Thursday, 26 May 2016

Year 10 Revision for mock

Your revision topic will be based on your examination for 2016-2017 

The 2017 Unit 1 External Assessment topic is Television Game Shows.

Your examination board is AQA, where you can find additional advice and tips. 

Television Game Shows have entertained audiences for many years and have become a staple ingredient of television programming and schedules.

Often set in TV studios in front of a live audience (though not always) game shows have the element of competition at their core.

There are several sub genres of Television Game Shows, all of which are appropriate for Unit 1 purposes.

These include the following:

  • activity oriented; 
  • dating; 
  • panel games; 
  • puzzle oriented
  • quiz shows. 

Among the vast array of UK Television Game Shows that can be selected for study are the following:

  • Total Wipeout, 
  • Take Me Out, 
  • A Question of Sport, 
  • Countdown, 
  • Pointless. 

There is no requirement to study examples of Television Game Shows from the past but it would interesting in the study of the topic to cover a wide range of shows and not just contemporary examples.

Reality television shows, although having many similar conventions (and often a ‘game element’ to them), differ as they usually have a focus on ‘talent’ or real-life/work scenarios and therefore should not be used in the study of Television Game Shows.

Revision task one - What makes a quiz show?
Quiz shows are an example of a television genre. Programmes belong to a particular genre because they have features in common. Try watching a quiz show without any sound playing and make a note of the visual features that make you aware that it is a quiz show you are watching.

Example 
- Smartly dressed presenter
- High key lighting

Now try listening to the soundtrack of another quiz show without looking at the pictures being shown. List the aspects of the soundtrack which convince you that it is a quiz show.

Example 
- Sound effects designed to increase tension.


Quiz

Tuesday, 17 May 2016

GCSE Section A - Sample response

Section A - Sample Answer - Bourne Identity Extract

B322 June 2010 74/80
1) The events in this extract conform back to the action adventure genre as Jason Bourne is searching for something – his identity. Although this is not a completely generic convention it still features in many films of the genre as the character starts at the beginning of the film searching for something and throughout it they have an adventure in order to find it like Jason Bourne in this extract. He will have to pursue his adventure and along the way there will be many crossroads – a typical storyline for an action adventure film. Another way in which this extract conforms to the genre is by having a dominating male as the protagonist as this is typical of action adventure as it focuses on leading male characters that are the main characters in the story. Bourne is very dominating as Marie asks him whether to use the bathroom and is in control throughout the scene and when the water is cold Marie asks him for his help demonstrating the lead role of his character.
(10 marks)

2) Soundtrack – there is little music in this extract as this heightens the suspense but high pitch pans banging together start during the tense moments in the scene, acting as a warning bell to Jason Bourne’s shock discovery whilst on the phone. When action is building it is typical for an action adventure film to start to play music as it creates more tension. There is a lot of use of non diagetic sounds as well such as the dialling of his phone and the running of water – adding to the realistic atmosphere of the scene.
Camerawork – There are many point of view shots from Bourne’s perspective that use the oblique angle as they are unsteady showing the rush in which the character is in; they used that shot when Bourne was searching for his passport, drawing the audience in to the scene as though they are the character. There is also a long shot of Bourne which shows him by the white light of a window highlighting one contrast between his dark clothes and the sun outside to demonstrate he is trapped and a slightly dark character. Lastly after Bourne has received the news they do a panning shot around his face to portray the emotion on it and to convey that message to the audience as he is shocked.
Editing – At the beginning of the scene there is very slow paced editing to draw out the suspense and keep the audience on the edge of their seat but as Bourne soon realises whilst on the phone that someone may be in the flat, there are two jump cuts of other areas in the house suggesting they might not be alone creating suspense and dramatic tension as Bourne and the audience know but Marie is unaware. They also show Marie in the bathroom after the shot of Bourne searching through the money and for the passports to highlight the differences between their characters.
Mise-en-scene – Bourne’s costume in this extract is dark and plain where as Marie’s outfit is messy and baggy showing a difference between the two but also to reflect their personality types – Bourne is very dismissive whereas Marie was very cheerful and happy. They use natural lighting of the flat but show Bourne standing against the white light of a window – contrasting the colour of his dark clothes to show his dark personality and his reaction to the news. The setting is very relatable to audiences and this the action adventure genre as it is a flat in an urban area creating sounds such as traffic and alarms from outside highlighting the silence in the flat.
(16 marks)

