Soap Opera Genre –

Independent Textual Analysis

Name: Sarah HuttonCandidate Number:7493Center Name: St. Paul’s Catholic CollegeCenter Number: 64770

OCR Media Studies – A2 Level

Unit G324: Advanced Portfolio

Trailer 1 Eastenders (Christmas 2012)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aYLI5fXKAt8

Verbal Codes : Within the trailer there is hardly any verbal dialogue . The only dialogue heard other than the voice over is Kat pleading with what the audience would guess as being Alfie saying ‘Don’t give up on me, just don’t give up on me!’. This connotes to the audience that the ‘secrets’ themed trailer involves Kat and her secrets that are revealed over the Christmas period, this links in with John Berger’s theory of ‘men act women appear’ as Kat is now seen as a liar and has something to reveal, the trailer therefore is the binary opposite of the theory as this works against the female stereotype of being naïve and vulnerable, therefore this theory is challenged as the female character would need to act these emotions instead of solely appearing in the trailer. At the end of the trailer the non diegetic voiceover states ‘Eastenders thrilling Christmas’, which is persuasive to the audience and makes them want to watch the show as they are intrigued to know what makes this Eastenders Christmas so thrilling and after seeing the flashing words appear on the screen they want to know what secrets will be revealed to make this Christmas thrilling. The incidental music throughout the trailer helps to build tension and allows the audience to feel they need to watch the episodes throughout the Christmas season so that they know what has happened. Also the incidental music helps to establish ‘caregivers’ and ‘survivors’ (Maslow) as the audience ( young adults upwards ) will feel empathy for the characters within the trailer. Although the characters may be in the wrong due to the secret revealed, the target audience will still want make sure the characters they like will be okay as they feel slightly protective over them as they see a likenesses between themselves and the character, which is a appealing factor in the genre.

Non-Verbal Codes Within the trailer a varied use of lighting is used. The high key lighting could connote to the audience that the character is positive and that they might not be a liar so secrets will not be revealed. However, the low key lighting on various characters such as Kat connotes to the audience that she has a secret to hide and is therefore seen as a ‘villain’ (Propp). The setting within Eastenders is working class as seen through Albert Square, the main back drop for this trailer, for example the mid shot of Alfie walking towards something that is unknown allows the audience to see a market stall in the background. This connotes to the audience that the area in which Eastenders is shot is a working class area which conforms to the soap opera codes and conventions. This allows the audience who may be in the lower socio-economic grouping to feel they have a ‘personal relationship’ (Katz) with the characters on screen as they are living in the same conditions that some of the viewers are that are watching the show. The facial expressions of the characters change throughout the trailer. One character especially that has a varying facial expression is the character of Kat. Kats’ facial expressions change throughout the trailer, when she is talking to who is presumed to be Alfie she is seen pleading as looking very weak to the audience. Later on in the trailer when Kat is on the phone she is seen looking shocked and in dismay about what she has just heard. This could connote one of two things to the audience: one of which could be that she has just found out one of the secrets that has been exposed or someone has found out her secret and she is now scared about who may find out next. Another non-verbal code is the words that appear on the screen throughout the trailer. This allows the audience to see that Eastenders have focused on a part of their soap about lies, therefore giving enough information for the audience to want to watch the show but not too much that they don’t want to watch the show as they are aware of what is happening. All these non verbal codes help the trailer to fulfill it’s purpose of persuading the audience of the trailer to watch Eastenders due to the themes they are focusing on over the Christmas period.

