Section A 1B

Theoretical Evaluation of Production

• section A 1b = 25 marks
• have to choose to evaluate one of coursework pieces in relation to to a media concept:

Genre -

•  are categories or types of media text. Recognisable through repeated use of generic codes and conventions - iconography, narrative, representations, ideologies.
• Talk about macro AND micro features and conventions used.
• Theorists - Neale; (1980) all genres are instances of repetition and difference,
  Pye; films have to conform to audience expectations about narrative,
  Ryall; conventions = narrative, themes, characters/stereotypes, iconography.
• Meeting audience's expectations, audiences gain enjoyment when spotting conventions and makiing comparisons with other films of that genre.
• If a text deviates from the conventions it can confuse us, but at the same time we enjoy seeing the rules broken.
• Audiences like the anticipation of waiting for the predictable features.

Narrative -

• talk about A2
• Theorists - Propp; 8 character roles
  Todorov; equilibrium - disequilibrium - new equilibrium
  Barthes; 5 codes (action, enigma, cultural, symbolic, semic)
  Levi-Strauss; binary opposites
• all media texts tell stroies. The sturcture of these stories is called the narrative
• a story have verisimiltude (appear to be real) in order to engage us - how does your c/w have verisimilitude?

Representation -

• everything in the media is a representation - everything we see is being represented
• Who or what is being represented?
• How is the rep created?
• Who has created the rep?
• Why is the rep created in that way? what is the intention?
• What is the effect of the rep?
• Need to look ar Micro features - props, costume, mode of address, camera angles, colours, lighting, music, editing etc.
• Have there been stereotypes? Have you challenged conventions of stereotypes?
• Talk about genre, audience and media language
• Intertextuality - reference to another media text

Audience -

• consider: age, gender, demographic profile, socio-economic group, existing/new, lifeatyle, values, attitudes
• is your audience mass or niche?
• Hall: a preferred reading, an oppositional reading, a negotiated reading
• Talk about genre, reps, narrative
• How did you try to please your audience? Were you successful? (Audience feedback)

Media Language -

• denotations
• connotations
• anchorage
• all the Micro elements used to communicate meanings of the media texts - camera, editing, lighitng, sound, mise-en-scene