Question 1A

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  • Question 1A
    • Digital Media technology
      • Electronic software that is used in order to create a product.
      • We have more access to media that can cause inspiration thus increasing our creativity as we are able to create intertextual products or even a bricolage.
      • Allows us to use production software which means we are able to make changes and experiment with different ideas from work that we investigated in research and planning
      • As there have been advances in digital technology we now have more access to social networking and broadcasting software such as Facebook and Youtube.
        • Allows us to exhibit the work we created to an audience, encouraging us to make more as people are able to give instant feedback and show appreciation
      • AS Preliminary Task
        • AS Magazine
          • As I started to use a range of digital media technology in my work, both my skills and creativity improved.
            • In my production of my music magazine I used Adobe Photoshop in order to edit the images that I used on my front cover, contents page and DBS.
              • I was able to use Photoshop to get rid of the green screen behind my actors using the magic wand control; not only did this make my images look more aesthetically pleasing but it also meant that the music magazine as a whole looked more professional
            • Indesign allowed me to arrange the pages of my magazine, the software allowed me to use different layers which meant that I was able to experiment with conventions and the way in which my magazine looked.
            • Digital Technology meant that it was easier to keep a constant house style throughout the magazine as I was able to reflect the same design on every page.
              • This increased creativity as I was able to replicate the house style and colour scheme from real media texts that I had researched
        • Creativity during this task was minimal due to the lack of digital media technology that I used.
          • For the post-production stage I only used Adobe in Design as I did not edit the image I used.
            • The lack of skills and understanding presented here meant that I created a magazine for what I believed looked aesthetically pleasing.
              • There was no experimentation during this stage as I was simply copying a template.
                • Creativity during this task was minimal due to the lack of digital media technology that I used.
                  • For the post-production stage I only used Adobe in Design as I did not edit the image I used.
                    • The lack of skills and understanding presented here meant that I created a magazine for what I believed looked aesthetically pleasing.
                      • There was no experimentation during this stage as I was simply copying a template.
                        • I did not understand the conventions that I was using at the time it meant that I was not able to experiment with my work and challenge the conventions that I saw on the template.
                • I did not understand the conventions that I was using at the time it meant that I was not able to experiment with my work and challenge the conventions that I saw on the template.
      • A2 Advanced Portfolio
        • In the preliminary stage we researched the real conventions of a horror film trailer in order to establish what would look best in an edit.
          • I created and edited the dominant image in Adobe Photoshop- however I also used Youtube in order to have access to inspiration and I often used it in order to teach myself different techniques to use on Photoshop.
            • For our film trailer we used a software called Final Cut Pro, this was very straight forward to use and it provides easy access to social networks directly from the programme.
              • This meant that we were therefore able to distribute and exhibit our work onto Youtube where it can be viewed by a mass audience.
        • An increased access to digital technology meant that we were able to use a wider range of software in order to create our final product.
          • It allowed us to use production software such as final cut  thus improve the quality & make our product look more aesthetically pleasing than if it was created on a more basic and unprofessional programme such as movie maker.
    • Creativity
      • Technology
        • There are constant advantages in technology which allow people to be passively be creative as there is free and easy access to creative influences 
      • Intertextuality
        • Creativity is a product that ‘changes an existing domain, or that transforms an exciting domain into a new one’, intertextuality involves recycling previous works in order to create a new one. 
      • No Originality
        • It is becoming increasingly difficult to come up with an idea that is completely original due to the fact that all ideas have been used before. This is the idea of cultural recycling as ‘new’ pieces of work are in fact a mixture of different aspects put together in order to create something new. 
      • Post Modern Producer
        • All media texts have been influenced by pre-existing media texts and therefore no work is ever original. 
          •  There is social conditioning which enforces limitations on creativity- . Society has fundamentally set guidelines which all creative work must follow in order to be deemed as ‘creative’ and be seen as a professional and convincing piece of work.
      • Bringing something into creation that didn’t exist before, this consequently means that there cannot be any judgement over what is creative as people have different ways of interpreting it. 
    • Post Production
      • Film post-production refers to the editing, sound and special effect processes.
      • Print Post- production refers to manipulation of copy and images, as well as constructing additional content to an original document.
    • Real Media texts
      • Burton defined conventions as rules that must be followed by Media texts in order to meet the expectations set by the audience of the genre.
        • These rules have a purpose and you can break these rules therefore making your original and presenting a contrasting message, subtext.
