As Media Studies Handbook - Vle Version

CONTENTS Page no. Welcome to Media Studies

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Introduction to AS Media Studies

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Course Overview

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AS Level Assessment Objectives

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The Key Concepts - Student overview

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Unit 1 Foundation Portfolio (G321) - Preliminary exercises - Main tasks - Planning and Research - Evaluation - Examples of work - Top tips for filming and editing - 50 ways to improve your practical work - Print production – magazine front covers

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Unit 2 Key Media Concepts (G322) - Section A: Textual Analysis and Representation - Section B: Institutions and Audiences

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Useful Websites

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Welcome to Media Studies!

This handbook contains many useful resources that you will find essential reading at AS level: from information about key modules written by the current Year 13, guide sheets to the successful filming and editing to sample essays. You will be expected to bring this booklet to all Media Studies lessons. By reading through the book you will be able to familiarise yourself with the course in general, gain an insight into the kinds of things you will be studying and the new terminology you will need to learn. Each time you begin a new topic, have a read through the handbook so you know what to expect.

The Media Studies Department: Teachers in charge of Media Studies: Mrs A Hammond (ALH) Mr N Ford (NEF)

Mrs K Somel (KKS) Mr M Nicolle (MN) Mr M Smith (MPS) Miss R Frearson (RF) Miss K Elger (KLE) Tips for Success at AS level!! -

Use you diary to signpost and highlight: o exam dates o essay and coursework deadlines o production (filming, editing and written work) schedule o homework assignments o research programmes.

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Subscribe to/ read in Library MediaMagazine and Sight and Sound.

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Read a regular media section in a quality newspaper (Guardian, Times or Independent) for up-to-date material.

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Read a regular „ICT‟ OR „Technology‟ section like the Guardian’s supplement on Thursdays, to give you all the latest developments in new media technologies.

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Follow up references and sources given to you by your teachers.

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Check the Radio Times every week, not just for the standard programmes, but for useful media documentaries often screened on BBC3, BBC4 Channel 4, UKTV History etc.

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Look again at the „special features‟ box on your DVDs – there might be some useful footage there for your research.

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Use reliable sites on the internet.

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If you have a genuine interest in taking your study of media beyond Advanced Level you should think about work experience (local newspaper, local radio station etc), getting involved with local film or production groups, taking part in film or video competitions, contributing to school magazines – the list is endless.

We hope you have a successful year. Studying the media can be a varied, exciting and very satisfying way to spend the next two years.

The Media Studies Department

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Introduction to AS Media Studies Lesson Structure You will have four media studies lessons per week, and will be taught by two teachers who will each cover a topic area within the media course. The course is 50% practical, so you will gain experience in both filming/editing in order to create a film opening, and photography/Photoshop in order to create a magazine cover. Once you have practised both of these areas, you will decide what to produce for your final piece of coursework. Whilst you are producing your coursework, which can be the opening to a film or a magazine front cover and contents page, every lesson will be a practical lesson – your teachers will inform you in advance when these lessons will take place or you can check the VLE. This will be your opportunity to plan and create your piece with the help of your teachers. At lunchtimes, students working on their practical are free to use the e-Mac room or H2 in order to edit their coursework out of lesson time. All of the media teachers will be available in the English Office to answer any questions or queries you may have about your AS course outside of lesson time. Lessons which are not practical will be designed to prepare you for the exam and are theory based – remember that the exam will be 50% of your final grade. When your Media exams draw nearer, your teachers may choose to turn your lessons into revision lessons in order to help you prepare for the exams and get the best possible mark.

Attendance Full attendance is ESSENTIAL in order for you to do well in the course. If your attendance for Media Studies falls below 85% you may have to pay for your exam, or even worse be kicked off the course! Missing lessons means you miss out! If you miss a lesson or several consecutive lessons you will find it harder to catch up with your classmates and so you will have a disadvantage in the exam. It is essential that you attend all of your lessons in order for you to learn all you need to know to pass your exams. When your Media Studies exams are close it is advisable you pay extra attention to your lesson content because this is when your teachers advice will be most valuable! Missing practical lessons also means that you have less time to film and edit your coursework and could affect others if you‟re working in a group, which means you will be put under pressure to finish the piece in time for the deadline. Expectations Media studies requires many of the same skills as English. You will be expected to be able to write clearly and analyse media texts in detail, and unless you can present a detailed and well-written evaluation you are unlikely to achieve one of the higher grades for your coursework. It is important to be open minded when studying this subject – for example when studying for the exam you may be required to watch and analyse a text you would not necessarily choose to watch yourself. 4

Course Overview Unit One – Foundation Portfolio This is a coursework unit in which you will produce two paired media artefacts in response to briefs set by OCR. We currently offer briefs in Print and Video. You will have to complete a preliminary exercise followed by a main task, which is accompanied with evidence of research, planning and an evaluation. This could take the form of a Power-point presentation, blog or website, podcast or DVD with `extras‟. If you opt to do Print you must produce the front page, contents and double page spread of a new music magazine. If you opt to do Video then you must produce the titles and openi ng of a new fiction film, to last a maximum of two minutes. This unit is marked and internally standardised by your teachers and marks are submitted to the exam board (OCR), when a sample is then selected for external moderation. The unit is marked out of a total of 100 marks: 20 marks for the presentation of the planning and research; 60 marks for the construction; 20 marks for the evaluation. This coursework piece is worth 50% of the total AS grade and 25% of the full A Level. Unit Two – Key Media Concepts This is an exam unit in which there are two sections: Section A: Textual Analysis and Representation (50 marks) Section B: Institutions and Audiences (50 marks) Section A: Textual Analysis and Representation For this section of the exam, you will be shown an `unseen‟ moving image extract of a contemporary British TV drama four times. You will then answer one compulsory question dealing with textual analysis of various technical aspects of the languages and conventions of moving image media. E.g. camera angle, shot, movement and composition mise en scene editing sound You will then be asked to link this analysis with a discussion of some aspects of representation within the sequence. E.g. gender age ethnicity 5

sexuality class and status physical ability/disability regional identity

Section B: Institutions and Audiences In this section you will answer one compulsory question based upon a case study of a specific media industry, from a choice of six topic areas offered by OCR: film music newspapers radio magazines video games Your teacher will tell you which two areas you will be studying and you will write about one of them in the exam. You will learn the processes of production, distribution, marketing and exchange as they relate to contemporar y media institutions, as well as the nature of audience consumption and the relationships between audiences and institutions. This exam is worth 50% of the AS grade and 25% of the full A Level. Each section will be worth equal marks.

