How well do you think you
have done? Based on
feedback from teachers and
peers do you think have
successfully met the required
brief?
I personally think that I have done reasonably well with this project to
meet the required brief. For example, I have tried my best to use my
best equipment and learn how to use them properly as shown in my
research. Even though some shots may have not been of the best
quality. I think that overall the production is at an okay standard. There
are still areas that could be improved however, like transitioning well
between different scenes, and making more sense of the narrative.
Feedback:
“I think the video is very good and reminds me other dark emotional
dramas I have seen.”
Victoria Parr 18
“I think that the editing could be cleaned up, but I can follow the
storytelling very well”
Peter Andreu 17
“I like the colour grading, but some bits are too dark”
Niall O’Loughlin
“I liked the different shots I thought they were well filmed, however I
think that you could improve by reshooting out of focus scenes”
Frances Carroll
There are many important points highlighted in my feedback which will
help me to understand how well I have done with this project. For
example, Victoria said that it reminds her of other dark emotional
dramas she has seen, this indicates to me that I have effectively been
able to use the codes and conventions to create a well designed and
appropriate drama that incorporates the themes I am trying to achieve.
This could also suggest however that my work is not original, which
means I should try to use the codes and conventions more carefully, so
I still allow for originality whilst making use of the codes and
conventions to reinforce the same themes.
Peter said that the editing could be cleaned up, I agree with this
statement as I could have done more research into how I could more
appropriately use post production to convey the themes I am
communicating in different ways. For example, where could I cut out,
or fade out so that it would have more impact, do I need to cut to the
beat? Could I use post-production to contribute to the narrative? I
think in many ways I could have, but I also did in various parts of my
work for example when the first shots of his view down on the town
are seen the music hits a chord which I think works effectively to bring
attention to the landscape and its significance.
Niall said that he liked the colour grading, confirming that it may have
had the effect I desired, achieving a grumpier and drearier look. He also
said thought that in a few scenes the colour grading wasn’t needed, for
this reason in the future I will try to watch over all the production
before exporting and try not to apply the same adjustment layer to all
of the shots.
Frances mentioned how I should try to refilm scenes that were out of
focus, I think this is an important thing to pay attention to in the future
if producing similar work, to try and avoid this issue I will make sure to
check all footage on the camera and soon after on the laptop to make
sure the footage is good enough before I decide to stop shooting. I
think that this can be quite off putting when a scene is out of focus so I
 should try to avoid this, and in hindsight I think the quality of my
project would have been a lot better if I payed closer attention to this.

Verbal feedback:

I received verbal feedback from a teacher stating that some of footage

during the argument scene was out of focus, I did not notice this at
first, and I think the cause of this was the light level changing as I was
filming this scene. I think in the future I need to be more mindful of the
time of day and the how this will affect the light level I am filming in, I
should also make sure to check frequently whether the camera is
focussing properly to see whether I need to film at another time, use
artificial lighting or shake the settings on the camera to accommodate
for that change.

Do you think you followed the These were the guidelines outlined by BBC 3 and OFCOM that
guidelines well? my work must adhere to:

BBC guidelines require producers to take special care when

dealing with sensitive issues such as self-harm, suicide, and
violence:
Care must be taken to avoid describing or showing suicide or
self-harming methods in explicit detail, unless there is a clear
editorial justification.
It states in BBC guidelines that producers must make sure the
use of alcohol is not condoned or glamorised:
Must generally be avoided and must not be condoned,
encouraged or glamorised in any programmes broadcast pre-
watershed or on radio when children are particularly likely to be
in our audience, or in online content likely to appeal to a
significant proportion of children, unless there is editorial
justification.
The BBC Guidelines also state that any use of bad language
should be editorially justified:
The use of strong language must be editorially justified and
appropriately signposted to ensure it meets audience
expectations, wherever it appears.
Strong language is most likely to cause offence when it is used
gratuitously and without editorial purpose.
Producers are also required to abide with OFCOM regulations,
these are generally the same as the BBC guidelines however I
 will take steps to make sure I abide by them in all aspects of my
production:
OFCOM - Generally Accepted Standards
2.1 Generally accepted standards must be applied to the
contents of television and radio services and BBC ODPS so as to
provide adequate protection for members of the public from the
inclusion in such services of harmful and/or offensive material.

