HOLIDAY ESSAYS

Marking  guidelines:

AUDIENCES, FILM DISTRIBUTION, CASE STUDIES & TRENDS

From the FDA Handbook 2017 on Distribution, Foreword by David Putnam:

TRENDS & MY PATTERNS OF CONSUMPTION

We practised writing about this, the final bullet point in the specification outlining G322 section B (see below). We integrate our response about national trends and our our consumption. You made your own notes.

Major online Indie film distribution platforms for uploading content:
Consumers as producers
Web 2.0
iTunes
BitTorrent Bundle
Vimeo on Demand

Platforms for home screenings as consumers continue to migrate towards online platforms:
Netflix 
Amazon Prime
BBC iPlayer
BBC Britbox for US audiences 
Mubi
Home cinema
Other platforms that you prefer

But we also go to the cinema
for the wide screen, Dolby surround sound
for 3D experiences (name the film & say why you chose cinematic exhibition: e.g.Fantastic Beasts, Arrival, Star Trek Beyond, Rogue One)
for the social experience.

Cinema attendance is robust with figures for 206 holding up, only slightly down on the previous year at 2.6 times a year per head nationally.
At the BFI study day, Rob Kenny, director of operations for Curzon, told us of his plans to open 50 more screens in the next five years. Curzon's USP: screenings tailored to engage diverse audiences, Curzon Artificial Eye as distributor, special events.

 
 

FILM INDUSTRY: CASE STUDIES

After coursework deadline day on Wednesday 22 March, we will focus on exam work. You have already completed nine written exam questions on analysing representation in TV drama and many oral analyses.  Our next focus is the film industry question for which you will have a 'define the key terms' task and written essay questions.
 
Our starter activity involves a Disney case study Beauty and the Beast and an independent UK film '71.
Beauty and the Beast (2017)

• its website clearly demonstrates how Disney uses horizontal integration in its marketing as the banner shows links to its TV, DVDs, games, merchandising, live events, theme parks, travel company, cruise line, videos, competitions and DisneyLife. 
• Beauty took  $350 on its opening weekend. It had the biggest ever opening weekend for a PG-rated film, and notched up the seventh best opening overall. This marks Disney's best opening for a live action remake yet - beating The Jungle Book, Cinderella and Alice in Wonderland.
• Disney can afford to use big names such as Emma Watson , Emma Thompson, Ewan McGregor and so on.
• Is the film an example of Dalecki's '4 S' model? Yes: whilst not a sequel, Disney’s Beauty and the Beast is a live-action re-telling of the studio’s animated classic which refashions the classic characters from the tale as old as time for a contemporary audience. 
• Budget $ 160, the most expensive musical ever made

'71 (2014)

•  By contrast, '71 is a low-budget national film but one that aimed at international audiences as its subject (radicalization of young men during the Troubles in Northern Ireland) was of universal interest. Plot summary here.
• Jack O'Connell had previously attracted critical acclaim for Unbroken (2014) appearing as a prisoner of war in a Japanese war camp. Directed by Angelina Jolie, this film made O'Connell known to an American audience.
• 71 won Best Director at the 2014 British Independent Film Awards, after receiving nine nominations. The National Board of Review named '71 one of the top 10 independent films of 2015.
• Budget, £8.1 million. Box office, $3.2 million.

EVALUATION Q.1 FORMS & CONVENTIONS

In today's lesson, we start Evaluation q. 1 by making the notes that will be posted as YouTube annotations. We view an example from a previous group. I give you a prompt list. 

Make sure that you keep the actual question in mind as you write.

If you work with your group to compose these annotations,  claim responsibility by identifying who wrote which note e.g. MARY: distribution company ident for Metrodome, a good choice because Metrodome is...

1 FORMS & CONVENTIONS

 In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

CHECKLIST: EVALUATION

Deadline Wednesday 22 March.  

Unfinished work? Checked on Wednesday 22 March. IS YOUR NAME BELOW?