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AS Level Assessment Objectives

At AS Level Media Studies you will be assessed through your ability to meet the following assessment objectives: AO1 Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of media concepts, contexts and critical debates, using terminology appropriately and with accurate and coherent expression. AO2 Apply knowledge and understanding to show how meanings are created when analysing media products and evaluating your own practical work. AO3 Demonstrate the ability to plan and construct media products using appropriate technical and creative skills. AO4 Demonstrate the ability to undertake and apply appropriate research. Module 1 – Foundation Portfolio (c/w) A02 (10%) AO3 (30%) AO4 (10%) Module 2 – Key Media Concepts (exam) AO1 (30%) A02 (20%)

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Key Concepts Key Concepts are an important part of the OCR Media Studies course; they apply at AS and at A2. They are the first step on the way to understanding the mass media. At first they might seem like a set of rules b ut they are not intended to restrict your thinking but to show you how to start thinking about the media. Thinking in this way is a skill that needs practice. Eventually, the reading of texts using the key concepts will be natural to you. Representations Nothing you come across in the media is real even something that attempts to give you information about a real-like event. Everything in the mass media that you see, hear or read has been constructed. You, as the consumer of the media are getting a second had experience. Many media texts give the impression that what you see is realistic, true-to-life, authentic, natural but even the news, is re-presented to the consumer. You weren‟t there and you‟re being told about it by someone else. Despite the familiar, authoritative voice and appearance of the newsreader, despite the pictures broadcast from the scene of the event, the content style and format of the news package has been constructed and this process involves selection and editing. Decisions have been made as to what to put in and what to leave out, decisions affected by the time available, the availability of the news story itself and the choices made by the news producers about what they think is appropriate and interesting for their viewers. You are not seeing the real thing, it has been mediated by the very fact that it has been selected and shaped. When considering the concept of representation you are examining the processes and techniques that shape texts and students must ask questions: Is the representation fair and accurate? What is the purpose of the representation What might the audience make of the representation? Is stereotyping used? Why? You will need to look, in detail, at the language and form of the text and consider its genre in order to answer these questions. You must be able to support ideas by giving detailed references to the processes by which the representation has been constructed.

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Applying the concept Here is an example of a way of looking at looking at representation as part of the study of the topic TV Drama. You will be studying different types of drama, e.g. soap operas and teen dramas. Perhaps the focus is on the represe ntation of families and you might examine one half-hour programme looking particularly at issues of representation. A contemporary example would be EastEnders on BBC1 to a family audience. There is, as in most soap operas, a „problem‟ in most episodes but the characters, their relationship with each other, stay more or less the same throughout the soap and the setting is usually a domestic one: various rooms in the comfortable house in which they live. There is always conflict between the characters particularly between parents and children. You could look in detail at the representation of any of the following: how family life is represented how working-class, marriage is represented how working women/mothers are represented how men are represented how parenting is represented how teenagers are represented You will look closely at the codes to construct the characters: e.g. what does the clothing and hair style of the X signify? What message does it give the audience about the balance in her life? Note the elements of stereotyping present in the construction of teenagers and consider how these factors often form the basis of the narrative. Media Languages and Forms (including Narrative and Genre) This concept is about looking at the ways in which the language (words and sounds, the images and shapes) of any media text are „read‟ or interpreted by the people who read, view or listen to them. It is concerned with understanding the processes involved in the construction of media texts and how the techniques used in the construction affect the way the message is interpreted by the receiver. Semiology, the study of signs, is the starting point for the study of individual texts and making comparisons between them and students should scrutinize closely the signs in a text to help them work out what meaning they signify. You must be able to explain how the technical codes particular to a media form (like the size and font of the masthead on a newspaper front page, or the over-theshoulder shots and use of spooky music in a dramatic scene from a horror film) carry with them cultural meanings. You should denotate (describe accurately) the detail that makes up the language of a text and connotate (say what meaning the language may carry). One of the most interesting things about the media is that the meaning intended by the maker of the media product, the preferred meaning, doesn‟t always come across to the partaker of the media

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product, because the reader of the text is interpreting it in the light of previous thoughts, ideas and experiences and may have different cultural connotations. When considering the concept of media language and forms you must avoid merely describing what is there. You should look at all the elements in the text and explain how they carry cultural meaning. Applying the concept To practise analysing media language any text can be interrogated from any topic in any unit. You should be familiar with and use the terminology of the moving-image media and that of the print-based media. When studying the TV Drama topic you should make detailed readings of significant parts of specific texts and be able to explain: How the processes involved in constructing the messages shape the meanings and carry the story to audiences. o non-verbal structures (e.g. facial expression, position, gesture, clothing, props etc) o the significance of the mise-en-scene, the sound and visual techniques (e.g. camera positioning, editing, relationship between sound and images) Narrative Narrative is closely related to Media Language and is concerned with the form or Structure of the text itself, the way it tells the story, how it is shaped. You will have come across the word „narrator‟ meaning story teller and the narrative is the story that is told or written. In the context of the mass media the story is the media text and a whole team of people has been involved in creating and shaping it for the consumer. Narrative is a process of organising and structuring. It‟s easy to work out the narrative pattern of a fictional text such as film and there are theoretical models which can be used to look at the regular patterns found in film and television drama. A narrative is present in all media texts and you will need to be able to describe the ways in which narratives is constructed in individual texts, comment on any narrative patterns within each topic and account for similarities and differences. You should be able to talk about how the producers control the flow of information and how this affects the way the story is understood by the audience. In newspapers, for example, a large dramatic photograph or a dramatic headline is the first part of the story that the reader notices, and may, in fact, be the only part of the story read, the part on which the reader‟s opinion is formed.

