PLANNING FOR FINAL FILMING

For my final filming I would ideally like to use the same band as my draft however Dino has work therefore I will have to get another bassist. The equipment used will be the same. The same bass guitar, drum set and lead guitar. I have decided not to have a rhythm guitar as you can't hear it and it would mean that the singer has less ability.
I will depart from school straight to The Cookie Jar in town and then film until 8pm. I will then head back.
I am yet to arrange lifts.

Booking THE COOKIE JAR!

I really wanted to use The Cookie Jar again as it was great for my draft. Thankfully they have allowed me to use it again, free of charge, which I am thrilled about. This is on wednesday from
5pm-8pm. Get in.

Booking The Soundhouse

I booked The Soundhouse on Wednesday from 5pm-8pm. It was going to cost £30. In the end I cancelled after getting a cheaper venue which suited my genre later on.

REFLECTION POST 7/12/14

Things I need to do this week:
Consult media teachers about behind schedule.
Finalise filming location.
Let Band know when and where I need them.
Edit video and upload to youtube.

This all needs to be done as soon as possible!

MAJOR PROBLEMS

I have encountered some major problems. I have been trying to contact The Cookie Jar (where I filmed my draft) about re-filming there as I loved how it looked and had good feedback of one of my teachers about the place. We filmed there in a half term during the day when there where no events on. Unfortunately now the majority of nights there are events being held there, whether it be gigs or comedy club events. I also cannot film during the day due to college. The past weekend has been unavailable to filming in the day aswell due to one of my potential band members being away.
I have also fallen behind on work the past week due to having numerous uni/job interviews.
I am waiting for a message back from The Cookie Jar and am also waiting for a reply back from The Soundhouse, a studio located in the centre of Leicester and I am in the process of getting in contact with British Legion.
I will update in due course.

DRAFT FEEDBACK

I did not have any written feedback from the draft, it was all verbal. I was told that I was too static with the camera and that I should move it around a little bit more, and also have more shots with faster cutting. This would enable my video to look more realistic instead of being slow pace like it was in my draft. I was also advised by one of my teachers to look at a previous students video and take inspiration from it (see below). It contains a lot of fast cuts and the little space which the director has the use is used superbly. The shots of the instruments and the shots of the head only being 3/4 in the shot are something which I will try to emulate in my final music video.

ADVERTS 1 + 2

 

DIGIPAK INSPIRATION 3

This cover is also minimalist/simplistic. From just looking at this cover one would not be able to tell what genre it would fit in - and this is what I like about it. I am a fan of just 2 colours being in place again, this time none of them being black however - they are clearly Orange and White. I will try and emulate just 2 colours being in place on mine. I quite like the 'Parental Advisory Explicit Content' in the bottom right however I don't feel it would fit my genre - as mine is more hip-hop. I like the size of the text on this album cover but in mine I will try and move it down slightly so it is more central as I feel this looks better.

DIGIPAK INSPIRATION 2

Kasabian are a band which I admire greatly and this album cover was very striking when it was first released. It caught people off guard with it being so simplistic. I feel that the black works very well with the pink. Well... black works with everything. I used pink in my draft, this was inspired by this however I feel that it didn't work aswell. I like the text being central - in my final digipak I will emulate this - as I don't like the text being on one side and the cover looking lopsided. I will also have the text larger as well as I do not feel that is is prominent enough in this.

DIGIPAK INSPIRATION

The colours on this Digipak inspired me the most, although I do like the minimalist design as well. I feel that yellow and black work really well and this is something which I would like to incorporate in my final digipak and maybe even the advertisement as well. I used these colours in my AS media magazine last year and this was marked highly therefore it is clear that they can work together. I am a fan of the picture on the front of this album cover however I am no sure whether I will use this as inspiration on not. On mine I also want the text to be in a more prominent place.

ADVERT INSPIRATION 2

This advert is one which was made by a previous student at my college. It is an exemplar piece and has my shared on my teachers blogs and also stuck up on the wall at college - this is where I first seen it. It is very similar to the advert in my previous Advert Inspiration post. I like the size of all of the text on this poster and I like how the text/record label at the bottom is inline with the box and doesn't drift further out. This has inspired me a lot as you will be able to tell in my final piece. Again I do like the box however in mine I will probably have text as I am not very artistic. The font isn't my favorite however this would be easy to change.

