Filming Update

After the feedback we got on Monday of our rough cut we used the feedback to our advantage in order to plan filming for Tuesday 6th. 
We wrote a mind map to organsise ourselves including the following points:

• Re-film kiss at end
• Re-film girl singing all parts all the way through - interior shot against a white wall. Use a range of shots CU, MS, high angles, and panning. Perhaps try a range of lights - fairylights, tea lights 
• ''youve built your wall so high'' boy looks up to the sky & camera follows, then moves back down to girl walking towards camera. - Visuals matching lyrics - this also adds camera movement which our rough cut really lacks
• Exterior shot of boy walking down street with girl sharing umbrella, camera tracks backwards
• Re-film boy singing all parts all the way through. Interior shot against white wall, paying close attention to lighting with lamp and torch. CU, MS, panning shots
• Exterior shot of boy bringing flowers to doorstep
• Film boy and girl singing scenes together - interior, attention to lighting & pan camera
• Interior shot of boy & girl sitting down having dinner 

While filming these scenes I feel we need to play close attention to less static shots, loads of camera movement, effective lighting, mise en scene and camera angles. 

I feel filming went well, filming all scenes at my house & using different locations around Burwell. we definitely got a lot of clips to fit in more lip syncing in the video using a varietly of angles and camera movement which hopefully looks effective as camera movement is a really important in the pop genre of music videos. This time round filming we used a large angle light which was quite bright, and used filters too to give a colourful effect. We spent quite a lot of time filming interior shots against a white wall, therefore we only actually did one exterior shot. It was so dark that it was quite hard to light as we only had torches, however hopefully with editing contrast and brightness we can make it useable. I dont feel like this will be a problem though as all filming from our first shoot was exterior. We then did our last scene of the two characters having dinner. We played close attention to props and layed out cutlery, wine glasses and a bottle of wine on a dining room table, using artificial lighting. Furthermore concentrating on mise en scene, we dressed the characters so throughout the video they are seen in 3 different outfits each, making it more stylised and inspirationl for our target audience. That was all we got done but I feel we have enough to put together a successful music video. 

Feedback

In Mondays lesson we got feedback on our rough cut from our class, who are the age of our target audience. This was really useful just to see what people thought of it and get constructive critisism also. Our rough cut wasnt how we planned it to be as we didnt have enough shots from our first filming therefore we had quite a few blanks throughout. 
The main bad points that came across were:

• Not enough use of mise en scene shown 
• Need to fill in blanks
• Re-film girls part of lipsyncing, not as good as boys
• Some scenes are too long

However we did also recieve positive feedback and got good scores from the class that we are pleased about. 

• Good use of shots
• Boys lipsyncing is good throughout
• Effective lighting
• ''best we've seen''

We planned to film on tuesday 6th, so this feedback really helped us plan filming and make us notice what needed to be improved. 

Class feedback on rough cut

Feedback on rough cut and plan for filming

After filming, uploading  and then editing our footage in order to hand it in for the rough cut deadline on the 23rd October, we found that we didn't have quite enough clips to make our music video to the standard we had planned too.

After completing our rough cut, our teacher watched it and then gave us some feedback, we soon realised that a lot of improvment can be made. Our teacher and us both agreed that a lot more angles need to be used when filming in order to create some movement and depth to the video.We also realised that the whole video looks as if it is set in the same place, even though we used different locations, the fact that we filmed outside when it was dark gave the illusion that it was in one place, therefore we need to film in a variety of different loactions again to add some movement to the video. We also felt that the actors used could have been a bit more enthusiastic, as we found it hard to match their actions with the lyrics as they weren't opening their mouths wide enough when singing.

We then decided where in the song we needed more footage in order for the lyrics to match the visuals and made a plan of what equipment we needed, where we were intending to film and also what different techniques we could use.

We watched a music video made by other Long Road students to show us what we needed to include in order to make a successful music video, they included a lot more shots filmed at different angles, they also used a range of different locations, it worked really well to create a good end product. This gave us motivation to better our music video.

We have booked equipment for Tuesday the 6th November:
-Dolly
-Filters(blue)
-Torches
-Camera/tri-pod

-We plan to film in Burwell, using Charlies house and different areas outside the house to ensure that we have a range of different locations. (Exterior and Interior)
-We will use a variety of different shots and camera angles.
-We will use filters in some shots to ensure it is not the same lighting throughout.
-We will use torches to light the characters appropriately, also to add variety in the way each shot is lit.
-We will film a couple of the verses again in order to get good, clear shots of the characters singing.

We plan to make sure we have enough footage so we have something to match every lyric in the song, we don't want to be stuck trying to find something to put in and don't want our video to look unfinished or messy.

Half Term homework

Advanced Portfolio Half Term Homework:

You must think seriously now about how your music video works in combination with your magazine advert (advertising the digi-pack) and the digi-pack cover (at least 4 sides).

