Shooting Plan One

My Idea


The idea for my initial shoot is to collect and film footage shot at night time or late evening. I am aiming for quite a grainy look to the footage so will probably use a high ISO which goes hand-in-hand with night footage anyway. 





Equipment

• Canon EOS700D
• Tripod
• 64GB SD Card
• 60mm Lens

Lighting

As I'm filming at night or late evening, I will not be using any additional lighting and will instead be utilising the ambient lighting around from street lights, lights from shops, the moon etc. 



Audio






Risk Assessment

Music Video Schedule

So that I can effectively make use of and organise my time, I decided to create a Gantt chart. I found this method particularly useful in my promotional video unit when Beth and I created a video for a tattoo parlour, as it meant that I could see what tasks I needed to complete and when easily, and I could update the chart as frequently as I needed to by logging back into teamgantt.com. 

Music Video Treatment

Working Title

The title of the video will be 'Moving Home'.

Genre 

Music video for the 90's emo inspired/alternative band Moose Blood.

Duration

The aim is for the video to last the entire duration of the song, which is exactly 3:00 minutes in length.

Target Audience

The target audience will be fans of the band Moose Blood, as I will be using their song for the music video. These people are commonly either male or female, and range from the ages of 15 - 25. I think that in particular, my video will attract this age group, as the character that features in the video is between this age bracket, making it more relatable for the audience as they can put themselves in his position more easily. 


Outline

The narrative for my music video follows the story of a young man who has been kicked out of his house. He goes on a drive to contemplate his life and the situation he is in, stops off at various locations (a fast food outlet, a church) before making his way to his old family home. The narrative will end with the young male character returning to the house he was kicked out of.

Visual Elements

In regards to lighting, I plan on using a lot of low-key, dim lighting, with my character being lit mainly by the television screen in the hotel room. This is to create a moody atmosphere which reflects the feelings of the character and the overall feel of the song. I also intend to incorporate some fairy lights in the video at some point, as this is something that is heavily features in Moose Blood's other music videos and live performances - it is almost their iconography, something that fans associate with the band. 
As for camera movements/techniques, I am going to employ a variety of camera movements, such as tracking shots of my character walking through crowds of people he doesn't know, tilts, pans, zooms etc. I will heavily incorporate close ups and extreme close ups of his face, hands, eyes etc. so that the audience can understand the way that the character is feeling and his vulnerability through his facial expressions and body language. 


Audio Elements

The audio for the video will be the song 'Moving Home' by Moose Blood, as this is the song I have chosen to create the music video for. I won't be recording any additional sound using external mic, however I will be very conscious about ensuring that the footage I select will fit well with the music to make for an aesthetically pleasing video. 


Rationale

I have chosen the song 'Moving Home', as it is one of my personal favourite songs by my favourite band, and also because I thought that the idea and concept behind the lyrics would be interesting and challenging to create a video for. I like the melancholy theme to the song and feel like this would make for an aesthetically pleasing video.


Primary and Secondary Research

For primary research, I have watched and written up a semiotic analysis of various music videos that I hope will inspire my own video in some way and I have also created mood boards that include still images from various different films, music videos, books and television programmes that I am inspired by in some way - whether it be the shot types or camera angles, the colour scheme, the general idea, the mood or even the filters or lighting used. I plan to print this out and take this to London with me for when I'm lacking inspiration, as this may give me a few ideas. 
As for secondary research, I began to read 'The Kindest Cut' by Carol Vernallis, and 'Dancing In The Distraction Factory' by Andrew Goodwin, which gave me an insight into the theories behind music videos. It also enabled me to understand better the conventions of music videos, and therefore help me to decide what to include in my own music video. 

Requirements and Resources

As most or all of my filming will be taking place in London, I will be making use of the hotel room I am staying in. I will also need to use my Canon E0S 700D with the kit lens, a soft focus lens, 60mm lens, tripod and potentially a reflector.  

Actors

The main character (and only character) in my music video, will be played by a young male called Jordan.  I chose a young male character as the song is written and performed by young male artists, therefore making it more relatable to them as an audience and more convincing for the video. 


