Planning ~ Animatronics

Planning ~ End of the Music Video

Due to Love Actually being our intertextual link that we have copied the idea of having the opening monologue. We also like the idea of having an ending in order to not have 'loose ends' but a proper ending the matches the beginning like it does in Love Actually. We like how the screen splits more and more of all of the clips of couples which then fades into "The End". We like this idea of having it as the end of the story or possibly having "they are even better together" in order to show our main message once again to remind the audience of what it is all about. 

Research ~ Ed Sheeran

The front cover of Ed Sheeran's album titled + has a very simplistic appearance. The simplicity of the cover symbolizes the simplicity of his music. Sheeran being a singer/songwriter accentuates the fact that he isn't making music for fame but to share and express himself through his music; by him making himself the central focus of his album cover in such a simplistic style he is able to emphasize the fact that this is his music and he has created the album with a lot of independence.  In most of Ed Sheeran's music video's he is never seen which is unusual for an artist as music videos are used to promote the artist. By him being the main feature on the cover of the album he is able to highlight the work he has done and what he has produced. It consists of a close up head shot of Ed Sheeran himself with an orange filter. The orange filter represents the fact he is ginger which is part of Sheeran's iconography. The colour scheme of the album cover is quite bold and loud which is a contrast to the type of music Ed Sheeran produces as he is an acoustic artist so most of his music gives off quite a relaxed and calm ambience. Also Sheeran is known for his slow, acoustic live performances so this album cover is a contradiction to what people have already seen. It gives him a bit of an edge and adds to his character. Additionally the album hasn't got a title as such other than the + sign, this creates more of a buzz associated around Ed Sheeran as an artist as when people talk about the album they will not refer to the title as it isn't that significant but they will refer to 'Ed Sheeran's' album which increases recognition of his work.

The back of Ed Sheeran's album cover is coherent to the front; adapting the same theme it remains simplistic. The font of the writing that lists the songs resembles a typewriter style, this font remains the same throughout all of Ed Sheeran's album artwork, website, adverts etc across all of the different media platform he is available on. This is another feature of Sheeran's iconography and enables audiences to associate this writing with Ed Sheeran. This is another unique aspect to the album and keeps with the semantic field that this album cover seems to be following, simplicity. The simple nature of the font shows a clearer association from the cover to the music, whereas the colour scheme doesn't link very well to the type of music Sheeran produces. The list of songs is placed in the centre of the back cover which immediately draws the focus into it. Ed Sheeran's website is printed in the bottom left of the back cover which is a promotional tool and links with the codes and conventions of a digipak. The barcode at the bottom right of the back cover highlights that this is a sellable product. The size of the writing is quite small which ensures that it is not the central point of focus, the colour of the album and the headshot of Ed Sheeran is the main focus of the album cover throughout.

Research ~ Ben Howard

Ben Howard Website

Planning ~ Opening Monologue

Research ~ Katie Melua

Katie Melua is a highly succesfull singer songwriter from the UK with her first album that was released when she was 19 sell 1.8 million copies in it's first 5 months. Her second album "Piece by Piece" has gone platinum 4 times. She is the 7th richest British musician under 30! The songwriter that discovered her was looking for a singer capable of singing "jazz and blues in a interesting way." 

Melua often writes songs that have meaning or a story behind them and also often writes about her own experiences such as "Belfast (Pengiuns and Cats)" was about her time in the troubled capital of Northern Ireland. 

Her song "Closest Thing To Crazy" was played on the BBC Radio 2's Terry Wogan breakfast show which was highly popular playing it frequently during the summer of 2003. This support raised her profile and her "Call off the Search" album entered the 40 UK albums chart and the single achieved Number 10. Another boost of the album was when she performed at the Royal Variety Show making the album hit Number 1 in January 2004. Since then, her success has continued from album to album. 

 "Dancing is an important function of music, but so is crying." 

Her music was also featured in move "The Tourist" from 2010. 

