James Bolton - Filmed Evaluation

This is my filmed evaluation in which I talk about how our Music Video, Digipack and Website have been integrated so that they are all clearly shown as being for the same band and song. I also talk about how we used different technologies throughout the coursework. This includes the use of the blog throughout the whole course, the use of iWeb to create out Webpage, the use of photoshop where we edited all our images for both the digipack and website, the use of QR codes to integrate the Webpage and Digipack and finally the use of iMovie where we created the final music video. In iMovie we used lots of the different elements including changing the brightness and contrast of shots, speeding shots up, different transitions such as fade in and out, zooming shots in and cutting and editing all the shots.

James Bolton - Reflective Evaluation

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

I think that our video does use and represent conventions of real media products, not only in the style and content, but also in terms of the characters and people that are featured in the video. As you can see from the video for the single ‘Meantime’ by The Futureheads, they’re wearing dark clothing; typical of an indie band and that is something we aimed to replicate. The image of the band is very important as it, as well as the music, is a factor that often influences fans of the band and helps to sell them to the target audience. Something that we feel we have done well in terms of sticking to conventions is setting. In the ‘Never Miss A Beat’ video by Kaiser Chiefs, the setting where the performance takes place is a rundown working men’s club which looks very similar to the setting we have used (a pub skittle alley). This type of working class, unglamorous locations are typical of the indie genre. Performance is very important to an indie video as it is important to fans of the genre to see their bands playing instruments live, as it makes the band look authentic, which appeals to the target audience. We therefore felt it was crucial we had performance in our video, to accompany the narrative. In terms of the editing and camerawork, we used a variety of angles and shot distances and used continuity editing and quick and frequent cuts so the video flows. We had a rule of no performance shot lasting more than 2 seconds, as that is too long and doesn’t fit with the fast paced music or the typical conventions of music videos.

Above: Our video.

Above: 'Never Miss A Beat' by Kaiser Chiefs

Above: 'Meantime' by The Futureheads

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

Our video revolves around the theme of the main character leading a double life, which are lyrics from the song. In keeping with the dark narrative of theft and crime, we have incorporated the idea of a mug shot into all three of our media products. As you can see that is the main focus for the front of our digipack, but where a normal board would have the criminal's name, we decided to integrate the band name and song title on the front and as the track listing on the back. It is also featured on our website, with the band members having their own mug shots, holding up their name and instruments. This gives a personal touch, so the audience are aware of 'who is who', while still maintaining the intimidating look of a mug shot. Finally, in the video itself when the main character is arrested, he has a mug shot too, but this time, some of the lyrics from the song are on the board (this is one of our 9 key images). Conventions are maintained by using black and white as well as the same shot distances (mid-shot). In the video, we juxtapose the double life with split screen shots, in a similar way we have compared day and night time on the digipack (at work and mug shot).

Another way we have made all three of our products interlinked apart from the look (e.g. colours and tones) and the theme is the idea of a QR Code. I came up with the idea to add one to bottom left corner of the back panel of the digipack. It is a unique code that you scan using your smart-phone and it directs you to a website. This gives complete integration of the products across different mediums in one simple step.

Above: A flow chart to demonstrate how the QR Code gives us complete cross-media integration using all three of our products.

Above: The front, back and spine of the digipack.

Above: The inside left and inside right of the digipack.

Above: The website homepage

What have you learned from your audience feedback?

We conducted our audience feedback during one of our lessons, and got members of our class to fill in sheets (click here for sheet scans), which would evaluate our use of narrative, performance, range of shots and whether it is suitable as a music video for our chosen band and genre.

We created a Wordle of the feedback sheets and the more often a word was used, the larger its size in the Wordle. As you can see, the words “good”, “suitable”, “professional” and “well” are frequently used, showing our work is both appropriate and completed to a high standard. The Wordle also includes “performance” and “narrative”, which is the structure and content of our video, as well as including “stop-motion [when the tie is removed]”, “sped-up [referring to the shot at the desk]” and “flashback [at the end of the video]”, which are the main talking points of our video in terms of effects. The feedback we received on these three things in particular was very positive.

Above: The Wordle created using the audience feedback sheets.

In terms of improvements, some highlighted that some of the instruments weren’t quite in time with the music in a couple of places. While we did our upmost to try and get instruments in time, sometimes this had to be compensated in order to get the lip-synching in time, something that we felt was much mire important. Another thing highlighted was the fact the break-in scene is not shot at night, as the lyrics suggest it should be. This is something we had planned to do but was not viable due to availability of actors and location. We did try to correct this in editing by attempting to darken the video, but we felt the look was very artificial and inauthentic.

