Evaluation

Media Evaluation

For our A2 Media Studies I chose to do assignment brief 1 which was to create a promotion package for the release of an album, it had to include a music promo video, together with two of the following options; A website for the band, A cover for its release as part of a Digipak, magazine advertisement for the Digipak. We could do this in alone or as part of a group. I decided to work with a partner, Andrew Crooks. We chose to do a music video for a song by the Rap/Hip-Hop artist Nelly, the song is called Na Nana Na and is a stereotypical rap song about money, cars and women. We chose to do this song because not many people know of it because it is an old song and is not aimed at a mainstream audience. During my research I looked at a range of genres from rap to rock to analyse (I analysed music videos by Akon, Busta Rhymes, Linkin Park, Jay Z and Paramore) and noticed that they all have a similar shot pattern, which is timed with the beat of the music. This then gave us an idea of how many shots we may need, and when we had an estimate, we began to film. The analysed videos used for research can be found on my media blog at: http://advancedmediat.blogspot.com/2010_10_01_archive.html. At first we had planned to completely challenge the stereotypes of the Hip-Hop genre but then we thought it would be better to challenge as well as use the stereotypes because it would show the genre from two different perspectives. The original idea consisted of only one main character/protagonist who is a ten year old Caucasian boy, William, by just having him in our video we are opposing the stereotype that all rappers and Hip-Hop artist are black. Our original idea was to have William dressed as a stereotypical Black American but we decided against this idea and had him dress smart in order to break the baggy clothing stereotypes. We then had the idea to have two main protagonists/characters and changed our storyline. So we used the ‘Child Gangster’ narrative (explained on my blog) but with an older character as well because the song we had chosen included some explicit lyrics and we did not want William to imitate such words. Our chosen song already has a video to it and the original does not seem to have a storyline through it. So, after looking at other music videos I saw that music videos rarely have a narrative structure and we decided not to use one. Instead we had no narrative and decided to create audience expectation and then try to oppose what they may have expected to see. During filming we tried to use the forms and conventions, which consist of cuts in time with the beat, of real media texts to create voyeuristic pleasure. For this we had lots of close up shots and medium close ups of the artists. Other conventions include oversized clothing and baseball caps, we used these because it supports the genre of our chosen song and clearly shows the audience that the genre we chose was Hip-Hop. The most dominant shot we used was the medium close up because it shows body language as well as facial expressions. As well as the medium shots we used a lot of close ups because it allows the audience to get into the same mood that the artist is portraying. We also used a range of long shots to establish the scenario show the audience the locations of our video. Through the use of our chosen locations we were able to challenge conventions of the rap genre by not being in the stereotypical ‘ghetto’ location, instead we chose to film outside of a college and on a park with lots of trees and bright green grass. In order to complete our A2 media portfolio we had to use a wide variety of modern media technologies, in order to reach full potential in creating our video and the two ancillary texts and to develop our blogs. Since it was not possible for all of our coursework to be done using computers, we did not only use these forms of technology. We also used video cameras and still cameras in order to record our video and to take pictures for our ancillary texts. The most used new media technology was probably the internet and Web 2.0 the internet was used for everything that we did because it all had to be posted onto our blogs, the internet was also used to do our research because it allowed access to www.wikipedia.com. I used Wikipedia to find some of the conventions of the rap genre and it also helped to analyse the lyrics in the video for Linkin Park Ft. Busta Rhymes. Web 2.0 made the research a lot easier. With the use of websites such as YouTube, MySpace and Blogger we were able to look at other student’s work and see how ours was in comparison to theirs, Web 2.0 allowed us to give and receive feedback during our project. Websites such as Google, Wikipedia and Bing were also useful for research purposes because through the use of Web 2.0 internet users are able to give their opinions on music videos and we can use the opinions for our video. The advantages of Web 2.0 are that it allowed us to upload our own finished project as well as look at other students’ it also allowed us to gain feedback off internet users from all around the globe. These advantages strongly influenced the outcome of our product because we were able to see other fan made videos and use them to see how we could improve ours. After the research stages, we began to plan both our music video and ancillary