Viewing entries from category: Genres & Case Studies
DIY Animation Film »
Categories: Genres & Case Studies, Animation, DIY Animation, Production Zone, Moving Image Production
Animation - Making Your Own Film
Anyone aspiring to be taken seriously as an animator would be well advised to first learn how to draw and then to learn the animation basics.
No matter if you are interested in doing 3d computer animation or stylised 2d drawings if you can’t draw you are at a disadvantage. Drawing is best learned from doing life drawing lessons, from studying other people’s work who can draw and from just practising.
Leaning to draw will teach you things like anatomy, character, design and composition, all very important as an animator, and also how to...
[ read full article ] »Shaun of the Dead Single Film Study »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, Directors, Edgar Wright, Non-Hollywood Films, Shaun of the Dead, Genres & Case Studies, Comedy, Horror
YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/embed/LIfcaZ4pC-4
Copyright © 2017 Edusites. All rights reserved. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use within the subscribing school only. Copying or lending of any part of this document in any form or by any means to external bodies and / or individuals is prohibited.
Eduqas Film Studies Paper 1
Section B: British Film Since 1995 Two Film Study
Component Group 1: Varieties of Film and Filmmaking
These tasks require you study all films with particular reference to responding to questions in the key areas:
- Film...
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest Single Film Study »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, American, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Directors, Milos Forman, Genres & Case Studies, Drama
YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXrcDonY-B8
Copyright © 2017 Edusites. All rights reserved. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use within the subscribing school only. Copying or lending of any part of this document in any form or by any means to external bodies and / or individuals is prohibited.
Eduqas Film Studies Paper 1
Section A: Hollywood 1930-1990
Component Group 2: New Hollywood 1961-1990
These tasks require you study all films with particular reference to responding to questions in the key areas:
- Film Language
- Film Meaning
- Film...
No Country for Old Men Single Film Study »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, American, No Country for Old Men, Directors, Coen Brothers, Genres & Case Studies, Crime, Drama, Thriller
YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/embed/38A__WT3-o0
EDUQAS Film Studies Paper 1
Section B: Hollywood American Film Since 2005
Component Group 1
These tasks require you study all films with particular reference to responding to questions in the key areas:
- Film Language
- Film Meaning
- Film Context
And with specific reference to ideas of:
- Spectatorship
- Ideology
Section B: American Film since 2005 (two-film study)
Answer on one film from Group 1 and one film from Group 2.
Group 1: Mainstream Film
- No Country for Old Men (Coen Brothers, 2007)
- Inception (Nolan, 2010)
- Selma...
Boyhood Single Film Study »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, American, Directors, Richard Linklater, Non-Hollywood Films, Boyhood, Genres & Case Studies, Drama
YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/embed/IiDztHS3Wos
Copyright © 2017 Edusites. All rights reserved. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use within the subscribing school only. Copying or lending of any part of this document in any form or by any means to external bodies and / or individuals is prohibited.
EDUQAS Film Studies Paper 1
Section B: American Film Since 2005
Component Group 2: American Independent Film
These tasks require you study all films with particular reference to responding to questions in the key areas:
- Film Language
- Film Meaning
- Film...
Vertigo Single Film Study »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, American, Directors, Alfred Hitchcock, Hollywood Films, Vertigo, Genres & Case Studies, Mystery, Romance, Thriller
YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/embed/UHhsEYDg8GI
Copyright © 2017 Edusites. All rights reserved. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use within the subscribing school only. Copying or lending of any part of this document in any form or by any means to external bodies and / or individuals is prohibited.
EDUQAS Film Studies Paper 1
Section A: Hollywood 1930-1990
Component Group 1: Hollywood 1930-1960
These tasks require you study all films with particular reference to responding to questions in the key areas:
- Film Language
- Film Meaning
- Film Context
And...
[ read full article ] »Inception Single Film Study »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, American, Inception, Directors, Christopher Nolan, Hollywood Films, Genres & Case Studies, Action, Adventure, Science Fiction
YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3A3-zSOBT4
Copyright © 2017 Edusites. All rights reserved. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use within the subscribing school only. Copying or lending of any part of this document in any form or by any means to external bodies and / or individuals is prohibited.
EDUQAS Film Studies Paper 1
Section B: Hollywood American Film Since 2005
Component Group 1
These tasks require you study all films with particular reference to responding to questions in the key areas:
- Film Language
- Film Meaning
- Film Context
And...
[ read full article ] »Casablanca Single Film Study »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, American, Casablanca, Directors, Martin Scorsese, Genres & Case Studies, Adventure, Drama, Film Noir, Romance, War
YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQTWfGOv1JY
Copyright © 2017 Edusites. All rights reserved. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use within the subscribing school only. Copying or lending of any part of this document in any form or by any means to external bodies and / or individuals is prohibited.