We do agree with the feedback to a large extent. We too feel the stop-motion and sped up shots work well; the narrative is clear and in keeping with the song and the performance element is strong and professional.

For the full feedback sheets please Click Here

Key Images From The Music Video

These are nine key images that we have taken from the music video, we chose these images because they show the narrative behind the music video in full including the performance, sped up shots at the office, stop motion tie, police arrest, mug shot lyrics and then the double life at the very of the music video where we have two shots side by side which shows the two different lives. 

Group Feedback Questionnaire

Above are scans of the feedback sheets that were completed by members of our class when they watched and evaluated our music video. People rated our use of performance, whether the song and video held their attention, whether the narrative was strong and suitable as well as how it could be improved. The feedback we got was very positive and all of them said our performance was professional, the video held their attention, the video was suitable for the band/genre and there was a large variety of shots. We will analyse this feedback in more detail in our reflective evaluations.

Final Completed Music Video

This is our finished music video.

Darkened video

In the above video, we have attempted to darken some of the shots of the main character outside, in order to get it closer to night time, as this is when the lyrics suggest the break-in should happen. It was not possible for us to film at night due to arrangements with actors and locations.

Having tested these effects, we don't feel it works all that well, but was something we still wanted to explore. The shots have a slight blue tinge to them and they look very unauthentic and unnatural, so we will be keeping the original setting lighting.

Filming Complete

We completed our final filming shoot Saturday the 7th of January. That was the section where we recorded the break in and the police part of our footage, and the main idea behind our "double life" idea. This shoot went successfully and we've cut up all of our footage and we're just concentrating on piecing all of our film together in time for the deadline in a couple of weeks time. In the next few days we'll be uploading clips of our film which we've edited.

Scheduled Filming

We are going to be filming on the 7th December, this will be our third and final shoot and it will be to film the final section on our music video which is the break in scene and the arrest scene. As well as that we will be filming the small stop motion section of the film, this will be where the main character is talking his tie off.

As some of the filming tomorrow will be carried out outside it is important that we check the weather forecast as on our first shoot we filmed outside, not much time passes between when our character is at the office to when he is at the house. Therefore it will have more continuity throughout if the weather is similar for both parts. The forecast for Saturday is for dry, overcast weather. This is similar to our first shoot so we should be fine with the continuity of the film. Below is a link to the weather forecast for our location on Saturday.

Saturdays Weather Forecast

Finished Digipack In Full

Above are copies of the completed digipack in full. Click on the photos to enlarge.

Permission To Use Actor

Above is a scan of the permission sheet that our actor and their parent/guardian had to sign because they are under the age of 18 and not part of the media studies course.

QR Code Allowing Complete Integration - James Bolton

When we were applying the barcode onto the back of the CD Digipack, I thought it would be a good idea if we could integrate what is known as a QR Code (See below).

This is similar to a barcode and they are being used more and more often in the modern media. The idea is that using your smartphone, you can read this barcode using an app or your camera. The code is then recognised by the phone and you are directed to a relevant website. These are often used to give the customer access to exclusive content, downloads or deals. So, I had the idea of applying one of these to the CD Digipack, which could direct cutomers to the band's website so they can claim a free copy of the music video that goes with the main song on the EP or Digipack. This is a great example of how we are not only integrating the video, digipack and website visually (ie, all three are connected by the content, theme and images), but digitally. The CD directs them to the website which directs them to the video. As I mentioned, this is very common in the modern media, and as our target audience is people from around 15-35 (common smartphone owners), this is a great way to sell our band and make customers even more connected and interested with the artist. It gives us complete Cross Media Integration.

To create this QR Code, I used the website http://www.qurify.com/en/
You simply type in the text that you want the customer to see when they scan the code, generate the image and download it.
The text we chose was "Visit us at www.thefutureheads.co.uk and type in the following code to claim your free copy of our video for 'Sun Goes Down'! **CODE**"

A screen grab of the website used to generate the code.

A relevant section was added to our website's homepage so it is simple and easy for the people to claim their free video.

Below is a copy of what appeared when I scanned the QR code myself on my Blackberry.

Often these codes don't work when they are covered. So the protective plastic that goes across CDs in shops would prevent someone from just scanning the code and claiming their video, rather than them actually buying the CD, then claiming their code.

As you can see from the picture below, we opted to place the QR Code on the bottom left corner on the back of the digipack, along side the regular barcade. We also included instructions for the user, that will get their attention and encourage them to claim their free video.

Digipack Progress 3

Onto the spine we've also added text. This is name of the band and the track. We used the Dirty Headline font that we found on Urban Fonts and we are using that throughout our texts; the Digipack and the website.

