Final Music Video

Evaluation Question 2

Evaluation Question 2 (Draft)

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

During the creation of both my main product and the ancillary texts, I kept in mind that I would need to successfully create a sense of branding throughout. Bands such as the Pixies, however, are generally known for their musical and lyrical style, rather than particularly bold appearances. In purposely trying to stay away from elaborately styling my artist, I ended up taking influences from grunge and alternative fashion, as worn by bands such as Nirvana, which are much more low-key and could even be considered as "scruffy" when compared to popular style trends of today. I felt that this would suit my artist a lot better given the genre of the music. With the absence of a memorable image, this meant that I needed to create a "brand" in a different way. Having researched into other psychedelic rock bands, such as Oingo Boingo and Pink Floyd, I concluded that I could instead use abstract artwork to attract an audience and associate with the band, rather than setting up a photoshoot for the digipak that would just not work.

In the early stages of pre-production, I decided that I would draw upon the references made to fish in "Where Is My Mind", and developed this idea by manipulating footage that I had shot specifically to enhance this element of the lyrics, which then became a recurring motif throughout my work. The effects used created a surreal image which was mirrored in the subject matter of the song, and the over-saturated colour palette further amplified the band's style - a mixture of indie rock, noise rock, psychedelic rock and surf rock. I decided to develop this element of psychedelia further, attempting to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs, as I edited my music video, thus creating an effective brand to associate with "Electric Addiction". This is shown most significantly in the last minute of my video, as the pace of the editing quickens and creates a sense of disorientation as the video jumps from camcorder footage to shots which were heavily edited with added digital effects.

Having created a draft music video, I asked for some initial feedback, in which many of my peers commented on the fish element within my work. This became the most memorable part of my video, as the bold colours and abstract shapes of the fish juxtaposed with the black and white camcorder shots. I then decided that this general aesthetic could work well on the album cover, and so transferred stills from the video footage onto my digipak. During the creation of my magazine advert, I based the design entirely on the album cover, so as to establish a link between the two ancillary texts and consequently, further enhance the brand. Although most bands do not incorporate artwork designs within their videos and vice versa (though this is not always the case, and despite the genre, Arctic Monkeys' AM album artwork is present in the "Do I Wanna Know" video), I felt that this would establish a clear link between all of my products, creating a star image motif associated with the "Pipeline Pop Jet" album. Although this would change during other eras of the band's development, the fish motif would be associated with this phase of Electric Addiction's career nonetheless. This means that even those who are not necessarily fans of the band will still associate the images and themes with Electric Addiction. Alternatively, I could have looked to a black and white visual aesthetic, also present within the video, but I felt that this would not reflect the band's true essence; a monochrome palette would suggest to an audience that Electric Addiction were more stylised, and would confuse the appearance of the band with their offbeat musical style. Instead, I feel that the psychedelic element present throughout my work is a better representation of the band.

Evaluation Questions

1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
2. How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?
3. What have you learned from your audience feedback?
4. How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?

Location Alterations

Having received feedback that the studio setting was not right, due to the cheap wallpaper and poor lighting, I have decided to re-shoot in a different room. The "White" room and the "Target" room are a lot better in terms of mise-en-scene. Both have plain, white walls which will not distract from the band and provide a clean background for the shoot. The black flooring in the Target Room contrasts with the walls, creating a monochrome colour palette and a more professional-looking backdrop. The drums are of better quality and are elevated for emphasis, making the set-up of the band look a lot more realistic. Similarly, the White Room would also serve the purpose of creating a simplistic backdrop to work with. Once again, the rooms come equipped with a drum-set, microphones and stands, and amps. The lighting in both rooms, as you can see from the images, is much better than in the Orange Room, as the spotlights are white and placed evenly along the ceilings. The fact that the rooms both have white walls means that I can focus on the band without there being any distractions in the background, ie. coloured wallpaper, and I have the option of enhancing the background colour if I wish.

