Historical:
In the 1980s in East Germany, there was an obvious increase in equality between men and women. From modern estimations it is said that the gender pay gap was only 8% where as it was 23% in the western part of the country, showing that east Germany was more modern. Alongside this, there was also a form to help women in the workplace - the system was used to help women and mothers in the work place. In East Germany, they took stamp collecting very seriously, and was one of the most popular hobbies in the German Democratic Republic. There was a wall in 'little Berlin' which marked the border between the Americans occupying West Germany, and the Soviets over in the East. Another thing that showed East Germany was ahead of the time against West Germany was that they had created their own pedestrian traffic lights.
Economic:
In East Germany in the 80s, the German Democratic Republic made it a law that every city in the country with over 50,000 people had to have a breast milk bank for babies who needed them. This shows that the country was in a poverty stricken state as they need donations to cover the country for milk. Along with this, East Germany did suffer economically, and as certain technologies became commonplace in the west, the east was unable to reach the same state of comfort. There was no belief in unemployment in East Germany, however this meant there was also no unemployment benefits, but employees could only be fired due to misconduct.
Social:
As the two sides of the country were separated, naturally they developed their own dialectical differences, but in the East slang words were much more common. A black market developed in the 80s for jeans, as in the 1970s they were banned, which they then became a big fashion statement. As Coca-Cola was hard to be transported into East Germany, they created their own coke called Vita-Cola, and another thing relating to food and drink is that bananas were seen as a rare delicacy. East Germany often had a different concept of what a fashion model should be, and their female models were usually everyday women who promoted a healthy body and healthy living. Germanys magazines also were unusual, they based their articles and stories on party politics and healthy living, rather than celebrity gossip etc.
Friday 22 February 2019
Friday 8 February 2019
Regulation and Long Form TV Drama: Fact-finding
Learner Resource 3
Regulation and Long Form TV Drama: Fact-finding
Regulation topic
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Relevant information
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Topic 1 - The regulation of global practices of production, distribution and circulation
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Those opposed to the reversal say getting rid of the protections will allow internet service providers (ISPs) to throttle the connection of some sites, giving preferential treatment to others at a price.
Netflix Inc. tweeted on Tuesday that it supports strong net-neutrality rules, and that it opposes the commission’s proposal to roll back protections.
In 2015, the launch of HBO Now opened the floodgates for all major players in media and entertainment to launch their own stand-alone video streaming service that is not linked to a cable subscription.
Netflix continues to amass global subscribers to consolidate itself as a market share leader. Last week it announced that it garnered 7 million net new members in the fourth quarter of 2016.
Netflix had 34.5 million international subscribers against 47 million in the U.S. at the end of the quarter. It is unclear how many of its customers are in Asia.
Months after its global rollout, Netflix Inc (NFLX.O) is facing problems in several major Asian markets as it struggles to provide enough strong content to attract consumers amid tough local competition, and also faces many regulatory hurdles, underlining concerns about disappointing subscriber numbers reported this week.
Months after its global rollout, Netflix Inc is facing problems in several major Asian markets as it struggles to provide enough strong content to attract consumers amid tough local competition, and also faces many regulatory hurdles, underlining concerns about disappointing subscriber numbers reported this week.
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Regulation topic
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Relevant information
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Topic 2 - The regulation of media and long form drama in the UK
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Video-on-demand services including Channel 4’s All4 and Sky’s Now TV will be regulated by broadcast and communications regulator Ofcom.
Currently TV-like services delivered over the internet are regulated by a separate body authorised by Ofcom, the Authority for Television on Demand (ATVOD), which follows similar rules. These rules will still apply but be overseen by Ofcom.
Video-on-demand services include TV catch-up and online film services. The platform on which these on-demand services are delivered does not matter, so services on connected TVs, apps on mobile phones and programmes you view through set-top boxes may all be regulated.
· Protecting under 18s
· Incitement to hatred
· Commercial references in programs
In addition, platforms such as Netflix and Amazon will have to ensure that their services provide “good visibility” and prominence to European content in their digital catalogues.
According to a study provided by the European Commission, Netflix and Apple’s iTunes already devote 21% of their film catalogue to content from the European Union.
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Topic 3 - The impact of new media technologies on regulation
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It will suffocate the fast-growing streaming industry under a blanket of regulation. It will fund lots of unwatchable, pretentious rubbish.
Streaming will be a huge industry. But if we are force-fed a diet of dreary French drama it will quickly be killed off – and the destructive power of the EU’s misguided economic nationalism will have been demonstrated yet again.
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Stranger Things Meanings Essay
What meanings are created in the sequence you have studied and what do they tell us about narrative, character, development and genre?
There are many conventions in which allow you to identify a long form TV drama. Some of these include; cliff hangers, mystery and strong soundtracks. Within the sequence which we studied, these conventions are obvious along with others. You can identify these within the six-minute clip which was studied, and they allow the audience to entice themselves into the drama more, as the scene ends on a cliff hanger. The final scene in which the group of boys find Eleven, allows the audience to see the themes, see a development in the storyline and also proves the genre is sci-fi.
In the final scene of the sequence the boys are introduced to the character of Eleven. This creates a lot of meanings which develop the story line further and show the genre of the series. These conventions are shown in a range of ways; however, they are used here as it is the end of the episode which therefore creates a cliff hanger, and also so that the audience are shown that the storyline comes together when the two groups of main characters come together. The scene shows the boys running into Eleven and then a shot of close up level shots of the boys looking at her, with their torches shining on her. This is accompanied by loud sci-fi music, which created a sense of mystery and tension as the audience are yet to know who Eleven actually is and her background. Within this scene there are many hints of the genre within the scene. Firstly, the music is a typical sci-fi themed music. The music not only highlights the sci-fi theme, but also creates a lot of tension for the audience. The volume of the non-diegetic music increases when the boy’s torches shine at Eleven, which shows that this moment is of importance as it makes it stand out more. The level camera shot however, shows that the teenagers are equal. This tells us that the characters are equally important within the sci-fi themed long form TV drama, and the cliff hanger shows that the narrative is going to continue to develop in episode two.
