Exam Prep - Digital Technology

This is another post in preparation for my exam. This particular topic is a part of question 1(a) which could ask for the following 5 items:

• digital technology
• creativity
• research and planning
• post-production
• using conventions from a real media text

For this question I must discuss and compare both of my AS and A2 coursework.

Digital Technology

Editing Software
When I first started the course, I had very little experience in editing software. I could comfortably use Windows Movie Maker and had only just started to familiarise myself with iMovie. Both are very basic software and I had never used a high standard system before. When I was introduced to Premier Pro CS6, it required a different level of skill which I didn't have. However, after the two tasks I was given, The Prisoner and The Little Life of Eve Snow, I was able to compile footage together, insert music, add tints and other video transitions. By the time I created Last One Standing, my skills had increased and I was able to create a high standard piece of work. I was now editing with my footage and music, as well as adjusting the saturation and contrast on each of my shots to obtain my desired effect, something I wouldn't have been able to achieve at the beginning of the course.
At A2, it was easier to create work as I had the skills to use the software to my advantage, to become more efficient when editing my pieces. My coursework now contains all the same elements as my AS work, except now the footage is compiled together in time to a song, which has to be edited in a very concise and clean way, so that the work runs smoothly together. My skills in Premier Pro CS6 has developed over time as the more I use it, the more experience I gain in it. My skills are still developing as I'm discovering new techniques and have even had a go on Adobe After Effects which is a whole new level of editing software I am still yet to use. Because of my development of skills, it has allowed me to experiment more with the editing, to use effects I wouldn't have known about before the course.

Hardware
When I first started the course, I was using the Canon Powershot SX500 IS. I had experience using cameras prior to this course, for example I created a interpretive video for my GCSE art coursework. Getting used to the camera wasn't as difficult as using the editing software but I still had to learn the technical aspects of the camera. I had to learn how to adjust the white balance and figure out which setting was more suitable for my shots. I was using it with ease by the time it came to my final piece and I was able to take a range of different shots using different angles and movement which benefited my piece.
For my A2 coursework, in my practice video I used the same camera, but for my final piece I wanted to use a higher standard camera which was the Fujifilm Finepix HS30 EXR. This camera I already had experience with so I was very comfortable to film with it. The shots I have are clear, stable and show a lot of detail which I wouldn't have achieved if I continued to use the Canon. The camera has multiple different settings for filming videos and taking photographs. I know how to adjust each setting and feature so that when I take the photos for my digipack and advert, I'll be able to se these features to my advantage.

So that's my little summary for digital technology. I will updating it after I've completed my coursework as I still have to complete my print work.

Until next time,  
                          Toni

Mood Boards and Test Shots

After looking back on my analysis' of the digipacks, I have an idea in my mind as to how I want my design to look.
I created a board on Pinterest to get inspiration for my ideas. You can find it here.
The first set of images I found were the exterior of houses. This is an idea for my album cover. Taking inspiration from Mumford and Sons, the idea is to have an image of the front of the house the cover as in my next video edit, the first thing we see is the house during daylight and the video will end with the shot of the house at night. To make the image of the house as the front cover, it will create a strong tie between the music video and the digipack. I also plan to make this image the design for the advert as well as this will tie all three products together. Much like in Mumford and Sons', the advert image is the same as the image used for the cover but is extended so we see more of the scene - this is what I plan to do with my products too.

The next image is the interior of a room with a window looking outside. This is another idea I've taken from Mumford and Sons' as the image they've used for the track list is of an inside of the building seen in the album cover, but it's a window looking outside. Although the window doesn't show us any scene, it is obvious that the two images are linked. My idea is to take a shot of the window from the living room which is the last interior scene we see in the video. This will be my track list image. Another idea is to take a similar shot but from the windows of a bedroom as the setting is slightly different. I will practise with these ideas and design each one to see which is more preferable. This will either be done through a focus group or a survey.

The next image is of some woodlands which will be used in my digipack for the inside, either on the CD or just on the inside panel. This is so that there is more connection with my music video because I filmed in woodland areas. The use of woodland is another trait to my genre as well as the english countryside is a huge characteristic of the folk indie genre. So, when my audience sees the album they'll be able to see some clues as to what genre my artists are.

