Section A, Question B - Theoretical Evaluation of Production

Section A: Theoretical Evaluation of Production

• Section A, question 1b of the A2 exam is worth 25 marks
• You will choose to evaluate one of your pieces of coursework in relation to a media concept
• In the exam one of the following areas will be selected for you to write about:

- Genre
- Narrative
- Representation
- Audience
- Media Language

Last June's Question:

Analyse one of your coursework productions in relation to the concept of audience.

Macro

• Genre
• Narrative
• Audience
• Representation
• Media Language

Micro

• Mise en scene (costume, props, location)
• Lighting
• Camera Angle, movement, position
• Editing
• Sound

Genre

Genres are categories or types of media text. Genres are recognisable through the repeated use of generic codes and conventions:

• Iconographies
• Narrative
• Representations
• Ideologies

Which of the above codes/conventions does your c/w use and how?

Genre and Audience

• Genre offers audiences a structure of framework
• Audiences gain enjoyment from "spotting the conventions" (repetition) and making comparisons with other films of the same genre
• If a text deviates from the conventions it can confuse us, but at the same time we enjoy seeing the rules broken
• Audiences like the anticipation of waiting for predictable features

How did you use genre to offer your audience a framework? Do you think your target audience enjoyed spotting the conventions or seeing the rules broken?

Buzz Word: Stereotype

Narrative

You should aim to apply the narrative theorists which can be applied to your c/w:

• Prop - 8 character roles
• Todorov - equilibrium - disequilibrium - new equilibrium
• Barthes - 5 codes (action, enigma, cultural, symbolic, semic)
• Levi-Strauss - binary opposites (good vs evil)

Buzz Word: Verisimilitude

• All media texts tell stories. The structure of these stories is called narrative
• A story must have verisimilitude (appear to be real) in order to engage us - how does your c/w have verisimilitude?
• It might seem more obvious to apply narrative theory to a film, but if you created a magazine you need to consider the following:
• How is your magazine structured? How does the front cover lead the reader into the magazine? How does the contents page lead the reader in to the rest of the magazine?

Representation

Everything in the media is a representation - everything we see is being represented e.g regions/locations, individuals, groups, places, nations, ideas

Questions we would ask when analysing representations:

• WHO or WHAT is being represented?
• HOW is the representation created?
• WHO has created the representation?
• WHY is the representation created in that way?
• WHAT is the effect of the representation?

Consider the representations in your c/w and answer the above questions in detail.

• To maintain a representation of reality, media language elements such as lighting, music, editing, camera work and mise en scene are used. How did you use these micro aspects to create representations?
• Sometimes, representations are seen to be a deliberate attempt to create associations and ideas for the audience

Audience

• Consider: age, gender, demographic profile, socio-economic group, existing/new, lifestyle, values, attitude
• Categories A, B, C1, C2, D, E
• Is your audience mass or niche?
• What would the three reactions to your c/w be:

1. A preferred reading (your intended interpretation)
2. An oppositional reading (someone who didn't like it)
3. A negotiated reading (someone who isn't the target audience but might appreciate it for whatever reason)

• Every media text is made with a view to pleasing an audience in some way - how did you try to please your audience?
• Success is measured by the audience's response to a media text and those that do not attract and maintain an audience do not survive
• At the heart of this fact that all media texts are created in order to make money

Media Language

You will need to write about:

• Denotations
• Connotations
• Anchorage
• Micro elements

You made lots of desicions regarding the following micro aspects:

• Camera
• Editing
• Lighting
• Sound
• Mise en scene
• Special effects: visual, sound and ligthing

Choose one page or scene from your c/w and analyse the above aspects in as much detail as possible. Analyse the effectivness of each area as if you were analysing an unseen text.

Section A Question 1a Support and Guidance

Introduction: PDQ (Point Data Question)
Answer/give point of view to the question (I think my skills have developed in ………over the course of the two years/from AS to A2)

Outline briefly what you made across both years

Explain to the examiner how you are going to structure the essay


Structure
You should approach your essays using 3 stages:

1) Pre-production

2) Production

3) Post-production

(Digital technology, creativity, use of real media texts)

You need to ask yourselves the following questions:

What digital technology did you use at AS pre-production (3 examples)

What digital technology did you develop in A2 pre-production (at least 3 progression examples)



What digital technology did the students use at AS production (3 examples)

What digital technologies did you develop at A2 production? (at least 3 progression examples)



What digital technologies did you use at AS post-production? (3 examples)

What digital technologies did you develop at A2 post-production (at least 3 progression examples)

Exam Prep Section B

How do contemporary media represent different collective groups in different ways?

