Analysis of an Episode of Emmerdale and Evaluation of Analysis of episodes

My group felt that the research we group did into the soap opera field was very effective as we were able to clearly understand how the producers of the soaps used conventional elements in order to attract their specific traget audience and keep them watching through a constant sense of realism. This is an effective technique which we incorporated into our own product as it allows the audience to feel part of the soap and make connections between most of the characters.
-Some of the conventions that we included in our product which we used, challenged and developed in our product were: narrative enigmas, cliffhangers, different character types, and relationship problems.

When analysing Emmerdale I noticed a number of codes and conventions that the producers used to create a realistic effect on the audience, these were:

- "the school run" families taking their children to school, we also see residents leaving their houses rushing to get to work (daily commuters)a realistic morning scene, this can be easily related to therefore attracting a wider target audience.

-We see business men in suits, suggesting wealth/upper class this is a contrast to the school children we see going to public school, representing the working class. We see all groups in society race, age, gender and the main one being communicated social class.

-We get a sense of community, appealing to a family audience

-We hear diagetic music (both characters and audience can hear) PussyCat Dolls 'Hush Hush' is playing in the background the audience get the impression the song lyrics are filling in the gaps of what is not being said between the characters. This creates tension in the atmosphere keeping the audience on the edge of their seat wanting to watch more. This also hints at future storylines to come.

- Outside lighting is bright, could represent that things are going well (pathetic fallacy)

-We see the upper class represented through mise-en-scene of ornate furniture, big house, modern/classic decor. However the darkness of the house could suggest tension/trouble in the family.

-We are shown different relationships both good and bad. This is very effective and realistic as we are not false shown that all relationships are perfect.

-Binary composition, the contrast between higher and lower class characters at work. We are then shown(in contrast to previous family) a typical working-class work place at a mechanics. Again we hear the effective use of music, as we can hear Lilly Allen '22' in the background, this effective use of music could be reflecting the characters situation.

- However we also see a negative stereotype as we are shown the majority of the residents who are working-class all working in a factory, which takes away from the realism of the soap.

-Because the soap is set in the countryside we are shown a variation of different green landscapes, this creates a nature theme emphasizing a cosy family atmosphere as opposed to the busy city roads. There is also regional accents used to create a realistic location and culture within the soap.

Evaluation:

Overall from my research of soap episodes i have come to understand that the producers key target in creating an effective episode stems from their representation of creating a sense of realism through out the soap. From my research into the soap episodes i have clearly understood that producers create a sense of realism through a number of techniques codes and conventions, for example they include

• Daily routines that are uncounted in every day life, such as 'the school run'


• realistic representation of the different classes within society (e.g. high/low classes, ethnicity, race, age..)


• mise-en-scene ( lighting, sound, decor..)


• Binary composition of characters


• negative and positive stereotypes


• landscapes

Written by Natalie Nicolaides