Key assessment five: practical key assessment

 Key assessment five

Time allotted: 180 minutes

How: Using the allotted time and the footage you have shot so far, use Premiere Pro to edit your footage in a manner which addresses the criteria listed below

Why: The exam board have strongly suggested that students now focus on completing coursework (30% of your overall grade) before any potential further disruption. Additionally, this rough cut you will now submit will form the basis of a contingency measure should any further disruption occur

When: after completing this practical key assessment, you will be emailed a grade reflecting your progress, as well as clear feedback on what you should focus on for your final week of filming (w/c 5th November)

Essential elements – the basics. You need all of these!

• At least three different shooting locations, including an interior and an exterior
• Three minutes to three and a half minutes in length
• Wide range of camera shots, angles and movement to interpret the music and lyrics of the song
• Shots of the artist or band to establish a clear identity/image
• Performance footage (rehearsal and/or live and/or lip synched)
• Representations of at least one social group
• Clear structure with an element of narrative (remember, 'narrative' takes many forms...)
• A range of appropriate editing techniques including variation of pace
• Graphics depicting the original name of artist or band and title of the track (NOT the actual name of the artist, but the artist you created!)

Desirable elements- B and A grade criteria. Focus on at least some of these elements where appropriate!

• Intertextuality
• Generic hybridity
• Complex representations
• Challenges stereotypes
• Looks and feels like a music video that is targeting a niche and specific audience

1st year learning conversation and work to complete remotely

A learning conversation is a chance to catch up with your teacher at key points throughout the course, and to discuss anything that is going particularly well, or anything that might be concerning you.
Most importantly, you also set goals for the coming weeks and months. Having a goal helps with organisation, and allows you to become a more effective Media Studies student.

This is earlier than we have ever done a learning conversation before. It's frankly a bit too early, but this is what needs to happen this year. 

Task one - answer these questions, and publish the answers as a blog post - this must be done before the collapsed lesson

Please copy and paste these questions in to your blog, and then answer them. The more thought and detail you go in to your answers, the more rewarding the learning conversation will be

• What do you think has gone particularly well so far this year? What are your strengths?
• What is stopping you from achieving your goals? What threats might you face, (for example not enough time, lack of organisation, pressure from other subjects...)
• Identify 3 specific targets for yourself for the rest of this year. They can be both academic and organisational goals.
• What grade do you want to achieve in media studies?
• Do you have any suggestions about the course?
• What job to you want to get after you've finished education (this can be really vague!)
• Did you do GCSE media? If so, what grade did you get?

Remote learning

• What equipment do you have access to at home, for example a computer, tablet, laptop, and/or phone?

Task two - learning conversation - this will happen (hopefully) during the first hour of the collapsed lesson

You will receive either a prompt to join a Teams meeting or you will receive a phone call to your mobile at some point during the following times. 

It will likely be during the first hour of the breakout session, but we need to allow for technical difficulties

P block (you normally have a 09:00 lesson on Mondays) - Monday 28th September 09:00 - 12:00

T block (you normally have a 13:05 lesson on Mondays) - Monday 28th September 13:00 - 16:00

R block (you normally have a 10:50 lesson on Tuesdays) - Tuesday 29th September 13:00 - 16:00

Your learning conversation will be brief (approximately five to ten minutes) and will be conducted in breakout groups on Teams. These breakout groups will be the same as the group you were working in for the suspense sequence task. If you would like to talk to me individually, then you absolutely can; please just stay on the call after I dismiss the group. 

Other tasks:

These task are mandatory, and hopefully they are fairly laid back. You will be quizzed on the key terms you have learnt when you come back to college, so make sure you're prepared! 

Task three - Barthe's five narrative codes

In media studies, we use theory to help make sense of how media products create meaning. Different things we see, hear or read in a media product all mean something for the audience, and the producer has worked hard to put this meaning in there.

Click here to read this article on Roland Barthe's narrative codes, and make notes on which each code means in your own language. Additionally, come up with one example (not used in the article) for each code.

Make sure you publish it on your blog after you've finished:

"If it's not on your blog, it doesn't exist"

Task four - the textual analysis toolkit

The textual analysis toolkit can be found under 'key resources' on the top right of the blog. You can also just click here.

