AS FOUNDATION PRODUCTION

G321

UNIT GUIDEIf you have any questions about these tasks please contact us on Edmodo or come and see us in MS1/2

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INTRO TO THE UNIT

For this unit you will be planning, filming, editing and evaluating the opening sequence to a new film. You will work in groups of 3-4 to do this. You will have to submit the following things:

A group preliminary filming project A research and planning blog with a selection of group and individual tasks A group final film opening sequence which includes titles and lasts a maximum of 2 minutes An evaluation made up of group / individual tasks

PRELIMINARY FILMING TASK

In your groups you must film and edit a sequence to show what your CURRENT production skills are like. There is no mark scheme for this task, instead it is a set mark. If you complete this task, each person in your group gets 15 marks towards their coursework grade. If you do not complete it, you don’t get the marks! SIMPLE!

You sequence must involve the following items to qualify for the 15 marks:

A character walking, opening a door, crossing a room and sitting down in a chair Whilst in the chair he / she has a conversation of some kind with someone else where they

both speak Correct use of the 180 degree rule Shot / Reverse Shot editing Action Match editing No continuity errors (eg no costumes changing mid sequence, or items disappearing mid

sequence from the background etc..

You should aim to finish the whole of this preliminary task within 3 lessons. You may have to spend your own time editing in order to get this finished.

PRELIMINARY TASK EVALUATION – INDIVIDUAL

Once it has been uploaded to your blog you should all write INDIVIDUALLY about your prelim task, discussing the following things:

How filming went How editing went

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Problems you encountered Strengths of the prelim Weaknesses of the prelim What you will remember to do the same next time What you will remember to differently next time

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RESEARCH AND PLANNING – AN OVERVIEW

Your individual blog should be a comprehensive and creative demonstration of your research and planning skills.

Some tasks are to be done individually but some can be done as a group. On each relevant task page it has been highlighted in bold what tasks or parts of tasks should be done as a group and uploaded to everyone’s blog within that group.

It is also important to note that NONE of the work on your blogs should be copied and pasted from these or any other website as not only is this plagiarism, it is likely to be spotted by your teachers or external moderators and could result in you, and possibly the rest of your group being disqualified from the coursework element and / or removed from the course entirely (this has happened before!). Use the internet for inspiration and research and write your work in your own words with your own examples.

MARK RESEARCH INTO SIMILAR PRODUCTS & TARGET AUDIENCE

ORGANISATION OF ACTORS, COSTUMES, PROPS AND LOCATIONS

SHOTLISTS, SCRIPTS AND STORYBOARDS

TIME MANAGEMENT PRESENTATION OF RESEARCH & PLANNING

16-20 Marks

Excellent research into similar products and a potential target audience

Excellent organisation of actors, costumes, props and locations.

Excellent work on shotlists, scripts and storyboards

Excellent time management skills

Excellent level of care in the presentation of research and planning

12-15 Marks

Good research into similar products and a potential target audience

Good organisation of actors, costumes, props and locations.

Good work on shotlists, scripts and storyboards

Good time management skills

Good level of care in the presentation of research and planning

8-11 Marks

Basic research into similar products and a potential target audience

Basic organisation of actors, costumes, props and locations.

Basic work on shotlists, scripts and storyboards

Time Management may not be good

Basic level of care in the presentation of research and planning

0-7 Marks

Minimal research into similar products and a potential target audience

Minimal organisation of actors, costumes, props and locations

Minimal work on shotlists, scripts and storyboards

Time Management may be very poor

Minimal care in the presentation of research and planning

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RESEARCH AND PLANNING MARK SCHEME

RESEARCH INTO GENRE – INDIVIDUAL TASK

You should research the film genre that your group intends on working in. You should discuss the following points, finding screen grabs / posters / images / videos to illustrate your points.

Conventions of the genre (colours, images, locations, props, costumes, music, fonts, characters, etc)

Conventional actors / directors / companies that work mainly in that genre Themes that tend to be tackled in films of that genre eg revenge, love etc Why audiences enjoy watching films of that genre. What gratifications do they gain from the

genre? Famous examples of films of that genre

To push for A/B grades in this task, aim to include lots of terminology, and perhaps one or two theories such as Steve Neale, Rick Altman etc..

