Our Target Audience

Star Image for Our Artist

The Star Image of Our Artist from

Budget For Our Music Video

We need certain props for the music video which as a group, we needed to buy. A budget list was produced showing how much each item costs with the total each person had to pay. It was decided that each person in the group would give £10 towards the props, giving us a total of £30 to spend. Luckily, the props came to less than this, therefore, we have a little money spare if we need to buy anything else.

Asking for Permission

In order to use the song for our music video, we need to ask the record label permission to do so. James Bay, the artist who originally sang the song 'Best Fake Smile' is signed to Republic Records, a member of the Universal Music Group. The song was released on this record label as a part of Bay's album 'Chaos and the Calm'. I sent an email to the record company via the contact link I found on their website. If we are told we can't use the song, we will need to find an alternative song that fits our concept and we can get permission for or change our song choice and idea and get permission for the new song.

We also need to ask permission for a location we want to use. One of the locations is the grounds of a hotel, therefore, we need to ensure that it is ok for us to film there, using our equipment and with the cast. Another member of the group has emailed the hotel manager to see if we will be allowed to film there. If we cannot film here, we will need to look for alternative space that is similar that we can use, even if we need to ask for permission again.

Props for Our Music Video

Props For Our Music Video from SamMullerMedia

Review of the Storyboard

The storyboard was difficult to develop as we had to try to express our idea, which we had previously written out, in picture form. As a result of this, we created the timeline and shot list first as this allowed us to write out what we wanted to happen and when, making it easier for the person drawing to see what to draw out in each box as each box represented a shot. However, every time the storyboard was updated and tweaked, the storyboard also needed to be altered, resulting in the drawer re-drawing the frames to allow for this. After the drawer had finished drawing, the storyboard allowed us to picture our music video using images rather than words, creating a visual aid for us later in the process. 

     During the process of creating the storyboard, we were able to debate about certain elements such as whether the performance element should take place in the studio or in multiple locations. By having the images drawn out, we could get a clearer image of what each idea would look like, allowing us to see what may look best. We also looked into other indie music videos at this point to help us ensure that we were making the right choice by only drawing out the studio in this storyboard for the performance element.

     We will use the storyboard as a guide when filming as it will enable us to ensure we have the shots that we initially wanted to take. However, on the shoot day, we will film a wider range of shots as only using the storyboard will limit this. Taking a wider range of shots will be useful because it is likely that when we edit, we can alter what shots we wanted if those from the storyboard don't work as well as we hoped or we find a better angle. 

     The storyboard will be particularly useful during the editing process as it will help us make sure that we are following the narrative in the right way. As our narrative tells almost a story, it is important that we use the storyboard to make sure that we sequence the shots right, otherwise the narrative concept may be lost to the audience.

     Overall, the storyboard has helped us clarify our concept and ideas as well as any questions we had about what shots to use. We realise that the storyboard will become a very important part of the making of our music video, particularly in the future processes. 

Storyboard for Our Music Video

Timeline and Shot List for Our Music Video

As a group, we wrote a timeline and shot list to help illustrate how we see the music video progressing. We wrote out the lyrics as well as the seconds and then decided where we wanted the location to be for that part as well as what the shots we wanted to take would include.

Plan for the Day

We have decided to film our music video over the course of a couple of days. We have split the shoot into days depending on the location, for example, we want to film from the view point and the lake on the same day because they are close together. As we want to film part of our music video in school because this will help us demonstrate our narrative, we need to be in school to do this, therefore, we will do all of this on a separate day.
     In order to ensure that we know exactly what we are doing and that we work efficiently, we have put together a plan for the day. We have made one for the days that we will shoot outside of school and one for the days when we will film in school.

