Evaluation

1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products ? The use or challenging of typical conventions was something that we had previously thought about before we created our music promo video, as can be seen in this blogpost.
http://liveyourdaysthroughpoemsanddreams.blogspot.co.uk/2011/09/influences-for-music-video.html
Locations

  

Above are three screenprints displaying the main locations/settings from the music promo video we created. The first image shows Cally and myself ,drunk, in a rural area outside an abandoned building at sunrise, and the second image shows the party happening inside the abandoned building. This sticks to typical conventions as these types of settings are common in similar music videos and other forms of media aimed at our target audience. We chose these two particular locations to film in for their urban appearence, graffiti, boarded windows, uncared for and in need of repairs etc. This sticks to conventions and makes our video realistic and appealing. The third image displays Cally persuading me to go the party. The background behind Cally is a surburban looking lane where each house has it's own private garden area and the entrance to the street is away from main roads meaning the street is quiet. We picked this location as it is often common for charcters from program such as "Skins" to come from quiet surburban areas and have family and neighbours that wouldn't expect such rebellious behaviour from them, this again sticks to conventions and will appeal to our target audience as the idea of leading a double life and having such a wild rebellious lifestyle and getting away with it offers escapism.
Props/costume

The screenshots above display the useage of props and costume in our music video. Throughout the music video people can be seen drinking bottles of alcohol, smoking cigarettes, taking drugs aswell as the floor being cluttered with empty bottles, off licence carrier bags and IPod's aswell as there being silly string. This sticks to conventions as it is common in media forms similar to ours for there to be heavy alcohol, nicotene and drug abuse and for it to be glamourised as a good lifestyle. The costume appeals to and sticks to conventions typical of our target audience. Rock music band tee's, 90's style clothing, dyed hair, plaid shirts and expanded ears are styles you would expect from a band producing music like this and the people listening to it.
Camerawork

The screenshots above display the way in which we used the camera to film our video. The footage was filmed using a handheld camera meaning all the scenes from the party are filmed from different characters points of view. We liked this idea as it meant the audience can see the party as it happens through the eyes of the people who are there and the handheld camera creates rough jerky shots adding to the chaotic effect. This challenges conventions as in most of the similar videos we looked at the camerwork was done using a fixed camera being filmed from an outlookers perspective meaning the audience are looking in on the party.
Characters

As our video has no storyline there aren't any individual characters however within the first few seconds of the video it is obvious that the people in the video are off the rail youth abusing alcohol and drugs. The screenshots above are examples of how these characters are created. The opening scene is a drunk girl lying in grass where she fell and the other screenshot taken from 00:35 seconds into the video shows a boy trying to enter the room but failing because of his intoxicated state. This is highly typical and sticks very strongly to the conventions of this particular genre as drinking excessively and taking drugs to the point your in a complete state is glamourised and seen as the norm within this genre and generation.
Special effects

We used the reverse speed effect in adobe premier pro on our video. The screenshots above are examples of clips in the video where we felt the effect worked particuarly well, these scenes are the one where Cally and myself fall backwards into the party and the one where the smoke goes back into Lewis' mouth rather than being blown out. This effect could be seen as challenging conventions as we have only come across it's use in similar videos once and we show the messy aftermath of the party and go back through to the beginning of the night where the party is being discussed as a "quiet night", in a way this shows the characters and their lifestyle in a bad light, as media aimed at our target audience tends to show the party where everyone is enjoying themselves and the alcohol and drugs have no negative effects and simply make the occasion more fun.

CD Digipack Printed tasks

2.How effective is the combination of your main product and the ancilliary task?

 

When designing and creating both our ancilliary and main tasks it was important that we made them consistent with each other and the presentation above shows the ways in which we went about doing this. We also compared our products to existing products in order to see the comparison between combinations of our products and proffesional products.

3. What have you learned from your audience feedback?
Throughout our project we have tried to gain audience feedback from both peers and tutors. We found gaining feedback to be helpful and helped us to make changes to our work for the better.
 After we had created the first drafts of our magazine advertisement and CD digipack, we felt we should gain feedback and make any amendants suggested to us, the feedback forms we received from our lecturer can be seen below.

