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1. A2 Media coursework
evaluation -
Question 1
“In what ways does your work use,
develop or challenge forms and
conventions of real media products?”

2. Introduction:
For my A2 media course, I was required to create three different media texts that would contribute to
my overall grade at the end of the academic year. These three media texts were not just to help me
achieve my target grade, but to also add a sense of realism to the task that we had been set for that
year. Our task was to create either a short film or a music video as our main production pieces. These
were to be accompanied by either a poster and a magazine article, or a digi-pack and poster.
For my A2 coursework tasks, I chose to create a short film named “The unfortunate life of James Flint”,
which is based on the life of a man from 1930’s London, who falls into a coma and awakes in modern
day. In order to make it look as if we were undergoing a saturated release, my poster and film article
needed to be extremely conventional, in terms of how the different mediums are created and
produced in real life.
I will be separating my evaluation into three different sections, each based on one of the different
mediums that I was asked to create for my A2 tasks. I will also be speaking in terms of the key concepts
of media, and how they apply to my work.

3. Short film:
Short films are an extremely interesting and diverse type of film. This is because of the fact that they can tell a story,
indulge the audience and often be successful in a shorter amount of time than a feature length film. This is the most
obvious and typical convention of the short film genre, and I have stuck to it by making my film 10 minutes long –
and no more than that.
Another typical convention of short films is that they usually only contain two or three main characters at most. In my
case, I have two characters, but only one main character – so I can technically say that I am also challenging a
common convention of short films as well. Below are pictures of my two characters, James Flint (Left) and Peter
Walker (Right).
I wanted to be able to make the narrative as easy to follow for the audience as it possibly could be. In order to do
this, I felt that using two characters instead of three or maybe even four characters would be effective – especially
because Peter Walker does not actually have that big of a role to play in the film, until the twist in the second half.
By using two characters, I was easily able to stick to the theory of Todorov and equilibrium/disequilibrium. In terms of
narrative, these two theories are extremely important, as they can give a real insight into a person’s work when it is
being textually analysed. The theory of equilibrium and disequilibrium is the idea that all stories stick to a formula of
beginning, middle and end. Equilibrium theory is that everything is normal, and this is demonstrated through the day
to day activities that James is seen doing in the opening scenes of the film, for example waking up and fixing
cameras which is his job. Disequilibrium theory is where something isn’t normal, for example where James falls into a
coma. This theory links to the next convention of short film… the twist.

4. Short film (Continued)
Linking back to narrative structure, the fact that my film was easy to follow due to the lack of characters means that in
terms of the key concept of audience, my film was also successful. A popular theory of audiences within media is the
idea of the “Hypodermic needle effect” – that comes from the effect model of audience theory. Because my
storyline is easy to follow, the effects of the film and the messages that it demonstrates when showed are hard to
ignore, as there isn’t anything that could divert the audience’s attention away from the action. Having two
characters, with only one playing a major part in the film means that there is no confusion that could be experienced
by the audience, bringing the hypodermic needle effect into complete use.
The next convention of short films that I feel I have met is the convention of the twist. A lot of short films include a twist
at some point, which is used to throw the reader off or piece together the storyline that they have been bemused by
when watching. In my film the twist comes in two places – and are both used to demonstrate the differences
between James’ 1930’s life and his modern day life. The first twist I have used comes from the character Peter Walker.
In the 1930’s scenes, Peter Walker is met by James, and they share a friendly wave together, highlighting their
friendship. However, in the modern day scenes, James returns to the same park in an attempt to find some familiarity.
He encounters a person who looks exactly the same as Peter, but who has no recollection of James at all –
highlighting through his rude gestures. Below are two pictures of Peter Walker and his “copy”.
The strange looks that Peter’s copy give to James can be linked to
the key concept of representation. The copy is a seemingly normal,
young person from modern day England. James has travelled in
time, and could appear as an elderly person by the copy.
Unfortunately, a lot of the younger generations have limited
respect for the elderly, which is demonstrated through the use of
the copy’s reaction to James getting close to him, asking for help
as he attempts to find his way out of the world finds himself in.

