Costuming ideas

Original Music Video Ideas

Today, Carmel and I got together to come up with some ideas for our music video. While we have already made a mind map considering things such as location, audience, location etc, we knew we had to confirm these in much more detail. In our original mind map of ideas we decided to have a narrative in our video, however we decided we would do both a narrative and story running side by side in our music video. 

Our main idea, is to have auditions for the music video taking place within our music video. We aim to film six or seven people singing different parts of the song, with one person being chosen as successful. We will then incorporate the successful candidate into the narrative of the video. We aim to film the auditions in colour, using the same background for all candidates and have them all wearing similar clothes. We're aiming for natural shots in the auditions, where they go wrong or sing the wrong line, to make sure we're making it as natural as can be. We're then going to edit the narrative to black and white to ensure we're still staying on track with the theme of the artist.

We think the costumes in the narrative should be simple, mainly black and white. The costumes in the auditions may be slightly more colourful, to show the individuality of each person auditioning. We will also style the character who gets the role to be in the music video, as similar to what will be in the video and similar to the style of the artist. This will show the character and how they have thought about the role before auditioning.

The audition shots will all be interior shots and filmed in the same place, against a plain wall, with a clapper board at the start or each scene. The narrative shots will mainly be outdoors, possibly in a much darker setting, filmed in late evening, to ensure some genre conventions are identifiable.

Defining Our Audience

I created a mind map in order to help define our audience, and gain a better understand of who our target audience is. I felt this was essential in gaining the right effect for our music video. 

Music Video Pitch

As part of our research and planning, we filmed a one page pitch, which consisted of me and Carmel answering questions about our plans for our music video. We had a camera on both us and our teachers to film both responses, and then edited this in Premier Pro, which enabled us to have shot reverse shot. Therefore making it so the audience can see the questions being asked and us answering them. 

The Male Gaze Theory.

Music Video Regulation.

 

Pitch - Initial ideas.

To make the music, I am working with Carmel, as we feel we worked well together in AS. We have decided between us roughly how we're going to distribute the roles, and we decided that I shall be in charge of the costume, filming and directing, while Carmel is also in charge of filming and directing. 
We're going to make a music video to Bastille - Laura Palmer. This song lasts for 3 minutes 4 seconds, and is of the Genre Indie-Pop.
It's argued that this song/music video, will appeal to older teens and obviously people who like Indie Pop the most, and for audiences who are escaping from reality; Goodwin's conventions - diversion from reality and life issues.
We're pondering the idea of editing the footage so it's black and white, however we also want to try and film in dusk/dark lighting outside, which will require a lot of practice to get the lighting right, so it isn't grainy. Furthermore, if we film in the dark, we will keep the colour and not edit it in black and white. We feel wearing dark, plain clothes and dark makeup will suit the genre and help with the narrative.
In order to get the quality, we feel using a DSLR would be the most appropriate to avoid a grainy effect, and using lights to get the correct back lighting. We will use a tripod for specific, steady shots, however we feel that some hand held shots would be appropriate to get across the overall effect and emphasize the narrative. 
Throughout the video, we're going to use longer shots, potentially using multiple extreme close ups to emphasize emotions, however we're also going to use fast paced editing throughout the chorus. 
Taken from Goodwin's convention's, we feel that we're going to try and create a narrative where the visuals match the lyrics, or at least fit the narrative of the song. 
The music video will fit the whole CD package, as for the website and the CD cover, we're going to try and stay with the dark theme, and possibly black and white, so everything fits with the genre and song. 
Finally, we feel that ideally we'll need about 6-8 weeks to produce and edit this music video, 2-3 weeks of this will be used for filming, and the remaining weeks will be used for editing and the rest of the package.

The most famous music videos.

As research for my music video, I searched the most famous/greatest music videos of all time. I used NME's 100 greatest music videos as I found this to be the most informative and reliable. I watched some of the top videos, in order to understand what they director did, in order to become a famous and create a good music video. The top 5 music video's were:

1. Johnny Cash - Hurt
2. Radiohead - Just
3. Chris Isaak - Wicked Game
4. Soundgarden - Black Hole Sun
5. Bjork - All is Full of Love.

Here's what I found worked well and was most common within the music videos:

• Visuals matching the lyrics
• Good lighting
• No complicated/over the top special effects or editing
• Has a narrative to the music video
• Close ups

I feel that from watching the top 5 music videos, the list above is what I found to be most common in all of the music videos, and what I found to be the most effective. There's multiple ways in which the effects listed above can be achieved. 
 

