Components & Assessment

Internal Assessments

Internal assessments will be carried out through research tasks, filmmaking, etc. There are bespoke marking grids for certain tasks and a generic mark scheme for all other work/preps. These differ from the mark schemes used for your component work (examined work) given that these are written for multiple stages (assessment, planning, production, etc.) whereas internal work generally focuses on specific aspects.

These link to the live document, so will automatically reflect any changes made by your teacher(s). Note, that if you save a copy, these will not automatically update if they are changed.

Media Analysis Mark Scheme

General Mark scheme

Component 1 - Portfolio (AS)

Component 2 - Externally Set Assignment (AS)

Component 3 - Personal Investigation (A2)

Exemplar Materials

Marking

The following examples were generated by Google's Gemini large language AI model. It was fed the course handbook along with the specification and context of the work. It produced the following guidance on how marks should be assessed - and after some small modiciations, I agree with it. Remember, each is marked within a band. E.g. AO1 excellent 

AO1: Research and Record

• Excellent: A pupil researching a short film about youth homelessness goes beyond online searches. They interview social workers, visit relevant charities, and analyse similar films, carefully noting style and narrative approach. Their reflections critically examine how these varied sources will influence their work and its potential impact. They look beyond the obvious and superficial and focus on the design aspects of the artist/work, such as use of colour, mise en scene, contrasting with other works to make a point, etc.

• Confident: A pupil creating a school promotional video researches other schools' videos, analyses colour schemes and editing styles, surveys a sample of student perspectives and staff expectations. Reflections show self-awareness, considering how others' techniques could be adapted or avoided.

• Competent: A pupil creating a product demonstration video gathers information from company websites, user reviews, and existing tutorials. The reflections primarily describe what they found, rather than analyse how it will shape their specific project.

• Satisfactory: A pupil designing a video game trailer uses screenshots and marketing material from the game, along with some fan blogs. Their reflections mainly identify their favourite bits, missing opportunities to consider how this informs their audience and approach.

AO2: Explore and Select

• Excellent: A pupil producing an animated explainer video experiments with illustration styles, voice-over tones, and soundtracks, seeking feedback from peers. Decisions are carefully justified, demonstrating awareness of target audience and message clarity. They aren't afraid to abandon well-executed parts that don't serve the video's overall effectiveness.

• Confident: A pupil making a music video brainstorms several locations and costume ideas, testing visual mood through storyboards and rough shots. Selections are made based on practicality, but also how they enhance the song's meaning and contribute to the desired energy of the piece.

• Competent: A pupil tasked with an interview video tests camera angles and lighting choices for clarity and visual appeal. Their choices show understanding of basic technical considerations, even if some options are ruled out simply due to limitations.

• Satisfactory: A pupil crafting a video tutorial might try a few stock background music tracks. Selection feels arbitrary, rather than guided by the pace or target audience of their teaching content.

AO3: Develop Ideas

• Excellent: A pupil filming a dance piece has clear themes explored through their storyboard. Feedback leads to rethinking shot sequences and experimenting with angles to highlight both individual artistry and group choreography. They critically reflect on their work, referencing both audience experience and the dancer's input.

• Confident: A pupil documenting a school science fair works closely with participants to understand their experiments and devises compelling ways to show them visually. Shots and pacing are adjusted throughout the day, with clear awareness of how to tell a satisfying "story" within their footage.

• Competent: A pupil planning a vlog-style book review develops their ideas using a basic plot outline. Feedback helps focus their main points, leading to some tweaks for a clearer structure. Consideration is given to how visuals will connect with the content of the review.

• Satisfactory: A pupil making a video 'behind the scenes' for a school play primarily captures events as they happen. While editing reveals a process, there's little evidence of tailoring sequences to build interest or reflect feedback.

AO4: Produce a Personal Response

• Excellent: A pupil’s final video achieves its aim powerfully (persuading, educating, entertaining), demonstrating personal vision. Creative choices in cinematography, pacing, and sound all serve the central message, going beyond simple proficiency.

• Confident: A pupil delivers a well-executed final product that aligns with the brief. Clear technical skill and an understanding of storytelling techniques create a video that successfully engages the audience and fulfills its purpose.

• Competent: A pupil produces a technically sound video that showcases core skills. Editing may be simplistic, and though choices make sense, the work does not demonstrate a particularly unique or creative voice.

• Satisfactory: A pupil creates a functional video with basic editing, and the story or message can be followed. Some elements could be further refined, suggesting either missed opportunities to strengthen work or limited technical skill.

For success:

1. Think Outside the Artist Box: Instead of just focusing on a few photographers or artists, try studying scenes from movies, interesting documentaries, even the way music creates a mood. Anything can inspire you as long as it's related to your project's theme.

2. Ask Why It Works: After looking at all this cool research, think deeply about how the stuff you find works. How does the movie director use color to make you feel a certain way? How does the music build tension? Write down what you notice and explain how you could use similar ideas in your own project.

3. Don't Just Do, Reflect:  When you experiment with techniques,  software, or materials, don't just try random things.  Ask yourself: Does this help me achieve what I want? What did I learn from this? Should I keep doing this, or try something different? Write down your answers!

