A2 Examination - Q1(a) definitions

What are media conventions?
Media conventions are the established ways of creating meaning in media texts.  These can be technical (camera, editing, sound and mise-en-scene) or symbolic (see Barthes' codes).  Some things that you might think of in your own product are:

• Camera - shots, movement and angles, e.g a canted angle in a horror
• Editing - e.g. the fast pace of an action movie or flashbacks in a sci-fi film about past events
• Sound - e.g. creepy piano music in a horror or the sounds of battle in a war film (NB don't forget dialogue)
• Mise-en-scene - e.g. in a horror film you might have an isolated house, low-key lighting and a knife glinting in the moonlight (iconography)
• Characters - e.g. vulnerable, attractive female in horror; tough, maverick in action films
• Narrative - e.g. thrillers will provide lots of enigmas and unexpected twists; sci-fi will often involve some sort of major disruption, such as the outbreak of a virus or an invasion by aliens
• Representation - archetypes, stereotypes, typical locations, social groups, national stereotypes etc.
• Genre - all of the above help to establish genre through film language

Also think about the conventions of form (e.g. film opening, trailer, short film).  All of these forms have their own conventions relating to structure.  A film opening will try to create a setup (see here for further info http://howardschoolmedia.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Narrative), a trailer will try to create enigmas by showing key extracts from the film and using narrative devices (see here http://howardschoolmedia.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Trailers and here http://howardschoolmedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/a2-examination-q1b-narrative-devices.html) and a short film will try to put across a key message in a short space of time, often using a small number of influential characters.

What is creativity?
"Creativity is just connecting things." (Steve Jobs)
“There is no doubt that creativity is the most important human resource of all. Without creativity, there would be no progress, and we would be forever repeating the same patterns.” (Edward de Bono)

“Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes, and having fun.” (Mary Lou Cook)

A question on creativity can be related to creative use of research and planning, creative production techniques (e.g. camera, mise-en-scene, sound) and creative post production (e.g. editing and sound effects).  Creativity does not have to be innovative.  As Jobs suggests in the quotation above, it could be simply how you saw a convention in a similar product and used technology to recreate it in your own media product.  A creativity question is often linked to technology.

A2 Examination: Q1(b) definitions

What is film language?

"The cinema is quite simply becoming a means of expression..."  "By language, I mean a form in which and by which any artist can express his thoughts..."  (Asturic 1948)

"Film may not have a grammar, but it does have a system of 'codes'.  It does not, strictly speaking, have a vocabulary but it does have a system of signs and codes of a number of other communication systems."  (Monaco 2000)  NB - see Barthes below

• Film language refers to how meaning is created (stories, characters etc.)
• Film language includes: cinematography, mise-en-scene, editing, sound and dialogue, special effects, genre, narrative and representation.
• Film language is a system of signs - Roland Barthes: enigma code (puzzle to be solved); action code (a code from which we expect to see certain consequences based on other similar films we have seen); semantic code (the connotative meaning of characters, objects or settings, such as the villain dressed all in black); symbolic code (oppositions such as good/evil, light/dark, innocent/corrupt); cultural code (the world outside the film that is referred to, such as the world of adolescent young men in The Inbetweeners Movie)
• Film language is not definitive; it depends on the viewer (spectator) and reception (see Stuart Hall's Reception Theory).
• Also see Michael Wohl.

The media audience 

"There is no stable entity which we can isolate and identify as the media audience, no single object that is unproblematically ‘there’ for us to observe and analyze. … It becomes harder to specify exactly where media audiences begin and end. The conditions and boundaries of audiencehood are inherently unstable."  (Shaun Moores)

1 Who would be your target audience?

In North America (US and Canada), the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) carries out research into movie audiences.   They classify audiences as:

• frequent moviegoers (once a month or more)
• occasional (less than once a month)
• infrequent (once in 12 months)
• non-moviegoers (no visits in the last 12 months)

(Don't forget that films can be distributed in a number of other ways (e.g. DVD, Netflix, Youtube, film festivals) and your audience might not access the film in the cinema.)

Frequent moviegoers buy 50% of all tickets sold.

In terms of age groups, the MPAA use the following audience segments:

• 2-11
• 12-17
• 18-24
• 25-39
• 40-49
• 50-59
• 60+

The most frequent moviegoers are the 25-39 age group (about a quarter of all tickets sold) with the 18-24 group in second place. Traditionally, the movie industry chased viewers between the ages of 15-24 because they were considered to have the highest disposable income but movie audiences have been getting older. The gender split for moviegoers is almost 50/50.  Action, fantasy and animation dominate the top 20 box office movies.

In the UK, the British Film Institute (BFI) gather statistics on audiences.  They segment age groups as follows:

• 7-14 (14%)
• 15-24 (33%)
• 25-34 (19%)
• 35-44 (16%)
• 45-54 and 55+ (18%)

Percentage of UK cinema admissions for 2014 in brackets.

The BFI note that animations are particularly popular in the 7-14 group and that comedy and action are very popular with 15-24 year olds.  Action is also very popular with the 25-34 group. Animation is also a genre widely viewed by 35-44s (perhaps because many are mothers and fathers, what we call a secondary audience).  Drama is a genre favoured by 45-54 year olds.  Fantasy is universally popular across the 15-54 age range.  Males prefer action, thriller and comedies while females enjoy a broader range of genres.