texts. We started the planning stage by drawing up various drafts for our Adverts and Digipak outlines. Although and the first stages, the majority of our planning was scribbled down in rough on paper, new media technologies played a major role in the quality of our media texts.We used programs such as Microsoft Paint and Microsoft Publisher to create numerous IT drafts, representing our proposed themes and layouts for both our album advertisement and Digi-pak cover.We then used these drafts as a guide line for creating our actual piece, a similar technique we used in designing our music video. For our first ancillary text, the Digi-pak we took some pictures using a Canon camera to go on front. The pictures represent wealth as well as struggle because of the rap genre and how it started, but, we later thought to screenshot some parts of our video and use it as pictures on the Digi-pak, but we decided against this due to the fast paced acting of the models and the still pictures kept blurringpaste it here. In doing this we found out that people who had seen our video instantly knew that the Digi-pak template was for our video. The screenshot idea made our main project link in with our ancillary texts and made the combination of the two very effective. We also had the idea to pastiche an album cover which had two faces, as halves, put together as one. The idea was inspired form Christina Aguilera’s album ‘Bionic’. We did not use this idea because the album we decided to release was for a solo artist and the song only had the second artist featuring on the track. In order to take the pictures we had booked a still/photo Canon camera from the media department. Both, me and Andrew know how to use these cameras as we had used them for our AS Media Projects so we were already familiar with the digital technology. This gave us a head start because we had not forgotten how to use the technology and did not have to be shown again. Then for our second ancillary text, the advertisement poster, pictures were taken of the model in front of a fence with ivy growing from it. We chose that certain location because it represents the ghetto (because the fence is dirty) and hope of new life in the ghetto because there is fresh plants growing over the fence. This is a really good sign with greenery to show new life. ‘Life is as good as new in the ghetto in which the rap artists were raised.’ During the process of editing our video, using Premier Pro CS 4, we had noticed the we had attracted other student’s attention to our video. We showed some of the students the video, still incomplete, and give them questionnaires to fill out. The response was generally positive and the only thing which kept coming up as a negative was the location in which we had shot one verse. We resolved this problem by shooting again in another location and the sample audience said they like the new location more. The main positive feedback we had received was the used of William as one of the two main stars. The sample audience said they enjoyed his performance and that he looked as if he was enjoying the filming process. The questionnaire samples provided us with the information we needed to improve our video significantly. John Hamlin said: “The video has A* potential.” while Sam Anderson stated that: “I don’t like the location you chose for the first verse.” We took the feedback and filmed in a different location and began to edit the video. The editing mainly consisted of cutting the shots to shorten the and to sync the lips of the models with the lyrics of the songs. Also, during editing, we noticed that we had mistakenly left a tripod in one of the shots. We decided against shooting this shot again because this media project is a learning process which should hopefully help us pick out the mistakes we made and allow us to alter them in the future. Our video was shot in many locations. The main two locations being at Wyke college and Beresford Park. We chose to film outside of Wyke college because it shows that one of the main characters is a college student who likes to sing and rap. Beresford was the second location because of the greenery and the trees which represent innocence and cleanliness. While filming we had the logo for the college visible within the Mise-En-Scene for the first verse. We chose to film on Endike Lane as well because it is where William lives, though this did not have a major impact on the video, the costume that William was wearing did because it was his School uniform and it showed that he had just got home from school. We used a range of costumes from a school uniform to formal wear to smart shirts and jeans. The different costumes represent different things because they range form innocent school uniforms, to show the age of the models, to baggy clothing which is an iconic feature of the Rap/ Hip hop genre. The costumes made a real difference in our video as it gave the video a proper narrative with a storyline. For the chorus we needed some extras in our video and when we mentioned this to a group of friends, they instantly agreed to taking part in our video. The location we used for the chorus was a dark garage door so the characters stood out. Two of the more enthusiastic extras were used more often because they were not camera shy and full of energy and willing to help for our project.

