Practicality Issues

I've been thinking of issues that we need to cover so we don't have problems along the line.


Song:
In regards to the song itself, I already emailed 679artists, who are the record label behind Meddle and have said that we can use the song! This is great news and it's great that they replied to soon.

Actress:
We've also spoken to Tara, who we'd like to use as our singer who has agreed to everything but we also have Liv, who does drama, as a back up just in case who we could also use as she would fit the image.


Location:
We definitely need to check out possible locations and make sure that they would work in all weather, as we can never be too sure with English weather!
Places like the skate park in south bank could be good, as it's sheltered but all the graffiti gives of a really cool, urban vibe which British audiences would identify with and other audiences, ie. American would love to see.

Song Choice

We pitched our ideas and have decided to go with Little Boots' Meddle, an electro pop song with a young audience. Ideas for the video are to use a reversed effect, tying in with the theme of meddling and confusing the audience, leaving the video open to interpretation.

Our artist will be female and quirky, appealing to a young British audience of around 16-24 year olds. 


As for the ancillary products, we are going to produce:

1. A website: probably myspace as we are all confident customising this and this would be suitable for a debut artist, as we have seen through the likes of Lily Allen and many others.
2. Album cover: the front will most likely be a photo of the artist, as nearly all debut artists who are trying to go mainstream do this.

Reflections on group

My group will be Despina, George, Joe and I. I'm really happy with this mix as I haven't worked with anyone before but I think we'll get on well and we all have strengths that will help the group!

First proposal: The Next Untouchable

Lyrics:         
I can’t believe, I can’t deny, 

I can’t conceive what’s in your eyes,

Another mistake, another regret, another unwanted cigarette,

And do you really like me? 

Because one and one and one, makes three,

If you don’t hear me, then why should I hear you?

I can’t walk away,

All I can do is say “better luck next time.”

The next untouch (x4)

The next untouchable

I can’t walk away,

All I can do is say “better luck next time”

The next untouchable (x3)

Feel her,

Move her,

Believe her,

See her,

And then it comes, I don’t know what to do,

Do I feel it pure, or is that just you?

She said again, (x9)

And do you really like me?

Because one and one and one, makes three,

If you don’t hear me, then why should I hear you?

I can’t walk away,

All I can do is say “better luck next time”

The next untouch (x4)

The next untouchable

I can’t walk away,

All I can do is say “better luck next time”

The next untouchable (x4)

Feel her,

Move her,

Believe her,

See her,

Forget her.

Forget her.

Interpretation:

From the lyrics I've taken that the song is about a guy who is in love with a girl but I think she has a boyfriend already. He tries to get over her yet is still singing about her so obviously wants her still. 

She seemingly says she likes him, yet she is still an 'untouchable'. This part could be like a day dream, or the main guy is just imagining that the girl likes him. 

The theme of the song is unrequited love, which could be replicated quite well in a video.

I like the ending of this song as it isn't cheesy or what we would normally expect; the guy doesn't end up with the girl, she just says to forget her.

The target audience could be teenagers, fans of indie music etc. The teen singer and youthful music along with things like cigarettes and  the english accent would really appeal to a young, english audience.

My idea for this song reminds me of the film (500) Days of Summer (Marc Webb, 2009) where the male character seems to be obsessed by the female who ignores him but at the end he finds a new love interest who isn't so cold.


I like the end of this, which would be fitting as the singer says "forget her," which could introduce the new character.


Techniques:


I like the idea of slow motion, as it can be really effective. I'd like to do something slow, clashing with the fast paced music and focusing on the narrative, like in Kanye West's video Flashing Lights which is really simple but so effective to the audience.

Blake Schneider

Screenwriter's Bible

Joseph Campbell

Week 4 Task: Website and marketing analysis

http://www.katyperry.com/

The first thing when we see on Katy Perry's website is a banner with artwork from her album Teenage Dream, which features on the front cover of the CD. Katy Perry's name and the album title is in a candy font, which relates to the first single from the album California Girls which was inspired by Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and the game Candy Land. The fun theme runs through the site, with pink and blue colours.

BRAND IDENTITY & TARGET AUDIENCE: Katy's image is very sexualised through all her work, appealing to both men and women as she is a female singer. She markets to a worldwide audience as she is a mainstream popstar, who frequently appears in the charts and on radio. As we are in the UK, the wesbite automatically loads in a British format, but there are other options available for lots of other countries, allowing a wide audience to buy into Katy and her music.

