Evaluation 4

How effective is the combination of your media product and ancillary task?

I think mine is very effective as I have created it to suit my target audience, and created my own brand image. I feel as though I have created my band image throughout my digi pack such as the font and colour schemes. The black and white stripes are shown throughout and hopefully would make the audience think of the band when they see similar stripes. I tried to portray the band as if they are fully involved with the ideas, such as the back of the CD case with the lead singer ‘writing’ the songs. My band is based mainly of the lead singer of this album, therefore shows him on the front cover of the CD album cover. I have also done this through the ‘jokey’ bed scene on the insert cheer the target audience up and show that the band are no superstars like them, making them more enjoyable to the target audience. I have demonstrated throughout the video and digi pack that my band is representing an underground image and have received very positive comments on this.

Evaluation 3

Evaluation 2

Media

View more presentations from SimonHell.

Evaluation 1

The Digital Pack

Down to the digital pack and probably the most prolific selling point to the whole package.

I decided to produce a front cover that just had the lead singer on. I looked into a lot of magazine album covers and a huge amount just featured the lead singer. I thought this was a good idea and have his sitting in a 'waiting room' area as though he is with himself. I received great praise for the product. On the other hand I have huge critism to myself on the piece. I tried my hardest to get the program to merge the background together but the different colours just stayed the same. Again if I had a larger budget the front cover would have been flawless and much more productive. Nevertheless, the audience feedback was outstanding and could not give me enough praise for trying the idea.

I thought of this whilst shooting the music video. As mine features a record player I thought I would create the CD cover as if it were and old record. The center of the CD is quite creepily my eye based on the name of the band 'Eyeshine'. Many thought this was a good attempt by me and supported the idea.

The Back of the album had been created to look as if it was him writing what was underneath. The fact that I had added the cartoon effect made the idea continuous and many thought I would be able to follow this up with future ideas and make this iconic for the band.

This would be the insert. It was connoting a fun-loving nature of the band and illustrating that life should not be taken seriously all the time. Seeing bands in situations like this add humour as well as inspirational to the younger target audience.

This was the spine of the CD case. I thought I would keep it simple and down to the point.

Cartoon Effect

Previously stated, this was inspired by the iconic video by Aha - 'Take On Me'

As you can clearly see, it transforms the whole clip as if it has been drawn and water coloured. The audience approved and did not expect the twist of a cartoon narrative. They also enjoyed the fact that whenever he was with his band, the clips had no effect.

It was extremely easy to accomplish. I would click onto the clip that I wanted to edit and click the small settings button and scroll down to clip editing. Change the video effect to cartoon and everything worked out exactly how I wanted it too. If I were to have a higher budget to the music video, I would make the effect extremely noticeable with sketch lines etc.

The above and below picture are to highlight what effect it had on the clips. As you can see it was remarkable the change.

Moodboard

Effects

I thought that the effects were extremely helpful on the iMovie software. They had a variety of effects that helped transform, not only mine, but others that I saw around me.
I believe that the effects changed as well as developed peoples as well as my owns ideas when re-filming either adding or taking away clips. Effects such as cartoon which I added later on...

The program 'iMovie' had great help with the darker scene. It helped add a brightness to the scene enabling a clearer view of the lead singer and what he was actually doing. I received a lot of feedback suggesting that I should re-film to make it so you could see the singer, however I was able to add brightness without the hassel of re-filming and the audience enjoyed what they had requested.

It also helped with the whole clip of him with the candles. It made the sequence seem more 'trustworthy' as to what he was doing as you could clearly see him singing and playing the guitar.

I had originally filmed this part of the clip to be featured in my music video, yet it was too dark to be able to see and part of the clip. Once I had discovered that this would would, it varied the shots in my video, made the lead singer seem powerful from the low angle at this part in the narrative and the audience appretiated what was being told.

Again this is highlighting the effectiveness of brightening the clip. This was easily noticeable, however, through brightening the clip the audience thought that it linked well with the other and brighter clips in the sequence.