CONVENTIONS OF OPENING SEQUENCES – INDIVIDUAL TASK

You should show knowledge of what the conventions of opening sequences are (eg institutional logo, title, credits, intro to characters, narrative enigma etc). For each convention you come up with you should give a visual example from a film (clip / image) to back up your point.

To aim for A/B grades in this task, you should aim to include lots of terminology, and perhaps even an explanation of the function of each convention, (eg why does narrative enigma get included in the opening)

ANALYSING FILM OPENING SEQUENCES – INDIVIDUAL TASK

You should analyse at least 3 film openings on your blog. They should be from a similar genre of film to the one you intend on working in.

You should embed the opening sequences you are analysing IF POSSIBLE into your blog along with a title of the film and year of release to make it clear what you are analysing. As well as embedding the video you should take screen grabs of parts you discuss and embed those too. For each film you need to make sure you don’t describe what is happening in each opening, but instead are making analytical comments about the following features using key media terminology

Camera movement, shots, angles Editing transitions, special effects, titles / graphics Mise-En-Scene (colour, costume, props, location, facial expression etc) Sound (music, dialogue, sound effects, ambient noise etc) Representation – how the characters are represented through these technical elements above Dominant Ideologies – what ideologies are presented in the opening sequence, are they

dominant ideologies or not?

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What conventional elements of an opening sequence have they included / not included? Genre of the film and how this is signified in the sequence through the embedding of codes (eg

objects, colour, locations etc) Audience reception – how might an audience react to or view the sequences (uses &

gratifications) + why it is engaging etc Narrative – How have the company signified the possible narratives of the film in the first two

minutes? What signs and signifiers are there that indicate narrative? What narrative enigmas have been included?

To push for A/B grades in this task, aim to include a large amount of accurate media terminology, and references to at least two theories (eg Todorov, Propp etc)

REPRESENTATION IN FILMS OF THAT GENRE - INDIVIDUAL

Representation means the “way an individual or a group is shown to the audience in a media text.” Many groups of people are often represented in a stereotypical way, or under-represented in media texts. As an individual you should discuss the representation of some of the following social groups in the film genre you are working in. The representation will vary from genre to genre. Discuss how they are portrayed to an audience through the use of narrative, camera, editing, sound, mise-en-scene. Do the films of your genre represent these groups mostly in a conventionally stereotypical way or an unconventional, non stereotypical way? Why do they do this? Find examples of real characters from real films that back up your ideas. You could discuss other groups of people as well eg disabled people, british people, northerners etc..

Different Genders – men often seen as masculine, brave, dominant, powerful, good at labour, aggressive, technical, intelligent, physical etc. Women often represented as feminine, weak, powerless, submissive, good at caring, maternal, emotional etc

Different Ethnic Groups – white people often represented as intelligent, dominant, powerful, good, innocent. Other ethnic minorities represented as weaker, subservient, powerless, criminals, guilty, etc

Different classes – Very dependent on the genre. Working class people often either underrepresented in most films, OR less powerful, poorer, criminalistic, aggressive, lazy. Middle classes often represented as being good, clever, kind, caring, happy.

Different ages – Children often represented as sweet, innocent, reliant on others for care. Teenagers often represented as aggressive, lazy, criminals, violent. Adults often represented as clever, hard working, good, happy, powerful. Older people are often represented as weak, stupid, confused, reliant on others.

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To push for A/B grades in this task, aim to include at least one theory (eg Laura Mulvey) and lots of media terminology.

CREDIT SEQUENCES – INDIVIDUAL

You should watch some opening credits / titles / logos to see what real film companies have done. Write about your research using videos / images to demonstrate your points. How have real companies used elements such as sound, font, background to enhance their title sequences?

To aim for A/B grades in this task, include titles / credits from a range of different texts in a range of different styles.

