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Radio Codes and Conventions

The document discusses various elements of radio drama production including words, voices, speech, background music and sound effects. It provides an analysis of their use in a specific radio drama speech. The speech analyzed has a formal tone with occasional humor from a man talking to his comatose friend. Background music and the sound of a pacemaker are used throughout the emotional speech.

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152 views2 pages

Radio Codes and Conventions

The document discusses various elements of radio drama production including words, voices, speech, background music and sound effects. It provides an analysis of their use in a specific radio drama speech. The speech analyzed has a formal tone with occasional humor from a man talking to his comatose friend. Background music and the sound of a pacemaker are used throughout the emotional speech.

Uploaded by

api-570661298
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Words

The words that are used in the production. This can change depending on the
background of the character, location, time period or the circumstances of the character.

The words used in Ianto’s speech are quite formal due to the circumstances of the
speech. Slang isn’t used for example.

Voices
The sound of the characters voice, including the accent or any other individual features,
such as a character with a particularly gravelly voice.

I believe the character in Ianto’s speech has a Newcastle accent.

Speech
The type of speech can vary, for example it could be formal if it’s between two corporate
employees, or more casual between two friends.

The speech is from a man talking to his friend in a coma. He is quite formal, with
occasional light hearted comments, and towards the end of the speech his voice starts
to get emotional.

Background music and ambient sound


Background music and ambient sound have both been used in media since the very
start of film, and they serve a similar but more important role in radio dramas as the
audience has to solely rely on audio to become immersed in the story. These aspects
are one of the most important parts of the production.

There is emotional background music throughout the speech.

Sound effects
Similar to background and ambient sound, sound effects are vital to creating a good
radio drama as they create an immersive picture of what’s going on scene to scene
without using any actual video. Sound effects often include footsteps, doors opening
and closing, and background chatter.

There is the sound of the pacemaker beeping throughout the speech.

Silence
Silence can be an effective tool in building tension and suspense, or can be used during
an important conversation between characters to direct the focus towards the dialogue.

Aural signposting
Aural signposting is the use of sound to convey to the audience where the characters
are. For example, birdsong and soft footsteps with the sound breaking twigs would help
the viewer build an image of a forest in their head.

Fades and silences


A radio drama director may choose to use a fade into silence to transition or end a
scene, usually after a particularly dramatic scene. However, transitions using music are
often utilised to keep the audience engaged.

Titles and credits


Because there is no video component, titles and credits are announced by the narrator
usually at the start of the production.

Cliffhanger endings
Cliffhanger endings are an effective way to build tension and if done right they should
keep the audience returning to the show consistently.

Narration
Narration can be an easy method to help the audience keep track of the story and the
events that have transpired so far. If overdone it can get irritating though, and the
narration should be simplistic as to avoid confusion

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