Evaluation Question 4- How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluating stages ?

Evaluation question 3- what have you learned from your audience feedback?

Evaluation question 2- How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary task

Evaluation question 1- How does your media project use, develop and challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

                                           

Editing my Music Video

When editing my music video I was quite familiar with the how to use the editing software from my previous project last year.

One of the technique I used was transitions between my clips, these are important to ensure a smooth and effective video. The main transitions I used was cross-disolve, cross- blur, fade to black and fade to white this is because out of all of the transitions they were the most appropriate for my music video.

Transitions 

Another technique was the changing the filters of certain clips. I did this by going in to the clip adjustments and clicking video effects. The first filter I used was vignette, I used this during my animatic scenes so that it was clear that they were the animatics and the filter gave the shot an old style movie effect and it worked well with my final project.

Changing the filter

The second filter I used was sepia. I used this during the scenes with the girlfriend scenes and this was to show the differences between the lead singers time with his girlfriend and time with the band.

Changing effect

One of the final techniques I used was the precision editor. I used this to make sure that my clips fit to the song I have chosen especially for my animatics as they have many clips for one piece of film as it was very difficult to make sure that everything was kept in time. 

Precision editor

Locations

I decided to vary the location of my music video from outside to inside. I decided to film my band playing outside as it looked very effective and was easy to obtain.

The inside shot varied from the use of 2 living rooms, a dining room, a bedroom and the back garden again they were al easy to obtain but connected with the story and also are similar to what a new band would be able to afford on a budget.

Bedroom

Back Garden

Dining Room

Front Room

Front Room

Costumes and Props

Costumes

For the costumes in my video I have decided to opt for a more indie look even though I have classified my genre as punk the costumes worked well with the image I was trying to create.

From the images above, my costumes were very everyday wear consisting of jeans, hoodies and T-shirts.  I chose this as the audience will be able to relate to these clothes because they are available for them to buy.

Props

The props I used consisted of a drum kit and guitars as these are the main components of my bands song

In the scenes of the band hanging out, I used the props of a games controls and a pack of cards as these were easy to access and also allows them to just be their selves which is the shot I was aiming for.

Another prop I used was a red bus that appears in my animatic, I used this as it links with a specific lyric in my song. 

I have also used various props that link with specific lyrics or work with the scene I was trying to create.

Final Digipack

Album Cover

Insert

CD

Back Cover

Magazine Advert

This is my final digipack consisting of an album cover, insert, Cd, back cover and magazine advert.

As mentioned in an earlier post I had an audience feedback session where we chose the photo that would be used for my album cover- because they weren't looking at the camera straight on it followed with the title of their debut song and album.

The photo for the insert was chosen as it isn't too serious so it injects a bit of a comical atmosphere that was created in the music video.

The Cd itself, I decided that grey tone would go well rather than colour as the image itself again follows the song and album title but I didn't want anything to flashy.

The back cover was done purely for a humorous effect, the fence provided a good base to put the song titles on.

The magazine advert- the photo was chosen by my peers as it is from the same photo shoot that the album cover was from so this can create an association and a brand identity for the band. I decided to base my magazine advert off of a Paramore advert- they went down the non-convectional route of  doing a landscape advert rather than the conventional portrait, I believe that because it is out of the ordinary that my band will get more attention because of it. 

Final Cut

Here is the final cut for my music video ' Which Way To Go' by The Grifters. Hope you enjoy.

Magazine Advert choices

Similar to my album cover I have two choices for my magazine advert and I am going to hold a voting session with my peers.

Album cover choices

I have decided to have 3 sample album covers and then hold a voting session with my peers on which would make the most effective album cover.

Album cover 1

Album cover 2

Album cover 3

One of these will end up as my album cover but the other two photos, one will be used in my magazine advert and one will be used in my insert.

Rough Cut Feedback

I did a screening of my rough cut to my peers so that I could get feedback which would then help me to make any changes to produced my final cut. After the screening I collected the feedback made a brief summary of what they commented on.

• Overall the music video was a great media production and fitted well to the genre of music
• The use of the animatics especially the bus worked well. 
• The performance scenes tied in well with the song and shows them as a band.
• The scene showing the photos and the following when they are burnt were good
• The ending with the path complimented the lyrics
• At the end when the picture scene of the band was enjoyable
• However the lip syncing at the beginning could be a bit sharper.
• Also the fire scene maybe too long and could do with some scenes in between.

Taking this into account I can now edit my final cut based on these points to make a better project.

