Risk Assessment

Risk Assessment

There are no major risks when filming at these 4 locations: Studio, Farm, Green-land and house.

However, there are still risks to be assessed. Firstly, the possibility of electrocution in the studio is highly unlikely, but there's still a chance - considered to be a minor threat, but extremely harmful depending on the voltage supply. Way to prevent, keep all electronics turned off and wires kept safely aside.

 

Secondly, animals in the farm, for instance horses or cows have a slight chance if aggravated to react violently to strangers such as myself. Standards of prevention; stay clear or behind protected fences but yet to have a good view for filming of said cattle and horses.

 

In the Green-land/Forestry, one could be injured through certain plants - therefore, remain to man-made paths for security.

 

The most dangerous threat is setting fire to objects or yourself at home. As my house scenes require me to light matches continuously then drop into a bin of letters, there's a higher chance for a large fire to set alight. How I'll prevent this is through having a bucket of water in case the fire becomes too uncontrollable.

 

To conclude, there are still many more risks, but none to high to be concerned as a health risk.

Confirmation of Locations

Confirmation of Locations

Since the reply, I have constructed a budget for allowance of catering, travel and renting costs.

Roughly £30 where £20 will proceed towards renting the studio and the rest elsewhere.

In addition, the farm scenes are to be held at Shady Farm in South Normanton.

 

Email of Enquiry

Email of Enquiry

 

Character Representation

Character Representation

 

As our characters are based upon real lives of those in Central US, i.e. states like Texas, I will be relating to as many conventions as possible for further realism and appeal for our audience.

Typically, our audience are either British or American females, I will be focusing on trying to appeal this particular audience to maximise success.

 

We relate Texas and Alabama with cowboys, hillbillies, corn-fields etc, obviously we're going to attempt to go against some conventions; modernise our video to appeal a more modern audience.

My artist will be closely related to a cowboy, but converting them to become as modern as possible. I'm hoping that my artist and song will connect with my audience as a sense of relation, and potentially motivate my audience in any of the struggles that they may face. If my audience branched out across all ages, then the effects and issues that they could be undergoing are: Exams, Interviews/Promotions or generalised pressure.

 

The idea of transgenderism for my 'back-up' idea, made me think of how our audience would react, I've recently been analysing historical events in transgender media. Presumably, with a more modern target audience, there'd be an increased sense in acceptance as our society has grown in acceptance for LGBT. Like I said though, this is only the 'back-up' idea, thus I have no actual intention of predominantly using it.

 

However, I have considered the fact that this idea wouldn't be appreciated and perhaps neglected by some audience members, but today, when an artist releases a piece of music, the majority of their audience love their music but there are always some that don't.

 

For my music video, I don't want to give a negative representation of the characters as it could result in negative comments overall and inevitably a bad overall mark. I've analysed carefully different eras of Country Music from Dolly Parton to Taylor Swifts early music. The focus around Dolly Parton & Taylor Swift are for inspiration purposes only for the actress, but taking some aspects and gender-bending them, I can represent my artist in the masculine manner now too.

 

With these analysis' my objective is to also not misinterpret groups of people and perhaps 'mixing them up' with others. These analysis' have allowed me to go in depth for the lifestyle of my target audience group.

Research into Music Posters - Part 1 (Country)

Research into Music Posters - Part 1 (Country)

The typography for a Music Poster is somewhat similar to my analysis' of Digipaks. The font is large and bold, the white typing over a red background almost jumps out to an audience. The layout of the text is specific over the importance of what is on the poster - from largest to smallest in significance: Artist Name, Date & Location of Performance and Additional Information. The name of the artist is more important as it provides audiences with whom is performing.

 

The design of the background appears to be sketched. The face of the artist covers around 50% of the poster. A sketched and rough appearance standardises with conventions around a Country lifestyle. What 'Merle' is wearing and how he comes across shows us, the audience of what we'd associate him with - rough facial hair, stubborn expression and a typical cowboy hat, clearly shows me that he's a country artist.

 

The colour scheme behind the poster, tacky oranges and reds can be recognised as being ragged-old and of a Texan style. Being of this specific colour scheme, there's less modernisation and more American-western.

 

I believe 'Merle's' stature is somewhat important, the reasoning behind this is; it provides us with a little of his personality. Per say, standing hands on hips and smiling can be linked with a feminine artist such as Beyoncé, where she'd be flaring off some of her male-gaze attraction. In this case, eye-lining with the camera and his audience, 'Merle' is coming off as a strict and focused artist.

 

In comparison to modern posters of Pop genres, this specific poster has no reference to any industries involved with him. The only exception being the location(s) of his performance along with dates.