In order to achieve good lighting and gain the effects we want, which includes dark shadows and half of the face covered in darkness, we need to do plenty of practice shots. We need to have a lamp and hold the camera in multiple positions such as from a side view and close up, to see what effect we can gain from these angles. 

In order for our music video to have a narrative, we need to story board in detail and ensure we stick as close as we can to the storyboard and plan.

I believe that if my group and I accomplish all or at least some of these things in our music video, it will be a successful video. 

Genre Theories to a music Video.

'Take Me To Church' by Hozier, is a song from the self-titled album, which follows the genre of soulful rock 'n' roll, with a slight hint of the gospel genre coming through. Whilst the song lyrics them self have a meaning behind them, the music video makes you interpret it in a way which is your own, and is in some ways, controversial; which links in with the previous blog post - http://tasminebentona2.blogspot.co.uk/2015/09/response-to-q-magazine-controversy-in.html. The meaning behind the music video which the artist intended, was that the music video 'criticizes the repression of gay people in Russia'. Hozier said, 'The video has a theme - an organisation that undermines humanity'(). This ideology is definitely apparent in the music video, with the main theme in the video being the love between a gay couple, who are targeted by a gang, and one of the males ends up being attacked. 

Soul music is a combination of gospel and R&B. It began in the 1950s,and it's roots originate from four main sources: racial, historical, geographical and economical(3). Applying Altman's theory to this music video is easily applicable when you watch the music video, due to the fact this video subverts generic conventions in my opinion, as this music video is arguably controversial. This video supports the ideology that there is no such thing as 'pure' genre anymore, as this song/video is a mixture of soul, gospel and rock 'n' roll. 

Fiske's theory also applies to this music video, as the video definitely represents the zeitgeist and tells the audience something about the way of the world. This music video represents the zeitgeist, as it clearly signifies and represents the issues relating to homosexuality in Russia. I feel this music video definitely fits this theory and ideology, and it's possible that other music videos of this genre also reflect the zeitgeist and help support this theory. 

The entire music video is in black and white, which I feel also helps represent the zeitgeist. I feel that the zeitgeist is negative, and that the main theme in the music video is negative. Furthermore, black and white is seen as depressing and therefore helps get the message across that the main theme is also negative. 

I feel that the part in the music video where the two men bury the chest, with a large metal lock around it, in the ground signifies that they have to hide their love in order to protect themselves from other people who disagree and are against it. It also suggests that in Russia people have to bury their love deep in order to prevent the risk of them getting caught. I believe that this scene in the video represents the zeitgeist and supports Fiske's theory once more. 

Sources.

(1) http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=32921
(2) http://www.reflector-online.com/opinion/article_7f5adde8-b30c-11e4-af17-cfb3caaf4bc3.html
(3) http://randb.about.com/od/rb12/a/Soul_Music.htm

Response to Q Magazine - Controversy in music videos.

"When a musician starts to use the phrase 'mini-movie' to describe a video, it's time to quit" is a phrase from Dave Grohl, who's words were for the 'ripe folly of Guns N' Roses' comically excessive November Rain', however his words also came to mind for Rihanna's controversial 'Bitch Better Have My Money' premiered earlier this year. The article unpicks every detail of the music video, giving a negative impression through sarcasm, exemplified when words and phrases such as, 'snooty', 'self-regarding, hubristic and flamboyantly expensive' and 'if you missed it, it's not that complicated' which then continues to give a sarcastic synopsis of the video. The article pointed out that 'the internet unpacked the sexual and racial politics of the video in double-quick time', suggesting that there's multiple controversial parts in the video.

The Q Magazine article, September edition, expresses their opinion on recent music videos, with music videos such as Bad Blood by Taylor Swift being featured in the article, being mentioned as 'smug, 'outdated, and that 'Taylor Swift wants to cement her status as an A-List celebrity and every famous woman's dream BFF'.

The article focus' on controversy within music videos, and music videos which were perhaps made to cause controversy, however does hint that this may not always be for the worse. 'Bad Blood only topped the Billboard charts for a week because of video views'. The article then goes on to say 'without a video, Bitch Better Have My Money peaked at a disappointing Number 17 in April'. This article suggests that controversial music videos aren't always a negative thing as they help raise the song in the charts, exemplified in the Taylor Swift/ Rihanna example. 

Controversy in music videos is becoming much more common, as it is often used to gain a more press and a bigger audience. People hear that the music video has something controversial in it, or is a different style to what the artist is usually known for, and they watch it just for the reason that it's different, not because it necessarily is what they like. Controversy is also a way to get their opinion across when the artist feels as if they couldn't just say what they think. This article overall presents the different reasons why music videos are controversial.

