You are on page 1of 17

Unit G325: Critical Perspectiv es in Media

Student Guide

Unit G325: Critical Perspectives in Media


For your final exam you will have to answer questions in two sections: Section 1- Theoretical Evaluation of Your Production work Section 2 Contemporary Media Issues Section 1- Theoretical Evaluation of Your Production work
The first question asks you to describe and evaluate your skills development over the course of your production work, from Foundation Portfolio to Advanced Portfolio. The second question asks you to identify one production and evaluate it in relation to one theoretical concept. The question for 1(b) is different in focus for each assessment session, and draws from a list of possible concepts; you will prepare an evaluation of one production which covers all of the possible concepts

Question 1(a)

requires candidates to describe and evaluate their skills development over the course of their production work, from Foundation Portfolio to Advanced Portfolio. The focus of this evaluation must be on skills development, and the question will require them to adapt this to one or two specific production practices. The list of practices to which questions will relate is as follows:

Digital Technology Creativity Research and planning Post-production


Using conventions from real media texts

In the exam, questions will be asked using one or two of these categories.

Question 1(b)

requires candidates to select one production and evaluate it in relation to a media concept. The list of concepts to which questions will relate is as follows: Genre Audience Narrative Media language Representation 3

In the examination, questions will be set using one of these concepts only. However as we do not know which will be asked you will need to prepare a response to each of these.

Evaluating Your Production Skills

1.

Digital Technology- skills I learnt at


AS level
Using digital DV cameras- zoom in and out, recording, playback, connecting it to the computer to upload footage Using AppleMac computers- learning the keys/shortcuts etc Using Final Cut Pro- Cropping shots (editing), log and capturing footage, colour filters, adding sound, adding special FX, adding music on top of footage, voice overs, transitions Using Soundtrack Pro- adding sound fx Lighting- creating mood through lighting (chiaroscuro lighting) Use of tripods, steadicam and dollys Recording sound (boom mic) Continuity with filming scenes Camera shots and angles, movement and composition- learning the basics 180degree rule(preliminary task) Shot reverse shot (preliminary task) Action Match (preliminary task)

A2 level
Creating blogs to record progress and obtain audience feedback, uploading media files to these blogs Uploading footage to online video sites like YouTube (web 2.0) Camera shots and angles- experimenting and developing Using more advanced features of Final Cut Pro- colour correction, cropping of shots, split screens, further transitions, changing the speed of the footage, symbolising through filters/colours Exporting files into Photoshop (changing to jpegs) and learning to use More advanced camera work- incorporating graphic matches, focus pulls, focus (manual and spot), trombone shot Syncing images with audio (lip-syncing) 5

Write a response to- Discuss what technical skills you have

learnt and developed on your A level Media course

2.

This is quite a tricky one; start by listing the creative choices and decisions which you have made over the course, and what skills you think you have developed:

Creativity

Creative skills which you have learnt and developed

Q. Discuss how you feel you have developed your creativity over the two year course. You should think about:
What have you enjoyed the most, and what experiences have lead to you becoming more creative What are you particularly proud of How this creativity has helped you in other areas of your life Are you developing this with your further studies?

This is a key area for showing you understand how professional production companies work. You need to understand the importance of preproduction work and explain how it informed your planning and eventual finished product.
Primary and Secondary Research Primary- research which you carry out yourself, all of the data is created by the research which you have done Secondary- this data is already collated by researchers, you then use this to inform your work Qualitative and Quantitative Data Qualitative Data- this is data which is more in depth and carried out on a smaller section of people, this would include focus groups and interviews. This is more time consuming, however it gives you greater quality of research as you can ask people to expand on their responses, this involves open questions Quantitative Data- this is data which is less detailed however you would get a larger sample, this would include questionnaires and surveys. It is quick and easy to administer and involves closed questions. The advantages of this are that you get a large quantity of data, thus allowing you to draw conclusions, however you do not get detailed responses.

3.