EDUQAS Film Studies Paper 1
Section A: Hollywood 1930-1990
Component Group 2: Hollywood 1960-1990
These tasks require you study all films with particular reference to responding to questions in the key areas:
- Film Language
- Film Meaning
- Film Context
Bonnie and Clyde Single Film Study »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, American, Bonnie and Clyde, Directors, Arthur Penn, Genres & Case Studies, Action, Biography, Crime, Drama
YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ACCpXaA-MU
Copyright © 2017 Edusites. All rights reserved. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use within the subscribing school only. Copying or lending of any part of this document in any form or by any means to external bodies and / or individuals is prohibited.
EDUQAS Film Studies Paper 1
Section A: Hollywood 1930-1990
Component Group 2: Hollywood 1960-1990
These tasks require you study all films with particular reference to responding to questions in the key areas:
- Film Language
- Film Meaning
- Film Context
Blade Runner Single Film Study »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, American, Blade Runner, Directors, Ridley Scott, Genres & Case Studies, Film Noir, Science Fiction
YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FnAXSl6LW2s
Copyright © 2017 Edusites. All rights reserved. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use within the subscribing school only. Copying or lending of any part of this document in any form or by any means to external bodies and / or individuals is prohibited.
EDUQAS Film Studies Paper 1
Section A: Hollywood 1930-1990
Component Group 2: Hollywood 1960-1990
These tasks require you study all films with particular reference to responding to questions in the key areas:
- Film Language
- Film Meaning
- Film Context
Apocalypse Now Single Film Study »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, Directors, Fancis Ford Coppola, Hollywood Films, Apocalypse Now, Genres & Case Studies, Drama, War
YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=snDR7XsSkB4
Copyright © 2017 Edusites. All rights reserved. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use within the subscribing school only. Copying or lending of any part of this document in any form or by any means to external bodies and / or individuals is prohibited.
Eduqas Film Studies Paper 1
Section A: Hollywood 1930 - 1990
Component Group 2: New Hollywood 1961-1990
These tasks require you study all films with particular reference to responding to questions in the key areas:
- Film Language
- Film Meaning
- Film...
World Cinema Topics: Empowering Women | Pumzi (2009) »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC A2, FM4, Section A: World Cinema, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, World Cinema, Pumzi, Genres & Case Studies, Science Fiction
WJEC A2 Film Studies FM4 Section A World Cinema: Empowering Women
Empowering Women Past Exam Questions:
- Discuss how persuasive you have found the different films you have studied for this topic in promoting female empowerment.
- In the films you have studied for this topic, how far can it be said that central characters and their situations are represented in similar ways?
- Discuss how far men are represented as enemies of female empowerment in the films you have chosen for this topic.
- Explore some of the ways in which film techniques are used to position audiences to identify...
WJEC GCSE Film Studies Superhero Films | Batman v Superman and Deadpool »
Categories: GCSE, WJEC GCSE, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, Hollywood Films, Batman v Superman, Deadpool, Genres & Case Studies, Action, Action Adventure, Superhero, Hot Entries
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (Batman v Superman) is a 2016 blockbuster superhero movie produced by DC, and distributed by Warner Bros. From a marketing point of view (common question 3 in Paper 1) it is an attempt to compete with the most successful franchise in film history – Marvel Cinematic Universe, whose recent films have been distributed by the owner of the franchise, Disney Motion Picture Studios.
To simplify, Marvel and DC Comics were, and still are, competing superhero comic publishers who both have now...
[ read full article ] »WJEC AS Film Studies FM2 Section B British Film: The Quiet Ones and Hush »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC AS, FM2, Section B: British Film Topics, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, Non-Hollywood Films, Hush, The Quiet Ones, Genres & Case Studies, Horror, Hot Entries
Section B: British Film Topics – British Film and Genre
To answer this question, students must show a detailed knowledge of a minimum of two films. This resource explores two contemporary British horror films and can be used in conjunction with the following other case studies and exemplars:
- British Film and Genre (Horror and Comedy)
- 28 Days Later Case Study
- The Wicker Man Case Study
- WJEC AS Film Studies FM2 Section B British Film Horror Exemplar
Past Exam Questions
Analysis of both films will cover all potential areas of exam questioning with the following questions...
