MANGANMEDIA
Media curriculum and student gallery
Media Units 3 and 4 2023 Course work, SACS SAT and Assessment
Unit 3: Media narratives and pre-production
In this unit students explore stories that circulate in society through media narratives. They consider the use of media codes and conventions to structure meaning, and how this construction is influenced by the social, cultural, ideological and institutional contexts of production, distribution, consumption and reception. Students assess how audiences from different periods of time and contexts are engaged by, consume and read narratives using appropriate media language.
Narratives are de ned as the depiction of a chain of events in a cause and effect relationship occurring in physical and/or virtual space and time in non- ctional and ctional media products.
Students use the pre-production stage of the media production process to design the production of a media product for a specified audience. They investigate a media form that aligns with their interests and intent, developing an understanding of the media codes and conventions appropriate to audience engagement, consumption and reception within the selected media form. They explore and experiment with media technologies to develop skills in their selected media form, re ecting on and documenting their progress. Students undertake pre-production processes appropriate to their selected media form and develop written and visual documentation to support the production and post-production of a media product in Unit 4.
Area of Study 1 Narrative and ideology
Narratives are fundamental to the relationship between the media and its audiences. Ideologies in society frame the nature, form and structure of narratives. Audiences and the media together frame the nature, form and development of discourses in society through the construction, distribution, reception and consumption of narratives that implicitly or explicitly comment on, re ect on, develop, reject or ignore ideologies.
Media narratives are the product of creative and institutional practices that represent ideas through media codes and conventions. The use of media codes and conventions in uences audience engagement, consumption and reading of narratives. Other in uential factors include the social, cultural, ideological and institutional contexts relating to the period of time and location in which the media narrative was produced, the purpose of the media narrative, the genre, style, content, particulars of distribution and consumption and reception.
Students examine ctional and non- ctional narratives in the form of film and/or television and/or radio and/or audio product (that may be broadcast or streamed) and/or photographic and/or print products. For the purposes of this area of study, the media product selected for study will comprise of one of the following:
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at least two feature length film products of one hour or more in length or the equivalent length in television, streamed, radio or audio products
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two photographic series of at least six images each
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two print productions of at least 15 pages each.
Fictional and/or non- ctional narratives may be studied. At least one media product must have been released in the ve years prior to the commencement of the year of study.
Outcome 1
On completion of this unit the student should be able to analyse how narratives are constructed and distributed, and how they engage, are consumed and are read by the intended audience and present day audiences
Assessment
Students will need to be familiar with a range of terms covered in Area of Study 1 including media codes and conventions, audience engagement, consumption and reading of media narratives and ideological and institutional contexts.
Students should be able to analyse how narratives are constructed and distributed in at least two media products, with one of those products having been made in the five years prior to the current year of study. They must discuss audience engagement and consumption by the audience when the product was first made and a current day audience.
Students must analyse and discuss the relationships between media narratives and audiences, media narratives and the ideological, and institutional contexts of production.
Students discuss how ideologies shape media narratives and the relationship between the narrative, the ideological and institutional contexts of production and audience consumption and reception. Students need to be provided with the opportunity to clearly identify and analyse the ideology and link it with the media products they have selected.
Key questions should be designed to allow students to discuss the connections between media products, audiences, ideological and institutional contexts.
Area of Study 2 Media production development
Media productions develop out of that which has come before. Media creators and producers frequently reference ideas and techniques that have been developed by others. Collecting, acknowledging and building upon ideas, structures, aesthetics and techniques informs the direction of media productions and an understanding of how audiences are engaged. Students investigate and research a selected media form to inform the development of their proposed production. This research contributes to the direction of their production design.
Students conduct an investigation of aspects of the media form in which they will work, developing knowledge of narrative, genre, style, media codes and conventions and aspects of the works of media practitioners relevant to their proposed production. Students develop production skills that inform the production, design and development of a media product. They record their learning in documented research, annotated production activities, experiments, exercises and re ections.
Outcome 2
On completion of this unit the student should be able to research aspects of a media form and experiment with media technologies and media production processes to inform and document the design of a media production.