The White Room





The Target Room 

Video Feedback

• Not overly keen on the walking in the countryside part (the rest is fine though)
• Drumming looks weak, considering how the drum kicks in with real force on the track. The drummer needs to look like they mean it.
• The bassist needs to lip sync the backing vocals in the studio shots.
• The bass player and drummer need to work on their playing. It needs to look more convincing.
• The mise-en-scene in the studio is awful but having watched the video several times it becomes strangely appealing.
• I love the shot at 1.57 - the look on the bassist's face is brilliant
• The fish shots are great. Shame they couldn't feature earlier too.
• Level 3

I received the following feedback from my teacher, and due to this, I will organise a re-shoot at the studio, switch rooms, and inform the bass player and drummer of what they need to do to improve the impact of the video. I may also alter my storyboard and incorporate some more fish shots nearer the beginning of the video, as well as improving the 'walking in the countryside' part and changing the shot, then also re-filming outside.

Draft Music Video

Filming 16/10/13

My second time filming at the studio went much smoother than first. I booked the Orange Room from 5 until 7, as I knew an hour was not enough time to organise myself. The extra hour meant that I could set up the equipment and the camera without rushing, as well as having time to re-shoot footage which I wasn't sure about and being able to experiment once I was used to my surroundings. I made sure that my actors were comfortable in their positions and brought along a docking station so I could play "Where Is My Mind" out-loud and the actors would be able to play in time to the song. I knew that one of my actors had to leave at 6:30, and so shot all of the footage which required him to be present before this time.
The whole process was a lot more relaxed and I got a lot more done because of it. I finished early and so was able to experiment with different shots of the drummer, and filmed from different angles and at different parts of the song.
One thing which could hinder the quality of my filming, however, was the lighting in the room. The only light was hung, as you can see in the images, not in the middle but to the side of the ceiling. It only occurred to me whilst I came to a close that I could use the flash on my camera, and so most of my footage I shot may well be a little dark and need to be enhanced during the editing process. Overall, though, the experience was much better than last time and I was able to capture everything I had set out to.

 

Filming 13/10/13

The filming which took place in Leire was much more beneficial than my previous experience, and I think I managed to capture everything I needed for my draft video.
I filmed on a Sunday, which meant that we could shoot for the entire afternoon until it got dark, and as the location was outside and in a public place, it was free of charge. I could re-shoot entire scenes without the constant pressure of a time limit, which was a great relief.
My actors brought their guitars/bass etc. to the location and were dressed accordingly. The fact that we were outside and were continuously moving around meant that we couldn't bring a drumkit with us, but I brought along a set of drumsticks for the drummer (replaced by another actor who was more accustomed to playing the instrument) to carry around with him. Stemborough Lane was a great place to shoot because the path turned off and led to a field which was overlooked by a lake, and we were almost completely uninterrupted by passers-by. This meant that there was plenty of room to film and also a variation of scenery.
I used a Samsung camcorder when shooting, as this created the shoddy, homemade style I wanted to capture. However, the downside to this is that a camcorder works using a tape, and therefore cannot be imported to a computer as easily as footage from a video camera can be.  If I cannot find a way to transfer the footage to a disc, I will have to re-record the shots on my video camera, using the camcorder's LCD screen, as I don't think re-recording the shots themselves using a video camera would look as good. There was a black and white setting on the camcorder which I used, as I had originally planned to incorporate a monochrome palette within my video, and also because this made the footage look more grungy and would be easier to work with when editing and adding effects.
I was able to shoot everything I wanted to, but I may decide to change and re-shoot some shots.
Here is a sample of my favourite shot. I played the footage on the LCD screen, rewinded and re-recorded it using my iPhone.

I wanted to test out some effects using my iPhone, and so also shot some footage using the app "Video Star". My favourite shot is the double effect which is applied to the final actor.

Filming 10/10/13

Admittedly, filming at the studio on Wednesday did not go too well.
As previously stated, I had booked the Orange Room from 5 until 6, and so arrived beforehand to set up. However, upon arrival, I had to find missing cymbals, sort out which shots I needed to focus on and become accustomed to using the video camera I had borrowed from college at the last minute, as I couldn't use the camera I had originally planned to. I was unorganised and it showed in the quality of my footage.
One of my actors was late getting to the studio, and was then scheduled to play the drums, but wasn't very strong in that area musically, which messed up a lot of the shots and wasted time. By the time any proper filming could take place, the hour was almost up. I didn't want to waste the opportunity and so asked if it was possible to stay an extra hour, but someone had already booked out the Orange Room from 6 o'clock. However, I was able to use the Blue Room, and so decided to move into there. This wasted more time, however, as we had to move all of the equipment into another room and set up once again, and obviously the room was a different colour, therefore creating inconsistency within the shots.
Another of my actors had to leave half an hour later, limiting what I could do within the short amount of extra time I was given, and the shots which were good in terms of camerawork were once again ruined due to the drummer not looking comfortable.
Overall, there is very little footage, if none, which can be saved and used from this experience, and therefore I have re-booked the studio for the 16th, as I was pleased with the location.

