AS/A Film Studies: Clarification of specification (first issued September 2011, reissued
September 2012)
Following the second complete cycle of AS/A level Film Studies, the following clarification of the specification
is offered. In addition, it is recommended that all centres refer to the Examiners’ Report, 2012, which
includes key guidance arising from the recent examination series. Notes for Guidance on AS and A2 Film
Studies are also available on WJEC’s website.
Options
Pending Government announcements, all options for FM2 Section B and FM4 Sections A, B and C will be
extended until the end date of the qualification (not likely to be before Summer 2015). The online
specification has been modified accordingly.
FM1
Analysis of Film extract: It is expected that candidates will not choose films to analyse which they will
subsequently be specialising in elsewhere in the specification.
Creative Project: the Aims and context is not assessed but should be completed (see guidance on website).
It is important both for centre assessment and for moderation purposes.
Please note: hand-drawn storyboards and screenplays are not an option for the creative project. There
is no evaluation but a reflective analysis of the creative project, which demonstrates how key micro
features in the creative work make meaning(s).
FM2
Section A - Producers and Audiences: It is expected that centres will use case studies of films to teach
this topic. The guidance is for case studies on one mainstream/blockbuster and one independent American
film to demonstrate the US film industry and one culturally British but US financed (eg Harry Potter/Bond
films), one medium budget and one low budget British film to demonstrate the British film industry.
Section B – British Film and Stars: It is expected that centres will approach this topic through a
consideration of the relevant theoretical aspects of star study.
FM3
Screenplay: the screenplay should adopt a conventional screenplay layout (‘master scene script layout’)
and should not include shooting script information.
Reflective Analysis: the reflective analysis of the creative project selects key features of the creative
product and reflects critically on both the process and the product. The guidance is to combine the
approach adopted in the AS reflective analysis with a more conventional evaluation of process and product.
FM4
Section A: for all four options, it is expected that each of the two principal films chosen must be in
languages other than English and be by a different director. English-language films may be selected as a
supplementary film. It is recommended that supplementary films are studied more briefly. In addition, the
following guidance is offered:
(a) Aspects of a National Cinema – Mexican Cinema, 1990 – present: Whilst it is recognised that
del Toro’s Pan’s Labyrinth is a Mexican/Spanish co-production, it is recommended that this film is
not selected as a principal film. This allows candidates to consider the relationship between
national cinemas and the representation of their own country.
(b) International Film Styles: New Waves – French New Wave in the 1960s: If choosing to focus on
the French New Wave in the 1960s – a permissible option - it is not expected that a further film will
be studied to provide an awareness of the adaptation of this style.
Section B: Spectatorship – Popular Film and Emotional Response Popular film is defined as
mainstream and therefore excludes overtly independent films. The most obvious genres to study are
horror, comedy, thriller and melodrama.
Section C: Single Film Critical Study Candidates are required to study the film chosen in a synoptic way,
to consider the critical reception of the film (which in all cases has given rise to much debate) and to apply a
critical approach appropriate to the film arising from one or more of the critical frameworks listed for FM3.
There is a choice of three questions available to candidates: two general questions and one specific question
set for each film prescribed (see Specification, p23).