Our target audience are boys of girls aged between 16 and their late 20's, this is because of who the artist is and the type of music that he makes. The target audience for this artist are probably more laid back and have similar lives to the ones depicted in his songs, these are people that live life as it comes and do not worry about money etc.
It is this target audience that I plan to base my ancillary task as well as my music video for, it is these people that we are making the whole project for at the end of the day and it must appeal to them. It is because of this we must shape our entire project around them, the layout of the website must be interesting and up to date, this could be achieved through live twitter updates so that they can follow him on another popular website which is also aimed at people of this age group. We must be very concious of who this whole thing is aimed at whilst creating the music video as at the end of the day that is who will be buying it.
Wednesday, 29 December 2010
Filming Diary
We filmed all of our footage over the space of two days, this was so that continuity of factors such as the weather could be maintained easily and due to the fact that there were two locations in which we were shooting in so we filmed a location a day for two days.
Day 1
We began filming our opening scenes during the early morning, this is so that we do not need to rely on any artificial light and it makes the morning scenes seem like they are morning. We filmed the first few shots and soon realized how important it is to check for continuity mistakes as they are very easily done due to moving around between takes. This was reduced by the length of our shots however still became a problem that we had to take a great deal of care of. We have changed a couple of shots due to complications or if on location we felt that another would be better.
We then moved outside to do the various shoots on the way to the train station, at some parts we added or changed what was happening as we were walking, we would be walking along and I would hold the camera and film the actress talking for a moment which we could then use in the final piece. We felt that it was important for the weather and lighting to stay the same for this external part so we shot extra footage, much more than we needed so that when we get to the editing stages we have enough shots and we can take what we want and leave what we don't need. We also began playing our song on my phone as we walked so that we could get a taste for what we aim to finally do, we can create a fast cut montage using short clips and if the characters are already going with the beat of the song it works even better. We only did this with a couple of shots such as one where they are walking round and infront of the camera and my foot lands right infront, this was so we could synchronize our walking speed with that of the song. It was at this point that we noticed that due to the white balance of our camera for a split second it had to go white in the footage. We plan to use this to our advantage during the editing stages as we can use it as a natural fade to white. These ideas came naturally to us as we began filming, we soon found ourselves thinking, what about this shot, or what if we move it over here? We had to finish filming for the day however because the sun had begun to go down and this was the section of the film that we planned to shoot during the next day of filming.
Day 2
Today we began by shooting the train station parts of the music video and on from there, we found a shot that I particuarly liked which was as the other actor and I run up the stairs have the camera pointing into a convex mirror in the corner, this allowed for an almost wide angle feel to the shot. We once again overfilmed, getting shots of trains going past, arriving and people on the platform that we can use later to set the scene more. We then did other shots on the train that could show that we were traveling somewhere, I did other shots such as walking out of the train station and into the town. We then filmed various other shots as the characters in our music video traveled to the bowling alley, the lighting at this point was good for what we wanted as we began filming at the point that we stopped filming the day before so that continuity of light could be upheld well.
Unfortunately on the day of filming it was the weekend of halloween, we didn't think this would have been a problem however the lighting in the bowling alley had been turned right down and replaced by UV lights. We overcame this by using the lighting effects on the camera and setting it to 'night mode' so that it picked up even more light. Following that we shot the scene in the arcade, like the day before we began shooting various shots of anything as well as the shots written in our storyboard so that any clips that we don't like could be replaced with that.
We finished the day by traveling back, by this time it was night time which rounded the music video off nicely, I filmed some shots which worked very well, such as the close ups of feet and the bus driving away. For this we needed to sit on a step for about ten minutes waiting for the bus to drive away but the final effect came out very well, also during the drive home from the station I shot clips out of the windows to use later on, I filmed the entire drive home just incase there was something that we could use later on, unfortunately a lot was rather shakey however some was usable and I intend to use it when it comes down to it during the editing.
Day 1
We began filming our opening scenes during the early morning, this is so that we do not need to rely on any artificial light and it makes the morning scenes seem like they are morning. We filmed the first few shots and soon realized how important it is to check for continuity mistakes as they are very easily done due to moving around between takes. This was reduced by the length of our shots however still became a problem that we had to take a great deal of care of. We have changed a couple of shots due to complications or if on location we felt that another would be better.
