OCR Media Studies - H540

Media Technologies

2010-03-08T00:48:00.003Z

How did you use new media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation?

research into my production pieces included looking up other music videos on Youtube. This was good, effective research as we could get good ideas about the transitions and SFX (special effects) that were being used in the music videos of the same genre of the band we had chosen our song from.

For the construction of the music video he used a Panasonic GS500 DV video camera to film footage. We hads the focus and the white balance set to automatic so that if we where inside or outside the camera would set its self so that we had the best quality light that the camera could perform.

In terms of the software we used, it wasd the iMac computer and the Premiere Pro program. We were able to put the footage together on to a video timeline to produce the video and add features such as cuts and text. This program also separated the visual footage from the audio, this was useful as the sound that had been picked up on the camera was unwanted because it was background noise.

In our video i played the narrative character and the lead singer in the band. When planning we knew that it would confuse the audience if there wasn't a specific change in appearence between the tweo characters, so another element was costume change.

The rest of the band members wore clothes that they liked and they also looked, for ideas at the band members in paramore to get a picture of the style they go for.

I used blogger to produce a production diary of what we were doing in our course and progress on our task.

My mobile phone was very useful when organising getting everybody together, it was the best form of communication.

Audience Feedback

2010-03-07T22:59:00.008Z

What Have You Learnt From Audience Feedback?

Before we made any text for the course we researched our target audience by giving out a questionnaire. We gave this out to a specific age group of 17 to 18 years old. Their responses told us what they might expect in the texts we were going to produce.
Form this we were able to decide how much we were going to satisfy the audiences expectations and how much we intended to challenge them. We decided to accept what they expected of us and make our texts of a satisfactory level of our target audience.

For the screening of our music video we made some invitations and gave them to our friends but the same amount of boys and girls. Obviously we invited the cast that took part in our video because they asked if they could see the finished production.
For the invitation we had the information about when and where the screening would be taking part and as a background picture we had a sill shot of one of the practise performances we had.

There wasn’t really a set arrangement at the screening of our video, we just asked that the people stayed after the viewing so that could fill out a questionnaire we had made about our production. We also made sure that we didn’t talk to anyone while the video was playing because we wanted them to focus their full attention to what was going on in the video.

The responses we got back from our questionnaires over all was very positive, most of the rating we got from our audience was 3 out of 4 which is very good so our average was about 3.8.
Some quotes were positive and some quotes were not necessarily negative but, constructive criticism.

Research into CD covers, we decided we should have the normal style of having the band on the frontcover. We felt this would attract people to buy the album. We wanted to portray a young audience in the front cover which was our aim throughout the whole course for our target audience.

For our magazine advert we wanted the band name and the album name in the centre of the actual advert, obviously to stand out, then the release date and the rest of the information at the bottom. we decided to have a completly differnt style magazine advert so that it stood out from other adverts.

The Combination Of Main And Ancillary texts

2010-03-06T09:17:00.013Z

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

Research into ideas for our album cover was an article featured in the Kerrang magazine about the band that we had chosen our song from. Some of the pictures that were included of the band members, they had covered their eyes with their hands but, the eye was on the back of their hands.
See below

We took this idea to use for out album cover and started to experiment ourselves by using Photoshop to remove the eye off the face and place it on the hand. We found this very difficult as some of our bands hands were paler than their faces making it hard to blend the eye into the hand and make it look realistic.

We decided that this wasn't going to work but we still really liked the idea so we decided to change it. We wanted the name of the band and the album name included on the front cover so knowing that we had five band members and we wanted, Par.A.Mour, Best So Far! We decided to present our album cover like this.

By photoshopping the images we got the negative effect. We decided to do this because it gives the cover more colour and makes it more appealing for the target audience.

There is a clear similarity between the CD cover and the magazine advert because of the font on the advert and on the front of the album cover. Also some of the still shots from the video have been used on the inside covers in the album. The use of the same font creates continuity and also reminds the audience of the CD cover when they see it and might attract them to buy it. The font is called Punk, possibly appealing to a younger audience for its scruffy look, the name of the font suggests rebellion which may appeal to our targeted audience.

The idea of displaying the magazine advert on an iPod relates to the young audience as they use iPods which might encourage them to download the video on their own iPods or listen to the song on their MP4 devices/iPods.

For the bands outfits, there is a mixture of genres. We decided to let the members of the band decide what they wanted to wear because they all have different tastes in clothing and this is good for the audience because they can find their own identity by how the band members dress.

The concentration on the look of the ancillary texts reflects and explains the close links between these two texts and my main text.
Therefore in my view there is a highly satisfactory link between the three texts.

Forms And Conventions Of Media Products

2010-03-05T12:04:00.011Z

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Our music video uses the same forms and conventions as real music videos. We did this by researching real music videos on a user generated website, such as, Youtube to have a look and get some ideas of how music videos from different genres of music are constructed to suit the style of the lyrics. To do this, we focused our research on music videos that our chosen band, Paramore, have to see how they have constructed their performance, whether it is just band performance or whether they have included a narrative into their video.

We were able to establish a pattern in many music videos as there is a link between the lyric and the narrative on-screen to support the band playing the song. we decided to follow this pattern for our own video as it was a clear way to present it and makes the video as a whole easier for the audience to follow.

We broke our video up into narrative and performance sections, making it easier visually to understand what is going on. Introducing narrative into the video also helped the audience to make sense of the lyrics. Earlier in my blog i have gone into more detail about this process, from the 17th September onwards.

Going on to the aspect of narrative theory, Althusser, focuses on specific target audiences. For our video we have tried to make our video similar to the bands previous videos but also unique in that, the song is a different style to the rest of their songs and if the song videos are too similar the audience will lose interest.

Encoding meaning of the video, we have specifically produced our video so that it is very clear for the audience to make meaning of it, we want it to be easy for the audience to understand that the song is about a young girl who is torn between whether she wants to be with her boyfriend or not anymore and through out the song it is her trying to make up her mind, her final decision being made at the end of the song.

Challenging forms and conventions, we have done this with our magazine advert.

We have produced our magazine advert in a completely different style to most advertisements. We have made our advert seem like it is a picture within a picture, as you are looking at the information on the screen of an iPod. The picture is an iPod hanging out of a jean pocket, so this is more likely to attract the attention of a younger audience rather than older as this generation is more up to date with new technology and that is what we are aiming for.

Updated Photo For Advert

2009-12-15T15:22:00.006Z

Prviously we were intending to use this image for our magazine advert, but recent changes have taken place. We have added detail to the corners of the picture, we have edited the image so that it look like pins are holding the picture onto a background.

The reason behind doing this to the image is so that it looks more like a magazine advert rather than just an individual photograph. Another reason for us changing the image is because our CD cover has been created to have a very chaotic feel to it and we wanted to recreate that feeling in the magazine advert.

Back Album Cover

2009-12-14T11:45:00.004Z

For our album cover, we have made the back cover after finishing the other parts. It features a track list, a compliation of tracks that have been released as singles, making this album a greatest hits album that most record companies want bands to produce every few years.

Magazine Advert

2009-12-10T13:07:00.008Z

Our magazine advert is displayed on an ipod, we have chosen to show our advert this way as it reflects the consumer's consumption of media and music. This is done in the way that music is often downloaded on to mp4 players and this is reflecting the consumption of media becasue our advert is displayed on the screen of an mp4 player.
We liked the idea of showing our advert this way because it is a different style of advertising for a new album that is being released.

The background that has been used in our advert is a corkboard that we have used previously for the album cover. We have agreed between us to use the same background again for continuity, also the information on the advert is in the same font.We thought it would look more professionl if we stuck to one font style.

In our advertisement we have included an image of the front cover for our CD, in that image we have jagged edges round the band members and we have decided to continue the jagged motif on the advertisemnt to contain the information within it.

I like the idea of our magazine advert because its different in the way that it is a photo within a photo and it breaks the expectations of a normal magazine advert.

Change In The Magazine Advert

2009-12-07T14:41:00.002Z

For our magazine advert, originally we were going to advertise our cd on a billboard. we have experienced problems with this due to the weather. we have therefore decided to display our advert on the screen of an ipod.

To do this, we will take a close up picture of the ipod and then photoshop the picture that we want to use on to the screen of the ipod.

We came up with this idea because last week we were editing pictures in photoshop and one of the images we were using was the photo of the ipod. We really liked this idea so we decided to recreate it.

