The Killing - Chatacters

The Killing - Characters

Major Characters

Other Important Characters

The Killing: Industry

The Killing: Industry

The Killing was created by Soren Sveistrup.

The Killing was produced by DR (Danish Broadcasting Company). DR is a government-owned television and radio public broadcasting company.

Like the BBC, DR is funded by a license fee that must be payed by all danish households.

Industry and Production

Huge difference between the money available for TV shows in Denmark from DR in comparison to Netflix.

'The Killing' episode reflects the economic context of a small publicly owned  national broadcaster that can only finance one long form drama every season.

The drama is required to be both popular and reflect the nation as a whole.

DR may face more restrictions in terms of representation due to it being a PSB in comparison to Netflix, etc.

The Killing

• Smaller budget 
• Original
• Thought-provoking
• Socially conscious
• Real life social issues
• emphasis on the drama developing slowly 

The Killing: Settings and Themes

The Killing: Settings and Themes

Locations and what they are filmed like/ look like.

Forest: dark, camera shots constantly changing at a fast rate.

Sarah Lund's Home: small, empty, compact and claustrophobic.

Police Office: bright lightening, open area.

Birk Larsen's House: open, light and warm before they discover their daughter is missing, dark and cold after they discover their daughter is missing.

Mayor Place: constantly busy, chaotic and rushed.

Debate Room: dark, shadowy, ominous - makers the mayor seem threatening. 

School: chaotic and rushed.

Issues and how they are explored.

Emigration/Moving: The Lund family moving away to Sweden.

Family and Relationships: parent bond to child, Sarah Lund and her son, the Birk Larsen's and their daughter and sons, etc.

Politics: elections and corruption.

Missing Child: Nanna Birk Larsen - How parents and schools reacts.

The Killing - Representations

The Killing - Representations

Dominant Ideology

The dominant belief system is the dominant ideology.

Dominant ideologies presented in 'The Killing'

• Politician romantically involved with his female secretary.
• College students represented as rebellious. 

Dominant ideologies challenged in 'The Killing'

• Main character is female and a high standing police officer.

Masquerade and Male Gaze in 'The Killing'

• Opening scene: Female victim wearing very little clothing. - This is used for the plot, shows the crime and brings pity for the victim.
• Sarah Lund in a mans pajama top but still reveals a lot of her body. - Male Gaze, unneeded and nothing to do with the plot.
• Sarah Lund walks through the rain not caring about her appearance. - Non dominant ideology
• Male dominated police work force. - Dominant ideology

The Killing and Genre

The Killing and Genre

'The Killing' is part of the Nordic-Noir Genre. This genre includes:

• A setting within Scandinavia 
• Characters such as: police, detectives, journalists, bystanders and criminals.
• The story-lines involve institutions against criminals.
• The weather is cold and blue winter weather.
• Characters will speak different languages such as Swedish, Danish and Norwegian. 
• The lighting is either dark and shadowy or has a cold blue tint.
• Blue cold colour is used to show the cold and there is lots of black used for darkness.