Written evaluation

Written Evaluation

In what ways does your media product use, develop and challenge form and convention of real product?We chose to create an Funky House music video, and as any other music video genre, it has the originalcodes and conventions. Most R&B/Funky House music videos follow the convention of a narrative where astoryline is used to reflect the meaning of the song; in this case we thought we would stick to thisconvention but develop it further. As our music video appeals to the R&B and Funky House audience, thenarrative was made quite simple as the lyrics tell the story. The narrative is about a break up which is atypical storyline for an R&B video. We chose this narrative because from our research we noticed that theaudience can related and sympathise with the artists and the lyrics, when there’s a narrative and it engagesthe audience to watch and listen to the song. An good example is Tyrese-How you gonna’ act like that, wherethe female leaves and he starts to remember how they were when they were together and it shows clips.Many people can relate to this as it is a part of everyday life.Notion of looking was one of the conventions that are used in some R&B narratives. Normally, in musicvideos Goodwin’s theory of, Notion Of Looking is used to demonstrate the dominance between male andfemales, and sex appeal however we did not demonstrate dominance or appeal, we used it in a differentway. We expressed this by linking it to the narrative and emphasising to the audience who was more hurtfrom the break up. We showed this by displaying emotions through body language and facial expressions,clips of the female looking upset and emotional emphasises that she is the one most affected compared tothe male. To some, this is a stereotype; that females are always more emotional than men. Throughout themusic video, due to the female being the artist she is shown more frequently, which again expresses to theaudience how she is feeling, and gives them the chance to relate to the situation the female and male are in.Mise-en-sceneMise-en-scene is used widely throughout music genres. Lighting is key in a music video and can make a bigdifference to how the video is meant to be interpreted by the audience. In R&B music videos, low and highkey lighting is used, both to create an effect. Due to our narrative being a relaxed and realistic theme withinour music video we chose to use a lot of natural light, as the video is set outside, in a park, street and by acanal. By keeping the natural light it creates an more realistic feel to the video and compliments and links thesettings to the theme and lyrics.

Costume&CropsNarratives doesn’t usually have a lot of costume changes because the whole point of a narrative is for it toflow, like a story, so within our music videos there weren’t a lot of changes to keep the video as realistic andsmooth as possible. A lot of costume changes are known to be in abstract videos. The dress code was keptsimple and casual and represented our music genres, all of which they are recognised for their urban/streetstyle, such as hoodies, jeans, trainers etc. We done this as the scenes within the video are day to day scenes,not party or work atmospheres. The colours were kept the same as expected in R&b/Funkyhouse musicvideos, dark blue, black, white and the odd printed t-shirt. We chose to keep these colours also because ofthe weather conditions, when filmed, it was just the end of winter and it is unusual for people to be wearingbrightly coloured clothes in the winter, its most expected in the summer, so we had to think about theweather conditions of outside also.EditingWhen researching about editing and effects we realised that not a lot of effects are used however editingand transitions were used a lot. We incorporated this into our music video and used transitions such as fadesand cross fades. These two transitions establish the passing of time and emphasis’ how happy they were as acouple as the happy scenes fade into another and so on. Another effect we use that brings to attention thepassing of time is the black and white effect. Black and white clips are used widely in the R&B genre as aremembrance, of past events. We did use the black and white effect for this reason. The audienceimmediately assumes that it’s a flashback of how the ‘couple’ was before the break up, happy, joyful andpleased at that current time. When the clip changes and it goes back to colour it tells the audience that ithas gone back to what is happening currently, which is the opposite of the past. Colour and Black&White isgood way to emphasis conflict and change, in personality, appearance, or atmosphere. An example of anR&B music video is, Mariah Carey-We Belong Together, where she has flashbacks of the party and they firstmeet and that scene also is in black and white. Another effect we used was echo, this emulated a ghost likeeffect and by using a different effect that isn’t a usual code and convention of an R&B video we were able tolink it with the other sub genres such as funky and dubstep