The other images are sunrise and night sky scenes. My plan is too edit this into the album cover as this will make it more eye catching. Ideally I'd like to use the sunrise images as the front cover will be of the house during daylight. However, I would also like to design it so that the front cover is the house at night with the night sky edited in. I will test both images and see which is more effective for my target audience.

Here are some test shots I've already taken of the woodlands when I was first filming back in October:

These are just some test shots and are by no means the final images I will use. These are just ideas as to what it could look like.

I will have a go at creating some mock ups when I return after the holidays as | don't have access to photoshop at this moment.

Until next time,

                          Toni

Florence and the Machine's Lungs Advert Analysis

This is my analysis of the advert for Lungs, the Florence and Machine album.
It was created via Prezi.




Until next time,
                         Toni

Florence and the Machine's Lungs Digipack Analysis

Here is another digipack analysis. This is Florence and the Machine's Lungs analysis. It was created through Prezi.



Ho ho ho,
                Toni

Birdy Digipack Analysis

Here is another digipack analysis. It was, once again, created via Prezi.


Until next time,
                         Toni

The 1975 Digipak Analysis

This is the second album didfipak I have analysed.
It was created via Prezi.


Until next time,
                          Toni

Exam Prep - Genre

It is now time for me to start considering the preparation for my June exam so I will be evaluating my coursework from AS and A2, however for the question I am only to evaluate the one production.
The question in relation is 1b and there are 5 topics which can come up:

• genre - AS
• audience
• narrative 
• representation 
• media language 

In this post, I will be discussing genre. Out of my two coursework portfolios I would choose my AS opening title sequence if this topic was to appear in my exam. So without further ado...

For my AS coursework, I chose to delve into the horror genre and created an opening title sequence. 

To help with this post there was an evaluation question which was in what way does your media product use, develop or challenge forms of conventions of real media products?

Here is the podcast I created to answer the question.

  Evaluation #1 for Last One Standing from Toni Hendry on Vimeo.
In this I discuss the key conceptions I found in the horror genre.

Mise en scene
First of all the mise en scene for the horror genre includes settings such as an abandoned house and run down areas. The settings are usually very dark and look as if there is no life about it. For my coursework I decided to film in a similar setting. I chose to film in the outskirts of the woodland behind my house which I thought to be a suitable setting. Luckily enough, on the day I chose to film to started snowing which made the setting look even more miserable and dull. Because it was awful weather there was nobody else round either which helped to make the setting look even more deserted and neglected. I also filmed in my house but I made it look disheveled and untidy, like it hadn't been cleaned in a while. I wanted it to look like my character was set up in an old, run down house as she was in the midst of an apocalypse with no one else around. I made sure that it looked like there was no electricity by using natural, dull lighting in the interior scenes.
The costume she wore was dark clothing which further helped to dull down the setting. The dull, heavy, bulky clothing she wore helped to establish my genre as she is in the apocalypse, so her clothes aren't going to be the first thing she cares about as long as it keeps her warm. Her appearance in general is dishevelled and unkempt - she doesn't care how she looks because it's not important, only her survival is. She is also covered in blood which is on her skin and her clothes. This is another convention of the horror genre which I wanted to utilise. I placed blood all over her so that the audience would be able to see it and it creates an enigma of the character.
The props she uses as well are a part of the horror genre. She carries the golf club as her weapon, as a part of the horror genre there are always threats, and the use of the weapon help to demonstrate that. She's protecting herself, but what is she protecting herself from? There is a lot of violence and blood in horror films so this was my subtle way of incorporating it into my work.

