Reflection of location photographs

Reflection of location photographs
After taking my own photos of the room location I feel as though I have a better idea about how it will be shot. I think that the shots will be easy to film and I like the colours, textures and tones. Particularly of that with the mess/the bed. I do think that when I film it I may use artificial lighting as I can borrow some resources from my Grandfather.

Mrs D

This is fantastic Becca. Try and get some reflect up about the pictures etc. Well done. The animatronic storyboard looks fab. There are a few shots toards the end that might be a little too quick, so when you film, make sure you film a little more than you think you might need so you have something to work with. You could also get some audience feedback on it to help you.

Email response

This is the response I got from XL Recordings:

Hi Becca,

Hope you're well

XL have no licensing rights for Radiohead - you will need to clear this with Warner Chappell Publishing.

Kind Regards,

Emma

So I will be sent this email to Warner Chappell Publishing:

Warner Chappell Publishing,

I am writing to you to seek permission to use the song Nude – Radiohead in my media piece, which will be a music video for that song. This will be used for my coursework and no profits will be gained from the use of this song. A video will be made and then uploaded to youtube with credits to your record company and to your artist, Radiohead. If there are any questions concerning the music video I will happily answer any.

I look forward to hearing from you,
Regards,
Becca Penfold

Advert layouts

SB with accurate timings and music

Rough timings

0-9 candle
9-44 a mix of shots showing the camera, the room, the man
44-1:05 man singing lyrics to camera
1:05-1:14 introduction of memories mixed with shots of him and the room, band
1:14-1:25 man singing to camera
1:25-3:08 memories and shots of the room, his face, him sing lyrics, band
3:08-4:06 quick edited shots of the band, the room, his face, segments of previous memories, 360's
4:06 -4:09 door opening
4:09 - END man looks up

Message to cast

Hi,
I would love for you to partake in my media video. You would be given the part of __________.
If you’re in the band it will acquire you to bring instruments. Band costume should be simple and be clothes fitting to the alternative music genre – simple jeans, trouser, slouchy.
The lead singer will need two outfits – something very slouchy and dishevelled looking and one slightly smarter. No bright colours, simple tones (mainly dark).
The female lead again will just need to wear something simple and casual in simple tones.
I will need for you to film on Sunday’s and over some weekdays which I will arrange with you all each week.
Thanks and I look forward to filming with you soon,
Becca

Didgipack layouts

CD Cover ideas - I want something simple and stripped back. Relating to the video and the song title. I like thinking about the word "nude" to be either transparent or natural. The camera has the ability to look right through people, the smoke has varieties of levels of opaqueness and transparency, the man's lips shows a vulnerability and a natural face.

Here I have played around with digipack layouts concerning the pictures as I am happy with the layout and features included.

MES - Location

Photographs
Room:

I wanted to take pictures of the room in general, testing camera angles and also experimenting will the placement of the "mess" and the textures of the room.

Song: Radiohead - Nude

Mrs D

Your ideas are coming along nicely Becca. Try and get the animatronic storyboard up soon. I also look forward to seeing your ideas about your ancillary tasks.

Filming schedule

I will mostly be filming on Sunday’s and perhaps some days after school.
I am going to first shoot the shots that don’t involve any actors on Sunday 2nd October.
I will then arrange filming to shoot the bedroom takes throughout the week but I will have them all by the end of Sunday 9th evening.
I will approach the band performance in a similar way and have all the takes by 16th Sunday, ready for the first draft of construction.
Props-wise I will be getting the band members to bring their own instruments and giving them a guide line of costume.

How my video will abide to codes and conventions of a typical music video

How my video will abide to codes and conventions of a typical music video Looking through – the idea of looking through is shown through the use of the video camera and also the use of showing mirrors throughout the piece. Another thing that uses the concept of “looking through” is the fact that many shots are in the view point of the lead singer (when he’s looking around the room at his memories).

There is also a relationship between the visuals and the lyrics. These are illustrative and amplifying as the sad nature of the song fits the sad nature of the narrative, also amplifying as when the song reaches its climax the editing will feature quicker takes – heightening the feeling.

There might also be a little bit of intertextual reference as at one point there is going to be a glimpse of picture showing the face (and just the face) of the erotic icon, Bettie Page. This links to the lyrical line “you’ll go to hell for what your dirty mind is thinking” as it is shown during that time.

There are also lots of close ups of the artist and the lead singer of the band – this has also been shown typical from my RMA’s.

Casting

For this video I will need five actors. The lead singer, a girl, and three other band members (Bassist, guitarist, drummer). I have picked out who I want to make up the band (as I know people who play all the instruments required) and see if they are interested in being a part of this and also allowing me to use their instruments in the video.
As for the lead singer/man I will be asking someone who I know is reliable and has experience in acting (through their partake in a theatre studies A level and role in the school play) I will also be asking a girl who also has acting experience (partaking in a theatre studies a level).

Cast

Lead - Ben
Girl - Millie
Bassist - Chris
Guitarist - Liam
Drummer -Dom

Letter acquiring rights

XL recordings,
I am writing to you to seek permission to use the song Nude – Radiohead in my media piece, which will be a music video for that song. This will be used for my coursework and no profits will be gained from the use of this song. A video will be made and then uploaded to youtube with credits to your record company and to your artist, Radiohead. If there are any questions concerning the music video I will happily answer any.
I will look forward to hearing from you,
Regards,
Becca Penfold

I contacted them through XL recordings' webside via the "contact us" section.

Rough sketches of ideas

Rough SB pictures

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MES/Location

I want this video to be quite dark to reflect the narrative and character. I want the scene to look as I would describe humorously as a "poor man's Moulin Rouge" but a little more twisted. I think the textures and colours used for the bedroom should be a little bit sultry reds, blacks, silk/satin to reflect the sexy nature of the songs sound and maybe to reflect aspects of the characters personality (as I like the idea of him being quite a bohemian type of character). For this location I will be using my own room as a lot of the colours and textures I am looking for are in this room.

