The document provides an evaluation of a media project creating a music video. It discusses: 1) How the video drew upon conventions of indie/alternative music videos in its editing techniques, shot types, locations, and clothing of the band. 2) How the music video, digital pack, and advertisement formed an effective marketing package with consistent branding. 3) How feedback improved aspects of video quality and syncing clips to the music. 4) The use of technologies like YouTube, blogs, cameras, editing software, and social media in researching, planning, filming, and promoting the project.

1. Evaluation
1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge
forms and conventions of real media products?
After researching existing media products and deciding on a music genre,
we then had to decide which song was going to be featured within our
music video. Our music genre was indie/ alternative/ rock band, for which
we wanted our music video to represent effectively, using conventional
elements found within this music video genre. We considered a number of
bands such as Local Natives, Foster the People and Warpaint. After some
research into the bands and their existing music videos, we decided a
more well known band was more appropriate for our target audience,
which is when we decided to use the song Fluorescent Adolescent by the
Arctic Monkeys.
The editing techniques we used were those that would be stereotypical of
the Indie genre of the song we were doing. In our initial ideas and
audience research, we gained an understanding of conventional features
within music videos in the indie/alternative genre, things that included;
sepia colour effects, film grain, narrative, black and white and still images.
Initially, we started to focus predominantly making the footage black and
white, as we thought this would make the video look more stereotypical
on the indie genre; however, it became apparent that for our target
audience and for the song choice, the black and white features weren’t
suitable for the video. We then decided to explore the technique of using
sepia and adjust the video saturation of the clips by making it a retro
orange colour, however we were not content with this either. The final
idea we had was to change the brightness and contrast of the clips, we
simply altered the pegs up for the brightness and down slightly for the
contrast making an image we were extremely pleased with. We also
manipulated the opacity of the footage to fit in with the image we had in
mind. Not only did we adjust the colours of the images, but we also
integrated images over one another in order to give sort of a ‘trippy’ effect,
a technique which we picked up from existing media products.
Whilst doing some research we discovered that indie rock videos often
only featured long shots or extreme close ups (meat shots) of both the
band members and the instruments, a technique which is used within the
industry to promote the band and make the audience more familiar with
the band and identify with the music. This researched helped us establish
what particular shot types we would include within our own video and
where in the video they would be featured, decisions of which wee made
prior to filming when creating our storyboard. When filming, we captured
a range of multiple shot types which made the editing an easy process in

2. terms of identifying where shots would fit into the sequence. We used a
variation of different shots such as blocking shots, cantered angles, 360
views and also the general shot types of medium close ups and long shots
to establish the band, showing things such as long shots of the band, the
lead vocalist behind the microphone, etc. We also realised in a lot of indie
rock music videos it did not fit a specific storyline, and narratives were
often none linear, which often just small clips of the band in their daily life
or having fun. This is where we used our understanding of real forms of
media products in order to develop the video, as we were able to used
random, yet effective footage which was suitable for the video.
We used inspiration from existing media products, and the opening of our
video in particular was influenced by the video Teddy Picker, also by the
arctic monkeys. The opening of teddy picker shows the band setting up
their instruments, by plugging in equipment and adjusting guitars. This
introduces the band to the audiences and allows them to immediately
identify with the music genre. We have incorporated this technique into
our own video, showing the band setting up their equipment within the
first opening seconds. We have also used a range of shots to show close up
of the band playing their instruments, which is an idea which we got from
the video teddy picker, which features predominantly throughout the
video.
Our video was filmed in two main locations, one of which was a
professional music studio which we hired out for the purposes of filming,
and the other was in a student house, a location which we believe will
appeal to our target audience and engages the audience in that youthful
atmosphere. We focused upon real media conventions and stereotypical
features of our chosen genre to make our filming as effective as possible.
We were very particular on the clothing of the band within the video, as in
typical indie/alternate music videos clothes such as skinny jeans, tight
tops, logo t-shirts etc are very prominent. As well as this, we also looked at
the colours used to make it as suggestive as possible for our particular
genre, which were manipulated by using editing techniques and camera
movements.
2. How effective is the combination of your main product and
ancillary texts?
As part of our project, we not only created a music video, but also two
ancillary texts; a digipak and advert for our chosen song. The combination
of these along with the music video acts as a device to market our media

3. product, by using corporate image, using the same colours and fonts
throughout. This technique is used within many existing media products in
order for the product and brand to be easily recognisable as a marketing
package for the target audience; which is hopefully what we have achieved
in our own product. Our ancillary texts compliment our main product by
demonstrating similar images of that indie rock style and the sepia colours
used. This helped us to portray the genre of music in the texts and help the
audience identify with the product. Both the advertisement for the song
and the digipak both include pictures of the band members and the
instruments, which shows a high level of coherence throughout, creating
fluency through all through all three media products. The video itself
however can be appreciated and distributed over the internet at a click of
a button, and it is simple and easy to get hold of which will appeal to our
target audience, as young people are very much engaged in using things
such as social networking sites such as facebook and twitter. Both the
main product and ancillary texts therefore work along side each other and
fulfil every aspect when used together to get the maximum benefit when
advertising and marketing our product to appeal to our target audience.
Although we think our ancillary texts are both relevant to the main video,
we do however think that if we were to complete this coursework task
again, we think more in depth research into the importance of the texts
and main product would help us establish more understanding of how to
appeal to our audience on a wider scale; using both branding and
marketing techniques.
3. What have you learnt from your audience feedback?
We have used our audience feedback from our rough cuts, from both
positive and negative feedback to improve our video and take things our
audience have said into consideration. After our first rough cut, many of
the comments were in relation to the quality of the camera footage, which
unfortunately we weren’t aware of till after filming and so were unable to
make any changes to the footage. However, despite this minor setback, we
have since been able to manipulate the colours and brightness of the video
in order to make the lines from the poor camera quality, to fit the ‘indie’
themed genre, by making the video look slightly washed out, which we
think to look effective. Another piece of constructive criticism from our
audience was that we needed to make some clips more in sync with the
music; this was in relation to one particular piece of drumming footage,
which has since been adjusted. However, we did have some positive
feedback on the mise en scene fitting into our genre; for example the
clothing of the band and the location in which the video was filmed. As
well as this, we also had positive feedback on the way we were able to link
the clips to fit the song and band, this was done with the editing on

