GG - Music Video Idea/4 - Fatboy Slim (Praise You)

For this idea I was thinking we could relate an idea to the 'big beat' genre of Fatboy Slim by using footage from a party. The song sticks to a basic structure, it follows a catchy tune throughout and the lyrics are the same all the way through.

My idea would be to have a narrative performance and a male falling in love with a girl. We would get a range of shots of him looking at her from long distance's and from hiding positions, this making it clear that the girl is unaware of this boys presents. The idea would be to create a 'stalking' feel with the main male not having the confidence to approach the girl. This would then lead to them both being at a party, they would both make eye contact (with them being surrounded by dancing people). The boy would both gradually approach each other leading the viewer to think she likes him. Then at the end she will walk straight past him and to another person behind him.

We would use a range of shots and a lot of fast pacing editing at the party scene. Also we would cross cut a lot of shots to signify the people their are drunk, also possibly using a fish eye lens. We would film all throughout Ilkley, on the grove and in the woods. The party scene would then either be shot at an actually friends party or in my basement where we will get a load of friends to act for us.

I have found a good persons videos to look at for ideas is David Guetta. 
Fatboy Slim - Praise You on MUZU.TV

GG - Music Video Idea/3 - The Swing Movement (The Town or The City)

My reason for choosing The Swing Movement is because we would have easy access to the band, also we have all the instruments to film with. My idea would consist of mainly the performance aspect of music videos. 

We would film a huge range of shots of the band playing in my basement at home, this would cover around half of the video. The rest would be a narrative of a male or female character struggling to come to terms with city life. We would create an impression of unhappiness and a sense of suffering as the person walks the city streets of Leeds. We will pick quite a rough area of Leeds to film, the main character will just be walking through the streets looking at his surroundings, this being the tall building and all the people who surround him. We would film the narrative aspect in black and white to create a sense of uncertainty. 

We will use a range of slow a fast takes, whilst also using transitions to cut between the two scenarios. 

I believe if I look at some of the Arctic Monkeys videos they will help with this idea. 

GG - Music Video Idea/2 - The Clash (In Hammersmiths Palais)

The Clash originated in 1976 and emerged as a Punk Rock band, they were very popular during their time under the spot light.

My idea would be to have all footage in black and white, representing how old the song is. We would film in a rough area of a city or town, with the main characters dressed in quite old fashioned clothing, the 1980 puck look. The idea of the video would be four males searching around the derelict area, they all then come across some old instruments near a tip. They then gradually pick them up and start playing along to the song. Slowly a crowd gathers around them, and they start performing to an audience. At the end they all just put the interments down, everyone leaves and they continue with their routine before they found the instruments.

We would film in a rough run down area and all footage will be in black and white. We will use a range of shots to keep the audience guessing.

The Clash have made some very special and significant videos during their time, including the well received 'London Calling'video.

TW - Idea 4

My 4th idea is Song 2 by Blur. This was made in 1997 which means that making a video for this would be no problem, as it is now 14 years on.

The idea is to have cross cuts between performance and narrative, with the band being in both aspects. It would begin with performance until the first lyrics begin, in which it would change to a man walking, he would lip sync with a various range of cuts. The lyrics would not match the narrative though. The man will be walking in dark attire down a long road, with occasional shots from an ELS shot from the end of the road in order to show the distance they walk, and possibly some slow motion.
Every now and again throughout the walk another member of the band will appear, until finally there will be all 4 band members at the end of the alley, the camera will then track them as they turn a corner in slow motion, into the middle of a road. The will then stop there as another group come out opposite them. They will then run at each other and a side view of them almost clashing when it cuts to black to end the video.
My inspiration for this idea came when watching This is England and Green Street as this song is commonly used in user made football videos on social media such as youtube, and the collison idea came from Green Street especially to give an indication of football hooliganism, or hooliganism in general.