Props I will be acquiring empty bottles of an assortment of alcohol - hinting at one of the problems that have brought him to this point. They will not be a massively used prop but there may be a shot or two of them and they may be in the background. They will mainly just be an addition to the room and the room's atmosphere. I also think maybe an ash tray full of used cigarettes will add to the bohemian/misguided soul feel as you associate such a character to smoke - especially as he has obviously been through a lot of stress to get to this point. I quite like the idea of having an artistic thread of shots featuring smoke throughout (with a lit cigarette, candles) because I think it will add to the eerie feel of the video, character and will add a conceptual/artistic touch. However, I won't be filming shots of the character smoking.

I also may have shots of screwed up bits of paper/general mess of clutter to show that he can't decide on his thoughts and its taken himself a while to figure out what's in his head, what he wants to say to the world. The mess and clutter will be to show how he his life has deteriorated. Clutter will only be shown in shots of "the present", the shots of his memories will be clean and uncluttered to show a contrast and help tell the story. When filming this I will have to make sure to film all the memories before the present shots.

For costume I am not aiming for a particular style and I will be making sure all costumes are simple in muted colours black/grey/white/cream/beige as to not distract the audience from the narrative and song. I will perhaps make sure the main man will look quite disheveled in "present" shots. If I decide to add a performance part in for the band I will have him in a slightly smarter costume. I have a black backdrop for the performance scene (if necessary)

All scenes will be shot in my house so a letter of permission will not be needed.

Pitch

I pitched my ideas to my media teacher and decided upon using Nude - Radiohead due to the fact that the concept is interesting and has potential to be a very effective music video in contrast to something that has done quite often before.

We discussed using 360 shots with a dolly - which I may trail and test run if I decide to use them.

I think the next step for me will be planning out some of the "memories" the main character will see and planning out a simple backing story for what has driven him to such a point.

Basic ideas for my two possible songs

Nude - Radiohead

A man is recording his breakdown message as a warning of the disappointments that people will experience. As he record his message he looks around his room remembering teh factors that have brought him to this point. A loss of a girl, greed, obsession. Then as the song ends hope is seen as the door to his room opens and it's left at that.

Underwear - Pulp

The singer/lead of this song is emotionally involved with a girl, a girl who has these feelings too but finds herself in someone elses room, being seduced by them. The thought of this haunts her and she finds herself surrounded by the lead and his band and cannot push them out of her thoughts.

Mrs D

This is great Becca. I look forward to seeing your ideas come together in the planning process. Keep up the good work.

Lyrics - a deeper look

I have chosen two songs to look at lyrically to see if I can create two ideas from them. I will then pitch both ideas to my media teacher and focus group and see what video idea would be more appropriate.

Radiohead - Nude

Don't get any big ideas, they're not gonna happen
You paint yourself white ... (will add in missing lyric here as the lyrics are blocked due to the title of the song)
But there'll be something missing

From this I get an image of a person, a character, who is experiencing some kind of break down/trouble. They're negative "Don't get any big ideas, they're not gonna happen" and as if they're a warning to someone so they won't be let down. "There'll be something missing" could represent something missing in this characters life like a love? Their sanity?

Now that you've found it, it's gone
Now that you feel it, you don't

Maybe a hint of the break down in a relationship?
You've gone off the rails

A possible break down in the character?
So don't get any big ideas, they're not gonna happen
You'll go to hell for what your dirty mind is thinking

The mention of hell could be something to do with the breakdown of the character

Pulp - underwear

Why don't you close the door and shut the curtains
'cos you're not going anywhere.
He's coming up the stairs and in a moment he'll want to see your underwear.

From this I see a potential narrative of a girl and a boy with the boy trying to seduce her.

You couldn't stop it now. There's no way to get out.
He's standing far too near. How the hell did you get here.
Semi-naked in somebody else's room.
I'd give my whole life to see it.
Just you stood there only in your underwear.

"I'd" the use of this suggesting that the singer has feelings for this girl so maybe a love triangle will be a good thing to do? And then the rest of lyrics also reflect this storyline

Possible song choices

Here is my initial list of songs that I think have a dark vibe and would good to create a music video for.
Nude – Radiohead
Paradise circus – Massive attack
Diamond dogs (David Bowie original) – Beck
Don’t forget me – Red hot chili peppers
The beginning is the end of the beginning – Smashing Pumpkins
Running up that hill – Placebo
Underwear – Pulp
The Nobodies – Marilyn Manson
Me, I’m not – Nine inch nails
I will look at each song closely and analyse the pros and cons of each.

How research will inform planning

From my questionnaire I have found that alternative music was the most popular in my research (questionnaire/focus group) so therefore I have chosen to do an alternative music video (shown through my choice of RMA) which is vital in my planning when choosing a song.
I have will choose a “dark” alternative song as the RMA’s I have looked at are either musically or lyrically dark sounding, which then affects the look, style and pace of the music video. I will take my inspiration for my own video from elements from all three RMA concerning camera, mise en scene and editing. This will help me plan my video. I like the way the editing fits the pace of the music in "This is Hardcore" and "Hurt" and would like to incorporate that in my own video. I like the way "Lullaby" illustrates the lyrics in the visuals as well as having the overall sound of the song incorporated to the narrative of the video. I will think about these features when I'm planning my own video.
I will also be reviewing "Nude - Radiohead" and other songs by "Pulp" as they were mentioned in my questionnaire/focus group and fit the alternative genre.
My didgipack/ad questionnaire and analysis has also helped me with my planning as I have a rough idea on how to lay out both my advert and digipack.
For my advert I will be making the album art take over half the page. I will include a date of release, the name of the album, the name of the band, the website of the band and possibly a rating/quote/mention of what songs are on the album. I will also be using black and white.
As my questionnaire said the digipack and album should relate I will also be using black and white for the album art as well as the same fonts. I will include pictures of the band, lyics, acknowledgements, thank you's and possible some background information and pictures relating to the songs (whether the feel of the songs/title/lyrics).

