application/pdf
2036-461X
16311
19
en
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Cinéma & Cie. Film and Media Studies Journal
Introduction
Text.Serial.Journal
https://riviste.unimi.it/index.php/cinemaetcie
12
Introduction
2012-10-01
2021-09-09
2012-10-01
2024-02-14
Cinéma & Cie
Veronica Innocenti
2012/10/01
Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna
2036-461X
19
en
Introduction
https://riviste.unimi.it/index.php/cinemaetcie/article/download/16311/14497
12
INTRODUCTION
Veronica Innocenti, Università di Bologna




  In the past few years television serial narratives have gone through some relentless changes in
their structure, as well as in the way they are perceived and “used” or “re-used” by the audiences.
This new wave of serial production has been quite well analyzed by scholars from different coun-

serial productions, from the narrative construction to the audience reception. Nevertheless, the
main focus of these studies seems to always be on US productions. This issue of Cinéma & Cie
aims to draw more attention to European TV series.1
  Several factors deserve the focus of this issue dedicated to serialized audiovisual content pro-
duced in Europe. First, TV serial narratives have become one of the most successful among

these cultural products appeal to a wide range of consumers, are a common factor across European


audiovisual serialized formats suitable for investigating potential transformations/trends and the
construction of the cultural imagery of media convergence in Europe. The digital production,
distribution and consumption of contemporary TV series allow a continuous reshaping of content.

to engage in direct interchange with user communities and thus to better suit European communi-

                                                                                                     -


Italian situation, where the serial production starts simultaneously to that of the public TV system.2
                                                    sceneggiati, mainly based on novels and literary

characterized by the limited number of episodes lasting 90 minutes each and by a multistrand nar-

existing familiarity of the audience with the plots: biopic, products inspired by true stories and
literary adaptations.3
the discontinuity toward other serial formats.
   The golden age of the Italian “sceneggiato” lasted until the beginning of the 1980s, when the

CINÉMA & CIE, vol. XII, no. 19, Fall 2012                                                           9
VERONICA INNOCENTI
                                                                                                     4




serial products, mainly coming from the US, that had just invaded the programming, especially on
commercial broadcast TV.5 Nowadays, the production of TV serial dramas is indicated in Italy as
                                                                                               -

                           Un posto al sole (1996-) and Centovetrine (2001-). Moreover, we have
                                                                                                  -
ty (such as Distretto di polizia, 2000-2012; La squadra, 2000-2007; RIS – Delitti imperfetti, 2001-
2009; Tutti pazzi per amore, 2008-), as it often happens with American TV serial productions.

of American, European and Extra-European serial formats. It is not by chance that many Italian
productions are in fact adaptations of original foreign formats, as it happens for instance with Un
medico in famiglia (1998-) and I Cesaroni (2006-), based respectively on the Spanish formats Un
Médico de familia (1995-1999) and Los Serrano (2003-2008); with Love Bugs (2004-2007), Ital-
ian adaptation of the Canadian format                    (1997-2003) and of its eponymous French
version (1999-2003); but also with La squadra, based on the British The Bill (1984-2010) as well
as with Un posto al sole, adapting to Naples the Australian format Neighbours (1985-). The most
recent case is In treatment (2013-), inspired by the American production (2008-2010), which in
turn based on the Israeli show BeTipul (2005-2008).
                                                                                                     -
                                                                           6
                                                                             It is evident that serial

space boundaries and spreading on several channels through complex production and promo-
tional mechanisms able to generate strong involvement and participation of the viewers. When
compared to the more traditional TV programming and shows, contemporary serial production is
                                                                                           -
ity and permanent extendibility on other media.7




construction and development of the narrative universe, fragmenting and diversifying the viewer
experience in different formats and on different channels.8
  As far as the formats are concerned, we are seeing the birth of new serial narrative models, orig-
inated by a matrix product designed for TV fruition. In fact, it is now very common to produce a

