Unit 3 Media

VCE 2018
Media Elements
There are two types of elements we use to describe media
products.

They are the Production Elements and the Story Elements

2018 VCE Media Elements

Media codes are the technical, written and symbolic tools
used to construct meaning in media forms and products.
Production or Technical elements should be very familiar to
you. They are: Camera
Acting
Mis en scene
Editing
Lighting
Sound
2018 VCE Media Elements
They also include:
Special effects
Typography These all relate to Editing
Colour and happen in post
production
Text
Graphics
This relates to Mis en
scene and is planned
Visual composition in pre production

2018 VCE Media Elements

Camera
The use of camera movement, shot size and camera angle to
tell a story.
• Camera movement: crane, dolly, dolly in, dolly out, handheld, pan, pedestal,
point-of-view shot, snorricam, static, steadicam, tilt, tracking, vertigo effect,
whip pan, zoom.

• Shot size: extreme long shot, long shot, full shot, medium shot, medium close
up, close up, extreme close up.

• Camera angle: overshot, high angle, eye level, low angle, undershot.

• Focus: deep focus, depth of field, pull focus, shallow depth of field, aperture.
2018 VCE Media Elements
Acting
The scripted and directed performance of an actor.

Acting contributes to a narrative through the actor’s movement, gesture,

facial expression and tone of voice.

When writing about acting, ensure that you make specific reference to how
they contribute to the narrative, character and audience engagement.

2018 VCE Media Elements

Mis en scene
A term that refers to everything within the frame.

It incorporates the set, makeup, costume, props and colour.

Mise en scene also refers to the composition of shots and the arrangement
of elements within the frame.

When writing about mise en scene, make specific reference to how these
elements contribute to the audience’s understanding of the narrative.
2018 VCE Media Elements
Editing
The process of compiling and manipulating captured
material to create a media product.

• Visual editing. cut, fade, dissolve, wipe, cross cut, shot reverse shot, ellipsis,
flashback, flash forward, montage, fast motion, slow motion, time-lapse, jump
cut, reversed, freeze frame, flash frame, split screen, parallel editing, speed
ramping, superimposition, wipe by cut, audio match cut, visual match cut.

• Audio editing: transitional sound, pre-lap, post-lap, fade, audio match cut,
reverb, echo, flanger, phaser.

2018 VCE Media Elements

Lighting
The illumination of a scene, natural or constructed, that contributes
to a narrative.

• Source: Key light, fill light, three point lighting, reflected, spot, flood,
incandescent, fluorescent, daylight, ambient.
• Direction: Front light, back light, hair light, side light, rim light, under light.
• Quality: Hard, soft, diffuse.
Temperature: Warm, cozy, yellow, white, cool, cold, blue.
• Intent: Naturalistic, expressionistic, stylised.
• Shadows: Chiaroscuro, dark, inky.

2018 VCE Media Elements

Sound
Sound involves everything that the audience can hear in a film,
including music, dialogue and sound effects.

• On screen, off screen, transitional, pre-lap, post-lap, audio match cut, inner voice,
remembered sound, distorted sound, spoken writing, personal narration,
impersonal narration, diegetic, non-diegetic, music, score, song, contrapuntal,
ambience, sound effect, foley, loud, soft, strong, melodic, eerie, rhythmic,
percussive, shrill, piercing, harsh, heavy, deep, reverb, echo, flanger, phaser.

• When writing about sound, always make specific reference to what you hear and
how it contributes to the narrative – remember the soundtrack, like every other
aspect of the film, has been constructed.
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Story Elements are the other half of the equation.
They describe the non-technical things that contribute to the structure or narrative
of a film.

Cause & Effect

Opening, development and resolution
Points of view
Multiple storylines
Establishment and development of characters and the relationship
between characters

Structuring of time
Setting
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Cause & Effect
This is the chain of events that drives the story forward –
action leading to reaction. It is always driven by the
characters’ motivation and is often initiated by a catalyst that
made the protagonist take the first step. Character motivation
and audience engagement are closely linked as the audience is
looking at the characters to see and evaluate their reactions to
the events.

The main thing here is not to retell the story. You need to find
links between parts of the story and explain why they exist.
2018 VCE Media Elements
Opening, development and resolution
The first act finishes when the protagonist finds their motivation – the
start of their struggle. It establishes characters, setting and themes - who
is who and what the issue is. Opening is about the audience engagement
– this is what makes people want to watch the film.

Development – the second act – is about the story playing out –

characters rising and changing in response to the situation. It pushes us
toward the resolution.

In the third act, everything is tied up and resolved – mysteries are

explained and romances sorted out and settled. A climax is reached,
characters establish themselves in their new order and a satisfactory
conclusion is reached.
2018 VCE Media Elements
Points of view

It is generally from one or more of the characters in the

film, but may be from an ‘outside’ one.

The point of view is usually that of the character/s that

the director wants the audience to identify with.

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Multiple storylines
There are usually multiple storylines that are intertwined
and interconnected.

Money and love, action and relationships – these are two

ways in which multiple storylines are often able to be
operating simultaneously. They depend on each other. This
can often be seen as a set of internal and external conflicts
that depend on each other. They don’t always happen at the
same time in the film.
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Establishment and development of characters and the
relationship between characters

It is very important that you define how both characters and

relationships are established and developed.

They cause changes to happen in the narrative as they react

and respond to events.

They are established and when they change during the

narrative it is called a character arc. Explaining these changes
is essential in describing what is driving the story forward.
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Structuring of time
This depends on how the film is structured. It may be linear or
be circular or have flashbacks among other things. Rarely is it
true to real time.

Terminology is important. Editing techniques need to be named.

However, editing is not a story element. Editing is one way to
show how time is structured. Other ways include costuming and
setting.

Structuring of time is always done for a reason that helps to tell

the story.
2018 VCE Media Elements
Setting
It is often not just where the film happens.

It is the time and place of the story. It is NOT where or

when it was shot. It is the time and place that it is set.

Its often related to genre – superhero films and rom-coms

are set in the city because that is where events that drive
their sort of plots happen.
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Bibliography
www.Lessonbucket.com
Heinemann Media 3rd edn.
Cambridge Checkpoints VCE Media Units 3&4 2020-22

2018 VCE Media Elements