Location

Location Recce

Places I plan to film:

• Bristol - street art shots
• Road near Corley services - birds eye shots of cars on motorway at night  
• Coronation walk and fields in Weddington - tracking shots of subject 
• Studio at King Edward VI College 
• My house for experimental lighting shots
• Foleshill Rosd Coventry - neon signs on busy road at night

Bristol

I am going to Bristol from the 2nd - 3rd of March where I plan to shoot the natural lighting shots for my music video as there are a lot of interesting places that I can go to. For instance I quite like the idea of combining images of art with the visuals that I create in the studio of the character and I can also play around with layering the images to create more experimental visuals. This is also something that I have taken inspiration from the music video  Cedar Lane by First Aid Kit where layering is used to create a more dreamy/uplifting visual with fits well with the Psychedelic appearance that I am aiming to achieve. 

Street art/Graffiti is also hugely popular in Bristol and I plan to visit multiple sights where they are positioned as I think this will add a creative and colourful element to the visuals of my music video.  

Positives 

1. Lots of choice of places to film

2. Adds to narrative

3. Places to shelter nearby if it rains due to city centre location

Negatives

1. Might be unable to shoot in galleries 

2. Open to public - disrupts filming 

3. Time constraints 

Bridge over motorway by Corley Services:

I plan to film a time lapse of the cars on the motorway from the bridge as I think this will emphasise a sense of escapism and also an altered perception of time as although this will be a POV of the subject it will be sped up to suggest gaps in time. 

When I filmed this shot the weather was bad and it was raining heavily and I had the idea to take advantage of the rain drops on the car window and try shooting from the inside of the car. The overall result turned out better than I expected because it makes the shot more visually interesting and is relevant to the narrative as it causes the image to appear out of focus which fits well with the fact that the subject has taken an E and is no longer seeing an accurate sense of reality.

Positives

1. Bridge will be quieter at night

2. Can take shelter in car if weather gets bad 

3. Adds to narrative

Negatives

1. Lack of light, harder to see at night so filming may not be as good quality and there is no light source on the bridge 

2. Open to public - other cars on bridge may disrupt filming 

3. Have to rely on someone to take me there 

Coronation walk - Weddington

I wanted to film some shots of the subject walking and I thought coronation walk would be ideal because it is a big open space and is near to my subject's home so it is easily accessible for us both which is useful on days where there is a restricted time for filming.

Positives

1. Big open space 

2. Easy to access 

3. Familiar setting for subject so they may feel more comfortable filming there

4. Short walk from subject's home in case of bad weather

Negatives:

1. Open to public 

2. Uninteresting location 

Studio at King Edward VI College

I plan to use the studio to film the projections on my subject to add something visually interesting to video.

Positives

1. Good environment to work in with lighting equipment available to use. 

2. Can ask for help from peers if needed 

3. Inside so a weather check isn't necessary 

Negatives

1. Can only book for a certain amount of time 

2. Harder for my subject to travel to 

3. May be difficult to achieve with time constraints 

My home

This is an ideal filming location because it is a space that I am the most comfortable in and I may have more time to film because there isn't a time limit on how long we can be there. Subject may also feel more comfortable because it is a familiar location for them. I want to shoot the experimental lighting shots in my bedroom because I can have more control over the lighting. 

Positives:

1. Familiar and comfortable place to film

2. Don't have to consider the weather before filming

3. More time to shoot 

Negatives: 

1. Have to be respectful of other people in the home when filming  

Foleshill Road - Coventry

This area was suggested by a participant that took part in  my focus group and it wasn't somewhere that I had originally planned to film. However, there were a lot of neon signs on this street therefore I was able to film a number of shots that I aim to use in my final music video. 

Positives

1. Has lots of neon signs I can film 

2. Adds to narrative 

Negatives 

1. Outside location would require a weather check

2. Public location which can be busy 

3. Requires a car to get there 

Questionnaire

Questionnaire

I decided to produce an open, 10 question, questionnaire on SurveyMonkey to help me get more of an idea of what is popular with a range of audiences rather than just sharing it with the people I know. This way I can compare the results to the ideas that I already have for the appearance of my music video and come to a decision about what will work best. I have also planned to conduct a Focus Group  to ensure I have also have some qualitative data to reflect on because the questions on the questionnaire are much more vague and don't allow a more in depth response which will be most useful in voicing the opinions of my audience. 

In the Focus Group I will present my ideas so far in terms of location, genre, visuals etc and start a discussion about which ideas work well and others that may need some work. Also by conducting a Focus Group I may obtain some ideas that I would't have come up with myself which will may alter my initial plan. 

Find the results here - 

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/survey-taken/?sm=6922l4v1MzF6SPdO6SWSB_2FaDs4WUyMqIek3P2Nneob34jDueJo3Da3YORNId4eGJGbcB5pfGvTbau7eCb4J_2Fr9qZXImura2hrLqxD23YW58_3D

Looking at my questionnaire, it is clear that the Indie/Alternative Rock music genre is predominantly more popular with audiences although Psychedelic Rock is only slightly behind. Experimental was also voted most popular which I believe fits more with the Psychedelic Rock genre because it is often more experimental with visuals and this is something I aim to achieve with my music video. I will be using a combination of natural, low key and experimental lighting to achieve my preferred aesthetic. 

