25/10/12

In todays lesson me and Maddie decided to look at the lyrics for our song and annotate it with how we want them to match the visuals and what will happen when they are said. We found doing this was extremely helpful as it gave us an idea of exactly what we want in the shot and how we could follow Goodwins theory. This created a basic idea for us and managed to help us begin our storyboarding and expand on what we want to include to reach our pure potential.

Lyrics And Visual Ideas

Annotating the lyrics gave me and Maddie a much clearer understanding of how we would like our music video to look. We broke down each part and discussed the camera angles, actions and performance. We had a rough idea of our plans before we done this but whilst doing it we began to apply Goodwins theory such a close up's of band members and matching the lyrics and visuals.

Presentation Feedback

Here is the feedback we received after presenting our pitch to the class. We felt the feedback was very positive although it mentioned how our target audience was not specific enough and maybe appealed to the wrong kind of people. It mentioned how we haven't fully thought about intertextuality within the piece so this is something we are going to have to think about in order for our video to feature some kind of meaning and to meet the codes and conventions. This is still early stages in planning so we have plenty of time to develop and expand our ideas in order for us to reach our potential. 

Presentation Video

Island Records

Within the group, Maddie and I decided that Island Records was definitely the record label we wanted to sign our band. This is because they have signed other similar bands to us that have been very successful in different time periods such as Pulp  and Bombay Bicycle Club; this shows how they have maintained very high standards. Island records have signed quite a collective mix of artists considering they have also signes artists such as Tulisa and the band Mcfly. This is positive thing for our band, considering that we have quite a hybrid genre of music as we include all different types. It's good to have a record label that are very open to all different idea's within different genres - which could work with the image of our band and the freedom they will have to make the image their own and we would like to keep them original. Our band being able to create their own image is an important factor, we don't want the band to seem like a 'sell out' band, so having an open minded label is very important to the development of the band. 

18/10/12

In todays lesson we were given an hour to complete our pitch and me and my other group member decided on our record label in whom will be 'Island Records'. We decided on island records as they have signed other artists and bands similar to ours such as Bombay Bicycle Club, Pulp and many more that have an independent style of music and fashion which have been very successful within the industry and were sold mainly on their music not on their look or like ability.

We then went on to presenting our pitch as a 'Prezi' to the class. I found this a great experience as me and Maddie were able to present all our ideas and get an opinion/feedback from an outsider of the group. As we read it out loud it also made me realise some of the difficulties and errors we had within our idea such as not being very specific with the target audience and the main theme. We agreed with our feedback on the good and bad notes and our presentation was recorded, therefore i will be posting the video and feedback sheets soon.

12/10/12

In todays lesson as a group we got all our research and planning up to date. We finished our audience profile and was happy with the final outcome as we created a specific target audience that our band will appeal too. We discussed our progress so far and both agreed that we are going the way we both planned and the view of the video is meeting our expectations.

Feedback

After this feedback i felt proud to know that my research and planning was meeting the teachers expectations. After having a comment about starting regular production posts i will be sure to expand and create more journal posts after every lesson to show the changes and discussions that take place within the group. The comment about changing the way I could present how I analyse previous music videos has inspired me to not change what I have already done but analyse more videos in order to show the progress of how that i am trying different things and to be able to really communicate my thoughts and feelings. I will begin to experiment with different blog tools and i do agree it is not very varied at the moment and I would like my blog to be as presentable and interesting as possible.

Demographic And Psychographic Audience Profile

Music Video Pitch

In todays lesson we began to create a pitch of what the band and video is going to be about. Within my group we began to specify a particular primary target audience and how our video is going to appeal to them. We discussed what sort of things we wanted to portray through the video and managed to come up with a final decisions of what we would like to include and how we would portray it such as the bands personality and also their determination to become successful within the industry. 

Commodification

When a product is made with the aim of selling it at a particular price, it becomes a “commodity.” In order to expand it, capitalism forced all goods to be converted into commodities.  The professionally popular media that was produced emerged in the nineteenth century and had a double relation to the commodity system . All products were commodities in their own right as they are sold for a price, but some, most notably the popular press and, later, commercial broadcasting, also provided the major spaces where other kinds of commodities were advertised and promoted. 

In the music industry if the public carry on illegally downloading tracks and albums the music industry will eventually die! The artists and music labels will not be earning hardly any money except from live performances. Shops such as HMV will shut down and this will then lead the music industry to permanently sell albums and singles on sites such as iTunes and Amazon. This will end the collection for true music fans who like to actually buy albums and singles instead of having them saved as a format. This is making society a lot lazier and if the audience have to buy music online anyway, it would be the same process to illegally download for free.   

Digipack Analysis

This is a digipack for 'R' by R Kelly in which he wrote and produced all of the songs featured. 