[ read full article ] »WJEC AS Film FM2 British and American Film Sec A Producers and Audiences: The Inbetweeners »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC AS, FM2, Section A: Producers and Audiences, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, Directors, Ben Palmer, Non-Hollywood Films, The Inbetweeners, Genres & Case Studies, Comedy
Independent Film Case Study: The Inbetweeners Movie (Palmer, 2011)
This resource focuses on one crossover independent film, The Inbetweeners Movie. It is intended to be used as stimulus in helping to understand the definitions of independent film. For a full guide on Section A please access WJEC AS FM2 British & American Film Producers and Audiences Resource Items.
The Inbetweeners Movie (Inbetweeners) from 2011 crosses over from independent to mainstream film even in title: the name having connotations that it is neither one thing or the other with four stereotypically...
[ read full article ] »WJEC AS Film FM2 British and American Film Sec A Producers and Audiences: Only Lovers Left Alive »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC AS, FM2, Section A: Producers and Audiences, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, Directors, Jim Jarmusch, Non-Hollywood Films, Only Lovers Left Alive, Genres & Case Studies, Drama, Horror, Romance
Independent Film Case Study: Only Lovers Left Alive (Jarmusch, 2014)
This resource focuses on one independent film, Only Lovers Left Alive. It is intended to be used as stimulus in helping to understand the definitions of independent film. For a full guide on Section A please access: WJEC AS FM2 British & American Film Producers and Audiences Resource Items.
Only Lovers Left Alive (2014) was directed by Jim Jarmusch and starred Tilda Swinton, Tom Hiddleston, John Hurt and Mia Wasikowska. Despite the obvious casting of established well known actors the film can be...
[ read full article ] »OCR A2 Film Sec A Messages and Values in Global Film: Battleship Potemkin & Les Quatre Cents Coups »
Categories: A Level, OCR A Level, OCR A2, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, World Cinema, Battleship Potemkin, Les Quatre Cents Coups, Genres & Case Studies, Crime, Drama, History, War
1. How is style and theme used in communicating messages and values in the films you have studied? (50)
The two films I have studied are Sergei Eisenstein’s Battleship Potemkin from 1925 and Francois Truffaut’s Les Quatre Cents Coups (The 400 Blows) from 1959. Both films are encoded with a filmmaking style that both reflects a period in cinematic history and also with narrative themes deeply embedded revealing underlying messages and values.
‘Potemkin’ is considered a classic of 1920s silent soviet cinema with Eisenstein directing films alongside famous...
[ read full article ] »OCR AS Film Studies Contemporary English Language Film: Gone Too Far! and Sightseers »
Categories: A Level, OCR A Level, OCR AS, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, Non-Hollywood Films, Gone Too Far!, Sightseers, Genres & Case Studies, Adventure, Comedy, Crime, Drama
This resource will be studying the seven frameworks for analysis in Gone Too Far (2014) and Sightseers (2012). It is not an exemplar. For a breakdown of exam requirements, please go to AS OCR Film Studies: Contemporary English Language Film or locate our extended Section A Exemplar Response, using The Double and Saving Mr. Banks, both from 2013.
Gone Too Far!
Authorship
Gone Too Far! (GTF) is a British-Nigerian comedy/social realist drama directed by Destiny Ekaragha. She is only the third black British woman to have directed a feature length film that received UK...
[ read full article ] »OCR A2 Film Sec A Messages and Values in Global Film: Battleship Potemkin & Good Bye, Lenin! »
Categories: A Level, OCR A Level, OCR A2, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, Non-Hollywood Films, Goodbye Lenin, World Cinema, Battleship Potemkin, Genres & Case Studies, Comedy, Drama, History, Romance, War
- Battleship Potemkin (Russia, 1925)
- Good Bye, Lenin! (Germany, 2003)
Battleship Potemkin
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNT6xyopdBs (whole film)
Historical, Socio-political and Cultural Issues incorporating Authorship
Battleship Potemkin (Potemkin) is a film rooted in Russian history, a fragile peasant economy was ruled by a Tsarist autocracy until revolution and war in 1905 saw a wave of mass political and social unrest spread through the Russian Empire. This included strikes, peasant unrest and military mutinies. It was the latter that Potemkin explored by...
[ read full article ] »WJEC AS Film Studies FM2 US Cinema Comparative Study: Dirty Harry and Gran Torino »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC AS, FM2, Section C: US Film Comparative Study, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, American, Directors, Clint Eastwood, Don Siegel, Hollywood Films, Dirty Harry, Gran Torino, Genres & Case Studies, Action, Action Thriller, Drama, Thriller, Western, Key Concepts, Audience, Film Language, Genre, Narrative, Representation
- Dirty Harry (1971, Don Siegel)
- Gran Torino (2008, Clint Eastwood)
Centres can choose from a range of different American film texts: the three main areas of study are Messages, Themes and Values, Narrative and Genre, Representation of Time and Place (often linked to messages and values) and Representation of Character. You can compare in Section B but in Section C you must. The above choice of texts reflects films belonging to the same genre but it is very possible to explore two films that encode similar messages and themes from different genres and time periods. Both...