 

Now that my artist is male, I'll be taking a few of these aspects and using them as influences along with the other posts into Research of Posters. To be precise, I like the idea of the layout of the text and with how the importance of what's written decreases, so does the text size. However, as my song is more modern, the colour scheme isn't as appealing to me.

 

                                                                                 

Record Labels

Record Labels

"A record label is a brand or trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos." Record labels are essential when coming to music, they are the best & generic way of distributing music & music videos to audiences and even other companies to do so. Labels can be used as a form of copyright, meaning that no one can use the song for their own use without specifying and also 'distributes' & promotes the song. Record labels basically give artists and their managers a contract with them so that music released can benefit both parties.

 

In the music industry, artists rely upon record labels to distribute and broaden the audience/consumer base. Distribution can create a market solely based around music to which it's available from a variety of platforms from phones, TV, MP3 & most importantly nowadays, the internet.

 

Record labels can 'come in all shapes and sizes', small independent companies to major international  labels. Examples of each are: Sun Records - Indie company, UMG (Universal Music Group) - Major Record label.

 

Well-known artists are promoted through large companies, hence why we know of the artist really well. Yet, not as common artists are associated with smaller indie companies and potentially localised organisations. An artist we are familiar with today is Adele; associated with Columbia Records, under the wing of Sony Music Entertainment, considered to be one of the 'large' labels. Columbia have contracts with not only Adele but Calvin Harris, Celine Dion, Little Mix & many, many more.

My artist, Catie Curtis, already has a few record label contracts, but if I was to not include those then the labels I'll suggest will be unfamiliar to a modern audience. Partisan Records & ATO Records are a couple of labels that I'd recommend for my particular artists. These two companies focus on Folk, Country & Pop genres and therefore would probably be contracted to my artist.

Record labels were first introduced back in the 1920's where there was four major companies at first; Music Publishers Holding Company (MPHC), American Record Corporation (ARC), Decca Records & Hollandsche Decca Distribute (HDD). Only two of these companies still exist as their original name, MPHC & Decca Records. Obviously, the main reason for the introduction of record labels was to get rich basically. Another is the fact to show off peoples talent of singing internationally without actually having to go from nation to nation performing to get known.

How do their products get distributed? Large companies have necessary links between other large companies and smaller ones too. These links allow them to promote and distribute their most recent product. The companies associated to the 'big four' can be world-wide; for instance, an artist may be English and have a contract with an English company, yet the product can still get distributed to other countries such as the US, Germany, Australia etc. Links are a necessity when coming to record labels, without them, they product won't get as much income compared to have links to other companies or subsidiaries of their branch.

Social media in general is rather important when trying to 'show-off' their product. Despite this not being relevant to music, but showing and posting trailers online of films is a great way to gather hype. YouTube, Facebook & Twitter are the largest sites to await for announcements for media products. Using Facebook & Twitter allows the audience/public to get information about an upcoming product and makes it so they can express their views and even 'share' to their friends & followers. Using social media allows for an 'ice berg' effect where when one person finds out; they can tell 10 people and those 10 can tell 100 others...

Copyright, mentioned previously- "is a legal right created by the law of a country that grants the creator of an original work exclusive rights for its use and distribution. This is usually only for a limited time." This means that the creator receives a 'shout-out' from the user and commendation for the creation of the product. Copyright is put in place so that users can't poach what isn't theirs and so do malfeasance. If copyright wasn't set in place by the government(s), record labels, artists & managers would lose out on revenue therefore, having copyrighted work negates the loss of revenue.
The fact that copyright is still in place, my song is under the copyright act; meaning that I need to consider that I can't take any credit for the song, but I can for the video myself and Luke are making.

Based off everything I've said, I need to use my knowledge of committing & staying within the rights of copyright, also the examples of record labels relevant to my genres & artist. The record label(s) that are indeed relevant to my song, I could possibly use them on my digipak or even perhaps create my own with facts that are similar to others.
 

Recce Shots

Recce Shots & Locations

For the outdoor scenes, I've searched around my local area, specifically in Kingsway as it's more rural. The rural aspects are required for my outdoor shots as they need to represent farmland and countryside, obvious stereotypes when relating to Country music.

I believe I've found two places where I can record these outdoor shots, however I'll be needing to contact the land-owners in hope to film on their property without trespassing.
Below is an image of a particular shot used at the beginning of my music video from last year, the same area will be used again, however this time I'll be maximising my potential in the arts of camerawork and editing.

 

When recording inside a studio, it means that I'll actual need a studio to record in. I have two further places in mind: Hardy Smiths Music store in Sutton-In-Ashfield, relatively close to home and my sister knows the owner through having lessons from there - contacts with people are very helpful when constructing a music video. Secondly, Electric Bear Productions situated in Mansfield. For both of these places, I'll be emailing them in hope of being allowed to record my studio scenes; even if it costs me to rent out their studio(s), if so I'll be creating a budget for my project.