3) People are represented very differently in this extract as Jason Bourne is represented as a dominant male – stereotypical of a strong male character in this genre as Marie asks him whether she can use the bathroom. It also portrays him as very impatient and dismissive as he hangs up the phone and doesn’t really listen to Marie. They also show him in dark clothes illustrating his low mood and also to show darkness to his personality. Whereas Marie is shown as a stereotypical woman; she is obsessed about her vanity – looking in the mirror and adjusting her hair but this also reveals her very normal personality and how she does the usual things people do whereas Bourne has a bag full of money and fake passports – showing the difference between their lives as Bourne’s is far from normality. The extract also shows Bourne as a very neat and thorough person as in his flat all the books are in order and the camera shows a shot of him taking his pen lid off – the notebook is already there. Whereas Maria first drops her shoes on the floor and leaves them there clearly an untidy person which is a-typical as in most situations women are usually the more tidy people. Each character has a very different personality which is reflected by their actions in the extract and also by the camera angles as many shots of Bourne are long shots – showing his rigid stance as he awaits the news whereas Maria is shown through low angle and mid shots showing the laidback style of her personality.
(18 marks)


Principal Examiner’s Comments
B322 June 2010 (Bourne Identity)
One of the best answers in the June 2010 exam.
Question 1
Explain two ways the characters and/or events in the extract fit the action adventure genre.
This answer shows thorough understanding of generic conventions, both of which are explained. The supporting evidence from the extract is perhaps the weakest part of this answer but the candidate does cite Marie asking Bourne whether she can use the bathroom, and the examiners were instructed to be generous on this point given the lack of textual evidence in the inadvertently shortened extract for this exam.
10/10

Question 2
Explain how each of the following is used to create effects that fit the action adventure genre:
• soundtrack
• camerawork
• editing
• mise-en-scène.
Some errors – the misunderstanding of non-diegetic sound and the erroneous statements about ‘many point of view shots’, the ‘panning shot around his face’, and the ‘two jump cuts of other areas of the house’ - but this is otherwise competent and detailed. All four bullet points are addressed. The understanding of connotative effect is through and clearly lifts the answer into level four. Accuracy in the use of terminology is the weakest part of this answer and limits it to the bottom of level four, but there is some accurate use.
16/20

Question 3
Discuss the ways in which people are represented in the extract.
Make reference to stereotypes.
This answer only addresses one representation issue – gender stereotyping – but does this thoroughly and with detailed reference to the text. Aspects of characterisation are clearly linked to gender stereotypes, showing through understanding of representation issues. This answer is rather short, but clearly attains level four.
18/20

GCSE Section B revision tips -

Scheduling ideas
  • Prime time hours (7pm – 11pm) – The show is exhibited around 9pm, which is usually considered the commencing time of more adult themed programming due to the watershed dictating “the times when television programmes should not be broadcast that might be unsuitable for children”. (http://ask.ofcom.org.uk/help/television/watershed)
  • The show is scheduled at this time to avoid competing with other popular programming that is shown on other commercial television channels such as The Simpsons (6pm – Channel 4), Two and a Half Men (6:30pm – Comedy Central) and repeat programming such as Gavin & Stacey (8:30pm – Gold).
  • The BBC is a globally recognised institution that endeavours to follow John Reith’s (1927) values of distributing programming that would “inform, educate and entertain”. This gatekeeper has earned a reputation for producing impartial programming that would appeal to a mass audience – Outnumbered is a programme that focuses on a nuclear family and provides some moments of humour that a family audience can equally enjoy, however the text does deal with some adult themed issues that justify it’s initial post-10pm slot on BBC, with later series shown earlier and earlier as it became more popular.
  • The BBC has a rich history of producing and exhibiting sitcom classics such as Only Fools and HorsesFawlty TowersOne Foot in the Grave and more recent hits such as Gavin & Stacey.
Situation Comedy - Outnumbered

