Bridge Flashcards
(10 cards)
Context:
Social & Cultural: (3)
- programme reflects changing attitudes towards gender and introduces a discourse into the narrative of this series around gender, identity, and LGBTQ issues.
- rep of gender in the programme, (including construction of Saga’s character), is influenced by changing social and cultural attitudes regarding the role of women in society.
- binary opposition of Swedish & Danish cultures highlights how issues may be treated differently in different cultures.
Context:
Historical: (3)
- demonstrates that genre conventions are historically relative and dynamic.
- reps constructed are affected by the historical context, they subvert/challenge typical reps that have been accepted over time and in doing so reflect the society of the time. (e.g., gender, LGBTQ)
- Different audience interpretations of The Bridge may reflect historical circumstances.
Context:
Economic: (3)
- demonstrates the economic advantages of international co-productions. (wider audience..)
- creation of the Nordic Noir brand meant that programmes could be successfully marketed globally. (existing fanbase)
- Establishing the codes and conventions of this style of programme builds a loyal fanbase and reduces the economic risk.
Context:
Product:
which episode, when broadcast & where?
whats its sub-genre?
where is the drama set?
what does title refer to? & whats the actual bridge called?
who co-produced it?
what does this season/episode open with? (plot)
- episode 1 of season 3, broadcast in UK on BBC 4 at 9pm, 21st Nov 2015.
- is an eg of a Scandinavian sub-genre of crime drama - Nordic Noir.
- set in Sweden, title refers to the Oresund Bridge between Denmark and Sweden and is a metaphor for the collaboration between the two police forces which commenced after a body was discovered in the middle of the bridge in the first episode of the first series.
- co-production between
Filmlance International and Nimbus Film. - opens with the murder in Malmo of a prominent Danish gender campaigner and owner of Copenhagen’s first gender neutral pre-school.
- Swedish detective Saga Norén is assigned a new
Danish colleague Hanne to help with the investigation, after Saga’s involvement in sending her previous Danish partner Martin to jail for murdering the man who killed his son.
Industry:
processes of production, distribution, circulation by global context:
how does the sub-genre increase viewership?
what don’t contemporary audiences mind in non-english films/shows?
broadcast by who in Denmark, Sweden & UK?
how did the co-production between S&D help economic factors?
who was main distributor, & distributed to how many countries?
what were the range of marketing techniques?
what did the marketing focus on?
what international remakes of the Bridge were there?
Television is now a global industry and this globalisation has had a significant impact evident in:
- global distribution of television products.
There are now the means in place in the television industry to distribute products worldwide.
- Nordic Noir has gained global popularity regardless of the language barrier. Contemporary audiences are more accepting of sub-titles and BBC Four has been at the forefront of establishing Non-English-Language programmes as part of their schedule.
- BBC Four Service Licence, issued in April 2016 states: ‘BBC Four’s primary role is to reflect a range of UK and international arts, music and culture’. Part of its remit is to ‘offer international and foreign language feature films and a range of foreign language dramas and documentaries…
- was originally broadcast by SVT in
Sweden and DR in Denmark -> settings, cast and crew taken from both countries reflect the economic context in which The Bridge was produced and helped to shape the programme. (UK broadcaster was BBC Four) - main distributor was ZDF Enterprises, and The Bridge was distributed to over 150 countries worldwide.
- range of marketing strategies including posters, trailers and a website were used to attract and maintain audiences focusing on:
- UK’s BBC Four branding connoting recognition of quality
- team of detectives establishing sense of community and an ensemble, but in some of the marketing products with Saga in the forefront
- The character of Saga as the troubled antihero
- The Swedish/Danish setting with the iconic image of the Oresund Bridge
- The Radio Times used a front cover image of Saga in her recognisable overcoat with the anchor ‘Hot Scandinavian dramas for cold winter nights’
- were international remakes of The Bridge illustrating its success, these included the Anglo/French production The Tunnel
Industry:
significance of economic factors to media industries:
what has happened to international co-productions, & why?
who was TB co-produced by? & who helped finance it/receive funding from (3)?
- has been a rise in the number of international co-productions. These are attractive as the collaboration means that economic responsibility can be shared and the more contributors, the bigger the production budget.