I found video effects that I started to experiment with and found the highlighted, top right effect. I took inspiration from the iconic 'Take On Me' video by Aha. I found it so inspirational that I thought I might try to mimic this with a cartoon narrative. The audience feedback was not what I expected as it was outstanding. All were very supportive and thought it worked well with the video.

Final Cut

Similar Artist Style

All American Rejects, Taking Back Sunday, Bowling For Soup, Blink 182 and Sum 41 have been noted to sound similar to my chosen artist.
After asking classmates, they said that my band reminded them of the ones listed above. In fact, I was pleased that they thought of these bands as similar artists as it showed I had portrayed the genre I wanted to.

Photos of Band Members

Using iMovie

Using iMovie has made life much easier. Using tools such as clip adjustment gave me the edge above the previous programs. I find it easy to edit the clip how I wish it to come across, whether it be adding a sepia effect, zooming or just to mute the clip itself. However, being extremely familiar to Windows and their layout, I found it hard to grasp the formatting of the computer itself. This included saving pictures that I had 'print screened' and putting it into folders on the desktop.

Using my own camera to upload the footage was also difficult to accomplish because of the wire 'Firewire 800' This is so that it could convert correctly and be able to use in iMovie. Nevertheless this was simple to use once completed.

I found that the programming of iMovie was perfect to edit my clips because of its simplicity. Once I adapted and familiarized myself, it was straight forward and was easy to accomplish what I wanted to do.

Sometimes I would find it difficult to import projects

Using DiskLabel

I found this tool incredibly useful. It was on a plate from the start with easy tools to use and obvious directions.

The first step on the program was to add a background to the CD. I wanted to portray the CD as if it were an old record, so to do this I took a picture of the record used in my music video and imported it. I then cropped it to fit the size of the CD. It brought the product to life designing this part. I wanted to add my eye to the CD cover as I thought t would be relevant to the bands name. I had took a picture of my eye and then added it to the program. I then cropped it to the desired size and added effects.

(My eye ready to be imported onto the CD cover)

(This is a testing eye found on Google to see if all would be achieved)

As you can clearly see from the diagram above, after clicking 'effects' this pop out came up.  It clearly showed what could be accomplished and led me to complete my CD cover.

This is the CD sticker. This was imitating a record player also linking to my video. Through audience feedback they clearly understood the point of the eye in the center (EYESHINE) They enjoyed the idea however some said this was 'creepy'

Favourite music video director

Marc Klasfeld is an American music video director. He has directed over two hundred music videos for artists such as Katy Perry, Jay-Z, Kid Rock, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Nelly, Foo Fighters, Jewel, Sum 41, Avril Lavigne and many others with multiple MTV award wins and nominations.He is also a director of television commercials for Nike, NFL, NBA, Hummer, Reebok and Cartoon Network. I feel that this gives him an edge above others and a different style to others. I feel that his videos have such diversity, it makes him one of the best directors around.

My Icon

I have many Icons that I consider a part of my musical life. For me I think Jimi Hendrix was so inspirational for his short trip in the spotlight. I take him as just one of my icons because of his raw talent which had all become from his early life. His life to me shows what massive things can be accomplished from so little.

At age 15, around the time his mother died, he acquired his first acoustic guitar for $5 US from an acquaintance of his father. This guitar replaced both the broomstick he had been strumming in imitation, and a ukulele which his father had found while cleaning a garage. Hendrix learned to play by practicing for several hours a day, watching others play, getting tips from more experienced players, and listening to records. His story goes on to achieve only more brilliance and inspire millions.

I believe his lyrics are also words of a genius they fit perfectly with his backing music and seemed appropriate to what message he was giving out.

Blink 182 is another one of my inspirations. Growing up with their music help mould my taste in other genres and other artists. I really enjoy the 'fun' style they have and have a mixture of serious songs with what seems to be funny songs. I still listen to them nowadays as they have had such an impact on me.

My icons consist of the obvious as well, such as Elvis Presley and Michael Jackson but more over, through my childhood I have heard my families taste in music and have enjoyed it over the years. This can be ranging from The Clash, Spandau Ballet, Depeche Mode all the way over to Chris Brown.