Her song is very chilled, very acoustic sounding, retro, indie and relaxing to listen to inspired by Eva Cassidy. 
Looking at her website, the colours reflect the sound of her music in soft tones and colours and a simplistic layout. Here, the website is the biggest element to advertise her as a whole artist. The home page has the tab links to all of the pages of the website as well as a link to her twitter page which opens up the audience even further. The background images looks like soft painting of a stormy sea. This is a link to one of her albums. 

The pages feature on her website are News, Live, Photos, Newsletter, Music, Biography, Videos and Store. These pages have covered all of the possible information that her fans would want to know and keep up with. This is a great way of marketing herself as an artist featuring her videos, her performance dates, photos and upcoming releases.  

When moving away from the home page, the background image is not longer the painting but the soft yellow and purple colour scheme remains keeping in sync with the home page. There is also links to social media sites such as facebook, twitter and YouTube. 

The link to the store means that should people like the look of Katie Melua as an artist, they are actually able to buy her products, this is a very important element. The design of this page is different as it is a link to the record company that hold her copyright. This is a great way in order for them to make money through advertising their other artists. 

The album cover artwork of Katie Melua's albums tend to be quite dark and dramatic in terms of the colour scheme. This is due to her music being full of deep messages and meanings but it also matches her physical appearance with her well known dark curly hair and then her bright brown and green eyes. Some of them also feature her with her guitar as this is an important element to her as an artist.  

Planning ~ Potential Locations

picture collage will not upload) Scene 1: No location 

Scene 2: Woods 

Scene 3: London- Leicester Square, Hyde Park, London Eye, Iceland, Windsor etc. 

Scene 4: MUSICIAN- Woods, different locations where couples have been seen maybe? 

Scene 5: Doorstep 

Scene 6: In the park, park bench, feeding the ducks. 

Scene 7: Living room, garden, dining room. Family locations etc. 

Scene 8: Graveyard 

Scene 9: Bonfire night- the rec 

Scene 10: MUSICIAN, MUSICIAN- Woods, different locations where couples have been seen maybe? Sitting round the bonfire singing with guitar? 

Scene 11: Someone’s house  

Scene 12: Dining room in someone’s house? Family picnic in park (the rec)? 

Scene 13: Bracknell train station, Sandhurst Railway Station? 

Scene 14: Windsor Castle? London Eye? Big Ben? 

Scene 15:  -

Scene 16: Log in woods 

Scene 17: Photobooth- photography department with black/white backdrop. 

Scene 18: Bonfire  

Scene 19: Graveyard 

Scene 20: MUSICIAN 

LANTERNS:  Follow guidelines to find appropriate location http://www.skylanternsonline.co.uk/instructions-for-use/

Planning ~ Prop List

Planning ~ Actors List

Young Love; Rhianon can get her cousin Abby that is around 6 years old and one of her (the cousin's) friend to pose as a young couple.
Family Love; Rhianon has a 2 year old cousin so we could use this to pose young love of a new family. 

Artist (Jack Johnson); I have a friend that can pose as Jack Johnson as he is also able to play the guitar and lives near to some woods and a common that would be a great location to film him as an artist. 
Friends; I have a group of friends from air cadets that all meet up regularly and are willing to be part of the music video. We are going to use them to our advantage so they can naturally act as though they have been friends for years making our music video more believable and relateable. We would also like to use this group to show show a possible new love brewing as well as this can happen a lot in life and amongst friendship groups. 
New Beginnings; My dad has filmed quite a few wedding videos for people so I am going to ask a couple for permission to use clips from their wedding video and their first dance making this a highly realistic clip to include in our final piece.
Forever Love; I have neighbours that are an elderly couple in their 80's which have shown interest in posing as the couple for this part.

Planning ~ Storyboard

Before we presented our ideas into the storyboard, we did this. It acted as an elimination process where we were able to condense our ideas and really consider timings. These timings are rough and we have played with them further as we have got closer to filming and especially when we did our animatronics. As a group we had to think about each scene realistically so a lot of the timings did change however doing this initially was very useful because we, for the first time, we able to fully visualise our piece. This also meant further research could be done so that we were fully prepared when it came to filming. We were able to plan specific locations, particular actors and when we would be able to all this.

