Radio Drama's

The Archers

The Archers is a soap opera radio drama created by the BBC in 1951. Due to it being a soap opera, the show follows many realistic yet exaggerated scenarios for it's storylines. The dialogue is also written and performed very realistically. This fits the genre, due to soap-opera's often trying to be more realistic. It will also add a lot to the listening experience, as everything sounds and feels natural. The drama follows many different stories as it revolves around numerous different farming families. The large amount of characters is another typical convention of soap-opera's, making the show even more fitting to it's genre. episode that I selected to listen to started with a rather upbeat introduction song. This is common in many radio dramas, as the song can become familiar with audiences and let them know what is in store for them. This is particularly effective if they hear the show on the radio, as the music could allow the listener to know when the show is starting. When the characters are introduced they have very noticeable York accents. They speak casually, allowing the audience to insert themselves into this world easier, as it won’t be different from their own. This is good as the target audience for this show is likely people who are middle class and middle age. This is the target audience for most soaps, including this one. Also, younger people are less likely to use radio over television, so marketing towards older people is more effective. The episode features relevant sound effect's as-well, which is a common feature in radio drama's. An example of one such sound effect is the sound of plates clashing and rattling while two characters talk to one another in a dining room. This realistic and normal sound effect once again fits with the soap opera genre, and could even add more immersion to the scene by making the setting feel more active and alive. Within the episodes that I studied, The Archers did not employ any fade in's or out's, which is uncommon for a radio drama, so I feel they may have been used in some of the other countless episodes of the show, and just not featured in the episodes that I heard. The show ends with the same theme song it opens with, signifying to the listener that it has finished until the next episode.

The War Of The Worlds

The War Of The Worlds is an infamous radio drama that first aired on Halloween in 1938. The show used a very unique format, as the first half of the show was presented as if it was a real radio broadcast. This is very different to most radio dramas, and was absolutely unheard of at the time that it was done. The show used breaking news updates that interrupted musical intervals to talk about an alien invasion on Earth. The use of the interruption was very effective. It was so effective at seeming real, that it’s believed people thought it was, and ended up in a panic. The use of many Sci-Fi tropes such as laser sound effects are used. However, the show takes a different turn halfway through. It starts following a more traditional radio drama format, and follows a survivor in an attempt to survive. The show uses many sound effects, ranging from cannon fire to crowds screaming. These both play into Sci-Fi and horror also, allowing the drama to capture the feeling that it was after. Besides from the musical intervals used in the first half, the rest of the music used is subtle,featuring low horns that sometimes grow faster. This is to try and create more immersion in the second half, to make things seem more hopeless and scary to the listeners, and to build suspense. The show uses subtle fades between different parts of dialogue, perhaps to signify a pass in time or just a change in perspective.

Editing Techniques

Continuity editing is when different related shots are all put together in a film to allow the viewer to understand that there is consistency within the story, and everything flows normally. Alternatively, there is non-continuity editing which is where many shots are mismatched and seemingly random. This can be used to disorient the viewer, or it can also be used to montage many different scenes so that many things can be shown in rapid succession.

Parallel Editing

In the movie Way Down East, there was a scene that used relatively unknown editing techniques for the time. This scene used parallel action. This is when two separate events in separate locations are shown as taking place at the same time. Oftentimes, they could be taking place very close to each-other. The audience will typically be shown these scenes due to many quick cuts between them both, which is used to generate excitement. This film used this technique for the exact reason of inciting excitement within an audience. One character was shown as being in a moment of distress, while another was shown as rushing to help them. The woman character was shown to the audience lying down on a surface of ice, seemingly in pain and unable to stand. A man is then shown hurriedly jumping from ice to ice, trying to reach her before she drifts to the nearby waterfall and drops down it. This scene constantly shows her nearing her demise, and the man struggling to travel quickly. This is to generate excitement within the audience via intensity, but also a sense of dread that he won't make it, and he won't be able to save her. In the last possible second however, he reaches her, and carries her away from the waterfall. The parallel editing showing the exact moment he arrives is very effective as-well, as it couldn't be done as well with different forms of editing, as we saw the man gradually getting closer and closer to the woman. This makes the relief that the audience feels when she is saved much stronger, as the task always seemed nearly impossible, and he only barely succeeded with completing it.

