Here's the directors commentary for our video, enjoy, try to ignore the echo!!!
Friday, 16 December 2011
Evaluation question 4- How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages
The process of creating our media product has required us to use many different types of technology. Although at the beginning of the process there were members of the group who were very efficient with certain types of technology, through the filming and editing process, all of us have learnt new skills relating to these various technologies.
Through the planning period of our project, we frequently used Blogger, or Blogspot, in order to update teachers and examiners of our current progress. We used the 'embed' feature on Youtube in order to share videos we analysed or used as inspiration to our own video.
It was through exploring the various songs in the rock genre that our group discovered the song, Muse-Feeling Good.Blogger has also been used throughout the entire production process, updating our own individual blogs whenever we went out to film a shot, a well as continually sharing pictures and short videos showing our group when working.
As well as using the internet to research and update others of our progress, we also used sites such as Prezi and scribd, in order to create presentations of our research, and for different pieces of work.
We also used various websites which use pregrenerated fonts in any sentence you type. These particular websites were very helpful in the design of our digipak, and the poster for the album.
The internet has helped us massively in the production, for if something exists, then it is more than likely it can be found somewhere.
After we had chosen our song, we used HD video recorders to film preliminary shots for our video, that were basically practice filming sessions for our group, trying out new shots that we wanted to use in the actual video. The HD recorders were also used in the actual filming of the video, so we would always have a camera on hand to film pieces that we could use in the final edit.
I also own an a Digital SLR, which allowed us to take very high quality photos for the digipak, while also using it to film in HD, which meant that after borrowing one HD camera from the school, we would always have access to at least 2 cameras, with the capability to film high quality shots. The DSLR also allowed us to use the focus on the lense to perform focus pulls, adding interesting depth of field to all scenes shot with the camera.
After we had assembled footage, we used Final Cut Express to edit all of our clips together. With the extended use of different transitions and video filters, we eventually created the final edit of our music video.
Final Cut Express is among the top when it comes to video editing, and is used by professional film makers very commonly. The opportunity to use this piece of software is a privilege, as although it allows us to cut out parts we do not want, as well as putting footage together, it also includes plenty of special effects and video transitions that can be very complicated to use and is not as simple as it look. I have learnt a lot about final cut, such as the use of markers, which you can use to mark where the lyric begin, in my case. Using Final Cut, we were able to complete our music video in just under 3 months, which is a great achievement, when the amount of footage we have is taken into consideration.
One great thing about final cut is that even if there are shots that are not fantastic, you can add a colour gradient, a filter or special transitions in order to improve the aesthetic look of it.
In order to create and edit our digipak and advert, we used Adobe Photoshop CS5, the latest version of the leading photo editor. The process of creating the digipak consisted of researching other digipaks, both professional and amateur.
I researched different text effects that can be created in photoshop, learnt how to use some of these effects, and then adjusted them to fit to our own song and genre style, before we even began t create the digipak. We also took plenty of pictures of our lead singer and the main character, as we wanted to use them both in the digipak. These pictures were manipulated, and if we did not like the way they looked, we would try something different in order to gain the effect and look we desired.
Eventually, we managed to create 4 panels that we think look very good, with the extensive help of Photoshop.
To sum up, throughout the process, we have used many different forms of technology in order to plan and create our music video and similar products. I feel that I have learnt many new skills during the process, from learning how to perform certain shots, to how to create a neon lighting effect in Adobe Photoshop.
The use of web 2.0 sites, such as Youtube during the planning and research stages was absolutely vital, and in today's age of technology, I doubt that we would have been able to plan to the degree that we did. Through using Youtube, Wikipedia and Blogger, we were able to learn and understand the conventions in Genres, the conventions of videos within the genres, and of the different types of music video.
Through the planning period of our project, we frequently used Blogger, or Blogspot, in order to update teachers and examiners of our current progress. We used the 'embed' feature on Youtube in order to share videos we analysed or used as inspiration to our own video.
It was through exploring the various songs in the rock genre that our group discovered the song, Muse-Feeling Good.Blogger has also been used throughout the entire production process, updating our own individual blogs whenever we went out to film a shot, a well as continually sharing pictures and short videos showing our group when working.
As well as using the internet to research and update others of our progress, we also used sites such as Prezi and scribd, in order to create presentations of our research, and for different pieces of work.
We also used various websites which use pregrenerated fonts in any sentence you type. These particular websites were very helpful in the design of our digipak, and the poster for the album.
The internet has helped us massively in the production, for if something exists, then it is more than likely it can be found somewhere.
After we had chosen our song, we used HD video recorders to film preliminary shots for our video, that were basically practice filming sessions for our group, trying out new shots that we wanted to use in the actual video. The HD recorders were also used in the actual filming of the video, so we would always have a camera on hand to film pieces that we could use in the final edit.
I also own an a Digital SLR, which allowed us to take very high quality photos for the digipak, while also using it to film in HD, which meant that after borrowing one HD camera from the school, we would always have access to at least 2 cameras, with the capability to film high quality shots. The DSLR also allowed us to use the focus on the lense to perform focus pulls, adding interesting depth of field to all scenes shot with the camera.
After we had assembled footage, we used Final Cut Express to edit all of our clips together. With the extended use of different transitions and video filters, we eventually created the final edit of our music video.
Final Cut Express is among the top when it comes to video editing, and is used by professional film makers very commonly. The opportunity to use this piece of software is a privilege, as although it allows us to cut out parts we do not want, as well as putting footage together, it also includes plenty of special effects and video transitions that can be very complicated to use and is not as simple as it look. I have learnt a lot about final cut, such as the use of markers, which you can use to mark where the lyric begin, in my case. Using Final Cut, we were able to complete our music video in just under 3 months, which is a great achievement, when the amount of footage we have is taken into consideration.
One great thing about final cut is that even if there are shots that are not fantastic, you can add a colour gradient, a filter or special transitions in order to improve the aesthetic look of it.
In order to create and edit our digipak and advert, we used Adobe Photoshop CS5, the latest version of the leading photo editor. The process of creating the digipak consisted of researching other digipaks, both professional and amateur.
I researched different text effects that can be created in photoshop, learnt how to use some of these effects, and then adjusted them to fit to our own song and genre style, before we even began t create the digipak. We also took plenty of pictures of our lead singer and the main character, as we wanted to use them both in the digipak. These pictures were manipulated, and if we did not like the way they looked, we would try something different in order to gain the effect and look we desired.
Eventually, we managed to create 4 panels that we think look very good, with the extensive help of Photoshop.
To sum up, throughout the process, we have used many different forms of technology in order to plan and create our music video and similar products. I feel that I have learnt many new skills during the process, from learning how to perform certain shots, to how to create a neon lighting effect in Adobe Photoshop.
Evaluation question 3-What have you learned from your audience feedback
Our focus group consisted of 4 different people, and through asking them various questions, we were able to receive very good feedback from our own peers.
According to the group, we have used special effects very well. 3/4 of the group said that we had used them enough, and that we had not overdone it with various visual effects. This has helped us massively as there are parts in the video that look like we had used them too much, such as the use of the chroma key feature multiple times.
According to the group, we have used special effects very well. 3/4 of the group said that we had used them enough, and that we had not overdone it with various visual effects. This has helped us massively as there are parts in the video that look like we had used them too much, such as the use of the chroma key feature multiple times.
This is an example of the chroma key shot. We also received a very positive comment about this particular shot, as it is the only shot in the video where our character has a performance role, 'singing' the lyrics "Feeling Good" as an elevator door opens on him. I am personally very pleased that we have received good feedback about this shot, as we spent a lot of time actually trying to achieve it to the standards required by the industry.