Preliminary Piece.

Our preliminary piece didn't take particularly long to film, however we did film too much footage, in case some of our footage wasn't worth using, or what we wanted. The editing was a success, however as always, it took a some time to edit the clips to the right length and get the lip syncing in time with the song. As always, some improvements could be made, such as even though the lip syncing is timed well, there's one clip which could have been filmed again to ensure it was perfectly in time.

Album cover.

As part of our preliminary task, we created both the front and back of an album cover for the artist we have chosen. For ours, we wanted to create something which captured the artists style, yet was different to their album covers. We took photographs which suited their genre, indie-pop. On the back cover, we wanted something simplistic, yet we wanted the name of the songs, and therefore opted for a black and white image with simple, small writing. 

Preliminary Website.

As part of our preliminary task, we were asked to create the front page of a website for the artist we have used. We tried to create a realistic website, and therefore included links to information such as their latest album, reviews, tour dates and photographs, all of which were presented in a way to help capture the audience's attention. 

http://thekooksa2media.weebly.com/  

Textual Analysis 4 : Bastille album cover.

Storyboard - Preliminary task.

In order to help plan our preliminary task, we created a storyboard of our idea for the music video. We tried to make it as detailed as we could, to help guide us when filming, and also to help us prepare for our full music video task in year 13. We intend to follow this storyboard while filming, however things may change as we begin filming.

Our choices - Preliminary task.

For this preliminary task, the group I am working in, includes myself, D'arby and Carmel. The song choice we've decided to use is She Moves In Her Own Way - The Kooks. We decided to use this song, as we felt that the lyrics are quite easy and fun to work with, and it will be fun to make, as well as us all quite liking the song too.

Our initial ideas are to have the girl the song is about, as the main focus within the video, with a few shots of the couple later on to fit the lyrics. We want to go with the idea that the visuals fit the lyrics in some parts of the song, as demonstrated in Goodwin's theory. We also want to create a narrative with the visuals, showing some of the development of the relationship between the girl and the boy. We want to try and capture the genre characteristics through the visuals, in order for the audience to get a feel of what the song is about and what genre the song is.

Making a successful music video.

Today we were given a sheet with the top ten tips for creating a successful music video. Briefly described below are the top ten tips needed to help us.

1) Research.

• You need to watch a lot of music videos in order to analyse the language of the genre.
• It needs to be considered exactly what you are planning to deliver before the process is started.
• Examine how different genres work and have examples to draw upon.

2) Getting in a group.

• Sometimes it may be best not to work with your friends on a project like this, as having a good time may possibly get in the way of work.
• Decide whether you and your group work well together, have the necessary communication, organisation and practical skills needed for the task.
• Ensure deadlines within the group are set and met, in order to overcome any unforeseen change in circumstances.

3) Choosing a track.

• As a video maker you are doing a job, you don't have to like the music or even the artist. 
• Narrow it down to not on the basis of your personal tastes but in terms of which music or lyrics stimulate ideas. 
• Consider the genre for each and what a video for that music is likely to entail. 
• Going for little-known or even unknown acts avoids the problem of the artists image being imprinted on the audience's mind.

4) The pitch.

• Involve a single page of ideas, simply expressed, which would enable anyone hearing it to envisage the potential finished video.
• Needs to stand out, with a 'hook' in the first paragraph, a clear idea of location, and narrative.
• Must be clear as a group exactly what you are intending and how and why you are going to do it.
• Ideas need to be, simple, clear, with the more complications you set, the more there is to go wrong.

5) Look at previous student work.

• Look at material from a similar context to your own in order to see what can be achieved and also what can go wrong.
• Previous student work should give you and idea not only of what works well but also what should be avoided:

1. Well-known songs,
2. Overdone effects - you shouldn't use effects just to disguise poor footage.
3. Aimless driving around.
4. Scenes involving booze, fags or drugs.
5. Shots of people walking around.
6. Sped up footage or footage run backwards to cover lack of material.
7. Zooms.
8. found footage - it should be your on unless there's an exceptionally good reason.
9. Atmosphere-less stage footage.
10. Over the top stories.

• Strengths found in previous students work:

1. Consistency through to the end.
2. A clear sense of genre and artist.
3. Well-shot footage.
4. A powerful performance.
5. A good simple effective idea.
6. Judicious cutting.

6) Planning and Shooting.