TIMINGS FOR OUT OF SCHOOL FILMING

9:30 - Group arrives and goes over what we want to do in the day, check that we have everything we need for that day
10:30 - Cast arrives and group tells them what we are going to do
10:45 - Costumes, hair and make-up
11:30 - Go to location 1, run through, then film
13:00 - Lunch
14:00 - Go over what we need to do in the afternoon
14:15 - Go to location 2, run through, then film
15:45 -Review footage


TIMINGS FOR IN SCHOOL FILMING

When we film in school, we will need to be considerate of the fact that other students will be around, and may even be in lesson. This means that we may have to keep the noise down as well as the fact that certain parts of the school may not be suitable to use at specific times of the day.  We will also have lessons during the day, the members in our group will all have different lesson times and so will the members of the cast. This therefore means that we will need to find a time that is convenient for everyone, this means we may have to film during lunch time.
     We will film during lunch time or during free periods, therefore we will not have a full length day plan for this. Instead, we will meet the cast and quickly discuss what needs to be done, we will then make sure they are in their costumes. Following this, we will begin by doing a run through and then start filming.
     Closer to the day we will devise a more accurate plan for the filming in school.

Vance Joy - Album Cover Analysis

The album cover has a general vintage feel to it. This is a result of the colours used and the clothing that Vance Joy is wearing.

     The colours used on the album seem to be washed out, creating the vintage feel because when something gets old, the colours begin to fade. This helps connote that Vance Joy is a more indie artist as it contrasts with the vibrant colours that are often used on pop albums.

     Joy is clearly wearing unconventional clothing that doesn’t really fit in with mainstream fashion of the 21st century. This connotes that he is an indie artist as his fashion sense is more alternative.

     The natural colouring also highlights that Vance Joy is a natural, and therefore organic artist.

The predominant image on the album is the long shot of Vance Joy  which is place in the centre of the cover. This draws the audiences attention to him, creating a focus point for them.

     The fact that you can’t see his face clearly due to the rip and the fact that part of it looks covered connotes that he doesn’t want to sell him album based on his looks, but rather the music he produces. This links to the star image of an organic, indie artist.

The font used for Vance Joy’s name almost looks like it could’ve been handwritten. This signifies that Joy is an organic artist as he is using images that look natural. The font used for the album name it very simple and very small. This connotes that again, Vance Joy doesn’t want his music to sell based on how the cover looks, rather what the actual music sounds like, signifying that he is an organic artist.

Costumes, Hair and Make-Up for Our Music Video

Casting Our Music Video

To help us decide who we want to appear in our music video, we decided to 'audition' some people who we think had the right look. This helped us to see what they would be like if they were in the video.

From doing this, we saw that finding the right people to be in our music video would be more challenging than we initially thought. 

     When watching this footage back, we saw that all the girls, apart from the one with the short red hair seemed quite nervous in front of the camera. It is important that they girls don't look nervous and aren't camera shy because they will be playing the part of the popular, slightly mean girls at the school. To portray this effectively, the people who we will cast need to be confident in order to play the part convincingly. Unfortunately, it is unlikely that we will cast any of these people as they either don't have the right look, or are not confident enough to be able to play the part in the way that we want it to be done. This has helped us in seeing what we should be looking for in terms of acting ability as well as what the cast need to look like.

     We could only get a couple of boys to appear in this casting video, however, this still allowed us to see what we needed in terms of look and lip-syncing/acting ability. While the boy in the blue top seemed to be a bit shy and unsure of himself, the other boy in the tartan shirt was over acting. We saw the importance of the fact that the boy knows the lyrics to the song, particularly as he is the artist and should know the lyrics to his own song. This is because without knowing the lyrics properly, it isn't possible for the boy to give a convincing performance and make the audience believe that he is passionate about his music. Both the boys didn't seem to have good musicality which is important because they need to be able to say the lyrics in time with the music, therefore using the music as a guide. Additionally, neither of the boys had the look we want our artist to have as the boy in the blue looks too young and the other boy simply doesn't have what we were looking for. Neither of the boys is able to play the guitar which is a problem as to highlight that our artist is organic, this is something we feel as though we should show in the video, especially because you can hear the guitar in the song. 

     Following this, it is clear that we need to re-evaluate what we are looking for. We need to ensure that whoever we cast as the girlfriend and her friends are confident in front of the camera to be able to portray their characters effectively and well. For the boy, it is evident that we need to have someone with good musicality, and can play the guitar. We also can see that the boy needs to be able to learn the lyrics and be able to lip-sync well as well as accurately.

