The document summarizes a media product evaluation for a trailer for a fictional soap opera called "The Lodge". The summary highlights that: 1) The trailer uses diegetic and non-diegetic sounds to build suspense and engage the audience. 2) It employs various shot types like close-ups and tracking shots to develop suspects in a murder mystery. 3) It features strong female suspects to challenge gender stereotypes, in line with research on portrayals of women in soap operas. 4) A cliffhanger ending leaves viewers wanting to watch the full soap opera to see which suspect is guilty.

1. Evaluation
Forrest Smyth

2. In what ways does your media product use, develop or
challenge forms and conventions of real media products.
Key terms
Current issues
Zeitgeist – Window into the world
Multi-stranded narrative
Non-linear story line
Sund
In our trailer we put a piano piece that we made and put it over the top on the trailer. This was non-diegetic sound, however we did include the diegetic sound toward the
end of the trailer. When the suspects are being interviewed you can hear them all say ‘no comment’. The use of the diegetic sound helps build suspense and also leaves the
trailer on a cliff-hanger and also engages the audience (Juxtaposition). Also at the very end of the trailer there is a voice over that gives the audience a information on what
channel ‘The Lodge’ is being shown and at what time.
Shot Types
Throughout the trailer we used many different types of shot types. We used close ups (CU) on the weapons that each of the suspects. This was because the weapons that
each suspect had could link them to the murder. Also we did a tracking shot of one of the suspects walking down the stairs. This was to done to show that the suspect was
walking away from the murder and being excused, as each of the characters has the same or similar shot types it ‘repeats’ Steve Neal.
Strong Women
In our trailer we had multiple suspects; we ensured that we had more female suspects than male suspects. This is supports Rebecca Feasey’s theory of ‘Strong Women’, as
the victim in ‘the lodge’ is a male. This suggests and shows that women in soap operas are strong. This is shown in many different soap operas such as Eastenders often and
there are many different strong women.
Cliff-hanger
Throughout our trailer, we build up the characters background and engage the audience as we show each character individually and how they could be involved in the
murder. Each with a weapon that could have been used against the victim, this creates ‘Enigma Clue’ (Barthes) as it throws off the audience. Towards the end of the trailer,
you see each of the suspects being questioned and being told their rights. Each of the characters gives the same answer of ‘no comment’. This leaves the trailer on a cliff-
hanger as the audience will be engaged to find out which one of the 4 suspects did it and will want they to watch the soap opera. When I was looking at other trailers I
noticed that majority of them had included cliff-hangers for example in the Eastenders trailer ‘The Week of Revelations’
Realism
As our trailer has more female suspects compared to male’s suspects it shows misandry as it shows women hatred towards men.
Throughout
Indent/ Logo
Stereotype; always-in trailers.

3. How effective is the combination of
your main product and ancillary texts?
• Why was it important to have all of them,
reference cross media convergence and
synergy and how it would help attract your
specific target audience.
• in my soap opera ‘The Lodge’

4. What have you learnt from your
audience feedback?
• From my audience feedback I have learnt that