Product placement

I will display my music video on numerous places. First of all I would create a youtube channel for the artist of the music video. Here the artists could upload their own videos interacting with fans, answering questions, showing sections of their lives and of the personalities of the artist – this would allow the audience to get a feel for the band and create more of a connection between them, creating a group of committed fans. I would upload music videos to this account (in particular this one) as fans would learn throughout the variety of videos on the account that this would be the place to go for video updates – including information on tours and releases. This allows the artist to not only promote themselves personally but their single releases, album releases, tour dates, merchandise releases or anything to do with the artist. This means the artist can promote all sorts of products from this one account.
I would also be interested in making sure the band is heavily involved in social media. Making sure they have twitter, facebook and myspace accounts/groups as well as their own website of which they can link the video to and build up music video promo premiers. This has effectively been done with Lady Gaga as she often has countdowns to her videos through her various websites. I would make sure something similar was being done with my artist to build up a hype for this music video so that a wider audience can become interested in what this video may be.
I would also make sure that the video could be sold on iTunes, as that would again allow the artist to promote their albums/songs alongside it as iTunes has an option of seeing other material from “this artist”.
I would also make sure to put the video on various music channels that related to the genre plus a few big popular music channels just to make sure the video gets noticed by as many people as possible. I wouldn’t put it on RnB/Hip hop channels such as KISS and MTV bass as it is unlikely that an alternative music video would do well there. I would however be inclined to feature it on pop music channels as alternative music sometimes gets into the charts and is amongst pop/popular music (e.g. MTV though they play less music videos and smash! hits, the box. MTV hits) this will also alow my video and the song to stand out against the pop videos it will probably be sandwiched between. I would also put it on channels such as VH1, MTV ROCK, NME (and depending on whether or not the artist is a bit heavier Kerrang ) as these music channels are known for showing rock/alternative music which will attract an audience who obviously listen to this type of music, which is ideal for the alternative music promo I will be creating. I will make my video stand out by keeping classic elements of alternative videos whilst trying to sway from just doing a quirky indie video featuring the band performing and messing around. This will be developed further in the planning of my music video.
I will also get the song played on the radio with radio stations such as Heart, Capital, Radio 1 to promote the song further.
I will also make sure to get the adverts into music related magazines such as kerrang! and NME who have more alternative. I will particularly focus on getting it on the back page, as that is one of the key spots for adverts. I will also place it in men's magazine as this type of genre is more masculine and suited to men's magazine such as Empire, Esquire etc rather than a glossy women's fashion magazine as it's harsh appearance would not suit the feminine interior of a woman's magazine.

Questionnaire Analysis and Focus group

Again, like my last questionnaire I decided to use the same focus group to collect my data so the same gender and ages apply.As most people said they were influenced by CD magazine adverts it is vital for me to get this advert right and provide all the right information.
From the data here is is obvious that I either need to provide an image of the album or the artist, though analysis of real media artifacts will help me make this decision. A rating should also probably be included, as well as some kind of quote. When talking to my focus group after looking at their results we also discussed that you would also expect to see a release date, maybe a mention of what songs are on there, a website link and a couple of logo's such as that of the record label and the artist's own logo (if they have one). They told me that they think these are also very important for them as consumers to see so when planning my own I will have to include these.


There were only a few colours out of all the ones I listed that people associated with the alternative genre. The main ones being black and white, which hint at sophistication. This is probably because alternative musicians are more focused on created good music and see themselves more as professionals, wanting that to come across with the appearance of their products.
From the data here it is clear that a related image (whether that be of the band or to the title of the album) is much more expected and accepted then a conceptual image. It might be a good idea to try and incorporate both in the final image to show the bands personality and illustrate the title. When talking to my focus group they also liked the idea of using both or creating a cover that completely relates and link to the title.


From this data it is clear to see that lyrics and pictures of the artist and lyrics are expected so I'll definitely be keeping that in mind when I start to plan my own digipack. Thank you's and acknowledgements would also add a personal touch to the pack, promoting more of the artist's personality. I will also look closely at the real media artifacts I analyse to get a better idea of what to do for my own.

As nearly everyone agreed that the music video, digipack and advert should link together in some way I think it is vital that I keep all fonts, images, colour schemes the same or as close to the same as possible.

I asked my focus group to watch The Cure – Lullaby before I analysed and to tell me their opinions on it, what they liked what they didn’t like.
Likes – they liked the lighting, the use of close ups, the creepy narrative and the way the narrative fit the lyrics of the song. They also just liked the concept of it being a nightmare and liked the costume aspects of mise en scene. Many said it was vital that my narrative is fairly easy to understand the concept of. They also liked the idea of me doing a song that is also quite dark as some strongly felt that darker songs have more potential for more interesting and moving music videos. One mentioned Johnny Cash’s hurt is a great example of this so I will analyse this.
Disliked – many didn’t like the scene of Robert Smith being swallowed by the “spider man” as they thought it seemed more amusing than scary and didn’t fit in effectively with the rest of the video. They told me that for my video I should be very careful to make sure it all works together visually as well as connecting to the song and to take the lyrics into consideration when choosing my song and the concept of the video.

RMA - Digi pack and advert analysis

Gorillaz – Demon Dayz

Overall
The colour scheme throughout is mainly black and white – this has proven to be quite typical of the alternative artists as I’ve found in the other RMA’s I have looked at that black and white has been used. This again hints at sophistication and professionalism with their attitude towards their own music. The fonts used throughout either match or are very similar. The fonts used are all in white and a all simple – again showing a want to not distract from the music with gimmicky over the top fonts and colours. It features a mix of cartoon and photographs from reality. This relates to the band “Gorillaz” as they are illustrated as cartoons – a cartoon band amongst reality – clearly represented here. It is also a folding one, which I may consider doing for my own.