We then moved outside to do the various shoots on the way to the train station, at some parts we added or changed what was happening as we were walking, we would be walking along and I would hold the camera and film the actress talking for a moment which we could then use in the final piece. We felt that it was important for the weather and lighting to stay the same for this external part so we shot extra footage, much more than we needed so that when we get to the editing stages we have enough shots and we can take what we want and leave what we don't need. We also began playing our song on my phone as we walked so that we could get a taste for what we aim to finally do, we can create a fast cut montage using short clips and if the characters are already going with the beat of the song it works even better. We only did this with a couple of shots such as one where they are walking round and infront of the camera and my foot lands right infront, this was so we could synchronize our walking speed with that of the song. It was at this point that we noticed that due to the white balance of our camera for a split second it had to go white in the footage. We plan to use this to our advantage during the editing stages as we can use it as a natural fade to white. These ideas came naturally to us as we began filming, we soon found ourselves thinking, what about this shot, or what if we move it over here? We had to finish filming for the day however because the sun had begun to go down and this was the section of the film that we planned to shoot during the next day of filming.
Day 2
Today we began by shooting the train station parts of the music video and on from there, we found a shot that I particuarly liked which was as the other actor and I run up the stairs have the camera pointing into a convex mirror in the corner, this allowed for an almost wide angle feel to the shot. We once again overfilmed, getting shots of trains going past, arriving and people on the platform that we can use later to set the scene more. We then did other shots on the train that could show that we were traveling somewhere, I did other shots such as walking out of the train station and into the town. We then filmed various other shots as the characters in our music video traveled to the bowling alley, the lighting at this point was good for what we wanted as we began filming at the point that we stopped filming the day before so that continuity of light could be upheld well.
Unfortunately on the day of filming it was the weekend of halloween, we didn't think this would have been a problem however the lighting in the bowling alley had been turned right down and replaced by UV lights. We overcame this by using the lighting effects on the camera and setting it to 'night mode' so that it picked up even more light. Following that we shot the scene in the arcade, like the day before we began shooting various shots of anything as well as the shots written in our storyboard so that any clips that we don't like could be replaced with that.
We finished the day by traveling back, by this time it was night time which rounded the music video off nicely, I filmed some shots which worked very well, such as the close ups of feet and the bus driving away. For this we needed to sit on a step for about ten minutes waiting for the bus to drive away but the final effect came out very well, also during the drive home from the station I shot clips out of the windows to use later on, I filmed the entire drive home just incase there was something that we could use later on, unfortunately a lot was rather shakey however some was usable and I intend to use it when it comes down to it during the editing.
Wednesday, 22 December 2010
Similar Websites
Mumford and sons have a similar website to the one that I plan to make for my anciliary task for Ed Sheeran. I feel that with this type of artist simplicity is key, I will use the house colours and star image motifs that I create for my artist on his website and on the albm, I will also, like Mumford and Sons have done. Include a link to the album that they have made, this is important as fans will be able to buy merchandise online legally.
James Blunt's website is similar to the one that I would like to create for Ed Sheeran, I would like a white background so that I can stay very simplistic. I will also include links to updates, tours and photos etc. Which is very commong for a band or artist's website to include, I like the way that this website is plain and clear with minimal white space and clutter, thisis something that I will try hard to
achieve in my website.
Enrique Iglesias' style of music is also similar to Ed Sheeran's in that he uses acoustic guitar in most his songs. Enrique's website is very focused around selling his merchandise and tickets, he uses his star image motif of himself to sell the various things on his website such as his after shave (seen in the bottom right of the image) or his tickets in the large box which changes images every minute.I like that Enrique's website is very simple to use, there is a navigation bar at the top which is something that I will use in my music video and the use of his star image motif is something that I would like to also recreate.
My Artist
I chose my artist because the song that I listened to had a good storyline that I could map out in my head whilst listening to it for the first time. This allowed me to eaily create a storyboard to that music video which worked well, my artist is named Ed Sheeran, he was made well known through the MIA song Bullet Bullet and also collaborating with the well known rap artist Example in a video posted onto Youtube which was filmed backstage at one of his gigs.
The use of certain keywords or phrases in his song 'Little Bird' will allow me to match lyrics to visuals at different points throughout my music video which works with Goodwin's theory.