Audience Feedback

Here are some of the questionnaires we had given out to a sample of students after they watched our video. The sample included a range of males and females aged from 17-19 and were all from Wyke College. We generally had positive feedback for our video. Majority of the sample had given us 8/10 on how good our video was. The main criticisms we had were the 'college' location and that the lip movement could not always be seen due to the editing. The main positive feedback we got was that we had a young model who seemed to be enjoying himself, some of the sample like the shots with the tree during one of the choruses because it was funny and unexpected. Me and Andrew were very pleased with the feedback because most of the sample we used stated that the ideal music for them is Rnb and Hip-Hop, so we feel as if we have reached out to our target audience. The sample also wrote that they thought our video was of a Rap genre song so I also believe that Me and Andrew were successful in making a video which matched the genre of our chosen song.

Music Video Final Edit/ Finished Product

This is our final product of our music video. It can also be found on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ounFBayhEpM.

Advert Second Draft

For the next two drafts me and Andrew made we decided to add another comment, but this one is not by a magazine, this one is by one of the world's most successful rap artists Jay Z. in addition to this comment we decided to change 'Coming Soon' to a date to show exactly when the debut album will be released. The use of different pictures allows all of our products to compliment each other because the pictures are used multiple times for different purposes.

Advert First Draft

Here are the first two drafts that Me and Andrew made for our first ancillary text. Is is a magazine advertisement for the release of a debut album by the artist named Teed. We kept our ideas basic and simple yet similar to one another because we could then give feedback to each other about our products. For instance after we both made our first drafts we decided to use other pictures for other drafts and after seeing Andrew's advert I decided to use the fact that he included a comment made by a critic. It makes the advert look more professional.

Chosen Font

This is the font we chose to use for our ancillary texts because it is big and bold and it should go well with our products. I uploaded it in white colour to show how it looks because we were unsure about having it black or white. It looks better in white so we will use this font in white for our ancillary texts.

Font Styles

These are some of the fonts we had looked at using for our ancillary texts. We wanted the print to be bold and readable so it stands out to the reader. The colour of the font will either be black or white because it should contrast with the images we have chosen and may catch the eye of the audience.

Disc Designs

This is the design we have created to go in front of the disc once our music video is finished. We chose this picture because we have used it already for both of the Ancillary texts so it all links together very well.

The writing on the picture was done in the same fonts that we used for the poster as well as the digipak so, again, it all links together very well.

IT Digipak Drafts

Above are some drafts we made using computers, again they are very simple and should consist of mainly pictures with minimal text. The picture on the bottom is the outline we will need in order to make a 6 panel Digipak, that is the reason we have done the IT drafts on that outline.

Final Advert

These are Mine and Andrew's final advertisements we chose these two because the pictures look similar and we used the same layout and design because it seems more professional if the two adverts are alike. We included the release date as well as an institution (Def Jam Records) for the album itself and for the advert (XXL). Again, we included the quotes from Q magazine and Jay Z to make our advert more appealing to the audience.

Hand Drawn Digipak Draft 1

Here is one of the layouts I drew for the panels of a digipak. After looking at and analysing other digipaks I realised that they are all very simplistic with minimal writing. I kept to this idea so we do not have to do anything that may be very complex. I used the conventions of Digipaks and included pictures, artist name, institution and a bar code. I also notices that there is minimal writing on a Digipak and so I only decided to put lyrics on the back panel, but for the final product I may change this to a track list.

Another One

This is the second picture we have chosen to use for our Ancillary texts. We chose this picture because it only shows half of the model's face. Once in editing the background will be cropped out so the audience will only see half of a face. We chose to show only half of the model's face because it connotates the the audience is not only into music, there is a side of him that people don't know.