Constraints and Contingency

I may encounter some problems throughout the filming process include the fact that I am using an 'actor', and people are notoriously unreliable so I will have to really push Jordan to film. Another problem could be the fact that I plan on filming at night or late evening, meaning low light situations which will require additional equipment which I will have to carry around (tripods, additional lighting etc). Another issue with lighting is the fact that I want to use some street lights for certain scenes, however some street lights cast a very orangey glow which does not always look particularly effective and doesn't fit with the colour scheme throughout the video. 




Legal and Ethical Considerations



Budget

My budget for the video will be limited as it is being made for educational purposes and I have not acquired any funding. The main thing I will need to consider when it comes to my budget is travel costs and hiring equipment out from the technician at college.

Andrew Goodwin - Dancing In The Distraction Factory

Andrew Goodwin was a media theorist and practitioner who spent years analysing the music industry and music video production, in order to put together a set of key features that apply to all music videos. Not all of these key features appear in every video you see, however it is guaranteed that at least one is present. Goodwin published his thoughts and findings on the subject matter in his book 'Dancing in the Distraction Factory' in 1992. 

Lyrics and Visuals


The first feature of a music video, according to Andrew Goodwin, is the relationship between the lyrics in the song and the visuals that appear in the music video:

• Illustrating - where the visuals clearly link with the lyrics 
• Amplifying - a more metaphorical way of linking the visuals with the lyrics 
• Contradicting - using disjuncture and subverting away from the lyrics having any connection to the visuals in the video

Genre Characteristics

Goodwin came up with the idea that genres exist within music videos, and that certain music videos demonstrated different genre characteristics depending on the genre of music they were produced for. The different types of genres can be divided up into five categories:

• Studio performance
• Stadium performance
• Conceptual/ Experimental
• Location
• Narrative

Goodwin also mentions the post-modern idea of a metanarrative whereby the video or even the lyrics suggest the progression of the artist, taking them from one place to another. 

Artist Close Ups

Goodwin expressed that a key feature of music videos is artist close ups. He argued that record companies require and demand that the artist is heavily featured throughout their music videos for the purpose of advertising and marketing. Music videos act as a sort of advertisement for the artist, and often focus heavily on making the artist 'look good' through promoting brand values, unique selling points and artistic style. Videos utilise star iconography to create a recognisable 'artistic brand', buying into the idea of celebrity culture and helping audiences to associate a particular aspect with that artist.

 Some artists develop their own motifs that recur throughout their music videos or even take on different personas which help audiences and fans to identify them. There are countless examples of this:

Both Lady Gaga and David Bowie are renowned for their star iconography, star image and use of personas. 

Interestingly, however, it is argued that the use of personas and star images can also 'complicate the ability for audiences to recognise the real person underneath the star image construction'. (Devereux, Dillane and Power 2015). Despite this, people associate the image of 'Ziggy Stardust' with David Bowie, and 'Joe Calderone' with Lady Gaga.

Looking and Voyeurism

Voyeurism and the notion of looking are both very broad themes that many music videos feature in some way. The audience will see something in the video that they would not normally see, maybe even in a setting that they would not normally be familiar with, like an intimate scene in a bedroom. Voyeurism can be used to sell the artist's music through sex appeal and can appear in the form of nudity or near nudity, revealing  clothes, camera angles and shot types etc. Goodwin makes reference to Laura Mulvey's male gaze theory, particularly when speaking about voyeuruism and the notion of looking and how this attracts a male audience. 

Voyeurism can be demonstrated in the form of watching something happening from the eyes of an observer, however it is much more common for the artist to be singing and addressing the audience, creating a false relationship between the artist and the audience that makes them feel connected when in fact this is not true - this is an example of the notion of looking. 

 

Intertextuality

Goodwin points out that another common convention in music videos is intertextuality - referencing other texts such as other music videos, films, books or pop culture. This can be in homage, pastiche or even some kind of brand synergy. 

An example of intertextuality in a music video is in Alien Ant Farm's video for their song 'Movies', where they make references to films such as Charlie and The Chocolate Factory and Ghostbusters. 