INITIAL IDEAS – INDIVIDUAL

As an individual you should have a post which shows ALL of your own individual initial ideas for a film opening sequence. These ideas could be very diverse. So you could include the following:

Possible genres Possible storylines Possible characters Possible locations Possible titles

YOUR GROUP FILM IDEA – GROUP TASK

As a group you need to have a detailed version of your group’s final film idea. This should include:

Title of the film Genre of the film Age Rating of the film Characters who would be in the film (names, type of person, role in storyline, job, personality,

what actors would play them etc) Location / Setting Storyline including beginning, middle and end of the film.

To aim for A/B grades for this task, make sure you include lots of details

YOUR GROUP OPENING SEQUENCE PITCH – GROUP TASK

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As a group you need to have a detailed plan for what your opening sequence will look like. You will use this plan to pitch your idea to the class. This detailed pitch will include:

Exactly what is going to happen on screen Sketches of the way the titles are going to look (font, style, colour etc) Ideas for music / sound

To push for A/B grades in this task, make sure you include lots of details

DESCRIPTION OF YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE – INDIVIDUAL

For this section you must identify your target audience in as much detail as possible. When describing your target audience for your film you need to include as many of the following as possible:

Age Gender Social Demographic (eg ABC1C2DE) Occupation Hobbies & interests Style Personality Media Grouping - fave films, fave tv. favourite artists / music What Uses & Gratifications will your film offer to your audience?. Remember that in the Uses &

Gratifications theory, Blumler & Katz suggest that a text must “gratify an audience’s needs” that might include offering them entertainment, information / education, escape, social interaction, opportunities for identification. Discuss this theory and how your film plans on offering these to an audience.

What solutions will your film offer to their problems (Utopian theory). Remember that in Richard Dyer’s Utopian Solutions theory, he suggests that audiences often have various problems in their lives and they will be more attracted to media texts that offer them solutions to these problems. So confusion might be solved by clarity, boredom might be solved by entertainment, isolation might be solved by a sense of community and loneliness might be solved by social networking. Discuss this theory and how your film plans on offering these things to an audience.

To push for A/B grades in this task, aim to include at least 2 theories

AUDIENCE QUESTIONNAIRES / FEEDBACK FROM YOUR PITCH– GROUP TASK

For this task you need to work in groups to create a questionnaire to hand out to your target audience to help you work out what they think of your film idea when you pitch it. Ideally your questions should fit on one side of A4 and have both multiple choice questions and spaces for more open answers to particular questions.

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You should have 2-3 questions that allow you to find out who it is filling in your questionnaire (e.g. age, gender, etc)

You should then sum up your film opening sequence clearly and simply for them.

You should have 4-10 questions asking them what they think of your idea. You might suggest some different locations and ask them their favourite. You might have pictures of several different possible main actors and ask them to choose their favourite. You might show them different film titles and get them to choose the best.

Once printed you will ask approximately 6-10 people to fill the questionnaire in. The filled in questionnaires need to be scanned in, and uploaded on to all of your blogs.

Example of multiple choice question

Which of these locations would be good for a film about lost love? (choose your favourite)

Theme Park Bar / Restaurant School Park Beach

Example of an open question

Describe below what you think of our film opening idea including suggestions about what we could improve.

To push for A/B grades in this task, make sure your questionnaires ask relevant useful questions, where the answers will actually help you make key decisions in your production work.

FOCUS GROUP - GROUP TASK

For this task as a group you need to get a group of people together (preferably from your target audience profile) to have a filmed group discussion as research. You will have around 5 key questions prepared that are “open” questions allowing for descriptive answers and then film the group discussing what their opinions are about these questions.

To do this you will need a camera and tripod, a quiet room, and 3-6 people willing to take part on camera (not people from your group). Ideally they will be people from your target demographic.

Good questions to ask are things such as:

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Here is our idea (tell them about it), what do you think about it? What could be improved? What locations do you think would be good to film in? Where should we end our opening sequence to help make the audience want to see more? What are your favourite film opening sequences and why? Is there anything you hate in particular film opening sequences and why?

And so on…

You need to make sure the camera is as close as possible to the group to pick up their audio clearly.

This focus group video then needs to be uploaded into Final Cut (edited if you wish) and then exported as a video clip and uploaded to You Tube, before being embedded in your blogs.

