Thursday 28 February 2013

1st draft analysis



This is the first draft of our music video recreation, 'Hall of Fame' by The Script.

Within the video we have tried to display the message of 'work hard and you will succeed' through the use of a sports theme. We felt that a sports theme would best convey the message we are trying to achieve due to the effort that successful athletes put in to winning races, something we have tried to display in this video. This message that we attempt to put across is very similar to that of 'The American dream' which states that anyone can go 'from rags to riches'. This view emphasises the belief that anyone can achieve greatness through hard work and dedication, which makes it appropriate for our video.
Also, within the video we have displayed a link between the visuals and the lyrics, in order to emphasise the message of the video whilst also trying to display to the audience the plot of our video as well as improving our visuals and providing a link to the song. An example of this is towards the start of the video, as they sing, "you can be the King Kong banging on your chest", and we display Ben as the artist of the song punching his chest in time with the lyrics, further promoting the link of visuals and lyrics.

(00. 26)
We have also displayed a link between the visuals and the music, and the beat of the song. Doing this, I feel, really enhances the quality of the video as the visuals flow well with the beat of the song, and is pleasing on the eye due to the rate at which the clips are shown. I used this to great effect in this video through the use of 'rapid cutting' on 'Final Cut Pro', as I inter-twined the clips of Ben running alone with the clips of him running with the personal trainer. This displayed the contrast of the two bits of training, and created a smooth flow between clips as it matched up with the beat of the song well.



>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>


<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<


>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
(1.28 - 1.31)


In addition to the 'rapid cutting' signifying the link with the music, it also highlights the change from dark to light, which is used to represent a 'change in fortune' for the athlete. We used this contrast from dark to light to display the improvement of the athlete, and that the second race would be the successful one. This sudden change of colours hints to the viewer that the outcome of the second race will be different, and that the training the athlete goes through helps him to achieve his goals in the end. This contrast in colours ties in well with Claude Levi-Strauss' 'Binary Oppositions' theory, in which two opposites signify the contrast between good and bad. Within the making of our video we took this into consideration, and we show how the 'Black vs. White' contrast further enhances the message of succeeding through hard work as the athlete loses the first race, which is shown in a darker shade, before winning the second race, shown in a lighter shade.

Furthermore, as well as the change in colour, the athletes actions and character development through the video again give the audience a hint at the outcome of the second race. We made this noticeable in the beginning of the two races, as we portrayed how the athlete had his head down in the build up to the first race, to imply a lack of confidence and belief; in contrast to, the athlete having his head up prior to the second race, to suggest new found confidence, and a will to succeed.   

(0.33) and (1.45)





We also had the idea of the plaque in the video as a symbolism for a 'hall of fame', in which the athlete of the video is striving to succeed and write himself into the hall of fame. In doing so, we knew that this footage would tie in well with the motive of the lyrics, and also cleverly tie in with the songs title.
(2.24)
Finally, the footage of the artist is used by us as we felt the need to conform to the conventions of typical music videos, in which the artist themselves play a dominant role in the visuals of the video. We felt that merging the clips of the athlete and the artist throughout the filming would help us conform to these stereotypes, and make it clear to the viewer what we are trying to achieve. As Ben plays both roles, we needed to make sure the viewer can distinguish between each character, and so the use of clothing helps us do so. The athlete is seen wearing typical sporty clothing, in comparison to the stylish but casual wear of the artist, as well as the glasses. Also, the location of the two characters help display the difference between the two, as the athlete is filmed over on a field to highlight his training and running, whilst the artist is filmed in a hall.

To improve on the next copy of our video we plan to...

* Finish the races by gaining footage of the end results of the races
* Film and add the ending 
* Fill all missing scenes
* Film more clips of the artist as some are repetitive

First draft of my music video recreation

Here is the first draft for mine and Ben's music video recreation of the 'Hall of Fame'. There are gaps in the video which we will fill with footage soon, and post again when done.

Tuesday 26 February 2013

possible digipak panels

 These are the possible images I will use for my digipak. Note: These arent final so I will definitely be making changes and adding the final images to my blog!

















