Question 3 LFTVD question part 3
'The differences in the codes and conventions of LFTVD reflect the different values, attitudes and beliefs of the audience that consumes them' How far do you agree with this statement? (30)
The differences in codes and conventions of long form TV drama reflect the different values, attitudes and beliefs of the audience that consumes them as the products need to ensure that audiences can identify themselves in aspects of the TV drama in order for them to be engaged with the product. Netflix has a large audience to entertain and engage therefore it has to include a range of shows that feature a range of codes and conventions to try and entertain their audiences in 190 countries. DR is a public service broadcaster in Denmark therefore it needs to contain codes and conventions that reflect the values, attitudes and beliefs of its audiences as people there need to pay a Danish license fee of £291 per household for the service to run. If the audiences don't identify with the values, attitudes and beliefs of programs produced by DR, they may not pay their license fee, meaning DR's funding will stop therefore showing that their codes and conventions are strongly reflected on its audience.With DR being a PSB, it has more requirements that it needs to fulfil in its codes and conventions than the private company Netflix, but arguably Netflix needs to work harder to ensure the codes and conventions it portrays can appeal to its mass global audience whilst DR has a niche audience of Denmark.
The differences in codes and conventions of long form TV drama reflect the different values, attitudes and beliefs of the audience that consumes them as the products need to ensure that audiences can identify themselves in aspects of the TV drama in order for them to be engaged with the product. Netflix has a large audience to entertain and engage therefore it has to include a range of shows that feature a range of codes and conventions to try and entertain their audiences in 190 countries. DR is a public service broadcaster in Denmark therefore it needs to contain codes and conventions that reflect the values, attitudes and beliefs of its audiences as people there need to pay a Danish license fee of £291 per household for the service to run. If the audiences don't identify with the values, attitudes and beliefs of programs produced by DR, they may not pay their license fee, meaning DR's funding will stop therefore showing that their codes and conventions are strongly reflected on its audience.With DR being a PSB, it has more requirements that it needs to fulfil in its codes and conventions than the private company Netflix, but arguably Netflix needs to work harder to ensure the codes and conventions it portrays can appeal to its mass global audience whilst DR has a niche audience of Denmark.
Both long form TV dramas Stranger Things and The Killing, reflect the different values, attitudes and beliefs of their audience through the codes and conventions in which they use. In 2016, Netflix worked with the Duffer brothers (Matt and Ross) to create Stranger Things. The show is poly-generic to try and appeal to the mass global audience that Netflix has due to approximately 183 million people being subscribed to the service. The show features an array of genres such as: sci-fi, romance, group/buddy, action, horror and coming of age. This has allowed the show to be able to reflect values, attitudes and beliefs of a wide audience as there is something for everyone to identify with. The use of genre hybrids relates to the theory by Steve Neale which states that genres are fluid and are often changing and mixing with each other to create hybrids which are engaging for wide audiences.
In 2007, DR created the long form TV drama The Killing which reflected the values, attitudes and beliefs of its intended Danish audience through the use of reflecting on current social issues which were occurring in the country. This included corrupt politics, racism and conflict between Denmark and Sweden. The show used Nordic Noir conventions which allowed for the audience to relate to the issues mentioned but enjoy viewing them in a dramatised way. The show was very popular in Denmark with an average of 1.7 million viewers per episode and became popular outside of its native country with BBC 4 showing it past watershed on Saturday nights in 2011. This shows that the codes and conventions used in the LFTVD not only reflected the values, attitudes and beliefs of those in Denmark but a larger scale audience.
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However, it wasn't just the audience that caused Stranger Things to be poly-generic, but the ownership structure of its producer and distributor Netflix. Netflix is a privately owned company which makes its money through customers paying a monthly subscription of a minimum of £5.99. With Netflix's subscriber count being approximately 183 million, this allows for the budget of the company to be vast and therefore allow for the creators of their shows to have creative freedom and create shows in which they believe that their subscribers would enjoy. The Duffer brothers were given the creative freedom when producing Stranger Things as they subverted elements of David Hesmondhalgh's theory of cultural industries but having new elements that hadn't been tried before (such as having unknown child stars) instead of repeating what had already been tried and tested previously. The format of the show reflects the values, attitudes and beliefs of the audiences due to its industry. Series 1 of Stranger Things consists of 8, 60 minute episodes to allow for Netflix's USP of binge ability to be achieved- the audience can view all of the series in one sitting if they wish which is unique as most shows release episodes weekly or have a large amount of episodes in a series. This binge ability format is designed for Netflix's main generation Z and millennial demographic so that Stranger Things can appeal to them. This shows that the different attitudes, beliefs and values of audiences reflects the codes and conventions used in LFTVD.
