Completed DigiPak; Magazine Advert

When i was creating a mood board for our music video, the main feeling i wanted to show was feeling of autumn. to me, this time of year represents changes and the colours of nature are beautiful. For our music video, we edited the colours into warm colours to portray this feeling and i have tried to keep that theme running through to the album and advertisement. I wanted the cover and advert to be simple.

I have created a magazine advertisement for the album using Photoshop. The purpose of the advertisement is to promote the sale of the album so it was necessary for me to follow a house style. for the advertisement, i enlarge a section of the same image used on the inside of the album itself. It's clear that the colours are consistent and i have also ensured to use the same fonts and colours used on the album. The additional differences from the album cover and the advert is that there is more text such as quotes by magazines and ratings. The advertisement also shows the date that the album will be out on stores. The purpose of the quotes and ratings is to show the audience what some of the biggest names in the music industry thought about the album. This would increase make the audience try and see if they agree and buy the album.

Using the colour balance, balanced out the colour of the main image according to the size and font. Some of the text is written on white font therefore its important that this information can be read clearly.

Digipak: Album

Below is my album for my music video. I have used one image; a leaf. From this one image, i have taken sections of it to be used for the back cover, front cover and on the inside. I have edited the images in Adobe Photoshop. This was a challenge because I'm not very familiar with this program.

The album cover reflects the atmosphere created in my music video.

Time Table for Production

Monday 08/11/10
08:00 - 08:30 > Robin's scene in the theater [Set up props, Set design]
08:30 - 09:00 > Lights & Cameras & Sound [Set up angles of cameras, insert MP3]
09:15 - 10:00 > Rehearsal [Lip synching run through]
10:15 > 12:05 > Filming [Robins Scene only]

Tuesday 09/11/10
08:30 - 09:45 > Filming Robin's scene [set up white projector this time film using projected image]

Wednesday 10/11/10 CANCELLED 
08:45 - 11:45 > Priya's Scene [Park scene, Swanswel Park]

Thursday  11/11/10 NO FILMING


Friday 12/11/10 
13:00 - 14:00 > Priya's scene 1 [Park]
14:00 - 15:00 > Priya's scene 2 [Bench]
16:00 - 17:00 > Priya's scene 3 [ Taxi]
17:00 - 17:30 > Complete any extra filming              

Technology/equipment

I have used the following equipment for our music video:

HD Video Camera - Panasonic SD700
Digital SLR (stills) Camera - Nikon D3000
We have used tripods to hold the camera up when videoing one of our scenes;
We used adobe Premiere to edit and put togther our video.

My DigiPak Ideas

I have decided to keep the cover if the album plain yet effective. The reason for this is because i think it would relate to our music video more. So i have decided to use the same tones of colours used in the music video when it was edited. 


Here are examples of simple covers

Each of the above album covers show use simple font for text and stand out although they may seem quiet plain. The album cover i create will be simple and will portray the similar atmosphere and feeling the audience get from the music video.

Final Music Video

A-Level Media Music Video 

Editing

To edit our music video, we used Adobe Premiere. Editing the video in Premiere was a challenge as it was the first time we used it.


The main tools we need to use were cropping tools/ laser tool, colour changing tools, dissolve and fade transitions. To make editing seem easier, we took a scene of Robin singing as base and main and placed other scenes showing shots from angles and scenes of Priya above the main scene.


It was very successful because Robin is the only person singing. This also made it easier for us to edit the lip syncing and make it seem as though he was actually singing and ensure his lip movement were in time with the lyrics.


To edit the lip syncing, we converted the song from a video in Youtube into MP3 format. We placed the song in the track area within Premiere and played the main scene of robin singing along with the song. 



















 We decided to change the tone and the colour of the video to make it seem more professional and less rough. We chose to try and keep it natural and warm to create a autumn and romantic atmosphere to link with the lyrics. We change one scene to black an white and that scene was the scene that showed the memory between Priya and Robin. the scene shows Robin filming Priya who is acting camera shy and smiling directly into the camera. This lets the audience know the connection and history between them.

Adobe Premiere Introduction

Adobe Premiere
We will be using Adobe Premiere to edit our music video therefore i have looked at the basic tutorial on Youtube. Watching this 10 minuet clip gave me basic knowledge such as how to import, change the size, cut and edit colours or add transitions.

There are also suggested video's for more deeper tutorials on the side.

Filming Priya's scene

These are the pictures i have taken whilst we went out together as a group to film priya's scenes. 

