Final Major Project (Unit 13)
Music Video
Rationale
Since I started this course in September of 2015, I have been covering 12 units of work which has helped me gain greater understanding of the subject and I feel as if it has shaped and prepared me for the future. For example, gaining experience with the equipment provided and using them in a variety of ways. Throughout my second year of doing this course, I feel as if I have improved with a lot of my practical skills, for example, by the end of the first year I felt that I was still struggling to understand how some of the equipment work such as with the sound equipment and with a few aspects of the camera. But after working on improving these skills throughout the second year I feel a lot more confident in my understanding with the sound equipment and I now have no problem working the different mics and the zoom recorder. I also have gained a better understanding of the camera and how to change the aperture, white balance, and the ISO properly to the correct levels depending on what I'm want it to look like.
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For the most part of the first year, I was using Final Cut Pro to edit our pieces of work, and towards the end, I started using Premiere Pro for the final major project of that year, but didn't really get a full understanding of the software. Throughout the second year, I was able to use Premiere Pro again I was able to really flesh out my understanding of it, and I really enjoy using this software more than with Final Cut Pro. I found it much simpler to use and it is much easier to understand because of the way it is set up, I got used to using it within the first month into the second year and my editing skills have improved.
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There was one unit where we had to watch French New Wave Films and write essays on them. Throughout the most part of this unit, I actually didn't really enjoy, however towards the end of this units I was able to see the values of this topic and has really taught me to not just pay attention to the story/plot but also the different shot-types, colours, sounds, editing, and the costumes deeper. I was also given the task to compare a few of these films with the remakes, talking about the problems, improvement, and general differences and try to explain why certain differences and similarities exist. I also talked about the different time periods and locations these films were made in. This unit also allowed me to appreciate and open my eyes to foreign films much more, in particular French New Wave films. It also let me use and improve my essay skills when talking about not just French New Wave, but films in general.
Project Concept
For my FMP(Final Major Project) I will be creating a story based music video using one of my own music which made throughout the past 2 – 3 years, and I plan for it to be 5 – 7 minutes long. I also want to create a short promotional trailer in Premiere for the music video featuring the instrumental and a couple of shots of the locations which I wish to use in the final product. I will also be doing primary research to find out what audience I want to target for the project, and secondary research to come up with a better and more detailed idea of what I want to do. After the research and deciding what I want the final product to be, I will create a formatted script, shot list, location report, storyboard, and risk assessment. I will also be updating a weekly log book to record what I have been doing per week throughout the course of the FMP, for example, the things listed above, and when I start/finish shooting and editing, and finally the evaluation.
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I will be having a budget of a maximum of £300 for the props and costumes, I feel this may be a lot of money just for the props so I am thinking of hiring actors and people to help me with the camera equipment for £50 each person for a day of work. I will be updating the money I spend in my pre-production. As soon as I think of a decent and well detailed idea for the project, then I will start to film and then edit the footage in Premiere Pro for both the trailer and the final piece. I will be editing the footage using all of my knowledge of editing whilst making it fit for a music video.
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If all goes well and I finish the project with time to spare, I would like to showcase my project to my class, friends and family, and gain feedback from the viewers. If I am not able to showcase it the class, then I'll be able to show it to my friends and family. And using the feedback I would gain, I will try to implement them into my final evaluation of the project.
Evaluation Plan
I want to be doing written and audio recordings for each time I work on my project so when I eventually do my evaluation I will be able to implement these recordings into it. There will be days where I will be working with up to 4 different people and some days on my own, so I will be commenting how well I work on my own and with certain people whether or not it makes a positive or negative impact on my work and I'll be able to refer to these recordings when seeing what I can do to minimize disruptions throughout the production of the unit. After editing the film, I will showcase the film to my friends and family and the class, and then I will give the viewers a few questions about my piece for them to answer and after the questions I will see if they have any additional comments. I will use my feedback and reflect these comments in my evaluation on how I can improve the piece and what I did well.