[ read full article ] »WJEC AS Film Studies FM2 US Cinema Comparative Study: Taxi Driver and No Country for Old Men »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC AS, FM2, Section C: US Film Comparative Study, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, American, No Country for Old Men, Hollywood Films, Taxi Driver, Genres & Case Studies, Crime, Drama, Thriller, Hot Entries
FM2 British and American Film Section C: US Cinema Comparative Study
For further details of assessment requirements and past Section C exam questions, please go to FilmEdu’s Gilda (1946) and L.A Confidential (1997) Comparative Case Study and FilmEdu’s Minority Report and Blade Runner Comparative Study for other comparison resources.
Taxi Driver
Like No Country for Old Men, Taxi Driver is a film about nihilism – with 31 years between them both films have characters that reject underpinning established rules of law in pursuit of an ultimate individualism. Both films...
[ read full article ] »WJEC AS Film Studies FM2 US Cinema Comparative Study: Goodfellas and American Gangster »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC AS, FM2, Section C: US Film Comparative Study, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, American, Directors, Martin Scorsese, Ridley Scott, Hollywood Films, American Gangster, Goodfellas, Genres & Case Studies, Crime, Key Concepts, Audience, Film Language, Genre, Narrative, Representation
- Goodfellas (1990, Martin Scorsese)
- American Gangster (2007, Ridley Scott)
Centres can choose from a range of different American film texts. The three main areas of study are Messages, Themes and Values, Narrative and Genre, Representation of Time and Place (often linked to Messages and Values) and Representation of Character. You can compare in Section B but in Section C you must. The above choice of texts reflects films belonging to the same genre but it is very possible to explore two films that encode similar messages and themes from different genres and time periods....
[ read full article ] »International Film Styles: Neorealism »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC A2, FM4, Section A: World Cinema, Analysis, Film Analysis, Film History, Cinema in Context, Film Industry, Censorship & Regulation, Copyright & Licensing, Film Distribution, Film Marketing, Film Publicity, Film Promotion, Production Companies, Films & Case Studies, Non-Hollywood Films, Kes, World Cinema, Rome, Open City, Genres & Case Studies, Neorealism, Hot Entries, Key Concepts, Audience, Film Language, Representation
Across the varied and diverse ways in which a film text can encode and emphasise meanings and a specific viewpoint on or presentation of a subject, realism is a key aesthetic and formal choice and approach that has functioned as a key creative direction of so much western expression across literature and the visual arts. This resource, then, explores the characteristics of a particular film style that we call neorealism. It stems from post World War Two Italian cinema and its influence has been felt in cinemas around the world.
In exploring two films as our key texts in...
[ read full article ] »WJEC GCSE Superhero Glossary of Terms »
Categories: GCSE, WJEC GCSE, Genres & Case Studies, Superhero, Hot Entries, Key Concepts, Film Language
Superman (1978): First recognised, and globally successful superhero film of the modern era.
Marvel: American publisher of comic books, frequently pertaining to the superhero genre founded in 1939 e.g. Hulk, Thor, Fantastic Four, Spider-man, Iron Man and Wolverine. Disney acquired (bought and owned) Marvel in 2009.
Stan Lee: At age 92, Stan Lee is president and chairman of Marvel Comics and co-creator and writer of Spider-man, the Fantastic Four, Iron Man and X-Men among others.
Marvel Cinematic Universe: An American franchise centered on the production of superhero...
[ read full article ] »Exemplar WJEC A2 Lesson Plan | Introduction to Bollywood as a National Cinema »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC A2, FM4, Section A: World Cinema, Genres & Case Studies, Bollywood, Hot Entries
Associated Resources
- Edusites Lesson Plan Template.docx
NB. Please note this is a suggested template, your school may require a different layout.
Length of Lesson (minutes): 60
Lesson Title: An Introduction to Bollywood as a National Cinema
Context
This lesson would be delivered in the first or second week after the Christmas break with the assumption that students are close to completing their FM3 projects – an understanding of World Cinema has been embedded but needs to be revisited at the start of the lesson before this specific, examined Section A: World Cinema...
[ read full article ] »British Film: Swinging Britain 1963-1973 »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC AS, FM2, Section B: British Film Topics, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, Non-Hollywood Films, Alfie, If, Genres & Case Studies, Comedy, Drama, Hot Entries
click on image to enlargeFM2 Section B: British Film Topics – British Film and Culture
When we use the term ’British film and culture’ we are stating, or at least implying a connection between specific films and how they are partly, and in significant ways the product of a wider national cultural discourse and identity. In this context, a film can contribute to the way that a nation communicates messages and values about itself. In terms of film, these messages and values find expression in both the micro and macro elements of a film narrative.