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Area of Study 3 Media production design
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Media production designs are a set of written and visual documents that detail the stages of production of a proposed product. The production design communicates both creative vision and thorough planning. The media industry has speci c methodologies, conventions and work ow for documenting media production in different media forms. These methods vary from form to form and within forms according to the style and/or genre of the proposed product.
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Audience engagement consumption and reception is at the heart of media production. A feature common to production design across media forms is a clear understanding of the proposed audience/s. Audiences may be delineated by demographic or social factors, identi ed by their interests and experience in media works, forms, genres or styles, or created by media institutions or individual producers for a particular purpose. Detailed articulation of audience/s and how they will be engaged underpins all aspects of a media production design.Informed by their learning in Area of Study 2, students use industry speci c design and planning, both in written and visual documentation, to complete a media production design. The design incorporates a clear ctional and/ or non- ctional narrative for a speci ed audience in a selected media form as outlined below.
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Students take into account the relevant media codes and conventions of the selected media form. The production design is developed for one of the following media forms:
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A video or lm production of 3–10 minutes in length, including title and credit sequences.
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An animated production of no more than 10 minutes in length, including title and credit sequences.
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A radio or an audio production of a minimum of 8 minutes in length, including title and credit sequences.
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A digital or an analogue photographic presentation, sequence or series of a minimum of 10 original sourced
images shot, processed and edited by the student.
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A digital or traditional print production of a minimum of 8 pages produced and edited by the student.
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A digital and/or an online production that demonstrates comparable complexity consistent with the other media forms.
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A convergent or hybridised media production that incorporates aspects of a range of media forms and is consistent with product durations and the descriptors listed.
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Outcome 3
On completion of this unit the student should be able to develop and document a media production design in a selected media form for a specified audience.
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“So what does VCCA suggest should be contained in the Media Production Design”
Media production design forms the pre-production stage of the Media production process. It uses the Media production development from Area of Study 2 and is the working document used to create the Media production in Unit 4, Area of Study 1.
Intention Narrative and Specified Audience statements
Intention, narrative, audience form the creative context for the Media production design. They create the rationale, outline the vision and its relationship with the specified audience, the style and the constraints of the Media production.
The Intention Statement will include the purpose of the media product, a discussion of its main themes or ideologies, ideas or concepts and an exploration of the media form, including the style and genre.
The Narrative Statement will include a short summary of how an audience will experience the media product. Examples include: a scene-by-scene description, description of photographic compositions, descriptions of sequences or how the layouts will be presented, arranged or ordered.
The Specified Audience Statement will give a clear understanding of a proposed audience or audiences and has four parts: identification, engagement, and consumption, and reception. The Specified Audience Statement should include detailed audience research and referred to throughout the Media production process.
Style
Students will describe how their media product will include their personal style. This section will be a culmination of their media production development. They discuss the influences, aesthetics and structural qualities, codes and conventions that have contributed to their Media production development , including references to the Specified Audience, Intention and Narrative Statements.
Opportunities and constraints
All media products are made within a context of the available resources. This section should show a clear understanding of the constraints but also the opportunities available to the student relevant to the media product. This includes an understanding of school and community values, access to shared equipment, technologies and materials, budget constraints, travel constraints and access to locations and props. Students and teachers should refer to the section on Safety and Wellbeing on Page 7 of the study design and consider the regulations regarding permission to film or record in public places. The content of media products is a school decision and students should consider the appropriate content for the school community and audience.
Pre-production documentation
All media forms and types have different pre-production documentation. Students need to research the industry conventions of their chosen form and determine which documents and processes are appropriate and necessary for their chosen media product. Documentation needs to reflect all aspects of the media product and should invoke a clear and detailed indication of what the finished product will be.
Pre-production documentation has two main sections:
Written and visual representations: these are detailed depictions of the finished product. Written and visual representations may include: treatment, script, storyboards, page layouts, blocking diagrams, image compositions, lighting diagrams, sequencing diagrams, interview questions, presentation layouts, mock-ups, screen design, graphic or character design.
Roles, tasks and timelines: the planning documents required for the production and post-production stages of the Media production process. They may include: cast and crew lists, production schedules, shot lists, lighting plans, camera and lens details, time lists, call sheets, copyright clearance, location permissions, talent release forms or equipment/costume/prop checklists.