ADVERT INSPIRATION

This advert is probably the biggest inspiration to me. It is an EP advert for a band called CHEATAHS. I like there is writing or something on most places of the page. I think the box works well however in mine I will probably not incorporate a picture as I feel I am better technically and not artistically. I like the font that is used - it is bold yet simplistic. I don't feel that the date is lost as it is easy to find on the page. What I don't like is that the website URL is too small, in my opinion anyway. I do like the minimalist design however. I will probably not use the red colour in my video as I want to use Black and Yellow and it will probably be on a plain background without the red backdrops.

PLAN FOR DRAFT FILMING DAY

Below is my plan for the draft filming day; hopefully everything sticks to this and runs smoothly.

9:00 - Drive to Ollie's house and pick up bass guitar, rhythm guitar and drum kit.
9:20 - Leave Ollies and drive to Harrys to pick up him and his guitar.
9:25 - Leave Harrys and head to The Cookie in Leicester city centre.
9:35 - Luke picks up Matt and heads to The Cookie
10:00 - Meet at The Cookie and carry equipment to the basement in order to start filming.
10:20 - Start filming.
12:00 - Filming break for food and a drink.
12:30 - Re-film to 15:00
15:00 - Thank Tinny for letting us use The Cookie, pack up equipment and head home.

BOOKING THE STUDIO

POSTER DRAFT

DIGIPACK DRAFT

BASS GUITAR TUTORIAL

My bassist watched this video in order to make sure that when he pretended to play the bass he looked like he actually did. This is the video here.

LYRICS FOR MY CHOSEN SONG

JAWS - GOLD 

Take me, take me over to the left side
I'll be, i'll be waiting on the right side for you (x2)

Take me, take me where the gold drips from the sun to my back
Take me, take me where the gold drips from the sun to my back

Break me, break me up into the ocean
A thousand pieces I don't wanna see
Break me, break me up into the ocean
I don't wanna see, make me blind

Take me, take me where the gold drips from the sun to my back
Take me, take me where the gold drips from the sun to my back

PLAYLIST

RISK ASESSMENT

1) Tripping.
People who are at risk - The band members and the person filming. The person filming is at risk as if they move round when filming they could trip over a wire.
Likelihood - Low, as I will prevent this with precautions.
Severity - High.
Precautions- Make sure all leads are out of the way, taped down and tied up if not in use.

2) Falls of crew and equipment.
People who are at risk - The band members
Likelihood - High.
Severity - Medium.
Precautions - Keep everything out of the way of the band and tape things down. E.G speakers and amps, also leads.

3) Vehicles?
Answer = No.

4) Weapons?
Answer = No.

5) Special Effects?

Answer: No.

6) Burns from lights.

People who are at risk - Everyone.

Likelihood - Low.

Severity - High.

Precautions - Be sure that lights are not near anything flammable and switched off when not on.

7) Temporary structures?

People who are at risk - The band.

Answer: Yes

Severity: Medium

Likelihood: Medium

Precautions - Make sure everything is secure and sturdy.

ROLES

As I am working on my I am the Director, Art Director, Director of Photography and Make-up and costume. This will be tougher than if I was working in a group and only had one of the roles, however I will have to overcome this by putting in 110%+.

CAMERA

The camera which I will be using is the Panasonic V700. This is because it will be supplied by the college and I do not have my own camera and cannot afford another one. I feel as if it is good enough anyway. It is the camera which most students of the college will be filming their music video on.

EQUIPMENT

The Equipment that I will need for my video is as follows:
1 Microphone
1 Microphone Stand
2 Guitars
1 Bass Guitar
1 Full Drum Set
1 Panasonic Camera 
1 Tripod

FINAL 25 WORD PITCH

THE DOLLY ZOOM

The Dolly Zoom is an in-camera effect which undermines normal visual perception. It is achieved by zooming in with the camera while moving away or vice-versa. The camera angle can be pulled away from the subject while the lens zooms in. I would like to include this at the end of music video as the music fades out. At the top of this post is an example of the dolly zoom (in bad quality). I will begin practicing it in my next lesson when camera's are available.

NARRATIVE

I am just making it clear that my music video WILL NOT be a narrative. It will be mainly performance based with some backstage and crowd shots. There are many reasons for my decision, one of these is that the music video for the song that I have chosen is a narrative I don't want mine to be comparable to the original. I also think narrative videos are very hard to pull off, this is not the say that I'm not a fan of them, because I am - I would just rather try and create a performance video.

MY (HOPEFUL) STUDIO OF CHOICE

The studio which I would like to record the majority of my music video at is Yellow Bean Studios. Having looked through some music videos from that of previous years I decided that this would be an excellent place to record. It offers what I need; an infinity white screen. This can be seen in the videos for The 1975 - Girls and The Rifles - Minute Mile (I will link these below). These are featured in the photography studio which Yellow Bean Studios boasts. I am going to email to owner of the studios and see how much it costs exc exc... I will update this post when I have fully exchanged emails.

