This document discusses various genres and subgenres of television drama. It begins by defining genre as a category of artistic composition characterized by similarities in form, style, or subject matter. It provides examples of drama genres like horror, romantic, comedy, and action. It then defines subgenre as a category within a genre, providing medical drama as an example subgenre of drama. It outlines some key conventions of medical dramas and crime dramas, such as typical settings, characters, themes, and narratives. It also briefly discusses the conventions of soap operas, including domestic themes, central meeting points, cliffhangers, and ongoing/scheduled nature.

1. TV drama

2. A genre
A category of artistic composition, as in music or
literature, characterized by similarities in
form, style, or subject matter.
Horror, romantic, comedy, action, western.

3. Sub genre
A subcategory within a particular genre:
drama – crime, soaps, medical, costumes

4. Medical drama
A medical drama is a television drama in which
events center upon a hospital, an ambulance
staff, or any medical area.
Medical/hospital dramas play on the human
fascination of witnessing horrific events. They
often share narrative similarities with soaps but
can also be more informative/educational than
soaps
Casualty, holby city, er

5. conventions between all medical
dramas
A convention is a widely accepted device used in
television dramas.
Plot
Setting – ambulance, hospital
Characters – doctors, nurses
Themes
Narrative

6. Conventions of Crime
Setting- Crime genre are set in a well known city or capital that is created to be a dangerous place
this is because there is a high crime rate there.
Characters- are crime solvers, criminals, victims, family and friends of victim.
Narrative- includes a crime that needs to be solved, at the end the crime is solved and criminal is
punished, lead characters will have a back story and include there personal life in the
narrative, there is also a mystery for the audience to solve.
Camera angles- the camera normally follows the detective who is solving the crime, there is close
ups and extreme close ups when the crime is on the verge of being solved or intense moments.
Lighting- the lighting is often dark when showing the criminal and the criminal is in dark clothes this
is to stereotype of a criminal.
Props- include guns, weapons, laboratory equipment, police cars/banners, magnifying glass and
newspapers.
Music- unusually a monotone humming in the background to create tension towards the audience.

7. How do we know Crime is a TV
Drama?
• Involves a crime and a criminal.
• Is a program not a film.
• Follows the different types of characters.
• The crime is always solved by the end of the
episode or series.

8. Soap Opera
• Conventions that are found in soap operas include:
• Domestic themes and personal or family relationships occur
repeatedly between the characters to allow for the audience to
connect to these and for the soap to be as realistic as possible.
• Setting – The setting of soap operas are usually set around a
small, central area where the soap opera is filmed. These place
a lot of important on the community as they’re often set in
familiar and realistic surroundings.
• Central meeting points – These are points in the soap opera
where all the characters regularly go to interact with one
another.
• Cliff hangers – These are used when a dramatic situation
happens in the soap but the end is not shown until the next
episode to keep the audience wanting more and wanting to
watch it again.
• Characters – these are used to allow for the audience to relate
to the situation and the help pilot the plot.

9. • On going – Series do not have a particular start or end as they usually run all year
round.
• Scheduling – Soaps are usually scheduled for target audience and is usually shown
on specific days and specific times related to the target audience.
• Includes real life issues – things like death, birth and marriage are often shown to
make the soap as real as possible.