Bringing the Story to Life - Animatic

[Upload of animatic needed]

This is my animatic for my music video. I took digital still photographs of each shot on my storyboard and put them in sequence in Adobe Premier Pro to represent how my final music video will roughly look. I layed the non-diegetic soundtrack over the digital stills and edited the shot transitions and pace to match the music.

Now I have my animatic completed, I am ready to start filming. Once I have gathered a sufficient amount of footage, I can produce the rough cut of my music video, which will allow me to see if any further changes should be made.

Storyboarding: Putting Pictures To The Idea...

Now I have a firm idea of what exactly I know is going to happen in my music video, I must storyboard the entire video to show me roughly how it will look.

I will sketch each, individual shot as it would be filmed, and write notes concerning the duration and type of shot, so when I take it out to film with me along with my shot list, I know exactly what footage I need to capture,

By storyboarding our entire opening, and digitalizing it in the form of an animatic, I am able to see roughly what my final music video will look like, and make any alterations to my idea before I start filming which overall, will save time and therefore be extremely beneficial

[Upload sample storyboard images]

Now I Need A Set...

For my location, my idea simply calls for a room large enough for the band to perform in. I want the room to be as plain as possible so I can add my own set design to make it suit the band atmosphere more (I want to create the authentic unsigned band-practice feel).

Additionally, I would like the room to be fairly small, in order to represent the closeness of the band as they interact with eachother during the music video. I will set up all the instruments so I will have fully working props to create a high sense of realism and believability, The room shall be decorated with plenty of lights and lightbulbs to coincide with the song title 'Illuminations', and will also help to create unique lighting within the room, which will cast shadows on different walls to make the video quite trippy.

After visiting various friends houses to try and find the perfect room, I have asked my friend Jo Grimshaw (one of the actresses) if we can use her loft, as the size is perfect, the shape is unique, and she already has instruments set up, reducing overall production time as we no longer have to set up al the props.

[Pictures needed]

Recreating the Band: Finding My Own Joey Nightmare

As it would be difficult to organize the shoot to actually include Joey Nightmare (they have a very busy schedule) I have decided to recreate the band.

After looking at pictures of the band, and judging their styles when I have met them and seen them perform live, I should be able to easily estalbish the same 'look' with my actors to give the music video an authentic 'Joey Nightmare' feel.

Joey Nightmare consists of:
Joeseth - Guitars/Vocals
Alex - Guitars
Benji - Drums/Vocals
Josh - Bass/Vocals
Tiff - Vocals

These are the actors I will use:

Sara Cracknell as...Tiff - Vocals

James Coffey as...Joseph - Guitar / Vocals

Tom Horsfield as... Josh - Bass / Vocals

Jo Grimshaw* as...Benji - Drums / Vocals

*[I thought it would be interesting by using a girl to replace Benji intead of a boy to appeal to a wider audience]

I have decided to use these people for a number of reasons. Firstly, they will all bring a lot of character to the screen as they have big personalities meaning I can make an exciting music video. Secondly, they are all fans of Joey Nightmare and therefore know how the band play, so should be able to mimick them in terms of performance fairly easily. Lastly, all the actors live locally, making shoots very easy to organise, allowing me to schedule re-shoots quickly if needed. However, the original band consists of 5 members and I am using only 4, simply because a 5th willing volunteer was proving hard to find.

Time To Finalize - Development of Ideas

Let's Get To Work - Initial Ideas

To help me come up with ideas for my music video I decided to watch some videos of Joey Nightmare to give me an idea of how they perform and their individual personalities, allowing me to recreate and incorporate this into my final product.

This is live footage of Joey Nightmare performing 'Illuminations' (the song I'm using).

It is obvious to see that Tiff (singer) draws most of the focus during the performance and uses the stage well by constantly moving. However, as I have seen them perform live myself I know that this is a tame version of them live, so will incorporate my own personal experience and knowledge of them myself.

This the official music video for 'Sun Showers' by Joey Nightmare

Conclusion of Results

After analyzing my results, I have now decided upon my target audience. This is important as it will effect my final idea greatly because I now know what people wish for me to include. I can therefore manipulate my music video to fit my target audiences' wants.

The audience I am targeting is 18 and below, and will be of a mixed gender meaning I have to choose actors that will appeal to both a male and female audience. I will also match the on-screen performance to coincide with how they would like the band to move, interact, etc...

