Questions and answers from Section A Theoretical Evaluation of Production

(In the real examination I will comment on both AS/A2 work in response to qu 1a.)


Question - June 2011
1. Explain how far your understanding of the conventions of existing media influenced the way you created your own media products. Refer to a range of examples in your answer to show how this understanding developed over time.

My production was essentially a drama about a young women and the last few years of her life. I wanted, first and foremost for my audience to be gripped in her thoughts and feelings of her adventure, rather than big action scenes etc. I watched a few films like 'American Beauty' and 'Jerry Maguire' also dramas, where the film opening starts with the main character introducing their life at the present with a few long establishing shots and both have voiceovers, which helps the audience immediately understand the main chartacters point of view and their understand of the story as a whole. I used techniques from both these films, voice-over, long, establishing shots and the music as that was the feeling I wanted to create with my production, to immediately get the audience gripped and able to relate to Stella, my main character.  
(This response focuses well on how the conventions of existing media products influenced you however, you could also refer to mise-en-scene to analyse it further :) )

Question - Jan 2011
2. Describe how you developed your skills in the use of digital technology for media production and evaluate how these skills contribued to your creative decision making. Refer to a range of examples in your answer to show how this understanding developed over time.

Digital technology was very important in my production piece, while there were many problems that arose while filming, post-production work allowed me to correct most of these. Using the video camera I was able to record my voice-over and through post-production I was able to overlay that onto my film, and after developing my skills with the programs we used for post-prodction, I was able to overlay the voice-over in exactly the right positions, turn down the non-diagetic music where the voice-over came in and turn it back up again when the voice-over was finished. I would never have been able to edit my production so intricately without the pre-practice and continual development of my skills in the post-production programs we done before.


Question - Jan 2010
3. Describe how you developed research and planning skills for media production and evaluate how these skills contributed to creative decision making. Refer to a range of examples in your answer to show how this understanding developed over time.