This is our storyboard. We wanted to make our storyboard as accurate as possible so when it came to filming we had a clear structure and storyline to follow. This made our planning process a lot more organised because we were able to sort out each scene; who we wanted to play the characters, where and when. We found doing the storyboard an extremely important and useful process. Before this stage we had lots of ideas but had not organised them or seen if any were even possible. This allowed us to condense our ideas and pick the best and most realistic ones. 

Research ~ Conventions of a Website

http://www.imcreator.com/
http://jackosmanwgsbmedia1.blogspot.co.uk/2010/02/website-conventions.html
http://manager.doomby.com/site
http://www.slideshare.net/Forbzy/analysis-of-website-convention-the-killers
http://blog.htc.ca/2013/09/03/web-design-conventions/

Research ~ Character List

We have a very set vision of what we wanted in our music video. Once we established our song, theme, target audience, and what our target audience were looking for, our ideas developed very quickly. We want to base our narrative video around a collection of different couples, all at different ages and stages. We want to explore all aspects of love; platonic, romantic and unconditional, we feel this will ensure the video is relatable and enjoyable- we are keen to create a nostalgic atmosphere for those watching and allow them to reminisce about past, present and future love.

Some of the relationships we are keen to portray...

First loves/New love being explored. 

For this we would like to explore that feeling of being in love for the first time and being absolutely consumed with happiness. The world is more magical and colourful and possibilities seem endless. We are keen to have this couple being affectionate and stereotypical. To to this we will show them both taking part in very 'couple-y' activities such as that 'door step' moment, photo booths, hugging, laughing, watching the stars and all those hugely cliche but wonderful things. The age of the pair will be teenage (mid to late.)

                                                                          Young Love

We thought it would be a very young couple, maybe nine or ten years of age (maybe even younger if possible.) Being this young means the relationship is more like a friendship, a fondness and joint excitement for adventure. We thought of showing this by having the two playing, at an arcade.

Within this avenue we may even explore love at a much younger age; of children. This would be extremely cute and show affection and friendship at its truest and most simplistic form.

With young people the cares and worries of the world aren't there, the world is a place to explore and is full of excitement. Friendship and love in this context is a feeling everyone is keen to feel again.

Possible New Love 

One of the ideas we had was to explore the very early signs of love and affection. At whatever age, love is scary but massively liberating. Every little thing is over analysed; a message or even just a look for example. We liked the idea of having a group of friends sitting around a bonfire and just looking at each other from across. This is subtle sign but the audience will hopefully be able to identify with that feeling of second guessing everything the other one does-is it a sign?

Sad love/Love lost

Whilst our song is greatly positive and we do want to maintain this theme we like the idea of introducing a bit of sadness so the audience is feeling a broad range of emotions when watching the video. We also need to acknowledge the pitfalls of love and relationships because it's these that make us appreciate those who we do have even more. To do this we like the idea of having a couple at a train station having to say goodbye, possibly a couple in the middle of breaking up, a older man or woman looking at a picture of their husband or wife who has passed away.

Forever love

One of the themes we would love to explore is unconditional love, ever lasting love. Having an older couple who have been together for years would be perfect to show that true love overcomes and survives everything. This is quite an inspirational message that we would like to get across.

Friendship love

Love comes in many different forms. Friendship is just as important as a "relationship" and is essentially what gets you through the hardships that come with relationships. It's also important to acknowledge that friendship comes in many different forms and this is something, if logistically we can, we would like to portray. We will show typical friendships between girls and boys, men and women, women and men, older and younger, animals etc.

Family love

Family is one of the most sacred types of love, whether this is family by blood or not it's a bond that keeps people together for a lifetime. It's a word that's associated with support, tradition etc. This is an easy one for us to show, even if it is simple a mother and daughter sharing a hug, a father and son watching TV, sisters, brothers, grandparents, grandchildren and cousins. We want to emphasise the importance of all love, not just romantic. Our song is great because it allows for this, it's just about life being better when people are together and surrounded by those who love them and whom they themselves love. This is a very significant message that needs to be promoted.

