Task 10:Audience feedback of first draft

Audience feedback of first draft

 



Our initial Critique: 

• The music video is missing lots of footage- This is because we have not finished certain scenes which include lip singing and playing the piano.
• The footage has not been rendered so it isn't very good quality at the moment.
• The birthday scene was filmed in low lighting and when we added an effect to brighten the footage it lowered the picture quality - We aim to fix this by making it look like a home movie by applying a record and time effect on the main production.
• The narrative has not been made clear to the audience as we are missing the footage needed that explains what the skeleton is a metaphor of. 

Questions for our audience:

• Do you think our video matches the genre of the music well?
• Do you understand the narrative?
• What type of audience do you think would like this video?
• Which channels do you think this video would be aired on?
• Can you tell that there are issues with white balancing in the video?
• Do you think we have incorporated our props effectively? i.e the skeleton
• Do you think we have used humour well in our video?
• What would you do to improve our video?
• Do you think the lip syncing looks natural in the video?
• What do you like about the video? What have we done well?

November feedback

You have allocated roles and enquired about copyright of the music.

Analysis of print products is promising and is allowing you to develop ideas.

You have taken a lead role in the group and driven the ideas forward which is pleasing to see. Yo have taken the lyrics and interpreted them in a way that will appeal to a target audience.

You produced the storyboards and will take credit for this. They are quite thorough and clarly indicate the shots that you have planned. Be clear about your involvement in the  creative process by documenting your creative journey.

Work on a target audience is promising and shows an awareness of theory and identifies lifestyles aswell as more traditional demographics.

Your final idea is well defined showing an enthusiasm and a willingness to lead the group.  The filming has also been completed with you organising your peers.

Very promising evidencing level 3.  Aim for level 4.

TARGETS

Complete an edit that uses post production techniques to correct any lighting issues

Be careful with white balancing

Document your creative journey

Gain audience feedback by publishing your edit or at least the first cut

Task 10:Pitch

Although we had already decided on a final idea, we decided that the pitch should contain some other potential ideas that we could incorporate into our final idea.

Task 10: Background information on Kate Nash

Background information

The song we have chosen to make a music video for is Kate Nash's "Skeleton Song", which never had a music video made for it originally. 

Here is the song:


Kate Nash

Kate Nash is a 28 year old English singer,song writer, musician and actress who in 2007 released her debut studio album "Made of Bricks" which topped the UK albums chart. The song "Skeleton Song" features on this album but was never released as a single such as her other songs "Mouthwash" and "Pumpkin Soup".

She was named Best Female Artist at the 2008 BRIT Awards and her singles often make it into the Top 40 in the UK singles chart.

She has many strong opinions on matters such as LGBT rights and in an interview with Artistxite she criticized the music industry's early failure to adapt to the digital market and nurture new talent saying "There is no nurturing of talent. No one wants artists to grow and develop. Everyone is afraid of being fired and they didn't move with the digital age. The music industry had the power to move with the digital age, but they didn't do it and it was the biggest mistake they ever made".

The main reason why we decided to use Kate Nash is because the songs she produces are often unique and are about random objects which then can be used to help produce a storyline for our music video. For example, skeleton song is about her imaginary friend based on a skeleton toy she used to have and so we can adapt this to make our video for the song.

Task 10:Legal documents

Legal documents

When filming anything it is important to have legal documents that state certain things like what contract the actors featured are on (such as what they are expected to do and how much they will get paid) as well as asking permission to use certain songs in the production. There is an issue with copyright with singer's songs and so it is important to ask permission to use their work and not claim it as your own.

We emailed Fiction Records to inquire about using Kate Nash's Skeleton Song. The email we sent is shown below:

Task 10:Deconstruction of Album Covers

Deconstruction of Album Covers

What's the point of having an album cover?

Album covers are not just part of the overall packaging to help protect the CD inside but it also helps the promote the singer and attract buyers. Although more people are buying their music from the internet, there is still a need for an album cover to help identify the singer and the album as a whole. The future of CD's and thus the need for album packaging are uncertain due to people evolving to the online age but as of 2008, physical album covers continue to outsell digital downloads. Often when people download their music, the album cover becomes downloaded as well, which appears on the screen whenever they play a song from the album which therefore shows it is still a vital component needed.

