Task 1

1) Close Up Of Artist:

The close up of the artist in our music video (me), has been used to create the feel as the artist is the star, this has been done by creating a glow effect on the shot, it also has good lighting which is just on me and is a clear crisp shot.

2) Costume:

The costumes we decided to use were simple but with a touch of glamour, i believe this look fitted in well with the whole theme of our music video, it added more glitz and and glamour to it. Also as some of the costumes had sequins on them, created a great effect when the light hit the outfit this added a real "star" like feel.

3) Camera Work:

I believe this is great camera work in this shot, as it follows the artist around and shows that the artist is the most important element to the music video. It is also very well presented as this shot was taken by a hand held camera and is not shaky or anything.

4) Relation to Film:

I believe that our music video relates to the film Chicago with all the dancing, and burlesk feel to it. We got a lot of ideas for the dance from the film, this is we felt it would fit in with the type of music used.

5) Lighting:

In this shot the lighting is fantastic and makes the music video look professional, the lighting has been used so you can only basically see the silhouette of the artist, the lighting is also a purple color to add more excitement to shot and is to keep the audience interested.


6) Framing:

In this shot we have edited the shot, so it is framed to have the artist at the front of the shot and the dancers in the background. This is to create the effect of a hierarchy, and shows again that the artist is the most important factor of the music video.

7) Ideas from other music videos:

The mirror shots, were an idea we got from the video "Diamond Rings" by chipmunk, i believe that the shots are really good and are my favourite shots, this is because the lighting is very good and makes the footage clear and crisp, also the color of the dressing room gives edge to the shot.

8) Mise-En-Scene:

This shot shows mise-en-scene well, as the set is set up to look like a glamorous dressing room with the lights round the mirrors, and the walls of the dressing room are red to add warmth to the shot, it also makes the shot bold and glamours as its such a bright colour. Props where used in this shots to add more to the Mise-en-scene, for example the make-up and hair brush makes it more obvious that i am in a dressing room.

Task 1 part 2

1. Shot one is a shot from the music video "candy man", the shot links to the lyrics in the song, this is as Christian is holding shots and in the lyrics there is an association with alcohol.

2. Shot 2 represents how the record company wants their artist to be represented, in this case they have tried to make Britney Spears look like a "sex symbol", they have done this through use of costume to attract the male audience.

3. Shot 3 illustrates how the "lady marmalade" video uses music genre, in this case they have show the typical "pop" genre through all four performers being on stage, this is as it is a very common set for an example the pussy cat dolls and the sugar babes have also used this sort of set up to show their "pop" genre.

4. shot 4 of Christina's music video "candy man"shows an inter textual reference, this is the whole 1950's sailor theme, the theme of 1950s is the general theme through out the video, for an example it has the whole diner girl feel in the video which is also from the 1950's generation.

5. Shot 5 demonstrates good use of camera in the "Lady Marmalade" video, this is as it is a low angel shot of the girls which makes them look important as it makes their image look bigger, and makes them look as if they are looking down at the audience in which makes them look like the "stars" of the stage.

6. Shot 6 demonstrates great use of lighting in the "Lady Marmalade" video, this is as its been set up so you can only see the silhouette of the performer, which makes the viewer wonder who the performer is, which keeps them hooked to find out. It also make the shot look more interesting and bold.

7. Shot 7 demonstrates the use of miss-en-scene in the "Lady Marmalade" video, the set has been made to look like a romantic boudoir, this to relate with the whole moulin rouge theme, the costume of the performer adds to the miss-en-scene as it is gold and red, which are warm colors so they relate to the whole boudoir set.

8. Shot 8 is a shot which i have seen before in films such as james bond, the shot is from Britney Spears' video "toxic", it creates an action shot which looks really effective and is seen in many action film such as "die hard". It also is seen in one of the "Hearsay video, pure and simple".

Task 2

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

I feel that the combination of my main product and ancillary texts link well together. The links are that my digi pak and poster link to my final music video, as the images i have used on both my poster and digi pak are shots from my video. The other links are the colors used as i have used quite bold colours and lighting which also link to my music video as the lighting in it is one of the main features. In the inside of my digi pak i have an image of bright red lips, this is as in my video a big element of it is make-up and costume, and all the performers have bright red lips, so i felt this was a good use of imagery to use. I also used the image of the lips to link to the lyrics of the song as its all about "seduction", and i feel lips is a big element in this, and is usually linked to seduction.

Task3.

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  Feedback on Treatment:
  

  My class mates and teaches gave me feedback from my initial treatment, which helped me develop my idea for my music video further. The constructive criticism i got was very helpful which consisted of thinking about the location and it may be difficult to find, this was as we wanted to have our music in a jazz bar. However from the feedback we realised that we wouldn't be able to find a jazz bar in such short notice, so we then decided to film in the junction. I also got told to add more detail to my treatment, to develop my idea further and help me get a better concept of how i wanted my video to be like. In my treatment i said that i wanted a top car to be in the video, however listening to my feedback i realised this may be hard to find and would be difficult to find someone to drive the car as i cant drive, so i decided to scrap that idea.

