Key assessment one mock exam

 

Key assessment one mock:

Plan:

·         Focalisation on the food and the production process

·         Producer aims to convey the care and time that is put into the production of the products

·         Waitrose is typically a more expensive brand, target audience therefore being middle class families

·         Conveys that Christmas dinner is the most significant part of Christmas

·         Their food brings people together as represented through the family dinner scene

·         Montage of production process

·         Use of well-known Christmas song creates a sense of familiarity towards viewers

·         Montage of the changing of seasons at the beginning of the advertisement

·         Depressing MES of Christmas tree being thrown in the bin symbolising the end of the festive season, music stops

·         Use of dark low key lighting and bad weather at the start contrasts with the warming festive scene at the end

 

1 - Explore how media language combines to create meaning in the It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas Waitrose advert you have been shown. [15]

In the Waitrose advert, ‘its beginning to look a lot like Christmas’ the use of several different elements, including Mise en scene along with the use of sound, effectively constructs a festive atmosphere. It is evident that Waitrose aims to convey the effort and care that they put into developing their products to allow their customers to achieve their desired Christmas dinner, being assured that the products they have bought are of the best possible quality.

The advent begins with a montage of different seasons, followed with the background music of ‘It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas’. Here, the advert opens with a rather depressing scene of a man discarding his Christmas tree in the bin, throughout this scene in particular the music is cut out, to represent the shift from Christmas to the coming of the new year, which is often dreaded and depressing. The MES here of the rainy weather and use of low-key lighting and a dull color scheme is used to create a relatable feeling amongst the audience, as the advert aims to portray the boring aftermath of Christmas. Furthermore, the dull and unsaturated color scheme is highly contradictory to the warm and vibrant colors often associated with Christmas, here we notice an intentional lack of any bright lights, or Christmas decorations. As the advert progresses there is a rapid montage of different scenes, at different points within the year, within these scenes the advert focalises on displaying the various production processes of the company’s food products. By doing so, the advert allows the audience, who are potential consumers of the products to see the dedication and time that is put into producing their food. Throughout the montage, ‘it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas’ continues to play in the background, the choice of a familiar song to play throughout allows the audience to feel a sense of excitement, or even anticipation for the festive season ahead. This also represents how the company throughout the entirety of the year priorities delivering the best products for Christmas.

Towards the end of the advert there is a significant scene in which a large family gathering for Christmas is represented. Waitrose intends to represent and create yet again, a relatable and familiar scene for the audience, the company also expresses that the food products bring families together, allowing people to celebrate and come together for the occasion. There is a significant shift in tone here to one that evokes a sense of joy and festivity, this I represented through the MES of warm tones and Christmas lights n the background. There is also a focus on the Christmas dinner through the use of focused zoomed in camera shots. Here the company aims to convey the quality of the food they produce and draw the audience’s attention to the products themselves, this is particularly evident as the background is blurred intentionally, leaving the audience to focus only on the MES of the food.

 

Section b

2a) Briefly explain what s meant by an independent film [2]

An independent film is one that is produced on a significantly smaller scale, that is also not produced by large conglomerate companies. An example of a large scale film production company is Walt Disney studios producing a large-scale blockbuster film such as black panther.

b) Briefly explain what you understand by horizontal integration [2]

Horizontal integration refers to the ways in which a company may buy other media organisations within its same sector in order to reduce competition, an example of this  Walt Disney buying Marvel studios.

 

c) Explain two features of independent film production? Refer to I Daniel Blake to support your points [6]

Independent film production is often conducted ion a small scale, with limited funding from multiple organisations. One example of this can be I Daniel Blake, a social realist film produced by Ken Loach. This film was intended to be not for profit, instead the producer aimed to covey a significant message towards their target audience. I, Daniel Blake received funding from the BFI and the BBC which are publicly funded companies. Another feature of a independent films is the way in which they are distributed to viewers. I, Daniel Blake was distributed by several companies internationally, however the film was also shown in small venues such as village halls, by doing so Loach intended to make his film accessible to his working class target audience who were unable to afford visiting cinemas. This smaller scale method of distribution is contradictory to films that are often distributed through huge international streaming services and companies, such as Netflix.

 

d) Explain how mainstream films are shaped by the means of their production. Refer to Black Panther to support your answer. [10]

Mainstream films are produced on a large scale, they are aiming to maximize their potential profit therefore they often utilize huge sums of production and marketing costs. One example of a large scale film is Black panther, a blockbuster sci – fi superhero action film produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney animation studios. A significant factor that influenced the success of Black Panther was caused by the production company themselves. Marvel film studios is a hugely successful film production company well known for producing superhero action films, as swell as comics. Marvel already has an existing and dedicated fan base. The budget for Black Panther was 200 million dollars, and they achieved a profit of around 1.3 billion dollars. Due to Marvel being a large  scale and popular company, they were able to source the necessary funds to put into the production processes,and marketing costs. the amount of funding used towards the production of Black panther Clearly exposes the ways in which a mainstream film is impacted through its budget, therefore large production values essentially guarantee large profit. Another way in which films can be directly affected by their production is through the editing process. For Black panther specifically, it is evident that there is significant use of detailed CGI, a mainstream action superhero blockbuster such as this often includes a large amount of editing and CGI in order to enhance the films aesthetic and create a more cinematic experience for its viewers. The editing process is expensive , however it results in a more appealing outcome for target audiences, which ultimately is another method used to maximize a mainstream films profit.

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