Album Covers Research

Typical Features:

• Album Title
• Focal Image of the band
• Band name
• Limited colour scheme
• Very little/lots of mise en scene
• Band logo
• Lyrics in booklet
• Thank yous/acknowledgements
• Production credits
• record company logo
• barcode
• typeface
• website
• little promo
• stickers
• Track list
• Product codePlace of manufacture
• Copyright
• Booklet
• Sleeve
• Release Sate
• Parental advice
• Colour scheme
• Abstract art
• Synergetic look
• Different conventions depending on format

Categories:

• Genres
• Concept vs Image of band
• Illustration/graphic vs photo of artist
• Photo of artist vs photo of other
• Framing eg CU, MS, LS
• format
• colour scheme eg Monochrome
• concept album
• Solo/band
• gender
• Band photo vs concept
• Abstract
• Bust mise-en-scene
• Decades
• Debut or not
• Record label
• Audience
• Influenced by other media
• Compilation
• Realism vs abstract
• Distinctive styled designs
• Accessibility - popular culture

Their functions:

• Sell the artist' image
• Attract artist's existing fans
• Interest people through design
• Set up artist identity
• Attract attention/eyecatching
• Extension of Artists art  
• A                                              

Revolver

Images used: Lots of pictures of the different band members, illustrated and photographed, but all in black and white, all moulding in to one another

Text: 'Revolver' with 'The Beatles' written on a black block at the left hand side

Relationship between text and images: Both monochromatic, text is bold an simple as opposed to the disorganized collage of pictures, contrasts with the drawings

Differing functions of the front, back, inside sleeve:
Front: Show the different direction of the band's music
Back: Institutional information, track list
Inside sleeve: lyrics, photos of artists, art

How signifiers/iconography reflects band, genre, overall image:

• Still have iconic beatles haircuts
• Monochromatic colours matched their suit and tie image
• The collage represents their fun loving and humorous side
• Mix of different styles matches their music
• funny pictures reflect their public image as humorous
• It reflects their innovative side

Target Audiences:

• With the exclusive funny/attractive photos of the bands it would appeal to their usual fans, especially teenagers
• The psychedelic aspect would've fitted in with the growing hippie culture
• The monochromatic colour scheme enable them to appeal more to adults than previously
• The artistry that has gone into the cover would enable them to appeal to an older audience than teenagers

Institutional context:

• They don't normally have any institutional information on the front, leaving the credits to the back of the CD or on the inside
• There is the Apple logo on the front and the inside

Creating an Ideal Artist

The artist we created for Emily G is Billie Kaden, who is a part time singer, part time athlete.

She is different from normal pop singers in that:

• She has a sporty body instead of being either curvy or skinny
• She wears sport luxe clothes like high tops, snapbacks and tracksuits (but the classy kind)
• She participates in sport because she loves it instead of just to maintain a nice body
• She is working class
• She isn't sexualised
• She doesn't have time for a boyfriend
• She sings about living your dreams, competition and winning

It was interesting seeing how an artist doesn't have to be sexualised to be interesting and appealing, which may make her appeal to a younger target audience but perhaps not a wider one. I think that the fact she is a decathlete who promotes sports charities makes her unusual, and the way she follows her dreams and doesn't try to appeal to men on the basis of her physicality makes her an aspirational figure.

Notes 9.9.2013

Brainstorming Emily's idea

Band, Group or Solo? Band - we have instruments, but also could be a group of 3 singers, and Kelly Clarkson singing solo in 'I want You' (Emily's song choice)

An issue is that we would need male actors - Alex E, Chris, Stefan, Torin Luke, boys from the year below, Ben,

Ends up with tea boy?

