How is gender represented in this extract of Primeval?

Gender is represented in this extract of Primeval through the use of mise-en-scene, camera angles, editing and sound. Primeval is a sci-fi TV drama and typically in Sci-fi males are seen as the dominate more active, involved in solving the problem whereas the female characters are often providing information or being saved.

True to this, the extract begins with Abbi sat in the tractor with Nick doing the manual work, he is wearing ordinary everyday clothes, t-shirt and combats which are muddy which suggests he is more involved in the work than Abbi is who is wearing more fashionable clothes which are clean. However, she challenges the typical stereotype of a weaker character when she gets more involved and saves Nick by distracting the creature when it attacks. Nick takes on Vladimir Propp's role of the typical male hero when he draws the creature away from Abbi. He is more active when dealing with the situation by running and climbing whereas Abbi is more stationary. This suggests that the female character is more prepared to tackle the situation head on whereas the male character wants to more physical in his approach. Abbi challenges the stereotype of the damsel-in-distress role when she comes to Nick's rescue by shooting at the creature. The group is mainly and is dominated by male characters, who decide what action is going to be taken. The group decide to save Jenny who seems to have take action into her own hands, this suggests she is challenging the stereotype by taking the heroic role however this is reversed by the fact she has to be rescued. Jenny's character looks out of place on the farm as she is smartly dressed, obvious make-up and hair done up. This contrasts from the male farmer who is in working gear which is more practical to the setting which suggests the female character cares more about her appearance. She seems aware of her looks and she tries to use it to control the farmer who ultimately ignores her argument so she ends up having to be saved by the others.

The close-up of the severed hand uses Barthes' code of enigma to make the audience wonder what it's doing there, it also builds up the plot and adds intrege. This extract uses a lot of low and high angle shots to show the control and power of the male and female characters. When Nick is in the trench and is being attacked by the tiger, low angle shots are used to make Nick look vulnerable and high angle to make the creature intimidating to Nick and the audience. Fast pace panning is used for the shots of Abbi in the digger and the tiger to add to the excitement and movement in the scene. It also gives the audience a sense of confusion as they can't see clear what is happening. These shots are cut between shots of Nick in the trench which makes him seem out of the action and shows that he is concerned for Abbi's safety. When Nick climbs the ladder there is a jump cut to him taking his belt off and tying the belt to the zip wire to speed up the action and give the audience a feeling of urgency. A tilt shot is used to show Nick on the zip wire and the tiger on the ground to suggest to the audience the danger he is in and how close he is to the creature. There is quick cutting between shots of Abbi running with the gun and Nick with the tiger which builds up the tension for the audience who want her to get to his rescue on time.

A slow motion edit is used when Abbi shoots the tiger which is quite effective after the fast pace cutting as it shows the action is over and gives the audience time to recover from the excitement, it also gives them the opportunity to see Nick's emotion. It then cuts to the panning shots of the group which cut several times to show the different characters talking, this makes the audience feel more involved in the conversation than if the camera where stationary.

The diegetic and non-diegetic sound also helps builds up the tension and sense of action which is key to the sci-fi conventions. It is also used to get the audience to build up emotion towards the characters. At the beginning of the clip the non-diegetic music is ominious and imposing which builds suspence and suggests to the audience that something dangerous is about to happen to the characters. The music then gets quieter and the diegetic sound of the JCB is heard this makes the action seem more real and the audience more involved. There is a dramatic beat when Nick spots the hand in the mud which suggest to the audience that this is significant. When Abbi turns off the digger the growl and crunching of twigs implies that the creature is close and the characters are in danger. The camera then uses quick panning shots off the trees to add to the tension and fear of the characters and audience. When the tiger appears the sound increases with the noise of the JCB, the growling and the non-diegetic music all adding to the tension and action of the scene. When Nick runs away the music becomes more louder and quicker to show the urgency of his situation. When the tiger is shot the music slows and becomes almost a fuzzy ringing sound which coinsides with the slow motion edit. During the conversation the music is still in the background loud and slightly ominous but increases when they decide to take action and save Jenny.

