Y12 exam - Media Paper 1: Learner response

 1) Type up your feedback in full (you do not need to write mark/grade if you do not wish to).

WWW- You started brilliantly: very close to the top level in Q1+2. The challenge now is reaching that level through.

EBI- Revise ideology for Q3 and distribution in Q6.

     - In your weaker questions, focus on the key words was lacking. Was this about revision/knowledge or exam technique? (It was the lack of time)

2) Read the mark scheme for this exam carefully, paying particular attention to the 'indicative content' for each question. This is some of the best analysis you can do as it gives you an idea of what the exam board is expecting. For your LR blogpost, identify ONE point you could have added for the first three questions in Section A:

Q1 (unseen text) additional point/theory: The typography on the advert is all sans serif, offering connotations of a more youthful, modern brand. The fact the campaign encourages the audience to make this product their “first Swiss watch” reinforces the feel this is aimed at slightly younger professional men perhaps at the start of a lucrative career.

Q2 (unseen text and CSP) additional point/theory/CSP reference: Hypermasculine representation reflects traditional view of masculinity in 1950s and 1960s.

Q3 (music video) additional point/theory/CSP reference: The video has strong links to the Yeehaw Agenda, a social movement to highlight the erasing of black cowboys from the country and western cowboy aesthetic. This makes the text explicitly ideological (estimates suggest 25% of cowboys were black but media representations of this time period are almost exclusively white).

3) Now focus on Section B. Section B began with two questions testing your knowledge of industry terminology. Make sure you know the answers to these (get the answers from the mark scheme if you have to):

Benefits of vertical integration: Got full marks

Definition and benefits of diversification: Got full marks

4) The Section B CSP focus was on Blinded By The Light. The impact of new technology on distribution was a weaker area in most answers. Pick out three points from the mark scheme that you could have included in your answer here.

• Film was largely unsuccessful at the box office with many industry figures blaming a release strategy that failed to build on positive word-of-mouth and pitted the film against Yesterday, another music-based historical film with a romantic storyline.
• However, technology arguably has saved the film (and New Line Cinema who paid $15m for the rights to distribute) with deals to make Blinded By The Light available first on Amazon Prime and then on Netflix. This means the film will continue to generate income despite the initial disappointing box office figures.
• Streaming has changed the way audiences watch films with audiences increasingly watching movies using streaming sites on smaller devices (such as phones and tablets) meaning cinema exhibition is struggling to retain its relevance and influence in the industry.

5) Finally, identify three things you plan to revise before your next Media assessment or mock exam (e.g. terminology, particular theories or CSPs etc.) 

• Most important thing for me to practise is time management and speed of my answers. I all my exams I was short on time so I will have to work hard on getting more familiar with exam technique. 
•  Second thing I need to improve is that I need to revise Ideology
•  Lastly, I need to revise the industry side of the spec