A quick update on my editing is going.I think we have done some really good progress, we have now finished our sequence, well we filled in all the shots anyway .
Need to do:
Get miss to give feedback on our project
Grading all the shots
Change the contrast of them all
Also, whilst we are finishing off the small touches to the video we were also starting up our website (Myspace) and also starting the album cover (digipak).
As there are 3 of us in our group we thought it would be a good idea to split up these 3 tasks to do; Tom- because he is more experience at Photoshop started the Album cover Hannah and I- then alternated between doing the Myspace and carrying on with editing on the Video.
This makes it easier to make sure everything is atleast practically finished before the deadline.
The editing is going really, we have a few gaps left now but haven't quite decided what shots we are going to put where.
Having so much footage and so many takes made it a lot harder to pick a couple of shots that we liked and edit them in, because there were many that we really liked.
Also, in our music there are numerous parts where there are 3 quick beats.
So we decided to write down how often and where these came in.
We thought this was the best way to go through our footage and find the shots we are looking for.
This is when we edited the 3 fast tight cut shots of Sian in the pink jumper.
And after getting our feedback it was a shot that many of our target audience liked!
After looking through all 19 questionnaires (14 girls&5 boys) we wrote up what we got from them and how they helped us. The range of question we asked were good because it allowed us to know straight up who liked it and who didn't, and why they had their reasons.
(1) Everybody we asked said the video looked proffessional. Many of the reasons for this were:
The changing clothes
effects
the fact there was so much going on
it was eye catching
quirky
fun
bright colours
(3) Strangely, in reference to question 3, two music videos that came up were Kesha- Tik Tok and Duffy- Warwick Avenue. This was good because these were definitely two references that we had considered when choosing effects (black&white) and deciding on our narrative (taxi).
(4) The majority of our audience seemed to understand that our music video was performance and concept based. People identified the themes of our video being; lost love- break up, London, femininity and youth, independance and fun. (5) It was really good that they got the genre. Some even specified retro pop/alternative pop. This is good it meant we successfully put our genre across.
(6)words that came up frequently when talking about Skye's identity were quirky, likeable, young, pretty, individual, appealing, fun to watch, original, fashionable, flirty/sexy
(7) They listed a lot of mainstream music channels that it would be shown on such as 4music, MTV, The Box, TMF, The Hits, MTV hits, NME, Q
(8)They listed a lot of mainstream magazines that it would be reviewed in such as Time Out, Smash hits, mainstream music, NME, Glamour
(9) When asked if they wanted to watch it several times over 74% said yes, 10% said no, 16% said maybe – which I think are pretty good results.
(10) About half of our audience said they would spend money to download the single
(11) Some of our audiences favourite moments included the clothes changing, the split screens, the end shots, a lot of people liked the reaction shots, and loads of people loved it when Skye danced with the random guy.
(12) When asked for criticisms people noticed that some of it was out of sync, they thought the change from b&w to colour was too sudden, they wanted more retro clothes, more random people in the video and one person didn’t like Sian’s green lips on the album cover.
(13) Everyone said they liked the album cover and MySpace and that it fitted well with the video. They said it fits perfectly. It glamorous, it looks very professional and the SKYE cover is great.
I think our audience feedback session was a great success, we got some really good comments back, and the criticisms were things we were either aware of already or weren't too hard to change.
Now our main product and ancillary texts are completed, the final thing we need to do is get our target audience in for a screening and get their views on all 3 products :)
In order to know what our audience really think, we decided to make a questionnaire, this way we could work out the common comments/criticisms that occured and know what needs changing.
1) Does the video look like a music video - if so in what way
2) Does it entertain you - if so how
3) What other music videos would you compare it to
4) Can you describe the narrative, theme or concept of the video
5) What is the genre of this music video
6) Can you tell us anything about the identity of the artist AND do you find her appealing…if so, why
7) Which music channel would you expect to see this playing on
8) Which music magazine might it be reviewed in
9) Would you want to watch it several times over
10) Would you be willing to spend money to download this single
11) What was your favourite moment in the video
12) Do you have any criticisms – (be honest)
13) Do you like the look of the Album cover and Myspace – do they fit with the video
We booked our screening with the teacher yesterday lunchtime, and it was a great success as we managed to get 19 questionnaires filled in which was a sufficient amount of people because it meant we have more data to work with.
Yesterday we did the Bricklane shoot which was scheduled to have been done couple of weeks ago, however due to unfortunate weather we were uanble to shoot.
We started our shoot at 10 and finished near enough 4.30, it was a long and cold day but we managed to work through it and come out with some amazing footage we can work with.
Our actress was amazing, we were standing there cold with about 5 layers on, where as she was barely in an outfit and had to put up with being directed and doing take after take. We are very thankful she was able to take time out to help us with our project.
We have now finished our london shoot and only have a performance shoot to do which i think should take max 10mins. We would like to take atleast 3 takes of her performing infront of the green screen, because to be honest we have so much footage already we really only need the performance shots to break up the london sequences we have already.
What do you think you learnt from Friday's workshop? It could be specific things about making a music video OR general things about the production process.
I think the workshop helped with a variety of things:
Directing/shooting
Performance
Pre-production stages
Directing/shooting
I learnt quite a lot here, as Jake Wynne, our director proved through his knowledge of the film that he has watched it numerously. This is important because it is essential for the director to understand and know well every shot that is filmed. It is important for the director to be communicating with the crew and actors at all times, otherwise nobody will know where they stand. The easiest way for Wynne to show the actors what he wants exactly is too simply demonstrate it himself. The director also has to be a rather patient person, as the actor’s performance may not be spot on straight away! I noticed Wynne was regularly going back to the Wheatus video and checking it to make sure his shots were exact and he didn’t miss anything important out.
I also learnt that a good rough idea of how a real music video would be filmed. I thought the tracks were done really well, and the equipment used for them was really good to see how it worked. Also, things may happen on the day that you have got to be prepared for, for instance, lighting in some places mainly the hallway were too bright and so we used filter paper to tone it down slightly.
Another factor that is essential is performance. The actor has to be confident; otherwise it really shows on the camera. The actor also has to be someone who will be able to put up with being told what to do constantly, it cannot be someone who has a short fuse and doesn’t like being bossed around. They also have to be reliable, therefore many of us have learnt it would probably work better if someone from your own group were to act in the music video. Purely because they would have been there throughout the whole pre-production stage and would know exactly how you want it to be seen.
2. For you, what was the best bit?
I enjoyed the whole day, from acting in the shots to sitting down and getting ideas from the camera work. To be honest I think my most enjoyable bit would probably be watching them film the band on their own. Solely because I was able to look at how and why they shot certain things in different ways. In addition this will really help us when thinking about special effects and what shots to do for our real music video.
3. How do you think the work we have done will impact on your group project? I think it has had a big impact on the group project because the workshop really proved how important pre-planning was, and how without it everything will go wrong on the day. We need to think carefully about a shooting schedule, and what shots we will shot were. We must stick to our time allocation as closely as possible, otherwise we could end up not shooting certain shots that will be crucial for when we edit.
Additionally, I think we should allocate one director for the days we shot, we cant rotate but I do not think it will do any favours if everyone ends up telling our actors what they should be doing. I think we should also decide on who will shoot certain shots, this is because within out group each member may be better at a specific shot than another and it would only be practical to use the best person and we do wish to end up with a perfect project by the deadline!