APPEAL TO AUDIENCE: The website works in synergy with other sites like Facebook, YouTube,  Twitter etc which shows the technological convergence which allows the site to broadcast to many people. Katy has a live twitter feed which shows her tweets and other people that have mentioned her. Most celebrities use Twitter now, which allows fans to follow their every move and even interact with them.

The website is very fan based, with links to watch parodies that fans have made. This benefits the fans and Katy, as both are working symbiotically as people can view fans interpretations of her work.

STRATEGIES TO BUY INTO ARTIST: There are many ways to buy into Katy Perry, the main one being to buy her latest album Teenage Dream, with 'available now' and 'available everywhere now,' repeated all over the place. 


The audience can buy ringtones, visit the store to buy merchandise, view tour dates and buy tickets for live performances. There are links to specific songs and some are from her EPs and previous album, which shows that the website is allowing the audience many options. Again, there is an appeal to an international audience with a UK and US store.

INSTITUTIONS: The record company behind the website and Katy's new album is capitol records, who are featured at the bottom of the page. Katy's website doesn't advertise for other institutions like clothes shops, which perhaps shows that she doesn't need the extra money from advertising as she is so successful or perhaps that she wants the fans to focus on her instead of other things. There are photos of the artist, videos, songs and many other things to appeal to the audience as they have visited the site for her and not anything else.

Week 4 Task: Carol Vernallis analysis

Nicki Minaj - Massive Attack



Vernallis' theory centres around 4 key concepts that all relate to the way a music video is constructed. They are:
     1) Narrative
     2) Editing
     3) Camera movement and framing
     4) Diegesis


NARRATIVE:

• The song is a visual response to the music
• There is a narrative and performance, although the narrative is not fully explained and quite vague: the video begins with rapper Birdman giving Nicki a stack of money, then there are various desert shots and a car chase with a a helicopter. There is a harijuku army and the video seems quite random, then Nicki escapes with model Amber Rose in a pink lamborghini.

• The narrative is quite fragmented, which leaves it open to interpretation and the quirkiness is in keeping with Nicki Minaj's eccentric image. There is a pink colour scheme; in the backgrounds, clothing and mise en scene which relates to Nicki's 'Barbie' alter ego.

EDITING:

• The video frequently cuts to the beat of the music, especially in the introduction from 0.21 to 0.30 seconds. There are lots of shots of animal and insects, which are always cut to the beat.
• Cuts match the the sharp beats and there are jumps in narrative towards the end.
• Continuity is disrupted as narrative is intercut with performance
• Some long shots and some extremely fast shots. (e.g. slow: Nicki rising from the water, fast:cuts of snakes/spiders)

CAMERA:

• Extreme cuts from wide shots of the car to CUs of different people or animals
• The camera is nearly always moving (zooms, crane, pans, etc), only static for performance.
• Extreme angles: at one point there is a LA shot of Sean Garrett followed by a HA shot of the car. (below)

DIEGESES:

• There are gaps in the audience's understanding as there isn't really a story with a climax, the video is more abstract and involved on the dancers, singers, rappers and fashion.
• The music video uses intertextual references; the car chase is symbolic of the chase in Thelma and Louise (1991, Ridley Scott) which is a film about two women escaping their caged lives, which is ironic as Nicki Minaj and Amber Rose are so outlandish and quirky.

(The end shot resembles the theatrical poster for the film.)

Week 3 Task: Andrew Goodwin analysis

Snoop Dogg feat Justin Timberlake & Charlie Wilson - Signs

Andrew Goodwin, in Dancing in the Distraction Factory (1992, Routledge) has identified features of music videos, which can be seen in this video:

1. Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics (eg. stage performance in metal video, dance routine for girl band)

• It is clear that the genre of this song is rap/hip hop/r&b.
• We know this from the singing and rapping, but also visuals such as the dancing, fancy cars and scantily clad women and the general big budget video which are all signs of a hip hop video.
• Rappers often have videos showing off their wealth and from all the shots of money, cars, alcohol, groupies and the Las Vegas location, this video is no different.