The textual analysis toolkit is a list of words that you should be using every time you analyse something in media. We ask you to open it every lesson, and you are allowed to have it in front of you for almost every task (apart from some mock exams).

Find the print advertising part of the textual analysis toolkit. This will be your next subject.

Textually analyse the below image, making reference to the following terms and concepts:

• Layout and design
• Composition
• Images/photographs - camera shot type, angle, focus
• Font size, type of font (e.g. serif/sans serif), colour 
• Mise-en-scène – colour, lighting, location, costume/dress, hair/make-up 
• Graphics, logos etc.
• Language – slogan/tagline and copy 
• Anchorage of images and text
• Hermeneutic codes
• Proairetic codes
• Referential codes

Click to see image in full size

Task five- get your blog up to date and make it look nice

This is important! The posts you should have in your blog so far are:

1. An 'all about me' list of your favourite media
2. A post of abstract images
3. A post of narrative and abstract images, combined to create a narrative, with a written explanation of this narrative
4. An evaluation of your photo narrative
5. A learning conversation post (which you should have just completed)
6. A post with notes on Barthe's five narrative codes (with examples)
7. OPTIONAL - Your summer work (unless you handed it in on paper)

Exporting and submitting work

 Second years: you will use these instructions to submit your assessment

First years: you will use these instructions to submit your suspense sequence

If you want some help with editing your video at a very basic level, then click here for some tips!

1 - In Premiere, Click 'sequence', then 'render in to out'. This should be done automatically when you export, but it makes sense to trial it now.

2 - Click 'file' then select 'export' then 'media'. If it's greyed out, you need to select your sequence. So click on your sequence bar!

3 - On the window that pops up, click the blue bit and if necessary rename your project to "[YOUR FULL NAME]". Also make sure you are exporting the file to folder with all of your footage.

-IF YOU SKIP  STEP 3, IT MAY BE IMPOSSIBLE TO FIND YOUR EXPORTED FOOTAGE. DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP-

4 - Under the 'format' drop down, click 'H.264'.

5 - Then under 'preset' click 'YouTube 1080p HD'

6 - Now just click 'export' and wait for it to finish. This could take a while

7 - In your folder, there will now be a video file with your name on it

8 - Open Google Chrome, and make sure you are logged in with the same Google account you use to access your Gmail and edit your blog

9 - Open your college email, and find the email from your teacher that has a link to the submission folder (2nd years will (hopefully) know what to do already here...)

10 - Find the correct folder, drag and drop your your exported file in to it. You're done!

Examples of high end fashion adverts (print)

First year suspense sequence

 You can find the general guidelines for the suspense sequence activity by clicking here.

Please remember that the rules and timings are a little different this year, but the minimum shot requirements are identical. 

Remember, go crazy with extreme closeups! They're an effective way of positioning your target audience for maximum impact!

Googling 'extreme close up' demonstrates the ubiquity of eyes as a common and effective theme in a variety of media. Why? Because eyes resonate with audiences in a variety of ways, from quickly encoding themes of terror and misery, so effectively showing warmth and emotion. Make sure you try this effective shot out in your own film!

First year learning week week one: 3 - textual analysis/self evaluation

 

This week is part of your initial assessment. Lesson one assessed your abstract creativity. Lesson two was about how you can apply structure to abstract concepts. This lesson is an assessment of how you use written language to communicate.

What is textual analysis?

Much of Media Studies, and indeed your grade will come from the analysis of media products. We sometimes refer to this as textual analysis. A text is anything that can be read (as in 'derive meaning from'), for example a book, TV show, music video or film.

In short, 

Textual analysis...

...is how the producer (person or group who made the product)

... uses media language (shot types, camera angles, colour, editing, etc)...

...to create meaning...

...for the audience

This is media studies in a nutshell. Everything else is just gravy. And you need to get used to offering suggestions for what something means

Task one: Analyse your narrative using the following headings, using full sentences - TWO PARAGRAPHS

COLOUR

SHOT TYPE (close-up, mid shot, long shot)

FOCUS (in focus, out of focus)

FRAMING (what is included in the shot, and what is not...)

