TV DRAMA

Example of TV Drama

Feedback from OC questionnaire...

the questionnaire was carried out by doing interviews in my media class and this is some of the response that i received...

1) Do you watch the OC on tv when its broadcasted? on the internet? dvd boxset?
2) Does it make much of a difference when you watch them either on tv, boxset or internet?
3) Do you feel that the OC portray problems that the average teenager experiences realistically? If yes, how? If no, why?
4) Do you enjoy the OC?
5) Can you name another tv drama that follows the same conventions as the OC?

Rachel...

1) TV broadcasted.
2) No, not really, its personal choice.
3) No. its exaggerated and i don't think all those problems happen though it maybe sometimes.
4) I enjoy it, its funny.
5) Hollyoaks.

Matt...
1) T.V
2) it's earlier on the internet.
3) No
4) No
5) Home and Away

Axelle...
1) TV boxset, internet.
2) Can watch the box sets and on the internet whenever i want.
3) yes, but can over dramatize the issues and therefore downplays its significance.
4) LOVE IT!
5) one tree hill, skins, smallville, shameless

Sean...
1) Neither
2) -
3) -
4) No
5) No

Sabil...
1) on E4 (TV)
2) -
3) No
4) Yes
5) One Tree Hill

Lost

Hi my critical research project is on lost and why it's such a international media success.

The primary research that I've done already is textual analysis, I've watched every episode of Lost to date. And I've analsised the general plot of the show e.g. almost always ends with a cliff hanger. Interesting connections to each main characters past, and the future in the case of the last episode of season three, how the characters are connected but don't know it.
I'm also doing short interviews asking watchers of Lost three questions.

Secondary research that I've studied is mostly from wikipedia as it gives quite a bit of info into what went on in ABC as Lost was created how much money has been pumped into the show the risks that were taken people were fired because of those risks e.g. the head of ABC was fired (If only they knew the success it would be). The problems that ABC have encountered for instance the writers guild strike over pay wages. Forums have also been good.

Questionnaire on Lost

Hello I'm doing my research on ABC's TV drama Lost and why it's been such a international media success.

This should be answered by fans of the hit Tv drama Lost.

Why do you watch lost?
Is it because of it's varied genres like mystery, adventure or drama or other reasons the acting, adverts etc

How did you watch lost? E.g. on channel 4, the internet, downloaded from the internet
And why did you watch it this way?

If you could post your answers back that would be great.
Thanks

Questionnaire on the OC...

I posted a questionnaire about the OC on myspace and channel 4's OC fansite and i also interviewed people in my media class...these are the questions that I asked...

Hello everybody! I'm doing a media project based around the OC and i was wondering if you can answer a few of my questions to help my research...thank you!

1) Do you watch the OC on tv when its broadcasted? on the internet? dvd boxset?
2) Does it make much of a difference when you watch them either on tv, boxset or internet?
3) Do you feel that the OC portray problems that the average teenager experiences realistically? If yes, how? If no, why?
4) Do you enjoy the OC?
5) Can you name another tv drama that follows the same conventions as the OC?

Thank you for taking your time to answer this questionnaire!


And this is some of the feedback I received...

Louise via Myspace...
1) dvd boxset. plus tv repeats sometimes.
2) dvd you can watch anytime? :S
3) relationship stuff yeah kind of as teenagers mostly experience simular things.
but we dont live in such a materialistic society as them so then kind of not.
4) yesss :)
5) one tree hill? laguna beach?

Farhana

OC's Poster textual analysis...

OC poster found on google images search engine...



Season 4 Chrismukkah Promo of the OC found on youtube.com posted by parks586.

Farhana

Internet Sources On the OC...

One of the most useful sources through using internet sources is Youtube.com because it enables me to view almost any episode of the OC from any series that i choose, which is helpful for viewers who want to catch up on any missed episodes or eager fans who want to get ahead of he story lines and watch future episodes.



That was the first ever episode of the OC found on youtube posted by VictorYi.

Another reason as to why youtube is an essential part of my research is that i came across a vital piece of information in which Charlie Brooker explains or rather RANTS about tv dramas such as the OC making individual viewers feel inadequate about their own lives. This was extremely useful as it will help me to answer my question and be one step closer to understanding why such programmes have such an impact...



MySpace.com is also another useful site as they contain pages and pages of fansites dedicated to the OC. Myspace allows fans from across the world to join together on a particular fansite to share views and post blogs discussing the show and its characters. I will be able to look at a few of these fansites and compare them in its differences to see how the creators of that page try to get as many views and subscriptions to their pages by posting pictures of all the casts, divulging information about the celebrities or the show etc...