  I also got a lot of positive feedback, which was great as it gave me confidence in my video, and helped me believe it could turn in to something great. My peers realised that i had put a lot of thought in to costume and make up and felt that the look i was trying to create would fit the song really well. They also felt like the video would be fun to create, and would look great in screen. My theme of "burlesk/moulin rouge" came across well, as everyone felt that it matched up to the song really well and that they could see the link in the lyrics to the idea of my video. They were very interested in the dance routine and felt that this would make the video more interesting and keep the viewers hooked.

  Feedback on Rough Cut:
  

  The constructive criticism i received from peers and my teachers was that the lip-syncing was slightly off, however i did realise this is myself and corrected this when editing. I also got told that there should be more footage of the boys, which i totally agreed, however i did not have time to shoot anymore footage of the boys, as my group and i were to busy editing the footage we already had. If i had more time i defiantly would have got more footage of the boys. They also felt the card game didn't fit in, however i felt it was a good cut away and gave a new concept to the video other than just dancing and singing.

  I received a lot of positive feedback which was great! Many of my peers felt that there was a nice range of varied shots, which kept them interested in what was going on. They felt the performance was convincing on both parts of myself and the dancers, this was great as i was not to sure about my performance in the video however everyone seem to like it, so this got rid of my concerns. However there were some shots of myself performing which i felt could have been a lot better, and would have been happy to re shoot if i had the time. The costumes and make up seem to be a big hit with the video, which was fantastic because i kept changing my mind on the costume idea, however I'm pleased with the choice of costume the dancers and I ended up with, as they weren't over the top so they didn't look tacky, and they added more glamour to the video. I also got a lot of comments on the lighting and how it made the video look professional, which was great to hear as i felt some of the lighting over powered some of the shots.

  Feedback On Digi Pack and Poster:

  A lot of the feedback I was given was positive for both my digi pack and poster, Everyone seem to like the style of font I chose to use, which was great to hear as I wasn’t to sure if it fitted in with the effect I had chosen to use on my images I used. They all seem to think my digi pack looked professional and fitted in well with my music video theme, however I wasn’t to sure as I made my digi pack look quite modern and my music video isn’t meant to be set in this year. My peers felt that my digi pack was great as it looked bold and so would make people want to buy it. They felt the composition on both poster on digi pack looked like it had been thought out well, however the weren’t to sure about the layout on the back of the digi pack as they felt it could have been laid out better to look more eye catching, I totally agree with this, however I thought it would be easier to understand and read by the way I set it out. They felt the poster did its job and gave all the details it needed to, however I feel I could have put more about the artist on it to add that extra bit of information. I am glad my peers felt that I used a good range of shots for my digi pack and poster as I did really want to do a photo shoot for it but I did not have enough time, however it seems the shots I decided to use did the job well.

  Final Feedback:

  I got everyone in our class to give me feed back on my music video, everyone seem to think it looked professional and especially liked the lighting and dance routine. They all thought that the editing went well with the pace of the music. One of the great success of my music video was the location i got to use, class mates picked up on this and thought this gave the video a glamorous look. They also thought that it was well lip synced, and most peers liked the ending of my video.

  The only critical feedback i got from my peers is that they thought the card game didn't really fit in to the video, this was as the game was only placed in the begging of the video. However if i had more time i would have filmed some more card shots, to be placed through out the video.

Task 4

Final cut, i used this to edit our footage, this included cutting up footage, adding cut aways to the video, adding filters and effects to some of the shots to make them look brighter and adding "glow" effects to close up shots of the performer (me). I also used final cut to lip synch the whole video.

Flickr, i used flickr to upload images of my work such as my digi pak and poster, i also used flikr to find images to put on my blog.

Google, google has been a big help for me in this project as i have got lots of imagers from it and i have used it to look up lyrics for my song, this helped a lot as this meant i didnt have to write all the lyrics down myself and learn them. I also used it when creating m digi pack as it gave me insipration on how my digi pak should look.

Vimeo, i have used vimeo to upload my final video and rough cut, then from vimeo i was able to post my work on my blog. Also vimeo was very helpful as people could comment on our video and give us feedback.

Facebook was used to keep in touch with my group so we knew what was going on with our music video, and it also helped as organize things, for an example we could get in touch to remind each other to bring certain costumes and props in for our video. I also used facebook to get photos of it for my blog.

Itunes, i used Itunes to listen to my chosen song, this helped me learn the lyrics to it.

Blogger, this is where i kept my blog and put all my research on it, it also kept me update on what work that had already been done, and what was needed to still be done. I also put all my ideas and feedback on my blog.

Myspace, i used this to get in contact with Esthero to ask for permission to use her song, however sadly she did not get back to us. I also used myspace to message Daisy, as we were planing to use one of her songs.

Youtube, i used youtube a lot in this project, this is as i used it to research other music videos, i also used it to give me inspiration for a dance routine.

Photoshop, this is what i used to create my mood boards on, i also used it to make my digi pak and poster. I used it to edit images and add effects, i did this to make it look effective and interesting.