TW - Idea 3

My 3rd idea is to use To The Bone by The Swing Movement. This is George's brother's band therefore filming performance footage would be very easy, compared to getting other bands. I had this idea on Friday, and after speaking with George, we both like the song as an initial project. It was made in 2008 but no video has been created for this song.

The idea would be of a male character walking around, with lots of close ups from snori cam in particular, looking around at people. many people are staring back at him, and this causes paranoia inside him and he begins to become agitated, This would continue until he finally snaps and proceeds to push around one particular person who is staring at him. The violence escalates and he ends up slamming the person to the floor, and walking away, while everyone stares at him, this time with reason. He would then break into a run, people still looking at him, and his pace increases until he is going full pace. His destination is his house and the last shot would be of him opening his door, and slamming it behind him, before he walks into a deserted living room, which would be just darkness, no lighting. This would meet the eerieness of the song, and a winter atmosphere would only add to an eerie theme.


The Swing Movement - To The Bone from Ben Symonds on Vimeo.

TW - Idea 2

My 2nd idea is How Your Remind Me by Nickelback. Both the song and it's video was created in 2001 and is still extremely popular today.

My idea would again include performance shots, whilst the narrative would show the protagonist struggling with day to day life, as he is constantly reminded of a past relationship. This could be shown by having the woman seemingly appear in situations such as escaping a robbery, driving, or anything that could take his mind of an important situation, as these are early ideas that can be changed or improved. The idea is that seeing his ex partner will in short ruin all activity that is important or could be a big deal for him. Eventually, he will get extremely frustrated and go on a rampage in his house, destroying anything related to his ex, or just anything that crosses his path, beginning with a photo of them both together, that he rips in 2 to show the separation.

TW - Idea 1

My first idea is Hunting For Witches by Bloc Party. Although this song had a music video made in 2007, in the year of release, the video is purely of performance. This would mean as long as our idea differs from this, the video will be completely different in every aspect.



My idea would be to have increasingly fast paced shots of a paranoid character from 0- 25 seconds as it meets the strangeness of the song opening. It can then be cross cut from black and white, to showcase the past, to colour as to how he has got to where he is, which is the paranoid feeling of being followed. The black and white would show the character watching the news, and seeing a report on 'witches' to meet the song lyrics. The cross cutting would see how he reacts to the report, and then shots of him trying to escape, and seeing people in hoods to be the 'witches'. The news report would meet the lyrics of 1:02. After the initial paranoia, the character would run to the loacation of the band playing (as performance shots would be included), and recruit them to go 'hunting' for the 'witches'. The final shots of the video would be of the group chasing the 'witches' into the woods, and the main character getting lost, he stumbles and as he turns he sees all of the hooded figures around him, indicating they will decide his fate.

TW - Music Vid Ideas

As you may know, we have had difficulty setting an idea in stone for the track we decide to compose a music video for, so both myself and George have come up with 5 ideas each, and will decide on one of the 10 ideas we have, subject to approval.

Sample Footage

Here is some sample footage for one of our video ideas, Tarantula by The Swing Movement. It is 30 seconds of what we would expect the footage of the band to look like in the performance shots of our video. We included myself, George and a cast member we hope to retain in Jeremy Whitehead.

Fatboy Slim Practice Footage - 'Praise You'

Please note that this footage was short before the track change. We do however still regard this is still useful footage as some shots could easily remain in our new video idea. This footage was filmed by George completely as my idea was 'Right Here Right Now'

TW - Further Ideas

After deciding to drop the 'Superman' idea we are now focusing on getting solid ideas down for several music videos, before narrowing it down to not only our favourite song choice, but the one with the best idea. This change has come due to audience feedback not being favourable, and a struggle to set a conceivable and story onto the music video, that the audience will understand.

Early ideas on this heavily include George's brothers band, 'The Swing Movement' and we will be looking at numerous songs by them, whilst also looking at other genres and ideas to bring to the table , in order to get a real variation of ideas and possibilities.

This choice should be completed by Monday, and along with the practice footage and vodcast we plan to shoot at the weekend, this should greatly further our progress in this task and put to bed any issues with plot or creation for our music vid.

