EVALUATION OF DAY2:

On the second day of filming, was when we filmed the narrative side of our music video. This is when the location was set at Hannah's house.

Firstly, before shooting we took necessary preparations such as make-up adjustments, do to our already existing planning we had chosen to put stage make-up on Kingston, to give of the feel he is in a sense a ghost of her imagination and he is always haunting her.

Therefore, the following image below, is a shot of Kingston after his make-up had been added to his face. Our main focus was to smudge his eyes to make them look daunting and empty as if he is not really there emotionally anymore and feels no real emotion etc.

The following image below is a over the shoulder shot of Hannah facing the mirror, and Kingston (who at this point is meant to be a figure of her imagination being placed in mirror). In this scene Hannah is portrayed to of imagined him there because she feels as if he never leaves her side, she feels haunted by him and she just cannot get him of her mind. Due to the fact is this scene she is appeared to be applying her mascara, she bends down to look up again and see he is behind her. However, when she turns around he is no longer there. Therefore, she feels as if she cannot even do normal everyday things without her feeling as if he is there with her.

 

 

 

As you can see from the jokey image above of the two actors in the mirror, this shot was difficult to create due to the positioning of each character being able to fit in the shot. Also before Kingston comes into shot, he has to almost only take one movement, in which case he was not even in the right position anyways. Therefore, this shot take an excessive amount of time to take however, hopefully the successful shots we have got will show the technique we had in mind and was trying to portray.

 

 

The following shot above is a screen shot of the video recorded effect technique we included within our music video. This was also a fairly difficult shot to create, this is due to the positioning of the camera, the two actors held it hand held. Therefore, it was either two close or not steady enough. However, by using stabler technique on one of the macs, I feel confident this error will be smoothed out.
 

 

The image above is a screen shot from our music promo video, we used the initial idea technique of creating the shot to be styled as a video image from a camcorder that had been recording the events happening.

 However, one technique that did work well was a pan shot of an extreme close up of Hannah looking at a picture and pretending to be crying as if she is upset looking back at the memories she has had with her ex boyfriend.

 

 

EVALUATION OF DAY1:

On the first day of filming we set the performance side of our music promo video at our first location being the warehouse at Henry's Dad's factory in Bicker. Firstly, the costumes worn by our actors were practically the same if the not the same, as the costumes chosen in the planning stage of our production.

 

 

The image below is a close up shot of one of the instruments used within our performance side of the music video. When undertaking planning, I researched that it was essential in any indie pop music promo video, that there was a significant focus on instruments to promote the skills of the artist. 

 



 

 

The image to the right is a mid shot of one of the members of the band, playing an instrument. We aimed to include a variation of mid shots to show the mannerisms of the artists. This technique was also used to show of the artists broadasting their skills due to showing their passion towards what they are doing in the way they move and act.

 Mid shots are also used to shoot all artists together and show the relationship between one another, dependant on their positioning, how they act with one another etc. Mid shots also show off all the costumes and props used within a music promo video.

The image below is a screen shot of Hannah filiming a section of our video where there is an extreme close up of the drummers foot on the foot pedal. This shot was used to show the preciseness and on point percession of the band member to be beat of the track.

 

*It is essential that we get the shot in exact sync with the music to show realism that our artist is actually playing the instrument on the track.

 

 

 

In our perfomance side of our music video we used lighting effects such as strobe lights. As a group we decided to use this technique as it would enable the artists to be highlighted and stand out juxtaposed to the dark background.

However, in this shot we have included un-necessary background objects which could give off the impression that our music promo video was made by ammeatures and not professionals. Therefore, it is essential when editing our music promo video that we cut out any type of shots that include background objects that we have made the mistake of not moving from the background.

 

The shot above is a low anlged shot looking up at the artist from below. This shot is used to show the power associated with that current band member. In various other indie pop videos I have researched this is a technique used frequently therefore, by sticking to the genre I have included this within our music promo video.