 

Bibliography

• Goodwin, Andrew. Dancing In The Distraction Factory. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1992. Print.
• Devereux, Eoin, Aileen Dillane, and Martin J Power. David Bowie. Print.
• Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema, GRIN Verlag, 1975, Auth. Laura Mulvey

Music Video Inspiration

Edward Hopper

I am going to use Edward Hopper's paintings and artwork for inspiration for my music video, as his work is often very melancholy and shows people who have been isolated etc. The paintings are often quite dark and moody, which is the kind of look I am going for in my music video. 

Existing Music Videos

Below are a collection of music videos that I find particularly inspiring or interesting. I plan to come back and watch these videos if I'm lacking inspiration at any point and may potentially draw some influences from them by using techniques used, lighting, narrative themes etc. 

    

 

Music Video Questionnaire

I used a website called SurveyMonkey.com to create a survey with questions based around music videos. I thought that it would help me create my own music video, as it would give me a good idea of the kind of aspects of a video people like, don't like, what types of video are popular etc                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/DG3VZ68

Research Techniques Notes

Types of Research:

• Audience research - the analysis of who consumes what media products and why
• Market research - investigations into the way that products could produce income by looking at the demands of consumers
• Production research - the research conducted to inform the production process of a media product e.g background info, locations, legal and ethical requirements

Primary Research 

Primary research involves material and resources and information which has been found 'for the first time' by the researcher. This would include material found using techniques such as:

• Observations made when viewing an exhibition, show, performance or on visiting location.
• Interviews with people
• Reports of Meetings/Discussions with people
• The collection of information from questionnaires or surveys
• Focus group activities 

Secondary Research

Secondary research is information or material which is collected by looking at the findings of others.Secondary research would include:

• Referring to books, journals, magazines and newspapers.
• Gathering information from the internet
• Making notes on information presented on audio visual formats like dads, videos or cds.
• Collecting information from CD ROMs

Reliablitiy and Validity 

There are many techniques that can be employed when researching. However it is vital that you choose the right one to ensure that your information is reliable and valid.

Reliablity: whether this can be trusted as a source of information. Could it be biased by peoples opinions or effected by flaws in their research methods? If this activity was done again, would it get the same results?

Validity: The relevance of information to your investigation. Can you determine that it proves what you think it does?

Music Video Planning

I have chosen the song 'Moving Home' by Moose Blood, which is off of their EP with the same name, released February 2013. I have decided that I want my music video to illustrate the lyrics to the song. 

Lyrics:

 





Ideas Brainstorm

• The key word I'm going to keep in mind throughout the filming process is 'melancholy' as I feel that this word best describes the lyrics for the song. 
• Haze aesthetic - present in most of the bands videos - added in post production
• Close ups of tired eyes, shaking hands etc - illustrates lyrics 'My eyes are getting heavy' and 'i'm a nervous wreck, I'm a mess'
• Shots of character asleep with the television on - total darkness in room except the television shining on character
• Fairy lights - links to star iconography as they appear in all of Moose Blood's music videos
• Shots of rain, looking out of windows, looking lost - links to melancholy
• Low Key lighting - suits mood of the song
• Slower paced edits - consider timing in song
• Multiple exposures
• Black and white - linking again to the melancholy feel
• Close up of the 'do not disturb' sign on the hotel door 
• Travelling on the tube/bus/train alone

Music Video Analysis - (West Coast by Lana Del Rey)

The music video for Lana Del Rey's song 'West Coast' was released on youtube on May 7th 2014 and is a narrative video shot on location, but is also performance based.

The video for the song definitely illustrates the lyrics. An example of this is when Lana sings 'Down on the West Coast' and the visual that accompanies it is her stood on a beach, suggesting that she is on the West Coast. Then there is a tracking shot of palm trees, echoing the idea of the beach environment.     

