Television industry contexts: Blog tasks
To finish our work on television, we need to complete some tasks exploring industry contexts around foreign-language TV, the changing audience for television and how streaming impacts the way audiences consume TV. Indeed, when answering these questions, consider the issues from both an audience and industry perspective.
Independent: British viewers can't get enough of foreign-language dramas
Read this Independent feature on foreign-language dramas. If the website is blocked or forcing you to register you can access the text of the article here. It features an in-depth interview with Walter Iuzzolino who curates Channel 4's Walter Presents programming. Answer the questions below:
1) What does the article suggest regarding the traditional audience for foreign-language subtitled media?
Fifteen years ago, if you'd mentioned to a colleague that you'd spent Saturday night glued to a subtitled European drama, you'd have been quietly declared pretentious, dull and, possibly, a little odd. Skip to today and foreign-language dramas aren't even on-trend, they're fully mainstream. Now we are as likely to discuss the latest Danish thriller over a morning flat white at our desks as we are a new season on HBO.
2) What does Walter Iuzzolino suggest is the key appeal of his 'Walter Presents' shows?
The channels were "restaurants who had put a special on the board". Walter Presents makes the specials board the main offering – so you can't play safe with the televisual equivalent of a cottage pie.
3) The article makes an interesting claim for the popularity of subtitles in the multi-screen age. What does it suggest?
3) The article makes an interesting claim for the popularity of subtitles in the multi-screen age. What does it suggest?
There may be something else in foreign TV's new popularity, too. It may sound prosaic but when we're frequently distracted from our TV viewing by Twitter feeds and a pinging WhatsApp, subtitles are a welcome enforcement for us to focus. "When you read subtitles, you have to be glued to the screen," says Deeks. "That concentration gives a particular intensity to the viewing experience. You just can't multitask when you're watching a foreign-language drama."
4) What are the other audiences pleasures of foreign TV drama suggested by the article?
"You develop a love for the distant world because while you're watching, you're in Sweden," he says. "If you see something amazing set in Argentina, then Argentina itself, the houses, the people, what they wear, what their voices sound like, the language, is one of the biggest appeals. There is a huge pleasure in that."
Film School Rejects: The foreign TV dramas you're missing out on
Now read this Film School Rejects feature on the foreign TV dramas you're missing out on. This contains some particularly useful background on Deutschland 83's reception internationally. If the website is blocked, you can access the article text here. Answer the following questions:
1) What does the article tell us about Deutschland 83's release schedule?
Premiering on AMC Network’s Sundance TV in June 2015, the show was the first German-language TV series to premiere on a US network. The fact Germany’s commercial RTL channel received Deutschland ’83 five months after the US both signifies the series’ global appeal as well as foreshadows where the German crime thriller was (and is) to find its audience.
2) The article contains important statistics on viewing figures in different countries. What were the German viewing figures for the first and last episode? What were Channel's 4's viewing figures for Deutschland 83?
Whilst Deutschland ’83 received significantly fewer viewers in the US than Germany, with its US premiere garnering 0.066 million viewers compared to Germany’s 3.19 million, the series proved more successful in the US than its homeland. The majority of German audiences did not like neither the show nor its premise, with the Guardian‘s Philip Oltermann observing the Cold War politics and “cool and sexy” style as factors that distanced them from the series.
3) Who are the two production and distribution companies behind Deutschland 83 and what did they announce in October?
After a period of uncertainty surrounding its renewal, SundanceTV and FremantleMedia finally announced in October that there will be a second series of Deutschland 83 (called Deutschland 86, more likely than not followed by the pivotal year of 89). What with its lackluster response in Germany, it’s apparent the US critical reception and UK’s record-breaking viewership have a role to play in renewing the show.
4) How does Walter Iuzzolino use social media to engage audiences in new international TV dramas? How does he suggest this has changed the reception of foreign productions in the UK?
Even if you’re weary of foreign drama, with Iuzzolino posting a “Weekend Pick” on his Facebook page and engaging with viewers on Twitter, it’s impossible not to become engrossed in the experience. As Iuzzolino says, in the UK subtitled and foreign productions are “relegated to the elite” and the art-house. His streaming service has certainly changed this perception in Britain.
1) How have streaming services such as Netflix or Amazon Prime changed the way TV drama narratives are constructed?
“Your form of storytelling has to reflect the fact that people could watch the whole series straight away. So the hooks at the end of every episode are very important. But you also have to think about how you give information. With a thriller for terrestrial TV, you tend to have a recap at the start of each episode. But, with streaming video on demand, you can get straight on with the story.”
2) Why has the rise in streaming led to more complex storylines and an increase in cliffhangers?
the rise of streaming has created a highly competitive environment where content creators need to keep viewers engaged and coming back for more. Complex storylines and cliffhangers are effective tools for achieving this goal.
“Your form of storytelling has to reflect the fact that people could watch the whole series straight away. So the hooks at the end of every episode are very important. But you also have to think about how you give information. With a thriller for terrestrial TV, you tend to have a recap at the start of each episode. But, with streaming video on demand, you can get straight on with the story.”
2) Why has the rise in streaming led to more complex storylines and an increase in cliffhangers?
the rise of streaming has created a highly competitive environment where content creators need to keep viewers engaged and coming back for more. Complex storylines and cliffhangers are effective tools for achieving this goal.
In order to maximise the use of time, and minimise the cost of actors and crew, while part of a drama is filming, another team is prepping the next section.
4) How has "permanent 24/7 connectivity" changed both the production and consumption of TV drama?
Live-tweeting by audiences has usefully democratised criticism. Stories about alleged outrage over or violent action are often based on the fact that a tiny handful tweeted disagreeably.
Media Magazine: Netflix and the Cultural Industries
2) What is technological convergence?
All media can easily be easily accessed through technology, in particular, computers.
3) How are technology companies challenging traditional broadcasters in the TV industry?
Finally, go to our Media Magazine archive and read the article on Netflix and the Cultural Industries (MM63 - page 45). Answer the following questions:
1) What does David Hesmondhalgh argue with regards to how the creative industries have changed since the 1980s?
Media companies began to see the benefit of synergy at the same time that governments in the west came to appreciate the economic benefits. The growth of computing and the creation of the World Wide Web lead to increased technological convergence.
1) What does David Hesmondhalgh argue with regards to how the creative industries have changed since the 1980s?
Media companies began to see the benefit of synergy at the same time that governments in the west came to appreciate the economic benefits. The growth of computing and the creation of the World Wide Web lead to increased technological convergence.
2) What is technological convergence?
All media can easily be easily accessed through technology, in particular, computers.
3) How are technology companies challenging traditional broadcasters in the TV industry?
Amazon is producing its own television programmes. They originally followed Netflix, which began as a postal DVD service, in liberating television programmes from broadcasters' schedules Traditional distributors ,for example, Blockbuster, went bankrupt after not being able to followed the new trend that was on demand streaming.
4) The global nature of modern television means producers are having to consider international audiences when creating content. What example from Netflix does the article use to explain this?
In Stranger Things named the Demogorgon after a Dungeons and Dragons demon. Netflix's teams dug into old D&D materials to nail down how various cultures translated Demogorgon in the mid-1970s.
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