2. There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals (either illustrative, amplifying, contradicting.)

Illustrative

3. There is a relationship between music and visuals either illustrative, amplifying, contradicting.)

Amplfiying, illustrative

 

4. The demands of the record label will include the need for lots of CUs of the artist (visual hooks) and the artist may develop motifs which recur across their work (visual style). These include CU of the star's face (money shots), iconography of the band image, visual trademarks/motifs.

• Justin Timberlake's dance moves and recognisable vocals are his trademark, which
• appear in practically all his videos. He dances a lot in this video, mainly alone which makes him stand out.
• Snoop Dogg often bops and has the 'swagger' and carefree attitude that has become his visual hook. We can see this a lot in the 'Signs' video.
• There are CUs of all three stars as they ware who the fans want to see. Even the producers, The Neptunes (Pharrell Willams and Chad Hugo) have been featured, showing the star power as they are famous as well.

(Pharrell & Chad)

5. There is frequently reference to the notion of looking (screens within screens, telescopes etc.) and particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body.

• In the narrative, the artists tend to look at each other or other characters.
• In the performance, the artists are usually looking at the camera but do look everywhere at other characters as well.
• Looking into the camera creates an emotional connection between the singer/rapper and audience, eg. Justin Timberlake and the viewer.
• 
  

6. There is often intertextual reference to films, TV, other music etc.

• The video is set in Las Vegas, with the money as a key theme. The narrative focuses on a boxing match and the artists gambling.
• The song itself interpolates Cheryl Lynn's Got to Be Real and The Gap Band's Early in the Morning.

Week 3 Task: Genre analysis

Nirvana's Smells Like Teen Spirit video is in the rock genre. We can tell this by:

• dark colours - black and brown/red (dark grungy colour scheme)
• shots of instruments
• guys with long hair - stereotypical
• shots of the lead singer singing and playing guitar
• CUs on instruments - focus on guitar/drums etc
• headbanging
• audience playing air guitar and jumping along to beat
• crowdsurfing + moshpit
• gentle playing on verses then 'rocking out' when the chorus starts
• smashing guitar

This video is like an actual concert, with the audience participating which really makes viewers get into the song.

In contrast, Missy Elliott's Gossip Folk is a clear example of the hip hop genre. Signifiers of this include:

• choreographed routines + matching outfits
• bright colours
• money shots of famous people e.g. CU of Tweet even though she isn't featured in the video
• street dance/break dancersshort skirts + shots of female's legs (e.g. 0.59)- working on sex appeal even though Missy is a female rapper
• showing off clothes, like adidas uniforms, branded kangol hats and big gold earrings
• appearances by other rappers/singers; Tweet, Ludacris + Ms Jade
• voyeuristic treatment of female body (Ludacris in office with different women
• intertextual references to other great hip hop artists (Aaliyah, Lisa Lopez at end)
• cutting to beat of music + lyrics

Reflections on album cover research

It's been really useful to have a look at my old albums and newer, modern ones. Albums can be used to appeal to audiences who may be looking for familiarity (ie through genre signifiers) or something new from an alternative artist who doesn't conform to the normal rules.


It was helpful to list all the conventions of album covers, even simple things like barcodes, track listings and featured artists as all albums need these so obviously we should have them on ours.


I think it's always good to stick to some conventions such as these, so that the audience can identify with the artist but I would also like to try something innovative such as artwork or something that will help our cover to stand out.

Week 2 Task: Album cover analysis

Jay-Z's last album, The Blueprint 3 was his eleventh and last in the Blueprint series. The album has a colour scheme of white and red, which makes it stand out from others. The front cover is a photo of painted instruments, not just modern ones such as the keyboard but older ones like gramophones. Jay-Z is a rapper, with hip hop influences but we can see in that the album has many influences, with keyboards and synthesisers and even jazz instruments like the saxophone. Intertextuality is key, as we are drawing from all genres of music. There are 3 red stripes on the front and back, branding the album which is key iconography. Anyone who knows Jay-Z will see the stripes and instantly think of this album. The core target audience for this album would be fans of hip hop and Jay-Z in general.

The instruments take up the majority of the cover, with the text providing as anchorage. and are in black text, with his name in bold as HE is what the fans are looking for. This album, was long awaited and like others, the artwork was realeased before the actual album, giving a chance for the audience, especially die hard fans to get to know the album, building up hype.

