Product Research

SHERLOCK

Sherlock is a very well anticipated drama as they release one series consisting of 3 episodes every two years. The genre would be drama/thriller.

The opening two minutes of series 2 episode 3 called ‘a scandal in Belgravia’ gives us an idea of the narrative straight away. The first thing we hear is police sirens which are diegetic sound as it comes from within the scene as a background noise. There is also a close up of a front door which connotes they’re might be some detective work going on or there is some trouble around that area. Then there is a long shot of ‘Sherlock’ and his friend doing some work. The friend is typing on a laptop which is being shown to the audience on the screen as text as it is being typed; this gives more of a work ethic feel to the programme.

In terms of costume, Sherlock is wearing a long robe which connotes he has probably just woken up and is reading a newspaper and drinking tea, this shows he is more relaxed than his friend who is dressed up in a shirt looking smart and started his work in the morning. In this scene there is back lighting shining in through the windows which tells us it is day time. There is low key lighting which creates a shadowy effect which is known as chiaroscuro. The props used such as the laptop link to the narrative as it shows the actor working and maybe doing some detective work. Another prop was the newspaper that Sherlock was reading which could also link to the narrative as he is one to read the news and likes to be on top of things as he is a high end detective. The setting is in a house which looks to be quite dull but roomy, enough space to do detective work and a bit messy which suggests they do not have much time to clean up and be homely.

The next scene changes with a straight cut but also fade in the character as he is being seen in the same position as he was in the last scene.  There is continuity editing as each scene links with the other. The next part shows random people telling Sherlock and his friend their personal stories. There are straight cuts between each person telling the story which shows that they are interviewing a lot of people which connotes they have a busy work schedule. There are very clever ways they have put in to change the scene and people, they sort of use the wipe effect with the screen but instead have a close up of Sherlock’s legs showing him walking across the screen as he is anxious walking around in the scene.

There is then a jump cut to the next scene which shows Sherlock with his friend and another man in a lab, which is a common setting for doing research and typical detective work in. There is high key lighting and bright lights in the room which gives the lab a cleaner more realistic feel. There is a close up of Sherlock looking through a magnifying glass showing his facial expressions as he seems really interested and eager in what he is doing. There is also a close up of his friend doing the same as he is stating what he sees and what he thinks has happened. The camera angle only shows their facial expressions which creates enigma code as the audience wants to know what they are examining. There is then a quick shot of a dead body which is what they were looking at. However there is still a sense of enigma code as the audience wants to know who the person is and why they are examining her. The body is shown to be very pale and white, however Sherlock and his friend are dressed in black and darker colours which is binary opposition as this could connote good and bad.

There is then a straight cut to the next scene which shows their costumes; Sherlock wearing a robe again which tells us he is done with his working day whilst his friend is still dressed smart and still working on a laptop, again showing the audience what he is typing as they have overlapped text onto what the audience is viewing. The prop being the laptop is almost like the plot device as it is being referred to a lot and keeps the narrative moving. Sherlock is also eating and his mouth is half full whilst talking to his friend telling him what to do, this connotes he is the protagonist in the drama. The camera angle also shows a high angle of Sherlock from his friends point of view which connotes he has power.

The scene is then taken back using the wipe screen edit, to the part where they are still interviewing people which connotes they have spoken to quite a lot of people as they are still doing it once the audience thought the scene had ended. There is a long shot of the interviewees sitting on a sofa from an angle showing them from straight ahead and of Sherlock’s friend sitting closer to the camera with a side view, medium shot of him. As this is going on there is non-diegetic sound in the background which is parallel as the music seems mysterious and goes well with the scene.   

The next scene is shown with a fade out edit which is when the screen fades to black and then the next scene appears. This is then set outside which seems to be a construction site. The actors are all dressed smart and wear black which makes them look sleek and professional. There is a long shot of the actors walking one behind another at a faster walking pace than usual which suggests they are eager to get to work. There is very low volume parallel sound playing in the background of the scene. They then reach a car where there is evidence of some kind that Sherlock needs to figure out, his thought process is being said out like a monologue which connotes he has detected a lot of things within a short amount of time as he picks up certain objects like a passport. There is a close up of the passport and then is zoomed out of as he picks out the rest of the objects. This is all sussed out very quickly which gives the audience an idea of how fast paced the drama is.

This programme ‘Sherlock’ is mainly targeted at people who watch quality drama. It would appeal to thrill seekers and people who enjoy the suspense and anticipation of watching the drama. This show would appeal to that target audience because they would probably like to solve mysteries and they like to be challenged as it keeps the viewer engaged and keeps them guessing about what could happen next.