The Chosen One

This is the photo we have decided to use as the main picture for our Digi-pak.
We chose this picture because it shows the artist clearly. Although the artist is not looking at the camera the audience can still see who it is. The main reason why the artist is not looking towards the camera is because it shows that he does not care for wealth and fame, he just doesn't want to go back to his old life. He is looking down towards the ivy growing along the fence because he doesn't want anybody to be living bad life and is willing to help them through the struggle he once faced.

Photographs for Digipak/Advert

Here are some of the pictures we took for the album cover:

We took the first picture to show that the 'ghetto' life in which the rappers came up from can be changed, they can become successful if they try. The hood is flipped up to show the anti-socialness which is stereotyped within the teenage generation, but the look on his face shows that he is interested in the rap genre and it could help him lead a better life.

Again, with the second picture, the car and the logo is highly visible to represent wealth. The model was told to dress very smart to show intelligence and over his jumper he has earphones dangling down halfway. The earphones show that the successful artist has not given up on his music career and is looking to go a long way. His leg is resting on the car to show that he is easy going and not worried about is struggles anymore.

When we took these pictures we wanted the car be involved in some way or another. This is because the car is a Mercedes-Benz and it represents wealth. Being wealthy is what rappers sing about in majority of their songs.

Filming Sessions

Today me and Andrew went out and filmed more of our video, the weather was perfect and it enabled us to film more of our outdoor shots.
Some footage will be posted up soon as my laptop does not accept memory cards because its a boring laptop :(
Also, in regards to filming, we have changed some of our shots so they no longer follow our storyboard but this is because either we did not have the right cast (amounts/members) or we could not gain access to our originally chosen locations. However, this has not affected our video at all because we have made slight adjustments to make up for the little loss that may have occured.


We have also advanced our work on our two ancillary texts by making drafts using the computers.

Back On Track

The adverse weather has cleared up and we are able to finish off our filming,

Paramore

The second Paramore video I decided to analyse is called Playing God.
This video was released after the media had stopped criticising Hayley for being the only reason that Paramore became successful.
Majority of this video was shot in Hayley's house itself, I guess this was a way of her getting back to the negative media comments by showing that she doesn't mind her personal space being shown.

Here is the video



In this video the light bulb is used again, it is inter textual between the two videos. Instead of Hayley keeping hold of the light bulb herself, she has tied down her fellow band members and placed the light bulb on top of them. This is probably to show the media that she doesn't want all of the limelight, and is willing to share it with the band. She is only seen as the main person in Paramore by fans because she is the lead singer, not many people take into account the names of the musicians and are only concerned with the singers.

Throughout this video Hayley Williams seems to show two sides of herself. One being really friendly and inviting and the other being a serious, dangerous and revenge seeking person. This may have been done to show that she is generally a really nice person but if people have negative points of view towards her, she can be evil and turn angry. (But who doesn't do that?)

Analysis Until We Are Able To Film

Due to fresh snowfall and further forecasts of snow it has become very difficult to continue filming due to continuity problems.
So, in the meantime I thought it may be useful to analyse more music videos.
The two videos I am going to analyse are both by the Punk Rock band 'Paramore'.
I have chosen to analyse these music videos because of the lead singer of the band, Hayley Williams.
Hayley has been widely targeted by the media because they say that she is the sole reason for the success of Paramore.
The first video I am going to analyse is for the song called Ignorance.



Here is the video; as you can see, it is set in a small dark room, in which the band is all squashed together with minimal movement space. The main thing to consider about this video the the lighting, as the only light for the most of this video comes from a single light bulb.
Throughout the whole of the video Hayley Williams has control of the light bulb and seems to keep it towards herself for most of the time, occasionally, she moves it towards her band members but it is just for a matter of seconds and people do not really tend to notice it.
Hayley is also placed higher up compared to the rest of the band members to show that she is supreme and leads the band. You can see Hayley as tries to get herself higher and touching the ceiling of the room.