Existing product research

Youngers

In this opening sequence to E4's teen drama Top Boy we are introduced to the protagonist of the series. The opening shots of the scene are extreme close ups of both the character's microphone and his lips. Not allowing us to see the character's full face creates an enigma code as to who the character is, however it also effectively allows us to identify with him and establish that he is about to rap. This is added to by the energetic high pace of the non diegetic music in the background. However when the protagonist begins to rap we are able to establish the sound as diegetic and coming through the character's headphones, which we see from the close up of his face, as he raps to the music. This programme would appeal to and be targeted at a younger demographic between 15-25, mostly living in urban areas and can relate to the characters.

The Big Bang Theory

The big bang theory opening starts with a medium establishing shot of the three protagonists sitting on the sofa set in an apartment. This shot is constantly returned to as the sequence follows a constand shot reverse shot with close ups of characters and other objects such as the tv aways eventually returning to this medium shot of the characters. The costume in the scene is effective as two character's are wearing rather ordinary dull colours that don't catch the eye or draw comparison. However the more eccentric character, Sheldon, is wearing a bright red top which effectively highlights his outspoken nature. The only sound in the sequence is the non diegetic sound of pre recorded laughter which adds to the comedy of the scene and allows us to identify it as a comedy. The programme is a comedic sit-com targeting a range of audiences including intellectual viewers, students and even families.

How I Met Your Mother

How I met your mother contrasts to the big bang theory in how they chose to show their group of protagonists. Instead of using a medium shot of the characters and constantly returning to it How I met your mother takes a different approach. Instead they use very quick medium shots of a pair of characters sitting next to each other split by straight cuts and long shots of all the characters together are used rarely. We are able to identify the main protagonist as the only character not constantly shot in a pair and is alone in the middle of the table. His costume also makes him distinct as he is wearing a suit where as the others are wearing casual clothes. The show is aimed at a large age group from approximately 16-35 for people who seek laughter and comedy.

West 10 LDN

West 10 LDN is an urban drama broadcast on BBC 3. Immediately we see an establishing, birds eye view low angle shot looking down on an area. This straight away conveys the setting is an urban area and shows this is going to be an urban drama. There is then a constant shot reverse shot between the establishing shot and two female protagonists in a car. The two protagonists are in a low end, cheap car which again adds to the urban feel of the sequence. The two protagonists in the car then continues to shot reverse shot with the car driving and its surroundings. The run down urban environment again conveys that this is going to eb an urban drama to the audience. Occasionally the shot would reverse to a character outside. The character would appear with their name next to them. The font of the names were in graffiti which again personifies the urban feel to the opening. A stereotype can also be clearly identified as most of the characters are black in the opening. This follows the stereotype that most urban areas are habitats to black people. As well as this all characters were youths and wore tracksuits and baggy trousers, another stereotype of youths as uneducated street walkers and also speak slang. The main character can easily be identified as the girl looking out of the window as the shots constantly reverse back to her and we identify with her. We also get point of view shots of what she's seeing out of the car window. The shot transitions are all straight cuts and rather fast paced, adding to the fast action packed nature of an urban drama. The non diegetic sound throughout is a reggae like instrumental, adding to the urban feel to it as reggae is often listened to by urban youths as well as being commonly associated with black people. This show would appeal to youths mainly living in urban areas aged from around 16 - 35. This is because they can easily relate to the urban drama and the urban nature is clearly emphasised in the opening to allow viewers to identify it as an urban drama.