An example of an album cover is The Weeknd's Beauty Behind the Madness

This is the front of the album cover for The Weeknd's 2015 album. It features the singer's face distorted to look as though it is cut in two. The main colors are yellow and black which are shown constantly throughout the album. An explicit content warning is shown in the bottom corner to warn the audience and potential buyers that the content on the CD may not be suitable for young listeners.

This is the back of the album cover. It features the track list which is used to cover the singers face. It tells the potential buyers and listeners what the songs are called and also of any other singers who featured in the song such as Ed Sheeran and Lana Del Ray which could potentially influence their decision when buying the album.

Inside the case, a booklet ,several pages long with each song having a page each, is featured. This is where information such as the writers and singers are credited. The background features pictures of women as well as the singer and the color scheme matches throughout the whole album, to tie everything together.







Kate Nash- House of Bricks album cover

This is the original album cover for Kate Nash's House of Bricks. We are using one of her songs for our production this year and so we can use this album cover to help produce our own. It features the singer next to a house with animals made out of hedges surrounding her. She is also Photoshopped into some of the windows in the house which tells the audience that she is imaginative and quirky. 

The back of the cover features the track list for the album. The song we are going to use for our production is number ten on the track list (Skeleton Song). The songs featured contain swear words however there is no explicit lyrics warning on the actual cover which suggests it may have been on the clear film that would have wrapped the CD case to help protect it.

The inside of the album features a 'Thank you' message. It also has information as to where the listeners could research more into Kate Nash and her music by providing a website address and MySpace page.










This is my own attempt at her album 'Made of Bricks':

This is my version of her 'Made of Bricks' album which features the 'Skeleton Song'. I decided to brand Kate Nash by using pictures of her to make a brick like structure therefore she is 'made of bricks' herself. I then placed a image of her lying on her stomach on the top brick ( in the middle) as it shows she is the most important person on the cover. I had to edit out the original background so she was clear over the background that I chose. The background I chose is blue and has an added brick pattern to link with the album title.I decided to make the font look curly and fun because it links with the type of singer Kate Nash is and then I arched it over the image of her to make it interesting to look at.

The back of my design includes the track list for her album. Some of her song titles do contain swear words which shows that she uses explicit language in her songs. Although I never added an explicit warning sign on my version, it would most likely be on the clear film that wraps the CD case. I added the music company's logo to show which company she is signed with and a bar code to make it  look authentic. Then I added another image of Kate and some illustrations that were released with some of her songs as singles.

Task 9:Casting

Casting

The music video focuses on the singer (Kate) and her friend the Skeleton. We needed one main actress to play Kate,the skeleton would be a prop, another person to play the boyfriend at the end and an extra person to play the role of the owner of the house.

Kate: The singer featured in the music video is Kate (Kate Nash). Played by Lydia.

We decided to cast Lydia as our actress because she has experience in drama and acting.

Skeleton: The skeleton will be played by a fake skeleton prop (Dimitri).

Boyfriend:The boyfriend is only featured near the end. Played by Oli.

Owner of the house:During the Halloween scene, the owner of the house is seen briefly shouting at Kate. Played by David (Extra)

Task 8:Final Idea

Final Idea

The final idea for our video to "Skeleton Song" by Kate Nash follows the story of a girl ( the singer)and her skeleton.It follows closely to the actual lyrics of the song which helped us form a narrative and includes several shots of the girl singing to the song.

A wide shot of a street is first shown and when the girl walks into shot the camera pans to follow her. A point of view (P.O.V) shows her walking up the drive to her house and into her house. She walks up the stairs, where on the landing, the ladder to the attic are set up. She's decides to climb the ladder, once in the attic she looks around at all the boxes. The camera shows a P.O.V shot staring at the girl suggesting she isn't alone. The girl finds a box that she pulls out to open. The camera is placed in the box and shows a P.O.V (low angle) as the girl reaches in to pull something out of the box. Then the lyrics start.

