Year 10 Poster Task

Task:
Select a poster of your choice from the action genre and answer all the questions below.

Posters occupy a space between art and advertising. They have a clear commercial purpose - to promote an event or product - but they also have artistic value. People buy them and hang them on their walls. Museums have whole galleries devoted to poster art. When analysing a poster it is important that you evaluate both how well it fulfills its purpose (i.e. promotion) as well as its aesthetic value.

When analysing a poster, you should consider the following broad questions before you start to focus on the details:
•What are the main colours used in the poster? What do they connote?
•What symbols are used in the poster? Do you need audience foreknowledge to decode the symbols?
•What are the main figures/objects/background of the poster? Are they represented photographically, graphically, or illustratively?
•Are the messages in the poster primarily visual, verbal, or both?
•Who do you think is the intended audience for the poster?

Given that all movie posters have the same purpose - to get audiences to go see a movie -


•What persuasive techniques are used by the poster?
•Which genre conventions are referred to?
•Is a star used as a USP (Unique Selling Point)?
•Are "expert witnesses" (i.e. critics) quoted?
•What pleasures (gratifications) are promised by the poster?
•How is attention gained (humour, shock, surprise familiar face of a star)?
•How does the tagline work? (humour, pun, alliteration etc?)
•Who are the institutions involved in production?
The poster can also give you important information about the production context of the movie:
•How much does the poster tell you about the institutional context of the movie's production?
•How important is this information on the poster (think about information hierarchies)?
•How important a part of the whole marketing campaign is the poster? Where is the poster placed?
•How expensive was this poster to produce?

Critical Evaluation

Finally, you have to pass judgement on the poster:
•Is it a good poster?
•Does it communicate effectively with the audience?
•Are there any alternative readings which might harm the message of the marketing campaign?
•Is the poster offensive in any way? e.g. representation of people or places

New Year 10 Summer Homework Booklet

GCSE Media Studies Summer Homework 2015

Compare how teenagers are represented in Action Adventure films: Hunger Games and The Amazing Spiderman

Writing the Comparative Analysis Essay

Essay Writing Frame: Media GCSE

Compare how teenagers are represented in action/fantasy film.

800-1500 words

Introduction: Knowledge and understanding of the texts studied Name the two films Explain the conventions of the film genre (using media terminology) Explore how the two films meet these conventions

Analysis and Interpretation of the texts/ Representation Explain the film’s key message and structure Highlight its Unique Selling Point Identify the Target Audience and why the characters would appeal to that audience – comment on aspiration and representation

Representation of social and cultural message and values/ Media Language Highlight the social and cultural message behind the film Discuss why this message would impact on the Target Audience

Media Language/ Codes and Conventions Close film analysis of a key scene from the film Comment on the effect on camera shots/ camera movements/ sound/ mise en scene

Conclusion Comparison of how the characters are represented to link to essay title

Y10 Film Poster Audience Appeal

Film Poster for Avengers Age of Ultron

The marketing campaign for Avengers Age of Ultron involves a range of film posters to build up interest in the film. This happens in the build up to the film's release to ensure audience figures are vast so that the film makes a profit through box office sales.
You can see that the different posters are released to create excitement and interest in the film. They are designed to appeal to different audiences and drip feed information about the film in the approach to it being released to cinema audiences.
Posters are released in a certain order, usually the teaser posters are followed by official film posters and posters that will appeal to different groups of audiences. You can identify the different posters by the conventions used.
A teaser poster will rely on the key image, title and logos. It can be landscape rather than portrait to give the widescreen effect often seen on the cinema screen. Teasers tend to have limited information about the film.

Teaser Posters are released to generate interest in the film.

The film posters gradually introduce more information, until the final poster which includes all of the conventions. This is released closer to the film's release date. There are also posters which suggest the film could appeal to a range of audiences.

Look at these posters, especially the key image. Who do you think they are designed to appeal to?

Tasks: 

Create a version of your film poster to appeal to an alternative target audience. What changes do you need to make to your original first draft poster?

Create a teaser poster for your film idea. What conventions do you need to alter?

Deadline: The first drafts of this work need to be handed in on Wednesday 25th March in the lesson.

Year 10 Magazine: Production Log

As you work on your project, you need to record the steps you have made towards the final piece of work. This is called a production log as it outlines every stage of your work, week by week. Use the questions below to help you evaluate your product so far and talk about the design decisions you have made.

1. What product have you completed this week?

2. What were the challenges of this task? Did you find it easy?

3. How does your product use the conventions of Film Posters?

4. What part of your research helped you with this task?

5. Why do you think your product would suit your target audience?

6. What makes your product successful?

7. What changes do you plan to make next and why?

Year 10 Film Pitch

Film Idea

Task: Create your idea for your potential, original film. It needs to be an Action Adventure film that will appeal to a teenage target audience (male or female). You need to pitch your film idea thinking about the following ideas:

• Title
• Main Characters and why they would appeal
• Outline of the plot
• Unique Selling Point - what makes your idea stand out?

Add your idea to your images from last lesson and try to present it as a real pitch. Here are some examples...

Questions you should ask yourself:

• Is there a clear sense of narrative structure about your plot (beginning, middle and end)?
• Have you included detailed ideas about the main character(s)?
• Are there suggestions as to who could play the main characters?
• Is the film's genre clear - does it follow the conventions of Action Adventure?
• Are there references to other films?
• Is the overall concept clear?

Representation of Characters

You need to compare how the two characters from the films The Hunger Games and The Amazing Spiderman are represented.

Use the images below to look at how the two characters are presented to the audience. Think about their clothes, hairstyle, attitude and body language to give you a good idea of what the audience are supposed to learn about the characters. When the characters are first introduced, what kind of setting are they in? Look at the things in the scene around them?

To complete this task, you need to focus on Mise-en-scene:

• Costume
• Pose and facial expressions
• Props
• Lighting
• Colour 

Year 10 Schedule

Tuesday 21st
Begin creating the photoshop version of your film poster

Homework: Take photos for your poster or organise your props and bring them into college to take your photo tomorrow. Remember to think carefully about how you frame your image for effect.

Wednesday 22nd
Use photoshop to manipulate your image and begin creating your final poster.

Thursday 23rd
Continue completing your final poster.

Friday 24th
Finish your final film poster.