What type of audience is a soap opera audience?

The reason the above question is important is as follows,

·         Firstly, if we can determine which type of audience a soap opera audience is according to the Uses of Gratifications then we can cater for their desires.

·         By catering for the audiences’ desires then we are almost guaranteed a successful soap opera.

So, I asked a selection of sixteen people, varying in age, social class and ethnicity to list two reasons why they watch soap opera trailers. I choose that they could choose two because there are often several reasons why people may watch soap operas. However, if they watched soap operas for just one reason then they did not have to select a second option.  I listed all four Uses of Gratification so the participants could select reasons why they watch soap opera trailers.

Below are the Uses of Gratifications.

‘I watch soap operas...’

1.       For entertainment.

2.       To establish a personal relationship with a character from the soap opera.

3.       To be educated.

4.       To change my personal identity which is influenced by a character from the soap opera.

Below are the results, presented in a pie chart.

All sixteen people said they watch soap operas for entertainment. Two gave a second option that they watch soap operas to establish relationship with characters. The other two uses of gratifications were not selected. This informs us that the majority soap opera audiences watch soap operas for entertainment purposes only, making them a passive audience. Also it informs us that no one believes soap operas offer any real education and that no one would like to base their personality on a soap opera character.

By realizing a soap opera audience are passive we can determine they belong to the Hypodermic Needle theory audience. Meaning the audience watches and doesn’t think, instead, are just entertained, almost injected with soap opera ideas with no resistance. By having little resistance in thought the audience also will decode messages in the preferred reading desired by the producer.

Stuart Hall (1973) is a key leading media theorist. He determines that there are three ways an audience can decode a message which was encoded by a producer. The audience can...

·         Accept the text as the producer intended. (Known as a preferred reading.)

·         Accept parts of the text but challenge other sections. (Know as a negotiated reading.)

·         Disagree with the text and rejects the producers intention. (Known as a resistant reading.)

As our audience are passive, fed ideas through the hypodermic needle then they will not challenge the producers encoding, unless the plot in extremely unrealistic. They will often accept these encoded messages unconsciously.

Tony Angellotti  (2005) “The audience have the greatest power. It’s the audience who tell you what they like.” This is why it was important that I research what type of audiences’ soap opera audiences are. I needed to know they were passive so I could deliver what they liked. I will include my findings into our soap opera trailer.

Past students trailers

The reason I choose to write about the above trailer is as follows…

·         They criticise themselves at the beginning saying that radio is ‘more beautiful’. Why do they even include the beginning piece of text? What is its purpose? I believe the group wanted a clever approach to capture their audience’s attention, yet, the text was not clearly relevant to their soap opera theme. It shows no obvious link and therefore is distracting and would make me, as a potential viewer, decline giving the soap opera a screening in my spare time.

·         The voice over which introduces, informs and closes the trailer is hard to understand. A more traditional/conventional voice, clear and strong, would establish atmosphere which would make the work look professional, reaching an industry standard rather than staying beneath its boot. Perhaps they choose the voice over to be unconventional as it would match the new strand of soap opera which brings classes together in an obvious action. However, I still believe a more conventional voice or dialogue from the actors would have made the soap opera far more appealing to watch. I found it hard to understand what the soaps name was and I on my own would struggle to pronounce the title, as a result a clear voice is crucial.

·         The ending which informs the viewer of the timing and days of the soap is also unclear. I do not understand if there are three episodes back to back, if the episode repeats itself three times in a row or if the episode lasts from ‘19.00’ to ‘20.00’. Without clear guidance this production company will lose a large portion of potential viewers as they will often be too busy to follow up their enquiry about timing.

Editing

Conventional trailers include fade to blacks as a way to distinguish between scenes and show passing time. This trailer did not include this editing technique, however, it is still recognisable as a trailer and I believe that it is easy tell distinguish between scenes. Having said this, fade to blacks would have made it easier to distinguish between multiple storylines, by not doing so the trailer cannot appeal to the particular storylines an audience member may be interested in watching.

