Supersize vs super skinnyConventionsSupersize vs super skinny (series 6 episode 8) documentary follow obscure conventions in terms of their narrative. The documentary created by Channel 4 has characteristics of reflexive conventions in that it bases its subject on real life moments/objects or in this case the weight of people, and furthermore based on suggestions and opinions (how people feel about their weight, experiences of anorexia, suggestions on how to change diet etc.) rather than solid facts, however some factual knowledge can be found in the documentary such as recommended portion sizes, information on heart and kidney problems. Supersize vs super skinny appears to loosely follow the conventions of a reflexive storyline rather than restricting to it completely. Additionally, it also appears to follow the conventions of a performative documentary. This type of convention is largely based on emotion, and very often involves the TV maker or crew interacting with the subject; this fits with the narrative of supersize vs super skinny as it does include the crew or in this case Dr Christian Jessen interacting with the subjects of the episode. The TV series is also hugely based on emotion and does attempt to amplify that to the viewer throughout the show, for example in the extract we analysed, there is a scene where they visit a woman called Robin who is severely over weight; it was noted that while she was explaining the dramatic impact her weight has on her life, that close ups and sympathetic music was used, which gives evidence of trying to create sympathy for the subject, and almost crosses the boundary into entertainmentThese types of conventions for the documentary really begin to reflect and give and understanding of its broadcasting channel, Channel 4. We can see that due to the documentaries entertainment side (the performative conventions) and relaxed mode of address, that it gives us an overall idea of what type of content that Channel 4 produce. This is most likely due to the fact that their target audience is young adults aged between 18-30 year olds, which reflects that they have to show content that is more entertaining that factual as they do not want to bore their audience, as other types of documentaries may not appeal to this target market. Mise en SceneMise en scene is use very affectively in Supersize Vs Super Skinny. In the opening titles and the first time we get to meet the subjects, their costumes is purely just underwear in a skin like colour. This is done by the director to be able to see their weight for what it really is, without anything covering it up, it gives the connotation of the viewers being able to analyse their bodies like a doctor with a patient. We also notice that the presenter, Dr Christian, is dressed in smart clothing, with a shirt and smart jeans, it gives the appearance a stereotypical doctor by the director. In terms of lighting (when we are introduced to the subjects), when the main characters, Linda and Thomas, are introduced and brought together, their lighting on the subjects has a very clinical feel, it doesnt have any warm colouring or filters. This gives the connotation of a hospitalised feel, and adds to the sense that the subjects on the screen are being analysed which is consistent throughout the documentary as the main topic of the program is the weight of the individuals. Another example of when lighting was affectively used is the scene where Robin is explaining the difficulty of her life due to her weight. This is quite an emotional scene and it is presented in this low key lighting, this (alongside of the close up and parallel sound) makes the viewer feel pity and sadness for Robin as she explains how difficult her life has become. The low key lighting makes it visually noticeable that it is an emotional scene, this is also accompanied by her facial expressions which give the emotion of sadness. Another technique that is used in the epsiode is the props. Part of programme makes Linda and Thomas swap food, so that the other person has to eat what they eat in a normal day. Alongside with camerawork, the food is shown in a close up for the viewers to analyse what Linda and Thomas normally eats. Throughout the scene, they interchange shots from one meal to the other to lets viewers really compare the different type of meals and portion sizes. This is affectively used to allow the audience to judge what the subjects are eating, to allow them to have an understanding of how Thomas and Linda got to the weight that they are. Another scene that uses props is when they are interviewing Thomas and they have a stack of pizza in the background, this again gives the impression that not only does Thomas like pizza, but it is the main cause of his weight, this prop techniques makes this assumption visually obvious to the viewer. Composition is also a powerful technique used in this documentary. In the introduction scene where we get to see all of the subjects for the first time, we notice the positioning of the under and overweight people. We notice that the underweight people are all along the left side of the shot, and the overweight people are along the right side of the shot, with Dr Christian in the middle. This use of composition is created by the director as it allows the viewer to be able to easily compare the weight of the two groups, it gives a bases of comparison of what their weights are. We also notice that Dr Christian is in the centre of the shot or in this case the scale of weight, this can suggest that he is at ideal weight and adds as an additional size for the viewer to compare too.