Pre-Production

 

Elements of Pre Production	What will I do?	How Will I Do it?
Finance	To make a music video I would need to consider finance.  For the video I am creating, I may perhaps have extra people featuring in the background to make the video seem realistic. In reality these people will need to be paid for being there and taking part of the process.	Because I cannot afford to pay the extra people in the video, I will look for volunteers and friends who are willing to take part.
Time scale	I will need to consider the length of time I have to create the video. I will also need to think about the settings I will be using as in some cases some settings cost a certain length every hour. I will also need to think about the people in the video and the time they have. Time scale need to be considered because of people I need to pay for being in shoot. In reality when making a music video, the people being featured in the video such as models charge per hour.	I will need to plan what I will do and how long it would take me to meet deadline for the publication of the video. Settings can cost for certain length of time, because I can afford to rent a setting, I will be asking around school for place I could use such as the theatre. I will also find place where it doesn’t cost to use and I would have as much time there as I would need. Deadline for video to be published I need to make sure that I stick to the plan I will be making.
Personnel	I need to find the cast for the video and the people who are suitable for the scenes I'm shooting.	I will be working with two members of my media course to create the video. We will split our selves up to complete different tasks to stick to the time scale we have and the plan. Cast will be people that volunteer to be in our video and friends.
Facilities	I need to find the right setting for the video. This may vary depending on the scene and content.	I will be using the space we have in school, at home or random areas around the city that are suitable for the shoot.
Material	I will find the costumes and props that I will need to put together the video. The costumes and props I use will be suitable for the content of the video and the scene. I will also need to have the right lighting to create a sense of atmosphere and scenery.	To do this, I will be asking permission to use the lights owned by the school theater. I will also be asking permission to use their props and costumes.
Contributors	I would need to think about the way I treat contributors; for example food and travel expenses.	As I will be choosing volunteers for the video, it’s fair that I don’t also ask them to travel from location to location for the video and spend money on buses, trains ect… therefore, I have decided to use locations within school or area not far from school. This is to limit extra expenses. If a video shoot will be long, I would ask the volunteers to bring in food or themselves or I would bring snacks.
Locations	Depending on the music video, I would need to plan the location of each shoot and make sure its booked if necessary. I would need to ask for permission if needed.	For locations, I have decided not to use places where I know it would cost to use or places I know would cost to use. I have also decided that because it would take a while to shoot the video. Travelling to a location for every shoot would also be expensive. This led me to conclude that I will use School Theater, halls or settings that aren’t very far.
Codes of Practice and Regulation	Codes and practices need to be taken into consideration when making a music video so I will research about them.	When creating my video I will need to carry out health and safely checks of the environment and props to eliminate dangers. Regulations that I will need to consider are copyright laws. This includes the use of someone’s product (song in this case) without their permission.

Filming Robin's Scene & planning

This image shows examples of effects that can be used on lighting. Shutters can block lighting to different limits allowing you to add special effects. As a group, we talked about using shutters to change the atmosphere of a scene. for example a grey or brown shutter to change set a warm scene and a purple shutter as it is a neutral colour that can reflect.

This is an image taken from what we found out about lights and beams. the stronger the beam the more the more light on the scene. We were looking for an autumn type lighting; yellow-brown, warm lighting. 

Here is a layout of the scene and the props we will be using. We went for a more antique, vintage look for originality and realisim. 

After we set up the scene we realised that even with the lighting it didn't look complete. So we decided to remove the black background and lay down a rug to make the scene look more homely, warm and realistic.

I laid down a large white coat that we used as a rug as the main member of our cast got into position. Using white  was a good idea because the neutral colour of the purple lighting reflects off it. Other colours we used on the also reflect of the purple giving the scene a warmer look.

We also got rid of the black curtains as they made the scene look dull.  We set up the white projector and decided to project images on the background.

We have asked members who study drama to help us with the lighting and to project an image on the projection board. This will help us create the scene the way we need it to be.

Here we looked at backgrounds. We chose a simple moving background to go with the meaning and the mood pf the song. The movement is slow symbolizing sadness 

This is an image of our main character in the video lip syncing along to the words of the song as we film him. The image was taken before we decided to change the background. However we kept the video so we can look go back on it incase we changed our mind or wanted to keep some shots.

Clothing/ Make-up

Our set theme for our music video is urban, classic with an autumn, warm atmosphere. We have two scenes therefore there is one fixed location; the scene of where the young man is sitting down surrounded by vintage furniture. this setting is in our school theater.

We asked for him to dress smart yet casual to give him a that young adult look.

