Media texts rely on audience knowledge of generic codes and conventions in order for them to create meaning.

Analyse one of your coursework products in relation to genre. The statement suggests that media texts rely on an audiences understanding of the texts genre in order for the intended meaning to be derived from them; I would agree with this, as I think that an audiences knowledge of the genre is just as important as the producers knowledge of the audience. Within my A2 media coursework I produced a pop genre music video; choosing the pop genre placed my video within a certain 'category' with a set of pre-determined convention, generic features and overall ideas. The music video that I produced featured the artist in a performance style music video, as this is conventional within the pop genre. This would also place it in the performance category when looking at Andrew Goodwins genre categories, supporting his theory. Due to the use of a performance style, many of the generic conventions I applied to my texts were related to the artist's performance; for example, the use of lip-syncing and close-up lip-syncing throughout the song to emphasise the key performance element; first person mode of address, where the artist directly engages with the audience by looking straight down the camera; the use of star image; and repetition of chorus shots, props and prop use, and close-up lip shots to add 'repeatability' to the video. The use of repeatability also helped to keep the narrative loose within the video, and the storyline suggestive rather than realistic; this is another element that is conventional to the pop genre and would therefore help it to be recognisable as pop. Conforming to conventional pop ideas was necessary to ensure that my media product was distinctly perceived as part of the intended genre. However, I did not follow all conventions within my media text, as I felt that this would limit me to creating a generic pop culture video with very little room for added creativity. Therefore, I also challenged conventions in order to add a 'different' element to my music video; for example, the use of bright colours, something conventional to pop music, and 50's/60's style clothing, which is something unconventional to modern day pop (although it relates to popular culture in that time) as it is not on-trend. This would support Steve Neales theory that genres are instances of repetition and difference - it is essential for genres to deviate occasionally in order to attract and engage audiences. One way to effectively measure the importance of generic codes and conventions is by applying Tom Ryalls theory, which suggests that types of conventions can be grouped into the four following categories: iconographies, narrative, representation, and ideologies. I used elements from all four of these convention categories, both conforming and challenging different areas or ideas. I used narrative structures to open and close my music video; however I did not have a strong narrative theme. I also used representations to present the artist in a stereotypical pop star 'glamorous' way, however, some elements of the artist were not stereotypical to the genre; these elements could include her 1950s style clothing, as this is not on-trend and therefore not conventional to the genre, or having her smoke within her video, as this could be seen as a controversial element that is not necessarily associated with pop genre, and controversial views may defeat the idea of popular culture if it is not the popular opinion. Smoking within the video would be, for those reasons, against the normal representation of a pop genre artist; however, it did represent the glamour of the 50's and, as it was acceptable and an element of popular culture at that time, this is used as a representational element to indicate era and setting within the video, rather than placing smoking in an encouraging light. This does however also link to ideologies, as many people within the audience may see this as a controversial thing to include, especially those that do not have knowledge of generic codes and conventions; as this can be justified by the video being based within the 50's era, making this a comment about glamour and popular culture at that time. My video also had ideologies about the wealth aspect of glamour, featuring lavish furniture and clothing, as well as expensive items such as 'Chanel no.5' perfume; these could also be described as a conventional element within, perhaps not specifically the pop genre, but the music industry as a whole, as many people would associate this industry with wealth and the lavish lifestyles often depicted in music videos. This sort of element is generically associated with the hip/hop and rap genres as opposed to pop, but the way that I have created this image and ideology through the use of 1950s popular culture elements which were glamour and wealth helps to tie these two genres together, by using hip/hop and rap as an inspiration for the sort of look the overall video has. Some iconographies that appear within my video such as the clothing, the perfume, the idea of smoking, the setting, and other props, which all relate to the representation of the era; however, many of these incorporate iconographies that link to conventional

ideas within the pop genre such as brightly coloured costume, which links to the conventional use of bright colours. Overall, I would agree with the statement above, as I think that audience knowledge of the genre is needed for them to identify the generic codes and conventions that genre provides. Within my own media product, I found that this would be specifically important, as the use of a strong theme and era could make conventional pop genre elements harder to locate when looking surface level at the text. Knowledge of generic codes and conventions would help the audience to understand the elements that include conventions and the areas where they are challenged.