Response to Feedback on our First Draft

This post is a video of my group discussing the feedback we received from the 1st draft of our music video.

Behind the Scenes Editing: Argument Scene

Below is a video of Sheila editing the argument scene of our music video.

Behind the Scene: Argument Scene

This post is a video of the behind the scene action during the filming of the argument scene for our music video.

Argument Scene - Filming Review

This video is a video review on the filming of our argument scene. In the video we discuss what went right, what went wrong and just the overall experience of the filming for that scene. The argument scene was a hard thing for me to film personally as I had to perform angrily which didn't come naturally to me. I found it hard to get into that character and make it last for the whole scene.

Music Video 1st Draft

Below is a video of the 1st draft of our music video.

Candle Scene - Filming Review

This post is a video my group talking about the filming of the candle scene. We talk about the good and bad things that happened and issues that we came across and how we overcame them.

 

Behind the Scenes - Candle Scene

Below is a video of us the behind the scenes filming the candle scene of our video.

Dance Scene - Filming Review

This post is a video of my group talking about the filming of the dance scene. We discuss the good and bad things that happened and issues that we came across and how we overcame them.

 

Behind the Scenes (Dance Scene)

Below is a video of the dancers from the dance scene of our music video, coming up with a choreography that will suit the style and genre of our song.

Performance Scene (2) - Filming Review

This post is a video my group talking about what we filmed on our fifth day of filming and the good and bad things that happened and issues that we came across and how we overcame them.

Behind The Scenes (Fireflies Scene (2))

This post is a video of our behind the shot scenes from our third day of filming for our music video.

Fireflies scene (2) - Filming Review

This post is a video my group talking about what we filmed on our third day of filming and the good and bad things that happened and issues that we came across and how we overcame them.

Behind The Scenes (Fireflies Scene (1))

This post is a video of our behind the shot scenes from our second day of filming for our music video.

Fireflies Scene (1) - Filming Review

This post is a video of me talking about what was filmed on the second day of filming and the good and bad things that happened and issues that had occurred and how they were overcame them.

Behind The Scenes (Performance Scene (1))

This post is a video of our behind the shot scenes from our first day of filming for our music video.

 

Performance Scene (1) - Filming Review

This post is a video of me talking about what we filmed on the first day of filming and the good and bad things that happened and issues that had occurred and how they were overcame.

 

Props Buying

Below is a video of us buying props that we are planning to use in our video.

Filming review: Opening make-up scene

This post is a video review of the filming of the make-up scene which is seen as the scene for the first verse of the song. This review includes the overall filming experience of this scene as well as the good things that happen, the bad thing and also any challenges that were overcome.

 

Fireflies Projection

Below is a video of the fireflies projection that we had used from a video that we had found on YouTube. The video we had found contained different collections of fireflies; some had different background lighting, some were in different locations, etc. We had used a particular section of the video as this one had a nice dark background which was the kind of thing we were looking for to use in our projection scene.

Response of Location Booking

This post is showing proof of the responses we've gotten from teachers about the booking of their rooms and our reply stating which times we would use.

This is a response email from the drama teacher stating the times the drama pod is available and we've replied back saying the times we want to use the location.

Actors/Actresses agreement forms

This post is a screenshot of both the main artist's agreement form and the male artist's agreement form. This agreement states that our group have both people's permission to use them in our music video.

Actors Agreement Form

Artist Agreement Form (Male Actor)

Location Bookings

This post is showing proof of my group booking our locations.

Below is the attached document in the email that was sent above, showing our groups availability.

Response of Equipment Booking

This post shows proof of one of the teachers responding to my earlier emailing asking if we were able to use the smoke machine for our music video.

Equipment Booking

This post shows proof of me booking a smoke machine that we are planning to use in our music video.

Choosing our Main Artist (1)

Below is a video of my group watching all the audionees for our music video and us discussing whether or not that auditionee is suited to be the main artist in our video.

Auditioning potential artists (screen tests)

Below is a video of 6 girls auditioning to be the main artist in our music video. They have sung their own songs just so we are able to see how the perform in relation to their song.

