Character Profile of chosen actor

I have asked Maria to star in my my music video as she fits the brief in terms of what i am looking for as the main actor in my music video. To follow the stereotypical characteristics of the indie/accoustic/folk genre, i wanted the actor to have natural qualities and a hippy-esque feel about them and the confidence to perform quite well and naturally. This was asking quite alot, but luckily, my close friend Maria was happy to do it, i wanted someone with very long hair which she has (longer than the enclosed picture), she is also quite natural looking and i believe she will play the part well. 

when planning costume i attempt to follow the stereotypical fashion of the indie/acoustic/folk genre,i have studied how artists from the same genre dress and have focused mainly on female performers such as Sarah Versprille (Pure Bathing Culture),

Fiona Apple (Fiona Apple),  Eliot Sumner (I Blame Coco) and last but not least Florence Welch (Florence & The Machine ).

storyboard decisions

For the past few weeks i have been quite confused at where to start with my storyboard, because of this i have been drafting and re drafting storyboard ideas to get a better idea of what shots i may use and the duration of those shots. I have not started illustrating yet as i do not want my lack of drawing capability to confuse me further, so i am going to analytically describe each shot in a fair amount of detail then draw the shots when the writing is finished.

Evaluation of Group task music video

As a mini-project, we worked in a group of 6 to deconstruct and reconstruct 30 seconds of a media text, which because of our chosen brief was a music video (we chose Ed Sheeran - The A Team). The group of 6 were me, Ruby Dearness, Aimee Bant, Chloe Carroll, Jodie Gibson and Abbie Hastings. We chose this specific music video out of our group because it had various different shots and we had the ability to learn how to edit with the new media software as our video had high contrast and was in black and white. I think if we were to do this project again we would definitely focus on a video which had lip sync in and more quick shots to improve our skills for our later project.

We reconstructed 30 seconds of the music video which we chose to be 20 seconds in as the first 20 seconds had a lack of editing and was just one shot. Firstly, as a group we watched the music video and decided what kind of setting we were going to use and when we would have time and all of the group to shoot sand edit, we decided on times when we all had study periods and when we could all get together at lunch, because we knew that more time means more ability to get it right and not have to rush. I think as a team, we organised our self concisely and i think this was a major strength of the success of our project. 

We set up a production schedule, and made sure we stuck to this, especially because we had a limited time. Chloe had the video on her phone so when we were filming we could compare the shots on the video to our shots and to make sure the timing was correct for every shot. I think one thing we could have improved on is making sure we made use of the video storyboard so we didn't have to rely on the video - a lot of the time it didn't work and we spent a lot of time waiting for the video to load. 

After we had filmed every shot, we had a lot of time left for editing so we took advantage of this. We let Ray talk us through the different techniques we could use as he had knowledge on how the editing system and when he left us to our own accord, we decided to look at how we could best duplicate the Ed Sheeran music video with the editing, as it had a strong black and white effect with no grey and a strong contrast. I think it was good that we had a lot of time left for editing because we didn't have to rush.

We had to name each shot which took time and patience and then placed this on the editing timeline, we then cropped down the shots to best copy the video and making sure we stuck to the timing of each shot. We then used the black and white contrast technique then changed this so the contrast was slightly higher and black and white was stronger - this differed between shots as some shots had quite a white background.

After we had editing, we asked Ray to export the video, and by then we had a final music video. I think if we were to do this all again, we would most definitely choose something more complex for more of a challenge, aswell as something with more props and more use of mise en scene, maybe even something more abstract. 

Final Music Video

Codes and Conventions of Selected Brief

Codes and Conventions of selected Brief

For my A2 media project, I have chosen the music video promo brief, along with a promotion package for the release of an album and a website homepage for the band. 

I want my promo music video to fit into the codes and conventions of an established music video, as well as the style, therefore I would have to think about the genre, narrative, media language, representation and audience theory to establish a similar youth subculture audience as well as to ensure it was clear which genre it belongs to. I have yet to choose between the three forms (narrative, performance and artist) but have researched into them. Here are some codes and conventions of music videos, split up into the three forms. 

A music video is a piece of marketing merchandise to promote the artist and sell the product, and is the ultimate medium of the postmodern world. The codes and conventions of a music video vary depending on the genre of music; however, some can be general. General conventions I have found to pop up through all genres are the following: 

the artist is shown performing 
the lyrics of the song influence what is shown in the video 
the pace of editing fits the pace of the music 
the codes of dress reflect the mood of the song. 

Thinking about narrative music videos, I have found that the main convention of this form is that the music video contains a series of events that both make sense to the audience and appear to be unified in time and space. So as to ensure repeated viewings and the effective marketing of the band/artist and song, the narrative code must be loose or simply suggestive rather than realistic or detailed. 

I have also looked into the conventions of a band or solo artist performance and have found that a degree of authenticity of the performance is sought by the band and the director so we often find lip-syncing close-up, mimed playing of instruments, repetition of chorus shots to enhance repeatability, unusual camera shots and angles (e.g. the micro camera shots attached to the neck of a guitar, sweeping crane shots to film audience reaction to the band playing etc.). The solo artist conventions follow many of the band performance conventions plus choreographed dance routines to enhance permeability. Also, a first-person mode of address directly engaging the viewer through the camera which involves many close-up shots of eyes rolling and gesturing and if the video is a hybrid form cutting between performance and narrative then the solo artist or band lead singer often becomes part of the narrative story, acting as narrator and participant at the same time. Thinking about my specific genre (indie/electro),i have found the costume tends to be laid back yet reflects the personality of the music, and instruments are usually shown (guitars, drums, amps, etc.)

