GCSE MEDIAControlled Test - Guidance Tips

General Points•The exam will be 1hour and 30 minutes long

•The exam will be held on Thursday, June 14th at 1:30 pm

•Each question is worth 15 marks and you should spend approximately 20 minutes on each question.

•You should bring design equipment such as drawing and colouring pencils, a ruler and an eraser in order to answer question 4.

•NOTE: These notes are designed to be comprehensive; they are merely designed to start you off and provoke some ideas.

Institution identified

Expectation to use conventions

Narrative consideration

Audience identified

Mise-en-scene,

realisitc - not the desert!

Character consideration

Consider challenging stereotypes

Before 9pm!

Marketing

New and e-media = website!

BE CREATIVE!

The Scenario• The scenario you are provided with gives you a situation that requires

your expertise. In reality, it is a reminder that you are expected to respond to the questions in role; in other words, you are the representative for the Crime Channel and should write your answers in the appropriate style.

• The scenario also provides you with useful bits of information that will help you, such as:

• The crime channel is a satellite and cable channel

• ‘some say it now lacks originality and that main characters are often boring’

• suitable for a pre-watershed audience

• AND

• your ideas must have an engaging storyline, full of suspense

• take place in realistic settings

• convincing and interesting characters

Question 1• Will test your knowledge and

understanding of crime drama. Helpful points to consider for planning your question 1 response:

• being able to define TV Crime genre

• know the codes and conventions of TV Crime shows

• use of media language and concepts

• be able to use a wide range of examples from TV Crime shows to support your answer

Q.1 will test your ability of recall, select and communicate knowledge and understanding (AO1)

It will also test the ability to demonstrate research, planning and presentation skills (AO3)

Question 1- Concepts and Theories

Media Language - Codes and Conventions

• Conventions - genre, sub genres, hybrid genres and common features• Narrative structure and theory - Enigmas, Todorov, Propp, binary oppositions• Character types - Hero, Detective, Anti-hero etc•Technical codes - camera shots, angles, movements, editing, sound, characters, mise en-scene, setting and locations

Audience and audience theory

• Target audience - socio-economic, demographics, psychographics•Types of audiences - family audience, niche audiences, educated audiences•Audience positioning and appeals• Popularity of crime shows• Uses and gratification theory• The effects debate - active and passive audience• Cultural capital

Institution• Channels - BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5 - Sky Channels• Scheduling - time and date, cloning, hammocking and clustering• Pre watershed and post watershed (link to audience)

Representation• Use of stereotypes particularly gender stereotyping, cultural stereotypes in crime dramas • Representation of gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity and social class• Consideration of those excluded e.g. race, disability, sexuality• Male and female gaze• Star marketing - linked to audience

Question 2 - Pitching your idea

• For your pitch you will need to remember to remain in role, using persuasive and exciting language. You need to show the examiner that YOUR TV Crime show is the BEST THING EVER!

• It is likely you will need to include:

• An appealing and suitable title

• A realistic setting and location

• A brief synopsis - make use of sub genres or hybrids!

• two brief character profiles

• REMEMBER: a family audience

Q.2 will test your ability of recall, select and communicate knowledge and understanding (AO1)

It will test the ability to demonstrate research, planning and presentation skills (AO3)

It will also test the ability to construct and evaluate your own products (AO4)

Question 3 • It is likely you will need to explain why it will be

popular with the target audience and how it meets the demands of the brief

• rationale for your pitch - cross referencing the brief and to your pitch

• how do you plan to challenge stereotypes?

• what techniques have been used to appeal to a family audience - application of media theory to justify audience appeals

• what time it will be shown? (considering pre-watershed brief) - linking back to audience appeals

• marketing techniques you plan to use (TV spot trailers, poster, website, competitions, social networking etc)

Q.3 will test your ability of recall, select and communicate knowledge and understanding (AO1)

It will test the ability to demonstrate research, planning and presentation skills (AO3)

Question 4: Creative Task

• You will be supplied with an A3 sheet of paper to produce your design. It would be a good idea to draw your webpage leaving room to write annotations around the perimeter of your design. These would explain the decisions that you have made to the examiner.

• Your content needs to be appropriate to a family audience. The ideas you came up with for Question 2 and 3 will be a good starting point...

• You must observe the conventions of a webpage - consider how your reader will navigate the page with hyperlinks and where these hyperlinks should be placed. How should your content be arranged on the website? Research existing sites for ideas and good practice.

• Consider the advantages of the webpage format - interactive elements like moving image footage, animations, sound, music, links to other sites - and how these could be used to attract your target audience. You should also explain how these techniques could be used to present information effectively

• Link to social networking sites - how could these be used? You might also consider how to use forums or micro sites (blogs) to develop relationship between the text and audience

Q.4 will test your ability of recall, select and communicate knowledge and understanding (AO1)

It will also test the ability to construct and evaluate your own products (AO4)

Title of website and URL (address of

website)

Search engine

Institution/ Production company

Similar layout/typography/colour schemes to the show. Why?

Hyperlinks easy navigation

Embedded video clips

Date and how to watch the show

Sign in/ Register links

Synergy, cross media

Adverts relevant to audience

Forums

Audience interaction / participation through

games

Social networking

links

Institutional details, why is this here?

Legal notices and copyright

Audience polls

Newsletters

ITVITV Channel 4Channel 4 Channel 5Channel 5 Sky 1Sky 1

TuesdayTuesday6:50pm- Murder She Wrote (ITV3)8:00pm - The Sweeney (ITV4)9:00pm - Taggart (ITV3)

5pm - Rosemary & Thyme (Channel 4 + 1)

9:00 pm - CSI (Channel 5)10pm - CSI NY (Channel 5)

WednesdWednesdayay

5:50pm Heartbeat (ITV3)6:55pm- Murder She Wrote (ITV3)8:00pm - Lewis (ITV)

5pm - Rosemary & Thyme (Channel 4 + 1)10pm - The Killing (Channel 4)

9:00pm - NCIS (Channel 5)10pm - Law & Order: Special Victim Unit

(Channel 5)

ThursdayThursday

5:55pm Heartbeat (ITV3)7pm- Murder She Wrote (ITV3)8pm - Monk (ITV3)8pm - Minder (ITV4)9pm - Taggart (ITV3)10pm - Blue Murder (ITV3)

5pm - Rosemary & Thyme (Channel 4 + 1)

FridayFriday5:50pm Heartbeat (ITV3)6:55pm- Murder She Wrote (ITV3)9pm - Taggart (ITV3)10pm - Murder in Surburbia (ITV3)

5pm - Rosemary & Thyme (Channel 4 + 1)

9pm - The Mentalist (Channel 5)

SaturdaySaturday

12:20pm - Murder She Wrote (ITV)3:45 - Sherlock Holmes (ITV3)5:55pm - Agatha Christies Marple (ITV3)8pm - The Sweeney (ITV4)9pm - Lewis (ITV3)

7:55pm - NCIS (Channel 5)8:50pm - CSI (Channel 5)9:40 pm - CSI NY (Channel 5)

8pm - Hawaii 5-0

Still time to watch TV Crime shows!