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Visual trends in American TV. Shows

Tecnocampus Mataró Building Future. Visual trends in American TV. Shows. The American TV shows broadcasted during the first decade of this century (XXI) took the lead that was previous held by Hollywood’s cinema, over the second half of the twentieth century .

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Visual trends in American TV. Shows

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  1. TecnocampusMataró BuildingFuture Visual trends in American TV. Shows

  2. The American TV shows broadcastedduringthefirstdecadeofthiscentury (XXI) tooktheleadthatwaspreviousheld by Hollywood’s cinema, overthesecondhalfofthetwentiethcentury. We are living thethirdgoldenageoftelevision shows, justliketheonethattook place in the 70’s. The American TV shows havehadthreegoldenages in American televisionhistory: 1. Thefirst, in the late 40s andearly 50s. 2. Thesecond, rangingfromearly 80s tomid 90s. 3. Thethird, startswith CSI: CrimeSceneInvestigation (CBS: 2000 -) andTheWestWing(NBC: 1996-2006). Visual trends in American TV. Shows

  3. First Golden Age Thefirst Golden Ageoftelevision drama in theUnitedStatestook place duringthe 50’s, thankstoonehourlivebroadcastsrecorded in New York studios. Thecurrent shows are historicalsequelstoanthology series fromthefirstgoldenageof American TV (between 1948 and 1956). Theseepisodeswerecharacterized by: 1- Independentepisodeswith no evidenceofserialitybetweenthem, toenhance a single themeorplot. 2- Scripts which are closertothe radio andtheaterratherthanto audiovisual narratives. Somesuccessful shows ofthatperiodwere "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" and "TheTwilightZone". Visual trends in American TV. Shows

  4. Second Golden Age Theincreasingcompetitionbetween cable andpremiumchannelslike HBO andShowtime (in 1981 reached 30% ofamericanhouses) willfacilitatethenewageofwhat Robert Thompson has calledtheSecond Golden Ageof American Drama. Thissecondperiodstartsduringthebeginningofthe 80’s, preciselywiththerolloutof "Hill Street Blues" andcontinuesuntilmid-90’swith "ER" (NBC: 1994-2009) (Thompson, 1996). TV Shows like “Hill Street Blues ", “Moonlighting", ”ER” and" TwinPeaks” gavebirthtotheSecond Golden Age, thanksto a combinationof formal andthematicquality. Visual trends in American TV. Shows

  5. "Hill Street Blues" takes TV shows’ quality a stepfurther, developingthenarrativegenre, andinventingthemodern series. Novelisticelements are incorporated, likecharacterswhichhave a previouspast, presentandfuture. Thesteretotypeofheroevolvesinto a characterwho has a postmodernist halo. Additionally, the director creates a show wherethecharactershave a collectivememoryandhistorythroughoutthewholeseason. "ER," "AllyMcBeel" (1997-2002, FOX) and "Dawson's Creek" (1998-2003, WB) are goodexamplesofthis. Visual trends in American TV. Shows

  6. Third Golden Age Weoftenspeakofthelastyearsofthesecond Golden Age as a consolidationperiodthateventuallyleadtothethird Golden Age. This time starts at theendofthetwentiethcentury, withthebeginningof CSI: CrimeSceneInvestigation (CBS: 2000 -) andTheWestWing (NBC: 1996-2006). Theriseofqualitydramatic series leadsusto use theexpression ”The era ofthe drama" whenreferringtothecurrentfiction series, "TheWestWing" (1999-2006, NBC), "CSI" (2000 -, CBS), "24" (2001-2010, FOX), "House MD", (2004 -2011), "DesperateHousewives" (2004 -, ABC), "Lost" (2004-2010, ABC) or "Grey'sAnatomy" (2005 -, ABC). Thesequality series are consideredheirsofthecult series fromthe 90’s, like "TwinPeaks" (ABC 1990-91), "X-Files" (Fox, 1993-2002), "Northern Exposure" (CBS : 1990-1995) and "MurderOne" (ABC :1995-97). Thefirstexampleofthegenreis "Hill Street Blues” tocontinuewith "The Sopranos" and "SixFeetUnder” or “TheWire” or “BreakingBad”. Visual trends in American TV. Shows