New Beginnings

One idea we all had right from the start was to include a couple on their wedding day, specifically partaking in their first dance as husband and wife. This is the start of new adventures, a new union and a new life and is love at one of it's most powerful and dominant forms.

Essentially we just want to create an atmosphere of closeness and togetherness and we feel all these relationships will allow the audience to identify, inspire to and reminisce about.

Planning ~ Equipment List

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Dolby

Holli, be sure that you have a logical order to this blog in order to show the processes your group has undertaken, Because you decided on a song before any research it is reflected here so really you need some audience research, a look at the industry and also some analysis of other ancillaries that you will be doing.
Although you group together the conventions of music videos you have shown a good grasp of the features AND functions- well done.

Research ~ Conventions of Album Covers

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Research - Conventions of Music Videos

Singer songwriter, Elton John had a lot of other stars in his music videos such as Pavarotti, Millie Jackson and  Eric Clapton. In these videos, he is the main artist of the song . Inspired by this and Pharell Williams' Happy music video, we would like to have lots of people mime the lyrics to the song so that we still give off the feel that our main message of being 'Better Together' is portrayed throughout.  We do however, want to make it clear as to who the actual artist is singing the song in order to promote them. 

In order to make this the best music video we can, we looked into the conventions of music videos.

The conventions of a music video are as follows;

• Camera shots; create emphasis on the artist, location and emotions. Close ups are also used to reflect the words of the song with the movement of the artist's lips.
•  Camera movement; is used to follow and trace the artist or band. These can include tilts, pans, tracking and crane shots.
• Mise-en-scene; this covers the arrangement of performers and props on a stage or in a scene. Items can be well known to the target audience meaning we link the prop to the artist themselves. A good example of this is Beyoncé's 'Single Ladies' video or Michael Jackson and his glove.  This importantly represents something. For example, Neyo's music video for his song 'Mad'  shows him walking alone down a road and in an isolated room. This represents the isolation from his lover. The costume includes hats and dark clothes highlighting further the down mood. This image is accentuated through the use of dark lighting as it is in black and white.  This is a connotation of his anger and depressed mood. When artificial lighting is used, it can put the artist in an enhanced look. Costume tend to go with the scene in the song and also reflect the song's genre. This is a highly important factor as it has a slight influence on how the viewers will dress because a lot of artist and celebrities are seen as role models. A good use of costume being used to highlight lyrics is Rizzle Kicks' 'When I Was A Youngster' video. Colour also plays a key role in setting the mood of the song by creating an atmosphere. Dark colours tend to be used more in rock song music videos such as Kings of Leon's 'Sex On Fire' music video. Brighter colours tend to be seen in more pop and hip hop videos. For example, Katy Perry's 'This Is How We Do'. Hair and make up is also key in showing a character's or the artist's personality or can be a tactic in attracting the audience. It is important that the artist look  good and bold and bright make up can make an artist look fun, making them stand out. Lady Gaga is famously know for her hair, make up and costume in her music videos. Gold, silver and glitter can be used for sex appeal.
• Editing; the predominant editing technique used in music videos is jump cuts. This is because it allows a sudden change from one scene to another which can also be in time of the beat of the song making it more appealing to us as an audience. This is also common is narrative music videos. Other popular transitions include fade and dissolve. Parallel editing is when there are cuts with many scenes happening at the same time.
• Sound; the sound is mainly the vocals but in music videos such as Michael Jackson's 'Thriller', the producers can make what started off as a music video, into a short film.  During some music videos, there is some dialogue at the beginning or during the video. Sound parallel is when the music matches the mood of the video. If the music video was sad then  the music would also be sad. This would be the same for a happy music video. Diegetic sound can also be included. This can include surrounding in background sounds such as police sirens or birds tweeting. This helps make he video seem more realistic.
• Props; these are vital in creating a significant link between particular objects or people and so add to the scene.
• Location; this can decided on the genre of the song. For example, videos located at the beach, in a car or at a party are associated with a dance style pop music video as they give off a lively and happy feel. Hip- Hip and grime music videos have typical locations which give off the feel of gangs such as on a street or in a modern house.
• Notions of looking - stereotyping; notion of looking elaborates upon stereotypes and labels that you may associate with a certain artist or group. These stereotypes are usually taken advantage of in many music videos in order to appeal to specific target audiences.  Keri Hilson's 'Knock You Down' ft. Kayne and Ne-yo manages to question the dominance of females. in the beginning, we see an intimate hug where the male leans away portraying a cool and steady stance yet the female looks vulnerable. This ideology allows males to idolize this masculine behavior as it guarantees supremacy which is enhanced as Keri lies seductively on the bed. This questions whether she is a sexual object in order to lure more of a male audience. This perception is changed when she is the cause of a male confrontation and she stands tall by maintaining her posture that women idolize. She is more dominating when she looks down on her partner.

