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My name is Richard Parker and this is my blog. My blog contains all of the work undertaken as part of G324 A2 course work.

For this project I worked in a group of three, with Josh Newton and Adam Dixon, making a music video for "Still Life" by the English band The Horrors. The project started in september of 2013 and carried on till March 2014.

My final products are under the final products tab and if you wish to view the build up to the final products please look through the other tabs on the top of the page.

Magazine Advert

Digipak

Final Cut

Key Media Concepts

It is important to include some theory in the planning stages as this will ensure that our music video is as accurate as it can be. The main theorist we will refer to and take ideas from is Carol Vernallis. We will consider all of the following points although we may consider some more important to others as the process develops.

Narrative

• Fragmented / Unclear Narrative 
• Video may not answer all questions 

Editing

• Jump Cuts
• Breaking the 180° rule 

Camera Movement & Framing 

• Camera moves in time with music 
• A lot of close up sots are used

Diegesis

• Characters / Objects move in time with music 
• Some frames are more important than others 
• Gaps in audiences' understanding  

We will use more theorists and their findings as the process develops, however this will be the main theorist we want to focus our video on as it fits the video we want to create and will hep us create the vision we have whilst making sure that the video is realistic. 

Photoshoot Images

These are the images that we will be using on our Photoshoot. We have used these four images as the background and lighting is very similar and all of the images have a consistent theme.

Rough Cut 2

 This is the main rough cut. We have combined and edited the majority of the clips we have. We are aware that there are some sections of the video, which do not yet have visuals with the sound. However now that the rough cut is finished, everyone in the group has a good idea of what needs to be filmed and edited in order to have the final music video completed.

Rough Cut 1

This is the first rough cut we did. It is not very long but we used this as a preview of the complete rough cut. We made this clip so that all group members could have a quick glance and were assured that everything was matching before we wen ahead and created the full rough cut. 

Magazine Article Development

To make the digipak we started off by looking at our initial sketches. Once we all had the same vision of our magazine article, Adam started to make the product on Photoshop. 

To make the make the magazine article, he built up the product by using different layers on Photoshop.

He started off with the basic background which was the picture of the clouds and the field. We then added the logo and a photo of the digipak album. Once these were in place he found a textured patter and created this over the document in another layer. We then thought about where the digipak would be available from and we decided to use icons in or magazine article at the bottom. Adam then wrote New album coming soon in a font that matched the theme of the title. After building up a few layers of effects, adjustments and modes he put all of the layers together and had created the final product. 

As a group we were very pleased with the final product. We all felt that it fit the genre really well and that the theme between the digipak and magazine advert were very consistent. 

Digipak Development

From our digipak research, we found out that the digipak can give a lot of information to the audience about the band, before they even listen. The digipak design can help the audience identify the genre and also the style of the music. They can also help create a star image for the band. To start the digipak we decided to created a front cover on Photoshoot to collect ideas and try to create a theme for the digipak. This is the front cover of our digipak. We used the textured font to  suggest that the album is aged. We then contrasted the sun in the middle (By using bright colours) with the dark shadows on the outside (By blocking them out and slightly blurring them). We now all knew that we wanted to keep this nature theme and we also wanted to contrast the dark and light theme throughout the digipak.

Once we had reviewed the digipak, we had decided that we did not like the name and therefore we decided to change the name to Communiqué. We also took off the writing 'Still Life' as this would be the name of the single and not necessarily the name of the album.  Once we had our theme we wanted to start designing the other panels and to do this we printed off a template. We kept the theme of nature and even though we tried to change the front cover, we liked the original one and decided to stay with this one. We did not finish the left panel as we realised that throughout the development process our ideas and designs would change and this would influence the covers. 

We then made the changes to the front cover of the digipak before starting to design the other panels. The first  change we made was to the colour scheme of the front cover. We made this change as when we looked at existing digi - paks as we noticed that a lot of bands with a similar genre used colour effectively. The most common feature regarding colour was the contrast between the outside of the digi-pak and the inside. 