Unit 4: Media production and issues in the media
In this unit students focus on the production and post-production stages of the media production process, bringing the media production design created in Unit 3 to its realisation. They re ne their media production in response to feedback and through personal re ection, documenting the iterations of their production as they work towards completion.
Students explore the relationship between the media and audiences, focusing on the opportunities and challenges afforded by current developments in the media industry. They consider the nature of communication between the media and audiences, explore the capacity of the media to be used by governments, institutions and audiences, and analyse the role of the Australian government in regulating the media.
Area of Study 1 Media production
The production, post-production and distribution stages of a media product are a natural progression from the pre-production stage of the media production process. Students move from production into post-production where the manipulation, arrangement or layering of the ideas and material generated in pre-production and production leads to the realisation of their production design.
Media creators and producers re ect on and work with others to gain insight into whether their products communicate their planned intent, re ning their products in the production and post-production stages. Students undertake personal re ection and seek feedback on their work, developing, re ning and resolving their product as a result. They document iterations of their production after considering the factors that have in uenced the development, re nement of materials, technologies and processes, the resolution of ideas and the effect they have had on the nal product.
The creation and production of the media product is an individual undertaking. In some cases the implementation of the production design may require the student to work with others. Throughout both the production and post- production stages, the student should be the key principal in the production process. All work undertaken by any cast or crew or external assistance must be under the direction of the student and documented in the media production design plan.
Outcome 1
On completion of this unit the student should be able to produce, refine and resolve a media product designed in Unit 3.
As students complete their production and post-production. phases of their Media production process, teachers will help students be aware of the realities of media production, including completing productions outside of class time, the availability of equipment and resources and the protocols for the backing up of work. When collecting work for assessment, teachers should also consider how this may be safely and securely stored and backed up.
Teachers must authenticate student work throughout the Media production process using the Authentication Record Form and Student Feedback Forms in the VCAA School Assessment Administration Advice published annually in February. Students must prove they are the key principal in the production process through demonstrated documentation.
The completed media product should be consistent with the constraints of the media form and the Media production design set out in Unit 3: Area of Study 3, and the reflection and feedback processes outlined in Unit 4: Area of Study 1.
The Media production process is an iterative process and a working document and the final media products may change from the Pre-production documentation. All changes should reflect the original statements of intention, specified audience and narrative and be based on feedback. The Media production process may include annotations and production notes written in the production documentation in the Media production and post-production stages. These notes should be highlighted and dated. After the completion of Unit 3 and the submission of the Media production development and Media production design stages of the Media production process, teachers and students must store a backup copy of the original work. Details outlining the requirements for the backup and storage of student work are in the VCE Administrative Handbook published on the VCAA website annually.
To assist with the authentication of work and to track and encourage student learning, students must document their production and post-production phases. This documentation should provide ample evidence of student learning and work. Multiple stages of the production and post-production phases should be formally documented in the Media production process and backed up, including raw footage or photographs, rough cuts or drafts, and refined cuts or drafts. Other documentation could take the form of: behind the scenes photos, screen shots, re-shoot planning, continuity documentation, time lapse recording or a production journal. This evidence should be chronological in order and clearly explained linking to their planned intent and audience.
Feedback
This stage forms part of the post-production of the Media production process and enables the student to gather evidence, resolve ideas, refine their product and apply their understanding of the specified audience. Feedback should be collected from multiple sources including: teacher, target audiences, wider audience, peers and acquaintances unfamiliar with the work. Feedback can be undertaken in the form of: surveys, focus groups, and interviews. Feedback should be documented clearly and dated in the Media production documentation.
Reflection
This process is important in encouraging reflective practice. Reflective notes through the production and post-production phases of the Media production process are necessary. Students are encouraged to take notes on the feedback given, identifying ways of refining and resolving their work including changes to journal entries, and iterations after feedback.
