1.How does your product use or challenge conventions and how does it represent social groups or issues?
The most general codes and conventions within music videos include: The style (performance, concept, narrative) The camera. The editing techniques (transitions, fast, slow)
The codes and conventions of music videos are the different techniques used to construct meaning in them. These techniques can be divided into two types; technical and symbolic.
Technical – how meaning is conveyed using technical equipment ú the way camera angles are used ú different types of shots and movements ú diegetic vs. non-diegetic sound ú the pace and style of editing ú the genre. Symbolic techniques are ways of showing meanings beyond what you can see ú facial expressions ú gestures ú poses ú mis en scene. Symbolic codes show what is beneath the surface of what we see. For example, a character's actions show you how the character is feeling. A Music video is both technical and symbolic
Codes and conventions are important within music video so that the audience can become familiar with a particular genre, as they get used to recognizing the different conventions within a genre. It provides a structure that the audience can understandand to ensure the lyrics of the song fit in with our expections of the music.
We clearly ended our video keeping the codes and conventions in mind. The genre of our music video was ‘Indie-Pop’.
Indie Pop music videos are known to be lowbudget. Main settings are in: studios, cities, parks, woods etc. These locations create mysteries which makes the audience focus more on the performance. We shooted at various of the locations keeping the set up in mind. The locations of our music video includes a construction site, an abundant church, grave yard and streets/road. We chose such places especially graveyard so that we can make a suspense and a mystery that what’s going to happen next and make the viewer think and sit till the last scene.
Most Indie Pop music videos includes a live performance from the artist which makes the audience focus on the talent the artist has. Performance is often partnered with a narrative to break up the music video thus, creating the music video memorable. One of the key features of indie-pop music videos is the use of a narrative alongside the performance, normally involving a theme, explaining to the audience the story behind the lyrics of the song, most linking to love and relationships of the artist or characters in the song.
Talking about our video we wanted a narrative and performance both. However, performance is kept short and we more focused on the narrative. A narrative is used to tell a story by using a sequence of images and videos related to the song; not literal, but still enables the audience to understand. As technology advances, music video directors are able to create a variation of storytelling created by special effects making the video a lot more interesting for the audience and keeps them engaged in the music video as the scenes are always changing. There are plenty of scenes overlapping you can view in our music video to keep the audience interest.
Indie music videos are generally simple. Props, costumes, make up etc. are linked to the scene. •A prop can complete a scene as audiences are able to physically see what the character/artist is currently doing. In our video the guy is going through a breakup which is a common issue in this era. We tried to show his depression and sadness through the drugs and alcohol he is consuming. Our music video has some elements and conventions that lead it to be stereotypical, for example alcohol, drugs, money and the relation incorporation of the imagery with the lyrics. We did this, firstly because the target audience that we are aiming at are between the age of 18-25 and can actually relate to the lyrics by comparing their situation with it. Since by using different codes and convention we can portray the lyrics as images, which makes it easier for the viewers to relate with. Secondly, as a director, I wanted to stay as true to the original music video of the song as possible, while crafting the message of sacrifice and communication. Moreover, we also tried to break stereotypes by not choosing so handsome guy and also tried to give a message that not only girls can suffer but the boys can also be heart broken and cry. Secondly, we tried to convey that not only boys cheat but also girls do and can make the boy, who loves her, struggle and die. Through this we wanted to break the stereotypes. Costume and make up create the character. It indicates their age, wealth, status, era of the music video and stability. Next, we kept a dark mode throughout our video to show the boy’s sadness and depression. We shooted under moon light to give the dark effect also the different lights were used in the dark to show the character eg; car light, flash light (torch) and led ring light. Moreover we used some creative ways too. We used filter papers and put them in front of the white light to emit different colours light the technical code of lighting is used in some way in all genres. It is a convention of the horror genre that side and back lighting is used to create mystery and suspense – an integral part of any horror movie. We tried to use a similar strategy to create mystery and suspense in our video. Also, we kept everything around the character dark except his face to show the emotions. Colours are shown through almost everything in a music video: lighting, costumes, hair, makeup, locations. Even the way the camera is angled can play a part in portraying the colours we see in music videos. Color can affect us psychologically and physically, often without us being aware, and can be used as a strong device within a story. Being able to use color to create harmony, or tension within a scene, or to bring attention to a key visual theme can be used to spectacular effect. Desaturating a scene can create a depressed, isolated mood. A strong red color has been shown to raise blood pressure, while a blue color has a calming effect.