Sound beats - don't always match the visuals - disjointed

Lana Del Rey, the star, is the main focus for the record label, and therefore there are lots of shots of her. She appears as the protagonist in the narrative of the video, and is also seen performing (lip syncing) the song, which is common in pop videos. Her 'look' is very important in regards to her star image, which Andrew Goodwin talks about in 'Dancing in the Distraction Factory'. She is a very recognisable figure, and there are certain aspects about her/her videos that are very unique to her, which fans use to relate to her or associate with her, for example: her moody, grunge/hollywood glamour look, black and white imagery, palm trees, cigarettes, home video-esque filming etc. This iconography recurs throughout all of her videos, her concerts, her interviews etc and therefore, fans associate them with her whenever they see them. Obviously, with her voice being so unique, this adds to her star image also - people identify her voice with her image automatically. 

An interesting aspect of the music video is that some of the footage appears as though it is home video footage. 

Carol Vernallis - The Kindest Cut

Carol Vernallis teaches Film and Media studies at Stanford University. She carried out vital research and analysed editing in music videos and in Hollywood film, distinguishing the distinct differences between the two. 
I have been studying her academic essay ' The Kindest Cut: functions and meanings of music video editing'. 



Differences between Music Videos and Hollywood Film


Music Videos:

• The order of shots is often unconventional. There is no specific or typical order for the shots to be placed in. Shifts more freely between shots.
• Time, space, character and narrative are revealed incompletely - you do not always learn everything from one music video.
• Multiplicity of shots of shots sometimes obscure paths.
• Discontinuity - pop videos often draw our attention away from the narrative by foregrounding other structures and elements. 
• Visual hooks create continuity. Non continuous shots linked by a single feature - unified by figure, shape, colour etc. 
• Sometimes elements (setting, colours, star, editing) are all equal, sometimes one is dominant and others are subordinate. 

Hollywood Film:

• Continuity is important - the film draws us into a narrative.
• Single clear path through the film's world.
• Unity of time and space.
• Conventional order of shots - typical shot order - film opening, establishing shots, two shots, medium close ups etc. 

Other additional points to be made are that music videos feature far more cuts than are used in film, and much more frequently. Also, editing in music videos has much more responsibility than in film as it directs the flow of narrative. 

Vernallis stated in her essay that music videos often use fast cutting or editing to the beat of the music, which often appears to have a rhythmic style similar to that of the song. This is often referred to by film and television critics as 'MTV style editing' and is a complete contrast to editing in film which is often far slower in pace. Despite there being obvious differences between the two styles of editing, both film editing and music video editing it can colour and change our views and understanding of the characters that appear in them. 

Vernallis also points out that in music video editing, sometimes the edits are meant to be noticed as it brings out certain elements in the song. 

Questionnaire Feedback

Below is the feedback that Beth and I received from our clients at Hellcats Tattoo Parlour, after sending them the link to an online questionnaire that we created. We are extremely happy with the results from the questionnaire, as it showed us that our clients were very satisfied with the work we produced for them.

Music Video Analysis (The Hunter by Slaves)

The music video that accompanies British punk band Slaves's song 'The Hunter' is very much a performance based video which amplifies the lyrics for the song. The video is quite experimental in the sense that the video focuses a lot on the visual effects used in conjunction with the music. Andrew Goodwin talked about the use of 'thought beats' in his book 'Dancing in the Distraction Factory' which is the idea that you can actually 'see' the music. This video is a good example of this, through the incidental cuts and the visuals moving in time with the music etc. 

There are some parts of the video where it can be considered that the video actually illustrates the lyrics. For example, Isaac sings 'Keep smiling through your teeth' and the next shot is of a person's teeth smiling. Another example of this is when the lyrics say 'were crying to be fed' and Issac mimics the action of crying in the video.

Andrew Goodwin also commented on the importance of 'star image' and 'star iconography' in music videos. He pointed out that record labels demanded more and more that the artists appeared in the music videos in order for the audience to feel a sense of connection to them and to associate the artist with a certain 'look' so that they are easily identifiable. Slaves are known for having a certain recognisable 'look' about them - for example, they wear a lot of Fred Perry and Adidas Originals, crazy patterned trousers, round sunglasses, dr martens etc. The video conforms to this idea from Goodwin about star image by including countless close ups of the band members throughout the duration of the video, which allow us to learn about their recognisable style and see the different aspects that make.