Technical Codes : Within the trailer there is a range of camera shots and angles seen whilst skipping from different characters through fast paced cuts. The fast paced cuts allows the audience to see the characters involved in the drama within Eastenders. The close ups within the trailer of many of the characters faces allows the audience to form a ‘personal relationship’ (Katz) with the characters as they are able to see the reactions the characters have when caught up in the secret themed trailer. Also these close ups do not reveal to the audience how the characters are involved in the storyline of ‘secrets’, which leaves the audience to question whether these characters are the people who are hiding secrets or those who are about to find out about the secrets of their loved ones and those around them. At the start of the trailer the camera tracks Derek Branning running away from a man that does not look like a familiar character. This indicates to the audience that Dereks’ secrets have caught up with him and he is now having to run away for safety. This small clip makes the audience want to watch the show so that they can find out what Derek is running away from. There are two small significant close ups within the trailer, one being of a handful of money and the other being of a burning document. The audience understands from this that some of the secrets within Eastenders could be about money or a document that has substantial importance. There are a few shots within the trailer that are seen very quickly that could be considered long shots , these kinds of shots help to establish where Eastenders is set. From seeing these locations the audience of young adults and older are able to relate to the setting and the people in the show as it is a working class area as seen through these shots.These camera angles, shots and movements allows the trailer to fulfill its purpose of making people watch Eastenders to find out what the secrets entail.

Hollyoaks (Enjoy The Ride) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XO3VlauXYLA

Verbal Codes : Within the trailer there is hardly an verbal diegetic dialogue, the only time any of the characters voices can be heard is around 22 seconds into the trailer where the characters screams can be heard. This connotes to the audience that something will happen in the up coming episodes that will scare the characters leading the audience to want to watch the show so that they can find out what happens. A voice is heard during the non-diegetic voiceover at the end which states “Broken hearts, shattered lives”. This connotes to the audience that during this wedding day where everyone should be happy, lives will actually be destroyed. Also during the non-diegetic soundtrack over the top of the trailer the lyrics state this is ‘the last goodbye, I swear’. This connotes to the audience that this event featured in the trailer will end in tragedy and last goodbyes will be said .The sound effects at the start of the trailer sounds like an explosion and then the ticking of a clock is heard. The explosion sound effect at the start signifies to the audience that an explosion that is later seen in the trailer Furthermore just after the sound effect at the start a clock ticking is heard. This suggests to the audience that after this explosion time is ticking for certain characters within the trailer. All these verbal codes within the trailer help the show to attract an audience as the aspects seen in the trailer are not resolved and the audience will want to watch the show so that they can find out what happens to these characters, fulfilling the purpose of a trailer to draw the audience in to watch the show.

Non-Verbal Codes : Within the trailer there is a range of lighting. Towards the beginning of the trailer the lighting is quite high key and all looks to be happy. However, when the trailer gets to around 15 seconds the light in the background begins to fade and light is only seen on the characters on a black background: The explosion shortly follows. This connotes to the audience that when the explosion happens they will need to focus on the characters to see what will happen to them. The setting of the trailer looks to be in the reception hall after the wedding; this setting would normally have the connotations of a happy occasion after a wedding has taken place, however this quickly changes when the background turns black and the characters can only be seen shortly before the explosion. At the end of the trailer a female character (Jacqui) can be seen sitting on the floor alone in the destroyed setting. This scene of the trailer has many connotations such as she is alone (isolation) with no-one else around her, which could suggest to the audience that she is the only survivor of the explosion. After a tear falls from her eye it could also have the connotations that she has lost all hope or she has lost someone or a collection of people she cared deeply about. The audience are left in the dark to what she is actually crying about as in the trailer it is suggested to be one of many things. The facial expressions of the characters plays a key part in the trailer. Just after the explosion takes place Tony (Groom) whilst flung into the air sees Rhys and Cindy holding hands, his face is shock from the explosion but also the revelation that they are having a relationship is equally as shocking. Towards the beginning of the relationship the characters look happy and seem to be enjoying the reception, however moments later after the explosion they are all distressed and panicking. This connotes to the audience that no-one is safe and that none of them ever expected this was going to happen suggesting this was not a set up explosion by the characters within the scene. The costumes within the trailer are those that you would expect to see at a wedding, however Maddie is wearing a bright red dress, which could connote to the audience that she is dangerous or it could suggest that the red is a sign of blood and that Maddie will be one of the characters that will die. These effects within the trailer persuade the audience to want to watch the show as they want to find out what happens to the characters involved and the aftermath of the situation.