You might also consider your audience in terms of demographics (age, gender, ethnicity, income, education, family status), geography (residence location, work location, place of birth, choice of recreation area), usage/behaviour  (frequent/infrequent, subscriber/single ticket, plan-ahead/impulse), stated intentions (plan to come more/less/the same, will/will not renew), attitude/belief/opinion (likes/dislikes, preferences, values).

2 How would an audience respond to your product?

• Hypodermic needle theory - this suggests that audiences passively receive the media and rarely use their critical faculties, accepting and absorbing the messages contained within the text.  Theories that argue that audiences are passive are sometimes called manipulative models.
• Theories that argue that audience responses are varied and unpredictable are sometimes called pluralist models.
• Uses and gratifications theory - this suggested that audiences choose their media for a variety of different needs: 1. to escape everyday life; 2. to gain information; 3. because the consumer identifies with characters and/or situations; 4. to interact and discuss what they have consumed with family and friends.  
• Coding and encoding - Stuart Hall argued that audiences readings are determined by their gender, social and ideological positions.  Messages may be encoded with a preferred reading but audiences may have different and alternative interpretations. Hall identified three reception codes: dominant, negotiated and oppositional.  See here for more information: http://www.slideshare.net/dphillips4363/reception-theory-presentation-833299  http://www.mediaknowall.com/as_alevel/alevkeyconcepts/alevelkeycon.php?pageID=audience
• Fandom - some consumers have a very close relationship with a product and a high level of interest and devotion.  These fans develop interpretive communities and often have a participatory culture (see Henry Jenkins); in other words, they are very active.
• Spectatorship - film theory is often concerned with the notion of the spectator. Spectatorship is influenced by: where you watch; when you watch; who you watch with; why you are watching; genre; your previous experience; values; morals; beliefs; your ability to suspend disbelief; how questioning (critical) you are; interaction; emotion; cultural/ethnic background; understanding; technology; mood; distractions; prior knowledge (e.g. reviews); expectations; fandom; interpretive reading; attraction; problem-solving; and the impact of the film after it has ended.  
• Audience positioning - how did you as a film-maker position your viewer?  This is the relationship created between your product and the viewer and how you address and communicate with them via film language.  For example, you might want the viewer to sympathise or identify with a particular character and so you might have privileged that character with more shots, perhaps using close-ups and music that helped to develop your desired emotional response.
• Don't forget about your audience feedback.

3 How might content influence who might be able to see your film?

• themes
• offensive language
• violence
• imitable techniques
• horror
• drugs

See the BBFC's guidelines http://www.bbfc.co.uk/what-classification/guidelines

What is genre?

http://www.mediaknowall.com/as_alevel/alevel.php?pageID=filmgenre
http://visual-memory.co.uk/daniel/Documents/intgenre/chandler_genre_theory.pdf
http://visual-memory.co.uk/daniel/Documents/intgenre/
http://visual-memory.co.uk/daniel/Documents/intgenre/intgenre5.html

What is narrative?
A narrative is some kind of retelling of something that happened (a story). The narrative is not the story itself but rather the telling of the story. While a story is just a sequence of events, a narrative recounts those events, perhaps leaving some occurrences out because they are from some perspective insignificant, and perhaps emphasizing others. In a series of events, a car crash takes a split second. A narrative account, however, might be almost entirely about the crash itself and the few seconds leading up to it. 

David Bordwell  in his essay, Three Dimensions of Narrative, splits the 'narrative' into three areas:

1. "...the story world: its agents, circumstances and surroundings..."
2. "...plot structure, the arrangement of the parts of the narrative..."
3. "...narration, the moment-by-moment flow of information about the story world."

http://www.mediaknowall.com/as_alevel/alevkeyconcepts/alevelkeycon.php?pageID=narrative
http://www.slideshare.net/petefrasers/narrative-theory-hand-out-copy
http://www.davidbordwell.net/blog/2014/01/12/understanding-film-narrative-the-trailer/

What is representation?
"The meaning of an event...does not exist until it has been represented...We’re talking about the fact that it has no fixed meaning, no real meaning in the obvious sense, until it has been represented. And the representations – since they’re likely to be very different as you move from one person to another, one group or another, one part of society or another, one historical moment and another – just as those forms of representation will change, so the meaning of the event will change."  (Stuart Hall)

http://www.mediaknowall.com/as_alevel/alevkeyconcepts/alevelkeycon.php?pageID=represent

• Karl Marx and Antonio Gramsci – Marxist perspectives

Karl Marx was interested in power.  He did a lot of work thinking about how societies are structured and how they are unfair.  His main idea was that the masses (he called them the proletariat) were controlled or dominated by the elite (the bourgeoisie).  The powerful elite (bourgeoisie) own the means of production and therefore they have power over the workers (proletariat).  This unfair social dominance serves the elite but it is exploitative of the workers and society is kept like this because it suits those at the top.  The main way this is done is through the superstructure of society (the way people are influenced) namely religion, education, law, politics.  He called all this stuff the ‘ideological state apparatus’.  If this didn’t work, then the bourgeoisie would crush their working classes using the military state apparatus like the army and the police.