We did, however, receive some negative feedback regarding the use of visual effects. One member of the focus group stated that one shot (or sequence of shots) was over edited. As any criticism of our video is good, we had to take this into consideration, unfortunately, the member did not specifically tell us what clip this was, so we cannot be sure what part may look like this.
Another piece of negative feedback was a short section of the video when our main character speaks to somebody on the phone. During this clip, we can hear diegetic sound, as well as the song. The comment regarded whom the character was saying "I love you" to. The comment basically told us that perhaps the video would have made slightly more sense at this point if we had made it clear whom was on the other end of the phone, perhaps his mother or wife.
We generally received positive comments on the music video, and all members agreed that with the mixture of performance, narrative, and various special effect used, the video itself looked very professional. This is great feedback, as we were aiming for our video to have such an effect on the target audience.
Our digipak, however, received mainly negative feedback. This was largely due to the fact that the 4 panels do not specifically match up, and they do not follow a specific house style. This makes perfect sense, as the front cover of the digipak is very different from the rest, a it is set on a black background, with very bright lettering, whilst the rest of the digipak generally has brighter colours.
When asked if each member of the group would purchase our album, based on the digipak alone, we recieved a mixed response; 2 said yes, 2 said no. The 2 people who would buy the album cited the bright text and interesting song titles as the main reasons they would purchase it.
The 2 negative responses was that the digipak itself was not coherant with itself (did not match up) and therefore it looked odd. The other response was that the genre of music was not one that the member would listen to, which is an unavoidable reason, as not everybody is going to like the genre we have chosen.
When asked whether they believe we had catered to the general conventions of the genre, and whether or not the video appeals to them through signifiers, we received very positive responses. The general consensus was that the video catered very well to conventions of the rock/alternative rock genre, and even the digipak offered some appeal to them as individuals and as an audience.
This feedback has helped shape the way that I view our products, as I can view them with an even better critical view now. The negative feedback has allowed me to either affirm or dismiss my own doubts about the video and digipak, which means that I can evaluate all of our products better now than before.
Please view the focus group below for our actual feedback.
Post Production Focus Group
Here is our focus group, we have just shown the groups our video, and we receive feedback, enjoy.
Evaluation question 2- How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?
In our overall package (Music Video, Poster and Digipak) we have used brick walls as a backdrop quite commonly. We have established this backdrop as our housestyle, and we believe it works well as it contrasts with the lyrics in the song.
The poster does not keep in line with our previously established house style, however I feel that it does actually represen the urban grittiness that we were aiming for in the brick wall style, as neon lights are commonly seen outside of bars and clubs, therefore the neon could have dual representation, of brightness and colour, as well as an urban meaning.
Because of this theme of urbanisation, there are actually a lot of natural and urban shots in our main video. However, there is a large difference in the portrayal of both settings. The urban scenes feature our main character looking neat and tidy. We have done thi a we are trying to emphasize a large difference between nature and urban areas, as in all f the naturistic scenes our character looks dishevelled and untidy.
The reason for this was to attempt to make our major themes in the overall product easily visible, and I believe this has been done quite well. The poster has a very dark background, which can easily be identifiable as a depressive colour, although the neon lights and the white writing could represent both how society is very superficial (as the writing does look fake), or that there is always optimism.
The digipak uses a lot of dark colours, which once again may represent the depressive feelings we have tried to associate with urban scenes, which is also seen in the music video as in a large majority of the urban scenes our character comes across as depressed.
The digipak and our advert also have some similarities, and are therefore related. The white font is used throughout the two ancillary texts, and so are the darker colours, once again giving connotations of
depression.
The poster and digipak initially had used the same neon lighting effect on the front pane, which provided a clear relation. However, we decided to change this neon to a large, bold white text, to which I added a lens flare to the corner of one of the letters, which could imply there is something bright about the characters story.
The poster does not keep in line with our previously established house style, however I feel that it does actually represen the urban grittiness that we were aiming for in the brick wall style, as neon lights are commonly seen outside of bars and clubs, therefore the neon could have dual representation, of brightness and colour, as well as an urban meaning.
Because of this theme of urbanisation, there are actually a lot of natural and urban shots in our main video. However, there is a large difference in the portrayal of both settings. The urban scenes feature our main character looking neat and tidy. We have done thi a we are trying to emphasize a large difference between nature and urban areas, as in all f the naturistic scenes our character looks dishevelled and untidy.
The reason for this was to attempt to make our major themes in the overall product easily visible, and I believe this has been done quite well. The poster has a very dark background, which can easily be identifiable as a depressive colour, although the neon lights and the white writing could represent both how society is very superficial (as the writing does look fake), or that there is always optimism.
The digipak uses a lot of dark colours, which once again may represent the depressive feelings we have tried to associate with urban scenes, which is also seen in the music video as in a large majority of the urban scenes our character comes across as depressed.
The digipak and our advert also have some similarities, and are therefore related. The white font is used throughout the two ancillary texts, and so are the darker colours, once again giving connotations of
depression.
The poster and digipak initially had used the same neon lighting effect on the front pane, which provided a clear relation. However, we decided to change this neon to a large, bold white text, to which I added a lens flare to the corner of one of the letters, which could imply there is something bright about the characters story.
Thursday, 15 December 2011
Evaluation question one:In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
ia In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
Our media product, Muse-Feeling Good is classed under the alternative rock genre. This particular genre tends to focus on the artist's image, so therefore in a video it is usually performance based, and on any album artwork (digipaks) images of the artist or a motif/symbol that is attributed to them will be used. This is a convention we decided to keep, as it is very simple to do so. We also felt that the music video looked a lot better, and made more sense if we had a performance aspect to it.
We chose to use a mixture of light and dark colours within the video, which can be seen quite commonly throughout the alternative rock genre, although there seems to be a lot of darker colours used in the rock genre.
We followed one main convention in including a high speed montage of a 'room trashing'. This section of the video only lasts for about 10 seconds, and uses a lot of the same footage in short jump cuts. This is used very commonly. The speed of editing in this point of the video helps to build up the atmosphere, as the song reaches a climax, and our character is shown venting his fury. We feel this is a form of a graphic match, once again following a convention.
We decided that we would break convention here, and used a lot of bright colours throughout the video. We believe that these bright colours corresponded well with the song, as the imagery used in the lyrics give very positive pictures EG "Birds flying high" "Fish in the sea" "New life". Our video features a lot of close up shots, and there are quite a few canted shots as well. We make good use of our environment in our locations, such as using the doors of an elevator for a creative shot. We also included a lot of medium and long shots to add variety to the video.
In a lot of rock videos, lot of creative shots and special effects can be seen, therefore, experimenting with effects could be considered a convention of the genre.As the group and I like to try new shots, and be as creative as we can, we stuck to this convention and tried different visual effects to help enhance our video.
One such effect was reversing some footage, which made it look like my suit jacket was magically flying onto my body. A second effect involved the use of the chroma key feature, where we were able to grey out all colours except for one, such as a green or a blue.
Digipaks in the rock genre are often related to the video or artist is a direct way. We chose a dark background with a neon text effect as our house style, which is meant to be used as a signifier of fun and feeling goo (neon lights are commonly associated and used with clubs and bars).
The dark background relates directly to the plot of the video, as the character is supposedly feeling depressed, and darker colours are associated with these feelings. This could perhaps challenge the convention of digipaks in the rock genre as we do not feature any photos of the artist/band. We felt that photos of the band would not work well with the dark background and neon text aesthetically, and therefore we decided to leave them out.