The music is used as a sound bridge from the scene of the group and the scene with Jenny in the barn, the music becomes softer and less intimidating which suggests the situation isn't dangerous yet as they are just having a conversation. It also suggest that Jenny is unaware of the danger she is in which represents the idea that the female character is a bit reckless and haven't thought it through. At the beginning she seems to be in control of the situation however when the farmer picks up the shotgun and she falls over she becomes very vulnerable. Low angle shots are used to make the audience feel sympathetic towards Jenny and make her seem small and helpless. The diegetic sound of the gun shot and the dogs barking add to the feeling of helplessness of Jenny's situation. The dogs barking make the farmer seem more imposing and threatening and suggest to the audience that even if Jenny tried to run he would only set the dogs on her. Slow motion edit of Jenny on the floor is used to suspend the time between her lying there alone seeming helpless to the shot where Steven, Abbi and Connor arrive. When she falls the audiene can see she is wearing a black dress and tights which seems like an inapproprate thing to wear in a farm whereas all the other characters seem more approprately dressed. This represents that this female character is not used to this country setting, she seems more like a business woman than the type who would get involved in the action. The female character is shown as being more caring and sensitive to other's feelings as Abbi is the one to ask if Jenny is ok. Whereas Steven and Connor are more interesting in dealing with the farmer, again the male character is shown being more active and the one to deal with the situation.

In this extract, male and female stereotypes are used and challenged. The male characters are generally represented as the ones who get activly involved in the action and are the dominant figures as they outnumber the female characters. However, in some cases the typical stereotype of the damsel-in-distress is challenged with Abbi being the main one who gets rid of the tiger. Also Jenny tries to take action by going to deal with the farmer herself however this backfires and leaves her having to be rescued which backs up the idea that the female character is weaker and has less control. Also the male stereotype is challenged when Nick has to be saved by Abbi however the typical stereotype is used as he is represented as the active if reckless hero of the story.

How is gender represented in this extract of Dr Who?

In this extract of Dr Who, a sci-fi TV drama genders have different roles.

Kidulthood - the effects of camera angles and editing techniques.

The mid-to-long shot and over-the-shoulder shots of the parents show the distance between them physically and the lack of communication in their relationship. The mid shot of the Dad where he is closer to the audience and the Mum is out of focus behind him suggests that he doesn't really listen to her and that he gets the last say, which is proved when he ends the conversation "There you go, she's fine" and walks off. The camera then pans round to show the expression on the Mum's face. She then looks at the ceiling which cuts to shot of Katie in her room. The diegetic sound of the music becomes louder when it cuts to a shot of Katie. The camera moves around the room with Katie she walks towards the desk, there is then a jump cut to her sitting down so that the audience don't have to see every action. The high-angle shot of her at the desk makes her seem small and powerless to the audience. The shot also shows a bit of her room, there is a photo of her family on her desk. The camera then moves to an over-the-shoulder shot of her looking at herself in the mirror, this shows the audience Katie from her point of view, and shows her expression - she looks miserable and is shaking which could suggest that she is scared. It also implies that she is lonely and has feels that she has no-one to turn to.

There is then a cross-cutting transition to show the other characters. This implies that there is other action going on at the same time and the cutting makes the action seem simultaneous. The long shot of Becky in a crowded setting contrasts with Katie alone in her room which suggests that Katie is more isolated and lonely than Becky. The shot then dissolves into a the mid-long shot of Alisa in the toilet, which again is an empty room which suggests the character is isolated. The dissolving transition between the characters suggests that Katie is more cut off from the other characters and that the others are closer together. The fact that the montage shows the characters separately suggests that they lead separate lives.

The canted shot of Katie shows her distress and that she is not thinking straight. The shot then moves into a wipe shot montage of the other characters. The song is non-diegetic sound and becomes the sound bridge between the shots. The lyrics of the song "Just keep positive" relates to the story and the characters. The montage adds suspension and shows that time has passed since she went up to her room.