  • Slightly unconventional in terms of the semi-improvised (scripted but mainly on the spot, improvised humour) comedy that is presented to the audience through the Brockman family, in particular with the humour revolving around the younger members of the family.
  • The feel of the programme – for example the fast paced cuts and shaky cam in moments of chaos – make it seem more like a documentary “fly on the wall” style of programme.
  • Does NOT contain any canned laughter, but does present some familiar conventions such as a 30-minute format within a 6 episode series, the comedy being set in a familiar and domestic setting and on a repeated set of stock characters.
  • The comedy centers around familiar family values being exaggerated and the battle between the “outnumbered” parents and their 3 children (See Character Guide link above for more details on WHO the characters are). In the process, some stereotypes surrounding British middle class culture is represented to the audience.
  • TV Comedy’s (Outnumbered) appeal, which is what YOU MUST be able to address in the exam for ONE of the TWO Case Study TV Comedies. For example – in it’s basic denotative form – Outnumbered has mass appeal amongst a variety of demographics, in particular working – middle class families who can ‘personally identify’ (Katz) with the family dynamic and the variety of characters on the show. Below will outline the appeal of the show in more detail and encourage you to consider each TV Comedies appeal from your own perspective.
Target Audience
socio-economic needs

EXEMPLAR – 4 a) and 4 b) for 'Outnumbered' on BBC and 'A League of their own' on Sky.
4 a) – Scheduling
The 2 TV Comedy Case studies of focus in determining how and why they are scheduled on 2 different channels are ‘Outnumbered’ (Hat trick Productions – BBC) and ‘A League Of Their Own’ (CPL – Sky).
‘Outnumbered’ is a well established BBC sitcom that follows a long line of successful and “classic” sitcoms from the institution, such as ‘Only Fools and Horses’ and more recently ‘Gavin & Stacey’. The BBC since it’s inception in the 1920’s as a Broadcast media institution has endeavoured to follow John Reith’s “Inform, educate and entertain” values of providing programming of mass appeal to a variety of demographics, which resonates today as in order to access BBC programming you need to pay a TV license fee.
These values are reflected in the the sitcom (Series 1 -4 – Series 5 has been commissioned and is due to air sometime in 2014) scheduling during “Prime time” (7pm – 11pm) hours in order to capture a mass audience, however despite the show focussing on the family and containing characters of a younger age, the show was exhibited after the Watershed (9pm) because the text dealt with quite adult themed issues, such as the chaos surrounding teenage curiosity and sex. However, as the show became more and more popular (for example Series 2 averaged 3-4 million viewers for it’s 6 episode, 30 minute sitcom format, whereas the recent Series 4 peaked at over 6 million viewers) it was scheduled before the watershed as the BBC trusted the show to capitalise on it’s growing fan base. This resulted in the BBC providing Christmas specials and DVD box set’s for each series.
The latest series – series 5 – achieved just over 4 million viewers on BBC 1 and over 1 million requests on the catch-up iPlayer service.
In order for the show to further broaden it’s mass appeal, the BBC and it’s Producers (Hat trick Productions – ‘Father Ted’) decided to syndicate the show out to commercial TV channels that specialise in repeat programming such as Dave and Gold (currently shown on Thursdays at 9pm). The show also capitalised on the BBC’s emerging iPlayer service, whereby existing and new fans of the show could “catch-up” on missed episodes at their own convenience through tablet/laptop/smart phone devices.
‘ALOTO’ is a game-show/quiz/panel TV comedy that is scheduled on the Commercial Satellite TV channels Sky 1 (Series 7 as of August 2013) during the primetime slot of 9pm, as well as on it’s“sister” channel Sky 2 as part of the “Comedy Fridays” allocation. Much like ‘Outnumbered’,‘ALOTO’ was originally and is now back to being aired after the watershed, however the show was also moved to a pre-watershed time of 8pm to allow for more viewers to access the show on Sky 2, resulting in the shows adult humour being censored.
In order for the show to meet OFCOM guidelines though, expletives and censorship of some of the show’s crude humour and adult language does take place in order for it to be deemed “family friendly”. This follows a long line of recent success stories for Sky 1 and 2 as they have been critically praised for shows and sitcoms like ‘The Simpsons’ and ‘Modern Family’, as ‘ALOTO’ ishammocked between on Friday evenings as the show is still deemed to be less appealing than established shows like The Simpsons (7pm – 8pm).