The second image is an edited version of the original image of the ipod. We are going to place the second image behind the original so that to viewers it looks like our advert is on the ipod.

Parts Of The Cover

2009-11-30T09:20:00.005Z

Over the past couple of weeks, we have been experimenting with different ideas for parts of the CD cover.

For our front cover, we have taken a picture of these following photos with the pinboard as the background.

We arranged the last four into a square and then placed the first photo in the centre. This is because the first photo has the name of the band.

We liked this image because the cork background makes the colours of the original images stand out. Due to one of the photos having light it, we had to redo the text on the photo for two of the photos so that the writing was clearer.

Aswell as this, we made the inside of the front cover and carried on the theme of the corkboard that was used on the front cover and used the photo of the pinboard, covered in a range of images. We used one half of the image for the inside front cover and we intended to use the other half on the inside back cover, underneath where the disc sits.

For the other side of the inside cover, we have used the other half of the photo. We also added edges to either side of the cover to cover for the sides of the CD case when we folded them up. We liked this image as it continued our corkboard theme from other parts.

We have made one version of our back cover which bears a track list with a photobooth strip we have created. Having taken the photo, we cropped it down to the chosen size and added edges to either side and placed the CD name on each edge. We didn't like this image as it isn't as chaotic as the others so it doesn't carry on one of our themes. To improve this, we will reshoot for the back cover.

Pinboard For Album Cover

2009-11-25T09:15:00.000Z

For our album cover, we have gathered together a selection of photographs and arranged them on a pinboard. We have then taken a picture of it.

We have placed group/band shots around the edge of the pinboard and couple and narrative shots in the centre making the pinboard more busy.

Production Logo

2009-11-25T09:11:00.002Z

For the back of our CD cover, we have created a logo for a production company. We used Stef's initials and the first letter of my name and used the same font that is going to be used on the front and back cover.

Size Of Cover

2009-11-17T10:03:00.000Z

We have decided to use a CD sized case as we wanted to have two seperate photos inside the case that still made one photo so the viewer can take in each part seperately.

We are aware that the back covers will be a different size so we are taking this into account when we are designing them.

Invite For Screening

2009-11-16T10:50:00.002Z

We have now finished our video to a good standard after cutting bits and adding other parts in and are getting ready to show it to a select audience. We have created an invite for this audience using a photo of the band performing on Photoshop.

Photoboth Process

2009-11-12T11:48:00.000Z

To do our images for the photobooth, we used a blue bedsheet, a tripod, a camera, and a remote to the camera. We set the sheet up on a door or on two windows so that it provided a curtain like background for the photos.

We then put the camera onto the tripod and set it up so that it took a photo by remote instead of the button on the camera. We then asked each band member/the narrative characters to sit with their backs near the background and we then positioned opposite them so they were within the frame.

We then captured the images we wanted as each character did a random face and so on (pictures shown previosuly). They were unsure when the camera was going to take their photo as we used a remote so they couldn't see clearly when we were taking the photo. This made the photos more spontaneous.

We finished these quickly and smoothly and we started the photo choosing process.

To make the photobooth strip, we used the Paint program and shrunk the photo down so they were a desired size and then placed them in a line so they made a sequence. We made sure they were the same distance apart and then filled the white background with a pale grey then saved each image.

We created different versions, some with each band member with a different person and all of the band members had another version that had them with their own piece of the album title.

Photobooth Creations

2009-11-11T09:14:00.002Z

We have created different style photobooth images that are goin to be placed on the pinboard and used on the album cover.

Danny and I for the narrative shot.

Photobooth Shots

2009-11-11T09:05:00.003Z

We have taken most of the band member's photos in our photobooth style and has chosen five of each of them, including one on them holding part of the title/band name, and one more of them with someone else.

We still have Steve's photos to take after we have got in contact with him.

Digipak 2

2009-11-04T10:11:00.003Z

Front Cover

We have decided that the band members will hold the individual album name pieces that we have created previously and are placing them in a square then placing the band name piece over the centre.

Inside Front and Back Cover

This will have a photo of the corkboard/whiteboard that displays the photos spread across the two inside covers.

Back Cover

We have created a track list to feature on the back like it is an actual CD album which we are going to print out in our chosen font and we are placing another photobooth style photo strip on the corkboard/whiteboard that features an individual band member in each frame, pulling faces and such.

The Beginning Of The Photobooth Shots

2009-11-04T09:36:00.002Z

We have started the photobooth shots, but at the moment we are testing the technique to see if it will suit our needs.
We have taken some of the lead singer and the bassist for examples.

Chosen Track List For The Back OF Digipack

2009-10-22T12:15:00.001+01:00

1.Misery Business
2.Ignorance
3.Misguided Ghosts
4.Pressure
5.I Caught Myself
6.Decode
7.Hallelujah
8.All We Know
9.Crushcrushcrush
10.Emergency
11.That's What You Get
12.Brick By Boring Brick

Bonus Tracks
13.I Caught Myself - Music Video

Digipack

2009-10-22T11:32:00.003+01:00

We have come up with a number of ideas for our digipak and these have come from magazine articles and other digipak covers.
Recently, Paramore were featured in Kerrang promoting their new album. With the article, the pictures accompanied with the article had all of the band members coverintg either one or both eyes with their hands and their eye(s) photoshopped on the back of their hands.

We did our version of this as a experiment with our singer character but we didn't like this as most of the groups' hands were paler in comparison to their face.

We changed this to having writing on their hands on the back or the front but this looked unnatural and we didn't like the feel of it.

We have now made five designs of the band name and the name of the album as a collage on different coloured paper so every member has one word to hold to do with as they wish in their shot.

•Par.A.Mour - Me
•Best - Steve
•So - Mollie
•Far - Hollie
•! - Alex

We have also gathered together some equipment to make an old photobooth that produces a strip of five different photos after one session and we got this idea from photos on Flickr and we are going to start doing photos for this today.

After we have finished the photo strips, we are going to print a selection off along with narrative and band stills as well as photos of all of our actors together even if they don't interact with one another in the video such as Steve (our lead guitarist) with Danny (our male narrative character - Elliot). We are then going to place these on a pinboard or a whiteboard, depending on the amount we are going to print off.

Band Name

2009-10-16T11:58:00.001+01:00

Over the past few days, we have been working out a band name for our work as we didn't want to use Paramore.

We used an anagram generator and typed in Paramore and were given a few options. These were the few we like best.

* Opera Mar
* Area Prom
* Area Romp
* Pare Roam
* A Rope Ram

We asked around and many of those we asked didn't like these, so we decided to play around with the names of those that worked on the video, typing in a range of combinations: Helena Atkinson, Stef Streatfield, Steve Ward, Mollie Hart, Hollie Heron-Stamp, Alex Dodds.

* Sixth Worm
* Six Swirl Volt

Again, we asked people what they thought of the names we came up with and none of them jumped off the page at them so we went back to working on the name and we eventually came up with Paramour, the original spelling that the band Paramore took their name from.

Definition Of Paramour - A lover, especially one in an adulterous relationship.

When we looked up the definition, the website presented it to us like this and we liked how they were dots between each syllable so we have now decided on....

Par.A.Mour

Footage We Really Wanted To Use But Couldn't

2009-10-08T14:40:00.001+01:00

As mentioned previously, there was a fire at our location while filming our chosen bassist and we happened to capture part of it behind her head. This would add to our piece if we had more shots of her with the smoke and with the other members of the band but unfortunately we didn't have any of this so we are unable to use the smoke behind the bassist's head as it would look out of place.

Transitions

2009-10-06T09:17:00.000+01:00

We have used two types of transitions in our piece called Dip To White and have made this short so it flashes rather than fading to white and goes straight into the next bit of footage; this used between narrative and band shots. We have also used one called Band Slide between seperate band shots as in the lyrics, it says You're pushing and pulling me down.

Editing 2

2009-10-01T18:24:00.000+01:00

We've got on quickly with our editing and all of our decisions we have agreed on.

We have created another photo montage with the stills we've chosen and dispersed between the final bit of narrative that is going to be featured at the end. This shows the audience the relationship prior to the storyline.

We have also lined up parts of the narrative with the song that feature some of the lyrics. This shows a clear reference to the lyrics in the story and allows us to know where to put specific pieces of footage.

Crimson Effect

2009-09-30T11:36:00.000+01:00

Yesterday, we were shown how to add a coloured filter over some of our piece that increased in opacity. We chose red as it showed anger and it suited that particular part of our piece as it was where we featured stills and they grew in to different points of anger.