Our advert uses the same style of a neon text over the dark backdrop. This both challenges and uses advert conventions. It uses the conventions as most combinations of digipak and advert will often use a similar house style, and will feature many elements that are the same (in this case we used the dark background and neon writing to create and maintain a house style throughout both of the products).
However once again we challenged the convention of using photos of the band in the video, as once again we did not think this would work very well aesthetically.
Please see our directors commentary below for in depth analysis of our music video.
Our media product, Muse-Feeling Good is classed under the alternative rock genre. This particular genre tends to focus on the artist's image, so therefore in a video it is usually performance based, and on any album artwork (digipaks) images of the artist or a motif/symbol that is attributed to them will be used. This is a convention we decided to keep, as it is very simple to do so. We also felt that the music video looked a lot better, and made more sense if we had a performance aspect to it.
We chose to use a mixture of light and dark colours within the video, which can be seen quite commonly throughout the alternative rock genre, although there seems to be a lot of darker colours used in the rock genre.
We followed one main convention in including a high speed montage of a 'room trashing'. This section of the video only lasts for about 10 seconds, and uses a lot of the same footage in short jump cuts. This is used very commonly. The speed of editing in this point of the video helps to build up the atmosphere, as the song reaches a climax, and our character is shown venting his fury. We feel this is a form of a graphic match, once again following a convention.
We decided that we would break convention here, and used a lot of bright colours throughout the video. We believe that these bright colours corresponded well with the song, as the imagery used in the lyrics give very positive pictures EG "Birds flying high" "Fish in the sea" "New life". Our video features a lot of close up shots, and there are quite a few canted shots as well. We make good use of our environment in our locations, such as using the doors of an elevator for a creative shot. We also included a lot of medium and long shots to add variety to the video.
In a lot of rock videos, lot of creative shots and special effects can be seen, therefore, experimenting with effects could be considered a convention of the genre.As the group and I like to try new shots, and be as creative as we can, we stuck to this convention and tried different visual effects to help enhance our video.
One such effect was reversing some footage, which made it look like my suit jacket was magically flying onto my body. A second effect involved the use of the chroma key feature, where we were able to grey out all colours except for one, such as a green or a blue.
Digipaks in the rock genre are often related to the video or artist is a direct way. We chose a dark background with a neon text effect as our house style, which is meant to be used as a signifier of fun and feeling goo (neon lights are commonly associated and used with clubs and bars).
The dark background relates directly to the plot of the video, as the character is supposedly feeling depressed, and darker colours are associated with these feelings. This could perhaps challenge the convention of digipaks in the rock genre as we do not feature any photos of the artist/band. We felt that photos of the band would not work well with the dark background and neon text aesthetically, and therefore we decided to leave them out.
Our advert uses the same style of a neon text over the dark backdrop. This both challenges and uses advert conventions. It uses the conventions as most combinations of digipak and advert will often use a similar house style, and will feature many elements that are the same (in this case we used the dark background and neon writing to create and maintain a house style throughout both of the products).
However once again we challenged the convention of using photos of the band in the video, as once again we did not think this would work very well aesthetically.
Please see our directors commentary below for in depth analysis of our music video.
Tuesday, 13 December 2011
Sticking to the storyboards(ish)
At the start of our process, we lovingly created a long series of extremely creative storyboards, that outlined every shot in our video.
he initial plan was to have the main character standing on a roof, before he awakens in a smoky room, gets dressed, and goes on a long walk, on what looks like a happy and good day for him, however it is revealed the place he has been walking to is the rooftop, presumably to jump off.
We stuck to these story very vaguely, even though we always had them with us when filming. It is due to feedback given, change of ideas, and opportunities that ended with us changing most of the video, although we feel that the story worked out anyway.
he initial plan was to have the main character standing on a roof, before he awakens in a smoky room, gets dressed, and goes on a long walk, on what looks like a happy and good day for him, however it is revealed the place he has been walking to is the rooftop, presumably to jump off.
We stuck to these story very vaguely, even though we always had them with us when filming. It is due to feedback given, change of ideas, and opportunities that ended with us changing most of the video, although we feel that the story worked out anyway.
Sunday, 11 December 2011
Directors commentary script
Introduction- Welcome to our Director’s commentary, we are Bradley, Ryan, Connor, Jacob.
In the opening sequence we immediately put the audience in the action by showing a clip of the apparent ending, this creates atmosphere, which is amplified by the mise-en-scene, with dark clouds and the urban setting.
This is immediately contradicted by transitioning with bright colours of the rising sun, followed by naturalistic shots involving the main character.
We continue the naturalistic shots placing the audience with the main character using lens flares and natural lighting to improve the realism as well as establish a setting. The initial lip-synching begins still including the main character and some aspects of a natural environment.
Jacob: The variety of lighting displayed on the shots with the contradictor shots to produce contrast and immerse the audience within the world, the chroma keyer was also relative to our digipacks and relating back to our advertising. The lens flares and ECU’S help to draw in the audience with the conceptual based elements.
Ryan: We first start to see the main character signing letters and conversing with a boss figure, we have done this to give the connotations of being fired from his job and a more natural progression when linking it with performance based shots. We also decided to use a variety of natural and abstract shots with varying location environments such as rivers changing into shots of London, we also included Jump cuts to progress the story quickly and yet keeping the audience immersed within the narrative.
Bradley: Here we decided to include a variety of colour effects on the shots to improve their power over the audience as well as fitting in the performance based shots to the song with the megaphone section being sung in an untraditional manner with shadows and blur effects to give a different style to the shots. However we continue to progress the main characters story still included within performance and making the music video slightly conceptual based, the high angled shots of the main character help to make him seem vulnerable, this combined with the singer being shown in an exciting way to showcase the singer such as a producer would.
Connor Part 2: The idea behind these shots was to increase the tension with the audience by increasing the speed and abstract style of the shots as the music video progresses towards the climax. These shots offer the audience with more entertainment and excitement with the reversed shot creating confusing followed by the 5-millisecond shots of scenery and walking to make them more interesting and creates interest in the storyline.
The colour effects are repeated with the sky made to stand out followed by the close-up with good framing and is different to all the shots produced before to help build up to the climax.
Ryan Part 2: We begin to include time-lapses to give the connotations of the world changing around the main character and giving the connotations of this frustrating him, this is a good early hint towards the following shots of the release of anger with shots lasting less than 1 second to show all of the action in a quick pace with an overlay of the shots to give the blue effect. This sequence of shots was a good genre signifier due the action, which is directed towards the rock genre however the abstract nature of the shots signify the indie genre.
Finishing of the music video returning to the beginning of the music video gives the audience more of a build up of tension and finding out the true reasons behind standing on the rooftop, with the colour transition of the same colour of the sun and faded effects to make the audience interested in the story without being bored.
Friday, 9 December 2011
Behind the scenes footage 1
In this video, we have compiled a selection of footage of our group out and about, filming for our video, the video is 5-10 minutes long, and covers roughly 2-3 weeks of filming sessions.
Tuesday, 6 December 2011
Final Final Digipak
This our FINAL digipak, given a new face after receiving very helpful feedback.
As you can see, we still make use of the neon font, however we have established the neon text on dark background as our house style!
As you can see, we still make use of the neon font, however we have established the neon text on dark background as our house style!
Digipak analysis
Pane one: The first pane of our digipak is very simple in design. We used a very dark purple for the background, which was used to emphasise the colour of the text. The text itself is similar to the rest of our digipak, with the letters overlaying each other very slightly. There is also a faint lens flare over the letters.
