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Rationale

This study provides students with the opportunity to examine the media in both historical and contemporary contexts while developing skills in media design and production in a range of media forms.

VCE Media provides students with the opportunity to analyse media concepts, forms and products in an informed and critical way. Students consider narratives, technologies and processes from various perspectives including an analysis of structure and features. They examine debates about the media’s role in contributing to and influencing society. Students integrate these aspects of the study through the individual design and production of their media representations, narratives and products.

VCE Media supports students to develop and refine their planning and analytical skills, critical and creative thinking and expression, and to strengthen their communication skills and technical knowledge. Students gain knowledge and skills in planning and expression valuable for participation in and contribution to contemporary society. This study leads to pathways for further theoretical and/or practical study at tertiary level or in vocational education and training settings; including screen and media, marketing and advertising, games and interactive media, communication and writing, graphic and communication design, photography and animation.

Aims

This study enables students to:

• investigate and analyse their and others’ experience of the media

• examine the relationship between audiences and the media

• understand the codes and conventions that are used to construct media narratives and

  products

• develop an understanding of traditional and contemporary media forms, products, institutions

  and industries through theoretical study and practical application

• develop an understanding of the nature, roles, structure and contexts of creation and

  distribution of media forms and products

• analyse media stories and narratives to understand how meaning is constructed and how

  audiences are engaged

• develop an understanding of the relationship between the media and audiences that produce

  and engage with it

• develop the capacity to investigate, examine and evaluate debates around the role of

  contemporary media and its implications for society

• develop skills in critically understanding the significance and aesthetics of the media

• develop and refine skills in the design, production, evaluation and critical analysis of media

  products in a range of contexts and forms for different audiences.

​Structure

The study is made up of four units:
Unit 1: Media forms, representations and Australian stories
Unit 2: Narrative across media forms
Unit 3: Media narratives and pre-production
Unit 4: Media production and issues in the media