Title

The above soap opera font is not representative of their target audience but instead representative of the soap operas theme. The soap opera theme is incorporating higher classes to lower class disputes. This is why the trailer uses an unconventional voice over actor and has the posh, almost hand written font.

Costume

The only indication of character personalities throughout this trailer is their outfits. This limits the audience to only gaining suggested information through connotation of costume. This is why the costumes had to be planned down to the final detail. Early on in the trailer there is a picture which introduces the audiences’ to the soap opera character. It is this short still frame which gives the most indication of character personalities. However this picture is too crowded to get any good indication or even sighting of any characters. Some characters are seen in expensive coats and high hats, these costumes are black and white. Black gives connotations of important, high values business persons and white give connotations of kind, innocent people. The voice over informed us that there are two main groups in the soap opera, a high social class and a low. The outfits aren’t representative to who’s in which class; this makes it hard to categorised characters correctly which is an important process of attracting audiences. One of the uses of gratifications is that we watch things so we can relate to characters on screen, if we cannot categories these characters the audience cannot relate to them, thus, losing a major market.  

Despite the criticisms the group have accomplished getting a good set. I feel an establishing shot should have been included to help introduce the audience to the soap operas surrounding. However, they have a wide range of locations varying from realistic offices to a beach with the sunset dying down in the distance. This soap opera has taught me lessons which I will introduce into my own work. Mainly, that if the meaning or messages being conveyed, such as a theme or timings for the soap, are not clear then the possibility of our soap being successful is further from our grasp.

This trailer suggests an all female cast. This is told through the lack of male characters. My initial reaction was one of criticism, without any males the producers would lose a large portion of potential audiences’. Having said this and using my knowledge of existing television shows this may in-power the soap opera. ‘Sex in the city’ is a show which targets a female audience using actors and storylines which make the female gender powerful and appear dominant. This appeal of theme makes a gigantic female audience interested in watching the show so they can feel dominant. Applying this theme to a soap opera has not been tested as far as I’m aware but it the soap opera is created to an industry standard I feel they could have a similar audience to that of ‘Sex in the city’.

The music for this soap opera is depressing and though it matches the imagery on screen it makes the soap opera far less appealing. This is a trap many student soap opera trailers full into. Soap operas have plots which are seen as negative and harmful to the character who is leading them. So in trailers producers show this with depressing imagery and music. However, no one wants to watch a show which is constantly depressing, they need some form of relief. This is why in our soap opera I wish to have happier music and imagery which can be followed by gently forwarding serious negative plots.

The titles for the end of the trailer appears handwritten and on a chalk board type wallpaper. This is good relation to the soaps setting of a school though no establishing shot confirms this location. I like how the writing is slanted, this also relates to scruffy teenager handwriting at school. I do however feel that a voice over would have helped partially blind/blind audiences. They also could have created their own television logo. Though using an existing one makes the soap opera seem more realistic it could inflict with copyright laws.

The editing includes fade to blacks which is a convention of trailers, helping the soap opera trailer seem more legit. They make the fractured narrative more obvious by the words which cut into the frame, for example ‘obsession’ which appears thirteen seconds in.  The plots however that consist with these narratives are not clear. This is partially good because the audience can guess and explore ideas. However, to attract an audience member you want to advertise stories which they can relate to and without dialogue from the actors the producers did not achieve this.

Initial Soap opera magazine

Soap opera magazine front cover on Prezi

Image collected from thejoker.co.uk

This is my short analysis on a soap opera magazine cover before i learned magazine terminology.

Siege Week Trailer - Coronation Street

I myself am not a Coronation Street fan; yet even I know the line ‘Guess who escaped, Tony Gordon.’ connotes some form of danger is arising with the return of this ex character. The word escapes makes it apparent the man broke from prison, this is also visually suggested by the policemen within the frame. The policeman who warns the wife of the husbands escape further suggests he is a dangerous man. You can tell this man is dangerous by the slow zoom towards the policemen face showing concern.