MISE-EN-SCENE (this refers to everything that is 'put in the scene', for example props, costumes, setting and so one)

Example sentences

"The bold use of red here creates a sense of power and violence, which suggests to the audience that something terrible is about to happen

My use of close up here puts the audience in an uncomfortable position. I hope that the audience may feel threatened or intimidated by this shot, though some audience members may choose to feel sympathy instead

The clear, in focus nature of this shot forces the audience to concentrate on the hand as it grips the door handle, thus heightening the anticipation of the tragedy to come

The mise-en-scene of the watch, shot in close-up here emphasises the importance of time, and communicates to the audience that time is indeed running out for Claire"

Task two: analyse a music video - ONE PARAGRAPH

Pick a music video. Any music video! Write a hot paragraph, using the headings about to explain how this music video creates meaning for its audience. It is likely to be very different from the meaning of your photo narrative!

First year remote learning week one: 2 - constructing a narrative

In your last session, you took a series of enigmatic and abstract images using just things you found in and around your house.

For this session, you will take these images, and use them to construct a narrative

Key term: narrative - the way in which a story is told

Task one: chose a story

Examples of story: choose one of these!

An uninvited guest

A misunderstanding

Looking for something 

It is totally up to you how you interpret these stories. The interpretation of a story is called a narrative

Task two: take additional images

You will need to take additional image to add to the images you have already taken. These images do not need to be abstract, and can feature people. These people could be yourself (if you use the timer function on your phone or camera), or someone else, for example a family member.

Here are some examples of shots that you can use to create suspense, intrigue and thrill your target audience:

• An extreme close-up of a face or eye
• A low angle shot of someone climbing stairs
• A POV (point of view) shot of anything you choose
• A hand gripping a door handle
• A mid shot of your performer with something out of focus in the background...
  
  

Part three: Start a new blog post, and using the photos you have taken, rearrange them to create an interesting and effective narrative 

There is no restriction on how to tell this story. You may choose to simply present your images, or you may choose to add captions. Captions will help you to tell your story. They can be straightforward (she climbs the stairs) or more poetic (Claire's turns to ice and cracks in her veins. She never makes it to the top of the stairs)

How to insert images to as blog post (from a computer)

Before you do anything, you will need to upload the photos you have taken from your phone on to your computer. If you want to upload images directly from your phone to Blogger, this is fine too!

Step 1: click the little photo icon in the post edit screen

Step 2: then click 'upload from computer

Step 3: click 'choose files

Step 4: find the folder you want and select all the images you want to upload. You can select multiple images by holding 'Ctrl' as you click (Cmd on a Mac)

First year remote learning week one: 1 - photography challenge

Welcome to remote learning! Your challenge this week is to use your phone to take images in your home. However, you are going to need to make these images as exciting and as striking and as dramatic as possible.

But how can you shoot an exciting composition in and around your house?

1) Follow this link research and read about photography 'rules' 

This will give you tips and hints as to how encode drama and excitement in your images even using limited resources!

2) Use your phones to create 15 abstract, meaningful and dramatic shots 

An abstract image does not have an immediately identifiable subject or content. It can be mysterious, artistic, confusing, emotional...

Click here to see some examples of abstract, inventive photography

And click here for some tips, tricks and suggestions of how to create mysterious abstract images

3) Extension (you don't need to do this, but if you want to, go for it!)

Choose from a list of APPS that can be downloaded on your smart phones and use the editing effects to highlight your photograph choice 

APPS TO TRY: VSCO, FOODIE, SNAPSEED, AFTERLIGHT

Next Lesson: You will be adding to your 15 abstract and mysterious images, and will use them to form a coherent narrative...

Here's a few more examples of abstract shots, which I took in the streets and parks around my house. Remember to shoot loads, be impulsive, and be experimental!

After you have finished this task, please publish your images on your blog!

Getting your footage off of your phone and on to the college computers

TL;DR: get one of these! It will make your whole life 100x easier, guaranteed!

