Conclusion

Please find each section within these dates:

30/06/2010 - 11/11/2010 : Research
15/11/2010 - 16/12/2010 : Planning
15/12/2010 - 11/02/2011 : Production
26/02/2011 -01/03/2011 : Evaluation

This blog is now complete and ready for assessment.

Evaluation Question 4 - How Did You Use Media Technologies in the Construction and Research, Planning and Evaluation Stages?

The use of technology in media studies is vital, as processing the digipak and music video both require technology. Presenting my media coursework is done on Blogger, which is an easy and modern way of allowing people to view my work. If I had an iPhone, or a phone capable of viewing blogger effectively, I would have been able to update my blog from any location easily.
I used Myspace to ask the artist directly for permission to use one of their songs. Without media 2.0, asking for permission would have been extremely difficult and long winded.

By using Facebook during our planning stage, I could easily and quickly get in contact with my partner, as well as find potential actors/models for my music video and digipak. Using facebook also allowed us to share images of any locations we thought would be a good place to

shoot.

To help with the planning of the music video, I used Youtube to view many other music videos within my genre. Music channels such as "Kerrang!" and "Scuzz" were also useful, as they showed music videos within my genre too. However, a site such as Youtube has a vast wealth of videos, all free and ready to access.

For the actual production of the digipak, I used a FujiFilm A345 camera to take still images to use. This is an easy to use camera that still has good quality images. Although obvious, having a camera for the course is vital. I used Adobe Photoshop to then edit and assemble these photos. By using Google, I found a template with the right measurements and spacing ready made. Youtube also helped me here, as the site is full of step by step tutorials for many programs, including Photoshop.

For the production of the music video, I used two Panasonic DV cameras. By using two at the same time, it allowed us to capture the same footage from a different angle, which reduced the number of takes needed. To transfer our footage to a computer, we used Adobe OnLocation. The program has its pros and cons, as although capturing worked for the most part, some clips would corrupt, rendering them useless. This sometimes led to us having to repeat the capturing process to obtain certain clips. For the actual editing, we used Adobe Premiere Pro, which made putting together our video much easier. While it allowed us to edit it how we imagined it, using a new program leads to technological determinism. Which is that whatever

technology is available determines the final outcome, rather than the creativity of the user. I feel this applied somewhat to me video, as the video contained elements we didn't originally plan to

have, such as the black and white footage.
Media 2.0 has been useful throughout the whole course, as it allows anyone to gain some sort of feedback from an audience. By using Youtube, given that I have a fair amount of subscribers, I can use it to tap into a potential audience and ask for criticism. Although most comments are

generally very pedestrian.

In conclusion, the use of media technology, specially Media 2.0 such as sites like Facebook and Youtube which allow users to broadcast to an audience easily. Technology such as digital cameras, even though they used tape which may seem dated by todays standards, have been vital to the whole media course.

Evaluation Question 3 - What Have You Learned from your Audience Feedback?

I have collected audience feedback, as it is vital to see whether I have targeted my project at the right audience in the right way. Firstly, we asked media students for their feedback, as although they may not fit into my chosen target audience, they can give critical responses more detailed than non media students. They were all asked two questions, one about the lip sync, and one about the whether the video suited the genre of the song.

Overall, the general consensus is that the lip syncing was feasible, but that the acting was unenthusiastic. Another comment said the lip syncing looked unrealistic, as the acting looked flat. I think this is a fair point to make, as the acting was poor. However, many people thought the video suited the genre, as they felt the more comedic elements such as using Guitar Hero controllers matched well with the song, as it’s a cover. Metal cover versions of songs are usually seen as not being serious, as they are usually performed by the band just for fun. Finding this funny requires a a basic knowledge of Guitar Hero. This is an example of the audience having the right cultural capital, which is a theory developed by Pierre Bourdieu, which is whether or not certain knowledge is known within social groups. This collective of information within a social can come from a wide variety of sources, though Pierre Bourdieu claims much of it comes from institutionalised. For example, learning good manners or proper etiquette are learnt within our culture at an early age. Cultural capital can also be at a much more local level, such as knowledge of a more niche pastime, such as video games or comics. In this example, the audience is expected to understand the social contexts of Guitar Hero and similar games, such as the backlash by musicians claiming people should learn to play a real instrument instead of a simulation.

I also asked people who are not media students, as their opinions are more important, as they view it from an outside perspective. Among the various replies, this paragraph was one of the most critical. "While you do have some good camera angles and movements (such as the shots down the guitars and the tracking shot of bob), most seem very stationary and bland. You do have some camera in hand stuff, but it’s still lacking movement. And I don't think that random bit of black and white worked too well."Specifically, the comment about how the video seemed "stationary" is important. This refers to the use of a tripod throughout the video, instead of using a handheld camera, which is more comment for videos using heavier songs such as the one I used. The reason we shot using a tripod was mainly for practical reasons, as it allowed us to set up multiple cameras at one time. However, if I were to redo this video, I would use handheld cameras throughout, or apply a shake effect in post-production. Other comments later agreed on the lack of motion within the video. This is not a good example of an audience member misinterpreting the preferred reading of the video, as it is more of a technical criticism.

