MEST1 Section B: A Field In England

A Field In England is a low-budget arthouse film by award-winning director Ben Wheatley. It was released on 5th July 2013 across cinema, DVD/Blu-ray, TV and VoD.

It is described as a psychedelic trip into Civil War era rural England and attracted attention due to both the director and the highly creative release and distribution method.

A Field In England is an excellent second case study because the official website contains a huge amount of information about the film from initial idea and financing to filming, editing and its remarkable release strategy.

The more you read, the more confidently you will be able to use the film in your exam answer, comparing it to the Ill Manors release strategy and target audience.

Complete the following tasks on your blog:

First, read the Media Magazine article on A Field In England in Issue 47 and write a 100 word summary of the article on your blog. You'll find the article in our Media Magazine archive - click on MM47 and go to page 19.

Now read the following pages on the official website that provide explanations of the unique release strategy that the institutions behind the film chose:

Industrial Evolution: Producer Andy Starke on the music industry influences informing A Field In England’s release strategy.  
Screening/radical release: Commissioning Executive Anna Higgs on the groundbreaking release plans for A Field In England.
Audience: Anna Higgs discusses where A Field In England sits within British cinema and how it will reach its intended audience for the film.

Finally, answer the following questions on your blog:

1. How was A Field In England’s release different to typical film releases?
2. What are the advantages to releasing the film across all platforms on the same day?
3. What are the disadvantages to this approach?
4. What target audience would A Field In England be aimed at? Demographics and Psychographics.
5. Do you think all films in future will be released across all platforms simultaneously in future?

Extension work: read the rest of the official website's digital masterclass – there is a huge amount of information about the film from initial idea and financing to filming, editing and release.

Homework: Ensure the reading, summary and five questions are completed and on your blog - due Monday 7 March.

Ill Manors e-media: website analysis

Increasingly, social media is overtaking official websites in terms of importance on the e-media platform.

The Ill Manors official website has now been taken down (the film is over three years old) but look at the screenshot below and think about how it promotes the film in synergy with other texts/platforms you have studied. 

Ill Manors blog task

Answer the following questions on your blog:

1. What examples can you find of the Ill Manors brand on the Ill Manors website homepage screengrab above?
2. How does the website encourage the audience to buy or interact with Ill Manors products?
3. Look at Plan B's official website. How does it use social media in terms of content and design? 
4. Scroll back through the wall to look at posts from around the release date of Ill Manors. How does this statement on Ill Manors link to other texts we have studied as part of this case study? Do you agree with his claim that he "won't justify" the riots? 
5. Why do you think social media is overtaking official websites in terms of film promotion?

Complete this for homework alongside the rest of the Ill Manors e-media platform work. This includes the Tag London campaign and the social media research questions. 

In total, you need the following blogposts to cover the e-media platform:

1. Ill Manors Tag London campaign
2. Social media research questions
3. Official website analysis

Due: confirmed by your teacher (12C due Friday 4 March)

MEST2 film rough cut deadline

Your deadline for a rough cut of your three-minute film extract is Wednesday 2 March.

This means you need to have a rough edit of the whole production ready for viewing and feedback. 

If you're editing in school, you don't need to export the production as we can watch it at your PC on Premiere Pro. If you're editing at home, you will need to export the rough cut and bring it in to school for screening to your teacher.

This is an absolutely crucial aspect of the project as feedback now can still leave time for last-minute improvements that can raise your final coursework mark.

Make sure you meet the deadline!

MEST2 Print brief: inspiration for final drafts

You should now be putting the finishing touches to your MEST2 print work - a front cover, contents page and double-page spread from the programme for the Little Picturehouse screening.

This Curzon Cinema magazine may provide inspiration for your final design, particularly in how it uses still images from films alongside text.

If you can get final drafts printed this week that leaves you free to focus on editing the three minute film extract.

Remember, this half-term is just 4.5 weeks long!

Ill Manors: e-media off-site research

Answer the following questions in a detailed blogpost. Use screengrabs and examples. 

Note: due to the school's firewall you will need to complete these questions off-site.

Ill Manors Facebook page

1. How many 'likes' has the Ill Manors film page had?
2. What is the top of the page promoting?
3. Choose five of the posts on the page's wall, screengrab them and explain how they appeal to the Ill Manor's target audience.
4. Find three examples of synergy with other platforms (links to broadcast clips or newspaper/magazine articles). Explain how each one promotes the film.
5. Find three examples on the Facebook wall of opportunities for user generated content or audience interaction (e.g. a question that invites people to comment or a competition to enter).
6. Find three examples of the Facebook page cross-promoting the soundtrack or DVD release.
7. Find the Twitter graffiti campaign link on the Facebook wall and screengrab it.
8. How did the institution use the Facebook page to promote the film's release in May/June 2012?

Ill Manors Twitter feed

1. How does the Ill Manors Twitter feed use the Ill Manors brand to promote the film?
2. What hashtags are used on the Ill Manors Twitter feed?
3. Find three celebrities the Ill Manors Twitter feed re-tweeted to promote the film and explain how they appeal to the Ill Manors target audience.
4. How has the Ill Manors Twitter feed used pictures to help promote the film?
5. Find examples of the Ill Manors Tag London campaign in the Ill Manors Twitter feed and explain how they help to target the right audience for the film.
6. How was the Ill Manors Twitter feed used to specifically promote the release of the film (May/June 2012) and the release on DVD (October 2012)? Choose three tweets for each and explain how they effectively promote the film.