TW - Production Company

We have created a production company named 'Two Twigs Production' and this link can also be seen at the top of my blog, in the links list. This production company will keep you updated with filming, creation of magazine ads and digipaks.

The company will also showcase behind the scenes footage and promote our product on popular social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter

GG - Practice Footage

We plan to take some practice footage this week with the music from our new band selection 'The Swing Movement.'
Plan
We are going to take 30 seconds of performance shots of them playing. They are not all living in Ilkley at the moment so we will get others in to play the role of the band. This wont be a problem nearer christmas because they will all be coming home.
Location
We will film in my basement at home, in here there are all instruments including a microphone making it the easiest and best place for us to shoot some practice footage.

TW - Rise Of The Directors

In December 1992, MTV began listing directors with the artist and song credits, reflecting the fact that music videos had increasingly become an auteur's medium. Directors such as Michel Gondry, Spike Jonze, Stéphane Sednaoui, Mark Romanek and Hype Williams all got their start around this time; all brought a unique vision and style to the videos they directed. Some of these directors, including, Gondry, Jonze and F. Gary Gray, went on to direct feature films. This continued a trend that had begun earlier with directors such as Lasse Hallström and David Fincher.

Two of the videos directed by Romanek in 1995 are notable for being two of the three most expensive music videos of all time: Michael and Janet Jackson's "Scream", which cost $7 million to produce, and Madonna's "Bedtime Story", which cost $5 million. "Scream" remains the most expensive video of all time. During this period, MTV launched channels around the world to show music videos produced in each local market: MTV Latin America in 1993, MTV India in 1996, and MTV Mandarin in 1997, among others. MTV2, originally called "M2" and meant to show more alternative and older music videos, debuted in 1996.

Source - Wikipedia

This bares significance as it shows how directors became more and more of an influential part of creating music video, the fact that their name began to appear in song credits is a reflection of this. This increased knowledge of director's contribution was recognised around the same time that many new directors broke into the industry, such as spike Jonze

TW - My Consumption Of Music Vids

My main access to music comes through spotify, so I do not get the music video with this music source. I do however frequently use youtube to watch new music videos and ones that I particularly enjoy. I would say I access this source specifically for music videos around every other day.

I am in the 15-24 age bracket so my music tastes are extremely varied, so I would say that there is no specific genre that I would not watch music videos from, although my favourite genres would be Alternative and what I would call 'Mainstream' music.

I have not bought any CDs purposefully for the music videos as I see them as a bonus on this format, If i intended to buy music videos on a DVD format, then I would want the music videos included as I believe that recently they have become more and more important in the music world, not to mention the increased costs of these products.

TW - Podcast No. 2

TW - Filming Update

We have decided to take some practice shots next week, mainly of the male's change from normal to super-hero, as this was unclear after taking audience feedback into consideration. These shots may be edited with the transitions and effects we plan to use, however this will only be if we feel the change is not apparent, or believable that is only a re-creation of his thoughts.

We also plan to film our first vodcast by the end of the week, and new podcast also, we expect one to be completed Thursday, and the other to be completed on Friday.

TW - Narrative Difficulties/Audience Feedback

For our music video idea, we had planned to have a narrative, in short, that showed a man failing at everyday tasks, before he turned into superman and succeeded, until he meets a girl. This girl does not like him as superman but as the everyday guy, so he ditches the outfit and walks away with her, meeting the chorus 'I'm no superman'.

However after a conversation with our media teacher, the following question was put forward; 'Would we need to show how the change from normal to superhero originally came about?' Despite the explanation that the superhero parts are all fantasy and in the male characters head, it became clear that although we as the producers know that, the viewing audience may not. This answer was provided by Mel and Ellie, two fellow A2 Media students.