TWITTER FEED

Here is my bands twitter feed, I have used skills which I learnt last year. I have photo-shopped the amount of tweets, following and amount of followers.

EXAMPLES OF OTHER TEXTS

Firstly I have the video for Best Of Friends by Palma Violets. there are lot of things that I like about the video. i like that it is in black and white, as I've said before, I think it fits the genre and gives off a real sense of professionalism.  Another thing that I like it that it cuts to the beat, not fully, but every so often you notice that the shot changes as the beat changes. Additionally I like the type of clothes they are wearing, in a way I think that they are messy but smart - if that makes sense. In this video the band are playing a gig. This may be hard for me to do but I have thought about maybe trying to do this. Finally, I'm a fan of the close ups on the lead singer, the lead singer looks right in to the camera which I feel makes a good video as he interacts with the audience. (PLEASE WATCH ON YOUTUBE, VEVO HAS RESTRICTED PLAYBACK ON THIS SITE.)

Next I have ANOTHER video for this song, there are 2 versions and I really like both of them. This one contains a lot of narrative elements which I am not too keen on however. The main thing that I like in this version is the room in which the band are playing. It is a small, cramped room packed out with alot of people. These being teenagers, the majority being girls. I think this would work well with mine as my target audience is pretty much this. Adding to the fact the room is cramped and their is a gig going on with high energy the camera shots are very close up, showing just how cramped it actually is. It also cuts a lot which I think is good as it matches the high energy of the song, as do the light effects (strobe lights) used in the video.

This video is the music video for Like A Dancer by The Enemy. My favourite bit of this video is definitely the start. The video is cut to the beat of the drum intro. In my music video I would really like to incorporate something like this. Another thing I like is how there are a lot of shots of the band, I know I've stated that I would like focus on the lead singer, which is true (this video focuses on the lead singer a lot) but I think it is important to show off everyone in the band, and the instruments which they are playing. Finally I like how this is not just a performance video and it's not a narrative video either. It shows parts of the performance (quite a lot) but also some of the back stage happenings. This gives the viewer an insight into what they are actually like.

A final music video that I like is Minute Mile by The Rifles. At the start of this video the intro is a certain amounts of seconds long and this is counted down with a countdown on the video. I also like how some of the lyrics come upon the screen, sometimes on their own but sometimes over the band still playing. I think this is very clever and demonstrates a sense of realism in the video. At 1:25 there is a clever play on the word 'capsizing' as it is shown upside down, I think this is good and if I can use this in my video I will, Another thing which I like is the simple but effective white background, the background is on the floor as well so everything is actually white. I'm not sure what this is called but I really like it. In the video the band are each given an individual shot of them playing their instrument casually and it is shown several times throughout. This gives recognition to the whole band which I am a fan of but it doesn't take away focus from the lead singer as there's a lot of close ups of him. Along with this their are extreme close ups of instruments being played which I think is cool and looks good. Especially when the foot pedal is shown as it matches with the music. The colour scheme is nice and simple through, a white background with black and red appearing all throughout the video.

25 WORD PITCH

GENRE OF MUSIC VIDEO

The genre of my video is going to be Indie/Alternative Rock... This was the only genre I ever thought feasible as I'm not really in to any other types of music. Obviously I appreciate other types of music but this is my preference which I listen to, quite a lot of other people listen to it as well therefore there is a big market for it.

I will be basing my music video on artists like the Stone Roses, Palma Violets, Swim Deep, Catfish and The Bottlemen.

I feel that I will be able to combine a lot of different elements from a lot of different music videos, although I am definitely not going to include any narrative elements.

I also regularly view music videos from these sort of bands therefore I know what I want me to be like and how it should be. I have a good understanding of what needs to be done.

Palma Violets

The Stone Roses

Swim Deep

Catfish and The Bottlemen

BAND PHOTOS

I do not have any pictures of the band at the minute, will get them ASAP and update this post accordingly.

MY BAND (ARTIST PROFILE)

My band is going to consist of 4 members, all of whom are my friends. They're all friends as well therefore I feel that they will work together well, with great chemistry. At the time the video is released The Crescents will be around as big as Catfish and The Bottlemen/Palma Violets. They will be playing a lot of festivals; Glastonbury, Reading/Leeds and Bestival for example and packing out all of the tents which they plan in. they will have a very loyal fan base, made up most of teenage boys and girls, however I feel that their music will attract a far wider audience. At shows they will get the crowd going and the frontman will be very energetic - much like Jon McClure from Reverend and The Makers, but obviously younger. They will be releasing their new album soon with this music video being one which should attract people and promote their album. they will be completing Academy 2/3 tours. As explained before, The band originate from the Hulme Crescents in Manchester, hence the name.

