Revision Blog 1: Moving Image Terminology

Today's blog will focus on moving image terminology.  This is particularly important for Section A of the exam and especially question 1 (the question that focuses on media forms).  If you are still a little confused about the format the exam takes, all of the past papers are available here.  Unfortunately, due to copyright laws, the exam board cannot post the moving image texts which the exam papers refer to so they are of limited use.  However I will be posted exam style questions on this blog for you to complete.

Revision exercise 1

A digital version of the sheet I use in class is available here.  You don't need to know ALL of this terminology but you should know how to describe different kinds of shot.  Read this through and use it to make a list of the vocaulary you will need.  This website is also useful for the same purpose.

Revision exercise 2

Watch this video on YouTube.  It is unlikely that you will need a lot of the specific terminology for your exam but it gives some helpful ideas about WHY a director might choose a particular type of shot.

Exam example

In the exam you will absolutely not have time to describe every single shot that you see.  Nor will you get a question that asks you to merely describe how the different shot types are used in a clip.  You need to know this vocabulary well enough that you can just drop it into your exam answer at the relevent points.

Here is an example question that is based on the question from January 2010 but that refers to this clip.

Question

How does the advertisement use the conventions of a typical film trailer?

Model answer

The advertisement uses a broad variety of conventions that are common to a film trailer, specifically a film trailer in the action genre. 

The first convention you notice when watching the trailer is the wide variety of shots, edited together in a very fast paced manner.  These are intercut with title graphics and are used to illustrate the various benefits of Blu Ray technology. 

In a film trailer the shots are chosen to illustrate the "best bits" of a film and to entice the audience.  In the case of this advertisement, the shots chosen are ones that illustrate Blu Ray's superior video quality; for example the low angle tracking shot of the plane shooting men on the ground contains a lot of complex action which is going to show up better on Blu Ray.  Similarly the high angle helicopter shot of King Kong on top of the Empire State Building features a lot of detail and colour that would show up best on Blu Ray. 

The use of non diegetic sound, such as the driving, string based music that builds up to a climax and the thumping sound effects as each title card comes in is also a convention of action film trailers and serves to emphasise what we see on screen.  One convention that is nearly always present in film trailers, but which is absent here is the use of a voice over.


As you can see, I have used the correct terminology to describe the shots I have chosen but this is secondary to answering the question.

Exam Practise

Here are a couple of example questions for you to have a go at.  Feel free to email me your answer for feedback.  In the exam you will have 15 mins total viewing time and only 15 minutes to then write your answer to each question.

Question 1 refers to this moving image clip.

Question 1:  How does the trailer use the conventions of both the action and fantasy film genres?

Question 2 refers to this moving image clip.

Question 2:  How does the advertisement manipulate the conventions of an epic war movie for comedic purposes?

Good luck and see you tomorrow!  Please post a comment when you read this blog so that I know who is keeping on top of their revision.  Also please let me know if you are coming to the coursework session on Wednesday 27th April, 10am - 5pm.