- was co-produced by Filmlance
International, an independent Swedish production company and by the Danish company Nimbus Film. It also received financial support from European public service broadcasters.
third season of The Bridge also received funding from:
- The Copenhagen Film Fund. This co-funding resulted in more Danish crew members being employed on the third season than on the previous two.
- €1 million grant was received from Creative Europe MEDIA for Series 3 and helped to support and maintain the programme’s high production values. (Creative Europe provide financial backing for high quality, high budget European TV drama series).
Industry:
Hesmondhalgh - Cultural Industries:
theory & links to TB
BBC as a public service broadcaster is not under the same pressure as commercial broadcasters in terms of ratings and competition, it still uses a range of strategies to minimise risk and maximise audiences.
- one way is vertical integration. The Bridge was a Swedish/Danish co-production, received funding from several production companies and was distributed globally by ZDF Enterprises
The Bridge was part of the Nordic Noir
branding; trailers employed the marketing strategy of grouping together programmes under this new brand.
- enabled audiences to anticipate what to expect and used inheritance from previous examples of the genre to maximise audiences.
- Whilst containing an enigmatic narratives and complex, challenging characters, The Bridge also contains typical codes and conventions of a crime drama. Once the programme was established, the marketing materials used the recognisable characters, setting and iconic opening soundtrack to engage with audiences.
Audience:
how products target, attract, reach, address, contract audiences.
what audience may TB attract?
what range of pleasures may TB offer for fans of crime drama/TB?
- attracts the more niche, less mainstream BBC Four audience who are targeted through their expectations based on the brand identity of the channel.
- BBC Four established that sub-titled stories could reach a British audience. ‘BBC Four’s primary role is to reflect a range of UK and international arts, music and culture. It should provide an ambitious range of innovative, high quality programming that is intellectually and culturally enriching’
- may attract an inherited audience who will be familiar with other Nordic Noir dramas broadcast on this channel, for example The Killing and Wallander.
- also offers a range of pleasures for the fans of crime drama (Uses and Gratifications theory), the programme has typical codes and conventions of crime dramas but an element of escapism and diversion through the different characters, setting and culture. Audiences will gain pleasure from following the investigators as they attempt to solve the crime.
- Loyal audiences will have become familiar with the character of Saga, this is the start of Series 3 and they will have expectations of how her character will behave and may develop based on the other series.
Audiences:
ways different audiences interpretations reflect social, cultural, historical circumstances:
what does the programme construct?
how will understanding the sub-genre conventions help certain audiences?
what audiences could it attract/what could they be interested within in TB?
- Different demographic factors, for example nationality. The programme constructs an idea of the cultural differences between Sweden & Denmark (e.g., the Swedish characters are seen to be more politically correct than the Danish (more open about LGBTQ…) Danish and Swedish audiences may feel that The Bridge confirms longstanding views and reaffirms the separate cultural identities. Conversely, some may feel that this is unfair cultural stereotyping).
- Cultural capital, for example an understanding of the conventions of film noir or of other Nordic Noir dramas will enhance the viewing experience of the audience.
- Gender, for example women may be empowered by the construction of positive female representations in The Bridge.
- Audiences who are interested in crime dramas that offer a different cultural experience are likely to have a positive response to the programme.
Audience:
Stuart Hall - Reception Theory
theory & links to TB:
- audience may accept the producers intended meaning, to construct a programme that appeals to audiences by including typical conventions of the crime drama whilst offering something different and more challenging through Saga & Scandinavian setting. viewers will be entertained by the programme, its complex narrative, and the intertextual references to film noir. (Preferred Reading)
- Feminist audiences are likely to feel empowered by the inclusion of strong, powerful women in the storyline, by the representation of a lesbian relationship and the narrative addressing gender issues.
- some may enjoy typical codes & conventions of a crime drama, the enigmas, & involvement with the investigative narrative, but feel uncomfortable with the specific focus of the narrative. Swedish and Danish audiences may engage with the drama but feel that the cultural depictions are stereotypical. (Negotiated reading)
- some may struggle to be sympathetic for Saga. Audiences may view her behaviour traits with concern/ find it difficult to connect to her emotionally as her responses are so different to expectations & she lacks humour. A more conservative audience may respond negatively to the Swedish liberal attitudes to sex, gender, and political correctness. (Oppositional reading)