Although print and cinema were around when Marx was writing, the media was less prolific than it is now and lifestyle advertising was not in full swing – he doesn’t focus on the media all that much although he does consider propaganda.  Gramsci took his ideas on in the 1920s and the Birmingham School (Hall and Williams) took them on again in the 70s and 80s… These Marxist media theorists applied some of Marx’s key ideas to the mass media – especially ideas about ideological influence (HEGEMONY).

This idea of Hegemony is very important to representation theory because the way people and groups are represented and the messages and ideology we receive as the mass audience could influence public opinion.  For example, in some right wing news media (such as the daily mail) we often see pretty negative representations of immigrants… Shows like ’24’ produced by Fox (part of News Corp International) often depict asian and muslim people as potential terrorists.  It is important to interrogate how such ideologies serve the elite and influence the masses.

Let’s have a look at Top Boy (produced for Channel 4).  What do we know about Channel 4?  In what what can a Marxist reading of this text help us understand it in a fuller and enriched way?

• The Male Gaze – Laura Mulvey – Feminist Theory – Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema – Written in 1975

The cinema apparatus of Hollywood cinema puts the audience in a masculine subject position with the woman on the screen seen as an object of desire. Film and cinematography are structures upon ideas. Protagonists tended to be men. Mulvey suggests two distinct modes of male gaze – “voueuristic (women as whores) and fetishistic – women as unreachable madonnas”.  (Also narcissistic – women watching film see themselves reflected on the screen).  (Film texts:  Alien, Jackie Brown vs Foxy Brown…).

Here are some clips from a variety of media texts. Try applying Mulvey’s theory to these clips…

People who criticise her ideas say that she is ignoring the fact that all genders – male and female want to feel dominated and overwhelmed by the cinema experience.  Also, she ignores the fact that men are capable of ‘metaphoric transvestism’ whereby they are able to view the film from the perspective of a woman. (Thelma and Louise, The Piano, Knocked Up, Brick Lane).

• Lacan – Psychoanalysis and ‘The Mirror’

Lacan’s theory of ‘the mirror’ is an idea around the idea of identity.  He considers the point at which a person develops a sense of self and conscious identity.  He considers the point at which a child recognises their own reflection and begin to consider how others peceive them, modifying their appearence to satisfy their perceptions of how others see them.  Mulvey extends this idea when she writes about ‘the silver screen’ which she suggest operates like a metaphorical mirror; reflecting back to the female viewer representations of female identity, but these representations are not genuine reflections of the viewer but rather male perceptions of idealised femininity.

• Queer Theory – Judith Butler

Emerging out of field of Gender studies (the study of males and female roles historically, politically, socially etc).  Queer theory challenges the idea that gender – being male or female – is part of the essential self, that it is fixed, immovable – in other words Queer theory suggest that our male or female gender does not control all aspects of our identity or how we perceive other peoples identity.  In other other words gender, particularly as it is represented in performance – on TV, Film etc, is fluid, flexible depending on the context in which it is seen.   For example an audience can see Tom Cruise playing a “straight” pilot in The Right Stuff and interpret his gender, although male, as having very “queer” or “gay” attributes.   The theory developed as a way of combating negative representations of gay sexuality in the Media.  It combats the idea that people should be divided and categorised, indeed marginalised, due to their sexual orientation or practice and that a persons identity should not be limited to their sexual preference.  It asks us to consider how the media constructs gay representation. (Apply to representation of gay sexuality in Knocked up…any others? What about Graham Norton? Alan Carr? Does Post Modern Irony regarding representation of gay characters relieve the audience of burden of moral responsibility regarding evolving attitudes a more flexible idea of gender?)

• Subculture – Representation of Groups – Dick Hebdidge

In his book, Subculture and The Meaning of Style, Dick Hebdidge said that a subculture is a group pf like minded individuals who feel neglected by societal standards and who develop a sense of identity which differs to the dominant on to which they belong.  Ken Gelder lists 6 ways in which a subculture can be recognised: 1) Often have negative relationship to work 2) Negative or ambivalent relationship to class 3) Through their associuations with territory ( The street, the hood, the club) rather than property  4) Through their stylistic ties to excess 5) Through their movement out of home into non-domestic forms of belonging (social groups as opposed to family)  6) Through their refusal to engage with they might see as the ‘banalities’ of life.
Other ways of recognising a subculture might be symbolism attached to clothes, music, visual affectations  like tattoos etc.  (Examples – Ben and his friends in Knocked up representing a subculture some of the values of which Alison and as such the America she initially represents might benefit from).   Subcultural values often associated with being ‘cool’.

• Anthony Giddens – Traditionalist vs Post Traditionalist views of society

Media representations of society can be seen as traditional or post traditionalist.  Traditional societies are ones in which individual choice was limited by its dominant customs and traditions.  Whereas post traditionalist societies are one where the ideas set by previous generations are less important that those of individuals.  Post traditional societies are no longer feel so depenwere limited to time and place.  Giddens says, we are living in a post traditional society where we are much less concerned with precedents sest by previous generations and that our options are only limited by what the  law and public opinion allows.  We have replaced seen/discreet systems  with remote ‘expert’ systems, institutions and corporations.