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Applying the concept Look carefully at the texts within the topics and think about how the story is structured and how the audience is positioned (in a detective drama, have we seen the crime and the criminal or do we work out what happened at the same time as the detective does: are we led to identify with the victim, the criminal, the detective?). You should use the terminology of the moving-image or print-based media when exploring the following ideas about each text: How the narrative is organised and structured. o How the conflict is established and how it is resolved o The construction of the characters in the text and how we are led to relate to them o How heroes and villains are created within the text o The importance of sound, music, iconography, mise-en-scene, editing and other technical features in telling the story. o How the themes and ideas are put forward in the story. Genre Genre is closely related to Media Language and Narrative as it is by considering these factors that we can classify texts into genres or types by the similarities of content and form that they share. You should look at the codes and conventions shared by texts and discuss the generic features they share. When texts are grouped together according to types you will become aware of trends in popular taste and understand why producers respond to these by making more texts of the same sort in order to maintain an audience. Audiences like familiarity and producers like to produce texts that will guarantee an audience. Genre studies have shown that audiences can have specific expectations from a text that they wish to be fulfilled; that they enjoy a certain degree of repetition of features and that recognition of genre attracts audiences. Soap-operas for example gain higher television audiences than any of the other genre of broadcast fiction (on terrestrial television viewers could watch more than four hours of soaps on a weekday evening). You could examine two soap operas, for example Eastenders and Hollyoaks and note the features in terms of language of the moving image, character, themes and narrative structure. Looking beyond the texts themselves to the co ncepts of audience (different target audiences and different time slots in the television schedule), and institution (BBC 1 and Channel 4) you should be able to account for the differences within the genre.

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Genres develop with changes in technology, changes in popular culture and changes in the nature of audiences. Audiences like familiarity but want to be surprised by the unexpected too. Producers welcome the chance to repeat storylines, sets, actors and to build on a successful product. “If it ain‟t broke, don‟t fix it.” Genres that are a mixture of existing ones are called hybrid genres. If students look at a weekly television listing magazine they will find a number of types of made for television drama, classified in terms of subject matter, style and conventions to market them to an audience: drama, medical drama, comedy drama, crime drama, thriller, police drama, documentary-drama. Genres are not fixed; producers combine aspects of different genres to attract particular audiences. One way for the film industry to draw a young audience into the cinema has been to use television or popular music performers in acting roles. Stars associated with specific genres have always been and important as regards causing expectations in an audience. Applying the concept Question each text students are studying and the texts within any of the topics for any of the units. Identify the major generic conventions, including iconography, themes and characters. Explore how far audiences‟ expectations are fulfilled or otherwise and whether the generic conventions are treated playfully. Advertisements are a useful resource for a focus on genre. All advertisements share certain conventions – the product, the slogan, the space taken of time-slot but can be broken down into categories according to the product or service advertised and again into styles and formats. Audience In order for communication to take place there has to be two parties: the sender of the communication and the recipient of the communication. Every media text is produced with an audience in mind. The audience is the receiver of the text, it interprets the message conveyed by the text, and without an audience the message carried by the text doesn‟t reach anyone and thus its meaning is lost. The concept of audience is closely linked with institution and the institution is concerned with producing media texts that will reach a designated target audience. The media institutions devote much time and money into researching audience preferences and building up audience profiles which guide them in their decisions on what films, TV programmes, magazines, newspapers, and pop groups etc. to finance. 12

This audience data, known as quantitative data, is broken down by the institution into demographics (information about age, social class, address, occupation) which can give a detailed picture of the specified audiences appealed to by different texts and guide producers into how to construct more of the same or how to develop the genre in ways which will maintain the audience‟s interest. In the marketing industry such audience research is a vital part of a process which is fundamentally concerned with discovering audience thoughts, feelings, needs and aspirations and creating and/or packaging a product in a way that will deliver it to the audience successfully. Methods of research include questionnaires, interviews and focus groups. Advertisers use the same methods to investigate the effect of the advertisements on audiences. The relationship between the media and their audiences has always been a matter of debate and there have been shifts in ideas about the relative power of the media and the audience. From a position early in the 20 th century when behaviourist theorists saw the media as a hypodermic needle injecting the ideas held by the powerful groups in society into passive individuals, opinion has shifted to one which recognizes that audiences already have well-formed attitudes, that their identity is formed by the many social groups to which they belong and that, most importantly, they consciously select and interpret messages in an active way. Media audiences are often given the opportunity to interact with media texts by, for example, voting on a reality TV game show, e-mailing an opinion, writing a letter to a local newspaper, taking part in a radio phone-in, requesting a record or a television clip, appearing on a confessional; programme or participating in make-over programmes. Audiences even create and distribute texts themselves in the newer media forms such as creating websites on the internet which may contain music, moving-image, and the spoken word as well as more conventional print text. Applying the concept How the audience reads and reacts to the media is really important and you must explore this in relation to all texts and topics. An example of a way of focusing on how a text addresses its audience is to look at a range of generically similar texts that appeal to slightly different audiences: for example Breakfast TV programmes or drive-time radio programmes. Always ask: Who is the likely target audience (demographics) and how is it addressed by the elements of the text (media language including narrative and genre, media representations…) How does the scheduling or the positioning of the text support their views on its audience (think about conditions of viewing) and what does this say about the audience itself. What can be assumed about the likely size of the audience? 13