New Prop List

I needed a better storyline and easy to acquire and that would be easy to film. I realised that my previous idea was too difficult to achieve and not worth the time. My newer idea seemed to work a lot better and worked smoothly. The props were:

Microphone

Microphone Stand

Guitar

Bass

Drums

Photo

Lighter

Record Player

Candles

New locations

Storyline Locations
A storyline was key to filming different locations. Through receiving the feedback, I acknowledged the idea of mind mapping new ways to incorporate the lyrics with a decent storyline. New locations contained new areas, rooms and the outdoors.

New Room
It wasn't that difficult to decide on new locations to shoot my video. I found it extremely frustrating and time consuming to re-locate the drums. The purpose of moving the drums was to achieve a background of an empty plain space. I realised that they could already be found in a empty and blank space and would help my filming progress.

Different Rooms
I realised that I could incorporate an idea that all the band members were involved with the same girl. I had an idea in the plot of them finding out could have more locations helping the audience get the suggestion that the band would be disjointed.

2nd Rough Cut

This is a second rough cut to enhance my final cut and to gain a wider perspective to what the audience want in their final cut.

My Magazine Advert

I mirrored both the Blink 182's and Jessie J's magazine adverts to pull off an effective advert myself. I tried to mimic the flyer effect as I thought that that made an interesting appearance and I received a lot of praise from the audience. I also liked the special edition feature so added my own as the 'Striped Edition'. I thought I could be more creative with the idea and it would make a unique selling point. I saw that the majority of adverts include a picture of the artist so had to include the band in a picture together. The taken picture shows that the band is professional and shows a more personal side as they are in a simple room and not an expensive photo shoot, yet again showing the 'underground indie band' look.

Magazine Advert Analysis

This is Jessie J's advert for her 'Who You Are'. I thought it was important to look at an icon that is storming the charts currently. She is an idol to all ages at the moment and featuring on programs such as 'The Voice UK' helps significantly and she has such talent with her voice. As you can see there are 2 magazine adverts above. I chose them because it includes a special edition as well as the normal. I thought it was extremely clever to have a gold normal edition and to 'one up' that was a platinum version that is also labeled as the special edition. It shows: 'bling', a modern target audience and as sex appeal that follows Goodwin's six points. It simple and straight to the point, a picture of her and the details about the album being released.

This is an advert to Kanye West and his general career. This is not necessarily aiming to sell an album, but to sell / promote himself and future sales. This was at a time when he was releasing his hits and around the time he released a remix to Daft Punks 'Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger' again making him very popular. I chose to analyse this because again this isn't trying to be too complicated and straight down to the point. The simple colour shceme helps him to stand and and be the focus to the audience.

This is Blink 182's latest released album. I thought this was extremely good to look at and shows their development. As I have followed Blink 182 throughout their career, they have usually done rather childish / immature posters. Looking at this though they have kept it very simplistic, like the two above. The black and  scheme seems sophisticated compared to their previous adverts. They have kept the same font throughout the poster, yet unlike the others, this has a Computer Generated Image where the rooftops spell out their name and based in a neighborhood. It also takes up the impression of a flyer both these techniques are very clever and effective.

Target Audience Questionnaire

1. What do you look for in a band?  The responses received were as followed:

- Image                                - Catchy Songs

- Good Band Name             - Different from other bands

- Exciting Media                   - Remembered for time

- Realistic                             - Brands
- A Sustained Album

2. Are you more bothered about appearance or music? The responses received were as followed:

- I think that the appearance is more important because I feel that....
- I think it has to be a mixture otherwise...
- I prefer the music however this will affect if people were to see them live

3. Does your favorite Genre have judgement on certain artist? The responses received were as followed:
- With the genre of music I listen to, it is difficult to understand other genres such as 'Rap' or 'R'n'B', however I can listen to a track if I deem it a good song. If I enjoy the way the music sounds, then I can listen to it
- I don't really mind what genre it is, if I enjoy the music that is played, I will download it onto my iPod and listen to it again. If the song doesn't sound right and doesn't suit my taste, then I leave it. I don't particularly have a favorite genre.
- Yes. I cannot stand some other genres whether it be in the top 5 of the charts and played none stop. I still don't enjoy it and nothing can change my opinion. I like the genre I like and nothing really changes that.