Parallel editing was then later used in the film Silence Of The Lambs. Here, it was used to very effectively trick the audience. The audience is shown a man named Buffalo Bill who is keeping a woman in his basement and brandishing a gun. We are then shown a swat team arriving at a house, heavily armed. They send one man to go the doorbell with a present, and ring it. Bill is shown again, reacting negatively to his doorbell ringing due to the woman he has in his basement that he is trying to deal with. The FBI outside grow impatient, and burst through the doors and windows of the building. They rush inside, but discover the house to be completely empty. We are then shown the armed man answering his door, to show a woman, who asks if she can come inside to ask him some questions about a recent murder. The action cuts back to the brake in, as the man giving all the instructions realizes the mistake that he has made, and how his co-worker, Clarice, is in danger. The editing in this scene is very effective, as it tricks the audience into thinking that the FBI are actually breaking into the house of Buffalo Bill, due to the doorbells both being shown as going off at the same time. This initially gives the audience hope, as they believe the serial killer will be brought to justice, but the big reveal that the main character is in danger completely destroys this, and instead fills the audience with a sense of dread.

Between these two examples of Parallel Editing, I personally believe the use of this technique in Silence Of The Lambs to be more effective. This is because of its usage to actually deceive the viewer is something that not many films have used the technique for, and when the audience realizes it becomes more effective due to the suspense of what may happen next. Way Down East is still effective, but all it has is slight suspense, whereas Silence Of The Lambs has great suspense and deception.

Montage Editing

In Rocky III, a montage is used to show Rocky training for his boxing match. A montage is when numerous related shots that took place at different times are shown in quick succession. This is so that they can give away a lot of information/show a lot of things happening in a relatively short amount of time. These are typically non-continuity, as they don't flow exactly together from when they happen. In Rocky, the training actually likely takes place over the space of a month. This alone shows how effective the montage technique is, as watching a much longer clip of nothing but training could end up being boring, but instead they condensed everything down to only take up three minutes of screen time. In the montage, Rocky is training with his friend Apollo. Noticeably, Apollo is faster than Rocky in the scenes of the montage where they are running along a beach. As the montage reaches it end however, Rocky is seen outpacing his friend. This shows him progressing, indicating that the training is actually paying off. If the montage wasn't used, a great deal of time would have had to have been used to show this progress, but instead, they can do so quickly and get the same effect of making the audience feel a sense of proudness for the main character.

A montage was also used in the film Team America: World Police. The montage here is used for comedy reasons, as it borrows many cliches and conventions of montage's to show how they can be quite absurd. It follows traditional montage steps, showing the main character training to face off against Kim Jong Il, and eventually growing stronger to the point his is defeating the man training him in karate showdowns. The montage also shows what is happening to his captured friends that he wants to rescue, as they are being electrocuted and by Kim Jong Il's workers. We also see his plan coming together, as he invites world leaders to a special event with intentions to destroy the world. While the scene is a parody of montage's, it still uses it's own montage very effectively, showing all of these important things in only one minute and twenty seconds. The audience, while likely just enjoying the scene for its comedic intent, are still being show everything they need to be shown in a very small space of time, indicating this scene to be smarter than it may seem to some viewers who only see it as parody. 

Between both examples, I believe the montage from Rocky III to be more effective. This is simply because the audience watching this film will want Rocky to succeed, so seeing him improve on his skills will make them feel proud and happy. In Team America, wile the montage still works, it's mainly played for laughs and it simply isn't meant to make the audience feel many other emotions.

