How to do your blog (and how not to)

Here is a very useful resource for putting together your blogs. It's a blog from the exam board that has lots of examples of work from a variety of levels, so you can see how to hit certain levels:

http://getaheadocrmedia.blogspot.com/2010/09/as-work.html

Example of a good AS Media Studies blog

Here is a very good example of the kind of thing we are looking for from your blog. Use the navigation at the side to take a look at the kind of thing this student has done, particularly on the Research and Planning side of things:
http://alexjowettmedia.blogspot.com/

Storyboarding tips

Here are a couple of links that might help you put together your storyboards:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcXfgBLRv_E
http://www.ehow.com/video_2389857_storyboard-movie.html

Hope they help.

Research and Planning

OK, now your preliminary task is completed, you need to turn your attention to your actual coursework task.

Before you start filming, you need to research your film genre and target audience, then plan your shoot. Remember, according the the mark scheme, excellent research and planning involves:

• Excellent research into similar products and a potential target audience
• Excellent organisation of actors, locations, costumes or props
• Excellent work on shotlists, layouts, drafting, scripting or storyboarding
• Excellent level of care in the presentation of the research and planning
• Excellent time management

To achieve this...

AS A GROUP:

• decide what genre of film you are going to make
• define your target audience using appropriate media theory and terminology

INDIVIDUALLY:

• watch the opening of a film in this genre and make detailed notes on the genre conventions contained within it (ie, use of camera angles, diegetic and non-diegetic sound, lighting, camera cuts/transitions)
• come up with an idea for a film within your chosen genre and storyboard the opening credits and opening scene of that film. THIS IS TO LAST NO MORE THAN TWO MINUTES

AS A GROUP:

• select which storyboard idea you are going to turn into your production piece