To push for A/B grades in this task, make sure you ask relevant, engaging questions that will ensure the focus group give useful answers in their discussions. Don’t be afraid to prompt your participants for more detail during the focus group.

ANALYSIS OF AUDIENCE RESEARCH RESULTS - INDIVIDUAL

Then as an individual you need to sum up the results of your questionnaire and focus group. You should do this in the following ways.

Create bar charts or pie charts to show some of your results Write about what you have found out & say how you are going to use it to help you develop

your plans

Your charts could show the percentages of what answers were given. Charts will only be possible for the questions you asked that had multiple choice answers. You can also write about how the results will influence you in the making of your film opening sequence. As a result of this analysis you may have to upload a “final film idea” or “updated film opening idea” showing how you have developed or changed your idea based on their feedback etc..

See below for an example about how to analyse results.

Example of Chart and Writing about results

Question: What is your favourite location idea for our film opening?

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4 people chose a theme park

Theme Park Park

Beach School

5 people chose the park

The analysis of your questionnaires / focus groups can be written directly in to your blog with charts embedded as pictures, or it could be a Word or Scribd document..

COMMUNICATING THE GENRE OF OUR TEXT – GROUP / INDIVIDUAL TASK

You need to explain how your group intends on communicating the genre of the film in the opening sequence. What genre signifiers will you include? How will you use media language to help communicate the genre? You might discuss particular camera shots, sounds, editing transitions, colours, locations, costumes, lighting, text, font, music, dialogue etc.

To push for A/B grades in this task, aim to include some theories about genre such as Rick Altman, Robert Stam, Steve Neale and use lots of terminology such as conventions, genre signifiers etc..

NARRATIVE IN OUR OPENING SEQUENCE – GROUP / INDIVIDUAL TASK

You need to explain what narrative techniques you are planning on using in your opening sequence and why. For example, will you be following Todorov’s narrative structure or challenging it? How? Why? Will you be including Propp’s character types or challenging them? How will you make them clear? Why?

To aim for A/B grades in this task, try to also include other narrative theories such as Levi Strauss’ Binary Opposites, Barthes’ Enigma codes etc..

ENGAGING THE AUDIENCE – GROUP / INDIVIDUAL TASKWrite a post explaining how / why your film opening sequence will be instantly engaging, particularly to your target audience? How will you use media language to help communicate the

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The results here show that the beach was by far and away the most popular choice for a location for filming so we intend on basing most of our filming on Brighton Beach. However we will also include

Theme Park Park

Beach School

4 people chose a school

genre? You might discuss particular camera shots, sounds, editing transitions, colours, locations, costumes, lighting, text, font, music, dialogue etc.

To push for A/B grades in this task, aim to include some theories such as Uses & Gratifications, Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, Young and Rubicam, Barthes’s Enigma codes, etc..

REPRESENTATION IN OUR OPENING SEQUENCE – GROUP / INDIVIDUAL TASK

Write a post explaining how your group intends on representing particular people in your opening sequence. You can discuss particular social groups such as teenagers, adults, working class people, women, men, people from ethnic minorities, disabled people, gay people etc (obviously only choose to discuss the groups of people relevant to your opening sequence!). Why have you chosen to represent people in this way? How will you use media language to help communicate the representations? You might discuss particular camera shots, sounds, editing transitions, colours, locations, costumes, lighting, text, font, music, dialogue etc.

To push for A/B grades in this task, aim to include some theory such as Steve Neale, Laura Mulvey, Angela McRobbie, and lots of terminology.

STORYBOARDS – GROUP TASK

As a group you should complete a full storyboard for your film opening sequence to illustrate exactly what’s going to happen throughout the 2 minutes. Your storyboards must be detailed and include shot descriptions, shot durations, sound, music, and editing transitions. Previous students have had storyboards with up to 15 pages! The storyboards should be hand drawn, and preferably coloured in, on blank templates available from us, and then scanned in and uploaded as images to all your blogs.