Project Action Plan Timetable
I have been given 8 weeks to complete the FMP, so I will be creating an action plan timetable for these next 8 weeks which will help guide myself to complete this project to the high standard:
Week 1:
This week I will be doing my primary research. By doing this, I hope to find out what my audience wants from my film, whilst finding out their interests so I can decide on a genre or a certain tone they may want out of my video. Feedback is important for me so I can decide on what my target audience would be and I'll have a better understanding on what the target audience wants. I will also be doing research for my trailer I'll be making by researching other trailers/previews for music videos, this will give me some ideas for the trailer I want to create.
Week 2:
During this week, I will be doing my secondary research. I will be watching a few music videos for inspiration and will take screenshots of certain things I like within them and analyse. By doing this, I hope to try and find some ideas for the style, narrative, locations, acting, costumes and the props. And for the main story surrounding the music video, I may try to look into some real life examples of the locations and the people to come up with some ideas for the characters and how they would fit into the story and where the video is set.
Week 3:
For week 3, I will be planning my music video. I'll be picking my locations and what I want my characters to look like after looking further into my research of other music videos and then creating my trailer. I will also be deciding which music I would want to use in my music video depending on the research I have made and just the sound in general. I may also be using foley sound for certain areas of the music video and will try to use minimal sound effects taken from other sources, I will then focus on the lighting, thinking about whether to use artificial lighting to give a certain tone or natural lighting to make it have a more realistic feel to it.
Week 4:
Throughout the week, I will be doing the pre-production for the music video. I will be figuring out the budget, and doing the shotlist, risk assessment, storyboard and location reports.
Week 5 - 6:
For these two weeks, I'll be finishing off the rest of the work from the prior weeks, and will be filming my music video.
Week 7:
This week, I will be editing my music video on Adobe Premiere Pro.
Week 8:
For the final week, I will be showcasing the music video to everyone individually, or to the whole class followed by a quick question and answer session, and I will be referencing the feedback given to me in my evaluation.
Bibliography
Wiley ft. Devlin - Bring Them All/Holy Grime (Music Video):
Wiley. 2016. YouTube. [ONLINE]
Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcroTw04i-w.
[Accessed 1 May 2017].
Eminem ft. Dido - Stan (Music Video):
Eminem. 2002. YouTube. [ONLINE]
Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOMhN-hfMtY.
[Accessed 2 May 2017].
2Pac - Ghetto Gospel (Music Video):
2Pac. 2005. YouTube. [ONLINE]
Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Do5MMmEygsY.
[Accessed 3 May 2017].
Slick Rick - Children's Story (Music Video):
Slick Rick. 1989. YouTube. [ONLINE]
Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HjNTu8jdukA.
[Accessed 4 May 2017].
Public Enemy - Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos (Music Video):
Public Enemy. 1988. YouTube. [ONLINE]
Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZM5_6js19eM.
[Accessed 5 May 2017].
Negan Kills Glenn and Abraham(The Walking Dead - Season 7, Episode 1)
AMC. (2016). Negan Kills Abraham and Glenn(The Walking Dead - Season 7, Episode 1).
Available: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=apNG9X18hLY.
Last accessed 16/05/2017.
Kidulthood
Kidulthood, 2006.
[DVD] Menhaj Huda, United Kingdom: Noel Clarke.
Primary Audience
Target Audience
My primary target audience is males, aged 16 – 20. Males are my main audience as the tone of my film will be something in which males may enjoy more than females, and stereotypically, males of this age group will be into drug-scene, violent, grime music videos more than females, which is why I chose it to be directed for a male audience.
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I decided to start the age bracket at 16, because I feel that a lot of teenagers of this age would have seen the film 'Kidulthood' and a lot of the characters within the film are of this age group as well, and also because of my film being greatly inspired by Kidulthood I thought this age rating would be perfect.