For instance, the viral promotional videos teasing the viewers curiosity that circulate through the
videosharing platforms or the mobisodes and webisodes, designed to condense and summarize
contents already offered on TV or to explore narrative patterns not already discovered by the TV
              9
                In Italy, the traditional low serialized narrative formats representing the majority
of the production of the broadcasters haven’t allowed yet the full development and exploitation
of these mechanisms. Nevertheless, some efforts have been done both by broadcasters and pay

of the viewers for the series Tutti pazzi per amore


10
                                                                                      INTRODUCTION


trailers. Although very interesting and new, this formula has not been used in the following years.
The reasons behind this choice must be found, among others, in the average target audience of this
                                                                          Volare, it is evident that,
although it had a good success on the commercial 25-54 year-old target (3.739.000 viewers), the
core audience is composed by an older group of people, mainly over 65 (4.363.000 viewers) and
the group 55-64 (2.219.000).10
   This attitude toward the use of new media and digital technologies to support TV serial narra-

broadcaster Mediaset. Nevertheless, as far as this broadcaster is concerned, it is possible to ob-
serve a certain interest toward the production of merchandising, able to extend the experience of
vision and fruition on other channels. An example might be that of I Cesaroni, series from which

facing a transmedia storytelling project yet. Apparently, among Italian broadcasters the only one

Quo vadis, baby? had started this trend with a product which, originally a novel, had been adapted


                                                                    Romanzo Criminale – La
serie (2008-2010, born from the same path: novel-movie-TV series) through viral videos posted

still short in number, nevertheless the broadcaster seems to be interested in carrying on this trend
through some ongoing projects, such as Gomorra and Diabolik
                                                                Diabolik, announced for 2014, but
already present on the Web through a short trailer).
                                                                                                   -
tional broadcasters is still very limited. The main reason behind this trend is the average age


highly familiarized with web and digital media. Other reasons might reside in the contraction of


income, since nowadays they are limited to the DVD release, without very inadequate exploitation
of the web and mobile platforms.

programming.11

this reason, despite the high production costs, the relevant transformations undergone in the media


formats and new audiences, also beyond the national borders, and together with the exploitation



                                                                                                  11
VERONICA INNOCENTI

production, using the narrative elements on different platforms and addressing them to different
audiences. From the same concept many products and projects can sprout, exploiting all their
potential.
  As such, we believe it is very fruitful to focus this issue of the journal on European TV series,

frame of transnational production and circulation. One of the main reasons that prompted us was
to see how research and studies on European TV dramas and TV series production circulate out-
side the context of national studies. As a matter of fact, a big part of these researches does not go
beyond the national boundaries for several reasons, such as the linguistic problem and because


European TV dramas within the EU, as well as outside of the EU. Moreover, we found particularly
interesting the investigation of the domestic and American characteristics of EU TV dramas (in
terms of formats, genres...) together with the peculiarities of the European modes of production.




respectively on the French production Nicholas Le Floch (2008-) and on Danish Forbrydelsen

a product deeply rooted in French history and culture and strongly connoted by its “frenchness”.
In the second case, the main focus is on the combination of the genre elements (noir and mainly


strongly tied to the traditional genre called giallo.
   Another issue that has been addressed by the contributors is the relationship between European
and American quality TV. This is the main focus of the article by Stéfany Boisvert, who applied
the concept of quality television to British production, underlining the evolution of the concept of
quality and raising questions about the future of TV production in the UK. Lucia Tralli’s article
is also concerned with British quality TV, focusing on the online activity of Downton Abbey’s
fans. Not surprisingly, TV serial narratives are among the TV formats that are considered more
engaging by the audiences who are involved in a rich and intense participatory activity, commonly
labeled as             , that is composed by several different practices. Mapping a wide range of

traits of Downton Abbey that seem to be more appreciated by the fans and to which they dedicate
more time and attention.
   Finally, the last three contributions are dedicated to the analysis of national production, with the




production environment.