Cover
The cover shows each character of the band from their profile, in a mug-shot-esque fashion. This is o perhaps connote the fact that the image of their characters are rebellious and against the norm, reflecting their genre – alternative music which could be seen by some as an anti-pop genre. Each character is given a different colour hue over their image. Yellow, red, green and blue have been used to represent the characters. This use of separate colours could have been used to represent the different aspects of each character, making them individual characters and personalities rather than focusing on one. The characters themselves have been based upon the look of what you would typically expect of an alternative band. There is a quirkily dress and rebellious lead singer on the top right (represented through his golfers hat and cigarette – both of these contrast and create an irony due to the mix of an “uncool”/silly/joke hat and the “badass”/rebellious cigarette). To his left there is the “brooding” bass player. He has dark rimmed eyes, a grimace and dark hair and clothes. This converts to the stereotype of there being a dark, controversial, broody member of the band. Below him there is a smaller weedy looking character, converting to the stereotype that there is a “weedy” guy in alternative/indie bands. He also wears a hat with a skull on it again representing that their music won’t be sweet and poppy. To his right there is a bigger character who represents the drummer in the band – this again converts to the stereotype that drummers are quite bulky as well as alternative music being a bit darker and stronger than other genres.
The band name is at the top in a simple font above the pictures – this allows the audience to immediately identify that this is the band they perhaps are looking for or have heard of. The title of the album is below the images of the characters, central to the band name, tying the cover together and making it look very sleek. This again allows the audience to know what album they are buying.
Page one
This mainly consists of the album’s tracks with acknowledgements and “rights” being shown next to each track. It then gives a short paragraph about the band, who produced, programming, recording information, who mixed, who the band are managed by. This is followed by acknowledgements to the artwork and design and publishing information. The last paragraph gives a little information about the record label before giving the band’s website. This should be something I look at when designing my own digipack and knowing what information to include and I will think about this further in my planning.
The fonts are very simple and the track names are in capitals matching the cover and allowing the entire product to flow together.
Page two
Page two shows an image of four cartoon demons with the album title “demon days” on the bottom left demon’s stomach. These help reflect the title of the album whist also relating to the cartoons that represent the band. This is also shown through the use of colour that has been used to illustrate these demons as they are colours very similar to those which are seen use on the characters of the band – red, green, blue, purple and yellow have been used in both sets of illustrations linking again the visuals of the CD leaflet throughout.
Page three
Page three shows an image of men in what looks to be a ghetto part of a town (due to the ripped posters in the background, which suggests a lack of caring for the environment of the town which you would associated with underprivileged areas) holding what looks to be baboons and hyena’s on leads, some with muzzles. These animals represent beasts/demons which again represents the title of the album “Demon Dayz”. The animals look demonic as they are bearing teeth ferociously or have muzzles – hinting that they need to be restrained or they will act out violently like one would expect a nightmarish demon to do. This real photograph with the running theme of the demon’s links the real life images with the cartoon demon images – this related to the band, connecting the cartoon visuals of the band with the reality of their music.

Nirvana - Nirvana
Overall
The colour scheme is completely black, white, grey and silver (for the cover) even the pictures are black and white. Throughout the inside pages the fonts used are all the same showing a link and structure throughout. There is also the use of the font used for the album title on one of the pages – linking the entire CD leaflet together. The images used are only of the band or of Kurt Cobain (the lead singer) on his own. This could be due to the fact this album is a “best of” and therefore doesn’t have a specific message or mood to represent. The pictures of Cobain could be to reflect the memory of him (as he had killed himself prior to this CD release), they also could be because Cobain is seen as an icon and the voice of a complete generation – therefore wanting to sell the audience on the idea of this revolutionary musician and lyricist.
It is done as a booklet probably due to the fact that it reads almost like a book on the brief history of the band.
Cover
The cover is very simple – black with the name of the band “Nirvana” in a shiny silver. This again gives a sophisticated and professional feel as it again suggests that the only thing important is the band and the music they have created. The fact that this text is directly in the middle also suggests that they are the main and only focus. The silver has a connotation with wealth, success and importance and again sophistication in comparison to gold can be seen as quite tacky and self righteous – which doesn’t represent the music of the band.
The font or the text is the font that a fan would associate with the band. It’s the bands logo font, again making the band seem more like an iconic band and brand.
Page one
Features the track list. The track list is very small and is in the middle of the left side, behind it is stretched version of the track list that doesn’t fit on the page. This is probably to show that the main focus is the music as it is spread out over the majority of the page (even spreading off of it) and is repeated.
The font is clean and simple, again looking sophisticated, professional and musically orientated.
Page two
Page two simply consists of a picture of the band in black and white. They are in a park/wood/neighbourhood environment (shown by the long grass, trees and road) this may be to represent their background and where they came from to show that they still related with their fans who are still in areas like their old neighbourhoods. Kurt Cobain is in the foreground and is the only one making eye contact with the camera. This is probably because Kurt was the voice of the group and the main lyricist and therefore the focal point of the group and main personality.
Page three
The next page shows two pictures – one has been cut off and is spreading onto the next page. One shows a picture of Kurt on his own in the studio and the other shows the other two members Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic with their instruments facing the camera, whilst Kurt has his back to the camera with his instrument. This picture of the entire band let’s fans connect with the other two members (to some level). The fact that they look like they are all in a studio environment shows the fact that they create their own music and allow the audience to acknowledge the authenticity in their talent. The picture of Kurt on his own again is to show that he is the main focus of the band as explained above.
These pictures also help illustrate the history of the band that is featured on the next page (and throughout the leaflet) which starts, On Sunday, January 30, 1994, Kurt Cobain walked into Robert Lang Studios).
Other information helpful for planning
Acknowledgements are in the back for all the songs and also photography, art direction, marketing coordination and project direction, as well as, mentioning the record company on the back page.

