VCE VET Creative and Digital Media cheat sheet

Industry workflow sequence: brief and client sign-off → concept development → pre-production planning → production/capture → post-production → delivery and review; each stage ends in a documented approval point.

Design elements are line, shape, form, colour, tone, texture, space and type; design principles are balance, contrast, emphasis, movement, pattern, proportion, rhythm and unity.

Colour modes: RGB is additive and used for screen output; CMYK is subtractive and used for print; hex codes are RGB-based and written as #RRGGBB.

Raster images are pixel grids measured in pixels per inch; vector images use mathematical paths and scale without loss of quality.

Standard frame rates: 24 fps (film look), 25 fps (PAL/Australian broadcast), 30 fps (NTSC); higher frame rates smooth motion, lower rates can create judder.

File formats by use: JPEG and PNG for stills, SVG and AI for vectors, MP4/H.264 for delivery video, WAV for uncompressed audio, PDF/X for print-ready output.

Occupational health and safety duties in screen and media workplaces include hazard identification, risk control, safe manual handling, and correct use of electrical and rigging equipment.

Copyright in Australia protects original expression automatically on creation; moral rights (attribution, integrity) remain with the creator and are not transferable by assignment.

A client brief should be interrogated for purpose, audience, budget, timeline, deliverables and constraints before creative work begins.

A treatment or pitch document typically states concept, visual approach, audience rationale, production method and schedule.

Storyboard conventions: one panel per shot, arrows for camera or subject movement, shot type and duration noted beneath each frame.

Shot size ladder from widest to closest: extreme wide, wide, medium, close-up, extreme close-up; camera angle (high, eye-level, low) changes meaning independently of shot size.

The 180-degree rule keeps screen direction consistent; crossing the line reverses apparent subject movement and disorients the viewer.

Three-point lighting comprises key, fill and back light; the key-to-fill ratio controls contrast, and backlight separates subject from background.

Audio levels for broadcast delivery commonly target around -23 LUFS (EBU R128) with true peak no higher than -1 dBTP; dialogue should sit clearly above music beds.

Version control practice: save incrementally numbered files, keep a master copy unedited, and record changes in a log with date, editor and description.