Settings: Office, studio, warehouse, audition room, runway

Performance: On a plinth, stage

References:
Sugababes - Ugly
OutKast- Hey Ya
Bring It On auditions
Hairspray - New Girl In Town

Sharlene's idea
Song: Lily Allen - He Wasn't there

Solo Artist with backing singers

Narrative: Giving guy second chance and is happy she is

Minimalistic design for performance part. Constructed Outdoors in studio, made of paper, sitting on bench in garden/park

Benches a cliché or genre signifier

Problems: Why cut between studio and studio, might all be LS so wouldn't get diversity of shot types, might be weird to jump out of it

References:
Hairspray- New girl in town
Sit and tie Justin Timberlake

Mila's idea:
Wondergirl - Hey Monday

Band as superheoes

bad vs good - binary opposites

Won't save ex boyf

Could combine into retro old fashioned move superheroes
supervillain
causing him trouble

Refreneces:
Mr A -The Hoosiers
Dna - little mix


Anna's idea:

Casblanca black and white film romance - golden Hollywood

trench coats, fog, lights shining in river, looking through windows

Loves man but he cheats/ is gangster

Music That Means Something to Me

Childhood:

My first CD was S Club 7's greatest hits which I used to listen to on my Walkman, which I would conceal in my bag so people might think it was an iPod.

Early Teens:

The first song I voluntarily listened to by The Beatles was 'She Loves You', not knowing that I would become a huge fan, culminating in me seeing Paul McCartney live at the O2 for my 16th birthday. It's not my favourite Beatles song, but I basically like all of their music and this was also their first big hit.

Today:

My family and I have always watched Disney movies together, but our favourites are 'The Lion King' and 'Mulan', with 'I'll Make a Man Out of You' becoming me and my sister's anthem. When my sister comes back from university we always sing it, with me taking the low notes.

Music Track Research

Slower Songs:







Older Music:



Songs by female artists:

Music Video Remake Evaluation

Our prelim was remaking Little Mix' Wings, and we all had to perform and support the technical crew.

1. Did you enjoy the workshop day? What were your best bits and why?
I really enjoyed the music video day, especially when I got to join in with the technical crew, altough I was a bit nervous! I enjoyed pushing the dolly and cable tossing, and I got to mark up the shots in the blue grunge set up which was really fun, however I did not get to help with the lighting which was a bit disappointing.

 I also enjoyed encouraging the main performers by shouting, singing dancing and woohooing, especially when they reacted to it by putting more into their performance, although I did enjoy performing as a backing dancer to,o despite the fact it was very tiring. Also, I used to dance regularly, so it wasn't as alien to me as it was too some others who hadn't done much dancing before, which gave me more confidence as I had performed on stage. However, I think the general on set experience is what I value the most.

2. What have you learnt from participating in each of the prelim tasks?
I really learn the importance and difficulty of putting your all into a performance, allowing me to empathise more with those in front of the camera as I am usually behind it.

I also learnt loads of new technical skills, and how to behave on set, such as picking up bits of rubbish that are in shot without being prompted and generally to help the shoot go as smoothly as possible. It really gave me a feel of what it was like to work in the real industry, and I learnt about how crucial timekeeping and organisation is, as well as what a runner has to do which will prepare me if I take on a runner role in future productions.

I also learnt lots from our editing sessions, as it challenged me to develop my grading skills as well as developing my ability to synch both lip movement s and dance moves to music. Also as we were editing in groups of 8, we have to organise who would edit when and allocate equal amounts of time, which was hard but ultimately successful.

My audition helped me feel more confident when performing on the day, as gave me some experience with editing music videos and how to lip-synch realistically. I gave me a greater appreciation of how real artists have to perform.

Our Audition:

3. Are you pleased with the footage and your edit?
I operated the dolly during the mid shots of Jade/Arianna so I was particularly pleased that they turned out ok, and the way that the lighting, costume and backdrops of all the shots added to the professional look of all our shots.

Although some shots that we needed were missing, such as stamping shots, we managed to compensate by using other footage.

Our shots also did not require much grading because they were already of such high quality, though some set-ups, especially the full dance scene required a lots of grading, and I am not completely happy with the evenness of the grading throughout the edit. I already had some grading experience, but the video challenged me to try to blend different set ups together to give the video a consistent look. This however, is my only qualm, and I think that our resourcefulness and team work enabled us to achieve a very good final edit. I have edited in a group before, but never in so large a group, so it really forced us to communicate and share which are essential for next term's editing.

4. How do you think your prelim experiences will impact on your approach to next term's music video coursework?
It really highlighted the importance of pre-production and performance to me, as in order for the shoot to run smoothly and stay on schedule everything had to be planned and prepared for. It will prompt me to think more about costumes, props, make up, back drops and how to organize both the cast and crew so they are on set when needed which is often a problem when producing coursework.