  7. Themainfeaturesofthese shows are thefollowing: • - Productionswithhighquality standards. • - A veryrichinsightonthedesignofplots, themes, genresandcharacters. • - A veryspecifictargetaudience (unconditionalsupport) • Unlikeconventionaltelevision, these shows havepedigree, attractinganupper-middleclassaudience. • Charactersandseasonshavememory. • Hybridizationofgenres. • Focusonthe figure ofwriter. • Self-reflectivetalksabout controversial issues. • Aspire torealismandoftenwinprizesandotherawards. • Thisnewstage in actual American televisionis a productofthequalitytelevisionthat emerged in the 80’sand 90’s. Visual trends in American TV. Shows

  8. Case 1: Camera Positions There are 7 camera positionswithinthis triangular formation, eachofthemrepresented by 3 camera positions. Thisisthemostclassicalformoffilmakingsetupwhenwewanttoshootwith at least 2 actors, sincewe can combine themto record alloftheactorsmovements. Visual trends in American TV. Shows 1+2+3+4 3 1 2 4

  9. Example: The Big BandTheory TheatreonTelevision. Alwaysremainsthesamething… Visual trends in American TV. Shows “TheRussianRocketReaction" isthefifthepisodeofthefifthseason.ThisepisodewasfirstairedonOctober 13, 2011.

  10. Case 2: AxisJump In film making, the180-degreeruleisa basicguidelineregardingtheon-screenspatialrelationshipbetween a characterandanother, oranobjectwithin a scene. Animaginarylinenamed “TheAxis” connectsthecharactersand by keepingthe camera ononesideofthisaxisforeveryshot in thescene. Ifthe camera passesovertheaxis, itiscalledjumpingthelineorcrossingtheline. Visual trends in American TV. Shows

  11. Example: The Shield - Or how tobreakthe rules usingthemwith a narrativepurposeandaccordingtothecharacters. Visual trends in American TV. Shows "Pilot" isthefirstepisodeofThe Shield. ItwasoriginallybroadcastedonMarch 12, 2002. 7 seasons. 2002-2009. Ended.

  12. Case 3: Continuityandlackof “raccord” From a strictlynarrativepointofviewwhenwe talk aboutediting, theclassicalconventiontellsus thatimagesandmovementsmusthavecontinuity, eitherofmovementor/andshapeandthereforethecontinuityandtheeditinghavetogohand in handtoachievethatpoint, orotherweisewewillhave “raccord” problems. Visual trends in American TV. Shows

  13. Example: American Horror Story - TheimportanceofanOpeningTitlesequencerelatedtothestory. - Nouvelle Vague rescueus! Oreditingtechniquestohelpusraiseanemotion. Visual trends in American TV. Shows Thefirstepisodeof “AHS”. ItwasoriginallybroadcastonOctober, 5, 2011. 2 seasons at themoment. 2011-? Notended.

  14. Case 4: Audiovisual experiment TheHBO Voyeur Project was a theatrical multimedia experienceand marketing campaignlaunched in thesummerof 2007 usingvouyarismas a vehicle. Contentrelatedtothecharacterswasscatteredonline in fictionalwebpages, in photoand video clips on media sharingplatformssuch as FlickrandYouTube, in blogs and social networks, onthe HBO channels, andthroughmobilecontent. Thefocusofthiscampaignwaswerethecharacters living in eighthfictionalapartmentsonthe corner ofBroomeStreetandLudlowStreet. The display wasprojectingon a massivescaleonthesideof a buildingonBroomeandLudlowstreeton June 28th - July 1st, from 9 - 11pm, andagainfrom July 5th - July 8th. Visual trends in American TV. Shows

  15. Example: HBO Voyeur - Thisisnotinternetneither TV. Is HBO Voyeur. Visual trends in American TV. Shows Promoofthe Show. There are 5 storylocationswiththeirrespectiveaddresses: West41st Street, "TheArtist” East 85th Street, "TheHousewife” Prince Street, "TheMeditator"West 72nd Street, "TheMortician” Broome& Ludlowwith 8 individual stories: Apartment1A, "TheTempted” Apartment 1B, "TheDeparture” Apartment2A, "TheDiscovery” Apartment2B, "TheProposal” Apartment3A, "TheKillerWithin” Apartment3B, "TheGrown-Up Table” Apartment4A, "TheDelivery” Apartment4B, "TheTemptress”