Initial Assesment

During the summer, I started the plan for my next short film. This wasn’t to be a full pre-production, but it was still planning nonetheless. Unlike last year, this film needs to be approximately 15 minutes in length. To do this, I’ll need a lengthy script, as I won’t be able to make something long without this.

 Due to having a lack of ideas to begin with, my script is not yet finished. However, it is going nicely and will certainly help me hit the mark. This is already an improvement from last year, as my script featured very little dialogue and was mainly action. I have steered away from this, and have included far more dialogue driven scenes in my new film. Admittedly, I would prefer my script to have reached completion, but I am trying not to rush. Last year, I made the mistake of taking too long with the other parts of pre-production that should have been completed quicker. As these things are not necessary this year, I can focus more on creating a solid script and screenplay for my film. Due to the fact that my script is not yet finished, I am yet to start planning a storyboard. As soon as I have finished my script, I will start this. I want my storyboard to be way better than the one I used in my planning last year. I feel like it was really rushed, which lead to it not being very detailed, which in turn made it somewhat less clear to my cast. I managed to get around this, but i feel like the action in that film would have been a lot better had I simply worked more on my storyboard and made it a lot better. I feel like I can easily achieve this now, as I know how to manage my time for the different areas of pre-production a lot better than I used to.

 For locations in my film, I will be having some scenes outside, and some in a house. The scenes in the outside may be difficult to film in terms of audio quality, depending on whether or not there are strong winds, cars going by, or people. The scenes are supposed to take place in back alleys/secluded locations, so hopefully I won’t encounter much of a problem with this. The scenes taking place inside houses will not be a problem. All I will need is permission from the homeowner to film.

 All but one of the roles in my movie has been cast so far, so in this aspect I am already ahead of where I was at this point last year as well. I had many issues with casting last year due to people just genuinely not wanting to be involved, but this year I have had better luck. I hope to find the right person to play the final part and then everything will be fine.

 This time around, I want to make sure every scene in my movie is perfect. Due to this movie having less “action” scenes and more dialogue, it will be easier to shoot. This allows me to be able to focus more on getting good takes with different camera techniques. Last year certain scenes in the final cut could have been vastly improved upon, but were kept anyway due to how awkward they were to be able to film, and it seemed like it was the best that I could manage. I won’t allow this to happen this year.

I feel like my new film will be a massive improvement upon my last in literally every aspect. I have more experience with what does and doesn’t work, and since I’m doing a vastly different idea, which is honestly going to be easier to film, I can put together something that I can be proud of. With more time to focus on the actual shooting of the film and the script, I can make something that is objectively way better made than what I made last year.

