So Close...Yet So Far

Hooray we finished our video! However, celebrations were short lived as after saving the final project, on reopening of the file, we had mysteriously lost a minutes worth of edited footage! Even the technicians couldn't recover our finished project! Thankfully, we hadn't lost everything as we had a back-up copy which wasn't quite finished but was better than nothing! So back to editing it is!

We Love Editing!

We are currently editing our music video, Alex is the main editor as she knows more about using final cut than the rest of us but she is teaching us and all of us are having a go! So far progress is good. Its obviously quite a slow progress as we want to get the cuts as precise and on the beat as possible, but progress is progress!

Digipaks?

For one of our subsidiary tasks, we have decided to create a digipak for either a DVD or CD of our band. However, as none of us know what a digipak actually is, I have researched into it. I found that a digipack is an alternative to standard packaging, normally made out of thick card with a plastic insert for the disc to be placed. Here are two websites which give a more detailed picture about digipaks.

http://www.mediaheaven.co.uk/digipak.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digipak
(note: as Wikipedia is a we-media product and can be contributed to by anyone, it may not always be entirely reliable.)

I have also found a website which provides templates of various types of digipaks, but i imagine we will be using the simplest style for convenience.
http://www.duplication.ca/printspecs/digipack.htm


An example of a digipak and design:

The Wonders Of We-Media

As a group we decided that the best way to target our audience is through the internet and we-media products such as YouTube. Charlie has researched we-media and its benefits.

Greenscreen!

Today we filmed the greenscreen section of our video using the studio we are lucky enough to have on the school premises. Unfortuently we aren't trusted to use it alone, which was actually a good thing as we had never used it before and needed help from the media tachnician! Filming went smoothly and i think it looks really good!

Filming Day!

Today was our filming day! Fortuently, everything went smoothly, we recorded all we needed and more just in case! Now it's time to upload and edit!

Location shots

Here are the location shots that Alex took while looking for suitable places to film our video.

Filming Schedual

Here is the filming schedule for our filming :)

And here is our filming scheduel for the studio work (greenscreen)

This will enable us to work quickly, efficiently and without missing any shots, angles etc. that we will need.

Storyboard Presentation

A2 Music Video Storyboards

View more presentations from guestebc323.

Storyboard

Here the storyboards which Laura drew up. They will guide us through our filming process and hopefully keep us on time and on track!

I have also put them onto a slide show, which is available on the left side of my blog as we thought it would be neccassary to all have them.

Ideas Please?!

Now we have carried out all of our research, now is the time to get our ideas down on paper and get the ball rolling! We will now come up with a storyboard, find suitable locations and draw up a scheduel in order for us to be as organised and prepared as possible before we film. We shall work together on these tasks but shall each have different components to provide in neat.

How We Will Use Semiotics

Even though we all researched semiotics together, Laura furthered her research into how we are going to use semiotics in our music video. She has also discussed how we will use mise-en-scene.

Semiotics

Semiotics is the study of signs and meanings. 3 areas of study are :
The sign – the picture, object, sound
The system into which signs are organised
The culture within which these signs operate

Semiotics is present and plays an important roll in music videos. If we were to watch a music video with the sound switched off we would still be able to work out the genre and style of music by the signs within the video such as: location, lighting and camera angles. For example, if a music video was fast-paced, with lots of colours, and choreographed routines with not just the artist but often backing dancers this would most likely be a pop music video, whereas indie music videos have more of a plot and tells a story. Also another way of using semiotics is in the culture within these signs operate, if the video was set in a dark location, with the artist in dark clothing this may signify the sad tone of the song. So using semiotics proves to be an important part of music video to get across the genre and tone of the song itself.

OCR links

http://getaheadocrmedia.blogspot.com/

This is a link to a blog created by OCR which can be helpful to us as it gives information about our coursework.

http://www.virtualmediastudies.com/

This is a link to an OCR media website, with information about media techniques and examples.

Target Audience...

Above is a small sample of the 20 questionnaires we handed out to a range of different people of all ages, both male and female.

As our band 'The Carpet Monsters' are predominantly an indie band, and having decided that the style of video we make is going to be along the indie genre line; from the target audience questionnaire responses, we now know our main target audience is teenagers and young adults. This means we can produce our music video around both the conventions of an indie music video as well as what would be suitable and entertaining for a young person.

Also, we asked in the questionnaire, what an individual would want to see in a music video. The most common response we received was an element of performance (including instruments) which we will now make sure we include.