Production Techniques
The editing of the sequence is quite choppy, no shot lasts a long amount of time. A lot of the shots I used are short which helps create a sense of confusion amongst the audience. The shots only last a few seconds which is just long enough for the audience to gather the information from the shot before it moves onto the next one, where more information is given to them. The editing moves from each shot by cutting to each shot. This is very typical of the horror genre, to keep the editing at a fast pace, which helps to create tension.
There isn't a lot of camera movement, the camera remains still, bar a few shots of a POV. This is quite typical because instead of the camera moving, the subjects do instead. If there was a chase scene or an action scene then it would be more likely for the camera to move with the subject. However, in my opening sequence I just wanted to establish the setting and the character so there was no need for movement.
There is a lot of close ups in sequence, so much so that we are placed especially close to the character, almost too close for comfort. There are a lot of famous scenes in the horror genre that use close ups. This really helps to keep the audience in the action, to place them almost as if they were in the screen too. It also helps to show the audience any details they would miss if it were anything less than a close up shot.
The filter I placed on the video really helps to dull down the colours in the video and make it look really dingy and dirty, I really wanted it to look extremely dull. As mentioned above, this helps to establish the horror genre in my video as dark and dull colours are extremely common in this industry.
The soundtrack I used is Gustavo Santaolalla's The Last of Us which is taken from the The Last of Us video game which is also a part of the horror genre. I chose this track, firstly because it is from the same genre and secondly, I thought it worked well as a soundtrack to help establish the mood and setting in the sequence. The song is very low-key and has no enthralling elements to it - it helps to set the mood of a dull, dark life for the character in a world with no hope or company to keep her sane.

Symbolic/Action Codes
As mentioned above, the first code worth mentioning is the golf club which is the character's weapon. She uses it for protection whilst also posing a threat to the audience. There is also the prop of the broken lantern in the final scene which helps to establish my idea of a broken, dark, dull world she now lives in. Nothing works anymore, so she is forced to use anything she can to survive. A golf club wouldn't have been her initial weapon of choice, but it is the only option she has.
There are also some action codes such as the close up of the character clenching her blood covered fists. As mentioned above, some of the use of the close up shots were used for detail. The clenching of the fists tells the audience she is an angry, threatening character.

There are other codes that I sought to disregard and challenge in this genre.
Firstly, there is the use of a male protagonist. I used a female as the main character as there as a gap in the market for this. There are very few horror films with a strong female lead. So my character was created for this reason.
The second convention I saw was the use of news reports and images of every day life. I used neither of these as I wanted to set my sequence in the aftermath of the apocalypse. There is a sense of every day life, but again, it is in the apocalypse and is no where similar to the life my character lead before it. I used no news reports as I wanted the audience to remain clueless about the situation. I wanted the whole of the sequence to remain one giant enigma which would keep the audience second guessing themselves 'til the very end.


This is some of the points I would discuss if genre came up in my exam. Closer to the time I will actually put all of this information into a plan for me to use but for now this is just some of the ideas i have for discussion.

Until next time,
                          Toni

Mumford and Sons Advertisement Analysis

As promised, here is my analysis of the advert for Mumford and Sons' Babel.

It was created via Prezi.

Until next time,
                          Toni

Mumford and Sons Digipack Analysis

So today I've started researching and planning for the print products  for my coursework and in today's post I will be analysing and discussing Mumford and Sons' 'Babel' digipack.

I created my presentation through Prezi. There is also a print advertisement for this album but I will be analysing this in a separate post.

Until next time,
                         Toni

Rough Cut

After a few technical difficulties, here is another rough cut of improvements I've made to my music video.

In this edit I really wanted to emphasise the idea of a day in the life as we follow the couple from start to finish. I included more activities like watching TV and making dinner as well as scenes where the couple mime lyrics. 

Linking back to research:

Over the past few months I have been researching music videos from the same genre and finding key concepts and trends behind them all. Here I'm going to demonstrate how my ideas came about and why my video is suited for the indie/folk genre.

Behaviour
Across the several videos I looked at, the behaviour imitated varied. Depending on the theme of the video, the behaviour matched it. For example, Florence and the Machine's What Kind of Man displayed very serious behaviour. This was because the theme of the video was about a very fragile and explosive relationship between the couple. She struggles to contain her emotions but doesn't seem able to let the man go - such a serious topic demands serous behaviour.
In contrast, Mumford and Sons' Hopeless Wanderer contained a completely different theme. The featured actors and their behaviour aren't serious in the slightest. The running theme throughout has a humorous twist and the use of famous comedy actors allows the behaviour to be non serious - it gives the audience something to laugh at.
For my video, I chose to have my actors imitate silly behaviour. This is because it depicts the relationship between the couple and I wanted it to seem as genuine as possible. The fact they can be silly with one another helps to show their love for one another. It helps to establish the love between the couple whilst allowing the audience to understand the tone of the video. It's heartfelt with a pinch of humour, in my opinion.