An extreme close up shows the girls lips and then a skeletons mouth. It then shows them on a wall (as though the skeleton toy is her friend) where the skeleton falls off and she places a plaster on him showing she cares for his well being. More shots of the skeleton and the girl relaxing on some grass are shown to the audience followed by a change of scene where the girl is crying on her bed ripping up photos of her ex boyfriend and the skeleton comforts her. The singer is shown in a white room where a close up shows her singing the last line before the chorus.

During the chorus, a trick or treating scene is shown. The girl and the skeleton walk up to a house but instead of staying to get sweets, the skeleton runs away and hides leaving the girl in an awkward position where she attempts to run but the owner of the house calls out to her angrily. A quick cut to the singer in the white room is shown as she sings but this time she is holding the box that the skeleton was originally in.

For the next short verse, the skeleton and the girl are dancing in the white room while she sings which then cuts to them in her room trying on clothes which the girl finds amusing as he is a skeleton who has no need for clothes.During a music break, the girl is back in the white room but a close up of her playing the piano (showing off her musical talent). Next the camera shows the girl spinning round in a circle where the camera is the P.O.V of the skeleton and then this flips so the skeleton is shown and the camera is the girl. The next scene shows them at a birthday party and the skeleton blows a party streamer suggesting that he is involved in her life and has been with her for years. 

For the next chorus the main focus is on the singer performing. She is seen singing and writing the lyrics on her bed with the camera at a low angle looking up at her. Shots of her and the skeleton singing and dancing in the white room are shown but this time pictures of them are on the wall and the camera cuts to several of them to show the audience. But then it cuts to the girl holding the box previously and climb up the ladder to the attic implying that she was putting the skeleton back into the attic although this raises questions as to why she is doing this when they seem to be enjoying each others company.

The music dramatically changes and becomes much more slower and darker. Stop motion with the camera at a high angle, shows the girl in bed, rolling around as though she is having a bad dream. She then gets up,finds a hammer and walks to where the skeleton is (who is turned in the opposite direction to her) where she then proceeds to rise the hammer and it is implied she smashes the skeleton with it. The singer is then shown in a darkened room with an unknown light source distorting the shadows on her face making her look almost evil. 

During the music break, the girl is back in the the white room but is tearing down the photos and going crazy. Then when everything slows back down, the girl is sitting on the floor surrounded by the crumpled photos crying while she sings. She grabs an almost intact photo and holds it up. An over the shoulder shows that it is of a boy and then as she lowers the picture, the focus shifts to the skeleton that is suddenly against the wall. She stands up and picks him up then walks off. 

The next scene is similar to the trick or treating scene but the skeleton is replaced with a person in a skeleton costume. After the girl gets in trouble for ringing the bell and walking off, a close up of the person in the costume shows him taking off the mask, revealing that he's the boy in the photo form earlier. Several shots shown previously where the skeleton was featured and now replaced with the boy, suggesting that the singer wasn't talking about a skeleton but this boy. A final close up of the girl shows her singing the last line but then during the outro, the doorbell is heard and a P.O.V shows the girl walking towards the door. When she opens it the boy from the photo is there smiling, holding a skeleton costume and a trick or treat bag.

Task 7:Role Allocation

Role Allocation

Although everyone in the group will take an active part in filming and editing the music video, certain roles are more prominent. The main roles we will take on include being the director, the producer, camera operator and editor. 

Director: Katie

The Director's role is the person who guides the technical crew and actors into fulfilling their visions of what the production should look like, often their visualization of scripts given to them by the screenwriters.

Producer: Kirst

The Producer's role is to supervise the overall filming of the shots themselves.The role of producer's are normally sub categorized further into line producer (who manages the films budget and maintains a strict schedule in terms of filming) or executive producer (who oversees the filming in regards to financing).

Camera Operator: Oli

The Camera Operator is responsible for the maintenance of the camera during filming. They make sure the camera is ready in place for filming and physically operate the camera when the time comes to film a shot/scene.

Editor

Film Editors are responsible for editing the footage taken into a logical sequence to create a music video in this instance. They need to manipulate the footage by adding effects, cutting pieces of the footage and making sure the song and footage work together nicely.

