music video pre production paperwork

Pre Production Paperwork

Timelines:

Location Recce:

Location Release

Risk Assessment

Styles, Conventions and Techniques of the music video

Styles, conventions and Techniques of the Music Video

Music videos have many different styles and conventions. in this essay i will be picking apart these and applying them to music videos out there in the real world today. the first convention i will be discussing is the use of the live performance.

The live performance method is when the band/ artist performs in front of a crowd in the music video. It shows the artist(s) and the crowd both having a really great time which helps promote their live performances as someone very good to go and see. The video above is the music video for Bruce Springsteen's hit single 'Born to Run'. The video is comprised completely of live footage from different concerts of his in the eighties.

It shows both the band and the crowd having a really great time and promotes Springsteen as an intense live music performer. it also shows the scope of his fan base. It will make other people attend his concerts and will give people who are watching the video an idea of what Springsteen is like on stage.

Narrative and Interpretive

some music videos offer some kind of narrative to go with the music. There are different ways that the narrative can be told. they can be consolidating the lyrics, contradicting the lyrics and even sometimes don't have to pay any attention the lyrics at all. the images can be literal or it may take some interpretation. the video below (Icky Thump) takes a more literal approach as it follows the front man jack white as he does all of the things he sings about.

As Jack white sings, we see what he is singing about on screen which makes for an interesting video as it holds a story and expands the world of the song further than just the lyrics can.

Surrealist and absurdest

In a surreal music video the content is very often surprising and very unconventional, and very often has little relationship with the lyrics of the song. Fatboy slim's music video for his song 'weapon of choice' is rather surreal and has little relation to the actual song itself.

Impressionist

An impressionist music video attempts to try and get the emotional tone and message of the music rather than giving a literal meaning. most of the time this makes them look more artistic. there has been an art movement named the impressionism movement in the 19th century which focused on the emotions on the artist and how things made them feel. rather than realistically capturing the world itself. these music videos commonly have soft lighting, flowing and intermergent colors and very soft edges, a lot like in the art movement.

Inter textual: Synergy, Allusion, Pastiche and Homage

Music videos every now and again reference other subjects. soundtrack videos most of the time have reference and footage from the film itself (Synergy). Music videos can also allude to some other media text or a person in history or even an event. basically any historical or cultural reference. A parody is when something makes fun of the subject matter and a pastiche is more of an unrelenting version of a parody. A artist may also pay the someone else respect who had some kind of influence. This is called a homage. Weird Al Yankovic is a master of the parody, one example is his song 'Amish paradise' that parodies Coolio's gangsters paradise.

An example of a pastiche is the Foo fighters video for the song walk that gets a lot of inspiration from the 1993 film Falling Down starring Michael Douglas. The similarities are obvious. Even the outfit that front man Dave Grohl wears is the same as Douglas' character in the film. Take a look for yourself in the video below.

Here is a still from the start of the film Falling Down and underneath, a still from the music video. the similarities are obvious, they are both in a similar car, in a similar situation(traffic jam) and are both wearing more or less identical clothes. This is a very clever music video that pays great homage to a great film.

Animation (Stop motion, digital)

Videos can be wholly or just partly animated in some way. the whites stripes' Fell in love with a girl is complete stop motion animation and is made from lego, this video really propelled the white stripes into the mainstream.

LIP SYNCH - Miming and playback

It is very common for the artist in the video to mime the lyrics so that it appears that the artist is singing to the lyrics. This doesn't only have to happen in performance music videos, it can also be done in narrative-based music videos. the speed of the song can also be changed to film effects such as slow motion. In the video for the song 'The Scientist' there is a lot of lip synching going on. However this is a different kind of lip synch completely. the whole video is played in reverse, so, to get the lip syncing right. the front man Chris Martin had to learn the whole song backwards and then say it backwards when recording the music video. it works out great and makes one of the most memorable music videos of all time.

Editing

Music videos can be edited in different and interesting ways. these different styles can often challenge the conventions of classic continuity editing. below are the most commonly used methods of editing in music videos.

