The camera can be put on a tripod to balance it so it can not be moved.
An advantage of of single camera production is that it is less time consuming as the camera man does not have to redo as many shots as there is less chance of getting a mistake. This is also because filming in single camera is easy as there is less movement.
Sci-fi - red dwarf
Red dwarf is a sci-fi comedy show which is shown on UK television. It is a very popular show with the fans and has been on everyones television sets for over 20 years.
It is about a man who works in a spacecraft but is frozen for over 3 million years in which all of his friends have died and is the only human left alive.
Since the show is of the sci-fi genre, most of the lighting is unnatural since they are aboard a spaceship and it is set in the future. This is done to make people believe that it is set in the future and in space.
The use of single camera techniques are shown as there is only one camera used and also the actors do not move from the camera shot while it is filming so they are available on the scene at a lot of the time. There are a variety of camera shots used including close ups, medium shots and long shots. This is to get the actors reactions to things happening in the scene.
Comedy - Not going out
A comedy show that uses single camera techniques is not going out. This show is about an unemployed man who lives with his land lady in a flat and gets into a lot of humourus situations which include his best friend.
The lighting that is generally used is natural but light as it is a comedy so the purpose of it is to keep people happy and entertained.
Single camera techniques are shown as when there is a conversation by two of the people, Then there is only one camera used and that camera does not move at any time as it only changes position after recording is stopped. This shows that it is single camera technique as the camera does not move during filming.
The sound used is mostly natural and they are also sounds that are funny such as dishes breaking. They also have some music while the scene is being changed. This music is light hearted and the instrument used is a saxophone. This is done as the show is a comedy so there is no need for any tense or serious music.
Crime - NCIS
A crime show that uses single camera techniques is NCIS. This show is about different detectives solving crimes to do with the navy and marine corps. This is shown to be a crime drama as there is a lot of twists and turns during the course of an episode which keeps viewers on the edge of their seats.
There is also some black and white footage which is a supposed stereotype of dramas which include detectives. There is a lot of different camera shots in this show and a lot of them use single camera techniques. Also in this show it sometimes shows the actor walking off the camera shot but the camera does not usually follow them.
There is some music that is played when there is no dialogue which is done to create suspense during the story.
Teen - The O.C
The O.C is a tv show that is directed at teenagers and also demonstrates the use of single camera techniques. This show is about a young man who becomes embroiled into the lives of a close knit neighbourhood.
This is very interesting to teenagers as a lot of the characters in the show are supposed to be teenagers so the target audience think that they can relate to their problems. The lighting used varies as it depends on how the mood is supposed to be for that scene.
Since a lot of filming is done on a beach, The weather can sometimes be used as a source of natural light. There is music that is played while the scenes are changing and it is usually music that shows the mood to be sad. Also there is sometimes music at the end of the episode while showing different characters. There are also some natural sounds on the show. The techniques used are to potray the tension of the characters as they show the emotions on the characters faces.
Period drama
Thriller
Single strand narrative
A single strand narrative is a story that is focused only on one character. This is usually done by companies who have a low budget. However there are some movies that have done this such as spiderman or bruce almighty. In these films the story is focused on the central character and there are no sub plots.
Multi strand narrative
A multi strand narrative is a story that is focused on many of the characters. This is done in a lot of tv sitcoms. Example of this can include Friends and X men. This is because their are many different storylines inside the program which is not focused on one or two characters and involves others. This is what most soap operas use.
Linear and non-linear
A linear narrative is a story that is in chronological order meaning that it is shown exactly how it happened. This is used for most forms of media and is the most orthadox way of showing a movie or televison shows.
Non-linear narrative is a story that is shown in non chronological order. This means that it is muddled up which may mean that it shows the ending first and then the begining. This is an unorthadox way of showing a story as it may be confusing to viewers. An example of a tv show that does thiss is how i met your mother. This is shown as the father tells his kids the story in the beginning of every episode and the rest of the show is meant to be a flashback.
Todorovs theory
Tzevetan Todorov is a philisopher from Bulgaria. He said that the conventianal narrative structure has 5 different stages. These are:
Stage 1 - A state of equilibrium is defined.
Stage 2 - Disruption to the equilibrium by some action or crisis
Stage 3 - The Character(s) recognition that there has been a disruption, setting goals to resolve problem.
Stage 4 - The characters attempt to repair the disruption, obstacles need to be overcome to restore order
Stage 5 - Reinstatement to the equilibriam. The situation is resolved, a conclusion is announced.