Photobucket, i used photobucket to get inspiration on costumes and make up ideas.

In this photo of me you can see all the equipment i used:

The HD Camera: We used this to film our footage for the music video. We decided to use a HD camera as its much more better quality than a DV camera, it also makes our footage look more professional as it doesn't look as grainy as it would if we used a DV camera.

Tripod: The tripod was used when filming some of the shots in our music video, this was to keep the shot steady and neat.

Mac G5 Computer: I used the computer to research, edit footage using final cut and also using such programs such as photoshop to create mood boards etc.

Feedback from film-maker Ben Gee

Wicked little Girls:
nice cuts, professional look; good fades, light used well, very good use of mix shots with big close ups and shared shot on screen; care in filming and edited very well; doubled up shots very nicely done; blur effect good; all good quality, no bad shots; cards at end make it look pro

Final Video.

HANNAH, LOUIS & CHARNA - 'WICKED LITTLE GIRLS' FINAL VIDEO from cmdiploma on Vimeo.

I am so please how our video has turned out, this because through out the project i did have some doubts, but the location, lighting, performance and editing as defiantly payed off! 

If I had more time...

If i had more time to work on my digi pak, i would take some more photos instead of just using shots from my music video. I also would of thought more in to the layout, and the text. I would also create a booklet to go in to the digi pak filled with images of my own photography, and had all the lyrics from all the songs of the album/extended single. I would have really liked to make my digi pack more abstract, as i believe this would have made it more interesting to look at. However i am still pleased with how my digi pak has turned out, i did a lot of editing through photo shop to get my final product.

If i had more time to work on my poster, i would change a lot because i feel it could be much better. This is as i feel the layout could be more structured but more interesting at the same time, i defiantly would have took more photos for my poster as i think the shot i have used for the background is a bit plain and doesn't show what "Esthero" is all about, however I'm not entirely disappointed with it, as i believe the text i chose to use worked really well.

Feedback

Digi Pack and Poster Feedback:

The text goes well with the theme of your music video.
The front of your Digi Pack looks like a real digi pak case.
Your Digi Pack looks really effective and bold.
Composition has clearly been thought out well on digi pak and poster.
Looks professional both poster and Digi Pak.
Poster does its job and gives all details needed about when the extended single will be out.
There could have been more thought on the digi packs back on how you could have set out the track list rather than in just a straight line.
Good use of shots on poster and digi pak, they work well.You could have taken some of your own photos than just taking shots out of your music video.

Poster

I created my poster on photo shop, i used my own images, and added a slight glow effect to the image. I also included the single cover to promote it even more, i added details of the record company and the date of the single being realeasd. This is to inform the public.

Final DigiPack

I created my Digi Pack on photo shop, i used a range of filters to edit my photos to make them look interesting and effective. I chose to use photos of me, to highlight the fact that i am the main the performer in the single, i added a  range of information to the pack also to make it look realistic. 

Our Feedback.

Positive Points:

• Nice variety of shots.
• Lighting well presented.
• The dance routine is very good.
• Good ending.
• Cinematography is very good.
• good lip-synching.
• nice locations.
• good chirography
• good use of cut aways.
• nice costumes.
• Performances is convincing.

Constructive Criticism:

• Lip-synching is slightly off.
• More footage of boys
• the card game doesn't fit.

Our Rough Cut.

HANNAH, LOUIS & CHARNA - 'WICKED LITTLE GIRLS' ROUGH CUT from cmdiploma on Vimeo.

This is our rough cut so far, i really like the begging of the video however i find the end is a bit messy and can be improved a lot. One of the main things i find that looks really effective is the lighting as it gives the whole video a glamourous feel.

Shots which could possibly be used for digi pack.

On Fridays lesson, i saw our footage for the first time, i was quite impressed with our footage and found it looked quite professional. After i had looked at all of the footage, we started to edit it in final cut and add cut aways. I also managed to put an effect on the close ups of me to make me look like the "star of the show". I also took some screen grabs of our footage which i will be able to use for my final digi pack and poster.

Images from the Junction.

Looking at other peers work on the Digi Packs, showed me how creative you can be with them, and that not necessarily the images used have to match the music video. My favourite digi pack and poster was Yasmin's, as she has really thought about make up and costume in it, it doesn't necessarily relate to her music video but i think this creates a great contrast between the two. I love the colour shceme she has used with pale colors, this has shown me that i have to think about every little detail for my digi when creating my final one.

I noticed on some people digi packs that they looked a bit plain and have the same sort of images going throughout the pack, this made it clear to me that i don't want my final digi pack to be plain i want it to have a bit of an edge to it, to draw people in.

During the week of filming, i helped out Emma's group as they wanted me to be in some the footage, this involved me getting a costume for my character which was the queen of hearts, i already had a costume that they wanted to use. I had to be in the cut aways, some with Yas and max, and some with Yas, Max, Tilly and also Emma. I also helped out setting up, for an example i helped created the drink me bottles by putting glitter and sequins etc in it.