This is a printscreen image of one of the OC's fansites on myspace...it consists of cast pictures, OC polls, quizzes to test OC fans on their knowledge about the show and links to individual cast myspaces such as Seth Cohen's myspace.

Using the Google search engine i found the UK official OC site on channel four...consisting of biographies of the cast, forums, quizzes, galleries etc. All the necessary information to satisfy OC fans around the UK..



Farhana

OC Question...

I have chosen to focus my research onto TV Drama and the media..I have chosen The OC as my TV Drama as I believe its easier to focus on a specific TV drama than to focus on many. In doing so i'm more able be detailed in answering my question in relation to my topic. In researching the OC, i can apply to that particular TV drama instead of having to apply to several others. My question in a roundabout way is, "How is the US Hit Tv Drama, the OC, such a popular tv drama in its appeal to the youths in the UK and how does it relate to the young generation?" By researching thoroughly, i hope to answer this question and find out why tv dramas such as the OC have such a strong appeal.

Farhana

A Bit About The OC...

creator: Josh Schwartz (writer / producer)

OC - a troubled youth becomes embroiled in the lives of a close-knit group of wealthy, upper class neighbourhood of Newport Beach.

Josh Schwartz also created...
"Gossip Girl" - privileged teenagers attend an elite private school in New York City.
"Chuck" - 20 something year old geek inadvertently downloads critical government secrets into his brain, his former college friend turned CIA, recruits him as a secret agent, all while keeping him out of his evil hands.

Release Date of The OC:
UK: 7th March 2004
USA: 5th August 2003

Channel 4 airs The OC

Production Company:
-Wonderlan Sound and Vision (US) also a production company of "Chuck", "Supernatural", "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle"
-Warner Bros. Television (US) also production company of "NipTuck", "Veronica Mars", "Joey" etc
-College Hill Pictures Inc (US) also production company of "Chuck", "Gossip"

Awards...
14 wins and 17 nominations...
2005 - Logie Awards - Most Popular Overseas Programme.
2006 - Prism Awards - Performance in a drama series episode.
- Teen Choice Awards - Choice actor (Brody), choice actress (Barton & Bilson), choice drama.
2005 - Teen Choice Awards - Choice actor (Brody), choice actress (Bilson), chemistry between actor/ess (Brody & Bilson), choice tv show.
2004 - Teen Choice Awards - Breakout T.V Show, breakout tv star (female - Barton), tv actor (Brody), choice tv show.

Official site for the OC...
UK: channel4.com/entertainment/tv/microsites/o/the_oc/
USA: www.fox.com/oc/

Farhana

The OC's appeal...

Source Citation:Wilson, Benji. "When West Coast gloss meets East Coast irony; As the second series of The OC begins on Channel 4, Benji Wilson looks at the enormous success and unusual appeal of this clever and deceptively sophisticated show which has even spawned its own language." Daily Telegraph (London, England) (Jan 29, 2005): NA. InfoTrac Full Text Newspapers Database. Gale. Long Road VI Form College. 13 Dec. 2007
.






When travel agents want to sell you California, it's the opening credits of The OC they hope you'll imagine. In the Orange County, where the hit TV series is set, the sea caresses the sand, the sunsets are always a deep orange, and so are most of the multi-millionaire residents. The show populates this Shangri-La with a cast of cover-girls and buffed boys, driving gleaming sports utility vehicles and sleeping together. Their schools resemble theme parks and extensive orthodontistry appears to be just part of growing up.

In other words, at first glance The OC looks exactly like the kind of escapist teen fantasy that sustained Melrose Place or Beverly Hills 90210 through several hundred episodes, and indeed, in abstract, it's hard to see why it should be treated any differently from previous rich-kid dramas. The indie-band intro of "Cal-a-fawn-yahh, here we cahhmm!" suggests another retelling of the West Coast fairytale that's been a topos of American broadcasting since the advent of colour TV.

In fact, The OC is cleverer than that. The reason it has been such an astounding success on both sides of the Atlantic is that it takes the West Coast idyll and injects it with a dose of East Coast irony.

Most of this emanates from the series' central family, the Cohens of Newport Beach. Kirsten Cohen (Kelly Rowan) may be a real-estate heiress with a red-carpet wardrobe, but, unlike most of her neighbours, she is a loving mother, selfless and grounded. Kirsten is married to Sandy (Peter Gallagher), a likeable Jewish lawyer from The Bronx with a conscience almost as big as his Neanderthal eyebrows. Sandy is a big fan of Newport's surf; less so of its preening denizens. "Sandy is the kind of dad I'd like to be one day," says the series' creator, Josh Schwartz.

