Editing

Aswell as the shoot day, the editing process is also essential to create any form of film media. The editing process for my video was realistic as the only after effects we used was colour correct. We spent a total of six houres editing the video.

We used the 'Final Cut Pro' editing system to edit the video and color correct system. Final Cut Pro is an editing system that works along side G5 apple mac computers. It is a timeline based non-linear based package.

Due to the disadvantage of changing our idea the day before the shoot day and therefore the storyboard was not a useful document to us, therefore we had nothing to go by during the editing process. This meant that we had to experiment with different shots for different parts of the song and judge which shot looked better. However, I do not think this was a hinder to us but helped us be more free and creative. This came across once finished as it portrayed the easy going, fun and free style we wanted to portray in the overall video. During the shoot day we did capture particular shots for particular parts of the song. For example, at the end of the song the music slowley fades out. We shot the girls lying down threw feathers down whilst filming in slow motion. We filmed this to particularly use for the end of the song.

The first assembly or rough cut of the video was sucsessful as I feel it had the correct feel to the video that we wanted to create from the shoot day. This first assembly is to make sure that the video works well and conveys our initial ideas. The video was then shown to Luke to make minor changes. For example, there is a quick cut of a light near the begining of the song, weher we used the light coming from the projector. Luke and ourselves felt that the light wasn't bright or impressive enough for the begining of the video. Therefore we looked over our shoot material and found a brighter, better light.

This is important in the editing process as it gives an outsiders opinion on the video. We felt that the video was secure and finished, however getting Luke's opinion on it helped us to analyse the video further and understand what needed to be changed. He informed us that there was a section of the video on the rough cut that cut to the beat of the song. He said that this did not look right in amongst the whole product as the rest of the video used discontinuity editing.

We came to the final cut after changing some shots to make the overall feel of the video the style we wanted. We used Kuleshovs theory to aim to sell the song and establish the image of the band. We wanted the video to paralell the etheral, bohiemuim and fantasy elements of the song through the video. We used soft circles and lines to create a soft, relaxed and imaginary atmosphere. We wanted the audience to feel relaxed and free when watching the video. We wanted a diversion from the audiences every day lives; we felt the free soft shapes and slow movement would give the audience an emotional release from everyday pressures.

We also used Kuleshov's theory of colour, using warm blues and pinks. I feel that this added to the surreal and fantasy element of the video by making it appear like a dream world. We used a program on final cut pro that allowed us to colour correct the video after it was cut. This meant that the shades of colour apperaed the same. This made the video look more neat and therefore proffessional.

This is the finished version of 'La La La':

Shoot Day

The shoot date of my music video of 'La la la' by 'The Bird and the Bee' was on Tuesday 26th November. We started filming at 10 am, after setting up the studio and making sure the cast were ready with full make-up, hair and costume. The set we used was a simple design that used two sofas, bed sheets and 'girly' items such as flowers, feathers, fairy lights and cushions. We carried in two sofas into the studio and put them on their sides to make a 'den' like creation for the girls. We then covered it in a bed sheet and the girly items. We set up the projector and linked it to the laptop that played the patterns that were continuously projected on the girls and sheets. We then filmed the girls from different angles in the 'den' laughing and lip syncing. However, we only filmed in close-up and mid close-up to show the intimacy that we wanted to create in the video.





One of the 'girly' items was pink netting; we discovered that this was created an interesting under water style effect when placed over the projector. It appeared as though the camera was underwater and created an delusional 'hippy' type feel that we wanted to create for the video, we then captured this on camera.

We then changed the set, making a tunnel of white material using a bed sheet and a fan. We then filmed the girls lip-syncing lying down in the tunnel, once with Lizzy in the foreground and then with Catherine in the background. We then set up four poles and hung sheets on them to look like a tent style white background and hung fairy lights around it. We filmed with this set up on a mid closeup and a closeup. We then filmed just the girls bodies with no background and projected the patterns onto the girl's white dresses and filmed them one at a time dancing and turning. After lunch, the girls then changed clothing from white dresses to cosmic style tops and Catherine wore a velvet skirt and Lizzy wore velvet leggings. We hung the sheets from the ceiling using rope and a ladder to attach them to the lighting rig. We filmed one girl at a time holding a sheet in each hand and waving them about at a slow pace whilst lip syncing. I thought these shots were particularly effective because the projection and the girl's make-up stood out particularly here. We then used this sheet set up by filming Catherine walking into the sheets and Lizzy walking out.


Gina thought of this shot on the shoot day and I felt it was particularly effective as it would make the audience consider are they twins or are they not. We then filmed them in slow motion from a birds eye view throwing them in the air on a bed sheet. We were assisted in holding a corner of the bed sheet, with each girl on it, feathers and flowers. We also filmed them each lying on the sheet and filmed them from a birds eye view lip syncing and then in slow motion with them both together as feathers were thrown onto their faces. We then packed up and returned the props we used, swept the floor and made sure the studio was left in the same way it was before we built the set.






