AUDIENCE
Audience marketing
How did the marketing( trailers ,advertising etc.) for 'Life on Mars' target, identify and maximise its audience ? This could also be by targeting an existing audience
official trailer
BBC press pack
Look at the following :
- Use of specific genres and their conventions
- Use of stars such as John Simm
- Use of characters
- Any other methods used to target audiences (enigmas, merchandise, links to other products or genres)
Fandom : Life on Mars had and still has a cult following among TV fans .
wiki fanpage
Summarise how the resources created here links to Jenkins theory of fandom
What could be an oppositional reading of Life On Mars be, in particular in relation to how different types of audience could respond to the characters of Gene Hunt and Sam Tyler? Any other examples?
Critical response
Give examples of fan, newspaper and website reviews of the series and any awards . Were these generally positive and what were the main reasons ?
INDUSTRY
Summarise the following Production and ownership information (use the revision pack and your own research )
Summarise how the programme was commissioned and produced and details about who byBroadcast date, scheduling and channel of original broadcast, audience figures , spinoffs and different versions, other ways of increasing profits How does Life on Mars fit into the BBC's remit of the kind of programmes it should be producing ? Use key words from the BBC remit ( in the revision pack )
Regulation information
Which bodies were in charge of regulating the content of Life on Mars ? What possible legal or ethical issues could have been raised by the content of Series 1 episode 1 ?
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Life On Mars uses crime and sci-fi combined to maximise audience interest. The audience it aims for is older, hence why the actors are famous from previous films or series that have an older audience. For example, the actor that plays Gene Hunt would normally be seen as a dad character in other movies.
Crime interests many young viewers, however the time that the series is set in wouldn't normally interest younger viewers as they wouldn't now much about it or find it white boring and old-fashioned.
The trailer is very short and catchy as there is so much going on that it instantly grasps the audience's attention and makes them intrigued to watch the series. The trailer also doesn't give away too many details so it doesn't spoil the show and leaves you guessing when you watch it.
However, the trailer instantly shows the time change which can be seen in Sam's face where he immediately looks younger, making it self-explanatory that he has gone back in time without showing the little clips of the series.
Gene Hunt and Sam are in the car together which isn't seen in the first episode, however the trailer jumps straight into it to not waste any time.
The trailer could interest ages from 30 upwards, but for me being a teenager I wouldn't mind seeing it too as it appears exciting from the trailer. \
John Simm, who plays Sam, has been in many dramas and is a very famous English actor and director which many people would want to see, so making sure he is seen close and clearly in the trailer or advertisements would make viewers be drawn in to watch the series.
The BBC Press Office describes the series multiple times as an "innovative, witty and action packed drama" in a description on their site in bold.
The viewers instantly see from the trailer some sort of connection between Sam and Annie which could be a potential romance. Romances are quite popular in the 21st century and could possibly attract many female viewers.
The T-shirt above is merchandise for Life On Mars which is humorous and appeals to older audiences, like middle-aged men which would find it funny to wear if they enjoy the series.
If the shirt becomes popular in high-street stores or online it could attract many more viewers to watch the series as it would become more well known and spoken about, giving it higher ratings.
Life On Mars won the audience award from the British Academy for Film and Television Arts in 2007. It received 7 nominations including Best Actor, Best Director, Best Drama, Best Writer, Best
Production Design, Best Sound, Best Editing. At the
International Emmy Awards it won
Best Drama for 2006 and 2008.
One of the keys to the continued success of Life On Mars was how the audience
was made to feel part of the central storyline from the opening episode onwards.
The audience becomes ‘active’ within the narrative as they are working alongside Sam Tyler to work out for themselves if this is fantasy or reality.
The series works upon classic narrative lines of mystery, intrigue and enigma.
Enigmas are puzzles, mysteries, questions which are built in to the narrative
regarding characters, situations and events. These help to move the narrative
along, create tension, and involve the audience by seeing if they can work out
the answers. I think Life On Mars creates multiple enigmas in the way it constantly makes us wonder if Sam has really gone back in time or if it is just all in his mind and he is actually sitting in a hospital bed in his own time just dreaming while he is in a coma.
Henry Jenkins' theory is about how dedicated fans respond to popular media in their social and cultural identities, in ways that aren't authorised by the media. Jenkins refers to this as "textual poaching".
Best Drama for 2006 and 2008.
One of the keys to the continued success of Life On Mars was how the audience
was made to feel part of the central storyline from the opening episode onwards.
The audience becomes ‘active’ within the narrative as they are working alongside Sam Tyler to work out for themselves if this is fantasy or reality.
The series works upon classic narrative lines of mystery, intrigue and enigma.
Enigmas are puzzles, mysteries, questions which are built in to the narrative
regarding characters, situations and events. These help to move the narrative
along, create tension, and involve the audience by seeing if they can work out
the answers. I think Life On Mars creates multiple enigmas in the way it constantly makes us wonder if Sam has really gone back in time or if it is just all in his mind and he is actually sitting in a hospital bed in his own time just dreaming while he is in a coma.
Henry Jenkins' theory is about how dedicated fans respond to popular media in their social and cultural identities, in ways that aren't authorised by the media. Jenkins refers to this as "textual poaching".