Cutting to the beat

In music videos cutting to the beat of the music is often used and helps establish rhythm to the editing. In the video to the white stripes song the hardest button to button cutting to the beat is done heavily and it looks great. they use this method of editing as the main focal point of the music video.

Post-production effects

Visual effects and CGI can be used in the post production stage to enhance the audience's viewing experience. It may make the audience want to watch the video if the effects are cutting edge and look breathtaking. it can make the audience of the band expand if the effects are clever, Mesmerizing and complex. Artists have to be careful however to keep the effects to the genre of the music. The video for 'Californication' is styled like a music video, this was done in post production.

Split Screen

This is a very interesting editing technique. multiple versions of different events are shown at the same time which results in a very interesting and quite bewildering effect. Blink 182's video for the song Always does this to great effect.

Chroma key

This is when footage is shot in front of a green screen or a blue screen and the action is filmed in front of it. The colour behind is then taken (chroma keyed) out so that it can be replaced by a different image. In Eminem's video for 'purple hills' chroma key is used heavily.

Camera Movements

Pans, tilts, crab and tracking shots are frequently used to enhance the excitement and flow of the music video. This makes the audience enjoy and get more engaged in the music video. In the video for Meat Loaf's hit song 'i would do anything for love (but i wont do that)' camera movement is used heavily. In the shots of the motorbikes at the start the filmmaker has used whip pans.

Camera angles and shot types

by varying the shot distance and camera angles the filmmaker can create meaning and tone and also , like camera movements above, keeps the audience engaged. If the camera angles are interesting then the audience will be interested. In the video for Jack White's song Lazerreto there are several unique camera angles used such as this one where the camera is attached to the microphone.

Mise En Scene

The mise en scene of music videos is often very striking. It is crucial in creating the mood and atmosphere of the song and it is hard to find any music video where mise en scene hasn't been taken into consideration. It can get across almost any emotion that the artist is trying to convey. In the music video for the white stripes' song 'My doorbell' the mise en scene helps make the video look very old, like it was set in the forties or fifties, this is done through the use of props and costumes from that time period.

Music Video - The Practical Work

The track that I have chosen to do a music video for is 'if you wanna' by the Vaccines.

'If you wanna' is The Vaccines' third single. Written and recorded in 2013 this song was from their debut album entitled 'what did you expect from the vaccines?'. The song debuted at number 53 on the UK singles chart and managed to reach number 35.

I think this song is quite obviously about a guy who has broken up with his girlfriend and it is hitting him very hard. His friends are all telling him to get over it however he simply does not want to. he is willing to welcome the girl back into his life even though she has put him through tremendous heartache. he even begins to obsess over the girl coming back into his life however this is most likely not going to happen.

Imagery, pace, genre and duration

When I think of the imagery of this song I think of quite happy and fun images. Although the lyrics and meaning of the song are rather down and grim the pace and melody of the song is very fast and upbeat. The genre of this music is indie rock. As I mentioned above the pace is fast and upbeat. The duration of this song is 2 minutes and 54 seconds.

Artist-image and Representation

The vaccines are notorious for their fun and upbeat attitude. they have rather casual outfits that mainly consist of jeans and casual shirts and or t shirts. They are also known to wear clothes that were very common in the 70's as we can see in the image below, the bright colored shirts and big collars. this adds an element of comedy to their image.

The tone of their existing videos is all very fun and happy. They usually have a feel good aura around their music videos which is done by the band itself, what they do in the video and the music they play itself. In the music video for their song entitled 'Norgaard' this fun and upbeat tone remains but this time it is mainly don't through props, costumes and the band/actors.

Locations in the music videos are mainly on set. The main concepts and themes of their songs revolve around a girl or some kind of break up. The two songs above both focus on these things. They also focus on the theme of being young and rebellious. Another one of their songs entitled 'Wetsuit' is all about growing up too fast.

Synopsis of my Music Video

My music video will start off with a boy waking up and looking at his phone to see that his friends have text him telling him

The purposes of the music video

The Purposes of the Music Video

This essay will be about the purposes of a music videos. Each paragraph will explain and give an insight to their creation, why they exist and how they help different people in the industry. The start of the music video was in 1975 when the rock band Queen made their video for their hit single Bohemian Rhapsody. The video helped promote the song as the music videos in this form had never been seen before so, naturally, It got people talking which helped the publicity of Queen and the song. This music video came out in the same year as the first ever blockbuster, 'Jaws'. 