As it was only me and Gina in a group, therefore was a lot of different jobs to do on the shoot day. I was in charge of making sure that what was being filmed looked good on the monitor, keeping the projector playing the images, making sure that the red light to stop people entering the television studio was switched on when filming and was also in charge of playback, which is when the song is played every time something is filmed so the girl's could lip-sync to it. Gina took photographs during the shoot day, she was also in charge of making sure the girls new what they were doing during the shoot and although I set up the different sets too, she had a more vital role in this process. We both handled the camera work also.
Camera work was especially important in our pop video as we did everything free hand.










We did not use a tripod during our video as we feet that would limit us and we wanted to have the sense of free spirit and energy in our video. We used the Sony NX5 to film our video, which I felt was an appropriate camera to use as wasn't to heavy to camera and delivered a quality image. We used this camera to take many different shots in all angles using different settings and lighting effects. We did this to make the video fast moving, dream-like and colourful.

We used different lighting effects and haze during the shoot day, to make the video seem more surreal and psychedelic. We used bright blonde lighting to light the girls from the front for a dreamy atmospheric quality. We also used coloured green and blue lighting at times again, to give a dream like, supernatural effect on the girls and the backdrop. We also used patterned 'gobos' that were patterned with horizontal lines and span around, to give a sense of a dream taking over reality. We also used projection of firework type lights that were projected onto the girls, their clothes and the set. Lights were very important because the backdrop, their costume and the idea was not complicated that lights were needed to bring out the dream like, surreal qualities of the video.There were no problems on the actual shoot day, it went to plan, giving us an hour to eat lunch and the girls performed to a high standard. However, the leading up to the shoot day, especially the day before the shoot was very problematic. Due to Gina and I unable to find a suitable amount of cast that were able to attend the shoot date, we decided on a new idea the day before the shoot.


Much of our energy and time was spent into trying to get cast to be available for the shoot day, however it was very difficult finding older people that were free due to work commitments, lived close enough, were not offended by the subject matter and were comfortable enough to perform. Many people initially said they would be available but as the shoot day became closer they realised they had other commitments. We asked teachers to be cast members instead, however, we did not feel it would be as effective as they did not look old enough. Therefore, the day before the shoot we decided to re-think the idea. We did not change the idea completely, but decided not to focus on the narrative elements of the video, but the performance elements.






We decided that we would only use the two girls in the bad and we thought the concept of the video could be them coming back from an exiting day, perhaps meeting a boy. The video would show the feelings of excitement and girliness with lights and pink items. We thought this would be an appropriate idea as the song appears to be surreal and has a 'girly' atmosphere about it. We also thought this would be appropriate as it is not a challenging but simple idea to carry out and as we only had one day to plan for it, this was important.

Therefore, we were limited to what we could achieve on the shoot day, as we only had one day to find things for our video and could not buy items previous to the shoot. However, we overcame this problem because our idea was simple. I borrowed fairy lights and cushions from friends and we had previously purchased feathers for our initial idea. Gina also purchased bunches of flowers and we brought in all the 'girly' items we had for the shoot. Also, Gina and I had spent allot of money and time finding and buying appropriate props for the initial idea. Therefore, we had to refund pink paint, wallpaper and bedroom stickers. We had also previously rented out and set up the cinema chairs for the cinema scene, which were no longer needed.

One shot I feel worked particularly well was a shot we created when the girls sat on sofas that were placed on their sides. We placed a keyboard in their and put fairy lights on it. Catherine played keyboard whilst Lizzy lip-synced. I thought this was especially effective as it gave a performance element to the shoot but it was not as the audience would expect. We used jouissance as they audience would expect Catherine to be playing keyboard on a stand standing up. However she played the instrument sitting down whilst she looked up at the camera. Although, Catherine was not playing the right notes, the shot brought out the dream like atmosphere we wanted to create. As it created a sense that they were in a 'magical' den and they were relaxed and happy in their 'dream world'.


Another shot I thought worked particularly well was when we made a small tent style set out of white bed sheets and the girls sat inside in lip-syncing. We placed the projector and the camera in a gap in the sheets and hung the fairy lights inside the tent. I felt this was effective as the projection was incredibly clear on the sheet in the background. I feel this shot helped highlight the element of fantasy we wanted to create in the overall video.

One shot I feel did not work very well was where the girls layed on the bed and the camera was shot from a birds eye view but on close-up of them. It was effective when they layed still and lip-synced; however we tried to roll them from either side of the sheet using two helpers and us to hold each corner of the sheet and move it back and fourth. However, this did not look good because the movement of each girl looked slightly awkward whilst rolling and them moving in and out of shot was not incredibly effective.