Within the scene of Nancy and Steve there are many meanings. Firstly, you can see the development of not only their relationship, but also the development of Steve as a character, in which he becomes more likeable to the audience as he is helping Nancy learn her notes for her exam. Earlier in the episode, you see Steve as a stereotypical jockey who is obnoxious and arrogant – however in this scene he is presented as a more loveable person and you can see that Nancy see’s this too making the audience feel part of the scene. When Nancy and Steve are in her bedroom it is a typical 80s bedroom which shows the theme and genre of an 80s drama. There is an 80s diegetic song playing in the background of the scene at a low volume, however when Nancy pushes Steve off her, the music gets louder to show that it is a dramatic moment, as well as a jump cut being used to show the proximity between them after he moved closer. When he does this, it shows the development of their relationship as the audience are made aware of the intimacy within their relationship as it blossoms. One of the meanings that can be connotated through this scene is the idea of teenagers developing, which is important throughout the whole of episode one, as not only do you see the development of Nancy and Steve, but you can also see the development of the group of boys becoming responsible and mature when they decide they need to look for Will.
Finally, in the scene at Benny diner, which is a typical 80s diner, there is diegetic music playing. When the social worker arrives and is speaking to Benny, a high angle shot is looking down on her making her seem inferior, and a contrasting low angle shot is used to look up at Benny which connotes that he is more superior. When the social worker has arrived at the diner, the pace of the cuts increases, alongside the non-diegetic music. This is used to make the audience feel on edge and excited, and it gives an overall sense of panic as the officials look for Eleven. When Eleven uses her supernatural powers, this shows the theme of sci-fi to the audience. It shows meanings to the audience that you cannot judge someone on their appearance, as Eleven originally is a young child who looks scared, which connotes to the audience that she is innocent and then she turns into a child who has the ability to use superpowers to an extent that can kill or seriously injure people. This develops the narrative as it makes the audience question the TV drama, making them want to know what is going to happen in the second episode. It introduces Eleven as a character who is full of mystery, as well as making the audience feel empathy towards her. Again, this scene shows the genre of the TV drama as the use of supernatural creates the themes of sci-fi, as well as the murder of Benny showing a theme of crime.
In conclusion, within the sequence there are many meanings which show the genre, development, characters and narratives. I think that the main scene is the end scene in which there is loud non-diegetic sci-fi music when the boys find Eleven. This adds tension and mystery, to then conclude the episode with a cliff hanger. Alongside other meanings which highlight the themes of sci-fi, mystery and crime throughout the whole episode which make the audience want to continue watching with hints of future themes and the mystery in which the audience want to find out what is going to happen.
Sunday 3 February 2019
Stranger Things Fanbase
What is the product? Give an overview.
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Who is it by? What demographic/ psychographic can the fan be defined by?
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Where can you find this product? Which platform?
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Which features of the drama’s content does the product focus on? What does it suggest is the main appeal of the TV drama?
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How have other fans responded to the content? Give examples of how they respond?
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Are the fans targeted by the TV drama’s creators in any way?
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Fan-made product 1
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Instagram page made by fans called @netflixstrangerthings
Posts images and memes from the series and characters.
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It is created by a fan, but they do not disclose themselves as to who they are.
However, the fan must be at a working class as they are able to access Netflix and images to post on their Instagram.
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You can find this product on Instagram, so it is only available on one platform.
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The feature that they mainly focus on is the characters, both the actor and the fictional person.
It suggests this is the main appeal as they relate to them on the page.
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Lots of other fans comment and like the pictures.
They are able to DM and comment on pictures and the account creator will reply so they can have a conversation the program.
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The fans are not targeted by the TV dramas creators as the account is created by a fan and is for fans so therefore the creators do not have any part of it.
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Fan-made product 2
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Official Instagram page for Stranger things @strangerthingstv
Is an official page linked to a YouTube channel.
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It is created by a fan or publicist; however, it does have links to the real actors etc.
It shows a high demographic as they are in contact with the actors.
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You can also only find this product on Instagram which is one platform. However, it has a YouTube channel which links it to another platform.
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This Instagram page focuses mainly on advertisement and current things the actors are doing rather than on the storylines of the series.
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Fans comment on the pictures and follow the page. They are often in easy access to the YouTube channel which they can also comment on. They ca ask questions on live videos and on questions on the Instagram stories.
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They are not targeted by the dramas creators however they are targeted by the actors as they are able to speak to each other through posts and comments.
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Fan-made product 3
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Twitter Page for Stranger things @stranger_things
The official page showing links, sneak peeks and fan accounts.
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It is created by the promoters for stranger things.
The demographic is a wide range as although it is created by a higher class, it is produced for everyone.
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This product is primarily based on Twitter; however, it is accessible via the internet. The social media platform.
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The thing that it mainly focuses on it promoting the new series and also being able to keep their fans up to date and allowing them to interact.
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Fans respond to the twitter page in a positive way as they comment and follow the page. They tag the page in their posts in order to get retweeted.
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The fans are not directly targeted by the dramas creators, however they are a large apart of the page as they base their posts on what will interest the fans.
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