Grace's Evaluation

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

Below is a voice clip introducing the answer.

Using forms and conventions is all about taking a technique and reusing it in another video. It is normally used to make the video conform to a particular genre.

In our music video we used an idea of panning across the band which was taken from Paramore – crushcrushcrush. This enabled us to show all the band members performing with added interest for the audience. The clips below show the section of our video and the Paramore video which used the panning technique. I have slowed these down and removed the sound to allow the technique to be viewed easily.

Below is an explanation of how we used the technique and why.

We have used this technique in the performance scene as it worked best here. It was used to show the band as a group as is aesthetically pleasing for the fans to look at because it adds movement into a series of jump cuts and increases the shot length. It also adds to the repeatability factor because fans can watch the artists perform without having to pay to see them live in concert. This shot enhanced what there was of the mise-en-scene because of the three point lighting used. It enabled us to light up the scene and emphasise certain factors like the costume and the instruments and draws the attention of the fans away from where they are performing to the artists themselves and their instruments. This is similar to the Paramore image where the enhanced lighting allows for the artists to be seen but the mise-en-scene around the artists is relatively bare causing focus of the audience on the artists themselves.

This shot represents the band as a whole and also brings together the split in gender between male and female performers. Like the Paramore image it gives the audience the opportunity to see the band members' roles, as well as see them as a group and also gives them the opportunity to view the members as individuals. This creates ‘star power’ (Richard Dyer) and also a star image which helps the audience to feel more close to the artist because viewing them as individuals creates a connection and relationship between the fans and the artists.

This shot also breaks up the narrative of what’s going on outside of the performance which adds interest for the audience, as well as being a narrative in itself. This is useful to have in a music video as it prevents the audiences from getting bored and also again adds to the repeatability factor because it generally requires them to watch it more than once to gain an understanding of what happens in each narrative.

We have also used the idea in our narrative of the lead singer being alone much of the time. We decided to use this because it created a base narrative for the video. We took some of the shot ideas from Coldplay – Fix You, like the ones below. These images both show the lead singer walking along in a medium close-up shot singing to the camera.

This shot links well with John Stewart’s Theory. It demonstrates his theory because usually fans would not be able to be as close to the performer and also this is during part of the narrative and so helps the fans to feel as though they are part of the construction of the video and close to the artist. These two images both contain a familiar environment of the artist being alone in a quite location where there is not much going on. The alone feeling is then put across to the audience, because they are connecting with the artist, through the setting which in both images is similar.

In our video the image helps to represent the female gender and contrasts many videos in the indie genre of male leads. It also helps to build on the mise-en-scene of the indie genre and using a close up to do so, displays to the fans what they may want to ‘copy’ and build on to gain the indie style and dress. Although Paramore is not classed in the indie genre they use many traits of the indie genre for example costume and the images (left and right) shows the types of costumes we took our inspiration from, especially focusing on the lead singer.

The shot from our video  is aesthetically pleasing to watch as it flows with the music and for the male audience, a medium close up brings them closer to the artist, creating an appealing image for them.

Within our narrative this image was a way of us showing the split between the band and this reflects the Coldplay image because the lead singer (above image) is on his own singing until much nearer the end of the video when he joins the rest of the artists in a performance with a live audience which is similar to our video where they perform together.

In our music video we developed the idea of the artists being watched by a CCTV camera. This was decided upon because it brings in the feeling of voyeurism (the characters/artists are unaware they are being watched).We have tried to incoporate theorist Andrew Goodwin's theory. It is important to music videos because in any video it creates a feeling for the fans that they are experiencing something that they would experience anywhere else. This is therefore a way of attracting fans to buy the products made by the artists. One of our main inspirations for this technique was from the video by the Arctic Monkeys – A View From the Afternoon. In this music video there is the use of an extreme long shot in monochrome of the artist performing alone on in an empty area, like a car park. We built on this by not focusing so much on the type of shot but the use of monochrome and voyeurism to create the CCTV image.

This image is an example of a still taken
from real CCTV footage and shows what
we tried to mimic in terms of the date and
time displayed.