The jump shots of Katie in different areas of her room suggests that she is pacing up and down, that and the variety of different shots and quick cuts adds to the tension. The canted shot of Katie curled up on the floor is a high angle shot which makes her look helpless. It's a long shot which distances the audience from her which makes her seem even more helpless. This contrasts from the other characters because they are in close-up or mid shots which makes them seem less isolated.

The wipe shot montage starts again with a two shot of Becky and a unknown man. The man has his back to the audience which makes him seem dangerous or suspicious. It is obvious that he is older because he is not in uniform and she is, also he is towering above her which shows he has power over her. Shot then wipes to a close up of Alisa which allows the audience to see the emotion. The audience presume that the baby is Trife's because of an earlier conversation and the wipe shot then moves to him. The montage ends with Moony throwing his controller and cuts to a over-the-shoulder shot of Katie writing a letter suggests to the audience suggests that the other characters' problems are trivial compared to Kaite's. The amount of shots of Katie writing suggests she is putting thought into it, it could also suggest that she is unsure about her decision.

A close up shot of Alisa looking away from the pregnancy test shows her emotion and suggest that she is actually pregnant.

Katie indicates that she has come to a decision when she looks up at the ceiling, the cut to a shot of her family downstairs suggests that something bad is about to happen. The soundtrack also implies this because the lyrics aren't heard anymore but the repetitive melody carries on and becomes quite ominous.

The mid-shot of the Dad on the laptop makes the rest of the room look out of focus and distant which suggests that he is distant and uninterested in his family. This is also shown when Lenny refuses to tell his sister to turn the music off, which shows he has a good relationship with is sister because he doesn't jump at the opportunity to tell her off. The high-angle shot of the Mum looking up the stairs makes her seem powerless in this situation and shows that the audience have a better understanding than she does. The cut to the living room increases the suspension and shows that the family are oblivious to what is going on.

The shot of Katie's room from the inside implies that Katie is dead and lets the audience know before the characters however the shot is a low angle shot which makes the audience feel helpless in the situation. When Dad and Lenny burst through the door the camera zooms out to show Katie's feet hanging in mid air. The Dad and Lenny look up at Katie which makes them seem powerless and small but the audience are looking up at them which makes the audience feel even smaller.

There is a pause in the action where there is a blank shot so that the audience can take in what has happened. It also implies that time has passed, the next shot is light which suggests it is the morning after.

A panning shot shows the audience that the action is happening in a different setting - before it was in a relatively large house at night, now they are in an urban area with council flats. The different setting suggests that the story has moved on to a different character rather than continuing with Katie and her family.

The shot pans to Jay knocking on a flat door, the non-diegetic sound of the radio acts as a sound bridge from the outdoor shots to the indoor shot where the audience presume the radio is on in the kitchen where Trife's mum is cleaning. The shot pans round to the door where Trife opens the door for Jay, this allows the audience to see that the flat is quite small compared to Katie's house.

Typical Conventions of TV Drama Genres.

Crime:

• Multiple suspects
• Complex plot
• Good cop/bad cop
• Enigma - makes viewer speculate
• Clear explaination at the end

Examples:

• Lewis
• Miss Marple
• Sherlock
• Inspector Morse
• A Touch of Frost

Sci-fi:

• Special effects
• Fantastical/extravagent storylines
• Humans vs aliens
• Often mixed with action
• Set in outer space or different time periods
• Humans usually the "good guys"
• Based on comic book characters
• Characters with magical/supernatural powers

Examples:

• Doctor Who
• Primeval
• Merlin
• Being Human

Hospital:

• Set in hospital
• Main characters are doctors/ patients/ paramedics
• Plots about dealing with illnesses for both patients and family
• Give viewer insight to unknown illnesses

Examples:

• Casualty
• Holby City
• Scrubs
• House
• Doctors
• ER