1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? Alexandra, Josie & Megan; Tom & Matthew; Cesca & Alfie; Oli, Alastair, CD & CGB
PRESENT THIS THROUGH YOUTUBE ANNOTATIONS
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2. How does your media product represent particular social groups? Alfie
PRESENT THIS USING PINTEREST + SCREENSHOTS / VIDEOS OF CHARACTER INTERVIEWS
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3. What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?
PRESENT THIS IN (leave as a blog post until I hear back from YuDu, which I have contacted about retaining the free version as we are an academic not commercial institution).
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4. Who is your target audience for your film?  Alfie, Matthew (audience profiles)
PRESENT THIS USING EMAZE
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5. How did you attract/address your audience? Alfie & Cesca; Alexandra, Josie & Megan; Alastair, CGB, Callum D (where are the group's own social media creations?)
PRESENT THIS IN SLIDESHARE WITH SCREENSHOTS LIKE THIS
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6. What have you learned about technologies from the process of constructing this product?  Alfie; Alastair, Megan
PRESENT THIS WITH  HYPERLINKS TO YOUR WORK + SCREENSHOTS
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7. Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learned in the progression from it to the full product? Alfie; Alastair; CGB, Josie
PRESENT THIS IN VISME LIKE THIS
OR IN YUDU LIKE THIS 

TV DRAMA: PRIMEVAL

G322 TV Drama (Primeval June 2010) Use the school's CLICKVIEW (as the other link is now blocked). The extract lasts about one minute 30.

PREP: please email me before the start of the lesson on Monday 20 March
Note: your coursework deadline is coming up. The finished film together with valuation questions 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 must be on your blog by the published deadline of the lesson on Wednesday 22 March 2017.
Answer the question below, with detailed reference to specific examples from the extract only. 

1 Discuss the ways in which the extract constructs the representation of gender using the following:

• Camera shots, angles, movement and composition
• Editing 
• Sound
• Mise-en-scène

Exemplar Student Essay - G322 TV Drama (Primeval June 2010)

This students response achieved a very high grade due to the following points:

• The student answered the question. This might seem obvious but when a response is unsuccessful the student usually doesn't relate to their answer to the question and so fails to pick up points.
• The question in this case related to gender (male/female) representation. How the men/women were shown
• The student gave detailed examples from the clip and then discussed the way in which this made the men/women in the scene "look".
• The student analysed (pulled apart how the men/women were shown), they did not tell the story or describe the plot which is different from analyzing the clip. Do not story-tell.
• Finally, they gave examples of technical codes to support their argument i.e. the low angle made her look powerful.

  
Read through the student essay below and use the mark scheme to examine where the marks are awarded. I have typed up this response as written and included the red ticks as they appear on the original script and this would indicate where the examiner awarded a mark.
remember the marks are awarded as follows:

argument/analysis/explanation 20 marks
Use of examples 20 marks
Use of terminology 20 marks

Key Media Concepts (TV Drama)

Wednesday 9 June 2010

Duration 2 hours (30 minutes viewing clip; 45 minutes each essay)

Section A: Textual Analysis and Representation

Answer the question below, with detailed reference to specific examples from the extract only.

Extract: Primeval Series 2 Episode 3, written by Richard Kurti and Bev Doyle, dir. Jamie Payne

1.     Discuss the ways in which the extract constructs the representation of gender using the following:

·      Camera shots, angles, movement and composition

·      Editing

·      Sound

·      Mise-en-scene

 (50 marks)

The representation of gender in the clip given conveys interesting and thought provoking ideas and contrasts between characters.

The young women called Abbey, her character steers away from the stereotypical image of women, young women, she is portrayed as a strong and feisty female, √ this is evident in the shots where she is operating a mechanical machine, √ with much skill and efficiency also. A wide shot √ is used when we first see her √ to establish the scene and location (the woods and forest). √ The close ups also of the end of the digger fortifies the fact that Abbey is experienced in using such a machine √again reinforcing her non stereotypical √portrayal, she is given the impression of a tomboy. The mis-en-scene used also fortifies this point, she has a short almost boyish hair cut√ and wears a leather jacket √that makes us think of a character like Steve McQueen or perhaps “Greece”, √ mainly male, strong willed characters. √

The fact that she also fights the Sabre-toothed Creature, saving the man’s life shows her tenacity. The shot that this portrayed through is a continuity edit. Also the wide shot √of her running after the man being chased reinstates this point again, √ as the man, who stereotypically is supposed to be strong and courageous√ is in fact running and being chased, this is a contrast to the women who is running through the forest with a gun to help him for a second time! √The dark shape of the gun in her hands, reiterates, power, as a gun, is in this extract, power. √

