Hey there! This is TOP episode 119. FILM AND SERIES. Vocabulary Booster
My name’s Ola and I am an online English teacher, I teach through one to one classes and I want you to know I believe you can eliminate your language blockade. It is 100% guaranteed. I’m not saying it’ll be given to you on a silver patter yet I know you can get there. I’ve overcome a massive blockade myself and I know how to do it. The secret word here is consistency. That is why I record this podcast’s episodes, and each comes with a little worksheet, a one-pager to help you digest and test what you’ve practised here. You can speak English with more confidence, slay that fear and enjoy new freedoms. Each episode helps you practice speaking, the practical part is always there, at the end of each episode. You’ll boost your vocabulary, brush up your grammar, and improve your pronunciation. Go to my website for full transcripts and worksheets to each episode. <They’re free> Happy learning!
Thank you for joining me today! I really appreciate the fact you’re here and I don’t take it for granted. Today we are going to look at the most common types of tv series and we’ll learn some vocabulary connected with film and tv series. You’ll learn about words like a character, a plot, a plot twist, a scene, a red-herring and more. Stay with me till the end, when you’ll hear ten sentences to repeat out loud. That is your practice for today.
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Don’t forget to download a worksheet. It’s waiting for you at teacherola.com/119. If you have little time and prefer to go all-in buy a worksheet set. I’ve prepared a set of the first 30 worksheets. Worksheets that are compatible with episodes 0 to 30. The Worksheet Set (1) includes a Speaking English Planner, a great tool for monitoring your progress in speaking.
One last thing before we begin. If you are interested in Speaking English Course With TV series download a checklist that will tell you if this method is for you. Is learning to speak English with TV series right for you? You’ll find the link in the show notes at teacherola.com/119 and below in the description of this episode. Let’s begin!
First of all let us have a look at the list provided by Netflix, the list of all series genres. What’s a genre anyway? Genre is a particular type or style of literature, art, film or music that you can recognize because of its special features. Genres offered us by Netflix include:
action, American, anime, Asian, British, for kids, for teenagers, drama, Halloween, horror, comedy, criminal, science and nature, Polish, reality tv and talk show, romantic, science fiction and fantasy, documentaries, historic, thrillers. Let’s have a closer look at some of them.
Anime series. I’d like to draw your attention to pronunciation. Anime series. Anime. These are Japanese animations, typically aimed at adults as well as children. ‘Pokemon’ is a very well known example.
Drama series. Drama is a category of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. There are many sub-genres inside ‘drama’ such as soap opera (operatic drama), police crime drama, political drama, psychological, legal drama, historical drama, domestic drama, teen drama, and comedy-drama also referred to as dramedy, period drama and many many many more! Period drama, if you’re interested, is set in a particular historical period and characterized by the use of costumes, sets, and props that are typical of the era. ‘The Bridgertons’, for instance.
Reality shows. These are programmes that document supposedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unknown people rather than professional actors. In this genre, you’ll find cookery shows, travel shows, DIY programmes and many more.
Thrillers. There might be a little problem with pronunciation, so make sure you say it out loud: thrillers, thrillers. The word derives from a noun a thrill – a strong feeling of excitement or pleasure; an experience that gives you this feeling. Thrilling experience. Thriller is a genre of fiction, having numerous, often overlapping subgenres.
Thrillers are characterized and defined by the moods they elicit, giving viewers feelings of suspense, excitement, surprise, anticipation and anxiety.
Let’s have a look and some useful words. Words that’ll help you talk about your favourite series or films.
Series, tv-series, Netflix series, HBO series, or simply serials are episodes that all together constitute a season. Ok? So the series is made of episodes which are grouped into seasons. An episode in an individual video, material. One more time. A season consists of a set of episodes that are coupled in order from the first episode to the last episode. When a new season of a tv series is airing at a given time, then you would usually have to wait until next year for the next season to come out so that you can watch newer episodes. Seasons are meant to be watched in order from the first season to the last season of a tv series when the show ends.
Character. A character is a person or an animal in a book, play or film. There’s usually the main character. Some characters can be round or flat. There are static characters and dynamic ones. There’s also a stock character. Stock characters. Stock characters are ones who represent specific stereotypes. These characters are types and not individuals. Stock characters are based on clichés and social prejudices. For example, the dumb blonde, the mean stepmother, the loyal servant, the abusive boyfriend, or the evil dictator or CEO are all stock characters.
Plot. Plot is the cause‐and‐effect sequence of main events in a story. The sequence of events that make up a story.