However, looking back at it today, we decided to not use it as it became too red for us as it became solid colour so we took it out.

Editing

2009-09-29T11:36:00.000+01:00

We are now in the editing of the production process and are learning about features we have not worked with before.

As we have taken stills of the two narrative characters together, we have used the ones we like within our music video, creating a photo montage which ends in a bit of footage as the Drew character pushes the Elliot character over.

We have also put all of our band footage in sync with the music. To do this, we used markers on each piece of footage when the drums come in on the track and then lined them up so everything was in time. This will allow us to get the band footage in time with the track.

Filming - Market Rasen - De Aston 4

2009-09-24T11:36:00.000+01:00

Today was our final narrative shoot and our final shoot altogether for our piece and we are now in the editing process unless we need to re-shoot parts.

We filmed the final part of narrative which we were unable to do earlier in August. The light was different as the light decreases during autumn, which we were aware off but this created a particular mood as we wanted to get the feelings of the characters across as they are both upset during this part.

Shot Today
Shot 14 - Two Shot - [1.12] - Drew: [Shouts at Elliot] I should have never thought of you.
[This makes Elliot angry and he starts to pace, Drew tries to make him reply]
Shot 15 - Two Shot - [1.16] - Elliot: [He turns to Drew and pushes Drew away, angrily, then pulls her back towards him]
Shot 16 - Head and Shoulder Shot - [1.18] - You need to make up your mind.
Shot 17 - Head and Shoulder Shot - [1.20] - Drew: But I don't know what I want.

This went extremely well as Danny and Helena knew exactly what we were doing and they worked well together while I filmed.

Location Used

Costumes Used

Helena - Drew

Danny - Elliot

Pre-Filming 9

2009-09-23T11:35:00.000+01:00

Filming for final narrative shoot tomorrow in the new location at De Aston for the remainder of our narrative.

Equipment
Video camera - Panasonic GS500 mini DV camera
Digital camera - Nikon D60
Tripod
Tape - TA020

Actors
Helena Atkinson
Danny Cooper

Filming - Hemswell Cliff 7

2009-09-22T11:35:00.000+01:00

Earlier tonight, we did a small bit of filming with our rhythm guitarist, Mollie Hart, so we got the first minute of her playing close up as she comes in part way through and in our original storyboard, there is a close up of the guitar when it comes in, though at the time, we didn't realise we needed a second guitarist.

Filming - Market Rasen - De Aston 3

2009-09-21T18:09:00.002+01:00

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On Saturday, We arranged with Steve to film his individual part for our piece so we agreed to do it during school hours on the field so no one would disrupt the shoot and we could use the locations we found.

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When Steve arrived, we went to the top field and set up. Steve had a practice with the music while we got the camera in position. After he was finished practising, we started to film him, changing the angle three times. We also did a handheld moving shot but we don't think this turned out well as we made the camera shake quite a bit.

Locations Used

Costume Used

Steve - Lead Guitar

Pre-Filming 8

2009-09-21T10:20:00.000+01:00

Filming for sixth band shoot today in Market Rasen with our lead guitarist, Steve Ward as we have cancelled our narrative shoot and moved it to Thursday.

Equipment
Video camera - Panasonic GS500 mini DV camera
Digital camera - Nikon D60
Tripod
Tape - TA020
Guitar - Vintage

Actors
Steve Ward

Filming - Middle Rasen

2009-09-19T18:43:00.014+01:00

This was our fifth band shoot; the first shoot that we've had every member of the band present which allowed us to do the entire band shot.

Early this morning, Stef and I were organising the times everyone was going to arrive and when Stef was going to pick Hollie up with her drum kit. We chose to use Hollie's drum kit as it shows changes in how the Drew character feels as they are reflected in her fellow band mates and their instruments as we used Mollie's originally.

When Hollie and Stef had packed the drum kit into the car, we took it to our filming location, my grandma's double car garage. Mollie and I were clearing out the garage when Hollie and Stef arrived so we could set up the band and the three cameras on tripods.

When the drum kit and cameras were set up, everyone had a run through of their part and the entire band had a practice together while Stef arranged them. The only two Stef couldn't move were Hollie and I so Stef made sure they were both seen in at least two of the cameras while Stef arranged Mollie, Alex, and Steve. Alex and Steve could see themselves in one of the cameras and made sure they stayed within frame throughout the shoot.

While filming, the iPod station which were using was losing power so we changed to a CD player with the CD the track is from. While we were waiting for the CD, Mollie, Alex, and Steve practised together while Hollie and I practised together so I learnt my cues to the drums rather than the music as the music wasn't loud enough for me to hear it.

However, when we had the CD player, the music was louder so all of the band could hear it and this made them more confident in their performance, allowing them to be more energetic.

Location Used

Costume Used
Helena - Singer

Alex - Bassist

Hollie - Drummer

Mollie - Rhythm Guitar

Steve - Lead Guitar

Pre-Filming 7

2009-09-18T21:33:00.001+01:00

Filming for final band shoot tomorrow in the new location in Middle Rasen for the remainder of our band parts.

Equipment
Video cameras - Panasonic GS500 mini DV camera
Digital camera - Nikon D60
Tripods
Tape - TA020
Guitars - Fender Strat & Vintage
Drums
Bass - Ibanez
Microphone stand
Microphone

Actors
Helena Atkinson
Alex Dodds
Steve Ward
Hollie Heron-Stamp
Mollie Hart

Filming - Market Rasen - De Aston 2

2009-09-18T17:59:00.002+01:00

This was suppoed to be our final narrative shoot which starred Danny and I. We had two shoots prior to this and another one scheduled for August but only one was successful so because of the first being less successful, we were unable to film our first part of the narrative well so we tried to rescheduele for August but we were unable to due problems from all parties involved.

However, filming was cancelled as problems occured early today so we have postponed the filming shoot for Monday.

Pre-Filming 6

2009-09-17T09:29:00.002+01:00

Another Location Scouting

2009-09-16T09:28:00.007+01:00

Yesterday, we also explored around school and found locations that would be suitable for our piece. Today, I took photos of the locations we found so we could discuss which ones would work for our final narrative shoot.

This location would be really good for our final location as you would be able to see someone walking past the windows.

This location would be good to have one of the characters running down it and having the argument at the bottom so they could storm back up it.

This is the same as the location above but the argument could take place on this platform, or we could have the camera on this platform, looking down on them both.

This is a great location as it allows our characters to walk in and out of various places and though it is outside, it's enclosed by the surrounding foliage.

I really like this location as like the previous one, it is enclosed as the trees trap people within the frame. This would also allow the characters to go in and out of shot through a variety of directions.

This location is really out in the open, allowing the characters to seem free and alone but the building shows they are near others, hinting that there are people in the area.

Final Narrative Shoot

2009-09-15T10:33:00.002+01:00

We are still working on the narrative element of our piece and we are working with Danny to find a suitable time to finish it as our free time does not coincide with his apart from our lunch hours.

New Band Location

2009-09-14T10:59:00.002+01:00

As we've now come into September, it is more likely to be raining more often and we have less free time as we've returned to school. This means less time to film and the likelihood of rain therefore, more chance for our shoot day to be cancelled due to film.

To solve this we are possibly moving our band location to a garage owned by a relation of mine, who lives in Middle Rasen which is closer to our band than Hemswell so it is less of a commute. We have chosen this location is that it is less of a commute and it will be large enough for our band to fit in it.

We still need to film Mollie and Steve doing their individual pieces but we still intend to film outside with them both.

Filming - Hemswell Cliff 6

2009-09-12T19:32:00.008+01:00

This was our fourth band shoot which we had organised the week before and we were only expecting to film Hollie, Mollie, and me, as we were unable to contact Steve and Alex was unable to make it due to work.

After Hollie and I arrived at Stef's house for the shoot, we went over to Mollie's to collect the drum kit and the guitar Mollie was going to use. We asked Mollie's mum if she could drive the drum kit over to our filming location and we could walk over to it with the rest of the equipment. When she agreed, we packed the drum kit into the car.

While we were packing up the drum kit and putting it in the car so we could take it over to our location, Stef received a call from Steve, saying he was able to make it so we told him where we were going to film and he planned to meet us there.

We arrived on location and started to set up the drum kit as Steve arrived and helped us. As a local business was open, we decided that we should move away so that it wasn't as loud and wouldn't disturb them as much.

