Final Magazine Advert

Final Digipak

Improvements

After receiving feedback from different people about my both Ancillary Tasks I felt some improvement needed to be done. 

Firstly the Magazine Advert didn't have a lot of conventional information. For example didn't include a website address. This I agreed on and added both an website address for the artist and then a QR code which audiences could scan to get exclusive information. I also changed the colour of the QR code and artist record lable to white to allow a similar theme to run across all my products. 

My Digipak didn't receive much criticism but the spine needed redoing. This was a quick process as I reused the forest shot which features on the front and back of my digipak. This helps create a link between all of Birdy's products.

Audience Feedback

We asked two students their opinions on our music video. This was their response:


Overall the response was positive. Looking at it a final time, Isla and I are pleased with the final result and will not be making any changes to our piece.

Creating Magazine Advert

Music Video Draft

Digipak Draft

Advert Draft

Editing #2

Now we have all of our footage we spent a long time putting it all together. Using our 3 locations we mixed it up so the audience could get the impact of all scenes. This will allow them to closely follow our narrative and understand what is going on.

I've added an example of a section which flows throughout our 3 locations:


via GIPHY

We also managed to overlap shots and change the opacity to show the link with Sarah in the piece.


via GIPHY

Using both a singer a performer seemed to be quite confusing at the start but we managed to portray the image of Sarah through the use of match cut where Chrissy's face formed into Sarah's. This allows the audience to make the connection between the narrative.


via GIPHY

Digipak Steps

After deciding on my Digipak options I took the improvements given to me from other people and put them into action. I made a prezi to show the steps I took to create my Digipak and embedded it below:
  

Digipak Options

I asked a few people in my media class about the two options I completed. Using a tally I found all
the 6 people I asked preferred the first picture because it was more pleasing to the eye. I was given some improvements for both Digipaks but  I'm going to focus and add to the first picture as it more natural.


Improvements included:
- Use my own picture
- Add more fire to represent 'fire within' (in eyes)
- Outline the Names so they stand out some more

Filming Day 3

Release Forms

We got both performers and our singer to sign  release forms to allow us to use them in our music video. This gives us evidence that they were happy to take part in our video. 

Filming Day 2

Filming Day 2 by Georgina Huggett on Scribd

Lip Sync Practice

As our singer Sarah goes to a different school we have trouble finding time to all meet up and film practices for our main video. To compromise and make sure we have all the experience we can get with editing lip syncing we filmed two people from our school singing our song and edited them together with the song.  It was a lot easier than i imagined and we managed to fit it together perfectly. Although due to the girls actually lip syncing some of the facial expression didn't quite fit with the emotion of the song. However Sarah is a confident singer and is willing to sing with emotions so the audience can feel connected.

Below I've added our practice video.

Preparing For The Third Day of filming

We have now arranged a date to film the singer performance part of our music video. To be prepared for the day I've gone on to 'Storyboard That' to create ideas of different shots and angles we can use on this day. This will enable filming to go quicker and make it more easier for us as a group.

Below I've pasted an image of my storyboard:

I've included a number of close up shots to allow the audience to connect with the singer and gain insight into the emotion she is giving off. Also I added different angles so we can match cut while editing into our music video.

What we need:
- Camera
- Tripod
- Studio Background
- Lighting
- Black Clothing
- Actress (Sarah)

Location:
As previously mentioned we were going to film the scene in the school drama studio. However trying to find a time where we were all free to use the room was very difficult. After searching for people to lend us a lighting kit we managed to buy one ourselves online. This makes it easier for us to film on the correct day. We will be setting it up in Isla's bedroom next Tuesday to film the final part of our music video.

Actress:
Sarah will be coming to Isla's house and we will be filming the last part next Tuesday. We have asked her to wear all black so this scene contrast with the other dating scene. This represents 'Birdy' as being raw and admitting what gone wrong where as the other scene the girl has hope that thing swill change and everything will get better. Using close up shots will expose her and show the emotions with the audience to create that connection that the audience hope for.We will be applying very natural makeup with a bright red lipstick. This represents the fire she could be hiding within her that she's struggling to get out. Upon the lipstick we will be adding gold glitter to relate the storylines together. It shows how she is going through the same emotions as the female performer creating synergy. 
To be able to fit the lip sync in perfect we will be getting her to sing the song all the way through from each angle we film. This will enable us to cut and fill in the spaces in our video.

Font

For both my Digipak and Magazine Advert I will be needing to add some text in to show various information on the artist and the album itself. As I will be creating it on Pixelmator I had a look at the different fonts available. They are the same normal ones featured on Microsoft. If I was to use one from here it would be between Bradley Hand, Lucida Handwriting, Herculanum and Monotype corrida. All these are flowy and help portray a feminine artist cover which will attract the initial target audience. My favourite from all of the above is the Herculanum font as it's very unusual and different which will help attract a different style of target audience. I written my artists name and album cover and pasted it below so you can see the effect it gives off.


