TV Drama - Coming Down The Mountain

The Rule Of Third camera technique comes into play in this clip from Coming Down The Mountain. The character Ben, who is disabled, is shown in the bottom, side frame of the screen during his able bodied brother David's conversation with his friend. The positioning of Ben in the frame highlights how Ben is isolated from normal teenage conversation and how he doesn't fit in with the other children at school or even his own brother. It makes the audience have a sympathetic view of disability and Ben.
Another camera technique used is the angle of the camera at the start. The opening shot is a bird's eye shot of the two boys shared bedroom. This shot shows the difference of the two characters. Ben's side is bright and chaotic whilst David's side is dull and organised. This could suggest that the life of  Ben is much more fun than the life of David. This makes the audience feel envious of Ben's childish innocence. It makes them reminisce about their childhood and allows them to see Ben's disability in a positive light.
The bird's eye camera shot links in with the setting and props of the boys' bedroom. The decoration and the obvious divide of the decorations highlights the difference between the boys. Ben's side of the room is chaotic, bright and childish.This shows disabled people as childish and chaotic. The fact that Ben's side of the room is messy creates a feeling of exasperation for the audience because they (especially parents) can relate to the tidying up after the chaos. This shows disability in a negative light unlike the last point.
The last point is reinforced by the bus stop scenes and the props used there. At the bus stop, Ben always has to have something to do. It shows he has a short attention span, like a child, and needs to be distracted. The method he is distracted by is child toys. For example he plays with a slinky or a stress ball. This highlights and reinforces the audience's ideas that disabled people are childish, once again representing disability in a negative tone.
At the beginning of the scene there is a short sequence of black and white clips showing evolution. The sequence shows clips of odd/ugly creatures, dinosaurs and cave men. It highlights how the world has evolved since then but the first person the audience sees after this clip is Ben. The audience then make a link between the unevolved creatures from the past, creating the image that Ben is some kind of prehistoric creature that hasn't evolved. This creates the idea that disabled people are not as evolved as able bodied and outcast's them from today's society.
Later on in the footage the pace quickens during the school scene. The quickening of the pace shows the confusion of disability. It highlights that for Ben everyday situations can be confusing and chaotic. It shows that the mind of disabled people can't take in and register what would be normal situations.
During the entire opening scene, there is a constant voice over of David. The dialogue continuoulsy refers about looking after and wanting to murder Ben. The first line said in the clip is "Last summer I decided to murder my brother", this just shows how Ben is a burden on David's life and that he is unwanted in society and David's life. In part of the clip, David has to assist Ben to the toilet.  This creates emphasis on the fact that Ben can't be independent and will need assistance throughout his life. This again makes the viewer's view Ben as a burden on his family's life and society.
Throughout the clip, Ben does not have many lines. If he does have a line it is a short simple sentence.  Overall in the clip, Ben talks the least whereas the able bodied people talk a lot more, The lines of the able bodied people are longer as well, for example David has an entire voiceover that lasts the whole footage. It conveys to the audience that Ben does not really have a voice, not just at home but in society. By not being able to talk in both school and at home it shows how people do not really value his opinion. Also by Ben only saying short, simple sentences it creates the impression that Ben is not of high intelligence. This fits in with the stereotypical disabled people are less intelligent than non disabled people.
The main positive aspect of the entire clip is the actor who plays Ben. The actor who plays Ben actually has down syndrome. This is really empowering to disabled people because it shows that they still have the same opportunities as able bodied people. It shows that they can do the same jobs and fill the same roles as anybody else. They have the same rights as anybody else does and this programme highlights that.