When we designed the first pane of the digipak, we tried to keep the storyline of the video in mind. The dark background is used to suggest that the character is depressed, however it is juxtaposed with the brightness and suggested optimism of the bright font.
This first pane also keeps in with line with the advert, which uses a very similar style, which we believe to be easily recognisable.
Pane two: The second pane does not keep in touch with the style of the neon style font, however we chose to follow a different style. We have placed our lead singer in front of a brick wall, and by creating a work path in photoshop, wrote text following the outline of his head. The text is used to promote the product, as the is simple but very effective.
We believe it is important to put a face to the brand name 'Esum', and this keeps in touch with digipak conventions as more often than not, the artist will appear on their products.
Pane three: We used a photo that we took during the filming process as the backdrop for our CD case. The audience can create parralels between the music video itself and this pane, as this particular shot was used in the video.
Pane four: We decided to use the brick walls as a motif for our digipak. We found a stock photo that was the sharp corner of a brick wall, and then based 2 columns of writing on each side of the corner. Both sides of the brick wall vary in darkness, and we chose to colour the font corresponding to the shade of darkness (dark= white font, and vice versa). We believe this has created an interesting visual effect, and boosts the overall look of the pane.
Tuesday, 15 November 2011
Tuesday 15th November
Tuesday 15th November 2011- Final Scene (Ending twist)- Whole Group:
Today was our final major filming session that draws to a close nearly two months of filming for our music video. We aimed to film the twist at the end of our music video in which it is revealed to the audience that the letter seen previously was the main characters resignation letter. We went somewhere local, a street about 5 minutes away from school instead of our intended destination of Croydon, Whitgift car park in which we have previously filmed at. Filming went smoothly and we achieved a variety of shots with the sun in the background, aimed at acting as a contrast to previously seen footage featuring clouds and grey sky. After filming this we uploaded it and started to edit it.
Monday, 14 November 2011
Monday 14th November
Monday 14th November 2011- Drums scene- Ryan only:
Today we filmed a minor part of the video that included a friend playing the drums to be used as a filler for our music video in no more than 3 sections on the timeline where there was previously gaps. Filming lasted for about 5 minutes to get some quick shots of a drums performance. Within the edit for our music video we have extracted only the video and deleted the audio so it looks like the drums performance is in time with the song.
Friday, 21 October 2011
Friday 21st October 2011- In School Filming- Whole Group:
Today we decided to film some of the last segments of the music video. We planned to include various drum shots and band performance but this didnt go to plan as we couldnt get the locations available. We hope to get these as soon as possible. However we turned the bad around and decided to film with a microphone prop and lip sync the final lyrics with our main singer for the video. We used various in-school locations including a brick wall backdrop which also included filming shadows and our main singer lying down on the grass playing guitar and miming some sections of the song. We have now managed since this to lip sync the entire song. From here on in all the filming left to do is filler shots and maybe a scene where our main character trashes an office like room where paper is flying all around him in slow motion.
Friday, 14 October 2011
Friday 14th October 2011- Ryan, Jacob and Connor- Central London- Various Locations:
Today 3 people out of the group travelled up to Central London to complete a whole day of filming for the music video. Today's aim was to lip sync the main parts of the song and with a new group member who is now miming pretty much everything. We started our journey at Carshalton Station were we travelled via National Rail on Southern trains to Victoria; despite the diabolical travel fare one way we arrived at a good time and got the number 11 bus to St.Pauls Cathedral. From here we made our way down via several points of interest within London.We did about 15 minutes of filming around the St.Pauls area and then made our way down to the Millenium Bridge that is in line with the Cathedral. We walked across the bridge and did a lot of filming including a time lapse showing people walking past the main character whilst looking over the River Thames, tracking shots of the main character walking down the length of the bridge and also a long shot showing the entire bridge at the end of it with St.Pauls perfectly positioned in centre in the background with the main character walking towards the camera.After the bridge we were by the Tate Modern art gallery and we then filmed some more there and also down by the South Bank were we did some lip syncing with the Thames in the background. From there we had a lengthy walk and we made our way to Blackfriars Bridge were we did some more lip syncing and another tracking shot. We then continued over it to the other side of the river.We then made our way down to Embankment which was quite a long walk but time soon passed and we found ourselves by Charing Cross station. From there we crossed the road and went to the London eye were we filmed some shots with the attraction directly centered on camera. This was a very useful shot and we had our subject doing some more lip syncing and playing the guitar. We also got some more 'behind the scenes' that we have been building up on quite a lot in previous locations and on previous film shoots on other days. A member of our group also brought with him his camera that he used to get some pictures and various shots on that. After the London eye we walked past the Houses of Parliament and by Parliament Square and then went past Downing street were we got some telephone box footage. We then made our way to our final destination of the day; by now we had done about 3 hours of filming.Our final location was Trafalgar Square and we positioned ourselves by Nelson's Column. We were right in view of the National Gallery and we set up the camera to film a final time-lapse of the public walking about the area. We also had our main character walking with the public very slowly so it would look effective when we speed up the shot into a time-lapse. We got a few more shots in the square which then concluded filming for the day. In total we were in London for about 4 hours that both included the time to film and to make our way to the various locations that we required. It was all planned ahead and the day ran smoothly; the weather was also on our side and there was no security or safety issues.
Tuesday, 11 October 2011
Tuesday 11th October 2011- Whole Group- Office Scene:
Today we met as a group and filmed the short scene that is meant to suggest our character has been fired. For this, I created a letter, and was filmed signing it. This was supposed to show that i've been fired, however i'm not sure whether or not it will look that way, but we sill have to edit the footage.
We also filmed Ryan's character handing mine the letter, so hopefully it will look like the main character has been fired!
We have also edited most of the footage together, and the video is starting to take form!
Friday, 7 October 2011
Friday 7th October 2011- Bradley, Connor and Jacob- Croydon (various):
After a few weeks of making sure all the footage we have is edited to the point where we are happy, we went on our next filming session, back to Croydon!
With Ryan ill, it was just Bradley, Connor and myself. Since the last post, we have changed the singer to Connor (also our guitarist in the video). We done this because we think he will suit the voice of the original artist better than I will, so the main character is no longer singing.
We filmed some more lip synching, some random shots that will add to us building mise en scene, and took some more photos, possibly for use in the digipak, depending on how they look after adjustments. Due to time constraints, we did not spend as much time filming as we would have hoped to, so we are currently editing what we filmed.
Friday, 30 September 2011
Friday 30 September, Whole group, Beddington park
Today we headed off to Beddington park, in the strange heat with the intention of filming all of our naturalistic shots. We managed to get a few graphic matches, such as filming the river, to be used with "fish in the sea".
We got a lot of lip synching done, which we felt important as there's a lot more footage of the main character walking about looking melancholy. We also filmed a very interesting shot of the me walking backwards, whilst taking off some clothes. Although this doesn't sound very special, we are going to reverse the footage, so it appears I am walking forward, and the clothes will 'magic' themselves onto me. We think this will be a very good visual effect.
We filming some stock of the guitarist playing as well, which will be interspersed with me singing. We also discussed making him always appear in the background of shots a running theme.
Tuesday, 27 September 2011
Tuesday 27th September 2011- Whole Group- Croydon Car Parks:
Today was our first filming session, and we headed off to Croydon in order to begin filming of the video. Our first location was Centrale Car park, and after we took a few pictures for use in our digipak, we were asked to move on, as we had not asked for permission to film on their premises.