I also hope that it has improved by directing skills, as I have experienced how actors feel on the other side of the camera, which will enable me to understand and help them more with their performance.

I also learnt what was possible during editing, as the video required lots of split screen effects, radial blurs and fast cuts which disguised any poor performances and bad dancing. It also gave me the opportunity to try out discontinuous editing which I had not done for coursework since year 10, which is essential for next term's music video, allowing me to refresh my memory and edit my first performance music video.

In conclusion, I think that I have improved my performance and editing skills which will help me to make a better music video next term.



Our Remake:

Performance Music Video Analysis

The music video I have chosen to analyse is 'Fidelity' by Regina Spektor.


Music, Lyrics and imagery work in synergy:
Regina Spektor's acting matches the emotion in the song, with the monochromatic colour scheme also matching the fact she used to contain her feelings, with the burst of colour helping to symbolise her new freedom. Also some of the shots reflect the lyrics, such as the shot of her with 'one foot on the ground'.

Performance Drives the music video and is sustained throughout:
Regina Spektor is in every shot, and is the only actress in the video, with the emotions she is displaying through her acting engaging the audience.

Artist lip-synchs believably throughout:
Yes, although not during the coloured powder scenes.

Role of artist may switch between artist performance and character:
Sometimes she sings while directly addressing the camera, with her voice continuing over the narrative clips of her struggling to connect with her boyfriend, such as when she looks sadly downwards while stirring her tea.

Singing/Dancing/Playing Instruments:
Regina sings and plays the piano, indicating that she writes her own songs.

Conform to expectations of genre/artist:
This was Regina Spektor's first big hit, establishing her as quirky and interesting, with the coloured powder establishing her as fun loving and different, with the video not quite fitting the conventions of typical pop videos, as she plays a piano and oozes a vibe of sophistication.

Artist Performance is engaging/impactful/visually striking:

Her acting is good, and by directly addressing the camera she draws the audience into the story, with her brown hair also providing the only relief from the monochromatic background, and towards the end of the video her hair and make up grow more striking.
 

Highly Stylised costume/hair/make up/background/effects:
Her monochromatic costume mathces the mise en scene of the scene, with both featuring stripes and strong patterns, and her plain make up and hair becomes quirkier in the powder bit, matching the quirkiness and fun of the multicoloured powder which also contrasts with the monochromatic nature of the mise en scene. Also the heart necklace is symbolic of her letting her lover in.

Strong Sense of Development is expected:
The video begins with her alone in a monochromatic environment, with a hollow figure appearing who only becomes a real man once the necklace breaks, the coloured powder is released, and Regina Spektor is free to let her emotions show.

Strong sense of artist identity and aspirational to artist's fans:
It creates a sense of quirkiness, fun and prettiness around her and establishes her as creative and someone to keep an eye on. Also the fact that she has a boyfriend who she is able to open up to is aspirational, with the emotional journey of the video being reflected in some fans own relationships.

Beauty/Money Shots:
There are lots of CUs of her face, with high key lighting enhancing her features, and her hair and make up both making her look nice and creating a quirky feel.

Extreme juxtapositions and binary oppositions:
There are cuts from LSs to Cus, but the juxtaposition of the highly stylised monochromatic backdrop, costumes and props and the multicoloured bright powder is the biggest contrast, with the hollow boyfriend also contrasting with the actor who eventually appears whilst Regina Spektor's hair and make up becomes more crazy, contrasting with its early sophistication. The early half of the video contrasts with the later half, with static framing giving way to shakycam tracks and pans.

Discontinious editing:
There is a mix of different scenes but it is edited in chronological order.

Polysemic:
The black and white mise en scene could connote her boredom, and her inability to feel emotions and let her lover in, also could signify a sense of entrapment, and a need to break free from her restrictive life. The fact that her boyfriend is represented by a hollow man initially could connote her inability to connect with him, or that he is absent from her little shut off world. The video either presents love as a freeing force, or as a scary thing, that requires you to open up.

Provokes a strong audience reaction:
When the heart bursts the audience rejoices with the artist, with the powder also appealing to them, as well as the sweetness of the love story.