Planning: Call Sheet

Group Post: Planning - Evaluating the film shoots

When we filmed in the abandoned building location, I feel that these are the things that went well:

• Because of the good weather, we were able to film exterior shots
• Because of the wind, in the exterior shots we have Emily's hair blowing in the wind
• Good natural lighting was in the interior shots, providing soft light through the windows

However, these are a few things that we found difficult:

• Because both of our stars are not too fond of heights, it was difficult to get them onto the introduction shot on the rooftop, and the final verse was recorded at reasonable heights as well, making the stars a little anxious. However, this was fixed as we all sang the verse together to reassure the singer.
• The opening shot which included the female star spray painting onto a wall was quite difficult, as the wind was getting out of control, and the paint was very difficult to apply. We resolved this by waiting out the wind and painting from a closer range.
• The shot with The Dorothy shoes was quite difficult to shoot as the shoes were a little too big for the actress, therefore she found it quite difficult to get her heels to touch.
• In the actual location, the ground floor was very dark and difficult to maneuver in, therefore it took is some time to find our way around into the lighter parts of the building.
• Because we could not find an empty brick wall in the building, we had to settle for shooting only one of the opening sequence in the location.

Responsibilities

Planning: Greta's House Storyboard

Planning: Brigg Town Storyboard

Conclusion: Institutional Research

• This has influenced my research and planning as it has given me an insight on the vast popularity of You Tube and how popular it can make artists due to the mass amounts of views and recognition they receive from having talent and broadcasting it.
• This has influenced my research and planning as it has shown me the large market that iTunes provides and the broad audience it satisfies due to the mass amounts of different genres it has. It has also influenced me to make links to iTunes when adverting our artist.
• This has influenced my research and planning as it has shown me music can be harmful to music sales and it partially deprives artists of their royalties.
• It has also shown me how popular Spotify is due to its versitility of being on many different devices. I may choose to put our star on spotify on the ancilleries linking them to spotify due to this. 
• This has affected my research and planning as I am now aware of how popular it is within youth culture but primarily for the wrong reasons e.g. copying music and breaching different laws which deprives artists of earning their deserved keep for good work.

Conclusion: Music Video Research

• I have a better knowledge on social comments related to ethnicity and racism in music videos.
• I also have a better understanding of identifying concepts in music videos. 
• The close ups of him singing into camera with a careless attitude as it addresses the audience and presents the artist almost as a narcissist. 
• The special effects and CGI used in this video are very effective and we may be able to produce something similar but to suit a lower budget
• This has influenced my research and planning as it I have a better idea on social comments within a concept/narrative, I may choose to use this in my music as it is a very effective way to get a point across.
• This influenced my planning and creativity as it has inspired me to use instrument performance shots in my video which would enable me to change the style of the video to performance and concept, this would allow me to attract a larger audience as well as giving the video a more rugged, pure rock feel.
• This has influenced my research and planning as I like the use of of colours in this video, they seem to represent segregation.
• The scale of the room is good, I like how such a large empty room is used and is made effective with the colours once again representing segregation.
• This has influenced my research and planning as it as I have noticed a convention of an Indie music video is having a location shot as an establishing shot, sometimes semiotics can also be included within the shot, this can be very effective
• I also like some of the CGI/Animiation that is used, although it may not be possible due to budget reason I would quite like to use something like this in the video.

Planning: Risk Assessment (Brigg Town)

Planning: Risk Assessment (Ryan's House)

Planning: Risk Assessment (Abandoned Building)

Planning: Risk Assessment (Brigg Exterior)

Music Video Research 11:Todorov Narrative Theory

Tzvetan Todorov's narrative theory suggests that all narratives follow a structure separated into three different parts, the first part consists of a narrative beginning with an equilibrium, where everything is happy and the characters are enjoying life and being their normal selves, a prime example of this is Michael Jacksons Thriller, this begins with Michael Jackson and his girlfriend watching a horror film at the cinema, Michael Jackson is enjoying himself and teasing his girlfriend for being scared and then they go for a walk, the equilibrium is in tact and everything is normal.

Stage 2 is where there is disruption of the equilibrium, when referring to Michael Jackson's Thriller, this is where corpses rise from the dead and walk the streets, this will be a clear problem even though the characters aren't aware of this yet.






