Ivy Wood.G324: Advanced Production.Henderson: Katie, 4405.

We chose to go with the name ‘Ivy Wood’ as our general idea was to create a parody of ‘Hollyoaks’.

The ‘Ivy’ corresponds to the ‘Holly’ as they’re both types of plants. Similarly the ‘Wood’ corresponds to the ‘Oak’, as Oak is a type of wood. Doing this enabled us to create humour, but it also draws our target audience of 18 – 24 year olds into the soap, as that is the age range which ‘Hollyoaks’ is aimed at.

Products of soap operas.

Only a very few storylines.

Short scenes.

Originated in 1930s America.

Generally aimed at woman, this creates narrative perspective, scheduling and costume.

Aim to become embedded in the culture.

Storylines of the main characters interconnect to keep audience interested.

Characters become ‘people’ as they play a central role in life outside the soap.

Originally cast on radio sponsored by soap and detergents.

Products of soap operas.

Question 1: In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Ivy Wood Hollyoaks

Social gatherings are generally used to set the scene and show all the main characters.

We chose to use a mid long shot for ours, and found that this was similar to what’s used in Hollyoaks.

Ivy Wood Hollyoaks

Pans are used throughout soaps to also set the scene for that location.

In our soap, we panned up, showing a range of different female items until we saw the star, whereas in Hollyoaks they pan down from the name of the college.

Ivy Wood Hollyoaks

Close ups are used throughout soap operas so that the audience can see the facial expression easily, meaning they can see emotion easier.

Ivy Wood Hollyoaks

Over the shoulder shots are used so the audience can feel in the same room as the stars.

They are also sometimes used so the audience feels like they’re intruding into the room.

Ivy

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Shot reverse shots are used during conversations between two stars. The eyelines match which makes it clear to the audience that they’re having a conversation and which stars are involved.

Ivy Wood Hollyoaks

We used a long shot for our fight scene because it enables the audience to see everything and it means they won’t miss our on anything.

Hollyoaks also use long shots for fight scenes.

How I use sound to follow existing conventions.In generic soap trailers we usually see a background track of a song which tells the story of the trailer and the situations.

In my video I have chosen to use ‘Jar of Hearts’ by Christina Perri. I chose to use this because I found that it fit with the representation I was going for by using the lyrics to show something was going to go wrong.

For example in Hollyoaks, we hear ‘White Wedding’ by Billy Idol to create the goth look, and by doing this creates a representation that something isn’t going to go right.

Hollyoaks trailer. Ivy Wood trailer.

I used title cards in my trailer to tell the story and help the audience understand the narrative perspective.

This is a general convention throughout soap opera trailers and is something which I think I have incorporated well.

Use of title cards in my trailer.

Use of the end title card.

Both have a twitter tag to link audience to social media.

Both show the logo for the channel they’ll be shown on.

Both show the days that the show will be shown.