     The next thing we will need to do is test screen some other people who we think would be able to play their parts more accurately. We will use what we have learnt from this test screening to help us do this.

Feedback On Our Idea

Tom Odell - Album Cover Analysis

Characters We Need

Paolo Nutini - Album Cover Analysis

Location Scouting

To make sure that we would use suitable, sensible locations, Bianca and myself went location scouting. From this we were able to visualise what shots we wanted to be taken in each location as well as what locations would and wouldn't work for various reasons. It also helped us to choose locations which best suited the organic, natural image that we want our artist to have.

What Sub-Genre Does Our Artist Fit Into?

Like films, music artists often fit into more than one sub-genre which allows them to access a wider target audience. I looked at different indie sub-genres and how we could incorporate some of their conventions or ideas into our video.

INDIE - POP

Indie pop videos, much like pure indie videos are set in low budget locations as well as those which would enable the artist to give a convincing performance. This is important because they are still indie artists who pride themselves on the quality of their music. However, unlike pure indie videos, their performance in a music video is broken up by a narrative in order to make the video memorable for the audience. This narrative often tells a story and conforms to Goodwin's theory that music videos amplify the message of the song which is important in helping the audience to understand the meaning of the song.

    These are all aspects which we could use to target a wider audience. We want to include a narrative in our video to make it more engaging for our audience.  I think that it is quite possible to indie pop videos to feature love stories as they are targeting a pop audience who might like mainstream rom-coms, therefore, I think that our narrative about a relationship would appeal to them. I also think that by using the forest, a low budget location and a small studio we would be able to give a convincing performance.

INDIE - ROCK

From my research, I could see that the conventions of this sub-genre were much the same as indie-pop but didn't have the use of a romantic narrative to appeal to their target audience. These videos tend to focus more on the performance and have the lead singer upfront. This will be something easy for us to emulate as we are presenting a solo artist so he will always be presented in the centre.

    Another convention I came across was their clothing. These artists wear laid back, casual clothing such as black jeans. This is the kind of look seen on James Bay and is therefore something we will take into consideration when creating the look for our artist.

Media Products with Ideas Similar to the Narrative for Our Music Video

Research into the Indie Music Genre

Diagram to Show the Narrative for Our Initial Idea

To help us visualise our prelimairy idea, we drew a simple diagram with a few notations.

Location Research

In order to create a convincing performance, we need to find a suitable performance space for this to take place in. The location needs to connote authenticity and highlight the organic qualities of our artist. In work out what a suitable location would be to connote that our artist is authentic, organic and indie as well as look like a realistic performance space, I looked a music videos for similar artists, Paolo Nutini and Benjamin Clementine.

In his video for 'Let Me Down Easy' Nutini is seen in a small performance space which is quite open and surrounded by nature. In this space, he has a band and is singing into a microphone. This connotes his organic nature as he is surrounded by nature and therefore can be seen as natural. The fact that he is surrounded by a band who are playing their instruments signifies his authenticity as it shows that he cares about the quality of his music and that his image is not about who he is as a person, but rather the music and all the instruments that are used to create it.

In Clementine's video, he is sitting by the piano in a small studio, playing the instrument as he sings. This connotes that the is an authentic artist as he actually plays the instrument which is used in the song. The use of the small performance space also creates a sense of intimacy and makes the audience feel closer to Benjamin Clementine. This is important for allowing him to connect with his fans and make them feel like they have a personal relationship with him.


WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR OUR LOCATION?
From this, I can see the importance of the way in which the performance space is dressed for example, the fact that there are instruments in the room. When we film our performance element, we will dress our studio in a similar way, we will use amps and a microphone to make it look like a real stage/ performance space. We will also use a relatively small room to create intimacy and make the audience feel closer to our artist.

'Best Fake Smile' - Lyrics Analysis

Our Music Video Idea

Research And Development Of Our Music Video Idea from Bianca Shirk

Questionnaire about Music Videos and Music Video Consumption

In order to understand what people look for in a music video and what would influence them, making them more inclined to watch it, I asked some people about their music video consumption.