So we moved across the high street to the Whitgift centre car park. We were a lot more successful here, and we managed to film the entirety of our introduction (which also doubles as our ending), a creative shot involving the opening of an elevators door, and our main character lip synching.
After the filming here, we headed further down the high street to the market, where I began recording of some POV shots, which we hope to add to the video at different points, as these shots can be used very often.
We finished our filming with the main character descending a long flight of stairs, the camera facing him at a high angle. We hope to use jump shots somehow with this footage.
We then filmed a short 'behind the scenes', with Ryan and I talking about what we had achieved today, which will go on the blog at some point.
Monday, 19 September 2011
My inspiration
Hello everybody!
We are just about to begin the filming process, which will mean many long hours of filming, re filming, and 're re filming' in order to get the best shots we can, and I know we will be pushing ourselves hard to make a good finished product.
I have decided to show some of my favourite music videos, as well as some that have features I would love to implement in our own product.
The first is the iconic video to the song 'The Scientist', by Coldplay.
So this video has been critically acclaimed on many occasions, partly due to the storyline, but mostly due to the fact that it is all shown in reverse, that is, we begin at the end, and the world moves 'back to the start'.
Coldplay have made the most out of a video in reverse, Martin often jumps back over walls, bicycle tricks are performed backwards, and most of all the sadness of Martin' character is not revealed until the end of the video itself.
This is among my top ten music videos of all time, and I would also love an oppurtunity to use reversed footage in our own video, as I love how the effect looks.
The second video I want to show is 30 Seconds To Mars- Closer To The Edge.
This is actually my favourite song, ever, and although I love the video, I do not see very much in there that I would like to try and implement into our own.
The video is comprised entirely of stock footage from the bands concerts, as well as a few short clips of themselves out and about (Miami, Grand Canyon). I can personally say that just by watching this video, it makes me want to go to on of their concerts. The spotlight on lead singer, Leto, drummer, S.Leto and guitarist Tomo helps to promote themselves as a label, as they are drawing attention to themselves, something important in this genre (alternative rock).
We intend for our video to mainly be a narrative, however with aspects of a performance style video on the sidelines, as making sure the story is easy to follow is very important.
We are just about to begin the filming process, which will mean many long hours of filming, re filming, and 're re filming' in order to get the best shots we can, and I know we will be pushing ourselves hard to make a good finished product.
I have decided to show some of my favourite music videos, as well as some that have features I would love to implement in our own product.
The first is the iconic video to the song 'The Scientist', by Coldplay.
So this video has been critically acclaimed on many occasions, partly due to the storyline, but mostly due to the fact that it is all shown in reverse, that is, we begin at the end, and the world moves 'back to the start'.
Coldplay have made the most out of a video in reverse, Martin often jumps back over walls, bicycle tricks are performed backwards, and most of all the sadness of Martin' character is not revealed until the end of the video itself.
This is among my top ten music videos of all time, and I would also love an oppurtunity to use reversed footage in our own video, as I love how the effect looks.
The second video I want to show is 30 Seconds To Mars- Closer To The Edge.
This is actually my favourite song, ever, and although I love the video, I do not see very much in there that I would like to try and implement into our own.
The video is comprised entirely of stock footage from the bands concerts, as well as a few short clips of themselves out and about (Miami, Grand Canyon). I can personally say that just by watching this video, it makes me want to go to on of their concerts. The spotlight on lead singer, Leto, drummer, S.Leto and guitarist Tomo helps to promote themselves as a label, as they are drawing attention to themselves, something important in this genre (alternative rock).
We intend for our video to mainly be a narrative, however with aspects of a performance style video on the sidelines, as making sure the story is easy to follow is very important.
Saturday, 17 September 2011
Adverts for Digipaks
From looking at this advert, we can clearly see that it has not been made professionally. However, this is not a bad thing.
The title of the song is 'Windows' and the producers here have taken this in a very literal sense, and have cut the advert into little boxes (or windows). We can see the artist through these windows, however some of the boxes have been cleverly used as a way to present important information, such as critical acclaim and release dates.
From looking at the artist, one may assume that the genre of music is 'indie/alternative rock'. This mainly due to his clothing (Branded hoodie, beanie hat, jeans and worker boots).
We can also take note that he is sitting on a bale of hay. This gives connotations that perhaps he is performing country music, or that this particular song has nature based themes and lyrics present.
Finally, the artist could be seen as very friendly, as he is smiling or laughing, and sitting in a very casual pose, facing away from the camera. This could give the suggestion he is laughing at someone else, giving this particular shot a 'candid camera' feel.
Friday, 16 September 2011
Research into digipaks
Islands- The xx
This digipak, designed by 'The xx', features very soft blue lighting. The light is clearly made from a projector, and the band member's shadow is seen behind them.
The band is classed under the indie genre, which would generally mean that their fan base takes a lot of stock in the artists image, thus it makes sense that the artists should appear on the front cover of the pack.
The projected image looks as if it is a view of the water. This would relate back to the name of the single, as obviously an island is on a body of water.
The simplistic white font could suggest how they are not a band that goes over the top with their music and designs, rather they would stick to producing a very clear and real image, about the CD and the band itself.
Andrew Hone- The journey
This digipak, which has been created by the artist 'andrew Hone', is very simplistic in design.
However, this works very well. It is a simple panorama of an empty field, with some woodlands in the background. This could give the name 'the journey' a deeper meaning perhaps the journey is one of spiritual value.
It is a very natural scene, so therefore it could be that the song is about nature as well.
This cover seems to break CD conventions, as they largely feature images of the artist. This could mean that maybe this artist is not too concerned with his image.
The font can be described as transparent, as we can still see the sky through the writing.
I should definitely keep the fact that the majority of digipaks use images of the artist, or images that relate to the major themes recurring in the film. For this reason, it may be an idea to have an image of the main character, and perhaps the band as well. We could also reference an event in the video.
Mise en scene
ow are we going to utilise mise-en-scene in our music video?
Lighting is often overlooked when talking about mise-en-scene but we want to use lighting to create an atmosphere as well as captivating the audience. One idea would be to use flares combined with lens flares to create a streak of light across the screen. This is a powerful image and something that isn’t done often; it will set our music video apart from others and it is also an interesting and creative technique.
The lead singer plays an important role in our music video because we are following his story and the video revolves around him. However, we also want to make him look vulnerable and make the audience empathise with the character. The use of props and lighting will reflect heavily on the character, as will their surroundings. For example, looking in a mirror in a rundown bathroom will give connotations of his emotions or rundown life.
For costume, as the theme of our song is ‘rebirth’ we feel it would be important to change the costume of the lead singer. Binary opposites of black and white are likely to be used for the costume with changes throughout the song to indicate progression which leads back again to the connotations of change and- with white, for example- innocence.
To communicate the rock/indie genre it is typical of other bands to use instruments as props in their videos so we are likely to do the same as it is a reference to the genre to show we understand different conventions. This can also be said for costume as there seems to be a ‘dress code’ for indie bands with certain clothes being worn and certain clothes being avoided.
The message of our song is the change in life so we can show that through a variety of locations to once again reflect the change in character but it also is an effective way of telling the audience what is going on without explicitly stating it.
To attract, appeal and entertain our audience a lot of unique techniques and elements may need to be used. We are considering unique lighting effects as well as abstract ways of delivering our message and also a unique take on the song through the video. The twists in the narrative are also good examples. The non-linear structure of the video would appeal to the audience. This is similar to other videos in the genre including The Killers’ video for ‘All These Things That I’ve Done’
By Connor Sleet, Bradley Russell, Ryan Almond, Jacob Caria-Preen
Description of Target audience
Our song (Muse-Feeling good) is classed under the alternative rock genre. This genre can be seen as similar to the indie genre, as many of the themes portrayed in songs are the same. The look of the bands in both genres, however, are very different.