There are also conventions for music videos of our song's genre. Although Jack Johnson is thought to be a rock artist, we felt that this song had a more acoustic sound to it as well. Here is what we need to consider as conventions for our music video.

• Use extreme close ups and long shots.
• The artist is often seen playing their own instruments, so you realize that they are proper musicians.
• Editing is fast paced to match the song.
• Normally wear their own clothes, but this can change.
• Some use of special effects.
• Can be mixed with elements of narrative and concept. Narratives tend to be deeper than those in pop music videos.  
• Camera movement is slow paced so to not distract the audience, allowing them to understand the meaning of the music video. This creates deeper emotion.
• Locations tend to be in isolated and run down areas or a location that reminds the artist as to who they are singing about.
• Costume is mostly sophisticated in which men are usually in suits and women are equally as smart.

Planning ~ Proposal Feedback Explored

We got a lot of positive feedback from our proposal. We do however need to consider whether we still used stop motion as will intrude on the flow and continuity of the video and so will not match the tone of the song. Miss Dolby liked the idea of using others to lip sync and suggested that we look into more RMA's, in particular, Elton John's. We need to also carefully consider how we will promote Jack Johnson, especially through the Digipak and Homepage. Due to this song being quite quirky and romantic, we need to ensure that our marketing and distribution reflect him as an overall artist. We will consider his background more and reflect this through our video. For example; making it laid back, mellow, simplistic but effective and entertaining. We have been quite ambitious with locations and Miss Dolby has suggested that we stick to 3 or 4 locations to limit complications and prevent audience confusion. Initially, we chose quite a niche target audience but Miss Dolby has suggested widening this. We will do this by making sure the video isn't too "cheesy" and is appealing to both genders. Despite this, we will be sticking to a female target audience but we will bear in mind that Jack Johnson, as an artist, reaches out to both men and women. The main point that was made was the good and strong inter textual link to Love Actually as it fits well with the nature of the song. We will be sure to incorporate many elements from the film. 

Planning ~ Proposal

Planning ~ Changing the Colours

We decided that because this song is acoustic and so quite chilled to listen to that the video should look warmer and almost vintage. I looked up some video tutorials on YouTube to see if changing the colours was doable on the Final Cut Pro software. We decided that making the colours warmer and the darker tones more of a reddish tone rather than black that this was more fitting to the sound of the song without the harsher colours. 

Planning ~ Stop Motion

We liked the look of having stop motion as a small element of our music video for a match of lyrics to visuals. Here we tried it for ourselves to see if this was something that was doable in terms of taking the photos and then in the editing stage. Due to finding this an easy task, this is something that we consider as a task that we could manage. 

Planning ~ Filming Locations

Planning ~ Opening Monologue

We decided that we really liked the opening monologue from the film Love Actually (2003) as it had a powerful message about love and linked really well to the theme of the film. We decided that this would be a fitting feature to our song and so, we have decided to write our own opening monologue. 

Planning ~ Proposal Mood Board