This will enable me to create a music video that will be pleasing to watch, as well as being enjoyable to listen to.

Primary Research - Questionnaire

For my primary research, I created my own questionnaire and decided to give it out to a sample of 100 people. This is a summary of the results:

1. Gender:
M - 58
F - 32

2. Age:
18 and below - 45
19-29 - 37
30-39 - 11
40+ - 7

3. What is your preferred genre of music?
Pop - 15
Rock - 20
Indie - 25
Metal - 2
Hip-Hop / Rap - 8
R'n'b - 3
Alternative / Acoustic - 12
Classical - 0
Dance - 15
Other - 0

4. What style of music video do you enjoy the most?
Narrative (Tells a story) - 26
Performance (Band / Artist simply performs the song) - 19
Mixed (Both narrative and performance) - 65

5. Give reasons for your choice:
For this question I recieved a variety of different answers. Overall, participants said that they would prefer a 'mixed narrative' as its much more engaging and interesting then simply having a storyline or a performance.

6. Do you like music videos to be:
Funny - 37
Serious - 15
Romantic - 39
Political - 2
Inspiring - 7

7. What do you like music videos to include?
Again, for this question I recieved a variety of different answers. Overall, males enjoy music videos with beautiful females in, and females with handsome men in. Additionally, surprisingly a lot of partiipants said they enjoy music videos to include unique lighting, and an artistic flair.

Tips for Making a Good Music Video

Beware of Using Excessive Zoom:
It may look cool while you're shooting it, but in the final edit zooming often looks clichéd, and unless done with a very steady hand can often look amateurish.

And Excessive Special Effects:
Even the most basic video editing software has a myriad of of special effects for you to use; color changing, rolling edits, split screens.....it's advisable to use them sparingly. A good video isn't a showcase for how many effects you've mastered. It's usually better to use a couple of effects throughout the video to create a certain feel rather than use as many effects as you can to make a video exciting (if you need to do this, then maybe it's time to rethink your idea. or add some more footage - see Steps 4, 5 and 6).

But Think about Adding Sound Effects:
A dramatic music video may be enhanced with some addition sound effects. If your video begins with someone walking down the street, you could add the sound of footsteps or ambient street noise over the intro. If you're making a video for someone else make sure they won't mind you adding sound effects to their perfectly crafted tune!

Don't Be Over Ambitious:
A simple idea well executed is often more effective than a complex idea done badly.

And Ignore All I've Said:
The most interesting videos are made when the rules of convention are bent, buckled and broken, so keep experimenting and above all else, make something interesting.

Secondary Research - How To Shoot A Music Video

Whislt me and my co-student were researching on the internet, we found a useful website which gives a detailed guide on how exactly to film a music video.

URL : http://musicians.about.com/od/musicindustrybasics/ss/makeavideo_10.htm

'Choose Your Song'
Having a music video can help promote your band, through video sites such as YouTube and MySpace. As well as by getting exposure on national television. If you're a film maker making a music video is a good way of getting exposure and experience and bands are often happy to give you a creative free reign. A video doesn't need to cost a fortune what's important is having a good idea and working within your budget. Production companies charge a fortune for even the simplest promo video, but you can easily do it yourself. First things first, however. You have to choose your song.

While it might make sense to make a video for your upcoming single there are a few other factors to consider:

- It can take a lot longer than you think to make a video, so by the time it's finished your single might have come out. It might be an idea to think about making the video for a subsequent single.
- Having said that, in these days of internet downloads, any track can be seen as a single, so there might be a track on the album that you have a great idea for a video for, even if that track wasn't originally planned as a single.
- Remember that it can take a long time to shoot and edit each second of video so while you might have a good idea for a video for that 10 min epic that closes the album it might be more practical to shoot a video for the 3 min pop song.

'Get a Team and Equipment Together'
However complicated (or simple) your shoot is, you'll need a team of people. As well as the actors/performers you'll need:

- Camera person – At least one, and maybe more.
- Lighting Person – If you're filming inside you'll need lighting, and someone to look after it.
- Director/dogsbody – You need someone in charge of the shoot, making sure everything is running smoothly, and who can go buy batteries when you need them.

It's a good idea supply some kind of refreshments for your crew – that will not only keep them happy but also stop them popping off to the shops to get their own supplies, just when you need them for the shoot.

