Sunday, 29 January 2012

Job Roles and Responsibilities

I chose to take the role of Camera Operator / Editor as I enjoy the filming element of the production stage and I have had previous experience with camera equipment as I have helped  to film some of my friends videos in A2, I feel that i can best contribute to the team in this role. The editing side of my role means that I will be able to use my creative side to help create the finished music video, I feel that i am best suited to this role as I have an iMac at home and so am accustom to some of the basic editing software and I have also helped one of my friends to edit their video using Final Cut which means that I have a basic knowledge of the software already.


Shriya chose to take the role of Director / Production Manager as the music video we are doing was her concept and so she has a better idea of what kind of shots would best fit the idea and what cast and props to use. Also Shriya has the ability to delegate tasks well for others whilst still being in control of the situation. She is also good at instructing others with precise detail and is responsible and reliable which is needed for this role.

Risk Assessment

These are Risk Assessments of all of our filming locations, they highlight any risks that we may encounter during the production stage and how we will protect the cast and ourselves. This is a very important aspect of the health and safety of our production team and is taken seriously.

Production Schedule

This production schedule includes the free time that me and Shriya have at the same time, what dates we have allocated to film each scene and what dates our cast have free time available. We also included the dates which we will be unable to film as one or both of us is unavailable. Our aim is to adhere to this schedule strictly but we are both aware that there are many unforeseen problems that could arise and so have also set aside some time for such cases.

Permission to Film

Costa
I am still awaiting a reply from costa as to whether it will be possible to film at this location, and if they do not reply in time I will seek other filming locations that are easier to get permission for.




Canteen
I have asked for permission from the headmaster of the school to film here. This was the easiest location to gain permission for as I attend the school and are trusted students.


Valentines Park
My partner has e-mailed the council requesting permission to film in the park. She has gained verbal approval but we are still waiting for written confirmation of permission.


House
My partner has gained permission for the house location and has received confirmation but we are awaiting an e-mail confirmation to display.

Waiver for Cast

Before we were able to film we had to get the cast members to sign the waivers in which they formally agree to be in the music video. We planned the cast list together by going over the original idea and allocating roles which were vital to the video, this included a girlfriend, boyfriend, Ex-boyfriend and a rebound girl. 



Production Log: Week 2

This week me and Shriya finished planning what locations we were going to use, this means that when we come to filming we know where we are going to film. For each of our shooting locations we filled out a risk assessment form which details some of the risks associated with filming in each of the locations.


We also finished our shooting script which plans in detail each shot that we are going to make, the angle of the shot and what lyrics will correspond with that shot in the finished music video. Another objective that we completed this week was to finalise the cast list and get each member to sign a waiver form before we started the filming stage.


One of the difficulties that we faced this week was finding the time to meet up with my partner as we both had exams, this meant that we feel slightly behind on some of the work and so had to catch up in what ever free time we could use. We also had trouble in picking the cast of our video as we had to contact the people and didn't always get the quick reply that we required.
We overcame both of these problems and some other minor ones by setting up times to work together and by organising the work so that we were able to work independently and catch up with our schedule.

Location Reccies

Valentines Park 
For our first location we will shoot in Valentines Park, this is because for one of the scenes we need a playground with a swing set. Also Valentines Park is quite central for all of our actors/actresses. Due to its large size we are more likely to be able to film uninterrupted which will result in a better finished product.
The openness of the park will contrast well with the busy and noisy environment of the Costa this will help to separate the different scenes for the audience. Also compared with the house location which is very private and will give an intimate feel to some of the more romantic scenes where as the park is an open place which is open to the public and so gives a different feel to the scene.




Costa
A location I have chosen to use is Costa coffee shop in Romford. I have chosen this location as it is a public place in which the atmosphere is buzzing and there is a appropriate visual style suiting my video idea. I believe this will create a appropriate mood for my video according to the script. Filming in this location will be difficult in the scene that other people will be there and we will be unable to control our surroundings however, we can deal with this by going at a time there will be less people and it will be more quiet.
This location varies from the others as it is more buzzing and fun than the park as the park is quiet and intimate as demonstrated in this circumstance. The coffee shop also varies from the dinner in the canteen as it is often stereo typical for a cute date however dinner is more romantic. This is suitable for my music video as my characters having a coffee date and dinner will emphasise the difference between the time of day/ a new day. I will also make this clear by the type of clothing the characters and wearing e.g.. dressy, casual.


House
A location I have chosen for two scenes of my music video is a house. I have chosen a modern house as I want to video to be classy and have a bright atmosphere. I feel that during the fight the house will be appropriate as it will appear big against the characters showing them to be venerable. I like this location as there are many rooms to film in which can be used for different scenes which appear to be in a different place. This will be an advantage as my partner and I will be able to film more than one scene at once without having to travel. This will save us a lot of time. This location compares to the rest of mine as it is homely, the characters in the scene are fully alone and in private. This will allow my characters to appear loved up and closer to each other than they would be able to in the other public places. This location will also show viewers the different ways the characters act in various situations. This location is suitable for my music video as it will allow me and my partner to be creative with the scenes set out which will change the atmosphere also it will show a contrast between public location scenes. 








