Final Aims and Intentions

Genre:

'Paranoid fiction'; 'dystopian'; 'Orwellian'

Channel:

ITV

Location in narrative:

Point of disruption.

Aiming to achieve:

   A dystopian production, lightly touching on sci-fi themes and genres like ‘paranoid fiction’ – a style more suited to the works of George Orwell (1984). The three-minute production will be at the point of disruption, where the enemy figure commences the operation to trace the protagonist and rebel group. This is during the time that the protagonist forms his alliance with this crowd, joining forces in fighting the hierarchy together.  My media magazine will promote this product with a feature article: a front cover and a Q+A style interview with a cast member.

Target Audience:

‘Renegade 7’ will be an ITV production, targeted at a demographic of ‘Millennials’ (18-35 years) – as with my magazine pieces. My series will be of particular interest to this audience, with themes mirroring the real dilemmas and controversies that preoccupy the minds of this age band. It will cater to those seeking an escapist fantasy with parallels giving the narrative more depth. In terms of gender appeal, the protagonist is male, but in order to by-pass the gender bias here, there is another focal female character in the series, not standing as merely a love interest. Issues such as mental health and LGBTQ+ will also be addressed. In terms of socio-economic groupings my target market would fall into the C1/C2 (lower middle class/skilled working class) bands, given that these will be most able to identify on a personal level with the focal characters. That said, I think that themes in society mirrored this way are universally understood.

Form and Style:

 The series will span many episodes, with a complex narrative that may have the potential to continue over several seasons. The production itself will have a high production value, working with a more cinematic style. A dystopian aesthetic will a large contribution to the product’s unique selling proposition. Given that crime drama is popular, but mildly overused, I decided to incorporate some stylistic features in my production, developing a ‘Dystopian-Noir’ feel. To broaden the show’s impact, I broke out of the confinement of one creative genre, allowing mine to work with much genre hybridity and therefore appeal to multi-fandom interests and audience personalities.

Themes and Features:

  A successful fictional dystopia needs a certain type of protagonist. A non-conformist. A rebel. Mine stands as a young man devoted to fighting for freedom, whilst at the same time trapped in his own mind, shackled by depression and PTSD – a perfect paradox. Subjecting this character to common themes of dystopia works to induce fear from parallels between this fiction and real-world problems. Having a relatable character allows the viewers to easily slip into his shoes, facing a world not too dissimilar from our own. A totalitarian hierarchy, loss of control, technological takeover – each fears of today’s millennial generation, and prominent subjects within dystopian literature. Orwell’s ‘1984’ has served as a large inspiration, and so themes and features of this text may be borrowed as a visual demonstration as to how disturbingly distorted our future could be.