Media Paper 1 mock exam - Learner response

You've now completed your mock exams and so need to be identifying the specific areas to revise and improve on before the final exams in the summer.

The most important aspect of any mock exam is making mistakes and learning from them.

Here, we need to closely analyse our performance across each question in Paper 1 and identify specific ways we will improve for the real exam on Thursday 14 May (PM). Complete the following learner response tasks in a new blogpost on your Media Exam blog called: 'Paper 1 mock exam learner response'.

1) Type up any feedback in full (you do not need to write mark/grade if you do not wish to).

Go to your Media teacher's Google Classroom and find the mark scheme and examiner's report uploaded. This is vital as the paper was an official exam paper and therefore the mark scheme tells us a lot about what AQA are expecting us to produce.

2) Write a question-by-question analysis of your performance. For each question, write how many marks you got from the number available and identify and points that you missed by carefully studying the AQA indicative content in the mark scheme:

Example: Q1: 4/8 marks

Additional points: Using Roland Barthes’ theory of semiotics, the National Trust advert “What will take your breath away?” can be analysed through denotation, connotation and myth. Denotatively, the advert shows images of British landscapes and historic sites. Connotatively, these suggest peace, escape and emotional fulfilment, reinforced by the slogan which implies awe and inspiration. This creates a myth that British nature and heritage are naturally restorative and meaningful, promoting the ideology that visiting National Trust sites is an essential and valuable experience.

3) Look at Question 4 - a 20-mark essay evaluating Judith Butler's gender is a performance theory. Write an essay plan for this question using the indicative content in the mark scheme and with enough content to meet the criteria for Level 4 (top level). This will be somewhere between 3-4 well-developed paragraphs plus an introduction answering the question planned in some detail.

4) Based on the whole of your Paper 1 learner response, plan FIVE topics / concepts / CSPs / theories that you will prioritise in your summer exam Media revision timetable.

Complete this learner response for your homework if you don't finish it in class - due date on Satchel One.

Coursework: Print brief research and planning

The Print aspect to our coursework brief is as important as the video work have been focusing on so far. 

It is crucial that you research, plan and design print work that could comfortably hold its own alongside professional examples. You will also need to include a section regarding your print work in your redrafted Statement of Intent. A reminder of our coursework brief is here, with the key tasks as follows:

The band is being featured in a documentary film on a streaming service such as Netflix about the history of pop bands. The film will look at examples of pop artists from the late 20th century (80s or 90s), early 21st century (00s or 10s) and the band you promoted for Task One represents contemporary pop. The documentary’s target audience are people of all ages who are interested in pop music.

Create three print billboard posters to promote this documentary. Each poster should use imagery to reflect one of the eras being focused on in the documentary to attempt to appeal to a broad age range. At least one poster should feature the band being promoted in Task One. The posters should be visually appealing and communicate the name and content of the documentary, its release date and how audiences can watch it.

What do you need to produce?

You should create three different billboard posters – specifically:

• engage the audiences as identified in the brief
• three original images across the three print adverts
• images created and chosen to appeal to the target audience
• appropriate layout, design and content choices relating to placement of the adverts
• consideration of font, type sizes and colours to create meaning
• consideration of the industrial context of production

The three print billboard posters targets all ages who are interested in pop music

Print brief - overall minimum requirements

• A clear house style should be used in the presentation of all pages
• A minimum of three original images should be included in the submission.
• Absolutely no use of AI in any way at all is permitted for the written elements of the print brief.
• Work should be presented on pages that are an appropriate size or in proportion to the size of paper used by billboard posters

We recommend that all of the above should be A3 landscape page size 

Research and planning blog tasks

Create a blogpost called 'Print brief research and planning' and complete the following tasks to plan and prepare your print work:

Research tasks:

1)  Billboard poster research:

Look at the following billboard poster:

Now answer the following questions based on the poster above: 

1. What historical moment in pop music does this documentary focus on, and why might that moment be significant for audiences interested in music history? 

2. How might the poster imagery communicate the era of the music being explored (e.g., 1980s)?

3. Who would be the target audience for this documentary and why?

4. What visual codes (e.g., typeface, colour, style of photograph) would you expect on the poster to reflect the documentary’s focus on classic pop music history?

5. How could promotional text emphasise both nostalgia and relevance to a modern audience?

This Is Pop on Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/gb/title/81050786

(This Is Pop is a documentary series exploring different influences and trends in pop music.) 

Watch the following trailer for the documentary series: 

Now answer the following questions based on the trailer: 

1. What themes and topics does This Is Pop explore based on its episode description (e.g., Auto-Tune, boy bands, festival culture)? 

2. How might a billboard poster visually represent multiple facets of pop music history covered in this series?

3. This Is Pop is a series rather than a single documentary film—how might its poster need to differ in design from a single-film poster to communicate that?

