Rovio – a few thoughts for a case study

At the time of writing, Bad Piggies is Rovio’s latest game. Whether or not it will prove to be as sensational a success as Angry Birds remains to be seen, initial Birds follow-up Amazing Alex seems to have fallen off the charts.
Here are a few links and facts for you to consider about the company that created an App sensation.
Rovio in their own words..

WHO WE ARE
Rovio is an entertainment media company, and the creator of the globally successful Angry Birds franchise. Rovio was founded in 2003 as a mobile game development studio, and the company has developed several award-winning titles for various mobile platforms.
In 2009, Rovio released Angry Birds, a casual puzzle game for touchscreen smartphones that became a worldwide phenomenon from 2010 onwards. The Angry Birds games have enjoyed continuing worldwide chart success, and the franchise has since expanded to a variety of new business areas. Rovio is rapidly expanding its activities in broadcast media, merchandising, publishing and services. Rovio’s headquarters are located in Finland.

The history of Rovio (wiki)

Company history

In 2003, three students from Helsinki University of Technology (currently Aalto University School of Science), Niklas Hed, Jarno Väkeväinen, and Kim Dikert participated in a mobile game development competition at the Assembly demo party sponsored by Nokia and HP. A victory with a real-time multiplayer game called King of the Cabbage World compelled the trio to set up their own company, Relude. King of the Cabbage World was sold to Sumea (now known as Sumea Studios as part of Digital Chocolate), and renamed to Mole War, which became the first commercial real-time multiplayer mobile game in the world.
In January 2005, Relude received its first round of investment from a business angel, and the company changed its name to Rovio Mobile.[citation needed]
In December 2009 Rovio released Angry Birds, a slingshot-puzzle game for the iPhone. Angry Birds has since been downloaded over 1 billion times, with paid downloads accounting for more than 25% of total downloads, making it one of the most sold games in the Apple App Store.
In March 2011 Rovio raised $42 million in venture capital funding from Accel Partners, Atomico and Felicis Ventures.
In July 2011, the company changed its name to Rovio Entertainment Ltd.
In March 2012, Rovio acquired Futuremark Games Studio, the game development division of benchmarking company Futuremark for an undisclosed sum.
In 9 May 2012, Rovio announced that its mobile game sensation Angry Birds had reached its 1 billionth download. The Company’s communications officer Sini Matikainen presented in an email: “We are so thankful to all of our fans for their support, and we can’t wait for them to see what we have coming up,”.

Bad Piggies – a Guardian review

Institutions and Audiences – Video Games – G322

 

From the Specification – the bare-bones of what we are required to teach/learn…

 

Section B: Institutions and Audiences
Candidates should be prepared to understand and discuss the processes of production, distribution, marketing and exchange as they relate to contemporary media institutions, as well as, the nature of audience consumption and the relationship between audiences and institutions. In addition candidates should be familiar with:
 the issues raised by media ownership in contemporary media practice;  the importance of cross media convergence and synergy, in production, distribution and
marketing;
 the technologies that have been introduced in recent years at the levels of production, marketing and exchange;
 the significance of proliferation in hardware and content for institutions and audiences;
 the importance of technological convergence for institutions and audiences;
 the issues raised in the targeting of national and local audiences (specifically, British) by international and global institutions;
 the ways in which the candidates’ own experiences of media consumption illustrate wider patterns and trends of audience behaviour.

Video Games
A study of the production, distribution and marketing of a specific game within one or across various gaming platforms, along with its reception by a variety of (British) audiences. This should be accompanied by study of the impact of next generation capabilities (HD, Blu-Ray, online services, etc) on the production, distribution, marketing and consumption of games.
Please note that overseas centres may choose a local media industry example which targets the geographical area in which the cohort of candidates is based.
The above list is not intended to be exhaustive. It is acknowledged that most media industries are characterised by cross-media strategies, production and promotion; candidates will be expected to focus on a particular medium but should make reference to related media where relevant.

G322 exemplar answers – Radio industry

First – the mid level example –06_AS_A_Level_MediaStudies_UnitG322_June2009_Q2only_Radio_MidLevelResponse
..and then one which earned nearly full marks…98 marks – section b radio

Examination questions for G322 and Examiners Reports

A link to the OCR website page which hosts all past papers for our modules, along with the corresponding mark schemes and examiners reports.
If you really want to test yourselves, look at the relevant question for your media industry choice (section 2) and spend 45 minutes answering the question. Use the mark-scheme to mark your own answer, and then read the examiners report to see what other students got right (and wrong). Naturally, if you want any of us to read, check and mark your answer, all you have to do is ask -just give us enough time to do it!

Editing Film – a glossary

Film Editing Glossary (thanks to http://www.learner.org)

cut
A visual transition created in editing in which one shot is instantaneously replaced on screen by another.

continuity editing
Editing that creates action that flows smoothly across shots and scenes without jarring visual inconsistencies. Establishes a sense of story for the viewer.

cross cutting
Cutting back and forth quickly between two or more lines of action, indicating they are happening simultaneously.

dissolve
A gradual scene transition. The editor overlaps the end of one shot with the beginning of the next one.

editing
The work of selecting and joining together shots to create a finished film.

errors of continuity
Disruptions in the flow of a scene, such as a failure to match action or the placement of props across shots.

establishing shot
A shot, normally taken from a great distance or from a “bird’s eye view,” that establishes where the action is about to occur.

eyeline match
The matching of eyelines between two or more characters. For example, if Sam looks to the right in shot A, Jean will look to the left in shot B. This establishes a relationship of proximity and continuity.

fade
A visual transition between shots or scenes that appears on screen as a brief interval with no picture. The editor fades one shot to black and then fades in the next. Often used to indicate a change in time and place.

final cut
The finished edit of a film, approved by the director and the producer. This is what the audience sees.

iris
Visible on screen as a circle closing down over or opening up on a shot. Seldom used in contemporary film, but common during the silent era of Hollywood films.

jump cut
A cut that creates a lack of continuity by leaving out parts of the action.

matched cut
A cut joining two shots whose compositional elements match, helping to establish strong continuity of action.

montage
Scenes whose emotional impact and visual design are achieved through the editing together of many brief shots. The shower scene from Psycho is an example of montage editing.

rough cut
The editor’s first pass at assembling the shots into a film, before tightening and polishing occurs.

sequence shot
A long take that extends for an entire scene or sequence. It is composed of only one shot with no editing.

shot reverse shot cutting
Usually used for conversation scenes, this technique alternates between over-the-shoulder shots showing each character speaking.

wipe
Visible on screen as a bar travelling across the frame pushing one shot off and pulling the next shot into place. Rarely used in contemporary film, but common in films from the 1930s and 1940s.

Editing Film – a few pointers and some info

A selection of Youtube clips and information which you might find useful when it comes to making your short film opening G321, and also for the exam in January – G322.
SOme wise words in these examples, from the masters of editing – watch out particularly for the musings of the great Walter Murch – philosopher/editor!

(sorry – couldn’t find part 4!).
A web page which covers shot basics

The Wikipedia page on film editing – quite thorough!






FIlm Editing – a pdf document – download and digest!

G322 Exemplar scripts

Firstly a 98 mark answer on radio – 98 marks – section b radio very nearly full marks, though we thought there was more that could be said – and the candidate spent a lot of time discussing social networking sites, and secondly a lesser answer on Video Games – rather short – a lot more to be said about the subject – 46 marks – section b video games