Area of Study 2 Agency and control in and of the media
The relationship between the media and audiences has never been more complex. The contemporary media landscape poses issues and challenges for the way that academics and commentators have traditionally theorised the nature of communication. The media has always been considered to have the capacity to in uence, but now the balance of power is shifting and arguments around who in uences who have become highly contested. The media and its audiences are now both thought to exercise agency; the capacity to act and exert power.Today the media not only produces and distributes content to audiences, it also generates and sustains social networks, which have, in turn, enabled new modes of production, distribution, consumption and reception based on the sharing of commercial and user-generated content. This has contributed to business models based on data aggregation and the harvesting and sale of personal information collected from what many individuals consider social and personalised media engagement.
Laws and policies of the Australian Government and self-regulation by media institutions de ne and maintain standards through regulatory bodies and codes of conduct, but individual interaction with other media users, as in social networks, is not subject to these constraints. As the media increasingly crosses national borders, governments struggle to maintain control over the laws and policies created for their jurisdictions. These issues pose challenges for managing and regulating the use of the media by globalised media institutions, governments and the individual.
Outcome 2
On completion of this unit the student should be able to discuss issues of agency and control in the relationship between the media and its audience.
Students must write a report based on a case study of the media and its influence on, and relationship with, its audience and institutions as well as the issues and challenges of regulation in an Australian and international context.
Students should analyse, discuss and evaluate the following:-
--the extent of media influence and the media audience
--the ethical and legal issues surrounding the product within its production, distribution, consumption and reception, and what these issues suggest about different viewpoints of the relationship between the media, audiences and institutions
--the changing relationship between the media and its audience
--the effectiveness, rationale for, issues and challenges of the regulation of the product and the audience.
The task must provide the opportunity for students to demonstrate their use of media language in the analysis and discussion.
Assessment
School-assessed Coursework for Unit 3 will contribute 10 per cent to the study score.
Outcome 1: SAC
Analyse how narratives are constructed and distributed, and how they engage, are consumed and are read by the intended audience and present day audiences.
Total marks
School-assessed Task Marks allocated = 40
School-assessed Coursework for Unit 3 will contribute 10 per cent to the study score.
Assessment tasks
The student’s performance on the outcome is assessed using one or more of the following:
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a written report
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an essay
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short responses
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structured questions
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an annotated visual report
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an oral report
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a presentation using digital technologies.
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Outcome 2 SAC
Discuss issues of agency and control in the relationship between the media and its audience.
Marks allocated
Assessment tasks
The student’s performance on the outcome is assessed using one or more of the following:
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a written report
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an essay
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short responses
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structured questions
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an annotated visual report
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an oral report.
School-assessed Coursework for Unit 4 will contribute 10 per cent to the study score.
SCHOOL ASSESSED TASK
Assessment for Media includes a School-assessed Task. The student’s level of performance in achieving Outcomes 2 and 3 in Unit 3 and Outcome 1 in Unit 4 will be assessed through a School-assessed Task.which will contribute 40 per cent
The level of achievement for Units 3 and 4 is also assessed by an end-of-year examination, which will contribute 40 per cent.
Suggested Texts
At this time new texts are being created for the new course :Students may wish to review sample chapters ( Ed 3 Proofs only ) from Heinemann Media
How to prepare
A significant part of the year 12 course is the planning development and documentation of a production design plan during Semester One that will provide the blueprint for the students major production to be completed in Semester Two: Students should give consideration to which Media form they wish to specialise in for their Media production - by reviewing the following
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A video or lm production of 3–10 minutes in length, including title and credit sequences.
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An animated production of no more than 10 minutes in length, including title and credit sequences.
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A radio or an audio production of a minimum of 8 minutes in length, including title and credit sequences.
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A digital or an analogue photographic presentation, sequence or series of a minimum of 10 original sourced
images shot, processed and edited by the student.
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A digital or traditional print production of a minimum of 8 pages produced and edited by the student.
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A digital and/or an online production that demonstrates comparable complexity consistent with the other media forms.
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A convergent or hybridised media production that incorporates aspects of a range of media forms and is consist
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If you can then determine which media form you prefer - you could utilise precious time over the end of year break giving serious thought to the type of production you would like to make . You could also use this time to further your skills in an area of production - such as filming - or editing - or photographic composition and processes
or layout and design - sound or radio recording - or digital online production
If electing to work in film its a great idea to view Top Screens VCE films on Youtube to get an idea of the standard you could aspire to