Overall, I honestly feel the shoot day could not have gone better. Considering we had one day to sort out our props, set, lighting and idea we pulled the shoot off very well. I feel the fact we only had one day, gave us a creative advantage as it meant the shots were not as formulaic and structured but had the free and dreamlike quality we wanted the video to posses. Every element of the shoot day went particularly smooth, from the setting up of the projector to the cast being especially good at taking direction. Therefore, we had time to film a large amount footage, with different costume, set, camera free hand movement and angles. Meaning that, we will have many different shots to chose from in the editing process, making it much easier and therefore creating a better finished product.

Permissions Letter

HURTWOOD HOUSE
HEADED PAPER

Head of Copyright - Blue Note Music 23rd September 2010
EMI Records
E M I House
43 Brook Green
London
W6 7EF
U.K.


Dear Sir or Madam

We are a group of A Level students working on an A Level project for a qualification in Media Studies. We are writing to request permission to use the following track as part of this project:

'La la la' - The Bird and the Bee

With your permission the track would be used as the accompaniment to a short form video that is made purely for assessment purposes and will have no commercial usage. The video will be viewed only by members of the school community and the assessor of the examination board.

The artist and the copyright holder will of course be fully recognised in the pre-production and evaluation material that accompanies the project. We can also include a full copyright notice if required both in the planning material and on the video itself.

Yours sincerely

Alexandra Hall and Gina Mitchel

Hurtwood House School

The structure of the music industry

The music industry dominates popular culture; music influences the way people behave and look. For example; the male in the left picture would steroetypically listen to hardcore metal, 'emo' music such as "Bring me the Horizon".

There are four trans-national corporations that are known as ‘The Majors’ that own the largest percentage of the music industry. These are, ‘Universal’, ‘Sony/BMG’, ‘Warner Bros’ and ‘EMI’. However, the structure of the music industry is not hierarchal as such with ‘The Majors’ at the top of the structure, as most majors also own, or license small companies in order to reach all audiences. For example, ‘Universal’ own ‘Verve Records’ an American Jazz record label. These companies are known as the ‘Major-independents’.

The music industry is structured as a ‘web’ of companies. These companies are made up of big companies such as ‘Majors’ and ‘major-independents’, the web of connections allow these to gain connections to new artists to move into popular music. Smaller companies are known as ‘independents’ that have little or no financial connection to the four major companies. The web of connections allows these smaller companies to gain access to bigger markets and popular music.

My pop video, is 'La la la' by the alternative band The Bird and the Bee. They are signed by independent jazz music corporation, 'Blue Note' records. These are not owned by one of the major trans-national corporations and have no financial connection with these also. This means that the video would not have much financial back up for the creation of the music video.
The music industry itself is linked to different media platforms such as radio, TV, Print media, Film, New Media. This created synergy and symbiosis between these media platforms. For instance, music is played on the radio, which can be listened to now online and on television. Music is also linked to film; in a way that soundtracks are an important part of feature films and can be bought on their own.

The Bird and the Bee were featured on the soundtrack for 'Sex and the City' with a cover of 'How deep is your love?' by the Beegees. This is how I found out about The Bird and the Bee, not due to a promotional music video.

All popular music when released must have a music video. A music video serves a number of different functions. They are important in the promotion process of an artist's single and normally their album. The content of the music video and how the artist is shown in the video creates or adapts their 'star image'. It entertains an audience on it's own. There are all different music video channels on television promoting different music genres. The can also be viewed o the internet on the artist's website or on websites such as 'youtube'.
My music video promotes my band, that is made up of two girls. They wear indie, bohemian style clothing, to represent them as quirky and individual characters.

There are four elements that make up a music video. These are, performance; this includes the singer lip syncing and the band playing their instruments. Narrative, this is a storyline element to a video that could be performed by the singer/band itself or other actors. Thematic, this is what the video is about and must follow the genre of the music. For example, a rock band would probably not feature a dance break with girls as maybe an club style song would. For example; Arctic Monkey's video here is just the rock band performing with their instruments. This is so the video appeals to the target market, who will buy the song. Symbolic is the last element that uses symbolism to put over a message to an audience or reinforce the meaning of the song.
I have these elements in my pop video. The band is featured in a performance element that is filmed in the television studio. This shows the synth player, playing her instrument and the singer lip syncing. There is also a narrative element, that features members of the elder generation in teenage situations.

The music video does have current threats facing it, and in some ways they are becoming defunct and irrelevant. The music industry has been facing threats from the internet for some time due to many available websites to download music for free. There are now so many easy ways to promote an artist through the intent, such as artist websites and interviews. This is mug cheaper promotion than a pop video, and with the threats from lack of finance through music, these ways of promotion can be more effective.

call sheet

The call sheet is the most important document on the shoot day. It is designed to enable all crew members to be organised and allow the cast members to know what they are doing, so the operations of the day run smoothly. A copy of the call sheet is given to each member of the cast and the crew. The call sheet contains different parts, including:


Production team - This is a list of all the people who are involved in the production. It also has a list of their roles within the production and a way of a means of contact, for example their mobile telephone number. This is in case they weren’t there on the shoot day, you would still have access to things they may have organised or dealt with.