We then started making the back panel for the digipak. When we were looking at the ideas from our initial sketches, we decided to keep the design the same as the front panel to keep the digipak consistent. However we decided to make small changes so that the panel was not exactly the same as the front cover. To do this we started by copying the front cover, but then we removed the text and although we left the textured pattern we played around with different effects and adjustments to make the panel look a it different. We then used a white text (which was the same font as the text on the magazine advert) to write on the name of the songs featured on the album. 

On one of the inside panels we decided to use our photoshoot images. We used the image that featured all of the band. When we opened the image we decided to block out the lights behind us, however that did not work. Even though the effect looked good as a group we were unsure and so we tried again. This time we decided to just block out the large lights and leave the small lights as they were. We were a lot happier with the results we got from this image. 

Storyboard Images

Here is a collection of images we have drawn for our storyboard for the music video. These were to give a rough idea on how the music video will unfold and the type of shots we will use when filming.

Magazine Advert Sketches

To ensure that all of the group understood what we were trying to achieve we sketched out our initial idea for the advert. It is evident that we went for a simple and effective magazine article, taking inspiration from the Kasabian and Daft Punk adverts we analysed. From this sketch we can now start to create the final advert. 

Digipak Sketches

For our digipak we want to continue with the contrast between the ambient dynamic outdoors and the dark lighting of the studio. To create this effect we have created the back panels of the digipak with the theme of nature in mind. This links with the ambient outdoors and features of the dynamic landscape. When the digipak is printed with colour, the colours used on these panels will be bright and eye catching, especially on the front cover. 

Then when the audience open the digipak, they will see the band name wrote across the inside panels. This will be printed and designed using dark colours and will have black bands across to make sure that the logo stands out. Then the middle panel will be very bright and very colourful, with a pattern on the CD that matches the colour scheme of the panel. 

However we understand that throughout the development process we will learn about making a digipak and this may alter our design. Also our ideas will change throughout the process and this may be another factor that influences our designs and final digipak. 

Recce of Locations

For our music video we need two main locations, however we came up with a number of possible locations we could use in the video.

Roseberry Topping:

We chose Roseberry Topping as a possible location to film the landscape area. This is because the area around the attraction has a lot to offer in terms of view. With the colour hills and spacious fields surrounding, this location would make a good location for a time lapse.

View from Roseberry Topping:

Another possible location, which could create an effective shot, is the view from Roseberry Topping. This is because Roseberry Topping is at quite a high height and therefore a high angle shot from the top of Roseberry would also create an effective time lapse. The view from Roseberry Topping is also very colorful and therefore this will help us in the editing process, when we try to create a psychedelic theme.

Studio:

The studio in college will also be the location that creates the other half of the video. This will be where the band is performing throughout the song as the camera cuts away from the landscape scenes. 

Shooting Schedule

We have created this document using all of the planning and preparation we have done. This should ensure that our video resembles the conventions and storyboard. However we understand that during the filming, it is likely that we will decide to remove shots and add other shots in and this will therefore alter the document. 

Anamatic

Evidence of Request for Permission

We have asked 'XL Recordings' for permission to use the song 'Still Life' by 'The Horrors' to use on this A2 Media Project.

Because this is the song we have chosen for our music video, digipack etc. We have had to ask permission from the record label this song was released on.

The screenshot above shows proof of the email I have sent to XL Recordings, asking for permission to use their artists track for my A2 Media Project.

Advert Research

Advert Research

Adverts are one of the most popular methods used to attract peoples attention to a certain product. In the music industry advertising is heavily used to ensure that the record company institutions make a lot of money of the records and products they sell. Music adverts often feature in music themed magazines as this allows the companies to narrow down the advert to a particular genre, which will help people who like that genre see the advert and then make a purchase.

Usually magazine articles either use a photo of the band or have an illustrated image. This is used to create a certain star image that can relate to people who are interested in that particular genre. They often take up a full side of a page so that they can be seen and use different sized fonts and colours, which usually depend on the genre.