Advert two

The only colours used in the advert are black and white. This is probably due to the band (Blink 182) being older and more sophisticated and grown up and not wanting to use lots of garish colours. It also gives the feel that they want the main focus to be the music and the lack of colour allows the audience to focus on that. It also ties in with the album artwork which is completely black and white.
The album artwork takes up over half the page, this will be to put all the main focus on the product they are trying to sell, allowing the audience to remember it’s appearance so that it will stand out amongst other CD’s when going to purchase it or simply when coming across it in a shop or online.
The font is simple but artistic. It is has many angles to it and points, making it quite a masculine font, showing that the band’s music is perhaps quite rocky, sharp and masculine sounding, rather than being light hearted, or chirpy and fun. It also might reflect the personalities in the band, showing that they too are masculine and harsh looking – which in a rock/alternative band is expected as they stereotypically might have piercings, tattoos, etc (in this case they do). The font is also different to the font they’ve had previously that big fans may associate with them, this could be a sign that they’ve moved on, that their music has changed.
There isn’t a lot of text, it is all in capitals and it is centered. This is to probably just focus on the main points – again keeping it simple, keeping it all about the music and the release of this music. The name of the album, band and release date are all the same font size and are all bigger than the rest of the text on the advert. This is probably because these are the main points they want the audience to remember so that they can purchase this album. The smaller text “THE NEW ALBUM FROM” and “FEATURING ‘UP ALL NIGHT’” are not actually necessary but are there to try to persuade anyone who goes in for a closer look. The address to their website is also there so people who come across this can get to know the band better, find out tours, other releases, buy merchandise to market the band further.
Logos of the record company/label are also in the corner to show that they are professionally signed and a quality artist. It also allows the labels to attract anyone who links Blink 182 if they are looking for similar music. It also encourages fans of the label to check out the bands associated with it (blink 182). Blink 182’s logo is also included, though it is quite small. This continues the branding and recognizable image of the band, as well as showing that they are authentic and still acknowledge their past (as they have reformed). The logo is probably smaller in this case because they are moving on from their past and they don’t want what they used to be to affect what they are becoming musically and as a band.

Advert one

The image shown here on this advert is the cover art of the digipack. It shows the main artist central with a lung necklace where her lungs would be. This links to the album title “lungs”. The fact that the lead singer Florence of Florence and the machine helps promote her as a personality and the main focus of the band. The cover reflects this even further with the girly, pink roses in the background – reflecting her own personal girly style. The font used for the band’s name is also curvaceous and feminine, again reflecting Florence’s style and personality. This image takes up the majority of the page/advert so that the image is recognisable for possible buyers to notice and know what to buy.
The colours used are black, white and dark green/blues which fits the alternative genre as it’s darker and more sophisticated of that of pop music. The font is simple, again, showing a sophisticated attitude to their music.
The main features are the title of the album, the numerous ways you can purchase it “CD. DELUXE CD. VINYL. DIGITAL.” Also in capitals to make it stand out. This is probably because they want the audience to know it is accessible to all and alternative audiences are more likely to have numerous way of purchasing this music.
The other things featured are the date of release – obviously so the audience knows when they can purchase this. It also includes information about tracks on the album, the main singles that have been released so that fans know that songs they may already like are on there, that the album will have a similar sound.
The website is also included so that fans can access more information about the artists, the album, possible tour dates and such. There is also the logo of their record company in the corner to show that they are professional recording artists and also it may attract people who are aware of that record label to give the band a listen or to listen to other artists from that label.

RMA overview

I chose to do more varied music choices in the "alternative" genre to analyse as it gives me more choice when picking my video.
All videos share traits of the genre as they are all quite conceptual. I have also made sure all the songs are quite "dark" either lyrically or musically.
I will continue this theme when choosing my own song.

Dolby

Your analysis is thoughtful but I see that you have rather varied choices with the music being rather niche- consider your audience and who that might be when choosing your own song to pitch.

Digi pack/advertisement Quesntionarre

1. Are you influenced by CD magazine adverts?
Yes
No

2. What would you expect to see on a magazine CD advert?
Quote from a review
A rating (either stars or out of 10)
A picture of the CD
A picture of the artist
Mentions of tour

3. What colours do you associate with the alternative genre?
Red
Yellow
Pink
Blue
Black
White
Grey
Green
Orange
Other (what)

4. What images would you expect to see on an alternative genre CD cover?
Of the artist
An artistic/conceptual image
An image relating to the song title/album title
Other (what)

5. What would you expect to see in a an alternative genre CD digipack?
Lyrics
Pictures of the artist
Pictures relating to the title of the album/song
Thank you’s
Acknowledgements
Message from the artist
Other (what)

6. Do you expect a music video to link to the look of the CD digipack/advert?
Yes
No
Why?

RMA - 3

Johnny Cash - Hurt

Mise En Scene

The lighting in this is very dark and brooding – which suits the song as the song is a dark, and has depressing song lyrics are about someone who isn’t happy with themselves. It seems mostly shot in what looks like natural light, rather an artificial as the light seems to come from one direction in most scenes, such as the one of Johnny Cash sitting down on his chair playing the guitar in the opening scenes. The tone of the lighting is also quite a cold yellow, giving the entire look of the video an aged feel. This is probably to reflect the artist, Johnny Cash, and to represent him at that very specific and crucial part of his life – the end. The lighting also looks like similar to the natural light you get with a sunset – also reflecting the end. This also fits the lyrics as the song is looking back at his life and thinking of the end “everyone I know goes away in the end”, “if I could start again a million miles away I would keep myself” and “what have I become?” hinting that he has changed throughout his life, reflecting over what he has done and what he wished he would have done during his life.
There is an overall feel of darkness in the video. Johnny Cash is dressed in all black and he is surrounded by dark wood furniture. This harshness could reflect the cold, harsh reality and honesty of the lyrics – “I hurt myself today to see if I still feel” and “I focus on the pain the only thing that's real”. Black is also a colour that reflects mourning/death and represents Johnny Cash’s acceptance of his last days.
Lighting is also used to create shadows and silhouettes, for example when Johnny cash is playing the piano from a profile view of him, he is casted into darkness, a silhouette perhaps representing he is fading into the shadows/dark/death.