When set up, Hollie had a practice on the drum kit and we then filmed it. Like on Thursday when we re-shot Alex's part, we reshot Hollie's, this time doing a moving camera so to give a different feel.

We then took the camera, microphone, microphone stand, iPod, and iPod speakers over to the singer location while we left Mollie and Steve with the drum kit as Hollie was going to hit play on the iPod for Stef.

While filming, some of the local children came towards us and decided to watch. This caused me to become less confidence in my performance but this was solved by Hollie singing with me. This made me even more confident while filming and I became more energetic, interacting with my stand and with the camera, as I was concentrating on Hollie's singing rather than my own.

Following this, we returned to Steve and Mollie and Steve was helping Mollie play the guitar and this showed us that Mollie had not practised enough so we told her we would film her part later when we filmed the entire band as it was getting darker due to the time.

Steve and Stef then went down to a different location and he played the first part of his own part while Hollie controlled the iPod. We only filmed a small part as Steve was unsure on the solo and a lot of the song so we agreed to refilm his parts at a later date.

The drum kit was then deconstructed and walked back over to Mollie's as her mum was not home when we called.

Costumes Used
Helena - Singer/Drew

Hollie - Drummer

Steve - Lead Guitarist

Locations Used

Pre-Filming 5

2009-09-11T10:10:00.003+01:00

Filming for fourth band shoot tomorrow in Hemswell Cliff for individual shots with our other band members, though Steve has been unreachable at this time.

Equipment
Video camera - Panasonic GS500 mini DV camera
Digital camera - Nikon D60
Tripod
Tape - TA020
Drums
Guitar - Fender Strat
Microphone
Microphone stand

Actors
Helena Atkinson
Hollie Heron-Stamp
Mollie Hart

Filming - Market Rasen - De Aston

2009-09-10T18:54:00.003+01:00

This was our third band shoot which we organised earlier in the week as Alex is unable to make it to Hemswell on Saturday so Stef and I discussed with her when she was free and we all had some free time following lunch in school today so we agreed to film during the final hour of school.

Although we had already filmed with Alex in Hemswell Cliff, we looked back at the footage and thought that both the camera work and Alex were too static so we decided to reshoot everything.

I was present this time so we both took turns in filming Alex and helping her by playing the music from our music source and as we didn't have any iPod speakers, we used a phone which had the song on it and this worked very effectively.

Alex's performance was alot more energetic this time around as she moved around so we hope that this energy will carry on into our band safe shot when we are able to film this.

We chose to film in the school grounds as it looked similiar to places in Hemswell Cliff we have looked at but it is still different. As mentioned previously, the reason we have used different locations for individual band shots is that it gives each band member a sense of loneliness, therefore making them vulnerable.

Pre-Filming 4

2009-09-10T11:30:00.002+01:00

We are intending on filming part of Alex's (our bassist) role in the video later on today after 2.30 as a starting point for our piece. We are refilming the static shots as they weren't what we wanted for our piece and we are adding some moving shots today as well so we can vary the kind of shot we have.

Equipment
Video camera - Panasonic GS500 mini DV camera
Digital camera - Nikon D60
Tripod
Tape - TA020

Bass - Ibanez

Actors
Alex Dodds

For Magazine Advert

2009-09-09T11:19:00.002+01:00

Today, I went into town during school hours and found a billboard which I thought would be suitable for our advert. I took photos of one of the billboards under a railway bridge and we may use this for our advert but there are shadows cast across it so I may retake the photos when the sun won't affect the billboard.

Idea For Magazine Advert

2009-09-09T10:07:00.002+01:00

We have thought of somehow getting the album name we have chosen Best So Far! onto a canvas or wall with the band surrounding it like they have just written it and are admiring their handy work.

Another idea has been taken from a photo taken by James Sharrock that he took then edited of Story Of The Year, promoting their album, The Black Swan.

Notes For Actors

2009-09-09T09:05:00.002+01:00

We have spoken to all of our actors, one of them being me, about their energy levels in their performances as they need to be more energetic because they are all quite static in their performances.

We have done research into some performances from Paramore and we have looked at Crushcrushcrush and we have taken Hayley's movements and her interaction with the camera and also Misery Business for Hayley's interactions with the other bands. i have taken this in to account for the singer character, that i play.

These videos are also useful for our other characters as the band as they are very energetic and we want our own band to have this in their performance too.

Added Guitarist

2009-09-08T10:06:00.002+01:00

Today, while listening to our chosen track, we realised that the rhythm guitar is noticeable and if we were to not have a second guitarist then it wouldn't look as effective so we have enlisted the help of Mollie, our extra from our narrative, and she has agreed to learn the riff that is played throughout the track by the rhythm guitar while Steve plays the lead guitar.

Filming Notes

2009-09-08T10:05:00.002+01:00

Now that we have entered September, the light is starting to disappear quicker and therefore is becoming yellow and this will give different light to our piece so this is something to take into consideration while filming.

Also the days are starting to get shorter, giving us less time to film so we need to keep track of time as well as the weather as we shouldn't get the equipment wet as it could be damaged.

Ideas For Shots

2009-09-04T12:36:00.002+01:00

Looking back at the footage we have shot over the course of the holidays, we have decided that we may reshoot some shots such as the two shot of me and Steve so they are both are more energetic. Also we are considering reshooting the individual shots, asking them to be more energetic in their performances as Alex was very static in her performance and so was I.

Filming - Hemswell Cliff 5

2009-08-27T15:00:00.012+01:00

This is our second shoot since the beginning of filming which has had difficulties in certain places, for example, people not being able to make it and a fire at the factory during a filming session.

Steve, Hollie and I were able to make it but Alex had a family matter so she was unable to attend which made us unable to do the band safe shot.

Even though we couldn't do the band safe shot which will be filmed on the platform, we were able to film Hollie's and my individual shots. I arrived first so we went over to the field and filmed a few angles of me with Mollie (the extra) helping out with the music station so I could sing along with it.

We then recieved a phone call from Steve saying that he had arrived at Stef's house, so we told him where we were and he soon arrived with Hollie our drummer.

After we had completed my shots we then decided to get my shots done with Steve so we could get my shots done for that day. Although we got this done i will be reshooting my part as Stef asked me to put a bit more energy into my performance.

After I left, Hollie, Mollie, Steve, and Stef went over to Mollie's house to get her drum kit so that we could transport it over to the market for Hollie's individual shots. It took us about half an hour to dismantle, take the drum kit over to the market, and put it back together correctly.

For Hollie to perform the drum piece, she needed to hear the music to keep in time with it, so they placed an iPod and speakers behind her and asked Mollie to stay near it. We then made sure that Mollie wasn't going to be seen in the shot so we made sure she was positioned behind the drum kit and out of shot.

While shooting Hollie's shots, two problems occured. First of all, part of the bass pedal flew up and hit Hollie in the knee so we paused the camera so she could put it together. Secondly, the wind started to pick up and part of the cymbal blew off as we were filming her and she was playing. We stopped the camera for a moment so we could put the cymbal back together and we could continue the shoot.

When Hollie was finished, we decided between the four of us that Hollie and Mollie should stay with the drum kit while we filmed Steve in a separate location for his part as the guitarist but when we started the camera and then the music, Steve realised that there were two guitars in the track, the lead and the rhythm, so we stopped the camera and we discussed which one he was going to play and he decided on doing the lead guitar, meaning we may need someone else to perform the rhythm guitar.

We decided to allow Steve more time to practice his part so we returned to Mollie and Hollie and started to dismantle the drum kit and take it back over to Mollie's.

One problem we may encounter on a later shooting date is the lack of tape due to the amount we have shot so we have enough choice for our final piece.

Costumes Used
Helena - Singer/Drew

Hollie - Drummer

Steve - Lead Guitar

Locations Used

Filming - Hemswell Cliff 4

2009-08-26T15:49:00.002+01:00

We were hoping to film today with the entire band to get our safe shot and other individual shots so we could complete the filming but, due to the fire at our filming location that took place yesterday we decicded to check out the location to see if we would be able to continue filming but, we decided that is was unsafe to film as there was clearly smoke still coming from where the fire had took place so unfortunately filming was postponed.

Filming - Hemswell Cliff 3

2009-08-25T19:02:00.006+01:00

Setting up of the camera

This is the first date we have been able to do shooting of the band

The band were meant to be present, but due to problems with Hollie Heron-Stamp's family, she was unable to turn up and therefore unable to bring Steve Ward, so he was unable to attend also. Due to transport issues I was also unable to turn up.