Lighting
Lighting has become an issue whilst filming, the outside shots due to their nature are fine as they have all of the natural lighting needed but the inside shots seem to have caused some problems. The opening to the music video features a shot of the girl drinking tea, the person then looks down and their own mug comes up into the shot as the use of a transition. This is a really good shot however because of the large amount of light coming in from behind her, it is causing her to become shadowed, this means that this shot isn't as well lit as it could have been. If I could improve it now I would get come artificial lighting such as the use of a flood light and bounce it against a piece of white paper to create more natural looking light.
Also when we filmed in the bowling alley we didn't account for the fact that we went during halloween weekend to film so the lanes were lit with UV lights causing everything to be darker. Although we have made up for this in the use of the camera's night time mode and the effects available to us on the computers, this could have been improved by filming another weekend.
Also when we filmed in the bowling alley we didn't account for the fact that we went during halloween weekend to film so the lanes were lit with UV lights causing everything to be darker. Although we have made up for this in the use of the camera's night time mode and the effects available to us on the computers, this could have been improved by filming another weekend.
Camera Work
To make sure that the music video isn't boring with the camera work we used a mix of both handheld and fixed shots. I thought that using the same handheld effect throughout could be quite difficult for the viewers to follow, this is why we introduced some fixed shots.
Monday, 13 December 2010
Thursday, 9 December 2010
Shooting problems
We have had some problems with lighting in our video, during some of the internal shots the lighting was poor. This can be seen during the shot where the girl is seen drinking tea and then it goes into it's own cup, this was difficult to correct using the editing software that is available to us. The way we are going to over come this is by reshooting this particular shot with a stronger lights against her, we have a flood light available to us which we could point away from the shot against a piece of large white paper to give the illusion of natural light against her. Doing this will improve the quality of the shot.
Website Ancilliary Task
We have produced a draft for a website using the program Adobe Dreamweaver. Fortunately to us we are familiar to this software and found it easy to produce a proffesional looking website. However we have used copyrighted images to show what the website will look like (EG the legs at the top of the screen), we will solve this problem by taking our own photos similar to those that we have already used along with adding more panels. The panel layout we have used came from the idea of the Mozart HTC phone as the page could be updated using various live panels which update automatically, from here fans can see a live twitter feed of Ed Sheeran, there are also links to the shop and to see his upcoming gigs.
We have also asked permission from Ed Sheeran to use the images of his album artwork and merchandise so that we can easily make an authentic looking webstie. This also allows us to use copyrighted images without having to worry about breaking the law.
At first we had a bar splitting the titles and main page which had no real relation to the website or artist himself. It was at this point that I suggested changing this to a shoe lace as his star image motif is a shoe. This is where the image changed into a shoe lace going accross.
Wednesday, 8 December 2010
Friday, 5 November 2010
Location Shots
http://www.flickr.com/photos/joeorwin/sets/72157625186632963/show/
The link above is to the slideshow of my location shots
The link above is to the slideshow of my location shots
Wednesday, 20 October 2010
Questionnaire Answers
We showed the pitch video so a group of 30 willing volunteers over facebook, all of these fitted between the target audience boundaries that we had already set out. We carried out the answering process over a website named 'snappoll' this allowed everyone to vote over the internet which was much easier and quicker than any other way that I could have done it. Bellow is what was found.
Song Permission (again)
I'll be the first to address the fact that gaining permission from our artist through twitter may not be the most 'conventional' method of requesting royalties to someones artwork out there. But it worked. I sent a message over the popular social networking site 'twitter' to Ed Sheeran (our artist) and quickly received back a message in response which clearly showed enthusiasm in allowing us to make a music video from his song 'one night'. This will be our last song change as we're scheduled to begin filming next week. However we already have a storyboard and shooting schedule which will be posted in the next couple of days when I am able to gain access to a scanner.. :)
Also I didn't realise when naming my twitter account that it would come into my media work, if I had I would have named it something with a bit more dignity.
It is important to gain permission to use someone's work before you use it as without such, it would be stealing something that belongs to them. By gaining permission we are allowed access to the song that you have asked for and without this it would be illegal to use their property for any commercial use.