Preparation Schedule Plan

This post shows the preparation schedule plan for our filming. It's been organised showing dates, times, locations, scenes and equipment needed for that particular. 

Production Schedule

This post is showing a brief production schedule for our music video

Risk Assessment

Below is a table showing the risks that can occur during the filming process in our three locations.

Mise en Scene Plans

This post is showing the plans we have in terms of mise en scene for our video. Each image shows the different scenes in our video along with annotation of the right hand side explaining what each image means for our actual video

Reece

This post talks about the issues that we could come across when shooting in our different locations and how we would be able to overcome those issues.

Star Image Mood Board

This post is a presentation about the star image. We give a brief introduction to the artist and we start to talk about her image throughout the video.

Star Image by hafsahjalloh

Shooting Script

This post shows the shooting script for our music including the types of camera shots and movement we are going to use and the type of editing we are going to use.

Shooting Script

Planning Pitch

This post shows the presentation that was seen in the pitch presentation post.

Pitch Presentation

This post is a video of my group presenting our music video pitch.

Response of Focus Group Feedback

This post talks about our groups response to what was said to us from our focus group in terms of the ideas we had for our music video.

When we went to pick out a focus group, we decided on there being 3 individuals as they would be a sense of majority rules if there was a point when the group were deciding whether or not certain ideas we had for our music video were good or bad. Also, even though our target audience are females between the ages of 16-21, we thought it would be good to have 1 male in the focus group so we can see whether or not our music video would attract a male audience.

The focus group liked the ideas we had for our music video and so that reassured us that we were going along the right lines. The ideas we told them weren't overboard and they coincide with the actual meaning behind the lyrics of our chosen song.
As they liked our ideas, there wasn't much feedback when we had asked them if there was anything from our ideas that they would develop or change or if there was anything in general we could do to improve our music video overall.

They one thing they had told us was to not get carried away with our ideas and to keep it simple and understandable so we don't lose the meaning behind the song and so we don't exaggerate it too.

Focus Group Response to Initial Ideas

This post is a video of our focus group giving us feedback on the ideas we had for our music video. They were able to tell us whether or not we should incorporate certain ideas in our video and other things we could potentially use to make a music video better.

Final Music Video Synopsis

This post shows our final ideas for our music video.

Music Video Synopsis

Audience Profile

This post shows the profile of the target audience we are going for for our music video.

Mood board of ideas

This post shows a mood boards of the ideas that my group had for our music video and if you scroll over each image, there is a written explanation that explains each image.

Annotation of Lyrics

This post shows my individual annotation of the lyrics to Zendaya's Fireflies and how I've interpreted the lyrics.

Lyrics of our Chosen Song

This post shows the lyrics of our song chose, Zendaya - Fireflies.

Fireflies Lyrics

Treatment Grid

This post shows the treatment grid for my group talking about our ideas for our music video, the resources we would need and the reason why we decided on our ideas and how it relates to our song's genre and the actual artist.

Treatment Grid

Final Chosen Song

This post shows our final chosen song for our music video.

During the evaluation of our three potential songs, as a group we drew to the conclusion that Fireflies by Zendaya was the best choice for our music video. This is because we could instantly come up with ideas for a concept base video as well as a narrative base video. 

Evaluation of songs

This post is a video of my group and I giving feedback on songs that we have chosen to be potential songs that we could use in our music video. We have each picked one song and are collectively giving feedback on whether or not one of the songs could be the song we use in our music video.

Representation Analysis

In this post I have looked at  how men and women are represented in 50 Cents's Candyshop music video. Different music genre represent men and women in different ways and Rap/Hip-Hop music videos typically tend to represent different genders in the same way.

How Are Men and Women Being Represented in the 50 Cent Video

Narrative Analysis

In this post, I have analysed a narrative based video which in this case is Beyonce's irreplaceable.

The artist in my video plays both the protagonist and narrator. She plays the protagonist as she is the main character in the video and she is telling her story in the video. She is also the narrator as she is the artist in the song and she is featuring in the video.