The Abstract/Image form is where the video has no reference to the song what so ever. However these styles are often cross and can be broken down and explained further. I have found this to be very popular within my chosen genre (indie/electronic) and it seems they seek out to reflect their music video as more of an art form which has a hidden meaning rather than to follow the lyrics or story. I have found a lot of the videos to have cliché imagery through the use of editing and mise-en-scene and that a lot of the abstract music videos I have researched into are very much a “surface without substance” For my genre, the music videos would use unusual props and vintage style costumes for a female band/artist. An example of where these two elements can be found is in the Kate Nash video for ‘Foundations’. Props such as toothbrushes, socks and watches have all been used to link with the lyrics but create a quirky tone to the artist and video. The artist’s costume consists of an old-fashioned vintage style dress, which is considered fashionable at the moment, however as the style is dated this gives an unusual feel to the artist.  

The idea that youth culture is expressed very freely has transformed the music video not only into the most effective tool for promotion within the music industry, but into a powerful ideological force as well Abstract music videos are on a visually artistic level, which enters the realm of culture, if not art. Doing this, my music video will employ strong beliefs and will function within society at a deeper level, as well as allowing me to be creative. 

Indie music videos have a certain ideology of being anti-establishment and appeals to those who consider themselves to be anti-establishment to some degree. This is why the lyrics are largerly about rebelling, such as sex and drugs. The lighting is usually low-key, and is sometimes on a stage sometimes with disco type lights. Other cinematography are MCUs of band members, wide shot of entire band, close ups of vocalist, close ups of instruments, long shots of entire band, panning shots, high angle/worm eye/ disorientated angles and the majority of the shots are with a handheld or steadicam. I have found a particular pattern in the figure expressions are laid back/uncaring, they are sometimes they are semi-headbanging with the music and the singers lean into the microphone whilst holding the guitar quite high up. The location is usually set in a studio, a small room, a rehearsal space, a stage, or rural outdoor area. 

For example, indie music videos often portray rebellion by the use of mise-en-scene and pace of editing, often provoking an attitude or ideology to be portrayed and amplified within the audience. The Killers's "Runaways" video is a prime example of this, although the video provokes rebellion and chaos it still strictly follows the same conventions of indie music videos.

codes and conventions of 2 media texts

Tribes - We Were Children

Entirely performance based, this was particularly inspiring, as this is something seemingly rare to come across when viewing indie/rock/folk music videos. The video represents the indie folk genre by use of live footage, as opposed to studio shot footage that is seen in pop videos, and Is set above a shop in Camden town, an area in London where music of that specific genre is appreciated.

They capture the audience (prominently young) probably more than the band, which reflect the indie ethic and the connection they have with their audience through viral messages for example, as opposed to the pop culture, especially with Tribes, who depended on word of mouth and live performances to spread their message., no narrative or concept is shown, it is just the band performing to the masses and is a way to advertise themselves in the same kind of DIY way. The video portrays youth as strong, energetic and full of zest, a message i want to portray through my music video.

fast zoom in zoom out shots are used filmed with a shaky handheld camera, which gives the impression the music video isn't very organised and is purely just for the sound performance of the band. throughout the mise en scene, we can see various signs of Britain such as the red London buses and England flags in the background at one point, which could show the band want to reflect their routes and where they came from.

Infact, this video was filmed in just three shots, as this is what it took before the police arrived at the Camden residence, because of this, there is something very raw about the video with the infective energy which stops the passers-by.

Punching in a Dream - Young Blood

the video is one of energy and zest and empowering to a teenage audience. Sympathetically, it taps into their teenage angst and provides them with an idyllic world, in such high key that it is almost over-exposed (so as to create a dream-like effect) - definitely something i would like to incorporate into my design. Like other videos, i would like to create the same feeling in my music video somehow.

there are repeated shots of fireworks and sparklers. These portray how dynamic and bright youth can be, in balance with their untamed and uncontrolled image (as seen with shots of teenagers crashing down on the bonnets of cars). They also fizz and whir about along with the impassioned drumbeats and chords of the song.

The band can be seen in the video, but are not particularly glorified, they are shot individually and in the same manner as any other actor in the video, though the female and male leads hold their gaze longer with the camera.

The youth are shown enjoying a wild, care-free existence, running and tumbling through the rugged countryside and swimming naked in lakes - acts which are deemed inappropriate in a conservative society.

                                                                        

Audience Demographic & Psychographic Profile

Thinking about my chosen audience for my music video, i would have to research into their demographics and the Psychographic Profile. Demographics are split into 5 groups:

 A- Higher management, bankers, lawyers, doctors and other professionals
 B- Middle management, teachers, creative and media people eg graphic designers
 C1- Office supervisors, junior managers, nurses, specialist clerical staff - white collar
 C2- Skilled manual workers, plumbers, builders - blue collar
 D- Semi-skilled and unskilled manual workers
 E- Unemployed, students, pensioners, casual workers

By using this information, i can shape my chosen media text (music video) to appeal to a group with known viewing habits. Although, this is not of course a complete picture. It does not tell the media producters some things they might need to know, such as how much money each group has to spend each week. Some skileld manual workers, like electricians, earn more money each week than say a teacher, but they probably do not spend it in the same way. Also, demographics is only about the main earner in a household so young people at home (ie students) are not included.

I can also research into my audience by looking into psychographics - looking at the behaviour and personality traits of its members.