Media Production and Analysis

Conrad HoggNovember 30, 2017February 27, 2024

The Media Production and Analysis ATAR and General courses aim to prepare all students for the digital and interconnected world developing their media literacy, filmmaking, and digital content skills. Through the process of investigation, students engage with topics, issues, and themes, which have global and local relevance. Students explore film movements, genres, and styles to develop their practical skills. The production of media work enables students to demonstrate their understanding of the key concepts of media languages, representation, audience, production, practical skills and processes, as well as express their creativity and originality. When producing media work, students learn in an environment that simulates industry experience. During the pre-production, production, and post-production phases of practical work students develop problem-solving skills. This includes, making creative choices, manipulating technology, working within a small team, effective time-management, and meeting externally set deadlines. Media ATAR and General courses provide opportunities for students to become critical thinkers and savvy consumers of digital content, whilst learning how to tell their own stories in their own unique style.

Year 11 ATAR Course

Unit 1 - Popular Culture

In this unit students analyse, view, listen to, and interact with a range of popular media work. They develop their own ideas, acquire production skills in a variety of production roles, and learn to apply their understanding of theoretical concepts when producing media work in the popular culture context. Students explore how representations are constructed in popular media work, and how audiences interpret these based on their values, attitudes, and ideologies.

Unit 2 - Influence

In this unit students analyse and respond to a range of media work designed to influence audiences. Students develop ways to effectively communicate ideas and extend their production skills to produce media work in the context of media influence. In contexts related to journalism and other influential media, students undertake extensive research into the representation of groups and reporting of issues within the Media. Students work towards becoming independent filmmakers through manipulating technologies, honing production skills, and exploring new techniques to express ideas in their productions.

Assessments

Production
50%
Response
30%
Written Examinations
20%
There will be examinations at the end of each semester and/or unit.

Year 12 ATAR Course

Unit 3 - Media Art

This unit provides the opportunity for students to explore a range of media art to develop their understanding of media aesthetics. Students analyse, view, listen to, and interact with contemporary and traditional examples of media art. They identify how filmmakers manipulate techniques to construct stylised media works and consider how audiences interpret these. Students explore how media representations of values change over time, the influences of technological developments that influence how audiences of art within media work. Students in this unit will study the practice and profession of independent filmmakers within the context of art and national cinema. They are encouraged to experiment with technologies, structures, codes and conventions to express their ideas and creativity. Students further extend their production skills and processes and the emergence of personal style.

Unit 4 - Power and Persuasion

The focus for this unit is power and persuasion, which includes the influential nature of media used as a form of propaganda and political persuasion. Through this broad focus, students extend their understanding of persuasive media, examining the way the media is able to reflect, challenge and shape values and attitudes. They critically analyse, view, listen to, and interact with a range of media work, considering the purposes and values of producers and audiences. Students in this unit will study the impact of globalisation and media convergence on the reporting of world events, examining the treatment of issues and how these are represented to global audiences. Students synthesise a range of ideas, skills and processes to create their own media productions that express their views.

Assessments

Production
50%
Response
20%
Written Examinations
30%
There will be examinations at the end of each semester and/or unit.

All students enrolled in the Media ATAR Year 12 course are required to sit the WACE examination. The examination is based on a representative sampling of the content for Unit 3 and Unit 4. Students will sit a written examination of 2.5 hours and submit a completed production submission for the practical examination component.

Courses