I looked online and found a website that allows you to search for text. I came across 'Because I am Happy font' which was flowy and was the right fit for what I wanted. I managed to type the artists name and album name and pasted it below to give you an idea on what it looks like. This can be used for both my Digipak and advert.

Either one of these would be effective on my Digipak and Advert.

Birdy's Digipak

Birdy's Digipak by Georgina Huggett on Scribd

Double Exposure Experiment

Double exposure is a technique in which you combine two(or more) images into one to create an artistic look through combining ideas.

A number of artists have used this technique on their Digipaks.

My Experiment 

Using Pixelmator I had a go at my own double exposure. Although I've reminded myself of using the software I needed some guidance on how to create such an effect. I went on the Pixelmator Tutorials website to seek advice. Below I've added the steps I took and then my final practice image.

By following the steps provided in the tutorial I was able to produce my own double exposure image. Although it took a while to find buttons and move the image it was fairly easy to create. Next time I will be confident in producing  my own double exposure, using my images, without following the tutorials. 

Preparing For The Second Day of Filming

Next Thursday (10th October 2016) we have planned to film the second scene for our music video. This is based at night and we will be filming in Isla's back garden with both George and Chrissy. Due to earlier commitment we will be starting to film at 8pm and hopefully will be done by half 9 the latest.

What we need:
- Camera - Pick up Thursday
- Tripod - Pick up Thursday
- Picnic Blanket - Isla's House
- Lanterns - (1 from me/ 1 from Isla/ 2 from others)
- Candles - From Isla's
- Matches - Isla's House
- Fairy Lights - (from me and borrowing from others)
- Costumes
Chrissy: A sparkly dress with white blanket wrapped around her
George: Smart shirt and tie with black trousers
- Actors
- Wine Glasses - From Isla's
- Sparklers - I'm buying from shop

Shots we need:

After editing in our first day of filming we decided that using too much dance would make the night seen look pointless so are willing to get more footage on the second day to fill in any gaps in our piece. This will all it to follow more freely. Shot's could include; close up's of the couple together and apart; Close up's of the different props; Shots with deep focuses and long shots of the couple.

Pixelmater Software

To be able to create my Digipak and magazine article I will need to be able to use the software Pixelmator to photoshop my ideas together. Although I used this in year 10 I had to review it to make sure I am confident on how to use it.

I tried to experiment with Pixlemator and posted the jpegs below:

This helped me understand how to crop and cut out various backgrounds. Also I was able to use the effects bar to make it black and white and change the brightness and contrast of Image.

I was again able to cut out the background of each image and transfer them together. I was also trying different effects to match the colours of the people to the background. Although it's not 100% I still have time to develop my skills before I complete my real thing.

Editing #1

Today we got to upload all our footage taken last Thursday on the computers and start adding it into final cut express with our song over the top. Due to having only one scene shot we had to leave gaps and fit in parts relating it to our storyboard. Here are a few examples of what we have done in our first editing session:

• We managed to fit together our locked off camera shots and create a match cut where George appears in the shot. 

via GIPHY

• We also added cross dissolves in between clips to allow the clips to flow together with the music. 

via GIPHY

Filming Day 1

Filming Day 1 by Georgina Huggett on Scribd

Isla also created a video for the day:

Preparation for Filming Day 1

To prepare for the first day of filming we've organised the costumes, makeup and also made sure we're both confident with the camera and all the different settings it features.

Equipment List

• 2 cameras - one from school and one was Isla's
• 2 tripods
• White screen- for the singing aspect we are filming in a studio
• Own lanterns and night lights
• Make up
• Gold Glitter 
• A white leotard to go under our performers dress

The inspiration for some of the moves and costume ideas came from a show where Chrissy and George performed a duet together. From this we could start planning what parts we wanted to include and what would relate to our own piece.

Storyboard (Paper edition)

Storyboard by Georgina Huggett on Scribd

Filming Schedule

Equipment List

On set

• Camera (1 borrowed from school/1 Isla's) = Filming 
• Lanterns (for night scene)
• White screen background
• 2 Tripod's

Preparation

• Makeup (Simple; Gold Glitter, Mascara, Eye Shadow, Foundation,)
• Car to travel 
• Curling irons

Costumes

• White dress/leotard for Chrissy
• White top/Black trousers for George 
• All black for Sarah 

Performance Practice

We met up with our dancers and filmed them practising certain dance routines which will be used in our music video. I uploaded it onto youtube and linked it below. We will go on and film their dance in our chosen location with costumes and props for the music video itself.