Tuesday, 19 October 2010
Pitch
Bellow is the video of our pitch, it shows what we intend to do with our music video, we carried out a questionnaire to see what people thought of our ideas, the results will be in a following blog post
Monday, 18 October 2010
Thursday, 14 October 2010
Changes
We have decided that our ideas for our music video are a bit generic, the song doesn't allow us to achieve our full potential that we know that we are capable of doing. We have now decided to change our location from my house/garden to somewhere that is not as common. My idea is to film an actor miming the words whilst in the woods where we can film them, this could be in the evening with a light pointing up at them. Also still using a narrative storyline to cut between the shots of the song being sung. We plan on making various changes throughout the process which I will keep posted on this blog.
Friday, 8 October 2010
More location shots
This is a video carrying on from the location shots previously posted with annotations of what I intend to do with each of the locations.
Location Shots
Front of the house
The opening follows behind the main character not showing their face which in itself follows Goodwin's notion of looking. There is also a cut to the artist begining to sing with their star image motif on the microphone, the slow opening taken in one shot matches the music as it has a very slow, calm opening to the song. The camera then pans round the character as he knocks on the door and is now facing the opposite direction, the door then opens as a girl jumps out and hugs the boy. This part may be difficult to do as there may not be enough room to stand a good distance from the two after the door is knocked, if this is the case we could not go round the boy and just stay next to him in the begining.
Inside house: Kitchin, Stairs, Bedroom etc.
After close ups of drinks being poured etc. The boy then walks up the stairs as the camera tilts upwards, this may be difficult as the lighting leading up the stairs in our location may not be good enough, we could overcome this by using artificial lighting.
Garden
Shots in the garden and on the patio (next photo also) of the characters when they were younger, weather may be a problem in this however we will record it all in one go so that continuity is all the same.
Living Room
The next shot is of them talking in the living room and the boy putting the video into the player, this then moves into the family videos in the room that they are in during different times of the year Christmas, Halloween, New Years etc. Then behind the two of them as they face the television. These shots may be hard due to the fact that it might be difficult to show that time has passed since this was filmed and that these two children are infact the characters that have been in the music video so far.
Wednesday, 6 October 2010
Annotated Lyrics
As piano plays person walks into recording studio and begins to sing.
My strings are broken and my heart is out of tune
Scene 1, 2 and 3
I wanted quiet but all I see is you
I don’t know anything
Cuts back to person singing
I stumbled forward and you let me walk away
Scene 4, 5, 6 and 7
We both know I’ll be running back to you someday
I don’t know anything
Singer
The earth is spinning but my feet are standing still
Scene 8, 9, 10 and 11
And the wind is biting but I’m fighting off the chill
I don’t know anything
Singer
So let’s pretend for just one minute
The world, the world, the world, the world
The world is mine but you’re not there
Scene 12, 13, 14 and 15
Singer
They say time’s a healer but my watch can’t tell the time
The left hand’s stuck six months ago and I can’t find the right
I don’t know anything
Scene 16, 17 and 18
The pen is stronger than any sharpened sword
But everything I write to you makes me feel like a fool
I don’t know anything
I feel like I can do anything
Why don’t you understand
Scene 19
Why don’t you see what I could be
Singer
Why can’t you see
I’d trade in the world for you.
Scene 20
Wednesday, 1 September 2010
Brands
Branding is a type of advertisement that artists use to boost their popularity and notability. It is important for an artist to have a specific type of brand so that they can adapt their star image around it. Their brand follows them throughout everything they do including the merchandise that is available to the public, this can involve posters, clothes and badges. having merchandise with their branding on is important because it is a very strong form of distribution, if a person were to see someone with a badge of a band that they don't know, they could ask who's it is and would then be told by that fan about the music. This actively helps to spread a band's notariety through word of mouth and all they have to do is produce the merchandise.
This sort of advertising is important and has been used throughout the years by many bands, the beatles for example used their brand image to sell more merchandise and also to build popularity and become more mainstream (not that they needed it!)
Merchandise that includes the band's brand can usually be found on the band's website so that they can sell more. Bands are increasingly selling their merchandise online for ease of access to the public, also because distributors in more recent times have become able to sell to places all over the world. This allows fans who cannot go to see the artist in person because they live abroad.
Merchandise can also be sold when the bands are touring, usually at larger gigs where arena's are built with stands set up to sell whatever is there.