Sound and camera anglesWhen analysing music videos we realised that quite a lot of music videos include non-diegetic sounds, werean action is over exaggerated to emphasis the meaning, however we tried this but came to realise it never fitin with the narrative and theme of the video and together, there was too much going on in the video for theviewers to focus as well as the non diegetic sound, so we chose to stick to diegetic sounds only, which wasthe music. However while creating the video it became clear that by using just diegetic sound was just aseffective as non-diegetic sound. We used a technique were the image moves or changes the same time asthe base in the song, this is effective when making a video catchy and exciting video to watch. When thechorus comes in we used the opening of fireworks which fitted in well with the beat, we repeated this acouple times throughout the video. This technique is also effective as it helps the audience remember thelyrics to the song when they can think back and remember the video.The movement of the camera also was a technique that contributes to linking the lyrics and actions to thesound of the music. We used sudden cuts when showing the black and white clips. The sudden cutsemphasise the happy times, that resembles a fantasy life and then she comes back to reality. The maincamera angles used in this genre is mid shots and close ups, especially in narrative videos. We used a fewclose ups show the facial expressions and emotions, when she is alone and waiting, then we used it to showhow the male and female looked at each other when they were together and show the eye contact whichhighlighted their feelings for each other. Mid shots were used to show the body language between thecouple, body language is key in a narrative because it can also show feelings. For example if the couple arestanding quiet far apart it may demonstrate that they are in a argument or aren’t as close as normal couples,however if they are close and relaxed it shows that they have positive feelings for each other and feelcomfortable and safe around each other. Body language and lyrics is a good combination, so we decided thatwhen she mentions about love we would have positive body language and vice versa so it’s clear buteffective to watch.Overall, we felt as though our music video did challenge the codes and convention of a real music video as itdid comply with the usual conventions of our chosen genre.

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary text?In the early stages of planning our music video we knew that the main product, the music video and theancillary text, promotional poster and DVD cover would have to relate to each other in order to be effectiveand in turn be successful. To accomplish this it was important to make sure those aspects from the musicvideo links with the ancillary texts, to do this we decided to take elements from the main product such asthe styling, mise en scene and the theme to make it effective. The theme of our video was heart ache, whichinvolved trying to evoke the feeling of anguish and vulnerability through the actress. Scenes in our musicvideo where the actress displayed these emotions were frequently used to emphasis the theme, and toclearly establish the theme to the audience, using various different camera angles. To incorporate thesubject of heartache to the ancillary texts we used photographs which the actress illustrated this feeling, indoing so creating an effective platform of advertisement by informing the audience on the overall theme ofthe album. Furthermore, the location of the music video predominately took place in an outdoorenvironment, we created a link between the backdrop of the promotional poster and DVD cover by usingsimilar settings which were taken in a park. As well as this, the location also provides essential information tothe audience about the genre of the collection of songs. Since, both the main product and ancillary textswere set in parks it allows the audience to establish the genre of the album, which had influences fromdubstep, rnb, and UK garage because many videos that are majorly set outside are either of these genres.Continuing with the setting, the bench featured on the promotional poster is largely involved within themusic video as it is at the center of the when the couple were captivated with each other, whereas it is alsofeatured as the place where we see the beginning of her broken heart when she is now alone andreminiscing of the troubled moments they spent together. The bench could be symbolic of the two sides tothe album, such as portraying the feeling of energy and love or either despair and sadness, however becausethe bench plays a part of mainly the more emotionally scenes it does set the tone for the majority of thealbum. Moving on to the DVD cover, where the background is a brick wall, although it does not have adominate role in our music video it could also be seen as attributing to conveying the genre to the audience.As a brick wall does represent a distinctive style, which would most likely be associated with graffiti, thetarget audience will almost certainly be fans of urban and street music and take pleasure in the style.