4. What aspects of pop culture history might appeal to older audiences versus younger audiences?

5. What visual elements could ensure the poster suggests that this isn’t just entertainment, but a music documentary with depth and exploration?

These two IMDb image links point to stills or frames from the same documentary series (This Is Pop.) 

Compare the two different images from this series:

1. What different visual messages do they convey about pop music?

2. How do these images reflect the diversity within pop music culture (different genres, artists, eras)?

3. What emotions or associations do the images try to evoke in the viewer?

4. If you were to extract design cues (pose, colour palette, style) from these stills for your billboard posters, what would you take and why?

5. How do the images relate to your understanding of representation and media language in music documentaries?

2) Billboard Poster Research (Era Focus)

You must research THREE professional billboard or large-format posters, one from each era:

1. 1980s or 1990s pop artist promotion

2. 2000s or 2010s pop artist promotion

3. Contemporary (2018–present) pop artist promotion

These may include:

• Tour posters
• Album or single promotions
• Music documentaries
• Streaming platform music content (e.g. Netflix, Apple TV)

Choose artists that are clearly representative of each era.

3) Media Language Analysis 

For each billboard poster, analyse how visual design communicates meaning and appeals to its audience.

You should analyse:

• Layout & composition
  (scale, hierarchy, central image, simplicity for roadside viewing)

• Typography
  (font style, size, era connotations, readability)

• Colour palette
  (neon, muted, monochrome, saturation and era signifiers)

• Imagery
  (pose, gaze, styling, realism vs performance)

• Branding
  (logos, streaming platforms, consistency)

Then, explain how these choices reflect the era of pop music being represented.

4) Representation and Era identity

Explain how each poster represents:

• The artist

• The music culture of the era

• Attitudes to fame, performance, and identity

Consider:

• Fashion and styling

• Gender representation

• Star image

• Youth culture vs nostalgia

• Authenticity vs commercialisation

Apply at least one theory, such as:

• Stuart Hall – Representation

• Postmodernism (nostalgia, pastiche, remixing eras)

5) Audience appeal

For each era-based poster, explain:

• Who the primary audience is

• How it may also appeal to other age groups

• How nostalgia is used to attract older audiences

• How modern design elements attract younger audiences

Link this directly to the documentary’s aim to appeal to “people of all ages interested in pop music.”

6) Streaming services and industry conventions

Research how streaming services (e.g. Netflix) promote music documentaries.

Analyse:

• Common visual conventions (minimal text, strong imagery)

• Use of logos and release dates

• How platforms communicate where and how to watch

• How global audiences affect design choices

You may refer to:

• Netflix documentary posters

• Online promotional materials

• Billboard adaptations of streaming campaigns

7) Application to your coursework

This section must directly link your research to your final production.

Answer the following:

• How will each era influence the design of your three billboards?

• What visual codes will you use to differentiate eras?

• How will you maintain brand consistency across all three posters?

• How will you promote your band from Task One as contemporary pop?

• What design skills do you need to develop before production?

Planning and sketching

1) Plan the content for your first billboard poster:

• Title of the documentary film (must be NEW original documentary film you have invented):
• Name of streaming service the documentary will feature on
• Original image (the band you promoted for one of your TikTok music videos)
• Release date of the documentary
• Ways your billboard poster will represent the contemporary pop era
• Font style / colour scheme, additional design aspects:

2) Plan the three images you will use for the billboard posters - use the elements of mise-en-scene (CLAMPS). One image has to be the band you promoted in one of your TikTok music videos required to meet the minimum content in the brief.

3) Research and select the font or typography you will use for your billboard posters. This is a critical element of your print work - the brief requires a consistent house style running through all of your pages. 

4) Produce A4 sketches of your billboard poster designs and scan it/upload a picture to your blog.

5) Finally, create the pages in Adobe Photoshop or InDesign so you have the documents ready to go in terms of adding your text and images. This will need to include:

• A4/A3 landscape 

Use this website for specific billboard sizing which you can enter in Adobe Photoshop or InDesign: https://www.template.net/graphic-design/billboard-sizes/ 

Photoshoot

1) Who do you need to photograph for your billboard posters? Remember, you need three original images across the whole print production. 

2) What camera shots do you need? Write a shot list or design a mood board for your photoshoots. Make sure you plan a variety of camera shots you will look to capture - medium shots, close-ups etc.

3) Plan the mise-en-scene. What costume, props or make-up will you require for your photoshoots?

4) Finally, note down the time and date for your photoshoots. This may be inside or outside school (or a combination of both). You will have Media lesson time for this after the mock exams.

Statement of Intent

1) Once you have completed your print research and planning, go back to your statement of intent and make sure you have included the print brief in your final draft. Then, submit the final draft statement of intent to your teacher. The due date for this will be confirmed by your coursework teacher.

Use your Media coursework lessons to complete these planning tasks - homework time should be exclusively to revise for mocks.

Due date for research and planning on Google Classroom.