Filming Schedule

Thursday, 10th October:
Stayfree Music Studios, Leicester



I have booked the Orange Room at Stayfree Music Studios from 5 until 6, where I will be filming performance shots of the band. I will be bringing along an electric guitar and a bass guitar, and have informed the persons involved with what to wear.
The following equipment is supplied:
Behringher PA
Epiphone head and cab
Fender Guitar Combo
Peavey MKIII head and cab
Drumkit with Pearl fittings
2 Microphones and stands

Sunday, 13th October:
Stemborough Lane, Leire

Alternative Location

Rather than filming in a garage, as this could be problematic when setting up equipment and clearing space etc., I have been looking at rehearsal rooms at Stayfree Music studios in Leicester. I like the look of the Orange Room, which, as you can see from the images below, is very colourful, comes fully equipped with microphones, amplifiers and a drum kit (guitars are not an issue as I have access to some which I can bring with me), and is a good size to work in. The price of the Orange Room is very reasonable and it would provide a great background for my music video, as well as extra equipment which I wouldn't have had access to otherwise, bringing a sense of professionalism to the performance.

Risk Assessment

Representations In My Music Video

  

Who?
The band I am creating, Electric Addiction, consist of a male vocalist/guitarist, a female drummer and a male lead guitarist.

What?
The band will be dressed to represent their genre of music, and so will take influences from grunge and alternative fashion. Alternative or 'Alt' fashion does not conform to style trends of the times that have widespread popularity, and may exhibit itself as a fringe style - extremely attention grabbing and more artistic than practical - but it can also develop from anti-fashion sentiments that focus on simplistic utilitarian drives e.g. grunge fashion, which was based around comfort and availability, as is the case in my music video. Alternative fashion has often been intentionally adopted by an individual or group to display a break from the beliefs or mores of popular culture and as a form of self-expression that challenged the boundaries of what was considered appropriate, practical (or in this case), fashionable. Clothing commonly worn by grunge musicians consisted of thrift store items and typical outdoor clothing (most notably flannel shirts), as well as a generally unkempt appearance. The style did not evolve out of a conscious attempt to create an appealing fashion.

Why?
I chose "Where Is My Mind" because it was the song I had the most creative reaction to. I like the genre of alternative rock and already had an idea of who I would ask to be in the video and how it would be styled before starting to work on it properly. I like the grunge, alternative style because it is, in my opinion, real, and also so hard to come across nowadays. Rather than obsessing over current fashions and creating a high-tech, over-stylised video, I wanted to create something which was a little more interesting and artistic in a different kind of way. The simplicity of the performance style means that I can be creative with camera work and effects, rather than focusing on the band's image. Due to the non-existent budget, a video so simple as this would be easily achievable and just as effective than if it had been shot in a studio with expensive clothing and props. I want my band to represent a moral  . Pop culture portrays women as sex objects and men as arrogant and obsessed with money. Electric Addiction, in my opinion, would be seen as better role models for young adolescents and even for young adults than a hip hop artist promoting sex and money. Although I have decided to include elements of psychedelia in the effects used in my music video, this is to reflect a sense of mental obscurity rather than a purposefully altered state of mind, and is done for artistic purposes rather than to promote drug abuse.

Where?
I am going to set up the band to play in a garage and also film along a country lane. These are not extravagant, stylised sets and so will not make for an extravagant, stylised video. The idea of shooting in a garage reflects a kind of band practice and sets the video up to be performance, creating a sort of noise rock atmosphere. The country lane allows for more freedom and experimenting when filming and illustrates a sense of isolation and surrounding the band, reflecting the context of the song. It is an open and natural setting and so draws more attention to the band itself, as well as creating movement as the band wander down the lane.

How?
The representations construed in my music video will be illustrated through the use of clothing, setting, camera work, added effects, colour scheme and the song itself. Pixies include a range of indie rock, psychedelia, noise rock and surf rock in their music, each of which feature somewhere on the track "Where Is My Mind". These genres will be reflected through grunge clothing styles, psychedelic effects and the setting of a grubby garage. The colour scheme will consist of black and white, and over-saturated colours. This is to contrast the two and to add a deeper level to the interesting camera work. The shaky camera effect will run throughout so as to convey the distorted effects of the guitar and the concept of the song, adding to the representation of the band as being socially alienated, apathetic and mentally unsure of themselves.