What are the probable audience readings of the text? How active of passive is their involvement? Examination questions may ask about how an institution targets a specific audience, so you will need to understand the audience‟s role in a media text. Institution When discussing institution as a concept you don‟t need to make a distinction between this term and industry, organisation or corporation. It can be used to describe large conglomerate corporations for example AOL Time-Warner, which produces the traditional media forms of film, tele vision and music and new media forms and technologies like internet service provision; or the BBC which also works with traditional and new forms of media technology and has a global reach; or smaller institutions such as Radio 1, MTV, Heat magazine, all of which are also part of larger institutions. There are some independent media institutions which are free from the financial and organizational influence of the large scale media corporations that dominate the market place and mass media industry. Texts produced by independents are often small-scale, appeal to a niche audience, and are distributed and consumed in different places from that of mainstream media. However, large organisations commission work from independents if they think they will be financially successful in the mass market. You should know the institutional source of each text you study and how typical it is in terms of the products or texts generally produced by that institution. When examining a text a consideration of the institution that produced it adds a new dimension to its meaning and message. An issue worth thinking about is how institutions might use the power and control that they have and questions must be asked as to whether the text has been influenced or shaped by the institution that produced it. News International often run promotions for 20 th Century Fox films in its newspapers and on its satellite TV channels) and may legitimately be said to have an interest in the content, style and attitudes of the text itself. Values and Ideology Values Attitudes, beliefs and values are terms used to describe our various responses to the world. Our values are our basic responses to reality and are based on the worth we place on aspects of our lives, including events and people. They are the foundation on which we base our behaviour and they are culturally shared. For example, the majority of people in Britain share the view that the best way to bring up children is within the family home by two parents. Although this does not reflect the reality of life in British society, it can be argued that it is the model to which the majority aspires. We experience the world primarily through the family and social groups to which we belong and – from a very early age- through what we read, see and hear in the mass media. 14

Identify the values carried by the media and the beliefs about society which are naturalised within texts. Texts deliver assumptions about life that can affect how their consumers think about themselves and others. For example, in the majority of media texts the predominant image of a female is of an attractive, tall and very slim young woman, often with long, blonde hair. This can be seen as the only desirable appearance for a woman; it has become naturalised or take n for granted. Our view of the world is filtered through the media. The media have a powerful role in reinforcing or changing our attitudes towards events and people, and can sometimes provoke action. The News of the World started a „naming and shaming‟ campaign by publishing the names and addresses of paedophiles, some of which were incorrect. The newspaper gained publicity and extra sales and unleashed vigilante behaviour. It was accused of generating a moral panic. The Daily Mirror ran an anti-war campaign in March 2003, which encouraged readers to demonstrate against war in Iraq. The paper even provided a cut -out poster for readers to put in their windows. This poster indicated that the reader shared the Daily Mirror’s views and the paper‟s name was visible to the onlooker, thus promoting it as being serious-minded and having a social conscience. The editorial and opinion sections of tabloid and broadsheet newspapers are often revealing, as they may encourage their readers to adopt a particular attitude towards a political, social or national issue. Ideology Ideology is a set of beliefs that people use to make sense of their experiences and views of the world. The most obvious belief systems centre upon religious, political and economic concepts. The construction, selection and shaping of ideas that go into a media text can be seen to reflect the belief system of the originator of the text. Historically, the people who ran the media institutions shared the same narrow social class and educational background as those who made up the higher ranks of government, the legal profession and the civil service, and were therefore more likely to share the same values. These people were mostly white, middle class and educated at public schools and Oxbridge. The same ideology (attitudes, belief and values) was seen across the majority of media and was implicit in every medium, resulting in a state of hegemony. Hegemony is the domination of a powerful professional elite which imposes a certain worldview on the rest of the population in order to maintain the status quo, i.e. the situation in which the elite‟s views about religion, politics, economics, gender and race are favourably presented and re-presented in news-papers, magazines and the broadcasting industry.

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The concepts of ideology and hegemony originate from a sociological view of how political and social control worked in nineteenth- and twentieth-century capitalist and totalitarian societies. The situation has changed and continues to alter, as the people who work in the media industries today come from wider backgrounds, reflecting Britain‟s increasingly multicultural society. With the growth of media out-lets across traditional and new technologies there is more potential for alternative ideological values to be presented. Applying the concept of ideology involves unpacking ideas which are often taken for granted by the producers and the audiences of media texts about shared concepts like the family, nationality, gender and sexual orientation. Interestingly, you will find that there are inconsistencies in people‟s consumption of media texts; for example, many working women read the Daily Mail in spite of its antiworking women content. A text conveys an obvious message through its format, narrative, characters and technical codes, but there is also a hidden message to be found in the beliefs and values it implies. Applying the concept Consider the perspectives the texts you are studying have on different social groups such as homosexuals, women, children, old people, minority ethnic groups, and what attitudes are implied about such cultural conditions as marriage, friendship, childhood, parenting, virginity, beauty, drinking, sex and drugs. Make sure that you can explain how ideology is built into the text. To support your ideas you may need to refer to media language (e.g. soft-focus lighting and romantic music), genre (e.g. heroic males saving the western world from disaster), narrative (e.g. a problem is solved, the hero gets a reward, there is a return to the status quo) and representation (e.g a white-haired granny knitting by the fireside). In addition, the intended audience and how likely it is to receive the text are paramount. Some of the texts may be critical of the dominant ideology and comment on ideas and values, perhaps through humour or in drama or documentary formats, to expose them to audience scrutiny. The producers of many media texts encode a set of values which it might be assumed the audience shares.

The concepts of ideology and hegemony originate from a sociological view of how political and social control worked in nineteenth- and twentieth-century capitalist and totalitarian societies. The situation has changed and continues to alter, as the people who work in the media industries today come from wider backgrounds, reflecting Britain‟s increasingly multicultural society. With the

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growth of media out-lets across traditional and new technologies there is more potential for alternative ideological values to be presented. Applying the concept of ideology involves unpacking ideas which are often taken for granted by the producers and the audiences of media texts about shared concepts like the family, nationality, gender and sexual orientation. Interestingly, you will find that there are inconsistencies in people‟s consumption of media texts; for example, many working women read the Daily Mail in spite of its antiworking women content. A text conveys an obvious message through its format, narrative, characters and technical codes, but there is also a hidden message to be found in the beliefs and values it implies.

