The base of your case study

By now you have made your decisions on genre and film- meaning that you are ready to put together the basic information for your case study. One you have done this then you can go on to analysing the secondary products associated with that platform.

The following information must be in your blog by the time we print it out for your portfolio next week:

- a breakdown of the conventions of your chosen genre.
- a breakdown of your three films and why your picked them.
- a summary of the marketing elements of each film (release date, budget, gross, director, institutions, summary of marketing strategies)

Once you have this information you can start looking at the print products associated with your core products (films). You need to analyse each one separately for how it tries to attract the audience.

Theories for Film Fiction

To complete the film fiction case study properly you are going to have to apply a range of theories, some of which we have already covered and some that will be introduced later in the course. For now you will need to revise the application of the following theories:

Narrative Theory: Propp and Todorov
Audience Theory: Reception Theory and Uses and Gratification Theory
Intertextuality
Synergy


If you haven't already written up your notes on to your blog then you will need to do this as part of your preparation for the case study.

Film Fiction Project: Part 2

By now you should have decided on which three core products you will be using for your film fiction case study. Remember that these products must be from the same genre (but not necessarily the same sub-genre) and must have either different marketing methods or target audiences.

Over the next month you will need to analyse various elements of each product- mis en scene, narrative structure and intended target audience. You'll then need to do the same for a range of secondary products associated with the core product- trailers, poster, interviews, magazine articles, website, viral marketing etc. You do not have to cover all of the associated secondary texts. However, you must cover at least two secondary products from each platforms.

You'll then need to record all of your ideas and conclusions about each product on your blog for revision before the mock and real examinations.

So far you should have recorded your research into genre, this will help you to analyse your core products, and your ideas about which films your might choose as core products.

Now you need to start analysing these core products and recording your conclusions. I'll be posting an example analysis of a core product next week for you to use as a comparison.

Old Spice and the conventions of the aftershave advert

Hello Ladies

Have a look at the video below. How has mis en scene been used to mimic the conventions of a typical aftershave advert?

The Media on Twitter

Below is a list of Twitter accounts that it might be useful for you to follow on Twitter. These accounts are run by people in the Media and will help keep you up to date with Media developments.

1) Empire: the Twitter account for the iconic film magazine is full of film news and weird facts. It will be a big help when you're studying film.

2) Media Guardian: the Media section of The Guardian newspaper covers developments in the wider Media and will provide you with up to date analysis on Media issues.

3) Tabloid Watch: this account is an extension of a great blog that fact checks tabloid newspaper stories.

Watch this space for more recommendations.

Hello AS

Please remeber to send your URL address to me on Twitter. If you have any issues with the independent reading then please get back to me before Friday.

Below is the schedule for the film fiction investigation.

Date	Research Area	Task
10/9/12	The Language of Film	Find ten terms that refer to camera angles or lighting techniques in film making and a pictorial example. Create a glossary on your blog of term in film making. Watch on film of your choice and review.
17/9/12	Film Genre	Choose one of the following genres to research: Horror, Indie, Sci-fi, Rom-Com, War, Historical, Drama, Western, Fantasy, Comedy, Thriller, Crime. Find out as much as you can about the conventions of these films. How have they changed over the past few years? What are the conventions that the audience can always expect to see? Watch and review one film from this genre.
24/9/12	Sub- Genre	Choose a sub-genre of the genre you chose last week and investigate the conventions. How is the sub-genre different to the genre as a whole? What are the best examples of this sub-genre? Choose one film from this sub-genre to watch and review.
1/10/12	Film Making Techniques	Look at another film from your sub-genre list in detail and find out as much as you can about the way it was made: when, where, specific techniques used by the director i.e.- special effect and camera angles. How do directorial decisions change the final film? Watch this film and review.
8/10/12	Intertextuality in Genre	Look again at the same film from last week. Investigate the influences on this film by previous film. A good place to start with this is always the trivia section of IMDb. Which films influenced your film the most? How does understanding this reference change your understanding of the film? Why do you think film makers use intertextuality? Watch one of the films you discovered influenced your original film and review.
15/10/12	Audience in Film	By now you should understand what audiences are at a basic level. Research the core audience for your chosen sub-genre. What kind of people make up the core audience? Why do they consume these texts? How do you think these texts appeal to their core audience?
Half Term	Advertising in Film	Over half term you need to collect a selection of print and e-media advertising for your film product (at least two of each) and produce an analysis of the semiotic elements- how they abide by genre conventions and appeal to the target audience.