Camera

There are many shots which illustrate what is happening musically for example the close up of him playing the piano as the piano kicks in. There is a wide shot of him playing the piano, showing he is alone with no one around him which illustrates the lyric “everyone I know goes away in the end”. There is also a wide shot of Cash moving his arm away from him which illustrates the lyric “goes away” showing that he is alone and perhaps that he has pushed people away in the past. This notion is also repeated with wide shots being used of Cash at a big table full of food for no one but himself – this gives the impression that, once again, he is alone, people have left him, he has no friends/guests to share this all with. There is also a wide shot of Cash pouring wine when he sings “you could have it all” showing that he all the stuff he has doesn’t mean anything to him knowing what he has done and the pain he has caused, that he would trade it all to “keep himself”. This is also reflected through the numerous shots of the elaborate things he has in his house – showing that they are worthless.
There are lots of close ups on Johnny Cash not only because he is the only person singing but because it is about him and his life and the end of his life. It’s his final song and his last goodbye so shots (particularly close ups) can be seen to show Cash saying goodbye and the sincerity in his face of the words he is singing (perhaps as an apology?) these can be seen throughout but an example of this is near the beginning when he first starts singing, close ups of his hands on the piano. Extreme close ups of his face (shown when he is performing at the beginning, at the dinner table and throughout and with him directly addressing the camera) show his vulnerability which reflects the song and also shows the audience how old he is in contrast to the younger pictures of him, it shows the audience that he is at that point where he will be moving on. It also allows the audience to see the sincerity of his words.
There are many close ups of items around his house – statues, record plaques, pictures. These reflect the history of his life and also perhaps the stuff he would give up for others. There is an extreme close up on the broken glass of the record plaque which one would associate with someone punching in an act of rage, this reflects the angst within the song.
A lot of shots show a profile view of him singing at the piano throughout, not allowing him to connect to the camera, this could perhaps represent the distance he feels from people. He also is often shown looking into the distance (when he is at the dinner table) there are many mid shots of him there showing Cash thoughtful, reflecting of his life and troubled by his past.
The is also many different shots concerning his wife to represent that she was a massive part of his life and his “sweetest friend”. There is a close up of his Wedding photo to his wife – shows the biggest most meaningful parts of his life and other close ups of his wife – show the love she still feels for him. The most emotive shot, however, is the wide shot of Johnny Cash performing whilst wife is looking over him shows the relationship – that is still there and meaningful and the framing (her watching him from the stairs) shows that there is distance there and that they are aware that they will be separated soon.

Editing

Performance/Conceptual video about Johnny Cash reflecting over his life.
Throughout the video clips of his past are edited in to reflect Johnny Cash looking back on his life from when he was younger from his career, his marriage, and general places he went.
The music often fits the takes as they cut in time to key changes and the pace of chords being played, an example of this is when he is on the piano and also during the opening scenes to the video when there is numerous different shot showing all the different dark objects around him and then later when the shots are showing different Johnny Cash merchandise.
There is a sequence of clips edited together to represent the love and strength of the relationship between Cash and his wife when the clip of the wedding photo is followed by the sequence of clips of Johnny Cash performing whilst his wife looks at him from the stairs. This could be to show how far their love has come through everything that has happened in the past until to that point.
There are also numerous clips of “Jesus” being put on the cross (dying for sins that have been committed) this could relate to Cash having to die for all the sins he has committed through his life or it could represent the fact that this song is Cash’s confession of his sins and will stop him from going to hell.
With the climax of the song the takes get faster, cutting quickly between Johnny Cash and Johnny cash as he was younger smiling, Johnny cash when he was younger performing, emotive clips of birds flying up (representing heaven), floods (representing devastation), Jesus (representing his religious beliefs, sins, death, heaven), a hammer hitting (representing a confliction and also fitting to the repeated chords of the piano being played), a cross being shown (representing death and his religious beliefs), the piano being played (fitting to the music/chords being played), sun through the trees (hope), lakes (beauty), doves (love), his wife (love, the most important person in his life) before it slows with the music as the climax finishes to a medium take of Cash (profile view) performing the lyric “I will find a way” and ending on a long take without the music of Cash closing the piano and running his hands over it as if he were saying goodbye to it and remembering the times he had had with it. This climax intensifies the feeling of the music and the feeling of angst, regret and yet hope. The slow ending shows the realistic, sad nature of the meaning of the song and the end of Johnny Cash’s life.

RMA - 2

Pulp – This is Hardcore

Mis en scene The styling of all the characters in this is based upon the trends of the late 1950’s/early 1960’s. You can see this in all the actors as the men are wearing smart tailored suits or smart trousers and shirts with slicked back hair and some are seen wearing trilby hats. These are all classic, almost stereotypical traits of the fashion of that era. The woman either reflect the Hollywood Siren’s of the golden era of films with hairstyles associated with icons such as Marilyn Monroe, Rita Hayworth and Grace Kelly – blonde, pin curled neatly and carefully styled hair with pinup make up to match (red lips, winged or a lightly smoky eye), dressed in silk/satin dresses in jewel ruby reds or emeralds (popular colour choices of the time) some have pearls and mink coats. Or they reflect a more innocent stereotypical style seen at the time (seen on the brunette) – high necked dressed that cinch in at the waist and protrude out (with probably some kind of petticoat beneath) which go about mid length, again with a red pin up lip and pin curled hair in some kind of “cute” preppy up do.
This style works well to promote Jarvis Crocker as he often styles himself this way so he is able to wear the clothes he would usually wear but it allows you to pick him out of the crowd as it appears much more modern on him as his hair isn’t quite as neatly styled and at the end the suit he wears appears much more modern than the rest of the people around him. This again is promoting Jarvis Crocker as the main personality – unique and cool and modern in comparison to the people around him, perhaps a metaphor for how Pulp want to be seen as cool, new and different in comparison to other music around them at the time?
The lighting is rich throughout the entire piece. There are many different tones and shades in each take creating a sexy and glamorous feel to each moment. This is to reflect the sexy sound and words of the music and also to make the video appear cinematic – as if it were a collection of scenes from an old film. The lighting also is used to focus completely on each character that is being shown, highlighting their faces in each scene. This is probably because the words are not performed until the last part of the video so their expressions are needed to tell their part of the story (as it doesn’t coincide with the lyrics). It also again helps to promote Pulp and Jarvis Crocker as it makes his face, his style and his persona easy to see and for the audience to access and be sold on.