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Unit 1: Foundation Portfolio (G321) This is the coursework module which is worth 50% of your final AS marks. You will be given a choice of 2 tasks (print and video) and will be given opportunities in the Autumn term to practise both areas. These pieces will be graded by your teachers to help you decide where your strengths lie. The practice pieces are compulsory and you will be deducted marks from your final coursework if you don‟t submit anything (exam board rules). For the actual coursework piece, you must decide whether to produce a printed or filmed media text. Preliminary exercises As already mentioned these are compulsory, and will show the moderator that your work has progressed when compared to your actual coursework. Although your teacher will grade this piece, this grade will not be sent off to the exam board. Video This will take place in the first Autumn Term (your teacher will inform you when). In pairs or threes you must film and edit a character entering a room and engaging in conversation with another character using shot/reverse shot and the 180 degree rule. You can decide on the genre, mise en scene and conversation which takes place. Print This will take place after half term in October (second Autumn Term). Either individually or in pairs, using Photoshop, produce the front page of a new school/college magazine. Main tasks After gaining experience filming, editing using I movie, photography and editing using Photoshop, you will need to decide which task to complete for your actual coursework piece. The main task should show a sense of progression from the preliminary exercise and is slightly more detailed and complex. Your teacher will tell you when you have to start this. This task is worth 60% of the actual coursework marks and will be marked by your teachers. Video You must film the titles and opening of a new fiction film, to last a minimum of 2 minutes. You can decide on the genre, storyline etc

Print You must produce the front page, contents and double page spread of a new music magazine. Planning and Research The main task you produce for your coursework must be accompanied with research and planning. This is worth 20% of your actual coursework marks and will be marked by your teachers. You can present this as any of the following: 18

Power-point presentation Blog or website Podcast DVD with extras Planning and research must cover the following areas: • • • • • •

Research into similar products Research into potential audience Evidence of organisation of actors, locations, costumes or props Evidence of shot-lists, layouts, drafting, scripting or storyboards Evidence of time management Evidence of digital technology or ICT in how the planning/research is presented

Evaluation You must also evaluate your work and this is worth 20% of your final coursework mark. This evaluation must be presented in an electronic format (like the research and planning) and show evidence of understanding of the following: • • • • • • •

Forms and conventions used The role and use of new media The combination of main product and ancillary texts The significance of audience feedback The choice of form in which to present the evaluation An ability to communicate Use of digital technology or ICT

Examples of work Your teachers will show you a range of print and film examples produced by students so that you can see the standards expected of you. You will also analyse real examples of film openings and magazine covers so that you become familiar with the conventions. There are examples on the VLE you can look at.

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TOP TIPS FOR FILMING AND EDITING If planning to film outside always make a note of the weather. If it does rain see if you can shoot something else indoors. Make sure you set a date to film that everyone can attend. Make a shot list for that filming session so that you can get all of it done. Do not rush! You will forget shots and will need to re-shoot and you may damage equipment. Watch what is happening in the background of your shot. You don‟t want to get in the edit suite and realise your film has inappropriate graffiti in the background. Use a tripod whenever possible. If you need dialogue and you‟re recording outside make sure it isn‟t windy. The wind can affect the microphone and your dialogue will be lost. When filming make sure that the lens cap is secure and will not bang about around the tripod and camera as you can hear it. Never rewind your tape to look at a shot that you have just done in the middle of filming. The camera will rewind more than you expected and then you will lose shots. When editing make a note of shots you don‟t need as the computer captures them. That way you can get rid of your footage immediately and keep work you know you can use. If you need to re-shoot make a note of which shots and then plan when you will film them. Team work is essential. Let everyone try everything: filming, acting, editing or music choice are all jobs everyone can do. Filming is not about having a laugh with your friends, you need to be constructive and prepared - you will have just as much fun.

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Production tips – 50 ways to improve your practical work Your production work can make all the difference to your final grade; and for many of you it will be the high point in your course. Read on for advice from expert and examiner, Pete Fraser on getting the most out of your coursework.

Research and planning 1. Focus your research by looking at examples of real media texts. If you are doing a Sunday supplement, take the time to examine several Sunday supplements. If you are doing chocolate ads, break down some real ads to see how they are shot and edited. If you are doing a radio current affairs programme, tape some real examples and identify the features they contain and how they are put together. Concentrate on formal and technical aspects – this is just as important as content. 2. Look at examples of previous students‟ work. Identify their strengths and their weaknesses – you can build on the former and avoid the latter. Use their work to identify clichés to avoid, such as endless Tarantino rip-offs. 3. Think about your audience. Make sure your ideas are appropriate, realistic and aimed at people beyond your own peers, teacher and examiners. 4. Set yourself a deadline of a week earlier than the date for the final submission – that way you allow for any unexpected mishaps. Coming up with ideas 5. Keep your ideas simple. The more complex the idea, the more can go wrong. Complex productions also run the risk of confusing your audience. 6. Film parodies or pastiches have to be really good to work. You ma y think you were the first people to think of doing a chocolate ad in the style of The Blair Witch Project … but you weren‟t. 7. Don‟t try to be funny. What is funny to you and your mates may not be that amusing to your teacher or the examiners. Out-takes in particular look childish and amateur – it‟s like including a load of deliberate spelling mistakes at the end of an essay.