Crew List

Filming - Georgina and Isla
Editing - Isla and Georgina
Performers:
Singer- Sarah
Dancers - George and Chrissy

Indie/Folk Magazine Adverts

My Digipak Ideas

After opening a Pinterest board and collecting different ideas I've come to an initial conclusion. I like the idea of Double Exposure where two pictures are layered and optimised to create an effect. This will make up the front cover of my Digipak. On the back I will include the initial conventions to allow the audience to become familiar with the style. Using synergy I will try to correlate the images for the Digipak and magazine advert to match the style of music video.

These are the ideas I especially liked for the front of the Digipak.
I like the idea of using a human silhouette of our singer on the front along with a landscape image.

      

              

The back of my Digipak will contain some sort of landscape like the ones below:

Indie-folk Digipaks

I decided to look at some digipaks of bands from our chosen genre (indie-folk) so that we could see what the typical conventions are. My research is below.

Mumford&Sons by Georgina Huggett on Scribd

According to my research the conventions of a digipak for the ‘indie-folk’ genre follow an ‘old-style'. Both digipaks I looked at have a vintage look which adds an element of ‘folk’. The front of both album covers only include one relaxed image and the title of the album. The production company logo and bar code are included and the he colours are dull, they are not bright and eye catching like the colours of a digipak from the ‘pop’ genre would be.

Analysis of Magazine Adverts

Olly Murs advert for his Right Place Right Time album follows the main conventions of an magazine advert. It contains the name of the artist an the album along with the release date and single names that will be popular with audiences. The font used is quite childish but presentatble promoting fun. Also the songs that have already been released is featured which will catch the audiences attention making them aware of what the album will contain. It also follows with Flo Rida's name to promote his album to attract the rappers target audience as well as his own. The image of Olly himself takes over half the advert making sure the audiences can recognise him. Using a mid shot allows the audience to see him holding his hands in his pockets, presenting a relaxed and friendly image. Him looking directly at the camera makes it personal to the audience as it looks as if he is looking at them persuading them to purchase the album. The smart/casual outfit he is wearing is far from mainstream making it appeal to different target audiences. It presents a different image which audiences may be interred to look into. 'ollymurs.com' is printed a the bottom on the advert allowing audiences to have to option to explore deeper into what he's about.

Location Recee

Warren Farm

This location is accessible to us as a group and has a variety of green/forest areas to film different scenes in. Having it so close to us enables us to use it as much as we want ad can always go back to get more footage if needed.

Location Problem!!

As discussed in our pitch we were meant to be using the lavender fields to film part of our music video. After contacting the people about filming we found out it was closed and would not be available for us to film in. This means we are going to have to change the location in our music video. 

Synergy

A way in which different elements of a media conglomerate work together to promote linked products across different media platforms. For example the music video, poster adverts and Digipak  all having a common theme to link them together. 

Examples: 

• Tom Odell: Long way down.

His Music Video, Digipak cover and advert has used the same imagery, text and colour theme all the way through to create a consistent marketing campaign. This makes it recognizable and conforms to both Tom's brand image and indie pop genre.

• Lana Del Rey: Born to Die.

A consistent campaign has been used to promote Lans album. Her music video for follows the same theme as her Digipak and Magazine album helping promote her brand image. 

Magazine Advert Conventions

Distributing Music Videos

326742475 Ways of Distributing Music Videos by Georgina Huggett on Scribd

Student Digipaks

This Digipack is visually appealing with it following a common theme. It contains all the conventions of a Digipack and informs the audience of the genre. The font is very fitting and the white stands out.  My only criticism is the album art on the back and front is very much repetitive. It could have contained a different angle for the camera.

I particularly like the images on this Digipack as they are very original and have been edited to cause an effect for the audience. This engages the audience and makes them become curious which is vital when selling a product. The colour themes match up perfectly and it follows the same theme throughout. 

My criticism for this Digipack is the spine, a simple word is not going to sell! It must contain information which will draw the audience in making them want to pick it up and buy it!

I like the way this one has 6 parts. It allows the audience to gather more information about the artist and get the most of what they buy. However more information could have been added as the close up of the tree is very repetitive. My favourite part it the transfer for of the face and tree, this is the theme i would like to follow in when creating my Digipack.

Collecting Digipack Ideas

I've created a Pinterest board of ideas for my own Digipack. It also includes passed indie/folk covers which inspired me into the themes I've chosen. I have linked it here.

Performance Aspects

For our music video we want to incorporate both a singer performance and a dance to expand our target audience.

Dance:
The song Wings is a slow song so a lyrical dance will fit  in well. Both a solo dance from Chrissy and a duet between her and George will allow us to create a clear and creative story line. Chrissy  and George have a passion for dance and are willing to choreograph a dance to the song so we could evaluate it and fit it in with our ideas.This will enable us to keep our target audience entertained while they follow the narrative.