The theme which I am going for within my digipak is of natural imagery, highlighted by the pictures of the sky and the trees. I took all of the pictures myself and so none have been copied. The faded brown colours are that which I am going to use for each panel of the digipak so that each panel smoothes nicely onto the next and the digipak flows well.
 
 
 

 
This picture really represents what the songs lyrics (Hall of Fame) are about, with the trees symbolic of reaching the top. The narrative within our video is of an athlete striving to reach the top and the tree displays how the athlete 'branches out' to reach the top, and that well known saying that 'the sky is the limit', displayed with the clouds blending with the trees.
 
 
This panel is the one I intend to use as the CD holder, hence the big red circle. I used the image of the curtains as symbolic of opening the case, as I have done with the front cover. This highlights the anticipation the buyer would hopefully have of listening to the CD, as you would do when waiting for the curtains to open in the theatre.
 

 
This image was taken in the school hall, the same place as some of the footage of our film. The lights I feel stand out well in contrast to the brown background, however the big gap to the left of the picture deteres the quality of the image, and is something I will adress.


I like this image of mine and Bens shadows as it is unique and also highlights the 'natural' imagery theme I am aiming for. The way the shadows stand out I feel work well with the grass, and, as you can see, the raised arm of one of the people again highlights the notion of reaching the top, as he is pointing upwards to symbolise progression.
 

 
To gain the faded brown colour on most of the panels I had to use a brown background for each picture on 'Photoshop', and edit the picture from 'normal' to either 'Pin light', or 'Linear light', depending on which effect worked bewst in displaying the fade in each picture.

Digipak back cover?

Here is my initial idea for my digipak back cover:

 
Although the back cover may look a bit blank, I am still going to add onto it the details such as Distributer and Manufacturer for the album.
I took all pictures I am using for my digipak myself, using my schools 'Nikon SLR 500' camera for its good quality photos.
To achieve the colour change from the original picture I used 'Photoshop' and added a brown background layer whilst changing the image from normal to a 'Pin Light' effect in order to merge in the brown colouring with parts of the image. I feel this effect works well, as it gives a contrast of colour to the original image and also allows the sun to be more demanding and dominant in the photo.
Aswell as altering the image, I have also added in the barcode from an internet picture, and used 'Text' to include the song names and price tag. 
 
Edited image
Original photo

 
Changes I plan to make:
1. Include the extra details such as manufacturer and distributer
2. Perhaps include album title on back cover also
3. Include more song choices as only 4 choices is small for an album
 
 
 



Friday 22 February 2013

Digipak front cover



Here is a picture of what my digipak front cover image will look like.


The thought process behind this image is that it is simple and not too 'overpowering' as to distract attention away from the band name or album name, which is essentially what we are trying to display.
In addition, the curtains suggest that a show is about to start, which highlights the anticipation and excitement one feels as a show is about to begin. This can be converted to display how my album would excite its audience and that in opening the curtains (a metaphor for opening of the digipak) the audience will be pleased with what they find inside.
Furthermore, the title of both the album and band are written in a bold white, which makes them stand out in contrast to the red of the curtains. This allows the audience to be drawn to the names due to the way they stand out, and so our band name will be the first thing they're drawn to.
Lastly, there is a strong link between the front cover and our music video itself as this cover is a scene in which we used in the video, and so this intertextuality can be shown to promote our video through my digipak.

Thursday 21 February 2013

'Star Image'

Album name

I have decided to go with the album name of: 'From rags to riches'.
 

I feel that this name highlights the message of the song perfectly and also ties in well with the new, more serious outlet that our band is trying to represent. This album name also reflects the inspirational nature of our video and the songs lyrics, as we have attempted to portray an athlete that works hard in order to go from loser to winner, something that the 'American Dream' represents.

Possible Album names....

Unsure as what to call my album name (although I should know by now), so here are a few ideas I have;

'Gold'; this name would fit well with the meaning of the 'Hall of Fame' lyrics aswell as our video, as gold is the colour typically associated with sporting success, i.e. Gold medals.

'Dreamers'; this would link in well with the 'dream come true' notion hinted at within the 'Hall of Fame' lyrics in the sense that anything can be achieved.