The video portrays an objective character identity as we are only shown one character’s point of view in the video, which is Beyoncé’s.

Todorov suggests that all narratives begin with equilibrium or an initial situation (where everything is balanced). This is followed by some form of disruption, which is later resolved. With the resolution at the end of the narrative a new equilibrium is usually established.

There are 4 characters seen in Beyoncé’s video. In terms of Propp’s Theory of Narrative, Beyonce would be considered the hero in the video as she is the character that restores the narrative equilibrium by kicking her cheating boyfriend out of her life. Also, as Beyonce is the main character in the video, she is invariably the hero.
Beyonce’s cheating boyfriend would be considered the villain as he was the one to create the narrative disruption.
The helper in the video would be the taxi driver has he the one that is aiding the hero in kicking the villain out of the house.

Binary oppositions that exist in the music video would be man vs woman and protagonist vs antagonist,

Barthes identifies narrative codes which readers use to decode (understand) texts. He emphasises the active role of audiences in creating meaning, and their ‘culturally formed expectations’. The narrative code that exists in Beyonce’s video is the action code. The action code is applied to any action that implies a further narrative action. We as viewers are expected to connect different pieces of narrative. The video shows Beyonce escorting her boyfriend out of her house and watches him put his stuff in the taxi. She takes items of clothing and jewellery of him as she points out in her lyrics that she bought them for him.

There doesn't appear to be any intertextual references within the music video.

Codes and Conventions Research Task

In this post, I have analysed a number of music videos from different music genres such as Rap/Hip-Hop, R&B and Dance. I have anaylsed the videos in terms of the camera work that is seen, whether the video is performance, concept or narrative based, the iconography of the artist, the editing used and a range of over points.

Mally Mall – Wake Up In It

·         The video is a mixture of performance and concept. The performance doesn’t involve any dancing

·         The location of the video is in a mansion

·         The artists have been styled with lots of jewellery and designer clothes. The main artist has a selection of outfits that he wears within the video. One of the outfits that is worn is a short sleeve top accessorised with a long chain that hangs over his top, topped off with some black shades. Another outfit that is worn is another short sleeve top with an image of a gold chain that’s been placed hanging the same way an actual chain would hang. Other outfits consist of a leather jacket and a sleeveless top which shows of his tattoos. All throughout his outfits, they’ve been accessorised with long gold chains and silver stud earrings and shades.

The other artists that are featuring in the video are dressed in a similar manner where they are seen wearing a lot of gold and designer threads.

The video vixens in the video are seen wearing tight, figure hugging dresses where in some case they have a massive boob cleavage. This is how video vixens are stereotypical seen in Rap/Hip-Hop.

·         Camera – the camera shots in the video were usually close ups, low angles and wide shots. The close up shots sells the artist as the audience is seeing the artist clearly and close up. The low angles make the artists appear as if they are better than everyone else as they are showcasing their lavish lifestyle. The wide shots allows the audience to see the scenery of the video.

Editing – the video consists of lots of cuts and dissolves. The cuts from one scene to another follows the same beat that the song has itself. The cut changes the perspective from which the scene is portrayed

Notorious B.I.G – Nasty Girl

·         The video is a mixture of performance and concept. The performance doesn’t involve any dancing just the artists rapping and singing to the camera

·         The location of the video is in a club

·         The artists featuring in the video have been styled to look suave and sophisticated

·          Camera – a lot of close ups have been used in the video to sell all the artists featuring in the song. Wide shots have also been used to show the scenery that the artists are in

·         Editing – the video consists of cuts which follow the beat of the song

·         Lighting – as the music video has been shot in a club, natural hasn’t been used

Tyga – Wait a minute

·         The video is a mixture of performance and concept. The performance doesn’t involve any dancing just the artists rapping and singing to the camera

·         The video has been shot in an open spaced studio but through the use of editing they have green screened the background and made it seem as if the artists are in an open spaced building

·         The artists in the video have been styled to fit the genre in which their music fits into. They are wearing designer labels, gold chains, snapbacks and leather jackets

·         Camera – There’s a range of close ups, long shots and wide shots used in the video