Performance and/or narrative clips
Some of the videos I research contained performance clips such as What Kind of Man, Greek Tragedy and Hopeless Wanderer. However, other videos such as Yeah Yeah Yeah's Sacrilege and Mumford and Sons' Lover of the Light contain all narrative clips. This is common in the indie genre. There really isn't any set rules as to what clips should be featured unlike the pop genre which demands close ups of the artists face signing the song.
For my video, I chose to include a mixture. The majority of the clips are narrative, however I've combined the performance into the narrative to carry the story along. I've only done this subtly so I may have to include more performance. However, this is another trait of the indie genre I have managed to incorporate into my video.

Setting
In the majority of the video, there is the use of a natural setting. Mumford and Son's Lover of the Light heavily includes the use of a forest/woodland area as well as scenes of the man at the beach. Completely coincidently I also filmed in similar surroundings.

The woodland area is heavily used throughout the video. 

I also used the woodlands as one of the scenes for my video. However, my visuals use a different style. 

The video showed a day in the life of a blind man dealing with grief. Here he is making breakfast and setting the table for two places out of habit.

As my video is also a day in the life, I wanted a scene of the couple having dinner together. I used a similar scene of the couple at the table eating together and enjoying one another's company. This helps to further their relationship as they enjoy spending time together.

In another scene, I chose to film at a local beach which has also been used in Mumford and Sons' video. In my video, the beaches introduced when the song reaches its climax whereas MaS use it as a filler scene. 

The use of a natural setting is common in the indie/folk genre as usually there is a lower production value, so the use of natural setting and lighting is very common to see - there is rare;y any use of huge studios with high production value. Also, it helps to establish the star image as genuine and real - if they were to use artificial lighting and huge fake sets in production studios it would give the appearance of an artificial artist. The fact I've used genuine settings and lighting shows the audience my artist wants their songs to depict true meaning in a true environment. 

I feel that I have used these concepts in my video in my own ways. As these are the key concepts of the indie/folk genre and I've included them in my video, it can be included in the genre as it looks the part, literally in more cases than some. Therefore, I believe that my video has taken into consideration the concepts and used it to its advantage.

There are a few things I'd still like to tweak about my video, however. When the beat kicks in and it gradually changes form black and white to full colour, I adjusted the saturation and colours to make it look more vibrant, yet I feel the contrast appears all of a sudden rather than the gradual effect I was hoping for. This will need to be changed when I continue the editing in January. Also, I feel my editing still needs improving in some areas. I deleted a lot of the short clips in the beginning of the song as the tone and pace required a lot of longer shots. I also made sure all clips were in slow motion and that it would be consistent throughout. These are some things I need to take into consideration for my final cut. 

Now I need to focus on the print products for my album and magazine advert as well as taking into consideration the planning for the first section of my exam where I discuss my coursework. The research and planning for this will become apparent over the next couple of weeks. 

Until next time, 

                          Toni

Music Video Research

After yet more consideration for my music video, it is my task to find music videos of a similar style to mine. After a little searching online, these are some videos I found that I can use to influence my project.

The first video is one I've previously mentioned which is The Suburbs by Arcade Fire

The main plot of the video is that it features a group of youths who are going about their daily life in the American suburbs whilst in the midst of a war as we see scenes of soldiers with guns and other towns being attacked. The kids live in this images but do their best to ignore it whilst getting on with their lives, riding around on their bikes and messing around with the local residents. The video definitely has the sense of a dawn until dusk feeling because around halfway through the video, it suddenly changes to nighttime, and we see more graphic images of the local residents being attacked and arrested by a group of militia. The video was inspired by a short film in which America's surburbs are all mini countries and state that all attack each other. There is a huge dystopian feel to the video and although this is not the tone I want to take, there is no performance in this song. It features a day in the life whilst showing us scenes from dawn until dusk as well as featuring a whole narrative rather than performance clips. These key features are also what I want to include in my video.