Examples:
Music videos that include lyrical dance performances to expand their target audiences include:

Ed Sheeran - Thinking out Loud
 
Singer Performance:
Sarah is our performer and will be playing Birdy in our music video. We are going to incorporate her singing into our video alongside the narrative played by Chrissy and George. She will be singing in front of a studio light in front of a white background to contrast against the bright background from the story line.

Examples:
Music videos that include separate singer performances to expand their target audiences include:

Selena Gomez - Kill Em with Kindness 

Conventions of Digipacks

Music Video Analysis 3

Gabrielle Aplin by Georgina Huggett on Scribd

Stars and their Identities

Stars and Their Identites by Georgina Huggett on Scribd

Our Pitch

GROUP BLOG

Our Pitch

Music Video Analysis 2

Demi Lovato; Made in the USA

Demi Lovato is an American singer/songwriter that usually releases pop style music. Her  albums have debuted across the globe scoring herself many awards for there talent. The Made in the USA song was part of her album DEMI which was released in 2013 and follows the Pop genre. It was directed by Demi herself alongside Ryan Pallotta.

This video contains both semantic and syntactic elements suggested by Rick Altman in his genre theory. The variety of medium two-shots and close ups of the man and women together implies to the audience that video is following a love story which is conventional to the pop genre. Syntactic elements are themes which the director has produce to engage the audience. This video follows the theme of love and romance which is conventional in the pop genre.



The audience demographic for this video is mainly straight, white american females aged 12-18 that enjoy love story narratives. This is because its following a traditional love story of a man and women in america. Also fans of Demi herself would watch this video as she appears performing the song alongside the narrative. This music video offers this target audience an escape from everyday life along with entertainment and a connection through music. Young and Rubican would categorise the target audience for this video as being in the mainstream group as they connect with other people through the music. The socio-economic status of the target audience for this music video would be D/E.

The Director has decided to the follow a non-linear narrative to keep the audience engaged and give them a chance to be apart of the story line from the start till the end. A montage is used to follow the love story of a young American couple through their dating phase until the man leaves to fight in a war and leaves the girl at home waiting. Angela Mcrobbies theory can be supported through this as the man going away to fight for his country represents him as powerful and superior where the women is shown as weak staying at home waiting for him to come home. Meanwhile in the video flashbacks appear from the carnival where they initially met. Having the flashbacks give the audience an understanding of the whole story and allows them to connect and develop sympathy for the characters. The climax of the video (Disruption according to Todorov's narrative theory) is the chaotic scene with the boy in the battlefield where he appears to be dying. However the resolution then appears when the girl and boy are reunited at the end of the video giving relief to the audience. 

Different camera shots have been used in this music video to strengthen the narrative and allow the audience to see different perspective in the scene.

An establishing shot is used at the beginning to introduce the audience to the setting of the carnival. This sets the scene ad allows the audience to become familiar. This followed by single shots of the couple making it easier to identify the main characters.


Close up shots of them both adds emotion and give the audience a connection. All camera shots are eye level to the audience making it more real and the camera is always still looking into the scene from the audiences perspective.

The costumes in this music video are very basic and stereotypical of an american couple. In the carnival scene the women is wearing denim shorts and a USA flag top. This top reinforced the lyrics 'made in the USA'. The man is wearing a basic white top and jeans. Theses basic outfits are what's in fashion at the moment making it relevant for the young target audience. When the guys at war he's wearing the army uniform with the american flag yet again putting emphasis on the song title.  The American flag is very Patriotic to a lot of Americans and having  them witness it brings of pride and satisfaction enabling them to enjoy it more.  Being in the army makes you automatically a hero so having the guy at war in the narrative allows the audience to praise and have a positive image of the guy.

The whole video is based fully on low key lighting with the carnival scene being lit by artificial lights. This contrast acts as a split between the future and past making it clearer to the audience which part is being shown. This makes it easier fore them to follow and enjoy the video.

During the low key shots lens flares have been used. These lighten the image and give focus on the scene making them more effective. 

The fast editing used in this music video is used to convey lots of information in a short space of time. Fast past editing has been used throughout this music video cutting from various locations, shots and time enabling the audience to gather a perspective of the narrative. Although its been edited fast throughout when the boy is shown dying it's cut faster creating a chaotic atmosphere for the audience. It then slows down again at the end where everything is back to normal (Resolution/New Equilibrium).

Although the narrative and performance is separate it still fits together as Demi is performing at the carnival where the couple meets. Having a different actor to act the narrative puts Demi in the position of an observer just like the audience. This will allow her fans to relate to her and feel on the same level making them equal.