It was suggested to us that although we had a good understanding of our target audience through costume used in the image an the overall layout of the magazine advertisement, and had a well created image we could make the image more controversial through larger use of props and body language. We agreed with this and felt that the front cover could be improvd on vastly. This aswell as losing a group member we decided that rather than make small amedants we would just redesign it completely.  We feel that this was a good decision and improved our digipack greatly. The improvements that we made once gaining this feedback can be seen below.

Once we had improved on our Front Cover we also decided to improve our magazine advertisement bringing it up to the same standards. We added in reviews of the CD from a popular magazine and added endoresements from popular companies. Although these changes are small we feel they improved the overall look and proffesionalism of the product.

After we had made all neccasary changes and improvements to all our printed tasks and we were happy to call the work we had produced our complete and final draft. We printed out the final drafts individually and stuck them to paper and asked some people from our class to give us feedback on them. The written peer feedback we gained on the printed tasks can be seen below.

In order to gain peer feedback on our music promo video we showed it to a group of people within the age group of our target audience and asked them to give positive feedback and comment on things they liked on pink post-it notes, and provide criticism and tell us what they didn't like on yellow post-it notes. This feedback can be seen below.

We feel that we learnt a lot from our audience feedback and gaining it was very useful for us as it helped us to make tweaks that made our product turn out as well as we feel it did. Our target audience felt that we created products that appealed to them and we were succesful in creating realistic representations. Both our target audience and our lecturer felt that we succesfully created products that worked well together. If we were to produce something similar to this in the future we have learnt that we used a good variety of shot types, had good ideas and applied conventions correctly however, we could improve on the continuity and editing of the video, aswell as recording dialogue seperately in order to create a video of proffesional standards.

4. How did you use new media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?
During each stage of our project, the research and planning, the actual construction of the products and the evaluation we used a range of new media technologies, these were both on the form of software such as Blogger or Adobe Premier Pro, and hardware in the form of a camera.  
Blogger

Equipment

Construction of printed tasks and music video

Gaining Feedback

Music Promo Video Peer Feedback

To gain feedback from our peers we showed the music video to the whole class and asked them to give us anonymous written feedback. Pink post-it notes were the positive comments and things they liked, and the yellow post-it notes were criticisms or areas they thought we could improve on.

Common positive feedback we recieved was that reverse effect we used was a good idea and unique, the handheld camera and point of view shots we used were effective, the choice of music was relevant and our video had similarities to the likes of skins. Receiving this positive feedback about our video made us pleased as we were wanting to create a project similar to skins with relevant music appealing to the target audience and intended for the camera shots and effects to be received the way they were.

Common criticisms we recieved were the very end of the video with the dialogue had a few editing mistakes and the dialogue could have been clearer. These were factors we were already aware of and agreed with, we had tried to fix them as best as we could during the editing process and unfortunately due to timing issues we couldn't amend them completely. Another common criticism that we received we're that some scenes lasted to long. We were aware this could be a problem however we had to pick the best clips from the hours of footage we had taken and a lot was unusable, and where there are clips that last a lot longer than the others this was because they were the most useable. For example in order to get the correct length on the video we needed to fill out a few more seconds but there were no more useable little clips and it was a toss up between more footage of someone urinating into a toilet or more footage of someone blowing smoke, so we went with the blowing smoke scene to extend. A few people also said they didn't understand the storyline and it made no sense, this is due to the fact as a group we didn't introduce the video properly and only people who were friends with or worked near us in the classroom understood the ideas behind our project.

We also uploaded the video onto YouTube and Tumblr, two popular social networking sites specifically amongst our target audience. This allowed us to ensure that our video reached the audience it was intended to and to gain feedback from people who may not have during the feedback session in class, such as online friends and friends from different schools etc.