Jay'Z is a household name and all audiences will know who he is. He doesn't need his face on the cover or his name plastered all over it because fans will seek it out and most people will recognise it. His last two albums, Blueprint 1 and 2 fit the usual conventions of album covers, with the artist pictured and the name on the front, but this new ablum breaks convention, like he was doing at the time (e.g. appreaing at a festival like Glastonbury which created controversy.)

The back cover continues the colour scheme and features the red stripe logo, which is iconic for Jay-Z. The tracklist is featured so that people know which songs are on the album and who is featured. Artists such as Pharrel, Kid Cudi, Swizz Beatzz, Rihanna etc are all people that are recognisable within the R&B/hip hop genre, although Mr Hudson is more of an indie artist who frequently collaborates with rappers, showing that Jay-Z is expanding his genres like he has done previously with bands like Linkin Park.

The record companies involved in the album were Atlantic Records and Roc Nation, Jay-Z's own label. Both labels are indicators of the American music scene, although they are not purely hip hop or rap, as artists such as The Ting Tings, Mark Ronson and The Darkness are under these labels.

Making the cover:

Week 2 Task: Album covers analysis

Front:

Back:

1. What are the typical features that an album cover has? Make a list of all the elements they have in common.


FRONT:

• image of the artist(s)
• name of the artist - large, bold font
• name of the album - large, bold font
• parental advisory if there is swearing
• colour scheme

BACK:

• continued colour scheme
• track listing
• info on record company
• featured artists
• copyright
• artist website
• barcode

INSIDE BOOKLET

• continued colour scheme
• more images of artist
• info on tracks
• lyrics - sometimes
• thank you from the artist
• credits to those involved in making track

SPINES

• title of album
• name of artist

CD

• continued colour scheme
• artwork matches the cover, i.e. Lily Allen's debut album Alright, Still. 

2. How would you categorise the covers in front of you? Are there any other ways of distinguishing between them other than generically?

• The albums I used were from when I was young, ranging from 2000-2007 and the main category to distinguish the albums would be through genre. I split the albums into garage/UK hip hop, pop, hip hop/r&b and rock. 
• I also split them up into bands and single artists and immediatly could see similarities between all the band covers who used a layout of name and album title at the top, and a large group photo taking up most of the space.

3. Album covers serve many different functions. What do you think these are (ie what is their purpose?)

• I think that the main purpose of an album is to show audiences what an artist is selling, so that they can buy in to the brand. When I grouped the albums according to genre, it was clear that the pop covers were very obvious, with a simple photo of the band and the rock ones such as Avril Lavigne (right) were more understated. Audiences would see a cover and immediatly identify it with the genre. This can be useful for mainstream artists who want to sell their music but alternative artists could want to create an enigmatic feel, which relates to their music.

• There is usually a relationship between the text and images. We are drawn to the artwork as it is normally placed centrally and the text anchors this, such as the title 'Nellyville' from Nelly's album, which adds to the rustic, urban feel. We can see that this creates an image for the artist, branding or even re-branding them in a way that audiences will be able to identify and become familiar with.

Week 2 Task: Intertextuality

Kanye West ft Lupe Fiasco: Touch the sky

In this video, Kanye plays 'Evel Kanyevel', a parody of stuntman Evel Kenievel. Donning the trademark American red, white and blue jumpsuit and flying in the 'death rocket,' Kanye is making an obvious reference to Kenievel which makes the video funny and very tongue in cheek.

Cameo appearances by actresses Nia Long, Pamela Anderson and Tracee Ellis Ross add to the filmic style of the video. There is an interview in the middle of the video, with a reporter which is then interuppted by Nia and Tracee who says "that's right, girl, I told you, when he get on, he gonna leave yo' ass for a white girl," an obvious reference to his Kanye's song Gold Digger. Another reference is made to the single Through the Wire in the line "I think I died in that accident 'cause this must be heaven," which is constantly repeated.

The big budget video is anchored by another celebrity appearance from Lupe Fiasco who features on the track. Shot with a marching band playing behind him adds to the 70s style parody. Through mise-en-scene such as costume, (american jumpsuit, Pamela's white playsuit and the other outfits, the grand canyon shots, american rocket etc.) we really get the all-american feel.

A test card also appears featuring

Kanye's trademark teddybear mascot, adding another layer of branding.

With the use of moving split screens, we see more 70s style filming and the preparation for the take off, which is another parody of Evel Knievel and his unsuccessful jump across the Snake River Canyon in 1974.