Structuring an Exam Answer

Some of you have been asking for a structure for your exam answers. While that is not easy to define for Section A, where it is a case of focusing on the most relevant semiotic aspects first, it is easier to do for Section B. Therefore, I am going to give brief instructions on how to practise Section A and then a more detailed plan of how to answer Section B.

Section A

Your best shot at getting better at the analytical skills required for Section A is to do a lot of short burst semiotic analysis. That means finding adverts and analysing their semiotic elements over two quick viewings. The heading are always the same, even if the focus questions change. So you need to focus on the connotations of the semiotic elements and what they suggest about the use of Media forms, the representations, the possible reactions of the audience and the institution.

Section B

There is no substitute for practise. It might be a good idea to plan for any possible question i.e.- synergy, intertextuality, use of new technology, UGC, audiences as producers, reception theory etc.

So that you can practise you exam answers at home I am going to provide you with a suggested structure for your answer. However, this comes with a warning because it might not be appropriate for the question you are trying to answer. You must answer the question in front of you, not just give all the details from you practise answer. This is just a rough guide as to how to organise your information.

Introduction

Address how your case study is appropriate to the question i.e.- synergy is used by producers to reinforce the semiotic elements of their core product and, in turn, make them easily and quickly familiar to audience members. This can been seen to a greater or lesser extent in all of the film campaigns that I have studied.

Overview

This should be one paragraph outlining the basics of your case study with appropriate reference to the topic of the question i.e.- over the course of my case study I have instigated the synergy between core and secondary products in both financially successful (Les Miserables) and financially unsuccessful films (The Town).

First Points

You then outline your comparisons either by platform i.e.- print, then broadcast, then e-media. Or you do it by core product. For a question on synergy it might make sense to do it by core product.

The most important thing is that you are constantly commenting on how successful these products were at drawing in an audiences and why, with focus on the topic of the question i.e.- the synergy created by Paramount between the website, poster and trailer allow an audience to feel comfortable with the premise of the core product and make it more likely that they will consume this product.

However, you must remember to use the semiotic elements to support these statements i.e.- the colour blue has been used as the background on both the poster and the website, reinforcing the upbeat and hopeful message of the film.

You can work through these points in any order, so long as you have written about all three platforms, using at least two examples from each.

Conclusion

This is the point at which you sum up your previous points in a paragraph i.e.- the evidence I have collected indicated that synergy does have an important role in attracting audiences to core products but it isn't the only important element in gaining a mass media audience. I think this is clear from...

Revision Check List

The information below covers every aspect of your revision for the MEST1 exam. Essentially, if you do all of this then you should be able to improve your grade from you last mock. There will be one more mock exam before your real exam.


Section A

Section A requires you to do a semiotic analysis and then apply this in detail analysing the form, representation, impact on the audience and how it reflects upon the institution. The first step in being able to do a quick and detailed semiotic analysis of a product.You will only get ten minutes viewing time, so practise doing short and sharp viewing periods for broadcast products.

Note: do not, ever, say that you would have advertised the product differently or that you don't think it is successful. This is an analysis, not an evaluation.

Semiotic Features:

Narrative
Lighting
Camera Angles (especially changes in camera angles)
Colour Temperature
Costume Colour
Actors (for representation)
Setting
Diagetic Sound
Non-diagetic sound
Facial expression and movement
Inter titles (tag lines)
Use of trademarks and branding
etc

All of these elements then need to be broken down into their connotations, appeal to the audience, brand values and representational elements (see the post on mock work for an example).

Section B

The section B question will be asking you to show your wider knowledge of the effect of using different platforms for promotional purposes in film fiction. Translation: how and why do film companies use the three platforms to attract an audience to a film product to make a profit?

To answer this question thoroughly you are going to need two things:

• Excellent knowledge of the uses of the three platforms for film promotion.
• A case study of film fiction products that demonstrate evidence of the use of three media platforms for film promotion (successfully or unsuccessfully)

AND

An excellent knowledge of the theories behind why audiences consume certain Media products (audience theories).

Note: the question will NEVER ask you just to describe the products in your case study. Do not do that. All of your hard work will count for nothing if you don't bother to read and specifically answer the question.

