Textual analysis toolkit

Textual analysis toolkit - 2017 specification

The following list outlines the essential media language that you must use when discussing the following media forms.

Media language must be used when textually analysing media products for component 1, section A and component 2. 

Advertising
Print

· Codes and conventions
· Layout and design
· Composition
· Images/photographs - camera shot type, angle, focus
· Font size, type of font (e.g. serif/sans serif), colour
· Mise-en-scène – colour, lighting, location, costume/dress, hair/make-up
· Graphics, logos etc.
· Language – slogan/tagline and copy
· Anchorage of images and text
· Elements of narrative

Moving image 

· Codes and conventions
· Camera work – framing, shot types, angle, position, movement
· Editing – pace, type of edits, continuity/montage Structure/narrative
· Sound – music/dialogue/voiceover
· Mise-en-scene – colour, lighting, location, costume/dress, hair/make-up


Music video

· Codes and conventions – performance/narrative/experimental features
· Camera work (framing – shot types, angle, position, movement)
· Editing – beat-matched?
· Elements of continuity/montage
· How does the video interpret the music and/or lyrics?
· Structure/narrative
· Intertextuality
· Sound
· Mise-en-scene – colour, lighting, location, costume/dress, hair/make-up


Newspapers

· Point of view and ideology 

· Codes and conventions of news products/newspapers/type of newspaper 

· Layout and design

· Composition – positioning of headlines, images, columns, combination of stories
· Images/photographs - camera shot type, angle, focus
· Font size, type of font (e.g. serif/sans serif)
· Mise-en-scène – colour, lighting, location, costume/dress, hair/make-up
· Graphics, logos
· Language – headline, sub-headings, captions
· Copy
· Anchorage of images and text
· Elements of narrative

Television 

· Genre codes and conventions

· Genre theory
· Genre fluidity
· Camera work - framing and composition shot types, angle, position, movement
· Lighting and colour
· Editing – pace, type of edits, continuity
· Narrative construction, related to narrative theory
· Sound – dialogue, music
· Mise-en-scene – setting and location, props, costume/dress, hair/make-up

Magazines 

· Codes and conventions – changes over time?
· Layout and design
· Composition - positioning of masthead/headlines, cover lines, images, columns
· Font size, type, colour
· Images/photographs - shot type, angle, focus
· Mise-en-scene – colour, lighting, location, costume/dress, hair/make-up
· Graphics, logos
· Language – headline, sub-headings, captions – mode of address
· Copy
· Anchorage of images and text
· Elements of narrative

Online media 

· Homepage and other pages
· Codes and conventions
· Layout and design
· Composition
· Font size, type of font (e.g. serif/sans serif), colour
· Images/photographs - camera shot type, angle, focus
· Mise-en-scene – colour, lighting, location, costume/dress, hair/make-up
· Graphics, logos
· Language - formal/informal mode of address?
· Anchorage of images and text
· Elements of narrative/structure around the site
· Interactive features
· Menu bar and navigation – structure and design of the site 

HOW TO DO WELL IN MEDIA STUDIES...

As you can see from reading the rest of this blog, there are a lot of areas of the media that need to be covered during the course. We will not be able to cover every area of each topic within the lessons and this will mean that you will have to do a lot of research and work outside of the classroom. 

You should not only just focus yourself on the topics of the course but fully immerse yourself in the media! This should be a course which you enjoy and the more you enjoy it and use what you've learnt in lessons, the more you'll be able to get out of it. SO, WATCH TRAILERS AND FILMS, WATCH TV, READ NEWSPAPERS, WATCH MUSIC VIDEOS, WATCH GAME TRAILERS AND PLAY GAMES, READ MAGAZINES and WATCH YOUTUBE!!! 

You will also be asked to keep a media journal to show how you have been engaging with the media and should be frequently updated.