Final Digipak

Final Posters

Journey Of My Digipak

1 - Here, I think an all black simplistic look would suit my digipak.

2 - I now think that maybe another colour may help enhance my digipak, it is still simplistic however.

3 - Thinking that bright colours may look good on my digipak, I am thinking a little less simplistic here with a picture on it.

4 - I have gone back to the simplistic look, this album cover features an image and is very bright compared to 1 and 2.

5 - I have gone back to a very simplistic look here, I have decided that a minimalistic look is what I'm aiming for, this time I feel maybe it should be brighter.

6 - This is me thinking that bright colours should definitely occur in my digipak. It is the cover for The Beatles - Yellow Submarine. 

7 - This is the cover for the single Money by the band Peace. Here I think that maybe I should keep it bright.

8 - This is my draft digipak, I have kept it bright like I have said however I have not used an image, it is very similar to number 5.

9 + 10 - This is the album cover for Take That - Progress, It is yellow and black, this is what I have definitely decided on. I feel that it will stand out to people who see it and will attract them in. It is bight like I have stated but also incorporates my original idea - black.

11 - This is where I have contemplating having a picture of my band on the digipak, it still involves yellow like I have said ad this is what the main focus is. 

12 - This is the cover for Blur - Parklife. It features an image but this is not the main focus as I have decided mine will be without, I am more focused on the colours and whether I should have a black background with yellow text or vice versa. 

13 - This is an album cover for band Daft Punk, it is yellow and is what I am liking the look of. I like this yellow more than the yellow on number 12 as it is brighter. 

14 - This is my main inspiration. Black text on a yellow background, I am not very keen on the picture however I like the whole idea.

15 - This is my final digipak, I have incorporated ideas from all of the previous images.

Video Inspiration 4

A final music video that I like is Minute Mile by The Rifles. At the start of this video the intro is a certain amounts of seconds long and this is counted down with a countdown on the video. I also like how some of the lyrics come upon the screen, sometimes on their own but sometimes over the band still playing. I think this is very clever and demonstrates a sense of realism in the video. At 1:25 there is a clever play on the word 'capsizing' as it is shown upside down, I think this is good and if I can use this in my video I will, Another thing which I like is the simple but effective white background, the background is on the floor as well so everything is actually white. I'm not sure what this is called but I really like it. In the video the band are each given an individual shot of them playing their instrument casually and it is shown several times throughout. This gives recognition to the whole band which I am a fan of but it doesn't take away focus from the lead singer as there's a lot of close ups of him. Along with this their are extreme close ups of instruments being played which I think is cool and looks good. Especially when the foot pedal is shown as it matches with the music. The colour scheme is nice and simple through, a white background with black and red appearing all throughout the video.

Video Inspiration 3

This video is the music video for Like A Dancer by The Enemy. My favourite bit of this video is definitely the start. The video is cut to the beat of the drum intro. In my music video I would really like to incorporate something like this. Another thing I like is how there are a lot of shots of the band, I know I've stated that I would like focus on the lead singer, which is true (this video focuses on the lead singer a lot) but I think it is important to show off everyone in the band, and the instruments which they are playing. Finally I like how this is not just a performance video and it's not a narrative video either. It shows parts of the performance (quite a lot) but also some of the back stage happenings. This gives the viewer an insight into what they are actually like.

Video Inspiration 2

Next I have ANOTHER video for this song, there are 2 versions and I really like both of them. This one contains a lot of narrative elements which I am not too keen on however. The main thing that I like in this version is the room in which the band are playing. It is a small, cramped room packed out with alot of people. These being teenagers, the majority being girls. I think this would work well with mine as my target audience is pretty much this. Adding to the fact the room is cramped and their is a gig going on with high energy the camera shots are very close up, showing just how cramped it actually is. It also cuts a lot which I think is good as it matches the high energy of the song, as do the light effects (strobe lights) used in the video.

