Filming Review

The filming took place on 3 separate days. The first day was in Hethersett and we filmed all the live music performances. Filming was hard a the ground was wet so we needed to get a floor mat for the drum kit. Then during filming it started raining and we had to stop for a while. There we no other issues apart from dog walkers and other people sometimes walking into shot by accident so we had to re film some of these shots. We also filmed to shots inside the shop that day. We got permission and were in and out within 15 minutes as we didn't want to disrupt the shop and its customers.

The second day consisted of the black and white shots seen at the start of the video. These were in Wymondham and only took 20 minutes to film. everything ran smoothly and the weather was kid to us that day. Apart from the fact that we had to make our own fake puddle!!! we found a relatively small puddle but it wasn't big enough to make the splash i wanted when Michael walks through it. Then we filled it up with water from a bucket near by. We also had a slight problem with one of the SD cards but I had a spare one at hand so it was alright.

Finally on the third day we filmed the rest of the shots in Hethersett. These consisted of the tennis court shots, the spray paint ones, the ones in the house and also the ones in the field. The spray paint shots seemed to be the hardest to film because getting to the tree and the pathway was a long walk through a muddy track! its safe to say Michael wasn't to pleased about that one. The rest of the shots were perfect and went really well and smoothly. but again, there was the occasional dog walker that we had to stop for.

What have can I take away from this experience?

The weather is not in your control. Always have a backup plan if you are filming outside.
Bring a spare SD card and any other equipment needed.
If filming in public then I need to be aware of the people walking about and making sure not to get them in shot by accident.

Draft of my Album Cover digi pack

This is the draft of my album cover.

The theme I was using when making my album cover was 'Seeing things in a different way' I think this matches my song choice Polarize very well. I've also decided to stick with the black and white theme that I used on my practice album cover because I really like the effect it gives and It also makes my other effects look better. It also works with the black and white effect that I use in my finished music video.

The actual title of the album is a cut-out effect on Michaels face and uses that instead off a fill in the text. This is because of my theme  'Seeing things in a different way' as we are seeing Michael's face in a different way. I also added a lens flare effect as it matches the song 'Polarize' as polarize sunglasses remove glare from someone sight and the song is about polarizing the way wee see.

The back of the album consists of other 21 pilots songs and I found the record labels they are signed with and added them too. I found a barcode and a parental advisory image online as well to try and achieve a professional look.

I didn't want to use the same effect on Michaels face as the poster on my album cover because I want to show as many different ways you can see the same image to match my theme of 'seeing things in a different way'.

 

Research into music video posters ancillary task

Here are 4 important rules that i learnt and think I should follow when designing my poster for my music video.

1. Challenge Yourself to Try New Techniques in Production

Limited funds mean that the financial implications of experimentation are lessened greatly. Now is the time to take a risk or two on the production side, without a multi-million dollar corporation over my shoulder wondering if this is going to work or not. I could mix in a spot varnish, split fountain, tweak the opacity of my ink and just experiment in general.

Here is a good example I found that uses different layers, varnish and a split fountain:

2.Typography ALWAYS Matters

a successful poster depends on the typography that comes with it. Readability depends on the artist and their audience. Don’t forget that a lot of these posters are intended as merchandise, as opposed to items to promote the album. 

Here is an example that use good typography:

3. Would You Hang This On Your Wall?

This is the hardest thing to quantify, but there is no escaping that a poster is expected to be cool. Cool enough to be the only piece of art on your wall. Cool enough to let everyone that walks in to the room know a little about you and your tastes. This is the rule of poster law. 

here are 2 examples that I believe follow this 'law' and i would be happy to have on my own wall.

4. Listen to the Band You Are Designing a Poster for

Sounds simple, but you can easily see when a designer has abandoned the studying part of the job. Your poster can reference a lyric in a beloved song, or exist as an abstract piece of art, but it needs to appeal to the audience for the band to have any worth. These are the people who you want to buy your print to frame and cherish it forever. Respect that and they will respect your work.

Here are some examples of poster that i think are suitable for their relevant artists:

So what does this all mean?

basically, I need to make it relevant to the band, make it worthy of going on my bedroom wall, use typography, use imagery and finally challenge myself to new techniques when designing it and try to be original.

I have a few ideas in mind and they include using texts and typography on photoshop to resemble a face....

Final Locations

This is an update from my old post of my initial location ideas on the 02/12/15. This one now includes the park in Wymondham as I decided to film in this location instead because my rough cuts footage wasn't suitable for my final cut as you can tell its filmed at the village hall in Hethersett and i wanted to add some more diversity to the locations i uses.

The final locations have been chosen for my music video. I have decided on 6 separate locations and they are all located in Hethersett apart from one. I chose Hethersett as I know the area very well and to make the filming easier as it reduces the amount of travelling needed.

Corner Shop

I used a corner shop in Hethersett called 'Premier' to film in. The reason I chose this location is because I knew the shop owner and he has given me permission to film inside. It also has a wide range of  products inside and they all had vibrant colours so it went well with the music video as it is a shot that is relating to his childhood.



Tennis court

I chose to film a part on a tennis court in Hethersett as a tennis court relates to a game played by 2 people and him being alone is showing that he has no friends and he goes there in the hope of finding someone else or to recall his childhood when he did play there with his friends.






Hethersett skate park


I chose to use the skate park in Hethersett as it represents his childhood and there is a vantage point that I can use to get a good low angle shot when the happy part of the song comes in.







Village Hall field

I used the Hethersett village hall field for two main reasons. Firstly, because it is close to the tennis court and the skate park so this saves time and travelling. Secondly, because it is a wide open space and it suits what I wanted because there is a wall nearby that I can use when I want the character to lean against it.






House

I used my own house purely as it was easy to use. The location isn't that important for this shot so my own house works well enough.






Park in Wymondham


I used the park in Wymondham as I needed a pathway to use at the start of the film and my actor wasn't able to make it to the park in Hethersett so I decided to use the park in Wymondham as he could get there ion short notice

Storyboard - Final design

This is the storyboard I have made for 'Polarize' - the song I have chosen to make a music video on.

I went for a 6 panel approach and went into more detail with the sketches as this was the final version of the storyboard.

they all feature a brief description of what is being shown in each box.

the difference between this one and my previous design is

1) more detail - more professional.
2) panel 1 shows him walking right to left instead of straight at the camera.
3) panel 5 shows him looking down at his hands.
4) other small adjustments.

Heres the storyboard:

Prop list

• Drum Kit
• Black wooly hat
• bottle of sunny D
• Red washable spray paint
• mic stand 
• microphone
• drum sheet

Audience feedback for my rough cut

Here are some of the positives that I learned from the feedback and that they particularly liked:

• The storyline
• The transition between the story and the live performance
• The ending (spray paint and fade to the sky)
• The song choice
• the framing of the shots "interesting and you can see the emotion on the actors face"
•  The wide screen effect

But also they gave me a few pieces of constructive criticism:

• Lost their attention - needs to be more vibrant
• lip syncing is out at he start
• didn't understand the hidden messages "like the hat and the bottle dropping"
• Titles at the start are a 'bit shabby' and can be improved on

I think all the feedback is fair and constructive and I will try my best to resolve anything that they didn't like about it.

I will make a different post that shows any changes that I decide to make between my rough cut and my final cut.