12
                                                                                                INTRODUCTION

in mind the relationship with American production, that invaded the scheduling of Polish broad-
casters after 1989, and which today represents the primary model for local production both from


prosperous production activity ever since. This activity also found another incentive in the 2000s




from theatre or literature, which in recent years seems to favor the foreign (from US, Latin Amer-
ica and Europe) series formats replica.
  Of course many topics and questions remain open, but we hope that the issue you are about to
read may provide interesting and stimulating starting points for research and study into European
TV series.


This introduction, written by Veronica Innocenti, has been conceived and discussed by both co-curators.

1 In order to deepen the analysis we list here some useful, but of course not complete, bibliographical ref-

    Popular Television in Eastern Europe During and Since Socialism, Routledge, London 2012; Andreas
                                      Transnational Television History. A Comparative Approach, Rout-
                                            Global Television: Coproducing Culture, Temple University
                                                                     A European Television History, Wi-

    The Media in Europe. The Euromedia Handbook
                                                                         Les Temps des Médias, no. 2,
                                                                                                       -
    ropean Broadcasting Channels Revisited,” in European Journal of Communication, vol. 16, no. 1, 2001,
    pp. 51-76; Milly Buonanno (ed.),                                                                   ,
    RAI-ERI, Roma 1998; Milly Buonanno (ed.), Imaginary Dreamscapes. Television Fiction in Europe.

                                                               European Journal of Communication, vol.
                                                                                                 , La Docu-
    mentation française-INA, Paris 1993; Preben Sepstrup, Transnationalisation of Television in Western Eu-
    rope                                           , East of Dallas. The European Challenge to American
    TV, British Film Institute, London 1988.

3   See Milly Buonanno,                                                    , Liguori, Napoli 1996, and Id., Le
    formule del racconto televisivo. La sovversione del tempo nelle narrative seriali, Sansoni, Milano 2002.
4   On the history of Italian television see: Franco Monteleone, Storia della radio e della televisione in
    Italia. Costume, società e politica                                                 Storia della televisione
    italiana                                                                     Breve storia della radio e del-
    la televisione italiana                                                            Che cos’è la televisione.
    Il piccolo schermo fra cultura e società. I generi, l’industria, il pubblico
             La TV italiana dalle origini
                                                                 L’immagine al plurale. Serialità e ripetizio-
    ne nel cinema e nella televisione, Marsilio, Venezia 1984, and Id. (a cura di), Un’altra volta ancora.
                                                                                     , ERI/Edizioni Rai, Torino

                                                                                                             13
VERONICA INNOCENTI

                                                                               Le nuove forme della serialità
     televisiva. Storia, linguaggio e temi, Archetipolibri, Bologna 2008; Daniela Cardini, La lunga serialità
     televisiva. Origini e modelli, Carocci, Roma 2004.
                                                               Convergence Culture. Where Old and New Me-
     dia Collide                                                                            Media and Identity
     in Contemporary Europe: Consequences of Global Convergence, Intellect, Bristol-Portland (OR) 2002;
                                               Televisione convergente. La tv oltre il piccolo schermo, LINK-
     RTI, Milano 2010; Massimo Scaglioni, Anna Sfardini (eds.), MultiTv. L’esperienza televisiva nell’età
     della convergenza, Carocci, Roma 2008.
7    See Lev Manovich, Software Culture, Olivares, Milano 2010.

   Series,” in Journal of Information Architecture
9  Veronica Innocenti, “This is Snack Culture And Boy, is it Tasty (not to Mention Addictive). La migrazione
   delle forme seriali dalla televisione al Web,” in Close Up, no. 22, 2007, pp. 39-47.
10 Source of these data is Auditel, the Italian society that collects and publishes Italian television ratings.
11 Here are some data on the productions that in 2013 gained more than 20% share. On 18 and 19 February
   2013 the two-episode drama Volare – La grande storia di Domenico Modugno (Rai1) attracted more
   than 11 million viewers. Very good performance also for Un medico in famiglia (Rai1) that attracted
                                                                                                   Ultimo. L’oc-
   chio del falco (Canale 5) was seen by 7.048.000 viewers (24,56%). Sources of these data is Auditel,
   ASCA.




14