There were many steps I took to follow these guidelines; to

follow the first guidelines I made sure to not include scenarios
including suicide, self-harm or any gratuitous violence. My
original narrative involved a suicide which I changed to have the
mother instead go missing, even though this is not completely
banned, and I would be able to include this while being very
careful to represent it; I felt that both the storyline and my
ability to adhere with the guidelines would benefit from
changing this element. I think that it would implement a sense of
hope in the storyline to instead have a scenario where she could
possibly still be alive, as well as making sure that I am not
displaying scenes of suicide.

The second guideline states that the use of alcohol should not be
condoned or glamorised. I do show one of the characters
drinking alcohol in one scene, however, I use it to show that a
desperate time in her life has lead her to a bad habit. She is
shown to be drinking alcohol because she is experiencing
helplessness and loneliness, and I make sure to not imply that
her life improves due to the use of alcohol. I make sure the use
of alcohol is shown in a bad light, therefore it is not glamorised
or condoned.

After having reviewed the guideline highlighting the numerous

issues surrounding the use of bad language, I decided that the
best course of action would be to avoid any use of bad language
in my script to both adhere to the guideline and try to avoid any
offense my audience may take.

Overall, I think I complied with the guidelines well and I have a

piece of work that BBC 3 commissioning would likely find no
issue with. I don’t feel that the guidelines were extremely
limiting, as they were quite easy to work around.
How well do you think your The codes and conventions of dark emotional serial dramas:
production followed the  A strong focus on the characters emotions.
conventions of your  Strong character development.
genre/style?  A setting that suits the mood of the drama.
 Dark and dull colour grade.
 Appropriate music. (either down tone or suits the
situation)
 Comprehensive backstory.
 Mystery.
 Dynamic relationship between characters.
The style of dark emotional dramas is quite broad, however
there were things such as a strong focus on the emotions of the
character and artistic elements to consider.

I personally believe that my production followed these elements

quite well, for example in many scenes I implemented music that
added more feeling and helped to communicate to the audience,
in otherwise quite vague shots, what this character is feeling; for
example, when the character of Anthony is walking up the stairs,
the scene without the
music may feel a little
empty and the audience
might not understand why
they are seeing this or how
the character is feeling,
however after adding the
music I believe it communicates to the audience that what he is
doing is a reflection of his state of mind. He is making his way to
the top of the building to be in a place where he can escape his
routine and close his eyes for a moment.

I also believe scenes like this help to also develop my characters

personalities, for example the scene where Anthony is walking
up the stairs to the top of the building is a quite simple process,
yet this acts as a source of relief for him which reflects both his
peaceful side and the desire he must escape his repetitive life.

Whereas, when he is arguing with his daughter he appears more

aggressive and careless for her emotions and the wellbeing of his
wife. With Rachael I have developed her personality by showing
how she isolates herself, showing how defensive about her
mother she is yet so helpless to solve her issues.

Reflecting upon the development I have put into both of my

characters I think I have done well to satisfy the need for strong
character development as a convention of dark emotional serial
dramas, using both their actions and clues within their dialogue.
In terms of the convention to use a setting that suits the mood
of my drama, I have tried my best to put a lot of focus on this.
For example, I use the setting of the house to create a feeling of
claustrophobia, primarily using the character of Rachael to
convey this. She is constantly in the same setting and never
leaves, not only does this represent her loneliness and isolation,
the main purpose of constantly showing her in the same place
creates a feeling of claustrophobia within the audience. I also
constantly use close-up
shots, such as the tracking
shot when her hand is
trailing down the bannister,
to create a feeling of being
too close, or being in a very
small space. I do this to try
and make the audience feel the same way she does about her
environment, being able to more effectively empathise with this
character. I intended to do this from the beginning of my project
and looking back on the result I think it was quite a good idea
and turned out to be quite effective.