Canteen

One of the other locations that we are going to film is in the canteen, we are going to use this as a setting for a romantic dinner. The main reason for this is because there are tables with chairs on both sides as in a restaurant, also shooting on school grounds means that we do not need to get written permission to shoot. This means that we can allocate more of our time to filming or editing the video.
Also because it is a lot larger than most restaurants and it is on school property we are more likely to be able to film with minimal noise and interruptions which will provide a better quality video. Another advantage of filming this scene at school is that there is easy access and does not require a long journey with the equipment. If shot from the right angles this location could have a more intimate feel than the park setting emphasising the image of a romantic dinner.


Monday, 23 January 2012

Our Rationale

Production Log: Week 1


This week we chose our partners for the music video project, I chose to work with Shriya. As a pair we decided to use her song and music video idea for the project as we both agreed that her idea works very well with her song. We spent some time planning and altering her idea for the scenes so that when it came to the shooting script and production stage we would have a detailed idea of what we were going to do. We also exchanged contact details so that we would be able to make plans to go and film or edit.


We filmed a short video Rationale in which we highlighted what elements of each of our ideas we would incorporate into the video, we also talked about what we felt the main challenges we will face could be. Also in this video we talked about why we had chosen to work with each other and what we thought each others strengths during this project would be.



Feedback Analysis

I received a lot of very useful feedback for my pitch which will help me to develop my idea and produce a better music video.


Suggestions
Some of the suggestions that I got were to incorporate some comedic elements into the video, this will enhance the feel of a punk video whilst also giving another element to keep the audiences interest throughout the video. Another suggestion was that I could  try and add some variety to the locations of my video and also try to vary the look of each of the band performing. Also I found that although people thought I had a good idea there were some elements which I didn't fully explain  and so people found it hard to grasp the full concept, in future presentations I will try to give more information on my idea and elaborate on some of the more confusing elements. If I were to do my presentation again I would try to explain my idea in more detail by describing the different types of shot that I would use and some of the different techniques that I would use. 


Positives
The soft sound of the song means that it will appeal to a wider audience which may include people who don't necessarily fit into the stereotype of a rock listener. Also the idea of shooting the video as a band competition is quite unique as I haven't found a video that uses the same ideas as mine but I have taken inspiration from videos like "American Idiot" which use a lot of as live performance. This type of video will not have to change the environment a lot to keep the audiences interest as the variety of bands would do this in place of location changes.

My Feedback

My Feedback

My Pitch

My Pitch (Part 1 & 2)


Analysing my Song

Silent Sundays - "Thin Black Jeans"
http://www.unsigned.com/silentsundays
The Lyrics:

Rows and rows of people feeling lethal
And I dont know these people
Coz I'm knee deep in the cold raw steak you throw my way
And now you can say you care for all the people here
Can you feel someone staring
It’s me it’s just me
But I’m not the only one breaking
We’re all guilty
Raise your hand if you feel daring
Coz your all wearing thin black jeans and swearing
I cant bare all the agony come ecstasy
And now you just can be there
For all the people here
Can you feel someone staring
It’s me it’s just me
But I’m not the only one breaking
We’re all guilty
We’re alone so stop shaking
We busy breaking hearts
And sweat your making
coz its just taken me a year to get us here
And now you can say you’re here to all the people here
Can you feel someone staring
It’s me it’s just me
But I’m not the only one breaking
We’re all guilty
Can you feel someone staring
It’s me it’s just me
But I’m not the only one breaking
We’re all guilty

Target Audience:
I think that the target audience for this song is white males between the ages of 15 - 25. This is because this age range is the most likely to be able to relate to the lyrics. I think that this song is targeted towards young males in the western hemisphere as the culture and customs differ from that of other countries and allow people of that age a to express themselves more freely. Also the  name of the song "Thin Black Jeans" could be linked with teenage fashion which people outside of this age range may not understand.


Tempo:
 The tempo of this song like most punk / indie is quite fast throughout this can make even some depressing songs sound more upbeat and allows for a better song to dance to. I like how the tempo speeds up slightly for the chorus as this adds emphasis on that section of the song.


Lyrics:
Many of the lyrics in this song have a very random feel as though they come from different songs. Although this may confuse the audience the lyrics, when sung properly, match the tempo of the song well creating a better sound for the audience. But the chorus of the song, although completely different from the rest of the lyrics, matches well and helps to give a feeling of stability to this otherwise random sequence of lyrics.
One of the lyrics that most caught my attention was "Coz I'm knee deep in the cold raw steak you throw my way" because i'm not completely sure if these are the correct lyrics but if they are they seem to connote that the girl is treating the guy as an animal by tossing him cold steaks. This could mean that in the relationship the girl has some sort of control over the boy and he realises this.
Another lyric that drew my attention was that there was only one reference to "Thin Black Jeans" even though this is the name of the song. This happens fairly often in rock songs and  don't know why, it could be a way of emphasising a specific section of the song or it could be that that lyric works well as a song title.

Treatment