The gentleman who is in a sky blue t-shirt is portrayed as more of an intelligent man, √brain rather then brawn. √When the sabre-tooth attacks there is a close-up √of him in the hole cowering, √this goes against the usual stereotypes of a man, a contrast between him and Abbey. Despite his cowering √he does show an instance of courageousness, √when he lures away the creature from Abbey. Despite this brave act he √still is running away from the sabre tooth tiger, √ a continuity edit is present when he is running and also when he uses the zip wire, √ close ups√ show fear and exhaustion on his face. The fact that he also uses his belt on the zip wire again shows his brains over brawn. √ The mise-en-scene of his clothes convey a more stereotypical view of the man, they are neutral and earthy colours and are dirty and strained, √ this helps paint more of a picture of a mans man, or someone who is not afraid of getting their hands dirty. √

The non-diegetic sound of the ambient sound-track helps √convey the tension and fear and also helps make the pace of the action a whole lot faster, especially in the chase scene, a combination of this music √and also the fast pace of the editing √raises the tempo and tension. The blurring and wipes X between each edit gives the action the impression that it is too fast to see and fortifies √the fact that the creature is very fast. The music becomes slower, but is ramped up with tension as (sounds?) drove on through the scene with the man with the shotgun, creating a sense of dread and anticipation! √This along with the wide shot and the man’s face, riddled with anger and malice, conveys a tension filled shot. √

The man who is wearing pink attire is portrayed as more of a pretty boy, √lover not a fighter, √the pink colour is more common to girls, women therefore gives him an air of effeminacy. √The rest of the cast wear mainly earthy colours or smart suits etc, whereas he wears feminine colours turning the stereotypical image of a man on its head. The fact that he also doesn’t have a gun √and instead, quite comically pulls a spade out, √whereas the other two people in the shot √both have guns, one a man and the other a women, this gives the impression that the women is almost more reliable than the man wearing pink.

The wide shot √showing the tree in the barn gives a very theatrical feel to it, almost tries to emulate√ a sense of bravado and coolness that other films use e.g. the opening shot of Reservoir Dogs. √Also the fact that there are three of them may portray symbolic qualities, like the three musketeers etc. √

The lady who is talking to the gentleman who breeds dogs is portrayed as a pristine, more of a stereotypical view of a lady. √This is conveyed through the sequence “My Best Coat”! √This provides a clear √insight into her personality. She is strong √whilst using words but when the man pulls out a gun a close up reveals her √devastation and fear. Even the colour of the ladies “Best Coat” is white, √which provides the thought of purity and pristine.

The over the shoulder shot and the cross cut editing √reveals the rising anger of the gentleman breeding the dogs. √He is weak when the pristine √women threatens him but has much more power when he picks up the gun. The line “won’t be pushed around anymore” indicates his explosion of anger. The diegetic √noise of the barking dogs also convey a sense of threat and hysteria. This shot conveys √the power of a weapon and also the power of words and how gender can be powerful. √

 This extract turns a lot of ideas mostly stereotypical views of gender on its head, which therefore gives the viewer an interesting watch. √     

	Level 4
Explanation/analysis/argument	20	20
Use of examples	20	17
Use of terminology	10	7
Total	50	44

WELCOME, MODERATOR

Welcome, moderator! I am George Clooney 1234 and I worked with Cameron Diaz 4321 and Tom Cruise 0007.

I hope you enjoy my blog, which contains my work on my G321 Foundation  Portfolio. We chose the video brief, the titles and openings of a fictional thriller film which we named Our Film. My preliminary exercise follows immediately underneath. 

I took specific responsibility for.....

My evaluation questions are above.

EXAM REVISION PLAN

TV DRAMA REVISION

Question: Discuss the ways in which the extract constructs the representation of gender (or ethnicity, class and status, physical ability/ disability, sexuality, regional identity, age)

You will have answered 10 exam paper questions in writing and done many more than that orally, so you should feel confident using the exam technique of identifying terminology, examples, then analysis, argument, explanation (T, E, AAE). Return to your marked work and note the corrections.

You need to practise writing under timed conditions, which is not easy. In the exam (and when you practise), hand-write straight onto the exam paper. DO NOT MAKE NOTES as there isn't time. It is easier for computer users who can convert notes into sentences easily.

