My main product is a music video and my ancillary texts are a digipak and magazine advert promoting the same artist. I chose a 1970s retro theme to create a nostalgic aesthetic and coordinated the colors, fonts, and grain effects between the products for continuity. While the ancillary texts effectively capture the 1970s theme, the music video's theme is more modern pop than retro. To improve the combination, I could incorporate more 1970s-inspired costumes, props, and conventions into the music video to better match the theme portrayed in the other products.

1. Question Two – How effective is the combination
of your main product and ancillary texts?
Brooke Smith

2. Why is it important to have an effective combination?
It is important to have an effective combination of main product and ancillary
texts as it gives a professional finish and enhances the unique aesthetic of an
artist. I have chosen typography and colour schemes that stand out, this has
allowed all of my media products to be eye catching. By using the 70s, retro
style I was able to create a nostalgic concept that also stand out from the
common popular styles. I used the same colours for backgrounds that were
sampled from the video. This enhanced continuity, I have also used a grain
effect on Photoshop to make the images look more authentic.

3. What is my overall theme? Were you influenced by other work?
My main product is my music video and I have produced a digipak and
magazine advert, which are my ancillary texts. My whole theme is 70s as it
coordinates with the trend in pop culture of nostalgia, it is also original which
allows the media products to stand out. I was inspired by recent TV and music
videos such as stranger things and Selena Gomez’s ‘Bad liar’. The digipak and
magazine advert link as they are both presented in colours that are iconic to
the 1970s era with added grain effects and the same fonts. However, my
music video is slightly disengaged from this theme as there is more of a
modern pop theme. The colours and aesthetic fit with the ancillary texts
however the 70s theme isn't portrayed as well in the main product. I could
have improved this by changing the costume and props to look more retro;
creating a more effective combination.

4. What is your house style and layout of your ancillary texts?
My ancillary texts are consistent with deep red and mustard yellow colours.
These emphasise the 70s theme as they were popular colours at the time and
the combination of the two also allow the texts to stand out more. I have also
been consistent with fonts, which allows customers to see the similarities and
recognise the digipak from the magazine advert. The visual recognition will
create an iconic look for the artist. I have used the same image of the artist
from the magazine advert in my digipak, this also fits the imagery of the
music video as I took the photos for my ancillary texts when filming the music
video.

5. How could you make your brand identity clearer?
I could make my brand identity clearer by making the artists costume more iconic
to the 1970s era. This would make the artist’s style more memorable to audiences
and customers. Furthermore, I could enhance the brand identity within my main
media product by using more props and costumes from the 70s era, this would
create further recognition of the artist. Looking at my music video, I can see that it
conforms more with the pop codes and conventions, this is useful as it fits the
genre of music and is easy to build hype. However, for my music video to have a
clearer brand identity and originality I should use conventions from other genres.
This would build a stronger combination and connection with the digipak and
magazine advert. On the other hand the fonts that I have used work the brand
well as they occur multiple times throughout the ancillary texts. The artists name
stands out against any other fonts, so is more iconic. To develop this I could add a
similar title into my music video.