*However, one thing to consider is sometimes low angled shots can make the viewers feel inferior and not on the same level as the artist therefore, this could potentially be a negative of this type of shot.

 

 

As a group we took various still shots like the one shown to the left. These still shots contained all members of the band, placed upon a back wall while portraying mannerisms of the 'i dont care' attitude to life. Therefore, due to the successful shots acheieved from this idea we aim to include one of these photo's as the front page of our magazine advert.

 

 



The technique we have used here is by placing all band members in a line this enables an almost invisible straight line that goes down the middle of the page which instantly grasps the viewers attention.
This is not a technique to show whom is most important within the band, rather a chance to show off each individual member.



PLANNING: Assigned Roles:

DAY1:
Myself: I will  help with bringing the instruments and equipment from the cars to the location. I will also help with setting out the mise-en-scene, such as moving objects around, to make sure we have the right amount of space needed, to fit everything which is essential, in the mise-en-scene. I will also be taking a vast amount of still shots to make sure we have enough evidence of what we actually did on both shooting days. I will also be helping with shooting some of the footage and holding the lyrics on A3 paper for Kingston to read and mime.

Kingston: He will be acting as the lead singer in our promo video. He will be one of the main focuses of our performance side of the music video, due to he is actually the only singer in the performance side of our music video. Therefore, it is only Kingston who will need to mime the lyrics in time with the music. Kingston will need to emphasise every word and make the intended audience believe his story. This added to the costumes he will wear and the mannerisms and how he acts will all add up to whether he looks realistic enough for the audience to believe him.

Hannah: She will be in charge of shooting/filming half the performance side of the promo video. Hannah will be in charge of camera one, which will be used to shoot particular shots such as long shots and mid shots of the band. This will also be including low angled shots and high angled shots to make sure there are a clear variation in short formations when looking at our footage after shooting. Therefore, this meaning there will be enough footage to work from so we do not have just one type of shot otherwise our music promo video could be classed as boring or un-imaginative.

Henry: He will be in charge of camera number two. Henry will need to focus on getting the opposite of the variation of shots Hannah will be aiming to get. Therefore, Henry will need to be getting shots such as close-ups and extreme close-ups to show the individual band member's feelings and emotions they are trying to portray. Also we will need extreme close-up shots of the individual instruments being played by the artists. However, one thing needed to be considered is due to the fact two camera's will be in motion, Hannah and Kingston must try not to get in each other's way, or there could be shadows formed of the action taking place on the other camera. Therefore, this would overall make our production look un-professional and in a sense ammeter like meaning we would not have met our overall aim.

DAY2:
Myself: I will be filming the narrative side of our performance using a HD camera; we aim to borrow from a friend. Due to the increase in quality of the camera, this enables a variation of different camera lenses. Therefore, before filming I will need to test out what lens works best with which scene to see which shot would overall look most effective. Due to the increase in technology of this camera, it also means the camera has various focuses therefore, if we choose to create an over the shoulder shot with blocking out one of the characters, we would be able to achieve this just by using the camera alone without having to edit it afterwards.

Kingston: He will be an actor again. However, this time round he will be the ex-boyfriend who is portrayed as a ghost and is a figure of her imagination haunting her. Kingston will be undergoing changes to his facial features due to him having to wear make-up to give of the impression of 'haunted eyes'. He will be one of the main characters, and will need to try his hardest to act out the character he is trying to portray in hope to make the scene seem believable and realistic.

Hannah: She will be acting as the female character in the narrative part of our promo video. Hannah's part will be to portray the girlfriend who is being haunted emotionally by her ex-boyfriend. Hannah will be able to use her acting skills learnt in drama, to undertake this role and to give of the impression she is crying, upset, hurt and confused. Hannah will also be doing Kingston make-up due to skills she learnt previously also in drama.

Henry: He will be also filming half the duration of the footage. Henry will be in charge of making sure all the props/equipment is set up and correctly positioned before filming. Henry is the most familiarised with high tech cameras therefore, he will be in charge of taking screen shots of the scenes that will be being filmed, for photographic evidence we have done what we said we would do in planning.