'From rags to riches'; this name ties well with the intertextuality within the 'Hall of Fame' of the 'American Dream'. The 'American Dream' is the belief that anyone can go from 'rags to riches' to achieve greatness if they work for it; this supports what we are trying to display within our video.

Wednesday 20 February 2013

Filming schedule....

Although we have filmed the vast majority of the footage we require, we still need the completed footage of the two races, to show the development of Ben as the athlete from winner to loser. In order to do this me and Ben have devised a further filming schedule for the 22nd February.
We will again be needing the help of our friends for our filming, and so thanks to Harry, Sam G, and Sam H who will be helping us out.

Location: River Lea, the same place as the footage of the athletes training due to its accessibility and ideal environments for a cross country race scene.

Hall of Fame - Intertextuality

Equipment list and character's clothing

For my filming I have used a 'Sony Bloggie', the very same camera that I had used for last years filming, which was convenient as I had previous experience with the camera prior to this years filming.
Sony Bloggie

Bens Characters;

The sportsman:
 In order to portray the character in training and during events, Ben's character wore typical sporty clothing during filming; football shorts and socks, a casual T-shirt, and a pair of football trainers.



The singer:
When Ben plays the character of the band member he wears a casual/smart outfit, portraying a stylish and 'cool' singer. In doing so he reflects the up-to-date song choice and our attempt to fit our video in with todays popular songs.


Tuesday 19 February 2013

'The Reservoir' questionnaire

1. How do you feel 'The Reservoir' conforms to the Pop/Rock genre?

Very Well          Relatively          Not alot          Not at all





Most of our targeted audience felt that 'The Reservoir' conforms 'very well' to the pop/rock genre, therefore backing our view that this band name is a sufficient choice.


2. How well do you feel 'The Reservoir' fits in with the 'Hall of Fame' narrative?    

Very Well          Relatively          Not alot          Not at all




The majority feel as though the name does fit in with the narrative, once again proving our choice correct.



3. How much does 'The Reservoir' appeal to you?
Very Well          Relatively          Not alot          Not at all




This is important to us as the band name is extremely important in attracting a target audience.



4. Would the song appeal to you through the band name?

Yes          No          Maybe




Unfortunately, the majority answered no. However, this is not too much of an important factor.


5. Do you feel the band members match the title of 'The Reservoir'?

Yes          No          Maybe  





Most of the target audience answered yes (not too sure if thats a compliment or not).



In conclusion, 'The Reservoir' seems to be a good name choice, and so this will be our name from now on.

Filming locations

Throughout our filming we will be needing various locations to film due to the alternative narratives in our video; the sportsman, and the band member.

For our sports sequences, all footage will be filmed within the River Lee due to the natural images needed when our runner is in training, and so the River Lee is an ideal location. We will be filming in various locations of the River Lee so that the footage does not become repetitive and dull.


Unfortunately for us, the River Lee is a rather popular local park and so our filming is often delayed due to the amount of people walking in and around the park. Problems arise because of this as we cannot afford to have random people in our shots, and therefore we cannot always get the footage we had planned. Furthermore, we are restricted to certain times of the day when filming due to the lighting contrast as the days progress and we want to ensure that all footage is relatively similar in terms of daylight.

Also, other locations we will use will possibly be Ben's house, and we will also use our school hall, which is almost always available to us.
However, we will have to ensure that it is not evident that the footage is from within our school, as this would look tacky and uncreative. In addition, we will need to make sure that the parts we film are clear so that there are no bits of school equipment lying around.

Saturday 16 February 2013

Further filming

We will film further footage over the next few days.
The footage we will be doing will be of the two races, one in which Ben, the main character, loses, and the other in which he wins, in order to conform to the idea of 'work hard and you will achieve' to display the effort Ben goes through to succeed. This idea is one that is also clearly evident in the actual 'Hall of Fame' video, something which we will try to recreate successfully.
We will also shoot a piece of footage in which the athlete Ben drinks a raw egg. Unfortunately Ben is unwilling to actually drink an egg (despite my protests of making it as realistic as possible!) and so we will be using a yazoo milkshake to make it look as similar as we possibly can.