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I also think that males up to the age of 20 are generally more interested in the violence of gang crimes and I also thought that men ages 20 to 25 stereotypically are more interested in the grime music video of this nature more than other ages.
Secondary Audience
My secondary audience would be for males aged 20 – 25 in London, because I am thinking of putting in a few scenes of violence with weapons such as knives and bats which may hit closer to home as knife crime is pretty prevalent today, and I feel this audience will understand the risks and the controversies of this subject. For example, recently, a man, 23 years old, was stabbed in West London on the 6th of May, and another 17 year old boy fell victim in London on the 8th, just two days after. This could interest those who have been following the news particularly about these events and it could leave audiences with a taste of what it is like in these areas whilst keeping a safe distance behind the screen. This way, my music video can give a sense of realism.
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I have a feeling that both of my audiences will enjoy my film as I will be trying to add all of these elements into my music video.
Social Demographic Table
My main target audience fits into category's C2 and D according to the social demographic table as most people within my age group would fit into here as they would be student(with part-time or full-time work).
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My secondary target audience would fit into category's C1, C2 and D as people at this age would be in work, mostly likely within these three categories.
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For my primary target audiences, I will release my final project edit onto YouTube to advertise and promote as this'll be a good way to attract the audiences I am aiming for. I may also use Vimeo which is very similar to YouTube, however, it is less popular so it’ll more than likely not spread across as quick.
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My secondary target audience slightly older than my primary, and may be much less active on YouTube as they be working most of the time and won't really have a lot of time to browse on YouTube. For this, I'll be uploading the final edit unto YouTube, but also make a small teaser trailer for it and post it unto the Facebook page and other social media. By doing this, I'll be gathering audiences from both of my target audiences, some via YouTube and others via Facebook and other social media.
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I could also send the teaser's to some of my friends from my own Facebook profile and send the teaser to some of my followers on Instagram and Twitter.
Primary Research
For my primary research, I created a survey for some of my peers to fill out. I asked questions to see what style it should be, what they would like to see in it, and find out the right target audience for my film would be.
I made the survey with SurveyMonkey and I sent the survey via email to get some answers and suggestions from my college peers.
The answer that were sent back to me really helped me understanding what my audience wants out of my music video. I was able to gather a few ideas for my character and the style my music video may potentially be. It's safe to say that this survey was successful as I got some ideas which altered my initial and vague idea. Sending the survey via email was successful as I was able to get information from the other students in my class who are also doing there FMP, I was able to gather responses very quickly in the span of 1 - 2 days.
I also created a Facebook page for the FMP. I felt that I would be able to gather information there from some of my friends and family, However I do want to focus on the survey questionnaires as I was able to get better results for the primary research.
Synopsis:
Idea & Research
My idea for my music video is about a mysterious, hooded person who carries an eery and tense feel to him and you can get sense that he wants to kill someone. I want to try and use my surroundings as best as possible to create a grimey and claustrophobic feel to it, filming in tight locations such as alley ways, hallways and council estate staircases. The music itself will be of the grime genre, but the main plot's genre surrounding the music video will be a thriller and I my target audience will be people aged 15 – 22 year olds, I am planning on using a scene which some may see as pretty gruesome so I don't feel like it would be suitable for anyone below the age of 15.
Secondary Research:
Wiley ft. Devlin - Bring Them All/Holy Grime (Music Video)
I really like the setting they used in this music video, the rundown buildings and the industrial feel is just what I have in mind for my own music video as it gives a very grimy feel to it so I definitely want to have similar locations in my music video. The location is a very important part of my music video I want to make it give audiences an uncomfortable feel yet be able to connect to it as they would be able to relate it to certain areas they may know themselves.
I really like that it was filmed in black and white, it seems to work well it terms on trying to sell the gritty nature of the music and the setting, and it also works well with the artists with there clothing and they way they present themselves in the music video.