Sky – an institution that “believe in better” – is a subsidiary institution within the News Corporation multi-media conglomerate, meaning it’s programming has huge financial backing and this is evident in the show’s high production value. Each episode is also 30 minutes in length, however does feature an advertising break in between in order to recoup the heavy investment into the show, in particular for it’s production company ‘CPL’, which is much smaller in scale compared to ‘Hat trick’.
Sky’s array of channels does mean though that it can provide more choice and options for it’s audience, for example you can now series link and record shows like ‘ALOTO’ through the remote control provided, as well as capitalise on the +1 channels available. Sky have also introduced the ‘Go’ service on line, which again means audience’s are able to access shows like ‘ALOTO’ whenever and wherever they like through a variety of e-media products (laptop, phone, tablet). This show has also capitalised on the ‘Remote Record’ service offered by Sky which immediately puts the consumer in control of their own Television consumption online and away from the traditional analogue method of TV consumption, much like BBC’s iPlayer service which has often exhibited episodes of ‘Outnumbered’.
In conclusion, both TV Comedies have adapted it’s scheduling in order to maintain it’s popularity amongst TV audiences across a variety of channels and platforms.
4 b) – Audience Appeal – Outnumberd logo
This answer will focus on the audience appeal of the semi-improvised BBC sitcom ‘Outnumbered’, which in line with Reith’s “Inform, educate and entertain” values provides humour through ‘informing and educating’ (also in accordance with Katz’ Uses & Gratifications theory) the audience of the trials and tribulations of a stereotypical middle class family called The Brockmans’ (Dad – Pete; Mum – Sue and their 3 children), with the ‘entertainment’ deriving from the humiliation the parents from being “outnumbered” by their at times unruly children. A prime example from the show would be when the Brockman family take a day out and Karen embarrasses her Mother in public by opening the toilet door for the rest of the public to see – much to the dismay of her husband who walks off in state of despair.
The semi-improvised nature of the sitcom is one of the many appealing factors of the show, especially as this improvised humour tends to come from the stars of the show: the children. This is slightly unconventional of the typical sitcom format, along with the fact the show is filmed quite often on location and without the presence of a studio audience (for example ‘ALOTO’has this) and the canned laughter so accustomed to this genre. The sitcom also appeals to the audience as the exaggerated nature of the genre is reflected in each episode, for example Karen (arguably the star of the show in terms of humour presented on a regular basis) aggravating a well known footballer (Frank Lampard) before they step out onto the pitch during her role as mascot through verbal codes such as “you missed a goal my Granny could have scored!” – Make sure you have AT LEAST x1 Example for the exam!. Other unconventional themes of the show which the audience will appreciate are the “fly on the wall” style of documenting the lives of the family, which is something many viewers of all ages can ‘personally identify’ (Katz) with and find amusing.
The target audience of the show can be denoted as being from the B – C2 socio-economic groups because this demographic can relate to the characters roles in society, for example Pete is a teacher and Sue is a part time worker who is overwhelmed by looking after their children as well. In accordance with Stuart Hall’s ‘Audience reception theory’, the audience take on a‘dominant position’ as they accept the representation of the chaos often presented in the Brockman household as it is often presented in other texts from the genre and is often realistic enough to be accepted by the viewers.
Finally, another factor that would appeal to the audience is the ‘star appeal’ (Richard Dyer) of Hugh Dennis (Mock the Week), a well known stand up comedian and actor taking on the role of the often emasculated and humiliated Father and husband Pete, which a common theme repeated in this sitcom and other sitcoms as well.
In conclusion, ‘Outnumbered’ provides many audience pleasures that have made the show over the 5 series produced successful and popular in a competitive genre.