This has led us to come to the conclusion that we will be conducting practice shots ASAP so that we can test and see whether the video will be a success

GG - A brief Idea of our Music Video Lazlo Bane - Superman

Our Treatment

Here is our treatment for 'Superman' by Lazlo Bane

Lazlo Bane - Media Treatment

NOTICE

Any posts on my blog from now will either be headed 'GG' or 'TW.' This is just to show who has done the blog post as we will be sharing work from now. 

Podcast 1

Here is our group's first podcast. It highlights our idea change from Fatboy Slim to Lazlo Bane and also gives minor detail into when practice shoots will begin.

New Idea - 'Superman' By Lazlo Bane

George and I have recently had doubts about filming a music video for Right Here Right Now by Fatboy Slim, and after brief location scouting throughout the october half term, we decided our idea was not the best. This led us to change our idea to Lazlo Bane's Superman, which is most recognized as the theme song to the hit TV show, Scrubs.

Our new idea is very narrative based, with aspects of a performance. The narrative would centre around a young man's endeavours and how he fails to achieve his goals, until, meeting the lyrics, he becomes 'superman' (which would be met with a costume and screen effect) and he succeeds. However, at the end, he meets a girl who likes him for who he is and not superman, so he dumps the costume which would meet the main lyric of the song, 'I'm no superman'. This narrative would be cross cut with scenes of the same character playing an acoustic guitar and lip syncing with the lyrics of the song.

Early ideas for location is Ilkley, perhaps at the bandstand or in a spot commonly used by street performers. We also have plans to use a snori-cam to show the change between normal and superman outfit. We also have plans to cast Jeremy Whitehead as the lead actor for the video (see right). Jeremy can play a guitar extremely well and has proven in the past to show great effort with lip syncing duties when required, so this experience will prove extrememly useful.

Here is the song we are basing our idea on, and with it the music video that was originally created for it. It is a concept video with performance and shots of on set footage from Scrubs, with lip syncing in the performance shots. Both these methods have been intertwined with shrinking the footage and allowing it to be played next to each other, showing more than one piece of footage at once.

My Pitch

Untitled from Tom Wardman on Vimeo.

Progress Report: What I Have Learnt So Far

• Fish Eye Lens - This camera is very useful when trying to show things may be a bit out of the normal in the shot you are trying to film.
• Snori Cam - This is perfect for movement shots to caption close ups that can highlight motion and emotion both together
• Advanced Use Of Final Cut - I can now edit at a fast pace and can also easily add effects to the project
• The three types of music video - Narrative, Concept and Performance, these can be fused together
• From looking at the marks schemes and doing a marking asgnment of my own, I now know what is needed to be done to attain the highest marks and of what quality this work must be contiuned at.
• How to create advanced SFX injuries by adding stitches to the 'wound'
• I now have advanced knowledge on framing and what it means to the music video - this is key
• I now understand the codes and conventions of a music video
• Time management is important in editing etc
• Planning is key to success for film schedule and also in written aspects such as storyboards and call sheets

3 things I would like to learn this year are:

• Directors and their significant preferences when making a music video; some have a certain style
• The process of making a complete digi-pak
• How to keep an audience interested throughout a music video whilst maintaining the integral parts of your idea in the music video, or how to maintain a preferred reading when it can be open to interpretation

Marking A Final Cut - We Are The Ocean - Confessions by Mary and Lucy

For my production task, I was assigned to mark Mary and Lucy's final cut of We Are The Ocean - Confessions which was submitted to this year's Bradford Media Film Festival and was also included in the IGS dvd of A2 videos at the end of the year. Here is my assessment of their video:

Steady Shot


I awarded Mary and Lucy Excellent for this particular category as although the majority of their video is not appropriate for steady shots, they have met the criteria by adding steady shots in when possible (most namely at when the track is at a slow place) and this is when most appropriate for how their narrative of the video plays out.

Framing


I have also awarded excellent for this category as Mary and Lucy as they have kept everything needed for the video central to the shot (allowing for the shaky camera movement at stages) thus maintaining clear framing work.