Ideally you'll be able to recruit a team who have their own equipment. If you have to get equipment, then you'll want to get the best your budget allows. While prices are coming down, buying a camera, lights and other gear will still set you back a small fortune. You'll be able to get more equipment for your money by renting gear; many places have community arts programs where you can hire equipment cheaply. You can also check out the local colleges in your area to see if they can help. If you are looking to buy gear, then do your research. For example you're probably better of buying a higher spec Standard Definition camera, than a bottom of the range High Definition camera.

'Plan Your Shoot'
The more planning you can do before hand the quicker you'll be able to shoot. If you're renting gear, the quicker you can shoot the less it will cost you, and if you're relying on favors, people will be more willing to help again if you keep the hanging around to a minimum. To plan, you should:

- Draw story boards showing each scene and shot
- List the crew, performers and props you'll need for each shot
- Try and brief the camera and lighting people beforehand so they know what you want from the shot.

'Filming'
On the day of the shoot be prepared and organised. Keep a record of shots you've made; it'll make editing much easier. Always allow plenty of time for shooting - the finished shot may only last 10 seconds, but could easily take several hours to set up and shoot. When you're happy with a shot, if you have time, shoot it again. You can never have too much footage, and the retake may capture something that you hadn't noticed first time round. You'll have your plan and storyboard to follow, but remember that some of the best moments in a video can be unplanned. Keep the camera rolling – these days tape is cheap.
*[I find this to be very good advice]

'Capture Live Footage'
Filming the band playing live can provide you with great footage for a video. Filming the band at a gig will mean you'll be able to capture the bands live energy and their interaction with the audience. They are some difficulties, however:

- They'll only play the song you've making the video for once so you'll only have one chance of capturing the right footage
- The live version may differ considerable from the recorded version so syncing the footage with the track could be problematic
- The band's, and particularly the audience's, movements won't be choreographed, so you, or your camera person, won't know where to be to capture the right shots
- The lighting and effects may look great to the audience but may not look great to the camera
- Your filming may interrupt the bands performance.

Live filming may provide you with some great footage that can be used as part of a video, but if you want live footage to synch to a video, your best bet is to "stage" a live performance. Get the band to play along (or mime) to the track in front of an audience of mates or invited fans. You can then control the lighting, people's movements and get the track played as many times as you need (or at least until the band decamp to the bar!)

'Use Stock Footage'
You can spice up your video by adding stock footage but you need to be aware that, like music, almost all video footage is subject to strict copyright law. Making use of footage without the copyright holders express permission is illegal. (That shot from Top Gun may look great in your video but you'll need permission from Paramount Pictures to use it).

However, there are source of footage that you can legally use. Royalty free footage is footage you can re-use in any setting, without asking permission or paying the copyright holder a fee each time you use it - but you may have to pay a fee to obtain it in the first place! Fear not: there is free royalty free footage – footage that's in the public domain. Some sites where you can download public domain footage for free from are:

- The British Film Institute
- Google's collection of National Archives
- For black holes and other treats from outer space try the European Space Agency.

There is more and more footage being made available under creative commons licences - original material that the the copyright owner has entered into the public domain with certain conditions attached (usually that the original author is credited). More details from Creative Commons.org.

'Editing'
Your footage might be great, but it'll only become a great video through editing. To do a good job you'll need patience, time and more patience. You'll need to decide the 'feel' and pace of the video. Will it be made up of long sweeping shots, or quick sharp edits? Do you want to follow the mood of the song and edit to the music or do you want the video to contrast with the track?

The judicious use of the right effect can really set your video apart. As well as your software standard effects, there are usually many plug-ins that you can download (some free, most for a fee) so feel free to experiment (most plug-ins have a trial version you can play with for free before you buy). See tip 3 in the last step for more about the proper use of effects.

A word of warning: if you're making a video as a band it's usually best to delegating the editing process to one person. After they've done a rough edit you can discuss how it should be finished, but if 4 people sit round all trying to edit a video together a long process will become torturous and, almost inevitable, will end in falling outs.

'Get the Right Software and Hardware'

These days cheap, or even free, software can do a professional job of editing. The basic video software for Macs is iMovie and for the PC, Adobe's Première Elements is a good place to start. The more complex software available may give you more freedom and choice, but for the beginner these package can be overwhelming and very pricey.

Any new computer should be capable of editing film footage, and even a ten year old PC should be able to handle basic video editing software. Video editing takes up a lot of hard drive space, so keep your hard drive clear and get rid of footage your not using (but be careful not to delete footage you ARE using!). Investing in a new hard drive to store you video footage on is probably a good idea.