Schwartz may, if he's lucky, grow up to be like Sandy, but right now at 28 he is much more like Sandy's son Seth, The OC's resident wit. Seth's monotone patter, a torrent of buzzwords and one-liners, is funny in itself but also offers an ironic gloss on what's going on around him. It's Seth's sardonic musings and deft barbs that make all the biceps, bikinis and neck-wrenching plot-twists palatable. He's like having an acerbic critic of the show, on the show.

The very existence of Seth represents Schwartz - also an anxious Barmitzvah boy with a mop of black hair and an array of tight polo shirts - getting his own back on the jocks he met in his time studying film at the University of Southern California.

"You do in your art what you cannot do in your life," he says, which may be why in The OC the geek gets all the girls. Fuelled by Seth's ironic take on all he sees around him, The OC is able to have its cake and eat it - superficial Californian consumption gets a good ribbing, while at the same time viewers get to enjoy the visual delights of superficial Californian consumption.

If Seth is the show's brain and Sandy its heart, then Ryan is its backbone. Ryan (Benjamin McKenzie) is a ne'er do well who promptly started to do well when he was taken under the Cohen family's gilded wing by a benevolent Sandy. Initially rejected by the local jocks on account of his unfamiliarity with water polo and a proclivity for stealing their girlfriends, he let his fists do the smooth-talking while becoming best of friends with that other archetypal outsider, Seth. When The OC needs a new plotline, it invariably turns to Ryan, who brings with him miscreant friends from his former existence, and the kind of brooding stare that can snare a prom queen in seconds. New romance and new characters can come in handy when a dialogue-driven drama winds up in a storyline cul-de-sac.

The OC began life on UK screens in a cosy early slot on a Sunday evening, aimed at an aspirational teen audience who were supposed to like the clothes, the faces and the indie soundtrack. It soon became apparent, however, that the show also appealed to a much older audience, and new episodes are now shown first on Channel 4's edgier satellite sibling E4, in a 9pm midweek berth.

The key reason for the show's broader appeal is perhaps that beyond the cliffhangers and the quips there is a portrayal of interfamilial relations that is singularly modern. Seth shares everything with his parents in regular exchanges that are wryly humorous yet warmly sincere. Kirsten and Sandy's relationship, set in sharp relief by the marital fireworks all around them, is tender and believable. This has all translated into healthy ratings - a programme watched and liked by an audience stretched across two, sometimes three generations. If kids are going to behave like Marissa (drink problem), Ryan (ultra-aggressive tendencies) or Seth's current squeeze Summer (sex addict and snob) then their parents will at least want them to talk about it like the Cohens do.

A further adult edge is added by The OC's playful irreverence. After Janet Jackson's Superbowl peepshow, the prevailing wind in American TV is very much against network shows taking risks, and The OC is never going to be anything more than stealth satire (especially as President Bush's daughters are both fans). But it still manages to be a little naughty. When Sandy asks one of Seth's many girlfriends why she is not with her parents on Thanksgiving Day, he says, "What's the deal? Your parents don't believe in celebrating the genocide of the American Indians?"

Several other sacred cows get similar treatment, and Jewishness is a constant source of humour. The show is even big enough to poke fun at itself - Marissa and Summer are both glued to a fictional weekly soap called The Valley, which is an obvious cipher for another teen drama set in a well-known Californian locale.

The presence of a spoof OC within The OC is a cute reminder that although this is an intelligent teen drama, it's still a teen drama. The second series will see Marissa plunge into a drunken abyss in outrage at her vampish mother's manipulations, Ryan finds a new squeeze, and Sandy and Kirsten facing financial ruin.

Viewers who find pot-boilers, plaintive indie rock and, like, American teen-chat intrinsically repellent should not think that here lies their passport out of BBC4. But, after the success of Dawson's Creek, and now riding high with The OC, Channel 4 seems to be convinced that savvy, soapy teen drama is the way to bridge the generation gap. Point Pleasant, a sort of Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Dawson's Creek, has just begun on E4 in a post-watershed slot and Smallville, the travails of an adolescent Clark Kent, has also been re-scheduled to ensnare the thirtysomethings. It would appear that the televisual equivalent of the bimbo with brains is coming to seduce us all.



Farhana

OC's Orange Appeal...