     I also wanted to understand what kind of music people listen to and why they listen to this kind of music so I asked them some questions about their music tastes.
     The problem with this was that the people I asked were all around the same age and pretty much all female, making the interviews very biased and therefore I did not receive a rounded view of people's media consumption and tastes in music. Below are a few videos of the interviews that I conducted.

Hozier's Star Image

Research into What People Think of the Song 'Best Fake Smile'

Review of the Lip Sync Task

When we did our lip syncing task, the first thing we did was choose a song. We decided to choose a recent one as it was more likely that the person in the video would know the lyrics, therefore making the lip sync more accurate. The song we chose was Little Mix 'Black Magic'.
    After we chose the song, we had a quick conversation about what we should do in the video, whether it should be purely performance based or include some narrative. We decided that we would have a narrative element in the video, however, we did not have a chance to storyboard this so had to decide what to do as we went along. The narrative is about nerdy, unpopular girl who one day decides that she wants to change that using 'black magic' to do this. The girl transforms into a popular girl with lots of friends and self-confidence.
    The ideas used in this task were based on typical teen themes and things that have been seen in teen movies, for example, the idea of sitting in the toilet alone came from the film 'Mean Girls'. This allowed us to use Stewart's theory of 'incorporating, raiding and reconstructing' elements of other media texts to create nostalgia for the audience. Other ideas came from the lyrics and therefore, we were able to incorporate Goodwin's theory of the existence of a link between the lyrics and the visuals. We did this by using the idea of a chemical experiment making a potion to make two people fall in love as the lyrics say 'take a sip of my secret potion, I'll make you fall in love'.
    In this task, we appealed to Negus's idea of organic and synthetic artists, choosing to represent a synthetic one. This was achieved by the use of simple dance moves and the lack of instruments in the performance element of the video.
     The editing for this task is very basic, but it does conform to Goodwin's theory of visuals linking to the music as it is cut to the beat. There are no special effects used because I edited this using Movie Maker on my computer which only allows you to do limited things.
     Overall, I think that this task was quite successful because in the time that we had, I was able to create a video which has a simple narrative, a performance element as well as highlighting the attributes of a synthetic music artist in music videos. I was also able to conform to different conventions of a music video, adding the success of this video.

Similarities Between Some of One Direction's and The Backstreet Boys Music Videos

Richard Dyer's star image theory states that record labels create similar stars and images for artists based on the patterns that they know will work, resulting in the 'photocopied' nature of boy bands. This can be seen by looking at some of the music videos of One Direction and The Backstreet Boys.

ONE DIRECTION'S 'DRAG ME DOWN' and THE BACKSTREET BOYS 'I WANT IT THAT WAY'
The Backstreet Boys released this music video back in October 2009. In the music video, the band is seen walking through the airport and standing by the plane, preparing to get on it. They are seen standing in some sort of formation with the person singing at the front, switching as each member sings their lines. This is similar to One Direction's video for 'Drag Me Down' which was released in August 2015 and is set in NASA. In the video, the members of One Direction, through a montage, are seen preparing and training to board a rocket. There are group shots of the band standing in a sort of repair centre for the rockets and on the courtyard near the launch pad in a similar formation to that of The Backstreet Boys in their video. Like the 2009 video, close-ups of the member singing are used while they are in their formation to highlight this person and make it clear that this is their line.

ONE DIRECTION'S 'WHAT MAKES YOU BEAUTIFUL' and THE BACKSTREET BOYS 'ANYWHERE WITH YOU'

Both of these music videos are set on the beach with similar shots at the start. In The Backstreet Boys video, the establishing shot is a wide angle of the boys walking along the beach and a similar shot is used near the start of the 'What Makes You Beautiful' video. In the two videos, the band members are seen to be having fun on the beach, flirting with girls. Similar editing techniques are used in the two videos as well because both feature cross-fading as a transition between shots.