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8. Endless car-based videos should be avoided. They just look like students showing off that they‟ve passed their test. Scenes in pubs should similarly only be done if absolutely essential; they look like students showing off that they can pass for 18 and get served. 9. Avoid long scenes of kissing. They are usually just there to feature boys who want to prove they can get a girlfriend. 10. Scenes of students doing drugs (or simulating doing drugs) are painfully embarrassing. Avoid at all costs. Likewise avoid scenes with cigarettes. It doesn‟t look big or clever! 11. POV (point of view) camera is similarly unwise. Just because you‟ve seen the video for Smack my bitch up does not mean you could hope to emulate it. POV stuff probably needs a greater degree of planning and control than more conventional editing. 12. Remember, a thriller lasts 90 minutes or more, so you don‟t have to tell the whole story in the first two minutes. Aim to establish atmosphere and intrigue the viewer, not kill off half your cast. 13. With music video, a track by an unknown band taken from an MP3 site, or from a local band is likely to be far more produc tive than choosing your own favourite song. A sensible distance from the material can help produce a more professional outcome. Choose a track that generates visual ideas – don‟t illustrate the lyrics literally. A music video doesn‟t have to tell a story, but it does have to sell the music, however, so endless depressing shots of girls on roundabouts staring at flowers or boys clutching pills ready to swill them down with vodka are unlikely to lead to CD purchases. Fast cutting and lots of closeups work well. 14. Avoid using the most obvious music tracks – everyone else will be using them, too! Make sure you get hold of any tracks you need early on in the project. Don‟t leave it to your teachers to find – it‟s your project, not theirs. Get it on CD – local libraries often have a very good stock that can be borrowed for a small fee. Planning the shoot 15. Plan and organise down to the tiniest detail: where you will be shooting, who is going to be there, what they will be wearing, who will bring the props, what time everyone will meet up, what each shot is going to look like. Make simple call sheets and give a copy to everyone involved. 16. Never shoot anything until you have a storyboard or shot list. You can always change this plan on the shoot, but without a plan you will shoot rubbish – 22

guaranteed! 17. For group work, take down one another‟s mobile phone numbers. Agree to phone each other straight away if there any problems or if anyone fails to show up. 18. Test built-in camera microphones before going out on important dialogue shoots so you can compensate for their limitations (e.g. shooting some scenes from behind to be dubbed later, recording wild sounds that you can use with dubbed dialogue). Lots of camera microphones pick up every sound equally (planes, the wind, distant doors slamming, as well as your dialogue) so you need to shoot dialogue in appropriate places or using an external microphone. Always try out unfamiliar equipment before you using it. 19. Make sure batteries are fully charged before you go on location. Avoid using the LCD as it runs the battery down very quickly. Always have a spare battery or a charger.

On the shoot 20. Don‟t waste any time. If someone is absent, improvise. Don‟t say you can‟t do anything because they have the storyboards – you are all responsible. Always have a back-up plan, for example, what happens if it rains? 21. In group work make sure everyone has a go at the different roles. Everyone must know how to operate the camera and the editing equipment, other wise they will have difficulty in the production log explaining how the process worked. In your evaluation you should make clear your contribution to the project. 22. Don‟t set up anything that is dangerous – for example, filming on railway lines or hanging off buildings. It‟s just not worth it. If you are trying that hard to be different, you probably didn‟t have a good idea to begin with. 23. Don‟t film anything in a public place that might be misinterpreted as a criminal act. Toy guns have been known to result in police call-outs; bags of white powder carried by teenagers convince some people you are a drug dealer. If you are intending to film anything of this kind, talk it over with your teachers and see what can be organised. Ring your friendly neighbourhood police station – they can be very helpful. 24. Always create original images unless there really is no alternative (such as needing an explosion, where it is clearly more sensible to get one off a video). Dressing up fellow students, teachers or e ven parents as characters for your magazine covers, adverts, thrillers or websites is much more effective than using existing actors. If you need a famous background like the New York skyline that‟s 23

fine – but use it with image manipulation to integrate with your own material. 25. For radio work, make sure you can use a microphone properly. If the sound isn‟t good enough record it again. Radio programmes need a lot of planning and variety. They should never involve simply reading out a script and playing a bit of music. The role and tone of the presenter is crucial because you are relying on sound alone. 26. When doing voiceovers, make sure the sound level is adequate so they can be heard over your music. Record only when the room is quiet. 27. Avoid your main source of light being behind your subject unless you want them in silhouette. In difficult light conditions, shoot a few frames, rewind and check. 28. For an effective piece of cheap lighting take a torch. But remember, most night shooting will produce completely dark tape. For interior mid-shots and close-ups you can create a dramatic effect with a 60 watt bulb in a bedside lamp. 29. Make sure date and time are not displayed on the camera viewfinder. If they are, they will be there on your final footage. 30. Auto focus can sometimes be a problem. Learn how to control manual focus, too. 31. Keep the camera upright. Unless you want to turn your TV on its side to watch it, footage shot at a slant will be useless! A well-planned tilt, however, is almost always better than a zoom. 32. Make sure you know when the record button is on and off. It is pointless to come back with 2 hours of shots of your walking feet and none of the material you set up! Use „shoot!‟ and „cut!‟ and a simple clapperboard (a cheap pad of paper consecutively numbered 1, 2,3 etc) for easier editing. 33. Keep the camera steady, using a tripod wherever possible. Handheld footage is very hard to do well. 34. Set up moving shots in advance. Always know where you are going to finish before you start. Do a test shoot and always run the camera for a good few seconds before the opening and run over after the action finishes, to avoid postproduction nightmares when editing. 35. Pay attention to framing. Your shots need not always be centrally framed, but beware of close-ups where the actor moves his head too much or shots where the actors‟ heads are right at the bottom of the frame and a big brick wall or curtain dominates behind. Don‟t just concentrate on the action in the foreground 24