The same reply also went on to comment further: "And I don't think that random bit of black and white worked too well." Noting this, I would have toned down the black and white clips, limiting only to select parts of the song, such as the breakdowns. However, the black and white footage was used to help give areas like the breakdown a stronger sense of contrast and give the constantly changing footage more impact. I would say this response was an aberrant reading of the text, as the misunderstanding led to them finding less pleasure in the music video.

It is worth noting no responses expressed confusion in the use of the Guitar Hero game, which shows the understanding of at least the general idea of the game is known within the target audience's cultural capital.

Evaluation Question 2 - How Effective is the Combination of your Main Product and Ancillary Texts?

With this video I have visually presented how my overall package compares. So in conclusion, I feel my package could have been better co-ordinated, as my digipak and advert fail to fit well with my music video. Although there are some aesthetic similarities, the overall tone of both do not fit well and lack coherency.
My planning, or possible lack of is a factor into the lack of a house style, as from the start, I planned my digipak cover without thinking how that brand image would translate to my music video.

Evaluation Question 1 - In What Ways Does Your Media Product Use, Develop, Or Challenge Forms and Conventions Of Real Media Products

Media Evaluation Q1 on Prezi

Although Prezi is a great idea for brief information, I feel I should extend my level of analysis in written form.

As shown in the Prezi, we were inspired by many metal videos. All of the included videos include an aspect of performance. This is a very common convention of most music videos, but especially metal videos. This element is highly redundant, as it is so frequent in music videos, it has lost any meaning it once had. However, these videos provided ideas for shots and angles to use in our video. For example, the use of extreme close ups within Slipknot's "Before I Forget" led to us also use many close ups of the instruments.

This repetition is explained in Sam Neale's theory towards genre. He says genre is "instances of repetition and difference". This is because without repetition, each video would have to be drastically different, which risks alienating some audiences. However, sticking to conventions without ever attempting to challenge standard forms or conventions risks boring the intended audience. This is why our music video uses people playing Guitar Hero and only imagining they are real musicians. While this is entropic within professional music videos, many fan made videos have already attempted a similar idea, as shown in the Prezi.

Some parts of my music video were filmed using a hand-held camera, as many metal music videos use hand-held cameras, such as August Burns Red's video for the song "White Washed", as shown in the Prezi above. The video also uses very short takes, which inspired me to do the same. This video also played around with the speed of the footage, which led to me using slow motion within my video, although this was partly to help a chosen clip fit better on the timeline.

As I Lay Dying's video for "I Never Wanted" makes frequent use of split screens. I then used a similar post-production visual effect myself, but cropping the footage.

My video conforms to the standard use of cuts to transition from one clip to another, instead of using random transitions. However, I used a plentiful amount of fades and cross-dissolves, which is unusual for fast paced videos.

The mise-en-scene is basic and limited, although videos playing within a messy set is not unheard of, as seen in Blink-182's music video for "First Date", seen in the picture to the right, which although is not an inspiration for the production of my video, it shows how my video does not break common convention.

The costumes were chosen to reflect how bands frequently wear bands t-shirts, as well as to help show who the characters are emulating. Although band members are seen which such t-shirts, they rarely wear these in official music videos, whether that be for legal and copyright reasons or otherwise.

My research of existing music videos within my selected genre led me to find out most music videos are primarily performance based, or featured a basic narrative. It was due to this, as well as early audience feedback that my music video needed more than just performance. This is why the video game aspect was added. This element is entropic, as official music videos have rarely, if ever challenged comparing playing Guitar Hero to learning a real instrument.

Finished Music Video

Here is the final music video.

Our Music Video So far

Here is the current version of our video. We also had afew clips in synced near the end, but it made sense to just leave them out of this for now.

Shot List

We have composed a shot list to help plan the filming of our music video.

Shots we'll need:
Main Footage

Location - Garage

Shots - Group shots, close ups, shots of instruments

Actors - All Band members

Props - All Instruments, band clothing, tattoo sleeves

Guitar hero footage

Location - Living room

Shots - Group Shots, Shots of xbox & plastic instruments

Actors - All band members

Props - Xbox, Guitar hero controllers and mic

woodland shots

Location - Woods

Shots - Individual shots

Actors - All band members

Props - N/A

If any problems arise with scheduling, we can arrange to shoo the individual/close up shots of the band members playing seperately

Animatic Storyboard

Here is my groups animatic storyboard. It was edited together using Sony Vegas Pro 8, although any video editing software could of performed the task.
While we used alot of repeated shots, it has all the main elements we want our final video to contain. Specific effects may be changed later, such as the flashes, which may be toned down or made slower as the outcome will look different with actual footage instead of drawings.

The amount of cuts may also be reduced, as although the cuts match the beat of the song, the cuts may be too quick. However, by using an animatic storyboard, it allows me to see how the final product may look, even if changes are necessary later on.