Dialogue are often used in music videos either in the beginning or the end to tell or conclude the story. We wanted our audience to have a clear view of what they were going to watch in our music video. So to give a clear picture we started our video with a dialogue which clearly indicates that what the music video was about. It is also sometimes used to either distort, fade, increase or decrease the tempo to express one’s emotions. Diegetic sound is used when filming scenes: to match the lyrics with the actions, but the end product the song is non-diegetic. We also added a gun sound in the end to conclude the video.
Extreme, close-ups are the most common shots used as this introduces the artist or the antagonist to the audience. It is use to express emotions. We used the close ups mainly when the character is singing and where we tried to shoe emotions. Long shots, establishing shots are used to show the setting of the video and sets the character, and helps the audience understand the message behind the video. Tilts and pans to either move along the scene or cut into another scene.
Filters are often used over the top of clips or the entire video to give a certain idea to the viewer, such as memory, age to the video or showing the clip in a positive or negative light. Fast and slow cuts between shots reflects the pace of the music, creating the atmosphere of the music video. This helps to put across the mood in the video and also how we want the audience to feel. We slowed down the video in the end overlapping scenes to create a mystery and suspense of what’s going to happen next.
2. How do the elements of your production work together to create a sense of ‘branding’?
“Cross-media branding is used to promote the artist across the products (music video, website, digipak) as well as allowing fans to associate the products with the artist’s image.
Synergy is created by using a combination of different linked products to promote each other. In this case, synergy is used to create a recognizable image of the artist, which the audience can pin-point and remember. This is conspicuously done through the colour scheme, outfits, typography and logos present in the media products.
In order to make the brand identity of my artist noticeable, we kept the same colour scheme running throughout our production. The colour scheme of our website is black and white. The images we used for the website are also in the dark lighting, sticking to the theme this reinforces and creates branding of my artist.
Similarly, to my website and digi pak, I used the same colour scheme for the video. We decided to make our music video following the dark mode which mainly includes black and red theme throughout the video, this way it gave my artist a noticeable and consistent brand. With all three products we were aiming to achieve the same themes and tones throughout. This meant that similar techniques and processes were used for the music video, digipak and website. Both the music video and digipak are dark and we see the character in the dark filters which shows his damaged mind, there is closed window and hands coming towards him shows that the world id eating him.
As all the production work consists of black and red, the audience will relate this to my artist, thus creating brand identity for my artist. The colour scheme is the most obvious and main factor that creates a sense of branding.
While some people may hear the lyrics and see the video as a man struggling with heartbreak others will decode the hidden encoded meaning within the video that shows a man struggling with his self image and battling his mind. This meaning is one we wanted to have throughout all the products, they each show the cold world the character lives in as it is one which is he has projected through negative self image and being a prisoner of his mind. No matter which interpretation, every young person has felt these struggles and convinces themselves that they have felt it alone. I want the product to relate to the viewer and use these emotions so that they will see themselves in the video.
Also the name of my artist creates a sense of branding, as his name is Shahood Ranjha' it compliments the running theme and mode of the video. As the surname 'Ranjha' means ‘Lover’ indicates the videos theme. Also his first name 'Shahood' means ‘to be present’ which reflects that he is present in the world but his soul and mind is somewhere else. The brand identity of my artist is created throughout all the pieces of media I created.
3. How do your products engage with the audience and how would they be distributed as real media products?
The target demographic for our music video was young adults, between the ages of 16 - 25, whereas the psychographic segmentation would be more specific and geographical segmentation will not be specific to any area or region, since the song is in English making it widely understood. Our video and story would target predominantly males, but females are included as well. Since the topic is about an issue in which females are more likely to attempt suicide than males which I think is quite stereotypical and needs to be corrected, we tried to break this stereotypical myth through our music video attracting both male and female audiences. ‘Females are more likely to suicide’ is however a total myth, in our music video we tried to show that boys can also end up on suicide being emotionally break down. Youth is the asset for any nation and are the source of pride and success for any country. They have the power and ability to change the world. They have the greater influence on the society than the older ones. We chose the young adults to gain more audiences and to share a common situation every teen or late 20’s go through.