Camera
Camera
The members of the band feature and play characters throughout amongst actors, though you can’t necessarily tell whether they are members of the band or actors. Like The Cure video the main focus of the video is the lead singer, Jarvis Cocker – promoting him as the face of the band and showing his personality and selling him as one of the band’s best features. This works well as Jarvis Cocker is very opinionated, very recognisable, is a big character and has a very specific and cool presence which is reflected by the overall feel and look of this promotional video and song.
There are a complete variety of shots seen in this – similar to a film – this is because it is trying very specifically to imitate a film. There are close ups (of each character, particularly ones of Jarvis when he’s dying, when he’s tied up on the chair, of the dead woman in bed), extreme close ups (of Jarvis when he’s been shot, of Jarvis through the broken glass, of the woman dancing), mid shots (of many of the characters, the men at the beginning reading the script, Jarvis talking) establishing shots (of the couple at the park, of the office, of the party), wide shots (of everyone at the party, at Jarvis talking to a woman at the party, of Jarvis in the middle of the dancers), zooms (of Jarvis through the broken glass, of each screen test, of the woman playing piano), bird’s eye view shots (of Jarvis in the middle of the dancers), 360 rotates (of Jarvis in the middle of the dancers), crane shots (of Jarvis in between the dancers) and tracking (of Jarvis in between the dancers). Many of the shots focus around Jarvis being in the middle and being the main focus and narrator of the video – again selling him as the lead singer and promoting him as the selling point and personality of the band.
There is a close up of Jarvis in profile after he is shot – a close up has been used here because this is where Jarvis starts to perform the lyrics for the first time – “that it took me this long”. This works with the narrative as it appears to be his last dying words, that is a crucial moment in any dramatic film. It also works as it makes Jarvis stand out from all other people in the music video, as he is the only one to perform the lyrics – this again promotes him as a personality further. From that point all the words are performed by Jarvis until the end of the song. Using elaborate shots (such as bird’s eye view shots of Jarvis in the middle of the dancers, 360 rotates of Jarvis in the middle of the dancers, crane shots of Jarvis walking towards the camera, and tracking of Jarvis between the dancers) to help show his importance and keep the focus entirely on him. This has been used at the end to keep the audience remembering him as a performer and personality as you usually remember the last scenes of any visual performance. The elaborate shots and use of extras in these shots (the dancers) here also help to remember him as they are very over the top the audience would remember these being used and remember him being central to all of them.
The last elaborate scene/the performance from Jarvis also reflect the lyrics. After Jarvis “dies” in the film part of the video the scene fades to black as if it has finished. This last sequence works as a type of encore to the show which reflects one of the last lyrics of the song, “what exactly do you do for an encore?”.
The music even reflects some of the shots. There is a constant building and heavy dramatic overtone that works well with zooms. Particularly ones at the beginning when the camera zooms to establish scenes and characters (for example when the camera zooms into Jarvis through the broken mirror). And also when there is a zoom that shows a woman playing the piano as the piano first comes in.


EditingConceptual video based on - late 1950’s/early 1960’s films and old Hollywood glamour. It doesn’t necessarily have much to do with the specific words of the song but more of the feel of the song – sexy, a little dark, smooth. The song comes from Pulp’s second album when they are already established and have a reputation for doing strange, more artistic videos which their audience would look out for. It also works well with their genre of music as alternative artists quite commonly do conceptual videos.
The first thing you notice is the desaturated colour of the images – it again mimics the look of late 1950’s/early 1960’s films as the films in those times often had more of a colder, blue hue to the moving images, which has obviously been added in during post profuction.
At the beginning the takes are longer to reflect the slow, sexy drone of the music. The takes are edited to fit the timing of the music and feel rather than illustrating the actual words of the song. For example, near the beginning of the video there is a crab shot of a woman entering the office and moving to a man (Jarvis) who has been tied up in a chair who then sits up – from the beginning of this shot a bass note is held until the next one is played and Jarvis sits up at the same time.
There are also short takes throughout of classic “running film” you see in between certain takes at the cinema and such, that hint at the old editing process. This can be seen at the beginning with almost subliminal take of “missing scene” and “picture”. These images are sometimes over exposed over the takes of the “film” element of the music video.
The lyrics “I wanna make a movie” are shown when Jarvis and his co-star are in the car in front of a green screen which then changes to a road background. This obviously reflects the process of making a movie. As with when “oh here comes the hardcore life” there is a shot of a woman screaming as a shadow comes forward, reflecting the lyrics as the lady is screaming over dramatically/extremely (hard core meaning extreme) . The fact that the shot zooms in very quickly and very close up also gives a visual “hard core” feel.
As the music starts to build to the climax the shots show more movement and the takes become quicker. The takes flicker between a woman dancing in a red satin dressing gown and people at a party. The takes of the woman dancing and spinning are cut fast and use different shots (wide shots, close ups) to create a sense of energy and a build up which works well with the building music (as the music becomes louder and faster). This then contrasts with longer takes of the party – which are used to establish the scene and building up to the drama that is about to occur whilst also appearing random like a conceptual video. When the music reaches its climax the takes are very quick and focus around the “hard core” action that is going on in the party. The takes show a man throwing his drink at a mirror, two men starting a fight, a man choking on his drink/having a fit/heart attack/something of the sort, a man picking up a glass bottle, a man throwing a glass bottle, men fighting, people panicking etc, with the little random snippet of the woman twirling her red dress (red connoting danger, lust, passion). These not only reflect the sound of the music and are cut to the beat of the music but the lyrics “this is hardcore”, “there is no way back for you” all reflect the action taking place in the scene. The climax then ends on a high point with a shot of two men firing at Jarvis and the woman – again the end of the climax reflecting the end of the Jarvis and the woman. Jarvis’ head also hits the ground as the last drum beat of the climax is made.
My thoughtsI love the rich tones and colouring of the video but I mostly love how the music and takes work together – particularly in the climax when the visuals work together with the music and lyrics. I think it really causes excitement for the song and intensifies how amazing that part of the music and song is.

RMA - 1

For my music video I have decided to look at alternative music. This is because not only was it the most popular genre but I feel the music videos are, as a generalisation, far more artistic and well thought out compared to most pop and hip hop videos and also it contains a broader range of styles of music within the genre which allows me to play with my music choice.