Music Promo Video - Final edit

Now that we had created our first draft and organised the clips a way we were happy with we had to add the soundtrack and effects. To do this we uploaded the video to Adobe Premier Pro and changed the settings to reverse speed meaning the video would play backwards, allowing the video to go backwards through the party starting with the "morning after" scenes. The final scenes of the video play forwards but with audible dialogue rather than music. We added on the video clips with the dialogue of Cally asking if I will be coming to the party. Once all the video clips were placed in the correct order and had the correct effect on them we then added the song We Are Rockstars by Does It Offend You, Yeah?. We lowered the volume of the song over the clips containing dialogue so that it could be clearly heard.
We are very pleased with the outcome of the video. It turned out the way we envisioned it and it is pretty similar to the initial storyboard ideas we came up with. There are a few errors in the editing such as quick jolts or pausing, however we tried to fix these during the editing process and fixed it to the best we could. Other than a few errors we feel we used the editing software quite efficiently and the overall outcome was quite proffesional. The quality of the camera is slightly grainy as we didn't realise till during the editing process that we had HD turned off. Although at first this seemed a problem once we had seen the finished product we feel it adds to the effect and works well.
We feel we portrayed the theme of chaotic and wild youth well, created a realistic party and reached the target audience via conventions. We also feel the video is consistent with the CD digipack and poster.

Music Promo Video - First Draft

The idea behind our music video is that it will be played reverse and start showing you the morning after, aftermath of an all night lock in, in a disused bulding and go backwards through the night. In order for this to work we first had to work out what order to place the individual clips we had in so that once the video was put in reverse it would look cohesiant.

Above is the first draft of the video, for which we used Adobe Premier Pro to create, without any effects or soundtrack displaying the correct order of the clips from beginning of the night to the morning after.

The video begins with Cally knocking on a friends (my) door to ask if they are going out that night, after being told it will only be a quiet night I agree to go out. The video the skips to the party thats being held by our group of friends in a disused buidling and the party is shown via a series of small few second clips from the night. The clips jump from one another at a fast pace and the shots are taken on a handheld camera meaning they can be quite shaky which emphasies the chaotic and rough attitudes of the teenagers and the time they are having. Two of the band members (Cally and myself) can then be seen falling out of a door, down the steps out of the buidling and walking through a forested area and ends with Cally falling in the grass.

We are very pleased with the way the clips went together and how well they flow when played through and the ideas we had in our heads and on paper have definately come to life and once placed in reverse we feel we will have created a video that would indeed be appealing to our target audience, meet generic conventions and is a lifelike representation of the type of footage being produced by similar artists.

Music Promo Video Chosen Loaction (Original Images)

As we wanted to use a derelict building/run down warehouse as the main setting for our video this provided us with a slight problem. There we're a lot of problems with using an actual derelict building/warehouse, although we had access to a few around our area we had to think about Health and Safety and the legal implications that could come from using these so we had to chose a safe location that provided us with the appearance of being an empty derelict building. We chose to use the outhouse of one of the group members as once cleared out of the equipment being stored in it it would be a perfect location.

In order for it to appear that the party had been held in a disused building we will have to film the morning after scenes around an actual disused building at dusk. We picked a disused building in our local complex that we think will look convincingly like the outside of the location in which we will film the main part of our video.

We will also be filming a scene containing dialogue where Cally will persuade me to go out that night. We have decided this will be filmed in my backyard as my steps have lots of room around them which gives the opportunity for different camera shots and angles, I have a switch controlled yard light should we need an extra light source and the street in the background has a very suburban look. 

Music promo video props and equipment

To acheive the controversial effect we hope our video to have and to ensure our video fits the theme of party, we will have to use a variety of props. Below are some images that we collected from the internet containing conventional props that we have seen appear in many music videos and images of teenage parties.