Single Camera Techniques

Many modern movies use single camera production. A single camera production is exactly what it sounds like, a production that is filmed using just one camera. This is due to how much better the quality turns out and how much cheaper it is as-well, since it can be costly to use multi-camera due to the fact that it requires multi-cameras. These also take up a lot of space, giving another advantage to using single camera. Using a single camera also allows for numerous techniques to be used, due to the fact they can be used freehand a lot easier and you don't have to worry about filming the other cameras so you can move them more freely. Also, some multi-camera productions have all the camera's in very specific places, so that they won't cross paths and film each-other. This can be limiting as certain areas will be off limits, so everything will have to happen in specific areas of the set. However, single camera production isn't perfect by any means. It can take a while to shoot due to the fact that the camera has to be moved and set up often, and editing will take longer too due to how many shots are taken. A lot of repetition is needed on-set as you will usually have to film the same thing numerous times to see which angle is better, instead of getting it all at once like you would in a multi-camera production. Filming just one thing at a time can also be quite stressful for crew members due to how tedious it can be, and people being annoyed on set can easily slow production as they won't be able to full concentrate.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlETkY6ogRg       (Scene ends at 18 seconds)
One example of this is the single camera technique used in the 2000 film Requiem For A Dream. This technique is a snorricam. A snorricam is the technique of attaching a camera to the chest of an actor and having it pointed towards said actors face. In this movie, they use this during a scene in which one character is chased by the police and eventually caught. The footage is very shaky because of this, but this is definitely the desired effect. The shakiness of the camera shows the panic in the character, as he is being very frantic to try and assure he is not caught by the police. Due to the camera being on his chest an pointed at his face, we can see he has a look of panic and fear. He is also dowsed in sweat, indicating that he has been running for a while, and also indicating that he could be very nervous. This shot is meant to make the audience feel like they're right in the middle of the intense scene, and the shakiness of the camera certainly does this well. The snorricam creates quite a nauseating effect, due to how the background moves so rapidly, but the actor in the scene stays so clear. This links heavily to the movie's topic of drug abuse, as the scene could be regarded as being quite "Trippy" to some people.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYTfI75RMG8
Another example is the single camera technique  used in the 2017 movie Good Time. In this scene, it is clear that single camera is used from the beginning due to the constant switching between the character of the therapist and the character Nick during their conversation. These are also very close up shots, which is to make it feel very personal. The switching is used to effectively show how each character clearly feels, as we can see when Nick becomes uncomfortable and starts to cry. The camera rapidly switches again when Nick's brother Connie enters the room. The camera goes straight into a close up on his face, showing his anger at the situation. The camera makes rapid switches between Connie and The Therapist as they argue with each-other, and close-ups are still maintained. This is so that the audience can read their facial expressions, and understand them. During the argument, this is particularly effective as you can see The Therapist's annoyance, and Connie's anger. Connie demands Nick leaves the room with him, and the pair walk down a corridor. The camera once again starts rapidly switching between both characters in close ups, showing them as parallels to each-other. Nick seems more reserved and sensitive, while Connie comes off as more bold and brash. This is very important to the audience, since this is the start of the film, and they can already clearly see what types of people these two characters are. Their personalities have been established early on, something many films struggle to get across quickly.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IkYUDQCYGHA
In this clip from the UK sitcom The Office, a single camera is clearly used. This was used particularly effectively in this scene as the shaky and handheld camera made the show feel more realistic, which was certainly good due to the mockumentary style that the show was known for. In this clip, the camera uses many long takes during a job interview. The long, shaky take is very reminiscent of documentaries, but here it is also used to show how mundane and oddly comical the situation is. The camera switches angle quite sparingly, allowing the audience to simply focus on the dialogue and the body movement of both characters. This is very effective, as a multi-cam moving rapidly around the screen would be immensely out of place in a scene like this, and it would be distracting from many of the visual comedy aspects.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yEG2VTHS9yg
In this music video for the track L$D by musician A$AP Rocky, directed by Dexter Navy, they use a single camera to show many visually appealing shots. This is very effective, as it creates an impressive and smooth sequence for the music video. One particular shot shows Rocky and an unnamed woman walking through a very brightly colored room. This is a direct reference to the film Enter The Void by Gaspar Noe.

Harton And Westoe Project Evaluation

Promotional Video Evaluation

For my marketing of the Harton And Westoe Boxing Gym, I produced a video showcasing the gym, the people who attend, and what is done in it. I had many people give me feedback. My friend Jack said that:

 "The video was a decent length, and showed a-lot of relevant content, but I feel like the time lapse was slightly overdone."

After reviewing this feedback, I have decided that I must agree slightly. The use of time-lapse in my promotional video certainly may seem like a bit much, as if it was over edited. While this was the intentions, from an aesthetic standpoint, I can see how it could possibly be irritating or nauseating to some due to the speed that the clips making up the video are moving at. Next time I make a promotional video, I will keep things more simple and know when to take a break from big, hard effects. Another friend, Michael, had this to say:

"The video was fine, but I think that a more popular or well known song would've been effective as they'd then associate that popular song, with this advert."

