TV Drama
Genres
·
Soap
opera
·
Costume
/ period drama
·
Medical
/ emergency
·
Literary
adaptations
·
Crime
drama
·
Contemporary
melodrama
·
Comedy
drama
·
Sci-fi
/ fantasy
·
Spy
drama
Conventions of TV drama
What set of rules, codes or formulae
does TV drama follow?
·
Scripted,
fictional narrative
·
Central
characters
·
Often
continuous storylines
·
Often
familiar settings
·
Key
themes
·
Verisimilitude
(relatable, realistic settings, characters and storylines)
·
Could
be a one-off / special, mini-series, serial
·
Serials
can be progressive storylines, continuing from week to week and developing
across a series, or can be self-contained each episode, despite featuring the
same characters and settings.
·
Distinctive
style of directing / shooting
Further reading –
Douglas Kellner ‘Television Images,
Codes and Messages’
“a genre refers to a coded set of formulas
and conventions which indicate a culturally accepted way of organising material
into distinct patterns. Once
established, genres dictate the basic conditions of cultural production and
reception.”
Martin Esslin ‘The Age of Televison’
Bardwell &
Thomson’s ‘Film Art’.
Drama research – AUTUMN TERM
Can be presented as a blog or
slideshow.
Work on this each week of the autumn
term and update.
1. Research types of TV drama and give 3
examples of each
2. Research scheduling – what proportion
of the TV schedules are drama? When are drama series or one-offs scheduled and
why? What audience do you think they have? Explore the notion of mainstream and
niche audiences in relation to the scheduling of TV drama
3. Representation of social groups. How
do different TV dramas represent social groups and social issues? Conflict – what dramatic conflicts are
represented between social groups? How does shot selection and directorial
choice demonstrate this?
4. What roles or jobs are there in a TV
drama eg. Director, producer
5. Find a selection of stills from TV
dramas demonstrating the range of shot types (CU, WS etc) and annotate in
detail, exploring why and how this shot type has been chosen, including how
social groups are represented.
6. Create a glossary of TV drama
terminology eg. Wide shot, Mise-en-scene
7. Develop a pitch for your own TV
drama, specifying plot, setting, characters/actors.