4 b) – Audience Appeal – ALOTO_Logo_500x281
This answer will focus on the audience appeal of the Comedy Panel/Quiz show ‘A League of Their Own’, which conforms to the Institutions (Sky) vales of providing better programming ofHigh Production Value.
The show consists of 2 teams “competing” (although this tends to disappear after a while) against one another – Red v Blue – Who are the Captains of each team? – where they are often joined by other ‘stars’ (Richard Dyer) of the sporting and celebrity World such as Give examples. The humour tends to be very slapstick comedy, for example Give example and provides the audience with “LAD” culture banter as many of the panelists are male, with a select few of women who often encourage a ‘male gaze’ (Laura Mulvey) such as Give example. Therefore the audience can be denoted as:
  • Age
  • Gender
  • Socio-Economic Class
YOU MUST explain why for each and give example(s) from the show to support your understanding. E.g Male audience (Gender) tuning into to “kick off” the weekend with an introduction to 2 favourite things: Sport and Banter
In accordance with Stuart Hall’s ‘Audience reception theory’, the audience take on a ‘dominant position’ as they accept the representation of the chaos often established in each30 minute episode and the laughter generated often comes from crude one liners, the banterbetween the panelists and some of the more chaotic events that take place in the show. This often extends to the Audience in the Studio watching live as they laugh at moments such as –Give 1-2 examples from the show – verbal, non-verbal and/or technical.
Another appealing factor of ALOTO is it’s clear and apparent pastiche of the successful ‘A Question of Sport’ (BBC), however many would argue because of the “LAD” banter on the show that it doesn’t have the same dedication due to smutty jokes such as GIve an example and from which series/episode.
Finally, the presence of James Corden as the show’s host is described as one of the more appealing factors for why hundreds of thousands (around 600,000 for Series 7 – August 2013) tune into watch as The British Comedy Guide declares that “Corden makes for a likeable and up-beat host”. This connotes how the audience can build a raport and ‘personal relationship’ (Katz) with this everyday man as he embodies the character of “Smithy” made so famous in the hit BBC sitcom Gavin & Stacey. 
In conclusion, ‘ALOTO’ provides many audience pleasures that have made the show over the 7 series produced successful and popular in a competitive genre.

Sample Essay

Unit B322 - Section B Answer to specimen exam question
4a) Pick two TV or radio comedies you have studied. Discuss why they were scheduled:
- on the channels that chose them
- on the days and times they were transmitted. (15)


My two comedies are Have I Got News For You and Scrubs.

Have I Got News For You is scheduled on BBC 1 at 9pm on Thursday nights and is repeated with extra bits on Saturdays on BBC2. It fits BBC 1 as it is a mainstream programme that will appeal to a wide audience because it is funny. It is alsoeducational as it covers serious subjects like politics, so this makes it fit public service broadcasting. It is essential the BBC fits public service broadcasting because it is funded by the licence fee and so has to have some reason for charging everyone to watch it.

Thursday night is good for comedy as it is a wind-down time of the week, so BBC 1 always shows comedy at this time. The BBC runs its comedy zone on Thursday nights. After 9pm is good as it is after the watershed and therefore the programme can contain swearing and adult content. The programme that follows (Reggie Perrin) is a comedy as well, this is so it can inherit Have I Got News For You’s audience. The programme can also be watched on the BBC iPlayer.

Scrubs is shown on E4. It shows six episodes a day at 13:05, 13:35, 6:00, 6:30, 00:40, and 01:10 on every weekday, but not at weekends. Scrubs fits E4 because it is a channelaimed at young people – the same target audience as the programme. It is fits because E4 shows a lot of comedy shows, ‘cool’ shows from America. E4 can do this as it is a niche channel that is not covered by PSB regulations as it is not a terrestrial channel. This means that it can have stripped schedules and repeat programmes over and over again that are aimed at young people. This makes it easier for young people to know what is going to be on E4.

Scrubs is shown at the moment at lunchtimes, early evenings and late at night because these are repeated episodes and not considered important enough for prime time. It can also be watched on 4oD.

The BBC does not show lots of imported programmes such as Scrubs because it is supposed to make its own programmes. E4 would not show Have I Got News For You because most of its audience will be older than the E4 audience. 


Examiner’s comments


- Covers the BBC 1 audience

- Covers the BBC as an institution

- Explains why Thursday night and explains why after 9pm, but not in much detail

- Covers E4 as an institution and how it targets its audience
Explains times, but not in much detail

- Explains how programmes fit their channels

This answer does what the mark scheme asks for, so it just needs more detail for a higher mark 



4b) Show how these two programmes offer their audiences different pleasures. 
(15 Marks)

Have I Got News For You is very different to Scrubs as it is almost live comedy about recent events in the world, whereas Scrubs is a sitcom where the comedy is based on characters and everyday situations.

Have I Got News For You is ‘infotainment’ as it offers some education on the events of that week, whereas Scrubs episodes are simply for entertainment.
Have I Got News For You has regular stars – Paul Merton and Ian Hislop – that the audience can tune in to see sparing with each other every week. This is similar to the regular characters in Scrubs, such as JD and Turk, who are in some ways like a family that the audience can drop in on regularly. One big difference is that Have I Got News For You is presented by different people every week and has different guests, and the audience can tune in to see who is presenting this week and how well they will do.Scrubs, on the other hand, usually has more or less the same cast in every episode, but different storylines for the audience to follow.