The promotion of Artists and the promotion of directors is very common in the music video world. one of the music videos main functions is to promote an artists image of how they want to be viewed by the audience. In Blink 182's video for the song 'whats my age again?' the artists are seen running around a town completely naked. this promotes the bands image of being rebellious and not playing by the rules. this image appeals to their target audience of teenagers who are going through that rebellious stage. the video is also very comedic which promotes them as fun loving holds a message of not caring what over people think about you, which is another point of view that appeals to teenagers. The music video can also be used to promote the director. In the video for Meat Loaf's 'I would do anything for love (but i wont do that)' The director (Michael Bay) uses lots of action, effects and even a helicopter chase which promotes him as the action heavy director we know him as today

Producers of the music videos use different methods for different types of artists. If the artists are part of a major record label then the audience is most likely to see a a video that has a big budget that is spent on such things as; Extras- a lot of big budget videos have extras for a whole manner of different reasons such as dancing and backing. Some highly produced videos have a large budget for the special effects and pyrotechnics area. money is also spent on mise on scene, props and costumes. In Lady gaga's video for 'Bad Romance' it is evident that a lot of money has been spent on extras, pyrotechnics and also costumes.


 People can view major label bands on tv channels such as MTV and websites like Vevo and Itunes. Independent bands and artists have a different approach to music videos. they have a lower budget which means their frequency and reach is heavily decreased. however having a lower budget forces the artist/ director to be more creative and imaginative when making the music video because they cant keep the audience's attention with the things that major label bands can afford. the artists will most likely be playing their own instruments in the videos and will have them in it in some way to promote themselves. The places that independent artists put there work are on their own websites, social networking sites and occasionally on TV channels.
Self produced artists get to promote their image in a way that they want. It can be more enjoyable for the artist this way as they wont feel that they would have sold out as most things are in their control. self produced artists thrive on YouTube as they have no producers controlling them as its all 'home made' material. An example of a self produced artist is ty Zonday who rose to fame after he released his song 'Chocolate rain' by Tay Zonday. Artists can also use their videos to get their points of view across to the viewer. Michael jackson expressed his views and opinions on pollution and famine in the video for 'The Earth song'





The income for a band or artists mainly consists of royalties. this is when every time a band or artists work is played on the radio they will receive payment for the use of their product. If a music video accompanies the music then the band or artist will receive more royalties. this does not happen all the time however because of the massive number of media outlets and it is too difficult to track who is playing what and when. so an estimate is made depending on how how popular a song is and how well it is selling. it is more difficult for alternative bands to get on the radio because it costs money that the simply do not have and also there is a risk of piracy.


The number of media outlets/platforms is forever increasing. There is the radio. The Radio is a massive outlet of music and can access almost anyone anywhere. it allows artists to get their material to the masses. however it costs more money to get on the radio for unknown artists. however it does offer royalty payment. Another form of media outlet is the television; There are many different music channels on the television such as possibly the most well known and the original channel MTV. there are also other channels like SCUZZ,Kerrang and magic. There is also the internet which is probably the most common place that people view music videos thanks to sites like YouTube and Vevo. There is also DVD- many artists release DVD'S of their live performances, Bruce Springsteen did this for his live at Madison square garden concert. There is also C.D's and digi packs. There are advantages for the growing number of outlets such as its very good for the audience being able to view their favorite music videos anytime and anywhere and there is a bigger chance of recognition for the band/ artist. The disadvantages are its hard for new artists to be found and also there is a higher risk if piracy.



Synergy means the combining of two different things. In the media industry synergistic marketing is when a product is sold that relates to another product. This means that more money can be made off of a product. The main example for this is Disney's frozen main hit 'let it go'. Which launched a tirade of non stop merchandise such as clothing and even some food products. this allows more money to be made for both parties; the main product owner and the subsidiary product owner.

