MUSIC INDUSTRY 1

The second part of your exam focuses in on the Music Industry.

The areas you need to cover are consumption, production, distribution, marketing, sales, piracy, ownership, convergence, synergy, technological hardware and software. Ultimately you are trying to understand the ways in which the internet and technology has impacted upon the music industry across all of those areas in the last number of years.

Production - making the music product: writing, recording, mixing, etc. (If discussing this in an exam, issues relating to funding for production and the technologies that now enable artists to have home studios, etc. are all relevant).

Distribution - Getting the product/music to the audience, physically or digitally (release strategies are part of this).

Marketing - Often seen as part of the distribution process, this is about reaching an audience and promoting a product. (Consider the traditional forms of promotion, the more innovative approaches using online media, and also, cross media promotion and synergy as part of marketing).

Exchange - point at which the audience consumes or interacts with the music/product. Consider the wide range of ways in which this can happen now.

Independent – artist or label that is not managed by/owned by a Big 3 music group or large media conglomerate.  For example, Adele with XL or Dr Rubberfunk with Jalepeno Records

Major label – The Big 3: Sony, Universal, Warner https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Record_label

Mass Audience – Large audience, covering a wide range of demographics, for example Leona Lewis (with Syco records – a Sony label) targeting an international audience.

Niche Audience – Smaller, more specialised audience, for example Dr Rubberfunk appeals to a niche audience and particularly those who are into funk or nu jazz genres of music.

Media Ownership – Who owns the music/media involved? What is the institutional structure? Who has creative control? Who dominates/has power in the music industry?

Conglomerate – Usually refers to huge organisations that own many smaller companies, often across different industries.  For example, Sony corporation who own a range of media and technology companies and are one of the 6 biggest media conglomerates (globally) – Sony Music group is one section of the Sony conglomerate.

Oligopoly – Domination by a few companies, for example the Big 3 dominate the music recording industry making it harder for independents to compete. (monopoly = domination by one, duopoly = domination by two).

Horizontal Integration - Where direct competitors within the same industry merge.  This reduces competition and costs.  Consider the number of record labels that come under the Sony Music Group now.  All the Big 3 are horizontally integrated within the music industry.

Horizontal integration can also be across a range of media industries within a media conglomerate. So, as described above, Sony music group is horizontally integrated as it has many record labels dealing with the production of music (between them they cover a large part of the market).

Lateral Integration - own companies across a range of media and other industries. Sony Corporation is a large media conglomerate who is laterally integrated across a range of media indusries, for example film, music and video games as well as producing media hardware, etc. If you put all of Sony's media companies together then they can be seen to be a dominant institution in global media (one of the 6 biggest media conglomerates).

Vertical integration - Where a company has a stake in production, distribution and exhibition.  Reduces costs and gives complete access to audiences without need to go elsewhere.  I.e. Sony is vertically integrated as has the capability to carryout the whole process from finding/developing talent all the way through to providing live music streaming services to audiences. Jalepeno records are not vertically integrated (they do deals with separate company Kudos for distribution, etc.).

Synergy - Where spin off products and services are created on the back of a successful music track, e.g. music videos.  Often involves companies, products or services coming together for mutual benefit and cross-promotion. 

Cross Media Convergence - This is always a tricky term and it is useful to consider it in relation to both technological convergence and synergy rather than in isolation. Cross media convergence can be understood as different media industries or media companies coming together, often this is to create more opportunities for promotion (including cross promotion and synergy) or to create new revenue streams.  The Beatles Rock Band and BBC's The Voice to demonstrate cross media convergence.  Music videos are also examples of this.  Cross media convergence can also be understood in terms of many forms of media all being accessible from one platform - you can see the overlap with technological convergence here.  There are an increasing number of websites that converge different media. For example, Facebook enables you to watch music videos, listen to Soundcloud clips, read music reviews, interact with the artist/band, play games/widgets relating to an artist, etc.

Technological Convergence - The process by which a range of media platforms are integrated within a single piece of media technology, e.g. a smartphone (used to need a number of different devices to access/use all the different types of media that you can now access/use with a Smartphone).

Proliferation of hardware & content - increasing numbers of new media devices are created which create opportunities for new media content (music, music videos, music apps, music TV, music films, music podcasts, viodcasts, social networking, etc.)

360 degree deal - Artist treated as a whole brand and all possible revenue streams (not just music) are exploited. 
http://www.musicindie.com/news/1270
http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/2013/07/02/threesixty/

Meda platform - The technology (hardware or software - so includes websites/applications) that gives you access to media. 

Digital Aggregation - Digital aggregators (such as The Orchard or PIAS Digital) act as distributors in the online world, supplying downloads from labels and artists to online retailers (such as iTunes, Napster etc).