As a group we sat and discussed what props we think we should have on our music video, these are;

Water guns

Cans of silly sting/spraypaint

Food, for use in a food fight/fingerfood 

Balloons

Streamers

Fancy dress/strange clothes/onesies 

Cigarettes

Alcohol real and fake, empty bottles,  

Confetti

Vegetable soup to use as fake sick

Music promo video, full storyboard and shot types

We have planned the opening and end scenes of our music video fully and have decided on where we will film them and what shot types we will use to film these particular parts of the music video. However for the actual main part of the video in which the party takes place we are creating a fast paced montage of clips that will be cut down from footage filmed during the party. There are a few party scenes that have we planned and know we definately want as part of the video, such as people drinking alcohol, people kissing, and drunken behaviour, these can be seen above in the storyboard. These are scenes we know we definately want and will film first, the rest of the scenes will be filmed throughout the night randomly.

Music video location recce

Before we film our music video it is important that we consider health and safety.
Are there any potential hazards that could pose a health and safety risk where your music video will take place?
Some of the scenes for our music video will be filmed in outdoor places such as wooded areas/parks. There could be hazards such as litter, branches and rocks to trip on/stand on. As it is a public area there could also be broken bottles etc that could present a danger. The main part of the music video will be filmed in a derelict building/outhouse. This could present hazards as the building wont be well maintained and may have crumbly walls, uneven floors and debris/sharp rocks laying about.
What will you do to ensure these risks are minimised?Before we begin recording in the outdoor area we will decide which parts of the area we would like to use and we will check the area for any dangers making ourselves aware of where we should avoid. In the building we will check for any unsafe areas before we begin filming, ensure everyone is aware of them, if possible correct them and clear out any dangerous mess.
Will the time of day/weather affect the outcome of the music video? Have you allowed for this?As certain scenes will be filmed outdoors the time of day and weather could have affect on the outcome of the video. Wind or rain could interfere with both the costume and makeup and the equipment and props used. Ideally it will be a clear day with not much wind. We wish to film the outdoor scenes at dusk just as the sun is setting, this will create the impression we are walking to a party which is taking place at night and also the dusky pinky tones will create a nice effect that will tie in with the grungey theme perfectly. However as there isn't much light during this time of day the filming of the scene may have be done over several days.
Have you considered lighting? What about the ‘problems’ of natural lighting, either outside, or streaming through a window? Will you need to use a flash? Have you considered reflective objects that might spoil the effect?
The main part of our music video will be recorded in a building which will have very little if any windows or light sources. We would like lowkey lighting to give the video a dingy feel however so that the people in the video are visible we will need one or two small light sources such as lamps out of shot. The section of the video that will be recorded at dusk shouldn't require too much artifical lighting if we manage to catch the natural lighting on time however as time goes on the people and objects in the shot could become sillhouetted and we would need extra lighting such as a portable lamp or torch, or even the light on the camera.
Do you need permission to record your music video in the place/venue you have in mind?We do not require permission to film the outdoor scenes in a public place however we have to be careful not to get anyone elses face or things such as number plates on cars etc in the shot as this could be seen as overlooking other peoples privacy. The building we will be using will be an outhouse belonging to a member of the group and we have full permission to use the building.
Are other people/crowds likely to be an issue for you? What have you done to ensure that it will not spoil the effect?Most of the video will be recorded indoors therefore other than those involved in the process there wont be any people around. However the scenes that we are filming outdoors could be affected by members of the public walking into shot or sitting in the area we wish to film in. The areas we wish to film in are relatively quiet, especially around the time we wish to film so this shouldn't be too much of a problem.
Are you reliant on lifts/props/friends’ equipment/models? How have you planned that these things will come together at the appointed time? We have asked quite a lot of people to feature in our video in order to create a party atmosphere and create the wild effect we wish to. We will need to ensure that everyone is free at a time that is suitable for everyone else which may take some working out. Once we have organised a day and time we are also relying on everybody still being able to turn up at the arranged time. The props being used in the video belong to the members of the group therefore we have no worries about needing permission or favours from people. The recording equipment we will be using will belong to the media department at college therefore we will need permission from our lecturer to borrow the neccasary equipment.