Research and planning

Explain what you researched before starting your production work and why you carried out this research
7

How did your research inform your production work What difficulties did you encounter whilst carrying out your research

Preproduction Planning
Make a list of all of the preproduction tasks you carried out before your production work. Next to each task explain how it helped you with your production and why it was important for your planning

Preproduction Task

Benefit

4.

Post-production

This includes the post production editing process, audience feedback, refining your product and evaluating the success of your product. As you are fully aware filming the media product is merely one part of a long chain; without the postproduction process there is no product! Explain in your own words what the postproduction process involved and what skills you learnt and developed over the course

5.

Using conventions from real media texts

Whether you chose to follow or subvert conventions understanding the forms and conventions of the medium and genre within which you are working is key to the success of any media product. Explain how you found out what the conventions were for the product you were planning List the forms and conventions of the medium and genre within which you worked Explain whether you followed or subverted these, and why you decided to do so

Example Question
Section A: Theoretical Evaluation of Production In this section you need to write about your work for the Foundation Portfolio and Advanced Portfolio units. You must answer both 1(a) and 1(b). 1 (a) Digital technology turns media consumers into media producers. In your own experience, how has your creativity developed through using digital technology to complete your coursework productions? [25] (b) Media texts rely on cultural experiences in order for audiences to easily make sense of narratives. Explain how you used conventional and / or experimental narrative approaches in one of your production pieces. [25]

Initial Responses

Through analysing other professional texts- that fed into your own creativity, be getting ideas and inspiration from other producers (intertexual references in your own work to develop it) YouTube allows you to upload your text to the Internet (joys of web 2.0), this in turn allows you as a producer to reach an audience and receive feedback which helps develop and improve your overall work Using Final Cut Pro allows you to use more advanced editing techniques which makes your produce more visually appealing, this allows you to be more ambitious and creative with your ideas through editing and special fxs etc Creativity developed through practising and completing preliminary tasks before the main task- this allowed you to experiment with the cameras and develop ideas along the way (seeing what works and what doesnt) Photoshop allowed you to realise your visions- this software gave you the skills to produce work which looked professional (layers, effects, merging) In terms of developing your creativity as you produce more professional looking work, you become more selfcritical and strive to perfection (micro-detail) Soundtrack pro- allows you to experiment with sound and create mood within your visuals and guide audiences emotions, therefore audience engagement in greater Blogging- this allowed you to become more creative, you could upload other media products and compare your own work with that of others (audience feedback to develop your work) Digital Cameras (HD/harddrive recordable) allows you to view footage as you go along and adjust/develop your work. This also supported you in getting better quality shots, manual focus (focus pulls) Using lighting to create mood/atmosphere appropriate to your product- this made the text more appealing and more professional Through new media technologies such as Sky Plus/TV on-demand/ BBC iPlayer /iTunes etc you are able to
10

saturate yourself in media texts and find specific examples to help develop your own work

Mark Scheme
Q1 Level 4 Explanation/ analysis/argument (9-10 marks) There is a clear sense of progression established by the answer, and a range of articulate reflections on the production process are offered. Use of examples (9-10 marks) Candidates offer a broad range of specific, relevant and clear examples of the use of technology in relation to creative skills development. Use of terminology (5 marks) The use of both production terms and conceptual media terminology applied throughout is excellent. Complex issues have been expressed clearly and fluently using a style of writing appropriate to the complex subject matter. Sentences and paragraphs, consistently relevant, have been well structured, using appropriate technical terminology. There may be few, if any, errors of spelling, punctuation and grammar. Q2 Level 4 Explanation/ analysis/argument (9-10 marks) Candidates demonstrate a clear understanding of narrative theories / approaches and relate them articulately to the production process, describing specific decisions made in relation to narrative and expectations of audience response. Use of examples (9-10 marks) A broad range of relevant and interesting examples of the creative process are offered. Use of terminology (5 marks) Both conceptual language and production terminology are applied with excellent results. Complex issues have been expressed clearly and fluently using a style of writing appropriate to the complex subject matter. Sentences and paragraphs, consistently relevant, have been well structured, using appropriate technical terminology. There may be a few, if any, errors of spelling, punctuation and grammar.

11

12

13

14

15

Additional Notes

16

17

You might also like