Media Studies Conference

For all Year 12 students...

Don't forget to be on time on Wednesday 15th - 8.45am outside school - and to bring pen/paper etc.

Homework to do this week in relation to the Media Conference...

TASK ONE

Before the conference - read the three related internet articles and info about the key media professionals you'll be seeing and hearing at the following links...

Politics and the Media
A special report from The Guardian newspaper entitled 'The Fourth Estate Under Fire' that will prepare you for the session by Polly Toynbee, one of the top female journalists in the UK.

Bollywood - An Insider's Guide
A brief summary of some of the key points that Fuad Omar - the highly regarded writer on Indian Cinema - will raise in his presentation.

New Media Technology
A Guardian article outlining 'Why The Internet Will Revolutionise Politics'. This is the topic that will be covered by the Guardian Media Editor, Matt Wells.

TASK TWO

Then respond to the questions posed below, making use of your notes from the conference and the articles posted above. Each answer can be brief - a sentence or two - and should be submitted in the comments at the end of this posting.

This needs to be done by Monday 20th November for 12D1 and 12C2, and for Tuesday 21st November for 12C1.

1. Politics and the Media – reporting or creating the news?
(Polly Toynbee, Observer and Guardian)

a. Do the media determine or influence the political agenda?
b. Do the media turn politics into the cult of the personality?
c. Are the media more concerned with what is “of interest to the public” rather than with what is in the “public interest”?
d. Who is responsible for political spin - the politicians or the media?

2. Why is Bollywood so popular?- a comparative look at World Cinema
(Fuad Omar, Bollywood Director and Producer)

a. Just what is “Bollywood”?
b. What are the significant differences between “Bollywood” and “Hollywood”?
c. How has Bollywood influenced film making internationally?
d. Is there a “British Bollywood?”

3. How effective is new media technology?
(Matt Wells, Media Editor, The Guardian)

a. To what extent have new technologies led to information overload?
b. How can we trust sources of information with increasing use of podcasting, blogs and raw news from the public?
c. Do new technologies democratise access and polarise views?

TASK THREE

Also, remember that you also need to type up your conference notes for each of the seven lectures. These have to be ready for the same time as the answers to the questions.

Kidulthood Trip

Don't forget that you must be at Ealing Empire Cinema on Uxbridge Road (opposite Ealing Town Hall) by 9.45am at the latest Tuesday 17th October.

You've been given your Kidulthood packs (with all the tasks you have to do in relation to the film) but if you lose them they can be downloaded from here. (So no excuses!)








Also, check out these relevant webpages...

• Official Kidulthood Film Site

• Kidulthood 'My Space' Site

Make sure you ask the director of the film lots of questions when you get the chance (a credit to anyone who's brave enough).

Then, after the film, as well as completing all the questions in the pack, please leave a comment about the film after this post. It must be a minimum of 50 words, it should be written in standard English, and it should evaluate the film's strengths and weaknesses (like you did for the student productions you saw...refer to film language etc.)

Also, give the film a star rating (out of five...five = excellent, four = v.good, 3 = good/average, two = poor, one = terrible).

Media Awards Evening Tasks

Year 12s - you have a lot to learn from this year's Media Awards Evening. It's a fantastic opportunity to see what it takes to get a top grade for the Module 3 Practical Production (which is worth a huge 40% of your grade this year).

Hopefully, you'll leave with your head buzzing with ideas about what you might like to do when you get started on your production in just a few months time.



To make sure you get the most out of the evening you need to complete the following:

• Read all the reviews in the programme booklet.

• Choose your two favourite productions - one documentary, one fiction. If you can't remember, or if you'd like to see any of them again, you can do so by going to the GHS Videos 06 playlist on YouTube.
  

• Post a comment to this blog entry - see the link below - in which you say what you think the best production was and why. Give specific details - credits for the ones that make most references to the key terminology you've been learning about film language (checklist below).
  

(You don't need to register as a blogger user first but you must make sure that you type your full name at the end of your comment so we know who's saying what).

• Vote in the Macguffin Poll - Best Media Production 2006 - that is on the left of this page
  

• Write a detailed review on paper for each of your two favourites - use the film review guidelines you received in September (for the competition you entered) and don't forget to comment on MCCAT (Media language, Conventions, Creativity, Attention to detail, Technical Proficieny)

• For Media Language, make sure you cover...

cinematography/camerawork: composition, framing, BCU, CU, MS, LS, pan, tilt, tracking shot, zoom

mise-en-scéne: clothing, props, gestures, facial expressions, sets, setting (CLAMPS)

lighting: key light, back light, filler light; underlighting, top lighting, back lighting; low-key/high-key lighting

sound: diegetic/non-diegetic; on/off screen, sound bridge; parallel/contrapuntal sound, voiceover narration

editing: continuity editing, jump cut, dissolve, wipe, fade in/out, cross-cutting, paralleling, cutaways, montage, suturing (shot/reverse shot)

• Produce a one page summary entitled: "What Makes A Good Practical Production"

If You Needed Reminding...

The site meter suggests that a number of Media students have been checking in here every day (although there's no way of knowing if it's Year 12s or 13s). Hopefully, this means that many of you have the exams uppermost in your minds at the moment.

However, there are no comments posted to either the Module 1 Revision/Preparation or the Module 2 Revision/Preparation blog entries. Is this because you've done no work or is it because you want to pretend you've done no work?

Come on...share with us what you've done!!

And if you haven't started yet then here is the place to begin!

Curb Your Enthusiasm

The episode of 'Curb Your Enthusiasm' that you need to revise for the Module 2 exam on Thursday (yes, only a few days to go!) is available on YouTube.

It's the one called 'Krazee Eyez Killah' but there are a whole load of other episodes posted up here too.

Check it out...from 'Your Caucasian'.

City of God Study Guide

Click on the image for a link where you can download a useful Study Guide on City of God. It's not very advanced (you received a similar one on Bullet Boy before you went on study leave) but it's good for refreshing your memory.

Try to do some of the activities that are suggested as this will make a change from essays and essay plans (and I'm sure you've done dozens of those already!).

Bowling for Columbine on TV

Set your DVD recorders/PVRs (or VHS recorders for those still in the 20th Century) for Bowling for Columbine. Details as follows...

Tues 23 May, 9pm
More4 (available on Sky, Cable and Freeview)

There is a short Michael Moore season on the channel this week. Try to record/see one of his other films too if you can...Farenheit 911 (Monday 22nd, 9pm) or Roger and Me (Wednesday 24th, 9pm).



Also, once you've found the channel you might like to know that they are currently broadcasting the second season of another of your Module 2 texts...Curb Your Enthusiasm (every Sunday at 9.30pm or 10.10pm, depending on which listings guide you read). It is worth checking out a few extra episodes so you can spot some of the conventions more clearly and the way the humour works.