Source Citation:"HOLIDAYS: ORANGE APPEAL; CaliforniaOs beautiful people lead their glamorous lives there. John Honeywell finds out how to share the OC dream." Sunday Mirror (London, England) (May 29, 2005): 18. InfoTrac Full Text Newspapers Database. Gale. Long Road VI Form College. 13 Dec. 2007
.

Farhana






THE futureOs bright, the futureOs Orange I as someone once said. Millions of fans tune into The OC on Channel 4 each week to follow the incredibly glamorous lives of Marissa and Summer, Seth and Ryan, Sandy and Kirsten.

These beautiful people live in multi-million-dollar ocean-front mansions, eat and drink in ritzy restaurants and beautiful bars, and when they are not disentangling themselves from complicated personal relationships they are engaging in retail therapy at dinky boutiques and super-sized shopping malls.

It might look too good to be true. But Orange County does really exist I filling the California coast between Los Angeles and San Diego. And Newport Beach, which is the main location, is just as enticing in real life as it is on the small screen.

WhatOs more, whether itOs thanks to the sun, the surf, or the scenery IOm not sure, but there are plenty of real people in the real OC just as rich and glamorous as their fictional television counterparts.

While the region may have once been looked down on by its better-known neighbours, it has some of the best of the California coastline and now boasts property values as high as any in the US.

Famous residents from the past include John Wayne I they named the local airport in his honour I Richard Nixon, whose birthplace is now marked by a library of his archives, and of course Mickey Mouse, whose Disneyland theme park celebrates its 50th birthday this year.

Follow our guide to see how you can you live the OC dream[ETH]

WHERE ITOS AT

NEWPORT Beach (www.newportbeach-cvb.com) is less than an hourOs drive south of LA International Airport, down the 405 Freeway. If you canOt find Phantom Planet, whose song California is The OC theme tune, put local pop heroes the Righteous Brothers or Gwen Stefani on the stereo to get in the mood.

As you reach the harbour, which provides moorings for more than 10,000 yachts, glance over your shoulder to catch a glimpse of The Arches, favourite restaurant in The OC, and just as popular among real diners today. In the past it attracted Gary Cooper, Tyrone Power, Humphrey Bogart, Shirley Temple, and of course, John Wayne.

A little further down Newport Boulevard, and just before Newport Pier, you reach The Crab Cooker I the Seafood Shack of the TV series. At the pier itself is a survivor from a previous era, a market where fishermen sell their catch each morning.

Head down the Balboa peninsula, past some of those unaffordable ocean- front homes, to the Fun Zone, a small entertainment park next to the Balboa Pavilion (where the Bette Midler film Beaches was shot). The ferris wheel will never rival the London Eye, but it was where The OCOs Ryan and Marissa first kissed. From the Pavilion you can take a boat cruise round the harbour, or catch a high-speed ferry to Catalina Island.

If the budget doesnOt stretch to a private yacht charter, then why not hire an electrically-powered Duffy Boat (they actually use the same motors as golf carts) for a self-guided tour of the harbour I about pounds 25 an hour. You wonOt see SethOs yacht, the Summer Breeze, which was moored here in the series, but keep an eye out for sea lions, dolphins, and herons.

Back at Balboa Pier, the real-life RubyOs is televisionOs Pier Diner. Nearby you can rent a bike for pounds 5 an hour and get some healthy fresh air riding the ocean-front path along the wide, flat beach back up to Newport Pier, or south to The Wedge, a stretch of beach next to the harbour jetty which is world-famous for its cross-currents, breakers, and body-surfing.

Return to Pacific Coast Highway 101 to get to Fashion Island for a shopping fix. This is the mall where Marissa took Ryan shopping and told him OI like it here. Everything is so perfect. You walk around feeling like all your problems can be solved by the right kind of nail polish or a new pair of shoes.O

There are more than 200 stores I from department giants like BloomingdaleOs, MacyOs and Nieman Marcus to surfwear boutiques, galleries and specialty stores I plus 40 restaurants and two cinema complexes. Round the corner at the Newport Beach VisitorsO Bureau, The OC cast have left their handprints in the cement.

ELSEWHERE IN ORANGE COUNTY

WHEN The OCOs Sandy felt really guilty at the way heOd been treating his long-suffering wife Kirsten, he promised her a night at The Montage Resort in Laguna Beach, a hotel and spa offering almost unimaginable luxury.

Built on a spectacular 30-acre cliff-top site which was a caravan park until three years ago, the hotel has 262 rooms which all have views of the Pacific. Reception desk staff personally escort every guest to their room; when the bellhop arrives with the luggage he brings a half-bottle of champagne; when your car is returned from the valet parking, it has been re-stocked with fresh, chilled water bottles I the attention to detail is impressive.