Task 6:Planning using the lyrics

Planning using the lyrics

As we started planning the music video, we thought it would be a good idea to print out the lyrics and work out locations, types of shots and timings for each lyric sung. 

Locations


We decided that several locations would need to be used in the music video to help create a narrative as well as feature the singer in a separate location to keep the focus on her. 

Key

WR: White room
F: Field
BR: Bedroom
LR: Living room
A: Attic
L: Landing
S: Street
H: House
DW: Drive way

We thought that these locations would be easiest to film at as they are readily available to use and there is enough space for us to film in. The white room would be used as the location where the singer is the main focus and it pulls the audience away from the narrative which is where the other locations focus on. There are both interior and exterior locations that we are gong to film at which can create a life like narrative but it may also become an issue when filming due to the differences in lighting.

 Types of shots

In music videos, lots of different shots are used to help show emotion within the lyrics as well as helping to develop the storyline of the video. Therefore we decided that different shots need to be filmed including different angles so that when we edit, we can decide which shots look best and fit the music and lyrics better.

Key:

WS: Wide shot

P.O.V: Point of view

ECU: Extreme close up

LA: Low angle

W: Wide shot

T: Tilt

CU: Close up

MOA: Match on action

MC: Medium close up

L: Long

M: Medium shot

HA: High angle

P: Pan

Timings

It is very important that the timings are correct during a music video. The singer will need to lip sync the lyrics when we film and then when we edit the music and lyrics would be placed over the top of the footage, therefore it must all match up. We thought it would be best to write down the timings of each of the lyrics/ verses as well as many music breaks and use this to help make a schedule of what we film.

Task 6:Storyboards

Task 5: Script

Script

Music videos typically do not have scripts that contain dialogue as the lyrics are more important than speech seeing as it is a song. They more likely contain stage directions that tell the artist what to do during that part of the song. We decided that our music should contain some form of dialogue if only a line or two. This would most likely be something like "hello" or "okay,will do".

(See Task 6: Planning using the lyrics)

Task 4:Audience Research and Target Audience

Target Audience

My initial target audience are females aged between 16-20 who are interested in listening to music and watching music videos. However after more research, this has changed as I was able to profile a more distinct target audience.

Using the YouGov Profiles website, I first researched into the type of people who like Kate Nash, seeing as she is the singer that we want to make a video for. This is what I found:

The most likely people who liked Kate Nash were females aged 18-24. This is much higher than my initial target audience and therefore I would need to possibly re-think my ideas to appear more mature than before. My audience would obviously be more sided to females seeing as the singer is female, but as Kate Nash has strong opinions of LGBT rights,homosexual women and males of a similar age would want to listen to her music as well. Although these are more of a secondary audience. 


From the website, it also states that the socioeconomic group of this audience is C2, D and E. These suggest that listeners of Kate Nash are those with skilled manual occupations or are unemployed. The reason why they might be listening to Kate Nash is because she sings about random things such as skeletons and so they would relate to her music and possibly use it as a way to escape everyday life. 

The audience that listens to Kate Nash are said to describe themselves as being alternative and so my music video would be suitable for them to watch because it's about a toy skeleton which isn't normally a subject in music videos. I think my target audience would need to be able to appreciate the alternative elements in my video and so this is useful to help profile them overall. 

The types of places this audience shop at is Asda because it is a good for money place to shop and most suitable for the social class they are said to be within. This would also mean that when marketing the song, it would need to be available at shops such as Asda or Sainsbury's for this audience to be able to buy and it also needs to be interesting enough for them to want to buy it in the first place.

I then decided that it would help profile an audience to look at those who just generally like listening to music. This helped me to understand where these people who enjoy listening to music were most likely to live (according to the YouGov website). It showed me those who live in Wales and Avon as well as London and Northern Scotland have a higher chance of being part of my target audience. However  I think that this is not a true representation because all over the country people listen to music and therefore the range of areas where they lived would be much broader.

