Week 8 - Group: Animatic

The animatic should be embedded and the following questions addressed as a group response: Please ensure you use bullet points:

1.What was your individual contribution to the storyboarding and animatic task?
2.What have you learned from completing this process in terms of, camera - distance, movement and angle; editing - duration and transitions; sound - relationship between lyrics/sound and visuals, emotional colouring; Mise en scene - locations, character blocking?
3.How else has this process helped the development of your concept?
4.How was this task more complex/different from the same task at AS?

Week 5 - Preparing the Pitch

Include the following slides:

• Link to track with comments on emotional colouring, grain of voice, initial ideas
• Genre of track and some explanation of conventions
• Themes and ideology
• Treatment
• Detailed breakdown of track including lyrics
• Location reccies
• Characters and cast
• Costume and props
• Visual effects and lighting
• Shot ideas
• Storyboard including first and last shot
• Advert ideas and mock up
• Digipak ideas and mock up
• Challenges

Analysis of Promotional Campaign - Deadline: Monday 21st September - 6pm (13A)

For this task you need to analyse three music videos and one digipak and one magazine advert. One of the music videos is off an album and you will need to find an image of the album cover (digipak) and a magazine advert promoting the album. Use the framework in the booklet for analysing the three music videos. Cover all six areas but apply two only to each music video. Analyse both print products using the separate framework on the next page of the booklet. An example of a promotional campaign with a music video and digipak and advert would be:

Moodboard - Individual response

Decide what is going to be the focus of your primary research.  It could be investigating the metanarrative of an artist you are considering for your track.  It could be that you are deciding on genre and need to look at content and style of promos from a range of artists more thoroughly.

Share your ideas with your group and ensure that you are each doing different research which is useful in pushing your planning forward.

Complete the task in prezi.  This enables you to embed videos from the artists and include stills, examples of print work and captions.  It is also a way of making the blog more multi-media. Use terminology and show engagement with the task.

When you have completed the task, embed it on the blog as an individual post.  Then look at your colleagues' moodboards and post a comment saying how you found their contribution useful.

The power of the video / print promo package... Justin Bieber

1. How does a music video provide a platform for an artist to reinvent himself/herself to a target audience?
2. In what way can the CD cover design contribute to this process?

Justin Bieber is  currently in the middle of a 'come-back' campaign.  Look at how the promotional material (subsidiary media texts) is crucial in re-positioning his star image and post a group analysis on the blog.   As a group:

Watch the two videos and analyse two CD covers.  Consider each element separately - using the questions in the booklet to frame your analysis.  Then, analyse the collective promo package and it contributes to the artist's meta-narrative. Use narrative frameworks, Dyer, semiotics as tools to help you.

You will be assessed on the following:

1. Ability to work as a group to organise and complete the task
2. Perceptive analysis of how print and moving image constructs meaning
3. Use of critical theory
4. Use of ICT in presenting the task on the blog

Deadline:  this work should be up on a group blog, along with your individual contributions (holiday work, Term 6 work) by 8pm Tuesday.  You have lesson and HW time to do so.  If you work effectively as a group, this is more than manageable.

Research tasks for summer holidays - due first lesson back.

The holiday tasks will give your contribution to group discussion in the first lesson back. They will also be an individual blog post. To recap, you should all have the following documents ready to upload to the new group blog - planning for the music video and print production: 1. Comparison of two music videos. 2. Digipak - front pane using Photoshop with supporting comments 3. Initial track ideas. HOLIDAY TASK: Find three contemporary tracks which do not have a music video. Post a link for each one. Underneath each link bullet point ideas you have on how to visualise the track. 4. Inspirational music videos. HOLIDAY TASK: Find three. post links. Underneath each link, bullet point style, narrative, performance features which you think your group could try to emulate.

12B - how is meaning constructed in videos?

Consider how meaning is constructed in some of the following videos, using your reading from Archer's article and using the framework of semiotics to deconstruct the signifiers:

12A - Applying narrative theory to a music video

Now that you have considered how approaches to narrative reveal repetitious and recognisable narrative structures in your film openings, apply the same concepts to music videos.  Watch the videos below and choose a narrative theory to apply.  Does this reveal that these music videos are experimental in their approach to storytelling, or do they use familiar and recognisable structures, despite the lack of dialogue?

