MS2 – coursework

Option 2 – Music Video Part Two – Pre-Production Tasks

Task One – why do artists use music videos? Before you start to mind-map your ideas you might want to create a quick list of different genres of music and think of specific tracks and videos that fall into various categories, as well as the various TV channels you might find them. This should help you organise your thoughts before starting your research. When mind-mapping ideas as to why music videos are made, it may help you to think of the different audiences they are appealing to. Your mind-map doesn’t have to be very big, but it should certainly get you thinking. Using a computer program for mind-map is a good idea because you are not limited by size of paper – it is also something that can be easily added to in the future. You shouldn’t spend too long on this task – it is really a ‘starter’ to get your brain considering some of the key things that will be important throughout the project.

Task Two – researching music videos Since a reversal in a law prohibiting YouTube from broadcasting music videos, you will have no problem finding them. While it is one of the charms of YouTube that any budding videographer with a camera phone and editing software can create their own promo, it makes it a bit more difficult to sift through all the rubbish (a less charming side to YouTube), to find official, or at least well made, promos! First things first, where to begin? If you have access to music channels at home then this is a good place to start, failing that the website of the music channel. If you do use YouTube then use diligence. Look at the description at the side and see if there’s a reference to it being the original video. Try to watch as many different videos from as many different genres as possible. Look at videos throughout the past twenty five years (when the music video became really important), see if you can notice changes in the conventions of music videos over the years and if there have been prominent directors in the field. Without wanting to do your research for you, you may want to look at the promo work of directors; Jonathan Glazier and Spike Jonze. Both made some of the most memorable music videos of the nineties and now both direct feature films. Of course the most important element of your research is to analyse them – this will dramatically improve your understanding of how they work and what makes them interesting (and a chance for you to use all the new skills that you’ve developed this year!), this list is not exhaustive but should give you an idea of all the things to make notes about…

Once you have analysed one music video, the others will become easier. Look at:

• Conventions (typical features) of a music video. • Genre of song – does the video match the tone and pace of the track? • Narrative • Mise-en-scene • Representations - groups within the video, the band/artist and the audience. • Does the video meet or break audience expectations? • Target audience for the video. • You must record the channel, time and day/year of broadcast.

These are all areas we have covered in lessons and shouldn’t be taxing – yet perhaps a little time consuming. However, it is imperative to remember that this research is vital to the marks you are awarded for both Pre-Production and the Evaluative Report. All research should be typed up preferably – mainly to keep your own notes tidy and organised. This will make life easier for you in the long run. Also – don’t forget to write any ideas for your own creations down while you are doing your research. After all, the aim of the research is to start informing your own ideas.

You will be blogging the research that you do.

Task Three – genres of music videos

Wait a minute!

Before you know who your target audience is & what genre you’re looking at you need to choose the track you are going to make a video for! This has been covered many times but briefly, to reiterate…

• The track should be approximately 3 minutes long • The track should be appropriate in content • Try to choose a track that doesn’t already have a music video – therefore a

B-side or an album track (or an old song) might be easier. • All songs need to be vetted by me before you continue

Right, so that’s that out of the way. Where were we?

Task Three – genres of music videos Now that you know what track you are making a video for you need to look at other videos that are out there for similar sounding music. You also need to see what videos are out there by the same band that you are making a video for. This is where you walk a fine line. Your video should really fit in with the current trends and styles of the day – but should also be creative. At the same time it would be unacceptable to copy the ideas from an existing music video. Tricky eh?!

Task Four – target audience

Define your typical audience using the following forms of categorization: • Young & Rubicam’s: 4Cs model • Lifestyle Categories; drifter, cowboy, egoist etc • ABC model; outlining financial and employment status • Hartley & Fiske’s Subjectivities : write profiles of various audience members

A lot of this will be based on the genre of the track and possibly its lyrical content however:

REMEMBER: Promos may have more than one audience!

Task Five – ideas

You need an idea for an entire music video. Someone once said that: “Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration!” Basically this means that we can all have really good ideas, but they won’t just fall in our laps if we stare at the wall (or the telly, or FaceBook) hard enough and long enough. The best ideas come after hard work – therefore you will need to give yourself every chance to come up with a good idea.

• Listen to the track time and time (and time) again • Print out the lyrics from the interweb • Listen to the words, what phrases stand out, which are repeated? • Does the song already tell a story? • Think of the genre of the music and think about the pace • Think of the conventions of music videos • Are any abstract ideas created by the song

Then: Mind-map possible narratives, characters, settings, props, visual images, etc Basically – write anything down that comes into your head, a scene, a shot, a person! Anything can spark bigger ideas; The Usual Suspects has possibly one of the most complex narratives of any American film of the past twenty years and yet the entire film came from an idea the writer had for what he thought would be a ‘cool looking’ movie poster and a single line of dialogue that had been going round his head! Remember: You are being marked originality and creativity – don’t be afraid of creating something abstract or unusual – if this is something your research has made you think about and you can justify it, go for it! You are going to have to work through that 99% of blood, sweat and tears before you find that 1% of inspiration!