REFLECTION POST

I have realised that I am very far behind at the minute, I will now be using all the time that I have available to catch up and get ahead. Firstly I will start with completing the schedule and then I will be competing more than that. I still need to post my summer work which I have done and my 25 word pitch which I am going to finish now.

SONG CHANGE + INTENTIONS

I have decided to change my song from Sweet Disposition by The Temper Trap to Gold by Birmingham band JAWS. The video for this is narrrative, which is not something which I will be trying to replicate. i will still be aiming to record the band performing the song in either a studio or outside exc...
This song wasn't on my original shortlist either however after hearing it I feel I will be able to replicate the indie vibe well.

MOODBOARD

Here is my moodboard, in this I have tried to showcase the style that I will be aiming to go for. You can see a lot of bands that I have mentioned before in here, I like what all the people in here are wearing, I also like their haircuts. Ideally, I would like my lead singer to have facial hair, maybe just stubble.. I do not know why I want this however I think it will work better.

PEER FEEDBACK

I have given feedback to my peers on their 25 word pitch. I feel as I have been very fair in what I have said. The top one is my feedback to Bronte Woodland and the bottom one is my feedback to Tarun, Adam, Matt and Jack Wildbore.

AUDIENCE PROFILE

The UK tribe that I will be aiming to attract is the 'Indie Scenesters'. I feel as if these are best suited to me as they enjoy indie music, obviously, as music that is really out there and not mainstream. My band are not going to conform to pop music which dominates the charts and I will be going along the route of indie bands, like the ones in my inspiration post. The Indie Scenesters will like music for what it is and not like it because everyone else does, the fan base for my band will be really loyal. The band will have the same fashion sense as the band, this is specified in a previous post.
I will also be targeting Hipsters, like 60s mods and people who enjoy the fashion of the 70s and 80s. E.G Madchester. They will enjoy this music as it is kind of similar to that of the previous years that I have stated. The fashion of my band will also be similar to this.
Overall though, my audience will be wider than just these. Everyone will be able to enjoy my music and my music video. I want people to be able to watch it and enjoy it, I feel everyone will be able to do that. Even if someone doesn't like the song I hope that they will be able to appreciate the video.

LOCATION

For the location of my video I will most likely rent out a studio (with a white background) and video it in there. I may video it in an indie looking room such as the one used in The 1975's video for their single Sex (see at the top).
Alternatively I may video it outside with all of the instruments however I have not decided the location for this if I choose to, yet.
I may even video it using landmarks in Manchester as this is where my band is going to be from. For example, the Salford Lads Club may be used as the lead singer walks past.

BAND INSPIRATION

With my band I want to create a sort of indie style such as Palma Violets, JAWS and Peace. This will be done through baggy t shirt's and skinny/straight cut jeans. Additionally I would like my band to contain some elements of 80s/90s music icons such as The Smiths. This will be done in the same way however with messier hair exc..

BAND NAME

I have decided that I am going to use the same band name that I used for my AS media coursework. This is 'The Crescents'. I have chosen this as I would like my band to come from Manchester and the name works well. I am not going to have the same style of band though. This year my band are going to be indier and more like Palma Violets, Swim Deep, Peace exc...

THE SONG

SWEET DISPOSITION 

If the truth be told, I had struggled to find a song for my music video. I'd watched many music videos for inspiration and ideas and listened to lots of songs which I thought could be used. I then made a shortlist of 14 songs (see below) and sent it to my teacher so I could have his feedback.

One of my teachers replied saying that classic songs may be harder to complete as 'they're associated heavily with their era'. He carried on by saying that it wouldn't be impossible and then linked me to someone elses already completed coursework where they had used the song 'There She Goes' by The La's (they pulled it off well I must add).
He then recommended the song Best of Friends - Palma Violets. I was going to use this until I came across the song Sweet Disposition by The Temper Trap. After listening to this song I instantly knew that is was the one that I am going to use. I feel that i will be able to cut shots largely to the beat of the song.

ARCTIC MONKEYS - PRELIM TASK

TEXTUAL ANALYSIS HOMEWORK

Yo Media Scribd Ford Lol

MEDIA SUMMER HOMEWORK

Media Homework