– what is happening behind? Do you want that passer-by in the background making a rude sign? Is there a tree growing out of the hero‟s head? 36. As a rule, avoid using zooms – they look amateur and will make your footage will look like a home video. 37. Got wobbly shots, poor lighting, someone in the shot who shouldn‟t be there? Shoot it again to get it right! 38. Shoot plenty of extra footage to use in your editing for cutaways and cut-ins. Plan a variety of types of shot (LS, MS, CU) and angles on the same subjects. And always log every shot you shoot to speed up the editing process. 39. If shooting a music video with lipsynch, take a CD player with you on location and shoot the performance at least three times straight through from different positions so that you have plenty of material from which to choose when editing. 40. Always treat the equipment with care and bring it back on time. Post-production 41. When editing, avoid cutting immediately to a second shot of the same thing. Cut to a different subject first, then cut back to the first subject – it looks more professional. 42. Don‟t overdo the wacky edits. Special effects of any kind should be kept special by limiting their use. Most transitions should be cuts. Fades can be used to slow the pace, but gimmicky edits are only good for children‟s TV! 43. You‟ve run out of footage? Avoid the solution of simply running your existing footage backwards. It‟s a common trick and looks too obvious. 44. Don‟t use the names of famous actors or directors i n credit sequences – the audience will expect to see them. Check thriller openings to see which personnel do get a mention and stick to the relevant crew. Use your own names or make names up, but please not silly names like „Hugh Jarss‟ – leave that to Bart Simpson. Don‟t spoil a decent piece of work with a silly title – keep the tone right. 45. An advert usually lasts 30 seconds or less. Not only will the audience be bored with a two minute advert but the company won‟t be prepared to pay megabucks for such a lengthy slot! 46. Cut and cut again. Unless a shot has dialogue, we are likely to get the point in less than one and a half seconds. If your shot lasts much longer, ask yourself whether it couldn‟t be cut down. This is particularly important with adverts. 25

Student video shots are rarely too short, but often too long. Evaluation 47. In print work the overall „look‟ is often neglected. Stand back from your page and disregard the content of the writing. How does the layout compare with examples from professional texts? 48. Don‟t fill your evaluation with excuses – be honest about the shortcomings of your work and make it clear what you have learnt from the experience. Don‟t blame other members of the group, limited equipment or, worst of all, your teachers! It is better to be modest about good work than to try to talk up a turkey! 49. Keep within the word limit. You risk a penalty if you fail to do so. And finally … 50. Treat your project with professionalism and organisation and you will not go far wrong! Enjoy your work. Being creative is brilliant – but you can‟t beat being organised.

Pete Fraser This article first appeared in MediaMagazine 1, September 2002

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Print Production In order to create your own magazine front cover you should be familiar with the conventions of magazine front covers. The following power point will give you some background information:

Magazine Covers

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Unit 2: Key Media Concepts (G322) This unit will be assessed by a 2 hour exam in the summer and is split into 2 sections. Your paper will be marked out of 100 (50 marks per question) and will form 50% of your final AS grade. Section A: Textual Analysis and Representation (50 marks) Section B: Institutions and Audiences (50 marks) Section A: Textual Analysis and Representation For this section you will be shown an `unseen‟ moving image extract of a contemporary British TV drama four times. In preparation for this exam, your teachers will show you a number of different sub genres e.g. soap operas, teen dramas, costume dramas, medical dramas, crime dramas and docu-dramas. Each of these dramas have their own conventions, narratives, target audiences and expectations – you will analyse these in class in order to develop your knowledge and understanding of the genre so that you can confidently sit the exam. In the exam you must answer one compulsory question dealing with textual analysis of various technical aspects of the languages and conventions of moving image media. E.g. camera angle, shot, movement and composition mise en scene editing sound Textual analysis means deconstruct – you will need to understand from the above bullet points, how the extract has been put together. You will be asked to link this analysis with a discussion of some aspects of representation within the sequence. E.g. gender age ethnicity sexuality class and status physical ability/disability regional identity Representation means how something has been re-presented or portrayed – you will need to understand from the above bullet points how different groups are represented in the media and whether stereotypes have been used. Timing: 30 mins viewing/making notes (extract to be shown 4 times) 45 mins to answer 1 question Section B: Institutions and Audiences This section of the exam requires you to know about how media industries operate and audiences are formed. In the exam, you will answer one compulsory 28

question based upon a case study of a specific media industry, from a choice of six topic areas: film music newspapers radio magazines video games From these six topics, you will be taught two areas, so that you have a choice in the exam. You will learn about how your chosen areas are currently being produced and distributed and how this is changing. You will need to understand and discuss the processes of production, distribution, marketing and exchange as they relate to contemporary media institutions, as well as the nature of audience consumption and the relationships between audiences and institutions. In the exam you will be given a very broad question which can be answered using any of the industries studied e.g. “Discuss the issues raised by an institution‟s need to target specific audiences within a media industry which you have studied.” Timing: 45 mins to answer 1 question on 1 topic area

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USEFUL WEBSITES. The websites listed here will give you a „headstart‟ in terms of sifting through the vast amount of information available on-line. With so many excellent websites available the expectation is that you make use of them. Not only will they keep you informed and up-to-date, they will add a real edge to your written work and enhance your understanding of media as a subject. General

www.abc.org.uk – Audit Bureau of Circulation – offers updated circulations figures – a good resource for institutions and audiences www.allisonmedia.net – A teacher‟s website with some very useful explanations of media terms. www.afi.com – The American Film Institute. www.asa.org.uk – The Advertising Standards Authority. www.barb.co.uk – Broadcasters Audience Research Board. www.bbc.co.uk – The British Broadcasting Corporation. A massive site full of useful information and links. www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer - record programmes www.bbfc.co.uk – The British Board of Film Classification. http://blogs.warwick.ac.uk/michaelwalford/tag/ocr_media_studies_textual_analysi s/ - useful definitions of camera shots. www.bfi.org.uk – The British Film Institute. www.blogger.com – create your own blog for free in minutes www.emusu.com – West Midlands based digital music distribution website www.englishandmedia.co.uk – resources, subscriptions to Media Magazine and they pay to publish A Level media studies student work! www.facebook.com – essential social networking site www.games-culture.com – A comprehensive site covering all aspects of gaming culture. www.hitwise.co.uk – searchable internet usage statistics www.imdb.com – The best film reference site on the internet. www.loc.gov – The Library of Congress website www.longroadmedia.com – Sixth Form College website full of students‟ practical work www.mediaguardian.co.uk – The place to find new and exciting media items. www.mediauk.com – useful for research on UK institutions www.nielsenmedia.com – American television ratings. www.nmpft.org.uk – The National Museum of Photography, Film and Television in Bradford. 30