Branding is important because fans can instantly recognise a band's logo or image that is on the merchandise, branding can be widespread across all of the band, behind the stage, on the drum set, basically wherever the band choose to have it. One key example of this is Greenday with their logo of a hand holding a heart-shaped grenade, this image is used in their music videos as well as being on t-shirts and on their album cover.
This sort of advertising is important and has been used throughout the years by many bands, the beatles for example used their brand image to sell more merchandise and also to build popularity and become more mainstream (not that they needed it!)
Merchandise that includes the band's brand can usually be found on the band's website so that they can sell more. Bands are increasingly selling their merchandise online for ease of access to the public, also because distributors in more recent times have become able to sell to places all over the world. This allows fans who cannot go to see the artist in person because they live abroad.
Merchandise can also be sold when the bands are touring, usually at larger gigs where arena's are built with stands set up to sell whatever is there.
Branding is important because fans can instantly recognise a band's logo or image that is on the merchandise, branding can be widespread across all of the band, behind the stage, on the drum set, basically wherever the band choose to have it. One key example of this is Greenday with their logo of a hand holding a heart-shaped grenade, this image is used in their music videos as well as being on t-shirts and on their album cover.
Permission
It is important to gain permission from an artist before using their music as failure to do so is in breach of copyright laws and makes it illegal. This is why I found it important to contact the artist who's music we are using to first gain permission to use his song, Alex, our artist, on both occassions that I sent my emails responded quickly giving me full access to all of his music. Bellow is a copy of the conversation that we had over email, highlighted in blue text are his responses to my original emails.
On 22 Jul 2010, at 14:55, Elliott Gallimore <elliottgallimore@ymail.com> wrote:
On 20 Jul 2010, at 18:09, Elliott Gallimore wrote:
Hi Alex, my name is Elliott Gallimore, I'm currently studying my A-levels and have been set the task to create a music video over the summer using the song of my choice and would like to ask permission to use your song 'Candy Floss'. In the interest of copyright i thought it important to ask authorisation from yourself. Thankyou very much for your time,
Elliott Gallimore
Elliott Gallimore
Sure, help yourself! :D
x
On 22 Jul 2010, at 14:55, Elliott Gallimore <elliottgallimore@ymail.com> wrote:
Hi again Alex, sorry about this but I was wondering whether instead of Candy Floss as the song that I make a music video for could I perhaps use 'The World is Mine (I don't know anything), thanks very much for your help :D
All my songs are available for whatever people want, so yeah, go ahead :D x
All my songs are available for whatever people want, so yeah, go ahead :D x
Storyboard
*Scene One*
Worms eye view - Shot of wheel pulling up, door opens foot steps out
Over the shoulder (behind back) -Person gets out of car, camera follows from behind as they walk up to the door and knock. Door opens, girls jumps out and hugs person.
FAMILY FLASH BACK
*Scene Two*
Close up of tea being made, water boiling/being poured etc.
Drinking tea, boy goes upstairs Camera follows from behind
Fade from young to old, posters/ bedding changes etc.
Pulls out box, opens up to reveal memento’s inside and a video.
Walks downstairs to put in video, close-up of hand
Both sit down, *Silhouette shot*
FAMILY FLASH BACK
Tear rolling down cheek. Close up
FAMILY FLASH BACK – BOY GOING TO UNIVERSITY
She hits him with a pillow Fade to black
Worms eye view - Shot of wheel pulling up, door opens foot steps out
Over the shoulder (behind back) -Person gets out of car, camera follows from behind as they walk up to the door and knock. Door opens, girls jumps out and hugs person.
FAMILY FLASH BACK
*Scene Two*
Close up of tea being made, water boiling/being poured etc.
Drinking tea, boy goes upstairs Camera follows from behind
Fade from young to old, posters/ bedding changes etc.
Pulls out box, opens up to reveal memento’s inside and a video.