I also pay close attention to setting in various other shots

involving Anthony as well, for example when he is walking out
onto the terrace at the top of the building, I tried to make sure
that I filmed on a cloudy day. I wanted this moment to look quite
blank and grey, to try and
fit with the general colour
scheme of my project,
however on this day it also
happened to be foggy
which looked even better.
It had an almost hazy,
dreamlike effect which
really fitted with not only the theme of my drama, but the
nature of this scene.

One slight problem I did notice in certain scenes however were

bright objects or mess in the background, this isn’t too
distracting however I think it would have been better without it.
I noticed this in a scene
where Rachael goes up
to the pictures in the
living room. I should
work harder on
preparing my settings so
I don’t have this issue in
the future.

In terms of the dark dull colour grade I worked on this in post-

production to achieve a more down tone look. For different clips
I had to apply different level of saturation and less intense blacks
(for scenes that are darker than others.) I think this was worth
the effort and turned out quite well, at first some of the scenes
didn’t look right with the colour grade because I used an
adjustment layer which meant all clips had the same colour
grade. I improve this by removing the adjustment layer from
clips that needed a less intense colour grade, and directly
adjusting the colour grade on the original clip.

Feedback from Survey:

My first question asked whether they thought that my

production followed the codes and conventions of dark
emotional dramas, 75% percent said that it did. This suggests to
me that most people believe I have effectively utilised the codes
and conventions to develop an effective dark emotional drama
storyline. However, 25% percent of people said that it didn’t
follow the codes and conventions which may means I need to do
more research into it to develop my knowledge.

My second question asked which convention “do you think

lacked in my production”. I listed a few narrative conventions
that are quite important in a dark emotion drama, most people
said it was lacking a comprehensive backstory. I think that is
something that wasn’t present in the first episode however, you
don’t always learn everything about characters in the first
episode, so I don’t think this is too worrying. However, I think I
could’ve found more creative ways to implement information
through the events and props in the production.

What would you do differently
next time/ if you did it again?
However, I’m quite glad nobody said mystery which implies that
I have worked well to implement the element of mystery which
is my main plot drive, this is the device I am using to persuade
people to want to watch another episode and feel immersed in
the story.
If I compare my work to existing material for example,
Broadchurch which is a drama I did extensive research on to
understand the codes and conventions, I think my production is
very similar and therefore I think my work is very professional. I
think I have a lot of the same narrative devices for example
mystery with who the boys killer is, and my mystery with what
happened to the mother. I also think the characters are very
similar because they show their flaws which helps the audience
relate to the character and form a bond.
I think I would try to spend more time learning the ins and outs
of my camera. I found that a lot of the time I had to look up
different ways to improve my filming while I was shooting, I
think I will try to do research prior to any future projects so that I
don’t waste time during my work. I should also probably make
notes on this just in case I don’t fully understand or remember it
the first time I read it.
I would also try to spend a lot of time sourcing characters, in the
future if I’m working in a group project which I’d like to do, I’d
like to put some effort into finding real actors who would like to
act in my work. I did try my best to contact different theatres
that might be able to connect me with people who could help
but I didn’t get a direct response. I think in the future the best
course of action or me would be to go to the theatres and
introduce myself so that I would be able to talk to people
directly and I would be a more likely to find people and actually
build an association with them. Good acting can add a lot to the
quality of my work so it will be important and beneficial for my
future work if I do this.
As I mentioned in the
first section, in the
future I need to pay
more attention to the
focussing on my
camera while I am
filming. It meant one
scene in my
production had the camera focussing on the background rather
than my character Anthony. I should also be conscious of light
levels when I am filming, especially if I am filming in the evening
and it’s starting to get dark quite quickly.
I think I will also try to find more areas to use, in order to do this
I will try to do more research into areas near me that suit the
kind of area I need to use, it may also help to talk to others and
ask if people know areas that might be appropriate for my work,
it is important that I give myself a lot of choice when it comes to
areas I can film because I can use different areas as back up just
in case any issues arise with certain areas or they aren’t very
suitable.