 

There are many reasons why my target audience would want to watch my music video. The Uses and Gratification theory by Blumler and Katz, states that it's what people do with the media rather than what the media does to them. The audience would use my production for 4 key reasons: 

1. For information- They would watch my video, to learn more about the storyline I give them. As it has quite an intriguing plot (why does this girl have a skeleton and why is she so attached to it?) it would satisfy their curiosity if they watched my music video. 

2. For personal identity- Seeing as my target audience is most likely female,by having a young girl in my video it would help them connect to the singer and find a common link with her.

3. For integration and social interaction- After watching my music video, they would most likely have questions about it or their own personal opinion which they can then discuss with other people. This also helps promote the singer as the more people who talk about her, the more people will want to watch and listen to her songs and videos.

4. For entertainment- My music video is interesting and unique. By featuring a skeleton, it makes it intriguing and eye catching to watch and makes the audience want to listen and watch more to understand the narrative behind it all better. 

To conclude, from my research I can conclude that my target audience will be females aged 14-24. This is lower than what my research shows because I think that it would attract younger audiences as it is almost childish in the way the narrative follows a girl and her skeleton friend. The audience would come from all over the UK, because there's a wide range of people who like listening to music and with the use of radio stations a broad range of people will hear the song and then watch the video online. A secondary audience would be homosexual people as it is a Kate Nash song which is fairly popular with this group of people. The main target audience are females in both primary and secondary audiences for my video. They would be from the lower/ average classes as they would use my music video as a way of escapism from everyday life.

Pitch feedback

You have taken the lead role in this production which shows maturity and a will to get ahead.

There are ideas here which show promise and I hope that you develop the skeleton idea into a firm narrative.  You showed the development of ideas

However, the pitch was basic and did not provide a full explanation.

At present there is one member carrying the group and you need to work as a team.

Share things out and get together to work as a team.

Gather momentum by preparing a productions schedule which you follow.

Explain the performance element

How will you brand the artist? 

Task 2:Research into exsiting products: Music Videos (Lady Gaga- Bad Romance)

Lady Gaga- Bad Romance

 

Deconstruction of video

1st part (0.00-1.20)

• The first image the audience sees is a wide shot of the cast and Lady Gaga (LG) sitting on a white throne in the center. It is as though she is the story teller and the rest are going to be the actors on the stage. 

• The women in the first shot (excluding LG) are all dressed in white where as the men are all in black. This could be to represent evil and good or the fact that women are stereotyped to be more innocent then men are. 
• LG is dressed in gold which is used to represent that she is the main attraction; that she is the 'star of the show'. 
• She wears glasses made out of razor blades. This could be seen as a sign that she is dangerous and so people should watch out if they don't want to be hurt. Also this could be connoted that the audience should 'watch out' for further LG  songs and videos. 

• Her nails are similar to her glasses. She has a metal guard over than to suggest that people shouldn't touch her because she'll 'claw them'. This can be linked to the fact that her fans are known as monsters and so she is concealing her monster like features (claws) to protect people. 

• There are a lot of product placement within this video. For example, the alcohol Nemiroff is a Russian Vodka and so this helps the narrative of the story. It is shown and used a lot within the video and therefore it can be connoted that the story has some connection to Russia.

• White pods are seen later on as a bright light shines across the room. On one of the pods the word "Monster" is shown . This not only suggests that there's a monster inside the pods but it also helps brand LG and her "monsters".

• The location of the video looks similar to a prison. This is because the walls and floors are bleach white and it has very small windows as well as harsh lighting. All of these imply that LG and her monsters may be imprisoned within this place. 
• Large red text saying " Bath Haus of Gaga" and according to discussions on the internet about this video, the bath house is a place where they are putting women up for auction and bidding on them so they can 'own' them and do what they want with them. 

• As the lyrics start, the pods open and women dressed in white crawl out. They are unable to see due to the head pieces they are wearing and look similar to the aliens out the science fiction movie "Alien". They also dance as though they are aliens due to the way their bodies twist and move into strange shapes.

• LG is shown in a white bath type object with messy and hair and has huge dilated eyes. This can be connoted to suggest this is when she was innocent as the eyes imply she is young and has big eyes like a baby would (known as having a baby face). This can then be connoted further to symbolize the start of her career when she was fresh and new and hasn't been changed by anyone in the music industry or by the media. 