Walks downstairs to put in video, close-up of hand
Both sit down, *Silhouette shot*
FAMILY FLASH BACK
Tear rolling down cheek. Close up
FAMILY FLASH BACK – BOY GOING TO UNIVERSITY
She hits him with a pillow Fade to black
Running Order
Scene one, piano playing, Girl going to the door as if it’s just been knocked, she opens the door to a younger male, hold in an embrace. Cup of tea being made (close up, lurpack)
Scene two *family flash back*
Scene three, goes upstairs into bedroom, suitcase on bed, sits on bed, goes to old room. Younger self running in hiding box of ‘keepsakes’ under bed. Cuts back to older, pulls box out revealing momentos and a video.
Scene four, coming downstairs to sister, with video, walk into living room.
Scene five *family flash back*
Scene six setting up living room, video into player, lights dim. Cuts to behind them *silhouette shot*
Scene seven *cuts of family videos put together*
Close up of girls face as tear rolls down her face
Scene eight *cuts back to family video*
Scene nine *silhouette shot zooming out*
Sunday, 29 August 2010
Digipaks
A digipak is a booklet this includes a lot of the band's information in, they choose what they want to put into it, a list of the songs is usually key, also a short bio on each of the band members. But this is completely customisable to the band's preferences.
The digipak usually opens up into three parts and also a plastic holder
Digipacks are a type of CD packaging made out of card stock or other heavy paper or cardboard material. They can open like a book, or it can have three parts so that one portion of the packaging opens to the right and one to the left with the CD in the centre. Usually, the part that holds the CD is plastic like a normal CD case - it also allows you to attach the information to the plastic.
A digipak is a booklet this includes a lot of the band's information in, they choose what they want to put into it, a list of the songs is usually key, also a short bio on each of the band members. But this is completely customisable to the band's preferences.
The digipak usually opens up into three parts and also a plastic holder
Digipacks are a type of CD packaging made out of card stock or other heavy paper or cardboard material. They can open like a book, or it can have three parts so that one portion of the packaging opens to the right and one to the left with the CD in the centre. Usually, the part that holds the CD is plastic like a normal CD case - it also allows you to attach the information to the plastic.
Star Image
According to Goodwin's theory a music video will always include some sort of visual that relates to the band's identity within the media industry, for example in Greenday's song 'American Idiot' there are large images of the logo associated with them, this is also used on the CD and album cover so that it is a well known symbol.
This star image is reflected through their album artwork, bands spend a lot of money in creating good looking visuals for their album cover. If a band is to change their image to the public it can be seen in their music videos and ablum artwork as well, for example the popular artist 'Example' began his career performing primarily rap songs. Because he had his 'own' genre in the sense that there are very few successful white rappers from Fulham he could create a unique sound which has a very raw and untampered feeling to it, this can be seen in his album cover in which he is sitting in a crystal ball. Whereas when he changed his music for his second album which he describes as 'disfunctional electro' he is wearing a range of different clothes and it appears more edited which reflects the music that he provides to the public.
This star image is reflected through their album artwork, bands spend a lot of money in creating good looking visuals for their album cover. If a band is to change their image to the public it can be seen in their music videos and ablum artwork as well, for example the popular artist 'Example' began his career performing primarily rap songs. Because he had his 'own' genre in the sense that there are very few successful white rappers from Fulham he could create a unique sound which has a very raw and untampered feeling to it, this can be seen in his album cover in which he is sitting in a crystal ball. Whereas when he changed his music for his second album which he describes as 'disfunctional electro' he is wearing a range of different clothes and it appears more edited which reflects the music that he provides to the public.
Thursday, 15 July 2010
Niche Artists
Many artists started with their own niche, that one thing that made them stand out against the others, this could be through the star's image or the way that they sing. Lily Allen has been famed for having her own unique style of music which she herself coined as being her own, however since then other artists have come along and attempted to replicate her type of music. Kate Nash has been seen to try to adopt this music style however has appeared to be copying Allen's style and is therefore less popular.
It is now becoming increasingly easy to become famous as there are multiple mediums in which a person can show their niche to the world. Websites such as bebo and myspace as well as tv shows such as the X factor allow people to advertise themselves to the world by showing what they do best.
Some artist's niches are their image, by creating an air of mystery about themselves, this can be seen in bands such as gorillaz who almost never show themselves to the public but instead use cartoon images to represent themselves. Other artists reveal themselves to their audience but take on another persona whilst on stage, artists such as Lady Gaga and Marilyn Manson give themselves a strange reputation so that they are well known in the music industry.