Although not all the band could make it, Alex Dodds was able to film part of her role in our piece. We shot Alex playing her bass through out the song from different angles; one of her face, one of her entire body, one of the body of her bass and her playing it, and one down her fretboard so we can see her playing.

While filming, one of the hangers caught fire behind Alex and the black smoke ended up in one of the shots which could be used to reflect the mood of the Drew characterher, her relationship has gone up in smoke.

Costumes used
Alex - Bassist

Location used

Filming - Hemswell Cliff 2

2009-08-24T15:00:00.002+01:00

The filming has been cancelled today because of transport issues for all of the actors and some having to work so filming will take place tomorrow with everone available.

Pre-Filming 3

2009-08-23T12:30:00.002+01:00

Filming commencing tomorrow.

Equipment
Video camera - Panasonic GS500 mini DV camera
Digital camera - Nikon D60
Tripod
Tape - TA020
Guitar - Vintage
Bass - Ibanez
Microphone
Drums

Actors
Helena Atkinson
Alex Dodds
Steve Ward
Hollie Heron-Stamp

Digipak Ideas

2009-08-18T18:57:00.003+01:00

This is the first idea we had for our digipak cover. Its plain and simple, it clearly shows the name of the band and what the name of the album is. I think to improve this idea is to add a little more detail and possibly colour.

This idea is an improvement to the first idea, but i think a little more could be added as it is still one colour and I think more colours would help the cover to stand out and catch attention.

I think this idea is the best so far (excuse the pun). This is because more colours have been added to it and immediately it makes the image bolder than the other two.

This idea by far is my favourite. I love the use of all the different colours and the style of the image. I like how the phrase "best so far" is repeated all over the image.

Re-shooting Notes

2009-07-15T12:26:00.001+01:00

if for any reason we need to re-shoot any of our narrative piece, we will need to re shoot the whole thing as i am changing my hair and this will affect continuity. Also Danny Cooper may have left so we would have to re-cast.

For the performance, one of the members we need to get in contact with as he may have left De Aston.

Added Filming Dates

2009-07-12T12:25:00.001+01:00

We have planned to do more filming for our narrative parts.

Thursday 20th August - Narrative shooting with Helena Atkinson and Danny Cooper.

Monday 24th August to Wednesday 26th August - Performance shooting with Helena Atkinson, Alex Dodds, Hollie Heron-Stamp, Steve Ward.

Filming - Market Rasen

2009-07-10T15:30:00.008+01:00

Two problems occured today before filming, one was that i overslept which put us behind on filming time. This meant that we had less time to film as we were all busy during the afternoon. We knew that we only had to film a small part of the narrative element, so the lack of time that we had did not affect us significantly. The second problem was that two of our three extras, Naomi Hughes and Naomi McCready were unavailable, but this was easy to solve as we only needed one extra for the narrative so we used Mollie Hart for today's shoot.

Narrative Shot Today
Shot 19 - Wide Shot - [Drew talking with friends, Elliot walks past, he's looking down at the floor but then sees Drew sat down. He wants to reconcile with her. Drew chatting about a party that's coming up, able to improvise]
Shot 20 - Mid Shot/Head and Shoulder Shot - [Elliot turns to look at Drew and calls her name]
Shot 21 - Mid Shot/Head and Shoulder Shot - [Drew turns to Elliot]

Shot 24 - Two Shot - [1.41] - [Elliot walks over to her as she stands up and speaks to him at the same time] - Drew: You're not the one I believe in with God as my witness.

Shot 29 - Two Shot - [2.08] - Drew: And I don't want to talk to you, I'm with my friends.
Shot 29 also - Elliot: You need to tell me if you have made up your mind.
Shot 30 - Two Shot - [2.14] - Drew: [Angry because Elliot isn't listening to her] Elliot, you're not [pushes Elliot] listening [pulls him back]
Shot 31 - Head and Shoulder Shot - [2.18] - Drew: I HATE YOU! [Turns away from Elliot]
Shot 32 - Two Shot - [2.21] - [Elliot tries to grab Drew as she walks off]

Shot 37 - Two Shot - [2.55] - [Drew has turned back to Elliot and goes crazy at Elliot and tries to slap him, but he blocks it, able to improvise argument. Elliot is trying to calm Drew down through her yelling at him]

Shot 40 - Two Shot - [3.18] - [Drew and Elliot still arguing]

Shot 43 - Two Shot - [3.30] - [Still arguing, Drew has calmed down but now Elliot is more agitated but they're verging on finishing their relationship]

Shot 47 - Two Shot - [3.51] - [Drew and Elliot walk away from each other. The couple have broken up and are parting ways]

The filming today went successfully and we managed to shoot all of what we were aiming to when we looked through the recorded footage. We also shot some extra footage such and me and Danny play fighting that we could use to show our characters' relationship.

The shooting worked out better than the last attempt as both Danny and I knew what we were doing. This was because Danny had spent time working with Mollie developing what he was going to do during the shoot.

After shooting the moving images we were able to produce still images to show the characters' relationship. Only some of the stills ill be used as ones from the previous weekend will also be used.

Costumes Used
Me

Danny

Mollie

Pre-Filming 2

2009-07-10T12:23:00.004+01:00

Filming commencing tomorrow.

Equipment
Video camera - Panasonic GS500 mini DV camera
Digital camera - Nikon D60
TripodTape - TA020

Actors
Danny Cooper
Helena Atkinson
Mollie Hart
Naomi McCready
Naomi Hughes

Digipak idea

2009-07-09T12:22:00.001+01:00

We have begun to create some ideas for our digipak cover and magazine advert.

We have taken an idea from Paramore's second studio album.

We may use the idea of the graffiti from this album as it is eye catching but, we may photoshop this onto a photograph of a brick wall, allowing to the cover art to be outside where others can see it. We may also place band members in this image too.

Lighting, Makeup, Props

2009-07-09T12:21:00.002+01:00

Lighting
All of the lighting will be natural lighting as we are going to be outside while all of our piece apart from some of the stills. We are aiming to film when it's bright during the summer, making sure that the audience will be able to see every character in detail.

Makeup
There will be no unusual makeup in our piece as we don't have any unusual looking characters such as aliens or people who have been attacked or beaten up.

Props
We are using a microphone borrowed from one of our extras as well as her drum kit and Alex and Steve are using their own bass and guitar, that they have been photographed with.

Extra costumes

2009-07-08T12:20:00.004+01:00

As the Drew characters friends are not as important, we have asked them to wear thier normal everyday clothes as they do not need to stand out.

Band Costumes

2009-07-08T12:20:00.003+01:00

We have now decided on Drew's costumes. We have asked the other band members to find outfits vat are suitable to perform in. We want them to wear thier normal clothes as they all have differnent styles but also something similar.

Locations for Performance

2009-07-08T12:19:00.003+01:00

Following on from the location scouting, we have found a suitable and stable location to film the band. It has a good background feel as it gives the sense of lonliness.

We have also decided that for the individual bands shots they will be seperate because, its gives the audience a sense that the band members are isolated and this will also reflect how the characters are feeling.

Acting for Narrative

2009-07-07T15:00:00.002+01:00

For the narrative, we have written a script for the actors to perform and to make it easier to act, we need to add more stage directions for them so we get the desired narrative. The entire narrative needs to accurately timed

Shot Number - Shot Type - Time Shot Starts (Some shots don't have times) - Action

Script Re-edit
Shot 14 - Two Shot - [1.12] - Drew: [Shouts at Elliot] I should have never thought of you.
[This makes Elliot angry and he starts to pace, Drew tries to make him reply]
Shot 15 - Two Shot - [1.16] - Elliot: [He turns to Drew and pushes Drew away, angrily, then pulls her back towards him]
Shot 16 - Head and Shoulder Shot - [1.18] - You need to make up your mind.
Shot 17 - Head and Shoulder Shot - [1.20] - Drew: But I don't know what I want.