The location of the alley way holds more enigma coded information than one may think. An alley way is hidden away, stereotypically criminals can be hiding down them and this adds a fearful atmospheric mood for the audience. To further ideas of the alley way you can mention how it is situated within an urban environment connoting this man is hidden away from the public yet he is so close to their homes.  This closeness is stereotypical to the horror film genre. As criminals can be hidden close to the actor and the audience are well aware of the danger the character is in. This is called dramatic irony and I have found a quick example from the film ‘Halloween 2’. Nineteen seconds in the horror convention is used.  

What follows after the slow pan up of the Tony walking down the alley way is fast pace editing which adds a concerned atmospheric feel to the trailer. Fast pace equals worry and uncertainly as well as adrenaline within the confusion. This works well with the trailer and is a successful way to bring all the clips together showing the public unconcerned off his escape believing he won’t head home.

The fast pace editing ends with the final line “Ladies I am going to kill you and I’m going to enjoy it.” The realization that he’s headed home is the key moment for slow editing letting the confusion of the trailer glide away and the audience to identify Tony is back. This is followed like most trailers with a date, time and channel.

The non-diegtic rocky music fits well with the confusion adrenaline pumping atmosphere i referred to and it helps create the scenario perfectly.

EastEnders - And their unique trailers

Recently, EastEnderes have been twisting the rules of soap opera trailers. They have created a verisimilitude world of a different location or time period from that of the show. Yet, each still advertises the storyline effectively making them seem out of this world by the new location change. I agree with the majority of YouTube's comments such as ‘the trailers are better than the show’. This is what you need to attract your audience; a trailer that furthers the quality of the show.

This is my favourite trailer of all time. It is brilliantly corny and almost feels like its own cowboy show. The sound effects such as the gun reloading when Kat gets her mirror out it humorous and connotes that perhaps these characters will not have the most serious of roles to play to begin with. On the other hand the dialogue “Where do you get a drink around here?” (camera shot of the burned down pub) suggests that Kat and Alfie will become the new pub landlords of the Queen Vic.

The first shot in this trailer is an establishing one, in the frame the burnt down queen Vic pub. This already establishes the location of Albert Square as well as connoting the storyline regards the ruined pub. The other shot that stands out is the crane shot that reveals the character, Kat. This let the audience recognise her and it also goes with the stereotypical introduction from western films. Other shots fit with the western film genre such as Ian looking through the blinds with a close up, him hiding connoting that trouble is forming. Another humorous stereotypical western film shot is the over the shoulder shot which reveals a contender for the standoff duel.  It ends with a high angled shot which highlights the rivalry between the dual, another great shot.

The gap between Kat and Alfie connotes their relationship may be failing. The fast pace shots between their eyes suggest they are enemies and the colour of them have been edited to glow, showing power.  Further evidence that they are enemies is the non-diegetic voice over when Alfie appears, saying “It’s all kicking off in the square”. Alfie is also in the shadows connoting that perhaps he keeps secret from his wife or follows her, keeping an eye on her from afar.

The reactions of all the bystanders connote that the character, Kat is well-known within the square, perhaps too famous shown by the fearful reaction of Jane shutting the blinds. The wind which blows the rubbish around during the shots also connotes that Kat is bringing a storm with her; the storm being lots of expected drama.

The new location still advertises the show at the end with the theme tune, wording ‘EastEnders’, the voice over saying all next week (date) and the iconic locations such as the Queen Vic.

