Describe how your understanding of the importance of good research and planning skills developed throughout the pre-production of your AS and A2 coursework?

Throughout the 2 years of media studies coursework I have develop my research and planning skills, which has influenced my work and creativity within the course in many ways. In AS I created a 2 minute film opening sequence, made to look within the Film Noir genre. Whereas in A2 we were asked to create a music promo package; including Music Video, Digipak and Advert within the indie genre (The Automatic – Monster). Throughout this essay question I will explain in depth about my research and planning development I have done throughout my AS year of this course and then back that up with how I have developed my skills into my A2 year.

During my AS coursework, firstly for research was the brief of the coursework task ahead, this allowed my understanding of my task and what I had to base my product around. I took a real media text such as LA Confidential for instance then I was able to understand that my product will have a good cop/bad cop follow up and a crime storyline. This research gave me the boost I needed and gave me a foundation on what my product will be based on, also I researched the conventions of what a typical film noir will include and portray and example of this is the black and white theme shown in the successful film noir Seven. In Seven I understanded the key concepts of the genre and take ideas that could be adapted into my sequence, including elements that could be twisted for creativity. Lastly I looked at L.A confidential for a second time to look at the opening sequence as a whole to gain a more in-depth knowledge what is needed for the task and how it looked such as the fancy but professional titles.

In my AS coursework planning was key too as this provided a kind of platform to fall back on and act as a guideline. My group and me wrote our individual ideas on a piece of paper, which we then picked the best ideas and used them as key ideas/ possibilities, this then was used in our product with the best ideas used. Another key part of planning was the use of a risk assessment, which allowed me to understand that risks that, would be undertaken when creating the opening sequence and any problems. For example, we understood that lighting conditions might affect how our sequence is recorded, this now allowing us to prepare for such problems and discover alternatives. A storyboard was key to the sequencing of the clip, and created a structure that could be followed when preparing to film. Our storyboard allowed the whole group to understand how the opening sequence will be played out, also allowing any feedback and ideas to be inputted before committing to filming.

In A2, research for my products developed quite considerably and allowed a more effective use of research as a whole. As with AS, we started with a brief of what we aimed to achieve throughout the preparation of our products and what we were expected to achieve. However, this was developed primarily due to the reason that A2 required research and planning on more than one product, such as the video and Digipak, therefore our brief was much more detailed and expanded upon. The conventions of music video's was also a key area of the research, following a similar structure to the reviewing of film noire clips, but now however being much more varied and in-depth due to the flexibility of the dance genre. This allowing understanding of key parts of dance music, such as the thought beats found in call on me, and created a wider selection of elements to consider than film noire. This can also tie closely with the creation of a 9-frame analysis, which went further than simple convention reviewing and allowed a detailed dissection of a typical dance clip for key elements. A2 also developed from AS through the incorporation of new research techniques, such as a lip sync to a video with lyrics. This allowed greater preparation for the task ahead and removed the need for having to learn from scratch when filming, which was slightly the case when filming in AS. Genre research was also more in-depth than that of AS, embracing many elements from a variety of media's rather than a few like film noire. This again establishing a greater understanding of what dance music actually is and the conventions normally tied to it. 

Planning in A2 also developed quite considerably from AS. Drafting ideas were also carried on from the opening sequence in AS, however this ideas went much further than just group consideration. During A2 we embraced the use of fellow peers and social media to gain opinion on ideas on a much larger scale; this is turn creating a much more direct and appealing array of products. Carrying on from this was the use of audience profiling, which went beyond the typical genre stereotype and tried to understand what a typical viewer for the product would be like, and what would appeal to them. Creating a much more focused and aimed product than before. A storyboard was also key during planning in A2 too, again acting as a framework for the sequence to be based upon and enable a rough idea of the finished product before committing to filming. Although similar to AS, during A2 we did develop the storyboard to include details such as shots and specific lengths; thus making filming a much easier process than previously. Shot listing was also vital in the pre-production of A2, giving a outline to what we aimed to use during filming to meet the genre guideline and implement the unique ideas we had ourselves. For example, the use of high-angle shots was noted as something unique we aimed to implement, and was continued into production due to it's listing in the shot list. Finally, schedules encased the planning of our products in A2. This went further than A2 as it gave a clear plan of action for pre-production, preventing losing track of time like that which occurred during AS.