 

G322 INSTITUTIONS AND AUDIENCES past questions from Hélène Galdin-O'Shea 

Planning Tasks

Hi folks,
You now need to start having a look at the logistics of your film. The following things have to be done before you begin to film-

1. Actor research- who is needed, what should they look like, how should they act, dialogue, accent, movement

2. Costume research

3. Location recce and research

4. Setting research

5. Props research

6. You need to draw up a shooting schedule and diary. It may also be worth looking at things like weather forecasts for you film days. It will need to contain who needs to be there, equipment needed, storyboards and scripts for scenes, advice for actors, costume and props needed, travel details, timetables etc- all to help you manage your time and roles efficiently so that shooting goes smoothly. Everyone should contribute to and be able to access this information.

7. Allocation of roles and responsibilities- you need to outline and understand your role and duties in the group; try to use each others' area of strength and expertise

Task Checklist

Hi Folks, below is a checklist of steps that each individual and group needs to go through before the commencement into the making of your actual film. You get marked for all of these stages and the more detailed analysis and reflection you can provide, the higher your marks are going to be.

1. THE PITCH- we need you to pitch your idea to me and the class, so you are going to have to summarise your idea as briefly as possible.

2. THE TREATMENT- this is a more detailed version of the idea in essay form and acts as a bridge between your pitch and your screenplay. (these will be distributed to the class for feedback)

3. THE STORYBOARDS- these should be carefully drawn with detail. Look at some really famous ones here http://screencrush.com/movie-storyboards/

4. THE ANIMATIC- take photos of the individual storyboards and turn these into a short video in Final Cut to be published to Youtube.

5. THE SCREENPLAY- have a look at the screenplay for the Social Network http://flash.sonypictures.com/video/movies/thesocialnetwork/awards/thesocialnetwork_screenplay.pdf and try to put into practice the codes and conventions used (these will be distributed to the class for feedback). You could sign up for a free trial of script formatting software such as CELTX https://www.celtx.com

Once you have these done, your group will present your pitch, treatment, animatic and screenplay to the class. It may also be an idea to have prepared a questionnaire for the class to give you any suggestions or constructive feedback.

These will begin on Monday 8 February and constitute part of your marks. They will be filmed and embedded on your blogs.

via GIPHY

More tasks

Hi Folks

Some more things for you to work on:

 1. Look at the target audience for the film and how each film attracted their target audience.

2. What type of company distributes your chosen films?

3. How have social groups been represented in these films and how does this relate to the target audience?

4. What are audience expectations for these films?

5. Try and present your findings in an interesting digital format (video-log, Glogster, Prezi, Wordle, Soundcloud, Slideshare, Blogger, Charts, Graphs, Questionnaires etc).

** Also, please ensure that you have analysed the title sequence of 2 films, making a note of all of the timings of director, actors, roles etc etc**

WORK DUE FOR MONDAY 18 JANUARY

Hi Folks

As you are on Work Experience next week, it is important that you continue to do research, otherwise you will be very far behind.

Now that you have chosen your genre, you need to analyse what the codes and conventions (or the set rules that your type of film follows so that the audience is quickly able to identify the type of film they are watching) of your genre are.

Once you have this done, begin to analyse in terms of 
1 titles
2 music
3 shot types
4 mise en scene
5 recurring themes and character types
 and whether each film follows or challenges the codes and conventions for this genre. If you are working in a group, choose 5 DIFFERENT films to analyse.

THIS TASK IS TO BE COMPLETED FOR MONDAY 18 JANUARY. THANKS!

Main Task

It's very useful to have a look at http://ocrmediastudies.weebly.com/coursework-with-levels.html to get a sense of expectations and mark bands before you begin.

The brief:

Video 
Preliminary exercise: Continuity task involving filming and editing a character opening a door, crossing a room and sitting down in a chair opposite another character, with whom she/he then exchanges a couple of lines of dialogue. This task should demonstrate match on action, shot/reverse shot and the 180-degree rule. 
Main task: the titles and opening of a new fiction film, to last a maximum of two minutes. 
All video and audio material must be original, produced by the candidate(s), with the exception of music or audio effects from a copyright-free source. Both preliminary and main tasks may be done individually or as a group. Maximum four members to a group. 

Full Specifciation: http://www.ocr.org.uk/images/81037-specification.pdf

There are 20 marks available for research and planning your project. The tasks detailed below will help you maximise your marks for this area:

1.You will give a detailed analysis of the codes and conventions of the chosen genre/sub-genre you have picked (this MUST NOT be a copy and paste exercise).

2. I would suggest that you would then choose a minimum of FIVE films to analyse in terms of titles, music, shot types, mise en scene and whether this film follows or challenges the codes and conventions for this genre. If you are working in a group, choose 5 DIFFERENT films to analyse.