PLANNING: Equipment List.

Before shooting our promo video footage, it is essential that we have significant equipment to portray shots/ideas/techniques that we aim to create to make our promo music video look the most effective as it possibly can.

Essential things we needed:

• 2x Video Camera's (Sony Camera's) - One red and One blue. - These need to be fully charged in preparation for a whole days filming. However, as a safety net I will take the charger leads with us to our location therefore, if we do have a battery problem we will be able to sort it out.
• 2x Black Tripods - The tripods need to be checked to make sure they are working fully, and before leaving for our location, we need to be make sure the attachment bit is in the pack otherwise, we will have trouble clipping the camera to the tripod.
• 1x microphone - This is needed to give of the impression of our singer being professional.
• 1 Microphone stand - Microphone stand is essential so the artist can place the microphone within the stand to focus on emphasising the lyrics rather than walking around with it.
• 1x Drum Kit - This is being borrowed by one actor in our production, we will have to store this in one car, possibly even two dependant on how much equipment needs to be taken to our location.
• 1x  Pair of drum sticks- essential, without these the drumming will not be at all realistic.
• 1 Guitar - This will also be borrowed from one of our actors in our music video.
• 6x Hi Viz Jackets- These will be provided by Plasto-Sac-East are essential to apply with health and safety procedures within the factory.
• 3x 50m extensions lead - These are essential due to possibly having our instruments away from plug sockets.
• 1x Ipod (which will contain our chosen song)
• 1x Speakers - These will be needed for the actors to hear the song for them to be able to mime/act to it.
• 1x Double headed flood lights (for special effects) These will be used for lighting effects.
• 1x SLR still shots
• 1x SLR Video Shots
• 2x Pallet Trucks
• 1x Large A3 sheet containing the lyrics (for Kingston's benefit to mime)
• 2x STD pallets with top boards

*It is essential we bring the wires for the instruments; although we will not actually be playing them it is very important we make it look realistic enough, as if the actors are playing the instruments.

The following images below are shots taken from our filming day of the equipment we took with us, by using the already make equipment list we were to tick of the things we needed on the day and what we took with us.

The image to the right shows the drum kit, we used for our music video. One error we did make was not to bring the actual drum chair. Therefore, as a substitution we used just a plain ordinary chair in hope, it would not be shown and our intended target audience would not notice.

 The image to the left shows the guitarist, with the guitar used in our music promo video. This shot also shows the strobe lights in the background, which we used to make the mise-en-scene lighter and to make the band stand out from the dark background they were placed in front off. Overall, these lights were very successful in highlighting the artists. However, one thing to consider was to aim not to get the lights and wires in shot to make the music promo video look more realistic and professional.

The shot of the right is a shot of me, wearing the Hi Viz jacket, while holding the camera and placing it on the tripod before filming started. The Hi Viz jackets were essential to wear, due to the location being set in a warehouse which contained machinery therefore; it was a health and safety procedure that we had to wear these.

 

 

This next shot on the right, shows a big percentage of all the equipment used, it shows are actors (being the band in our promo video), all the instruments used, including the editing effects such as the strobe lights. It also shows of the location where we shot it (up against a brick wall). However, one criticism was in the shot, in the corner there is some equipment for the warehouse, one thing needed to be considered when getting footage for our actual promo music video.

PLANNING: Props.

When considering props and what will needed to be used to create the most realistic and effective promo video it came to mind that we needed props such as a bathroom mirror. We have chosen to use the bathroom mirror due to the bright lights situated around the mirror making it appear brighter than your everyday mirror. Therefore, this juxtaposed to dark make-up Kingston will be wearing for effect, this will draw the attention to Kingston when he is in the scene, which is overall what I aimed to achieve.
This is due to an effect I intended to use within the narrative side of the promo video. This idea is to place in front of the mirror, and for Kingston to be filmed behind her. However, due to our idea of Kingston (who is the main singer) being a ghost, he will be seen to be there then swiftly disappear as if she has imagined him there.
However, due to the immiture natrue of this idea our actors will have to be focussed and try their very best to carry out this task.

