Practice denotation: shotlist of past coursework

To help consolidate your grasp of shot types and angles, you will deconstruct a past AS coursework film opening, denoting the shots used.

TERMINOLOGY: denotation is the first step of semiotics, the analytical technique that breaks a media text down into signifiers (individual details with potential symbolic meaning - eg a red rose might be used as a prop to connote or signify romance; romance is connoted by the signifier of a red rose). We will cover these terms in more detail in a lesson shortly, but you may want to try and apply them now... [source]

BLOGGING STYLE GUIDE: the paragraph above is how I set out quotes too long to contain within a sentence. I use the indent tool [the speech marks icon]; change the font to Trebuchet; font colour purple. If I use technical terms in a post I highlight this by making them bold and pink. You should follow this style. Keep quotes short though - show your understanding by paraphrasing where you can (you still provide a source even if not quoting.


YOUR TASK:
Working in groups of 2 or 3, each take one of the videos embedded below. You're going to examine the shot variety used. Each take a section to denote - don't include the idents when figuring out your time slots. Then simply start denoting the shots you see, including any camera movement or re-framing within the shot (eg through panning, tilting, tracking, zooming), noting the start time of each shot.

When you've completed your individual analysis, get together and combine to create a single document. Email this to me. Then create a new blog post called Shot by shot denotation of a past coursework film, explain what you've done, and embed your document.

Next, have a look at the assessment criteria together and discuss which parts of the assessment criteria you think this film opening would do well on, and list these, using bullet points. You can compare with your classmates finding via their blogs. (Word guides are embedded below the videos)

FILM 1 - from 2016 StG AS

FILM 2 - from 2017 StG AS

FILM 3 - from 2015 IGS AS

...

You have hard copies of these, and have also embedded one of these (you might want to embed the other too, so you can always find it):

As cie cwk guide from DB3igs

As coursework assessment criteria a plain english guide from DB3igs

if you want to separately embed the exam guide, its here.
...

YOUR FINAL CUT DEBUT
You're now going to create and upload your first AS Media vodcast. This is an individual task.

GET THE VIDEO FILE TO ADD TO FINAL CUT

This is generally something you should do at home - and always be careful to avoid clicking on unwanted popups. Visit this blog (its listed on my list of blogs) and click the tag for 'rip'. Try the recommended site and see if you can save the video you've viewed - ASK IF UNSURE WHAT TO DO/CLICK.

Take around 15-20 seconds of the opening you examined which you think demonstrates excellent shot variety, and add large, clear titles to denote each shot within this sequence
Next, using screenshots or clips from the film opening, the Word doc on assessment criteria, or anything else you think relevant or useful, sum up what you've learned from this exercise and analysis. What do you now understand about the assessment criteria, and generally what is needed to produce not just a good but an excellent film opening? How important is shot variety within this? Have you any thoughts on mise-en-scene, use of SFX, editing or sound?

Once completed, export (SHARE) as a video file and upload to your YouTube channel. Call it Forename Vodcast 1 Assessing a past coursework film. Add the tags vodcast, assessment, cie, media a-level, as media, media coursework, film opening. Embed it in a new post: Vodcast 1 assessing a past coursework film opening.