• Timescale is crucial.
• The director would have no more than six weeks, from being given a brief, or first hearing a track, to plan, shoot and edit the video, then deliver it ready for the record company.
• It may not be the best thing if you have significantly longer.
• Often the most professional looking work is done under pressure to strict time constraints.
• Storyboard as much as you can. 
• Keep written records of everything so nothing is ever forgotten.
• Have time to have some costume changes so you can add variety to the video.
• Make sure you know the basics of how to use the camera, and that you have a working tripod before you go off to shoot.
• Check your footage early on in the shoot.

7) Editing.

• Break your footage down into chunks or load some footage then chop away what you definitely don't want before loading more. 
• Start editing straight away.
• Name files so you can find them and make sure everything is filed in your folder.
• Use effects sparingly and in a planned fashion.
• Line up material ready for lip-syncing. 
• It can be time consuming but it is crucial to the effectiveness of a finished piece. 
• Once the lip-syncing is achieved, you can start choosing which bits of the material will go into the finished video. 
• Cutaways can be inserted in awkward bits where miming has gone wrong or the camera is out of focus. 
• Expect to make compromises.
• May need to apply some filters to even up the lighting. 

8) Screening and feedback.

• Be ready to ask questions of your peers rather than just have say it was good or bad. 
• Try to get other forms of feedback too.

9) Writing.

• Follow the guidelines given by your teachers according to the A-Level spec which you are working towards.
• Don't fill it with excuses - blaming the equipment, the teachers, the actors etc. 
• The writing should:

1. Cover the whole process.
2. Use technical language accurate.
3. Include the feedback and our comments on it.
4. Relate it to real examples and their conventions.
5. Include an analysis of the finished product using the tools you would use to analyse real examples. 

10) Marking.

• Leave this to your teachers and look forward to a good grade.

Textual Analysis 3 - Happy by Pharrell Williams.

Stuart Hall's reception theory suggests that audiences decode the producers meaning depending on their cultural view points and experiences. 

Hall's reception theory can be applied to 'Happy'. This theory is relevant to this music video, as I have a negotiated view on it. The dancing around the street, I feel, fits with the song well, as it literally shows people being happy, which is the message being portrayed. However, I also disagree with the message, as I find it repetitive and annoying. Furthermore, the producer has however, successfully got their message across to the audience, as most of people watching this video are 'happy' afterwards. 

A completely oppositional view can be taken on the music video, as it was done so in Iran. The Iranian government forbids women being unveiled in public and dancing with members of the opposite sex. However, due to the popularity of the song, many recreations have been made with the title 'Happy from..', which led to one being made in Iran. The Iranian government didn't agree with this music video, or the recreation one, and therefore took an oppositional approach. This therefore demonstrates how each different audience member can take a different approach and agree or disagree with something.

Gauntlett's theory of 'Media 2.0' is also applicable, as demonstrated when people around the world began creating their own 'Happy in...' videos, some of which went viral. This allows the audience to engage and interact with people globally. Therefore the theory of the content being abundant, is applicable here, as it's cheap and easy for fans to create their own media. The distribution being abundant of the happy video is true, due to the video being shared globally, and the video being distributed through social media instantly.

Recreation Task - Happy.

Significant moments in music videos.

Textual Analysis 2: 3 class recommendations.

During a lesson last week, we were asked to write down a song which has a music video we like. We then watched a playlist of these songs in class, and had to write down the genre and stereotypes of that genre which were shown through the music video. 

The first music video we watched was Rat Boy - Sign On.

This music video starts off with fast paced editing, and a mirroring technique. The camera is tracking, and constantly moving, giving the sense of confusion and as if you're in the music video. The shots are mainly wide shots, with the occasional close up. This enables the audience to see what's going on. The close ups usually occur when one of the band members are on screen, in order to sell the artist and allow the audience to see who they're listening to. 

The artist is represented as casual, due to their lack of smart clothing, and their casual dark clothing, such as jeans and t-shirts. This suggests that they appeal to a younger audience, and are relaxed. Along with the aesthetics of the music video and the editing, the music video is done for a purpose of fun and enjoyment.

The genre characteristics/conventions, are shown through the music video, and suggest that it's indie music. The video also has intertextuality, and resembles the music video y Supergrass - Alright.

The music video overall creates a feeling of enjoyment for the audience, and therefore because the artists are having fun, it suggests the audience may watch it for fun.

 The second music video we watched was Olly Murs ft. Demi Lovato - Up.

This music video starts off with slow paced editing, and long close ups of the artists singing, in order to engage the audience and allow them to see who is singing. It also helps sell the artist.

