2016 ~ Laura Walker A2 Media Studies

Friday, 2 December 2016

Ancillary ideas

Ancillary Task 1 -

Idea 1

Idea 2

Ancillary Task 2- The Poster

Idea 1

The genre of our music video is a mixture of romance and mystery. I feel that some parts of our music video are quite conventional in terms of conventional romance videos. The 360 degree shot for example as well as the side shot of them on the bench I feel complies with this particular genre. However, it is not a simple love story as there is a mystery behind it. The story is not made clear and the audience are left to figure out the full narrative for themselves. This I feel is what will entice the audience. I suppose you could compare our video to those of panic as we are making the video up of various shots in order to tell a story. It is not in order and is quite mixed but stylized.

Filming day 3- Mousehold Heath

Characters and Casting

Final Cast

Charlie Frazer

A Level Drama student

Confident

Fits character description

Tall

Knows the song- confident at lip synching

Meghan Kelly

A Level Drama student

Confident actress

Fits character description

Mysterious- dark hair, smile etc.

Works well with Charlie ( in acting environment)

Our cast have plenty of acting experience in a range of different productions, plays and shows. They are both confident in front of a camera and have a connection which will really show when we film them. They also fit the character descriptions perfectly- Meghan has dark hair, red lips and pale skin which is what we were going for in order to portray a red riding hood like character. Charlie on the other hand is tall and dark. I feel like the contrast will work perfectly when filming not only for the narrative but for the overall outcome of the music video.

Inspiration #1

During the research stages of our music video we looked into various artists and bands. This really inspired the idea to film in the woods as it looked so abstract and different. As our original plan had been to include a band within our music video and cast, this would have linked quite well. However it still provides a brief understanding of how we got to where we are today with our final music video.

Ancillary Research

Existing Ancillary Products:

Simplistic, conventional- artists face, album title, 21 stands out-green

Arty, unique, own font, logo, colours contrast, pattern, simplistic black background- contrast with white and orange

A2 Ancillary Products:

These two ancillary products are part of the same project however there are a few elements which don't suggest this. First of all, there is no ongoing theme; colour scheme, font style/sizes, pattern, design or relevance. What I do like about the ancillary product 1 i.e. the CD case was the wolf face design on the front. I think that it is arty and unique and it relates to the song and the narrative. What almost ruins this is the anaemic, girly,. floral design dominating the majority of it. First of all, I don't feel like the black, together with the oranges and reds combine well with the pink. The whole idea is that the wolf is sad and alone and nobody wants him, emotions include sadness, anger, determination. The floral pattern distracts completely from the narrative and makes it seem cute, quirky like a conventional friendship or romance story. The image on the back is also quite confused, a plain black border would have worked much better and made it look more professional. If I could re-do this CD cover I would keep the wolf illustration however maybe have a colour focus on black and red or black and gold.

The poster is also quite confusing, it has nothing to do with the wolf and there is no link between this and the previous ancillary product. The colours are all different and so are the fonts which makes it look messy and unprofessional. (As well as grammatical errors 'Beware the wolf'.) It is not clear as to who the individuals are standing in the background however we presume it is the band. Overall, the setting, characters, colours, fonts and overall style has nothing much to do with the narrative and the song, it would have been more effective if they had used the poster shown pinned to the lamp posts during the music video.

What I like about these ancillary products is that they are simplistic yet effective. The colours compliment one another and there is a running theme through both the album cover and the poster. The font is bold and it tells you what you need to know, not fussy or over enhanced. These elements as well as the illustration design in the centre professionalises it. The only way that they could have made it a little bit more unique or eye catching could have been if they'd decided to use the same pattern in the centre to create another 2 sides to the CD cover.

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Update 14/11/16

Since last time we have filmed the second part of our music videos at butterfly studios, making the most of their space to create effective and useful shots. Now, we need to organise a date for filming at Thetford Forest, filming at a friends pool and filming in the drama studio at school several times this week. We have also started editing in Adobe Premiere Pro and it is starting to come together which is exciting.

Existing Characters

1. How important are characters/performers in music videos?

They usually are very important because the lyrics and the emotion of the character have to connect otherwise we wouldn't understand the feelings and the meaning the music video was trying to get across and they would clash.

2. Character profiles of 3 existing characters/performers in music videos

Ed Sheeran - Drunk

Character 1: The Pet Cat

The cat plays an important role in this music video, it is the symbol of Ed Sheeran's loneliness and how crazy/insane he has become after he has broken up with his girlfriend and how 'sad' he has become. Ed imagines that the cat is the only one that he could talk to and imagines that his pet can talk, drink, play video games and do things a human could do and so becomes his close friend and the person by his side in this hard time. The cat asks like a protective friend giving him advice and attacking someone who has offended him in the club.

Bruno Mars - Grenade

Character 2: Bruno Mars - Main Character

I think the main character in this music video is very important as the way he shows his emotion through his miming/lip syncing are important to the lyrics and narrative of the video. Also the fact that he is pulling a piano down streets, roads etc.. shows that he struggling with the weight of having troubles with his girlfriend/ex-girlfriend. I think the fact the actual singer is the main character/actor of the video is what makes the emotion stronger and more believable.

Taylor Swift - Blank Space

Character 3: Taylor Swift - Main Character

The Main Character of Taylor Swift is portrayed as insane and emotionally unstable in the music video through her behaviour after the partner she is with betrays her in the video. This is also due to how many people have let her down and broken her heart. The amount of posh pretty dresses she wears and her long beautiful earrings tells us she is rich, she is also wearing the full set of make-up and her hair is styled. These factors convey to us that because she is attractive the players fall for her and use her and she ends up how she is.

3. What makes these characters so iconic/memorable?

The Pet Cat: It acts as a form of entertainment for the viewer, without it the music video Ed Sheeran would seem less insane and lonely which is the point of the video and it wouldn't be as interesting as we don't usually see cats asking like humans.

Bruno Mars: He is pulling a piano down the street, roads etc.. you wouldn't usually see something like that. The lip syncing is also very emotional and you can tell it is from the heart.

Taylor Swift: The way she reacts to being betrayed/cheated on brings excitement to the viewer for example when she cuts the man's clothing up, sets it on fire and she whacks his expensive car with a golf club. These feelings of anger inside us can also relate to everyone. She also lip syncs/mimes the lyrics from the heart like Bruno Mars does which makes her emotions more believable.

4. Do they add appeal to the narrative?

The Pet Cat: Yes, definitely. The pet cat works with the song and the symbol of Ed Sheeran's craziness and loneliness.

Bruno Mars: Yes, he is singing from the heart, you can tell from the way he lip syncs, mimes and you can see that he is struggling with troubles with/breaking up with his girlfriend.

Taylor Swift: Yes, from her insane actions after being betrayed.

5. How engaged with the characters do audiences get?

I feel audiences get very engaged with the characters because they are who speak the emotion of the music, especially the main character. Other characters bring the narrative of the music video along or act as symbols.