The output format will depend on it's destination. Highly compressed formats are best for streaming over the internet (Quicktime is the most universal), DVDs are great for send out to press and media, and a DigiBeta tape is need for TV broadcasts (something you'll need to get made up at a professional production company).

'Be Creative'
How many videos have you seen on MTV that consist of the band playing in a club, with the lights flashing whilst the audience jump up and down? Exactly. Try and think of something different when you make your video. Filming a Hollywood blockbuster on a shoestring budget will generally look crap! One of the most interesting videos I've seen recently was of the band playing in the back of a transit van while it went through a car wash – the only cost was the car wash fee. From this simple idea they made a interesting and quirky video that was premiered on MTV Europe.

The Codes and Conventions of Music Videos

Media Music Video Codes And Conventions Presentation

View more presentations from emijean.

This presentation was produced by myself and the two other students in my Media Studies class who are also producing Music Video's as their A2 coursework (Emily Prescott & Lewis Yates). We were asked to research the codes and conventions of traditional music videos, and compile the information into a presentation. This will aid us in creating successful music videos and therefore excelling in our coursework.

Late of the Pier - Focker

Artist: Late of the Pier
Track: Focker
Dir: Daniel Brereton

Bloc Party - Banquet

Artist: Bloc Party
Track: Banquet
Dir: Scott Lyon

Crystal Castles - Courtship Dating

Artist: Crystal Castles
Track: Courtship Dating
Dir: Irwin Barbé

Paramore - Ignorance

Artist: Paramore
Track: Ignorance
Dir: Honey

Foals - Balloons

Artist: Foals
Track: Balloons
Dir: Dave Ma

Getting the Jist of Things...

In order to produce an effective and sufficient music video, I must first conduct research into the genre in order to gain insight into what I need / would want to include in my own music video.

I will therefore analyse 5 music videos from artists in the the same genre or sub-genre as Joey Nightmare to see what the codes and conventions are for music videos in said genre.

Bring on Joey Nightmare

As music is a big part of my life, I am frequently going to gigs and festivals in order to catch my favourite artists, as well as discover new ones. A few months ago, I went to an unsigned music competition, of which my friends were competing.

There were 6 acts in the competition, so the heat was on. And they all performed amazingly, making it hard to determine who the winner would be. However, one band caught my eye more than the rest. They were an indie / dance amazement, and I was hooked with their catchy songs straight away.

They may not have won the competition, but they definately made an impression on me. Introducing...Joey Nightmare.

[Click image to go to the Joey Nighmare MySpace page]

A Change of Direction...

After continuing with my original idea and carrying out primary and secondary research into the genre, it has become evident to me that there is simply no time to finish my song, record and edit it all in time to meet deadlines.

This is why I have opted to go back and find an unsigned band so I am free to go ahead and get the pre-production aspects of my music video completed, and plunge straight into filming and editing for my rough cut.

However, this means deleting all of my original analysis and planning as it is no longer relevant and would make my blog seem confusing with the 2 mixes of genre.

Jason Mraz - I'm Yours

Track: I'm Yours
Artist: Jason Mraz
Director: Eric Wareheim

The music video begins with an establishing shot of an airport with a commercial airplane featured, immediately suggesting that the video will have a ‘holiday’ feel to it. During the build up to the start of the song, there are short takes of various things, such as Jason Mraz (the artist) looking out of the plane window, and CU’s of road signs and water. This allows the audience to start having an idea of where the music video may be set.

As the music begins, there is juxtaposition in terms of setting, as it changes from the sunny atmosphere of an external location, to the darker atmosphere of an internal location. The shots are fairly long, focusing on the artist preparing to go out, keeping in time with the pace of the song. Mainly CU’s and MS’s are used to keep a sense of mystery – the audience is yet to find out where he is going – with the artist never fully shown on camera. Additionally, there is a shot where the artist is shown fiddling with a key (presumably to the apartment he is in) and then simply throwing it on the table and not taking it with him, suggesting to the audience that he isn’t intending on coming back and is out to seek adventure, allowing the audience to gain insight into the artists personality.

Following this is a travel montage (destination still unknown to the audience) of the artist in a taxi, on the plane, and then hitch-hiking and jumping into the back of a person’s pick-up truck (whether or not he knows them isn’t obvious at this point which ties in with the sense of adventure). The whole time the artist is singing the lyrics of the song, making it a mixed-style music video as it features both a narrative and a performance. At this point it’s obvious that the music video is trying to emphasize the chilled persona of Jason Mraz and promoting him as a happy-go-lucky type of person.

