1. A2
REVISION:
SECTION A

2. SECTION A
In the exam you should spend 1 hour on this section.
30 minutes for question 1(a), 30 minutes for question 1(b).
This section is worth 50 marks.

3. 1(A) PROGRESSION
Question 1(a) will ask you to discuss the progression of your
skills in one or two of these areas:
• Research and planning
• Digital technology
• Post-production
• Conventions
• Creativity
In this question you must talk about both your AS and A2
coursework.

4. CREATIVITY

5. CREATIVITY
‘creativity involves the physical making of something,
leading to some form of communication or expression’
(Gauntlett).
Creativity should be understood as the production choices
you made which allowed you to communicate meaning to the
audience.

6. QUESTION 1(A)
ASSESSMENT CRITERIA
o Progression
o Reflection
o Evaluation
o Specific, relevant, clear examples
o Terminology
Sense of a journey

7. QUESTION 1(A)
EXAMINERS’ REPORT
The highest marks were secured by candidates who were able to
relate their decision making to the creative outcomes and deal
specifically with how digital technology – for example, editing software and
image manipulation either affords or limits creativity. Most candidates
approached the question chronologically, citing examples of creativity
stemming from production work, whilst level 3 responses broadened the
discussion to explain how digital technologies had facilitated creative
decisions at the research and planning stage, with reference to You-Tube
for textual research, Survey Monkey for audience research and social
networking for audience research and planning. Many candidates
demonstrated how they had become more creative in the presentation of
their work by making more effective use of a broader range of apps on
their blogs/websites.
The least successful answers tended to list/describe the technology
used and confused creativity with quality.
To achieve level 4, candidates also needed to provide detailed
examples of progress in their use of technology over the course.

8. QUESTION 1(A) -
PROGRESS
You must show evidence of the progression of your skills in
your answer.
Each example should illustrate the development of a specific
skill.

9. QUESTION 1(A) –
REFLECTION/EVALUATION
For each example consider how successful this was, and
what this allowed you to achieve.

10. QUESTION 1(A)
Research and
Planning
Digital
Technology
Post-production Conventions Creativity
• Analysis of
music
magazines
• Audience
Research
• Draft work
• Publishing
software
• Image editing
• Internet-based
research (e.g.
Survey
Monkey)
• Publishing
software
• Image editing
• Layout
• Language
• Images (mise-
en-scene,
shot types)
• Mode of
address
• Typography
• Photography
• Writing copy
• Page design
• Typography
• Analysis of
videos
• Analysis of
ancillary
products
• Audience
research
• Shotlist
• Storyboard
• Animatic
• Production
Schedule
• Video editing
software
• Image editing
software
• Publishing
software
• Internet-based
research
• (Digital
camera)
• Video editing
software
• Image editing
software
• Publishing
software
• Conventions
of genre
• Conventions
of form
• Narrative
• Mise-en-
scene
• Camerawork
• Sound
• Editing

11. QUESTION 1(A) -
EXAMPLES
You need to use specific and detailed examples, evaluate
each example, and explain how this demonstrates progress.
YOUR EXAMPLES MUST BE SPECIFIC
Remember that lots of the examples will overlap (e.g. digital
technology, post-production, creativity).
You should have decided on the examples you intend to use I
the exam for each question.

12. EXAMPLES

13. EXAMPLE
Identify a specific example of how research and planning
helped you to identify a convention which you used digital
technology to create in post-production.
Use the example – evaluation – progression structure.

14. THEORY
Question 1(a) does not require detailed reference to media
theory, however it may be beneficial to bring in some relevant
theoretical ideas.
Gauntlett – creativity
Hall – encoding/decoding

15. STRUCTURING YOUR
ANSWER

16. STRUCTURE
Introduction – very brief description of what your coursework at AS
and A2, e.g. For the Foundation Portfolio I produced a new music
magazine focused on pop music, and at A2 I produced a horror film
trailer, poster, and magazine cover.
Paragraph 2 – Skill area – you may want to briefly define the skill
area and consider your level of skill at the start of the course – you
could use the preliminary task to illustrate this.
Paragraph 3 – AS coursework – discuss specific examples of your
use of the skill at AS, explaining how your skills developed.
Paragraph 4 – A2 coursework – discuss specific examples of your
use of the skill at A2, explaining how your skills developed, and
including some comparison with skill level at AS/beginning of course.
Conclusion – Briefly sum up how your skills have progressed.

17. QUESTION 1(B) -
THEORY
Question 1(b) will ask you to apply one theoretical concept to
one of your coursework productions.
o Representation
o Audience
o Narrative
o Genre
o Media Language

18. QUESTION 1(B) –
ASSESSMENT CRITERIA
o Understanding of concept
o Theory applied to production
o Range of specific, relevant, interesting, clear examples
o Terminology

19. 1(B)

20. 1(B) EXAMINER’S
REPORT

21. 1(B)
Representation Audience Narrative Genre Media
Language
Mulvey Hall Propp Neale Hall
Baudrillard Blumler &
Katz
Todorov Altman All narrative
theorists
Saussure Morley
(Bourdieu)
Barthes Ryall Neale
Dyer Fiske Levi-Strauss Cawelti Ryall

22. 1(B)
Introduction – identify the production you going to focus on.
Briefly outline the concept you are discussing.
Paragraph 2 – introduce one theoretical approach to the concept.
Explain how that can be applied to the product you are discussing
(or how it cannot be applied). Remember to use specific
examples, and approach the product with critical distance –
textual analysis of the product not description of production
process.
Paragraph 3-4 – continue to apply to relevant theorists.
Conclusion – how useful are the theories you discussed in
making sense of how meaning is created/audiences would
engage with your text.

23. 1(B) - EXAMPLES
Identify one specific example you could use for each of the
conceptual areas.
Representation
Audience
Narrative
Genre
Media Language

24. WHAT DO YOU NEED
TO DO WELL IN 1(A)?
Show progression
Use specific examples
Evaluate examples
Use terminology
Spend 30 minutes on the question

25. WHAT DO YOU NEED
TO DO WELL ON 1(B)?
Show understanding of theory
Apply theory to your product
Use specific examples
Use terminology
Textual analysis of product
Spend 30 minutes on this question