4. Would you research into the band further if you did like their release track? The responses received were as followed:
- If I like the track it doesn't necessarily mean that I enjoy their other music. For instance 'Somebody that I used to know' sung by Gotye featuring Kimbra is one of my favorite songs. Yet I had a listen to both their music and found that I only liked one or two others. I wont say I am a fan of there's, nonetheless I would say I enjoy one of their songs.
- If I liked their release track I would obviously look into the other tracks. However, if I didn't like the track I would possibly wait until I heard another that had made it into other media sources such as the radio or charts etc.
- It is rare to say that I don't research into the band a little further after hearing a song by them. I like to have a variety of songs that I listen to to stop myself getting bored with the same genre.

audience feedback

Feedback 1

I thought that this music video was good but could improve in a couple of areas. The differentiation between camera angles was put together well as no two shots next to each other were similar, but maybe a larger range of more creative camera angles could be used - although i really liked the low angle shot of the main singer and guitarist. The lip sync and the timing of the instruments need to be worked on so that they look more realistic, as if they are actually being played. A couple of clips need muting as you can hear the background noises and talking which shouldn't be there. In some shots, people are talking and although they are muted, the movement of their lips don't resemble the lyrics, so maybe the shots need re-filming or cutting shorter so that it is less obvious. I really liked the clever shots using the candles on the floor and i like the contrast between light and dark, although i feel that you might need to show a graduation of it getting dark as it is a bit sudden.

Feedback 2

The music video to me was average. I think that the storyline needs improving as it made little sense. I think a larger range would be critical to improve it such as over the shoulder shots etc. However I think that the lip syncing was pretty good, being a rough cut I didn't really pay attention but the scene with the lead singer starting the dialogue was really good. I thought it was also interesting how the lead singer wore the same with band and different clothes outside, it was like a transition of barriers. I think the candle scene was good however it needs to be able to see the face of what I expect was the lead singer. I think the drummer needs to be in time as well, it ruined realism for me. I thought the record idea was very good, it made the start and end link very well but recommend it be slower at the end. All in all i suggest re-film and have the storyline make sense.

Feedback 3

I thought the video itself was quite good, however I did find that the video needed adjustments. I felt the storyline did need to be improved as I got lot half way through. I believe some of the shots really worked well such as the low angle shot of the lead singer in the band. I felt that that showed him as 'powerful' when he was in his band scenario. I thought the candle scene was good and how it fitted with the long sung word 'around' however i think the band needs to come in earlier to make it fully effective. I think it was good how it showed the break down of the lead singer as well, i think it needs more of that or something similar to go with the storyline better.

Cast

The cast consists of:


Declan Clarke: - Lead Singer/ Guitarist


Conor O'Brien: - Drummer


Samuel Norton: - Bass Player


Maeve Keane: - Girlfriend

Rough Cut

This is a clip of my first rough cut.

New shot list

Previously I found it very difficult to shoot some of my original camera shots. I decided to change it for my final cut and from when I was filming I felt that some of the shots came into my mind and just seemed to fit from what I was doing. They are as followed:

1. Drum in time
2. Bass in time
3. Band Playing together
4. Dec in room on his own
5. Dec texting 'Girlfriend'
6. Sam texting 'Girlfriend'
7. Sam in his room
8. Conor texting 'Girlfriend'
9. Conor burning photo

Locations and Settings

This is the room, representing the lead singers habits connoting not caring and representing the typical teenager / bad boy bedroom because he has just found out about his girlfriend cheating with the other band members.

Again this is significant to the background of the lead singer. Through the video he is shown 'reflecting' in this area.

He is shown washing his face in this location, connoting 'washing away' the girlfriend.

I have a variety of locations to fit my genre. Yet being the type of band that I chose, I narrowed it down to a few locations and then had to see if it was possible to shoot them. One idea I chose was a van on the street and the band be on and in it. However, it was a struggle to retrieve the van and after doing vital measurements, it was a disappointment to find that the drums would not fit into the van. This gave me the incentive to look for other locations such as alley ways and rooms that will represent the ideals of my chosen  band.