Video Inspiration 1

I have the video for Best Of Friends by Palma Violets. there are lot of things that I like about the video. i like that it is in black and white, as I've said before, I think it fits the genre and gives off a real sense of professionalism.  Another thing that I like it that it cuts to the beat, not fully, but every so often you notice that the shot changes as the beat changes. Additionally I like the type of clothes they are wearing, in a way I think that they are messy but smart - if that makes sense. In this video the band are playing a gig. This may be hard for me to do but I have thought about maybe trying to do this. Finally, I'm a fan of the close ups on the lead singer, the lead singer looks right in to the camera which I feel makes a good video as he interacts with the audience. (PLEASE WATCH ON YOUTUBE, VEVO HAS RESTRICTED PLAYBACK ON THIS SITE.)

Booking The Studio

Final Filming Planning

For the final filming I am going to use the same band members are previously as I felt that they all worked together well. I am going to have the lead singer without a guitar this time though as I feel that his enthusiasm will come through more. The filming is going to take place at the same place as the draft; The Cookie Jar.

Draft Feedback

I did not have any written feedback from the draft, it was all verbal. I was told that I was too static with the camera and that I should move it around a little bit more, and also have more shots with faster cutting. This would enable my video to look more realistic instead of being slow pace like it was in my draft. I was also advised by one of my teachers to look at a previous students video and take inspiration from it (see below). It contains a lot of fast cuts and the little space which the director has the use is used superbly. The shots of the instruments and the shots of the head only being 3/4 in the shot are something which I will try to emulate in my final music video.

Draft Video

My draft video was erased when the technicians at my college switched to a new operating system on the computer I was operating it on. I am still currently trying to get it back.

Plans For Draft Filming Day

Below is my plan for the draft filming day; hopefully everything sticks to this and runs smoothly.

9:00 - Drive to Ollie's house and pick up bass guitar, rhythm guitar and drum kit.
9:20 - Leave Ollies and drive to Harrys to pick up him and his guitar.
9:25 - Leave Harrys and head to The Cookie in Leicester city centre.
9:35 - Luke picks up Matt and heads to The Cookie
10:00 - Meet at The Cookie and carry equipment to the basement in order to start filming.
10:20 - Start filming.
12:00 - Filming break for food and a drink.
12:30 - Re-film to 15:00
15:00 - Thank Tinny for letting us use The Cookie, pack up equipment and head home.

Video Style

I am just making it clear that my music video WILL NOT be a narrative. It will be mainly performance based with some backstage and crowd shots (maybe). There are many reasons for my decision, one of these is that the music video for the song that I have chosen is a narrative I don't want mine to be comparable to the original. I also think narrative videos are very hard to pull off, this is not the say that I'm not a fan of them, because I am - I would just rather try and create a performance video.

Poster Draft

Digipak Draft

Moodboard

Here is my moodboard, in this I have tried to showcase the style that I will be aiming to go for. You can see a lot of bands that I have mentioned before in here, I like what all the people in here are wearing, I also like their haircuts. Ideally, I would like my lead singer to have facial hair, maybe just stubble.. This is because a lot of indie lead singers have this characteristic and I want to conform to the 'indie' convention.

Digipak Analysis 3

Digipak Analysis 1

Digipak Analysis 2

25 Word Pitch

Colour Pallets

For my Digipak and Poster, I will be using the colours black and yellow. I feel that they work well together and they will stand out and catch the passer-by. I will be using a fairly bright yellow rather than a dim version.

Location

My video is going to hopefully be set in The Cookie Jar in the middle of Leicester. It is an indie bar/restaurant in daytime but a venue for indie gigs at night. Comedy gigs are also held their occasionally.
I want my video to be as indie as possible therefore if I have the chance to video here, which hopefully I will, I'll jump on it.

Risk Assessment

1) Tripping.
People who are at risk - The band members and the person filming. The person filming is at risk as if they move round when filming they could trip over a wire.
Likelihood - Low, as I will prevent this with precautions.
Severity - High.
Precautions- Make sure all leads are out of the way, taped down and tied up if not in use.

2) Falls of crew and equipment.
People who are at risk - The band members
Likelihood - High.
Severity - Medium.
Precautions - Keep everything out of the way of the band and tape things down. E.G speakers and amps, also leads.

3) Vehicles?
Answer = No.

4) Weapons?
Answer = No.

5) Special Effects?

Answer: No.

6) Burns from lights.

People who are at risk - Everyone.

Likelihood - Low.

Severity - High.

Precautions - Be sure that lights are not near anything flammable and switched off when not on.