3. Look at the target audience for the film and how each film attracted their target audience.

3. What type of company distributes your chosen films?

4. How have social groups been represented in these films and how does this relate to the target audience?

5. What are audience expectations for these films?

6. Try and present your findings in an interesting digital format (video-log, Glogster, Prezi, Wordle, Soundcloud, Slideshare, Blogger, Charts, Graphs, Questionnaires etc).

Examiner's report The Hustle

Comments on candidate responses to Question 1 – Television drama
The extract provided candidates with the opportunity to negotiate their own reading, which they could justify through analysis of the four technical codes. There were a number of different

interpretations provided by candidates; most of these were entirely valid. There was a good range of technical examples for candidates to analyse.

As noted in previous series, it is important that candidates move from description of key technical areas to analysis of how representations are constructed. This enables candidates to achieve higher marks for their responses. Candidate responses which did not link the technical analysis to representation often lacked focus with a common misconception being to discuss class, rather than gender.

Candidates tend to structure their responses in one of two ways for question one. Some began by addressing the concept of representation in the extract and a discussion of the representational differences between the male sales assistant/manager and the poorer, older female character and then introduce the affluent, younger and elegant female character, comparing this further with the representation of gender in the gentlemen’s club. Candidates would then analyse these examples in a chronological approach to the extract, whilst integrating different technical aspects, for example, combining the analysis of camera composition with sound.

On the other hand, and a slightly more popular approach, would see the candidates address the technical areas one by one. Stronger candidates could provide an integrated analysis of the extract through analysis of key examples identified. These candidates explored how the technical features could be applied using a combination of the technical features. Weaker candidates could list many technical aspects, with varying degrees of accuracy, but struggle to say anything meaningful about the representation of gender.

Candidates should be advised to keep introductions brief and to avoid theoretical introductions and/ or historical contexts to television drama; analysis of the extract itself should begin straight away. On occasion in this series, candidates offered quite general textual analysis and these responses often lacked a focused discussion of gender and thus penalised themselves from gaining a level three or four mark for EAA.

The mark scheme enables credit to be awarded to candidates in three different categories: Explanation, Analysis and Argument (20 Marks); Use of Examples (20 Marks); and Use of Terminology (10 Marks). Under use of examples, candidates cannot reach level 4 (16-20) when only three technical areas are discussed. This mark scheme is able to credit answers which have different strengths, and in this series, the marking of candidate papers revealed this flexibility in its application. It is advisable that centres make the mark scheme available to candidates for the summer series so that they are aware of how the work is assessed. This could also be used for the marking of timed assignments in the classroom and for the marking of mock exam papers.

Comments on the ‘micro’ aspects of Question one on Television Drama
The following comments are selected examples points and use examples to assist centres with the delivery of the topic and to help advise on candidate answers, it is by no means an exhaustive list.

Representation
Most candidates were able to discuss differences in the status of gender within the sequence, though only a very small number of candidates were able to develop their answer further by showing how the audience were positioned in relation to these representations.
More confident candidates were able to analyse the ways in which the extract attempted to position the audience in relation to the sales manager and the female clientele, the second male in the shop and the cross cutting to the gentlemen’s club and as a result were able to explore the

nuances of gender representation. These stronger responses showed a good grasp of the changing ambivalent nature of the representation of women and men, for example, either commenting on how the female protagonist played up to gender stereotypes or the centrality of this performance to the ongoing hustle. In relation to masculinity, candidates identified the stereotypical inability of men to multitask. Most candidates made reference to the sales manager’s character (David Walliams) as being feminised and confident candidates asserted that the second male character in the shop was able to dominate Walliams’ character as he was constructed as more stereotypically masculine – chewing gum, open shirt without tie, use of male colloquialisms – for example reference to ‘bird’ as stereotyped slang. However, many candidates formulated a much simpler version of gender representation with arguments such as ‘women like shopping’, the men in the club represent gender because ‘men like drinking whiskey and smoking’. Weaker candidates often relied on the use of binary oppositions in discussion of gender representation, rather than take this opportunity to explore a range of representations offered by the extract.
The majority of candidates attempted to formulate an argument about the representation of gender in the extract with the vast majority moving beyond the minimal descriptor for EAA. Candidates that scored less well tended to make points about the representation of gender in an isolated fashion rather than linking their points as part of a coherent analysis or argument.

