NARRATIVE in Music Videos: FilmSound.org guide

Detailed article with embedded examples/analyses to illustrate the article: http://filmsound.org/what_is_music_video/
There's a links list on this topic.
Here's a briefer blog post.
This is someone's list of fave narr vids. 

FilmSound's guide has lots of quotes from academic writers

WEB 2.0 Brave/Slave new world? [cartoons]

Not all of these are tech based, but most are, a good indication of how transformative new media technologies have been - and certainly not always for the better.

Q1a of your exam asks you to discuss how you developed skills and aptitude in one or more area (DCRUP) from your AS to your A2. While the timeframe might be narrower, perhaps you could try some similar cartoons to begin to express some key themes (EAA) or EXamples?!

http://www.earthporm.com/funny-illustrations/

CREATIVITY Success through failure...

The 'Music Video Day' concept carries an intentionally high risk of failure at the heart of it. If you're not organised enough, don't work well as a team, don't give clear directions to your cast, underestimate the setup time for each shoot and for each shot, don't quickly move to secure costumes and props, don't book rooms in time ... spectacular, very public failure is a very real possibility.

The flipside to failure is what you can learn from it - and the inspiration and impetus you might gain as you stride on to your main productions. When we had filmmaker Coz Greenop in recently, a crucial part of his story, his ultimate pathway to success in Cannes, was his 'failure' here with his GCSEs.

Not getting the required grades to enter 6th form, he went elsewhere, excelled in Media Studies and set out on the path that led to launching a successful business, a globally distributed debut feature film and getting hired to helm a £4m second feature.

I'm thinking about this not just in the context of the exhausting past week with effectively two videos and a feVocalist shot, but from reading an article about 90s (and very much ongoing) Northern Irish pop rockers Ash (Girl From Mars...) in the summer 2015 edition of Classic Rock magazine, an airport purchase en route to Luxembourg which I'm only now getting round to reading a week later.

Ash had a huge hit with their debut album, but their darker follow-up tanked. That happened while they were still teenagers, quite remarkably. Vocalist Tim Wheeler would consequently languish in a New York hotel, self-harming, before bouncing back with an even bigger third album (having quelled the bipolar disorder that led to such self-destructiveness).

I thought this was a great quote:
We also had significant failures... TBC

Alternative 1a/1b revision pack

Excellent guide from a teacher in Notts. The Section B Q they do is Collective Identity, but the 1a and 1b material is very useful:

A2 Media Studies Revision Pack from Andy Wallis

Thanks to Amber for sending me a link to this.
---

EXAMS: Examples of A grade exam essays

Below you will find an A-grade exam script from an IGS student, using Film (AS) and Music Video (A2) for the Q1a/1b (1b on M.Vid) and Media Regulation for the 2nd section (case studies: press, film (and TV, not used here)). You will also find the 'Examiner's Report' which considers what students did well/struggled with and is a useful read with lots of good pointers (this includes reflection on coursework too). You can find reports for every year (and more) here, on the OCR site.

ADDITIONS, MAY 2015: I've added further sample answers, the ones provided by OCR, at the end of the post.Therefore, in this post you'll find (usually including A-grade) scripts from: January and June 2010; January 2011; June 2013; June 2014.

First, here's the June 2014 exam paper:

2014 G325 paper from DB3igs

Past questions for Q1a + Q1b

A reminder of how the paper looks [click to enlarge] - it continues on to a 4th page. You answer both Section A Qs (30 mins, 25% each) and ONE of the two questions from the appropriate Section B category [Media Regulation] (1 hour, 50%)

The Section A questions follow; scroll further down to see the past Media regulation Qs too

 
JAN 2010: R+P/CREATIVITY---REP'N
1A: Describe how you developed research and planning skills for media production and evaluate how these skills contributed to creative decision making. Refer to a range of examples in your answer to show how these skills developed over time.
1B: Analyse media representation in one of your coursework productions.