Cast List Page - This is a list of all the cast you are using within your production. It also shows the roles that they will have in your shoot, what times they will be needed on set and what they need to do in their performance.



Studio set plan - This is a description of what will be used in the mise-en-scene; for example, in our case the fairy lights, the sofas ect. It also includes a birds eye view of the set so that it can be quickly and easily made on the shoot day.


Lighting Plan - The same principle as the set plan but it shows the lighting that will be used and the areas that light will be, showing ar

eas that requires it to be well lit.



Props list - a list of the props that are needed. It also included where the props are going to be sourced; for example, we sourced the feathers from the website 'Ebay'.



Wardrobe - This is a list of the garments of clothing that are to be worn on the shoot day, in what shots and who is wearing them at which points.


Shooting Schedule- This is a guide to what is going to be shot during the day and in what order. The storyboard is used to state which times which shot will be done. This will allow for breaks.


Storyboard - this is a very precise shot by shot guide of what is going to be shot. It includes timing and edit transactions. It is done against all the timings of the song, using the timeline to make sure you can fit everything in.

Set Build and Lighting Design

The pop video our group wishes to create consists of four sets. This includes; a teenage girl’s bedroom, interior of a cinema, a bingo hall, and the performance studio space for the band. We decided that we would not have any of the sets on location. This is because we would not have full control of the location. For example, if we had chosen to film the teenage bedroom scene in a teenage bedroom we would have encountered problems. Firstly, we would have limited choice over the bedrooms we could choose. We would have to use a boarding room which is a lot more plain and less ‘girly’ than an average girls room if they were living at home. Also, we would not be able to change the wall paper, carpet, posters, bed spread and furniture to our desires, because we cannot damage a person’s bedroom. In the studio however, we have complete freedom over how the bedroom looks and we feel the overall impact of the scene will be greater and more positive. However, deciding to build each set in the studio does draw up some problems.

Firstly we would have four changeovers during the shoot day. This means that there is very limited time shoot as there will be time taken away from changing the set around. Also another problem we will face is that in the studio near the beginning of the video, a large amount of feathers fly down from the ceiling. This means that we will have to shoot this last and the band has to perform perfectly and not look tired and warn out from the day of filming. Also, this will have to be done in one shot as it would take to much time to sweep the feathers up and bring them back down. Also, when they fall onto the studio floor they may get dirty, which could ruin the overall effect of the features. Another problem we faced was that our initial idea for the studio space was that the background was going to be white. We thought this connoted free spirit and youth than any other colour. However, when the feathers fall, they will not show up. Therefore we had to re-think the colour to black, which we feel does not have the same impact, however we feel the feathers are more important that the colour of the set.

Another problem that occurred was how we would design the different studio set up’s in a way that looks real and not ‘tacky’. Neither of my group had ever been to a bingo hall, so we had to deign it based on pictures on the interest. We do have doubts that the younger generation may not be clear on a bingo hall as we were and therefore the idea may not click straight away. Also, we have to set the studio up to look like a cinema, with only the aid of four cinema seats and a projector. This would be very easy to manage. However, we have close-ups and mid shots of the couple sat on the cinema seat. Therefore, we needed to design the set and place the camera in a way that tricks the audience in believing there are more people in the cinema.

The decision to use multiple OAP men and women in my music video was an incredibly challenging decision to make. Most of the music videos only cast students from Hurtwood for their video. We had to write a formal letter to a local amateur dramatics society. Luckily we had some positive responses and have had the chance to cast five members of the Ewhurst players. Our peers have also helped by asking their grandparents if they would appear in the video.

We then had to design the lighting plan for the set build. This was a rather simple task as we decided we would want natural lighting in the sets to make the bedroom, Bingo Hall and Cinema look real. We followed the simple set up for a studio making sure everything would be lit the same to make it seem professional but also realistic.

Design Plans

A design plan is an illustration that sets out what the set will look like, on location will look like and what the lighting will be. A director uses a design plan; so that they can clearly show the set designers and builders what the set will look like. This is useful so that the set will look exactly how the director wants it to look and so that it properly communicates the ideas and themes that the director wanted it to.

A design plan is also a helpful tool for the creators of the set because it is a guide of how much space the set builders have in the studio and on location. This is so they are aware in a practical manor what will and what will not fit in the space. All aspects of overall design are included in the design plan. This includes the furniture that will be used on set, the instruments, the backdrop, the lighting, camera movement and where the camera will be placed.

