course work

1. Soap Opera Genre –
Independent Textual
Analysis
Name:
Candidate Number:
Center Name: St. Paul’s Catholic College
Center Number:
OCR Media Studies – A2 Level
Unit G324: Advanced Portfolio

2. Trailer 1 – EastEnders Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=eastenders+kat+and+alfie+trailer
Verbal Codes
As soon as Kat walks into the scene the daunting ambient sound of her boots tapping against the ground ‘signifies’
(De Saussure) that she is a dominant female who is not afraid to cause trouble. Kat is not your typical ordinary girl,
she is the ‘binary opposite’ ( Levi Strausse) of “men act women appear’ (John Berger). In the trailer is she
represented as an ‘alpha female’ who is likely to appeal to ‘middle class females’ (Hartely) between the ages ’20 –
35’ because she is a young and ‘strong woman’ (Rebecca Feasey) and she isn’t in a high class but still she’s a
confident and brave lady who other women will look up to as they too find themselves in similar situations. When
Kat arrives at the Queen Vic there is western music that is played in the background which connotes that there is
about to be some sort of battle that is about to occur between Kat and the other characters, it sounds like a stand
off between two cowboys. Once some of the characters realise that Kat has arrived the non verbal code of their
faces denotes real fear and worry. For instance the strong hearted character Janine is usually brave herself in the
soap opera show however when she see’s Kat her facial expression is of concern. This implies that that there is about
to be a disequilibrium because a tough character like Janine is frightened by what trouble Kat could cause. This is an
‘enigma code’ (Barthes) the situation is about to get nasty. The diegetic sound of the phrase “where can I get a drink
around here” indicates her location. She is at the Queen Vic which is pub that serves all types of beverages. The use
of irony is almost humorous to an EastEnders audience because they know that the only place to get a drink around
there is the Queen Vic which is where she’s at. The voice over “it is all kicking off in the square” connotes that there
is about to be some sort of chaos in the square, Kat has come to start war and everyone knows it. ‘Caregivers’
(Maslow) will want to know that the rest the of the characters wont be affected by the confrontation that’s about to
occur between Kat and Alfie.

3. Non-Verbal Codes
Usually the Square is a busy place there are always customers coming in and out the pub, so its never quiet however
at the beginning of the trailer there is silence, its so silent you can hear the wind blowing and there is tumble weed
and newspapers rolling across the ground in the establishing shot this non verbal code use of symbolism connotes
that a disaster is about strike. In the western times tumble weed rolled in front of the screen it implied that
something dangerous was going to happen, which is exactly what it ‘signifies’ in this trailer. The dystopian lighting
when Alfie first comes into the trailer is an ‘enigma code’ that Alfie and Kat are in a bad place with their relationship.
Darkness is where she first see’s Alfie in and that's not a coincidence it denotes the feelings they have for each other
in the trailer; they’re very sinister feelings. This tension between Kat and Alfie connotes that they’re going through a
rough patch in their relationship as they’re known to be a couple in the actual soap and this makes the audience
want to watch the show that they’re ‘informed’ (Katz) on the Kat and Alfie’s relationship. Besides Alfie coming out of
the dark he is wearing black clothing and so is Kat which denotes gloominess between the two characters the only
different is that Kat has some red clothing which could denote that the anger she has since red is a colour of fire and
danger. Their cowboy like costumes ‘signify’ (De Saussure) that they’re both ready for action and they wont go down
without a fight because that is what cowboys do, they fight until their opponent lose. The fact that Alfie and Kat are
wearing cowboy outfits is quite funny because EastEnders has nothing to do with the western times and both
characters don’t have a cowboy background, instead these costumes indicate that trouble that is about to awake in
the Square.
Trailer 1 – EastEnders Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=eastenders+kat+and+alfie+trailer

4. Technical Codes
The establishing shot denotes that something tragic has just happened in Albert Square as the heart of EastEnders
‘The Queen Vic’ is burnt down. The long shot opens up the trailer with a disaster and tells the audience that there is
some sort of trouble. The low angle track from Kats big black cowboy boots denotes her dominance, her whole body
had to be acknowledged before showing her face from bottom to top. The jump cut between all the other characters
express the fear inside them, as they seem to be at ease before they realise that Kat is in town. On the other hand
the close up of Alife’s face when he first appears in the trailer ‘signifies’ that he’s her opponent and they’re paying
very close attention to each other with no emotion on their faces. The low angle low shot of Alfie through Kats legs
also connotes Kats dominance in the trailer as Alfie appears to be miniturised and below Kat; it also provides a ‘male
gaze’ to the male gender as they could enjoy the fact that a female is taking charge and standing up for herself in a
sexy way. The last technical code, a shot reverse shot at the end of the trailer which matches the drums of the
EastEnders theme song is a connotation that there is about to be battle between the two characters as the theme
song always plays when there’s about to be drama, almost like a cliff hanger.
Trailer 1 – EastEnders Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=eastenders+kat+and+alfie+trailer

5. Trailer 2 – Skins Trailer
Verbal Codes
In the skins trailer the non diegetic music being played has the lyrics “now I’m ready to start” connotes that there is
something to prepare for, something big is about happen is going to happen the series and it may be linked in the
events from last season. The lyrics imply that there is going to be drama or confrontation between the characters
and that each one of them is “ready to start” by releasing any negative emotions that they had previously.
Throughout a soap opera seasons characters change in behavior perhaps these lyrics mean that there that the
characters are about to change their personalities possibly in a negative way since they’re preparing for a battle.
Evidently the lyrics are an ‘enigma code’ (Barthes) to the fact that the true colours of some of the characters are
about to be shown. As the soundtrack plays it increases in volume and the drums get louder and louder, this
gradual increase in intensity connotes how each episode in the season will go from beginning to end. The more you
get into the soap opera series the more entertaining the drama is and the fact that the characters are falling in dark
water it ‘signifies’ (Neal) that clearly the characters are suffering in some way shape or form as drowning in deep
water is not a pleasant experience to have and the only to see how they get through their problems is watch the
program. The voice over “Skins brand new series coming soon on E4” ‘informs’ (Katz) which channel the program
the available to be seen on and the fact it is “brand new” gives the viewers something to look forward to. Resulting
in a bigger audience watching Skins making it bigger and a more well know soap opera show.