Shot Distance Variety


Again, I have awarded excellent as the video has a great shot variety, ranging from ECU to a ELS (after a zoom out). It is also in good balance in reference to meeting the track pace, and have also used a range of angles.

Appropriate Material


I have awarded Proficient/Excellent for this category as although they have cross cut with shots of performance, and have met their target audience,(I assume 15-24 due to character types and predicted age) I believe it can be argued that this is hard to relate to for every member of their core and secondary audience.

Mise-En Scene


Mary and Lucy have achieved excellent for this as they have used to extremely key props - the white dress and the backpack the girl can be seen using in shot for a good majority of the video. Aside from these key props, there are also posters in her room and household items in the shots needed for the argument the couple engage in at the house.

Editing


Again, they have achieved Excellent by achieving lots of cross cutting and quick cuts to meet the fast paced middle part of the track, and the editing has clearly met the pace of the track by displaying larger shots at slower paced parts of the song.

Transitions and Other Effects


Once again, I have awarded Excellent for his category as there can be seen to be fades at the beginning of the video between flash backs, and there is also sepia used to further highlight the time changes. There are also lots of angles and zooms, as well as cross cutting of the band.

Overall I have awarded 38/40 for this as aside from the relatability, it was a great final cut.

Research and Planning Marking For Callum Moreman

For my marking task I chose to mark Callum Moreman's blog for his research and planning. His group consisted of Joel Colborne and Johnny Hughes and their chosen song was Disorder by Joy Division. I have assessed his blog in relation to the criteria and these are my marks;

Similar Products And Potential Target Audience

I have awarded Callum the mark of Excellent for this aspect. This is because he has posted numerous, almost regular info on his product and similar ones, and has shown assessment of his chosen genre, and it's sub genres. He has also done heavy research into his chosen artist, before posting one, albeit extremely long and detailed, post on the bands core and secondary target audience.

Actors, Locations, Cosumes And Props - Organisation

I have awarded Callum Proficient for this part as although he has submitted a completed lyric sheet, an analysis of the snorri cam, and heavy info on both location and casting with costume, he has not shown full detail on props, with only small inserts being added. There is no clear blogpost on this aspect and this is why I cannot award an Excellent mark.

Time Management

I have awarded Excellent for this as he has shown continuous effort displayed in his continuous blogging which are not just detailed but effective.

Layouts, Drafting, Scripting

I have awarded Proficient for this as Callum has blogged on a lyric sheet and some planning, with lots of draft work on digipaks and advertisements, however no real blogging on storyboarding.

Care in Reasearch and Planning

I have awarded Excellent for this as there is excellent organisation in his blogging, with lots of detail in every post, he has also displayed 100+ posts with losts of of research into his chosen genre and conventions, which is important.

Communication Skills

I have awarded Excellent to Callum as he has shown clear meaning, which is easy to understand in each post. There is lots of detailed info and it has been constantly up to date throughout his project.

Overall I have awarded Callum 18/20 for his Research and Planning due to his continuous Excellent/Proficient markings to the criteria.

Vodcast - Analysis of Video Deconstructions

This is Rob and myself's analysis of our deconstruction's for both Knight Of Cydonia - Muse and Yonkers -Tyler, the Creater

Finished Cut - Martin Solveig's Hello

Fatboy Slim And Spike Jonze

Spike Jonze has directed 2 of Fatboy Slim's music videos: Praise You and Weapon Of Choice. Praise You soared to number 1 in the charts and the video is still well know today, whilst Weapon Of Choice cast superstar Christopher Walken, with the video being the significant selling point for this song. As Jonze is an inspirational director for me I thought best to look into his work, and through Weapon of Choice I have seen that even a basic concept (the floating in the hotel, hard to create yet simple in idea form) can become a smash hit, and that has played some inspiration to my final idea, whilst Praise You has given me an idea of incorporating some 'Guerilla' shots so to get a realistic reaction of passers by for my chase, this has also proved successful in Jonze's work in Jackass.