4. Did You Do What You Set Out To Do? Throughout your project, keep your original intention in mind. Think about if you're getting closer to what you envisioned, or if you've changed direction a bit. Explain why any changes happened and if they are for the better!

5. Be Critical: Just because an established artist has done something, doesn't mean it's right or a standard. Be critical when reviewing and find the good and bad (if there is any) when analysing both artists and your own work. Does it achieve its purpose? Could it be improved? What doesn't work?

Extra Tips:

• Keep your presentation simple. Think of it like a really well-organised slide show. The examiners should be able to see your entire creative process at a glance.

• Focus on telling your story! All the technical stuff matters, but only as far as it helps you visually communicate your ideas and show what you've learned.

How to prepare for the components

Here are some tips to help you prepare for the Cambridge International AS & A Level Digital Media & Design components:

1. Understand the Syllabus: Familiarise yourself with the syllabus and understand what is expected of you for each component of the course.

2. Practice: Apply the knowledge and skills you’ve learned in class to practical projects. This will help you get comfortable with the processes and techniques you’ll need to use in the exams.

3. Research and Analysis: Regularly analyse digital media products and conduct relevant research. This will help you understand industry standards and trends.

4. Develop Ideas: Practice generating and developing ideas that meet specific briefs. This will help you get better at coming up with creative solutions to problems.

5. Plan and Organise: Work on your planning and organisation skills. Being able to manage your time and resources effectively is crucial for the assessed work.

6. Evaluate and Reflect: Regularly evaluate your own work and reflect on your learning and performance. This will help you identify areas for improvement.

7. Review Past Papers and Exemplars: Reviewing past papers and exemplar work can give you a good understanding of what examiners are looking for.

8. Use Available Resources: Make use of the teaching and learning resources available on the Cambridge International website.

9. Ask for Help: Don’t hesitate to ask your teachers for help if you’re struggling with anything. They’re there to support you!

Remember, the key to doing well is understanding the assessment objectives and having a solid grasp of the knowledge, skills, and practices the course covers.

Example Outline Proposals (Comp 3)

In addition to the exemplar in the files above, the specification also gives three examples based on the subject area of study

Sample Outline Proposal for Component 3: Digital photography

To create a photo-documentary exploring the changing dynamics of family relationships. For this personal investigation I plan to research contemporary portrait photography, looking at David Hockney and other social photographers such as Jeff Wall and Gregory Crewdson and I will compare how they capture feelings such as intimacy or suspense in their work. This will be presented in the form of an illustrated essay and I will explore some of the same techniques the artists have used, in my own digital photographs.

My research will include comparing and contrasting the different ways the artists have captured visual language in their images. I would like to explore the relationships between people and how they relate to each other, and how this can be demonstrated visually. I am also interested in being able to add dynamism and suspense, so I will be exploring using location shoots at home and then re-creating them in the studio using models, lighting and props to create a different context for the image.

Based on documenting my family over a year, I will produce a series of 10 digital images based on family life. I will use post-production methods to edit and manipulate the images to build up layers and add depth. I plan to do this using software such as Lightroom and Photoshop. I am going to try a range of different format cameras to see which is the most effective in capturing the depth and level of detail that I would like to record.

Sample Outline Proposal for Component 3: Moving image

To create a five-minute documentary film to capture the energy and achievements of team sports. Using interviews, live-action filming, research and historical footage, I will explore the formation, development and energy of a football team at the start of the season. The aim will be to demonstrate the motivational, positively focused biographical documentary in the style of Undefeated (the Academy Award Nominee documentary, Manassas Tigers story) or Survive and Advance (the underdog story of North Carolina State University). My storyboard will include episode/section breaks, location research, characters in focus and briefings required, shot lists/types of shots (angles, durations), potential interview scripts, the calendar of events (training, meet-ups and games), and the timeframe required for selecting, editing and manipulating video sequences from my footage.

Apart from interviews with the players, fans, coach and other related people, lighting, sound booms and filters will be minimal and provide the look and feel of being in-situ. I will use Adobe Premiere Pro to edit my footage and Adobe Audition or Audacity for sound editing (for audio overlays or soundbites). For the introductory credits, section breaks and closing credits I will use After Effects.

While the film may cover up to a six month period of one season of the team’s existence, the final product will be less than five minutes in duration. I aim to capture the energy, emotion and passion through the filmed footage of the players and the fans and will edit the film to capture the pace and drama of a football game.

Sample Outline Proposal for Component 3: Mobile and multimedia applications

To create a mobile game application that will help students focus during revision. I am going to develop a game that helps students maintain their focus during periods of revision and exam preparation. My game will be on a timer that encourages the user to take a short break from their revision every twenty minutes and perform some form of mindfulness activity, a physical activity or a brain teaser. Colours and sounds can help students to make cognitive links to what they have been revising and improve their memory recall. Using the UDK (Unreal Development Kit) or Unity 3D (Unity Game Engine). I will create a single player game that is fun and instantly rewarding for the user.

I will research the most popular revision or memory improvement game apps and also explore effective ways of revising and improving memory in order to include this in my game. As part of the process, I will design the core features in a portfolio of concept artwork and screen designs of the gameplay, environment and characters. For my final submission I will show the screen shots and a short fly-through tutorial of what my finished app will look like

Next steps

Don't forget to check out the research and analysis page for help on conducting research and some analysis techniques.