 

To film both outside and inside will require a tops of two days each, if everything goes according to plan - as seen on my Shooting Schedule. If not, I have one more designated day to film any filler shots for my video.

At all of these places, there are risks that I need to consider and assess before actual filming. For instance, if I was to film in a studio, there's the risk of electrocution - may seem unrealistic, but is still a minor threat.

 

People Involved - Character Profiles

Character Profiles

 

As I'm creating this music video by myself, it means all weight lies on my shoulders. This implies that I'm in charge of everything. As part of being a Media student, it's my job to take control of my piece.
Due to being a Media student, I'll be the: Cameraman, costume designer, choreographer and editor. These roles are key when directing a music video as if you lack one, then the overall product will fail to be successful.

^[Steven Ballantine, 18 as of 14/11/2016, Student]^

 

My artist, the actor, the protagonist in my music video. The narrative is built around him and his pursuits, his struggles & his outcomes. A lot of the video will be of him lip-syncing or syncing through instrumental. In previous posts, I've talked about the dress-style of my artist; checked shirt, skinny jeans and boots - a modernised yet relatable to Country sense of costume.

^[Cameron Chivers, 17 as of 21/11/2016, Student]^

The drummer, solely for instrumental purposes. His role is to provide a beat/bass and rhythm for my artist to sing to, granted the instrumental won't have to be real, but instead to appear realistic. The style of clothing will be similar to the main artist, however I'll be sure that he doesn't appear to stand out more than the artist. How the drummer is composed and situated in certain shots shows his importance in the music video where I'll be keeping their importance to a minimum.

^[Christian Mathews, 15 as of 21/11/2016, Student]^

 

Shooting Schedule

Shooting Schedule

As part of my Music Video, constructing a 'timetable' is helpful, as it tells both myself and my teachers of when and where I'll be shooting certain scenes. Knowing the times allows me to know when I need to rent out the equipment that I require. For instance: DSLR Camera & Tripod for outdoor shots that don't include the artist, rent out date - 05/11/2016.

The actual dates will be set when I have confirmation of actor(s) and timetable for the studio.
I believe currently, my recce and risk assessment will be posted hopefully for Saturday 3rd December.

Day 1: Will now be the Studio recording with Cameron and Christian, set for Tuesday 6th December.

Day 2: Outdoor filming in Kingsway, Kirkby; Friday 9th December.

Day 3: Filming cattle and horses at Shady Farm, South Normanton. Thanks to my girlfriends mum, I've been allowed to film some scenes.

No further filming days took place as I used the match striking scenes from last year - I obviously would've re-shot them, however due to medical reasons I could not.

Equipment Required

 Equipment Required and Purpose

For my music video, I would require roughly the same equipment as I did for the film opening last year.

A camera(s), microphone, tripod, steady-cam, lights possibly. These pieces of equipment are essential. The camera or cameras would be obviously used to film/record each and every shot & angle. To assist me with precision of shots and angles is a tripod; a tripod allows me to track, pan or steadily record still shots.

Not only does a tripod assist with steadiness, but a steady-cam is extremely helpful too. A steadi-cam allows me to track & pan with movement rather than stillness. Allowing the camera to move around a scene or artist gives a more professional effect thus a higher grade.

 

I particularly chose a microphone for one scene, this scene happens both at the beginning and end. Required for the striking of the match scene at the start, the microphone will be used to record the diegetic sounds of the match striking on a surface. During this scene, no music will be playing, just the diegetic sounds the artist/actor can hear. The same microphone will be used again at the end for when the actor blows out the match; i.e. more diegetic sounds.

 

The studio lighting isn't a necessity, but is preferable for when filming in an actual studio. This studio lighting will provide some camera flare and will also light up the artist and drummer in the background. I thought of using both implemented and non-implemented (natural) lighting to contrast each other, creating a 'neutral field' and to be very similar to my analysis of Dolly Parton's music video.

  

 

 

Costumes & Props

Costume

Costumes & Props are essential when representing specific genres & social environments. Different styles of clothing and fashion movements often be associated and sometimes attributed to personality types, economical wealth and regional areas. This is how we are able to stereotype people from certain parts of countries so easily and also able to assume we know things about people who dress in a certain way. For example someone who had bright coloured hair, piercing's and wore boots with dark coloured jeans one would assume that they listened to metal/rock music and had a small social circle keeping away from mainstream preferences.