·         This must be the main focus of your essay

·         Diverse representations including fiction, non-fiction and self-representation

·         Harry Brown, Fish Tank, The Inbetweeners, Attack the Block, The London Riots news coverage, The Internet and self-mediation

How does contemporary representation compare with that of the past?

·         Examples needed for similarity and difference

·         Examples from the past – Quadrophenia – the film and the representation of Mods and Rockers

·         Have they changed? – Plato Quote…?

What are the social implications of different media representations of groups of people?

·         Stereotyping: What is the impact?

·         What power does the audience have to ‘resist’?

·         Propaganda, Moral Panic, youth as an empty categories, cultural hegemony, Stuart Hall and reading the texts and their messages

·         Statistics on result of these representations on attitudes and beliefs Vs the reality of the issues

To what extent is human identity increasingly ‘mediated’?

·         Increasing media = increasing mediation?

·         Representation by others/ by selves (facebook/youtube (youthtube))

·         Be critical of who is offering the representations and for what purpose?

·         Mediated: how the media shapes your world and the way you live in it

Guidance

·         Add your own personal opinion

·         What, in your opinion, is the future of representations and what are you basing this on?

·         Connections must be made between the examples/ contrasts are discussed

·         You must embed the theory into what you are saying

·         Must refer to more than one media – at least two different forms (film, print, internet)

Examiner Advice – Structure

·         Introduction – start with a quote, paraphrase it, and link to issues of identity, representation and the media. State your focus (social group and texts)

·         Historical example

·         Contemporary examples

·         Connect examples together

·         Conclusion – return to start. Prediction to the future.

·         Use referencing – name and year of publication given after first mention (e.g Giroux 1997)

·         Quote – paraphrase – critique

·         One text older than 5 years

·         Other texts should be from within the last 5 years

·         Make a prediction  for the future

·         Historical representations

– example – significance – theory – critique

·         Contemporary examples – newspapers

 – example – significance – theory – critique

·         Contemporary examples – film

- example – significance – theory – critique

Contemporary examples - TV

 - example – significance – theory – critique

·         Connections /effects

Conclusion

·         Return to the start

·         Summarise the key idea

·         Prediction for the future

·         Mass media construct representation of youth from a middle class, adult perspective, for the ideological purpose of maintaining hegemony

·         Impact of new media technologies/ internet  - more potential for self-representation; limited impact compared to mass media

Section 1a Exampler Essay

Over the two year media course we had to produce both a foundation portfolio of a school magazine and music magazine as well as an advance portfolio of a horror teaser trailer, film magazine – developing foundation skills further and a poster to advertise our trailer.

In the first year we researched existing music magazines and analysed each one so that we could gain knowledge of particular layouts, fonts and key elements that need to be contained in our production to make it successful. Research and planning allowed us to recognise ‘mastheads’ on magazines as being the most important and therefore the need to focus on a font more detailed to keep continuity with the contents page and double page spread which we also had to create.

Personally I researched ‘Rock’ magazines such as Kerrang, NME and others because I had chosen after carrying out a questionnaire to use Rock music as my theme. The real life media texts allowed me to visualise my favourite parts from each magazine – wripped sticker graphics and broken font on my own work which I then attempted to recreate within Photoshop CS4. In year one we were limited to what we could research because magazines were the only theme however, in the second year I was able to develop my ability to research real life media texts much further because we had a range of products we needed to create all under the ‘horror’ genre this time. I was able to research teaser trailers analysing my favourite and least favourite parts allowing me to plan with a mood board which I produced from a range of stills from previous horror films my ideas for my own trailer which helped me to develop my production of my products in relation to real life media texts and techniques such as restricted narration and handheld camera found in the ‘Blair Witch Project’ trailer which inspired my trailer ‘Laquem’ which is also set in the woods. Research into film documentaries like the ‘American Nightmare’ inspired me to create a product which reinforced fear and went against usual horror conventions to make it more interesting. Over the second year research became so important to achieving a product which was realistic and is now like my own distributed on on youtube as a real life media text of its own.

Real life media texts like advertising film posters were able to help me develop my Photoshop skills further because I was able to push myself with the ‘colour burn’ filters and want to create the scary atmosphere of my trailer from just an image and text which I found really fun.

