Why are some things blurred out in k-dramas?

Posted: Wed Feb 14, 2007 10:13 pm Post subject: Post Rating: 0

I got a bit bored so read through this topic, here's my 2cents (1p) worth:

Yep its about product placement - a scene in a coffee shop the actors will be stting at a table, drinking from logo branded cups and in the background will be the well known brand signage. Or the actors will have the latest technology - mobile/laptop. Or drive a brand new expensive car or ride a high spec motorbike. Also they wear the latest designer labels even if the character the actor is playing is meant to be really poor, need I go on.

About the blurring, its there for many reasons:

blurring of phone numbers, website address's and car reg. plates

I know what your thinking, but alot of stupid people actually ring up the the phone number sometimes the show will register the number and have a recorded message but sometimes the show doesn't they just use a random number which inturn is an actual real persons number that get hundreds of calls.

Same with a website address, the show will register that address so that once the show is broadcast people will log on to it sometimes they have competitions other just show informaton.

About car reg. plates being blurred its to do with cutting out crime, they use the reg plate numvber on their car, go over the speed limit camera reads the reg. plate yet someoneelse will have to pay the fine. Or sametimes the budget for the show is limited so they use the same car for different characters instead of changing the plate they just blur it out for one character.

blurring of knifes and guns (sometimes mute the sound too) - acts of violence etc, in some countries they edit whole scenes out, alot of the time it depends on real events at the time of broadcasting the show for example at the time of 9/11 or 7/7 and even on the aniversiary there were going to be some movies and shows containing terrorism the broadcasting channel replaces the shows with something else.

Editting of movies and dramas in different countries have different broadcasting guidelines for example alot of american shows that are broadcasted in the uk will have products blurred for example on american idol the drinks bottles look like red blobs we all know that its a wellknown fizzy drink. In the last series of sex in the city Carrie was drinking from a cup from a very wellknown fastfood place yet it looked like a white rectanglur blob.

Another thing I noticed slightly of topic sometimes when an actor is talking they beep out a word or put in an extra noise to disguise it, sometmes it comes in handy being able to lipread or the subtitles will have the actual words spoken but recently I have noticed that they will blur out the mouth. Usually they will beep out in the uk if before watershed 9pm (not suitable language etc)

Sorry everyone this was only meant to be a short note.

Posted: Sat Feb 17, 2007 1:19 pm Post subject: Post Rating: 0

My problem with the blurring is the same as kobe23's. It is so inconsitant that it makes the show look really cheap and "it gives you the impression its been edited by some teenager living in his parents basement".

I was just re-watching My Girl and the episode I watched last night had the lead actor driving up in what is obviuosly a land rover, but the name is blurred out. As he nears the camera the blur ends up on the hood instead of over the name. So the blur was done when the car is in the distance, and the name would have been hard to read because it would be so small. Then with the nameplate up close and personal, the burring is so half-assed that it doesn't even touch the name. All the bur effectivly did was draw attention to the make of the car.

If I were a car company I would pay the dramas to do the bad blurring, becasue it draws attention to something you probalby wouldn't have noticed in the frst place.

If there was no blurring I would have simply thought "oh... they're gonna see eachother, I bet there will be another misunderstanding"... with the lame blurring "hey look; a land rover!"