• Bell Hooks:  Interconnectivity of race, class and gender.

Pen name of Gloria Jean Watkins.  First major work “Ain’t I a woman? Lack, women and feminity” written in 1981.  Focused on the perpetuation of systems of oppression and domination in the media paying particular attention to the devaluation of black womanhood. The idea of ‘lack’ or ‘otherness’ refers to the way that women and ethnic minorities are usually represented as ‘other’.  Their primary purpose is simply to be other than the norm (usually a white male hero).  They are therefore known more by the context of lack than by a realised or complex identity.  This theory can be linked to ideas of the monstrous feminine found in feminist analysis of literature and art.

___________________________________________________________________________

Representation of youth and teenagers

Considering Quadrophenia.

This film is great for thinking about subculture. The film looks and mods and their ‘interaction’ with the rockers. Think about how fashion, music, language, drugs and sex are used symbolically to make meaning and represent values like rebellion , anger and disillusion. Dick Hebdige said that subcultures use style to represent their resistance to the dominant ideologies of a corrupt society. They take symbols like the smart clothes or mopeds and modify or customise them to show their alternative values. Watch the film again and see if you can identify these symbols and what they represent.

Can this theory be applied to more recent films depicting youth? Watch 8Mile and think about the urban music / hip hop rap subculture. Can the symbols of this subculture be analysed in a similar way to Quadrophenia?

A2 Examination: Q1(a) and Q1(b) key lessons from examiners' comments

Opening paragraph

• State your task(s) and the aims and context of your product(s).
• Define the concept you are being asked about - e.g. 'research and planning' for Q1(a) and 'audience' for Q1(b).
• Show that you understand what the question is asking you to do.

Examples (4-5)

• Use clear and specific examples from your production(s) that have good relevance to the question.
• Analyse your examples with explicit reference to the concept you are being asked about.
• For Q1(b), analyse your examples with reference to media theory/ theorists.
• For Q1(b) you can use quotations from the theorists.
• You may be able to use theorists for more than one concept.
• Use media terminology where appropriate and state the names of any software you used.
• For Q1(a), you must write about your skills development across the two years.
• Be reflective - explain how you made choices and how those choices influenced outcomes. You can use audience feedback in assessing success (don't just use your own opinion).

Conclusion

• For Q1(a), briefly summarise your skills development.  For Q1(b) you should summarise the success of your product in terms of the concept you are being asked about.
• Return to the original question by 'name-checking' it.

Year 13 Term 3 Plan

Week 1

• Preparation for mock exam, Critical Perspectives in Media - Q.1(a) on research and planning and Q.1(b) on narrative.  Smart Notebook presentation on 'Critical Perspectives in Media'.  Materials: question paper  http://www.ocr.org.uk/Images/144693-question-paper-unit-g325-01-critical-perspectives-in-media.pdf   mark schemes http://www.ocr.org.uk/Images/144693-question-paper-unit-g325-01-critical-perspectives-in-media.pdf and exemplar scripts http://ocrmediastudies.weebly.com/exam-papers-g322g325.html  Assessment: Q&A and planned answers.
• Independent reading: http://howardschoolmedia.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Critical%20Perspectives%20in%20Media  ebook chapter 3.1 'Writing About Production' http://howardschoolmedia.blogspot.co.uk/2011/10/as-and-a2-ocr-media-studies-ebooks.html  Media in the Online Age http://howardschoolmedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/here-comes-everybody-imagine-bbc.html  (Use your notes from Term 5 last year.)
• Assessment: mock exam

Week 2

• Mock examination
• Show 'rough cuts' of films/trailers to the rest of the class, get video feedback (peer assessment) and upload video to blog with your response to the feedback (what improvements need to be made?).
• Independent work: Producers need to give in outstanding task checklists (these were emailed to you) and check that the blog lists the group roles, otherwise your research and planning work will not be assessed. Producers also need to do an updated action plan of their group's current position in terms of research and planning, construction and post production.
• Independent work: Editors need to complete the editing of 1st/2nd cuts of their film.
• All group members need to check their individual research and planning task assessment sheet and make any amendments where necessary and return to me.

Week 3

• Mock examination feedback 
• Remaining 'rough cuts' of films/trailers shown to the rest of the class, video feedback obtained (peer assessment) and uploaded to the blog with your response to the feedback (what improvements need to be made?).
• Ancillary Task 1&2 - progress update and show drafts/planning to the rest of the class for feedback (peer assessment).  Upload feedback to blog with plan of action.
• Independent work: Research into Adobe Indesign  http://howardschoolmedia.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/how-to-use-adobe-indesign-cs6-to.html
• Independent work: Evaluation Task 1 - Nine frame comparison between your film/trailer and an influential film(s)/trailer(s) http://howardschoolmedia.blogspot.co.uk/2014/03/evaluating-your-a2-coursework-guide.html  http://howardschoolmedia.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/nine-frame-evaluation-guidance.html
• Assessment: Evaluation Task 1