 

For my music video, I will be following some conventions & stereotypes and ignoring or even opposing others. As I'm going to be modernising the music video, there will not be the use of much 'cowboy' related clothing other than checked shirts and props such as acoustic guitars.  

                                                                                                                                                                                            

As there was a recent change of plan and in fact my artist is now male, some of the conventions I've analysed will now differ. I say some because the male style is different in some aspects to a female; for instance, I analysed Dolly Parton, clearly as my artist is a man, I can't follow the style she has - Diva Make-up. However, my original plan of modernising can still take affect as nowadays, checked shirts are somewhat popular, thus I can use this. In addition, skinny jeans have been added too, also modernising the style of Country, this provides my audience with some appeal.

Example of Costume for main artist:

                                

 

                                                                      

Ideally, this is the kind of costume that the artist in the music video should be wearing.

I've chose this so that there are country elements to the attire but it still looks modern and something that could be worn and in fashion currently.

Props

As previously stated, props distinguish also the genre of certain songs. As my song is predominant on an acoustic guitar, this will be the signature identifier. However, it's clear that there is some bass involved, this means during the studio shots, I'll have a bassist on either a partial drum kit or drum box. I took this influence from a couple of bands, both have original pieces of music and also do covers. The two influences are: Boyce Avenue and Will Ferri from Against the Current. I guess, quite a bit of influence has been taken from both of these bands, as both have drummers and both have guitarists that can sing. Therefore, I'm essentially taking todays construct of a band and implementing it into my music video.

 

Stage Name

Stage Name

Obviously, for my music video, the name for my artist cannot match of the original musician, therefore I'll be hosting a name generator survey where you, the audience will decide upon which name will suit my artist.

As stated in previous blog posts, my song is of the Country/Folk-Pop genre, thus my name should be something rather generic and an immediate thought of the chosen genre.

A few of examples that I quite like the sound of are:

Daisy Mellows

Veronica Petal

Caroline Calla

Lily Dakota-Walsh

As my genre is more Country based, I took some inspiration from nature, either the forename or surname has some reference to flowers.

Please leave any suggestions that you personally prefer, and then I'll conclude which will be the stage name for my artist.

Stage Name Questionnaire:

Update: 02/11/2016

After being allowed to gender bend my song, the vocals are now male. This changes the aspect of my stage name as previously it was female. Thus I am adjusting my previous survey where my focus group will decide upon which name would most suit a male artist of the Country genre.
When thinking for a woman, I thought nature related, however for a man, I'll be listing a few names that sound generic with a hint of a crisp sound.

Names up for the running:
Joseph Forbes
Matthew McIntyre
Elijah Mills
Tyler Johansson

Update: 14/11/2016

Now that some time has passed since updating the survey, here is another update to finalise the name of my artist, personally, I preferred this one over the other 3 and no further suggestions were made. 'Elijah Mills' is the most popular choice and therefore will be my chosen name.

Animatic

Animatic 



Lyrics - Catie Curtis, Burn Your Own House Down

Why do I bother, that's what you say
And I know you're tired but don't fade away
It's been a long year, it's been a long day
You can't remember when it was not that way
When everything was okay

But I'm not gonna let you burn your own house down
I know you don't like living in it now
The halls are empty and the walls are bare
But I believe you, you're gonna find your love in there

Your door was open and your love left
Now all that you want is to burn the rest
But if your heart is open some love will come back
I know you don't believe me, I can see you light a match
I can see you light a match

But I'm not gonna let you burn your own house down
I know you don't like living in it now
The halls are empty and the walls are bare
But I believe you

I'm not trying to say you got no right to complain at all
What I'm saying is I believe in you and I will not believe
That everything is lost

Get up on the roof and look around
Get up on the roof and look around
Get up on the roof and look around

I'm not gonna let you burn your own house down
I know you don't like living in it now
You've got to see that somebody cares
But I believe you, I believe you, I believe you
Whoah, oooooh
You're gonna find your love in there

Research into the Music Industry

Intertextuality in Music Videos

Intertextuality within Music Videos

A quick presentation to introduce the idea of Intertextuality in Music Videos

Intertexuality within Music Videos from Zerikz

Intertextuality in general is ALL media; from games, television, music and film. For our music video, we will not be using much in terms of intertextuality as we believe it to be unnecessary. For our particular song, a parody or mocking another music video/film would be superfluous - unnecessary.

However, we don't necessarily have to make a form of intertextuality noticeable unless certain audiences understand the references, yet myself & Luke still agree on limiting the use of intertextuality within our music video.