Real Media Artefact
The Cure – Lullaby
Mis en scene

The lighting is dark and nightmarish throughout. It starts of lighter and gets darker like a day going into night or a dream turning into a nightmare. The lighter shots are first shown when Robert Smith (the lead singer) is in his bed without the webs. It then gets darker as the spider webs increase and he starts to get eaten. The lighting reflects the genre and song as it is dark and brooding sounding, yet in contrast slightly as although brooding it does have a relaxing sound to it musically (disregarding the lyrics), however the visuals are like a nightmare. This contrast is artistic and well thought out. There is also a lot of blue lighting, for example the scene where Robert Smith is in bed and has numerous arms/legs, to give a cold, haunting feel
Costumes are quite varied in this. Robert Smith is in classic striped pyjama’s to represent the story line – he is sleeping. The striped pyjama’s give it an ironic feel as the unoffensive, classic pattern seems safe and almost childish in contrast to the dark surroundings of the video, which works well with the audience of the band as alternative music is associated with perhaps more intelligent people who are appreciative of such irony. The blue stripe also gives a cold feel.
The band members all are wearing royal admiral type costumes in red this helps to create a surreal dream/nightmarish feel as they do not realistically to what would be the scene of someone going to sleep. It appears random, like dreams. The red is a colour that is featured throughout also reminds the audience of the horror aspect of the video and song as red connotes danger and blood.
The “spider man” character has long, black claw-like fingernails – again a salute to the horror genre, giving nods to films such as Dracula. He also wears the stripped pyjamas and then it looks to be wearing an old styled grey blazer and white shirt. This is probably to again look surreal.
The makeup is also quite nightmarish – you see many dark made up eyes, dark black shadow covering the lid and thick lined eyes applied in a messy fashion (on Robert Smith and the Spider Man) looking quite demonic – again carrying the nightmare theme. Robert Smith wears a blood red lip – again looking quite scary, like a vampire, where as the spider man wears a blood red lip, though it is smudged like a Chelsea grin which again connotes horror and violence. Later Robert Smith wears a bed lip with smudged black around it making him look evil and sickly – connoting death. The faces of all the characters are very pale, purposely made to look “ghostly” this is again to create a horror/nightmare/haunting feel, which works nicely as Robert Smith’s delivery of the lyrics sounds haunting.
The use of spider webs throughout on Robert, on the band members, around the room also all link to the horror/nightmare feel.

Camera

There are numerous extreme close ups/medium close ups throughout this, most of them focussing on the lead singer of The Cure, Robert Smith. These are mostly of him in bed and are used throughout him gaining cobwebs. This not only shows the horror elements of his ghostly face and of the haunting images of him almost being suffocated by the cobwebs but it also allows the audience to identify that Robert Smith as the lead singer and focal point of the band. The band members are shown separately at the beginning of the video, also allowing the audience to identify that these are members of the band (symbolised by their playing of instruments).
Wide shots are used to show them through the window, through Robert Smith’s point of view (also distinguishing that he is the main focus/member of the band) this distances the band slightly, making them seem as if they are purely backing Robert Smith, rather than contributing their own unique personalities to the band’s image. This could be because Robert Smith has a very specific image and big stage persona and focussing on that audience appeals to their alternative audience (teenagers and adults). There is also a crab mid shot of the band together playing their instruments in time to the music – this also shows that they are not meant to be seen as individual characters of the band, but as Robert Smith’s backing.
Close ups also used to illustrate part of the songs narratives. For example, there is a shot of the a spider crawling in the corner of the room when the lyric “a movement in the corner of the room”. This is also an example of “looking through” as again is from Robert Smith’s point of view. And again also when Robert Smith is looking at a crack in the window and it focuses on an “S” when the lyrics “I spy something beginning with S” are being heard.
There is a zoom in extreme close up on Robert Smith as he is covered in spider webs. It starts on his face and then zooms into his mouth and teeth which seems surreal and creepy – to represent a nightmare. It also highlights the sweat on his cheek to as a representation of his fear. It also is quite a claustrophobic shot, adding to the discomfort and fear of Robert Smith’s character and the video’s theme in general.
Numerous wide shots and mid shots are used to show Robert Smith when he feels “like i'm being eaten by a thousand million shivering furry holes “. Wide shots are used to illustrate what is happening in the song and to make Robert Smith seem smaller in comparison to the large creature of darkness – this again gives a disturbing and surreal feel which works well with the dream like theme of the video and also with the band’s image, as Robert Smith is a surreal and strange personality.
Wide shots are also used to show the spider man on the ceiling covered in cobwebs and also to show Robert Smith in bed with numerous arms grabbing at him. The wide low angle shot of the spider man is again from Robert Smith’s point of view to show that the spider man is looking down on him ready for him – “the spiderman comes” – illustrating the song and also showing a full body shot of him covered in spider webs – repeating the horror/nightmare theme. This horror/nightmare scene is also repeated when Smith is being tormenting in his bed by numerous arms grabbing at him. A wide shot is used to show all of the and the vast amount of horrible arms torturing him.

Editing
It is a narrative based video but because it is a dream sequence some may get confused with it being conceptual as it comes across as quite surreal. They speed up however using short and medium takes (mostly) together when the song reaches its climax (around 3:33) showing a mix of all the elements and different memorable shots of the video Robert Smith in bed, the spider man, the spider in the corner, the band members. This is to heighten the feeling of the music – to intensify the climax in comparison to the rest of the video.
As the song is slow paced the takes mimic this by being long-medium length. The shots are also used to mirror the lyrics that are being heard at the time they are shown as explained above with camera (e.g. there is a shot of the a spider crawling in the corner of the room when the lyric “a movement in the corner of the room” and when Robert Smith is looking at a crack in the window and it focuses on an “S” when the lyrics “I spy something beginning with S” are being heard.)
Special effects are used near the end of the video to show a ghost of the spider man walk through the wall into the bedroom – this again is to add to the horror feel of the video, adding another classic clique of horror/nightmare to the video.
The end of the song also mimics the visual as when the song ends Robert Smith is swallowed into the dark creature – mirroring the end of him and the end of the song.
The editing has mostly been used to show the narrative of the song and video rather than to emote a specific emotion to the audience, apart from the slow, creeping length of the takes.

My thoughts
The thing I liked most about this video was the narritive and the mis en scene aspects. I love the detailing, the lighting and the concept of the video. I would like to perhaps take some of this detail and use it as inspiration for my own product.