Its two restaurants, The Loft in the main building, and The Studio in a separate building on the cliff edge, vie with each other to provide the best gourmet meals available.

The Studio wins on both food and setting. Dinner there can be an experience if you ignore the main menu and allow executive chef James Boyce to present his special tasting menu. The morsels which made up our nine courses were simply outstanding, from the opening lobster and truffle custard, via scallops, halibut, foie gras, and a trio of goat cheeses to the final chocolate fondue. Each was accompanied by a different wine, introduced by sommelier Wayne Marshall.

At pounds 100 a head, thatOs a treat that even The OCOs big spenders like real estate developer Caleb Nichol could not afford every week, but it makes for a very special evening. Mere mortals on a budget to meet might save by snacking at Johnny RocketOs down by the main beach, where a cheeseburger, fries and a cherry Coke would set you back about a fiver.

Spa Montage has just been named the best in the whole of the US, the first to receive a five-star rating in the prestigious Mobil Travel Awards. The luxury and personal service all come at a price I rooms start at pounds 260 a night and suites can cost up to pounds 1,500 I not that the denizens of The OC would need to worry about that.

The town of Laguna Beach grew up as an artistsO colony Ixits streets are full of chic galleries, its Playhouse is the oldest theatre company in California, and every year in July and August it stages the Pageant of the Masters, when local residents dress up to recreate famous paintings. If that sounds a bit twee for your tastes, then head north instead, to Huntington Beach, the original Otwo girls for every boyO Surf City immortalised in the Jan and Dean song.

Here there are eight-and-a-half miles of some of CaliforniaOs broadest beaches, and no matter when you go in daylight, youOll find a bunch of wet-suited enthusiasts and their surfboards. Just across from the 2,000ft pier is surfingOs hall of fame (like Hollywood Boulevard but with palm prints instead of stars) and up Main Street I round the corner from the Sugar Shack cafe I is the International Surfing Museum.

Apart from surfing, the beaches provide a venue for two equally popular pastimes. There are hundreds of volleyball courts, each free and in almost constant use, whether by a bunch of friends playing for fun or for tournaments where the action gets serious. And there are 600 Ofire ringsO dotted along the coast, also free. They are much in demand on summer weekends when locals come equipped with firewood for their barbecues.

After grilling the sausages and ribs, what better way to round off the day than with another local delicacy I SOmores. Toasted marshmallows are sandwiched between Hershey chocolate bars and Graham crackers for this delicious treat I so good, youOll want sOmore!

For a hotel with access to the beach, youOd be hard pushed to beat the Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach Resort & Spa, where a standard room costs from pounds 120 a night and a suite from pounds 240 (rates are per room, not per person). The newly-built resort fills two blocks, has its own footbridge access to the sand, and offers luxuriously relaxing body treatments and massages in its Pacific Waters Spa.

FURTHER AFIELD

THEME park KnottOs Berry Farm at Buena Park has been going even longer than Disneyland. Both are about 30 minutes from Newport Beach. On the way, make time to visit South Coast Plaza I the biggest-grossing mall in the US, pulling in $1.3billion of sales each year.

Like Bond Street, Sloane Street and Bluewater rolled into one, itOs another favourite of The OC crowd I think of a designer label, and itOs there. TheyOve even got a bridge designed by Kathryn Gustafson, who gave us the Princess Diana fountain in Hyde Park, and 35 restaurants from French bistro style at Troquet to fast-food outlets such as McDonaldOs and Del Taco.

San Diego, with its world-famous zoo and Seaworld, is 90 minutes away, and you can get to Universal Studios Hollywood in about an hour.

THE OC TOUR

THE OC Experience is a seven-hour coach tour from Anaheim to Newport Beach, taking in all the sights from the series, and including a 45-minute harbour tour and allowing for three hours shopping at Fashion Island. Adults pounds 24, children pounds 20. Details from Coach USA at 001 (714)

978-8855.

GETTING THERE

FOR more information go to www.visit california.com or www.anaheimoc.org or call 001-888-598-3200 (international direct dial rates).

AMERICAN Airlines flies direct to Los Angeles from London twice a day. Return fares start from pounds 494.30 including tax. Go to www.americanair lines.co.uk or call 08457 789 789.

HERTZ offers great pre-paid OWorld on WheelsO all-inclusive leisure rates which start at pounds 109.91 for a seven-day rental in LA. Book online at www.hertz.co.uk, or 0870 599 6699.