The setting then changes again as the journey finishes and the artist finds himself in an empty swimming pool which the people he’s with start too skateboard in. The footage is edited in such a way that it changes from shot to shot to match the beat of the music, which is very effective as it keeps you hooked on what is happening. The artist is shown talking and socializing with some people as the others skate, with brief shots of an exotic looking waterfall whilst they talk, allowing the audience to see the topic of conversation without having to actually hear it (as this would take away focus from the song).


After being shown a glimpse of the next location, the artist leaves with the new people he’s met. An effective shot used is when there is a lyric on the song saying “loved” and then a shot of the artist making a love heart shape out of his fingers as he sings it (refer to video – 1:33)

Chosen Brief

After much deliberation, I've decided to go with brief 1 - a promotion package for the release of an album - rather than an advert. This is because I find it an exciting prospect to be able to create a piece of footage to go along with something that is an important aspect of my life - music.

The specification for this brief requires copyright-free music to be used for the music video, so this means having to find an unsigned band/solo artist. However, as a musician myself I feel that my music video will benefit more from an original piece that I will write and produce myself as this will give me ultimate freedom in the sense of the genre and style of my music video. Additionally, I have chosen to recruit my friend Joanna Grimshaw to accompany me on the track as a duet to have a varied vocal range to give a 'fuller' sound. Furthermore, having a female feature in the song will increase the audience that my music video will appeal to.

The genre of music I have chosen is acoustic / alternative. Much like the work of Jack Johnson, Jason Mraz, John Mayer, Cas Haley, etc. I will try and combine snappy, catchy guitar with soft harmonies to create a very chilled song with a happy-go-lucky kind of feel - perfect as a summer tune.

With this genre of music in mind, I will now have to research those of a similar style to see what music videos of this genre generally entail and then expand on that to come up with an original idea of my own.

Narrowing It Down a Bit...

After considering all the briefs, I have no narrowed it down to my two favourites, these being briefs 1 & 3. I have chosen these 2 specifically as they appeal to me most as it's an area of media which I have no past experience in and will therefore be a healthy challenge in terms of knowledge and skill to be able to complete successfully.

Why Advertising?
I think that to be able to produce something with the power to influence someone's choice within a brief moment is a very intriguing thing. I would find it an interesting prospect to see what ideas I could come up with to advertise certain products and how persuasive they could be toward consumers.

Example of the style of television advert I would wish to produce:



Product: Dairy Milk
Company: Cadbury
Director: Tom Kuntz

This style of advert is interesting as it doesn't directly relate to the product per say, but due to the way in which it's humorous and unique, it's instantly memorable and will therefore remind the public of the product each time they remember it. I also enjoy the way in which it's so lighthearted as I think that adverts which are too serious lose their appeal.

Example of the style of music video I would wish to produce:

Track: Electric Feel
Artist: MGMT
Director: Ray Tintori

Decisions, decisions...

For A2, we are required to work individually instead of groups as we did last year, and instead of a single task with which we had no leeway, we now have 6 different briefs to choose from. Before I can begin research, I must first consider each brief and decide upon 2 or 3 which I would be interested in doing and then proceed from there.

Brief 1

A promotion package for the release of an album, to include a music promo video, no longer than five minutes duration, together with:

- a cover for its release on DVD

- a magazine advertisement for the DVD

Brief 2

A promotion package for a new film, to include a teaser trailer, together with:

- a film magazine front cover, featuring the film

- a poster for the film

Brief 3

An advertising package for a new product or service, to include two TV advertisements, together with

- a radio advertisement

- a web pop-up

Brief 4

A promotion package for a new soap opera, to include a TV trailer, together with:

- a listings magazine front cover featuring the new soap

- a poster for the soap

Brief 5

A selection of materials related to an original children's TV drama, to include the title sequence to the TV programme, together with:

- the front cover to a magazine for the series

- a DVD cover for the series

Brief 6

A short film in its entirety, lasting approximately five minutes, which may be live action or animation or a combination of both, together with:

- a poster for the film

- a film magazine review page featuring the film

It's a New Year...

As I am starting A2 Media Studies, it was necessary to create a new blog for this year's coursework.

Click on the link below to see what i've done in the past...

AS