 

The biggest immediate challenge that we see coming up with the 'new normal' (urgh) way of working is getting footage off of your mobile phones and on to the computers. Frankly the biggest advantage of working with hardware such as the Cannon cameras is that they are 'plug and play' and use universal SD cards to store data. Modern smart phones are proprietary , which means they deliberately limit functionality and compatibility in order to remain competitive in a crowded market. This means that you normally cannot just 'plug and play' your footage from your phone, even if it's an Apple branded iPhone and you are attempting to interface with the college macs. 

If only life could be simple...

Instead you are going to have to jump through some hoops. I believe that the below method is the most straightforward, so do this one first:

Method one: bring your footage in on a USB stick

This is by far the most simple method.

1: Dump your footage on to your computer at home. This should be easier, because your phone will be synced and recognised by your computer

2: Transfer the footage from your computer to your USB drive

3: Bring your USB drive in to college

This method only works if you have got a USB stick. If you do not, please get one. We made it a requirement for the course, and it is the only thing we ask you to purchase

Method two: use Google Drive

You all have a Google Drive account to submit and to store work. You can use this to store your footage.

1: Dump your footage on to your computer at home. This should be easier, because your phone will be synced and recognised by your computer

2: Log in to your Google Account, then open Drive (you can just Google 'Drive'). You can drag and drop your files from your computer 

Method three: try and link your phone to the college computer

Look, this rarely goes well. You will need a propitiatory cable (we don't have them) and you will need to trust your phone not to sync all your information with the computer

Method four: email and One Drive

Again, this rarely works. If you're going to use Gmail, just use Drive instead. One Drive is a mystery to me. It sometimes works, but it has many restrictions. 

BIG DISCLAIMER

Your phone is your phone. We do not know how it works. We do not have a cable for it. Please make sure that you come prepared.

Welcome to A-level media studies! - First year introduction

 

We would like to take this opportunity to welcome you to the college, and more importantly (to us anyway), to welcome you to A-level media studies.

A-level media-studies isn't just a more difficult version of GCSE media studies. It also isn't just analysing media products (though it is both of these things). When you study media at A-level, we helping you to

• Critically explore a range of viewpoints and ideologies, and explore how they are hidden in media products
• Assess and analyse how media producers can use media products to manipulate and influence audiences in many ways
• To develop and to practice a range of practical skills, and how meaning can be created for audiences
• To challenge, critique and explore a range of potentially controversial perspectives, critically considering the world we live in today
• To prepare students for employment opportunities in existing industries, emergent industries, and industries that are yet to exist

In order for this to happen, have have to have certain expectations of you:

• To have a genuine passion for media. You should be watching TV, listening to music and using the internet in various ways each and every day!
• To email your media teacher if you are going to be late. Obviously try not to be late though.
• Try your best at everything, regardless of whether you think you’ll do well. One thing you will discover quite quickly is that A-level is MUCH harder than GCSE. However, we do not expect you to succeed at everything. Remember that failure is an essential part of getting good at something

Today, we need to get set up, to allow you to do all this from college and remotely

Setting up your blog

All instructions for setting up your blog can be found by clicking here. 

Please ignore the bits about labels though. It's a bit confusing. Also, Blogger has recently been updated, so things will look a little strange, but I'm sure we can figure things out

Resources and help

In order to make your experience learning media studies at A-level as pain-free as possible, we have devised a range of resources:

A free, full length revision guide (with every question, every theory, a glossary, exemplar answers, exam guide, articles and loads more)

Every PowerPoint for every lesson for the whole two years

Frequently asked questions about the course

A YouTube channel with videos on media theory, set texts, and practical demonstrations (this is pretty new, so expect loads more to be added later)

At the time of writing, there's well over 650 posts on the media blog, so click around and you'll find all your answers, and loads more besides

If you need any help with anything, be it media studies, issues with technology, or any other problem, please talk to your teacher. We can sort out almost anything, and if we cannot, we can find someone who can. 