Animatic

Storyboard

  

  

 

 

 

 

 

(Some of the shots were hard to explain, and so I have referenced which videos I have taken the inspiration from. These shots can be found in previous posts.)

Test Shots

I shot this footage on my iPhone at Woodlands Nursery & Garden Centre in Leicester this afternoon, using the app "Video Star". I decided to film some of the fish as they were swimming in the tanks due to some of the lyrics which feature in "Where Is My Mind", for example, "I was swimming in the Caribbean, animals were hiding behind the rocks, except the little fish..." etc. Also, as previously noted, Green Day incorporated fish into their video for "Basket Case" so as to convey an altered state of mind, which I think could also be applied to my song choice. I purposely blurred and slowed down some of the footage whilst shooting to distort and create a sense of disorientation, thus fitting with the theme of the song, and tried to also create a shaky camera effect. The first video is better quality than the second (the second being my first attempt) as I was just trying out different effects and you can see my reflection in some of the shots), but I may use some of this. I intend to edit the footage so it is placed over a shot of the band's vocalist, as shown below, but I may manipulate the footage in other ways too.

Audience Feedback

These are the comments I received on my pitch last week. Overall I think the responses were good; my ideas concerning psychedelia, surrealism and the abstract were well regarded by my peers, as well as the use of a shaky camera effect.

After much thought, I have decided to dismiss the idea of including a narrative element within my video, as this will create too much work for myself and possibly take away from the ideas I already have, rather than adding something unnecessarily to the video. 

The saying "less is more" applies here, and a simple performance video would more than likely result in a better video than if I overcomplicated my ideas and tried to achieve something that wasn't possible. By trying to shoot a narrative piece with a non-existent budget and limited software available, the professional style of the music video could be sabotaged in the process. Therefore, I intend to stick to performance, though adding in some shots of the band which are not related to the instruments to break up the song.

Camera Equipment

I am going to be using three different cameras to shoot my music video.
The first being the Nikon D5000 Digital SLR.


The Nikon D5000 feels has a lightweight body and is a comfortable camera to hold. I will use this camera for very precise, still shots as it can also be placed on a tripod, so as to ensure the shots are steady.
It has an innovative vari-angle monitor, outstanding image quality and digital SLR movie function as well as 19 scene modes that automatically adjust exposure, image processing and Active D-Lighting for smooth tone reproduction in high-contrast environments, therefore making it the perfect camera for my project.

I also intend to shoot some of the footage on my iPhone.

One of the main reasons for using this software is due to the number of apps that can be downloaded to the phone to create special camera effects, for example Video Star, iMajiCam Pro etc.
As well as this, it is handheld and would make creating the "shaky camera" effect very simple to achieve.
I have the iPhone 4 model, which has a 5.0 megapixel camera that can record video at 720p resolution, considered high-definition. It also has a backside-illuminated sensor that can capture pictures in low light and an LED flash that can stay lit while recording video. It is the first iPhone to natively do high dynamic range photography. Saved recordings may be synced to the host computer, attached to email or (where supported) sent by MMS, which makes the process of shooting and uploading very simple.

Finally, I want to use the Samsung VP-L800U Camcorder.

Samsung's compact, user-friendly 8mm camcorder offers an array of advanced video and audio features that assure quality video recording. The 8mm video system provides a crystal clear picture image, and its lightweight and compact size make recording a lot easier. It features EASY-Q and CUSTOM-Q, guaranteeing excellent shots under any conditions, and allowing users to program their favourite settings. Optical zoom and digital special effects are also made achievable with the Samsung VP-L800U.
The only downside is the fact that the camcorder works with tapes. To upload any footage shot on the camcorder, the tape would have to be converted to a disc before going any further. However, I intend to use this software for the few opening shots of my video only, and plan on displaying the footage on a HD television, then re-recording what is being played on the screen with the Nikon camera. I want to achieve a sort of playback effect, and therefore as I am watching it back, I can pause and rewind the footage and record this as I am doing so. For example, I would like to create something to this effect:

Influences Playlist