Research into film magazines allowed me to develop my work from AS level so much further because I was able to produce a high standard piece of work in two weeks this year when the magazines took over 3 months last year which shows how much my skills have improves just by being able to constantly refer back to real life media texts for inspiration and even colour schemes that work well together such as black and red which in the first year I just found experimenting with. Research into horror trailers allowed me to recognise different styles of film and how we like Alfred Hitchcock could be an auteur creating new angles and ideas using generic conventions as well as unconventional representations that I have picked upon when watching films and analysing certain techniques which I have then attempted to do in Final Cut Pro when editing certain shots together to create collision cutting and changes in pace which my trailer does extremely well. I was inspired initially by the hand held camera in the trailer REC and the fact I want as an auteur to change the stereotyped representations to be able use a female psycho killer.

Research also allowed me to produce text and intertitles that shook in order to capture my audience but narrating the story slightly so the shots when together made sense. Research into types of camera movements needed were really helpful and allowed me to completely change the pace with tracking shots and handheld camera which I noticed was used in Silent Hill and American Werewolf in London which I analysed and placed on my blog for reference as some pieces of footage I wanted to recreate including the final girl representations.

Explanation / analyisis / argument -   7/ 10

Use of Examples -   6/ 10

Use of Terminolgy -   3/5

There is some sense of progression and of how examples have been selected, and some descriptions of technical skills. Progress made is described and evaluated simply. They offer mostly clear, mostly relevant and reasonable examples of digital technology in relation to creative decisions and outcomes. The answer makes basic use of relevant media terminology.

Which areas was this essay an answer for?

1) Digital technology

2) Creativity

3) Research and planning

4) Post production

5) Using conventions from real texts

Describe how you developed research and planning skills for media production and evaluate how these skills contributed to creative decision making.

Breakdown of Section A

Question 1a

• section a, question 1a of the A2 exam is worth 25 marks
• You will be evaluating your AS and A2 coursework in terms of the skills you have developed over the two years
• You will have 30 minutes to answer this question

Skills Evaluation of Production
Question 1a
Describe and evaluate your skills development over the course of your production work -  this can include the preliminary tasks, your actual c/w, ancillary tasks and any other pieces you have created in the past year

In the exam 1 or more of the following areas will be selected for you to write about:

• Digital technology
• Creativity
• Research and Planning
• Post production
• Using conventions from real media texts

What is it about?

• What did you do?
• How did you do it?
• How did your skills develop?
• All supported with specific examples
• In relation to the area(s) in the question

Representation of Young People

• "What is happening to our young people? They disrespect their elders; they disobey their parents. They ignore the law. They riot in the streets, inflamed with wild notions. Their morals are decaying. What is to become of them?" Plato 4th Century (suggests British youth has always been viewed in a negative manner)

Stereotypes

Stereotypes are social constructs

• They originate in and reflect the power relations in society because they are part of the culture's ideology
• They foster values that reinforce group and individual subordination
• They marginalise people treating them as the "other"
• They categorise people into groups whose members supposedly share inevitable characteristics, most typically negative ones

Characteristics of stereotypes

• Stereotypes are categorical and general suggesting the traits that apply to all group members
• They are inflexible or rigid, thus not easily corrected
• They are simplistic
• They are prejudgements not based on experience
• Can be conscious or unconscious

Hegemony in News Representations of Youth

• Media industries operate within a structure that produces and reinforces the dominant ideology via a consensual 'world view'
• This world view is produced predominantly by white middle class, middle aged, heterosexual men
• It is their ideas and values that infiltrate media texts and ensure that other voices do not get heard

Propaganda

• Propaganda is a form of communication aimed at influencing the attitude of community toward some cause or position
• The end result of propaganda : moral panic

What is Happening at the Moment?

• What are the social implications of these representations?

• What words describe youth and youth culture in today's media?

- Yob
- Chav
- ASBO
- Gangs
- Scum
- Trouble seekers
- Hoodies
- Aggressive
- Confrontational
- Outspoken
- Out of Control
- Wild

• What words describe old people in today's media?