In this resource...
[ read full article ] »The Battle of Algiers (1966) Case Study »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC A2, FM4, Section C: Single Film Critical Study, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, World Cinema, The Battle of Algiers, Genres & Case Studies, Crime, Drama, History, War, Hot Entries, Key Concepts, Audience, Film Language, Representation
click on image to enlargeFM4 Section C Single Film - Critical Study
The whole film can be watched here.
In 2010, The Guardian newspaper published a story entitled “Algeria (national football squad) prepare for World Cup battle by watching The Battle of Algiers.”. Given the centrality of football to our contemporary popular culture, this incident might offer some suggestion of the cyclical power of cultural discourse and the transmission of a given film text’s thematic content in terms of the process of how it is decoded and appropriated by particular audiences at...
[ read full article ] »WJEC AS FM2 British & American Film Producers and Audiences Resource Items »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC AS, FM1, FM2, Section B: British Film Topics, Section C: US Film Comparative Study, Film Industry, Film Distribution, Film Marketing, Genres & Case Studies, British Film, Hot Entries
FM2: British and American Film ‘How to Respond to Section A - Producers and Audiences: Resource Items’
This resource examines approaches to Section A of FM2 in terms of areas of questioning but specifically, how to respond to the range of stimulus WJEC could use, and expect students to refer to in Part A and Part B of the resource items.
The section title, ‘Producers and Audiences’ is important in letting students know the type of response expected in the exam – an equal engagement with both film producers and film audience is expected in both questions (there will...
[ read full article ] »Happy Together (Hong Kong 1997) Case Study »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC A2, FM4, Section C: Single Film Critical Study, Analysis, Film Analysis, Film Industry, Film Distribution, Film Marketing, Films & Case Studies, World Cinema, Happy Together, Genres & Case Studies, Drama, Romance, Hot Entries, Theory, Auteur Theory, Queer Theory
click on image to enlargeFM4: Varieties of Film Experience – Issues and Debates Section C: Single Film – Critical Study
Introduction
Happy Together is a feature film directed by Wong Kar-wai. It was released in 1997, the year that Hong Kong’s governance from Britain ended and governance from China began. The fact that Happy Together begins with passports being stamped might well resonate with Hong Kong audiences particularly with when the film was released. We might suggest that a passport is a very tangible symbol of national identity. The film is encoded...[ read full article ] »
WJEC AS Film Studies FM2 Section A Producers and Audiences Exemplar »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC AS, FM2, Section B: British Film Topics, Film Industry, Film Distribution, Film Marketing, Film Publicity, Genres & Case Studies, British Film, Hot Entries
Associated Resources
- WJEC AS Level Film Studies FM2 Exemplar Resource Material A.docx
- WJEC AS Level Film Studies FM2 Exemplar Resource Material B.docx
Instructions
- Section A refers to the resource material (see associated resources)
- This is a Section A exemplar only
- Each question carries 40 marks
- You are reminded that assessment will take into account the quality of written communication used in your answers
Section A: Producers and Audiences
EITHER:
1. Study the items in Part A of the resource material which includes the logo of Working Title Films (UK) and Universal...
[ read full article ] »WJEC AS Film Studies FM2 US Cinema Comparative Study: Minority Report and Blade Runner »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC AS, FM2, Section C: US Film Comparative Study, Analysis, Film Analysis, Film Industry, Film Distribution, Film Marketing, Film Publicity, Film Promotion, Films & Case Studies, American, Blade Runner, Hollywood Films, Minority Report, Genres & Case Studies, Action, Mystery, Science Fiction, Thriller, Hot Entries
Introduction
One of the most interesting ways to engage with genre is to select two films from the same genre and compare and contrast them. Critically, select two films produced in significantly different time periods and places - by doing this kind of analytical exercise we’re able to go some distance in identifying some of the ways in which a genre evolves.
Science fiction film certainly seems to offer a particularly rich case study in terms of what kinds of ideas texts can be encoded with how we, as the audience (in our own particular times and places) can then...
[ read full article ] »Solaris (Soviet Union 1972) Case Study »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC A2, FM4, Section C: Single Film Critical Study, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, World Cinema, Solaris (1972), Genres & Case Studies, Drama, Science Fiction, Hot Entries, Key Concepts, Audience, Film Language, Representation
click on image to enlargeThere are key areas of study that WJEC recommend are explored for FM4 Section C – Solaris, and they are as follows:
- As a philosophical film about identity and memory
- The role and function of Hari
- The undemonstrative character of Kris and the reasons for this
- Issues of representation in relation to conventions of the Sci-Fi genre
- The significance of the earth sequences – including the emphasis on nature
- The overall pace and length of the film
- Spectatorship issues related to the above and to narrative development
- The film as...