The Outside Of The Pack (The Top) 

On the far left features a big bold, solid 'R'. The 'R' dominates the cover and is clearly the album name. The colour consists of red & black symbolising the love but also mystery behind his music. 

The middle cover shows the artist in his element doing what he loves. He poses by looking up as if he is thanking god for his success and the golden light adds to this as it gives it a heavenly ambiance. R Kelly stands alone on the stage with no fancy lighting, props or musicians and this shows he is a pure and original artist. 

To the far right is a silhouette of R Kelly with the letter 'R' This welcomes his audience into his lifestyle and almost allows them to talk to him as a friend; it also shows how he don't have to write out his whole name for people to know who he is. 

The Inside Of The Pack (The Bottom)

On the cover to the left shows the track names and a image of of R Kelly standing topless and showing of his muscles representing masculinity. He holds what looks like a towel or shirt on his shoulder showing he gives it all in his performance such as blood and sweat. The Colour in the background is gold and looks like clouds, this once again relates to the heaven feeling. 

The middle cover again shows a big 'R' within a circle. The circle is a way of representing a Cd/Music and the R is placed in the centre dominating the circle showing that R Kelly is in charge of his music. 

The cover to the right is another silhouette of R kelly but is a picture from one of his previous albums. This shows his staying loyal to his music and true fans that have been there from the start. it shows he hasn't changed and is still the same person even though the music industry is constantly changing. 

Tour Of Mood Board

Originally as a group we came up with an idea for our music video in which we was going to have a group of people dancing in a certain location entrapping someone in that location with them as he tries to escape until he realises he has to join in and enjoy himself. We felt this idea never had much potential due to not being able to get enough people, learning a dance routine and finding a location that would actually be useful. We also thought the idea as a bit too vague but was a good start and managed to make us realise that we do want the theme of teen life and fun to run throughout our new idea.

We then went on to discuss a new idea in which we thought it would be more appealing to the audience and allowed us to get the highest possible achievement from it possible. We decided to carry forward the theme of teen life and fun but this time make the band look more sophisticated but carefree and young. We wanted to feature a lot of colour and be able to relate to the audience not only our thoughts but also our costuming, likes and dislikes and personalities.
(Please view the above presentation to get a tour around out final mood board).

The Music Industry

In the above presentation i have researched what independent and major record labels are and which is the difference between them. I found a few examples of the companies and then focused on one specific independent record label that manages to get finance due to it being a subsidiary company of one of the big 3 '20th century fox'.

Independant Work

Blur - Parklife - Analysis:

• The video opens with a shot of a front door and a man being greeted with a window sales msn, this brings humour to the video and straight away shows the audience it is story like.
• The fish eye shot brings a sense of surrealism to the video although it also has reality tied within it.
• The lyrics and visuals match as the man says 'oi' as he directly looks into the camera.
• The running man and the kids loitering on the car also brings a theme of chilhood and fun to the piece.
• The car breaks down and smokes rises from the bonnit, this represents him as a lower class citizen,this is in contrast to his costume and therefore represents him as a kind of fake/liar.
• 'You should cut down on your pork pies mate get some exercise' represents as being funny man but also a kind of rude one.
• opens packed lunch in the car and snatches sandwich of the other man, makes him look un classy. 
• The lyric 'Parklife' is used and the camera focuses on a sign on the wall. 
• The video features typical british icons such as telephone box and a ice cream van.
• The video is made to look fun and colourful with the multicoloured umbrella routine.
• The band break the fourth wall throughout the video. 

Final Music Video Brief

You have been asked to devise and make a promotional music video for the new act detailed below. As a new act, the record label is keen that this first release appeals to a wide audience and establish an image that is both recognisably unique and appealing to their target audience. With this in mind, their first release will be a cover version and will be used as a platform for future, original releases. The record label is happy for this release to be any of the three songs listed below and would like you to choose which ever one you can make a dynamic promo for, as a key thing is to get them exposed.

Band Name: Young Mistakes

Billy (21) Adam (19) James (21) are 3 young middle class boys that came together at their hometown in surrey when they were in the middle of their secondary school years. They are a fun, carefree band that do not take themselves too seriously, which combined with their talent and really managed to appeal to a teenage audience. After performing a few gigs in London, they reached out to a London record label and were successful because of their young, unique style.

Sound: ‘funky pop with a indie undertone’

Music ideology: ‘it’s not about the fame, it's about doing what you love’

Influences: Blur, Pulp, Queen, Supergrass.

Likes: gigging, girls, chilling, music festivals, laughing, eating and partying hard.

Dislikes: people that don't know how to have a laugh, spots, Lady Gaga.

Chosen Song: Supergrass - Alright