Screen grabs

Some of you have been having problems getting screen grabs on the Macs. The ICT boys have had a look at this and have come back with the following solution:

The command +shift and 4 shortcut screen grab can't work because the defaults point to a location students can't get access.

However the actual utility program called screen grab works fine and you can get it in Applications > Utilities. You can choose from within this program where you want the screenshot. 

FINAL DEADLINE!

We are here: the FINAL deadline for your WHOLE Foundation Portfolio is FRIDAY 27th MARCH.

That means your blogs must be absolutely finished:

• Research & Planning - including any suggestions for improvement from my feedback last term
• Final video - have this as your top blog post so that it's the first thing anyone visiting your blog sees
• Evaluation - look at all the advice in the blog posts below for how to approach this

Our LAST lesson before the deadline in Thursday. By this lesson you should have finished your blog. That way I can give you some last-minute feedback on improvements you could make in the subsequent 24 hours in order to achieve maximum marks.

ALL WORK THEREFORE NEEDS TO BE DONE BY THURSDAY!

Work for Thursday 11th March

Hi everyone,

I'm really sorry but I'm not going to be in our lesson again tomorrow. I know that's two in a row that I've missed so please accept my apologies.

Please be cracking on with your Evaluations. The seven questions that you need to respond to are listed in the post below and are on the sheet that I gave you on Tuesday.

The five elements of the mark scheme are also listed below and are on the other handout you got on Tuesday. I would be really worth your while having a look at the two examples of Evaluations in the post below so that you can see the kind of things the examiner is looking for.

In terms of how to approach the seven questions of the Evaluation, here are some things you might want to consider:

• In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
• How does your film fit into its chosen genre? Are there codes/conventions that you have stuck to (characterisation? costume? sound? filming style? etc)? Are there codes/conventions that you have challenged? If so, how and why?
• You could consider doing a comparative analysis of your film against other film(s) within the same genre and exploring the similarities/differences between them

• How does your media product represent particular social groups?
• What social groups are portrayed in your production? How do you represent them? Does this challenge or reinforce stereotypical representations of that social group?

• What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?
• Is your film designed to be a big blockbuster, distributed by one of the  major Hollywood studios? Or is it an indie film, that might try to gain a cult following, perhaps through appearing at a high-brow film festival (Cannes, Sundance, etc)? Would you go for a mass, worldwide release through the major cinema chains or would you prefer to gain a word-of-mouth following by releasing in art house cinemas? 
• There are no right answers to these questions, it entirely depends on what kind of film you're making and the kind of audience you are aiming to attract.

• Who would be the audience for your media product?
• Define your audience as specifically as possible. Create a mood board for them. You could even set up a fake social media account for them, with them 'liking' the kind of thing (films, music, foot outlets, shops) you think your target audience would be into. You could even have that 'person' join Groups that you think would appeal to them.
• This would also be a brilliant opportunity to bring in some of the theory work you've been doing with Mr Groves: can you discuss audience in a more academic way, bringing in relevant media theory? Are there ways of defining Media audiences that would be relevant here?

• How did you attract/address your audience?
• Once you have defined your audience, what have you done to make sure your film appeals to them?
• You may even want to do a 'director's commentary' of your film - record a voice-over of your film where you talk through some of the filming/editing decisions you made. Or just use screen grabs of key moments in your film that would appeal to your audience. 
• Or, you could record interviews with people who you think might represent your target audience and get them to give their opinions on the film. Make a short questionnaire that you ask all interviewees and you can then edit their responses together. Here is an example from some A2 Cheney students a couple of years ago: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gYvau2HZl

• What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
• Be very specific. Short videos or screen grabs showing exactly what you did and how you used them on your productions would be really useful here.

• Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
• I would recommend starting by doing a self-assessment of your preliminary task, using the exam board marking criteria
• What cinematic 'rules' did you break or mistakes did you make? How has your understanding of the technicalities of filming improved (mise-en-scene, camera movement, tripod vs handheld filming)? How has your ability to construct realistic films through use of location and costume improved?
• What have you learned about the editing process? And how has this helped you create a better production the second time around?
• Again, screen grabs or short extracts from your film would be really useful here.

Remember, across all seven questions, you are being marked on:

• Use of ICT/technology: don't just write your answers to these questions; look to use screen grabs, short films, voiceovers, etc
• Understanding of issues around audience, institution, technology, representations and conventions in relation to production: bring in relevant media theory and discuss how they apply to your production
• Refer to choices made and outcomes: be very specific about WHAT you did, WHY you did it and what EFFECT it had on how your final production comes across; it can be especially helpful to have a first draft to compare your second draft to her
• Understanding of development from preliminary to full task: not just in terms of it being 'better' but also in terms of how your understanding of what it takes to make a professional-looking film - this can include technical stuff but also reflecting on how you adapted to some of the mistakes you made along the way
• Ability to communicate: make sure that everything you write/say/film is clear, uses correct English, includes relevant media theory and terminology in a way that can be understood and comes across as knowledgeable

I hope this helps, I'll be back in on Monday (promise!) to see how you're getting on but please make sure you do get cracking: deadline is still Easter so you only have a couple of weeks.

Evaluation

Your evaluation has to cover 7 key questions:

• In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
• How does your media product represent particular social groups?
• What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?
• Who would be the audience for your media product?
• How did you attract/address your audience?
• What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
• Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

Within that, you are marked on:

• Use of technology/ICT
• Understanding of issues around audience, institution, technology, representations and conventions in relation to production
• Refer to choices made and outcomes
• Understanding of development from preliminary to full task
• Ability to communicate

Here is an example of a top band evaluation: http://latymerfoundationlaura09.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Evaluation%20-%20Main%20Task

Here is a bottom band example:

http://www.chrisadamschrisadams.blogspot.co.uk/

Have a look at the differences between the two - what lessons do you learn about how to approach your own evaluations?