Folk Country Pop Social Group Ideas

Presentation:
My target for the presentation was typically women between the ages of 25 to 35. I presented to teachers at my college which provided me verbal answers and advice. Many of them didn't know who I was, which allowed no favouritism to happen making them a neutral party from my view point.
Each teacher had similar characteristics but some differed allowing me to receive data of a broad range.
After asking my social group, it was concluded that my third & conjoined idea is the one I'm going to choose and elaborate upon. Despite the third idea being the most popular, it was a combination of 1 & 2. Some staff preferred idea 1 and some preferred idea 2 and not combined. But, some compared to most is a significant difference allowing me to conclude what the focus would be around.


However, it was suggested afterwards to include some aspects of the second idea as it would improve the narrative behind the lyrics. The suggestion was the 'silhouette', a particular idea that I liked as a metaphor for a backdrop behind my artist. Silhouettes can represent many a things, in this case, a dark figure that has haunted them throughout their life; someone/something that has attempted to persuade my character to commit themselves in certain ways.


Besides this one suggestion, my target audience that I interviewed, were all impressed with what I had to offer.

Vox Pop Questions & Replies with Magazine

Vox Pop Questions

10 Questions to ask the audience: Template

1) How old are you?

I am 18 years of age.

2) Which social group would you say you associate with the most?

I’d associate myself with as a quiet, isolate nerd; interest varies from games, to education.

3) How often do you listen to music per week?

Cannot give a certain time frame, but differs between 2 to 3 hours a day, so between 14 to 21 hours a week.

4) Would you rather just listen to audio or do you prefer to watch the music video as well?

That depends upon my interest in the song, if there’s obvious context in the lyrics, I watch the video. However, House Music, just the audio as we listen for only the tempo, beat and bass.  I typically watch the videos for relation in context and meaning – both denotations and connotations.

5) What genres do you listen to the most?

My taste in music differs, I tend to listen to: Pop, Indie, Alternative and some classic Rock.

6) What music videos do you like and why?

Personally, my all-time favourite is “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen as it was the first official successful music video. However, I enjoy most Coldplay music videos due to the sheer obscurity and original each idea they come up with – a recent video being “Adventure of a Lifetime”.

7) Are you a fan of/do you like Country music and can you name an artist of that genre?

I’m not a particular fan of Country music, but I have listened to many songs in the past by artists such as Billy Ray Cyrus, Johnny Cash and Dolly Parton.

8) When you watch a music video, which aspect is the most appealing to you: Narrative, Performance, Star Image & Editing or any others you can think of?

Once again, it depends on the song, if there’s an obvious meaning behind the lyrics, I prefer Narrative.

10) *Plays song* When you hear this song what does it bring to mind?

Personally, I think of a tragic relationship – going from good too bad.

11) Which aspect(s) do you think I should focus on the most: Narrative, Performance, Star Image & Editing?

After listening to the song, I’d definitely say to concentrate on the Narrative; the lyrics hold a perfect story that can influence the video. I’d still use some aspects of the other 3, but mainly focus around Narrative as it is key and essential for this type of song.

Finally, do you have any suggestions I could incorporate into my music video?

The suggestions I have would be to lay off on the stereotypes, make the video original. Be sure to show that the video is of a Country genre, but obsessing over stereotypes will downgrade the overall quality.

 

With the research I did to collect these findings, I established that some people have a similar view in todays society (similar taste in music), however there is those that differ too. For instance, those that are more into Modern Pop/Chart music to those that appreciate Rock. With these findings, it meant that a broader view can be recognised for what they thought about Folk/Country-Pop. Despite differences in taste in music, the people I questioned had similar opinions over artists involved & associated with Country music, however the majority opposed each other in what aspect I should focus around; i.e. different views on what I should focus on: Narrative, Performance, Star Image & Editing.

After not being able to achieve a definitive answer, I concluded that aspects of each should be implemented, however they would be involved in a percentage type manner - 30% + 30% +30% + 10%, as some are relatively more important than others, yet the lower percentage needs to have some effect in the final release, i.e. Editing. 



 

Above I created a magazine that concluded the questions I required answers for, receiving opinions based around an online questionnaire I had students and adults to complete as additional research. For this magazine, I received details relating to age, demographics, opinions on mise-en-scene & characteristics within Country music.

From these results, I established once again that society has a similar opinion for what they believed when relating to Country Folk. Interestingly, I found out that most people follow standard conventions and stereotypes although, I believe that some ridiculous answers were submitted.



Focus Groups (Target Audience)

Focus Group Ideas

Whilst listening to my chosen song choice, myself and my class members have came to an agreement that my song is mainly directed towards American/British females between the ages of 20 & 30.

The reason for this is because, with my genres being Country, Pop & Folk; the element of Country is typically related to Americans whilst Pop is popular in both the US & UK.