I also added the relevant and necessary barcodes onto the back of the back of the digipack, and I came up with the idea of using a QR Code as well, which will give us complete integration of all three of the products we're making. I have explained this in another blog post.

This is the inside of the digipack where the CD will go. We decided to type out the lyrics to song, as this is often typical of indie digipacks. We stuck with the black and white theme, and then added a marroon circle to show where the CD would actually go in relation to the panel. I then decided it would be a good idea to highlight part of the text in white. We chose the line "the sun goes down and the double life begins", because not only is it the main line from the song, but it simulates the main theme of the narrative in our video. We also added a spine to the inside. We copied the one from the outside of the digipack and simply inverted the colours, so black became white and white became black.

We're pleased that despite the mix up with the lost photos, we were able to co-ordinate obtaining new photos, as well as making the digipack and website in time for the deadline on Thursday 15th December.

Words by James Bolton

Digipack Progress 2

Below are some more screen shots of the progress I have made on our digipack. This is the editing process for the front and back covers of the digipack. 

Again, for the image we cropped, transformed and scaled the image to make it square. We then played around with the saturation and brightness effects to try and make it look like a flash is being taken by a camera. Making the image brighter also emphasises the black and white board, making the track list more prominent.

We then added the front cover to the digipack and tested it with the same effects as the back of digipack. Unfortunately the effect we used gave a slight green reflection on both the images, due to the green screen where we took the photos. We tried to use the patch tool again, but that didn't really improve it, so therefore we decided to change the whole thing into black and white (below)

On here, the boards are still very prominent and it gives a dark feel to the digipack. The website is also in black and white, with the band mug shots edited in the same way to allow intertextuality and integration. When it comes to editing the video, we will have the mug shot scenes in black and white too.

Words by James Bolton

Digipack Progress 1

Below are some screen shots of the progress we have made with our Digipack so far. We have retaken the photographs and managed to include those this lesson.

The above screen shot in the picture of the main character in the office which signifies the day time section of the video. This will be the inside cover of the digipack with the night time section making up the front of the digipack. We cropped, transformed and scaled the image in order to make it from a rectangle into a square so that it would fit. This image didn't require any other editing, as we wanted it to be natural and resemble the footage we've filmed.

The above screen shot is editing the front of the Digipack. On the mug shot boards we made, there was a few blemishes so we used the patch tool on Photoshop in order to cut out a section that wasn't right, and replace it. Photoshop then merges the two shapes together to make it look clean and so it clearly fits. We're also going to do this with the height chart and extend the lines so they extend across the wall.

Words by James Bolton

New Height Chart

Unfortunately the original height chart that I made was the wrong size for when we tried to take the photos. I wrote three individual charts horizontally across the page, which meant there wasn't enough room above and below the scale, so the background of the wall could be seen in the photos. Hopefully I have iradicated that problem with the new chart. It is taller, but there are two sheets taped together to make sure it is still the required width and I have done just one scale this time, and for the website, we will merge the three photos together, rather than having one photo with all three band members in it. As our photos were lost we're retaking them tomorrow in college on one of our own digital cameras. We'll upload them onto the Macs on monday and get to work on arranging the digipack and website. Below are some photos on me making this new height chart.

Sped Up Shot Progress

This is the sped up shot that we will be using for the music video, we filmed this at the office and we have edited by speeding it up 5 times, this is the most that it could be sped up by on this version of iMovie. Ideally we would of liked it to be a little bit quicker but we are happy with this overall. This clip will be used for 14 seconds of the first verse 24 seconds into the song.

The idea of this clip is to show that the main character doesnt want to be at work and while everyone else is fine at work this character feels as if the day is going very slowly. We had other charachters walking behind clearly working to really show the effect that we are trying to create.

This clip is the exact right length for the clip that we need. So far we have not edited much more of the music video but we edited this as it is quite a significant part of the video. We will focus more on the editing of the video after the CD and website have been completed as the deadline for these is very soon.

Written by Alex Beale

Still Image Problems

When we shot our footage in the office (Saturday 26th November) and at the skittle alley for the performance (Monday 28th November), we also took a stills camera with us so we could take pictures for both the CD Digipack (Inside left image of the character sat at the desk) as well as various pictures of the band performing which were supposed to go onto the website.

Unfortunately, these photos have been wiped from the camera before we had chance to upload them. We were not aware of the procedure that the technicians have to be told that we have photographs that require saving. If they are not told, they assume there is nothing on there and the photos are deleted.

We are therefore missing:

• Office picture for the CD Cover
• Performance for the website
• Band mug shots

We have some photos of the above shots, but they were pictures we took on our mobile phones to demonstrate the filming or setting up process, rather than to be used as the actual digipack or website, therefore these photos aren't the required quality, they contain the camera/cameraman and just don't look at all appropriate.