It is a bit hard to tell because of the black and white, but it looks like it was filmed with natural lighting, which is something I always like to see as it gives more realism to shots, especially when in these types of settings. I will use natural lighting in my film to try and sell the grittiness of the areas I will film and give the audience a fresh and raw feeling. The shots of the buildings and the industrial areas with the natural lighting and the black and white is definitely something I want to use in my music video.
Eminem ft. Dido - Stan (Music Video)
Stan by Eminem is one of my most favourite music videos in terms of the story of the music and in the video itself. I also really like some the shots and settings of the music video, the grimy and claustrophic settings with the very tight camerawork really give the audience an uncomfortable feel. I really like how the music video uses the camerawork, the settings, lighting and even the lyrics to its advantage.
The settings don't completely fit with the idea I have in mind however, I do like the use of the space provided and the camerawork itself as it gives the audience a good feel of the locations. I may change a few locations in my music video to make it similar to this, such as a dark basement, and in a cramped car.
I really like the use of the low key lighting in this music video, I would like to have a few scenes using low key lighting like this to give it a dark feel to it. I am also thinking of having my character have a split personality and having low key lighting for a few of the scenes may be perfect to display the different personalities.
Another reason why I like this music video is the camera work. They did a good job making a lot of the shots very different from traditional camerawork as it makes the viewer feel uncomfortable. I want to use similar shots for a few of the scenes in my project, for example, I want a few scenes of tense moments and I feel a lot of these camera shots and angles would fit well.
2Pac - Ghetto Gospel (Music Video)
I chose this music video because of how it is set out. The intro shows how the main character dies, and throughout the rest of the music video we see the main character's life montaged up until his death. I'm thinking about having a solid intro, then have a bit of a montage throughout until the outro as my main plot is going to be more focused on the intro and outro.
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There are also a lot of locations in this music video which is similar to what I have in mind for my film. Another thing I like would be the main character, I may base one of the other characters in my project off of him.
Slick Rick - Children's Story (Music Video)
I chose Slick Rick's music video for Children's Story because of how the stories are presented in both visual and musical form. The lyrics tell a pretty depressing story of a young man being chased and eventually being gunned down by police, whilst the visual show a much more over the top and cynical view of these events with the story ending differently than the lyrics which makes a good parallel between the two.
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This setup is something I would like to do. I might switch it up and have the visuals tell a more serious story whereas the lyrics may be a bit more nonchalant.
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​The main character of the music video is very different to what I have in mind for my own, however I do like how carefree he is in certain situations, I'm thinking about having these qualities in my own main character.
Public Enemy - Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos (Music Video)
Public Enemy's music video of Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos is another music video which I like the style of, especially how the visuals are mostly situational rather than telling an actual story. I like how the artist is walking through the chaos as he raps, showing some filler shots of the other things which occur in this prison riot. The whole prison riot and the chaos isn't really what I want in my project though, however I do like the back and forward between the artist and the things going on around him. I may use this technique throughout the middle portion of my music video because despite this technique being quite common in rap/hip hop music videos, I feel like Public Enemy was able to execute it very well and I hope to try and replicate it in my own way.
Negan Kills Glenn and Abraham Scenes (The Walking Dead - Season 7, Episode 1)
The Walking Dead is up there with some of my favourite TV series such as Breaking Bad, Dexter, and Game of Thrones, and the character I want to focus on is Negan. Negan is one of the main antagonists of The Walking Dead series and is one of my favourite(and most hated) villain in any TV series. I have an idea that my main character is going to have a moment where he just flips and becomes very brutal and sadistic in one of the scenes quite similar to Negan.
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Negan has a very overbearing presence, using his baseball bat and his confident posture, spreading fear to both his enemies and allies. My character will generally be calm and collective, but there will be a moment when he completely changes character and will proceed to do a gruesome, similar to Negan.