- OAP
- Lonely
- Fragile
- Elders
- Critical
- Angry
- Crazy
- Stubborn

"The Youth of Today" DVD

• Less than 2% of youths in Oxfordshire have committed a crime

Press Representations

Teen Trouble (26th November 2007)

• Teenagers are a public enemy
• Parts of the media now attack teenagers
• Creates a wide gap between adults and teenagers
• The public has a view that teenagers cause most of the crime in the UK (about 80%) due to the media where in fact on 12% of crimes are committed by teens
• News of the World journalist states that "teens out of control" is a more dramatic and interesting story
• The public have a concern about teens and the media satisfies this
• Police get calls about youths where in fact most of the time they have been causing no problems
• Society doesn't accept youths as part of a community
• Adult fears are out of proportion to the real threat caused by teens
• Orders put in place such as mosquito alarms and dispersal orders
• During the Mods and Rockers era the papers were paying teenagers to be violent so they had something to write about
• Murder of 2 year old boy by two 10 year old children has changed societies opinion of youths
• In 1997 age of criminal responsibility taken down to the age of 14
• 4.2 million CCTV cameras across the country
• Impact of CCTV images makes us fear crime even more
• 6 times more likely to die falling down stairs than getting stabbed
• Cultivation theory - amount of proliferation coverage makes people believe what they see is true, which is effect creates moral panic
• Hypodermic needle theory - injected information as passive consumers, we accept everything we are told by the media. This is particularly true with older generations
• Desensitisation - because we see something so much in the media it no longer effects us which leads to the media over exaggerating
• "Generation ASBO"

Reading the Riot Acts

• IPSOS MORI Survey 2005: 40% of articles focus on violence, crime, antisocial behaviour; 71% are negative
• Brunel University 2007: TV News: violent crime or celebrities; young people are only 1% of sources
• Women in Journalism 2008: 72% of articles were negative; 3.4% positive. 75% about crime, drugs, police. Boys: yobs, thugs, sick, feral, hoodies, louts, scum. Only positive stories are about boys that died young

TV News Broadcasts

• TV was covering the riots on a round the clock basis
• An endless search for "experts" (any one with an opinion, all very negative)
• Anyone who spoke positively about the riots were shot down by the media

Rioting 2.0?

• Turning off the internet
• What role did new media technologies, particularly social networking sites play in London riots?
• Do media cause new revolutions?
• Technology and surveillance: mobile phones, CCTV, 24-hour news...

The Guardian Article: 'Broken Britain' rhetoric fuels fears about state schools

• How can you link cultural hegemony to this article?

Jessica Shepherd comments on the fact middle class attitudes are dramatically influencing how we view children in state schools "Tory "broken Britain" rhetoric has fuelled middle-class anxieties about state schools, an influential thinktank warns today". Cultural hedgemony is evident here as it is the fears of the middle class that are the concern, rather than the working class. The views of the Conservatives reinforces the views and attitudes of the middle class "Tory MPs and ministers group poverty and bad behaviour together...and risk entrenching class divisions in education even more deeply." This is stating that the opinions expressed reinforce cultural hedgemony by creating social division.

• How does the article suggest moral panic is being caused?

 The Consevatives are "playing to middle class fears and invoking 'a moral panic'" The Fabian society accused the Conservatives of  "massively exaggerated the problems in state schools" which has then lead to moral panic from the middle class. We can see that in fact the problems have been exaggerated as "While thousands of pupils come from low-income families and attend schools in deprived neighbourhoods, just a small number behave anti-socially or commit crimes".

• Can you link in McRobbies Symbolic violence theory? How?

 The article suggests that the working class have been represented in such a way as to scare the middle class, symbollically challenging their views and attitudes. The article states that David Cameron made a "comment in July that he was "terrified" by the prospect of sending his children to a local state secondary school". This clearly suuports the idea that symbollic violence is being used to reinforce cultural hedgemony "They link together issues such as bad discipline, falling standards, crime, and 'feral children' with educational standards in disadvantaged schools". State schools have been used as a symbol that links to crime and violence.

• How far do you agree with this article that governments decisions and policies are continuing to create a divide between the middle and working class? Discuss

 I agree with this article as the government are not working class, so they can't understand their issues and opinions. The government have a middle class attitude which means they are likely to reinforce their dominat idealologies in order to retain dominant idealologies. The negative representation of the working class and links between state school children with crime and anti-social behaviour from the government is obviously going to cause moral panic within the middle class as they fear a culture different from their own. This is most likely also the fears of the government.

• Between 6 and 10 August 2011, several London boroughs and districts of cities and towns across England suffered widespread rioting, looting and arson.