Next week: remote photo challenge

Music video week one work (and help, tips and resources)

Work for Thursday 10th - Sunday 13th September

You'll be working from home in the first, third and fifth weeks of the music video project. This means using every available moment (within reason...) to prepare and to shoot your music video

THEMES

Your video must have a theme. It could be something very simple, like SADNESS or MANIA, it could be something a little more complicated like FEMALE EMPOWERMENT or POVERTY, or it could be something really deep, like THE COVID 19 PANDEMIC or MORTALITY. Basically you can do absolutely anything you want (as long as it's legal. Please don't do anything illegal)

Here's a short list of THEMES you could have your video focus on:

MISERY
ENERGY
ISOLATION
EMPOWERMENT
MOVEMENT
CONFUSION
ANGER
GENDER IDENTITY
FRIENDSHIP
CONFLICT
SURREALISM
VIOLENCE
POVERTY
SPORT

ENCODING THEMES and IDEOLOGIES

It's all well and good saying 'my video is about not being able to communicate with people'. But is it actually clear to people watching it? Is it clear to your teacher who is marking it?

Here are some examples of how you can encode THEMES and IDEOLOGIES in your music video. These are all  just SUGGESTIONS and are not the only way to encode an ideology!

LONELINESS: If your video focuses on LONELINESS, DEPRESSION or something similar, you can encode this through bleak and depressing mise-en-scene, empty shots giving a sense of isolation, extreme longs shots, slow fades and gestures such as putting hands over faces

HAPPINESS: If your video focuses on YOUTH, ENERGY, HAPPINESS or similar, you could include fat -paced editing, a montage of close ups of smiling mouths, mise-en-scene of natural, positive imagery, and gestures and movement including dance routines 

CONFIDENCE: If your video focuses on CONFIDENCE and EMPOWERMENT, you can encode this through confident gestures, movements, and choices of costume, daring and over-the-top makeup, using several performers in performance shots to demonstrate inclusion and popularity, direct mode of address (looking directly in to the camera), and garments made of leather or denim to symbolise fearlessness

IDEAS for striking shots

Extreme close up of an eye
Close up of water going down plug hole
Close up of cracks in paint
Panning establishing shot of large empty field
Establishing montage of performer: extreme long shot, followed by mid shot, followed by big close up (of face)
Lights shot out of focus
Over the top makeup and costume
Wires and cables
Solid colours

LINKS and RESOURCES

Instructions specifically for making a music video during lock-down 

How you get marked for your music video

Music video coursework: lockdown edition

This year, you will start and complete your music video before August half term. This is a big undertaking, and will require a radically different approach. This post will go over everything you need.

The brief

First things first: you will be completing a music video to a specific set of criteria. These are strict and cannot be deviated from:

• A [music video] for a new artist or band in a genre (or sub-genre/ hybrid) of your choice.
• Create an original music video to promote the same artist or band.
• You should create a [music video] for a specialist record label (either independent eg XL Recordings or part of a large conglomerate eg Def Jam)
• The audience should be specialised or niche. Your target audience is 18 - 34 year olds
• The song you select for your music video cannot have an official music video already [when you picked it!]
• You will create a new and exciting artist/singer/band/DJ with a clear brand identity
• Length: 3 minutes - 3 minutes 30 seconds
• Two or more filming locations (e.g. studio, rehearsal or live venue, or other locations)
• Wide range of camera shots, angles and movement to interpret the music and lyrics of the song
• Shots of the artist or band to establish a clear identity/image
• Performance footage (rehearsal and/or live and/or lip synched)
• Representations of at least one social group
• Clear structure with an element of narrative
• Editing of original footage to the music track
• Graphics depicting the original name of artist or band and title of the track

You have already prepared

Remember when I kept saying you had to be ready to go in September to start making your music video? Well, it's September. It's time to start getting properly stuck in.

Before the summer holiday, you completed a 'pre-production booklet', where you researched other music videos and took inspiration for your own music video.

During the summer holiday, your summer work was to shoot 'B-roll' for your music video. This includes incidental shots, establishing shot, and maybe even some dance routines and/or performance shots. 

I also asked you to phone and message everyone you wanted to be in your music video. Now's the time for them to live up to their promises!

One week on, one week off

When you come back, you will alternate between remote learning (similar to what you received during lock-down), and normal, in-class work.

This works out pretty simply as: when you're working remotely, you shoot, and when you're in lesson, you edit.

This means three weeks of shooting and three weeks of editing, which is exactly what we give students every year. 

