Eastenders: Social Realism codes and conventions

What are the key differences between this and Made in Chelsea?

Note down:

• Themes and story lines
• Performance
• Lighting
• Costume
• Locations
• Dialogue and accent - how does this convey class and status of these characters compared to MiC?

Made In Chelsea Trailer - deconstruct this.

In four groups, watch the trailer and focus on one media language for deconstruction:

• Mise en scene: costume, locations, lighting, props
• Editing: title cards, pace, sound bridging, sound effects, music, quality of sound, is editing smooth or not?
• Sound: diegetic and non- diegetic, key, pace, volume, dialogue quotes
• Camerawork: shot types, angles, movement, handheld or steady camerawork?

Make thorough notes and once each group has fed back, use them to answer the following question:

How do media languages combine to create conflict in this trailer?

500 words, word- processed or hand written.

Soap Sub- Genre Presentations

As each group presents, take notes to gain understanding of each sub- genre.

The aim of this lesson is to explore different approaches to the soap genre and start deciding what kind of soap you might want to make for your final piece.

Note down:

• origins of the genre if explained
• length per episode
• aesthetic conventions - locations, costume, hair, make up. How do these demonstrate the class and status of the characters?
• stereotypical characters and storylines
• main conventions

Sub genres presentation

Soap Opera Pop Quiz

Traditional Soap Opera characteristics:

You have 2 minutes to revise and note down the following conventions:

• Length per episode:
• 3 stereotypical story lines
• 3 character types
• Name five soaps that fit the traditional template.

Soap Magazine Front Cover example

Welcome to A2 Media Studies

   

Soap Opera Conventions: Structure and Format

Structure and Format

The proper name for Soap Operas is ‘continuing dramas’. They are called this because the episodes are not grouped into separate series, but run week-in, week-out, all year round. 

Soap episodes are relatively short (most installments run for just 30 minutes), but three or four episodes may be screened per week, often with an omnibus edition at the weekend. In recent soaps, scenes also tend to be quite short; two minutes or so is considered the maximum viewing time for one scene to avoid the audience becoming bored.

A defining feature of the Soap Opera genre is that plots are open-ended, with several stories running at the same time. Three, four or even five story lines will be in progress during any one episode, with the action alternating between them. As one narrative is resolved, another completely different one with different characters will already be underway. One story line may end, but there is no overall narrative closure because Soaps (unlike other television dramas) are designed to continue indefinitely. Because of this narrative approach, Soap Operas are sometimes described as being ‘open text’.

A Soap episode will usually end with a 'cliff-hanger'; a suspenseful piece of dialogue or action without conclusion, which will tempt viewers back for the next episode. Similarly episodes often begin with a 'hook' in which one or more of the narratives from a previous episode is continued.

Occasionally, Soaps will broadcast special episodes to coincide with real-world festivities or events such as Christmas. Other special episodes might focus on characters that have left the main show, or current characters in a location outside of their usual surroundings. Occasionally a special episode will be given over to an established, well-loved character. These episodes are sometime referred to as 'Soap bubbles' because they are self-contained and have little impact on the storylines of the regular show.

Soap Opera Conventions 1: Narrative Themes

Narrative Themes in British soap opera.

Soaps concentrate on continuous narratives that deal with domestic themes and personal or family relationships. Births, marriages and deaths are frequently used to inject drama into a soap and are useful ways of introducing new characters and story lines  or getting rid of old ones. 

Illness and accidents also frequently appear in story lines, which has the interesting effect of making viewers aware of a variety of medical conditions. Indeed, over the years, Soaps have shown an increasing interest in story lines built around social issues, such as illness, homelessness, crime, unemployment, racism, sexuality, drug abuse, domestic violence, and bullying. These story lines can have a strong impact on viewers, for example, when Britain was

becoming aware of HIV and AIDS in the 1980s, EastEnders featured a story in which one of its central characters, Mark Fowler, contracted AIDS from his wife, helping to dispel social myths that only gay men were vulnerable to the virus.

Particularly controversial story lines are dramatic and entertaining and can also increase ratings, as they attract media interest and public debate, which helps to publicizes the Soap. Of course, it must be remembered that what is considered to be controversial changes over time - what might have shocked viewers in the 1960s (such as unmarried mothers) is now considered too tame to be the focus of a major soap story line, and some of today’s soap concerns (such as homosexuality) would never even have been mentioned thirty years ago.

Socially relevant story lines help soaps to remain realistic and maintain their popularity. Soap operas try to be as relevant as possible to their audience, focusing on story lines and characters that viewers can relate to. However, like any television programme, Soaps have to be entertaining, which is why they tend to focus on the more dramatic aspects of ordinary life; death, birth, marriages, personal crises, and controversial social issues.