Finally, to get ahead in our subsidiary task (making an advert) we asked in the questionnaire what music magazines they read; the most common responses from our target audience being Kerrang! and NME. Therefore, we will aim to produce an advertisement which would possibly be printed in those and similar magazines in order to reach our target audience.

Sound And Lighting.. Two Vital Elements

Sound is probably the most imnportant part of our music video as it is the base of which are to create the visuals! Lighing also plays an important role. Charlie furthered her knowledge into these two key areas and i have learnt much from it!

Camera Angles

As practice for our video, we experimented with different camera angles to see which looked effective. Here are stills of the different angles and our opinions of them.

1. Long shot - I like this camera angle as you see the artist in full as well as some of the location and mise-en-scene. However, this type of shot it often used to set the scene so may not need to be used very often.

2. Mid shot - This shot is effective as the artist fills most of the shot, drawing the attention to her. Also, as she is playing an instrument, as well as seeing her face, we see her playing. This is probably the shot we will use most often.

3. Close up - I like this shot as you can see the emotion of the performer which signifys both the narrative and mood of the video. I think this shot would be most effective if used fairly frequently but not as often as a mid-shot.

4. Extreme close-up - This shot clearly shows emotion of the face. But will also be good to show the playing of instruments.

5. High canted angle - This shot would be effective if trying to make the person look small and iferior, however this is not what we want to do and it does not create the desired effect, therefore we shall not include this type of shot.

6.Low canted angle - This shot would have the oppisite effect, to make a person look bigger. However once again, we are not looking to create this effect and also you cannot see the performers face very well so once again, we shall not be using this shot.

Next Target

On Thursday, as a group we are going to experiment with camera angles, using ourselves as the both the camera operators and a friend as the stand-in singer, in order to get a few ideas of what camera angles work and look effective for our music video.

A Music Video For Who?

All media texts, whether it's film, animation, print etc. has and needs a target audience. This is a specific group in which the product is aimed at. To determine what our target audience we have composed a questionnaire with questions about their tastes in music and their views on music videos in order to work out the target audience for our project. This will enable us to meet the conventions, stereotypes and general viewing pleasures of that particular audience in order for us to make a more successful product!

More Deconstructions

Laura, Charlie and Alex have also produced their own deconstruction's of a music video. Laura has focused more on the conventions of a music video, as have Charlie; where as Alex chose to look more at the style of the video in order to find inspiration for our video.

We thought it would be most beneficial for more than one of us to deconstruct a music video in order for us all to gain knowledge and understanding of how a music video works.

A Short Deconstruction Of A Music Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsq3iNW60us

The video I looked at was Love on the Line by the indie/pop/electro band Crazy P. There were many different aspects which made the video successfully and interesting to watch.
Match on action such as the turning up of the volume as the song volume level rose at the beginning of the song, gave a sense that the person was really turning the volume up, creating a sense of the audience being on the video. Also a typical convention of music videos according to Goodwin is the visuals illustrate the lyrics. This is not evident in the video as a whole as it is an abstract, non-linear narrative, but occasional hand gestures by the lead singer does in fact reflect the lyrics.
A variety of camera angles are also used, such as the basic mid-shot but also more creative shots such as a high canted angle. This gives the video an edge by using a large variety of shots, keeping the audiences attention. Another convention of all music videos is the use of close-ups. Love on the line was no exception with close-ups on the lead dinger and band playing their instruments remind the audience of the dominant performance element, which is the main feature of the video.
The use of iconography is also effective within the music video. The mise-en-scene is simple, with the band being the only feature to white background, which makes them stand out. This is typical of an indie video as the most important part of a band, is the band, rather than making a display for everyone to see. The clothing is also everyday, western attire, using the basic opposites of black and white. The only exception is the lead dinger who has a strip of pink, making her stand out as the lead. The only props are of two large cassette tapes which are iconic symbols of music.
The video Love on the Line by Crazy P, follows many of the typical conventions of a music video, all of which I think are aimed at a young adult audience, due to the fun-natured tone of the video.

Conventions Of A Music Video

Conventions are a set of generally accepted norms or criteria. All types of media carry there own set of conventions and music videos are no different. I researched the conventions of a music video and listed below are the most common and universal.

Lyrics: establish a general feeling/mood/sense of subject rather than a meaning
Music: tempo often drives the editing.
Genre: might be reflected in types of mise-en-scene, themes, performance, camera and editing styles.
Editing: the most common form is fast-cut montage, rendering many of the images impossible to grasp on first viewing, so ensuring multiple viewing. Often enhancing the editing are digital effects, which play with the original images to offer different kinds of pleasure for the audience.

