Lookie ‘ere, a Lego Movie Homework.

The genre conventions shown in the poster are:

• The poster shows the main character being at the front of the crowd in the middle, it then shows the female love interest of the main character to the side of him, this is patriarchal but also the typical genre convention of adventure in which the main character and hero is male and the “powerful female” tends to be nothing more than a love interest.
• The poster also shows the action in the background as a large explosion, this is a typical genre convention of action movies, it’s a simple sign of action and excitement.
• There’s also the genre conventions of romance in the form of the two main characters’ romance in the poster.
• There’s also the city landscape in the background which shows the normality of Emmet and the movie which could be genre conventions for more normal genres such as comedy or slice-of-life.

The title is bold and simple, it says what the movie is in three words “The Lego Movie”. This appeals to children who love Lego and also cannot read very well, it’s also made in Lego which then helps add the toy-like effect that the movie wants. The title looks friendly, creative and inviting which parents would want their Holden to watch to protect heir innocence, as well as this, ongoing movie goers would see the movie in full stop-motion Lego which was the first of its kind and therefore excitement.

The tag line is “The Story of a Nobody Who Saved Everybody” which is simple and attracts children in a small way in which they can relate to the main character, however families with children would want their children to understand this message and so would want to have them watch the movie, average movie goers would simply read the tag line and decide whether they want to watch it based on their preferences but the simplicity of it makes that choice easier.

The characters are all incredibly different, there are some kind and inviting characters which would invite the family/mothers to watch the movie with their children, the exciting characters like Batman and Superman would attract the children who are excited to see their heroes in Lego, the large range of the characters represents the movie goers as they’ll see at least one character they recognise on the poster and therefore consider the movie.

The setting is an average city in the background under construction, this is a simple reference to Lego as a whole as you must construct Lego like this. The buildabiligy of the background represents the children who want to build stuff to fulfill their creativity. The background is simplistic as to not draw attention from the main image, this simplicity would show the movie goers the main themes and characters of the movie without too much hassle about the setting, mothers would see the relatable elements of a large city which would be exciting for the children to be able to relate to the heroes.

In the posters, the male supremacy is clearly shown as most characters are men and powerful, this represents the stereotypes of men being powerful and leading, reaching out to the males who follow this stereotype or the women that also believe the stereotype.

However there are also a few female characters who are shown as powerful and important, such as Wonder Woman and Wildstyle, who would then appeal to the stereotypes of tomboys and feminists who want to see powerful female characters either to relate to or to just represent females. 

Though there are female characters who follow typically girlish stereotypes such as the Lego unicorn, she’s pink and a unicorn which would represent the young girls in the audience who appeal to this stereotype. 

Avengers and the 1960s.

The Swinging 60s.

Post war generation.

Children were more social and society was more innocent.

Single women were able to get the contraceptive pill - the generation of free love.

Most famous bands of the 60s:

• The Rolling Stones,
• The Beatles,
• The Who,
• Led Zeppelin,
• Pink Floyd.

Music was different as it was more 'rock and roll', people started enjoying less classical music and started enjoying dance music.

Most famous sportspeople:

• Muhammad Ali,
• Willie Mays,
• Wilt Chamberlain,
• Johny Unitas.

Political leaders:

• John F. Kennedy - American President,
• Robbert F. Kennedy, Attorney General,
• Martin Luther King - Peace Fighter,
• Richard Nixon - American President,
• Conservatives and Labour Parties.

Main Youth Group Fashions:

• Hippies - protesting violence and war, stereotyped to be school dropouts and smoke marijuana,
• Rioters - protesting war and poverty,
• The Youth Movement - Gender stereotypes were less common, men started having long hair, women started wearing blue jeans,
• The fashion started changing with the slogan "out with the old, in with the new" which meant that the fashion designers created new scandalous designs targeting young women. 

Scientific/Technological Developments:

• Space race,
• DOCTOR WHO,
• Contraceptive pills were improved,
• First Videogame console,
• First computer mouse,
• LEDs,
• Dynamic RAM.
• Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation,
• UNIX,

According to the media, drugs were a large part of youth and society, this is because the media focuses on negative stereotypes.

Wars such as :

• Vietnam 1955-1975
• The Cold War 1947-1991
• The Bay of pigs invasion 1961
• Portuguese Colonial war 1961-1974
• Indo-Pakistani War of 1965

In the 1960s there was a lot of segregation between races and gender, women were still stereotyped to look after the children at home and didn't have as many rights as today, however in media there were women carrying guns wearing miniskirts so they were portrayed as powerful still. However racism was at a high between all races, caucasians had more rights and so the Civil Rights Movement to stop the segregation of races was put into place.