Another conclusion I draw from my questionnaire is that audiences favour both the narrative and experimental music video genre with around 44% voting for narrative and 55% voting for experimental.I think this result is quite interesting as I thought that there would be more of a distinct division between responses and this just wasn't the case. I am also surprised that no-one voted for location because I thought audiences would consider this as an important aspect for a music video. This is reinforced by a later question which specifically asks how important location is for a music video with 77% of participants stating that it was only 'somewhat important'. This result made me reconsider my initial plans for location as I was planning to film in multiple locations in Birmingham such as Ghetto Golf because I thought it would be more aesthetically pleasing for the video however, with time constraints and a small budget I decided that this wasn't necessary and I changed my initial plan to be able to recreate something similar but closer to home instead. 

A weakness of my questionnaire is the fact that some of the questions are not always completely relevant for my research such as asking the participant's gender. Upon review I realised that this wasn't a necessary question to ask as I stated that my target audience were 18-25 year olds and made no assumptions about the gender of the audience. Although, if this was a variable that I wanted to control then I could have specified this at an earlier stage and tried to ensure that I had a fair response from both male and female audiences to make my data more valid. 

Similarly, I feel as though I should have controlled the age variable by only allowing participants within my target audience (18-25) to take part in the questionnaire because any other data I collected from participants that are out of this target is not valid  because I don't need to know what their preferred response is. This may have had an effect on the reliability of my data because I cannot be sure which answers a specific age group are drawn towards as this is out of my control therefore, the conclusions I draw from my questionnaire cannot be totally reliable. This will be important to reflect on before conducting my focus group to ensure that I won't replicate the same mistakes and instead ensure that all participants are within the age range that is specific to my target audience for the music video. This will produce the most valid form of data as I can be sure that all responses will be relevant to the research I conduct. 

Overall, I think producing a questionnaire was a relatively useful means of qualitative data as I was able to open it up to a wider audience which gave produced a more valid result in terms of gaining responses from people outside of my friendship group. However, I do not believe that all the questions were particularly relevant to my research and therefore this had a significant effect on the reliability of my results because I need to conduct a focus group to try and maintain the validity of data collected. 

Music Video: Planning, analysis and inspiration

{First Aid Kit - Cedar Lane}

• Layering creates a psychedelic/soothing effect 
• Long shots allow the viewer to take in the colour and different layers within the shot rather than have a focus on what is going on 
• Colours and layering effect create a sort of 'visual memory' almost like recalling something in your head, the memory is often blurred but certain things stand out and here it is colour - the colour could signify the mood or feeling that is trying to be projected 
• Also fits with the psychedelic genre - the colours almost appear like an acid trip and the layering too adds to the disorientating element that could hint at drug use which is popular within the psychedelic genre 

{Kid Bloom - Parent's House}

• Psychedelic presentation of nature - in various shots such as ones of the trees and an arm reaching up in to the sky the colours change and we see a beautiful visual of rainbow psychedelic colours 
• Soft red lighting when the subjects are sat on the sofa is 'dreamy' looking, the soft lighting again makes it appear as a visual memory or through 'rose tinted glasses', almost acts as a form of nostalgia or perhaps again a hint of alcohol/drug use as it intensifies in colour and mood as the video progresses 
• Combines two genres: performance and narrative and it switches between the two. The performance narrative illustrates the music and the band who are performing it and the narrative of the male and female character amplifies the music as we see a rainbow of coloured animation as the song progresses and suggests a deeper/alternate meaning to the lyrics. 

For shooting in the studio I want to experiment with different types of lighting on the subject as well as using a projector to get the Psychedelic/colourful look I aim to achieve. 

Carol Vernallis

Carol Vernallis The Kindest Cuts: Functions and Meaning of Music Video Editing

Carol's theory is based around 4 major concepts:

1. Diegesis 

2. Editing 

3. Camera movement/framing

4. Narrative 

Narrative

She suggests that videos are a visual response to a narrative, meaning that everything within the mise-en-scene is relevant to the lyrics. She does however state that the narrative can appear distorted or in fragments and can appear unfinished. In these cases the narrative isn't the main focus of the video and instead the lyrics or music carry the video forward. If the video appears unfinished then this may leave audiences with a lot of unanswered questions which provokes a deeper meaning to the video with it being more interpretational. Videos often follow a 'montage style' to present the narrative therefore the narrative may not always be obvious. 

Editing

She discusses how editing often does not follow the rules of continuity editing and can include jump cuts, contrasting pace, breaks of 30 degree rule etc. She also discusses how editing can be very visible within music videos and sometimes even being a major focus especially in experimental videos. 

Movements and framing

She argues that establishing shots are universal among music videos and can be used multiple times throughout a video as they are important to the narrative as well close up/extreme close ups. 