Stage 3 is the recognition of the disruption, this is where the characters are aware of the problem and panic is often shown and the characters often show their emotions the most in the section of the narrative, in the case of the Thriller, this is where Michael Jackson and his girlfriend are circled by the zombies and they are scared for their lives and probably humanity.





Stage 4 is when someone attempts to restore a new equilibrium and repair the disruption that has been brought upon the characters, in the Thriller this occurs in effect when Michael Jackson wakes up his girlfriend from her nightmare.



The fifth and final stage is when equilibrium is restored, everything is back to normal and the disruption has left the narrative, in The Thriller this is when Michael Jacksons girlfriend has been awoken from her nightmare and she isn't been pursued by zombies and monsters. The brighter lighting also indicates a new equilibrium has been restored as the lighting reflects a more positive atmosphere.

• This influenced my planning and creativity as I have got a better idea of Todorovs narrative theory and can now identify it in a music video.
• I also like the distinctive costumes used in this video, I would like to use some costumes that stand out compared to the mainstream clothing as well.

Planning Group Post : Script Breakdown Location 5

Planning Group Post : Script Breakdown Location 4

Planning Group Post : Script Breakdown Location 3

Planning Group Post : Script Breakdown Location 2

Planning Group Post : Script Breakdown Location 1

Planning Group Post: Lyric Analysis

Group Post: TA Research 3

Check this out on Chirbit


This is our TA research post on Chirbit, this is a method of technology I have never used before. This therefore has influenced my research and planning as it has enabled me to have a wider range of skills using media technology.

Planning: Photoboard

Dominant colours: 
Yellow
Red
Black
Cream

These colours will help with the synergy in our music video, as one of the most dominant colours is yellow. This colour directly links with the lyrics of the video, as the title of the song is called 'Old Yellow Bricks.' The representation of joy and happiness within the colour can also be used when positive aspects in life are addressed through lyrics and visuals.
The red that is used within the props and the costumes  represent the danger, passion and sex appeal. The relation to Mulvey and the male gaze will be a theory that we will be adhering to with the colour and the voyeuristic costumes/movements, and we rely on the colour red  a lot in order to use this theory.

The use of black and cream in the shots are used to link to the lyrics which refer to nostalgia, and the thought that things were better back then. So we use these colours to try and represent this longing for nostalgia.
The black links more to the neutral/ earth tones within the costumes and the props/locations, as the dark colour links heavily to the rock overtones within the song that we can either pursue or ignore.

Costumes:

We used some contrasting costumes for both stars in order to show diversity and make the costume change meaningful. For example, the first costume on the male is a dark green/black costume which links more to the grungy/rock side of the song, and the neutral/negative parts of the song due to the darkness within the costume. We also have a slight costume change when the neutral shirt can be replaced with a black one, and during this, when we took photos we decided to give the star an aggressive expression and a vulgar gesture of the middle finger. Therefore, the dark dominant outfit can signify the negative and the aggressive side to the song.
We also have a navy/dark green flannel top which creates a more rural look for the male, however, we felt like the costume was missing something, and therefore, upon reflection, we will incorporate the red scarf in order for the singer's costume to tie in with the female's.
However, to contrast both of these costumes, we also asked the star to wear something yellow, which is the opposite of the dark outfits we have seen before. There is no back, as the colours that the star is wearing consist of yellow blue and brown. This can link to the more cheerful, hopeful lyrics and show the more content side of the star. We also decided to use the yellow in order to get the visuals to link with the lyrics (Goodwin's theory).

The female also has four costumes, which compliment the male's. The first costume consists of a Yellow jumper and a blue jean pinafore, which links to the male's yellow outfit. However, we will not have the two actors wearing yellow at the same time, as the costumes will clash too much and be too bright. I believe that we will use them when we would like to accentuate on one of the actors more than the other.
We also got the female actress to wear a red, voyeuristic outfit which will be used more when we would like to appeal to the female and the male audience (Mulvey)

Location :

Even though the rail road links to escapism we will be unable to use this location as it is illegal and highly dangerous. The path seen in the bridge image links to our target audience as this is seen of a sense of journey/travel, as our target audience are aspirers they seek travel and change. Many of the locations adhere to the conventions of indie as these are easily accessed places. Furthermore, the bridge and the alley way will give the music video a grunge/rock appearance, which we know the target audience like due to the questionnaire. We had decided on using more rural locations as we can access these and


Props :

We decided to use a red lipstick as this connotes danger, love and sex appeal which links to Mulvey's theory of the 'male gaze'. The yellow spray paint and paint links to the song title 'Old Yellow Bricks' as well as the costumes worn by the actors. Furthermore we plan on using the yellow paints in a rebellious and teen angst, which is used to portray youths in our music video.