Music promo video location initial ideas (original images)

These are original images of places I think have the look I want for the location of my music video. I want to use a very urban run down looking area for the location of my music video. When watching music that I have taken inspiration from or videos of a similar genre they all seem to set in urban areas in empty warehouses etc.

Time management (5 weeks to go)

We have so far completed our research, came up with initial ideas for our music video, CD digipack and magazine advertisement. We also created the first drafts of all printed aspects of the coursework. After gaining feedback we have amended our drafts till final drafts we were happy with and gained positive feedback from were succesfully produced.

There is currently 5 weeks to go till deadline and we have now turned our attention the creation of the music video. We have already planned; the genre and conventions which will be included, initial plot ideas, costume and makeup, the soundtrack, character/behaviour and rough storyboards and shot types.

During the next 5 weeks we will; decide upon a definate location to shoot the video and consider health and safety, aqquire props we will need, film the neccasary scenes for the music video, and finally edit the film and add the soundtrack and effects.

Storyboard and shot types

As a group we discussed what scenes we could include in our music video and analysed similar videos for common reoccuring scenes. We wrote a list of scenes, which can be seen above, that we feel would be appropriate and would fit in our video well.

This is the first 10 shots of our music video taken from the overall storyboard. This includes a thumbnail sketch of what we would that particular scene to look like, the shot type and camera angle. As well as a brief description of whats going on in that scene. Storyboarding the scenes before we go into filming is useful as it helps us thoroughly think through what camera work we would like to use and also helps us know what we want to acheive from filming.

Magazine advertisement fourth and final draft

This is the fourth draft of our magazine advertisement. This is pretty similar to our third draft as we haven't changed the layout or background images but we replaced the image inside the CD case and the watermark on the IPod screen with the amended CD cover containing the new image. As a group we are very pleased with this magazine advertisement and would like to use as a final part of our digipack.

Inside sleeve second and final draft

This is the second draft of the inside sleeve for our digipack. We were pleased with the outcome of the first draft however we hadn't taken the photographs to place inside the poloroids at that point in time. We chose our favourite personal image and edited them creating a vintage effect for our poloroid. We havn't changed the layout as we were happy with the overall look, the only difference we have made is removing one of the poloroid frames as this was going to contain the image and name of the member that is no longer a part of our group. We are very pleased with this and would like to use this as part of our digipack.

CD Front Cover second and final draft

This is the second draft of our front cover for our CD. Although we were pleased with the first draft of our front cover after feedback from our lecturer it was brought to our attention that the image could be more controversial to tie in with the theme and after creating the other aspects of our digipack the front cover no longer seemed consistent with the package. We used the image we best felt fitting with our genre and placed it in a poloroid making it consistent with the inside sleeve, and made the background similar to that of the back cover.

CD Front cover amended photo shoot and Inside sleeve photoshoot

  After gaining peer feedback and feedback from our lecturer it was a common opinion that the images we had weren't controversial enough, and we also had a change in group members. We did another photo shoot, again using an outdoor background and using props such as alcohol and cigerettes but we have taken the photos whilst it was dark in order to create more of a back garden of a house party effect. We also took the images for out inside at the same time as the amended front cover photographs.

Amended front cover photographs These are the group photos we took to use for the front cover. We feel all the images came out well and were consistent with the theme however we feel the first image came out the best and looked the most realistic and controversial.

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 Amended front cover final chosen photograph This the image we have chosen and will be using on our front cover

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CD Inside sleeve tester photographs

These are photographs that were taken during the day in cally's backgarden whilst doing other coursework to test use of props, body language and poses. Taking these photos gave us and idea of what would look good and what wouldn't in our images.

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CD digipack inside sleeve photographs These are the individual photos that we took after taking the group photos to use for the poloroids on the inside sleeve.

 

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CD digipack inside sleeve final chosen and edited photographs We each chose our favourite photo of ourselves from the images above, and the photo that as a group we decided best fit with the theme and then edited them to look like distressed poloroids from a house party that you would find lying on a teenagers desktop.

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