FA5020 - PR and Media

Learning and teaching strategies on Fashion Communication encourage you to acquire a flexible and imaginative approach to problem solving through enquiry-based learning. You will become an active participant in your learning, integrating creative practice with academic and intellectual skills.

The extended studio (X-Studio) environment is integral to this process, encouraging individual intellectual freedom and a creative collaborative community. The X-Studio embraces our physical studios and workshops as well as our virtual spaces to create a flexible and rich environment that is responsive to your learning needs.

This dedicated approach has been developed over many years of continuous teaching innovation, research and industry collaboration. It has created a supportive extended studio culture that encourages you to learn flexibly, dynamically blending your learning and University experience between physical and digital interactions both in real-time and online at your own pace.

This extended studio culture not only helps you to become a more confident autonomous learner but also prepares you for a dynamic design industry in which an extended studio philosophy is current practice.

Lecturers with industry experience and supporting research will guide you through the module, developing your understanding of professional standards and practice. Guest speakers from the fashion and media industries will help you situate your own work in a professional context.

You are encouraged to advance your visual literacy and to be aware of current issues and debates. Working in groups, you learn to be flexible and collaborative, to identify and redefine problems in a creative way and focus on solutions that are both relevant and empathetic.

Traditional, new and emerging technologies are used both in the delivery and realisation of outcomes, and you will learn to present your work and ideas using a range of media and communication tools to a variety of audiences in different situations. You will create digital portfolios and presentations, as well as image-based/multimedia submissions.

• Tutorials with lecturers provide advice on the direction of your work and whether you are meeting Module Learning Outcomes. These will be timetabled, and will help you to progress your ideas.
• Project briefs are introduced via briefing sessions, where the task is fully explored by both staff and students
• Live projects with industry and regional, national and international external partners extend the practical study of the subject area within an industrial context, where possible. They are also designed to support student confidence in their ability to handle professional practice within the creative industries
• Students experience a range of teaching, learning and assessment methods and course work is largely project based
• Modules are delivered through a combination of delivery modes, with guided and independent learning
• Additional study skills materials and workshops are available through Skills Plus at https://library.northumbria.ac.uk/skillsplus/ and Linkedin Learning
• Students are expected to maintain a project plan and are encouraged to take responsibility for their own learning
• English language support is provided for international students
• University student services offer specialist support e.g. financial, disability, mental health, international student support etc.
• eLP includes all relevant documentation and learning material, e.g. module briefs, lecture content, video demonstrations, reading lists and weekly tasks, together with meeting spaces, discussion boards and notices
• Visiting professionals support relevant and current practice where possible

All modules at Northumbria include a range of reading materials that students are expected to engage with. The reading list for this module can be found at: http://readinglists.northumbria.ac.uk
(Reading List service online guide for academic staff this containing contact details for the Reading List team – http://library.northumbria.ac.uk/readinglists)

Knowledge & Understanding:
1. Show a detailed understanding of contemporary promotional methods and principles through a strategic PR campaign plan.

2. Demonstrate through your creative outputs, an advance understanding of functional, psychological, and aesthetic principles of fashion film practice.

Intellectual / Professional skills & abilities:
3. Demonstrate critical analysis in the selection and evaluation of research evidence or source material in order to target your campaign.

4. Produce and communicate brand editorial with distinguishable skill, application and presentation.

Personal Values Attributes:
5. Show ability to effectively communicate through one of more of the following means: written, visual, oral, aural.

Assessment will be conducted through;

Summative assessment:

Final summative Media and PR Portfolio:
• PR campaign presentation (audio/visual pitch deck) (1, 3, 5) 60%
• Promotional fashion film (2) 20%
• Brand editorial (4) 20%

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This module offers you the opportunity to deepen your knowledge and understanding of contemporary media and public relations practices, principles and techniques. It teaches you to research into and critically analyse a fashion brand and demographic, design an engaging opti-channel campaign and produce inspiring fashion content that will captivate, influence and mobilise your target audience. Focusing on contemporary brands, issues or values, you will sharpen your understanding of industry practices, to develop creative outputs that reveal your promotional, technical, creative, strategic and presentation skills and strategic understanding. Over the course of the module, practical sessions, technical support and tutorials will help you develop your understanding and critical engagement with fashion PR and contextual industry practices, and support you in generating a targeted campaign, fashion film and brand editorial. Ultimately, this module will enable you to create industry-relevant, focused and original fashion media and promotional outputs that can be used in a portfolio when applying for industry work placements and may support a step into industry and future employment.