Soap Opera Conventions 2: Settings

Settings in British soap opera

British Soaps tend to have a strong regional identity, for example, is set in the East End of London while Manchester is the setting for Coronation Street. This helps to make each programme more realistic by placing it in an identifiable setting.

A Soap’s setting also has an effect on its characters and narratives. For example, early episodes of Emmerdale Farm (Granada, 1972-) centred on the Sugden family’s life living and working on a Yorkshire Dales farm, and so rural themes were central to the programme's storylines. Also, the extensive location filming was a significant factor in the early popularity of the programme, with the production crew making the most of the spectacular scenery.

British Soaps generally place a lot of importance on community (both in their set design and narrative themes) as they are often set around a small residential area, such as Albert Square in Eastenders. They also tend to include a central meeting point where all the characters interact and major story lines develop, for example The Rover's Return

Coronation Street or The Queen Vic in EastEnders. These contained sets have benefits from a production point of view because producers can save money by using the same set for many different character encounters.

Soap Opera Conventions 3: Realism and Ideology

Realism and ideology in British and American soap opera

Soap Operas are generally described as being 'more realistic' than crime and fantasy-based dramas. There is a longstanding tradition towards social realism in British Soap, that is, a 'warts and all' presentation of the world as people experience it, rather than an idealised version of reality. These Social realist Soaps explore lives and social issues that seem broadly 'realistic', even if the idea that all these issues could arise in one small place seems rather unlikely.

This tradition is less apparent in Soaps from other countries. For example, American soaps like Dallas and Dynasty are very glamorous, presenting an idealised view of the world rather than a realistic one.

Characters are immaculately presented, beautiful and successful - here, audiences watch to escape real life, not to see it presented on screen. Light entertainment Soaps, such as Neighbours and Home and Away, seem to adopt the middle ground, being more realistic than many American soaps, but presenting issues in a less confrontational, "gritty" way than British soaps.

Some Soaps use elements of more than one style. Hollyoaks, for example, sometimes appears to be social realist, but also adopts the light entertainment approach of Neighbours, which it's younger audience finds more enjoyable.

Every element of a Soap contributes to its overall realism, including characters, storylines, setting, scripts

and production elements such as music, lighting and camera work.

Soap Opera Conventions 4: Characters

Characters

The link between Soap characters and storylines is pivotal to the success of the genre. Ultimately the characters serve two main purposes; they are a vehicle for the plot, and figures for the audience to relate to.

Characters are often introduced to a Soap with built-in story lines, such as serious illnesses or a secret in their past. This provides interest from the outset, however, writers must be careful not to link a character too closely to one particular narrative, otherwise they will outlive their usefulness once the story line has been resolved and become boring. Also, many Soaps tend to base their characters on basic stereotypes which can support different sorts of story line. For example ‘the loveable rogue’, ‘the tart with a heart’ and ‘the gossip’ can support stories with a comic element, whereas ‘the gangster’ and ‘the bully’ can contribute towards more dramatic story lines.

Most other television genres have central characters that provide the focus of the action, but Soaps have large casts which the action moves between. This helps to keep the storylines interesting over a long period of time and by focusing on just a few characters in each episode, the audience has time to get to know them and to become emotionally involved in their stories.

Soap characters often reflect the concerns of their target audience; for example, when Soaps began on 1930s radio they were aimed at American women who were at home while their husbands were at work.

As a result, most of the drama revolved around female characters, who lead lives that listeners could relate and aspire to. Similarly, Hollyoaks is a modern Soap aimed at a young audience, and so the characters tend to be young and attractive, with concerns reflecting those of its viewers, such as university life, exam pressure, sex, jealousy and drug use.

PLANNING YOUR SOAP TRAILER

Once you have planned the content of your trailer, you need to plan as a team how you are going to execute your ideas. In each group there should be:

A director - this person is responsible for the organisation of actors, materials, camera operators and scripts. 

Actors - each member of the group should be in at least one shot. 

Camera operators - these people are responsible for sound quality, tripods, cameras and lighting/mise en scene.

Runners: These are the team members who are not involved in the shot. Their role is to check continuity, props, scripts, mise en scene and equipment.

It would be best if you all share the roles so you get to experience each part of the production process.

Before you go to shoot your trailer, make sure the following tasks are complete:

• each member of the group has a complete script with dialogue and camerawork (see  example below)
• each member of the group has a copy of the storyboard and knows what part they are playing
• locations for shooting have been chosen (must take place in and around college)
• the order you are shooting your scenes