Slide One:           For my EPQ I decided to “research the formula behind                        successful sitcoms and then apply what I had learnt to                        script-write my very own pilot episode of a sitcom.”

 

Slide Two:           I chose this topic, because initially, when I was trying                          to determine what I wanted my project to be on I                              decided I wanted to produce, direct and edit the first                        episode of a teen drama, linking into skills I have                              obtained from A Level Media Studies. It is interesting                          how quickly my idea rapidly changed from creating a                        teen drama to writing a sitcom. The foundations of this                        drastic change lie in the beginning of my research.                            Essentially, my research began with genre, so I went to                        the library and began taking notes on comedy as a                            genre. I immediately became fascinated by the idea                          of sitcoms and how writers channel normal, everyday                          life into humour. We had been told in Media Studies                          that comedy would be too challenging to create,                              however, I was willing to take on the challenge.

 

Side Three:         I chose to participate in EPQ for various reasons. Firstly,                       I really liked the idea of it being a project purely                               focused around a topic you are interested in, and that                       it is entirely your responsibility to complete the project,                       providing me with a great feeling of autonomy and                           worth. Another contributing factor was that EPQ would                       help with my university application. Southampton,                             being my top choice, emphasised their love of EPQ on                         both its open day and when the speaker came into                           visit our school, making me eager to continue in the                           participation of EPQ as I believed it would help me to                         receive an offer from them. Oxford Brookes University                         seemed particularly interested in my EPQ when I                               attended the open day as it is both creative and very                         unique.

Slide Four:         As I have previously mentioned, I began my research                         looking into genres in television. Conveniently, the first                         genre I looked at was comedy. There are a wide                               variety of comedies shown on the television varying                           from mockumentaries, to sitcoms, to sketch shows;                             however, I was most curious to know the formula                               behind sitcoms as they are the most relatable form of                         comedy.

Slide Five:          I created a GANNT Chart to structure my research to                         the time I was provided with, listing each section of                           research against every week. I mostly stuck to                                   following my GANNT chart, although time management                       was difficult in incredibly busy weeks.

Slide Six:            I went online and obtained existing scripts for the pilot                       episodes of the hit US sitcom ‘Friends’ and the British                           sitcom ‘The IT Crowd’, and using comedy terminology I                       had discovered I annotated the scripts with how the                           writers had used different types of comedy to their                             advantage. I discovered quickly key differences                                 between US and UK sitcoms: where the US sitcoms                             generally use six characters with each representing a                         different stereotype: the joker, the stupid one, the                               strange one, the uptight bossy one, the superficial one                       and the geeky one, as seen in ‘Friends’.

Slide Seven:       British shows like the ‘Father Ted’ and ‘Blackadder’ use                         the tactic of having one central character who is                              deemed ‘the smart one,’ whereas everyone around them                       lacks in intelligence and common sense. However,                              character comedy is not the only form of comedy that                        they depict. Their episodes can be quite topical or                            amusing through the irony they use. A unique form of                        irony is used in ‘Father Ted’, similarly to in ‘The Vicar of                       Dibley’ as the writers use more serious institutions such                       as the church and yet cause the characters                                     accidentally, or occasionally purposefully, perform un-                       Godly actions.