Evaluation Question 2: How effective is the combination of your product and ancillary texts?

2. 0 The reason why we decided to create a magazine advert and a homepage
along with our music video is because we believe it is an effective way of
promoting and advertising our artist and his latest song. When comparing
the product with the ancillary texts we can see a clear link between all three
productions whether it is due to the costume, the narrative, the theme or
even the genre of the song. This in theory and in practise allows the audience
to easily remember this specific artist when compared to others as they will
notice similarities between the productions, as well as unique features that
are, too some extent, different to those produced for other artists.

3. Magazine Ad
0 When we created our magazine ad we used a software called Photoshop as
it is one of the best and most professional editing software’s that was
available which is even used by many mainstream production designers.
The design of the ad was inspired by the research we had conducted as we
found many ads that had impressed us to an extent where we too wanted a
similar visual for our magazine advert. One inspiration we took note of was
in K Koke’s magazine ad, there were texts behind the artist stating his
songs. We then took this idea but instead, we inserted Polaroid photos of
the characters from our music video.

4. Final Magazine AdDraft Magazine Ad

5. Final Magazine Ad
0 As you can see, we decided to have the artist looking straight towards the
camera by taking a mid shot photo due to the belief that this would make it
seem as if he was looking directly at the audience/viewer. This would
make the ad more engaging as the viewer would take notice not only of the
artist himself, but also the photos surrounding him. This was reinforced
from our research where we found that magazine ads that usually
displayed the artist would usually have them positioned in the middle
being the centre of attention. In addition, the photos that we have selected
were taken during the days that we had filmed in locations such as
Greenwich Park, which therefore shows a continuity and a link between
the music video and the ancillary texts. Furthermore, the music video itself
has a light filter attached to it as we wanted to make everything feel in a
more surrealistic vibe, which is also reinforced in the magazine ad.

6. Final Magazine Ad
0 As well as the link between the photos in the magazine ad and the scenes
from the music video, there is another form of synergy as we have also
decided to insert the website of our artist onto the advert. This can be seen
at the bottom of the ad, and we believe this would be an effective way of
getting those members of the public who are interested in our artist to go
and visit his website and thus, gain a better understanding of him as well
as his music.

7. 0 When it came to choosing the right text, we had to carefully consider
which style of font we were going to base our text on. This is a really
important aspect of any product as the style of text plays an impact on the
type of message the producer is trying to get across to their target
audience. This is reinforced by Dyer’s Theory of Typography of
Representation where he argues that a careful use of text must be used
when producing media texts as it will influence a form of representation
on the audience due to the connotations it may present. Below you can see
the three texts we had considered to use.
0 However, after discussing whether to use these texts or not, we concluded
that they were not suitable for our magazine ad especially the second one.
The first one and the last one were better suited in terms of the style,
however we were looking for a different style of font. We then found this
particular fond that we were impressed with and believe it would be
perfect and effective for our magazine ad.

8. 0 In addition, from our research, we found out that producers would usually
position the artist’s name at two different locations, either at the top (As
shown on Jay Z’s ad), or in the middle (as shown on K Koke’s ad).
Therefore, when we created our ad we decided to have the artist’s name
located in the middle as it looks far more effective and as it is directly in
the middle, the audience would be able to see the entire ad and would not
just be focusing on the text if it was at the top.

9. Music Video
0 In regards to the music video, throughout the product you will see many
close up and mid shots whether it is during the chorus of the song or
during the scenes where the artist is lip synching. We decided to use these
sort of scenes regularly because from our research we learnt that a song
based on a narrative tends to include close ups and mid shots as it is a
convention used for narrating a story, especially as close up tends to give a
message across to the audience whether it be a meaning of a particular
object or a deeper facial expression. This is reinforced with Andrew
Goodwin’s theory, which argues that most music videos consists of close
ups of the artist, which not only allows the audience members to be
evoked by emotions but also sells the artist’s image. This is also linked
with the magazine ad, as in the advert you can see that we have taken a
mid shot of the artist in order to display his body and facial expressions.

10. Music Video
0 When comparing the music video to the ancillary texts, you will notice
there is indeed a link between the products especially in regards to the
costume. On the Magazine Ad you will notice the artist wearing a white
and black shirt which is also the same shirt he wears in the music video
during the chorus. We decided to keep both these costumes the same, due
to the fact that the chorus plays the narrative part of the music video and
so effectively, it would be most suited for the magazine part. In addition,
when we were filming, we decided we would also hold a photoshoot of all
the characters as we could then insert them into our homepage for the
artist as well as the magazine. Therefore, this would create a continuity
between the product and the ancillary texts. Below are some of the
pictures that were taken that the audience will notice a link between the
music video and the ancillary texts.

11. Homepage
0 When producing our homepage, we decided to use ‘websitebuilder’
because it allowed us to create a website from various different templates,
which we could view and choose, and for free. This website was really easy
to use as all we had to do was insert the texts as well as the pictures and so
we gained skills on how to use the website really quickly, this was really
helpful for us as we was not hoping to use a site which was really
complicated. In addition, I believe we used the website effectively as we
included most of the conventions of a homepage which we had found when
researching other homepages produced for similar artists as ours. For
example, we included social media links towards the artist’s social pages
(Facebook, Twitter etc), tour date information, and images of the artist and
his latest music video. This overall, established a continuity between the
product and the ancillary texts as the magazine ad included a link of the
website, and the website had more information regarding the music video
as well as information about the artist as stated earlier on (tour dates etc).

12. These are tabs to direct the viewer onto
a different section of the website.
This was one of the
conventions of a
homepage, where the
producer would include
the artist’s social media
websites in order to
increase the artist’s
publicity regarding his
music and social life.
This is known as
‘Citizenship Journalism’
and is also a form of
Synergy.
Here we included the
latest information
regarding the artist’s
tour dates and where
they would be held.
This is a form of Image
Representation as we have
included an overall picture of
our artist. We decided to have
him dressed in a traditional
Asian attire to infer to the
audience the type of music he
mainly makes does have a Hindi
vibe to it. We have also decided
to include pictures from his
latest music video to show a
form of continuity between the
product and the ancillary texts.
By using images, not only does
it promote the artist but also
makes the page more
interesting for the viewer as
they will be able to physically
see images instead of just
having to read texts which will
be less effective.
We have also included some
general information about
the artist for those who don’t
know much about him as he
has recently started making
music.
Here you can see the magazine ad on
the website which reinforces the
link between the ancillary texts. This
makes the overall product more
effective as the audience will be able
to remember our artist more easily
due to the multiple texts relating
back to the music video.
Here are some platforms
where the audience are able
to listen and view his latest
song.