This links into the next prop which will be used being the mascara used for the mirror scene when Hannah will be 'applying' her make-up, then as she looks down she will look back up again to be bewildered to think she has seen Kingston looking back at her in the reflection.
However, one important thing to be considered is in the production Kingston shall not be seen from behind only as a reflection. Therefore, this emphasising on the fact he is a ghost of her imagination.



Another prop I intend to include in our promo video is a photograph of the couple in their happier days. This prop will be used when using an extreme close up pan of Hannah crying while looking at the photo and remembering all the happy memories the couple had. The actual memories will be shown throughout the duration of the music video.

 

 

I also intend to use the prop of a watch. This prop will be used for the shot of Hannah looking down at the watch, and crying due to the fact she has lost her ex boyfriend and this is the only object of his she has left now. Therefore, when filming this scene I aim to use a close up or extreme close up shot of the watch, which will be followed by a shot of Hannah looking upset.

The image below shows various instruments I will be using within the performance side of the music video which could be argued to be classed as props.

• The instruments that will definitely need to be used are a microphone stand used to position the microphone in, so the lead singer has his hands free to move them around to emphasise his passion he feels about the lyrics he is singing.
• A microphone is essential due to making the performance look as realistic as possible.
• The Bass guitar we will be using will hopefully be fairly new in hope to give of the modern look to our performance.
• Drum sticks will be essential, if we were to forget/not include these then the intended audience would just instantly know that the drummer was not actually drumming and just miming instead.
• The drum kit we aim to include will be blue. We have chosen a blue drum kit as blue has connotations of being calm, cool and collective. Therefore, this is the vibe we want to give of about the band and the individual artists.

PLANNING: Costumes:

*Due to in our prelim music promo video, having the main focus was on wearing suits, we aimed  to move away from the production we did before therefore, by changing the outfit code while sticking to within what is expected of our chosen genre.
The costumes used for all members of the band have got to be smart-casual. Therefore, this meaning either the actors had to wear some form of smart shirts with smart trousers.

The following outfits above are what as a group we have discussed and decided upon what the actors should be expected to wear. Anything similar to these would be acceptable, as we have a certain look in mind we are trying to give of, along with it is essential we stick to the connotations of the indie genre.

• One of the outfits we have chosen is a red checked shirt and black trousers. The black trousers neutralise the brightness of the coloured shirt, which shows of the artist's personality however, the dark trousers bring the brightness out and make the character be seen as looking cool, swish and mysterious.
• The lead singers outfit is of a white top and light navy blue trousers. The white shirt makes the artist stand out from their clothing. However, the blue trousers show of his individual character possibly meaning he feels bright and happy deep down inside. Blue also has connotations of feeling calm, cool and collective therefore, his clothes colouring could be a deeper meaning into how the actual artist feels themselves.
• The last outfit is a light blue shirt and black trousers. This choice of outfit also represents how the darkness of the trousers could be used to hide and fade out the artists personality. However, by the artist also wearing blue it could show he is also chilled out and content with life and how things are.

 

Another idea which we aim to use is due to the storyline being about him haunting her, we aim for him to be in a sense portrayed as a 'ghost'. Therefore, we aim to put black eye shadow on Kingston, and to smudge to make his eye's look scary and daunting.

 

 

*In all music videos it is essential to make necessary preparations such as e.g. make up, due to particular lighting that could possibly be used which will highlight the artists complexion in a negative/positive formation.*



The costumes I aim to include within the narrative section of our music video will mainly focus on the girl character and the boy character, whom also plays the lead singer in the performance.

 

Firstly, the black trousers the girl character will wear juxtaposed to her grey cardigan will give of a dull, negative and depressing vibe. Therefore, this will link into the storyline of the girl character being sad about feeling haunted by her ex-boyfriend, whom she did not love the way he loved her.