7) Temporary structures?

People who are at risk - The band.

Answer: Yes

Severity: Medium

Likelihood: Medium

Precautions - Make sure everything is secure and sturdy.

Advert Inspiration 3

Advert Inspiration 1

This advert is probably the biggest inspiration to me. It is an EP advert for a band called CHEATAHS. I like there is writing or something on most places of the page. I think the box works well however in mine I will probably not incorporate a picture as I feel I am better technically and not artistically. I like the font that is used - it is bold yet simplistic. I don't feel that the date is lost as it is easy to find on the page. What I don't like is that the website URL is too small, in my opinion anyway. I do like the minimalist design however. I will probably not use the red colour in my video as I want to use Black and Yellow and it will probably be on a plain background without the red backdrops.

Digipak Inspiration 3

This cover is also minimalist/simplistic. From just looking at this cover one would not be able to tell what genre it would fit in - and this is what I like about it. I am a fan of just 2 colours being in place again, this time none of them being black however - they are clearly Orange and White. I will try and emulate just 2 colours being in place on mine. I quite like the 'Parental Advisory Explicit Content' in the bottom right however I don't feel it would fit my genre - as mine is more hip-hop. I like the size of the text on this album cover but in mine I will try and move it down slightly so it is more central as I feel this looks better.

Digipak Inspiration 2

Kasabian are a band which I admire greatly and this album cover was very striking when it was first released. It caught people off guard with it being so simplistic. I feel that the black works very well with the pink. Well... black works with everything. I used pink in my draft, this was inspired by this however I feel that it didn't work aswell. I like the text being central - in my final digipak I will emulate this - as I don't like the text being on one side and the cover looking lopsided. I will also have the text larger as well as I do not feel that is is prominent enough in this.

Digipak Inspiration 1

The colours on this Digipak inspired me the most, although I do like the minimalist design as well. I feel that yellow and black work really well and this is something which I would like to incorporate in my final digipak and maybe even the advertisement as well. I used these colours in my AS media magazine last year and this was marked highly therefore it is clear that they can work together. I am a fan of the picture on the front of this album cover however I am no sure whether I will use this as inspiration on not. On mine I also want the text to be in a more prominent place.

Storyboard Animatic

Storyboard

Camera

The camera which I will be using is the Panasonic V700. This is because it will be supplied by the college and I do not have my own camera and cannot afford another one. I feel as if it is good enough anyway. It is the camera which most students of the college will be filming their music video on.

Roles

As I'm working on my own I will have to fill all of the roles myself with no help from anyone else, this makes it more challenging however I feel that I will be up to the task. I will be the; director, art director, director of photography, make-up + costume.

Equipment

The Equipment that I will need for my video is as follows:
1 Microphone
1 Microphone Stand
1 Guitar

1 Bass Guitar
1 Full Drum Set
1 Panasonic Camera 
1 Tripod

Playlist

Band Inspiration

With my band I want to create a sort of indie style such as Palma Violets, JAWS and Peace. This will be done through baggy t shirt's and skinny/straight cut jeans. Additionally I would like my band to contain some elements of 80s/90s music icons such as The Smiths. This will be done in the same way however with messier hair exc..

Study Of A Director

OLLIE MURRAY

Ollie Murray is an English director. He has directed things from films to music videos. It is music videos that I'm most interested in now. I found him after watching Noel Gallagher and The High Flying Birds video - In The Heat Of The Moment. 

I really liked this video due to the angles of the camera, some of them were tight upon the subject where as some of the shots were moving. I do like static shots but I feel that the camera moving around brings a sense of realism to the viewer, which was me in this case.

Murray has directed a wide genre of music videos, he has directed a video by The Vaccines, who are relatively similar in genre to the High Flying Birds; but then he has directed videos by relatively unknown artists, such as Fink and Midlake.

What I like most about Murray is his fast cuts, I am going to 100% try and emulate these in my music video. I am not that much of a fan of long shots I prefer it to stick to the beat, as I have quite a fast song I will try and do what Murray does here.

