127 Hours is a Docudrama directed by Danny Boyle, who also directed Trainspotting and Slumdog Millionaire, and stars James Franco from Spiderman, Freaks & Geeks, Pineapple Express amongst others. It centres around rock climber Aron Ralston who's arm becomes trapped by a boulder in Utah for almost 5 days, resulting in him having to amputate his own arm to set himself free. Aron Ralston himself said of the film, "it's as close to a documentary as you can get, whilst still being a drama". This is unique for a docudrama, specifically due to the style in which its presented. Whilst there seems to be much used for dramatic effect, the director Danny Boyle had been careful to keep the linear events as accurate as possible.

The film has a number of unique traits through its presentation and production. Much of the plot, according to the real Ralston, is extremely accurate, despite a few dramatic changes to the opening scenes. The film itself is almost entirely carried by Franco, who portrays Ralston's journey in surviving and attempting to escape the situation. There are many fantasy sequences, which often highlight Ralston's growing unhealthy state as he begins to hallucinate. In some scenes, diagetic sounds within the situation are heightened to add realism and intensity to the scene. In particular, a climactic scene where Ralston must self-amputate his own arm increases and highlights the sound of him slicing into flesh and through nerves to give a sense of unease.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Vo3INoJZLA - Arm Amputation Scene.

The soundtrack for the film isn't in relation to the film's time period, but reflects the personal selection of the character of Aron Ralston. It's possible that Ralston himself had a say in the music selection to add authenticity to the film. These include the likes of Bill Withers and Dido. A score was also produced amongst this for scenes which required fitting music for accompaniment.

One particular scene sees Ralston recording a video message that he prepares should he die and and his body be discovered. This scene is based on real video footage made by Ralston whilst he was trapped by the boulder in 2003. Though the film footage is not available on YouTube, the real footage is and is here. The movie captures this video from the same viewpoint of the camcorder with Franco's words being identical to Ralston's:

The movie uses several different viewpoints, cutaways, and establishing shots. In many scenes, the temperature and its affect on Ralston is made clear through the diagetic sound and camera work, his delirious state being echoed by the shots. The movie is entirely unique of the docudrama genre, and attempts to capture the 127 hours that Ralston was trapped in as much accurate detail as possible.

Freaks & Geeks was a television series set in 1980-1981 Michegan, America. It centres around a group of teenagers during their high school year. After 18 episodes, the network that showed the series NBC decided to cancel it, leaving it to become a cult phenomenon. The show's name comes from the opposing groups the series focusses on. As a period television show, there is great attention to detail in the characters, clothing, setting, soundtrack and cultural references. Though not like many "costume dramas", a sub-genre that period drama is generally related to - the show is technically a period drama as its set in a certain era.

Much of the show is character driven over plot, following the lives of the students. The soundtrack accompanies the time in which the series takes place, often using popular songs from that particular time period, like singles that may have been in the charts, such as Van Halen, The Who, Billy Joel and others. The show's premise circulates around the different social groups in a 1980s high school, with the main character Lindsay Weir being influenced into a group known on the show as "Freaks", who aren't academically motivated or accepting of the rules.

Much of the show has fairly standard use of camera work for a single camera drama, but some of the scenes, specifically the Dodgeball scene located below is shot in such a way as to perceive the danger and violence of the game to the "Geeks" who are being attacked by the opposing team of jockish figures. The camera work is swift and shaky, almost echoing the fear of the characters being attacked. There's use of slow motion almost making it like a parody of battle scenes or shootouts in action and war movies. This may be from the point of view of the Geeks who are more used to staying at home watching movies:

Another notable use of camera and sound is in the opening sequence of the show. A prolonged intro sequence which introduces each character through the school norm of a student photograph. This manages to not only establish their setting, but also the characters, through the ways they react, respond and present themselves through this. Along with that is a popular song of the time "Bad Reputation" by Joan Jett and The Blackhearts.

Overall, the series is unique in a number of ways but keeps to some of the norms of a television series, and specifically a period drama. Influences seem to come from 80s movies, such as John Hughes films.

Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) is a long-running American crime drama TV series that has had many spin-offs. CSI: New York and CSI: Miami. The show usually consists of 45 minute episodes, with occasional exceptions.The style of the show is unique to the specific genre. There is a heavy use of fast cuts, especially in flashbacks. The show is noted for its distinguishable style thats clear in the opening sequence of the programme:

The show uses a blend of codes and conventions for crime drama, as well as a modernised feel. The level of gratuitous violence is more coarse than many other crime dramas, especially on a main television network in the USA. The score and soundtrack to the show has more range than a usual crime drama. Where many stick to a specific score to avoid copyright difficulties, CSI openly uses songs by a variety of artists, and has been known to feature some musicians on-screen to perform their songs for a sequence. CSI uses this to attract a more mainstream audience, with younger people possibly being targeted as well as the usual adult audience for the timeslot and genre. 

The Who have contributed to the opening theme tune of all three CSI series', 'Who Are You' being the original CSI: Crime Scene Investigation theme; 'Baba O Riley' being the CSI: New York theme; and 'Won't Get Fooled Again' being the CSI: Miami theme. Besides the heavy use of culturally relevant mainstream music, and the intense fast cut sequences for flashbacks and reconstructions - the show's camera work is fairly typical of the crime drama genre. Many of the shots are close-ups to register reactions of those involved, there is uses of panning, tracking and single shot movement in more pacy scenes. The camera work adheres to the mood of the scene, with more dramatic, conversational and emotional based moments having little camera movement and often focussing on one specific person in any one shot. The faster moments, including the pre-credit crime sequences, or the multiple cast sequences in the CSI headquarters can have heavy use of what makes the show more unique than many others within this genre, with much of it feeling rather futuristic in some places. The show is also known for its unique panning shots of the cities it features in, with jump cuts occasionally being used to emphasise the notable fast pace of the show. 

Much like the camera work, the lighting often echoes mood. It also can depend on the setting. In CSI: Miami, there is a notable amount of bright colour to represent the exotic weather. CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, set in Las Vegas, often is set at night due to the famous bright lights of the Vegas strip, and its casino-based night-life. CSI: New York is often a mix between the two. Due to the genre, the mood can darken, and the cinematography can reflect that. 

As a crime drama, CSI often attempts to subvert some of the conventions of the genre, whilst still retaining some of the almost unavoidable key techniques. It's modernised style and emphasis on fast paced editing make it a bigger target for a younger audience than a typically adult (middle-aged to even elderly) aimed crime drama.

'Green Wing' is a British sitcom set in a fictional hospital, featuring an ensemble cast. There is so much abnormal and unique about the structure of this sitcom as opposed to many typical to this genre. Firstly, each episode is an hour long, with a special finale 90 minutes long. The sitcom has a heavy use of effects in post-production, including speeding up and slowing down. The show, although longer than typical sitcoms, has somewhat of a fast-paced feel to it.

The scenes generally don't feature cuts, and if so, they're used very subtly. On the DVD commentaries, the editors often use natural sources to establish cuts in the scene. For example, in scenes in the canteen or outside, an effect showing people passing in front of the screen, like extras, will make a cut, in such a way that the audience cannot tell. This style leaves heavy room for improvisation, with scenes like Sue White's office being set-up on one camera in one continuous take. The speeding up used in post-production is a way of skipping through the tedious parts of the scenes to get more of the action.

The structure of the show is mostly very loose. Though it's strictly a sitcom, with all the characters having storylines and the same setting for the shows entirety - the large writing staff often allows it to stray from any anchored down story arcs, and almost function like a sketch show with a consistent narrative. Scenes are separated between cast members and their roles within the hospital, and despite some exceptions, can often be viewed individually without any need for continuity. The scene above demonstrates this.

The soundtrack for the show is often played in the background of scenes that are heavily emphasised with physical comedy. The beginning sequences of the episodes, typically involving members of the cast arriving in their own ways at the hospital, has continuous use of the shows soundtrack. The soundtrack itself is produced by Trellis, and is exclusive to the show. Covers of some songs such as Stayin' Alive and Sparks have been featured.

Overall the show is very unique for it's style. The American style of their team of writers allows them to have a looser narrative, with the majority of scenes being completely unrelated to any long-running themes. This style was later applied to the short-lived sitcom from the same team, Campus. Both were an hour long each, both used single camera, and both employed unique production and narrative styles for their genre.