2. You are going to write and storyboard an advert which is
about a minute long for a charity you have created.
Task One – why do charities advertise?
Before you start to mind-map your ideas you might want to create a quick list of
different types of charity and which ones fall into which category. This should help
you organise your thoughts before starting your research.
When mind-mapping ideas as to why charities advertise it may help you to think of
the different audiences they are appealing to.
Your mind-map doesn’t have to be very big, but it should certainly get you thinking.
Using a computer program for mind-map is a good idea because you are not limited
by size of paper – it is also something that can be easily added to in the future.
You shouldn’t spend too long on this task – it is really a ‘starter’ to get your brain
considering some of the key things that will be important throughout the project.
Task Two – researching charity campaigns
The first problem you may come up against here is actually finding charity campaigns
– this requires a little patience and diligence on the interweb – but they are out
there. Once you have found one you must remember that you have to analyse it so
you will need to make some careful notes.
First things first, where to begin?
I would make the following page your absolute start point:
http://www.mediaknowall.com/as_alevel/Advertising/advertising.php?pageID=charity
This is a great resource from a trusted media studies website and will make
excellent background reading before you embark on your research. It also has links
to old and existing charity campaigns.
You will find a lot of links away from that page to other charity websites and
campaigns. And of course you can go directly to the charity websites and find recent
campaigns. (please note that charity websites usually end in: .org or .org.uk NOT
.com or .co.uk), going through charity websites can be tricky – as a search for the
word ‘campaign’ can take you to their political campaigns. Use search words such as
‘advertising’ or ‘media’ or ‘broadcasting’ – persevere they will be out there!
3. The other places to look are obviously Google Images and YouTube – the latter
being a great resource for old adverts. But be careful – double check that whatever
adverts you find are real! There’s a lot of rubbish on YouTube so be a discerning
user.
When researching charity advertising you should also be analysing (using all the new
skills that you’ve developed this year!), this list is not exhaustive but should give you
an idea of all the things to make notes about.
Once you have analysed one campaign, the others will become easier. Look at:
• Conventions (typical features) of a charity ad campaign.
• Type of media – how does the campaign use different types of media
effectively?
• Ideology – how does the charity get its message across?
• Mise-en-scene of TV ads / Visual style & layout of Print Based Ads.
• Representations - groups within the adverts. Are they stereotyped?
• Target audience for the video.
• Where do you find these adverts? If TV: What channel and when, If print
based then what publications?
These are all areas we have covered in lessons and shouldn’t be taxing – yet perhaps
a little time consuming.
However, it is imperative to remember that this research is vital to the marks you
are awarded for both Pre-Production and the Evaluative Report.
Finally – one piece of excellent research to read is based on a report by the
Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) who is the organization with the power to
censor of even ban adverts. This article will be useful for learning about Lines of
Appeal and other tactics used by charities as well as arming you with knowledge
about what is considered acceptable and unacceptable in a charity advert:
http://www.charitiesdirect.com/caritas-magazine/hard-hitting-ads-misrepresent-
charity-beneficiaries-according-to-recent-research-1166.html
All research should be typed up preferably – mainly to keep your own notes tidy and
organised. This will make life easier for you in the long run.
Also – don’t forget to write any ideas for your own creations down while you are
doing your research. After all, the aim of the research is to start informing your own
ideas.
You will be blogging the research that you do.
4. Task Three – brand identity and slogan
This is where your research should really start to kick in to the creative process. By
the time you start this task you should have made some decisions regardless of
whether it is an existing charity or one you have made up yourself:
• What field of work is the charity involved in? e.g. children, health,
environment, international development, animals welfare, etc.
• What are the main objectives of the charity, what is it trying to achieve?
• How does it achieve those objectives, what does the charity do?
Most charities have projects and services where they actually do things to help
people or situations. Some lobby the government to change laws and legislation.
Some are involved in research and all charities are involved in raising public
awareness of specific problems in society.
Once you are clear on all of these things, then you can start drafting and redrafting
slogans and logos. The logos need only be hand drawn at this stage but the slogan
needs to be quite clear.
Write down as many ideas as possible.
From the analysis of your research you should have deconstructed the different
techniques used by charities to create an effective slogan.
Use these techniques to create a slogan that sums up everything the campaign is
about.
Make sure it is not too obvious or statistical.
Make sure it is not too wordy or complicated.
Make sure it is not too vague or difficult to work out.
Make sure it is memorable!
You should have a ton of these from your research, but here’s a selection from the
past few years:
‘Be Humankind’ – Oxfam
‘Make it stop. Full Stop.’ – NSPCC
‘Giving Children Back Their Future’ – Barnardo’s
‘Make Poverty History’ – Oxfam
‘Save the Whale!’ – early Greenpeace
‘Save the Human!’ – recent Amnesty International
‘Beating Heart Disease Together’ – British Heart Foundation
‘For All Creatures Great & Small’ – RSPCA
Choose a final slogan and a final sketch for your logo. These will be the basis of your
own campaign.
5. Task Four – target audience
Once your charity and slogan has been approved you need to consider who you are
going to aim your campaign at.
REMEMBER: Adverts can have more than one audience!
Define your typical audiences using the following forms of categorization:
• Young & Rubicam’s: 4Cs model
• Lifestyle Categories; drifter, cowboy, egoist etc
• ABC model; outlining financial and employment status
• Hartley & Fiske’s Subjectivities : write profiles of various audience members
Task Five – ideas
Someone once said that: “Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration!” Basically
this means that we can all have really good ideas, but they won’t just fall in our laps
if we stare at the wall (or the telly, or FaceBook) hard enough and long enough. The
best ideas come after hard work – therefore you will need to give yourself every
chance to come up with a good idea for a TV advert and 3 print based adverts that
link together.