The clothing selected is casual everyday wear therefore, this makes the audience feel compassion for the character, and feel as if they can relate to her.

 

 

 

The clothing chosen for the male character in the narrative section of the music video is of a more colourful and current vibe. The Ralph Lauren polo shirt it very trendy and stylish in our current generation therefore, this added to the brightness of the t-shirt demands the viewers attention instantly and draws the focus of our eyes to him rather than the female character.

 

Due to the character only being planned to be shot from mid way up, we have not focused on the bottom half of this character, due to the fact this section of him will not be in shot. However, if the scenario was different I would put this character in light coloured chino's or smart trousers.

PLANNING: Mise-en-scene

The performance part of our chosen final idea was set in a warehouse at Henry's Dad's factory: (Plasto-Sac East) in Bicker. The warehouse is a box factory that supplies boxes for the fruit and vegetables market in Lincolnshire. The building has three main areas of the factory, the production area, the offices and the storage warehouse. We are aiming to film our performance side of our promo video in the production area.

However, we will need to compromise a time and day that we are able to access the warehouse, due normal everyday practises such as the workers there.

Due to the warehouse being situated 20-25 minutes away from where we live, we will have to find our ways of transport there and back, along with all the equipment we take with us will be limited due to having to fit it in the boot of a car. This is due to the fact we will have to take instruments and strobe lights, along with extension leads etc. Another thing we will also have to consider is we will also have to either take lunch or find someone near to the factory to have some dinner.

The image above is a layout of the warehouse, the arrow pointing which is captioned 'where we will film' is a grey brick wall at the front of the warehouse. Due to what is situated within the warehouse e.g. various packaging boxes and lifting machinery therefore, when moving around the warehouse it is essential we comply with health and safety regulations by wearing Hi Viz jackets.

The narrative part of our chosen final idea will be set at Hannah's house, at 30 Swallow Hill in Thurlby. The reason behind setting our narrative side of our promo video, at an every day house, is to give of the impression that this could be a realistic everyday situation that could happen. The house is a modern account of a traditional home with Victorian style features such as a grand fire place. We aim to film around various rooms within the house such as the living room, bedroom, bathroom and kitchen.
However, due to the location of our narrative not being very imaginative and what could be classed as 'steroypical', this really motivates myself to create that high a standard of filming that it will cancel out any worry of this promo video looking unprofessional and not to the standard I would want it to be.

The advantages of filming inside a house is we are more able to control the lighting, due to have light switches that can dimmer or be made brighter depending on what effect you are trying to create. However, due to using natural lighting as well as lighting from light switches, we will only be able to shoot our footage during hours of natural light, being between 9am and 4pm.

Testing and Planning:

After choosing our final idea, I then thought of how we would edit our music video to make it better and more professional looking than out first production of our preliminary task. Therefore, due to the storyline within our music video, being centred around a couple in love, breaking up and then all the heartbreak associated with the aftermath of events. The idea came to me that we could include an edit that would create an effect of a video being recorded when actually it wasn't however, it would make it seem like this was happening. Therefore, by putting this effect on, we hoped it would make the audience feel as if they were actually involved within the storyline, as if they were there at the time of this happening.

Therefore, before we actually decided to use this effect, we tested it out on our preliminary task to see what it would look like, to consider if it would look good within our music video etc.

 

When testing it out on our preliminary task, it became apparent that this technique did not work when using it on performance footage. Therefore, we then considered how it would look if we included it in our narrative side of the music video. The idea then came to me, that we could re-enact a scene between the couple in their happier days. Therefore, to use this effect to this idea it would make the audience feel compassion to the couple as they would feel as if they were actually there and involved in the happiness side of the couples relationship.

Story Boards and Shot Lists:

The story board above is the plan for day1, performance side of the music promo video. This is a brief but accurate account of what we aim to happen when filming and the shots we aim to portray.