Shot 19 - Wide Shot - [Drew talking with friends, Elliot walks past, he's looking down at the floor but then sees Drew sat down. He wants to reconcile with her. Drew chatting about a party that's coming up, able to improvise]
Shot 20 - Mid Shot/Head and Shoulder Shot - [Elliot turns to look at Drew and calls her name]
Shot 21 - Mid Shot/Head and Shoulder Shot - [Drew turns to Elliot]

Shot 24 - Two Shot - [1.41] - [Elliot walks over to her as she stands up and speaks to him at the same time] - Drew: You're not the one I believe in with God as my witness

Shot 29 - Two Shot - [2.08] - Drew: And I don't want to talk to you, I'm with my friends.
Shot 29 also - Elliot: You need to tell me if you have made up your mind.
Shot 30 - Two Shot - [2.14] - Drew: [Angry because Elliot isn't listening to her] Elliot, you're not [pushes Elliot] listening [pulls him back]
Shot 31 - Head and Shoulder Shot - [2.18] - Drew: I HATE YOU! [Turns away from Elliot]
Shot 32 - Two Shot - [2.21] - [Elliot tries to grab Drew as she walks off]

Shot 37 - Two Shot - [2.55] - [Drew has turned back to Elliot and goes crazy at Elliot and tries to slap him, but he blocks it, able to improvise argument. Elliot is trying to calm Drew down through her yelling at him] This will be slowed down to exaggerate the mood of the scene in the final edit.

Shot 40 - Two Shot - [3.18] - [Drew and Elliot still arguing]

Shot 43 - Two Shot - [3.30] - [Still arguing, Drew has calmed down but now Elliot is more aggitated but they're verging on finishing their relationship]

Shot 47 - Two Shot - [3.51] - [Drew and Elliot walk away from each other. The couple have broken up and are parting ways]

Edited Still Shots

2009-07-06T12:15:00.001+01:00

Filming - Hemswell Cliff 1

2009-07-04T16:45:00.014+01:00

A problem arised as the actor we had chosen to play the part as Elliot, Danny, had been in Market Rasen the night before and was unable to get a lift/bus back to Hemswell Cliff. This problem was solved because Stef called me to inform me of this problem and i spotted him from the car and gave him a lift back to Hemswell Cliff.

Although this problem was solved, another problem occured as Danny wasn't completly sure of what he was supposed to be doing in the piece, which was an error on our part as a group as we had been unsuccessful contacting him in the week. This became a problem as Danny and I kept frogetting lines as we hadn't been able to practise in the week.

Looking back at the recorded footage taken, we decided within the group that we would re shoot the footage at the coming weekend as this gave me and Danny enough time to learn our lines. Mollie Hart, an extra playing the part as my character, Drew's friend, has stepped in and offered to help Danny learn his lines and take him through what he will be doing during the shoot.

Though the filming was unsuccessful, we were able to take still shots of my character Drew and Danny's character Elliot together, showing what their relationship is like. To complete this we will edit pictures and decide as a group which ones we will use.

This piece of film was shot during the day.

This piece was one of the unsuccessful shots as i know my line but Danny was unsure of what to say and couldn't seem to say his line on time. He also was not as angry as we wanted him to be. I think the background is quite effective as it portrays the emotions of the two characters, on Danny's side the area is all over grown and chaotic, which could portray Elliot's confusion to why Drew is acting the way she is and on the other side the grass is all neatly cut and well kept, which may portray her feeling of knowing that she doesn't love Elliot anymore, but before she can decide what she wants the trees are acting as a barrier so she needs to decide.

Costumes Used
Me - Drew

Danny - Elliot

Pre-Filming 1

2009-07-03T12:13:00.001+01:00

Filming commencing tomorrow.

Equipment
Video camera - Panasonic GS500 mini DV camera
Digital camera - Nikon D60
Tripod
Tape - TA020

Actors
Danny Cooper
Helena Atkinson

Boy (Elliot) Costume

2009-07-03T11:52:00.003+01:00

As this characters costume hasn't been influenced by anything, we asked Danny if he would be able to find three outfits for the different shots we were going to be taking
that were suitable for the video. he was able to find two suitable outfits and we bought him a third.

Costume 1

Costume 2

Other Shots

2009-07-02T21:41:00.006+01:00

Here is a collection of shots that maybe be used for the character Drew as she performs as the singer. We chose to take photos for possible ideas as we are unable to draw the variety of shots we wanted and this allowed us to place more detail in the shot as it is the actual actor, portraying the character, rather than a drawing that lacks detail. The image beneath this one is another shot that was not placed in the collection but this is a good clear shot as we can see her face and it has more of an impact on the audience as she is so close to them.

Like the collection made for the Drew character, we have created one for other characters.
This particular one is of the guitarist character, Steve, for the performance shots. These possible shots vary, allowing us to consider which shots and angles we should take of this particular character. The people that can be seen in the background of some of the segments may cause some distraction, but this could be used as possible background ideas for this character, when we do individual shots we can exploit that the video is based on young lovers using a school as a setting.

This particular collection is of the drummer character, Hollie, for the performance shots. The different angles of her and the drum kit allow us to chose whether we want to shot from the front of the drum kit or the back or from any other angle. I like these images as well as they've captured Hollie while she's in action and you can see the drumsticks as they move therefore blurring as the shutter speed is longer. We may use a shot of her face, allowing the audience to see her but we are unsure yet but we shall use a wide shot so we can see Hollie and the drum kit.

Scheduling

2009-07-01T21:39:00.001+01:00

Saturday 4th July - Narrative shooting with Helena Atkinson and Danny Cooper in Hemswell Cliff.
Saturday 11th July - Narrative shooting with Helena Atkinson, Danny Cooper, Mollie Hart, Naomi McCready, and Naomi Hughes in Market Rasen.

Thursday 16th July to Friday 14th August - Helena Atkinson and Alex Dodds away in Peru pn a World Challenge Trip.

Band shooting still being decided upon. More possible narrative shooting following these dates.

Storyboarding

2009-06-29T12:16:00.010+01:00

Over the past few weeks in our group, we have been creating a step by step guide on the lyrics sheet of ideas that we want to include in the music video. This enables us to keep our piece organised with ideas that we both want to be included in the video.

After finishing the step by step sheet, we began to make a rough version of our storyboard, saying which shots we wanted where. This took about two days to complete as it took us a while to draw the images and get the right points we wanted the shots. To make the piece flow during the narrative part, we have constructed a script for our two actors to perform and if this is performed well and we are able to see the lips move clearly, some members of the audience may be able to tell what the actors are saying.

Having completed the rough version of the storyboard, we have now begun to make the final version from the rough version; this will allow us to decide on the final ideas and then start to film.

We have taken a few ideas from existing videos such as close ups of the singer from Paramore's Crushcrushcrush. This seemed like a suitable idea as the singer of our piece is the star of our video and close ups would reinforce this in the audience's mind. I like this style of shot as you focus on just one member more than others but this could also cause conflict with other members within the band.

We have also used slow motion during parts of the narrative from You Me At Six's Finders Keepers as it exaggerates the feel of the particular scene. I like this effect as it adds more emotion to the video and the audience are able to understand it more as there is more emphasis on it.

No Health and Safety issues

Digipack Cover

2009-06-25T11:48:00.000+01:00

We decided to use Paramore's song I Caught Myself from the original soundtrack, Twilight. As the song has come from a film, there is already an album for the song that exists. This would make it more complicated for us as we would have to ask for permission from the copyright owner of Twilight as well as Paramore which we have already done (see blog). Therefore we have come to a decision in our group to produce a new album called The Best So Far. This is practical as it means we are using the song correctly and other artists/record labels in the music industry do this regularly, for example Queen, The Greastest Hits. This allows them to resell the same song again and again which means they make more money.

Script for Video

2009-06-23T21:08:00.003+01:00

While making the storyboarding, we have decided on having parallel storieslines. We have decided on having one story line focusing on the band and the performance of the singer and the other on a girl who wants to break up with her boyfriend but isn't sure if that is what she wants.

As we have have the couple arguing, we have chosen to write a script for the parts where the girl and her boyfriend are arguing, so that Helena (girl) and Danny (boy), have something to act out. We have also constucted stage directions for the other characters to make it easier for them so they know what they are doing. This will halp the audience to understand the song and the story behind it correctly but also help the actors to perform in the right way.
To make the scripting and storyboarding easier to understand we have decided to give the characters in the video names to show clearly who is in which shot.

Girl/Singer = Drew
Boy = Elliot
Guitarist = Steve
Bassist = Alex
Drummer = Hollie
Drew's Friends = Naomi M and Naomi H

Singer/Girl Drew Costume

2009-06-23T21:00:00.000+01:00

We've decided to base the singer/girl's costume on the singer from Paramore, Hayley Williams. We have both been finding similar outfits to Hayley's.
Whilst collecting clothing items, we have researched Paramore images and then a little more specifically, searching for just Hayley Williams images.

