I highly commend the web page 'Nine top tips for Media students'. From the people behind theory.org.uk, its worth a read!

Thursday 15 September 2016

2016-17 Half-term1 deadlines and to blog

I'll add to this.
Each half-term I'll post, and update, details of work.


Week 1 + 2 lesson time is for planning, filming (possibly editing) a practice video:

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SEPTEMBER
Friday 16th
VODCAST1 GENERAL Cs + Cs :
The main summer work, including the conventions vodcast, needs to be on blogs 

Friday 30th 
VODCAST2 INDUSTRY
PRACTICE VID + ASSOCIATED BLOGGING
industry vodcast and completed practice video


OCTOBER
Tuesday 4th [UPDATE: pushed back to Weds]
PITCHES
Pitches for main coursework production. Film these and the Q+A, and blog your response, revised ideas, plans.

Friday 7th
PODCAST1
You'll have lesson time to work through an initial production schedule - remember, the aim is to complete principal shooting (and website/digipak photography) during half-term.
You should record the 1st of a weekly series of podcasts (upload as audio or video if you want to add visuals). PODCAST1: The Group, The Idea. In this you introduce yourselves, outline what you're working on (brief detail on the idea), and your individual strengths, ending with 'and in the upcoming week we will...'. Each week hereafter record a new episode on Friday: 'in the past week we have...; in the coming week we will...'.

Weds 12th [in lesson]
REPRESENTATION: Miley Cyrus' Wrecking Ball
REPRESENTATION: Lady Gaga's Bad Romance
Reflect the Tuesday lesson work, especially theories, with a detailed blog post clearly including and APPLYING the theories covered, with appropriate multimedia/illustrations (image, gif; links for articles, screenshotted headlines from those etc).
On Weds, you have 1st period to analyse the Gaga video, applying the same theories (AND any additional theories you choose from your MANGeR pack or existing wider knowledge) and approach (ie, looking at the wider context [eg see post], not just the video text itself). You could do this as a PowerPoint/KeyNote [save as PowerPoint if using KeyNote on Mac], upload and embed (or just email for now), ready to present findings in 2nd period. Focus on the potential conflicting feminist v post-feminist positions.
Relevant theories/terms include:
male gaze (Mulvey),
feminist, post-feminist (binary opposition?)
normative; hetero-normative
hegemonic, counter-hegemonic (Gramsci)
postmodern(ism): simulacrum/simulacra (Baudrillard)
Richard Dyer's star system/theory; Chomsky's propaganda model: flak (1 of 5 filters)
Freudian psychoanalytic approach: phallic imagery
Stuart Hall's reception theory (preferred OR contested/negotiated OR oppositional reading)
   

Weds 5th  [UPDATE: email blog link/attachment BEFORE Friday 14th]
TREATMENT/INITIAL (PRE-)PRODUCTION SCHEDULE
Treatment (see guide) + production schedule (post title: PRODUCTION SCHEDULE1: Pre-production tasks). You'll need to add multiple posts as you go: PRODUCTION SCHEDULE UPDATE1: Shoot 1 [ie, description of focus of changes/additions]. Keep updating and embedding a full schedule. Don't delete changed dates, just denote they changed with strikethrough.
strikethrough blogger tool
A great google calendar is a great way to organise this, and it can even be embedded on your blogs.
Each of you also need to email me a link (with typed artist name/track title) to a music video you will be called to present your analysis of at any point starting Tuesday 18th. Your analysis should include at least 3 applied theories from 1 or more MANGeR topics. I will go through some examples next week. My guide to blogging on examples, and this huge resource on examples I've blogged on, should be used to help with your own preparation.

Fri 21st
SAMPLE SCENE
VODCAST3: TARGET AUDIENCE 
Present a sample scene (or more) for discussion. If you've not cast or got access to cast/costume etc, don't panic - but do film in the planned location with a stand-in. This is a crucial testing out of ideas.

The audience vodcast should bring together all research and analysis so far of who your target audiences are (primary, secondary), with clear evidence to justify the age range, gender (etc) you indicate: why are they appropriate? what evidence is there for this?* how does your propsoal reflect/target this? have you considered any audience theories? (there is considerable overlap with some genre and representation theory here).
*try to get some feedback from any social media, fan forums etc, but looking for media appearances is also smart: magazines, radio, TV stations will all generally publish an audience profile for advertisers. Keep looking out for media appearances until the coursework is finished
Have you undertaken any primary research (posting question/s on forums, but also surveys, short multimedia questionnaire, possibly with a group rather than individuals?). This 2015 (UK) A2 Evaluation answer on audience contains lots of great examples, such as this tool for gaining initial evidence to back their audience outline (which changed somewhat after this process):



Fri 28th
UPDATED BLOG, INCLUDING ALL PODCASTS + LINKS LISTS, COMMENTS NOTED + ACTED ON
RESEARCH POSTS: INDUSTRY: MONETISING AND MERCHANDISE
ARTIST RESEARCH (various - see this post)  
You will have the lessons this work to research and blog on these topics. Look ahead to the Evaluation questions when doing so, and you should see how you'll benefit both from marks on research + planning and again later...
If you have any further sample scenes ready during this week, request a screening and feedback.

You should aim for some or all shooting in half-term.
Coursework to be completed by Xmas, though more time to complete Evals.