WJEC Eduqas A Level & AS Film Studies

1 What aspects of film form are used and why? 2 How does the film encourage the spectator feel? 3 What aesthetic decisions have been made and why? 4 How and why is the narrative shaped? 5 What genre features are present? 6 What institutional , social, political, historical and cultural contexts have influenced the film’s production and reception? 7 Has this film contributed to critical debate ? 8 What kind of representations and ideologies are present? 9 Is there evidence of an auteur at work? The exam board suggests a particular focus on these three areas for the Evaluative Analysis: 1 Narrative structure 2 Cinematic influences: the key elements of film form such as sound design, mise-en-scène and cinematography 3 Creating meaning and effect Consequently, this section will refer to each of these areas in the following very short film analyses of three focus films: whether you are analysing your own films, or the films that have influenced you or the films in the anthology, you will need the same skills. It is also worth remembering that all practical work follows a ‘brief’ supplied by the exam board. These will be changed every three years so please check on the exam board website or speak to your teacher to gain a clear understanding of the expectations for your production work. Narrative plays a fundamental part in the practical unit, not only in terms of the product’s construction but also in terms of its evaluation. You should then constantly revisit the narrative sections in this book before starting to draft a screenplay or plan a film shoot and then, of course, again when constructing your Evaluative Analysis. Narrative theory is complex but it can be neatly summarised, as explored earlier, in terms of the formalist distinction between plot and story . This may sound odd so think of it like this: • Who is the film about? • When does it take place? • Where does it take place? • What happens? • Why ? • How does it happen? And then most crucially … • How have I been shown it happening? If still struggling with the concept of narrative try answering the following questions: • Is the plot linear or non-linear? • Are there flashbacks or flash-forwards? • Is the plot episodic? • Is it circular? 313 Production skills