In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms of
conventions of real media products?
The topic chosen for the documentary is hard news (BBC style). The title is ‘Is
University worth it?’ it discusses University tuition fees and effect of it being
raised from £3000 up to £20,000. It also includes how this might affect
further education students looking for higher education. It looks at a variety
of opinions regarding the consequence of the rise of fees.
Figure 1
I had to consider the location of the interviews. I looked at how background
information in a location can build creditability and equally avoid distracting
information in the background. This makes documentary more real and
accurate, engaging audience in the debate. See figure 2
Figure 2
The camera work is another important convention of a documentary. It was
Figure 2
essential that the interviews were framed in a particular way. The rule of
thirds (figure3) was applied to the framing of interviews. Figure 4
demonstrates the rule of thirds
Figure 3
Figure 5
Also during interviews the shot should be eye level, this type shot involves
the audience in the documentary. This is a contrast to last years thriller
coursework, where many close ups, low and high angles were used to create
suspense and anxiety. In this coursework I am not dramatising the person, so
there is no need for variety of shots during actual interviews. See figure 6
Figure 6
Cutaways are another established convention in documentaries. It is a film
shot that interrupts continuity by adding a view of something else. Cutaways
bring out the creative side to documentaries. It is essential that they relate to
the topic. It should emphasise views, facts and figures and opinions
presented in the documentary. So it works well with the voiceover and in
interviews. This appends to the realism of the documentary. Figures 7, 8, 9
exposes cutaways used in the documentary and show how it convey meaning
to the audience.
Figure 7
Figure 10
I used many cutaways of students as the topic is based around them, making
the shots relevant. The interviews related to the rise and mentioned the
effects on students. The cutaways flowed well with the documentary. Mainly
wide shots were used for cutaways I used shots of students in university,
college etc However I feel the range cutaways were not sufficient to keep the
audience visually. This is one of the weak parts of the documentary. I could
have displayed facts and statments in many other ways to intrigue the
audience.Examples are charts, newspaper cutting, diagrams, pictures. In my
opinon some of the cutaways were not stable due to the way it was shot. I
mainly used students as my cutaways, this opposes the balance part of the
editorial guidline.
Figure 11
On screen graphics were presented in the documentary. Examples are titles
and text. The titles included full names of interviewees and occupational
status. See figure 12.
Figure 12
Figure 13
The sound and voice over challenge conventions of real media products.
Figure 13 Diegetic and Non diegetic sounds were used to indicate where attention
should be focused. The Score was copyright free material. It was called
reaction time (nightwalker), the style was electronicals. It was chosen as it
flowed with the documentary really well. The score is supposed to create an
emotion conveying points to the audience. I feel the music applies here. The
score was formal but entertaining it appeals to the audience, and that is how
it develops the conventions of media products. The music was mainly played
during the voice over; this involves the viewer in the debate.
The voice over should be formal, clear, delivered in accent, meaning it should
understood by all. I had to think about the impact of gender, and consider the
class in terms of mode of address. The voice over is suppose to anchor the
meaning of the topic. It is important to be unbiased here, and to take into
account for and against of the debate. The voice actor used in the
documentary was Andy Popperwell. The voice over followed the codes and
conventions of real media products. It does meet expectations of the
audience engaging them in the topic.
I followed the codes and convention of real media products, as it makes the
audience feel secure. It meets their expectation, this leads to
accomplishment of purpose of the documentary. The audience should focus
on the content and think about the issues raised in the debate. Compare to
the thriller last year, it was all about variation and ways of surprising the
audience, this year it is about repetition and established conventions.
Steven Neale.