Research TA 2 Analysis Flickr Group Post

Positive Comments:

• A much better exposure. Could you frame with the supports across the river?
• A lovely shot, it would make a great CU in the music video
• Like - no clutter in the background!
• A super, clean shot with just a little burn out from the flash. I like the diagonal composition.
• I love this shot - great for the MV, you could really get the l;ight to play around and flicker on and off the blade.
• The strength of this is the diagonal composition. You may be able to add artificial flare if you wanted to highlight such.
• I like the location but not sure about the plant and intrusion of the metal on the left.
• Excellent job of keeping the shadows out.
• A lovely shot - could be intriguing if you put blue screen in the mirror and then added the male star moving in it...
• I like this - two objects - two people/ stars - a couple!
• particularly like this one - but what about the partial plant? I presume that is intentional?
• A lovely shot - you could get this cropped on final cut prox into an ECU
• What about filming this and highlighting/ empahsising the 'forever' - would that work with your lyrics anywhere?
• Nice shadowless shot. Just need to photoshop out the top right corner.
• A lovely shot - i think you could film this - maybe where there are problems in the lyrics you could separate the cards and show them messy?
• I like this Medium shot pose however, she doesn't look very happy, she looks quite bored. I like the dungarees and mustard coloured top too - the make up is good on the female however, the male has very red eyes- perhaps some foundation is needed for him too.
• A lovely shot and i like the way her hair is blowing. Could be really nice cropped for use on the digipak
• I too like the hair blowing. She looks quite worried. A lovely shot
• A lovely expression and pose- could be good for the digipak. It may benefit from cropping.
• Really expressive - i love this shot. Cropping it to just below his hand would really draw their eyes into the shot and to the audience
• A great costume - i think this would be a good costume to use in the music video. She's not looking into camera which you need for promo materials so i wouldn't use it on the digipak or advert.
• A lighting issue here and quite aggressive. He looks washed out.
• This is somewhat better and has attitude. It depends really on what your intended/ preferred meaning is [Hall reception theory]
• That's a nice shot, i like the way he's leaning into her. Very subtle and well posed. It may work on a pane of the digipak
• 
  
• A lovely shot, nice angle and could be cropped to a great medium shot
• A great shot. Crop it to a medium close up perhaps as the house in the background is distracting
• Back to back shots can have all kinds of 'not seeing eye to eye' connotations. If they are singing, it might be easier for them if they stand in a slight V rather than fully back to back.
• I love this location and think it is really atmospheric. You could place your star in either light or shade. Is his name Jay?      

Negative:

• Are you planning on using this? is it disused? Remember it is illegal to trespass on used railway tracks!  
• The jacket/ costume on the male star isn't very effective - it looks too big for him. The lighting washes them out and expressions do not connote positivity.
• A lighting issue here and quite aggressive. He looks washed out.
• Strange pose and expression - quite off putting! 
• Why the back of a clock, the ornaments, the shield etc? There is a bike in the shot as well
• For a promo video - it's not very attractive.
• No. What age is your target audience?

Response to Positive:

From what can be seen here in the positive feedback we have received it is clear that our principle photography roughly adheres to the conventions of the Indie genre when looking at the comments and making comparisons to our music video research. I think all but one of the costumes used adhere to conventions of an Indie music and they also attract our TA. We have linked some of the costumes to semiotics and also used them to create synergy for the plans we have for the colour scheme on our digipak. In addition to this we also have reached out to our working class audience by having our artists wearing cheap, casual clothes. We also have a broad range of locations which has also received good feedback, we have a range of different locations that are urban, suburban, busy, abandoned, compact and out in the open so we have near enough ticked all of the boxes for this,  we can also link some graffiti at some locations which provides our TA with a small, extra story line within the narratives which may unfold some of the unknown. Some of the poses by our artists within the principle photography adhere to indie conventions yet they also begin to raise questions to the TA, e.g. Why does the female look confused and sad whilst staring into the distance?