We used this image because it gives the fans the ‘thrill’ of knowing that the footage they are watching is ‘unseen’ and that they are watching the band when they are unaware. It also adds to the exclusivity and repeatability factors of the video which again attracts the fans and numerous viewings and also makes it different from other videos by the same artist or a different artist. The text on the image was deliberate to ensure that the footage looked like it had been filmed by a CCTV camera (image (right) shows a still taken from real CCTV footage).

We also used this effect because it linked in well with the location. This footage was filmed at a skate park where there are likely to be CCTV cameras to watch for vandalism. This is again similar to the image that the Arctic Monkeys created because again this is a location that would probably contain some sort of CCTV camera. It also links in with portraying a message that it is an edgy location and crime is likely and therefore there is use of CCTV to watch the area.

The following video shows the CCTV sequences used within our video. I have removed the narrative that goes in between and slowed the clips down.

Below is explanation of why we used this technique.

This image was a way of us introducing the band within a narrative to the audience. Although this is different from the Arctic Monkeys image where they are introducing the location, we are using a similar principle to introduce the artists. It also helped to create the split in the band because the lead singer is introduced followed by the rest of the artists across two different locations. This creates interesting viewing for the audience as they are unsure of where the singer is and have to continue to watch to find out more about her, as they have only seen her briefly.

These videos link in with the representation of gender in that both the drummers are male artists. In our music video the lead singer is a woman, however the rest of the band are male and therefore it is male dominated as is the Arctic Monkey video as there is the one male performer. This is a general convention of the indie genre, however there are still the occasional female leads. This video is still aimed at the same fan base as other indie music videos with male leads. This is because it fits with the genre and so those who are indie fans are going to view it in the same light as any other indie video. It could appeal more to female indie fans due to the representation of the female gender and in a way proving that females can do what the males can do.

Also in our music video we developed the idea of using a recording studio for the lead singer. This was used as a way of inter-dispersing the narrative as theorist Steve Archer suggests. It also allowed us to increase the repeatability factor as viewers have to watch the video more than once to pick up on the narrative. It gave us one way of using a range of camera angles to interest the audience, in particular allowing us to incorporate Andrew Goodwin’s theory  because these are shots that allow the audience to connect with the artists. We were inspired to use this technique by Take That – Rule the World as this music video is solely based in a recording studio. We built on this by taking the idea and developing it to include just the lead singer as this was a focus in our music video.

Again this image gives the fans something that they may not otherwise see. It gives exclusivity and this is what makes the fans feel ‘special’ and like the Take That shot, the fans are being able to experience the making of a music video.

The image increases the representation of the female gender within our music video as she is the lead, however contrasts with Take That as they are an all male band. The focus was to make the lead stand out from the rest of the band and also show the divide within the story and so we developed Take That’s idea by using the recording booth image.



Sound boards from our video

This image also enabled us to make use of sound boards, to create the mise-en-scene of a recording studio. This reflects Take That’s video as their whole video is set in a recording studio and includes all those involved in the production as well as the instrument players and equipment.


Sound boards in recording studio of Take That's Rule the World











As well as interspersing the narrative it became a narrative in its own right in terms of her recording the lyrics for the track. This again has similarities to the Take That video as their narrative is all about recording the song and music for the new single. Differences in our video are that we have incorporated narrative outside of the recording studio and created a story for the band members.

Challenging forms and conventions is all about subverting what has been previously used. It is about going against an idea that has already been used and creating a new idea for that genre to convey a message or meaning.
 

Challenged Conventions on Prezi

These images below are the ones shown in the prezi and below these images are links to the videos the technique was taken from.

Just for Tonight by One Night Only

Paramore – Brick by Boring Brick

Overall we have used, developed and challenged conventions of both music videos in general and conventions of the indie genre throughout our video. Much of our video uses and develops conventions, however as can be seen above we have challenged some conventions. The examples given above are just a few of the techniques used throughout our video.

What have you learned from your Audience Feedback?



Below is our music video but it contains annotations wherever necessary on feedback given by our audiences. Accompanying this is some summaries of what I have learnt from this feedback.