Make sure you use the right terminology on your storyboards. Try and show off as many of your skills as possible (as long as its appropriate for the script). For example:

Camera – close ups, medium shots, long shots, low angles, high angles, eye level shots, aerial shots, canted angle, shallow and deep focus, loose frame, tight frame, over the shoulder shot, pan shot, tracking shot, tilt, POV shot, pull focus, two shot, zoom, reverse zoom

Editing – Action match, cut, cross cut, dissolve, eyeline match, fade, graphic match, jump cut, slow motion, wipe

Sound – ambient sound, asynchronous sound, contrapuntal sound, diegetic sound, non diegetic music, high / low dynamic range, pitch, rhythm, dialogue, voice over

Mise-En-scene – low / high key lighting, use your drawing to make the following things clear – facial expression, body language, colour, costume, props, locations,

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To push for A/B grades in this task, make sure you are really matching the drawings to your show descriptions, that you have filled in all the boxes in detail, and that your storyboard makes it ultra clear how your opening sequence is going to look on screen.

SCRIPT - GROUP TASK

As a group, you must create a full script for the opening sequence of your film. This must be laid out like a professional script (you can see an example extract below). It should include the dialogue, stage directions, short descriptions of any action, and cue for music / title etc

Example script layout:

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To push for A/B grades in this task, ensure that you use the correct layout / structure for a professional script (Miss Alford has shown you some) and make sure that you use the correct terminology on the script such as INT for Interior etc..

SHOOTING SCHEDULE – GROUP TASK

As a GROUP, produce and upload a schedule of your filming which shows in detail what shots / you will be filming when. A shooting schedule cannot just say “filming park scenes”. It must be broken up into particular shots you know you want to get. It will normally include the day, time, shot description, location, people involved. You could organise this in a table and then upload it to your blog. It might involve something like this (although obviously yours will be much longer!):

DAY / TIME LOCATON SHOT DESCRIPTION PEOPLE NEEDEDTuesday 4th October AM

Exterior - Park Long shot of roger running through park

Roger, all crew

Long shots of Roger sitting on park benchClose Ups of Roger sitting on park bench reading

Tuesday 4th October PM

Interior – Teenage bedroom

Tracking shot over messy bedroom floor

Roger, Lucy and all crew

Medium Shot of Lucy lying on bedLong shot of Roger talking to Lucy on bed

COSTUMES & PROP LIST – GROUP TASK

Write and upload a detailed list of costumes / props that you will need for all of the scenes you are filming. Don’t forget to think about all of the characters and scenes, all of the extras, all the set decoration needed for all the locations etc.. Include images where possible to make your ideas ultra clear.

To push for A/B grades you could add a short explanation for many of the items on your list to say why you have chosen them / what they add to your piece.

LOCATIONS RECCE - GROUP

A recce means, a trip to a place to see what it is like and if it is suitable. As a group make a detailed list of the locations you are going to use including the following for each one:

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Pictures / Video clips of the locations from different angles Information about why you want to use it as a location and for what scenes Information about access difficulties, restrictions, rules for using each location (eg lack of power

points, lots of members of the public, dangerous hazards etc) Information about how you will overcome any of these problems or ensure against any

danger / health & safety issues etc..

To push for A/B grades in this task, aim to write in lots of detail, and you may even wish to include some locations you decided against, giving reasons for your decisions etc.

CONTINGENCY PLAN - GROUP

As a group, you should have a plan for your film in terms of what you will do if things go wrong. You must describe what you will do if these things occur, or how you will try and prevent them from happening in the first place. Common problems to consider include:

Cast dropping out / being unreliable / being bad actors Crew being late / getting lost Locations not letting you film there / being too noisy / having too many people in the

background Battery running out on the camera Continuity problems (eg filming one scene with a character wearing a shirt with two buttons

done up, and then accidently filming another scene with the character where he has three or four buttons done up.