Scrubs is a drama, so it has episodes with narratives that are resolved at the end of the episode. This gives the audience the pleasure of a story being told. Have I Got News For You follows a similar pattern every week, but there is little sense of narrative resolution – one team will win the competition, but this is really a throwaway ending. The quiz is an excuse for people to be funny.

Scrubs will have situations where we can sympathise with characters as well as laugh at them or with them. 
For example, when JD is unlucky in love. Have I Got News For You is more about people performing for TV as themselves, so we tend to judge them on how well they have performed instead of feeling for them.

Examiner’s comments

- Understands the differences between the programmes

- Shows understanding of how the programmes offer different pleasures, but where are examples?

- Develops this understanding further, but still no detailed examples from the programmes

- This answer does what the top level mark brand asks for, except for detailed and appropriate exemplification. The student needs to study some episodes in detail


- This students has done pretty well. They only had just under half an hour to write these answers. However, they must learn to give more examples from the programmes. They could have used examples of panelists in Have I Got News For You being funny, an example of a storyline in Scrubs that is resolved, and perhaps an example of an everyday situation that is explored in one episode of Scrubs.

Tuesday, 8 March 2016

AS Media Studies Your Case Studies

Exam Approaches & Case Studies

       The exam board want to know what you understand about:
       Media Institutions: Hollywood Studios (20th Century Fox etc.), British Studios (Working Title + Warp Films etc).
       Media Audiences: UK film viewers (either in cinemas, or via PC / TV / Phone etc)
       Media Technology: Digital filmmaking (CGI, 3D, Imax, DV-Cams), Online Films (LoveFilm, iTunes, YouTube, piracy), Convergence (gadgets to watch films on)
       Marketing Campaigns: How Studios advertise their films (Synergy, TV + Internet trailers, Print ads – newspapers, magazines, posters, Premieres, junkets, word of mouth, USP, merchandising etc).

ALL OF THE ABOVE NEED SPECIFIC EXAMPLES. REMEMBER YOUR EXEMPLAR TEXTS MUST BE POST 2011 FOR YOUR EXAM.



Small Independent Low Budget British Film:

·          Genre: Social Realist Drama - ‘This is England’ 
·          Budget £1.5m, takings £1.5m.
·          Institutions: Warp Films + Film 4 + various small UK media companies.

Successful UK Studio: Working Title

·          Genre: string of blockbuster Rom-Coms:
·          ‘Four Weddings & a Funeral’ budget $6m, takings $244m 
·          Post-Universal take-over ‘Love Actually’ budget $30m, takings $244m.
·          Produced 100 films, but several non Rom-Com flops.

Successful US Blockbuster Film(s): ‘Star Trek’

·          Genre:  Science Fiction / Action
·          Studio: Paramount: massive marketing campaign - budget $140m, takings $280m+.

Successful US Blockbuster Film(s): ‘Avatar’

·          Genre: Science Fiction / Action / Romance
·          Studio: 20th Century Fox: massive hype, digital, 3D, massive budget $300m, massive takings $2.7bn.


+ add your own case study films & studios.

When creating your own case studies/examples, you need to research the following:

PRODUCTION

       Original idea?
       Book?
       Franchise?
       Casting?
       Producers?
       Directors?
       Composer – music tie ins?
       Screenwriters – other films?
       Studio – genres the do best?
       Blockbuster?
       Locations?
       Stars - A List or unknown?

DISTRIBUTION

       How did the distributor market the film and who was the target audience?
       Posters
       Trailers
       Websites
       Release date and type of cinemas best?
       Blockbuster?
       Locations?
       Stars - A List or unknown?
       The number of prints and scale and pattern of release  eg wide release
       Internet downloads, DVDs.

EXHIBITION/EXCHANGE

       In cinemas and at home
       Screen release
       DVD release
       Rating?
       Censorship?
       Restrictions?
       Film reviews
       A commercial success?
       Why?
       Stars - A List or unknown?
       Audience figures
       Box office figures
       Personal response
       Sales figures for DVDs, CDs
       Rising stars?