Worked example · Drama · Year 10
DCF: Data and computational thinking → Problem-solving and modelling
A secure Year 10 response, annotated so you can see which success criterion each part meets. It is also your answer key. The 5 errors: (1) LX 3 is written above LX 2; (2) the 30 second fade on LX 2 is still running when LX 3 goes; (3) the lighthouse is 8 separate cues and stops at 02:06; (4) LX 5 leaves the cold wash, Ch2, at 20%, so the end of the scene is nearly dark; (5) the blackout is called on line 15 and cuts off the last 3 lines. Show this after pupils have tried Step 3 themselves.
| Cue | Input | Process | Output |
|---|---|---|---|
| LX 1 | The start of the scene, 00:00, when the house lights are due to go down. | House lights, Ch8, 100% to 0%. Blue sky, Ch6, 20% to 0%. Warm wash, Ch1, up to 70%. Orange sky, Ch5, up to 80%. All over 10 seconds, so it finishes at 00:10, before Elin’s first line at 00:12. | The audience is in the dark and the harbour glows gold under an orange sky. It tells them it is sunset, the day is ending, and the play has begun. |
| LX 4 | Taid stands and walks down stage left at the start of line 11, 02:20. | Cold wash, Ch2, down to 20%. Blue sky, Ch6, down to 40%. Special, Ch3, up to 90%. Water gobo, Ch4, up to 60%. Over 5 seconds. | The harbour sinks into gloom and Taid stands alone in a tight circle of light with water rippling round his feet. It tells the audience we are inside his memory: alone, at sea, in the fog. |
Each cue is split into trigger, change and result, and the output explains meaning as well as what is seen. The pupil has checked that the LX 1 fade finishes before the first line. Evidences criterion 1.
| Cue(s) | What is wrong, and what the audience would see | The fix | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | LX 3 and LX 2 | LX 3 is written above LX 2. The operator works down the sheet, so at 01:30 the lighthouse flashes on while the sun is still up, and the change to night comes late. | Move LX 2 above LX 3, so the sheet runs in the order the events happen. |
| 2 | LX 2 | A 30 second fade from 01:30 ends at 02:00, but LX 3 goes at 01:50. The sky is still changing from sunset when the lighthouse starts, and the rule says one fade at a time. | Fade of 15 seconds: it ends at 01:45, 5 seconds before LX 3. |
| 3 | LX 3 to LX 3.7 | 8 cues for one repeating pattern, with GOs 1 second apart that no operator could call reliably. The flashing stops at 02:06, but the script says it flashes until the end, and Taid’s speech depends on it. | One cue with a loop: see below. |
| 4 | LX 5 | Ch2 is not listed, so it stays at 20% from LX 4. Lines 13 to 18, the moment the boat appears, are played in near darkness and the audience cannot see the actors’ faces. | Add Ch2 60% to LX 5, back to its night level. |
| 5 | LX 6 | The blackout is called on line 15, “Red and green”. It cuts off lines 16 to 18, so the audience never hears “never lost” and the scene ends on worry, not relief. | GO at 04:08, 3 seconds after line 18, as the script says. |
The lighthouse as one cue: LX 3, GO 01:50. REPEAT: Ch7 snap to 100%, hold 1 second; Ch7 snap to 0%, hold 4 seconds. UNTIL LX 6. That is one flash every 5 seconds (1 + 4 = 5), matching Elin’s count on line 9.
All 5 errors found, each explained by what the audience would actually see, and each fix checked against the rules and the script times. The loop replaces 8 lines with 1 and runs for the whole scene. Evidences criteria 2 and 3.
| LX | GO point (time and line) | Channels that change | Fade (s) | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Preset, before the audience comes in | Ch8 100%, Ch6 20% | 0 | House lights on, blue glow on the sky |
| 1 | 00:00, house lights fade | Ch8 0%, Ch6 0%, Ch1 70%, Ch5 80% | 10 | Warm sunset |
| 2 | 01:30, “The sun sinks” | Ch1 0%, Ch5 0%, Ch2 60%, Ch6 70% | 15 | Crossfade, sunset to night |
| 3 | 01:50, lighthouse starts | REPEAT: Ch7 snap to 100%, hold 1 s; Ch7 snap to 0%, hold 4 s. UNTIL LX 6 | 0 | Lighthouse flashes every 5 seconds |
| 4 | 02:20, Taid walks down stage left (line 11) | Ch2 20%, Ch6 40%, Ch3 90%, Ch4 60% | 5 | Memory: Taid alone in the fog |
| 5 | 03:20, after “I knew we were home” (line 12) | Ch3 0%, Ch4 0%, Ch6 70%, Ch2 60% | 4 | Back to night |
| 5.5 | 03:30, “You never asked.” (line 14), as Taid sits | Ch9 30%, Ch10 30% | 8 | The boat appears far out at sea |
| 5.6 | 03:40, “Taid. There. Red and green.” (line 15) | Ch1 30% | 6 | A little warmth returns: hope |
| 6 | 04:08, 3 seconds after “never lost.” (line 18) | All channels 0%, including Ch9 and Ch10. STOP the lighthouse effect. | 0 | Blackout |
Timing check: LX 5 ends at 03:24. LX 5.5 goes at 03:30 and ends at 03:38, before Elin points at 03:40. LX 5.6 ends at 03:46, before line 16 at 03:48. The blackout also has to stop the lighthouse effect, or the lighthouse would keep flashing in the dark.
New cues are slotted in with point numbers, every fade finishes before the next GO, and the blackout turns off everything, including the effect. The boat lights come up before Elin points, so the audience sees the boat first, as the director asked. Evidences criterion 4.
As Taid walks down stage left, the cold wash dims to 20% and the blue sky darkens, so Elin and the harbour fade into the background. A tight special picks Taid out alone, which tells the audience he has left the present and gone back into his memory. A gobo throws rippling water around his feet, so we imagine him adrift in the fog, small and afraid. The lighthouse keeps flashing behind him, so when he says “we saw it”, the audience links the light in his memory to the light tonight, and shares his relief.
96 words. It uses cold wash, special and gobo correctly, and every lighting choice is linked to what the audience should understand or feel. Evidences criterion 5.
Longest fade for LX 2: less than 20 seconds, because LX 3 goes 20 seconds later (01:30 to 01:50). 15 seconds leaves a safe gap.
Without the special: for example, fade the whole stage to the cold wash at 30% with only the water gobo. Taid would no longer be picked out alone, so the memory would feel shared with Elin rather than private.
Lines saved: the 8 lighthouse lines become 1, saving 7. Rhys’s sheet had 14 lines; the corrected sheet has 7 before the director’s 2 new cues are added. The loop is shorter and it works for the whole scene, not just 16 seconds.