SCHEDULE 

Week 1-3: Planning and preparation (completed during lock-down!)
Week 4: Filming 1 (7th September)
Week 5: Editing 1 (14th September)
Week 6: Filming 2 (21st September)
Week 7: Editing 2 (28th September)
Week 8: Filming 3 (5th October)
Week 9: Editing 3 (12th October)

You shoot with your phone

This is the big change, and it's not a change we really wanted to make, however, this is not only essential, but it's not as bad it it first seems. Here's why:

• In general, mobile phones today have very good cameras. My cheap, four year old phone has a better camera than the Cannons we use here. It's a bit depressing really
• Most of you have a mobile phone. Note I said 'most'. Not all of you will have one. If you do not have access to a mobile phone that can shoot video, I would ask you to start looking for a phone or a camera you can borrow, and quickly!
• You will be colour grading and editing your footage anyway
• We encourage you not to shoot on site most years (because it's boring), but this year, it's arguably safer to shoot off site
• Mobile phones are much smaller than dedicated cameras, and much easier to lug around

Issues and solutions

"My phone is crap. It's not fair that I should get a worse grade because of Corona virus!"

The quality of the footage will not affect your grade. By quality, we essentially mean the number of pixels, or resolution, or how sharp the image is. This has always been the case, and the exam board is keen to point this out. If you could just get a higher grade through owning an expensive camera, it means that rich kids would have a crazy unfair advantage.

Here's what you are actually graded on:

• Clear, in-focus cinematography
• Clear and striking use of makeup and costume
• Clear and striking use of editing to construct a narrative
• Clear conventions of music video, possibly inducing multiple locations, beat-matching, lip-syncing, costume changes, dance routines, jazzy editing skills etc

ALSO:

Filming a music video on a mobile phone is an example of digital convergence, as in the coming together of previously separate media industries (eg music, film, telecommunications) thanks to digital, internet enabled technologies. There, you've just added a bunch of marks to your final project.

"But I live in [insert name of small village here], my video is going to look absolutely terrible"

Look, most students who come to this college live in little villages. You're going to have to work with what you've got, and this is NOT a problem. 

Check out this student video. One guy, one field, a bunch of editing effects, it's great..

(I have more recent examples to show you too, but this'll do for now)

Here's some pictures I took down a footpath in my boring little village with my phone. Whack some high contrast black and white on it and it looks pretty cool! If this was footage, it would make a great establishing montage!

"I don't know what I'm doing!"

Here's a checklist. All of this was presented as work before the summer. I'm not going to bite your head off if there's anything you're missing, but you need to ensure you've completed it as quickly as possible so you can get started on your music video. Most of these tasks you will have completed as you went through your pre-production workbook

• Storyboard
• Location research
• Inspirational music video analysis
• Phone/text the people you want to be in your music video to make sure they know they're going to be in your music video

"This is going to be hard!!"

It always is! We always force students to go out and film the first week, whether they think they're ready or not. This is because you can't edit if you don't have any footage. We also strongly encourage students to film off-site, because shooting in college is pretty boring, people keep getting in your way, and you guys have a tendency to annoy everyone else.

"It's going to be completely different to previous years!"

Again, not really. Aside from having to shoot with phones (and you can take a look above for how this isn't such a big deal), the other difference is the scheduling.

PREVIOUS SCHEDULE: 

Week 1-3: Planning and preparation

Week 4-6: Filming

Week 7-9: Editing

NEW SCHEDULE 

Week 1-3: Planning and preparation (completed during lock-down!)

Week 4: Filming 1

Week 5: Editing 1

Week 6: Filming 2

Week 7: Editing 2

Week 8: Filming 3

Week 9: Editing 3

So it's the same, just mixed up a bit. 

"I don't know how to edit!"

I will show you how to edit. It's actually pretty straightforward to do the basics, and you only really need to do the basics. Everything else is time, and you have three total weeks to edit (13.5 hours of lesson time)

"What about the mock exam?"

Your mock exam this year will be practical. You will be graded in the footage you have taken already and the work you have completed on editing. You don't need to worry about this yet. We will let you know what's going on!