Movern Callar (2002) Case Study »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC A2, FM4, Section C: Single Film Critical Study, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, Non-Hollywood Films, Movern Callar, Genres & Case Studies, British Film, Drama, Hot Entries, Key Concepts, Audience, Film Language, Representation
click on image to enlargeFM4: Varieties of Film Experience – Issues and Debates Section C: Single Film – Critical Study
Introduction
Lynne Ramsay, the director of the film Morvern Callar has made the valuable observation that “I love to see great dialogue in the cinema but I hate to see ‘Film TV’. When I go to the cinema I want to have a cinematic experience….I like dialogue when it’s used in a way where the body language says the complete opposite…” [1] Ramsay’s emphasis on the importance of the non-verbal is highly relevant in relation to Morvern...
[ read full article ] »Documentary and Spectatorship Workshop »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC A2, FM4, Section B: Spectatorship Topics, Genres & Case Studies, Documentary, Hot Entries
click on image to enlargeDocumentary, of all genres has a profound impact on spectatorship. This dedicated, interactive WJEC A2 Film Studies Section B: Spectatorship topic explores historical and contemporary genre pieces from Vertov’s Man With a Movie Camera through to Senna, Grizzly Man and Marley ensuring that key theories e.g. the work of Dr Bill Nichols are incorporated. It is expected centres will inform Edusites Film of their chosen texts so the session can be bespoke to their needs.
Cost
- Half Day (3 Hours Contact Time): costs from £300
- Full Day (6 Hours...
Approaches to British Film Topics Workshop »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC AS, FM2, Section B: British Film Topics, Genres & Case Studies, British Film, Hot Entries
click on image to enlargeThis WJEC AS Film Studies dedicated, interactive workshop, offered both as a full or half day option provides a platform for further study in relation to FM1 Section B: British Film Topics. It is expected that centres will inform FilmEdu of their chosen topic/topics so the session can be precisely tailored to their needs.
Cost
- Half Day (3 Hours Contact Time): costs from £300
- Full Day (6 Hours Contact Time): costs from £450
- Travel and printing fees are also applicable, where appropriate. The workshop rate may vary depending on location
Booking...
[ read full article ] »WJEC AS Film Studies FM2 US Cinema Comparative Study: Gilda and L.A.Confidential »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC AS, FM2, Section C: US Film Comparative Study, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, American, L.A Confidential, Hollywood Films, Gilda, Genres & Case Studies, Crime, Drama, Film Noir, Mystery, Romance, Hot Entries, Key Concepts, Representation
Introduction
In this section of the exam you will get a choice of one question from two – an absolute must is that you compare and contrast two films, either from the same genre or that both deal with a specific theme. Genre, narrative and representation are key areas of study - see below examples of past questions:
- How far do the American films you have studied convey key themes in similar ways?
- How far is the representation of characters in the American films you have studied influenced by the times in which the films were made?
- Discuss some of the similarities and...
Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song (1971) Case Study »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC A2, FM4, Section C: Single Film Critical Study, Analysis, Film Analysis, Film Industry, Censorship & Regulation, Film Distribution, Film Marketing, Film Publicity, Films & Case Studies, Non-Hollywood Films, Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song, Genres & Case Studies, Crime, Drama, Independent, Thriller, Hot Entries, Key Concepts, Representation
FM4: Varieties of Film Experience – Issues and Debates Section C: Single Film – Critical Study
Section C of FM4 offers students the ability to engage in a critical study of a single film, within a synoptic framework – this means the micro and the macro features need to be studied, as well as issues of representation. Useful will be placing the film in an institutional and cultural context in reference to production, funding distribution, audience, audience reception but also genre and narrative. WJEC do provide, on request a short Reader on each film with a number...
[ read full article ] »International Film Styles: Surrealism »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC A2, FM4, Section A: World Cinema, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, Directors, Louis Bunuel, World Cinema, The Discreet Charms of the Bourgeoisie, Un Chien Andalou, Genres & Case Studies, Comedy, Fantasy, Silent, Surrealism, Hot Entries, Key Concepts, Audience, Film Language, Representation
click on image to enlargeSample Questions
- How far does cinematic style support themes and ideas in the films you have studied for this topic?
- Discuss how far the development of your chosen international film style can be seen as the work of particular creative individuals?
- Discuss characteristic features of casting and/or performance, exploring how far these features contribute the overall effect of the films you have studied.
- What is the relationship between visual style and the subject matter of the films you have studied?