Answer the following questions:

1.       What is your finalised star persona? Include a photograph of your star that best communicates their persona. Discuss what ideas/ideologies they communicate (materialism, rebellion, innocence, the cultural “ideal”, alternative to the “ideal” etc.). How do they communicate these ideas? How is their persona expressed visually? (costume, hair, makeup, bogy language, lighting, framing etc) How is it expressed through lyrics, genre?

2.       How are you going to ensure continuity between the 3 products? Remember your digi-pack cover cannot look like a single (can’t be images from the music video) but an album. Compare your ideas for the digi pack cover with professional promo images. A digi-pack is a combination of audio and video (a cd and a dvd with special features such as a few music videos or concert videos)

3.       Write down all of your individual or group ideas for the digi-pack cover and magazine advert. Ideas for costume, setting, lighting, colour, hair, makeup, Photoshop special effects etc. If you can do some mock ups of your own, or experiment with effects in photoshop.

 

Word count : 500 words minimum

 

ALSO Catch up with your blogging. Make sure Target audience work is complete and you have done at least 25 individual posts since the start of the project! It is not just the amount that counts though but the content!

Feedback & Planning

After the rough cut deadline (23rd Oct) we get a chance to film once more, we have booked the cameras for Tuesday the 6th November. As we have been editing our music video we have noticed that we still need to film a few more scenes:

• ''you built your wall so high..." male verse
• "oooooo" line
• main chorus boy singing to girl
• "you let all the girls go.." girl verse
• "you carried on so long" girl verse

We then got feedback and noticed that there are quite a few elements that our missing in our music video in order for it to be successful. As a group we watched another Long Road media studies music video which was a different style of music yet communicated the narrative succesfully while using a wide range of angles and locations, which was what ours mainly lacked. This music video gave us inspiration and motivation to improve our current video.

In our next filming session we will film the verses I have written above but we will also take on the advise we were given. We plan to involve:

• More camera movement - tracking shots, dolly, panning shots
• Range of angles - high angles, low angles
• Interior filming (set up a space inside that is a good location for our characters to be filmed)
• Exterior filming (a wider range of locations)
• Get more energy and enthusiasm out of our male character
• More lighting techniques - out of focus, fairy lights, tea lights, filters, high angle lighting
• Put the two characters in more outfits to make the characters appear more aspirational and interesting to the viewers 

Theoretical study into audience

Uses and Gratifications

Blumler & Katz argued that audiences are active not passive, and approach and use media products for the following reasons: diversion, personal relationships, personal identity and surveillance. 

I feel that our music video covers a few of Blumlers and Katz points as to reasons why audiences approach a media product. Firstly, I feel there is a lot of diverson throughout our video. The lyrics communicate a sense of sensitivity and vunerability. e.g. "you built your wall so high, that no one could climb it".. I feel this can relate to an audience who have been hurt and are scared to let their guard down, therefore our music video helps those who feel this way and can then escape from the pressures of everyday. The relationship of lyrics to visuals is quite successful throughout, we have used a lot of close ups of both the female and male characters to show emotion. The narrative of the music video is probably something the audience can relate to, which also covers the active approach of personal relationships. The male character feels like hes not good enough for the female character and vice verca, they both ignore each other even though theres a sense of attraction but dont know how to go about it. Closer to the end of the music video the scenario gets resolved and they start to notice each other then start dating/talking etc which hopefully encourages the audience to gain confidence in the situation they may be in. Furthermore, personal identity is important to captivate the audience. Hopefully our viewers can see aspiration in the characters in our music video, we dressed them both quite casual, a typical outfit that most teens would have in their wardrobe. Boy in jeans, blazers and a branded jumper, keeping the look fashionable yet simple, then the girl in leggings, a blouse, leather jacket and wedges. Our characters were represented as quite vunerable however towards the end they do become more confident in themselves shown through shots of them laughing, talking etc. I dont feel that we covered surveillance very well in our music video as we didnt reveal much about the characters. As the male character had the main part we focussed on him the most, we only revealed the way he looks and his style through a range of shots and angles. 

Focused and Ambient Audiences

David Buckingham explains that there are two types of audiences: focused audiences which deliberately watch music videos, or ambient audiences that are more likely to have the music on in the background.

Our music video accomodates for a focused audience by firstly a strong narrative. The storyline we have used of the boy and girl both feeling vunerable and scared towards each other is something our teenage audience can relate to as its quite common at that age. Ideally the context is there to multiply viewings as the narrative is something the audience will be familiar with and will then tell their friends to watch it etc. This does not only promote the video but also promotes the artist which is important in the music video. Furthermore we plan to use a clever use of effects such as colour correction and dissolving shots. We have already incorperated technical lighting into our shots which looks effective & professional, hopefully catching the viewers eye. We like to attract an ambient audience too so have incorperated some key techniques into our video. There is a strong performance throughout communicating the narrative between the two characters and we have also used quick editing by speeding up shots of the cars driving past which makes the video flash slightly accomodating for an ambient audience. Lastly we used a range of locations to shoot in such as a carpark, restaurant, street, park etc.