Task 13- Evaluation Question 1

Question 1:  In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? 

Research:
Jess Glynne- Real Love and Take Me Home (shots and performance)
Ed Sheeran- The A Team (analysed analysis) 
Lady Gaga- Paparazzi and Bad Romance (overall analysis of video- narrative)  
Adele- 21 (CD cover) 
Phoebe Ryan- Mine (video, lyrics, cover and performance) 
Birdy- Skinny Love (narrative and song lyrics) 
Johnny Cash- Hurt (lyrics and shots) 

For my media production I did a lot of initial research into existing music videos to gain an overview of the products in general and to give me ideas ton what my video should look like.

To begin with I researched the different types of videos that I could create and looked at the  history behind music videos. This included research into Metz and applying his theory to the different types of music videos. After researching the three main genres of music video (abstract, performance and narrative) and looking into products such as Gotye's 'somebody that I used to know', Jess Glynne and Clean Bandit's 'Real Love', Ed Sheeran's 'The A Team' and Maroon 5's 'Sugar' and how each product represented a different type of video I decided to make a performance and narrative based video. Once I had made my choice I looked into the main features of these types of videos. 

Performance

The performance aspect of a video can include the protagonist singing in various locations: either in the studio, on stage (usually at a concert) or as part of the narrative. I chose to show Faye singing in both the studio and on location because I thought that it would add variety to the video and make it more interesting. When I had looked at previous students work I liked that they used the studio because it made the video look more realistic. In addition to this, the singing as part of the narrative allowed me to emphasize how the narrative fitted the lyrics of the song. Many of the other performance based videos I looked into included  musical instruments being used when the protagonist was singing (Real Love). I challenged this because I did not think my video would need this aspect added into it as it could be seen as a distraction. Also, the only instrument I would have considered using would be a piano but because I was using an up beat song I didn't think that it would fit. 

Narrative 

In most videos the narrative links in with the lyrics as seen in 'The A Team'  by Ed Sheeran. Because of this I analysed the lyrics of 'Mine' before I had decided upon a set narrative. In addition to this, I realized that most narratives are much like a film, there is generally a problem or issue that is resolved. For example in 'The A Team' the issue relates to drugs, in 'Hello' by Adele it is about a break up. I decided that I would conform to this by making my narrative about a couple arguing and making up. I did however, challenge the conventions of narrative in other ways as I didn't focus on just the protagonist as most videos do- I had two protagonists one of which sang. In videos such as 'The A Team', 'Let it Go', 'Bad Romance' and 'Hurt' there is only the one protagonist (usually the singer). The only product that I researched with a similar narrative to 'Mine' was 'Paparazzi' by Lady Gaga which similarly focused on two main protagonists. However, my problem/issue was very different to Gaga's and the overall narrative was again different. 

Shots & Mise- en- scene 

My video also conformed to other media products due to the shots I used. As you see in the original video for 'Mine' many short clips/shots are used at the beginning of the video and they are usually cut to the beat. I did this with my video because I thought it would make it look authentic. However, when the lyrics started I used a long tracking shot with Faye looking directly at the camera and singing. From the products I have researched there are not many shots like this but despite this I thought it was a useful shot as it allows the viewer to connect with the protagonist from the start. 

I didn't use any specialist make up or costumes for the video like most other products do (mainly Lady Gaga) because I didn't feel that there was any need. Faye and Mark both wore their own clothes but I did ask them to wear the same clothes if we were shooting on different days for continuity. I thought that the protagonist in 'The A team' wore clothes similar to what I wanted in my video, they looked natural and fit the narrative. 

Task 13- Evaluation Question 2

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

When starting my A2 media production I knew that I needed to make both a music video and an album cover, digipak and magazine advertisement to go with it. This meant that even from the research and planning stages of my video I had to consider what I wanted in my print artifacts as to make the two products link together.

My main product had a target audience of teenagers and young adults (15-25). To make my overall product appealing to that target audience I needed to ensure that not only my main product was aimed at that age range but also my print artifacts. To do this I knew that I needed to create synergy between the production and artifacts. The main way that I appealed to my audience with my video was the young actors and genre of music. Therefore when I came to making my artifacts these were the aspects that I tried to illuminate most. I researched other artists that people between 15 and 25 listened to and found that these artists were mainly singers such as Adele, Ed Sheeran, Jess Glynne etc. All of these artists have a similar style of music to Phoebe Ryan so I thought that looking at their videos and artifacts would help me with my products. Throughout my research I found that most of the artists had a picture of them as their album cover- usually a close up. I thought that this would be a good feature to include in my own cover as it allows the audience to know straight away who the album is by. I found that other artists that have been in the music industry longer such as Coldplay didn't need a picture of themselves as the album cover as most fans have liked them for a while and know the artists logo or are already aware of the album. 

In addition to this, I wanted to make sure that my overall product appealed to both genders which is why my video had male and female protagonists within it. To make my print products gender-neutral I decided that a black and white theme would be the best option with hints of colour to make the key features stand out. My CD cover, digipak and advert all incorporated this theme. I decided against using black and white in the video as I didn't think it was needed. The other videos that I researched which used black and white shots were Ed Sheeran's 'A Team' and Adele's 'Hello' both of which are quite slow, sad songs. I didn't think that the actual song 'Mine' or the narrative for my video  was as downcast  as the other songs so I didn't feel as though the colour scheme would work. I also tried to include both protagonists in every picture for my ancillary texts and achieved this with the exception of the front of the album cover. I believe that if it is obvious to an audience that actors of both genders were used then it would appeal to a male audience too. 