6. Non-Verbal Codes
In the skins trailer the setting is very dull and gloomy, the setting denotes trouble and loneliness which is possibly
how the characters will be feeling throughout the series. They will also have to face problems they haven’t faced
before and have to find ways of solving those problems by themselves which is connoted by the distance between
the characters whilst they’re falling down. The fact they’re falling in water is quite overwhelming because drowning
a terrifying thing but there is still and low light shining on the characters and it may connote that even though they
will go through tough times, there is still a possibility of them pulling through their challenges. Although the lighting
itself is dim and doesn’t have much life in it which denotes that they may be scared to face some of the challenges as
they feel alone and scared. As far as costumes go the trailer is unique with it because the characters are barely
wearing any clothes and I thing think that this ‘signifies’ that they’re being cleansed. When someone is bathing or
cleaning themselves they don’t water clothes it makes sense that they’re falling down in clear waterwith no clothes
because their want to change their lives. The facial expression on the characters faces in the trailer denotes fear and
worry, they don’t seem very happy the in situation that they’re in and this is evident. The fact that they’re growing
up now and becoming more like adults might be a bit scary to them which the audience will ‘personally identify’
(Katz) because they are of a similar age and go through the same struggles. Like mentioned before the thought of
growing may be scar the adolescent characters which is why they facial expressions denote fear.
Trailer 2 – Skins Trailer

7. Trailer 2 – Skins Trailer
Technical Codes
In the trailer there is slow motion (editing ) of the characters descending into what seems to be bottomless waters.
The technical code of the long shot camera angel captures this well and connotes that the characters cannot run
away from their problems as the y look quite helpless. Perhaps in the series they wont be able to run away from
their problems and will have to face what comes their way. The long shot also shows clearly that the characters are
not wearing clothes which connotes that they are not afraid to express themselves, they are teenagers who need to
voice their opinions and what better way to do it than not wear clothes and be comfortable with it.
In addition to the there are a various of close ups in the trailer and denote the struggle that the characters have to
face. As the camera really shows a close image of the characters face you can see that they’re scared and worried
about something and the audience will ‘personally identify’ (Katz) themselves in the same situations hoping that
they get though it.
There is tremendous amount of tracking in the trailer and the as the trailer progresses the speed of the tracking
increases as well which creates suspense because the audience want to find out what will happen to their favourite
character, they want to find out whether their favourite character survives the fall and is not in danger. ‘Caregivers’
(Katz) will feel sorry for their favourite character and hope that they manage to over come any problems that may
occur.

8. Evaluation of Textual Analysis –
Compare and Contrast
Trailer 1) – Areas of Strength and what you would ‘repeat’ (Steve Neale)
In the EastEnders trailer there are some area’s that I will be ‘repeating’ (Neale) in order to make my trailer a
successful one. My trailer is aiming for a target audience between the ages of 18 and 25 which is similar to the type
of audience that EastEnders appeals to apart from the fact that my trailer will not just attract ‘women’ (Hartley)
mainly, it will also appeal to men. I’ll make sure of this by adding males characters in my trailer just like the
EastEnders one that way the male audience can relate to some of the characters just like the male EastEnders
audience appeals to Alfie in his stand off with Kat.
The EastEnders trailer had theme which was the cowboy western theme it generated the feeling a battle happening
between Kat and Alfie; and the theme that I will incorporate in my trailer is time, the idea that time always runs out.
My trailer involves someone being murdered and by including time as a theme the audience will be ‘educated’ that
they cant run away from their problems eventually they will get caught have no where to run.
What I thought was also powerful about the EastEnders trailer and aim to ‘repeat’ is to chose a prime setting. The
soap opera EastEnders in based in Albert Square and that’s where the trailer took place which the audience can
relate to and will know straight away the name of the location. In my trailer I plan to use a specific location to help
the audience understand what the trailer is about.

9. Evaluation of Textual Analysis –
Compare and Contrast
Trailer 2) – Areas of Strength and what you would ‘repeat’ (Steve Neale)
In the skins trailer the soundtrack was chosen very well, it made the trailer more dramatic and really got it’s message
across. The musical synths and drums of the non diegetic music worked well with what the characters were doing,
which was falling down to a gentle but up beat sound track. I want to do the same in my soap opera trailer, since my
trailer is based around a ‘who could’ve committed the murder?’ the music has to be quite sharp and spooky so that
it really grips the audiences attention they can understand what is going on in the trailer better.
The skins trailer was quite basic and it worked, there wasn’t too much going in the trailer and I plan on doing the
same for my trailer but still have scenes which are effective but simple, that way the audience wont be confused if
too much is going on.
The slow motion editing effect is convention that definitely needs to be used in my trailer because it is so effective, it
captures the moment and gives time to the audience so they really take in what is going on.