Jake is gangster

at first i was going to do some research based on the TV Drama Desperate Housewives, but after some consideration i have decided to focus on TV drama in general and have come up with the question "is there such thing as a tv drama fan?". this gives me the option to bring together a range of different dramas, instead of focusing on one, in which case it may be harder to find the information that i want. seeing as i watch a few tv dramas i think it may be a relevant subject to use.

Heroes: Focus Group!!!

Comic book aspect interests people, people aspire to be heroes themselves flying etc. (linking to their fantasies), its different from other shows. Good acting too. Keeps you interested. Cliffahngers every episode keep you on the edge of your seat. Intertwining storyline is interesting and its good how you see all the characters slowly coming together for the finale of Season 1

Males have better powers, men dominate the show, the women in the show are generally attractive.

Sylar is a favourable chracter for his 'bastard like qualities' and peter petreli because of 'his hardcore powers. and claire too "she's fine"

Sylar is appealing because he aspires to be a hero, just like the viewers. He embiggens the average man.

The audience for the show is not equal, more men watch it than women, men are attracted to the Females of the show and the sci-fi action whereas women are attracted to the show because of the drama. The unblabance in the audience could be due to the point that more sci-fi is more prominent in the programme than what there is drama.

DUB-PLATE DRAMA

What happens next? You decide, as Channel 4 launches TV's first interactive drama
· Viewers will shape story in six episodes
· Star cast includes Ms Dynamite and Shystie

Owen Gibson, media correspondent
The Guardian,
Monday September 26 2005
Television audiences have grown used to expelling Big Brothe contestants, forcing minor celebrities to eat jungle insects, and crushin the dreams of tuneless pop hopefuls. A new Channel 4 drama will take th trend to its logical conclusion, offering viewers the chance to shape an entir storyline by voting on the direction it should take and allowing them to play go with the fate of its central characters

A host of British urban music stars have been cast in the gritty six-part series which hopes to encourage its predominantly young target audience to engage with issues, including guns and drugs.

The Mercury music prize-winning singer Ms Dynamite and many of the burgeoning new wave of British grime and rap artists, including Shystie, Rodney P and So Solid Crew, all appear in Dubplate Drama, which is due to air in November.

In an effort to reflect rapidly changing media habits, the interactive series will also air on the digital channels MTV Base and E4, and will be made available to watch on Sony's new PSP device and in a cut-down version on the mobile phone network 3. The ambitiousproject, believed to be a world first, will be watched with interest by other broadcasters who for several years have been considering how to make a viewer-led drama that retains a strong sense of scripted storytelling and takes advantage of innovations in mobile phone and interactive TV technology.

Last month, in a more limited application of the idea, BBC1 screened an amalgamated edition of the hospital dramas Casualty and Holby City in which viewers were given the chance to vote on which of two characters should be saved.

As ratings decline on traditional channels, broadcasters are looking for better ways to engage viewers and promote loyalty among fickle audiences. Younger people in particular no longer seem so keen on being passive viewers.

Each episode of Dubplate Drama will end with a dilemma for the central character, Dionne, played by the critically lauded female MC Shystie. Viewers will be invited to text in their decision, with their choice influencing the action in the next episode.

Sam Conniff, the co-founder of Livity, the youth marketing agency that helped put the project together, said: "Groups of teenagers will gossip for hours about their favourite MC but not [about] pressing social issues. That's the challenge."

The series is set in the world of south London tower blocks, MC battles and rival pirate radio stations, from which the grime scene, characterised by its skeletal beats and quickfire rapping in a defiantly British accent, sprang. Its 25-year-old director, Luke Hyams, said the music was hugely popular, but because of its DIY ethos - with fans listening to pirate radio, swapping mix tapes and downloading songs from the internet - it made little impact on the mainstream.

Shystie said the motivation to make the series sprang from the paucity of television programmes reflecting black British youth culture. "We decided it would be great if we could put together a TV show dealing with our culture that kids can relate to," she said.

The series, in which Dionne also has to battle the dismissive attitude of her rival male MCs, attempts to provide a counterbalance to the idea that success in the genre is inextricably linked to guns and crime. "It's really positive, it's about showing that you don't need to get involved in the guns side of things," Shystie said.

"Black music and black culture is always shown as negative, we want to give it a positive twis

DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES GANG

So far we have contacted channel 4 via email and have a phone number for future reference. We have also produced a questionnaire to send out. browsed message boards and forums. Found facts via search engines.