Task 2 - Semiotic analysis and representation

1) What visual signifiers are encoded in the video? 2) What ideologies are being constructed?

Welcome back everyone! Post 1: Key features of a music video

Andrew Goodwin, Dancing in the Distraction Factory, 1992 stated that typical music videos have the following features:

1. Genre characteristics
2. A relationship between lyrics and visuals
3. A relationship between sound and visuals
4. A high proportion of close ups
5. Visual motifs
6. Notion of looking
7. Intertextual references

To test this theory, analyse your own choice of music video below (looking at page 47 of the booklet and the writing frame in shared area if you need it).

1) What is the genre of the track and what typical conventions are evident in the music video?
2) What is the relationship between lyrics and visuals?  Give three specific examples from the video.
3) What is the relationship between music and visuals?  Give two specific examples.
4) What is the proportion of CUs to other camera distance shots in the video?  What other shots are prominent or significant?  What are the CUs framing?
5) Does the artist have any visual motifs?  If so, what are the connotations?
6) Is there any notion of looking present?  Where?
7) Is the video voyeuristic?  Is it fetishistic?  Why do you think that is?
8) Are there any intertextual references to film, news, tv programmes, art, other music videos?
9)  Is the video primarily performance, narrative or concept based?  If a mix of two or more, what are the proportions?  What is the relationship between the two different sections?
10)  Does the video conform to Goodwin's theory?  Explain.
In addition: What visual effects are employed?  Is this typical of the artist?  What would you say about their style?


 

Week beginning 8/12 DEADLINE WEEK

This week, you will need to upload an exported version of your music video to your blog by then end of Wednesday 10th December.

You should also save a JPG version of all printwork, clearly marked by group name, to the Student area/Y13 Coursework/.  In addition, this final version should be uploaded to the blog - clearly labelled with text and for advertisements, where they would be printed.

Having looked at the blogs, there are very little posts relating to video or print post-production process from last week.  AS A PRIORITY, post your own involvement last week in these processes.  Be specific about techniques used in software, changes and revisions to your storyboarding/layout drafts.  THIS is VITAL.

Good luck!

Adobe Premiere Terminology

The following terms could be used to explain your process in post production:

Current time indicator, visual timeline, audio timeline, zoom in, cut clips, trim clips, cutting tool, organise, select, drag and drop, time stretch, overlay, edit, compress time, re-arrange, re-order, montage, continuity, duration, shot, cutting rate, media window, transitions, effects, video effects, audio effects, key frame, render, export, work area bar, motion, opacity, volume, balance, share, Mpeg, image control, lightness and contrast, saturation levels, colour balance, adjust hue, intercut, angle, monitor...

Friday 5th December - Deadline for Music Video and Print Production

Targets for the week.  Aim to take on a different role over the three sessions

• Blog director - refine and edit all posts on the blog.
• Post individual progress updates on the blog after each session with visuals
• Post regular production logs on post production - either bullet points or short film
• Print production - creative links with the music video and existing metanarrative.
• Rough cut of music video and print on Thursday 12 pm.

Week 17/11 - Progress print work

This week, you should complete the following 4 tasks:


1. editing at least 30 seconds of video to the track, ready to review on Thursday in lesson with KJ -this can be more!


2. Ensure digipak posts are reviewed and improved - by end of Monday 8pm


3. Work on layouts for digipak 4 panes minimum, 2 magazine advertisements for different segments of target audience and/or different forms – these should be posted on blog and annotated for media language / representation / ideological discourse

4. commenting on blog your individual contributions to all of the above

 

In groups, discuss the following and ensure that this is commented on during your research:


1. how will your band/artist metanarrative be constructed through the design of your promo campaign across a variety of forms?