Additionally, the effects used in the music video varied from no effect and slight glows to grayscale. Since weused various effects in our music video it enabled us to have a choice on the effects we could use. At theending we decided that we could use different effects for the promotional poster, in comparison to the DVDcover. By effectively completing this we would be able to combine both the music video and ancillarytexts, as well as displaying two different music styles for the whole album. By using grayscale on thepromotional poster where the actress is sitting on the bench, giving the facial expression of sadness anddespair relates to the scenes in the music video that presents a similar scenario. Also, using grayscale doessymbolise both the good and tremulous side in the relationship in our music video, this could be becausegrey is consider a mixture of black and white, whereas black depicts power, sadness and anger, on thecontrary, white portrays innocence and purity, this in turn causing grey to be neutral. On the other hand, theDVD cover does convey a different feeling due to the colours being intensified, creating a more vibrant andpulsating photograph, this ties in with the upbeat tempo of the song and the colourful fireworks in the musicvideo, this however evokes a different emotion in comparison to the promotional poster. Despite this, thebody language and positioning of actress contrasts, with bold colours because she is more relaxed as she isleaning on a wall, this embodies both aspects of the music video.Moreover, yet another element that conveys the liaison between the main product and the ancillary texts isthe styling of the actress, which includes clothing as well as extra accessories. This clearly demonstrates therelation between all three products, because the clothes featured on the promotional poster and DVD coverare distinctly similar to each other. For example, the outfits we chose particularly correspond with the genresuch as, hoodies, jeans, trainers and hats etc. which are all popular trends. The ancillary texts both featuretypes of clothing which links in with the main product, mutually they consist of the actress wearing jeans,and a jacket, also on both covers we are not able to see the her hair as they are either covered by a hat orhood, this is again a type of styling in our music. When the actress is in scenes on her own she is mostly seenwith a hood or hat covering her hair, which could suggest that now she alone she’s lost her confidence bylosing the one she loved and trusted, having a similar style on the covers on the ancillary texts demonstratesthe major theme of the album. Not to mention, the colours of the outfits worn in the music video andpresented on the covers of the DVD and promotional poster are all of the same likeness.

The colours used are based heavily towards darker colours such as grey, black, and dark blues we done thisbecause, not only does it link with the weather which we filmed the video in, but the colours symbolizevarious aspects of the music video, such as despair, calmness, sadness and trust. However, on the DVD coverthe jacket she is wearing has accents of red on it; this is associated with the music video as it features redfireworks, the colour represents the intense passion and aggression between the male and femaleactors, this is emphasised as the fireworks could suggest the explosive nature of their relationship which isevident in the music video.When deciding on the font for the promotional poster and the DVD, we considered how there are numerousmusic genres that are a part of the overall album, this included, rnb, dubstep, funky, and hip hop. Since therewas such a wide range it would not be effective to focus on one genre as it could falsely advertise theaudience and therefore decrease the potential sales, to limit confusion for the ancillary texts we decidedupon simple texts that can apply to all genres. However the colours of the text are different on thepromotional poster, which is white compared to the DVD text black. The white on the grey, emulates the softand vulnerable side which is presented in the music video, unlike the black on top of the colour whichrepresents a powerful and passionate part that is also displayed in music video. On the promotional posterthe words ‘out now’ are bold, and the colour is a bright blue, this therefore stands out from the grey,understated background. Not only does it become eye catching but it the bright splash of colour links tofrequent burst of colour of fireworks in the music video.The back of the DVD clearly displays its connection to the music video because it carries on the theme of abrick wall; however we modified it slightly by adding a heart. By adding the heart on the DVD cover, we wereable to relate the theme of love directly to the music video; also the heart is featured in the music videowhich too adds to the ancillary text being effectively combine with the main task.

Promotion Poster & DVD

What have you learnt from the audience feedback?From the audience feedback we gain mainly positive views for the music video. We alsoestablished that our music video did attract our target audiences as the responses fromthe question such as, ‘What age range do you think our music video would target’ thefeedback we got was between 12-24, as our initial audience to appeal to was between15-24 the responses we extremely close. Furthermore, when asking about ‘What type ofaudiences do you think would be attracted to our music video’, the answers ranged fromrnb and urban audiences, this was positive as this is the genre of the music video. Theyalso mentioned that the styling attributed to them knowing the target audience. As wellas this, they stated that the added elements of fireworks did help in captivating thereattention and emphasises the theme of heart ache in the music video.However we did get some feedback on how we could improve our music video, thismainly was about the eye contact of the artist when performing to the camera, becausethey felt as though it lacked connection with the audience.

