Task 1:Analysing Conventions of TV programmes

 Stranger Things

Stranger things is on Netflix. An episode of stranger things is between 40-50 minutes. The production company that makes stranger things is called 21 Laps Entertainment. The genre is horror, drama and mystery similar to creatures. Most indoor scenes were filmed in a studio however many of the outdoor scenes were filmed on site in Atlanta. The cast includes Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven. She is a 16 year old British actor. Finn Wolfhard who plays Mike. He is a 17 year old Canadian actor. Noah Schnapp who plays Will. He is a 15 year old American-Canadian actor. Gaten Matarazzo who plays Dustin. He is an 18 year old American actor. Caleb McLaughlin who plays Lucas. He is an 18 year old American actor. Joe Keery who plays Steve. He is a 28 year old American actor. Natalia Dyer who plays Nancy. She is a 25 year old American actor. David Harbour who plays Hopper. He is a 45 year old American actor. Winona Ryder who plays Joyce. She is a 48 year old American actor. Charlie Heaton who plays Jonathan. He is a 26 year old British actor. Sadie Sink who plays max. She is an 18 year old American actor. The show is about a group of friends who like to play a board game called dungeons and dragons. One night on his way home one of the friends called will goes missing in mysterious circumstances and the others have to try and find him. Along the way they find a young girl called el(short for eleven) with a shaven head who has escaped from an experiment lab and now has telekinetic abilities.together this group of young friends have to fight off dark forces in order to save their friend. I would say that the gender representation isn’t stereotypical as eleven (the girl) is the strongest member of the group and usually is the main fighter. However there are some stereotypes involved such as the way some of the older women act however this is because it is set in the 80’s where gender roles were rather prominent.

CAMERWORK CONVENTIONS , EDITING TECHNIQUES AND USE OF SPECIAL EFFECTS 

They use different shot types such as close ups, long shots and extreme longshots. They also use editing techniques such as  eyeline matches, shot reverse shot structure, match on action and ellipsis. They use special effects to create the atmosphere of the upside down, the cgi used for the Demogorgons and the mind flayer.

6 sources of information to find out about conventions:

• Textual analysis/content analysis- us breaking it down ourselves. Eg.sherlock Holmes.-Advantage:Cheap. easier to understand. take your time. Disadvantage: might not be accurate. Time consuming.
• Interview a TV producer/ director Eg. Matt Duffer- Advantage:experts. more accurate. Disadvantage:Only one perspective. Hard to get hold of someone.
• Online tutorials- how to make guides- film producer- https://youtu.be/csdJmleTW0I - Advantage- cheap Easy to access. Disadvantage: might not be an expert so could be wrong.
• Textbook for media production- L3 CAMTECH DM official text book- advantage: written by the people who make to course. Disadvantage: goes out of date.
• BFI presentation/ speaker event- Director/ Producers/ Actors https://www2.bfi.org.uk/whats-on - Advantage- you can ask questions face to face. Disadvantage- travel pay for travel and ticket
• Work experience/ on the job briefs/ projects eg Rob Speranza SYFN line producer. advantage- first hand experience. Disadvantage- no real disadvantages but can be time consuming.