Instructions on presentation

In light of your mock exam results I am going to tweak the outline for your presentation. You now have a focus question to help you explore the platform that you have research in the way most applicable to your exam.

Question: How have the technological changes that have occurred on this platform over the last ten to twenty year affected audiences views about this platform and changed the way in which they consume products from this platform? Outline what you think the future of this platform will look like- include a comparision with the other two platforms.

The answer to the question needs to make up the bulk of your presenation. It should not be just a list of facts about the platform that you found on Wikipedia! You really need to evalute the uses and effectivness of the platform as technology advances. A good grasp of this will be invaluable in aswering Section B.

Review After Mock

The results of your last mock very variable and this needs to be addressed. Below is a list of individualised tasks for you to work on during the lesson and for homework. The tasks are designed to help you improve on some of the major errors made in your mock exam. This is also the order in which I wish to see you for mentoring during the lesson.

Today's lesson will proceed in silence.

Bhavisha- answer the section B question again. Except this time actually answer the question- don't just give a summary of your case study. The first thing you need to do is find out why producers use different platforms to contact audiences. You must make reference to at least two examples from each platform.

You must then re-do Section A at home

Hira-  you must re-try section A. You need to re-watch the advert and make detailed notes in the following style:

Mise-en-scene (soft lighting)
Connotation ( romantic and idealistic version of the British landscape)
Effect of audience (portrayals England in very traditional ways, lulls them into thinking the advert is a conventional portrayal of England)
Possible reading of representation (shows a stereotype of England and then subverts it)

Here is an article on semiotic analysis http://users.aber.ac.uk/dgc/Documents/S4B/sem06.html

Monjoht- answer the section B question again. Except this time actually answer the question- don't just give a summary of your case study. The first thing you need to do is find out why producers use different platforms to contact audiences. You answer needs to be more detailed i.e- what is the product? how does it contact an audience? which audiences does it contact? what would their reaction be? evaluate its success? why was it used?

Zahra-answer the section B question again. Except this time actually answer the question- don't just give a summary of your case study. The first thing you need to do is find out why producers use different platforms to contact audiences. You answer needs to be more detailed i.e- what is the product? how does it contact an audience? which audiences does it contact? what would their reaction be? evaluate its success? why was it used?

You main issue was detail (or lack of)

Dhaneisa- you need to practise your analysis of advertising. Choose a recent advert to write up in detail, focusing in the representation of the institution.


Mise-en-scene (soft lighting)
Connotation ( romantic and idealistic version of the British landscape)
Effect of audience (portrayals England in very traditional ways, lulls them into thinking the advert is a conventional portrayal of England)
Possible reading of representation (shows a stereotype of England and then subverts it)

Here is an article on semiotic analysis http://users.aber.ac.uk/dgc/Documents/S4B/sem06.html

Anisa- your section B was very good. However, you explanations need to be more developed. You real weakness is section A. You need to try the same activities as Dhaniesa to help you refine and develop your semiotic analysis skills.

Easter Investigation

Over Easter you are going to investigate the technological changes that have taken place in one of the three platforms. You are going to be looking at the evolution of the platform over the last decade and how this has changed audience usage of the products.

You are going to have to research the following aspects of each platform:

- any changes in technology over the last decade.
- comment on how you think these changes have affected the audiences use of the platform.
- example products from either end of the decade, analysed for reception (dominant and oppositional), U&G and audience type.

All this needs to be blogged by the first Tuesday after half term. This will then be presented back to someone else in the group, or me in the same lesson.

New Technologies and Film Fiction

Today you will be investigating the uses of new technologies by film producers to attract mass media audiences. The focus will be on the development of new production technologies (3D and 48 frame rate); new technologies for the consumption of Media products (Blu Ray and online streaming); and the uses of online technology to promote films (viral marketing and the use of cookies).

This is lesson is merely an introduction to these areas. You will need to go away and consider how these technologies have been used to attract audiences in your case studies (if they have) and whether or not they have been used successfully to influence an audience.

It is also worth considering why a film might choose not to use new tech in production or promotion.