• Further into the video, she is seen wearing a crown and is all in black. This is her acting like the narrator rather than an actor in the story she is telling them. The black could be used to symbolize grief and therefore this character could be recalling her past to the audience and how she is sad about it changing.

• When she is back as the innocent character, she is shown listening to music and then holds her hands up like a gun. However a peace tattoo is on her wrist and conflicts with the symbol she is making with her hand and could be connoted that she herself is conflicted. 

2nd part (1.20-1.50)

• Some women drag her out of the white bath and mistreat LG. It is possible that the women are following orders from men or that they play a big role in her transformation from innocent singer to a huge star.
• They force LG to strip down so that she can be stripped back to basics. This means that she can then be transformed into the star that people ( the music industry) want her to be. She is being constructed into a media product rather than before she was just an innocent singer. 

• Her arms stretch out to the side and can be connoted to represent the idea of Jesus on the cross. He and LG are similar as they are both innocent but due to the actions of others they were changed/ destroyed. 

• Several shots of LG dressed in white and crying are shown and are used to represent her inner voice crying out for help whilst this is happening to her. She didn't necessarily ask for this to happen to her but the music industry is causing her to change her image to "help her career" but all it is doing is destroying her inside.

3rd part (1.50-3.00)

• The women from before force her to drink and due to the product placement of Nemiroff earlier it can be suggested that they are forcing her to drink the vodka to remove her innocence.
• She is dressed in more exposing white clothes and is forced to dance in front of a group of men. LG has the opportunity to show/ sell herself to the men who can be connoted to symbolize the music industry and the people who could make or break her. 

• A low angle shot of LG on her knees is shown with the camera having been put between a mans legs. This symbolizes the idea of submission that LG has been forced to show to these men. 

• A lot of feline imagery is shown within these shots. She prowls towards the men like a cat stalking it's prey (however this shot can come across as very sexual and has been possibly put in for the male gaze element). 

• Another shot shows her in a cage like object that is trapping her inside like an animal. She wears a cat head dress during these scenes which adds to the animal imagery in the video. 

• A sphinx cat is shown as being owned by one of the men and because she shows feline features, it is showing the audience how she is going to be owned by these men like an animal is. 

• Product placement of Beats are shown on the laptops and influences the audience to go out and buy these products because famous singers like LG use them. The laptops they are shown on, are  not only used by the men to make LG famous but are to bid for her. Each man shown could be used to represent a different music company who want her and so whoever bids the highest gets to keep LG. 

4th part  (3.00-4.10)

• A shot of LG standing in the middle of the room holding diamonds,with the men looking at her, is used to show the wealth and riches that being famous leads to. But to the men she is still just a possession that they are bidding to take for themselves so they can morph her into their ideal person.

• While she is dancing, LG makes the symbol of the cross and this can be linked to her use of religion in her videos. Earlier she looked similar to Jesus on the cross and now again she is showing the audience a religious symbol. This can be connoted to show her audience that she still wants to her old innocent self instead of being paraded around and shown off to these men.
• The bridge section of the song shows her making references to fashion as she has done previously in her other videos. This is used to brand her again and show the audience what type of things she wants to associated with.

• She wears a polar bear coat and walks towards a bed with one of the men sitting on it. This raises issues on poaching and killing innocent animals and as she has been shown as an animal she could be raising the issue of "killing" singers and taking their innocence away.

• It is implied that eventually her innocence is taking away because she has sex with the man on the bed. In between shots, images of her "inner voice" are shown crying and another scene of her dressed in red implies that she is no longer innocent. 

5th part (4.10-5.07)

• The bed is set on fire as she is finally getting her revenge on the men who made her like that. She has become better than them and more powerful so she stands in front of the fire to show dominance. 

• After dancing with some women dressed in red the lights all turn off. This is used to show that she no longer has to do what people tell to, there is no reason to dance like that anymore. 

• The final image shown to the audience, is LG sitting on the bed with a charred body next to her. The idea of the smoking body is used to symbolize the idea of post sex were it is stereotyped to start smoking. She is wearing black like the men were at the start because she is now more powerful than they were.