Another video idea is Lover of the Light by Mumford and Sons.

The plot of the video is a blind man who goes about his daily life trying to live without the comfort of his sight whilst grieving for the loss of his loved one. We see him going about his daily life such as waking us, getting washed, making breakfast etc. but he still sets two places at the dinner table out of habit. There is also the parallel theme of the deer in the forest which acts a guide for him. As he dresses himself, he walks to the door and is about to pick up his stick when it hits him that his lover really is gone. He runs into the forrest with the intention of potentially killing himself whilst the deer keeps a close track on him. As he makes it to the cliff's edge, the deer is with him. It is speculated that his wife's spirit is now inside the animal, hence why he was able to run through a forest blind and escape numerous times. This video features a day in the life theme to an extent as we see the man in his daily routine, the video also starts with him at dawn and the final scene sees him standing on the cliffs edge whilst dusk begins to fall. There is also a strong woodland theme as well as a tremendous scene of the beach as well, which coincidentally are used in my video also.

These are just two examples of similar themes that I would like to use in my video, however they are not the plot I will be using. My video will feature a day in the life theme but will be on a different tangent to these videos. I just wanted to use them as inspiration as well as showing that the indie/folk genre does contain videos like so.

Until next time,
                          Toni

Second Rough Cut

Over the last week I have been compiling my footage together and this is the outcome. Today I will be evaluating this rough cut and outlining what the other tasks I have to complete.

First of all, here is the video. Because I shot in 1080p it meant I had to export it in this setting in premier pro which meant the file was too large to upload to Vimeo. So instead I uploaded it to Vidme.


The first thing I corrected was the transition between each of the clips in the beginning. The cross fade was less harsh and worked better the beat and tempo of the song. The sepia effect remains along with the slow motion on every clip.
I think I will remove the clip of the dog as it is very brief and I can't extend it as this was a random, unplanned shot that I took so there is only one take of it. I will also remove the pan at 0:23 as again it was just a random shot and I feel the next shots after it are very quick and disappear before the audience has time to take in the scenes. By removing this pan it will allow me to expand the shots of the couple cuddling and walking, thus establishing their relationship. In this part of the song I feel there are too many short clips which is slightly jarring considering the pace and tone of the music. I will remove some shots of the scenery as it isn't needed.
At around 50 seconds in there is a black flash which needs to be corrected. The problem is, is that I slowed down all the footage until the beat kicks in so now the clips are too short and slow to establish anything. In my final cut I will make sure that the clips at the beginning are longer by removing all shots that I don't think are necessary, such as the pans of the surrounding areas in the woodlands.
The shot of the couple playing poohsticks also needs changing as there is a continuity error- the clip doesn't show the couple dropping the sticks. Again, this is because the footage has been slowed down and I didn't check it when I was adding in this effect, an error on my behalf.
When the beat kicks in, the colour suddenly changes to normal with no effect, which I think is very harsh and gives a very jarring affect to the audience. My idea is that on every beat, the colour gradually returns to the screen, meaning the sepia tone will fade more and more on each beat. This will be an  effective way to introduce the colour back again.

When the male opens the cupboard, I placed a stabilizer on the footage to reduce shakiness, however I don't like the effect given. I think I will remove this effect as it gives the impression of a low production value which is common in the indie genre. This will have a positive effect on the star image as it shows the audience that the band doesn't need a big production studio to create visuals for their songs. The use of a small camera is all they need to capture their feelings and meanings behind the lyrics. This is established through the use of natural setting and lighting, which is evident in many low budget indie videos.
The footage of the close up on the weighing scales also has the stabilizer effect, however I like the way it looks so it will remain on this clip.

The long shot of the beach will have some special effects added to it using Adobe After Effects. I downloaded some tutorials from Youtube as guidance on how to create it and I am confident it will look realistic and help to add to the idea that the couple are some of the remaining people on earth. The effects hasn't been added yet but this will be done by the time it comes to my final cut.