Week 4

• Media in the Online Age - The Virtual Revolution: "The Great Levelling" http://howardschoolmedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/virtual-revolution-great-levelling.html Watch, discuss, notes.  Further reading/research:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/virtualrevolution/makingofprog1.shtml
• Research and planning task assessment sheets to be handed back to students with suggested improvements.
• Complete final cuts of films/trailers
• Independent work: Complete redrafts of ancillary tasks 
• Independent work: Evaluation Task 4 (technology), complete and upload http://howardschoolmedia.blogspot.co.uk/2014/03/evaluating-your-a2-coursework-guide.html 
• Independent work: all students make improvements to individual research and planning work based on assessment sheet feedback.
• Assessment: Research and Planning tasks, Evaluation Task 4 

Week 5

• Show 'final cuts' of films/trailers to the rest of the class, get video feedback (peer assessment) and upload video to blog.
• Media in the Online Age - The Virtual Revolution: "Enemy of the State" http://howardschoolmedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/virtual-revolution-enemy-of-state.html  Watch, discuss, notes.  Further reading/research:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/virtualrevolution/makingofprog2.shtml
• Independent work: complete final versions of Ancillary Task 1&2.

Week 6

• Final deadline (13th Feb) to upload improved research and planning work before assessment.
• Final deadline (13th Feb) for completed film to be uploaded before assessment.
• Show final drafts of Ancillary Tasks 1&2 to the rest of the class, get video feedback (peer assessment) and upload video to blog.
• Preparation for answering Evaluation Tasks 2 (synergy) and 3 (audience feedback). You must have video copies of your short film or trailer to complete evaluation tasks 2 and 3.
• Independent work: complete Evaluation Tasks 2 and 3 http://howardschoolmedia.blogspot.co.uk/2014/03/evaluating-your-a2-coursework-guide.html  Please note that these evaluation tasks (and any improved ones) must be complete and uploaded to your blog no later than 27th February.
• Assessment: Evaluation Tasks 2 and 3.

What is 'narrative structure'?

What is Narrative Structure? 

Narrative structure is really about two things: the content of a story (i.e. what a story is about) and the form used to tell a story (i.e. how a story is told). 

Two common ways to describe these two parts of narrative structure are: story and plot.

Story refers to the raw materials of dramatic action as they might be described in chronological order in a film. 

Plot refers to the form of storytelling, or the structure the story follows. 

An example may be helpful.

If we want to analyze narrative structure, we can use Who? What? and Where? questions to look at the story or content of a movie.  ‘How?’  questions are used to examine plot structure. So, to describe the story in Star Wars, for example, we would need to answer the following questions:

·         Where is the story set?

·         What event begins the story?

·         Who are the main characters?

·         What conflict(s) do they face?

·         What happens to the characters as they face this conflict?

·         Who wins the conflict?

·         What rewards do they receive?

To describe the plot structure of the movie, we would need to answer these questions:

·         How is the major conflict in the story set up?

·         How are the main characters introduced?

·         How is the story moved along so that the characters must inevitably face the film’s central conflict?

·         How is the dramatic confrontation set up as the film draws to its close?

·         How does the film resolve most of the major conflicts set up at the outset?

From the audiences’ perspective, story and plot refer to the different ways movies construct meaning for spectators. Story is about trying to determine the key conflicts, main characters, setting, and events in a movie. Plot is about determining the stages at which key conflicts are set up and resolved. What’s interesting about most of the movies made in Hollywood is that, while the stories may change, the plot structure is virtually identical in most of the movies made by Hollywood.  

According to Bordwell and Thompson, the plot is what we explicitly see and hear while the story includes information that is inferred (suggested) to the viewer.

H O L LYWOOD AND THE CLASSICAL NARRATIVE STRUCTURE

The most common narrative structure in mainstream films is called the Classical Narrative Structure.

The Classical Narrative Structure

The Classical Narrative Structure is called this because it is the way most movies are made in Hollywood. It’s not classic because it is the oldest structure of storytelling or the best, but the most common. It is the storytelling structure in Star Wars, Buster KeatonÕs The General (1926), The Matrix (Andy and Larry Wachowski, 1999), and any number of other films we might think of.  It’s based on a three-act format that organizes the story in the following way.

Act I  The Setup

Here, we are introduced to the main characters in the story, their goals, and the obstacles they are likely to face to achieve their objectives. The main conflict in the story is introduced, as well as the major antagonist (the villain) who will stand in the way of the protagonist’s (the hero’s) objectives.

We can call Act I in a movie the Hook. It sets up the story so that the film engages the attention of the audience and suggests the story’s likely development. Act I generally takes up about one quarter of a film’s total length.

Act II  The Development

Here plot complications are added to the story. An increasing sense of urgency is created when the main characters encounter obstacles that stand in the way of their journey. The second act generally occupies the middle two-quarters of the film and it often includes a false resolution to the main conflict set up in Act I. Once the false resolution has been encountered, the action in the movie generally points inevitably toward a necessary climax.

Throughout Act II, Cause-Effect Relationships propel the main characters along. Cause-effect rela- tionships involve actions that force a reaction on the part of some character, leading to a new action and reaction, and so on.