My group drew three design plans that consisted on three design plans and a lighting plan. The three design plans, consisted of the bedroom, the cinema and the bingo hall. The design plan was an effective tool for my group. This is because I feel we set it out in an understandable fashion and we carefully explain each elements of the deign plan to the set designer ‘Dan’. Without the aid of the design plan, Dan would not be aware to the full extent of how the group wants the set to look and this means that it will damage the final product.

Cinema Plan: Bingo Hall Plan:

Bedroom Plan:

Camera Test

A camera test is an important and very useful tool. It enables the director to see what the actors look like on screen and whether they express what the director wants to achive. People appear differently on camera then they do in person; some people who may have the exact look the director wants but don't look right on camera.

Another positive about the camera test is that it allows the director to know how well the actors take direction. If the actors do not listen to direction they are told or appear awkward and shy the director may consider replacing them.

For our camera test we recorded the cast talking and laughing and shot them at all angels, (front, side and back). The girls we camera tested for our video I feel were a sucsess. They took direction well, but also had fun and enjoyed it which came across on film.

Unfortunatley, I could not upload the camera test as it was deleted from the system before I could upload it onto Youtube.

storyboard

The storyboard is the next step in pre-production. It is a compulsary tool that builds on the timeline to visualise the different shots and work out which shot type to use and what it will connote towards the audience. Storyboarding also considers where tracking and craning will be used and what this will suggest to the audience. When the storyboard is put together it also sets out how the final shoot will look after editing, using a device where the storybioard is filmed and edited together.

Storyboard's are also necessary because they are much easier to work with than film and also cheape. Using storyboards enables the direcrtor to understand what the shoot will be like. Therefore, it is much easier for an artist to change the images in the storyboard around than the director to change their mind about how images look on the shoot day.

Our first shot is a close up of a pair of heels on the floor. This signifies girls coming back after a night out, as the shoes look as if they have been thrown carelessly on the floor. We decided to use a close-up, so the audience understand what the objects are on the floor. We decided not to use an extreme closeup because this would imply the shoes have more of a significance to the overall video than they do.

We decided to use fast moving shots to edit the shots together. We decided that for example, fades would be too slow for the audience and then would loose the audience's intrest, as the song is only three minutes long.

Timeline

A timeline is a device that uses the words and the timings of the song as a first attempt to link the images to the words and the music riffs of the song. It uses a timeline grid method to show what is going to be on screen at the time of each second of the song. This is a helpful tool to understand what works on screen to the song and how many shots there is to be for every section of the song. With the timeline we can see whether images will hold in the line of the song. If the line of the song is seven seconds and we cut on the beat at the end, you need an image that will hold for seven seconds. Will an image of a hand playing a synth be interesting enough to hold for seven seconds? The timeline tells you whether it will or not.

With the timeline we can test out which line has a performance elemet with it, which one has a narrative image with it and which one has something else with it.

The storyboard helped us understand how much of the video would be the narrative of the OAP's acting and how much of the video would be the band performing. For example; the band has more screen time than the actors because as they are a new band they need toi be established and therefore they need to be put across to the audiece in a positive way more than the actors do.

Also we will use different shot types for the band and the actors. The band is formed of two attrative young girls so we will use more closeups and close mid shots as they are more important and visualy intreging than the OAP men and women. therfore, I will use more mid shots and long shots for the narrative scenes. Also, the band is formed of two twins but they may not be identified as 'identical' from a log shot. In order to identify the girls as twins, mid shots and closeups are nescessary so the audience is aware that the band are twins.

You go from the timeline to the storboard which is the next step to the pre-production.

Composition Rules

There are over 100 composition rules for film making. To use composition correctly the rules of emphasis need to be understood. These are:
1. Different type of shot size
2. Camera position and angle
3. Camera movements
4. Lighting
5. Rule of thirds
6. Leading to the eye
7. Colours
8. Shapes and lines
9. Detail arrangement
10. Editing Styles

1. Different Types of Shot Size
There are many different shot sizes and these all communicate different essential connotations to the audience.

Long Shot
This shot is used to create a first impression. It portray's action, atmosphere and character. It uses people at full length and create a sense of place and time.










Mid Shot
This shot is used to show the subject's facial expressions but far away enough to capture body gestures. The shot is comfortable to the subject and they can use their hands when taking in the shot.










Close Up
This shot is used to show the subject's detailed expression and delivers emotion from people and impact from emotions. A close up is also used to 'show off' a star in a film.










Wide Shot
A wide shot is used to set the context of what is yet to come and establish place and time. It creates an overall atmosphere, although subjects will be extremely small. It is most appropriate when there is action in the frame.










Extreme Close Up
This is an unusual shot that is used to shock the audience and bring a new perspective to the story.










2. Camera position and angle


Different camera angels are important to show certain perpectives of the subject, which may convey them in different ways. An low angle is used to seem as if someone is looking up at the subject. This can make the subject appear rebellious but if used for too long can give a sense of arrogance. A high angle is used to seem as if someone is looking down at the subject. This can make the subject seem inocent and intimidated. A straigh on shot is used to make the subject seems uninterwesting and boring. Therefore, the camera is always placed 30 degrees right or left of the subject to make them seem more animated.