  16. Case 5: Whenthe FX helpsuswiththestorytellingandalsowithcharactersdevelopment Theartificiality in narrativelanguage can holddifferentpurposes. It can be weilded as a symboloftasteforthebaroqueorabundanceandpedantry. It can also can be usedonbehalfofthenarrativeitself, or even become a stampofidentityandidentification. Sherlock is a sortofconsultant detective whosometimesworkswiththepolice. He appearstous as a fan ofnewtechnologiesandtheirapplications. SMS recievedorsent by thecharacters are displayedonthescreen, as so do Sherlock’sthoughtsanddeductions. Beingit a verydynamic show, whichiscontinuouslychangingscenario, transitionsbetweensequences are vital. Visual trends in American TV. Shows

  17. Example: Sherlock • - Fxtechniquestobuildcharactersbehaviour. • Fxtojumpoverdiferentscenes. • Editingtechniques. Visual trends in American TV. Shows ”A study in Pink” and “The Great Game” are episodesofthefirstseason. Started in 2011. “TheReichenbachfall” isthethirdepisodeofthesecondseason, releasedon 2012 January 15th. 2 Seasons. 2011-? Ongoing.

  18. Case 6: Thebeginning In visual terms, wefind a documentarystyle, in termsofthe script, with a predominanceofthereference, indirectreference, anddosedinformation. Theworldscreated by the TV series start at a momentof crisis (change), seedforgreatstories. No introduction. No previoslyon. No “dramatispersonae”. Justus, withournakedeyes in frontofanoften, breathtakingnarrative. Visual trends in American TV. Shows

  19. Example: Utopia • Withoutreferencestheonlythingleftisexcitementandquestionsto be answered. • Whois Jessica Hyde? Whentheviewerknowslessthanthe director. • Thriller/ Alfred Hitchcock Visual trends in American TV. Shows Episode “1.1” FirstSeason. Itwasoriginallydeboutedon 2013 January 15th. 1 season at themoment. 2013-?

  20. Case 7: Isit cinema? No, itis “BreakingBad” BreakingBadbringsthe visual techniquesandaestheticsofthe “cinema verité” tothe cinema and American TV. Thiscarriestheimplementationof a newmethodologytoshootfiction as ifitwastherealityitself, developed by European authors as response tothe Hollywood paradigm. The use ofthe camera has becomeanessentialelementoftelevisionnarrativesofour time, becauseitreferstoitsontological status, towhatit aspires to be. Thepilotepisodepresentsprofessionaland familiar characters, alongwiththeirmask. Thenewworldisbluntlysurrenderedtotheviewer'ssight, using cameras falteringovertheshoulder, in movingshotsandthroughtexturesthatlookdirtyor camera shotsthatemulatesecurity cameras. Thishappensnotonly in realisticworks, butalso in fantasticorsci-fi shows. Visual trends in American TV. Shows

  21. Example: BreakingBad • POV. • Without a facethere’s no emotion. • Cinema Techniques. Visual trends in American TV. Shows “Cornered" isthesixthepisodeofthefourthseasonreleasedon 2011 August 22th. “Madrigal” isthesecondepisodeofthefifthseasonbroadcastedon 2012 July, 22th. 5 season, thelastonewillstartthissummer. 2008-2013. Almostended.

  22. Case 8: SplitScreen Thesplitscreenis a techniqueusedtodepictmultiplescenesoccurringsimultaneously. Itisalsooftenemployedto show bothsidesof a phoneconversation. In 24, thesplitscreentechniqueisthoroughlyusedduetotheshow's real time formatandsimultaneousmultipleplotlines. A splitscreenshowcasingmultiplecharactersandlocationsisalwaysfeaturedalongwiththetickingclockoneachreturnfrom a commercialbreak (theact-in clock). Additionally, the final few minutes ofalmosteveryepisode are prefaced by a splitscreen, oftenwithurgent music, toupdateviewersonthe status ofeachmajorcharacterandplotline as thehourends. Thesplitscreeneffectwascreatedby David Thompson, the editor ofthefirstepisodeof 24. Visual trends in American TV. Shows

  23. Example: 24 • Splitscreen. • Whenfictional time and real time match. Visual trends in American TV. Shows ”12.00 amto 01.00 am” isthefirstepisodeofallseasons, releasedon 2001 November 6th, 2001. 9 seasons. 2001-2014. Ended.

  24. Everythingisportrayedwiththesameillusionoftruththatwefind in a documentaryor in filmsthathavebuilttheiraesthetics. Becausethe TV shows aimtocreate a world. Theyseal, sinceitsinception, a dealwiththeviewerwhoassumesthatwhatyouseeit as real as possible, and as fiticional as lifeitself. A parallelworldthroughaddiction. Visual trends in American TV. Shows THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME

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