OPTIONAL FURTHER RESEARCH AND PLANNING BLOG IDEAS – GROUP / INDIVIDUAL

On top of all of these compulsory research and planning tasks, you could choose to include more tasks to further demonstrate your individual skills. Here are some ideas for other posts you could include:

Research into particular directors and their style of film making Analysis of scripts Analysis of student made opening sequences Discussion of what makes a good / bad student made opening sequence Auditions Rehearsals Release forms for actors / extras (templates available on Edmodo) Health & Safety and Risk Assessment discussions / concerns / forms (templates available on

Edmodo) Moodboards Research into lighting / lighting test shots Costume & Make up tests

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Practise using the Live Type software Problems during filming or editing and how you solved them How you got the shots you wanted Experiments you did with editing techniques or effects What has been tricky / easy that week How your time management has been How you are working as a group Rough drafts of the finished opening sequence / credits What people think of your opening sequence so far, suggestions they make etc

PRODUCTION AND EDITING OF YOUR FILM OPENING SEQUENCE – GROUP TASK

You must film and edit a sequence which is the titles and opening of a new fiction film lasting a maximum of 2 minutes. You should be aiming to start filming as soon as possible after completing your research. All the footage used must be your own and music must be copyright free.

You will be marked on your ability to:

Produce a piece that has a clear genre and is appropriate as an opening sequence Cast appropriate actors Use a variety of appropriate and interesting shot sizes and angles Use a variety of appropriate and interesting camera movement Select appropriate and interesting mise-en-scene like colours, costumes, locations, props etc Use a variety of appropriate and interesting film editing techniques, transitions and effects Select appropriate and interesting sound including dialogue, music and sound effects Select appropriate and interesting titles and credits Contribute to all aspects of group production and editing

Hints and Tips Find interesting and unique locations (avoid using the school like the plague unless your film is

specifically about school kids!) Cast appropriate people of the RIGHT AGE AND LOOK. There is nothing worse than a 17 year

old trying to play a bank manager or a teacher or spy etc Cast someone who can really act or is really confident in front of the camera because there is

also nothing worse that someone with stilted dialogue or who clearly sounds cheesy or false Find places with beautiful light, or get some lights to make a place beautiful Don’t forget to dress your set. That means not just turning up and filming, but instead

remembering to arrange furniture, or add props, change colours etc Experiment with editing effects but don’t make it too cheesy! Your titles are ALL IMPORTANT. Don’t just stick them on a black screen at the end in a standard

font. Think about where they are going to appear and when. Choose a font that signifies

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something about the genre, and using editing / animation to make them interesting and engaging

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EVALUATIONS – GROUP / INDIVIDUAL

MARK UNDERSTANDING OF FORMS AND CONVENTIONS, REPRESENTATION, TECHNOLOGY, INSTITUTIONS & AUDIENCES

REFERENCE TO CHOICES & OUTCOMES

UNDERSTANDING OF DEVELOPEMENT FROM PRELIMINARY TO FULL TASK

COMMUNICATION USE OF ICT AND DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY IN EVALUATION

16-20 Marks

Excellent understanding of issues around forms & conventions, representation, technology, institutions and audiences in relation to the production

Excellent ability to refer to the choices made during the production process and the outcomes of these choices

Excellent understanding of their development from the preliminary to the full task.

Excellent ability to communicate

Excellent skills in the use of digital technology and ICT in the evaluation

12-15 Marks

Good understanding of issues around forms & conventions, representation, technology, institutions and audiences in relation to the production

Good ability to refer to the choices made during the production process and the outcomes of these choices

Good understanding of their development from the preliminary to the full task.

Good ability to communicate

Good skills in the use of digital technology and ICT in the evaluation

8-11 Marks

Basic understanding of issues around forms & conventions, representation, technology, institutions and audiences in relation to the production

Basic ability to refer to the choices made during the production process and the outcomes of these choices

Basic understanding of their development from the preliminary to the full task.

Basic ability to communicate

Basic skills in the use of digital technology and ICT in the evaluation

0-7 Marks

Minimal understanding of issues around forms & conventions, representation, technology, institutions and audiences in relation to the production

Minimal ability to refer to the choices made during the production process and the outcomes of these choices

Minimal understanding of their development from the preliminary to the full task.

Minimal ability to communicate

Minimal skills in the use of digital technology and ICT in the evaluation

You can use : Audio podcast / commentary, Filmed discussions, Prezzi presentations, Powerpoint Presentations, blog entries including links, pictures and embedded video links etc. All must be uploaded to your blog. You can choose to work as a group to answer these questions, or split them up and work on a few each. However you must make it clear WHO in the group has contributed to answering each question so we can mark you accordingly.