CameraworkCamerawork is used throughout the episode to amplify connotations or subjects. In the introduction scene there is a part where Thomas and Linda meet, there is a number of over the shoulder shots, when they are talking it is noted that when Thomas is talking it is projected as a slight low angle, and when Linda is talking it is shown as a slight high angled shot. This gives the feeling of dominance towards Thomas, and makes Linda look small and weak. This is a very powerful technique in terms of projecting the weight and size of the individuals, as by showing Thomas as dominant it gives the impression that he is large, and with Linda it makes her look small and skinny, with this camera technique it amplifies the weight of Linda and Thomas. Another powerful use of camera work is the scenes where they have one person in a white background setting. Throughout the episode they often cut to scenes where they have individuals (often Thomas and Linda but not always) in just their underwear, and they have extreme/close up shots of different body parts. This scene gives the impression that the audience is examining or judging the individual on screen about their weight, showing how being either over or under weight makes different parts of your body look. Additionally, another use of camera work is the multiple extreme to close up shots of an anorexia victim named Aria. Through this scene she speaks about her anorexia and how it develops; as you can imagine this is an emotion scene, and this is reflected through the camerawork. Whenever Aria is speaking the often use an extreme/close up shot of her face, this is done for affect as it focuses your attention on the victims facial expression, and amplifies the emotions. Another powerful camera technique used is the use of handheld camera work. Throughout many scenes its noticeable that a handheld camera is used to record the shot, this is created by the director to add a sense of realism to the scene, make the viewer believe they are there themselves, which consequently adds a believability factor to the documentary.SoundThere is a number of different sound techniques used through Supersize vs Super Skinny. At the beginning of the show they start with a piece non-diegetic sound of upbeat music. They play this while showing a summary of whats coming up on the show. I believe the reason why the director has done this is to appeal to the younger target audience, making them more engaged with the content that they are showing so that they will want to continue watching the show. This upbeat music was also played over a summary of the character Robins life story, where she explains the difficulty in her life due to her weight. As previously mentioned, this scene is an emotional one, so the fact that at the beginning of the show they have played upbeat music through it, creates this contrapuntal sound, which we believe is done for a comical affect. Although this scene is emotional and meant to promote the feeling of sadness, it is entertaining to the audience, the target audience would enjoy listening to this story, which is why we believe that contrapuntal sound is used. Additionally, through Robins scene where she speaks about the difficulty in her life, for a large portion of the extract a calmer, but still upbeat , music is used. Its not until Robin starts to cry that it all of a sudden changes to more parallel, sympathetic music. This again amplifies the comical aspect in the scene, the fact that the director is using this emotional seen and manipulating it into entertainment for the viewer. The sudden change in music makes a dramatic, and noticeable change to the viewer an makes it obvious that it is a upsetting scene. Throughout the whole episode, nearly at every stage there is some upbeat, pop music playing as a non-diegetic sound. For this programme it becomes apparent that they stick to this type of music for nearly every scene and its rare to find any other type. This really reflects on what type of documentary this is, if you were to compare it to a wildlife documentary, it would be extremely rare to hear upbeat music because it doesnt appeal to its target audience, but for Supersize vs Super Skinny it does. Just by the genre of music played you can establish that the younger/middle generation are the ideal target audience for this show, which would mean that this music would appeal to them and make them more interested in the programming. There is a scene where Dr Christian meets up with Robin and Thomas in America where he discusses Thomas issues and shows him Robins gas mask she has to wear at night in order to breath. We notice that in this scene there is only diegetic sound, no music or sound effects are played at all. This is done for effect as the absence of sound draws the attention of the viewer, they are used to listening to upbeat, non-diegetic music, so when it stops its very noticeable, and makes the viewer focus on what Dr Christian is saying. Additionally, throughout the whole program there is also the use of a voice over. Now unlike other documentaries where the presenter (in our case Dr Christian) is the voice over, in this programme its done by another person named Liza Tarbuck. The voice over technique is used to explain in the audience what is happening in the scene, for example of we were to take the narrator out of the episode, it would be very difficult to understand what was going on. Furthermore, the use of the voice over adds a sense of realism to the show in an ironic way. If we were to have a presenter explain what was happening and give us information on the scene, the programme would feel more like a show, rather than a documentary. Its crucial for documentaries to have that sense of realism to it because otherwise what they are presenting doesnt seem believable. So to have this voice, or narration, explain to us what is happening rather than a presenter, it gives that sense that we are observing what is going on (which is the same effect used in the famous David Attenborough documentaries). In this programmes case they have a presenter as well as a narrator, but this again is done for effect. Because of Dr Christians title in that he is a doctor, this adds an additional sense of realism because the viewers trust his opinion, which is why we believe that this programme needed an additional narrator, because Dr Christian is part of the documentary. EditingIn the scene where they have certain subjects in just their underwear and a white background, fast paced editing is used. We notice that in this scene, the shots are changed very quickly showing different close ups of body parts to the viewer. This is done to create the feeling that we as the viewer are analysing and judging the subject on the screen, we are quickly inspecting their body and looking at what being over/under weight does to different aspects of the body. This also amplifies the clinical or hospitalised feel to the scene as we are believed to feel like doctors ourselves, like we are examining a patient. Furthermore, during Robins scene, we notice that there is a number of long takes used when Robin is talking about her life. Long takes are used by the director to make the viewer feel physically awkward about what is being shown, long shots are very uncomfortable to watch as a viewer and this is done for affect. With this uncomfortable editing technique, it adds empathises on the emotions in the scene, and amplifies the fact that what Robin is talking about is sad.Furthermore, another editing technique is used during the transition of two different scenes. The scene where Dr Christian meets up with Robin and Thomas in America which is followed by a scene where all three of them meet up in Robins house. During the transition of these two scenes we notice that there is a dissolve transition used. Dissolves are generally used to show the passing of time from one scene to another, and in this documentary it is used for exactly that.