(from the OCR syllabus)

The preliminary exercise

Using desktop publishing (DTP) and an image manipulation programme, produce the front page of a new school/college magazine,

featuring a photograph of a student in medium close-up plus some

appropriately laid-out text and a masthead. Additionally, you must produce a mock-up of the layout of the contents page to demonstrate

your DTP skills.

The main task

The front page, contents and double page spread of a new music

magazine. All images and text used must be original (created by you) and there must be a minimum of four images.

The write-up

Produce and present research, planning and evaluation.

The marks

G321: Foundation Portfolio in Media

Planning & research 20

Construction 60

Evaluation 20

TOTAL 100

= 50% of the marks for AS Media

Treat your project with professionalism and organisation and enjoy it.

Being creative is brilliant – but you can’t beat being organised.

the brief AS MEDIA

COURSEWORK

The final deadline 14 Feb 13

Use this blog as a guide when doing your coursework:

http://soniaenorf.blogspot.com/

Present your research and planning in a blog and include the following points.

1. Research into similar media products Present an analysis of the cover, contents and DPS of at least 3 similar

magazines. 2. Research to identify a potential target audience

Survey the types of printed music magazines on the market as well as magazines targeting different

audience. www.magforum.com is a good place to start. You will need to be able to justify your magazine ideas by showing that there is a demand

and a gap in the market.

Profile your audience using demographics, psychographics, lifestyle choices, subcultures, tribes and consumer preferences.

Make a ‘moodboard’ to help illustrate your

audience’s tastes and interests.

Survey a sample of your audience for their ideas,

tastes, story and layout ideas and write up the results of that survey on your blog.

3. Organisation of actors, locations, costumes and props Show all original images taken, whether you used them all or

not.

Present a list of props, locations and dates.

4. Work on shortlists, layouts and drafting Show at least 3 screen shots and/or paper

drafts of work in progress.

5. Care taken in the presentation of planning and

research When writing a post, always use the spellchecker. Use Flickr, SlideShare, lots of images and take

care to make your blog look good.

6. Time management Your mark will reflect how well you managed your time and met

deadlines.

1. Planning & Research (20%)

No found images are allowed. You must use at least four

images in total. You must create images from scratch specifically for this coursework with pre-manipulated proofs supplied in the planning appendix on your blog. Drawn

images which are then scanned onto the computer and manipulated are also acceptable.

You must use the forms and conventions of magazine

design to make meaning in your texts (eg: colour choice, appropriate layout, word play, use of logos, etc). Pay

attention to detail, we expect professional looking work. It needs to be obvious that the magazine is targeting a specific audience.

You are expected to demonstrate your ICT/DTP skills using Adobe Photoshop (which you will learn in class).

The final mark is given on the main task only but if you do not complete the

preliminary task you will lose 15 marks from the possible total of 60.

Print work must be no larger than A3,

printed off, in colour. Following is the list set out by the exam

board that your tutors will use to mark your construction work:

Framing a shot appropriately for the task

A variety of appropriate shot distances

Shooting appropriate material

Selecting mise-en-scene including colour, figure, lighting, objects and setting

Appropriate images/image manipulation including cropping and resizing

Accurate use of language and register

Integration of illustration and text

Conventions of layout and page design

Appropriate variety of fonts and text sizes

Using ICT appropriately for the set task

Overall quality of finished pieces

Use of appropriate digital technology or ICT in the presentation.

2. Construction (60%)

Sample of A grade coursework (2010)

When you have finished your main task you have to evaluate it on your blog. There is no word limit.

In the evaluation the following seven questions must be answered:

1. Forms and Conventions: In what ways does your media product

use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

You could present this using Flickr’s post-it note feature. Be sure to use the relevant terminology you have learnt and that is included in

the glossary on the next page.

2. Representation: How does your media product present

particular social groups?

3. Institutions: What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

4. Target Audience: Who would be the audience for your media

product?

This relates to your planning post on your chosen target audience. Mention demographics, psychographics, lifestyle preferences,

subcultures, tribes, etc. and use pictures and/or YouTube clips to illustrate. (Google ‘find your tribe’)

5. Attracting the Audience: How did you attract/address your audience?

How did knowledge of your audience influence the details of your work (e.g. shot composition, framing, anchorage, layout mode of address and register?) Did audience feedback confirm expectations or generate

surprise?

6. Technologies: What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing the product? List all the technologies you used explaining what was helpful and

what wasn’t. Use images, logos, screen prints, etc to illustrate.

7. Skills Development: Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

Consider improvements in your planning, design drafting, photo shoot, organisation of locations, people and props. What about your time

management and skills development? Compare your preliminary with your final products. You could use a Slideshare presentation for this.

http://soniaenorf.blogspot.com/

This blog is a good guide to what you should put in each post.

3. Evaluation (20%)

Here is a list of some terms relating to print-based media texts such as magazines and advertising.

Semiotics the study of signs and their meanings

Denotation literal meaning, dictionary meaning

Connotation implied meaning, meanings that a sign brings to mind

Signify to imply, suggest, connote

Iconic signs that look like the thing they represent (eg: a photo)

Indexical signs that relate to the thing they represent (eg: Bobby’s hat for a policeman)

Symbolic signs that stand for the thing they represent (eg: ‘H’ means Hospital ahead)

Anchorage Fixes meaning. Captions are used to clarify the meaning of an image

Polysemy signs/texts can have more than one meaning, depending on who interprets them

Context the social aspects of the environment that help shape the meaning of the text

Dominant reading

the way the majority of people interpret the text

Intertextuality the use of references to existing media texts (borrowing ideas the audience will relate to)

Juxtaposition placing together of two opposing images to produce a new meaning

Mode of Address

the language used to address the audience (eg: serious, funny)

Cropping trimming an image to focus attention on a particular part of it

Layout conventions

the typical way a text is laid out

Mise-en-scene everything that is in the frame (of a still or moving image)

Demographics A way of dividing the population according to their characteristics e.g. age, gender, ethnicity, class

Psychographics classifies people according to their attitudes and values e.g. mainstreamers, aspirers, succeeders and reformers.

Glossary