The summer project is a fantastic opportunity to start planning your music video or promotional website.
Your summer project contains compulsory and optional elements; everybody will be completing some research around either music videos or sports personality websites, coming up with some initial concepts and drafting a statement of intent for your coursework idea. However, if you wish to plan and film/photograph some key elements for your production over the summer while you have time available we would fully support you in this approach.Complete the following tasks on a blogpost on your Media blog called 'GCSE Media Studies: Coursework':
Task 1: Research and Textual Analysis (Understanding Conventions)
Objective: Understand how industry professionals establish branding, use media language, and create a "house style."
Choose ONE of the options below to analyse, depending on which brief you are leaning toward:
Brief 4 (Sports Promotion): Find the official website and social media feeds (e.g., Instagram/TikTok) of a real sports personality or presenter (e.g., Marcus Rashford, Serena Williams, Alex Scott).
Brief 5 (Music Video): Choose an official music video by an established band or solo artist that tells a clear story or features a strong community of fans.
Your Blog Post Requirements:
Mise-en-scène & Visual Style: Take 3 screenshots. Use the CLAMPS acronym (Costume, Lighting, Actor placement/movement, Make-up, Props, Setting) to explain how a specific mood or brand identity is created. What are the denotations and connotations of these choices?
Target Audience: Who is this media product aimed at? Explain how the language, tone, and visual style appeal directly to this target audience.
Branding / House Style:
If you chose the Music Video: How does the video make the audience feel like they are part of a fan community? How does it build the artist's brand?
If you chose the Sports Website: How do they maintain a consistent look (fonts, colours, logos) between the website and social media?
Task 2: Establishing a Concept & Brand Identity
Objective: Practice brainstorming an original concept, identity, and narrative framework.
Now, you will invent a fictional sports personality OR a fictional music artist/band.
Your Blog Post Requirements:
The Bio: Write a brief introduction to your fictional person/group.
Sports: What is their sport? What is their role? What charity, cause, or social issues do they champion/support?
Music: What is the name of the band/artist? What is their musical genre? What is the core style/vibe of their brand?
Logo and House Style Mood Board: Create a visual mood board (Collection of images) for your concept. It must include:
A colour palette (3–4 specific colors that reflect their identity). Tool: https://color.adobe.com/create/color-wheel
Font styles that fit the genre/sport.
Some logo examples that might be used to inspire your own person/band that establishes the brand in the way that you envision.
Task 3: Website/Music Video Planning
Objective: Consider the practicalities of your production and what is required to make this possible.
Plan out the basic details for your website/music video. Complete the following on your blog:
- Plan for music video/website (narrative/performance/message etc.):
- Link to brief (positive role model for website/sense of community for music video):
- Actors/performers you plan to use:
- Locations:
- Costume/make-up/props required:
Task 4: Statement of Intent
Guidance and minimum requirements can be found in the AQA brief from their NEA Student Booklet.
Extension - Task 5: Going for the Top Bands (Advanced Media Theory)
Objective: Show the examiners you can apply higher-level thinking to push your work into the top grade boundaries.
Look closely at the "In the top bands, students may..." sections on the assessment briefs. Write a short paragraph on your blog addressing one of the following strategies for your project next term:
Intertextuality: How could you include cross-references to other famous media products, films, or campaigns to make your project more clever and engaging?
Subverting Expectations: How could you create a complex or deliberately ambiguous representation of your artist/athlete to challenge the typical stereotypes or audience expectations of that genre?