Technical Codes : The trailer begins with a close up of the champagne glass, which connotes to the audience that the characters are toasting the marriage of Tony and Cindy. The camera then zooms out so that a shot of the characters can be seen. The camera then does a series of slow jump cuts so that other characters can be seen within the trailer in a smaller group and their facial expressions can be seen. The camera then does a mid shot so that the audience are able to see Tony delivering his speech. This connotes to the audience that Tony is having a good time and is happy and wants to share this joy with his close friends. However, the camera then goes behind Tony’s back where the audience are able to see Cindy and Rhys holding hands. This simple close up of the hands implies to the audience that Cindy and Rhys are going behind Tony’s back and are together. A series of jump cuts is seen after the explosion capturing the reactions of all of the characters involved. This allows the audience to see that this will be a multi stranded narrative and they will see how this explosion effects many members of the Hollyoaks village. The camera then tracks many of the characters as they are forced in many different directions after the explosion. This tracking moment could help the audience to work out which of the characters are likely to survive over others. This is as some of the characters fall a lot further than others and their fall is a lot more dramatic than others and also it focuses on their fall more than others. Towards the end of the trailer a close up is seen on Jacqui’s red lipstick, which connotes to the audience many things, some of which are danger, anger, blood and passion. The camera shot is then of a close up of Jacqui’s face from the side and a tear drop is seen falling from her face. The camera then zooms out to see Jacqui alone and the destruction around her.

Evaluation of Textual Analysis – Compare and Contrast

Within the EastEnders trailer there are a lot of aspects that could be ‘repeated’ (Steve Neale) in my trailer. I think the way they use written words on the screen to state that secrets will be revealed is really good and effective as it’s clear for the audience to see but it doesn’t reveal too much information about what the secrets are exactly. This effect though makes the audience want to watch the show so that they can find out what these secrets are and the effect they have on the characters lives and how they will deal with these. Another effect that the trailer uses that could be ‘exploited’ (Abercrombie – 1995) is how the trailers show many different storylines that all focus around the theme of secrets. The camera does several jump cuts from character to character which yet again reinforces the multi stranded narrative aspect of the genre as the audience are in the dark about some of the secrets that are going to be revealed with the Christmas part of the show that year. This also allows the audience to be ‘caregivers’ and ‘survivors’ (Maslow) as they want their favourite characters to be alright even if they do have secrets. I also think another part of the trailer that could be ‘repeated’ would be the music in the background or something like it. I think this would be a good effect as it builds tension within the trailer and makes the audience drawn in to watch the trailer and possibly the show.

HOLLYOAKSI think Hollyoaks has a really strong, high production value trailer that has a lot of good quality that I would like to have when I make my trailer. However, some of them are down to a high production budget that we do not have. However, there are many simple things within that trailer that could be ‘repeated’ (Steve Neale) in my own soap opera trailer. When Tony was making his speech the camera switches to behind his back where Cindy and Rhys were holding hands. I think this is a really good idea that could be repeated in my trailer as it tells the audience some information on a potential affair behind Tony’s back, however the audience are unaware of how long this has been going on and if anyone else at the wedding knows of this situation therefore this actions doesn’t reveal too much. The audience are made aware that they are having an affair behind Tony’s back and by seeing his back with their hands it acts as a ‘sign’ (De Saussure) for the audience to presume what is happening. Other aspects of the trailer that I think could be repeated in my trailer would be the shot types that were used. I like how there any many close ups within the trailer of different characters, I think that as my trailer is a new soap opera this helps to show that the soap opera genre will have many different stereotypes the villainous male and female, older people being fragile and gentle, however within the trailer these stereotypes are challenged . This also allows the audience to build a ‘personal relationship’ (Katz) with the characters as they are able to see what is happening to them and how it effects them. Finally, another part of the trailer that could be repeated in my trailer would be the final shot of the camera drawing away from Jacqui. I really think this shot is effective as when the camera is drawing away from Jacqui looks as though she is looking into the camera almost asking for help. I think this shot is effective and works really well as ‘caregivers’ and ‘survivors’ (Maslow) would want to look after and want her to be okay. This also allow the audience to develop a more ‘personal relationship’ (Katz) with Jacqui as they see her as vulnerable and alone and people are able to relate to this.