In comparison, the ownership structure of DR is very different to Netflix as it is a PSB meaning it has more guidelines to follow and less creative freedom. The company is funded through Danish households paying a licence fee of £291 per year. Because of it only being funded by Denmark, this means it had a narrower budget than Netflix who is funded globally. When creating The Killing, DR had to synergise with ZDF (a German PSB) to have a big enough budget to create the show. With the low budget and niche audience to appeal to, The Killing can be seen to conform to David Hesmondhalgh's theory of cultural industries to ensure success as it can only afford to produce one major LFTVD a year. The show has conformed to Hesmondhalgh's theory by including popular Danish stars to attempt pull marketing to its audience. Conversely, the format of The Killing is that series 1 consists of 20, 50 minute episodes which instead of allowing for a binge ability feature to be achieved, allow for the audience to keep up with the progression of the story line as each episode represents 24 hours. It was shown weekly in Denmark in 2007 and then shown in double bills on a Saturday night in the UK in 2011. This format appealed to a different demographic than Netflix as it was able to appeal to an older target audience and be able to target people of ABC1 occupation groups in the UK by being shown on BBC4. This shows that the different attitudes, beliefs and values of audiences reflects the codes and conventions used in LFTVD.
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However, it wasn't just the audience that caused Stranger Things to be poly-generic, but the ownership structure of its producer and distributor Netflix. Netflix is a privately owned company which makes its money through customers paying a monthly subscription of a minimum of £5.99. With Netflix's subscriber count being approximately 183 million, this allows for the budget of the company to be vast and therefore allow for the creators of their shows to have creative freedom and create shows in which they believe that their subscribers would enjoy. The Duffer brothers were given the creative freedom when producing Stranger Things as they subverted elements of David Hesmondhalgh's theory of cultural industries but having new elements that hadn't been tried before (such as having unknown child stars) instead of repeating what had already been tried and tested previously. The format of the show reflects the values, attitudes and beliefs of the audiences due to its industry. Series 1 of Stranger Things consists of 8, 60 minute episodes to allow for Netflix's USP of binge ability to be achieved- the audience can view all of the series in one sitting if they wish which is unique as most shows release episodes weekly or have a large amount of episodes in a series. This binge ability format is designed for Netflix's main generation Z and millennial demographic so that Stranger Things can appeal to them. This shows that the different attitudes, beliefs and values of audiences reflects the codes and conventions used in LFTVD.
In comparison, the ownership structure of DR is very different to Netflix as it is a PSB meaning it has more guidelines to follow and less creative freedom. The company is funded through Danish households paying a licence fee of £291 per year. Because of it only being funded by Denmark, this means it had a narrower budget than Netflix who is funded globally. When creating The Killing, DR had to synergise with ZDF (a German PSB) to have a big enough budget to create the show. With the low budget and niche audience to appeal to, The Killing can be seen to conform to David Hesmondhalgh's theory of cultural industries to ensure success as it can only afford to produce one major LFTVD a year. The show has conformed to Hesmondhalgh's theory by including popular Danish stars to attempt pull marketing to its audience. Conversely, the format of The Killing is that series 1 consists of 20, 50 minute episodes which instead of allowing for a binge ability feature to be achieved, allow for the audience to keep up with the progression of the story line as each episode represents 24 hours. It was shown weekly in Denmark in 2007 and then shown in double bills on a Saturday night in the UK in 2011. This format appealed to a different demographic than Netflix as it was able to appeal to an older target audience and be able to target people of ABC1 occupation groups in the UK by being shown on BBC4. This shows that the different attitudes, beliefs and values of audiences reflects the codes and conventions used in LFTVD.
Very strong, well done Hattie
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