g324 evaluation guidance

A2 Evaluation Guidance

How to tie the questions in with prior and future learning.

Question 1

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

Which one of the key concepts of media does this question relate to?• Media language• Organisations• Representation• Genre • Audience• Narrative

What could you use in this question?

•Use of research in establishing conventions•Parallels between your products and those studied•Your knowledge of the music genre• All three products

Theories that could relate:• Goodwin• Vernallis• Neale (genre)• Barthes (iconography

in genre)

How?

Use, develop, challenge?

Your video uses elements of all of the videos you studied, meeting almost all of the conventions, to the extent it is almost copied.

Your video takes some of the common genre elements but uses them in different combinations and adds new ideas.

Your video rejects many of the main conventions of the genre for artistic reasons and sets out to create a new set of conventions.

USE DEVELOP CHALLENGE

Forms and conventions?In this case, forms would be the different kinds of video: narrative, performance, concept, hybrid.Which did you use and why?What did your research tell you (textual and audience)?

Example theory comment –Explain how Goodwin’s 6 rules were used or challenged. Use Goodwin to justify your decisions.

Forms and conventions?By conventions, we mean genre conventions, in this case linked to the music genre:• Cinematography• Iconography• Editing• How did you establish what they

were?• How did researched texts influence?

Example theory comment –Barthes says that genre is marked by its iconography – to what extent does your use of iconography prove this theory?

Real media products?

Real music videos, digipaks and adverts – how did you respond to them and use them in your own planning?

Example theory comment –Neale says media producers will select ideas from a range of choices and combine them in different ways. What set of options did you select, add or reject?

Question 2

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?


Effective?The first way we mean ‘effective’ is in terms of appealing to an audience. So you must think about the who and the how of that equation.

Audience theories:• Uses and

gratifications• Maslow’s Hierarchy of

needs• Cross Cultural

Consumer Categories (4Cs)

Effective?The second way this is meant is in terms of representation. Of the artist and their image, mainly, but in broader terms too. Did you create their image or use what they already had? What influenced you?

Relevant theory:• Dyer’s star image

theory• Relevant racial or

regional identity theories.

• British youth culture theories

• Male gaze?

Combination?The organisational aspects of this form of media can be discussed when thinking how the three products work together (along with linked platforms, such as websites or facebook pages referred to). How would the given terms apply? What others are relevant?

Relevant terms:SynergyConvergenceDistributionPlatforms

Question 3

What have you learned from your audience feedback?


Learned?In a nutshell, you learned a great deal (even if you didn’t) about how to construct and develop your products.

You might already have established who your audience is in Question 2, but if not then you must do it here. Start by making some notes on everything you did that was in direct response to an audience member.

Audience feedback?Review everything related to audience on your blog:• artist profiling• audience research• Youtube comments• focus group feedback• any surveys done around the print products• you can also discuss the impact of your

online presence and any response you had from your artist.

This suggests it is all about audience response to your finished product, but it is feedback on everything you’ve done that invited an audience to comment.

Question 4

How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?

This does not relate to the key concepts, it is all about you and your engagement with ‘new media’, i.e. digital facilities, online and social media.

Media technologies?Which of the following media technologies did you use? Any others?Digital camera Editing softwareYoutube BloggerFacebook PreziPowerpoint SurveymonkeyOnline editing Google/WikiMac/PC Photoshop

How?•Did you make good use of these

technologies?•Were there any you could have

exploited better?•Did any produce unexpected results? •How much did the technology

enhance your work?•Did you technical ability limited you

or did it grow?

It is especially important to note here that this is an evaluation. You need to judge the effectiveness of your work throughout, but particularly in this question.

Exam links? – section 1a• Digital technology• Use of real media

conventions• Creativity• Post production• Use of research and

planningHow did you progress between AS and A2?

Exam links? – section 1b• Media language• Organisations• Representation• Genre• Audience • Narrative

You can analyse either the thriller or the music video

g324 evaluation guidance

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