High angle shot- makes 'Oliver' seem weak and vunerable










Low angle shot- makes 'Mr Bumble' seem strong and powerful








3. Camera Movements

Tracking Shot
A tracking shot is when the lens is kept at a fixed angle but the camera is moved towards or away from the action. A tracking shot can be executed on foot, with tripod wheels, in the car, in a wheelchair or on tracks.












Panning Shot
A panning shot is when the camera pans from right to left or from left to right. It allows for a subject that is too wide for a static shot eg. a landscape. However, it can also be used to follow a moving subject.











Tilting
This is when the camera starts at either the top of the bottom of the subject and tilts either up or down to reveal the complete subject.



















4. Lighting
This diagram shows the lighting set up needed to make sure the subject is lit properly. The key light should be positioned as high as possible without losing the eyes in shadows from the eyebrows. The keylight should not cast a nose shadow of the subjects cheeks in an interview. shadows across the eyes from spectacle frames should be avoided.
The two types of lighting that will be used in the shoot for the pop video are:
Redheads (400 watts)
Blondes (2k)








7. Colours
Different colours are used in images to connotes different ideologies. These coloures are seen in the foreground, the background and the wardrobe of the shot.

Red
Personality- Outgoing, active, physical
Positive Qualities- Motivating, warm, caring
Negative Qualities- Irritable, angry

Orange
Personality- Sociable, creative
Positive Qualities- Practical, joyful
Negative Qualities- Overpowering, angry

Yellow
Personality- Quick, alert mind, sunny/bright ideas
Positive Qualities- Bright, happy, communicative
Negative Qualities- Egocentric, fearful

Green
Personality- Caring, epathetic, natural, wholesome
Positive Qualities- Balance, in harmony, abundant
Negative Qualities- Indecisive, feeling trapped

Blue
Personality- Peaceful, quiet, introverted
Positive Qualities- Loyal, honest, cooling
Negative Qualities- Depressive, withdrawn

Purple
Personality- Creative, spritual, sensitive
Positive Qualities- Powerful, seeker of trut, inspirational
Negative Qualities- Misuse of power, Obessive

Black
Personality- Feminine energy, mysterious
Positive Qualities- Potential, powerful
Negative Qualities- Identity crisis, hides from the world

White
Personality- Masculine energy
Positive Qualities- Purity, cleansing
Negative Qualities- Cold, isolating

Brown
Personality- Earthy, physical
Positive Qualities- Secure, safe
Negative Qualities- Restrictive, Barren

Grey
Personality- Self-reliant, independant
Positive Qualities- Indervidual, self-sufficient
Negative Qualities- Rigid, critical, uncommunicative

Pink
Personality- Loving, nuturing, emotional
Positive Qualities- Understanding, sympathetic
Negative Qualities- Immature, needy, emotional, unstable

Turquoise
Personality- Fresh, sparkling new ideas
Positive Qualities- Uplifting, refreshing, communicative, cool
Negative Qualities- Cold, isolating

Pastels
Personality- Softer version of each colour
Positive Qualities- More sensitive, gentle
Negative Qualities- Easily led, impressive












The different colours in the picture conote contrasting ideas. The woman's red dress could either conveys her as caring or angry. However, the backdrop of the image is calming and carefree so anger would most probably not be conveyed.


8. Shapes and Lines
Different shapes in a shot connote different ideas to the audience and this is can be used in a positive or negative way towards the action or actors. shapes can also be refered to as 'form' and they can be symetrical, asymmetrical, shallow or have depth, compact, or diffused.

Symmetrical
A symmetric shape would connote formality, grace and rigidity.

Asymmetrical
This would connote flexibility, casualness and a lack of order. For example, circles are free, rounded and trustworthy.

The 'line' of a picture is determines by showing where the subjects and objects are in the shot. The different lines in the image express differnt emotions.

Horizontal lines
This creates a restful, calm but distant feeling. The viewer will feel stability, heaviness, restfulness and peacefulness. For example, a sunset has a horison to communicate peace and harmony.

Perpendicular lines
This is used to express hight, dignaty, being regal, impressiveness and aspirational qualities.

Diagonal lines
These forms of lines express a feel of movement, or an unreal, bizarre quality. These lines are often found at the climax of a media product.

Curved lines
this is used to express femininity, naturalness, intimacy and flexibility.

Straight Lines
A Straight line is used to express strength, simplicity, nearness and regularity.


