My name is Cynthia Kimola and for the programme critique assignment I have been watching Waridi. It is a local Kenyan programme which airs on Citizen Tv every Friday night from 7.30pm to 8.oopm.
I chose to do a critique on this program because it is a swahili soap opera that reflects on different subjects of life, especially the subject of love and betrayal. It is based on three major families, its background is of the present modern society though with the ever fervent opposition from the traditional society. The story aims at showing how determination can take one to greater heights and how love on the other hand can cause destruction rather than healing. From watching it in the last 5 weeks i have seen that it aims at helping people/viewers sober up to reality and avoid taking things for granted and not forgetting to tame love because its like a wild animal.
29th January 2010
In this particular episode i saw that the camera man really liked to use VWS(very wide shot) to help us place or identify with the environment. For example, whenever they wanted to show us a scene taking place in the MPs house, they would first start with VWS of his house which is very luxurious to show us that its the MPs house and then zoom into his compound and slowly dissolve us into the house and into the living room where he is talking with his wife.
Still on the same scene, the camera man used th noddy shot on his wife to show us how she is listening and reacting to what her husband is telling her.
5th February 2010
In this episode we see Sally at her home with her husband and he hands her a glass of some green liquid which we later learn is herbal medicine to help her get a babay because she is infertile. The camera man here uses a POV( point of view) shot and i was able to see the glass with the liquid from sally's perspective and it really looked yucky. I also felt nauseated as Sally looked when they did a close up of her face.
The background music was also too loud at some scenes compared to the characters talking volume and i had to adjust the volume levels with my remote from time to time.
12th February 2010
This particular episode really impressed me because the camera man used the dolly shot to show us how weak Sally looked when she was walking to her aunt's place because she had been crying the whole night when her husband left her and went to stay with his mother because she was infertile. At some point she was about to trip and fall and i also felt that i was going to fall to. he had captured me. The dolly was also used in Paul's office when the secretary was hurrying to pick up her papers and rushed from her workstation toward s the boss's office.
19th February 2010
Here there was good use of cutaways of cars passing then stopping in a traffic jam just before the camera zoomed out and in to Paul's office. it was to give us a sense that the scene was now in the city in an office.
Also when Linda, the Mps wife gets back home at night and doesnt find her husband the camera angle was not all that god because the camera captured the incident light which at that time was the lamp and this didnt relay good pictography because i could see the shadow that was made onthe subjects face.
26th February 2010
In this scene the camera man used very good video shots. When Sally was crying he first showed us a medium shot of her which helped me see her in detail while still giving me an impression of her whole body and he slowed moved into a close up of her face and I could see her tears trickling down her face.
When Paul and his HR manager were talking in his office there was good use of OSS( over the shoulder shot, it helped me get the feel that i am looking at one person from the other person's point of view.
Overall, as i watched the 5 episodes it has been exciting because i had to read first and familiarise myself with video shots and lighting terms and how they are done so as to identify them when i see them on Waridi. I have been reading and familiarising myself with these terms on: http://www.mediacollege.com/
You guys can check it up.It is really helpful.
Friday, February 26, 2010
PROGRAMME CRITIQUE- WARIDI.
Posted by COM 264 A at 10:52 PM
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TAHIDI HIGH CRITIC
Episode one
This is a local drama that shows on a weekly basis on the citizen television in Kenya.It is set to resemble a high school. and show the different activity of the student in our Kenyan high school that would otherwise never get known by the parents and the general public.
On this my fist episode anew couple in school of Allan and Brenda is the our victims. one day this couple were cuddling with each other in the gym of the school and they were busted by the three most unscrupulous of all the students in the school that is o.j,shish, and fredy the three distorted the scenario citing that the two were having sex.and that Brenda the girlfriend of Allan had gotten pregnant from the scene.
Allan gets furious and debates with his next move which he decides to report the case to miss Morgan their deputy head teacher . and swears that the three were going to pay for their actions. but before he gets there his girlfriend Brenda who had bowed to the pressure of the three characters had already reported that Allan had tried to rape her. Allan who though that he was the clean one here was astonished by this accusation and got himself in trouble that he could not have imagined as yet.
