Codes and Conventions: Technical, Print, Symbolic, Verbal
Media products are built, not found. Learn the four families of codes that producers use to create meaning: technical, print, symbolic and verbal, from camera shots and fonts to costume and body language.
Use it, the way the marks are given
Free interactive practice at using the material, which is what the marks are for.
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Media is made
A film, a magazine cover or an advert does not just happen. Every part is chosen by its makers to send a message. These choices are called codes, and they fall into families: technical, print, symbolic and verbal. Learn to spot each one and you can explain how any media product creates meaning.
Four families of code
Media language is built from four kinds of code. Learn what each one covers.
Match the code
- Technical code
- Print code
- Symbolic code
- Verbal code
- How a product is filmed: shots, camera movement, editing
- The layout of a page: colour, fonts and house style
- What is placed in the frame: costume, props and setting
- The words and language used, and how the audience is addressed
Which code?
A close-up shot of a face is an example of which type of code?
- A technical code
- A print code
- A symbolic code
- A verbal code
Two kinds of sound
Sound is a technical code. Whether it comes from the world of the scene or is added on top changes its effect.
Match the term
- Close-up
- Pan
- Mise-en-scene
- House style
- A shot showing a face or a detail filling the frame
- The camera turning left or right on the spot
- Everything placed in the frame: costume, props and setting
- The consistent look and design a media brand keeps
Everything in the frame
Mise-en-scene means everything the makers place in the frame on purpose: the costume a character wears, the location, the props, the lighting, and the hair and make-up. Nothing is there by accident. Reading these details is how you uncover the meaning a symbolic code carries.
Diegetic against non-diegetic
Sound that comes from within the scene, like a character speaking, is _____. Music added over the top for the audience is _____. Everything placed in the frame on purpose is called _____. The colour, fonts and layout of a magazine are its _____ codes. When a presenter looks straight at the camera, that is a _____ mode of address.
Spot the mise-en-scene
Which of these are part of mise-en-scene, the symbolic codes in a frame? Choose all that apply.
- The costume a character wears
- The props in the scene
- The location or setting
- The editing between shots
- The movement of the camera
Find the technical codes
Tap the two examples that are technical codes.
- A slow tracking shot following a character
- A quick cut in the editing between two scenes
- The bold costume a hero wears
- The font used on a film poster
Talking to you
A vlogger talks straight to the camera as if speaking to you directly. What mode of address is this?
- Direct address
- Indirect address
- Diegetic sound
- A non-verbal code
From wide to close
Put these shot sizes in order from the widest view to the closest.
- Long shot, showing the whole scene
- Mid shot, showing a person from the waist up
- Close-up, showing the face
- Extreme close-up, showing just the eyes
Name the code
Read each description and choose the code category it belongs to.
- A newspaper uses a bold red banner and a large headline font.
- Low-key lighting and dark costumes make a character look sinister.
- The camera slowly zooms in on a face during a tense moment.
Explain the codes
Choose a media product you know, such as a film, advert or magazine. Explain how its makers use codes to create meaning.
- Name the media product
- Describe two codes it uses, from different families
- Explain the meaning each code helps to create