The document discusses the use of conventions from real-world texts in the author's AS and A2 coursework. For the AS coursework, the author created a music magazine and analyzed existing magazines to understand conventions around layout, content, colors, and photos. This informed design choices for their own magazine. For the A2 coursework, the author created a music video and relied on other music videos for conventions around shots, narrative elements, and themes. The author found conventions most helpful for the music video but had more creative freedom for other tasks with fewer examples to reference. Overall, analyzing real texts provided useful guidelines for creating coursework that would be successful and realistic.

1. Using conventions andreal world texts:
AS coursework:
To kick of my AS coursework I had to carry out a preliminary task of
creating a news magazine for my school. This was the first time I had
begun to think about the codes and conventions of a magazine in
general. I briefly looked at other news magazine and got some ideas
of typical layouts, fonts, masthead designs and also sell line ideas.
The main product that I had to create for my AS coursework was
music magazine. I decided that I wanted create a music magazine
that consisted if the mainstream genre RnB, with a hint of Hip-Hop.
Researching other RnB and Hip-Hop magazines such as ‘XXL’ and
‘Vibe’ allowed me delve into the codes and conventions of this genre
of music, so that I couldit put it into practice when creating my own
music magazine. Research also allowed me to understand the layout
and find out what content is appropriate in RnB magazine and also
music magazines in general. More specifically, undertaking magazine
analysis, and depicting the different genres showed me what was
appropriate to include in a RnB magazine and what was not. For
example, in pop music magazine like ‘Smash Hits’ bright colours, like
yellows and pinks were usedwhereas, RnB music magazine such as
‘XXL’ used colours such as red, black, purple and grey as their house
style. This was one of the reasons why my house style of my
magazine was purple, black and grey. Knowing these colours was
effective in a famous and popular RnB magazine I felt it was
appropriate to use similar colours to make my music magazine just
as successful. Moreover, I was also able to see the way in which the
text and pictures were laid out. All music magazines have either a
close up or mid shot of the artist they have interviewed in their main

2. article. The artist would also be looking directly in the camera, to
make eye contacting with the buyer. Again, I felt it was important to
follow this convention as I know that these music magazine that I
was analysis where very popular and in high demand by viewers; so
on my front cover of my magazine, had my model looking straight
down the camera lens in a mid shot, to allow the audiences to
connect with her on an emotional level.
Over all, I would say that I usedconventions from real word texts
regularly and efficiently throughout my research stages of my AS
coursework. This then mean I was able to refer back to real music
magazines and follow their conventions when creating my own
music magazine, basically using them as a template.
A2 coursework:
I also used conventions from real word texts when carrying out my
A2 coursework. This consisted of me creating a music video, with
two ancillary tasks of a magazine advert and a digipak. With
reference to my music video I relied heavily on other Drum and Bass
and also Dance music videos. I was able to refer to these both as
Drum and Bass stems from Dance music, however is just a more
individual genre of music. Due to this being the case, it was
important that I was able to understand the conventions that make
Drum and Bass music videos so successful and intriguing. The basis of
my narrative came from some of my own ideas but also from other
music videos. For example, I used shots of crowds at a festival/club
jumping around in a darkened place lit up with flashing laser lights.
The idea to have this included in my music video came from the
music video ‘Count on me’ by the electric duo Chase and Status. I
found that this was effective as it made you have euphoria and

3. happiness, which I wanted to have in my music video. However, to
contrast this and create feelings of alienation, I filmed my
protagonist drinking alcohol alone. The reference to alcohol and
even drugs is often used in Drum and Bass/Dance music video as this
genre is heavily associated with this certain behaviour. As I knew that
real music video reference the action of ‘drinking away sorrows’, I
wanted to follow this theme as it is seen as effective and intriguing in
real life music videos, meaning my music video would be easy to
watch all the way through. In terms of my digipak and magazine
advert, it didn’t have many real life products to rely on. However I
did find that in a couple of Drum and Bass posters that bold text and
sell lines were used. For example the artists name, the song and the
date of release would all be in bold font. My magazine advert did this
too with the date being written in the font ‘Impact’.
In terms of my A2 coursework, I relied more on conventions of real
life texts when it came to my music video more than when I had to
produce a digipak and magazine advert. I felt this wasn’t a problem
as it allowed me to be creative in what I was doing and produce an
individual product for an audience who have individualistic
tendencies and do not wish to follow the crowd.
To conclude I feel that, conventions of real life texts has proved
helpful in most aspects of coursework over the past two years, acting
as the guideline to produce successful and real products.