Act III  The Resolution
In the final segment of the film, the results of the story’s main conflict come to dramatic con- frontation. This is called the Climax. It is the point where key struggles are waged and an eventual victor is determined. In Hollywood films, needless to say, the eventual victor is usually our hero.

Following the climax, Closure is introduced into the story, which simply means that all the major conflicts, issues, or ideas in the story are resolved. The so-called Hollywood ending is the most popular kind of closure in the classical narrative structure. Films with this kind of conclusion usually close with a sense that the protagonists in the film live happily ever after.

Critical Perspectives in Media Q1(b) - Concepts and Theorists

 Representation - Richard Dyer

Dyer says that when considering the representation of a media product (i.e. your media production), we should ask the following questions:

1. What sense of the world is it making?  (In other words, what representation of the world is the product making?)
2. What does it imply?  Is it typical of the world or deviant?  (In other words, what messages are the representations creating?  Are these representations and messages familiar or unusual?)
3. Who is it speaking to?  For whom?  To whom?  (In other words, who is the intended audience for this product and how do the representations attract and address them?)
4. What does it represent to us and why?  How do we respond to the representation?  (In other words, what meanings and interpretations are created by the product?  How do you and other people interpret the product?).

Remember that representation is very complex.  For people it can involve gender, ethnicity, sexuality, ethnicity, regional identity, age, age and social class and status.  These can be constructed through characteristics like appearance (e.g. hair, clothing, make-up, jewellery) , relationships, possessions, behaviour and actions, voice (e.g. tone, accent, dialect, sociolect), job, hobbies, values etc.

Representation is not just about people.  For example, you may be able to analyse the representation of places, time periods and themes (such as betrayal or love).

Also see Stuart Hall https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTzMsPqssOY

See here for exemplars for representation: http://www.ocr.org.uk/Images/179236-example-candidate-answers-from-june-2013.pdf

Genre - Daniel Chandler, Steve Neale, John Hartley, David Buckingham, Deborah Knight, Gunther Kress, Nicholas Abercrombie, Tom Ryall, John Fiske, Rick Altman, Jonathan Culler, David Bordwell

Watch the following slideshow http://www.slideshare.net/HeworthMedia/genre-theory-6920670
Which of the theorists says something about genre that connects with your own product and the points you want to make about it?

Here are some of the key points:

Chandler 

• Conventions of content and/or form
• Assumption of the 'ideal reader'
• 'Interpretive community' can share a genre

Neale

• Repetition and difference
• Guarantee of meanings and pleasure (for audience)
• Audience expectations of what a genre will provide

Hartley

• Films often have the conventions of more than one genre

Knight

• We enjoy genres because we anticipate what is going to happen

Ryall

• Genre is a structural framework for producer and viewer

Altman

• Media language (meaning) and iconography defines genres

Culler

• Genre conventions establish a 'contract' of shared understanding between creator and reader

Use these framework for analysing your own product in terms of genre: http://social.ocr.org.uk/files/ocr/Generic%20Markers.pdf

Media Language - Michael Wohl

Michael Wohl is a film maker, author and software designer.  Read his explanation of the 'language of film' and see if his examples relate to your production.
http://www.kenstone.net/fcp_homepage/language_of_film.html

His explanation of how camerawork creates meaning is very useful.  He breaks it down as follows:

• Who - the CU of a character
• What (is going on) - the MS showing a character performing actions
• Where - the LS showing the location
• When - shots that tell the viewer the overall point in the story that has been reached or the time of day or the time period
• Why - the ECU or BCU that suggests what a character is thinking
• How - MCUs of a character perorming an action or a series of CUs or ECUs of actions
• With whom - relationships and interaction (two shot, OTS shot, wide shot etc.)

He also makes some very good points about editing but he does not write so much about sound or mise-en-scene.  

Audience - Stuart Hall

Read about Hall's three interpretative codes here: http://www.slideshare.net/dphillips4363/reception-theory-presentation-833299  How did you intend audiences to interpret your product?  How did they interpret it?

Narrative - Todorov and Levi-Strauss

See here http://howardschoolmedia.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Narrative

Ideas for film narratives

• Supplication - a supplicant (sufferer) is persecuted and calls on a power for help.

Deliverance - an unfortunate person is threatened but a rescuer comes to their aid.

Crime pursued by vengeance - an avenger seeks to avenge the actions of a criminal.

Vengeance within a group or family upon their own kind.

Pursuit - someone is punished or threatened with punishment and becomes a fugitive.

Disaster - a power is defeated by a victorious enemy and overturned.

Falling prey to cruelty or misfortune.

Revolt against a tyrant.

Daring enterprise - a bold leader with an objective takes on an adversary.

Abduction

The Enigma - a question or problem needs to be solved.

Obtaining - two adversaries (e.g. solicitors) or an arbitrator and two opposing parties try to overcome each other.

Enmity of kinsman - involves a bad kinsman, or two kinsman who hate one another.

Rivalry of kinsman - an object (possibly a woman) is desired by both kinsman; only one can have it.

Murderous adultery - a betrayal of husband/wife and murderous consequence.

Madness

Fatal haste - a rash decision results in a great loss.

Involuntary crimes of love

Slaying of a kinsman

Self-sacrifice for an ideal - someone or something is sacrificed for an ideal.

