Mood board

In an allocated group, me being with Chloe and Jacques, we researched in detail the genre ‘Pop’. We looked at images of ideas for how a performer from our allocated genre could be represented in terms of:

• Body language
• Pose
• Costume
• Facial expressions
• Hair
• Make-up
• Props

After exploring the Pop genre into such detail I have learnt that typical Pop costumes can be described as casual, boy/girl next door, relaxed and self assured. I also found that there are many different variations of Pop and how it can be presented to an audience. Considering Mise En Scene when looking at images, ideas, costumes, settings that are appropriate to Pop. Some examples of MES that are related to Pop are plain t shirts, leather jackets, sunglasses, bright colour palettes etc. I now feel I have a good enough understanding to be able to carry out a successful photo shoot. Without Mise En Scene, you would not be able to tell any music genres apart.

Post-It

It is important to find connotations of any piece of media and analyse it in detail to get a full understanding – a genre decode. With this task we stood our performer in front of our peers and they all had to write down adjectives they would use to describe them. A few words that our performer received consisted of:

• Laid back
• Casual
• Young/fun
• Genuine

Photo shoot

Final chosen photo

This is the image that I thought best resembled the theme of Pop music. We decided to dress our performer in a colourful shirt and denim jacket. This casual attire allows him to come across very ordinary and welcoming. The denotation of accessories such as a bracelet and sunglasses – makes the performer give off connotations of being very laid back and ‘boy next door’. The facial expression that the performer is a clear representation of how self assured and confident he is. In addition to this, the body language of pointing and looking directly at the camera makes the performer become engaged with the audience – a very important aspect of media.

Reflection

Throughout this mini project I have learnt a number of things that will help me with my media journey over the next couple years. At the beginning when making the mood board, putting in each individual picture, I couldn’t really see how it was going to pan out. However, looking at the board as a whole, with annotations, it all came together to give me a clear understanding. Although our group didn’t stick to the exact style that went on our mood board, it definitely pointed us in the right direction.

The biggest thing I have learnt from undertaking this task, is getting a full interpretation on the importance of using Mise En Scene to convey meaning. By starting with looking for specific MES features in the mood board, it was much easier to establish what MES features were needed in our photoshoot – particularly the laid back body language, casual style and young/fun accessories.

This will now impact my own planning/research for my magazine production in a very positive way. I now know how to successfully plan using the key features of MES – this will dramatically help me with my mood board for my magazine. As we have gone through the process of also choosing our final photo, it will assist me in a way where I can identify which photo from the shoot best suits the genre I am aiming for in my magazine.