WJEC Say
“This topic focuses on the...
[ read full article ] »WJEC A2 Film Studies FM4 Section A World Cinema Bollywood A Grade Exemplar »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC A2, FM4, Section A: World Cinema, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, World Cinema, Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge, Shree 420, Genres & Case Studies, Bollywood, Hot Entries, Key Concepts, Audience, Film Language, Representation, Theory, Auteur Theory
click on image to enlargeBy comparing the cinematic styles used in the films you have studied for this topic, is it possible to identify a distinctive ‘National Cinema’?
Indian cinema means different things to different people and there are a lot of different cinematic styles originating from the Indian subcontinent. Stereotypically, when western audiences without cultural capital or knowledge think of Indian films the iconic name ‘Bollywood’ comes to mind, or less widely known outside of India, as Hindi films. Bollywood films have come to represent a national...
[ read full article ] »Vertigo (Hitchcock 1958) Case Study »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC A2, FM4, Section C: Single Film Critical Study, Analysis, Film Analysis, Film Industry, Film Marketing, Film Publicity, Film Promotion, Films & Case Studies, Hollywood Films, Vertigo, Genres & Case Studies, Mystery, Romance, Thriller, Hot Entries, Key Concepts, Audience, Film Language, Representation
click on image to enlargeUnderstanding the relationship between the micro and the macro elements of a film is an essential part of our analysis of movies. Every shot, every sound accumulates to form the expression of an idea. Thinking about movies in this way might prompt us to acknowledge that a camera move for example, can express a character’s psychology, sometimes more forcefully and memorably than a line of dialogue could ever do. In the opening scene of Vertigo (1958) as the film’s protagonist Scottie looks down from a great height during a chase, a camera move...
[ read full article ] »Ratcatcher Case Study »
Categories: GCSE, WJEC GCSE, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, Non-Hollywood Films, Ratcatcher, Genres & Case Studies, Drama, Hot Entries, Key Concepts, Audience, Film Language, Representation
click on image to enlargeIntroduction
Lynne Ramsay’s film Ratcatcher is a key British production of the late 1990s and is notable for its thoughtful and sensitive focus on the representation of a young person. The film explores the representation of childhood, guilt and atonement in a dysfunctional environment. Although on the paper 2, GCSE list of films, Vicky LeBeau’s analysis of the narrative and ideological function that children typically embody in movies can apply when she writes that:
“Closer to the state of infancy, an infans (literally, without language)...
[ read full article ] »Approaches to Non-Hollywood Film/World Cinema Workshop »
Categories: Films & Case Studies, Non-Hollywood Films, World Cinema, Genres & Case Studies, Bollywood, Iranian, Japanese, Hot Entries
click on image to enlargeOur full or half day workshops explore the concept of ‘World Cinema’ – what it is and what it means using a range of examples from Japanese, Bollywood, Mexican and Iranian Cinema. Key texts will be explored to help pupils/students understand the global nature of film production, distribution and consumption.
Cost
- Half Day (3 Hours Contact Time): costs from £300
- Full Day (6 Hours Contact Time): costs from £450
- Travel and printing fees are also applicable, where appropriate. The workshop rate may vary depending on location
Booking &...
[ read full article ] »Modern Times Case Study (Chaplin 1936) »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC A2, FM4, Section C: Single Film Critical Study, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, Hollywood Films, Modern Times, Genres & Case Studies, Comedy, Drama, Hot Entries, Key Concepts, Audience, Film Language, Representation
click on image to enlargeThe first image that we see in Modern Times is of a clock - a symbol of the workplace and productivity as Chaplin’s Little Tramp struggles in the modern, industrialised world of which he is so critical during the time of the Great Depression, see more on that here. As such the image is emblematic of the entire film. Modern Times is a silent film comedy that is as ideologically rich and meaningful as a wide range of far more ‘serious’ dramas about ‘serious’ subjects; as evidenced by films such as Schindler’s List (1993) and 12 Years A...
[ read full article ] »WJEC A2 FM4 Section C Single Film Critical Study | Talk To Her - Almodovar, 2002 »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC A2, FM4, Section A: World Cinema, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, World Cinema, Talk To Her, Genres & Case Studies, Comedy, Drama, Romance, Hot Entries, Key Concepts, Audience, Film Language, Representation
click on image to enlargeIn this resource we will consider the film Talk To Her (2002) and explore some aspects of its film style, by which we mean the choices made by the filmmakers in their deployment of sound and visual elements in the construction of the narrative. As such, we are considering how storytelling devices express a range of meanings and values embodied within the drama. Talk To Her offers an opportunity for us to think about how film (and non Hollywood films, particularly) might have more opportunity than the Hollywood-produced film (typically conservative...
