The document discusses the evaluation of media products created by Jake Hashdi for an assignment. It summarizes the intentions for the products, which were to appeal to a target demographic while being high quality. It analyzes audience feedback which showed the characters and drama aspects were successful, though the science fiction element was less clear. The website also achieved its goals of being simple to use while reflecting the TV show's themes.

1. Media Evaluation
Jake Hashdi

2. How successful were your products? Did you fulfil the
intentions set out at the beginning of the assignment?
I originally intended to create a product that was of the
highest possible quality I could produce. Furthermore, I
intended to appeal to young people aged 15-35 as the
primary target audience but males aged 18-29 as the
secondary audience. I intended to create appealing
characters, with a gritty tone reflecting the content of my
programme, that was recognisable as part of the drama
genre. Finally, even though the programme was part of the
science fiction drama genre, I wanted to reflect real life issues
within it. In observing my audience feedback I fell that I Have
achieved these aims successfully. From my audience feedback
I can assess that I have successfully appealed to my chosen
target audience, as the members of the chosen demographic
responded positively to the programme. Furthermore, the
audience responded very positively to the characters within
the show. Overall many of those who responded in giving
feedback enjoyed the show, and praised parts of its
productions (e.g. camera angles) which proves its
quality, which was one of my main intentions, to produce a
show of high quality. Although, upon reflection with
feedback, I feel that I did not fully communicate the science
fiction aspect of the show fully to the audience, which
somewhat diminished the quality of the show.

3. How successful were your products? Did you fulfil the
intentions set out at the beginning of the assignment?
When producing my website, I intended to again create a
product that was of as high a quality that I could
achieve, whilst still appealing to the target audience.
Furthermore, I intended to create a website that was both
simple to use and reflected the themes and tones of the
TV segment that I produced. I feel that I achieved this very
successfully. From my audience feedback I can see at the
very least, all users found the website very easy to use and
navigate around. Another popular aspect which was
recognised was the reflection of the show’s ‘gritty’ theme
through the website, which was one of my key intentions
in creating the website. Additionally, whilst not directly
intending to achieve this, I did recognise that a popular
and common feature of modern websites was the
interactivity available within websites, e.g. a twitter page
available to follow. This element was included on the
website and also proved very popular.

4. What Kind of institutional context did
the productions fit into?
The productions were created under the knowledge that the
broadcaster of the programme would be E4. This ultimately
meant that the products were created to ‘fit in’ with the
content that the broadcaster currently produces/broadcasts.
The production fit into the ‘ethos’ of E4 as research was
conducted to assess how programmes of a similar genre.
The programme fit into the ethos of E4 as when creating the
productions as we recognised the products of a similar
genre and tone are or were popular on E4, most
namely, Dead set and Misfits, Both of which incorporated
elements, which we sought to mimic. In observing their
popularity and success, and that we indeed attempted to
add elements from these shows into our own, it can be
assumed that the production fit into the E4 ethos.
Image sources:
Misfits: http://images.tvrage.com/shows/9/8784.jpg
Dead Set: http://www.internalbleeding.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/dead-set-8.jpg

5. What genre were you working in and how
was this apparent to your audience?
The genre that I was working within was Science fiction drama. This was
apparent to my audience in a multitude of ways. The drama aspect of the
show was identified through the sue of tension in the show, which was an
identified convention of drama. Furthermore, the genre of drama was
further conveyed through the setting of the production, which was a
harsh, seemingly post-apocalyptic setting. The character’s costumes also
reflected the drama of the show. The costumes where predominantly
winter clothing that were mainly grey and other dark colours. The colours
and content of the website reflected the drama element of the show, as
the colours were again dark, and the content was heavily about the
narrative of the show, something again common of drama programmes.
This again reflects the dark tone of the show as these colours have dark
connotations, further connoting the programmes genre. The science
fiction aspect of the show was somewhat lacking in presentation. The
aspects that did show the science fiction genre were the post-apocalyptic
back drop, and the use of guns, which see little use pre watershed
outside of science fiction (for example they are often feature in Doctor
Who). The post-apocalyptic theme was somewhat represented by the
simplistic layout of the website.
Image source: http://www.artboiled.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/doctorwho-gun.jpg

6. How well did you target your audience?
Our audience was targeted fairly successfully. This can be assesed from the audience
feedback we received. The majority of those who responded where within our target
audience demographic young people aged 15-35. this meant that our feedback was valid.
As such from our audiences mainly positive feedback, it can be assessed that we target our
audience. The audience responded well to most aspects of both productions. Within the
TV show, the main praise was regards to the representation of the genre, the ‘cliff-hanger
ending’ and the characters. The website was praised for its reflection of the TV segment, its
simplicity and its interactivity. These are good examples of successful audience targeting for
two main reasons. Firstly, the very fact these elements where noticed and praised, shows
that the audience has responded positively to the production. Secondly (as previously
mentioned) the fact that the majority of our feedback is from those who fit our audience
demographic, and is positive shows that we have successfully targeted and engaged the
audience.