·         Editing – The cuts used match the beat of the song. A lot of flash is used in the editing of the video and that coincides with the lyrics of the song

·         Lighting – There’s a lot of high key lighting which coincides with the mood of the music video. The meaning behind the lyrics of the song is basically the artists saying that they want their girls to take a chance on them despite the frenzy that would come with having a relationship with them. The high key lighting gives the music video a hopeful view. No natural lighting has been used

Nicki Minaj – Looking Ass Nigga

·         Performance based video

·         The location of the video is in an open spaced land. With the location and setting being empty, the video solely focuses on the artist and the lyrics of her song

·         The artist is selling sex with her skin tight, figure hugging, and revealing clothing. How the artist dresses reflects her lyrics because of the fact she dresses the way she does, she’s looked at in a certain way which her lyrics say. She’s got a lot of bling around her which sho she’s a women of that lavish lifestyle. Her hair is slicked back and either in a ponytail or in a top bun

·         Camera - there are a lot of close ups used which helps add to this sex appeal she has going on. Wide shots have also been used so she stands out in the location of her video. The camera hasn’t just been filmed in a still position but it also tracking the artist which makes her appeal as a dominating person

·         Editing  - the editing is fast paced which coincides with the beat of the song

·         Lighting – natural lighting has been used with added artificial lighting

Beyoncé – Partition

·         Performance and concept based

·         There is some dancing involved in the video

·         A range of locations have been used in the video: a house, a stage, a car, outside

·         The artist has been styled in different way throughout the video. At first she is seen wearing  a dressing

Tinashe – 2 On

·         Performance and concept based. The performance involves routine dancing

·         Studio and dance studio setting

·         Reflects Cassie’s me and you music video

·         Star looks young, fresh and hip. Wears crop tops to show off her toned figure, dresses up girly to show her diversity. Look current

·         Camera – wide shots used to show dancing. Close ups to sell the artist

·         Editing – cuts in time to the beat of the song

·         Lighting – range of high key and low key lighting. Ranges within screen shots

Chris Brown - New Flame

·         Concept and performance based

·         Performance – studio setting. Routine dance

·         Artist is mostly dressed in white which reflects the song. Other people in the video are also wearing white in regards to the song. Long chains are seen throughout the artist’s costume changes

·         Camera – close ups, wide shots, long shots, zoom in and out, pan, high angles, low angles

·         Lighting – mixture of high key and low key. Natural lighting and artificial lighting

The Weeknd –Often

·         Concept and performance based

·         Performance is within the location of the video

·         Location – apartment

·         Artist is dressed in a bomber jacket. Advertising his clothing brand

·         Camera – tracking, close ups, wide shots, pan

·         Editing – the cuts between scenes are not seen. Edited to make the video flow.

·         Lighting – low key. The video is very dark in terms of lighting except for the use of lamps around the location

Sia – Chandelier

·         Concept and performance based video. Routine dance

·         The video has been set in an apartment. The apartment looks empty even though there’s furniture in the apartment

·         The artist isn’t seen in the video. The main character in the video is a little teenage dancer. She’s dressed in a nude leotard

·         Camera – range of wide shots to see the dancer. Close ups to see the features on the dancers face

·         Editing – no use of editing

·         Lighting – high key lighting. Mixture of natural and artificial lighting

Kieza – Hideaway

·         Concept and performance based. Routine dance

·         Performance is in the streets. Near junctions.

·         The star has been dressed in blue skinny jeans, a white bralet, black braces and red trainers. Her hair has been styled in Mohawk type style.

·         Camera – long shots, wide shots, close ups, tracking

·         Editing – no use of editing

·         Lighting – Natural lighting

Rudimental – Waiting all night

·         Concept and narrative based. Narration shows a group of bikers riding and doing tricks on the street, one of them gets into an accident and we just see that person in the hospital and end up seeing him released

·         Location – hospital, outside a house, streets

·         The artists aren’t seen in the video. The characters in the video are dressed wearing hoodies, shorts, skater shoes (converses). This fits the whole skating/biking look that is typically seen

·         Camera – fish eye, close ups, wide shots, long shots, POV shots

·         Editing – Fast pace editing. Fast paced cuts

·         Lighting – natural lighting. High key lighting

Extension Task

Comparing R&B music between the years 1980-1990 and now, there is a big change. For example, in terms of clothing Eryca Badu, a female artist from the 1980s dressed afro-centric and modestly. Nowadays, R&B female artists are seen wearing tight, revealing clothing. Eryca Badu sold social messages but current R&B female artists are selling sex.