www.ocr.org.uk/qualifications/asa_levelgceforfirstteachingin2008/mediastudies/d ocuments.html - Our exam board‟s Media page including the full specification www.phoenix.org.uk – Leicester‟s very own independent art cinema and contemporary theatre. www.rajar.co.uk – Radio audience figures. www.rottentomatoes.com – An excellent film review site. http://tv.zap2it.com – Current television news and reviews from across the pond. www.wikipedia.com – a very useful online encyclopaedia. New Media Technologies

www.jonesencylco.com/ - Jones Encyclopaedia. Media and Information Technology. A vast resource, will prove to be an excellent research tool. www.howstuffworks.com – If you are really interested in finding out how the equipment really works! www.newmediastudies.com – up-to-date facts and figures, such as global internet usage statistics www.webopedia.com – Unsure of all that media jargon? This site will help you look all knowing in front of your friends. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia - the original “we media” resource www.wired.com/wired - An essential technology magazine. Very highly recommended.

Production Work

www.apple.com/ilife/tutorials - invaluable for production work www.exposure.co.uk – A fantastic site for low budget film-makers. www.exposure.co.uk/eejit - The Eejit‟s Guide to Filmmaking. This site has tips and guidance on how to construct a successful production. www.filmmaking.com – A comprehensive site that covers many aspects of production work. www.imperica.com/sofia/ - This site has plenty of information on the technicalities of filming. www.mediacollege.com – helpful tutorials for production work www.channel4.com/film/makingmovies - Channel 4 online film-making site

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Radio & Television News

www.bbc.co.uk – British Broadcasting Corporation. www.channel4.com - Channel 4. www.cnn.com – Cable News Network. www.pcc.org.uk – The Press Complaints Commission. www.sky.com/news/ - Sky‟s main news site. Magazines and print

www.abc.org.uk – This site will give you sales figures for newspapers and magazines. Select „magazine data‟ from the top then „consumer magazines‟ from the left on the new page. www.cosmopolitan.co.uk – The best selling women‟s magazine www.ehow.com – photography tutorials www.flickr.com/photos/cogdog/269039506 - a guide to annotating images in Flickr www.glamourmagazine.co.uk - Glamour magazine. www.fhm.com – Home of the best selling men‟s magazine. www.gqmagazine.co.uk – GQ magazine. www.confused.co.uk – Dazed and Confused magazine: fashion, music, art, film, current affairs. Cutting edge from the U.K. www.thefader.com – Fader magazine. Similar in tone to Dazed and Confused but from an American perspective. www.i-dmagazine.com – ID magazine. A long running critically acclaimed leftfield magazine. www.condenast.com – Publisher of Glamour and GQ, to name just two. www.emap.com – Publisher of Cosmopolitan. www.intellagentcia.com - Another site for magazine sales figures. www.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound - Sight & Sound magazine. www.empireonline.co.uk – Empire magazine website. www.magforum.com – lots of information on magazines

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Newspapers

www.thepaperboy.com – A good starting point for this area of the media. www.thesun.co.uk – The Sun. The biggest selling paper in the U.K. www.guardian.co.uk – The Guardian. www.timesonline.co.uk – The best of the Times and The Sunday Times. www.dailymail.co.uk – The Mail. www.independent.co.uk - The Independent. www.mirror.co.uk – The Mirror. Advertising

www.absolutelyandy.com – A collection of recent adverts, downloadable in windows media player and real player formats. www.adassoc.org.uk/inform/content.html - The Advertising Association. A guide to what advertising agencies actually do. www.advertisingarchives.co.uk – You will need to sign up to access the majority of this site. A perfect resource for the committed media student. www.asa.org.uk – The Advertising Standards Authority. www.commercialbreaksandbeats.co.uk – The definitive directory of UK TV advert soundtracks. www.tbwa.co.uk – Website for the advertising agency TBWA. Film

www.artificial-eye.com www.bigfilmshorts.com – a short film festival www.thefilmfactory.co.uk www.disney.co.uk www.dreamworks.com www.filmeducation.org – film study resource www.firstlightmovies.com – useful website for short film work 33

www.miramax.com www.momentumpictures.co.uk www.fox.co.uk www.warnerbros.co.uk Music

Copyright free sites (Note: not all music is free to download from copyright free sites – there are download fees) http://copyrightfriendly.wikispaces.com/Copyright-friendly+m usic+and+sound http://www.shockwave-sound.com/ http://audiojungle.net/ http://www.musicmediatracks.com/?gclid=CK6V-r7ZiJgCFUse3god7XQJCw http://www.royaltyfreem usic.com/free.html http://freeplaymusic.com / (free downloads) http://www.trackline.com /acatalog/Tracks.html http://www.royaltyfreem usic.com/docum entary-general-production.html http://www.dm oz.org/Arts/Music/Sound_Files/Sam ples_and_Loops/ www.freesound.org (free m usic) http://www.mobygratis.com/film-m usic.htm l (teacher needs to register for this one) http://www.ljudo.com/default.asp?lang=tEnglish&do=it http://www.jamendo.com/en http://derekaudette.ottawaarts.com/ http://www.acoustica.com/sounds.htm http://www.alcljudprod.se/english/ljud.php Many, many more sites are available just „Google‟ „copyright free m usic audio download‟ or „free audio editor software‟

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