Super Furry Animals used their star image and more importantly their name to create the video to their song 'Golden Retrievers' in which they themselves become Yeti like creatures. Artists also usually use comedy to further their public image, eminem for example used the novelty of being one of the first successful white rappers to make it into the public domain.
It is now becoming increasingly easy to become famous as there are multiple mediums in which a person can show their niche to the world. Websites such as bebo and myspace as well as tv shows such as the X factor allow people to advertise themselves to the world by showing what they do best.
Some artist's niches are their image, by creating an air of mystery about themselves, this can be seen in bands such as gorillaz who almost never show themselves to the public but instead use cartoon images to represent themselves. Other artists reveal themselves to their audience but take on another persona whilst on stage, artists such as Lady Gaga and Marilyn Manson give themselves a strange reputation so that they are well known in the music industry.
Super Furry Animals used their star image and more importantly their name to create the video to their song 'Golden Retrievers' in which they themselves become Yeti like creatures. Artists also usually use comedy to further their public image, eminem for example used the novelty of being one of the first successful white rappers to make it into the public domain.
Tuesday, 6 July 2010
Types of Music Video
Goodwin stated that there are three main different types of music video that are followed by artists:
The first is the performance video, this is mainly a video of the artists performing their song, this is usually recorded in a studio so that sound quality can be vastly improved on filming it on set with all of the other background sounds that would get in the way. However this is not always the case, for example in one of OK Go's videos named this to shall pass is a key example of this, in that music video they perform with a large marching band which was actually filmed live and released to the public. This video was also a success in that it was filmed in one take, a method that OK Go have cornered the market in as their other music videos use this idea also. This type of music video is common in rock bands as they usually like to advertise a 'raw' and 'untouched' feeling to their music videos so that it says that the band is still only about producing good music.
Another type of music video is the narrative video, this usually tells a story which is often based around the music. For example, example's Last Ones Standing has been cleverly made to mimic a cop show from the 80's, only at one point does example actually mime the words of the song, and the rest follows the daily activities of the fictional cop character that he portrays.
The final type of music video is the concept based, this is where a video is particuarly notable due it's content and the unique-ness of it. For example OK Go's Here it goes again is particuarly notable as it is performed on six tread-mills as the band sings the song to a choreographed dance whilst using the running machines. This video started on the internet and became world wide over night, the band used this 'one take' star image to create a name for themselves and have since created two other 'one take' videos.
The first is the performance video, this is mainly a video of the artists performing their song, this is usually recorded in a studio so that sound quality can be vastly improved on filming it on set with all of the other background sounds that would get in the way. However this is not always the case, for example in one of OK Go's videos named this to shall pass is a key example of this, in that music video they perform with a large marching band which was actually filmed live and released to the public. This video was also a success in that it was filmed in one take, a method that OK Go have cornered the market in as their other music videos use this idea also. This type of music video is common in rock bands as they usually like to advertise a 'raw' and 'untouched' feeling to their music videos so that it says that the band is still only about producing good music.
Another type of music video is the narrative video, this usually tells a story which is often based around the music. For example, example's Last Ones Standing has been cleverly made to mimic a cop show from the 80's, only at one point does example actually mime the words of the song, and the rest follows the daily activities of the fictional cop character that he portrays.
The final type of music video is the concept based, this is where a video is particuarly notable due it's content and the unique-ness of it. For example OK Go's Here it goes again is particuarly notable as it is performed on six tread-mills as the band sings the song to a choreographed dance whilst using the running machines. This video started on the internet and became world wide over night, the band used this 'one take' star image to create a name for themselves and have since created two other 'one take' videos.
Monday, 5 July 2010
Addicted to love
We have looked at the song 'Addicted to Love' by Robert Palmer. First released in 1986 it has been adapted and borrowed throughout the years, it has been noted that this music video has influenced such music videos as Tone Lōc's "Wild Thing", Shania Twain's "Man! I Feel Like a woman!" where the women dancing in Palmer's music video are then swapped for male models dancing in the same way. Also Bowling for Soup's "1985" has been said to have been influenced by Palmer's music video and finally Beyoncé's video "Green Light" also is said to share many of the same elements.