Between us we have produced, a customised jumper, saying the character's name (Drew) on it and singer on the back created on Spreadshirt.net, we also made a pair of tight with two different coloured legs made from two pairs of tights, and a customised T-shirt with HYPNOTIC written on it similar to one Hayley has worn saying RIOT.

Script

2009-06-23T19:55:00.002+01:00

I wrote this script for the narrative to make it authentic so that the actors had something to say from a rehearsed script rather than saying something off the top of thier heads.
We also decided to give the characters names instead of calling them girl and boy.

Part 1

(shot 14) Drew - (shouts at Elliot) "I should have never thought of you"

(shot 16) Elliot- (pushes Drew away, then pulls her back towards him) "You need to make up your mind"

(shot 17) Drew - "But i don't know what i want "

Part 2

(shot 19) (Drew talking with friends, Elliot walks past)

(Drew chatting about a party thats coming up, able to improvise )

(shot 20) (Elliot walks past and calls over to Drew)

(shot 21) (Drew turns to Elliot)

Part 3

(shot 29)Drew - "I don't want to talk to you, i'm with my friends"

Elliot - "You need to tell me if you have made up your mind"

(shot 30) Drew -" Your not (pushes Elliot) listening (pulls him back)"

(shot31) Drew - "I HATE YOU!"

(Elliot tries to grab Drew as she walks off)

Part 4

(shot 37) (Drew goes crazy at Elliot and tries to slap him, but he blocks it, able to improvise aregument)
(Elliot is trying to calm Drew down)

Part 5

(shot 40) (Drew and Elliot still arguing)

(shot 41) (Still arguing, Drew has clamed down)

(shot 47) (Drew and Elliot walk away from each other)

Costumes

2009-06-19T19:45:00.000+01:00

Because we have decided to do a Paramore music video, we have decided to base the outfits for our main character, the singer/girl, on the lead singer, Hayley Williams. To do this, researched a few image of the entire band just to see if we can create some of the outfits of the other characters on the other members of the band.

Location Scouting

2009-06-19T14:27:00.000+01:00

In our group we have got our actors sorted. We have now been discussing where certain scenes in the storyboard should take place to set the right mood. Because we have not yet completed our storyboard none of our locations are final, but we have both been researching local and suitable locations with resoning behind them. Near to Stef's house, (my partner in my group) in Hemswell Cliff, is an old airfield, this area is now used as the market and car boot.

We have been discussing this as a location for the scenes of the band as it is quite stage like. the image above also shows stairs leading up to it, which means the camera can be positioned at a lower angle to give different effects. We also like this location becasue the atmosphere suggests isolation and desertion and this could reflect how the girl/singer is feeling because she is confused about her feelings for her boyfriend.

We had considered this location as it has a flat surface so that the band can be on an equal level, but we do not think we are using it as the pebbles on the floor would make the drums unstable and this would set a challenge for the drummer.

We did consider this as a possible location but there is the issue of people walking past in the background of the shot as it is near a group of houses. When shooting the video we want to surroudings to be free of people.

We considered this location also because it is flat, allowing the camera to be positioned so it is steady during shooting but this location is not as effective as other locations as it does not really represent how the girl/singer is feeling.

As we have a large amount of spare time during school, this enables us to go looking for locations around the school and various places in Market Rasen.
While doing this, we took pictures of the school field, like the locations in Hemswell Cliff, we thought that this particular location could be useful for the band shots we have in our storyboard.

Casting

2009-06-18T10:15:00.003+01:00

After discussions within our pair, we decided that one of us should be the singer as using other people could cause problems as they may have schdueling problems and the singer is a central character in our plan.
We have also chosen, out of a selection of reliable people, to be the band for our piece. Before we started any storyboarding, we took pictures of the key characters for our piece then also some extras.

Characters and Actors Chosen To Portray Them

Singer/Girl: Helena Atkinson
Boy: Danny Cooper
Guitarist: Steve Ward
Bassist: Alex Dodds
Drummer: Hollie Heron-Stamp
Girl's Friends: Kim Spaven, Naomi McCready, Naomi Hughes

As we have chosen to do a Paramore song for our video, we decided that for the members of the band, we were going to have only one boy as in the band, Paramore, there is only one girl, the singer - Hayley Williams.

Helena Atkinson

Danny Cooper

Alex Dodds

Hollie Heron-Stamp

Steve Ward

Naomi Hughes

Naomi McCready

Additional Material For Song Choice

2009-06-18T09:53:00.000+01:00

Lyrics

Down to you
You're pushing and pulling me down to you
But I don't know what I...

Now when I caught myself, I had to stop myself
I'm saying something that I should have never thought
Now when I caught myself, I had to stop myself
From saying something that I should have never thought of you

Of you...
You're pushing and pulling me down to you
But I don't know what I want
No I don't know what I want

You got it, you got it
Some kind of magic
Hypnotic, hypnotic
You're leaving me breathless
I hate this, I hate this
You're not the one I believe in
With God as my witness

Now when I caught myself, I had to stop myself
I'm saying something that I should have never thought
Now when I caught myself, I had to stop myself
From saying something that I should have never thought of you

Of you...
You're pushing and pulling me down to you
But I don't know what I want
No I don't know what I want

Don't know what I want
But I know it's not you
Keep pushing and pulling me down
But I know in my heart it's not you

Hmmm... Ohh..

Now when I caught myself, I had to stop myself
From saying something that I should have never thought
Now when I caught myself, I had to stop myself
From saying something that I should have never thought of you
I knew, I know in my heart it's not you
I knew but now I know what I want, I want, I want
Oh no, I should have never thought.

Tabs
Guitar
Bass

Song Choice

2009-06-17T09:23:00.001+01:00

Within our pair, we decided that we would like to produce a music video for Paramore's I Caught Myself. This track is not featured on any of their own albums but appears on the OST for the recently released film, Twilight. We wanted to use this song because we liked the thought of having a female singer and we also wanted to include some band members and Paramore fit our catagory perfectly. We chose I Caught Myself as Paramore have not made a video for the song, which is easier for us not to copy ideas from the video and it also had a strong story in it and it allowed us to think of various ideas.

Thoughts

We contacted Paramore over Myspace to ask for permission to use the song as they are the copyright holders. Closer version underneath.

Questionnaire For Research

2009-06-16T11:43:00.000+01:00

Questions and - All answers are direct quotes from questionnaires

Are you male or female?

Male - 10

Female - 10
How old are you?

16 - 5

17 - 11

18 - 2

19 - 0

Other - 2
In your opinion, what makes a good music video?

● Sexy dancers, the artist actually singing.
● Varying the camera angles is useful to capture the setting and show the emotion of the singer. It also has to have a social message and reflect the song lyrics.
● A good artist with a good song.
● A good performance by the band or a good expression of the lyrics.
● A storyline various different shots and good directing.
● Good music, good band, clear story behind song.
● The band playing their music, in an environment that isn't the general norm.
● A song with a meaning and video to show the message and make it memorable.
● Comedy, action, and close-ups of band.
● The lyrics with a story behind them and a video that matches.
● Good music and good looking women.
● A good song.
● Dramatic, memorable.
● The acting and song.
● A mixture of band and storyline shots.
● Band shots...if the lyrics demand good narrative shots...something original which lets me talk it and identifies it immediately.
● Performance shots, no continuity shots, action match, a good song! Women.
● The abnd and video quality.
● Where it follows the story in the song.
● Good artist with a good song.
What's more important in a music video? And why?

1) The performance by the/a band - 3
2) The story used to express the lyrics - 11
3) The camerawork - 2
4) The editing - 0
5) The star (character the audience are supposed to focus upon) - 0
6) Effects - 1
7) All - 1
8) More than one option but not all - 1

Reasons

1A) So that the band can express themselves and show off their music and who they are so that people can get to know them.

1B) Because the music counts.

2A) It involves the viewer more and keeps them interested.

2B) Helps to promote the band's message.

2C) Wouldn't be a good video if it wasn't related to the song.

2D) Because it is expanding on the song/band.

2E) This is more important as this brings out the song.

2F) Every song has a hidden meaning behind it and it makes it far more interesting that physically or performed in some manner.

2G) The stroy needs to link to the lyrics

2H) Expands on the song.