Another alternative but with similar ideas is Andrew Goodwin's theory:
· Visuals either illustrate, amplify or contradict the lyrics and music
· Genres often have their own music style/iconography
· Close-ups should always be included
· Intertextual references are also popular

The Age of Stupid

Along side our project, in preparation for our exam, we are studying postmodern media. Yesterday, I got the opportunity to watch a screening of "The Age of Stupid" a new film about global warming by director Franny Armstrong. It is a post-modern film, about a man living in 2055, looking back at present footage of the factors that lead to global warming, practically destroying the planet.
http://www.ageofstupid.net/

The fact that the film was post-modern was beneficial to me, as we are studying post-modernism for our A2 exam. I noticed different aspects which made the film post-modern.

We watched the film in a local independent cinema, Cinema City. It's different from a major company cinema as it's smaller, meaning there is less distractions as there is less people. However, personally, I did not find it any different than in a larger cinema, but I acknowledge that for some people it would be preferable.
http://www.picturehouses.co.uk/cinema_home_date.aspx?venueId=nor

Update

We have now received the completed questionnaires which we will upload and analyse. This will enable us to deconstruct a few current music videos which relates to the answers the band gave (artists mentioned etc.), in order to find out the conventions of a music video and other techniques such as lighting etc.

Band Questionaire Answers and Analysis

Here are the answers we received from the band and Alex added a small bit of analysis along side to help us understand the band more enabling us to produce a music video to suit their style and also to get a better picture about the band we are produng our entire media project around!

Grilling The Band

We were planning on conducting an interview with the band to find out their influences and more about their style of music. However, due to timing and work commitments this is not possible, so we are going to email each band member a questionnaire instead. These are the questions which we shall include in our questionnaire and send to The Carpet Monsters:

• How would you classify the music you perform?
• Who are your influences?
• Are there any current music videos which you like and would like your video to be like in any way?
• If you could compare yourself to any artist, who would it be and why?

We have made our questions quite open, giving the band the opportunity to elaborate their answers, giving as much detail as possible, so we can work to their ideals as well as our own.

The Carpet Monsters?

The band we are filming are The Carpet Monsters, the band members consist of:

Laura Hooper - Vocals
Matthew Castle - Guitar
Simon Durrant - Bass Guitar

They've been together since 2005 and play at local pubs, and beach festivals.

They have an album named 'Down to the Cuboid' and the song we have chosen in called 'Keep On Rolling'.

Check them out on Myspace!

A New Beginning

After discussing the options available to us, we have made the decision to join and work on the project with Alex Castle.
We came to this decision because we were finding it difficult to find an original artist who was able to commit to working with us as it would have taken up a lot of their free time. Alex, however already had a band in mind and as one of the members is her brother, we know he will be more reliable and easy to contact.

Together, we will now conduct research into music videos and begin drafting ideas for our own video.

The Best Place To Start Is The Beginning

The hard task of finding a suitable band to use in our production may be over but the hard work begins now!

Before we can even think of beginning our production, we need to research and plan first. As a group we decided it would be best to find out conventions of a music video to begin with as well as finding more about our band in order to create a suitable music video to suit their tastes and style.

We have decided to work together before giving out separate tasks so we can all receive the basics understandings before it gets too complicated.

First Things First

As a group, our next target is to decide and ask an artist who we will be making a music video for. We will then interview them to get initial ideas for the video.

We then need to decide what other pieces of media we are going to produce in conjunction with the music video for the subsidiary tasks.

We will be working together on this task so do not have specific duties.

Brief

We have come to the decision that for our A2 Media Studies coursework we are going to produce a music video. We chose this as we feel as a group, we have the strengths and qualities needed; we all have a keen interest in music and I personally have been involved in creating a music video previously.

I will be working with Laura Burroughs and Charlie Stokes on this project. I think we will work successfully as we all bring individual strengths but also work well as a team.

We have decided to use an original artist rather than a established, signed artist as it will give us more freedom to do what we want, as there won't be any preconceived ideas as to what their video would or should be like. Also we will have the advantage of working closely with the artist, meaning we can make a video suitable for them.

We are undecided on what other aspects of music promotion we are going to use, but by researching the options available, we will come to a better, more informed decision.

OCR Specification

Below is a link to the A2 Media studies specification for OCR, which is the course we are doing. I thought it would be a good idea to have quick and easy access to the site, as it would benefit us because we can easily check to see whether we are following what the specification states and hopefully fulfill the criteria.

http://www.ocr.org.uk/qualifications/asa_levelgceforfirstteachingin2008/mediastudies/documents.html

Welcome!

This is the blog i shall be using for my A2 Media Studies coursework.

Enjoy!