Editing: New Footage

On Saturday I spent the day shooting new footage, both for the lip-syncing at the start and some flashback sequences to try to solidify the narrative much more for the audience so the message behind the video becomes clearer. I'm really happy with the footage I managed to get and so have now been editing on the editing software I have available, which is iMovie. 
I really wanted to create a contrast between the flashback shots and the rest of the video and so I looked around at the filters and chose the 'romantic' effect.

Also throughout the video I changed the speeds to make it more exciting and interesting to watch...

I've put together a new beginning now with a flashback sequence before the song begins. I'm also going to include a few flashbacks in the video that will contrast with the artist being single now, which I'll talk about when I put up my third rough cut.
I felt like I needed some sound over the flashback sequence and so to begin with I put some wave noises over the top. But then I had the idea to put an old Adele song that was about love to fully show the contrast between the relationship and how the artist is now. I found Adele's cover of The Cure's 'Lovesong' which I thought fitted well it isn't too happy but has a sad undertone which really worked. The only thing I am questioning with my new beginning is whether to go straight from the last shot of the silhouettes fading to black to fade up to the song straight away or to keep in the establishing shot of the beach with the titles. I shall conduct some audience feedback to see what they think before making a decision. 


Here is my new beginning edited together...

Interlude Feedback

Over the weekend I managed to get some feedback on my Interlude: Rough Cut. I posted on Facebook, asking for feedback:

Here are the replies...

As you can see there are a few conflicting answers, including some helpful advice which I will look at trying. I'm thinking of having it without lyrics except for maybe one or two to make a better impact (e.g. the 'tears' one). I will also try it in black and white to see if that works or not. 

River/Interlude Shoot: Shot List

Above is the shot list from my river shoot a couple weeks. I've found producing shot lists for each shoot incredibly useful as it has meant I haven't forgotten any shots, something I learnt from my pre-lim filming. Also during the editing stage it means I can keep track of which shots I got from each location so I know what I have available.
I'm now working on putting together some rough cuts so I can see how it looks so far.

Forest Shoot

The forest shoot on Sunday went well. As it only features in the video for about a minute, the shoot took a lot less time than I was anticipating. The weather was nice and clear and the sun shone through the trees at times so I managed to get some great shots.
Here is my shot list from the shoot...

Here are some of the pictures I got that may be used for my album cover. 

Whilst filming I came up with a shot of the artist running away from the camera further and further into the forest, which symbolises letting the relationship go, and that it is now just a memory (helped by the white blouse which is ghost-like). 

Me filming

I'm now going to try to put a rough cut together of what I've got so far before I film the river location.

Beach Shoot #2

I thought I'd post about my filming progress so far to keep on track with my plans. My second shoot focused mainly on using the props that we didn't have time to do the first time as well as get a few pick-up shots.

Me during filming

 Here is my shot list from the shoot...

The rose shots went well and we decided to throw the petals to the sea in order to have a stronger visual. I took a few shots that could be used for my ancillary tasks for the single cover...

The only thing that didn't work well were the match shots. This was mainly due to time constraints, the strong winds and the lighting (i.e. too bright). We will have to come back later to try it again, because I think it is a really strong visual that will work well. 
Here was our attempts anyway...

The darker lighting and more sheltered area worked better when experimenting, so perhaps it was the location. I may try out the match again on the river shoot to see if that works better otherwise come back at dusk on the beach, and try and pick a less windy day!

Inspirational Shots

On Saturday I came across the below video which featured a female in beach and forest locations. The way she was acting, and many of the shots are similar to how I envision my video. Therefore it is very inspirational, and during my second beach shoot on Sunday, I was trying to emulate its characteristics and will definitely have it in my mind while shooting the forest sequences on Sunday. 

Here are some of the shots that I like from the beach location...

On my first shoot, I did similar angles and direction to those represented here, including close ups.

Also I had my artist spin on the beach, as I thought it fitted conventions. This clearly reaffirms this.

And the forest location...

While running through the forest in this video relates to the title/lyrics, I had originally wanted this also as it makes it feel more ethereal and personal.

 Another way for it to feel more personal and connect with the audience is to do extreme close ups in slow motion. I like this shot as she looks down and closes her eyes. I think it looks really good and artistic and am looking forward to imitate on Sunday.

When it comes to the editing process I may try some of the editing techniques in making the shots lighter (brightening the image) as it gives it more of a nostalgic feel, which is similar to the home-movie style that I wanted for some of the video.

Beach Shoot: Shot List

Yesterday was the first day of filming and it couldn't of gone better!
In order to be fully prepared I wrote down a detailed shot list of all the shots that I needed to get, which meant I got most of what I needed. 
I found this incredibly useful and I definitely learnt from the preliminary filming and had no problems with the camera. I'm looking forward to editing what I've got so far.