My song is performed by a female artist to which it would appeal more to a female audience than male.
Using YouGov Profiler, and researching target audience based around Carrie Underwood, my initial thoughts were correct, according to YouGov, the preferred audience for 'Underwood' are females between the ages of 18-24 living in the UK. Typically the occupation being based around Law and other socialising jobs. In terms of other forms of media, my target audience would be fans of similar musicians too; such as Lady Antebellum and LeAnn Rimes. Typically my audience are interested in Disney films like Beauty and the Beast & Cinderella as the more modern versions have been recreated in their era.
Next, I researched regarding Dolly Parton. Dolly is an older-style Country artist thus establishing social demographics is regarded easy as it would be stereotypical. In contrast to Carrie Underwood, Dolly Parton attracts more of an older generation rather than young; roughly mid 40s to late 50s. Dolly is particularly popular in the Southern regions of the US, to which regarding to political stand points, they are Right Wingers (Republican), supporters of Donald Trump - target towards racism of ethnics or religious minorities. Right Wingers in South US are typically Christian/Catholic and would be considered oppositional and passive readers & audience. However, this doesn't necessarily mean that my song/genre has to appeal to this particular Demographic suggested via YouGov, but I could take elements from either side and elaborate upon it to create my own target audience.
In relation to another Country Artist of an older generation, Billy Ray Cyrus, the Demographics are relatively similar to those for Dolly Parton; heavily Right Wing, simple and narrow minded.

 Recently we learned about Stewart Hall his Reception Theory; types of readers, aka oppositional, negotiated and preferred (dominant) readers, not only that but whether they're an active or passive audience. As my audience are focused around the internet, I'd have to say they are definitely an active audience but whether they're oppositional, negotiated or preferred readers would rely upon those as an individual person.


The sense and feel of Country music, one would associated as researched in my genre post, with nature and wildlife. Therefore, the audience would use the music as a way to escape from reality and delve into an imaginary world of relaxation. The fact of escapism is under the category for the Audience Theory, specifically Uses and Gratifications created and conjoined by suggestions made by both Bulmer & Katz in 1974.

Soon, I'm having to give a presentation to which I show my chosen audience ideas for my song. To show my ideas, I'll be using mood boards/collages to get views from my potential audience. Hopefully, my suggestions will appeal to them and they can also generate some ideas to improve my video to what they believe would suit my target audience.

Already, I have created a digipak using images from the internet and a few ideas given by some of my class that I want my digipak to look like. As my song involves both literal and metaphorical fire, I want both the beginning of the song and the front of my digipak to have a match lit in a pitch black room. With characteristics from my survey, the surveyors had similarities to conventions that they would associate with Country Pop Folk - farmland. I've already taken the idea for farmland to use on the inside covers of my digipak.

 

 

Digipak Analysis'

What is a Digipak?

What is a Digipak?

A digipak is basically a CD case with the contents being the music disk, perhaps a booklet with a list of songs, lyrics, companies involved etc, and even sometimes an autograph. Digipaks are typically made from card or plastic in which on the front the artist will most likely appear there and the back also a possible list of songs.
They are a form of promotion, they promote the disc inside and the artist to the audiences. Usually found in stores such as HMV and Blockbuster. One when thinking of a digipak is like a crowd browsing through records in an old-rent store. They are sorted in a variety of ways - differ from genre of music to alphabetical order of album name or artist name.

Here is an example of a digipak. The example below when referring to conventions of genres, would be associated with Indie/Alternative. The reasoning behind this, the imagery is obscure and uncommon and after stereotyping across all platforms and genres, Indie/Alternative is the closest and most relevant to the style. 

Information of Digipaks for my song

 

Genres for my song: Indie-Folk, Country & Pop.

As part of research for my music video, I’ve analysed a few digipaks for links between the genres and to gather ideas for when I create my own.

Throughout the three digipaks I’ve analysed, I’ve noticed that either the title of the album or the artists name are written in a fancy, hand-written and friendly sort of typography.

There’s also involvements of soft, pleasant colouring – gold's, yellows, whites etc.

Typically, the list of songs are written on the back of the case which allows the audience to easily find them. Not only is the list of songs on the back, the publisher and record producer is usually there too with additional information located nearby.

