1. How to analyze
a TV Drama
By Taylor

2. Section A
In section you will be asked to watch a 4-5 minute piece of a TV
drama. Then you will be asked to do a textual analysis on how it
represents one of the following:
 Gender
 Age
 Ethnicity
 Sexuality
 Class and Status
 Physical ability/Disability
 Regional Identity
You will construct this by using the following areas:
 Camera shots, angle, movement and composition
 Editing
 Sound
 Mise-en-scene

3. Camera shots
Types of shots
 Establishing shot: Where the scene will be
 Master shot: Shows the limit of the action
 Over the shoulder: Used during conversations
to show each characters reaction to each
other.
 Close up: To focus the viewer on the
characters reaction.
 Extreme close up: Used to show an important
moment and highlights significance.
 Medium Close up: From the waist up and is
good with 2 to 3 people.
 Long shot: Used to show the whole character

4. Angles
Types of angles
 High angle: When the camera is placed
high up and is looking down.
 Low angle: When the camera is placed
low down and is looking up.
 Canted angle: When the Camera is at an
angle.
Canted angle Low angle High angle

5. Movement
 Tracking shot: When the camera follows
an persons/objects movement
 Pan shot: When the camera goes from left
to right or right to left.
 Tilt shot: When the camera goes vertically
along the person or object.

6. Editing
This includes transition of image and sound which is either
continuity or non-continuity.
Types of cutting
 Shot/reverse shot: when the shot cuts to the view in the
opposite direction
 Eyeline match: This is part of continuity editing and is when we
see a character look in a certain direction the in the next shot
it shows what they see.
 Action match: This is when you see the character making the
action and then is cut to a shot of the next logical action
 Graphic match: Is when we cut to a shot showing an abject of
a very similar shape in the same place on the screen.
 Jump cut: When a few frames have been removed from a
continuous action.
 Crosscutting: A cut to a piece of action that is happening at
the same time or a flashback.

7. Sound
Types of sound
 Diegetic sound: sound that is part of the
story whether its on screen or off screen.
 Non-diegetic sound: sound that does not
happen naturally with the story
 Synchronous sound: sound that occurs
from what is on the screen.
 Asynchronous sound: sound that occurs
off the screen.

8. Mise-en-scene
Mise-en-scene is anything you can learn about
the slip form the following
Production design
 Location
 Studio
 Set design
 Costume and make-up
 Properties
Lighting
 Color design