At around 2:40 there is an abundance of different clips that I'm still deciding upon. I feel it has just been sequenced together for no apparent reason like when they're in the car and it gets darker through each clip. I will most likely change this for the final cut so that there is reason to why it is sequenced in a certain way. Also, a car drives past one the clips which defeats the purpose of the storyline, so these will be replaced with more clips which hint to the plot, such as stocked up cupboards of canned and dried goods.

I feel the rest of the video is acceptable bar a few shots that I will tweak or replace.
Now what I need to do is add the smoke to the beach scenes as well as the final shot of the house. My idea is to add in smoke to the background as well as make the house look a little more disheveled with a few broken windows or maybe even a large hole in the road - it just depends on what tutorials I can find and how achievable they are (I saw one for a meteor strike but I feel that might be harder to achieve, although there's nothing wrong in trying)

So that's my second rough cut. The next time I upload the video it will be the final thing and all corrections and effects would have been made and added.

Until next time,
                          Toni

Editing Update No.4

Within the last couple of weeks I tweaked my idea and needed to film some extra shots to make sure that it all fitted together with storyline - and in this past week I sequenced all the footage together to create a second rough cut.

Today's post is just another update in the process of creating the video. I wanted to edit some footage in time with the actual beat because earlier on in my first rough cut, there was the sequence of the couple walking in time to the beat which helped to speed up the rhythm of the editing as the music increased in tempo.

I wanted to repeat the same style of editing later on in the clip whilst the couple run onto the beach whilst cutting it with family pictures of their past life. This helps to establish the relationship between the couple as it suggests a life well lived with one another as they've created all these memories together. The clip above shows the sequence I've created. I also wanted it in time to the beat of the song so that there would be a stronger relationship between the music and the visuals. 

I took inspiration to put it in time to the song from the music video for Greek Tragedy by The Wombats.

At the very beginning the song starts off with an iridescent sound before the beat of the drums kicks in to speed up the tempo. As the drum is heard, it flashes clips of the girl in her plot to kill the band, foreshadowing the events whereas in my video it almost flashes back to show previous parts of the couple's life.

So that's my little update. I have finished editing my second rough cut which will be up and evaluated shortly

Until next time,
                          Toni

Filming Update - The Final One

So this is my fourth and final filming update. As perviously discussed, my footage from my rough cut was okay, but there was no through line in the story. So I decided to make a tweak and make it o that the couple were one of the remaining people on earth.

Over the weekend I filmed more scenes of the couple keeping in mind that I wanted to make the storyline more prominent in these scenes. This meant that I spent a little time on the internet looking up articles that showed the earth was falling apart by getting articles on freak weather warnings as well as taking some political news from current affairs involving the Syrian airstrikes debate. I put up these articles and newspaper headlines around the house and pinned to walls. This was so that they acted a little hints towards the plot without giving the game away. I wanted to make these hints small enough so that the audience doesn't notice them straight away, but it can be something they can look out for.
There are some more noticeable hints that are given to the audience, such as the couple measuring out their breakfast as well as playing card games with the candle as the light. There is also the scene where the man only gets a small portion of food as well as some shots of the cupboards with canned and dry goods - all which point in the direction of the plot but it won't add up until the end.

Here are some shots which I took:

This is a shot of the inside cupboards which has the fruit segments which is one of those typical items seen in any apocalypse. The cupboard is also really dirty which helps to establish my idea that the last two people on earth doesn't have the time to clean.

I also wanted to reshoot my ending to something a bit more appropriate as I didn't film the ending I wanted from my storyboard. In the rough cut it was the scene of the couple driving along in the car, however the shot isn't in focus and I only filmed it once when I was taking random shots in the back of the car. So I decided this would be my ending shot:

                        

In the build up to this shot we see the couple in the living room from an interior view before we see them from the outside looking out into the street. In this shot it is my aim to add in smoke to the background and maybe add a huge crack in the road, just to make it look like a disastrous event has taken place and the couple are living in the after math. I also hope to add these effects to other scenes such as the beach scene as well as the woodland setting too.

So that's my update, from this point onwards I feel I have enough footage to create a good quality video which will hopefully have a strong story throughout. I have already sequenced the footage together and so far it is looking pretty good. 

Until next time,  

                          Toni