The artist is represented as realistic, due to their realistic costumes/clothing. Their clothing represents what type of artist they are, suggesting they're quite realistic and relatable artists. Also, they're outfits are realistic yet slightly sophisticated, suggesting they could attract a younger and slightly older audience. Their clothing and the aesthetics and the set fit with the music and lyrics, a addressed in Goodwin's theory, as they help create a narrative to the song, of which a couple have broken up. 

The genre characteristics/conventions suggest that the artist(s) make music from the pop genre. The music video connotes the idea that the song is about love and that the couple have broke up. The video is emotional, and is represented through the actions of the artists, such as their actions being identical and happening simultaneously.  The close ups of the artist are used to show their emotions, and make the audience feel emotional or help connect with the artists. The dark lighting helps set the mood and helps get the sense of emotion across to the audience. 

The music video overall creates emotion for the audience, as well as enjoyment. The slight upbeat of the song helps create the enjoyment.

The next music video we listened to was Demi Lovato - Neon Lights. 

The editing of the music video is fast paced, hinting at enjoyment and connoting the idea of a dance environment.The camera shots are close ups of the artist mainly at the beginning, in order to help sell the artist, with the camera constantly moving. The dark lighting helps set the mood, with neon lights around, helping create the nightclub environment which therefore suggests dancing and enjoyment.

The artist is represented as voyeuristic yet realistic, which is shown through her clothing. They're wearing dark clothing yet neon makeup, shown through close ups, making them stand out. The music video is set in a night club, with lots of people dancing, including the artist. This therefore creates the idea of fun and enjoyment, which will appeal to a younger audience. The music video fits with the song and lyrics. 

The genre characteristics/conventions, suggest that the song is a pop song, especially aimed at a younger teenage audience, due to the lively, energetic nature of the song. The song resembles Kylie Minogue's - Spinning around, and therefore intertextuality is noticeable.

Textual Analysis 1: Supergrass - Alright.

Throughout the video, features of Goodwin's theory can easily be identified, however they are also subverted in some aspects of the video. The genre of the song is pop/rock, however the music video doesn't follow the conventions of a rock music video, however it does follow the conventions of a pop video as it's lively and fun.

The relationship between lyrics and visuals isn't as strong as the relationship between music and visuals. The music and visuals have a strong connection, as when the introduction is beginning, the video switches to a man playing the introduction on a piano.

Throughout the video, there;s lots of close ups which helps the audience clearly identify who each member is, and therefore can help promote the song/music video.


The music video opens with a blue circle, with 'supergrass' written on, with 3 silhouettes and a disco ball behind them, all within the light blue circle. This spins clockwise, with the black background behind them slowly shrinking, whilst the image of a vinyl appears, with the logo in the middle of it. This gives the sense that the people in the music video are going to be singing along to the vinyl, and therefore the music video may be more informal than in a studio. 

The idea of them singing to a vinyl is subverted when the video switches to a clip of a man playing a piano on a beach, which is the introduction to the song. This connotes the idea that the video may take place on the beach. However, it also gives the implication that the music video may be informal and fun, as the man is dressed in a black suit with ridiculous white beading all over it; therefore implying the video will not be formal or serious.  

Further into the song, we see a wide shot of the three member's in a double bed, with a multi-coloured/patterned patchwork quilt, on the beach. This suggests immediately that the video is weird, yet fun and different, therefore creating enjoyment for the audience. Due to the fast paced movement of the video, with short and sharp cuts frequently, it makes the audience engaged, as they're having to keep up with what's happening. It also, again, creates the sense of enjoyment and fun throughout the video. 

The reoccurring theme of carelessness and humour is continued throughout the video, which is exemplified especially in the clip where one of the men is sat, in what looks like a living room set up, with an armchair, a tall lamp, two small tables either side of the chair with a phone on. However, this set up is on the beach, with hands waving around behind the arm chair. This continues the theme of ridiculousness. 

Throughout the whole song, there isn't a serious aspect at all, however the video does in someways link with the genre and theme of the song, with the lyrics suggesting that they;re young and can do what they like, which is magnified through the music video. 

Introduction to A2.

With exams behind us, it's time to begin A2 media! With this, comes the task of producing a music video. Our main brief is to produce a promotion package for the release of an album. This package includes producing a music promo video, whilst also completing two out of the three following tasks;

• A website homepage for the band.
• A CD inlay for its release as part of a digipak (CD/DVD package)
• A magazine advertisement for the digipak (CD/DVD package)

Whilst I am not sure which two of the three tasks I am going to complete, I intend to complete whichever tasks I chose, in much depth and detail with plenty of planning, as my group and I planned very much for AS and it proved effective.