Although they have the word 'alternative' branded unto them, the bands in the genre are essentially rock bands. This is echoed in the songs. They tend to be loud, medium pace, with a heavy drum beat and bass line. The melody in this genre is not as important as it is in the pop and hip hop genre.
The majority of rock audiences come from the late teens (16) and early/mid twenties (20-25/6). The fans of such bands will generally follow these bands for much of their adulthood once they have started listening, as sometimes the artists image is just as built up as the music is. One example of this could be the fan base of '30 seconds to mars'. Although the majority of their fanbase may be in their mid-late teenage years, there are also plenty of adult fans who still follow them. This is because the band was formed in the late 90's, when the fans who are now approaching 30 would only have been 16 or 17. This genre of music tend to to use a performance style video as rock bands rely largely on their public image. 30 Seconds To Mars are no different to this, however their videos often follow concept based videos with a performance aspect. One example is their video to 'This is War'. The band act as US marines on patrol in Afghanistan, with the theme of war being played out. There are plenty of graphic match ups, however the main singer, Jared Leto, is seen singing with the video.
This is the sort of fanbase Muse has managed to garner, so it would make perfect sense if we were to appeal to the fans the band has already built up; rather than attempt to gather new fans.
We will be aiming our video at the CDE social demographics. This is because the majority of our fans would be very likely to still be students. This means that although many may be highly intelligant, they do not live a lifestyle that is sufficient to be in the B-A demographics. We will, of course, have some abnormalities. There could well be members of the higher demographics that wil enjoy and watch our music video, as we intend to portray a deep video with plenty of rich and contrasting colours, creating a wide range of visual effects that (we hope) will be stimulating to watch.
From the uses and gratifacations theory, we intend to offer our audience the Identifacation, escape and entertainment uses. We hope that although some viewers will be able to identify with the depression that our character feels, we do not want them to identify with the situation he finds himself in. We hope to change their view on the world by using bright colours throughout, which will steadily increase in brightness and vibrance in order to show how the world can be a bright and cheerful place.
The escape use will be used in the fact that the main character will clearly be enjoying his long walk through both country and city. The vibrant colours should also provide a sense of the world as our character is able to see it- new and fresh.
The final 'entertainment' is going to be represented through the use of colours, creative shots and interesting locations. We will also use the storyline to keep the viewers interested, and hopefully the final plot twist should give the viewer something to think about.
Although they have the word 'alternative' branded unto them, the bands in the genre are essentially rock bands. This is echoed in the songs. They tend to be loud, medium pace, with a heavy drum beat and bass line. The melody in this genre is not as important as it is in the pop and hip hop genre.
The majority of rock audiences come from the late teens (16) and early/mid twenties (20-25/6). The fans of such bands will generally follow these bands for much of their adulthood once they have started listening, as sometimes the artists image is just as built up as the music is. One example of this could be the fan base of '30 seconds to mars'. Although the majority of their fanbase may be in their mid-late teenage years, there are also plenty of adult fans who still follow them. This is because the band was formed in the late 90's, when the fans who are now approaching 30 would only have been 16 or 17. This genre of music tend to to use a performance style video as rock bands rely largely on their public image. 30 Seconds To Mars are no different to this, however their videos often follow concept based videos with a performance aspect. One example is their video to 'This is War'. The band act as US marines on patrol in Afghanistan, with the theme of war being played out. There are plenty of graphic match ups, however the main singer, Jared Leto, is seen singing with the video.
This is the sort of fanbase Muse has managed to garner, so it would make perfect sense if we were to appeal to the fans the band has already built up; rather than attempt to gather new fans.
We will be aiming our video at the CDE social demographics. This is because the majority of our fans would be very likely to still be students. This means that although many may be highly intelligant, they do not live a lifestyle that is sufficient to be in the B-A demographics. We will, of course, have some abnormalities. There could well be members of the higher demographics that wil enjoy and watch our music video, as we intend to portray a deep video with plenty of rich and contrasting colours, creating a wide range of visual effects that (we hope) will be stimulating to watch.
From the uses and gratifacations theory, we intend to offer our audience the Identifacation, escape and entertainment uses. We hope that although some viewers will be able to identify with the depression that our character feels, we do not want them to identify with the situation he finds himself in. We hope to change their view on the world by using bright colours throughout, which will steadily increase in brightness and vibrance in order to show how the world can be a bright and cheerful place.
The escape use will be used in the fact that the main character will clearly be enjoying his long walk through both country and city. The vibrant colours should also provide a sense of the world as our character is able to see it- new and fresh.
The final 'entertainment' is going to be represented through the use of colours, creative shots and interesting locations. We will also use the storyline to keep the viewers interested, and hopefully the final plot twist should give the viewer something to think about.
Music video plan, and timeline of song
Intro:
EXT- Before the music starts we see a man standing on the edge of life in dark clothes on a rooftop who looks like he is ready to jump to his death. It is an eery morning setting just on sunrise and we can hear jumbled voices in the background that sounds like arguments. This then fades out.
Music Starts:
INT- We now cut to a man who is waking up in a messy room and he is represented from a high angle to show his vulnerability. It then zooms out from his face and we the room in more detail. He then gets up to open his curtains to reveal the sunlight shining on his face. He has a new lease on life and he plans to go an a naturalistic journey to 'find himself'.
We deceive the audience by showing his demise (his death not being visually shown) at the very start of the video in the quick introduction and then we gradually progress and see his journey throughout the rest of the video up until the very end where he has made his way onto the rooftop edge. In an abstract way we show a person who is different and who wants to feel good about himself, changing clothes and appearance along the way.
The man now gets dressed but is in a rush to get out of the house and goes through several places on his journey.
EXT- Parks, Woodland, Fields, Alleyways etc.
Music Plan:
Intro Scene (No music)
0.00- 0.12- Music (Intro)
0.12- 0.31- 1st verse
0.31- 0.43- 1st chorus
0.43- 0.49- Plain music
0.49- 1.07- 2nd verse
1.07- 1.21- 2nd chorus
1.21- 1.24- Plain music
1.24- 1.50- Megaphone (3rd verse up to "For me")
1.50- 1.58- "FOR ME"
1.58- 2.17- Rest of the 3rd verse
2.17- 2.25- 3rd chorus (up to "And I'm feeling good")
2.25- 3.11- Various vocals and Plain music
3.11- 3.14- "Feeling Good"
3.14- 3.17- Fading end music- THE END
Thursday, 15 September 2011
People involved
Bradley Russell
Bradley will be one of our cameramen. As well as this, he shall provide creative input to our video, as well as being part of the editing process. He will also feature as the bands drummer in the music video.
Connor Sleet
Connor will be one of the actors in our video, he will also be one of the cameramen in the group, and will help with the production and editing of the video as a complete product.
Ryan Almond
Ryan will be the main cameraman, as he is the member of the group with the most experience in Media. He will also be onset to come up with some more creative camera shots, and will play a vital role in the editing process.
Jacob Caria-Preen
Jacob is going to be the main actor in the video, providing it with it's storyline. As well as this, he shall be on set to provide input to the filming, editing and general production of the video.
Bradley will be one of our cameramen. As well as this, he shall provide creative input to our video, as well as being part of the editing process. He will also feature as the bands drummer in the music video.