My music video alludes to the uses and gratifications theory due to a few reasons. My performer includes a young teenage boy, my target audience would also be of a similar age. This would allow the audience to relate to the main actors in my music video, by putting themselves in their shoes or by relating their current happenings in their life with that shown in the video. The purpose of a performance based music video is to entertain, and the purpose of a conceptual based music video is to convey a message. These two combined were the main aim of mine, therefore, my product was engaging and allowed the audience to relate and watch something that is intriguing yet serious and different. Music is a highly talked about subject across all ages, as it is a constantly changing subject that builds relationships between people. This would mean that music videos would spark conversations, hence, supporting the reception theory. Our media product engaged with the audience because of the way it was produced, with the help of the way we conveyed theme and message to the audience, the scenes, shots and angles we used to do so, and the performance shots along with the props used in them. All these things created a link or relationship that impacted the thought process of the audience in different way, especially when it comes to another method we used, which is representation. The representation of the character was done as it was to make him a part of a larger message or issue we wanted to discuss and shed light upon in the eyes of the audience, and via intertextuality we were able to do that. By using mise-en-scene and ensuring that the locations, being confined dark gloomy spaces such as abundant church, graveyard and the auditorium stage, combined with casual dark toned costumes and sad and emotional body language and facial expressions will link with the song, and create a cold gloomy tone.
Throughout our video we kept a dark tone focusing to remain on the darker theme and topic. I did not want to confuse the audiences by putting a natural day light in our video as it was not going with flow and I wanted the audience to stay in the feel we were trying to give by making sure not to break there tempo. Using a large range of camera positions and close shots will engage the audience and allow them to see my artist's facial expressions and body language, also in order to make it more interesting by adding camera movements too such as panning and tracking.
Our album would be made available to a wider audience including Pakistan and many other countries by using a distribution company. As a real media text our product will be distributed and promoted through the record label ‘Universal Music’ based in U.S to gain mass audience. The album and the main song along with the music video would be shared on social media sites, since its the quickest, easiest and the most cost-efficient and effective way of distribution. Sharing on Facebook, hash-tagging on twitter, snapping it on Snapchat and putting stories on Instagram, our album could be publicized. Additionally we have also decided to distribute the digi-pack on various other medians such as Online media that include putting the album on Soundcloud, YouTube, Dailymotion, Vimeo, and iTunes and so on, our whole album could get recognition and would be able to gain profit if it is successful since platforms like these allow artists to be discovered by music companies and agents and channels such as "Vevo" on You tube allow the artists to distribute to a wider audience and earn profit.
We also decided to sell the Digi-pack to music retailer stores in Pakistan such as Radio city, Illusions and One shop, Play the music video on different music channels such as ARY music, 8xm and Aag Tv. We will also send complimentary digi-packs to famous celebrities who would later upload pictures of them to the social media sites that would promote the album and also play them on the radio on stations such as FM89.Like telephone companies we can also buy emails and phone numbers and start to advertise by texts and emails. By airing it on the television on channels such as MTV,Channel UFX, 4Music, 40 TV, Channel V, VIVA, Scuzz and so on, a wider demographic audience would be able to view the music video.
Also in our media text we used features in order to engage with our audience such as in our website we had a mailing list so our audience/fans would be able get latest updates, we also had a store to buy the artists merchandise.
Q4. HOW DID YOUR PRODUCTION SKILLS DEVELOP THROUGHOUT THIS PROJECT?
For pre-production, I and my teammates sat together thinking of the ideas to apply in our video. Initially we were struggling a lot we tried to brainstorm ideas to no avail. We did have to face several problems during the whole process of creating this music video, from planning till post production. As we had similar taste of music we ended up deciding a genre and song very quickly with no hassle. The real problem was to think of the story to follow. In conclusion, we decided to think of the ideas ourselves and then share it with each other. I had to browse a lot as being the screenwriter and co-director. Lately, I did some in depth research about our music genres and sub-genres to make my brain work, internet helped me a lot to generate aesthetic ideas and themes. This made me conduct a survey about the genres which we make it filled by the students in our school to know different opinions and thoughts. I watched a variety of different music genres for example pop, indie pop, indie rock, hip hop and dance music videos to get interesting ideas for my video. Being creative I selected several things and ideas from different genres and videos and as a result I created my side of the story and plan. I even watched short stories and films on YouTube, Facebook and instagram from a technical point of view to think out of the box and generate interesting and tactful ideas. I tried not to stay on one thing but to try different mediums to collect more schemes for our video. Secondly, I not only browsed or had ideas from American/British music videos but also researched Bollywood and Lollywood music videos to pick a different idea than usual to create a mysterious story. I compared them all and picked out the mistakes according to me thinking of what could not attract the audiences, I tried my best not to show such errors in our video. Moreover, I also researched codes and conventions of different genres and by mixing them I wanted to challenge and make a unique product. I also carried out a survey as mentioned above, which helped me obtain qualitative results due to which i was more aware of the thoughts and interests of my target audience. I created a mind map, my team mates agreeing and dis agreeing on few things on the story and putting a little bit more ideas to it together we finally ended up on deciding a story for our video. As a screenwriter, generating ideas from different mediums and combining them made my skills and imaginations improve. The power of internet made me think more in creative ways which somehow improved my skills. Internet with no debate was the first step of improving and developing my skills and imagination.
