Analysis of Emmerdale and Eastenders Soap Opera Trailers

1. Analysis of 2 Similar Texts
A2 Media Studies
The first text I will analyse is Eastenders’ trailer about the death of Lucy Beale.
The second trailer I intend to analyse is Emmerdale’s ‘judgement day’.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKbgDzox4FM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGXX2ubwoIU
The aspects within these texts that I will be looking out for are:
-what channel it is aired on
-who the target audience are
-what storylines/themes are displayed
-how technical codes are used
-how the trailer persuades/entices its audience

2. Eastenders ‘Who killed Lucy Beale’
Channel
Eastenders is shown on BBC One Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday at either 7:30 or 8pm.
Eastenders are often producing new trailers foreshadowing content for the following weeks.
Conventionally Eastenders show their trailer after the episode. This is really effective as BBC
One already have the attention of the target audience thus resulting in the majority of potential
viewers seeing the trailer.
Target audience
The target audience for Eastenders would be females aged between 16 and 50. I think this
because BBC One have included characters that would relate to all of these ages e.g. Lola Pierce
(teenager) and Dot Cotton and Carol Jackson (older). I have additionally chosen females as
females tend to choose soaps as a pass time whereas men may prefer sport. Eastenders would
fit socio-economic groups C1 C2 D and E as some characters own their own business which may
appeal to socio-economic group C1 e.g. Mick Carter, Phil Mitchell and Ian Beale. Some
characters such as Alfie Moon are unemployed and therefore would be relatable to socio-economic
groups D and E. The target audience can additionally be determined by psychographic
grouping. This describes the audience’s personality and characteristics. For example the
psychographic groups for EastEnders would be ‘resigned’ and a ‘mainstreamer’. EastEnders
would appeal to these psychographic groups as mainstreamers often enjoy to stay at home and
watch soaps. Additionally EastEnders’ audience could be seen as ‘resigned’ as some audience
members may be quite traditional and are slow to adapt to new media (hence why soaps are
for them!)
Storyline/themes
The main storyline within this soap opera is the murder of Lucy Beale. The trailer focuses on
various different characters which foreshadows to the audience that the murderer could be one
of the following: Max, Lauren, Denise, Ian, Peter and Jane. This storyline reflects the target
audience as it is very dramatic and doesn’t occur regularly in real life. Stereotypically women
are known to be interested in high drama and therefore this is why a murder storyline is likely to
appeal to women.

3. Eastenders ‘Who Killed Lucy Beale’
Technical codes
Camerawork: the camera work in this trailer is quite limited for example there is an
establishing shot at the beginning of the trailer which is effective as it allows the audience
to know where the soap is being set. Additionally mid shots and close up shots are
evident in this production for instance on Ian Beale in the cafe and Max Branning when he
is putting out the bins. These shots are repetitive and effective as they allow the
audience to see the character’s facial expressions and reactions.
Editing: there aren’t many shots used in this trailer as a lot of shops last for a number of
seconds as they are effectively a still image. Therefore the editing is slower than usual.
However the editing technique of applying moving image onto a still picture is very
effective as it makes the audience feel as though the character is looking at them.
Lighting: a vast majority of the trailer has been filmed at night with the sources of light
being artificial. For example when we see Denise, the room is lit with a lamp in the corner
of the room and Ian is shown in the cafe with artificial lighting. This is really effective
within this trailer as it supports and matches the storyline/narrative being portrayed. The
darkness connotes danger and suspicious behaviour. This is additionally used to make the
audience feel cautious towards these characters.
Sound: no sound is used in this clip apart from the sound track which is slow and
mysterious and the voice over at the end of the clip. The voice over at the end of the clip
appears to be conventional and the soundtrack builds suspense and tension throughout
the clip.
Persuasion
The use of soundtrack is particularly persuasive for the audience as it sets the scene and
makes the soap appear eerie. With this the audience know that this storyline is very
dramatic and therefore they will be compelled to watch it. Additionally I found the use of
editing (the moving image on the still background) very persuasive as this technique
helps lure the audience in by allowing them to see facial expressions and eye movement.