Ill Manors on Instagram

1. How has Ill Manors used the Instagram platform to promote Ill Manors?
2. Choose three particular images/posts and explain why they are effective in promoting the film.
3. What hashtags are used on Instagram to promote the film? Is there consistency in branding/hashtags across social media? Why is this important?
4. Find three images on Instagram tagged with Ill Manors that relate to other texts you have studied across the three platforms (such as the music video, TEDx lecture or a print interview). Explain the synergy between the texts.

YouTube - planbuk channel

1. How was the planbuk YouTube channel used to promote the Ill Manors film?
2. Find examples of synergy or cross-promotion between the planbuk YouTube channel and other media texts you have studied as part of the case study. Explain how they both promote the film and appeal to the Ill Manors target audience.
3. What links to other social networking sites can you find on the planbuk channel homepage?

Homework due: confirm date with your teacher

Exam revision: AS Media March PPE

Your AS Media mock exam is on Wednesday 9 March at 8.30am.

This will be a MEST1 Section A exam paper similar to your January assessment. You will NOT be tested on Section B (British film industry and Ill Manors) as we have not completed teaching this topic. A reminder of what Section A involves:

Section A: 15 minutes to study the material/watch clip/make notes and then 60 minutes to answer FOUR compulsory questions.

You need to revise the following for this exam:

• ALL media theories and concepts we have studied since the start of Year 12.
• Your Film Language unit, paying particular attention to media terminology and detailed textual analysis.
• Finally, look closely at your MEST1 Section A January assessment - what were the specific aspects you needed to improve? You are looking for significant progress in the upcoming exam - an absolute minimum of 5 marks higher in Section A overall.

Do the work and make sure you are confident going into this exam - you have learned a HUGE amount about the media already this year and now have the opportunity to demonstrate that progress.

Good luck!

Ill Manors e-media: Tag London campaign

The Ill Manors Tag London campaign is a brilliant example of the power of the e-media platform.

The synergy with other aspects of the promotional campaign and the links to the political aspect of the film make it a vital part of our Ill Manors case study.




Ill Manors Tag London campaign: tasks

Read about the Ill Manors Tag London campaign on Musically - a music industry website - and the Think With Google Creative Sandbox page. The original website for the campaign is here. (You may not be able to access all of these pages in school but read all the links either in lesson or at home).

A selection of the tweets that were beamed across London include:

#ILLMANORS #IGNORINGTHEPROBLEM DOES NOT SOLVE IT? #INSPIREKIDS DON'T PUT THEM DOWN? #SOCIALCHANGECOMESTHROUGHACTION NOT INACTION? @4PLANB

#ILLMANORS THE WORSHIP AND MONEY MERGED ALL COLOURS AND CREED, INTO ONE TRUE RELIGION THAT WAS DRIVEN BY GREED @4PLANB

@ILLMANORS #ILLMANORS OLYMPICS GONNA LEAVE US WITH A LARGE BILL A LARGE VENUE THAT WILL CLOSE BY THE NXT PROJECT AND IS A TERRORISTS WISH,

#ILLMANORS JUST ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF CAMERON'S BROKEN BRITAIN

#ILLMANORS, SOCIETY REBELLING BACK AT BROKEN BRITAIN, @4PLANB

WHY ARE THE RICH GETTING RICHER AND THE POOR GETTING POORER. PFFT TO THE GOVERNMENT.THE OLYMPICS.WILL DESTROY LONDON #ILLMANORS

#ILLMANORS INCLUSION NOT EXCLUSION.

THE RECESSION IS A WORLD SCHEME TO KEEP THE POOR, POOR. THE RICH OF THIS WORD HAVE NEVER BEING RICHER. #ILLMANORS

SOUNDS LIKE THE TRUTH #ILLMANORS

@4PLANB MONEY & LOVE CAN LIFT A PEOPLE UP. IT’S NOT A RACE, WHEN WE’RE ALL FROM ONE PLACE. HOW WILL YOU APPLY YOURSELF? #ILLMANORS #ITSDEEP

AND BY THAT I MEAN, IF YOU WANT SOMETHING TO CHANGE YOU HAVE TO START WITH THE MORAL HIGH GROUND AND NEVER GIVE IN. #ILLMANORS

ON PRINCIPLE, WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A TEENAGER LOOTING TRAINERS AND A POLITICIAN STEALING THOUSANDS IN EXPENSES? #ILLMANORS

LONDON IS CALLING, THE CITY IS CRUMBLING #ILLMANORS.

PLAN B'S #ILLMANORS MOVEMENT IS SICK, GET INVOLVED

#ILLMANORS YOU CAN'T EAT MONEY...BUT YOU CAN EAT THE RICH


Now answer the following questions on your blog:

1. Summarise the Ill Manors Tag London campaign in 100 of your own words.
2. How does the Ill Manors Tag London campaign help to promote the film?
3. What synergy (links) can you find between the Tag London campaign and other texts you have studied as part of the Ill Manors case study?
4. Why might user-generated campaigns like this be more successful than traditional media campaigns?
5. Choose FIVE of the tweets above and for each one write what target audience the tweet could appeal to (demographics/psychographics) and then link the tweet to one other media text you have studied as part of the Ill Manors case study (TEDx lecture, music video etc.) Justify your link for each tweet using examples from the film/promotional material.

Finish for homework anything you don't complete in the lesson - due next lesson.