I did however, use the same title and font in both my print products and main production. In my digipak, album cover and the title for the video I ensured that the black and white theme was kept for the font and that the title was exactly the same size, font and colour. I wanted to do this to make sure that my overall product would be recognizable and link together. My advert did have a slight change to it compared to the other print products. I used a pale pink glow rather than a black or white one. I did this because there would have been little colour on the advert otherwise and I felt that It helped the main text to stand out. It also links to my CD cover in which Faye is wearing a pink and white top. 

I decided to use different pictures on each ancillary text (apart from the small picture of the album cover featured on the magazine). I believe that this was a good decision because it allows the audience to gain more knowledge about the video and want to watch it more. Otherwise, they might get bored with the same picture being used over and over again and the video isn't advertised as well. I used one outtake and all of the other pictures are taken out of the video. I thought this was vital because again it advertises the video but also gives hints to the narrative. I wanted to use one picture that was not in the video to give the audience something new if they were to buy the album. 

I used Photoshop to make all of my print products and word to present them. I used Photoshop mainly when changing parts of my pictures to colour while leaving other parts black and white. I also used Word when making small changes to my products such as adding in writing and logos and finally to present my different ideas in order to receive audience feedback. When creating my video I used Premier Pro, this enabled me to edit my video effectively and confidently as I had used it before. When I needed to take screenshots from my video for my ancillary texts I found the mac's helpful as the screenshots saved as an image on the desktop so were easy to transfer from Premier Pro to Photoshop. In addition to this, I wanted the title at the start of my video to be the same as the one on my album cover, Word and Premier Pro both had the same font, text sizes and effects for writing so I felt that I could create synergy between my products easily and effectively.  

Task 13- Evaluation Question 3

Question 3: What have you learned from your audience feedback?


After editing the first draft of my music video I decided to ask a range of people from my target audience what they would improve about it. Before I did this, I went through the production and looked at what I thought would need improvement so that I could plan my questions for the feedback based upon what I thought.  In the lesson that followed, the whole class watched my music video and a questionnaire was created based upon my own initial critiques. 

The verbal feedback that was given from my peers was very useful when it came to me being able to make improvements to my music video. The common improvements were that I needed to re-film the bench scene with both Faye and Mark there on the same day, due to the fact that it had been filmed on two different days and that made it impossible to fit when it came to the editing. In addition to this, the video also appeared to be very blurry to begin with so I had to go back to the video and edit it to sharper and therefore, clear up the picture so that it was easier for the students to watch and to see what was happening in the video. Furthermore, they advised me to change a couple of the shots as they were similar in having Faye walking in front or towards the camera so to improve this,I filmed a few more scenes in the studio at Landau with Faye singing the song in front of the microphone. I added a range of shots for this including a close up and then a zoom showing Faye's lips singing the song and therefore personalising the video even more to her as she was acting as the artist for it. 

After taking all of this feedback into consideration I re-filmed what was needed and then re-edited the final draft of the video and uploaded it to YouTube. This time the class watched the video again but they were given a generic questionnaire that everyone used for their feedback. This feedback has allowed me to reflect upon what I would change, should I ever make a music video again. Here are a few examples of the feedback I received:

In addition to this, after much research and consideration, I produced my first drafts of my print products - CD cover, digipak and magazine advertisement. The same process was repeated and the students sat round the table at the front of the class and were handed a copy of my print products to look at them and give me improvements to do if they found any. From their feedback, it became apparent that my CD cover looked very similar to Adele's 21 album cover (whom I had looked at during my research).

Also, there was a lot of 'dead space' on the front cover of the CD. Following this, I went back onto Photoshop and I carried on creating different edits for my print products in order to get them to a high standard and make them unique to my music video. To eliminate the high amount of dead space that there was on the CD's front cover, I filled some of it with adding the artist's name and also the title of the song was changed into a larger size to take up some of the room. The picture that is on the front cover of the CD is a mid/long shot of Faye when she is walking towards the camera in the music video. I used this shot as it shows a full shot of Faye so it would stand out to people who would buy the CD, the artist is distinguishable from the front cover straight away when you see it and also they would recognise her as it is a shot from the video itself.Afterwards, the same process happened for a final time and this time, theyhelped me decide on my final products.

Task 13- Evaluation Question 4

Task 12- Music video first draft feedback and questionnaire

• We need to re film and edit three more shots: Faye and Mark sitting on the bench, Mark running and Faye singing. 
• Edit some of the shots in terms of brightness and lighting. Also add transitions into a few of the main shots. 
• Ensure that all the singing shots are in sync with the music. 
 

• Most of the shots are edited so that Faye's lip syncing fits with the music. 
• We have also incorporated a wide range of camera shots and angles.
• Our shots don't break the 180 degree rule and the editing ensures continuity throughout the whole project.  

1. Is our narrative clear? If so does it fit the video?
2. Which camera shots are the best that we have used? Which are the worst?
3. Have we made good use of the facilities on premier pro?
4. Do you think our music video suits our target audience? If yes, how?
5. Is the lip syncing in time with the artist?
6. What is your favorite scene in the video?
7. Is there any way in which we could improve the video? What could be do? 

I have received verbal feedback from my peers on all of the above questions. The summary of the answers are: 

1. My narrative is clear. 
2. I used a range of shots but some of them did not fit the narrative (the bench scene in particular). 
3. I used a Premier Pro well but I could go more in depth with my editing- for example more transitions and better use of sharpness and highlighting etc.
4.  It does suit the target audience based on the actors, narrative and music genre.
5.  In the most part the lip syncing is good, there are however a couple of shots that could be looked at more closely (mainly in the studio shots). 
6. Mainly the tracking shot at the beginning and the bridge shot towards the end were the most liked shots.   
7. To make it better I need to refilm a few shots to make the narrative more clear and maybe add a title at the start.