Response to Negative:

The first negative comment highlights the fact that it is illegal to walk on train tracks as it is deemed as trespassing and dangerous, therefore we cannot use it in our vidreo which is a shame because we were going to use it as a discrete method to represent journey and how you can roughly predict what is in the near future, but cannot even begin to imagine the long term future. We think this would've been very effective when supporting the narrative towards the TA, we still intend to use it if we can get permission from the owners of a railway that is temporarily out of use in Louth.

The jacket also isn't effective on the male star in the image pictured above and this is understandable, it doesn't really have any colour towards it and looks bland and dead, this could be a reflection on the spirit of the male star in the narrative in the video however this could be portrayed more clearly using semiotics and linking it with clothing. The pose on the photo is also very off putting and I think it washes away the emotion and storylines in the narrative, therefore I agree with this and we will use another image of them for the behind the scenes images that portray them in a different light rather than what is shown on this image.     

Issues with Principle Photography

Today I went to various locations to carry out photo shoots so I had location shots for my principle photography, I took some very good shots, however, some issues stood in my way which resulted in me not being able to get every picture I wanted.
Firstly I could not get access to the abandoned building as it is under demolition therefore it is fenced off and too difficult and potentially dangerous to gain access.
Secondly, the church was locked so I was not able to attain interior shots, we still intend to film there but we will ask in advance if we can go to film so we don't come across this problem again.
Finally we also wanted an image of a well however, we did not know the location of one so we thought the best place to look would be the Brigg Garden Centre, after looking and asking around they no longer sell wishing wells so I had to leave empty handed with no shots there either.

Music Video Research 10: Instrumentals in Music Videos

Ian Brown - Keep What Ya Got

In the whole instrumental of the video location shots are used of an urban area, this seems to be breaking conventions as the artist is normally shown throughout doing something, these may be used to show the location of where the music video is going to be set.

 A caged fence is used here, it doesn't have a direct meaning however it could symbolise escapism, there also could be a reference to how trapped and restricted an urban lifestyle could be.

A time lapse is used here over the city of Manchester, this may be to show how quickly time passes however it also satisfies a Northern audience by using a Northern location in a video. As Ian Brown loves where he comes from he uses Manchester in a lot of his videos however there seems to be no hidden meaning behind his use of the city.





 
  Youth - Glass Animals

In the video of Youth by Glass Animals throughout the instrumental intro the two main characters are used, however they do not address each other, so it seems the intro is portraying the moments before they met, using the main characters in the intro also adheres to the conventions of an Indie music video. Scenic, outdoor locations are also used, this could be applying a sense of how free the youth are.

In the shot of the other main character during the instrumental intro a stressed woman at work is shown, she is at work and the fact she is indoors enhances the fact that the young boy outdoors is enjoying himself a lot more compared to the woman who looks to be portrayed as trapped. The woman is also wearing bright colours which could indicate inside she is a very bright and fun person, yet her fun spirit is overshadowed by stress from work and priorities of her everyday life. I think these shots are very effective as they already begin to unravel the theme of the video even though a lyric hasn't even been sung. This can also be linked to Camerons theory of Forking Paths, these two different story lines heavily contrast and although it is clear to see their current state it is quite implicit of how the outcome of the narrative will conclude.


 How this has influenced my planning and research:

• I really like how powerful semiotics combined with facial expressions can portray sadness and a sense of escapism in the latter video, it is very effective towards the narrative and this may be used in our music video
• I also like the time lapse of the skyline of Manchester, so much so that we have decided to put a time lapse of a skyline in our music video. 

Technology Trial 2: Final Cut Pro

On Final Cut pro X we learnt a lot about editing on the software throughout the lesson, we learned how to remove parts of the video using the blade tool, on top of this we also learned how to disable video and audio clips and overlay them.

We also learned how to apply generated gaps in the video which provides valuable space on the timeline without cutting the video short. This also provides you with more room for new clips that have been or need to be recorded.
A key part of the lesson was learning how to place markers on video clips and audio files which then allows you to sync them together.