Self-sacrifice for kindred - someone or something is sacrificed for kindred (e.g. family, tribe, group etc.)

All sacrificed for passion - someone or something is sacrificed for an object of passion.

Necessity of sacrificing loved ones - a hero is forced to sacrifice a loved one by necessity.

Rivalry of superior and inferior - superior and inferior rivals fight for an object.

Adultery

Crimes of love

Discovery of the dishonour of a loved one - a loved one has a guilty secret that is uncovered.

Obstacles to love - two lovers face an obstacle to their love.

An enemy loved - an enemy is loved by his/her opponent.

Ambition - a person covets something but has an adversary

Conflicts with a God

Mistaken jealousy - a person is jealous of someone's possession(s) but his jealousy is mistaken.

Erroneous judgement - a bad decision is made.

Remorse

Recovery of a lost one - someone seeks a lost person.

Loss of loved ones - a kinsman is killed.

What is narrative? A2 Exam Q1 (b)

• Narrative - You can use Todorov, Levi-Strauss, Barthes and Propp to deal with a question on narrative.  Also  the following will help you to respond.  (You don't want to simply tell the examiner what happens in the sequence or short film.  You want to explain how the story is structured and fits in with narrative theories.)

What is Narrative Structure? Narrative structure is really about two things: the content of a story (i.e. what a story is about) and the form used to tell a story (i.e. how a story is told). Two common ways to describe these two parts of narrative structure are: story and plot.

Story refers to the raw materials of dramatic action as they might be described in chronological order in a film. Plot refers to the form of storytelling, or the structure, the story follows. An example may be helpful.

If we want to analyze narrative structure, we can use Who? What? and Where? questions to look at the story or content of a movie.  ‘How?’  questions are used to examine plot structure. So, to describe the story in Star Wars, for example, we would need to answer the following questions:

·         Where is the story set?

·         What event begins the story?

·         Who are the main characters?

·         What conflict(s) do they face? (What motivates the characters to enter into this conflict?)

·         What happens to the characters as they face this conflict?

·         Who wins the conflict?

·         What rewards do they receive?

To describe the plot structure of the movie, we would need to answer these questions:

·         How is the major conflict in the story set up?

·         How are the main characters introduced?

·         How is the story moved along so that the characters must inevitably face the film’s central conflict?

·         How is the dramatic confrontation set up as the film draws to its close?

·         How does the film resolve most of the major conflicts set up at the outset?

From the audiences’ perspective, story and plot refer to the different ways movies construct meaning for spectators. Story is about trying to determine the key conflicts, main characters, setting, and events in a movie. Plot is about determining the stages at which key conflicts are set up and resolved. What’s interesting about most of the movies made in Hollywood is that, while the stories may change, the plot structure is virtually identical in most of the movies made by Hollywood.  According to Bordwell and Thompson, the plot is what we explicitly see and hear while the story includes information that is inferred (suggested) to the viewer.

The most common narrative structure in mainstream films is called the Classical Narrative Structure.

The Classical Narrative Structure

The Classical Narrative Structure is called this because it is the way most movies are made in Hollywood. It’s not classic because it is the oldest structure of storytelling or the best, but the most common. It is the storytelling structure in Star Wars, Buster KeatonÕs The General (1926), The Matrix (Andy and Larry Wachowski, 1999), and any number of other films we might think of.  It’s based on a three-act format that organizes the story in the following way.

Act I  The Setup

Here, we are introduced to the main characters in the story, their goals, and the obstacles they are likely to face to achieve their objectives. The main conflict in the story is introduced, as well as the major antagonist (the villain) who will stand in the way of the protagonist’s (the hero’s) objectives.

We can call Act I in a movie the Hook. It sets up the story so that the film engages the attention of the audience and suggests the story’s likely development. Act I generally takes up about one quarter of a film’s total length.

Act II  The Development

Here plot complications are added to the story. An increasing sense of urgency is created when the main characters encounter obstacles that stand in the way of their journey. The second act generally occupies the middle two-quarters of the film and it often includes a false resolution to the main conflict set up in Act I. Once the false resolution has been encountered, the action in the movie generally points inevitably toward a necessary climax.

Throughout Act II, Cause-Effect Relationships propel the main characters along. Cause-effect rela- tionships involve actions that force a reaction on the part of some character, leading to a new action and reaction, and so on.

Act III  The Resolution

In the final segment of the film, the results of the story’s main conflict come to dramatic con- frontation. This is called the Climax. It is the point where key struggles are waged and an eventual victor is determined. In Hollywood films, needless to say, the eventual victor is usually our hero.

Following the climax, Closure is introduced into the story, which simply means that all the major conflicts, issues, or ideas in the story are resolved. The so-called Hollywood ending is the most popular kind of closure in the classical narrative structure. Films with this kind of conclusion usually close with a sense that the protagonists in the film live happily ever after.

An example of a two paragraph point for Q1(a), A2 Exam

Question about digital technology:

For our Foundation Portfolio, we made a two minute opening to a new feature film with titles.  We used a standard definition (SD) camera but were disappointed with some of the footage which was grainy and lacked sharpness.  So, for our Advanced Portfolio film trailer, we decided to use a high definition (HD) camera.  This gave us the desired sharpness and clarity to our video but we were shocked how much space HD video took on an SD memory card.  Our card was 512Mb and it was filled up in no time!  We bought a much bigger card, 16Gb, and this provided all the storage we needed, even for HD.