[ read full article ] »GCSE Film Studies Exemplar Responses 2013/14 »
Categories: GCSE, WJEC GCSE, Films & Case Studies, Hollywood Films, X-Men, Non-Hollywood Films, Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, The Devil's Backbone, Genres & Case Studies, Superhero, Hot Entries, Mock Exams, GCSE Mock Exams
Associated Resources
- WJEC GCSE Film Studies Mock Exam Paper 1 A Grade Response 2013.docx
- WJEC GCSE Film Studies Paper 2 A-B Exemplar The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas.docx
- WJEC GCSE Film Studies Mock Exam Paper 2 A Grade Response 2013.docx
- WJEC GCSE Film Studies Mock Exam Paper 2 D-C Grade Response 2013.docx
- WJEC GCSE Film Studies Paper 2 Non Hollywood Exemplars
- WJEC GCSE Film Studies Paper 1 A-B Grade Response Summer 2014.docx
Rabbit Proof Fence Case Study »
Categories: GCSE, WJEC GCSE, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, Non-Hollywood Films, Rabbit Proof Fence, Genres & Case Studies, Adventure, Biography, Drama, Hot Entries, Key Concepts, Audience, Film Language, Representation
click on image to enlargeIn this resource we will consider the film Rabbit Proof Fence (2002) and explore some aspects of its film style, by which we mean the choices made the filmmakers in terms of how they deploy sound and vision. As such, we are considering the storytelling devices with which the film expresses a range of meanings and values embodied within the drama.
Through the way that the stylistic choices of the film’s producers’ (writer/director/producer/actors/camera/sound/music) function we are able to determine a range of themes and issues in the film...
[ read full article ] »WJEC AS Film Studies FM2 British and American Film Exemplar »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC AS, FM2, Section B: British Film Topics, Analysis, Film Analysis, Genres & Case Studies, British Film, Hot Entries, Key Concepts, Audience, Film Language, Representation
click on image to enlargeAnswer three questions – one from each section
Section A – Producers and Audiences
Study the items in Part B of the resource material, which include:
- Poster for Cowboys & Aliens, released in 2011
- Extract from a blog discussing film genre
- Forum discussion on movie genres.
Use this material, together with your own studies, to answer the following question:
How important is genre for audiences and producers? [40 marks]
Item 1: Poster for Cowboys and Aliens, released in 2011
click on image to enlarge
Item 2: Extract from a blog discussing...
Bollywood 1990 - Present »
Categories: A Level, WJEC A Level, WJEC A2, FM4, Section A: World Cinema, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, World Cinema, Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge, Shree 420, Genres & Case Studies, Hot Entries, Key Concepts, Audience, Film Language, Representation
click on image to enlargeWJEC A2 Film Studies FM4 Section A World Cinema: Aspects of National Cinema
This section of FM4 Section A: World Cinema does not require a comprehensive study of the period as long as there is some significance in the films chosen, and their relationship to the national cinema to which they belong. It is expected two principal films will be chosen, supplemented by briefer reference to one or two other films. As such, this resource (not an exemplar exam response) will focus on the following texts to give a historical and then a more contemporary...
[ read full article ] »Messages and Values in Global Cinema »
Categories: A Level, OCR A Level, OCR A2, Analysis, Film Analysis, Films & Case Studies, World Cinema, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Russian Ark, Genres & Case Studies, Action, Drama, Fantasy, History, Romance, Hot Entries, Key Concepts, Audience, Film Language, Representation
OCR A2 Film Studies Unit F633: Global Cinema and Critical Perspectives Section A: Messages and Values in Global Cinema
click on image to enlargeThe study of “two contrasting non-English language texts that derive from different countries of origin”:
- Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (China, Honk Kong, Taiwan) 2000
- Russian Ark (Russia, Germany) 2002
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Both films, one a Wuxia martial arts/romance hybrid and the other a historical drama-documentary provide audiences with an understanding of Chinese and Russian culture, within the framework of...
[ read full article ] »Superhero Film Codes and Conventions »
Categories: GCSE, WJEC GCSE, Analysis, Film Analysis, Genres & Case Studies, Superhero, Hot Entries, Key Concepts, Audience, Film Language, Representation
click on image to enlargeWJEC GCSE Film Studies Paper 1 Superhero Film Codes and Conventions
It was not until Superman in 1978 that the superhero film genre took off with the film securing critical and commercial success and for many years creating a genre template. This is why when we talk about historical examples of the genre it is difficult to cite examples before 1978 as in terms of cinema the genre has only featured broadly since the late 1970s. Yes, you could talk about Batman on television in 1943 and with Adam West playing the caped crusader in 1966 but this is...
[ read full article ] »