We are yet to analyze text and research books and create an interview with hopefully a member of channel 4.

desperaste housewives

we have used several method Research methods used:

primary methods:
-Textual analysis-through youtube
-have written questionnaire but need to find group to ask
-emailed channel 4 to ask them to help us with info-they emailed back giving us a contact number
-we have browsed messageboards but we need to set up a profile to leave a message on there:
www.ukmix.org

secondary methods:
-search engines
www.google.com
-websites
desperate housewives forum
youtube
-magazine article

Skins.

How many research methods?

Primary

Textual analysis - I have watched the whole of the first series of skins and am waiting for the next coming in feb 2008!!
Message boards - I have signed up to a skins message board and am added on the skins community on myspace.

Secondary

I have looked at books based on TV Dramas in the library.
I have looked at many skins websites, though it's not as popular as big american shows like 'heroes'
Search engines have helped me find all relevant websites.
In this case wikipedia was not very helpful and has very limited information.

Which has been useful?
I think that being in the skins community has been helpful as I get regular emails updating me on what is happening and how the new series of skins is coming along. The tv dramas book did also help me a little bit but is not relevant to skins.

Which other methods will i use?
I'm in the proccess of writing a questionaire and will interview teenagers on skins.
I also need to find something in newspapers about it and will post questions in a forum to see what their responses are.

Heroes! Primary Research methods

Research Methods Undertaken:

Primary Research;
1) Textual Analysis - We have all studied all of series 1 of 'Heroes', through BBC2 & Sci-fi Channel, we have also seen it online and DVD.
2) We have sent out an email to BBC regarding Heroes, its success and why BBC chose to Air it.
3) We have also approached a Focus Group from our age group who have all seen Heroes, these people have given their views on the success of Heroes.
4) We are also in the process of creating questionnaires to go out about Heroes and it's success

Ohhhhh hospital

The most useful source i have found has come from the method of internet research.

Wikipedia.org told me starting dates, number of episodes/seasons, cast members, cameo appearances and ratings.
I checked the where the ratings came from for authenticity and they came from reliable sources; Hollywood reporter, E!online, USA today and Geocities online. These however are the American ratings so I am going to look for UK ratings on BARB.

YouTube offered interesting comments in the comments section, however the video clips weren't full and were mostly fan videos.

I am currently looking for ER fan message boards to question fans on.

this is another myspace page that fans have made.

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=10898640

This is hollyoaks myspace page theres loads of info bout where they film etc and there links to the characters myspace pages .

www.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=111709842

"sometimes this job can make us a little crazy"

CSI: haha

i am researching into what influence crime tv dramas like csi have on peoples opinions of crime.

i have used secondary forms of research including:
BOOKS on crime drama which were useful in showing the reach of such crime dramas. they also showed how close to real life these fictional crime dramas are, which is significant in changing peoples opinions and knowledge of crime in real life.
'Criminal visions: media representaions of crime and justice.'
and 'Media, crime and criminal justice: images and realities.' have been useful.
WIKIPEDIA was also useful because it gave me good information with references from either books or other site that made the information valid and useful. it gave me insight into how jurors expect more physical forensic evidence because of tv dramas such as csi.
FAN SITES and FORUMS also is useful and i will use this more because it gives me good insight into how csi and crime dramas and csi can affect it's fans.

Primary forms of research that have been and will be useful are an
INTERVIEW with someone who works in the area of policing or investigating crime who can tell me if there has been a difference in the publics mindset of crime and it's investigation and if it's due to crime dramas such as csi.
i will also carry out a QUESTIONNAIRE on as many people as possible.
it is very difficult to find full episodes of csi online. but i have done ALOT of TEXTUAL ANALYSIS which has been useful to see how the contenet could change people's expectations of what is used to prosecute.

Looking through Youtube, i managed to find many episodes of Casulaty, and also behind the scenes footage, including documentaries on the making of Casualty, but also how some stunts are produced.
an episode of casualty found at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xpIGD1WJ0wg



producing a Casualty stunt found at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7rs3cPjKuM



a documentary on Casualty stars found at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUT30WAWP7Y




I found youtube.com very useful in finding back episodes of Casualty, more useful than ones of a DVD box set, or on television, as on youtube, each video allows me to see the ratings people have given the episodes, how many people have wacthed it, but also, the message boards attached to each video allow me to see people's opinions, and what they have been discussing or debating about the episode.

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The youtube pages also have a section next to each video, or Casualty episode, with other videos or episodes which relate to the show, such as other Casualty episodes, or episodes of Holby City, or documentaries on the TV Show.