Music videos are so popular and that popularity is only going to continue growing. This has a variety of different reasons, most of which are above. People like to see there favourite bands and artists perform and to see what their message is. music videos can be interesting, funny, scary. Effectively music videos can have any genre that a film can have and in some cases even more. If people like the music that they listen to then they will most likely enjoy the images that accompany the music.

Single Camera Techniques

Single Camera Techniques

In this blog post I will be explaining and giving examples on some of the key points and terms of single camera production. From the different genres that use single and/or multiple camera techniques to making the sound seem professional.

The first area I will be covering in this blog post is more or less the main tool the director uses, the camera. In a single camera production there is, as you can probably tell from the name, only one camera used at any one time. The camera is the tool used to get the audience into the diegesis. with using a single camera you and the audience usually have a far more 'intimate' feel which isn't available when using multiple cameras. Film makers more often or not prefer single camera productions as they have more control and are able to really set up each shot individually and make exactly what the visualized into reality. logistically, single camera productions allow you to shoot almost anywhere you would want to shoot, on multi camera productions it is far more difficult as logistics come into play a lot more. When filming a single camera production entire scenes need to be filmed several times and the different sections of scenes need to be done over and over to capture the scene from various different angles. unfortunately this makes filming more expensive. The camera angles in the film Drive are very unique and memorable and makes the film more engaging to watch.

The second area I will be covering is the lighting of a single camera production. Lighting a single camera production is far easier to control as each shot can be lit individually. if you use multiple cameras then the lighting must be correct for each shot, this could give each shot a fake and unreal effect- like it has actually been filmed in a studio rather than on location. using a single camera will make it look more authentic and will make the audience get more involved in the diegesis. The lighting in old Film noir films such as The Lady from Shanghai is very distingtive and bold, the term used to describe it is chiaroscuro.

In the following paragraph I will be covering sound in single camera productions. Single camera production shots always need to have some sort of overlay sound there. this is when sound starts
before the scene and continues after the scene to make sure the whole of the scene an to get rid of any jumpy cuts. sound affects can be added during post production. multiple camera productions, such as talk shows and reality shows usually make the recording equipment visible. one of the most important things to remember when filming a single camera production is that not all dialogue in a scene is from the same take. Commonly the sound is recorded and then put over the op of takes- Any scenes where the audience don't need to be able to see the source of dialogue. War of the wrolds has some very destinctive sounds such as when the tripod raises from the earth and gives off the 'foghorn' noise.

In this part of my blog post I will be covering the term 'coverage' in a single camera production. In a single camera production coverage is the term  used for the amount of film that is captured. The term 'good coverage' means that the film maker will have a lot of options when it comes to the post production editing process. not having enough coverage means you may have to settle with a poor piece of footage as there is nothing else to put in its place. When using a digital video recorder film makers can shoot pretty much everything. The amount of coverage you are able to shoot mostly depends on your budget. in a single camera production the film maker should always start by obtaining a master shot- this is when the film maker gets a shot that has everything in the scene so that different areas can be cut to while editing. In multi camera productions long scenes are filmed continuously so that lines have to be memorized.

The post production of a single camera production mainly consists of editing. this can take a rather long time as there is a large amount of footage that the editing team/film maker will have to go through. in a single camera production it is very likely that all scenes involved in a location will be shot together when a certain location is needed or certain cast members are needed. in a singlke camera production it is more efficient to edit shots in chunks. this means that after a day of filming you will edit what you have. If this is not done and you save all of the editing to the end then it will take more time and effort to go through it and select what you need.

TV Genres

Crime Dramas

Crime drams are naturally intense and have deep, meaningful characters that the audience have to connect with. the use of the single camera also gives a far greater feeling of intimacy and makes the more heart pumping moments more thrilling. Crime dramas can give the pint of view from either side of the law. Breaking Bad and The Sopranos both show what its like on the wrong side of the law. whereas Miami Vice and 24 are from the perspective of the do gooders.

Horror
In horror a single camera is chosen over multiple because, as I mentioned earlier, single camera productions are able to get you more involved with the world of the the shot. this is very effective in horror as it makes the audience feel as if they are actually in the diegisis which improves the amount they get scared.