Due to the deadline being so close (9 days) and the logistical issues of transport and liaising with the location as well as getting our actor, equipment (stills camera, tripod etc), instruments (drum kit, guitar, microphone and stand) and other essential items for the instruments that weren't provided by the college that we had to source ourselves from friends and family (drum sticks, plectrums, guitar strap), it wont be possible to go back to the performance location to acquire the two necessary photographs.

We therefore have decided to come up with an alternative to go onto the website to replace the images of performance that have been lost. Our idea is to take photos at the third location, which we are yet to shoot, and take photos of one of the shots. This shot is a split screen close up of the actor in the day and at night, which emphasises the 'double life' concept behind the video. We will set up a link on these images or add text that says by clicking on the image they will be taken to a page to watch our video.

For the office shot that will go on the CD, we are going to investigate the possibility of returning to the location to get the photograph. This too will involve liaising with the location, getting transport and bringing the relevant costume and props.

The band mug shots were not 100% ideal the first time we took them. We need to create a new height chart, as unfortunately the original one we took to the shoot on Monday 28th November was slightly too small. This can be done in college by pinning the chart to the wall in the media classroom and taking the photos with our other actor. The location is less relevant for these photos as the only background will be the height chart, not the actual location. The costume will obviously have to be the same and the relevant props will have to be brought into college.

Despite the mix up and the fact we weren't aware of the fact our photos would be wiped the day that the camera was handed in, we have explored alternatives and ways to either change or retake the photos we need.

Shoot Two - On Set Photographs

Words by Alex Beale.

Below are some photos that we took on shoot 2, this was filmed at The Crown pub in Awsworth on Monday 28th November. This shoot was for filming the performance shots of our music video.

As you can see from the photos James was the lead singer and Andy was the Guitarist in the band. This meant that I was filming and directing, with help from James and Andy. The photos we took show some of us setting up the set for the shoot which included the bands instruments and setting up the camera and the tripod.

We also have photos which show some of the performance being filmed, these photos have both the camera and the band in the shot. We also took some other shots which don't have the camera in which we are planning to use on the CD and on the website as they show live performance which is an essential element of an indie band. We will upload the photos in other post.

We think that the shoot went well as we got around forty minutes of footage which will need to make up just less than half of the music video, however we will only really know how well we did when we upload the footage to iMovie and start to edit it as we will then know whether the lip sinking and the performance has worked as if the timing is out or the instruments don't look as if they are being played then the video would look unconvincing and unprofessional.

We will be be doing most of the editing after the deadline for the Website and CD cover, this is because although we have enough people in the group to be doing all three we only have the use of two Macs to work on, this means that the CD and Website take priority at the moment as we don't have as much time to finish these. 

                   Andy setting the drums up                 James, Andy and Jack - Performance

                    Alex setting the camera up                James, Andy and Jack- Performance

James and Jack setting up

Shoot One - On Set Photographs

Words by James Bolton.

In this post I have included some still images that I took on my mobile phone while we were on set at the office shooting the first sequence of our music video. The pictures include us setting up the costume, filming various shots from various positions as well as taking pictures on the stills camera that will later be used for our CD Digipack.
Alex played the part of the main character, while myself and Andy filmed the shots, directed Alex and also featured in the background for the lengthy shot that we will speed up so the background is moving quickly, while Alex appears to be moving at normal speed.

Clockwise from above: Top left - Alex preparing his costume
Top right - I film a close up tracking shot of Alex
Bottom - Andy takes some photographs for the CD Digipack

Clockwise from above: Top left - Me and Andy review some of the CD Digipack shots
Top right - I frame the shot correctly for the CD Digipack allowing head room etc
Bottom - Andy practices photos from a possibly location in the office

Directors Cut - Shoot 1

This is the directors cut that we recorded before we filmed on Saturday, in this we briefly explained what we had planned to film on that day. On Saturday we filmed all the shots for our office/work scene, this included one of our main and most important shots, the sped up shot. We also filmed shots of our main character walking to and from his desk and also in and out of work. We felt that this shoot went well as we successfully got all of the shots that we had planned to film, we also got a few extra shots that we tried out just to see if they would work any better than the ones we had planned in our shot list. On this shoot we also took some photos which we are planning to use on the CD cover, we also took some photos of ourselves filming and setting up the camera and equipment which we will be uploading to the blog.

The next shoot that we have planned is the performance section of the song, we are going to be filming this at the pub skittle alley tonight. We have all the equipment booked including drums, microphone, guitar, camera, tripod and some other smaller items.