This feedback is also true, as a well known song is more likely to end up staying with the viewer, and staying in their mind. Them associating the song with the trailer will make them associate it with the club as-well, which would inevitably cause people to be thinking about Harton and Westoe Boing Club. Next time I make a video like this, I will likely use a mainstream and popular song to achieve this.

Instagram Page Evaluation

For my social media page advertising Harton And Westoe Boxing Club, my friend Jack said that:

"The posts you've uploaded are good, but there aren't enough posts. you should have posted more in order to show more things and reach more people."

This feedback is very fair, ads I only posted three images to the page. While these images showcased very important parts of the gym, there was room for more to be shown. Also, more posts will mean more people reached, so a small amount of posts isn't nearly as effective as making many posts. Next time, I'll post more and also more often in order to give more information and also grow the page. My friend Michael had this to say:

"The images posted are quite boring, and would likely look better under a filter or after being edited."

Here, I agree fully as the images were very lightly edited. While this was done to give a sort of "raw" feel from the images, it could also make them less visually interesting and therefore less likely yo catch peoples eyes when they see the posts. To fix this, next time I would use more exciting editing techniques on the images to make them more visually interesting and therefore more eye-catching, which would lead top a larger audience seeing them.

Harton And Westoe Project

Promotional Video

To help with reaching people, I have decided that I will create a promotional video for the boxing club. This is because a video would be a very accessible product and it would be very easy to understand and get the message across well. To do this, I would have to go directly to the source. I would be required to travel to the Harton and Westoe boxing gym. In a group of three, I travelled to the gym with a tripod and a camera, set out to get footage for my video advertisement. I received footage of many different things within the gym. In my video, I shot numerous shots of people sparring, exercising and the gym equipment. This footage is appropriate to my purpose and also very informative, showing people what they need to be shown. Shooting the footage went quite well, except a few of the shots for people doing drill exercises came out quite blurry due to the speed they were moving at. Nonetheless, I was happy with my footage, specifically the footage of people using the boxing pads and throwing punches. This is because it shows both the people who use the gym (people who attend and the coach) but it also shows off the equipment that can be used while you are in said gym and what you will be doing while you are here.

After I had shot the footage, I had to then piece it together. I did all of the editing using Premiere Pro. At the end of the video, I decided that I would include text presenting information about prices, times and dates of the gym. This is useful as this information is only available on the Harton And Westoe Boxing Club Facebook page, and people without Facebook can now find it on this video. In the video, I used many more effective editing techniques, such as these:

Here, you can see that I time lapsed many of the clips in the video. This was done for many reasons. One reason is that it allows me to show a lot more in the clip than if I used slow footage, as i don't want the video to last too long and lose the attention of viewers, but I also want to make sure that I get as much footage in as I can. It also works entirely as an aesthetic choice as-well. 

This shows the part in the clip where I transition from one clip to another with a fade in/fade out following the camera drifting to the right and fading into a different shot. This was chosen as it fit the way the camera swayed to the side, and gave it an interesting look that would catch people's eyes. 

Here I show that I made both the music track and the video fade out together at the same time. This is to prevent there from being a cut out when the video ends, which would look unprofessional and awkward.

Instagram Page

With my video finished, I began work on my Instagram page. On the page, I chose to make three posts. One post of someone sparring, one post of equipment, and one post of information regarding Harton And Westoe Boxing Club. On all of these posts I used very popular hashtags relating to fitness and exercise. This was supposed to reach more people, yet it had varied results. My most liked image had 6 likes, whereas the least liked image had only 1 like. Also, my page only managed to reach 3 followers. Overall, I would say that my Instagram wasn't particularly successful.

Conclusion

To conclude, Harton And Westoe's own promotional content is rather successful and reaches many people. In my created content, I was rather unsuccessful. While not all bad, I didn't get anywhere near the numbers of Harton And Westoe Boxing Club's original content. This leads me to conclude that their methods are more effective than I may have originally perceived, and that my methods would likely not be effective ways for them to increase how well known they are.