7. How successful were each of your products in
communicating their key ideas and concepts?
One of the Key concepts for the show was to seem ‘real’ a factor that was
learnt to be important through primary production research. Even though
the show was science fiction, this concept was communicated through the
features of real life issues within the show, such as the loss of a
parent, relationships, and general togetherness and cooperation. These
where all represented as part’s of the narrative within the TV segment.
However the product’s were for entertainment value, and were kept in
mind as such. The Mise En Scene of the production, was chosen with the
post apocalyptic theme in mind, as was the production of the website.
These elements ultimately helped to engage and entertain the audience
more.

8. How were the narratives constructed and
what part did they play in the creation of
meaning and experience of your products?
The narratives of the show were constructed using the knowledge of
Todorov. Propp and Barthes theory of narratives. While remaining
somewhat basic, in creating the narrative in such a manner meant that
the programme was kept conventional and thus appealing to the target
audience. This also meant that issues that were represented through
conations rather than denotations were better accepted as the audience
were not distracted by complicated narratives. These theories also helped
us create a conventional set of characters that audiences could find
appealing and relate to. The construction of the narratives in such a
manner meant that the product was ultimately appealing, as in being kept
conventional, but original in its concept, the audience where engaged by
the product, and the ‘cliffhanger’ ending proved popular with the
audience. The narratives of the show also helped in creating a theme for
the website, which again was popular with audiences.

9. What kind of values and ideologies did the
productions promote or attack?
The production itself somewhat promoted cooperation. This was due to the
teamwork that was carried out by the characters within the segment. This theme
was further built upon with the theme of valuing others, with characters being
concerned about the well-being of other characters. The idea/premise of losing a
loved one was also touched upon within the segment. This was not so much
attacked; however it was heavily portrayed as a negative/ troubling thing, so it
could be argued that the programme attacked this. Touching upon real life issues
within the science fiction/fantasy genre has proved popular before with audiences.
most namely, within ‘Buffy The Vampire Slayer’ which raised issues such as the
trauma of loosing a loved one even though it is a fantasy TV show. This ultimately
benefited the product as it engaged the audience more so, and was somewhat
relatable.

10. What representations do the Productions
raise?
The productions raise somewhat stereotypical representations of
characters. For example, within the TV segment, like the vast majority of
drama shows, and indeed shows in general, the dominant character(s)
who is shown to be ‘in charge’ is a Caucasian male (Dan), which is indeed
very stereotypical in TV shows. However within the TV segment, we
somewhat portrayed out female character unconventionally, as we chose
to have her holding a gun. This was significant in representation as a gun
is something that is often conative of power within TV shows and
films, so we indeed somewhat portrayed our female character as
powerful, and equal to the male characters of the show. However this
representation is somewhat contradicted on the website for the
show, where she is described as being “optimistic and always cheerful,”
which are traits that are considered stereotypical of young women, due
to their frequent use in fairy-tale.

11. How might you apply your ideas to a third media
platform?
There are multiple ways that the production could have been
applied to a third media platform. A poster campaign is one
aspect that could be considered. Multiple posters work well to
spread knowledge of TV shows. Furthermore they work
effectively when disguised as something else. For example, due
to the fact the full programme would contain hostile alien life,
false posters with a website address (for the show) could be
put up, that warn the public of these forces, much like the
poster campaign for the 2009 film ‘District 9’. Due to the fact
that it is unclear whether this is a serious warning or not, the
public would be intrigued to further explore the show. A
billboard campaign would also be effective. E4 as a broadcaster
has already used this technique to advertise some of its shows
(Skins) so this would in part be in part institutionally
conventional. This is also an effective way of promoting a
programme, as it can be presented in multiple ways (including
in the afore mentioned ‘warning’ manner), which prove
effective due to the placement and size of billboard ads
Image sources:
District 9: http://collider.com/wp-content/image-base/Movies/D/District_9/Movie_Posters/.thumbs/.District%209%20movie%20poster%20-%20viral%20poster.jpg
Skins: http://farm1.staticflickr.com/222/492985556_c9c2d0caff_z.jpg