Task Six – step treatment So you’ve got a good idea for a 3 minute Music Video and you want to make it look as dynamic and visually interesting as possible? Good! But before you turn into Stephen Spielberg and start the storyboarding process you need to get organised. Visualise the promo in your head and write down step by step everything that happens in the video.

• You need to write out exactly what happens in the video scene by scene • Pick the two most interesting scenes to storyboard • Write these scenes out in detail using the sheets provided on a shot by shot

basis – this should equal approximately 20 shots in total Remember that if you end up making your video in a group then the rest of the video will have to be storyboarded – this could be upwards of 100 shots.

So, you’re ready to start storyboarding then?

Storyboarding Simply put, a storyboard is the visual translation of your Step Treatment. It is a way to show that you understand the conventions of music videos. It is a way of bringing a promo to life through the use of camera, editing and effects. It is a way of completely understanding what an audio visual piece will look sound and feel like, without having to actually make it! Three Golden Rules:

1. You must use a variety of camera shots and appropriate editing techniques 2. You must fill in everything on the storyboard 3. The shot you have described must match the shot you have drawn

FAQ – there is usually only one Frequently Asked Question:

“But what if I’m not very good at drawing?!”

This doesn’t matter at all. My nine month old niece and my ninety year old nan both have more artistic talent than myself and yet I can storyboard because the idea of storyboarding is about getting information across simply. If you can’t draw people then stick men will do – however you must remember Golden Rule no. 3 – if you’ve described your shot as a Close Up then we shouldn’t be able to see all of the stick man! If something is not quite clear from your drawing (a specific prop or setting, for example) then it should be described fully in the notes section. Below are some examples of some drawings and the final shot – notice how basic some of the drawings are – but how they accurately capture the shot type.

Blank Storyboard This is what a storyboard looks like with nothing on it. You must provide as much information as possible. Things should not be left blank.

Points to consider:

• How you number your shots is up to you, but you must be consistent and it must be clear which shot follows the last one.

• ‘Shot Length’ should be given in seconds – even if it is less than one.

• ‘Setting’ should always start with ‘INT:’ if the shot is an Interior Shot or,

‘EXT:’ if the shot is an Exterior Shot.

• On ‘Editing Notes’ always describe the transition to the next shot. For example ‘cut to…’ or ‘slowly dissolve to…’, etc.

• ‘Shot Type’ describes the distance of the camera from the subject e.g. CU or Wide. It also describes whether the camera is moving e.g. Panning Shot.

• ‘Camera Angle’ describes the angle of a shot or the direction of a movement.

• Use the ‘Dialogue’ box to write down lyrics that coincide with the images.

Key Words and Phrases Remember that you are being marked on your knowledge and application of media so don’t forget any of those Key Words we’ve been learning along the way – here’s a few that will help in the storyboarding process:

And some terms to help you describe editing and transitions… Dissolves: To mix from one scene to another, for example to show that time has passed in the same place. Wipes: To make a narrative transition from one place to another. Cuts: A direct interruption and switch to another place or time, to keep action moving quickly. Fades: Emerging or disappearing scenes creates the effect of slowly departing or arriving into the place or mood of the narrative. Jump Cut: A cut to later action from one filmed scene to the next, creating an effect of discontinuity or acceleration And, of course, the shot types that you’ll be using throughout…

Camera term

What it means

Establishing Shot

The camera is set far back to show or to emphasise setting or location rather than the subject

Slo-mo A moment which is played much slower than real time

Pan shot The camera moves horizontally, taking in all the details along the way.

Tracking shot

The camera moves alongside characters either using a hand-held technique or smooth dolly tracks.

Zoom The camera focuses in on, or out from, a subject by using a telephoto lens.

Mini cam A tiny camera focuses in an unusual place for effect

Steadi-cam A weighted camera is strapped to an opera to allow hand-held but controlled movement

Framing the Image

It’s OK to use abbreviations for the names of shots – just make sure you use the correct name!

A Final Word on Pre-Production While the Pre-Production task doesn’t carry the most marks in the entire coursework, it can be the most time consuming. That is entirely acceptable – as all three pieces of work are linked, the work you put into this piece will benefit the other two elements of the coursework. The creative process you have been through will have already given you ideas for your actual Media Product even if you don’t end up making your music video, some of the ideas might be used. The research should have informed your work so you will be more analytical when writing your Evaluative Report.

Be thorough. Be professional. Be creative.

This is what I look at when I am giving you a mark out of twenty…