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http://www.quahog5news.com/

This is the website for family guy and i have used it for much of my general overview of tv drama. It include lots of articles clips, and also many images of which i have been studying through to gain a better understanding of this section of the industry.

Prison Break

http://community.tvguide.com/blog-entry/TVGuide-Editors-Blog/Ausiello-Report/Prison-Break-Exclusive/800024014

Again good news and info on all aspects, plus lots of reviews and comments.


Ross

http://www.channel4.com/entertainment/tv/microsites/H/hollyoaks/

This is the official homepage for Hollyoaks for fans, it gives news, information aboutt he cast etc.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hollyoaks

This is the wikipedia site for hollyoaks and has all the background info on it. It also has the information about what issues and storylines that have been used in the show.
Jessie Brewer

Prison Break

http://www.prisonbreak-online.com/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=363

Good website referencing every season, with info, reviews and spoilers, also behind the scenes photos and cast info. Very helpful depending what part you are going to look at.

Ross

The OC...teen drama

Source Citation:"Weekender: PRISCILLA KWATENGS: GUIDE TO YOUTH." The Guardian (London, England) (April 17, 2004): 7. InfoTrac Full Text Newspapers Database. Gale. Long Road VI Form College. 29 Nov. 2007
.

Farhana

Article on Shameless

Media magazine
April 2006
Issue 16
'Shameless & Proud Of It' p.23
Sally Brady

Harlee Scott

AS Media Studies, The Essential Introduction - Philip Rayner, Peter Wall, Stephen Kruger
Published 2001
Coronation Street - P.100
About the opening sequence of Coronation Street and the setting.

Television, Ethnicity and Cultural Change - Marie Gillespie
Published 1995
Watching Western Soaps - P. 95
(Nieghbours mentioned)

Television Drama: Agency, Audience & Myth - John Tulloch (Routledge 1990)
Chapter 1 - Soft News: The Space Of Tv Drama: Page 31

Television Drama: Agency, Audience and Myth - John Tulloch (Routledge 1990)
Genre and Myth: 'a half formed picture': Page 63-

Television, Audience & Cultural Studies - David Morley (Routledge 1992)
Television Audience Research: a critical history: Page 51-

hospital drama questions:

1. who watches them?
2. what motivates them to watch them?
3. do they watch more than one?
4. do they prefer British or American?
5. how are they sold/advertised?
6. what channels do they appear on?
7. do they all follow the same conventions?
8. how do they represent real life hospitals and doctors?
9. what does a hospital drama have in common with other tv dramas?
10. how do they differ?


becky grant

References

Censorship
Lacey, Nick - Media Institutions and Audiences, Key Concepts in Media Studies, 2002 Palgrave (page 53)

General
Hood, Stuart - Behind the Screens, The Structure of British Television in the Nineties, 1994 Lawrence & Wishart (page v)

Heroes

no books on heroes yet as it is still new in the UK, so i will have to use the internet for research and references.

Lewis Cotterill

Skins

Cult TV
by Jon. E Lewis and Penny Stempel
Publisher:Paviloin
Comedy:p230-278


Television an international history
by Anthony Smith
Publisher: Oxford
Cult TV:p102-103


Youth culture
by helena Wulff
Publisher:Routledge
Subcultures: 1-19 and 81-144

science fiction

edwards t
x-files
little brown and company
1996
page 9

its about the x-files

jon e lewis and penny stampel
cult tv
pavilion
page 10
its good for science fiction tv drama

page 187 is good for the x-man

DUB-PLATE DRAMA

My idea is based on a T.V drama 'Dub Plate Drama' which is related to Black Images on British T.V
Dubplate IS AN INTERACTIVE t.v programme where viewers vote for what's going to happenen next.

Books we've found

Anthony Smith, Television - An International History, Oxford university press, 1995

Women and soap opera, Christine Geraghty, polity press, 1991

Patricia Holland, The Television Handbook, Routledge, 1997

John Tulloch, Television Drama, Agency, audience and myth, Routledge, 1990

John Fiske, Television Culture, Routledge London and new york, 1987



Reference Number - 791.45


ROSS,HENRY,BECKY and JESSIE

Book Reference for Television Drama

John Tulloch, TELEVISION DRAMA AGENCY, AUDIENCE AND MYTH, Routledge, 1990

Contents: Part One
1 'Soft' news: the space of TV drama page 31
Part Two
4 'Serious drama': the dangerous mesh of empathy page 116

Index: TV drama: series and serials page 4-6 35 177 179