Artists seem to borrow and adapt from other music videos to build off of, they often use key points or ideas from other music videos, this can be as a parody (as seen in Weird Al Yankovic's music videos in which he makes fun of mainstream bands by changing the words and making new videos). Or even this could be due to nostalgic purposes, 1985 by Bowling for Soup uses the essence of many different 'classic' music videos to create a feeling of nostalgia whilst acting as a parody at the same time.
Artists seem to borrow and adapt from other music videos to build off of, they often use key points or ideas from other music videos, this can be as a parody (as seen in Weird Al Yankovic's music videos in which he makes fun of mainstream bands by changing the words and making new videos). Or even this could be due to nostalgic purposes, 1985 by Bowling for Soup uses the essence of many different 'classic' music videos to create a feeling of nostalgia whilst acting as a parody at the same time.
Thursday, 1 July 2010
Intertextuality and Music Videos
We have looked at a few different music videos and their relevence when looking at intertextuality within them. First we looked at 'Material Girl' by Madonna, this music video links with intertextuality in that it has been drawn from a film starring Marilyn Monroe. The scene is almost identical within the colourscheme and outfits however Madonna is singing in the place of Marilyn, this shows a popular film which has been adapted to build popularity.
We also watched Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen, we chose this because it was the start of the music video trend, although there had been these videos around prior to this. This video used effects and transitions never before seen in music videos that were only just coming to films.
We also watched Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen, we chose this because it was the start of the music video trend, although there had been these videos around prior to this. This video used effects and transitions never before seen in music videos that were only just coming to films.
Goodwin's music analysis
Andrew Goodwin wrote in the book 'Dancing in the distraction factory' the following key principles that are used in every music video in some way or another, we intend to follow these conventions to make a successful music video. The following are Goodwin's principles:
Music videos demonstrate gene characteristics (eg stage performance in rock video, dance routine)
This relates to our video in that it will be partly performance bace yet also narrative based so that we can include as much detail as we possibly can. This allows us to include the conventions of various types of music video including shots and effects. We intend to include a large amount of over exposed shots to show the purity behind the story.
There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals.
We will include a link between lyrics and visuals in that some of the lyrics link to what we will be showing, however we want to try to keep the music video slightly detached from the lyrics as it will make it easier to be unique.
There is a relationship between music and visuals.
We intend to use fast paced video montage at the parts when the music begins to pick up but also use slower transitions when the music is slower.
The demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close-ups of the artist and the artist may develop motifs which recur accross their work (a visual style)
We will be using a range of close ups and extreme close ups to show the artist whilst they are singing in the recording studio. Also are going to include the star image motif of our artist so that it is recognisable, the image that we have chosen is playing cards due to the fact that it relates to the artist.
There is frequently reference to notion of looking (screens within screens, television etc)
Close ups of eyes show throughout, also the use of direct address in the home videos make it apparent that it is being recorder with someone that they know. Also the fact that they are watching a home video is also us to address the notion of looking.
There is often intertextual references to films, television, other music videos etc.
The use of movie posters that relate to films that would have been around when the home video was taken show that time has passed.
Music videos demonstrate gene characteristics (eg stage performance in rock video, dance routine)
This relates to our video in that it will be partly performance bace yet also narrative based so that we can include as much detail as we possibly can. This allows us to include the conventions of various types of music video including shots and effects. We intend to include a large amount of over exposed shots to show the purity behind the story.
There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals.
We will include a link between lyrics and visuals in that some of the lyrics link to what we will be showing, however we want to try to keep the music video slightly detached from the lyrics as it will make it easier to be unique.
There is a relationship between music and visuals.
We intend to use fast paced video montage at the parts when the music begins to pick up but also use slower transitions when the music is slower.
The demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close-ups of the artist and the artist may develop motifs which recur accross their work (a visual style)
We will be using a range of close ups and extreme close ups to show the artist whilst they are singing in the recording studio. Also are going to include the star image motif of our artist so that it is recognisable, the image that we have chosen is playing cards due to the fact that it relates to the artist.
There is frequently reference to notion of looking (screens within screens, television etc)
Close ups of eyes show throughout, also the use of direct address in the home videos make it apparent that it is being recorder with someone that they know. Also the fact that they are watching a home video is also us to address the notion of looking.
There is often intertextual references to films, television, other music videos etc.
The use of movie posters that relate to films that would have been around when the home video was taken show that time has passed.
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