5. Short film (Continued)
The second twist in my short film comes from the use of an suitcase. In the 1930’s scenes, James is seen opening up a
suitcase full of tools and other items. As he reaches in to get some tools to fix a camera, he finds a picture of his wife
and daughter, who left him due to his overload of work he had at the time. This makes James depressed, but he
carries on anyway. When in modern day, James sits outside to catch some fresh air. He notices the same suitcase has
travelled along with him. He opens it up to once again find a picture of his family… this sends James over the edge of
causes him to take an overdose. Below are two pictures of the suitcase. 1930’s scene (left) and modern day scene
(right).
This common use of the convention of “twisting” in my film links to the key convention of genre and the theory of
conventional definitions, from Daniel Chandler. Chandler believed that genres are defined by particular conventions
that are used within media texts. For example monsters and gore in horror/thriller films. My short film fits into the
dystopian genre, in the sense that the world James finds himself in when he wakes up is empty and opposite to the
world he came from. James is alone in this world, and this is demonstrated through the use of the character that looks
like Peter Walker not recognising him. This copy also appears to be the only human being in the world, which has
elements of post apocalyptic situations. However, a lot of dystopian films are set after an apocalypse, whereas this film
set in the life of one person. With this being said, many could argue that “The unfortunate life of James Flint” is a self-
dystopian film, rather than an apocalyptic one.
The re-appearance of the characters and props are used to demonstrate how alone James is. He is surrounded by
familiar things, but is still so alone. This links to the media language convention, and Sassuares’s theory of how
everything is used for a reason. With the perfect example being how Peter’s copy is seen as a friend by James, by
James is seen as a stranger by the copy.

6. Film article:
Having studied magazines in years nine to twelve, I am confident in my ability to meet and use the typical
conventions that a lot of modern day magazines use when produced and sold to their audiences. The film article
that I was asked to write for my second production task meets a lot of different conventions set by various theorists
and common magazine production practices. The first convention that I can analyse will kill two birds with one stone
so to speak, and is the convention of synergy and Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Synergy in terms of media is where
two different mediums are integrated with each other to become effective, especially at meeting the needs and
demands of the audiences that they are being marketed to. In my magazine, I have used synergy to join my article
and social media together, through the use of a Twitter account that my magazine uses. Below is a screenshot of the
“On the social” section of my magazine.
Synergy is common in magazines, especially with social media. Almost all of the audience members for a magazine
will have some sort of social media account, and a shared interest for the magazine itself. This means that the two
can be combined through the use of social media. In my case, a Twitter account for the magazine that gives
updates for the audience members.
In terms of the hierarchy of needs, set by Maslow – the idea of self actualisation has been used in my magazine. This is
where a person becomes all that they can possibly be, for example a waiter could become a general manager at a
restaurant. The social media box of my magazine highlights the opportunity that the readers have to become more
than just a reader. The Twitter account allows them to contribute to the magazine by asking questions to be used in
interviews – which is highlighted in the screenshot above.

7. Film article continued:
My film article also meets another popular convention of modern day magazines – and that is the uses and
gratifications theory. In my magazine, I cover two of the four features of the uses and gratifications theory that we
see in modern day media. These are “To educated” and “To entertain” the audience. Entertaining the audience is
vitally important to the success of the magazine, as it is what keeps the customers coming back for more. If
magazines were not entertaining, then they wouldn’t be able to make enough money to match production costs.
Below is a screenshot taken from my magazine, this is an example of how I have entertained the audience in my
magazine.
The question that was asked of the director of the film is designed to be entertaining, as it is an insight into the life of
the director and the cast members of the film.
Below is another screenshot of my magazine educates the audience members.
Changing the genre of film from something you are comfortable with to something different is always going to be
difficult – and by getting the insight of the director, hopeful film makers and other audience members can learn
what the director was thinking, which is all part of the film director experience.

8. Poster:
Posters are undoubtedly, one of the most effective ways of promoting a short film or any other medium for that matter
(bar movie trailers). Because movie posters are so common in the world of film, they all have a lot of conventions that
need to be meet in order for them to be successful in their purpose. I feel that my poster has met a lot of the different
conventions of the standard movie poster. The first convention that I have met is the use of a full bleed image. Full
bleed images are particularly effective because they are used to highlight one of the main selling points of the film…
the actor(s). Hollywood blockbusters almost always use full bleed images because their cast members are extremely
famous and lusted after by many audience members that go to pay and watch them perform. Below is an example
of a Hollywood poster – and the full bleed image that I used for my poster.
The full bleed image that I have used shows a complete image of my main actor (Dylan Elliott) – and is also taken from
a clip in the film. However, whilst I have used a big convention of film posters – this is not one. A lot of posters do not use
images from actual parts of the film, because they do not want to give away anything in the film before it or the
trailers are released to the general public. I have decided to use this image because I feel that it is extremely effective,
because of the ways that it shows emotion that the character is feeling and also gives an insight into the film itself.