How did you use new media technologies in the construct, research planning and evaluation stages?During the process of creating our media product we used a variety of different media technologies, in orderto create a successful music video. Throughout the planning stages we used 3 main media technologies, a‘Nikon’ Digital camera which we used to take photographs of different locations, which we could havepossibly used as a setting for our music video. We also tested various camera angles, we done this toexperiment on angles that may be suitable to display our genre. Before beginning our real photo shoot forour DVD cover and promotional poster, using the digital camera before hand was valuable as it allowed us togain experience with the camera before actually starting the real process. Secondly, we used a ‘Cannon’video camera to practice filming; during this time we learnt how to use different settings of the camerawhich would be appropriate when shooting outside etc. Whilst using the video camera we also trialleddifferent camera shots, specific to a video camera such as a pan, to see how effective they would be in ourmusic video. Additionally, we learnt how to keep the camera still by using a tripod; this enabled us to have amore professional shot when shooting our video. Thirdly, we used a computer to collect data from theinternet for the research and planning, this involved exploring possible genre’s, music/social tribes, artistsetc. We also used to the PC to make plans on how we would present our DVD cover and promotionalposter, by getting inspiration from well known artists, CD covers and promotional posters. The computerplayed a vital role during the whole of our A2 experience as we had to use it to upload our blog onthere, which contained all the features need to for the project. When taking our questionnaire we usedexcel, this software helped us to illustrate our findings clearly by making them into a chart. Throughout ourresearch stages we used sites such as SlideShare and Prezi to publish our findings, which was useful becauseit displayed our work clearly. We found YouTube had a influential place when researching, as we were able tocollect music videos for our social/music tribes, these music videos effectively demonstrated the codes andconventions of the genre.

As the computer played a essential role we used it for several reasons, one being we had to convert thevideos from the video camera, in order to import then on to the Apple Mac book. Moreover, we used it tocollect the screenshots for our construction for the making of our poster, and DVD cover. When making ourMusic video we used a Mac book pro laptop, we used this to create the music video and also to editphotos, for the promotional posters as well as the DVD cover. When editing our music video we usedsoftware called final cut express, this helped us to create a professional edit on our music video, during thiswe used a different effects, depending on how effective it was to our music video. From the effects andtransitions we used, some were frequent and others were used only once. For example the video filter echowas barely used, this gave a ghost like effect on our video, we also used tint to turn parts of our video blackand white to show different tenses in our music video. On the other hand, the main transition we usedthroughout the production of our video was cross dissolve, this gave a sense of connection throughout thevideo because the video seamless flowed from one scene to another. In addition, we used Youtube again tolearn how to use particular edits on final cuts such as the speeding up, slowing down and reverse tool, whichadded to the effectiveness of our video.Furthermore, we used Adobe Photoshop it was essential in the process of creating the ancillary textsbecause of the multiple tools it inhabited, this included filter and feathering effects, cropping and erasingtools these all contributed to producing a professional standard of work. We used another Adobeprogramme Indesign, this software helped us to produce the poster and DVD cover as it is used to set outtemplates for them.We added text and imagery by place them on to the programme Indesign, we used this software to create aprofessional looking poster and DVD cover by using the range of fonts, colours and swatches to make ourcover fit the particular genre we was aiming for. Further on in the process we used the digital camera;however this time we used the photographs for our media products. Due to the previous knowledge we hadobtained on using the cameras, we already knew the specific camera angles and settings that would beappropriate to use for the particular genre of video.

Again we used a tri pod to steady our imagery to give our video a professional out look for our video/DVDcover/ poster. Also on the construction of the music video we used PowerPoint and Microsoft word to showthe progress in which we had to taken to create our video, poster and DVD cover. YouTube was used oncemore, to publish our music videos and diaries to add to our blogs, using YouTube helped us to show theprocess we used to help make our product reach a professional standard.For our evaluation we used several different technologies, for example, for yet another time we used acomputer. Microsoft Word was used to type up the plans for what we had to say when recording ourevaluation. In addition we used the internet to incorporate factual knowledge that related to our musicgenre and music institutions, therefore connecting real music videos to ours. During the production of theevaluation we used a video camera, this was to film us as group verbally speaking out our evaluation. Yetagain we used the video camera to produce audience feedback; doing this gave use valid information on theeffectiveness of our media product. The computer also allowed us to compare our media product, to a realmusic video of the same genre, and to see if it was suitable for the particular category.

Written evaluation

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