2. What visual signifiers are creating a coherent promo campaign?


3. How will your print work be rich in connotation - think about representation and ideological discourse in your work

 

Holiday Work and Animatic

Hello everyone.  Many of you are filming this week, some were able to take advantage of the good weather yesterday; Friday and Saturday also look sunny... if you have any issues with equipment, Jason is in this week so he can help out.

You have two written tasks to complete over the holiday.  The first is preparation for the A2 skills question in the exam and the second is the print analysis for the digipak, part of your planning.  Please make sure you upload stills as evidence for this post and that you analyse the front and back cover (at least) of the CD packaging.  Any questions, email us before the deadline.

Some of you also have improvements to make to posts.  Please ensure you email your teacher when these are done and we will update your grade accordingly.  Some of your posts need visual evidence and comments.

The animatics require an individual reflection task from each of you.  You should each edit the post the animatic is uploaded into so there is one group post for this task.  The questions are as follows.  Please ensure you use bullet points:

1. What was your individual contribution to the storyboarding and animatic task?
2. What have you learned from completing this process in terms of, camera - distance, movement and angle; editing - duration and transitions; sound - relationship between lyrics/sound and visuals, emotional colouring; Mise en scene - locations, character blocking?
3. How else has this process fed into the development of your concept?
4. How was this task more complex/different from the same task at AS?
5. What were the challenges/difficulties of carrying out this task?

Well done all of you on a great first term in year 13; I hope you get some time to relax over the break.. :) 

Group concept pitch - Due 17th Oct

When you have completed your pitch - post your slides/Prezi up and reflect on the following:

What was the feedback from the group on your presentation? What was identified as the strengths and weaknesses of your concept?  How will you now respond to this constructive criticism? 

Make it clear, how did each of you individually contribute to the pitch?

Please also check the post below to make sure you have evidence of vital areas of planning such as recces, props, casting, practice shots etc. before you begin storyboarding and animatic production.

The pitch reflection is due by Friday 17th October

Planning Pitches - Revised date: Monday 13 October

Well done all of you; you have completed the two main AV analysis tasks - the next will be print analysis after the pitches. Moving forward the planning tasks are:

• Making improvements to the content and presentation of the MV deconstruction and Tech Analysis.
• 6 frame storyboard per student taken from secondary research - can be electronic or drawn and scanned.
• Call sheet and risk assessment uploaded into Brighton planning post.
• Questionnaires completed and uploaded to survey monkey. 
• Individual reflection on purpose, methodology and construction of questionnaire.
• Location reccies.  What is the purpose?  what locations are you considering at this point?  What has informed your current decisions?  What do you plan to film at each location?  What resources would you need to take to a location reccie?  What dates and times have you arranged to go to potential locations?  Group post with some found images.
• Concept development - to get the green light you need to be very definite about what is happening in the beginning - middle and end. and what the camera is doing.  Storyboarding or having a shot list for the first ten and last ten seconds would help.
• Props, costumes, actors, lighting, SFX, camera movement. Take a couple of areas each and use either found or original images as evidence.
• Visual effects - evidence and some explanation of how you are going to achieve the effect.   If you need help from JF then it is time to ask him.

REMINDER - AFTER EFFECTS CLINIC TUESDAY LUNCHTIME

Work for Week 22/9 - pinning concept down

As per our lesson today - the overriding objective this week is to decide WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO FOR OUR VIDEO! In other words, start mapping out the concept to the lyrics.  The processes that you will carry out to help with these creative decisions are:


1. edit and review Brighton footage  and video diaries of who did what on the shoot.  Reflect - how has this process moved your ideas forward? - due FRIDAY 26th 3.35pm


2. Video analysis - review progress so far with KJ on Tuesday - reflect on how well you are using theory and finish off the final video analysis - due FRIDAY 26th 3.35pm


3. Technical analysis - map ideas to the lyrics ready for Thursday's lesson so you can make a focused decision about the kind of sequences that as a group would be useful to analyse to support your own concept.  Final analysis due on blog MONDAY 29th 3.35pm

Interesting colour, pro-filmic and visual effects - get creative!

A source of alternative music videos

Have a look at Bugvideos.co.uk for a range of alternative videos