 

 



Fourth Music Video Analysis - (Pop) Shawn Mendes - Stitches

• Stitches is purely performance based when looking at visuals, however you can tell there's a narrative within the lyrics. When listening to the song alone, we'd refer the style to be similar to that of Ed Sheeran, and to say that this is a pop song, there isn't a certain style or conventions for pop songs to follow. Pop music is a broad category to which every song can be different from another. For instance, Ed Sheeran's "Lego House" is on the other side of the Pop 'scale' in comparison to Girls Aloud's "Sound of the Underground". Each genre has a sub-genre so, "Lego House" can be associated as Pop-Folk whilst "Sound of the Underground" would be Pop-Classic with a modern up-beat.
• A focus point for this song is low key lighting - could be either natural, implemented studio lighting or through a little addition in editing; not to a great extent however.
• It's apparent there is no use of animation or special effects as they would be an unnecessary link to the song. However, the pace of editing isn't continuous throughout, even though the beat is consistent, the pace of the editing changes; at certain times it's slow and others fast, despite the tempo being nigh consistent. As I've previously stated, there is no standard convention for pop music and so I can't compare this song to another of the same genre, although there may be the odd similarities between them.
• Relating to clothing & mise-en-scene, Shawn has gone for a modern appealing look that consists of a brown leather jacket, grey shirt, slim/skinny jeans & what appear to be similar to VANS footwear. The reason for saying 'modern' is that Shawn is Canadian but has significant relevance to the US, for which I'm not familiar with their styles and stereotypes. However, I could deduce that their sense of clothing is relatively similar to ours in the UK, but as the US is a larger country than England, the stereotypes and sense of style differs throughout each state. Par example, Texans and Californians both dress differently, act differently and possess a different lifestyle.
• Mid-way through, Shawn smashes his head onto the glass of his car. The broken glass that ends up surrounding him on the floor can connote the feeling in both his mind and his heart. Not only does the glass connote a broken heart/mind, he is being negated by an entity; whether this entity being a girl from a past relationship or a past event that's caused him pain.
• The literal sense of "Stitches" signifies that he's cut both physically and metaphorically whilst he's battling this potential entity - a ghost, a figure from his previous life or life in general with the aspect of how difficult it is. The amount of objects that can prevent you from moving on in life or make it nigh impossible to find a solution.
• Throughout, to add dramatic effect, each punch and hit are slowed down. The only way this video could be cheesier and more overly dramatic, is if the video consisted of montages - similar to those of the Rocky Franchise. Although, the quick successive shots is similar to that of the definition of a Montage.
• Towards the end, there's the use of make-up which can associate to the lyrics "I'll be needing stitches", where the make-up is used to represent blood, scars, dirt and a black eye.
• Another focus point is the constant use of tracking shots where the camera focuses and literally follows Shawn during the video. Despite the use of tracking shots, there is a variety of angles where the camera focuses on Shawn; from low-angle to high-angle. It's not always tracking shots being used, at certain times, the camera remains still where the shots considered here are: close-ups, mid-shots and distant shots. Even though the camera tracks the artist the majority of the time, the torso is the main focus (Mid tracking shot). The camera never moves away from the artist, this is considered the use of star image.
• Throughout, the artist is moving towards the light - the area where the lighting is bright, considered to be the white in this case. Whilst the performance used keeps throwing the artist back, into the darkness, considered to be black. There is a contrast between white & black where white represents freedom and black constitutes the idea of being stuck and gloom.
• The finals shots denote him walking away, the connotation elaboration of this is him walking away from the memory and leaving it behind - it has scarred him in both manners thus, why follow and run back to something, when it has hurt you?
• The literal final shot is of him washing away the blood, the signified view on this is him as well as walking away, but him washing away the pain and moving on to return back to his relatively normal life.

Third Music Video Analysis - (Country/Pop/Folk) Gabrielle Aplin, Home

• As soon as the video starts, the scenery seems to look deserted and comparing that to typical a Country setting, they're rather similar. Meaning, instantly, I can state that there is going to be standard Country/Pop Folk conventions within.
• A minute into the video, the title "Home" appears on screen, which is the title of the song. This suggests that in some Music Videos, there are on-screen credits. However in this case, the artists name doesn't appear. This could be, the artist is that well known to her target audience, she doesn't require her own name implemented into the credit sequence.
• Within the video, there's a lot of narrative that refers to the lyrics.
• Despite the narrative put in place, there is aspects of performance - i.e. Gabrielle lip syncing, nothing else physical, dancing per say.
• Mid way through the video, I established a constant use of Star Image. With relation to other analysed Music Videos within the same genre, the artist seems to be in the dead centre of the screen - use of thirds in camera technique.
• The song itself can relate to a previous event within her life, where she has a sense of a struggle - being away from home and needing to get back to be safe.
• Even though the setting where the video is set is deserted, the clothing that she wears isn't of a standard convention of Country Folk but considered to be a link with Pop.
• The mise en scene is similar to the conventions I've used previously, for instance the use of an acoustic guiter; also used in Phillip Phillips song, Raging Fire.
• The pace of the editing is in sync with the thought beats (rhythm of the song).
• There is a significant variation in shots and camera angles used from close ups, mid shots, long shots, tracking, panning etc.
• There's a constant use of natural lighting which suggests there has been little editing.
• Throughout the course of the video, what appears on-screen begins to sync up with the beat of the song. The mood reflects the beat. For instance, the initial minute or two, Gabrielle has the sense of a struggle to make her way "Home", thus the song has a slow tempo. In addition to the final minute, her mood has started to return to some form of excitement, however not seen previously, therefore the tempo of the song increases. The term for this is 'Synchronous' sound, to which what's on-screen syncs up with the song. A perfect example is the Bar scene, on-screen, the audience and I can clearly establish that Gabrielle is starting to have fun with others in the Bar.