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EVALUATION QUESTIONS

The bullet points are just there to give you some things to think about to help you get started. You don’t have to include all of them, and you may choose to include other information too:

1) In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? Show you understand what the conventions of an opening sequence are Discuss the conventional opening sequence elements you have chosen for your opening

sequence (what are they and why have you chosen them?) Discuss any unconventional elements of an opening sequence if you have chosen them for

your opening sequence (what are they and why have you chosen them?) Show you understand what the conventions of your chosen genre are Discuss the generic conventions you have chosen Discuss any generic conventions you have challenged or developed

To push for A/B grades, make sure you include a variety of terminology, and at least two theories such as Todorov, Steve Neale, Propp, Barthes

2) How does your media product represent particular social groups? What social groups appear in your opening sequence (eg teenagers, women, men, elderly

people etc) What is the stereotypical representation of these social groups in the media? How has your opening sequence either represented them in a conventional or

unconventional way? (you might look at their appearance, clothing, language, actions, camera angles, editing etc)

Why have you chosen to represent them in either a conventional or unconventional way? (eg so that audiences can easily understand what is going on, can identify with the characters, will be shocked, will be interested etc)

To push for A/B grades, make sure you use a variety of terminology, and at least two theories such as Mulvey, McRobbie, Propp etc

3) What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why? Show you understand what film distribution is and why it is so important Discuss two different companies that might be suitable to distribute your film. What films

have they already distributed? Do they focus on niche or mainstream films, or a particular genre?

Why would they be suitable to distribute your film? What kind of distribution would you expect them to do for you?

To push for A/B grades, make sure you use a variety of terminology, and give detailed reasons for the choices of institution you discuss

4) Who would be the audience for your media product? Discuss who your target audience are in detail including age, gender, other favourite films,

social demographic (class, income etc)

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Discuss some of the research you did to find out more about your target audience. What did you find out about them?

To push for A/B grades, make sure you use a variety of terminology, and the Young and Rubicam theory

5) How did you attract/address your audience? Discuss what you found out from your audience research? How did you tailor your product based on what the audience wanted? How have you made the genre of the film clear to the audience in the opening sequence? How does your opening sequence engage an audience and make them interested in

carrying on watching? What uses & gratifications have you offered your audience? What about utopian solutions? What did your audience think about your opening sequence and how do you know? Have

you done focus groups since finishing? What did they say?

To push for A/B grades, make sure you use a variety of terminology, and at least two theories such as Uses & Gratifications, Maslow, Young and Rubicam, Barthes, Todorov, Neale etc

6) What have you learned about technologies from the process of constructing this product? Discuss what you have learnt about how useful the following technologies are, what you

can do with them, and why they are a popular choice for film makers / people in general.- Digital cameras- Final Cut Express- After Effects (if you have used it)- Green Screening / Chroma Keying (if you have used it)- Photoshop (if you have used it)- Blogging- You Tube / Facebook / Twitter- Scribd / Slideshare / Wordle

To push for A/B grades, make sure you use a variety of terminology, and try and discuss the strengths and weaknesses of each piece of technology you discuss.

7) Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product? What skills did you learn when you did your preliminary task? (filming, editing, sound,

directing, writing, planning, storyboarding, scripting etc) How have you used or developed these skills in your full task What were the weaknesses of your preliminary task? How have you ensured that your final piece does not have those weaknesses? What have you learned overall about practical work from doing these two tasks? What is

essential for being able to make a good practical piece?

To push for A/B grades, make sure you use a variety of terminology, and give a range of specific examples from your prelim task and your finished opening.

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BEFORE YOU FINISH

CHECK all your posts on your blog are in roughly the right order, including making sure that you have your finished opening sequence embedded at the end, and then the 7 evaluation questions embedded as the last posts.

Make sure all the posts appear as you want them to appear, and that the font is easy to read against the background

Make sure that Mrs Fisher / Miss Alford have the correct version of your finished opening sequence for the examiners DVD.

CONGRATULATIONS YOU ARE FINISHED!

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80-100 A70-79 B60-69 C50-59 D40-49 E0-39 U