I have noticed that improvements could be made to make the product better. However there has also been lots of positive feedback including one comment that said 'it looked similar to a real music video'. This is positive feedback as it shows that our video could be genuine. We have had some feedback about the video that people think it is not in the indie genre but people may perceive music in different genres to us as we have studied genres in detail. At the same time slight genre variation is good because the style of music can help to attract new fans from different genres.

There were many mentions of a good variety of shots used and this shows that we can hold an audience and make the video interesting to watch. Looking at the CCTV shots used, the time change and camera number change have been observed which shows that we have kept continuity. One part that was liked by many members of the audience was the beat of the music in relation to the car driving. It was mentioned that the music at this point was almost like driving music and so fitted the image of the car and the cuts.

In response to the question asked 'Would you buy this band work?' people said that it was catchy, they liked the locations used in the video and that overall it looked good and that they would buy the work. This shows that the video to some was pleasing to watch and also that it must be believable.

Image demonstrating split screen

Some negative feedback in response to this question was that they didn't like the genre, it wasn't their type of music and that there was too much going on in the video. This relates to a response from another question that the viewer did not understand the narrative. This could be because the links between the locations and stories were not clear enough. I think that in our video there probably was a bit too much going on and that possibly to split screen added confusion and muddled up the narratives. However, with a lot going on means that the audience is required to watch the video several times to gain an understanding of the different narratives and therefore increases the repeatability factor of the video.

Many people thought that the video fitted well with the indie genre due to the costume, group scenes, the camera focusing on the instruments and the setting used. We carried out a lot of research before coming to the conclusions of what to use and therefore we can see that we have got the indie genre correct.

We tried to use facebook to gain some audience feedback but unfortunately it did not really get used. However here is two links: 1) to the feedback of the final video and 2) to the feedback of our first rough cut.



This image is of our digipack with the errors which were a
problem circled in red.

In reference to audience feedback on the digipack there has been few things pointed out that have now been improved. On the front cover it says 'Out of the Hat' and on the back cover it says 'Out of a Hat.' Also on the first double page it has been pointed out that the words of the lyrics ran over into the other page. We have had overall comments that altogether the digipack looks professional, attractive and quirky and many people have said that they would certainly buy this product if they saw it.

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

Below is a video that discusses the media technologies that I used with demonstration. Accompanying this is a short amount of text which includes things that did not get mentioned in the video.

I have also taken advantage of the use of synergy. I used the website 4shared to store an audio track online which then allowed me to embed it into the blog.

The mac laptop itself was an important piece of media technology because it was transportable and so enabled us to take it on location when filming and allowed us to check our filming on it onsite to ensure that the footage already captured was suitable. It also allowed us to access the features of a Mac laptop outside of school and to continue research and planning. It also allowed us to make voice recordings which were then posted to the blog as said above.

Prezi, the online presentation maker was also important when doing research as it allowed me to collate all my research and bring it together in one.

I also used iTunes to convert audio files from wma to acc or mp3 which enabled us to then upload these files as audio to 4shared - as 4shared would not accept the files in wma format.

My Blackberry phone was an important piece of media technology both for me and for us as a group. We were able to check the Internet when out filming which was a benefit for checking things such as the weather. It also allowed us to take photos of locations and upload them straight away. I was also able to tweet on twitter using the text facility to update what I had been doing to keep a track record. As well as this I was able to access my emails and therefore was able to contact the original artists of the track wherever I was and did not need a computer to do this.

Blackberry

Facebook application on blackberry

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

Below is a voice recording that discusses the combination of the texts. With the speech there are images displayed to demonstrate what is being said. Underneath this video is our final digipack and magazine advert.

From audience feedback I have had many comments that all three texts look professional and if it was seen in a shop there is no doubt it would be bought because of it's quirkiness and also because it looks different and innovative. This proves that the combination must be effective as it is attracting in our target demographics who are interested in the music.

Our products use through the line advertising to ensure an effective combination of all three texts. It incorporates both above the line advertising and below the line advertising (through the line advertising).