• The first shot shown on the storyboard is of a slightly tilted low angled shot, where the camera is tilted and Kingston (the main singer) walks onto the shot and all you see is his feet. I thought this would be effective due to hopefully the shadow of Kingston's foot and the microphone will be juxtaposed against the bright light focused on these objects.
• The second shot is an establishing shot of all the band in focus straight after the first scene has happened. A pan is also used here to show off all actors and the instruments they are playing along with the location of the performance. (To create a pan shot we will have to attain some type of object which will enable one member of our group to be securly fixed on this object to then be wheeled/moved around in a sensbile manner and at minimum speed in order to create the perfect pan shot)
• The next shot is a close up shot of Kingston (the lead singer). We aim to use this shot to hopefully portray that the lead singer is in sync with the music. (This will mean the actor playing the lead singer will have to fully know and be able to recognise the music in able for them to mime the song at the correct time.)
• The next shot is a close up shot of one of the actors playing the guitar, it is also a low angled shot looking up at the guitar. This shot will be used to hopefully show of the skills of our actor, to hopefully play in tune with the music to keep the performance in sync. (A low angled shot is sometimes used to show one figure being more important than the audience. Therefore, as this is something we do not wish to show it will be essential we make sure the audience do not feel inferior to the guitarist however, in awe of their skills and talents)
• The next shot is another pan from right of the screen (facing it) to left of the screen. This section will take up a vast percentage of the song however, hopefully it will look effective if we get the camera positioned so it is stable and steady when moving it around.
• The last shot is a long shot zooming in from far behind to right up close. This shot will be used just as the performance is ending therefore, we aim for the drummer to throw his drumsticks in the air to show the band is done.

*During the performance aspect of the music video I aim to also include a vast amount of establishing shots to show the mise-en-scene and what relevance it has to the music video. Due to our chosen location being a warehouse, focusing on a dark brick wall where we will actually shoot it, this is dark and gloomy therefore, this will grab the attention of the viewer solely on the artist. I will also aim to include extreme close ups on the instruments played by the artists, as I know from previous research this is a common factor of indie pop music videos.*

The storyboard above is plan for day2, the narrative side of the performance. This storyboard did not come out as well on the scanner as the image above. However, when filming this was the plan we went by.

• The first shot is an over the shoulder shot of the mirror scene, with Hannah being placed in front of the mirror and applying mascara, when she thinks she has hallucinated seeing Kingston's reflection in the mirror. However, one thing to consider is I do not wish for the audience to see the back of Kingston due to the fact he is not meant to be seen as he is a figure of her imagination. (Another thing to consider is due to nature of the shot it could potentially come across as a 'joke' and 'a laugh' trying to create this shot. Therefore, our actors need to be on top form and have a serious attitude towards this period of filming.
• The next shot is a close up shot of Kingston singing, this shot is where you see the make-up effects added to Kingston (the black smudged eyes). Due to Hannah having experience in A Level drama and the production side of it, she will be undergoing any procedures done to actor's faces therefore, she will be in charge of this.
• The next shot is an extreme close up of Hannah looking at a photograph of her and Kingston in their happier days and crying over the memories they had. This shot is also a pan shot as the camera will move around Hannah from left to right. (One thing to consider is to what object we will place the camera on due to needing to get a steady shot.)
• The next shot is a dual shot within a pan of the girl placed within the foreground and the boy placed within the background situated behind her. (When editing this shot on the macs after filming we will need to add an effect to smudge the background so it appers blury to the audience therefore, emphaising on the fact the male character is meant to be portrayed as a ghost.)
• The next shot is a video styled camera technique of a hand held camera shot of the couple in their happier days. This is used to represent a flashback of the couple in the past.
• The next shot is a high angled shot from a tilted down angel looking at the couple from above. A high angled shot could show vulnerability therefore, this could show the naive and sensative side of the couples relationship.

*I will aim to focus on close-up and extreme close ups to show of the characters emotions and feelings that they are trying to portray, as this is a common factor of the indie pop genre.*