to emphasis ruralness.
All these things mentioned all play a role in keeping Midsomer Murders exclusively English. The locations in Midsomer are always typical of English ruralness, as are props and sounds. It uses people's ideas of what Englishness it and displays it in an exact way; not realistic, yet how we imagine rural countryside villages to be like in an ideal world. it is so different from other crime dramas because of the Englishness; other drama's of the same genre are mostly city-located, modern and rely on a gripping, and maybe more complex storyline, than Midsomer.
Wednesday 9 March 2011
Hollyoaks
Episode: Thursday 3rd March
Extract: Brendan and Doug are discussing a coke deal, which involves Rae. Doug is unsure about including Rae but Brendan tells him he owes him to do this, so Doug has to agree. The scene then cuts to Mercedes talking to Lynsey about an article on women behaving like 'ladies'.
Camera
The camera pans in slowly towards the two characters as their discussion gets more intense. The camera angle then switches to an over the shoulder shot of Brendan close to Doug they talk, showing power of the character ,the intensity of their conversation, and the desperation of Brendan. During several over the shoulder shots between the two characters, it is made clear by the camera angle which is charge, as the camera points down slightly to look at Doug, an up when looking at Brendan. The camera then switches to mid shots as we realise that Doug has lost this debate, and Brendan gives him the bad of drugs. The camera then goes into an over the shoulder shot as Brendan reassures Doug. In contrast, the next scene has mostly over the shoulder shots, but at a further distance from the characters, as they are having a more light hearted chat. There are several closer ovs shots, but they still establish distance between Mercedes and Lynsey, showing that maybe they know each other less then Brendan and Doug, and in a less serious and business way.
Editing
The extract opens with a fade trasion between an establishing shot of the bar to Brendan and Doug in the office. Apart from that, the scenes use just quick cuts between characters talking and change of shots, even between the two scenes.
Sound
There is no non-diegetic sound throughout this whole sequence, to focus the audience's attention purely on the characters' dialogue. There is faint background of people talking in both scenes, in the office in the bar and the street.
Mise-en-scene
The location between both scenes is very contrasting, with Brendan and Doug talking in a quite office with no-one else present, showing secrecy, while the two girls having a conversation in the busy town centre. The costumes between the characters also differ, in scenes and between scenes. Brendan is wearing all black, suggesting he is a bad or shady character and a suit suggesting he is a business man, although the collar is undone at the top, hinting that now he is doing other kinds of business, rather than professional. Doug is wearing lighter colours, showing he is more innocent and a better person. Mercedes and Lynsey are both wearing coats and scarves, suggesting weather. The lighting also differs dramatically, with the office scene very dark, only seeming to be illuminated by one lamp, and the street scene obviously in natural daylight. The first scene suggests through lighting that this may be a dodgey deal, that the characters have something to hide.
Extract: Brendan and Doug are discussing a coke deal, which involves Rae. Doug is unsure about including Rae but Brendan tells him he owes him to do this, so Doug has to agree. The scene then cuts to Mercedes talking to Lynsey about an article on women behaving like 'ladies'.
Camera
The camera pans in slowly towards the two characters as their discussion gets more intense. The camera angle then switches to an over the shoulder shot of Brendan close to Doug they talk, showing power of the character ,the intensity of their conversation, and the desperation of Brendan. During several over the shoulder shots between the two characters, it is made clear by the camera angle which is charge, as the camera points down slightly to look at Doug, an up when looking at Brendan. The camera then switches to mid shots as we realise that Doug has lost this debate, and Brendan gives him the bad of drugs. The camera then goes into an over the shoulder shot as Brendan reassures Doug. In contrast, the next scene has mostly over the shoulder shots, but at a further distance from the characters, as they are having a more light hearted chat. There are several closer ovs shots, but they still establish distance between Mercedes and Lynsey, showing that maybe they know each other less then Brendan and Doug, and in a less serious and business way.
Editing
The extract opens with a fade trasion between an establishing shot of the bar to Brendan and Doug in the office. Apart from that, the scenes use just quick cuts between characters talking and change of shots, even between the two scenes.
Sound
There is no non-diegetic sound throughout this whole sequence, to focus the audience's attention purely on the characters' dialogue. There is faint background of people talking in both scenes, in the office in the bar and the street.
Mise-en-sceneThe location between both scenes is very contrasting, with Brendan and Doug talking in a quite office with no-one else present, showing secrecy, while the two girls having a conversation in the busy town centre. The costumes between the characters also differ, in scenes and between scenes. Brendan is wearing all black, suggesting he is a bad or shady character and a suit suggesting he is a business man, although the collar is undone at the top, hinting that now he is doing other kinds of business, rather than professional. Doug is wearing lighter colours, showing he is more innocent and a better person. Mercedes and Lynsey are both wearing coats and scarves, suggesting weather. The lighting also differs dramatically, with the office scene very dark, only seeming to be illuminated by one lamp, and the street scene obviously in natural daylight. The first scene suggests through lighting that this may be a dodgey deal, that the characters have something to hide.
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