P1 - 2: Merlin, Gavin & Stacy and The Night Watch

Format:

A format for a television show is either going to be series or serial. A serial is a format where the story never stops so it is continous for example 90210, Doctor Who there is a main story after another. Another format would be a series which is a set amount of episodes which leads to the ending with the specific story and a whole new story would be created for a second series. Single Drama is now a rare type of format. It is designed to be a story which is a one off for television, this is more likely used for television then cinema for example 'Dirty War' was about a terrorist attack on London.

Genre is a main format of any television show because it allows you to categorize them in groups due to its specific storys for example Eastenders would be soap opera. A period drama is set in a specific historical period for example 'Anonymous' is set in the time of 1500's which was Shakespeare's year where he wrote all of his plays. This genre is mixed between a drama and docummentary, also called dramadoc. A dramadoc is a documentary type of drama where characters re-enact actual and specific historic events. Crime is considered as a genre which came by the 1800's which includes of criminals, crime, motives and their detection some examples of these are CSI series, The Bill and The Wire. The last genre is comedy which is considered when the show is funny or when they do funny acts and also when they emphasise in humor some examples of this genre are 'Bo' Selecta!', Dad's Army and Gavin & Stacy.

Narrative structures is what glue TV shows together by making it run sequential or giving it a ending. Linear structure is when the show is in a sequence and flows from the beginning to the end some examples of these TV shows are Doctor Who, Gavin & Stacy and X-Factor; in contrast, non-linear structure is when the scenes are not in order making it not from the beggining to the end but it can start from the middle then the scene could also show the beggining. Flashback is a structure where the scene is showing something that happend earlier in the past but is related to the main story and the present of the scene. Realist is a structure where the show is showing real people doing something that was written by the show or the producers for example Big Brother has real people in a house but there are rules written by the producers of the show, another would be Shipwrecked where real people are left on a island and the writers create the story and the set. Anti-realist creates the impression that the show or film is not representing the real world as it is now or when it was the same in the past, that it is fictional. The ending is important as the begginning so choosing from two choices open or closed is always used. An open ending is usually found in television series where there is no beginning, middle or end. So most TV soap's story never ends but ends only after a long while; in contrast, a closed ending is found more in movies then in television. A close ending has a beginning, middle and end to its particular story which is brought to a conclusion.

Gavin and Stacy:

Gavin and Stacy is a sit-com its genre is comedy it is formatted into a series production meaning it has a set amount of episodes that is going to a topic ending.

The structure of Gavin and Stacy is a linear structure because it starts with a story and ends with it going to happen or did happen and it runs in a straight line so this means the scenes will not be mixed up. This also has a realist structure because it is based on an average life of a group of friends so the audience can relate to Gavin and Stacy this is to make the audience believe what is happening. Gavin and Stacy also has a closed narrative so this means that it wraps up any story so there will not be any unanswered questions.

The mise-en-scene of Gavin and Stacy is not used because they move around each set for example a office work place would be a office work place not a set that has been created to give and influence that it’s a work place. This could be used to save money of actually creating a set because you will pay for the place that you will be filming making it cheaper. The location is in Cardiff not a studio so sets were not built. Some lighting was used to emphasise the characters faces for example depression or sadness. Modern transport was used for the show i.e. busses, cars and vans. They moved between locations because it was not filmed on a set so they travelled a lot to collect the correct scenes.

Editing technique was used a lot especially the 180 degree rule was used for most of the scenes for example the office you would see only Gavin and you will not be able to see his view because there is a line set also at the church when they were getting the baby baptised you couldn’t see the back of the church so the line was placed.

Cross cutting was a editing technique that was also used when the two main characters of Gavin and Stacy was on the phone talking to each other so we get both perspective of what both players are doing while talking on the phone.

Camerawork that was used especially Gavin and Stacy they use a single camera technique so that you can save money on location and also time. You could achieve more expressionist camerawork this means that the camera will be moved a lot more so that more shot can be captured these are some of advantages of a single camera you get more character actions and close ups for example close up was used to show the emotion of the characters face when he got the news that he got the job.

Over the shoulder shot was used to indicate POV of the specific character but not fully so you could still see the shoulder of the person. This can be used to show what the current person is currently talking too or when the person is responding to the conversation.

A two shot was used to show that two characters are conducting a conversation between each other within the same topic. This can also be a over the shoulder shot because you are looking over the character's shoulder to indicate what he is currently looking at.

This is a POV also called a Point Of View this is showing us what the user is currently looking at or what they are doing. This is showing the characters view.

Merlin:  

Merlin is a TV drama its format is series because there is a set amount of episodes that all are on the same topic. The genre of Merlin is drama and fantasy.

Merlin is a linear structure because it’s from beginning to end and also to cause an affect they use the story of King Arthur being attacked pushing the narrative along; this has a realist structure because it needs the audience to believe what is happening. This is a closed narrative meaning that they will wrap up any questions about the story that was shown in the beginning of the show.

The set design is used to amplify the aspects of one character. Lighting was used to emphasise the evil mood inside the cave it was also used to light up a set to create an effect that day light was shown through the window meaning that the scene could be filmed at night but the lighting will make it look like its day time. They changed lighting to bring out characters face. In some particular scenes they went to a particular set for example the castle that King Arthur occupied could of been a castle in Cumbria so it is easier to rent a area rather than creating a set wasting time and being more money consuming.

The costume was medieval to reflect the fantasy period. Horses and boats where used to emphasis the time they was in which would be the 5^th century. Natural lighting or candle lighting to show the era it was set in.

