Mise-En-Scene In Serial Drama Edutainment: A Case Of Setting In Siri, A Locally Produced Entertainment Education Serial Drama Lnkenya

ABSTRACT

With the growth of entertainment education (E-E) serial dramas worldwide and the extensive evaluation research on their impacts on the audience, techniques employed during their production have received a short shrift in E-E research. One of the most noticeable techniques in a serial drama production is the mise-en-scene technique and this study examines the role of setting an element of mise-en-scene in a serial drama edutainment. In this study, it is argued that in the hands of skilled E-E producers, setting and objects placed on the set (Props) becomes a concrete vehicle for impacting on an E-E serial drama edutainment. By viewing setting both as an entity and a symbol as well, SIRI a locally produced serial drama in Kenya was studied with the objectives to; 1. Identify the functions of setting on the plot 2. Examine the relationship between setting and characterization and 3. Examine the contribution of setting in the realization of emerging themes. Systematic data gathering consisted of watching the drama to identify how the directors employed setting to effect on the plot, characterization and emerging themes. Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) which revolves around the process of learning directly related to the observation of models formed the theoretical basis for the study. Data obtained was examined and analyzed in line with the study objectives. The study found that setting is part of the material fabric of a serial drama edutainment. Enlivened by the actors presence, charged by the dialogue and quickened in the audience imagination setting and objects placed on the set take on a life of their own as they weave in and out of a dramas action impacting on an E-E serial dramas edutainment. The study also resulted in useful findings for film critics, producers and health communicators.