Summer project
1) Research: TV crime drama extract analysis:
TV crime drama extract 1: Narrative and genre
How is the narrative and the crime drama genre communicated to the audience?
Extract 1: NCIS: The initial entry in the NCIS media franchise is the American military police drama television series NCIS. The fictional team of special agents from the Naval Criminal Investigation Service serves as the focus of this comedy-drama series that blends aspects of the police procedural and military drama genres. This show is a hybrid of genres meaning it consists of more than one: Action, Military, Police protocol and Thriller. The narrative of this story is that they solve multiple criminal cases. This creates suspense for the audience as it leaves them wanting more and to find out what will happen next which means that it keeps the audience on the edge of their seats which I believe is a good thing. Due to the fact that they are solving criminal crimes, this connotes that it's a crime drama to the audience. However, much to the surprise of critics and most viewers, the show proved that there was more to it than a basic story about special agents. Even though the show concentrates on the issue of crime in the US, its message is relevant to the average viewer because it is emphasised in every episode that justice will ultimately triumph. Because of this, despite a lot of clichés and stiff characters, the story appeals to viewers' easily identifiable emotions and conveys to them the concepts of accountability and the desire for justice, which are consistent with American ideals and the concept of social justice.
TV crime drama extract 2: Mise-en-scene
What do you notice about the use of mise-en-scene to create meanings for the audience? Think CLAMPS.
Extract 2: The Bill:
C: After watching this you can see that there are different uniforms. Most of them are wearing office black policing costumes which are called PC. All the DC are in normal plain clothes, men are in suits, shirts and ties and women are in dresses while some are wearing shirts and blazers.
L: The lighting is high quality as most of it is set indoors. So high lighting shows clear images of facial expressions and surroundings. There is high-key lighting.
A: The DCI's have a serious body language alongside facial expressions. They ask very open ended questions and get straight to the point wasting no time. You can see both main and background characters. Main characters are mostly in view but you also have people in the background. Most of the time you don't really see their faces as they aren't part of the crew on set.
M: Simple makeup to make them look like normal everyday people. Therefore it's easy for us to see their facial expressions.
P: The police officers have walkie - talkies, batons, pepper spray as well as handcuffs. Other props that I've noticed are: ID badges on uniform, car keys, police car, pocket note pads. These things are essential to keep them in character as it really gives the expression that they are police officers.
S: This is set in an average police station with double doors to enter. Going through the doors on the left takes you upstairs to where all the DCI officers are and the door on the left takes you to the interview room and holding cell.
TV crime drama extract 3: Camerawork
Here you are looking for particular camera shots and movement. E.g. Are close-ups used to show the reaction of key characters to the audience? How are establishing shots used?
Extract 3: Hawaii five - 0:
- High angle: This shot is used to set the scene at the start of the series. (e.g. this series will always set the scene of the murder and bring the high camera angle down to the scene. This just keeps the people watching at the start and making them want to see what happens next).
- Low angle: Low angle is used to show us in detail what we are looking at or for (e.g. Murder evidence that is laying around, someone who may be involved in the crime, also used at the end of a scene to leave viewers on a cliff-hanger).
- Extreme close up: This gives us a clear indication on what we are looking for (e.g. clues on what's going to happen or what has already happened).
- Over the shoulder shot: This shot was putting me in the shoes of the actors playing the role which made it feel real.
- Long shot: This is used to set a scene or if something was happening in the distance. (E.g. something has fallen on the floor but you are unsure of what it is as a long shot has ben used or if someone screams in the background and viewers have a wide area to scan around and look). Long shots are also used to end the scene on a cliff-hanger if there is another episode.
TV crime drama extract 4: Editing
Analyse pace, transitions, number of shots and juxtaposition e.g. eyeline matches. How is editing used to create meanings for the audience?
Extract 4: Witness number 3: It begins with a zoom in transition to create suspense. There are jump cuts which are disjointed edits in the same shot or action. There was a fade in/out in the beginning before the episode actually begun. There is a J-cut which is when audio from the next scene starts before the scene does. There is cross cutting between 2 characters while they are having a conversation. There are jump cuts which begin with showing the outside of the protagonists hair shop while slowly zooming in and then jumping to the protagonist herself inside the shop with a smooth transition. There is cutting on action which started with 2 boys boxing and cut to one of the boys taking his inhaler. There are a few invisible cuts which gives the impression that it's a single take. There's a cutaway when the police officer shows the protagonist her witness statement sheet. There is also another scene of cross cutting between 2 characters while they have a conversation which seems to be suspicious.