Rough Cut

This is the rough cut fir my music video Which Way To Go By The Grifters. I plan to show this to my peers and get feedback and find out if I need to make any amendments.

Maroon 5's Album cover

Maroon 5

"Overexposed" is the fourth album from the band Maroon 5 and has widely successful. The band have decided on an extremeley abstract route for the cover of the album; the album cover was designed by an LA artist called 'Young & Sick'. The cover seems to be inspired by artist such as Picasso and other modern cartoonists. The cover had mixed reviews from critics some describing it as "The bright colors and cartoon images are representative of the album’s themes" whilst others described it as "it is what an episode of The Simpsons looks like if you’re on acid." In my opinion the use of color is effective in grabbing the audiences attention as you would definitely take a second look at it so it shows that the use of color is important when designing an album cover. However there seems to be too much going on and might be a little overwhelming for some people. 

Magazine advert planning

After researching what makes an effective magazine article I have decided to go down a more non- conventional route and do a landscape magazine advert as I believe this will be successful in the marketing of my band.

I am planning on having the photo as the predominate image but I am not going to have it as the back cover as I don't think that will follow the look I am trying to follow. I am going to include the bands name, album name as well as logo buttons such as the available on Itunes button.

I am going to use the software's Picasa 3, PowerPoint and Word when creating my final magazine advert.  

Rancid's Album Cover

Rancid

The album cover for Rancid's album third album "... And out come the wolves" has followed a more abstract route. The centeral image is not of the band but this works for them as it is their third album; they have already gain status through their first two that they can try and use alternative album covers.

The bands name is in a graffiti style text and this works well with the genre their music falls into. As well using the colour red connotes danger and rebelling which again is common in the lyrics of a lot of punk bands, it is also eye catching. I am hoping to incorporate to graffiti element in my digi pack however I am going to try and find a less harsh graffiti style as although the bands genre is punk they follow the characteristics of an indie band. 

Magazine Advert Research

After looking at a range of magazine advertisements it became obvious that they are mainly either a single or a double page spread and consist of an image, the bands name, any relevant information such as an album release date, record/producers logo. Some also include icons such as 'download from Itunes' All of these conventions create an effective magazine advert without becoming overwhelming.  

Shot list

Here is a shot list for my music video, these are a basic and rough idea of what I am going to include in my video.

Close up of lead singer and guitarist playing the guitar in time with music, when the music kicks in a mid shot of the band performing outside? mix of different angle shots- individual and group
cut to shots of the band relaxing playing games? cards? messing about. in between each shots of the band performing
when lyrics start close up of lead singer lip syncing lyrics.
fade to past shot- him and girlfriend- not talking? arguing? fighting? unhappy
Animatic of bus- link with lyrics
change back to past shot- girlfriend leaves- inside door and front door
fades into birds eye view shot of phone- girlfriend calling- link with lyrics
close up of guitarist singing back up- "ahhh"
back to birds eye view shot of a note from girlfriend- he screws it up, throws it away
another close up- drummer singing back up "ahhh"
some more performance scenes
close up of guitarist again- back up singing
birds eye view- declining the call
close up of drummer- back up singing
mid shot of bin full of notes- fades to over head shot

Instrumental bit- lead singer walking in to his room, heads over to notice board, over the shoulder shot of picture of him and girlfriend. Takes photo off of the notice board
back to performance scenes for the remainder of the instrumental

Mid shot of lead singer- back garden? looking at the photos
birds eye view of him throwing match into box- flame catches
Him throwing the photos in to the box one by one
photos dissolves in the flames
Mid shot of him staring at the box and burning photos
gets up and leaves
fades to him walking up a path
looks around
Animatic- broke my heart- link with lyrics
cuts to guitarist and drummer standing on a pathway- laughing and joking
fade to white- girlfriend standing on a pathway as well, looks around.
mid shot of lead singer walking up to band mates
tracking over the shoulder shot- walking up to band mates, greeting them
quick cuts of the band pulling faces- messing about

back to performance scene
band play in time with the final music
fade to black.

Loveable Rouge's Album Cover

Loveable Rouges

This is the album cover for the Loveable Rouges first album 'What a Night". They have a followed the typical route of using the band as the main image; as it is their first album they need to make a brand for the band. I like that in the image of the band they are just "messing about" which is what I want to reflect when producing my album cover. I also like the use of the graffiti for the band name as this is iconic to them, its bright, colorful and loud and immediately draws the audiences eyes to it; this will help them massively when the album is on the shelve amongst others. The cover also reflects the bands video for the song 'What a Night' as the confetti links to the partying in the video this keeps the bands branding running through all their work.