Second Music Video Analysis - (Country Pop/Folk) Phillip Phillips, Raging Fire

• Rapid quick successive cuts at the being of the video in sync with the beat of the drums, thus being Thought Beats; Andrew Goodwin analysis. Thought beats are excessively used throughout the whole of the video, the denotation would be as stated previously, quick successive cuts. However the connotation is with the pace of the shot conversion and tempo of the song, they both can reflect upon how quickly a fire can spread literally and metaphorically.  
• After analysing characteristics of particular genres, something that stands out and appeals to me is the use of an acoustic guitar. Typically, Country Pop artists tend to use instruments such as acoustic guitars et cetera as it represents both their genre of music and the skills the artist possesses.
• Once again, the artist here has the scenery focused outside. This is also another characteristic of Country Pop music, well, Country in general; it's rare to see a video focused indoors rather than out.
• Repetitive use of the same shots, shows to us that there is a lack of variety within a Country Music Video, thus providing me with an incentive that not every shot must be different, but instead, it's normal, in fact encouraged to repeat certain shots & scenes.
•  In terms of additional mise en scene, Phillip Phillips looks un-neat through a green/brown coat, an unshaved beard and finally gloves that don't cover the fingers. When referring to Country Western states such as Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas and other central United States, States, most people look rough, especially men. Phillip represents these type of people well.
• As seen in this music video and in my previous analysis, the use of Camera Flare is common when filming outdoors and in Country Pop videos. Through how common the use of Camera Flare is, I've established that this must be a characteristic of the Country Pop genre.
• Although this is irrelevant to the analysis of the genre; in this music video, Phillip has similarities with James Blunt. The green/brown coat, acoustic guitar and his body language. Even though the genres between them are different, there can be similarities between different genres.
• Throughout the whole music video, the use of camera shots are quite repetitive, i.e. mid-shots, high angle shots and close ups. There is little variation in terms of camera shots & angles and yet similarities between this music video and Dolly Parton's meaning these sort of shots/angles could be a representation of this particular genre - Country Pop.
• Lighting is key here, with the video being set outdoors, the lighting is natural and not implemented through additional lighting. The same occurs in 'Together You and I' by Dolly Parton.
• The finale for the video implies one man in a struggle with a metaphorical sense of a raging fire within him - whether that be his heart or his mind, both imply a struggle in life.

First Music Video Analysis - (Country) Dolly Parton, Together You and I

• Firstly, I notice a shot where the camera pans across the sky with the focus point being the sun; the sky is also a luscious bright blue which can represent warmth, happiness  - relates to the title of the song.
• Then cuts to a mid-shot of Dolly where she is wearing full white clothing; this is a classic connotation of country pop and purity/love. With this being a connotation of country pop and purity/love, I can relate that Dolly is a Country-Pop artist and with the song name being "Together You and I", Love has a reference to people being together whether they be a couple, family or the best of friends.
• The mise en scene throughout the music video in the two scenes is constant and consistent. The make up Dolly wears is rather glamorous, over the top - diva esc and is another connotation of Country-Pop.

• As part of the context for the song, there are a variety of shots for which a line of people hold hands which can refer to the lyrics "Together You and I". Despite the background between everyone within the video, each other can relate to one another as they've all faced some form of difficulty; whether it be relationship, illness or career, everyone can come together fight and live.
• When just Dolly appears on screen, there's also a lot of camera flare - done through studio lighting and possibly some edition via the editing process. Most Country-Pop/Folk songs use camera flare when the artist or what's happening on screen is outside rather than indoors; this can suggest that camera flare can be used in both sceneries. Camera flare can also suggest in relation to religion, heaven; where an obvious stereotype being bright white light or the fact that no matter what situation you're going through or have been through, there's always light at the end of the tunnel.
• The pace of editing between shots during the video usually is at a fast constant speed with each shot lasting around 0.5-2.5 seconds.
• As part of context for the song, Dolly's facial expressions make a link too - she usually smiles to suggest happiness.