TV crime drama extract 5: Sound
Analyse both diegetic and non-diegetic sound in the extract - music, dialogue, voiceover, SFX, background or foley sound.
TV crime drama concept
Our coursework brief requires us to create our own TV drama extract and TV listings magazine for an original crime drama. Plan the following for your video production:
Your new TV drama
Crime drama title: King of the 6
Tagline: Kill or be killed
Streaming platform (note brief – streaming service, 12+ audience): Netflix
Logline – one sentence that sums up the whole TV drama series and hooks people in (25 words or fewer): Son is the drug dealer and one of the parents are users who eventually kills the son and takes over their line so that they have unlimited supply of drugs as well as making money at the same time.
Other successful TV dramas that are similar to yours: Narcos, queen of the south, power
Narrative arc – what happens in the overall series: Drug crime drama
Main protagonist – their motivation, conflicts etc.: The son is the protagonist at the moment until he gets killed for the drugs by one of his parents.
Other characters, their narrative role and their audience appeal: Parents and other characters that aren't as important.
Target audience for your TV crime drama (note brief – 12+, older youth and adult viewers): age, gender, social class, psychographic groups etc. Older youth and adults are my target audience
Your extract
When would your extract appear in the drama (e.g. season 1 opening scene, cliffhanger scene at end of season finale etc.): End of season 1
Setting (note brief – at least two locations): park, House, graveyard
What will happen in your extract (note brief – identifiable narrative features, crime genre codes and conventions etc.): A murder will take place which is one of the crime genre codes, Mystery is another code as you don't really know what's going to happen as it's a plot twist.
3) Statement of Intent:
My crime drama will be called King of the 6. King of the 6 will stream on Netflix due to it's high level of popularity. My three-minute extract will appear at the end of season 1. Son is the drug dealer and one of the parents are users who eventually kills the son and takes over their line so that they have unlimited supply of drugs as well as making money at the same time. Another reason why I want to stream my crime drama on Netflix is because it's also a worldwide platforms that people from a range of different countries have access to. My crime drama will include a plot twist.
In my 3 minute extract there are 2 potential locations at which I want to set it in. A murder will take place which is one of the crime genre codes, Mystery is another code as you don't really know what's going to happen as it's a plot twist. I'm going to use a range of camera work and non diegetic sound. I will communicate my narrative through the use of mise-en-scene, sound and editing. There is not an element of hybridity to my extract and I will use action codes as well as enigma codes to portray my genre.
My Tv crime drama will reinforce stereotypes due to the fact that the son is the drug dealer. My story will also challenge the stereotypes of parents due to the fact that parents are supposed to protect their children whereas in my extract one of his parents ends up killing their child over drugs. You could apply Gilroy's theory to my extract because of the fact that people could say that it's not in their culture to sell drugs and Gilroy's idea was that culture was used too often to explain differences and divides between groups of people, as opposed to bringing people together through common interests and unity. The males will act like men however the female may act a bit masculine sometimes. This reinforces and highlights Butler’s idea that “no one is a gender from the start”: it is performative and constructed.
My target audience are adults and older youth. My Tv drama will be relatable which is part of the gratifications theory. You could also apply the media effects theory to my crime drama Tv due to the fact that when the youth watch the media they tend to try relate and incorporate it into their own lives which isn't always the best idea. Media effects are typically defined as social or psychological responses occurring in individuals, dyads, small groups, organisations, or communities as a result of exposure to or processing of or otherwise acting on media messages.
My audience can access my crime drama on their phones, laptops, tablets, really any electronical device however only if they pay for Netflix and have access to an account with Netflix. The magazine Real Crime could be an option who would publish my crime drama Tv.
4) Ignite presentation:
https://1drv.ms/p/c/127d73b44c18e99b/ERSUiaq7GjZAq8pTr7fbMRoBJzyYurRFIB6HO6NMXGkOgw?e=avAyC2
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