Tackle the extract scene by scene dealing with ALL aspects (NOT by doing all the camerawork, then sound, then editing, then mise-en-scene). Aim to tie in your comments to the focus ( the words in blue above) as far as you can.

Use Exemplar Material from the OCR which you can find on the OCR website and here: 
June 2013 
June 2015 
and scripts here 

I have put examples on the class blog, for example, on Wednesday, 20 May 2015.

I have exemplar scripts as well from our own students which I will email you.

Know your camerawork terminology. There are videos on the OCR exam website to view on their website (open OCR Specification on our class blog). This is what the page looks like:

• Guide to basic camera movements (WMV, 22MB)
• Guide to basic camera shots (WMV, 23MB)

Below is your Set Topic Content, that is, the film language terms that you are supposed to recognize and use:

THE FILM INDUSTRY REVISION

You are expected to know:

Revise each bullet point in turn:

1. The issues raised by ownership

Hollywood studio system and the 'Big Six', Dalecki and the 4S model, horizontal integration, Disney case studies (The Avengers, Jurassic World). Contrast this with low-budget independent cinema (American Honey, '71, Tortoise in Love). How does ownership affect what gets the green light, production values, distribution and marketing.

2. The importance of cross-media convergence and synergy in production, distribution, marketing and exchange

Look on the class blog post Wednesday, 4 May 2016 to read a Grade A exemplar response on synergy (32 marks). FROM MEDIAEDU on synergy.

The Avengers

The Avengers is perhaps one of the greatest examples of the extremes synergy can be taken.  The film is based on pre-existing property and has raised the profile of its comic book characters, most of the characters have been features in spin-off television animation series, re-issues of the old comic books, or re-branded new comic book series. Tie-ins have been arranged with fast food restaurants such as McDonalds (for their happy meals), Dunkin’ Donuts and Baskin Robbins and fizzy drinks, such as Pepsi.
However, the most unique facet of The Avengers marketing and synergy campaign is that each of the protagonists has their own film(s) which have been used to market The Avengers. Each of these films has had tie-ins, product placement, merchandise, computer games and spin-offs and each is based on pre-existing property - which has been exploited and promoted by the film’s release. Iron Man, Thor and Captain America have been film franchises in their own rights, but from the build up to the release of Thor it has been clear that they are all part of the campaign for The Avengers.
Marvel was bought by Disney, however a pact was organised between Marvel and Paramount Pictures to produce a slate of comic book films. The inter-relationship between two organisations owned by two different conglomerates: Disney and Viacom respectively, expresses the oligopoly nature of Hollywood. From 2012 this relationship will end leaving both with sizeable profits and Disney will continue to distribute the later films, including Iron Man 3 and The Avengers.

Synergy Activity

Marvel Comics and Disney-Buena Vista (who now own Marvel Comics) have decided to release a new film on their character Ms. Marvel (see her profile here: http://marvel.com/characters/bio/1010338/ms_marvel).
Look at a range of existing comic book examples, www.moviemarketingmadness.com could be a helpful resources, research the different inter-linked products they have i.e. merchandise, spin-offs, cross-promotions, etc.
Mind map synergy potentials for the film Ms. Marvel remember to consider the different potential audiences you could appeal to and how you could develop pre-existing property.

 

3. The technologies that have been introduced recently at the levels of production, distribution marketing and exchange

4. The significance of proliferation in hardware and content for institutions and audiences

5. The importance of technological convergence for institutions and audiences

6. The issues raised in the targeting of national and local audiences (specifically, British) by international or global institutions

7. The ways in which candidates' own experience of media consumption illustrate wider patterns and trends of audience behaviour

 

 

TV DRAMA: DOC MARTIN

Plan for this week:

Monday: return and review exam essays and revise exam technique
Late work: Sherlock Alfie, Matthew; Cinema essay Matthew, Cesca, Calum D
Tuesday: re-filming scenes out of focus / additional scenes
Wednesday: Evaluation q.4 Who is YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE for your film?

PREP : before the lesson next Monday 13 March, email me the following exam question
January 2014   
Extract: Doc Martin,Series 1 episode 1 
The question was  'Discuss the ways in which the extract constructs representations of regional identity
January 2014 video