Digipak Conventions Analysis

 

Reflection:

From doing this task its allowed me to understand the key conventions of an album cover. It has opened my eyes to know what is and isn’t eye catching on the front of the cover and how to draw the audience’s attention directly to your album cover.

Teacher Feedback

 

Reflection – summary of feedback 

What to improve:

• Improve the transitions between the narrative and performance, at the moment the cuts aren’t smooth between shots
• To improve the lighting/blurry scenes in some parts of the music video. Some lightings are different per shot which makes it look messy
• Repeat masking effect scene
• Start the music video with the washing machine and end the music video with the washing machine

 

Targets:

• Edits between cuts needs to be cleaner
• When the clips are to long, cut between different shots as there is unnecessary bits of the shots which doesn’t make it look good
• Add in more transitions between clips so its not just going straight to a new clip or blackness in-between, we need to add transitions to sooth going from one clip to another

Music video draft 3

 

Reflection:

During draft 3 it was important we took onboard our improvements from draft 2 and that is what we have done.

Improvements from draft 2:

• One of the main changes we made from following on our tips from draft 2 is that we have added in transitions between clips now to make our music video run through smoother, We have also cut between clips more on beat with the music so it does not look so choppy. It was important that we really focused in on these two elements to improve on as this is what examiners look into when giving out marks.

Targets for improvement:

• Following on from draft 2 we are still struggling to adjust the lighting in some clips to make it all the same. We are looking into different ways in premiere that we can change it but still not having much luck. Therefore in draft 4 we hope to have accomplished the lighting issue.
• Another thing going on from draft 2 is our transitions and effects. Although we have added a lot when cutting between clips we still feel the use of effects are missing and we are wanting to add more to give more effect when our audience is watching it.
• When putting together draft 3 we were also in the middle of re shooting as in draft 2 we had realized we didn’t have enough clips of the major points in our music video, for example our music video is about a girl killing her cheating boyfriend with a knife and we felt we didn’t have enough camera time around the whole knife bit so we  decided to re shoot and these clips will be added when going into draft 4.

Shoot 2 Reflection (Narrative)

Reflection:

Our second shoot consisted just of narrative. This is the shoot where we needed both our models. Orlagh playing the killer girlfriend and josh playing our model who has cheated on his girlfriend. When carrying out our shoot it was important that we got specific shots that would tell our story and focusing on key points in our narrative story line to tell the story. We wanted to incorporate specific parts of the original song into our music video. For example the song is called “Washing machine heart” therefore our finishing shot was the bloody sheets in the washing machine after the murder. We got a close up shot of the washing machine to signify that it was an important part of the music video. We feel we successfully got enough shots and different camera movements to tell a clear story line to our audience focusing on the star image.

What went well:

• Following our previous shoot with the bad lighting and technical difficulties we prepared in advance this time by making sure all of our equipment was working and ready for a long day of shooting. Having been prepared this ensured us that we would have every minute to film a successful sequence.
• Before our shoot we made a meeting agenda with all the props, makeup and clothes we wanted our models to be in. Having done this it made my group feel prepared and our models feel ready. We let our models no well in advance of the look we wanted so they knew our expectations when coming to the shoot.
• In our shoot we used a variety of different props to add detail in our sequence. Our main prop was the knife that in the end she ends up using to kill her cheating boyfriend. This was the prop that would pull our whole sequence together. We carried out specific safety precautions to ensure the safety of our models when using the knife.

 

What didn’t:

• When putting all of our shots into premiere and looking through them we realized we could have gotten a few different shots to make the sequence flow better. For example in one shot our model is upstairs in her pyjamas and then the next shot she is downstairs in different clothes. Therefore we have organized a new date to shoot the missing shots to improve the sequences flow.
• A downfall when shooting our narrative sequence was the timing of the day. Pretty much half of our narrative sequence was supposed to be set in night time whereas we shot in the daytime so that left us finding it hard to achieve the night time look. Since our shoot and now into editing stage we are finding ways to set the scene darker to make it look realistic night.

Shoot 1 reflection (performance)

 

 

Reflection:

In our first shoot we shot our performance sector of our music video. We shot this with our model Orlagh in the black studio at school. In this shoot we focused in our models star image, we wanted to convey her as an, emotionless, strong and independent women. Throughout our shoot we had our model lip sync the whole song multiple times through. Each time we asked here to convey a different emotion and movements that would go alongside our narrative sequence. To gain the specific camera shots we wanted we used a tripod and school equipment lights to achieve the perfect shot which left us with the exact lighting we wanted to make the model the main focus with no other distractions around. To make our model feel comfortable we made sure that everyone was getting involved by singing or dancing behind the camera so she could put on her best performance without feeling pressured.

What Went Well:

• When selecting our model we wanted someone who would be easily co operative and that would be able to achieve the star image look we wanted. The model we chose allowed us to add whatever we wanted to her face and was happy for us to chose the clothes we wanted her to wear. Having the model be so co operative it allowed the shoot to go smoothly.
• Making a meeting agenda prior to the shoot this allowed myself and my group as well as the model to feel prepared before the shoot. This made us know exactly what we needed to bring and allowed the model to know the look she had to achieve.
• During our shoot we ensured we did a variety of different camera shots to to capture the perfect look. We chose between, mid shots, close ups, long shots and several more. Using several different shots allowed the camera to tell a story focusing on different emotions.
•  During our performance shoot it was important to portray the star in our music video to fit her character. We thought about the different makeup we could use and the clothing that would fit the theme. We decided to go with a light makeup look but for it to get progressively worse throughout the video. We added darker eyeshadow and messy lipstick as well as fake blood to herself.

 

What didn’t: 

• One of our downfalls in our performance slot was our lighting. The lighting specifically when we filmed outside was hard to get. Although it was daylight there was a lot of background distraction and we wanted the main light and focus to be on our star image. We tried our best to focus the light onto our star but it wasn’t easy which has left us to edit some of the lighting in our post production stage.
• If we got to do it again a key point for my group would be to have better preparation in time for finding models. We struggled picking the right person to fulfill our star image, this left us having to choose between quite a few people which made it hard for us to prepare them for a possible shoot. We ended up choosing orlagh and she fitted our star image perfectly.
• When shooting our outside performance videos we had technical problems with the camera as well as the batteries running up. This falls back into pre preparation as well making sure all of our equipment worked properly as this took up precious filming time.

Risk Assessment Shoot 2

 

To guarantee the safety of our models and ourselves when going offsite to film our narrative we created a risk assessment including all the potential dangers carrying out our narrative sequence. Doing this allowed us to avoid potential risks and the correct way to carry them out.

Production Meeting Shoot 2

 

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From doing our first meeting agenda for the first shoot when doing our second one we realized we needed to add more detail and more props we wanted to use. For example we added a washing machine due to our ending being a dead body in the washing machine and extra little details we missed out when carrying out shoot 1. From shoot 1 to shoot 2 we had changed the idea of what we wanted our model to look like, going through different stages of anger, grief and confusion and we wanted to show these emotions through the appearance of our model.

Video Narrative Photo board / Shot List

 

NEEDS REFLECTION

Having done a production meeting agenda it allowed my group to know exactly what props and equipment we needed to bring to our shoot and benefitted the model as she got a sense of the look and aim we were going for and how we wanted her to look.

Risk Assessment Shoot 1

 

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The purpose of us making a risk assessment was to insure the safety of not only our models but my group as well. Making a risk assessment allowed us to have to something to look back to when we were unsure on where we were supposed to be on shooting days and for props and additional information we added onto it. It also allowed us to know the risks of carrying out certain activities and the safety precautions in place to make things go smoothly.