Diegesis

The diegesis is the 'world' that the music video takes place in. This can often be revealed very slowly as the video progresses. Events within this 'world' are often disrupted or not completed and certain frames are more visually important to the narrative which is made evident through the way the shots are filmed. 

References: Carol Vernallis (2013) YouTube Music Video, and the New Digital Cinema, 198 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016, Page 10 

Music Video Analysis

Studio Performance

Illustrative - shows lyrics on screen 'modernity has failed us' 

Narrative - socio/political tone through visuals of current affairs such as the Grenfell Tower and public figures such as Harvey Weinstein and Donald Trump 

Intertextuality - references to Michael Jackson, the dancers perform the dance from "the way you make me feel" video

Amplification - we see visuals of several explosions cut to the beat to amplify the music

The visuals of the video are interesting because the colour palette is a direct contrast to the narrative as the narrative is dark and quite hard hitting whereas the colours are visually appealing and appear almost childlike - could hint at humanities naivety to what is truly going on in the world or perhaps could be representative of how many of us turn a blind eye to the troubling social issues and are instead distracted by our own means.

Music Video Analysis

Studio/Stadium Performance

English translation: https://lyricstranslate.com/en/mi-amor-my-love.html-2

Star appeal - Vanessa Paradis stars in the video which directly promotes her as an artist and her music by making her the main feature of the video. 

Illustrative - Her performance makes up the entire video therefore her lip syncing acts as a way to illustrate the lyric and emphasises her position as the performer. 

Amplification - Her dancing makes up a significant part of the video which amplifies the music because she dances freely to the beat of her own song. 

Editing to the beat - smooth transition between visuals and the performance  

Aspects of voyeurism - it could be argued that Vanessa Paradis is presented in a way which makes her look more appealing/desirable. When she looks directly in to the camera she seems alluring and at times even intimate, as if she is daring the audience to desire her or at the very least admire her beauty.  

Close ups - further emphasises her star appeal and may cause an emotional reaction from audiences who follow her music and idolise her because it allows them to feel closer to her by literally allowing them to view her from this position. 

Planning Music Video

Psychedelic music:

1. Janis Joplin - I need a man to love 

2. Psychedellic Furs - Love My Way 

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Location:

Studio

God's Own Junkyard London 

China Town Birmingham 

Ghetto Golf Birmingham/Leicester 

Bristol - need to do some research on areas that may be good to film in 

• fairy lights, kaleidoscope, projector, neon lights

Initial Mood Board

   

 

Andrew Goodwin: 'Dancing in the Distraction Factory'

Andrew Goodwin's text 'Dancing in the Distraction Factory (1992) states that are 6 elements that come together to make a music video successful in entertaining audiences as well as being open for audiences to create their own meaning from what is being illustrated, amplified etc. 

1. Relationship between lyrics and visuals: There are three ways in which a music video can demonstrate the link between the lyrics of a song and the video that has been created for it. By illustrating the lyric you can either create a lyric video which has literally shows the lyrics of the song on the screen for the audience to read, alternatively you could show the artist or subject lip syncing the song which enforces a strong connection between lyrics and video itself. By amplifying a lyric you may stress certain words within the lyrics by showing an image of what the lyric is saying when they lyric appears in the song or making something happen on the beat of a song to make the relationship between the vocal and visual synonymous. Contradicting the lyric is another way to demonstrate the relationship between lyrics and visuals which literally means to show a contrasting image to what is being reflected in the lyric. An example would be if a song's lyric said something in relation to cold but showing the visuals of a sunny beach. 

In Cage The Elephant's video 'Shake Me Down' we see the lyrics being illustrated by the artist lip syncing part of the song, this is also accompanied by an amplification of the lyric and visuals in parts where we see things happening on the beat of the song such as the two children fighting. Therefore, this demonstrates how more than one relationship between lyric and visual can be chosen to further emphasise. 

2. Genre: The genre of the music video is incredibly important in determining how the elements of the music video come together. The 5 genres that he discusses are Studio Performance, Stadium Performance, Narrative, Experimental and Location. The narrative genre is particularly popular in demonstrating meaning within music videos as it is more open to interpretation and can be more artistic, this is often seen in the Pop music videos. Studio/Stadium Performance is common amongst Rock bands to form a relationship between their fans and themselves as artists.

3. Looking and Voyeurism: This applies to music videos that show artists or their subjects wearing little clothing and can sometimes even include nudity. This provokes a feeling of voyeurism and particularly with big pop stars such as Miley Cyrus who is portrayed in a desirable context in order to gain the audience's visual pleasure. This also links to the idea of male gaze e.g Robin Thicke, Blurred Lines which caused great controversy due to its inappropriate portrayal and insinuations about women.

4. Star appeal: Showing the artist in the video is a favourite for music videos because it directly promotes the artist as well as reinforcing their brand etc. For instance a lot of artists are recognisable from the way that they dress or portray themselves. Michael Jackson's moonwalk and David Bowie's characters. 

5. Intertextuality: Music videos often make references to films or music videos and this is known as intertextuality.