For our female actor, we have asked for her to dress casually, with natural make-up and to have the vintage style. It was important that her outfits reflected the atmosphere of the scene. The focus will be on her because she is not singing she is simply walking around the city completing her daily activities therefore her outfits were important. Before we started filming, we took some pictures of some of the outfits she could wear.

Below are outfits we put together.

Cast video

We made a video of our cast to  create an introduction. The video we made was created in a stop motion style.

Practising Iip Synching

Before we made the video we thought it would be a good idea to practise lip synching and appreciate how hard it actually is and consider it for our video. We also duruing this process took in turns and parcticed filiming from different angles.


Glee Group 2 from Sidney Stringer on Vimeo.

Anamatics

Untitled from layla adam on Vimeo.

This is an animatic i put together using my story boards.

Story Board

I have sketched out the scenes for my music video to make a storyboard. This will  help us visualize and plan our music video clearly.

Mood Board

This is a mood board i put together based on the mental images of what i would like the music video to have or look like.

Music Video Treatment

Now that we have decided that we will be making a video to Breakeven by the script, we have come up with a final treatment of our music video. We have decided to make this video simple, yet effective in the way it shows emotions of a young man singing about heartbreak...

We have analysed the lyrics and realised that he is singing about a women who he feels is not feeling as heartbroken as he is.

"cos she moved on while I'm still grieving

and when a heart breaks no it don't break even"

The above is a part of the lyrics of the song. So for our music video, we decided that we will show a young man playing his acoustic guitar, singing about his broken heart. At the same time, we will be showing the young women, getting on with her daily activities. This shows that "when a heart breaks, it don't breakeven."

Within the video, we will have two settings; one is in a room where they young man will be sitting on a sofa playing his guitar, we have looked at and borrowed some props from our school drama department. the items are old creating a vintage look. This would give the video an urban and more realistic look. The second scene will be around the city at different settings to make it look more natural as the young women is meant to be getting on with her daily activities. We have also decided that for the treatment we will show relation between the couple by adding one black and white scene using a point of view shot. This scene will show the young women smiling and laughing and will have the effect as if the young man is creating a home video whilst they were together.

Style Idea's For Music Video

"Hey there Delilah" by Plain White T

This style of the video for this song was very inspirational for the style of music video me and my group are interested in producing. The video shows different scenes on one screen unfolding a story clearly.

The idea is very original and different which is what we like about it. However, we need to consider the editing that needs to be done which may be time consuming meaning the filming should be done quickly.
























"Goodnight Goodnight" by Maroon 5

This is a similar style video with the screen splitting into sections showing different scenes and unfolding a story. After analysing this i have realised that it could be difficult for the audience to understand what's going on which is why we have decided to slow the movements down.

Ideas for Song

Here is a mind map of songs we have considered for our music video. The similarities between these songs is the fact that they are urban and have a story behind them. We wanted a to create a video that tells the story and portrays the meaning of the lyrics therefore the song we have chosen is Breakeven by The Script.

Video Analysis

Jason Mraz - I'm Yours from Quitoop on Vimeo.


The video starts off with a close-up of a shadow figure, which we automatically believe is Jason Mraz. There are many cuts and as the song starts we see Jason sitting in front of a fish tank, then touching it as if he had just been inspired. For those who know that this is a love song, we begin to understand that these actions mean that he had just realised; “there are plenty of fish in the sea.”

Following from this, we see Jason ready to leave with a rucksack, throwing his house keys at the kitchen table. From this we realise that he does not intend to come back or go back to the past. We are then exposed to the beautiful countryside where Jason gets on the back of a truck singing “Nothings’ gonna stop me but divine interventions” meaning there will be no interference in his freedom but divine involvement.

I believe that the video is about having freedom. The reason for this is because as Jason sings on the back of the truck, there is a establishing shot showing the beautiful greenery of the country side, then a close onto Jason’s face to show his relaxing mood and finally a shot of his lower body showing he has no shoes on and blissfully moving his toes to the beats. All these show that he is now free to do what he wants. While we watch this, Jason sings “I won’t hesitate no more…”

After arriving at another location, Jason is surrounded by a group of young men and young attractive women. They then go in to the river by the waterfall where Jason swims and messes around with the young women in there with him. This automatically makes us go back to the phrase “plenty of fish in the sea,” the fish being the women.

In conclusion I believe the video is about finding freedom and having hope. It does seem that the lyrics are related to most of the actions. I particularly like the way the video cut from one place and straight in to the other for example, there was a time where we were shown a close of the digital clock in a car “13:30” then Jason getting on the back of a truck. The idea of having cuts to show specific items that have meanings is very interesting. The people watching the video straight away tend to think and ask them self why it was there to come up with a meaning.