The x and y axis is also an important factor to consider when shooting a sequence. These are lines than run through the screen. The y axis runs vertically through the screen and the x axins runs horizontally through the screen. If the action moves from left to right, this is comfertable for the audience's eye's movement and therefore conveys a sense of good. This means that usually the protagonist enters from left to right. However, if the actions moves from right to left, this is uncomferatble for the audience's eye's movement and therefore conveys a sense of bad. This means that usually the antagonist enters from right to left. The verticle line is also important for what is to happen in the rest of the film. If the subject travels up the line it will suggest that they will have some kind of difficulty in the futre. However, if the subject travels down the line then it suggests the subject will have an easy path in the futre.

First Pitch

The task was to pitch our most confident ideas to the our class and the rest of the group. This gave us the chance to think about our ideas in more detail, have feedback and the opportunity to improve our idea from the group and to hear the other group member's ideas. It also gave us the opportunity to discuss the main conventions of a pop video and our intentions for the music video we want to create imitates or subverts them. According to Keith Negus below are the common generic conventions of popular music promo videos.

• The explicit and unashamed promotion of the artist's "image" (aesthetic/generic/ideological) as a specific product with a brand identity, ready for mass consumption. This relates to Dyer who states that an artist should be young, have sexual magnetism, glamorous, rebellious and have an "edge"


• The featuring of the artist (almost without exception)


• A wide and extensive use of shot types (this includes close ups, extreme close ups, wide shot, mid shot ect), camera angles (this includes low angle, high and angle and middle angle) and movement (this includes tracking and cranes)


• Repetition or reoccurring thematic elements and generically specific iconography (one key element often being dominant and providing the skeletal structure for the promo).


• A possible narrative structure


• A possible performance element


• The flexibility to disregard realism, which could include discontinuity editing


• Short cut tightly to the beat of the track


• Use of special effects (lighting, animation, CGIs, camera effects)


• A carefully constructed Mise en Scene appropriate to the content and tone of the track. Everything in the mise en scene should be helping what you are trying to achieve.


• High impact instantly!

I decided to pitch the 'La la la' video idea as I felt the most confident with it. I feel that the band and pop video I wish to create will imitate and subvert the key conventions of a music video. The two girls that form the band with have a specific brand image than would be ready for mass consumption. I feel that the band will imitate 'Dyer's' intentions of what an artist should be. The band is formed of two young pretty girls that have sexual magnetsim, men will want to be with them and women will want to be them. They will have a glamerous but edgy look, for example they will wear fashionable clothes but with a 50's style. I feel this hasn't been used before in the pop world because women are seen usually as a sexual object for exmaple 'The Pussycat Dolls'. I will also imitate the convention that the artist should be featured in the music video. The band will either perform with the old men and women or will perform seperately in the studio and this will be cut into the narrative of the old age men and women. My video will also imitate the convention of using many shot types. I will have close-ups, mid shots, and long shots of the subjects and I may even use an extreme close up of the keyboard. I will subvert the idea of different uses of camera angles. I if I used this is would be too complicated and may look to narrative or that the music video is trying to have a hidden message. I will imitate the convention of use of camera movement. I feel that tracking shots will add more movement and therefore more excitemtnet for the audience who will watch the pop video. I feel it will make the pop video less static and also add to the comic element of the video. I will imitate the convention of a reocurring thematic element. This will be OAP's acting like they are young and this will be what happens throughout the entire video. I will subvert the convention of a narrative structure in the sence that there will be no storyline because the OAP's will not be linked in any way. Howevere, the video is not just a performance so there is a basic narrative structure for the audience to look at something else rather than just the band. I will imitate the convention of a performance element. The band will be playing either in the studio and thsi will be cut into the narrative element or they will be playing along side the old men and women, or I might combine the two ideas. I will imitate the ability to diregard realsim, through the editing and the context of the video. OAP's performing acts of teenagers is not what the audience expect to happen in real life, so this will shock them but also will be a added comic element. I will also use discontinuity editing because the video will not follow a formulaic narrative structure but will cut back different events and come back to them throughout the video. I will imiate the convention to cut shots tightly to the beat of the track. The singers will lip sync to the song, and the narrative element will be edited to the beat of the track. this is so the video and the song seem as one media text and not two seperate ones. I will subvert the convention to use special effects. This is because I feel that the use of CGI, camera effects ect will not read well with the narrative of my pop video. Special effcts are not necessary in communicating the message I want to in my video. Finally, I will imitate the convention of the pop video having an impact instantley. I will do this by using the OAP's doing obsure, comic actions from the begining, so the audience are drawn in and keep watching.

I think my pop video idea recieved an overall positive response in my pitch. I described that I wanted the video to feature differnt groups of OAP's doing teenage activities that would juxtapose their everyday life that the audience would expect to happen. I showed him the origional video for the song, which is two children playing with lego. I explained how I thought that this video was quite boring and unimaginative for the audience and that my idea would improve on theirs. I described how the song reminded me of youth and that it would be a clever idea to juxtapose this completely with retired pensioners. I told the class that I did not want the video to be crude of violent in any way. For example, I did not want to show a group of drunk and disordely retired men as I want to keep the idea of 'behaving as young as you feel' friendly and fun.