The Avengers (1965).

ITV (ABC) produced the show.

Primary and secondary audience:

• adults (15+), working class, interested in action and excitement, male and female.
• adults (15+), upper class (represented by the characters) male and female.

The first episode aired 7th of January 1961.

There were six series.

The last episode aired 21st of May 1969.

For series 4, the budget per episode was £56,000.

The Avengers 'Hit it Big' in America and was one of the few ITV shows to do so.

The £2,000,000 from ABC.

• Since the producers were given this large then-unheard of sum of money, they could spend it on filming the show with 35mm film rather than videotape. This was essential as it was a method compatible with U.S. methods.
• The new filming type allowed for more flexibility during filming as they now used single camera set up.
• This also allowed for more diverse camera angles and shots as well as outdoor location shooting.
• There were also better props and better ways of filming (helicopters etc.).
• All location work on series four was shot mute with the soundtrack created in post production and dialogue scenes were filmed in the studio.
• The music was also much more sophisticated.

Series 4 brought with it new and old characters:

• Patrick Macnee remained John steed throughout the entire run of the show. Macnee had been called up for the United Kingdom Armed Forces. He joined the Navy as an ordinary Seaman in October 1942 and left as a lieutenant in 1946. He had also performed in Scrooge as the young Jacob Marley. As well as many small parts in American and Canadian television and theatre.
• 
• Diana Rigg took the role of Emma Peel, this was a character who was created to appeal to men. Rigg's professional debut was in the RADA production of The Caucasian Chalk Circle at the York Festival in 1957 which was a theatrical production. Appearing on The Avengers was her first television Debut.
• 

The BBC started to abolish its 'stuffy Auntie' image due to the competition that ITV brought. The class lines split class loyalty completely, with ITV tending to be more popular with the working class. Though when "youth culture" started to become popular it was 'cool' to be working class and so ITV's popularity and especially the popularity of The Avengers skyrocketed compared to the BBC's The Forsyte Saga which only lasted half a year. This was because of The Avenger's appeal to all classes giving the show more popularity. The rising youth culture was more interested in action and the image of powerful women in miniskirts rather than posh, upperclass-looking, non-relatable characters from the BBC.

Serial TV Drama.

Exploring the TV drama genre and conventions.

What is the difference between TV drama and a Soap Opera?

Drama is more serious than soap and not as exaggerated.

A TV drama is a one off drama with little to no continuation, a serial TV drama is a long running show with a plot that develops every episode.

TV Drama can be split into many sub genres:

• Crime Drama.

Broadchurch.

Sherlock.

Gotham.

• Period Drama.

Robin Hood.

Call The Midwife.

Downton Abbey.

• Teen Drama.

13 Reasons Why.

Riverdale.

Pretty Little Liars.

• Medical Drama.

The Good Doctor.

House.

Grey's Anatomy.

• Science-fiction Drama.

Doctor Who.

The Flash.

Stranger Things.

• Fantasy Drama.

Vampire Diaries.

Supernatural.

Once Upon A Time.

• Political Drama.

House Of Cards.

Designated Survivor.

The Crown.

NARRATIVE AND CHARACTERS.

Serial Vs Series.

A serial drama has a continuous plot throughout the series and contains the same characters.

A series drama contains the same characters throughout however each episode has a different plot and there is no continuous narrative.


 Reasons why people watch serial dramas:

• Familiarity - they'll watch something which appeals to their personal life.
• To replace human interaction. 
• Theory of diversity - it appeals to multiple audiences.
• Location - they're more likely to watch something themed around somewhere they live.

Another Lego Movie homework?

Blumer and Katz states the theory that people undergo media consumption for four main reasons: surveillance of the ongoing world around them, personal identity, to develop personal relationships and diversion from their daily lives.
For the Lego Movie Video Game cover follows all of these gratifications and uses. For diversion, people would look at the action on the front cover which would satisfy their boredom with action and excitement. The second theory of surveillance is that people can see the cover and understand what the children are interested in these days as well as what the Lego company is doing currently. For developing personal relationships, those who play the game are more likely to have social connections with others that play the game, furthermore if they were to buy this game as a gift, it shows the action that you can expect to be in the game to consider as to whether you want to give it as a gift. Finally, personal identity - the characters on the cover are all different, they all have their own unique looks and personalities which then show you what you really are like by having you relate to a specific one with their specific personality.

Television industries: ownership

The term PSB (public service broadcast) is a term used for public benefit of a broadcast rather than commercial benefit.
There are three ways that a commercial broadcast makes a profit: subscription, sponsorship and advertisement.
In the UK, BBC is the main PSB channel.
Because PSB is funded by the public, they are legally obliged by law to:

•  deliver impartial news.
• represent all diverse communities of people.
• support learning for people of all ages.
• to show the most creative, highest quality and distinctive output and services.
• to represent the UK's culture to the world.