Connor Sleet
Connor will be one of the actors in our video, he will also be one of the cameramen in the group, and will help with the production and editing of the video as a complete product.
Ryan Almond
Ryan will be the main cameraman, as he is the member of the group with the most experience in Media. He will also be onset to come up with some more creative camera shots, and will play a vital role in the editing process.
Jacob Caria-Preen
Jacob is going to be the main actor in the video, providing it with it's storyline. As well as this, he shall be on set to provide input to the filming, editing and general production of the video.
Shooting schedule
Shooting Schedule
Session One: Filming of the short introduction to video (completely diegetic sound). This is likely to be filmed on a rooftop, also dependant of weather.
Session Two: Filming naturalistic scenes, most likely to be filmed in Beddington park, alternate location Richmond park/ Abbey Mills.
Session Three: Filming of urban scenes in London. Perhaps finding the opportunity to include intertextuality?
Session Four: Naturalistic shots, most likely to be filmed in Richmond park. May include the re filming of some shots from previous sessions.
By Connor Sleet, Ryan Almond, Bradley Russell and Jacob Caria-Preen
Wednesday, 14 September 2011
Analysis of 3 similar products
Swedish house mafia-Save the world
This video tells us the story of 3 separate people, all who encounter some form of violent crime throughout the video. It is possible that the concept of 'mans best friend' comes into play in this video, as it is eventually a group of dogs who 'save the world'.
In the video, the soft singing and melody is played whenever the people are on screen, juxtaposed when the beat becomes louder and more majestic when the Dogs come on screen, suggesting how powerful the Dogs may be. It also suggests that Dogs are a lot more knowing than it seems.
A lot of the video is also filmed in slow motion, making the video even more dramatic. This also coincides with how the song is not always fast paced, therefore the video often matches up with the tempo of the song.
At the beginning of the video, we see how each person we are shown to be in trouble, and obviously in need of some help from the police. One young man is attacked in what appears to be a robbery in a small diner. Two women are assaulted in a violent mugging, and a middle ages man is dragged from his car, which is then stolen from him. As each of these events climax (Baseball bat being swung, women being grabbed and car window being smashed) the chorus then kicks in, almost like an alarm to anyone nearby.
This is when we get out first glimpse of a dog, brilliantly lit up (perhaps showing how each dog will become the saviour) on a street corner. The dog barks, and we then see a close up of several more dogs turning their heads and cocking their ears.
Each dog then proceeds to help out each individual who has been attacked, by pursuing their attackers one by one, almost as if each dog is a vigilante righting wrongs in the night. After each villain has been chased down and 'dealt with' by the dogs, the video ends with a series of close ups of each dog flashing on the screen, lit up by different coloured lights.
This video seems to suggest that dogs are a mans best friend in any situation, even if the situation may not be ideal for the canine creatures. The video is very surreal, as the title 'save the world' and the early events of the video suggest that a superhero may intervene, not a small gang of dogs.
Strawberry swing- Coldplay
The only things that change throughout the video are Chris Martin's character's position and the chalk drawings on the pavement.
Through the use of stop motion filming and the chalk drawings, a highly surreal story is told to the audience. The main character, who seems to resemble a superhero sets out to save a damsel in distress, who appears to be kept captive by an evil (and giant) Squirrel.
This video creates a popular tale of a woman who needs saving by a man, suggesting she is helpless without one. The story itself is very similar to many stories of women in distress. Their hero suffers a few setbacks along the way, however eventually the man prevails, proving his superiority over the enemies. This music video is no different, after setting off to save the woman, the squirrel cuts his cape, causing him to fall into a great ocean, before being swallowed by a giant cat. He then escapes and manages to fly, on a cloud, to the squirrels floating palace where it is sleeping. After waking it up and nearly falling again, he rescues the girl and kills the squirrel with an explosive acorn. They then fly to the moon and share a first kiss as the video ends.
This video is extremely surreal in content, and the strange outfit worn by Chris Martin, coupled with all of the strange colours used in the drawings amplify the fantasy tale.
The most notable feature of the video is that although Chris martin may simply be moving very slowly along the road, the stop motion and chalk drawings make it look as though he is flying through the sky, or falling down into a city. The clever editing process has made it look highly professional, as is personally one of the most creative videos I have ever seen.
Touch the sky - Kanye west
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkwQbuAGLj4
'Touch the sky' is a 1970s style short film which presents Kanye West as 'Evil Kanyevil', a play on 'Evil Kenievil'. The video is a narrative which is supposedly about Kenievil's failed jump across 'Snake river Canyon'.
The video appears to be filmed mainly from news cameras, showing off Kanye West as the stuntsman. There are plenty of fans to greet Kanye's character as he emerges from the car, implying how popular he is among the American people. There is added verisimilitude through the filming style and colours. As common in the 1970s, the video has a grainy look to it, as well as sporting a slight sepia tinge to the colours, which may have been a lot more common.
At some point in the video, Kanyevil is shouted at by whom appears to be an ex girlfriend, claiming he left her for a ' a white girl'. This suggests that Kanyevil is a bit of a womaniser, something that the media commonly portrays men as, while women are more often a lot more innocent than the men are.
Kanyevils ridiculous aim to jump the grand canyon in this video suggests that he is a very cocky man, another trait commonly shown by the media. The man is very eager and very certain that he will pull off the near impossible jump, showing his cockyness and arrogance to the audience. Everyone is also very shocked and appear saddened when his mini rocket crashes and burns at the bottom of the canyon, once again showing how loved a man he really is.
Kanye includes verious references to his own work throughout the video. For one, the Black woman he shouts at him says 'that's right, girl, I told you, when he get on, he gonna leave yo' ass for a white girl', which is a reference to his own song, 'Gold digger'. Another reference comes during the simulated 'lost transmission' screen, where the audience can see Kanyes trademark teddy bear.
The video also has a $1 million budget, making it the 25th most expensive video of all time.
Tuesday, 13 September 2011
Intertextuality
Intertextuality is essentially, a way of paying homage to another song, artist or idea in an artists music video(s). Intertextuality is not always a common sight, as most music videos are an original idea that has not been done before, or perhaps the artist and recording company simply do not wish to pay homage to another idea.
One such example is that of Coldplay's "The Scientist" music video. This was an entirely new approach to the making of the video, as the lead singer Chris Martin learned the entire song backwards, as well as singing it twice as fast in order to make a story that would unfold chronologically in reverse look professional.
One example of intertextuality in music videos would be the video to "Goodbye Mr A", performed by The Hoosiers. In this video, the band pays homage to the graphic novel (comic book) industry, with all the bands members becoming superheroes with an evil plot. There are also many other references to popular culture scattered through the video, one of the characters is seen playing a game of FIFA ( the song was featured in the FIFA 08 soundtrack), and a slight pun on 'who you gonna call' is made when one of the band members answers a phone labelled "Hoosiers gonna call".
This video is just one of many that includes such references, and for the music video I am creating, I am eager to try and include some sort of reference to popular culture if possible, however including such references can sometimes be tricky, and it is very important that if we do try and create intertextuality in our own video, it matches the context of our song, video and film style.
One such example is that of Coldplay's "The Scientist" music video. This was an entirely new approach to the making of the video, as the lead singer Chris Martin learned the entire song backwards, as well as singing it twice as fast in order to make a story that would unfold chronologically in reverse look professional.
One example of intertextuality in music videos would be the video to "Goodbye Mr A", performed by The Hoosiers. In this video, the band pays homage to the graphic novel (comic book) industry, with all the bands members becoming superheroes with an evil plot. There are also many other references to popular culture scattered through the video, one of the characters is seen playing a game of FIFA ( the song was featured in the FIFA 08 soundtrack), and a slight pun on 'who you gonna call' is made when one of the band members answers a phone labelled "Hoosiers gonna call".