Kidulthood
Kidulthood and the sequels, one of my favourite film series growing up during early high school, has always inspired me to create films and usually when create characters of my own, I would usually base them on some of the characters from the movie. Trife and Sam, two of my favourite characters from the first movie, are in my opinion the best types of protagonist and antagonist in terms of character development and how they are presented, and there were many dynamics between the two characters which make me understand both characters, despite being flawed in their own ways.
I chose this film because of the ways the characters dress and how they act during certain situations. I really do like how each character is different yet similar in their own individual ways, but the thing I really wanted to focus on would be the characteristics of Sam(far right with the baseball bat). Sam tends to be aggressive and is the perfect antagonist for the type of music video I have in mind, I also think it would be great if I have this type of character and switch it around so he would be the "protagonist".
Planning - Script
Props and Costume
Baseball Bat
Owned by me.
Knife
Owned by Anthony.
Hooded Jumper
Owned by me.
Bandana
Owned by me.
Character Creation
Character 1 - Blake
Actor Profile
Name - Harrison Sands (Myself)
Age - 20
From - England, West Sutton
Interests - Television, football, outdoors
Blake is the main character of the film. He tries to act calm and natural, until he is at a point to become aggressive to get what he wants.
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Blake has the characteristic of a lone wolf type character living in London. I want audiences to feel that despite his actions when he seems calm, he can change to be very aggressive to get what he wants and that he has sinister yet unclear motives.
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Regarding all of the above, I found out what my character should wear. I thought that to give the London vibe, I thought about the typical clothes a street thug should wear, so I thought that he should wear a hooded jumper and a bandana, I then tried the clothes on myself and had a friend take a few pictures of myself within character. By doing this, I could properly visualise what the character would look like on film.
I do like what I came up for Blake's outfit. I think the colours match the surroundings really well especially in the shots I did in the council estates.
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I took these photos with my Nikon D3300, whoever the images didn't really translate well after I cropped them. I was also very lucky to have cloudy weather in a time when it's more than likely to be sunny as it gave a slightly darker and edgier tone, much like the visuals in Kidulthood. I hope I'll be this lucky when we begin to shoot.
Character 2 - Jay
Actor Profile
Name - Anthony Mitson
Age - 20
From - England, Raynes Park
Interests - Camera tech, outdoors, video games
Even though there isn't a clear "good guy" and "bad guy" in my music video, it will be suggested that Jay will be the antagonist. The audience will be firstly introduced in a pathway between two council estates waiting for Moony, and is a bit of a strange character. He'll tend to smile in a very strange way, as if he was smiling and squinting at the same time suggesting he is a bit of a psycho.
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Jay has been a street thug for a long time, and is now considered as one of the top dons in South London.
I took some inspiration from "The Dark Knight" for this character. Heath Ledger's The Joker is a character that I have always liked since I saw the film, and I've always wanted to adapt his characterisations into my own original character. In "The Dark Knight", The Joker was a very intimidating and unpredictable character and gave off a very creepy vibe.
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Perhaps Jay is hiding a motive? Does he want Blake to find and kill him? Much like Jay, The Jokers motive was unclear, and he wanted Batman to chase after him, therefore I was able to tie links between Jay and The Joker.
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Another thing I really liked about The Joker as a character was the way he made digusting noises with his mouth. I may add this to Anthony's character, and link them like that. However, I do like the idea of leaving Jay as a mute, leaving his facial expressions and actions do the job.
Risk Assessment
Shot List
Music Video - "JapBoi-CGW"
Evaluation
After weeks of of researching, planning, filming and editing, I have finally finished my Final Major Project. There's been many ups and down with this project, but overall I am very happy with the end result. I am very proud of myself as although I've never really thought or wanted a future in working with music videos I have always wanted to at least try it once since I started GCSE Media Studies in Year 10, and this FMP has finally made that come to life. In this evaluation, I will be covering my music video from the inside out talking about the things which went well and the thing that didn't. I will be going though things such as casting, sound, lighting, editing, and the filming. (unfinished)