A2 Media Studies

G325: Critical Perspectives in MediaA2 Media Studies

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Section A: Theoretical Evaluation of Production

You are required to answer two compulsory questions no choice.

Question 1(a) requires you to describe and evaluate your skills development over the course of your production work, from Foundation Portfolio to Advanced Portfolio.The focus of this evaluation must be on skills development, and the question will require you to adapt this to one or two specific production practices

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Section A: Theoretical Evaluation of Production

The list of practices to which questions will relate is as follows:-Digital TechnologyCreativityResearch & PlanningPost-ProductionUsing Conventions from real media texts

In your exam, questions will be posed using one or two of these categories!!

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Q1A in a nutshellDirectly asks you to evaluate how your media production skills have developed progressively from AS to A2Critical reflection on creative processes and decision making in the context of a range of productions and progress made from AS to A2.You must refer to work produced in Year 12 and Year 13 and emphasis development/progress

Past Examples of Question 1ARead over the handout. Identify Question 1AWhat topic have come up?What has not come up recently!

Section A: Theoretical Evaluation of Production

Question 1(b) requires you 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:-GenreNarrativeRepresentationAudienceMedia LanguageIn your exam, questions will be set using one of these concepts only!!

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Past Examples of Question 1BRead over the handout. Identify Question 1BWhat topics have come up?What has not come up recently!

Q1B in a nutshellThis question requires a more distanced approach a textual analysis of one production outcome as a media text to demonstrate the ability to apply a theoretical concept to the text.

Most Likely?1ADigital TechnologyResearch and PlanningPost ProductionConventions from real media texts

Creativity can come up in connection with any of the above!1BAudience Media LanguageRepresentationGenreNarrative

Sample Question (June 2012)

The Mark Scheme June 2012

Question 1A Level Three

Question 1A Level Four

Lets start small. Fill in a for one production you have done. (prelim, thriller, music video, website, digipack, magazine advert)Try to do this forabout 3 others as well

This should not be too hard- include hardware (cameras, phones for pictures/audio, computers and anything else you used) software (on your computer) and online programs, such as blogger, youtube etc.This is a difficult question and one that does not have a correct answer as such, but ought to give you food for thought.You will need to include a variety of examples- institutional research (such as on how titles work in film openings), audience research (before you made your products and after you finished for feedback), research into conventions of media texts (layout, fonts, camera shots, soundtracks, everything!) and finally logistical research- recce shots of your locations, research into costume, actors, etcStart with the genre andtype (thriller and film opening)Then list the conventions you had toinclude in order for it to be a successful product.Repeat this process for the other productions (itll be harder for the prelim as there was no set genre or form but there were some things you had to include)For the purpose of this exam, it is defined as everything after planning and shooting or live recording. In other words, the stage of your work where you manipulated your raw material on the computer, maybe using Photoshop, a video editing program or desktop publishing.All you need to do now is explain what you did