Thursday 14 February 2013

The Reservoir

So, after receiving our previous survey results, we have discovered that 'The Reservoir' will be our new band name from now on, a choice which we fill best suits the image we are trying to put across to our target audience.
This new band name has a far more serious feel to it in comparision to 'Burritto Dorito', and this choice will be best to display the more serious nature of the video, rather than the more humorous suggestion that our previous name gave.
In addittion, a reservoir (as pictured below) does fit in well with the lyrics and meaning of 'Hall of Fame', as the flow of the reservoir displays the achievement meaning in the song, as the lyrics display a sense of 'going forward' in life and moving on to better things, much like the flow of a reservoir.
A Reservoir
Below is an additional questionnaire linked to our new band name in order to understand wether or not our choice is entriely popular with our audience or not;

1. How do you feel 'The Reservoir' conforms to the Pop/Rock genre?

Very Well          Relatively          Not alot          Not at all

2. How well do you feel 'The Reservoir' fits in with the 'Hall of Fame' narrative?    

Very Well          Relatively          Not alot          Not at all

3. How much does 'The Reservoir' appeal to you?
Very Well          Relatively          Not alot          Not at all

4. Would the song appeal to you through the band name?

Yes          No          Maybe

5. Do you feel the band members match the title of 'The Reservoir'?

Yes          No          Maybe  

New band name Questionnaire

After much thought, here are the possibilities for a new band name;

1. The Reservoir

2. The Ama's

3. Olympus

4. Scripters

5. The ordinary

To discover which band name was most popular we carried out a quick survey;


In conclusion, 'The Reservoir' was the most popular choice and will be our band name.

Tuesday 12 February 2013

Band name change

We are changing name. Burritto Dorito is no longer.
We have decided that our band name doesn't match the 'image' of the group, and the song we are remaking is far more serious than the band name suggests.
Unsure which band name to use now but any name change will be posted.

Wednesday 6 February 2013

Digipak Layout

A typical digipak will consist of either 4 or 6 panels, and will include the CD(s), track listing, album name, band name, barcode, and other additional information/features.
A 6 panel layout has far more room for design and information than a 4 panel layout, and so will usually contain more content. With a 6 panelled digipak, there tends to be more colours and images in the background due to the extent of room available, allowing the artist to display the alums message well through the artwork of the digipak, as well as the ability to make the design more creative and complex. A 4 panelled digipak, on the other hand, is usually more simplistic due to the limited room for design and so the image must stand out in order to catch the attention of its audience, as they rely on quality, not quantity.
6 panels

4 panels

Tuesday 5 February 2013

CD sales in the last 5 years

Within both the UK, and the USA, CD sales are rapidly declining due to a number of factors.













Reasons for this:

1. Downloads: As most people who listen to music have technology such as 'iPods' to listen to their music, most music is now downloaded via sites such as 'iTunes' rather than the need to buy the actual CD.
2. Illegal: A lot of people nowadays download their music through illegal websites in order to avoid the cost of buying a CD or individual downloads.
3. Stores: Music stores are in rapid decline also because of various other ways of buying/downloading music, meaning these stores are closing down through a lack of profit.

Monday 4 February 2013

Digipak research: Digipak vs. CD case

Digipak:

Digipak
Digipaks tend to be far more informative than a CD case as they usually consist of 6 panels, meaning much more content can be held than the 4 panels of a CD case. They hold either one or two CD's and usually include band/artists information as well as a lyrics booklet.
They are usually made of card, making the artwork they use on the case a far better quality, and also allowing for the picture to be easily transferable and continuing throughout the other sides of the digipak, unlike a CD case as the pictures tend to be printed sheets stuck onto the plastic material of the CD case.

CD Case:
CD Case
Cd cases consist of 4 panels and usually contain just the one CD (with exceptions). They are generally more basic than a digipak and usually consist of the CD, song listings, and do not hold much else. They are often made of plastic material and are usually less designed than a digipak due to the smaller space available.







The main difference between digipak and CD case is really the size of the two and the amount of panels each consists of. Digipaks are usually more descriptive and hold more content about the artist and the album itself, and so because of this reason they are becoming increasingly favourable. Although, with this does come the expenses, as the CD case is much cheaper to construct and are also cheaper to buy than a digipak, perhaps the reason why people would buy the CD case in favour of the more expensive, yet more informative, digipak.