I learned different editing techniques, angles and shots through my research which helped me in carrying out my project. In order to grasp more concepts and techniques and to get used to the camera and the world of shooting, we had done a preliminary task. For our preliminary task, we decided a story within few minutes sitting in a café. In this task, we did not have any particular task/duty but decided to work altogether. All three of us handled the camera and other responsibilities as it was our first ever attempt of making a music video. We wanted to try and explore everything which I think was good for us as we had a chance to learn and experiment. We created a story best suited with the lyrics and gathered plenty of ideas from internet trying to be creative enough. While in the process, as being creative in making stories, I had change things and included more attractive scenes following the lyrics which my team mates also agreed upon and same goes with the final video, numerous scenes were added and discarded. We however tried to show transitions in our video but also failed to maintained few of the planned transitions. I took quite a lot of aid from technology in order to enhance my creativity. Internet was a very efficient and cost effective resource. By using it I had gained a lot of information relating to sound, camera, lighting, editing, distribution, angles and shots. Moreover, in preliminary task possibly one of the largest problems that we encountered was when our actors after shooting few scenes cancelled on us finding it difficult and hectic. We had to improvise and use one of our male friend available and the other the sister of one of our team mate. Eventually, everything fell into place because of our quick thinking and improvisation.
For our final video, we believed that actor is extremely important to the whole intensity of the music video so we had to cast the perfect actor but we made sure not to face such problem this time. Furthermore, we had view multiple other issues also such as actors availability, our timings, equipments and locations (we were not granted permission to shoot at several of the places) we compromised a lot. In addition, Our school took us to a news channel office called "City 42" where we learned to use Adobe premiere pro by a professional and we visited many shooting rooms and the control room where we got to learn about how to operate the camera and instruct the actors. I considered the preliminary task also as research since the whole experience of planning, producing and editing that we learnt ourselves was another experience.
Moving on, as a screenwriter, while deciding a story, being an art student I had an image of how the location I want to be set and decorated like according to my imaginations. As our story and theme contained intensity I made sure to deliver the message by choosing dark lights. While thinking of the stories, my mind maintained the dark trippy colours. As we were shooting outdoor where plugs and switchboards were not available, we used flashlights keeping the intense dark mode. ISO was the main feature of the camera we used the most to adjust the light we needed at the particular scene. Not to make our video boring in the same light throughout I gave the idea of using different colour lights, as we were low on budget, I gave an idea of how to produce a red or different colour lights without buying expensive tools. It was just a filter paper that we wrapped around our flashlights and on the car’s light to produce red light. Through this, I was able to make quick decisions and able to give a clever and instant conclusions.
Besides, I co-directed our cinematographer and director on instructing the actor and also telling her to capture the scenes according to me on how I wanted the story to be delivered to the audiences. We almost had to shoot every scene 2-3 times or more since either the actors started laughing or the camera angle or position was not satisfactory. We also did retakes in order to help us decide in the pre-production phase as to which shot was good and would be used in the video.
We tried different equipments such as tripod, stabiliser, green screen and flashlights. We mostly used tripod to avoid shaky videos. When the tripod was not available to us, we tried to be creative and used table instead to get a stable shot.
The post production process, due to our teams' efficiency in terms of editing and good artistic sense, went rather smoothly, and we encountered no problems in that regard. The editing was being done by my other teammate and we made few conclusions and a proper storyline which could be understood. We first decided the beginning and the ending of the video and then the other scenes were fixed into the video.
I learned about the following editing techniques while watching the video being edited such as dip to black, fade in fade out, dissolve, zooming and stability which we used the most in our video. I also learned to use different software's like Photoshop and Adobe Premiere. As an editor I learned how to overcome all the editing errors like jump cuts, continuity error and white balance and Hue and Saturation. I learnt how we can enhance and emphasize the emotions and give a better gloom to our video by using different techniques of color correcting. We had photographed the models where they actually sung the song for the digi-pak. For the digi-pak I ask my teammates to use a powder to dive a smoke effect. I edited the digi-pak keeping the theme in mind. As a whole, I mostly used black and red colours to match it with other products. The digi-pak is the mixture of different pictures and themes I used to make it aesthetic. By the end of the project I had gained better knowledge about the use of DSLR and had an idea of how to tackle a moving image compared to a still image and editing techniques.
Due to low budget we lack resources and uncertain situations came off but we managed to complete the project efficiently within the available resources which improved my planning skills.