ONE DIRECTION'S 'YOU AND I' and  THE BACKSTREET BOYS 'INCONSOLABLE'

It is clear after watching the videos that the One Direction video has taken ideas from the Backstreet Boys. The entire 'You and I' video is set on a pier which the boys walk down as they sing, the colouring isn't bright and there isn't anything else going on. The Backstreet Boys video features a pier, particularly during the chorus of the song, showing the boys standing on it singing, much like in the One Direction video. The colours and lighting in this video are also fairly dim. 

Feedback on my Music Video Ideas

To help us choose what song and concept we should use we got feedback on our idea. In the end, we chose to go with 'Best Fake Smile' for our music video which was also the idea that we came up with as a group. Below is the feedback on the other ideas:

BRUNO MARS 'RUNAWAY BABY'

• There would only be a couple of locations used which could make it quite boring, especially if we were just to use the school and a studio
• It would be very difficult to create a 60s setting with the equipment, props and costumes we have access to 
• The idea of the 60s is good as it would match the music of the song, therefore conforming to one of Goodwin's theories

MIKA 'WE ARE GOLDEN'

• The concept is good but it would paint all teenagers in a bad light, implying that they are all rebels and don't respect teachers in school
• It may be quite difficult to film a number of different people doing different things as this would require the use of lots of different locations and be very time consuming

GRL - 'UGLY HEART'

• The idea of basing it on a well-known film is good but may be quite difficult to do in 3 minutes as we are making a music video not a film
• We would have to find a group of 4 girls who would all be willing to be in the video as well as be able to dance as this is a very synthetic style song
• The constant switching between people and locations could be disorientating for the audience

JAMES BAY - 'BEST FAKE SMILE'

• The morals behind the concept are good and there are many ways this could be represented
• We need to choose a narrative rather than just think up all of the possibilities that we could use and develop that one
• The links between the narrative and the lyrics are quite clear therefore we would be conforming to one of Goodwin's theories

My Music Video Ideas

What I've Learnt From Doing The Lip Sync Task

While I feel that my lip sync task was successful due to the materials and time scale I had available, it was very useful in highlighting some key issues which would need to be addressed when producing my actual promotional music video.
     The first thing which I have learnt that I will need to do is ensure that I have a variety of shots in order to show different angles and be able to cut to the beat. While in the lip sync task, this was possible some of the time, I will need to be able to cut to the beat to conform to Goodwin's theory that there is a relationship between the music and the visuals properly.
     I have also learnt that there is need for proper planning when producing, including looking at different locations and costumes as this was something that we did not do in the lip sync task. This would be very important in the actual video as it would help connote the star image of the artist and was perhaps something that I did not think of as being that important in this task.
    A further aspect of planning that I would need to carry out is the creation of a storyboard. While not having one for this task was ok as it was quite informal and I feel like I produced a fairly successful product, I have learnt that in order to use time efficiently, take the right shots and plan the structure of the video, I would need a storyboard or timeline.
     Another thing that I have learnt from this task is that when I produce the actual video, I may need to film more than once. In this task, I only had the opportunity to film once, however, from this, I can see the importance of ensuring that the right footage is taken which may result in more than one filming session.
     I think that this task has also illustrated how difficult it is to get into character as well as perform and sing every word. When producing the real video, I will therefore need to make sure that as a group, we give good directions which help the cast perform to their best. I have also learnt that we should give our artist the lyrics before the filming so that they can perform them properly and sing every word in the,
     I believe that this task has given me an insight into what may be difficult when filming the actual video as well as the things that I need to take into consideration which I may not have initially thought would be an issue.

Lip Sync Task

Contoversy Sells

The Guardian article 'MTV Video Music Awards: where controversy is still the strongest currency' states that in order for MTV to make the VMAs successful, they need to make the show shocking and controversial.
     The show has been known to feature controversial performances from Miley to Madonna. The artice reckons that the only reason the show is successful is because of this as it gets people talking and  creates interest as well as that the awards are a 'joke' and only the nominee's really care.
     The article makes a point that the TV channel also create controversy during the advertising campaign leading up to the awards show.
      It is clear that it is becoming increasingly popular for artists to be shocking and different in order to sell.