2I) Because it helps to understand the meaning of the lyrics.

2J) It has to follow. Not be a load of mindless rubbish.

2K) Gives the song purpose and inspiration.

3A) Different shots and angles keep audience engaged.

3B) Boring camerawork is dull and tiring.

6) Because they are.
7) All mentioned above, a good music video must contain all of the above and somehow stand out from all the other music videos.

8A) The performance by the/a band and Effects - Special effects are aesthetically pleasing. Seeing the band doing what they do best (performing) is good.

8B) The performance by the/a band and Effects -Because if it's a rubbish band and the video tacky you're less likely to watch it.
Is better to have band members just performing the song and non-band members performing to narrative?

Yes - 11

No - 9
Do female stars attract more attention than male stars? And why?

Yes - 9

No - 11

Reasons

Yes

1) Their voices are more soothing and they are singing poignant and emotional songs.
2) Because girls would like to like the female star and boys would like to be with the female star.
3) Female stars tend to be better actors and more filling in most of the roles.
4) Because boys are scruffy.
5) Because they are more female performers.
6) Because I'm a man and I'm not gay.
7) To me...maybe because I'm merely a male.
8) Attraction of the male gaze.
9) Because usually of what clothes they wear.

No

1) It's the music that counts.
2) Depends who is watching the video.
3) Because it's normally the music that attracts the attention rather than the gender of the singer.
4) Girls tend to fall for the male stars and therefore this makes more popular.
5) Both sexes attract attention depending on how good their talent is.
6) Both sexes attract attention.
7) It varies on gender e.g. girls more likely to focus on boys etc.
8) Depends on situation.
9) It depends on intended audience.
10) If I like the song I'll watch the video to see if I like it.
11) It comes down to the music they create, not the gender.
Is the location important to the video and why?

1) No just relevant to the song.
2) No, as long as the video reflects the lyrics.
3) Not really, but should be kept relevant to the song if possible.
4) Yes, sets tone for story behind music.
5) Yes because the location adds to the feel of the video.
6) Yes, reflects story/emotion of song.
7) Yeah, it has to go well with the story.
8) It's important if there is a particular place where the video wants to be based or if there is a particular theme.
9) Yes, follows the song's story or emphasises it.
10) No because it it the lyrics you focus on.
11) Yes to set a mood.
12) Yes - a music video in Grimsby would be sh*t.
13) Yes it needs to be relevant to what's going on.
14) Yes, sets the scene.
15) Yes, because the location can help create meaning.
16) Yes. All aspects of mise-en-scene contributes to a mood.
17) Yes, it keeps audiences attention. A rubbish location means a rubbish video.
18) Depends on how the story is being told and what effect they want, so yeah.
19) It is important in that it needs to fit with the song.
20) No just relevant to the song.
Are special effects needed in a music video or are they unnecessary? And why?

1) They enhance it but they are not needed. USE SPARINGLY!!!
2) Yes, for certain songs as they are enticing.
3) Not needed if it's with a good song but they help, not a good video if there's too many.
4) Sometimes, helps portray story of song/video.
5) I think it depends on the video as they might not be needed.
6) No, not necessary as too many can be confusing.
7) I think they are unnecessary, they are just there to make it appear more interesting but most of the time they are just annoying.
8) They can be necessary in some videos depending on what the song is, some special effects can make videos and songs look good and spoil others.
9) No, depends on artist.
10) Yes but not a lot.
11) They can improve a video for visual pleasure.
12) Yes - makes the video cool.
13) It depends on the theme of the video.
14) Depends on the song.
15) They can or cannot be used, it depends on the type of song.
16) It depends on what mood you want to create and how you want to create it.
17) I believe you need to include some effects as a priority to show or amplify a character or event.
18) Again depends but most nearly all do.
19) Not needed - seen some very good ones without.
20) The special effects help the lyrics stand out.

Initial Ideas For Music Video - Selection Of Songs

2009-06-15T19:49:00.000+01:00

Sum 41 - Fat Lip
Singer - 2 Males
Teenages growing up in the suburbs, going to parties, hanging out with our friends and causing trouble.

Evenescence - Everybody's Fool
Singer - Female
About celebrities who have completely false images.

The Veronicas - Everything I'm Not
Singer -2 females
2 girls trashing a car of an ex-boyfriend, for cheating, by painting and smashing the car with paint buckets while the ex-boyfriend lookes on from a video camera.

Nickelback - Photograph
Singer - Male
Looking at a photo brings back memories of childhood/adolescence.

Paramore - i Caught myself
Singer - Female
A girl who is wanting to get away from an obsessive boyfriend but is finding it hard to leave him.

Foo Fighters - Best Of You
Singer - Male
About breaking away from the things that are getting in your way.

Initial Research For Digipack Cover

2009-06-15T10:21:00.001+01:00

This cover is for the OST for Twilight which has such artists as: Paramore, Linkin Park and Muse featured on it.

I love the layout of this album cover because the two characters give the sense of a personal relationship between them. Anyone looking at this album cover would know this becasue the male is leaning over the girl protecting her and she is pressed against his chest.

I really love this cover as all of the colour has been saturated out of the picture which highlights the title. The cover suggests that this person is the star of the band.

The following album covers are the album covers of Paramore's albums.

Im not very keen of this front cover becasue, there is nothing on it that makes it interesting or stand out. We may not use something similiar to this as it is dull.

I really like this image as you can see the four band members, performing live, and it draws you in as it is natural where as others are all staged and impersonal. We may use something similiar to this for our piece as it draws your attention to it as you see more than just lead singer who many are drawn to.

I Also really love this cover as there are the four band members and then the name of the album scribbled round them and i think this is a really good effect to use. This is also another album idea that we may use.

Initial Research For Magazine Advert

2009-06-15T10:01:00.000+01:00

The use of bold writing in the centre of the magazine advert draws the reader's attention to it immediately and they are then drawn down to the text at the bottom of the advert. We may use bold writing in our own piece as it keeps the reader's attention and is very simple.

Initial Research For Music Video

2009-06-12T09:13:00.000+01:00

Sum 41 – Fat Lip

This video has various shots before the singing starts of groups of youths causing trouble and doing stunts. When the singing does start the camera focuses on the singer to highlight the main subject at that point.
What I like about this music video is where it has been located. There is a small selection of different locations, but the main location is in a skate park.

Evanescence – Everybody’s Fool

This has two different sequences. One sequence is featuring the band, Evanescence, and another featuring the singer in a group of adverts. This is effective as it makes the lyrics easier to understand.
I think it is a really clever idea for the video because it sends a message out to people that you don’t have to change to be a person that everybody likes and admires.

Lenka – The Show

The establishing shot is the singer, Lenka, sitting on a park bench and as the camera zooms in on her she starts singing. I don’t really think that the video explains the lyrics as such but, it is still interesting to watch.

Soulja Boy Tell’ Em – Kiss Me Thru The Phone

This sequence is really interesting to watch. The video shows the singer, Soulja Boy doing his daily routine. When his girlfriend misses she calls him, and shoots a video of herself making a kissing face on her phone and sends it to him. Also through out the video there is a girl singing along to the song with her headphones on.

Black Eyed Peas - Boom Boom Pow

The video starts with flicking through pictures on a computer, they select an image of an explosion. The bands, The Black Eyed Peas, are then seen singing their verses of the song. While this is happening, dancers are seen in striped suits, dancing to the song, and negative images are turned into positive images.

Elliot Minor – Parallel Worlds

The band, Elliot Minor, are 'ghosts' at a dinner party, playing on a table in the room. The guests cannot see them but know something paranormal is happening, due to the shaking table.

Chosen Brief

2009-06-11T10:47:00.000+01:00

During our first year of Media Studies, in a different group to what i am in now, we produced an opening title of a film that had to be at least two minutes long. We decided as a group to base ours on a thriller film, aimed at teenagers around the age 15+, because the people who took part in the making of the film where of the same age. If our film was to be exhibited outside of school, it would have been shown in a cinema or on DVD.

For our A Level piece, we have chosen the brief that asks us to make a promotion package for the release of a new album. This includes producing a music video as well as two of three other options: a website homepage for the band, a cover of the album's release as part of a digipak (CD/DVD package), or a magazine advert for the digipak. The video's audience can change depending on the genre of the music. Within our group we listen to a mixture of genres, in particular soft rock such as paramore. Music videos are shown on TV, generally on specialised channels, internet sites and mobiles.