Soap Opera Conventions

An example of a two-shot camera shot

These conventions are followed to make soap operas recognisable and allow you to make links between soaps.

• The constant illusion of real time
• Multiple characters, with strong female characters (this is due to the original target audiences of soap operas)
• Each episode has many short scenes, typically less than two minutes
• Current social issues relatable to the audience
• Continuity throughout episodes
• Mostly diegetic sound
• Use of cliff hangers and tease devices to keep the audience in suspense
• Domestic, naturalistic mise-en-scene (known as 'kitchen sink' mise-en-scene)
• Storylines interweave
• Lots of camera shots involving two-shots and over the shoulder shots of conversations
• Symbolic costumes and set to display character identities to the audience



Domestic mise-en-scene in Hollyoaks (Home interior)

• Combinations of action (information for the audience) and enigma (questions raised by the audience)

Whilst most soap operas- such as Eastenders, Coronation Street and Emmerdale- follow these conventions, it can be seen that Hollyoaks tends to go against some of them. For example, a lot of Hollyoaks episodes start out with non-diegetic music which introduces the characters and storylines for that episode. Hollyoaks also occasionally uses editing to show pop-ups for text messages, which other soap operas do not do.

Bibliography:
OCR Media Studies for AS, Julian McDougall, 2008, Hodder Education