Lyrics

Take me, take me over to the left side
I'll be, I'll be waiting on the right side for you (x2)

Take me, take me where the gold drips from the sun to my back
Take me, take me where the gold drips from the sun to my back

Break me, break me up into the ocean
A thousand pieces I don't wanna see
Break me, break me up into the ocean
I don't wanna see, make me blind

Take me, take me where the gold drips from the sun to my back
Take me, take me where the gold drips from the sun to my back

Audience Profile

The UK tribe that I will be aiming to attract is the 'Indie Scenesters'. I feel as if these are best suited to me as they enjoy indie music, obviously, as music that is really out there and not mainstream. My band are not going to conform to pop music which dominates the charts and I will be going along the route of indie bands, like the ones in my inspiration post. The Indie Scenesters will like music for what it is and not like it because everyone else does, the fan base for my band will be really loyal. The band will have the same fashion sense as the band, this is specified in a previous post.
I will also be targeting Hipsters, like 60s mods and people who enjoy the fashion of the 70s and 80s. E.G Madchester. They will enjoy this music as it is kind of similar to that of the previous years that I have stated. The fashion of my band will also be similar to this.
Overall though, my audience will be wider than just these. Everyone will be able to enjoy my music and my music video. I want people to be able to watch it and enjoy it, I feel everyone will be able to do that. Even if someone doesn't like the song I hope that they will be able to appreciate the video.

Bass Guitar Tutorial

My bassist watched this video in order to make sure that when he pretended to play the bass he looked like he actually did. This is the video here.

The Song

The song that I've chosen is Gold by Jaws. I chose this as it is an indie song and I want to try and emulate the indie style. My mates also dress in a relative indie way so this will help.

Twitter

Here is my bands twitter feed, I have used skills which I learnt last year. I have photoshopped the amount of tweets, following and amount of followers.

Peer Feedback

I have given feedback to my peers on their 25 word pitch. I feel as I have been very fair in what I have said. The top one is my feedback to Bronte Woodland and the bottom one is my feedback to Tarun, Adam, Matt and Jack Wildbore.

Band Name

I have decided that I am going to use the same band name that I used for my AS media coursework. This is 'The Crescents'. I have chosen this as I would like my band to come from Manchester and the name works well. I am not going to have the same style of band though. This year my band are going to be indier and more like Palma Violets, Swim Deep, Peace exc...

Band Profile

My band is going to consist of 4 members, all of whom are my friends. They're all friends as well therefore I feel that they will work together well, with great chemistry.
At the time the video is released The Crescents will be around as big as Catfish and The Bottlemen/Palma Violets. 
They will be playing a lot of festivals; Glastonbury, Reading/Leeds and Bestival for example and packing out all of the tents which they plan in. they will have a very loyal fan base, made up most of teenage boys and girls, however I feel that their music will attract a far wider audience. 
At shows they will get the crowd going and the frontman will be very energetic - much like Jon McClure from Reverend and The Makers, but obviously younger. 
They will be releasing their new album soon with this music video being one which should attract people and promote their album. they will be completing Academy 2/3 tours. As explained before, The band originate from the Hulme Crescents in Manchester, hence the name.

Genre

The genre of my video is going to be Indie/Alternative Rock... This was the only genre I ever thought feasible as I'm not really in to any other types of music. Obviously I appreciate other types of music but this is my preference which I listen to, quite a lot of other people listen to it as well therefore there is a big market for it.

I will be basing my music video on artists like the Stone Roses, Palma Violets, Swim Deep, Catfish and The Bottlemen.

I feel that I will be able to combine a lot of different elements from a lot of different music videos, although I am definitely not going to include any narrative elements.

I also regularly view music videos from these sort of bands therefore I know what I want me to be like and how it should be. I have a good understanding of what needs to be done.

Advert Inspiration 2

This advert is one which was made by a previous student at my college. It is an exemplar piece and has my shared on my teachers blogs and also stuck up on the wall at college - this is where I first seen it. It is very similar to the advert in my previous Advert Inspiration post. I like the size of all of the text on this poster and I like how the text/record label at the bottom is inline with the box and doesn't drift further out. This has inspired me a lot as you will be able to tell in my final piece. Again I do like the box however in mine I will probably have text as I am not very artistic. The font isn't my favorite however this would be easy to change.

Summer Homework

Media Homework

Coursework Schedule

A2 Media Studies Schedule Lutterworth College 2014-2015

Arctic Monkeys Prelim