Thank goodness that Brenda decided to confess the truth that it was o.j,shish and fredy that had poisoned her mind that Allan was trying to rape her. she apologized for being so malleable.
Ms Morgan punished the three respectively after a good lecter.
The camera use in this episode was excellent except from one instance when the sound was running and was not corresponding to the motion picture but this was countered very fast by bringing cut for the promos. I guess they had not edited this one before hand. otherwise sound was balanced,lighint was excellent . and the message this episode was showing was the bad games that some students play that the parents and the general public could not know about.
EPISODE TWO
On this episode alady named Tanya. who is an ambassadors daughter is the center of the happenings. shish who is the crazy one and fredy his counterpart propagate rumors through face book that o.j Avery unscrupuoplus male student has impregnated Tanya.
This devastates Tanya’s live as the whole school is talking about her and sideling her some go as far as mocking her as a mother.
Meanwhile shish and fredy continue to add the salt to the injury through face book and make the rumors harsher.o.j is not having a smooth time as his uncle Omosh a subordinate in the school reprimands him and makes his live difficult until he is almost convinced that he had actually impregnated Tanya the ambassadors daughter this sends chilliness to his spine.
The situation is rescued by mr.kibunja who busted the culprits adding comments on the face book via phones which was prohibited in the school. The truth came out and the two got punished thoroughly for their evil actions.
The set on this episode is exellent.the lighting was alright apart from a time when the lighting had been too bright but they rectified this very fast . Sound was excellent and light setting was spotless. Microphone use and switching from one microphone to the other was smooth. It was an amazing episode.
EPISODE THREE
This episode starts with a group of students talking about sex as if they engage in it. shish and fredy his friend are in possession of trust condoms rubber protection in school. and are using them to deceived other students that they are using them and that they should join them .
This gets to miss. Morgan their deputy they fear with every nerve they have. she gets furious wanting to know who were the source of the rubber. It gets down to shish and fredy.who receive a good lecture before punishment.
In this episode sound was perfect and in balance even though they used different microphones. It was not easy to notice the switching, lighting was excellent. the only negative on this episode is that they brought a lot of cut ins for promo’s. this episode represents real life in our hifhschools. How the cd,s get moving in our high schools. It is warning to school and parented to watch out.
EPISODE FOUR
Following the last episode where some rubber as sex protection were discovered in school,shishs mother learnt about it and is worried about her daughters sex activeness thus she decides to arm her in the only way she thinks is best .so she gets shish family planning drugs whish she should use secretly.
One day shish accidentally drops them in the ladies lavatory. they get collected by the school captain and they end up in miss Morgan’s office. this turns her furious and she call for shish who walks in boldly. Upon interrogations shish confesses that it is her mother that gave them to her for protection. Miss. Morgan is shocked and calls for shih’s mother. she come and take full responsibility citing that she was only being protective of her own daughter who she claims was sexually active. They argue with the daughter about the assumptions that her mother makes of her. Then they agree and strike an understanding that they to communicate and listens to each other. this was to tell the parents that they should not judge their kids without understanding them and without listening to them. the set was good ,sound was excellent, lighting and microphone use was sparkles.
EPISODE FIVE
This episode starts with a group of students discussing about minerals.
The geography class is almost empty. since some students have dropped it and picked history instead.
Mr. .meiposi is the geography teacher and takes issue with Mr. ngatia who is the history counterpart,threr is conflicts between the two subject and also the teachers
The scenes in this episode are shot at different places .thus different microphones are used for example when the teachers are arguing about the subjects this where they used the omni lateral microphone.
This conflict brings tension even in students.mr ngatia takes the issue even to the subordinate staff by asking omosh a historical question he gives funny guesses. They show an interest to join his history class. there was a time between the student discussion that the microphone went off. This might be the mike was muted or they were off the mike or there was no mike presence it last like five second and was rectified.
Finally Mr.meiposi see some sense and at the same time students also realize that geography is as important as history and the class iis full once again. in this episode there was good lighting and color combination was impressive, sound ws excellent all through apart from the instance mentioned above they juggled the types of microphone through the episode. the language they used was Swahili, English and Sheng which gives this show flavor. The script is objective.
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