In January 1927 the BBC was established by Royal Charter as the British Broadcasting Corporation.

BBC.

BBC Channels.

• BBC 1.
• BBC 2.
• BBC 3.
• BBC 4.
• CBBC.
• CBeebies.
• BBC News.
• BBC Parlement.
• BBC Alba.

BBC Mission.

Most Popular BBC 1 programmes:

• Doctor Who,
• Sherlock,
• Strictly Come Dancing,
• Bodyguard,
• Eastenders,
• Luther.

Most Expensive to make is Game of Thrones, however of the BBC it is The Crown.

Other platforms of The BBC:

• Radio,
• iPlayer.

BBC's income:

• BBC's income is primarily from the TV licences.

However there are other ways the BBC to generate income:

• Selling its programmes to other broadcasting companies.
• Selling audio tapes and CDs of its best radio programmes
• Selling videos and DVDs of its best TV shows.
• selling books based on programmes, and magazines about science and natural history.

Advantages of being publicly owned:

• By being publicly owned, they're more popular as they're trusted more.
• They have guidelines set for them so their audience know what they're about.
• Guaranteed income.

Commercial institutions.

These generally have no guaranteed income therefore it's mandatory that they have means of profit:

• Sponsorship,
• Product Placement,
• Advertisement,
• Subscription.

ITV.

Channels:

• ITV1.
• ITV2.
• ITV3.
• ITV4.
• ITVBe.
• CITV.
• ITV Box Office.
• ITV HD.
• The Store.

ITV's mission statement:

By developing and managing the rights to content, ITV is able to maximise the value of its programme brands across a range of revenue streams, making ITV a more balanced business and enabling it to drive value from different revenue models.

Most popular ITV programmes:

• Everdale.
• The X Factor.
• Coronation Street.
• I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here.
• The Chase.
• Midsomer murders.

Most expensive ITV programme:

ROME.

Other Platforms:

• Radio,
• Mobile media,
• ITV Studios UK, USA 

Generates Income from:

• Adverts of products and product placement.
• Box Sets.
• Sponsorship of shows.
• Franchising programs.
• Premium rate phone lines.
• Reality TV shows.
• Online services

Duopoly in the 1960s.

The era of the two competing broadcasters - ITV and the BBC - was called the 'Golden Age' of broadcasting in the UK. 

Pros.

• No money is shared between different companies.
• Less competition.
• Programmes are of higher quality.
• Full control of creativity and editing.
• Pushing for better content.
• Allowed in-house talent and content to be developed over time and build a loyal audience.
• Production became more of a business.

Cons.

• Less shows to work with.
• Hard for voices outside of the institution to be heard.
• Ideas subject to the ideologies of those in power/political pressure.
• Some argued in competition with ITV and the BBC 'dumbled down' the content.

Television: Industries and Audiences

LO: To research the history, companies and regulators in the television industry.

Paper1:section A.

Unseen extract from a TV drama.
Three questions about the extract.
Could be asked about:

• How media language has been used to create meaning.
• How the industry has influenced the meaning.
• The audiences reactions to the extract.
• The social, cultural and historical context.

In your own words, write the definitions for the following terms.

• Publicly Owned TV Channel: a channel which receives funding from the government, meaning they're restricted by state regulations.
• Commercial TV Channel: a channel which is owned by its own private corporate media which isn't affected by state censorship.
• Convergence: The interlinking of different technologies and media platforms.
• Watershed: The time which TV programs which may be unsuitable for children may broadcast.
• Segmented Market: splitting a business or market into different sub-genres to specialise for different target audiences.
• Mainstream: Normal or traditional forms of mass communication.
• Self-regulating: An organisation which regulates itself rather than having interference from external companies.
• Franchise: A collection of related media.
• Channel-Surfing: flicking through channels yo find something interesting to watch/listen to.
• PSB: programming produced mainly for the public.
• TV License: Legal permission to use or install television.
• Scheduling: Arranging programs to fit a time plan.
• Conglomerate: a company which owns other companies.

When was TV introduced in the UK? 1936

In 1965, how many channels were there in the UK and what were they? ITV, BBC1, BBC2

When did ITV start? why was it different? 1960s and it had adverts.

Which UK channels have to follow PSB remits? Channels 3, 4, 5 and BBC

Who regulates TV now?
Who regulated TV channels in the 1960s?

List the differences between TV in the 1960s and now.

• They only had 3 channels, 2 of which didn't have colour until late.
•