At many scenes they broke the 180 degree rule; you never got to see any other camera which indicates that a single camera was used. At other times the shots was applied to create a sense of realism, continuity and order for the audience. CGI has been used to show certain mythical creatures for example griffin, dragon. They also used CGI to create an image of a fireball so this is showing magic that is a major part of the show. Unlike the multiple camera technique, single camera technique uses more variations.

Close up was used to show most of the characters talking. Some shots the other camera might not have been on set until it was their particular scene. High angles were used so it was easier to move while using a single camera. Some scenes needed a clear sky so they could have waited to film that but did other parts of the show then edited together. In the studio it would be more time consuming because they have to film same sequence from different shots and light actors each time. This is on location so it will save money and time this can help achieve more unconventional and expressionist camerawork. You can get closer to the action, more expressionist for example high angle, bird eye shot and low angle. More camera movement was used to build important tension in an action packed scene and you can get a wider range of shots.




















The Night Watch:

The Night Watch is a documentary drama because it is based on same-sex relationship which was not prohibited during the 1940's. This is a one off because there is not a continuation from the first one and there will never be a sequel. The genre is drama.


The Night Watch has a fragmented structure because you swap between scenes for example the 1940 to the 1947 then back to the 1940. It also has a circular narrative because we circle around the story. This has a realist structure so that it can show the people watching that the opposite sex was not allowed to have a sexual relatoinship in the 1940's this is to push the narrative along making the audience believe how people use to lie and hide ther sexualities just to keep them out of prison.
 
Their set is a 1940's set so the clothes had to be from a modern time and people wearing army uniforms to indicate that it was during the World War 2 so the vehicles were of modern old classic cars also horses was another way of transport. They also included items that would be in the 1940's for example the red phone booth which was famously in London the set was in London. Lighting was used to indicate the dull WWII scene of it not being very jolly so lighting was a key fact in the creation of the sets.

180 degree was used a lot in many of the scenes so that you can connect with the scene and not knowing what is happening behind the current action this is an essential piece of continuty editing making it very popular for directors to use it. There were many flashbacks in this film becuase it was used to indicate what happended back in the story for the people that doesn't know what happend before, it can also be used to indicate the characters origin in the film so where they came from or how they were introducted in the film.
An oral flashback was used to indicate what happend in the past but with only sound for example the scene where she looks at the green door she remembers what happend and she could hear the voices of people in pain at the moment in time.
 
 
Some of the camera work used was to show the characters talking between them for example the two shot used to show multiple characters talking to each other, this shot is also used to show emotions between the characters. 

 




Over the shoulder shot was used to show what the character was doing and it was also used to show to characters having a discussion. It is used to show the characters perspective from the shoulder of another character.





A shallow focus is used to focus on the main part of a scene for example the main characters from the extras in the movie. You emphasize one major key feature over the whole scene.

P1: Single camera technique

The main feature of a single-camera setup is that you use only one camera for the whole film or video. The director will use this setup because they will get more control over a shot. Single-camera technique is you film the scene of a person then you would cut to the other person and film them replying this would then be edited into the correct order. Using a single-camera it is much easier to film a person’s POV. A single-camera is used in commercials and mostly music video since you only need one camera. In a single camera setup you will not need all the actors at one point. You can move around and film from different angles so it will not be fixed at a point. Using a single camera setup you get more action shots for example close up, low tilt, high angle and many more.

A multiple-camera setup is going to be less expensive than a single-camera setup; the director has less control of the cameras. Multiple-camera setup you will need all the actors on set and filming at the same time. You can film parts differently at times once finished it can be edited together so if one part goes wrong you can re-film it but the process is long. Multiple cameras will not move they will be set at a particular point of the screen. Single camera provides you with more freedom with the cameras so you could move it around and capture all the shots and multiple camera setups only have a set position where you film a certain position. Single camera needs to film parts over again to get the different angles using multiple cameras you don’t need to re-film the parts to capture different shots.

An advantage is the director gets more control over the shot; in contrast, the use of a single camera shot cost more money than a multiple camera shot. A single camera shot does not need all actors on set it can be filmed in parts then edited together. A disadvantage could be the time that is needed to film a project could take longer because you are using one camera. You could only film one angle but if you want multiple then you would have to film the same scene twice or even more times. A disadvantage would be the time that is wasted in post production this will affect the savings you earns while shooting the actual production. A huge difference between single camera set-ups and multiple camera set-ups is the order that they’re shot in, for example multiple camera set-ups are filmed chronologically whereas single camera set-ups mean that the shots will be shot in the order of flexibility and will be put in order during editing.

You would use a multiple camera shot for live television because you are able to switch between cameras rather than using a single camera shot it would take longer to point the camera at the correct position while it would change instantly. The technical director gets to operate the cameras allowing less control for the director. On a show like ‘This Morning’ it will need multiple cameras because it switches between sets for example the cooking with Gino to the fashion with Amanda and this is operated by the technical director. Multiple cameras set up allow you to capture all the scenes without needing to re-film each scene you can also generate faster scenes.

Mostly TV dramas and comedy uses a single camera setup because you can film parts at different times these are the TV shows that use a single camera setup Scrubs, Eastenders, Ugly Betty, Merlin, Everybody Hates Chris and The office they use this so that it will save money and they do not have to necessarily film it in sequence so they can film different parts before editing it together.

You would need to move the camera all the time when topic changes for example you will need to switch the camera to the weather man while it is focused on the news reporter and only a multiple camera setup could manage the process rather than moving the cameras left and right to view the news. While using single camera you would not be able to cut to a part of the news next to the studio. While using multiple cameras the screen selection is captured so all you have to do is tell the camera director what camera and he will direct it to a certain choice.

Links Used:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single-camera_setup

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiple-camera_setup