Camera Shot, Angle and Composition
Overall, this technical feature was well addressed by the candidates. Most candidates used appropriate media vocabulary, commenting on shot composition, analysing the high and low angled shots in the extract and commenting on the ‘hand held’ camera techniques during the search for the ring. The tilt up of the camera on the woman’s dress was commonly misidentified as a pan but generally a wide range of terminology was accurately used. More able candidates were able to link the composition and the framing to the representation of gender by discussing the apparent significance of the hustler in the background of the frame, when the sales manager was speaking to the less affluent female character introduced at the beginning of the extract. Many candidates were able to comment on the direct mode of address by both male and female characters, commenting upon its unconventionality and function in linking the male and female hustlers. Candidates also commented on how the shots of the direct address to the audience conveyed control of the situation and therefore represented a form of dominance in character relations.
Weaker candidates were able to describe key shots used in exemplification, but would often lack explicit links to how these shots assisted in the construction of the representation of gender. These candidates would also tend to focus on just identifying the narrative flow of the extract through the naming of the shots.

Mise en scène
The majority of candidates discussed this area with confidence. The extract itself was rich in mise en scène that contributed to representation. The contrast of the affluent clothing boutique, with the gentlemen’s club was the setting most compared, at times in a sophisticated way. Candidates made most use of the accent, performance of characters and it was pleasing to see many candidates making reference to lighting with more able candidates confident in using terms such as high key, artificial and low key. Most candidates were able to discuss how the characters’ appearances linked to gender characteristics.
More able candidates could contrast the gender representation of different characters through the mise en scène and how power and status is represented. Candidates are also advised to look for the range of representations within the extract with more able candidates commenting on each character’s apparent gender and how that held some status within the scene, for example of the way in which the female hustler held equal if not more power than males in the

scam. The representation of the cockney male was contrasted to the more proper sales manager, who candidates often pointed out, was well spoken, tailored and legitimate.
Weaker candidates are still wedded to simplistic colour analysis and ignore all contradictory evidence to claim that characters dressed in white must be 'pure and innocent' while characters dressed in red are either 'passionate' or 'in danger', for example. This often appeared in discussion of the representation of the female hustler. This ‘binary’ approach needs refining by centres in relation to debating how meaning is constructed in an extract and it is suggested that comparing and contrasting different elements of representation deserves more attention in the classroom.

Sound
The analysis of sound was better than in previous series; for example, candidates attempted to link music with the representation of the characters, looking at how it was used to underscore characters’ actions. The use of terminology was generally better than previously in this area.; centres seem to be heeding the advice that an analysis of the dialogue is not sufficient.
Most students were able to differentiate between diegetic and non-diegetic sound and to demonstrate that the soundtrack was closely linked to our understanding of the protagonist, though few went further by discussing how the sound mix and sound effects were used. Most candidates were also able to use terminology confidently and could describe the tempo and use of music, for example, the manic use of jazz music with the female shopper. Often weaker candidates showed confusion with technical terminology, referring to ambient sound which was not heard in the part of the sequence they referred to, or simply getting diegetic and non-diegetic sound the wrong way round.

Editing
As previous series, this technical area proved to be the most problematic for candidates and the one technical area of analysis that was often omitted in responses. Those that did cover it were able to make meaningful links to representations by showing how the editing created particular viewpoints with which we are encouraged to identify or how screen time indicated the shifting relationship between characters in the sequence, for example through the discussion of rule of thirds. Most candidates made reference to the pace of editing to reflect the frantic situation and actions of the characters in the extract, for example in describing the affluent female shopper and the confidence she exudes in the hustle. Many candidates could identify the use of transitions; shot reverse shot and cuts to aid continuity and the use of cross cutting between the two situations to enhance tension. Many candidates identified the editing transitions, though the use of the term ‘jump cut’ was not accurately applied and candidates often misidentified the wipe transition as a ‘swipe’. Only a minority of candidates interpreted the function of the wipe as highlighting the juxtaposition between a female and male environment. The most able of candidates even interpreted the editing through the comedic style imbued within the extract, highlighting that candidates can be articulate and imaginative with the analysis of editing.
More able candidates demonstrated the ability to link the use of editing to the representation of characters, such as the use of long and short takes to represent power and the use of eye line matches to reinforce a sense of dominance.
However, many candidate responses seemed to be very limited in address of the issues of editing and all too frequently editing was absent from candidate responses – which again, does not enable candidates to reach a level four on the marking criteria for the use of examples. Weaker candidates often omitted any discussion of editing or offered quite simplistic accounts of how editing was used, for example in the use of the shot reverse shot sequence between characters. Many candidates identified the types of transition without discussing how these were

connected with representations, in particular the use of wipe transitions or freeze frames. There was little sense of the way in which the editing created a perspective from which the sequence made sense and most candidates confined themselves to discussing the pace of cutting.
This series has shown that with the right preparation, candidates can engage with the nuances of editing under exam conditions, with evidence that candidates are able to discuss crosscutting, eye line match and ellipsis in an extract. As in the previous report, the advice offered to centres is to encourage as much practice on the concept of editing as possible and how this assists in the construction of representation. Centres should begin by identifying editing techniques and encourage candidates to apply these to a range of examples in class and importantly, test them on this.