A plot twist. Plot twist is a change that subverts expectations. Plot twists don’t follow the linear path that may have been suggested at the start of the story. When properly executed, these misdirections genuinely surprise the audience and thereby enhance their engagement. We are all subconsciously waiting for good plot twists in tv series, films and books.
Setting is the time and place of the action. Social conditions, historical time, geographical locations, weather, immediate surroundings, and timing are all different aspects of setting. But there are three major components to setting: social environment, place, and time. This series is set in Medieval France.
Line. A line is the words spoken by an actor in a play or film. Every actor has to learn his or her lines before the shooting. If an actor or an actress keeps forgetting the lines, it’s a serious problem. On the other hand, actors always want more lines. Do you know that show: ‘Whose Line Is It Anyway?’. Let me know if you’ve watched that.
Subtitles. Subtitles are words that translate what is said in a film into a different language and appear on the screen at the bottom. There’s a huge discussion whether to watch films with or without them. Watch them with Polish or English subtitles. How to learn English with tv series, tv shows, or films. Well, my answer is very simple. It depends. It depends on your goal. A talked about this explicitly in episode 9.
Go and listen to it and find out how to take advantage of the language you feed yourself with watching the series. It’s very practical, it gives you actionable steps and yeah! Teacherola.com/9.
Scene. I picked this word for its pronunciation. Scene. Scene. Scene is part of a film, play or book in which the action happens in one place or is of one particular type. There are sex scenes, fight scenes, action scenes, battle scenes. But we can differentiate more detailed kinds of scenes. For instance: Stranger Knocks on the Door, Friends Having Coffee, Conversation Over Drinks, The Drunk Scene, The Drive and Talk, The Walk and Talk, Meal Scenes and there are various types of meal scenes, Lone Drinker and a Bartender, Packing for the Journey
Did you know that a scene averages approx. 1500 words and moves the story forward by shifting the value. A scene must move from one value state to another. If there is no change, no value at stake, no movement, then the scene doesn’t work.
Red-herring. Herring is a N Atlantic fish that swims in very large groups and is used for food. In film and books, and plays it’s something else.
It’s an unimportant fact, idea or event that takes people’s attention away from the important ones. A red herring is something that is used to divert attention from the truth. It’s supposed to distract and mislead audiences so that there’s a surprising twist that audiences didn’t see coming. It leads readers or audiences toward a false conclusion. Let me give you an example. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban revolves around Sirius Black, the first wizard in known history to escape the prison of Azkaban. He is presented as a murderer focused on hunting down the one responsible for his imprisonment. From the get-go, we believe that Black is the villain of the story. That leads me to the last word today.
Villain. I remember during one class, not long ago my student told me she had thought that the word ‘villain’ we had learned a week before would never come in handy. it would never be of any use to her. To her astonishment, she saw that very word ‘villain’ the following week. And she had admitted she’d had great satisfaction from the fact she had known the word! So! The conclusion is, sometimes the words we learn seem obscure, not that useful, right? Trust the teacher. Cool. Villain! Villain is the main bad character in the story. That’s it.
There are many types of villains in cinema, let me name a few: The Bully, The Mastermind, The Dark Lord, The Outsider, The Fanatic and many many more.
Time to practice! Please listen carefully, retain that sentence in your brain for a while and release repeating it out loud. Let’s get to it:
What’s your go-to genre when it comes to series?
Genre is a particular type or style of literature, art, film or music that you can recognize because of its special features.
These are programmes that document supposedly unscripted real-life situations.
A season consists of a set of episodes that are coupled in order from the first episode to the last episode.
The sequence of events that make up a story.
We are all subconsciously waiting for good plot twists in tv series, films and books.
Every actor has to learn his or her lines before the shooting.
Subtitles are words that translate what is said in a film into a different language and appear on the screen at the bottom.
Did you know that a scene averages approx. 1500 words?
A red herring is something that is used to divert attention from the truth.
There are many types of villains in cinema
That’s all! Great job! Don’t forget to go to your inbox and grab the worksheet in order to test yourself. Complete the worksheet with translations.
If you’re not a member of TOPeople download the worksheet at teacherola.com/119 and become one. It’s free. I also have The Worksheet Set (1), a set of 30 first worksheets to buy. This way you won’t have to download each worksheet separately. So it’s gonna be much more convenient to work with this podcast. Also you’ll get The Speaking English Planner, a tool that will help you monitor your progress.
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Thank you so much for listening and I’ll see you next Wednesday! We’ll be talking about two confusing verbs. Make and do. Till then, take care! Happy learning. Stay fearless and say it out loud! Bye!