• Remind yourself of the charity’s aims, and what it does
• Think about what your slogan says about the charity, what the focus is
• Think about your target audience
• Think about your research of existing campaigns
Then: Mind-map possible narratives, characters, settings, props, visual images, lines of
dialogue, statistics etc
Basically – write anything down that comes into your head, a scene, a shot, a person!
Anything can spark bigger ideas; The Usual Suspects has possibly one of the most
complex narratives of any American film of the past twenty years and yet the entire
film came from an idea the writer had for what he thought would be a ‘cool looking’
movie poster and a single line of dialogue that had been going round his head!
Look for inspiring statistics or shocking facts – these will be your most likely source
when it comes to charities – but write it all down and put it somewhere with all the
other ideas. You are going to have to work through that 99% of blood sweat and
tears before you find that 1% of inspiration!
6. Task Six – step treatment
So you’ve got a good idea for a 90 second TV advert and you want to make it look
as dynamic and visually interesting as possible?
Good! But before you turn into Stephen Spielberg and start the storyboarding
process you need to get organised.
Visualise the advert in your head and write down step by step everything that
happens in the advert.
• You will need to describe the scene, the shot type and any sound
• This will be done on sheets provided
• You must be creative
• Doing this well makes storyboarding much easier
So, you’re ready to start storyboarding then?
Storyboarding
Simply put, a storyboard is the visual translation of your Step Treatment.
It is a way to show that you understand the conventions of television adverts.
It is a way of bringing an advert to life through the use of camera, music and effects.
It is a way of completely understanding what an audio visual piece will look sound
and feel like, without having to actually make it!
Three Golden Rules:
1. You must use a variety of camera shots and appropriate editing techniques
2. You must fill in everything on the storyboard
3. The shot you have described must match the shot you have drawn
FAQ – there is usually only one Frequently Asked Question:
“But what if I’m not very good at drawing?!”
This doesn’t matter at all. My nine month old niece and my ninety year old nan both
have more artistic talent than myself and yet I can storyboard because the idea of
storyboarding is about getting information across simply.
7. If you can’t draw people then stick men will do – however you must remember
Golden Rule no. 3 – if you’ve described your shot as a Close Up then we shouldn’t
be able to see all of the stick man!
If something is not quite clear from your drawing (a specific prop or setting, for
example) then it should be described fully in the notes section.
Below are some examples of some drawings and the final shot – notice how basic
some of the drawings are – but how they accurately capture the shot type.
8. Blank Storyboard
This is what a storyboard looks like with nothing on it. You must provide as much
information as possible. Things should not be left blank.
Points to consider:
• How you number your shots is up to you, but you must be consistent and it
must be clear which shot follows the last one.
• ‘Shot Length’ should be given in seconds – even if it is less than one.
• ‘Setting’ should always start with ‘INT:’ if the shot is an Interior Shot or,
‘EXT:’ if the shot is an Exterior Shot.
• On ‘Editing Notes’ always describe the transition to the next shot. For
example ‘cut to…’ or ‘slowly dissolve to…’, etc.
• ‘Shot Type’ describes the distance of the camera from the subject e.g. CU or
Wide. It also describes whether the camera is moving e.g. Panning Shot.
• ‘Camera Angle’ describes the angle of a shot or the direction of a movement.
• When writing in the ‘Dialogue’ box, ensure it is clear who is speaking.
9. Key Words and Phrases
Remember that you are being marked on your knowledge and application of media
so don’t forget any of those Key Words we’ve been learning along the way – here’s
a few that will help in the storyboarding process:
Camera What it means
term
Establishing The camera is set far back to show or to emphasise setting or location
Shot rather than the subject
Slo-mo A moment which is played much slower than real time
Pan shot The camera moves horizontally, taking in all the details along the way.
Tracking The camera moves alongside characters either using a hand-held
shot technique or smooth dolly tracks.
Zoom The camera focuses in on, or out from, a subject by using a telephoto
lens.
Mini cam A tiny camera focuses in an unusual place for effect
Steadi-cam A weighted camera is strapped to an opera to allow hand-held but
controlled movement
And some terms to help you describe editing and transitions…
Dissolves: To mix from one scene to another, for example to show that time has
passed in the same place.
Wipes: To make a narrative transition from one place to another.
Cuts: A direct interruption and switch to another place or time, to keep action
moving quickly.
Fades: Emerging or disappearing scenes creates the effect of slowly departing or
arriving into the place or mood of the narrative.
Jump Cut: A cut to later action from one filmed scene to the next, creating an
effect of discontinuity or acceleration
And, of course, the shot types that you’ll be using throughout…
10. Framing the Image
It’s OK to use abbreviations for the names of shots – just make sure you use the
correct name!
11. A Final Word on Pre-Production
While the Pre-Production task doesn’t carry the most marks in the entire
coursework, it can be the most time consuming. That is entirely acceptable – as all
three pieces of work are linked, the work you put into this piece will benefit the
other two elements of the coursework.
The creative process you have been through will have already given you ideas for
your actual Media Product (the three print based adverts).
The research should have informed your work so you will be more analytical when
writing your Evaluative Report.
Be thorough. Be professional. Be creative.
This is what I look at when I am giving you a mark out of twenty…