          • These rules/ conventions often restrict work and therefore make things predictable and boring however following them means that you are fulfilling the audience’s expectations of specific genres.
      • To use conventions correctly and effectively you must have an understanding of the semiotics and the purpose of the convention; you must understand how it can be connoted to show a full appreciation of the deeper subtext.
        • My skills in using conventions from real media texts has developed as I now have and understand why conventions are used to make my project successful and convincing. This meant that I was able to appreciate why specific conventions were used and able to creatively manipulate this to fit my own work.
      • My knowledge of semiotics has developed over the last two years, as in my AS work I was more focused on making my magazine on what I believed looked good rather than focusing on the conventions set by the genre and audience expectations.
        • Over the second year I was able to research conventions of the Horror Genre and to understand why they have been used by looking at the connotations created by the conventions and I was able to understand the purpose for using them.
          • A2 Advanced Portfolio
            • I had to research the conventions used in real media texts such as the Mise-en-scene. I watched a number of different horror films and trailers in order to identify key conventions and to use as influence for my own trailer.
            • Specifically looked at the semiotics used in horror films in order to fully understand the purpose behind the conventions that are commonly used throughout the horror genre.
              • Every convention present is used for a deeper meaning for example the use of lighting is important as this effects the tone and pace of the film making the conventions successful and meeting the expectations set by the audience.
                • For example, low key lighting allows things to hide in the shadows therefore adding suspense to the film.
        • AS Preliminary Work
          • I did not complete any research and planning before starting which meant that I have a lack of knowledge on what it should conventionally look like.
            • This did not help me develop my creativity as I was given minimal control over the magazine as I was set specific guidelines that I had to follow
          • AS Magazine
            • The brief was simply to create a front cover, content page and DBS for a music magazine. This meant that I was able to have more freedom with what I produced.
              • I completed research and planning into conventions of other magazines from the same genre.
            • Despite using various real media texts in order to influence my own work I still had a lack of understanding to why certain conventions were used in a specific place and the purpose behind them.
              • This meant that I was not able to be fully creative as I was unable to ‘transform an exciting domain into a new one’ and I was not confident enough in my knowledge to challenge some of the conventions of a music magazine.
    • Research and Planning
      • The mapping out of concepts and ideas with an intended demographic in mind.
      • Over the two years my research and planning skills have developed as in the first year I was simply completing the tasks as it was set by my teacher
        • However I now understand the purpose of completing research prior to the production stage and therefore made sure that my research in A2 was more proficient and thorough.
          • A2 Advanced Portfolio
            • The preliminary trailer that we created during the summer was very helpful as we used it in order to reflect on the strengths and weakness
            • For the textual analysis, I began to analyse the different theories linking to the horror genre in order to work out and understand the purpose of using them in our own work.
              • We fundamentally used the influence of existing horror films to help us decide on the colour schemes, characters and subtext that we wanted for our own film.
                • This portrays the development in my Research and Planning Skills as I was now inspired by the effect the conventions had on the audience which enhanced my creativity as I was able to use the conventions more effectively.
                  • For the textual analysis, I began to analyse the different theories linking to the horror genre in order to work out and understand the purpose of using them in our own work.
                    • We fundamentally used the influence of existing horror films to help us decide on the colour schemes, characters and subtext that we wanted for our own film.
                      • This portrays the development in my Research and Planning Skills as I was now inspired by the effect the conventions had on the audience which enhanced my creativity as I was able to use the conventions more effectively.
          • AS Preliminary Work
            • AS Magazine
              • I asked my target audience a number of questions in order to see what they believed was effective in other pieces of work and also what they liked the most from existing products.
                • Therefore I applied this knowledge in the planning tasks for example the Mock-up photos in order to make sure that it was designed in order to include aspects that we mentioned as being successful.
                  • At this point of production I was not able to explain the purpose of the different aspects and conventions of a music magazine; my basic research skills still limited my creativity as I was not aware of the purpose of some of the conventions
            • There was no research and planning involved due to the fact that our class was given a magazine template to copy and we were instructed on how to create our magazine.
              • This meant that the skills that we developed during this task were very basic as it involved generic coping of a template.This limited my creativity as it did not allow me to be influenced by a number of different examples.
        • Prior research into the type of product you are creating has a major effect on creativity. Creativity is a product that ‘changes an existing domain, or that transforms an exciting domain into a new one’.
          • Therefore intertextuality is very important as it involves recycling previous works in order to create a new one.

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