4. Emmerdale ‘judgement day’
Channel
Emmerdale is shown on ITV1, Monday Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday at
either 7pm or 7:30pm.
Target audience
The target audience for Emmerdale is a mass audience like Eastenders as ITV ‘s ethos
is to broadcast to a mass audience. As the audience consists of different age groups
a variety of characters are featured to appeal to everyone. For example Belle Dingle
represents a young target audience and John would represent people in their
middle ages. I would state that the age of the target audience would range from 20-
55 and it would be for both males and females. Males and females are both featured
in this trailer and therefore this soap could appeal to both genders. I would
categorise the audience on the socio-economic scale to be similar to Eastenders- C1,
C2, D and E. This is because the backgrounds and professional lives of the characters
differs and therefore aspects of all backgrounds are covered making this soap
relevant to a wide audience.
Emmerdale’s target audience could additionally be described as ‘mainstreamers’ and
‘resigned’ as the audience are likely to follow the soap religiously and will appreciate
traditional aspects and storylines within the production.
Storylines
The storyline in this trailer is about ‘judgement day’. If someone didn’t have
background knowledge on this soap they may think this could mean that the
characters are being scrutinised or that the village will be judged by a ruling force.
This could foreshadow further dramatic storylines in particular as the characters
found in the trailer are acting negatively towards John who is passing through slightly
resembling a ghost. This storyline reflects the target audience the audience may live
in a similar place and therefore they may be able to relate to certain places in which
the content is shot. Additionally the storyline is dramatic and contains a variety of
characters, this therefore will appeal to an audience in either a less professional job
or the unemployed.

5. Emmerdale ‘judgement day’
Technical codes
Camerawork: a birds eye view shot right at the beginning of the trailer is effective as it makes the audience feel as though the village is
being watched by someone other than a character. Following this the establishing shot is useful as it allows the audience to see where
the rest of the trailer is taking place. From here at lot close up shots are used to as reaction shots to the man walking through the
village. These shots all demonstrate negative facial expressions which allow the audience to believe that he is the antagonist. Lastly I
noticed long shots; these were effective as it allowed the audience to see where the character had come from and their costume which
gave an idea of the social class and background.
Editing: a lot of the editing is done in slow motion. This is really effective as it create a slow atmospheric tension between each
character and allows the audience to see body expressions of most characters. The use of the 180 degree rule was additionally effective
as it allowed the audience to see the surrounding area as well as the character sitting on the bench. Shot reverse shot is additionally
used to great effect as it allows the audience to see the reaction shot of the character. This helps the audience develop knowledge on
the two character’s relationship without having to watch the soap.
Lighting: the whole trailer is filmed at night and therefore most of the lighting is artificially produced by streetlamps. This creates a
spooky atmosphere as bad things usually happen at night time in the dark. We also see car headlights on a slow moving car which
connotes danger and mystery as we see someone walking in front of the lights. As the lighting is low key, shadows are created giving a
scary and eerie feel to the trailer.
Sound: the soundtrack used is really appropriate as it is slow and expressive. This makes the audience concentrate on the trailer
especially as the song choice is so relevant to the production. It creates tension and suspense ensuring that the audience are hooked on
the trailer. Similarly there is a voiceover recorded at the end of the production giving information of channel and soap title.
Persuasion
The trailer entices the audience to watch it as it displays a range of characters thus creating a first impression of many of the characters
for the audience. Additionally the soundtrack is very relevant to the genre of the trailer and creates tension and mystery which will
appeal to the target audience in particular males. Lastly the voiceover at the end is very effective and persuasive as it allows the
audience to know when the soap is to be shown as well as the tone of voice following the creepy narrative of the trailer.

6. Conclusion
The main similarities I have noticed are the use of soundtrack and voice over as well as the inclusion of a
range of characters. I have now been inspired to use a range of characters as this gives an insight into the
soap. For example the audience are made aware of the main characters within the storyline. If the
characters are relatable this will create a sense of verisimilitude and the audience may feel drawn to
watching the soap to find more out about the featured characters. The use of close up shots and mid shots
additionally has influenced me as the audience need to see the character’s facial expressions in order for
the characters to be represented properly.
The use of both soundtracks in the trailers has inspired me to want to include something similar. For
instance I now intend to include a slow tension building track as this is one of the things that appealed to
me most as the audience of both trailers. This will set the right mood and atmosphere for my production
foreshadowing future events and storylines.
Lastly, as both of these trailers were lit by artificial lighting this has inspired me to want to do similar. I
found this a really appealing aspect of both trailers as it provides a timeframe and allows the trailer to feel
mystical and intense.