This video is just one of many that includes such references, and for the music video I am creating, I am eager to try and include some sort of reference to popular culture if possible, however including such references can sometimes be tricky, and it is very important that if we do try and create intertextuality in our own video, it matches the context of our song, video and film style.
List of equipment/props
We are going to have to use muliple pieces of hardware in our filming process in order to record a successful music video. This will include, of course, different cameras and lighting equipment (among others).
Hardware:
HD hand held video camera- provided by CBSC (school)
(Possible) Digital SLR with HD recording (in order to save time and create focus pulls)
Lyrics and Storyboarding- To know exactly what we’re going to shoot
Time Schedule- To stick on task and not run over schedule.
Light stand
Microphone Boom
Mp3 or music playing device (Phone)
Make-up set: Blusher to reduce shine on band.
Tripods
Software:
Final cut express
Adobe photoshop
Adobe illustrator
Livetype
Props:
Band Clothing (varying dependant on the day)
Instruments ; Guitar, Microphone, drums. Microphone Stand.
Lighting ; Flashlight, flare
Mobile phones, and other personal effects the character may use in the video.
By Jacob Caria-Preen, Connor Sleet, Bradley Russell and Ryan Almond
Hardware:
HD hand held video camera- provided by CBSC (school)
(Possible) Digital SLR with HD recording (in order to save time and create focus pulls)
Lyrics and Storyboarding- To know exactly what we’re going to shoot
Time Schedule- To stick on task and not run over schedule.
Light stand
Microphone Boom
Mp3 or music playing device (Phone)
Make-up set: Blusher to reduce shine on band.
Tripods
Software:
Final cut express
Adobe photoshop
Adobe illustrator
Livetype
Props:
Band Clothing (varying dependant on the day)
Instruments ; Guitar, Microphone, drums. Microphone Stand.
Lighting ; Flashlight, flare
Mobile phones, and other personal effects the character may use in the video.
By Jacob Caria-Preen, Connor Sleet, Bradley Russell and Ryan Almond
Our letter to Warner
To Warner Music,
For our A2 Media project we are considering using Muse’s song ‘Feeling Good’ as you are the relevant copyright holder and hold the rights to Muse’s material we are requesting your permission to use the album version of the song in our final piece. The title ‘Feeling Good’ and the band’s name will also be used on our adverts and digipaks but they will not be used for promotional purposes or monetary gain and will simply be used as a piece of non-profit work.
The music video will not be released or be sold in any way, shape or form. The music video will only be seen by the OCR Exam Board and anyone in my media class but no one outside this circle. A copyright comment will be placed at the beginning of the music video to ensure no disputes with both Muse and Warner Music namechecked.
Yours Sincerely,
Bradley Russell, Ryan Almond, Jacob Caria-Preen and Connor Sleet
For our A2 Media project we are considering using Muse’s song ‘Feeling Good’ as you are the relevant copyright holder and hold the rights to Muse’s material we are requesting your permission to use the album version of the song in our final piece. The title ‘Feeling Good’ and the band’s name will also be used on our adverts and digipaks but they will not be used for promotional purposes or monetary gain and will simply be used as a piece of non-profit work.
The music video will not be released or be sold in any way, shape or form. The music video will only be seen by the OCR Exam Board and anyone in my media class but no one outside this circle. A copyright comment will be placed at the beginning of the music video to ensure no disputes with both Muse and Warner Music namechecked.
Yours Sincerely,
Bradley Russell, Ryan Almond, Jacob Caria-Preen and Connor Sleet
Thursday, 8 September 2011
Locations
Urban Locations
We plan to film in several natural places, in order to gain some graphic matches to the songs lyrics that depict 'sea' and 'sky'.
Location 1: Beddington park.
This location has plenty of spots where filming would be perfect. The river wandle flows through the park, so therefore we may be able to use this as a graphic match for 'fish in the sea'. There is a lot of light, as most of the park is an open space, although there are also wooded areas that can be used for darker scenes.
Advantages include it's accessibility. Like Croydon, there is a bus that goes directly there within 5 minutes walking distance of our school, and within twenty minutes on foot. This means if we were to make a mistake whilst filming, we would easily be able to return here and re film that particular shot.
There is a large disadvantage in the fact that there are a lot of pedestrians that could potentially ruin some shots, once again like Croydon.
In conclusion, most of our potential locations are easily accessable, however some may incur slight cost. There is also the risk of members of the public ruining a lot of our shots, so therefore we would have to be very careful not to get in anybody's way when out filming in busy areas.
For our urban locations, we have plenty of choices available to us. We plan on shooting plenty of urban locations as they will compliment the story line and add to the verisimilitude of our main character being a businessman.
Choice one: Croydon town center
Croydon is a very good choice for our group. This is mainly because it is a big town, and is therefore quite easy to find interesting shots. There are also a lot of side roads, which would help us try and paint the picture of a gritty urban scene, which we are very much aiming to do, as opposed to any naturalistic shots we plan on doing later in the video.
Croydon is very near to our school, which is most likely where our group will meet before going anywhere to film, and is easily reachable from there by either the 157 bus route or a tram line from Mitcham. There is also very limited cost of filming here as we all receive free travel.
One drawback of filming in Croydon could be that it is often very busy. Because of this, we may experience a lot of people crossing in front of the camera while filming, which would mean taking more time to reshoot, wasting valuable filming time.
Choice two: London city
We have chosen London as a location as e feel we want to feature famous landmarks, which will hopefully cause a lot of people to identify with the settings, and (hopefully) our main character. The picture above is a shot that we definitely want to try and do, as the background is very interesting, and should look very good when our character is walking down the bridge.
One problem with traveling to London is that is may not be cost effective in terms of the amount of footage we could gain from a single trip. For instance, it can be expensive to travel to London on a regular basis, so it would be vital that we get most of our planned shots done to perfection in a single trip. It is also a very busy area to film in, and it is possible people may get in the way of our shots constantly.
One problem with traveling to London is that is may not be cost effective in terms of the amount of footage we could gain from a single trip. For instance, it can be expensive to travel to London on a regular basis, so it would be vital that we get most of our planned shots done to perfection in a single trip. It is also a very busy area to film in, and it is possible people may get in the way of our shots constantly.
One major positive is that we can get some impressive shots from anywhere in the city, as there are plenty of interesting shots scattered around, from Trafalgar square to the millennium bridge, we can definitely find some great places to film.
Naturalistic Locations
Naturalistic Locations
We plan to film in several natural places, in order to gain some graphic matches to the songs lyrics that depict 'sea' and 'sky'.
Location 1: Beddington park.
This location has plenty of spots where filming would be perfect. The river wandle flows through the park, so therefore we may be able to use this as a graphic match for 'fish in the sea'. There is a lot of light, as most of the park is an open space, although there are also wooded areas that can be used for darker scenes.
Advantages include it's accessibility. Like Croydon, there is a bus that goes directly there within 5 minutes walking distance of our school, and within twenty minutes on foot. This means if we were to make a mistake whilst filming, we would easily be able to return here and re film that particular shot.
There is a large disadvantage in the fact that there are a lot of pedestrians that could potentially ruin some shots, once again like Croydon.
In conclusion, most of our potential locations are easily accessable, however some may incur slight cost. There is also the risk of members of the public ruining a lot of our shots, so therefore we would have to be very careful not to get in anybody's way when out filming in busy areas.
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