Usher is a singer was around from the 90s and is still in the industry till now. You can compare R&B music through him as his music has evolved over the years. When he first started, Usher’s music was very soulful and pure R&B. However nowadays, his music is very dance culture. The lyrics in his past songs and meaning and very relatable but now it’s as if the beat of the music is what matters.

Aaliyah was a female singer of the 90s who broke the female R&B stereotype. Aaliyah wasn’t seen wearing minimal clothing and focused on selling the song rather than sex. She was a strong female singer who females looked up to and she presented herself in a role model matter. Comparing Aaliyah to Rihanna for example, there is a big difference between them both, through their clothing, the lyrics in their music, lifestyle, etc.

Codes and Conventions Presentation

This post shows the codes and conventions typically seen in music video of different music genres.

Codes and Conventions Research Presentation from MayaYeshitila

Textual Analysis of Music Videos

This post is explaining the textual analysis seen in music videos. The video I have chosen to analyse in terms of textual analysis is Destiny's Child's, Survivor.

The song is about a break ups and being able to move on without the partner and be better than what they were when they were together; you can do better without your other half. The visuals show Destiny’s Child trying to survive in the wilderness and they end up succeeding as they get rescued. The lyrics are amplified by the visuals as in both outcomes they end up succeeding. For example, when Michelle sings,

‘After all of the darkness and sadness

Still comes happiness

If I surround myself with positive things

I'll gain prosperity’

The visuals show Destiny’s Child on a dingy boat during a storm. The lyrics and visuals comes together to tell the audience that there was a dark patch during the relationship but they were able to get over it.

The beginning of the video is mirroring the beginning of their relationship and so from the visuals, you can see they are trying to find their feet and looking around their surroundings, this would reflect how they felt at the beginning of their break as they would have had to learn to do things as an independent person.

The video cuts to the beat. Whenever the beat starts to pick up in tempo, the cuts in the video do the same. When the beat is quite slow, for example in the beginning, the pace of the video is slow as well. When the chorus of the song kicks in, the video increases its pace and cuts more frequently.

The record company is looking to sell the track with lots of close ups and of the artists’ faces and long shots as well so we can see the artists’ bodies. As the artists’ are good looking females with incredible bodies, they emphasise the visuals of these things through the costume worn in the video and through the camera shots used. The artists’ are being portrayed as confident women which is what is being portrayed in all their other videos. The artists’ are known to be portraying females as confident, beautiful, strong and independent. This video among others attempts to implement these features in their videos; they remain consistent.

Although their costumes reveal their bodies, it’s not done in a sexual way. This also backed up by the dancing that is done in their video. There are no provocative dance movements that will purposely make people see them in that type of way. Their costume and dancing just attempt to portray them in a confident manner.

At the beginning of the video, one of the artists can be perceived in a provocative way as she emphasises her body through her body. The camerawork also brings attention to this as there are a range of close ups of the artist’s face and wide shots to show the artist in her surroundings.

Andrew Goodwin's Music Video Conventions

This post is explaining Andrew Goodwin's conventions of music videos with some examples and images to.

Blog Introduction

This post is introducing my blog for this year's coursework

The aim of the coursework this year is to create a music video for a song of our choice. The project will be carried out during the winter term where we would have to create a music video, an advert promoting the song and a digipak album cover sleeve.
I hope to gain a lot of skills and also improve on already existing skills such as broadening my knowledge on Final Cut Pro, put my time management skills into practice when it comes to completing all three tasks during the winter term and being able to work with a group who have different opinions and ideas and being able to construe an amazing music video.