AQA
48101
Year 11 Media Studies Mock Exam
Topic:
Science Fiction Films
December 2015
Time allowed: 1 ½ hours
Instructions
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Use black ink or black or blue ball point pen. You should use coloured
pencils, fine liners and rulers where appropriate.
Answer all tasks.
You may make sketches and diagrams to help develop your answer.
Cross through work you do not wish to be marked.
Clearly label all the sheets you use.
You are not allowed to take materials previously issued to you
into the exam.
Information
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The marks for tasks are shown in brackets.
All tasks carry equal marks.
You are reminded of the need for good English and clear presentation
in your answers.
Hurricane Films
Dear Colleague,
We are an established company who specialise in genre
films, which challenge the mainstream. We intend to
produce a new Sci-Fi film which appeals outside the
mainstream audience.
The Brief
 We have decided on some possible titles:
Abandoned; Darkness Reigns; At Close of Day.
 Whichever title you choose your idea must appeal
to a niche audience and be suitable for low
budget production.
 We would also like you to consider basing your
idea round a current fear.
To win the contract you are invited to complete the
four tasks which follow.
Remember marketing and promotion will be crucial in
securing funding.
You must demonstrate a clear understanding of the
Science Fiction genre.
We hope your response will be interesting and
original.
 Keep your ideas concise and focused.
 Use illustrations, diagrams and bullet points
where appropriate.
Best wishes,
Paul Schroder, Executive Producer
Hurricane Films
Answer ALL tasks.
Task 1: (25 marks) Compare the openings of TWO Science Fictions films. You need
to consider how the narrative and genre is established and how each film appeals
to its audience. To do this you need to look closely at the films' micro elements.
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use
use
use
use
use
of
of
of
of
of
camera
sound
editing
colour
lighting
Task 2: (25 marks) Explore how either men or women are represented in a
Science Fiction film of your choice. You need to consider:
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The role they play in the narrative e.g are they heroes or villains?
Their appearance
How they behave towards other characters
How other characters treat them
Which part of the audience they appeal to and why.
Task 3: (25 marks) Develop an idea for a Science Fiction film of your own which
fulfils the brief. Include the following information:
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Location
Characters
Style
Iconography
Narrative
Themes or ideologies
Task 4: (25 marks) Your film needs to hook its audience from the start. Show us
your plans for the opening sequence of the film. You are asked to produce a
storyboard of between ten and fifteen shots. Make sure:
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You establish the film's genre
Hook your audience
Present your work well
Show your knowledge of the film's micro elements: mise-en-scene; use of
camera; editing; lighting; colour; sound
End of tasks.
Glossary:
Try and use some of the following media language terms in your answers:
AI: Artificial Intelligence, the idea that machines will develop their own intelligence
and emotions.
Blockbuster: a very successful or popular film with a high budget, lots of special
effects and simple storyline.
Cloning: Creating people or animals in a laboratory rather than by normal
reproduction, often by taking cells from an individual and growing them rapidly to
create an exact copy of that individual.
Context: the circumstances that form the setting for an event, statement, or idea,
and in terms of which it can be fully understood.
Dystopia: the vision of a future society which is bleak and depressing where
people lack freedom and are ruled by ruthless, totalitarian governments. A place
which is on the verge of destruction by nuclear weapons or some kind of
environmental disaster.
Hybrid: a combination of more than one genre to form a sub-genre.
Ideology: a system of values, ideas, attitudes and beliefs.
Independent film: a film produced outside a major studio. It doesn't rely on
special effects or big stars and pays more attention to plot and is often produced on
a low budget.
Log-line: a one sentence summary of your idea.
Niche audience: a small or specialist audience group
Mainstream audience: most people who watch films; an audience drawn from a
wide age range and background
Parody: an imitation of the style of a particular genre of film, with deliberate
exaggeration for comic effect.
Pitch: a description of a film in as short a form as possible; it gives a clear sense of
the idea to potential investors.
Sub-genre: A subcategory within a particular genre.
Zeitgeist: the defining spirit or mood of a particular period of history as shown by
the ideas and beliefs of the time.