In the preliminary filming it took quite a long time (because we were getting to grips with the filming process) so I overestimated how long this shoot would take. The rose and match scenes were originally going to be shot, but I knew we would have to return as we wouldn't be able to fit everything in. Instead I focused on all the shots without the props so the second shoot would mostly centre around them. I also wasn't able to do the last shot in the sunset because we ran out of time so left that for the second shoot. But I have a better understanding of the environment, the equipment and of the timings now so I am confident we will get all that I need tomorrow when the weather brightens up (today it is too cloudy).
I brought my iPod with me, as well as the lyrics printed out, so we could get the lip-syncing in time with the music. I did lots of takes of the same scene from different angles so I would have lots of options when it came to editing. The lighting was great and we weren't caught out by the tide - something I still need to be aware of on tomorrow's shoot. 
There are still a few crucial shots left using the props (a rose and a match) which we will shoot tomorrow. Otherwise everything went very well and I'm very happy with my progress so far. 

Audience Research: Genre

Who listens to dance music (and the surrounding genres)?

My target audience is 16-30 year olds who regularly listen to, download and share music, specifically from the genre dance. They are more likely to have a disposable income, also, as they are young but will be students or starting out in their careers. As my video would broadcast on music channels and YouTube, I need to think about the differences in grabbing the audience through these different mediums. The majority of my audience will watch over YouTube as they spend more time on the internet than watching television. This means they have chosen to click on the video so will need less hooking in than on television, which can be easily flicked over to another channel. The beginning will be slower paced than the rest of the video but is still engaging as it introduces the artist and will be shot artistically. Then, once the beat kicks in the pace will build so by then the audience should want to continue watching.
According to this useful website on the media use of US teenagers, about 44% of what young people watch online are music videos. And the internet is incredibly important to young people in the UK as well, as this recent Guardian article states, just 23% of 16-24 year olds say they would struggle without tv.

Source

So the audience I'm targeting an audience that is very internet literate and is used to spending hours online a day, so in order for my video to stand out from the rest and to be successful I need to make sure it engages with the viewer and looks professional, fitting with the conventions the audience is used to (see below).


How are they traditionally targeted through the media?
Looking at some of the statistics for social networks, Facebook has a huge influence over my target audience's age group...

Source

So marketing is now primarily done through social networking sites as that is where most young people spend there time. There is a lot of business to be made advertising through these sites, so in order for music artists to be known to their audience they need to have a marketing campaign on these sites, with their own pages and interact with the audience, to get them sharing to their friends and talking about the music.


Music video conventions
- Lip-syncing 

- Dancing

- The artist featured and engaging with the audience

- Editing to the music

- Different locations/costumes to keep it interesting

- Visual signifiers

- Reoccurring motifs

- Some sort of narrative

- About 3-5 minutes long


Combining my research into what the audience for dance music videos want to see and the established conventions for music videos as a whole here is what the audience will expect to see in my dance music video...

- The artist featured and engaging with the audience
- Great cinematography
- Sharp editing to the music
- Lip-syncing 
- Dancing
- Changing locations
- Colouring/Lighting carefully considered
- Repetition techniques - manipulation of the film
- Emphasis on the beat through cuts and pacing
- Close ups of the artist, which provides empathy for the audience which they can identify with


Further detail in specific shots:
Many videos I have looked at have visual signifiers/reoccurring motifs, which anchors meaning for audience. Here are a few that I will include...
- extreme CU of lips to main line of the song
- crash of the waves

Risk Assessment

I need to do a risk assessment in order for my artist and myself to remain safe during filming...


Location 1 - River

Location 2 - Beach

Location 3 - Forest

The forest location is a public footpath and I will bring a map, torch and phone in order to not get lost and stay on the official paths. 

Location 4 - Plain Walled Room

As this is in my house, I feel this location is reasonably safe. I will make sure my artist knows where she is going and that all furniture and wires are in safe positions so no one can trip up.

New Ideas

After talking over my ideas so far in class, I have come up with a few new ideas that I'd like to integrate into my video.

As one of the lines is "lay your ships bare" and I'm setting a portion of the video on the beach I thought shooting in front of the fishing boats would be an excellent visual signifier for the audience. 

Also reoccurring motifs are a good way of making music videos successful so I am looking to include one in mine and thought a paper boat might fit in well. I could use it in most of my locations; the beach, the river, the forest. The visual image of the paper boat floating out to see is a strong image, something I have looked at here. Otherwise on the river rapids would also look good. 

Another great new idea is to have my artist throwing rose petals into the water. I think this a really strong visual code for romance, being thrown away - akin to the line "we could have had it all". However, I want it to be a positive action so will probably have the artist smiling as she does it as she is glad to have moved on from the relationship.


I also realised I need something a little more unique in order to stand out in the market, which is why I had an idea to shoot some scenes at night. I'm not sure which scenes would benefit from darkness but my initial thoughts were the beach scenes - especially with the match falling shot as it would really stand out in the night. The scene doesn't have to be entirely shot at night, in fact intercutting day and night might up the pace even more, but the darkness would give it more of an edge. 


Lastly, I'd like to look a bit further into the representation of my female protagonist and how female artists are portrayed in music videos, which I wil put in a seperate post. 

Experimenting: Shot 2:25-2:27 (Cutaways and Transitions)

Whilst scouting the beach location, I also filmed a few shots to experiment with a few crucial visuals, including the 2:25-2:27 shot that leads out of the interlude.
I also looked at transitions that could be used and a few other shots that could be used as cutaways... 

Experimenting: Shot 1:50-58

When scouting locations this weekend I did some practice shots of one important shot in that location - 1:50-1:58, the introduction of the interlude. 
I have put together the video below to explain my process...