Comedy 

Quite a lot of situation comedies are shot using the multi camera technique. shows like Friends and the IT crowd are shot in front of a live studio audience and have a laugh track which can help or hinder the audiences amount of enjoyment after a joke is told. My favorite comedies on television are all single camera productions. The TV shows extras and the office(UK) are not only two of my favorite comedy shows but also two of my favorite TV shows full stop. single camera production comedies linger more on the joke after it is told and sometimes use the cinematography to tell the joke.

Period Dramas
Period dramas is the name for a drama that takes place in a certain era from the past. Most of the time period dramas have some kind of romantic element involved. a Good example of period drama is Downtown abbey. this has recently revitalized the genre and has been reward with critical acclaim from fans and critics alike.

Formats

Series

A series is a type of programming where the characters are the same in every episode however each episode has a different story line. however there is usually a sub plot in the background which we follow as the episodes go on. Dexter is a single camera production crime drama programme. In series one he is presented with different criminals to kill in each episode however over the series he has the job of solving the mystery of 'the ice truck killer'. these types of shows are commissioned for a set number of episodes.

Serial

a serial can follow the same format as a series or it could, in the case of a soap opera can run on continuously and never end. A good example of a serial that never ends is Eastenders or coronation street. Like the series the characters are the same from episode to episode and the story line develops throughout the episodes. as mentioned earlier a serial that never ends is known as a soap opera, these have multi-strand narratives that overlap over many episodes. these have no clear protagonist and really no ultimate closure as they go on and on and on. one of the reasons serials can last so long may be the use of a multi-cam technique as it is quick and easy to shoot.

Single drama

A single or one off drama is told in a single one off episode. The minimum length of a one off drama is five minutes. Some one off dramas can run over two or three parts. They are also called a television movie and have their own category at the BAFTAS. The winner of the 2010 BAFTA'S was the single drama entitled 'A Short stay in switzerland '. 

Jack's research dossier

Jacks Research Dossier

Seeing as we opted to use jacks script we had to read through Jacks research dossier. Here is a link :
http://huntjbtec.blogspot.co.uk/2014/12/research-dossier.html

Production diary

Production diary

Pre-Production-
Our Pre-production ran from the 5th to the 12th of February. This week consisted of getting location recce's and releases. Most of the week however was spent doing the storyboards. We had to divide the ten minute short by 3 so that we each had our own segment to direct. i chose the first segment which was mainly centered around our college. It was quite challenging to do the storyboards for our segments because we had never done storyboards for a project this size before. i had to get permission to be able to use the college for filming. we also had to assign the different acting roles for each other. I had to be the main protagonist "James", Mark chose to be "Michael" while Duncan chose to be "Dan". we also had this week to get to together and order any props we might need for our production. the only prop we had to order was an inflatable hammer.

Production-
For our production we started filming on the 12th of February as we managed to get all of our pre production paper work done before the half term. We decided that it was probably more efficient if we did the scenes in and around college rather than the scenes outside of the college. We spent quite a long time on the first scene as we were reasonably unfamiliar with the equipment and also we were not used to the techniques of a single camera production. we did come across a few problems such as the camera batteries running out at times and weather problems. A big problem we faced was the original place we planned to film the exam scene was booked out for the whole week. We had to find another place quickly so we had to end up filming the whole exam scene in our regular classroom which made problems arise because of availability and another production team wanted to use the classroom location for one of their scenes.

Post Production-
Our post production was, at times, tricky. We were missing a few shots because we didn't completely stick to the rules of single camera production because of time constraints. However quite a lot of it went smoothly, We saved most of the editing till the end of the production. this created problems of its own because we had little time to re-shoot certain shots. some of which were out of focus. We also saved it until quite late to come up with a proper title for it, we came up with several terrible titles like "An Unhappy ending". However with help from our peers we came up with "Badvice". we also had to find a soundtrack for our short. I opted for something rather "funky" and "seventies". My colleagues agreed so we had that soundtrack running throughout the short. In the end our short just ran over six minutes witch is appropriate for how long the script was. Our ten minute short is below, i am happy with the final result, however it was harder than I thought it would be.