Blu Ray- watch the video. What is it about Blu Ray that attracts some audiences? What kind of audience do you think would choose to consume Media in this way? Why might release on Blu Ray be beneficial to a producer?

Enriched 3D Filming

Watch the video. This is a Making of documentary for the film Avatar. It was released before the film. What do you think 3D adds to the experience of watching a film? How might this appeal to audiences? What kind of audience do you think would be attracted to consume this product by the experience of watching in 3D? Why do you think the production company chose the release this video before they released the film? (think of U&G)

Viral Marketing

The following link is a run down of fifteen of the most successful viral marketing campaigns of all time (the short time in which they have existed). Read about some of the campaigns and then research one for yourself through the art of the Google search (The Dark Knight and Prometheus are particularly good). Then answer these questions:

What is viral marketing? What is the effect of viral marketing on audience groups? Which audience groups are attracted by viral marketing? Why do you think these films chose the use viral marketing?

http://www.prospectmx.com/15-of-the-best-viral-marketing-campaigns/

Now apply this to your own case study.

The Oscars and Star Power

In today's lesson we will be giving away the prizes for the Oscar 2013 Sweepstake. Congratulations to those of you who were knowledgable (or lucky) enough to predict the runner and riders at this year's Academy Awards.

Before we start I'd like you to have a look at the following gallery of images from both The Guardian and Daily Mail websites. Look at the images and the comments below and then answer the following question:

Why do audiences watch The Oscars? Which part of the ceremoney do you think interests audiences the most?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2013/feb/24/oscars-2013-red-carpet-fashion?INTCMP=SRCH

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/search.html?sel=site&searchPhrase=oscars+2013

Once you've finished you need to discuss this with your partner:

What is the purpose of awards ceremonies?

Case Study Check: What you need

You should now have progress with your case study to the point where you understand the following aspects of your core product:

1. Target Audience- full profile by ABC, U&G and interest groups.
2. Production Values- mis-en-scene analysis
3. Success- box office takings and critical reception (look at reviews from newspapers and Rotten Tomatoes)

If this isn't done then you need to catch up. Now.

The next step is to consider the way in which the secondary products associated with the core product (poster, trailer, T.V spots, websites and social media) are being used to attract a mass Media audience and how audience have responded to these text (UGC).

To do this you are going to have to analyse the synergy between the core product and the secondary products. Also, any use of intertextuality; the application of uses and gratifications to show how each product is design to attract a different audience group.

You also need to consider the Media Trend that this product might be part of and how this attracts an associated audience. For example: 'Pacific Rim' is part of several trends in film making- dystopian narratives, use 3D technology, summer block busters (tent poles), return of the creature feature movies (think Troll Hunter) etc. All of these elements will attract slightly different audience to make the mass media audience the production company needs to make back the enormous amount of money they spent making the film.

All of this information needs to be recorded in seperate blog post. So you need one for each secondary product. Failure to complete this work will result in detention and an e-mail to your head of year. If you need help then come to see me a.s.a.p.

MediaTheories

Below is the link to the Slide Share used in class today and a copy of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, just in case you lose the paper copy given out in the lesson.

Remember that you will need to apply these theories to the analysis of the products in your case study.

http://www.slideshare.net/geoffjmoss/media-theories-3016026

These are the audience and effects theories. We will be going over narrative theories next week and Media debates the week after.

Reasons to keep up with your Media diary...

By now you should have a Media diary of such breadth and scope that it would help you answer any question on the exam paper. However, the reality is that most of you have a Media page full of the bits and pieces you could be bothered to post and a few bits about your case study.

If you think this is going to help you get a good grade on the exam then you are dreaming. The following is a list of instructions on how to make your blog a useful tool, instead of a collection of useless notes:

1) Make sure that you are updating it alt least twice a week. You need to be recording your weekly analysis of recent adverts and any analysis of products for your case study.

2) Make sure the post are written out in full sentences, not bullet points.

3) Record all of you information for your case study on your blog- a separate blog post for information on each product.

You could also use the blog to record your thoughts and feelings about your Media work, even information for your coursework.

Failure to complete this work properly will result in detentions/ report/ etc.