This trailer is brilliant in capturing the viewer’s attention. An iconic British women, Barbara Windsor, the actress for Peggy Mitchell (the damsel in distress) makes the viewer scream at the television screen warning her to avoid the clutches of dirty Den (the villain), as many people grew up with this well-known character, helping affect nerves of the audience. By including a damsel in distress and a villain the trailer starts building the foundations of Vladimir Propp’s theory of narrative, which concludes that all soaps include a hero, villain, damsel, helpers, princess, the dispatcher and finally the false hero.  If we further applying this theory to the trailer, you realise Peggy also plays the role of the hero and princess as well as the damsel. Den plays numerous roles also including the dispatcher (as he dispatches Peggy to his life via a engagement proposal) and a false hero. Peggy and Den can also been seen as binary opposites, Peggy being good and Den evil.

The juxtaposition of the child's lullaby framed with an old lady (Peggy) really highlights how vulnerable Peggy is, perhaps more vulnerable than a child. At the start there are several close ups of Peggy; she looks oblivious of the approaching danger, childlike. When the danger first appears (the arrival of Den on a lighted floor) it is seen through a mirror allowing the audience to both see Peggy reaction and the villains arrival, furthering this it is stereotypical of horrors to see danger appear in the mirror before facing and confronting it, showing the trailer in conveying that of a horror. Within eleven seconds the trailer already portray many of the same conventions of horror films, like the last trailer did with wild western films. This tells me that experimenting between soap trailers and movie genres is coming into play and works well grabbing the audience’s attention.

Also once again this trailer tells the viewer the time, date and channel of this episode.

This trailer shows several close up shots of the characters faces. These were used to show the gradual transition from Peggy being happy to vulnerable. Den is seen from kind/caring too evil. The trailer ends with an extreme close up of Peggy eyes becoming a zombie, a perfect shot for a horrifying ending.

This is another great original trailer, very cool and very interesting. It connotes several things, such as Max may die connoted by “Judgement day for Max.” However, Max doesn’t seem concerned in this trailer which suggests to me he will live and carry on fighting. To further this suggestion the question “But will he lye in it?” makes it apparent he won’t go down without fighting.

Once again it tells us which characters are include within the storyline, such as Bradley in his police uniform, connoting he is the one who will stick to the law no matter what is thrown his direction. Tanya who clinches the death bed connoting she misses the departed or she wants him desperately dead. Jack, who holds up Max's death label, is perhaps suggested to be the killer. Jack also wears distinct black gloves, connoting evil and darkness; are these gloves to hide fingerprint evidence?

I feel this trailer has connotations of a film genre, like the other two, however this genre is thriller. To be more precise, a psychological thriller, this could explain the confusion within the trailer and the disappearing of Tanya and the appearing of Jack. Also the lyrics use an enigma code to feed the audience key information about Maxes potential fate.

"God's Gonna Cut You Down", also known as "Run On" and "Run On for a Long Time", is a traditional folk song which has been recorded by numerous artists representing a variety of genres. The lyrics are a warning to sinners that no matter how hard they try, they will not avoid God's judgment; in the chorus, God tells the narrator of the song to

“

Go tell that long tongue liar, go and tell that midnight rider, tell the rambler, the gambler, the back biter, tell 'em that God's gonna cut 'em down.

”

Wikipedia

The trailer also tells the date of the episode as well as the soaps name alongside its theme tune and logo. Yet, this trailer doesn’t show a time, which would confuse potential new audiences.

Each title appears differently. The first trailer, the western cowboy one, has the title appear in black font still within the frame. The second, the horror trailer, has the title appear on the red default/home screen of BBC ONE.  The third, the thriller trailer had the title appear in front of its London area shot logo as the show usually does.

I feel the reasons they did these different titles were simple. Trailer one – They wanted the tension between the stand of to remain, like a build up of a hugely anticipated film such as the last Harry Potter. They did this by introducing the title within the same shot which leaves the stand of remaining on a cliff hanger; this doesn’t give the audience any release, leaving the tension dwelling.

Trailer two – They wanted the audience to have relief after the hard hitting creepy trailer, so they allowed it by bringing in the BBC default/home screen. Release of tension meant the audience could think about what they just saw and draw up predictions.