Still from the video 'What a Night' 

Filming Schedule

I started filming on the 14th March as it a convenient day for both me and my cast. I planned to film my outdoor scenes as the weather was compliant to the scenes I was trying to create.

After much re-schduling I filmed my second and third pieces of film on the 21st and 22rd March again it was easy for all my cast. After all of these filming days I had collected enough footage to edit for my rough and final cut.

Digipack Planning

After doing my research on magazine adverts and album covers I have a rough idea of what I am going approach I am going to take when making my digipack.

I want the photos I use to be very relaxed and casual to try and reflect the atmosphere of the video. I think I am going to go down the stereotypical route of having the band on the album cover as it is their debut album. Other than that I don't have any other concrete ideas for the photos themselves, I think it will be better if I just try and capture the lads unaware so that they don't look to posed.

I am going to use the software's Picasa 3, Microsoft Word and PowerPoint, I am well versed in how they work so I will be able to navigate them.  

Album Cover Research

When researching album covers it is easy to spot the key features that are usually presented, these include:

• An image of either the band or the artist, this is especially true for new artist or bands as they need to make them selves known to their audience
• The name of the artist or the band is made clear, this helps when they are on display as their audience can easily recognize that is them
• The album name
• Branding, this helps the audience to associate the album with the artist or band.

However not all album covers follow the stereotypical features and as time goes along and popularity increases bands and artist can forego features such as having an image of them on the front and go for something different.

Sophie Muller- Music Video Director

Sophie Muller is a British music video director, who has directed over a 100 music videos. She is known especially for her collaborations with artists such as No Doubt, Eurythmics and Blur. She has won awards such as a Grammy for her work on Annie Lennox's 'Diva' as well as winning a MTV Video Music Awards for Annie Lennox's 'Why'.

Annie Lennox- Why 

No Doubt- Don't Speak

Maroon 5- This Love 

Birdy- Skinny Love 

Alicia Keys- Girl On Fire

In Maroon 5's This Love video I particulary liked the use of the shots of the band during the chorus, they focused on the band as a whole and as individuals. I have decided to use these shots in my own music video as my song has two main instrumental parts to the song and this will work well with the rest of the video. 

Target audience

After choosing my band I had to make a decision on the way to market them for the audience I am trying to reach. I decided that because the band are young and new to the music scene that the obvious choice of a target audience is around the young adult to mid twenties. Although I have choose to target that age group that doesn't mean that the band can't also provide for a more mature audience like bands such as Maroon 5. It is easier and more convenient to aim for the age range I have chosen as I fall in to that category and can use my own knowledge of what bands in the indie genre are doing now that aim at that age range. I want the audience to be able to really connect to my band on a personal level as well as a musical level and this can be done by the right marketing technique of making them young, fresh faced and entertaining.

Spike Jonze- Music Director

Spike Jonze is an american director, producer, screenwriter and actor with work including music videos, commercials, films and television programs. His directing skills aren't genre specific with a portfolio spanning over many different genres and sub-types.

He has won various awards such as best direction, best breakthrough and best choreography at the 1999 music video awards for Fatboy Slim's - Praise you.

Some of his well known videos are Da funk- Daft Punk, Flashing Lights- Kayne West, Sky's the limit- The Notorious B.I.G and Otis- Jay Z and Kayne West.

Da-Funk- Daft Punk

Otis- Jay Z and Kayne West

          

OneInThree

OneInThree are a media director company etablished by Ross Cooper and Bugsy Steel. They signed to colonel blimp a London based production company who have won multiple awards, since signing to the company the lads have worked with international artists such as Bloc Party, Ellie Goulding as well as independent artists such as The Teenagers and Badly Drawn Boy.

They are well known for producing industry standard quality music videos on a lower budget. In 2008 they received the most awards that has been acquired by new directors at the music video awards. The video above is Promises by Badly Drawn Boy and it was nominated for best art direction. The comments on this video was the experimentation between light and space.

They have gone on the do adverts for major companies such as O2, Ford and Trident.

Rancid

I have chosen to look at the band Rancid to use as a case study as the vocals sound very similar to my band The Grifters.

Rancid is an American punk rock band formed by Tim Armstrong and Matt Freeman, who were famous during the 80's punk scene. The band was formed as a way to help Armstrong out of Alcoholism and with the help of his roommate Brent Reed. The band formation has changed over the years and know includes Lars Fredericksen as second guitar and vocals and replacing Brett Reed, Branden Steineckert.

Although the band is from America their style of singing represents my band The Grifters, it has an urban edgy feel to it.