4. brightness and contrast, through this we have learnt the image quality is
one of the most important features to a successful music video.
The feedback for our final edit was very much positive, and focused
predominately on the way in which we have successfully been able to use
a range of camera angles and a variation of footage in different locations in
order to make the video seem more vibrant, appealing to our audience.
After making improvements from our the feedback from our rough cut, we
made sure that all the clips were in sync with the music which makes our
video look more professional.
Overall, we are really pleased with our audience feedback we received
from our sample of our target audience, as it helped us to improve certain
aspects of the video and allowed the target audience to identify with the
product in a constructive way. The main things we have learned from our
audience feedback is that when making any video, you have to be aware of
what you want to represent and how you want the audience to perceive it,
and to do this you must plan shots carefully, along with the editing
techniques you will use to create this illusion.
4. How did you use media technologies in the construction and
research, planning and evaluation stages?
Throughout the project we used a variety of new media technologies to
construct, research, plan and evaluate our media products. Since media
technologies have developed greatly within the last decade, it is to our
advantage that we have been able to use a number of research sources,
editing software and websites to promote our video.
Research and Planning
When researching and planning our work, we have used a number of
websites and sources which allowed us to develop our knowledge and
understanding of music video concepts in a variety of ways. We have
documented our work onto a blog, using a site called blogger. This has
enabled us to clearly demonstrate and exhibit our work in a clear and
concise format, which allows us to use visual aids such as videos,
slideshow presentations, photos and a storyboard animatic. Using blogger
to document our work has allowed us to update and improve pieces of
work as we progressed in the project, making the process a lot quicker.
When presenting our work, we have used a number of different websites
and programme to exhibit our work in a creative and effective way. One of
which was the use of Prezi, which is an online presentation programme

5. which allows you to add photos, videos and text in order to present work
in a digital and animatic way, which makes it look very professional.
Another programme we have used to present work is a website called
Slideshare, which enables you to upload PowerPoint presentations and
word documents into a simple scroll down format.
The internet has been a major source when researching and planning our
work, as it enabled us to find a vast amount of information when looking
into things such as media concepts and influences for our own video. We
often used the search engine Google in order to quickly find necessary
information which would be used within our project. Using Google has
also helped when adding work to our blog, as we used a Google account to
log into blogger. As well as a Google account, we also used a hotmail email
account to send work between the groups to ensure that both blogs were
up to date with all the necessary information. We also used our email
accounts to contact the record label for permission to use their song
within our video.
We also used YouTube as a way to
access music videos and learn the
key concepts which we would
include in our own work. When
analysing music videos for both the
music video analysis and the 9 frame
analysis, YouTube was a major
source which we used to print
screen certain shots in order to look
at in further detail. This developed
our understanding of conventional
indie music videos, as we were able

6. to see the common elements used in our chosen genre, such as the types of
camera angles, shot types, colours and mise en scene. We also created a
YouTube account which made accessing videos a lot easier, and allowed us
to upload our work in order to gain feedback.
Social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter were also used to
appeal to our target audience so we could gain insightful feedback for our
music video. Due to the rise in the amount of people using social
networking sites in our modern society, we thought these two particular
sources would enable us to reach a wider market when distrusting our
work.
Filming
When capturing the footage for our music video we used a small hand held
HD camera which allowed us to get high quality footage for our video. The
camera was touch screen which allowed us to look over footage quickly
after filming in order to see whether we were pleased with it or not. For
some shots we had to use a tripod in order to keep the camera at a steady
angle or to capture an image which would otherwise be too high or too
awkward to reach. Our understanding of the video camera from last year
helped us to develop skills and use it correctly to gain shots and angles
that would work well in our video.
As well as a HD camera, we also used a digital still camera to capture to
gain higher quality pictures of the location, band members, etc. We also
used it to get images for the fast paced photo shots which we used to
create a sense of movement through photos within our video, which we
were very pleased with.
Editing
Using an Apple Mac in the panning and researching stages of our music
video helped us with the important software and the understanding of the
programmes that we appreciate cannot be used on ordinary computers.
Since using Final Cut last year, we have been able to develop further skills
and understanding of conventional editing techniques in order to create
the right effect for our video. Using Final Cut, we were able to manipulate
the colours of the footage by adjusting the contrast and by adding hints of

7. colour where necessary. We were also able to shorten clips and overlap
them in order to make the footage in sync with the music.
We also use a programme called ‘iPhoto’ which enabled us to edit our still
images to good quality using several of the ‘quick fixes’, e.g. rotate,
enhance, retouch, and crop; all of which were simply basic editing
techniques making our images look effective. Another photo editing
programme we used was Photoshop, which allowed us to manipulate the
colours, in terms of contrast and brightness, and also the sepia effect on
the images.