Trailer three – This trailer built no tension but instead just told a rough outline of the narrative, meaning they had no reason for the title to release tension, nor keep it, allowing the iconic logo title to be featured.

Each trailer has a key line which clearly shows the narrative is open. Trailer one – “It’s all kicking off in the square.” Suggesting hell will brake lose.

Trailer two – “He’s got Peggy under control, but for how much longer?” Hinting that Peggy will escape Den’s claws.

Trailer three - “Judgement day for Max.” Connoting this is the end of Max.

Each one ends on a cliff hanger, and with the connotations of what to follow from these lines makes the audience very eager to watch the episode.

What is the purpose of a trailer?

There are two obvious purposes to a trailer. Number one is to advertise a new film, video game or television show. Number two is to grab the viewer’s attention and make them eager to see the film, buy the video game or watch the television show.  To do this they need a hook in their trailer to grab the audience’s attention as well as appealing to their target audience usually using verisimilitude or genre usage (e.g. action films appear to younger male audiences.)

Film Trailer

Video game Trailer

Television Trailer - Soap Opera

Each trailer for the following three categories clearly tells the audience a date of realise.
One thing that makes the soap opera trailer stand solo from the other two was the fact it had no warning or viewing guidance at the start of it. This is linked to why the soap opera trailers feature before the water shed; they cannot be inappropriate as young audiences may be watching and therefore, need no warning.

Also, soap opera trailers can be simpler than their cousins. This may be due to budget reasons, but most likely to do with not needing to attract the viewer in the same way. By this I mean soaps have several chances to attract their audiences using individual episodes. Films and video games only have one shot.

Also, video games and films often will show reviews from critics, if they are good. Soaps aren’t viewed until their premier on television; therefore the audience can be its on critic making fairer judgement.

Sound wise, the film trailer is breath-taking but plays different roles from that of a soap opera. The film has moments of silence which is battled against huge, dramatic, stunning orchestrial moments. It tells you the basic plot of the film using dialogue quotes from the film, an often occurrence from film trailers.

Camera angels are varied and change often thanks to the fast pace editing which coincides perfectly with the powerful roar of the music. When the music softens, almost lying to the viewer suggesting equilibrium, the editing becomes much slower and shots that introduce you to key characters faces take host of the framework.  

Video games are more like interactive movies now days than an actual virtual world. That’s why this trailer follows the same traits as that of a film. It has speech from dialogue games; false equilibrium during silent pieces and a quick tempo, diegetic soundtrack.  

It’s almost degrading how simple trailers for soaps are. However, I must remind myself that I only have paid special attention to old soap trailers rather than modern. This is why I question, if being complex and revolutionary with our soap trailer, would it be a rejoiced replacement or a discarded misfit? Should we stick with trends or move aside technology?


Videos posted from youtube

Hollyoaks first Trailer

`

One thing this trailer does outstandingly well is target a particular audience: the young, stereotypical, dumb teen. I hate this trailer, as it is so cheesy, however, I like the fact the actors talk to the viewer to advertise the up and coming soap. By doing this the characters are taken out of their world (which is Hollyoaks) and join our own through this interaction making them more appealing. The audience can indentify with one of the characters; one of the four parts from the uses and gratifications theory.

Unlike the EastEnders original trailer characters are introduced to audience before launch. The character who says ‘I’m not doing this’ has already briefly revealed some of her personality by refusing to play along and by teasing the man she has matched with. This trailer also reveals all the actors are young and therefore targets a particular young audience.

The actor named Benson clearly tells us the show's name and launch date but the time of the show is not said. In fact it is hidden away in small writing, until second screening I did not realise the times existence and therefore I would be led to say this trailer isn’t clear, nor bold enough.

Similarly to EastEnders the trailer was simple, and I believe would also not demand a high budget. So there it is, soap opera launch trailers need to be simple and clear without needing a high budget.