I described to the class three scenarios that could possibly be used in the video, which I feel complemenets the song well and follows the overall idea I want to put over in the video.

The first scenario is three retaired women at a sleep over. This would be much like an americanised teen sleepover would be portrayed on Hollywood films. For example, the pillow fight in 'Not Another Teen Movie'. They would be dressed in pink pyjamas and be laughing and easting sweets and popcorn. They then start a pillow flight and this continues. Thye may jump on the bed and have a food fight with the sweets whilst doing so.

The second scenerio is of a first date with a retired couple at the cinema. I wanted to use this beacuse this is an iconic image of two teenagers of an akward 'first date'. The man could put his arm round the women using a technique where he pretends to yawn. This was influenced by the film 'Cheaper by the Dozen 2'; where two teenagers go on a date to the cinema and he does just this.

The third scnenario is in a bingo hall. I feel this could be the last scnerio because then the audience are taken back to their expectaion of where they would expect OAP's to be. This is then juxtaposed, as the woman who wins stands and does a celebration dance that they audience would expect a teenager to do.

Research and Development

Research and development is one of the five stages of production and is the task of creating an interesting feasible idea and to perfect it. I am beginning to research and develop ideas for a pop video and this will help me determine if they are practical. I viewed various pop videos and these influenced my decisions for created one of my own. The video 'Flash Delirium' by MGMT was a helpful video because it would be considered weird or unpredictable which is what I wanted my video to be. I didn’t want it to follow all the main conventions of a pop video and have a boy band type band in a studio dancing. I wanted to challenge the ideas of the pop genre and perhaps market a pop video for a new audience.

My first idea is for the song 'La La La' by The Bird and the Bee. The music video is based around old age men and women getting in touch with their young side. As the lyrics of the song include “make yourself free.”, the idea came from the idea that you are only as you feel. I was inspired by this photograph of an old age woman playing on the wii.

The video is filmed in the studio and possible locations around the school building. The studio is first set up to look like the kitchen of an old woman’s house. It starts a close up of her face and then zooms out. The audience would expect a cup of tea in her hand but instead she is drinking a beer and reading a rock magazine. The band is placed in different parts of the kitchen. The band consists of two girls age 20 and 21 who have the same style and look and the girls in the picture. They both wear vintage clothing and have a quirky image. I think this would contrast well with the old men and women in the video but would also fit in as the video would have the same quirky look as the members of the band. The old woman then calls her friend with her blackberry who is inline at a Bird and the Bee gig, she is smoking a cigarette. The shot of the cigarette changes to a shot of a pen and the studio changes to a bingo hall. An old woman shouts bingo and then gets up and starts doing a “crazy” celebration dance. One at a time each bingo player stands up and starts joining in the dance. The band is playing at the front of the bingo hall whilst this is going on. Then the band members get up and join in the dance at the front. In amongst this there are also montages of old men and women on skateboards and trampolines ect.

My second idea is for the song 'Something Good Can Work' by Two Door Cinema Club. The music video will be filmed in the film studio.

The introduction to the song is layerd with the different instruments; starting with the drums and then the keyboard then the guitar and then the synths. The drums start and then each instrument that plays comes into shot. The instrument then comes onto shot when they play and the one that played before comes out of shot. I also want to use stop motion to have the instruments move but the shot before stays in shot. Whilst this happens the band is still playing on the instruments. There are other elements of the video. One is close-ups of the bands face pulling different faces. These would be edited together as if they are pulling them at an incredibly fast speed. There is also another element where the instruments change positions but as they do so they change outfits. This is from different coloured t-shirts to fancy dress. This is so the audience are aware of their fun loving, carefree image.

My third idea is for the song “She’s always a woman to me” by Billy Joel. This video follows the lives of a couple who are shot in slow motion. The video is filmed in the film studio that is first set up to look like the kitchen of a family home. The couple are arguing sat on either end of the kitchen table and the singer is sat at the foot of the table singing and playing the guitar. Then it moves on to them on their wedding day still in slight slow motion, there is a close up of the woman saying “I do”. A tear rolls down her face, she is crying with happiness. The singer is performing at the front as if he has married them. The camera then goes back to the couple arguing, they then get up and scream in each other’s faces. There is then a shot of their child crying on the stairs. The singer sings whilst looking at them. The camera then goes to their first date as teenagers. They are at the cinema. The singer is projected onto the screen of the cinema as if they are watching him at the leader. There is a closeup of the man’s hand going round the women’s arm. The shot then changes to the man’s arm throwing a plate. Then the woman smashes glasses, they are still arguing. The video then end with a close up of the man as an old man. The camera then tracks back and he is standing at the foot of the women’s grave he is crying. On the grave “your always a women to me” is written.