 

The small SD cards are definitely an improvement on the past in terms of portability.  Our teacher showed us a camcorder that used VHS storage and it was huge!  However, we did encounter one problem because of the miniature size of digital storage; we lost our SD card and could not find it for three weeks.  This put us behind schedule and we were worried we would have to reshoot.  Eventually, we found it but I resolved to always return the SD card to the slot in the camcorder after using it in my laptop so that it would not get lost again.

Past questions for Q1(a) Critical Perspectives in Media

Describe how you developed research and planning skills for media production and evaluate how these skills contributed to creative decision making.  Refer to a range of examples in your answer to show how these skills developed over time.  (Jan 2010)

Describe the ways in which your production work was informed by research into real media texts and how your ability to use such research for production developed over time.  (June 2010)

Describe how you developed your skills in the use of digital technology for media production and evaluate how these skills contributed to your creative decision making. Refer to a range of examples in your answer to show how these skills developed over time. (Jan 2011)

Explain how far your understanding of the conventions of existing media influenced the way you created your own media products. Refer to a range of examples in your answer to show how this understanding developed over time.  (June 2011)

Describe how your analysis of the conventions of real media texts informed your own creative media practice.  Refer to a range of examples in your answer to show how these skills developed over time.  (Jan 2012)

Describe a range of  creative decisions that you made in post-production and how these decisions made a difference to the final outcomes.  Refer to a range of  examples in your answer to show how these skills developed over time.  (June 2012)

Explain how your research and planning skills developed over time and contributed to your media production outcomes.  Refer to a range of examples in your answer.  (Jan 2013)

A2 Exam - Media in the Online Age Video Summary

Here is a video that attempts to bring together the major points of many of the topics and theories that we have studied.  Remember that you can also use your case studies - e.g. Wikipedia, Google, Myspace, iPlayer etc. - to support your points.  You can also use your knowledge of the film industry in the online age.

I forgot to come back to Napster, but you can read about the site's history here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napster

A2 Examination - Q1b: What is Media Language?

Media language is how you create meaning, using technical skills such as sound, camerawork, editing and mise-en-scene.  You need to explain, using examples (one from each technical area at least), how you created meaning and how successfully this was accomplished (use feedback to evaluate your success).  See the 'key terms' tab on this blog for technical terminology that you can use.


"Media language refers to the ways in which media producers make meaning in ways that are specific to the medium in which they are working and how audiences come to be literate in ‘reading’ such meaning within the medium. For example, the ‘language of film’, print layout conventions, web design and navigation conventions in gaming.  These medium specific languages will often be closely connected to other media concepts such as genre or narrative and candidates are at liberty to make such connections to a greater or lesser extent in their answers." (OCR)

If you are writing about film language in a trailer then the following links will be useful:

http://howardschoolmedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/analysing-trailer.html
http://howardschoolmedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/02/synergy-a2-evaluations.html
http://www.kenstone.net/fcp_homepage/language_of_film.html

A2 Examination - relevant tabs

If you are in Year 13 and taking your exam this Friday, a reminder that the relevant tabs for you are:

• A2 Examination
• Critical Perspectives in Media (the title of your exam paper)
• Media in the Online Age (Q2)
• Key Concepts (Q1b)
• Representation (Q1b)
• Genre (Q1b)
• Audience (Q1b)
• Narrative (Q1b)
• Media Language (Q1b)

A2 Examination - Q1b: Audience (useful reading)

Audience theory:
http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Students/pph9701.html
http://www.mediaknowall.com/as_alevel/alevkeyconcepts/alevelkeycon.php?pageID=audience

Audience profiling:

• Age
• Gender
• Ethnicity and cultural background
• Education
• Religious and political affiliations
• Economic status
• Employment
• Sexual orientation
• Family background
• Marital status
• Group membership
• Interests 

Also use your audience feedback, focus groups and evaluations of your productions.

A2 Examination - OCR documents

http://www.ocr.org.uk/qualifications/type/gce/amlw/media_studies/documents/

Here you can find past papers, mark schemes and examiner's reports.  If you scroll down to the 'support materials' section you will find exemplar answers for your exam (G325).

A2 Examination Q1(b) - Narrative theory (formalism and structualism)

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080730010526AAeiCxA
http://www.iep.utm.edu/literary/

In literary theory, formalism refers to critical approaches that analyze, interpret, or evaluate the inherent features of a text. These features include not only grammar and syntax but also literary devices such as meter and tropes. The formalist approach reduces the importance of a text’s historical, biographical, and cultural context. (e.g. Propp, Todorov)

In literary theory, structuralist criticism relates literary texts to a larger structure, which may be a particular genre, a range of intertextual connections, a model of a universal narrative structure, or a system of recurrent patterns or motifs. Structuralism argues that there must be a structure in every text, which explains why it is easier for experienced readers than for non-experienced readers to interpret a text. (e.g. Levi-Strauss, Barthes)
Source: Wikipedia