Preliminary Task

As part of my research we were given the preliminary task of re-making the first 25 seconds of Britney Spears’ music video ‘Baby, one more time’ in groups of three.

Evaluation of Preliminary Task

Equipment - I had not previously used the video camera so it took a little while to get used to it's different functions and making sure that it was recording properly however I am now confident in using it. We used a tripod in some of our shots which made sure that the footage was stable and not shaky however if i were to do this task again I would find a way of incorporating the use of a tripod whilst filming a moving shot such as the first shot of the preliminary task which was filmed handheld and the result was good but a bit shaky. It was very useful that a member of our group owned a smartphone which enabled us to watch the original Britney Spears music video at the same time as filming so that we could match the angle, content and length of each shot to the actual video making it as precise as possible. We used an apple mac computer and the 'imovie' software installed on it to edit our footage. I had used this software along with another member of the group so we quite easily uploaded our filmed material onto the computer and then began editing it until we were happy with our finished outcome.

Setting up the shots - For each different shot we did about 4-6 takes to make sure that when it came to the editing stage we would have enough footage to choose the best from incase there were any problems with the others. The location of any music video is very important and we were very fortunate that the Britney Spears music video that we were re-creating is set within a school so we found it quite easy to match the setting as well as possible. We were not able to control the lighting for the shots we took and instead adjusted some of the shots lighting on the editing software on the mac however in my music video I shall take the lighting into much more consideration. Within the 25 second clip that we were allocated to film there was only 2 words in which we had to mime however there were visuals of the foot and pencil tapping on the table, the clock and the bell which we had to sync in time with the music for the video which we downloaded and imported onto the editing software.

Working in a group - For this task I enjoyed working in a group because we had organised ourselves well so that we each got a chance to try out each stage of the production and editing for the video. It was good to have different opinions and feedback from the other members of my group which sometimes altered the decisions that I would have instinctively made. Despite the benefits of working in a group I am going to work alone for my coursework music video as you have to come up with a completely new idea for your music video instead of recreating one that already exists and I feel that there would be certain limitations of working in a group for this as everyone else will have too many different ideas and therefor I may not be completely satisfied with what we produce.

Overall I felt that our preliminary task outcome was quite successful considering the time in which we completed it. It was helpful to do this task as I am now aware of what differences I shall use when planning, filming and editing my music video.

Andrew Goodwin Music Video Theory

We have studied Andrew Goodwin's theory for music videos in which he explains six key features of the genre which include;

1. Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics

2. There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals

3.There is a relationsip between music and visuals

4. The demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close ups of the artist may develop motifts which recur across their work

5. There is frequently reference to the notion of looking

6. There are often intertextual references

I have chosen the music video for Limp Bizkit's song Rollin' and have stopped the video and taken a print-screen at each point of the video which relates to one of the six points of Andrew Goodwin's theory. Below the slideshow is the link to the actual music video.

Music video example for Andrew Goodwin's Theory

View more presentations from poppyimogenyoung

http://youtu.be/RYnFIRc0k6E

Analysing different genres of music videos

We can categorise music videos into three different main genres which include, performance based videos, narrative videos and conceptual videos. I am going to research into these three genres to see how they differentiate from each other. Further on in this project when I am making my music video I shall have to choose one of these genres so it is important that I get a wide understanding of them now so that I can make the right decision. For each type of genre I have found an example of a music video.


Performance

Performance based videos are quite simply the band or artist performing their music however this can be done in a variety of ways to retain interest which includes the video having footage of a live performance, staged perfomance, behind the stage scenes of the band in a casual relaxed environment which gives the audience a feel that they are getting a real insight into the artist/band. Perfomance videos are predominanty used by rock and indie artists/bands who are often prolific for their stage perfomances so this will boost their identity by having them perform in their video.This genre of music video has in the past and remains to be very popular amongst artists and bands. I think this is for the reason that the artist gets to purely focus on themselves and the music that they make rather then a glamorous video which can often detract from the raw talent of the music.

I have chosen Guns N' Roses performing their song 'Sweet Child O' Mine ' because I felt that this was a very clear example a performance based music video. Guns N' Roses are a classic rock band and this genre of video is very suitable for their image as it focuses directly on their music and the band livng the rock lifestyle. Each shot lasts only a few short seconds and sometimes only a second each which increases the Throughout much of the video the camera appears to be handheld as it sways and shakes which suits the nature of the song which is very upbeat and busy. There are many close ups on the instruments and the artists. The entire video is also filmed in black and white which gives the video a authentic aged feel.

Narrative

Narrative based music videos use visuals to narrate or tell a story which often directly link to the lyrics of the track. The artist or member(s) of the band might be used to ‘act’ out the story or an actor can be used as the main character in the video. This genre of music video gives the song a clear message to the lyrics with the story that is portrayed in the video.

The video for Paolo Nutini's song 'New Shoes' has a very clear narrative by linking the lyrics to what's seen in the shot(visuals). This makes the message of the video very clear and easy to understand for the audience. The video flows very well as the visuals are in time with the tempo of the song where the lyrics are being lip synced throughout the entire video and around the artist the actions are being played out.

Conceptual

Conceptual music videos focus strongly on the visuals within the video aswell as the music. They often focus on one idea or concept however this is not always clear to the audience as conceptual videos are often very abstract and even surreal.

The video for Nirvana's song 'Heart Shaped Box' is very abstract and does not follow a clear story that is obvious. There are a lot of symbols used within the music video which could have hidden meanings behind them which makes the audience concentrate and really think about the video that they are watching. This type of video suits the band a lot because their audience wanted something unique and original and Nirvana always delivered on that front.

Coursework Brief

On this blog I am going to present the research, planning, and evaluation of my final outcomes.

For my A2 coursework we have been given the brief to produce;
A promotion package for the release of an album, to include a music promotional video together with the following:
1. a cover for it's release as part of a digipak
2. a magazine advertisement for the digipak