Research into video directors

James Lees:
James Lees has directed several music videos such as You Me At Six ft. Chiddy Bang 'Rescue Me', If the kids 'Life Is Now', Two Door Cinema Club 'Undercover Martyn' and Shakira's 'Wakka Wakka'. These videos are all very creative and different. I would describe him as fresh and youthful with all of his music video ideas. These are my two favourite videos by James Lee:

If The Kids 'Life is Now': This video is one I admire because it is very natural in the way it has been filmed and it shows my generation doing things typically of them e.g hanging around drinking alcohol and having fun, playing games and just generally enjoying themselves because they can. I like the fact that it's not a performance, the actors an actresses aren't particularly playing up to the camera in an obvious and fake way. It is a video that you could watch and think that they had no idea they were being filmed. The lighting is all very natural throughout the video. It's very modern with they way that the shots are in slow motion and also some sped up. Jump cuts which I am also fond of are used throughout the video. There are lots of quick cuts that fit to the beat of the song.

Two Door Cinema Club 'Undercover Martyn'. This video is very different to the previous one. It is definitely a quirky video that is also creative and slightly unusual. I thought that the idea of the whole video being shot of the band laying down and being held up was interesting and fun. I haven't seen a video like it before and so it really grabbed my attention when I first came across it. The shots used are very simple but effective as it goes from close-ups to long shots often. The plaquards used are classic and have been used in videos for many years but in this video they are used for just one word in the song and it goes well with the music and the surroundings, they are very effective. Similarly to the other video it also uses quick cuts between shots that go with the beat. The video is slightly surreal but in a humorous way because of the fact that they seem to be floating. The coloured material that is waved around the band look good and add something to the video making it look nice and impressive. Overall the video is very simple compared the other one yet very exciting with it's random formations of the band and colours.

From observing some of James Lees videos I have noticed that it is typical of him to use lots of quick cuts during videos filling them with interesting things to look at. He tends to make very creative and innovative videos that I would say are aimed mainly at a young generation of teenagers and above. The videos are often colourful and depending on the band they can also have a slightly vintage feel to them and that is what I like about James Lees. This is his website: http://vimeo.com/jameslees/videos/page:2/sort:newest

Shane Drake:

Research into digipak covers

Kings of Leon inlay

This is the front cover of the Kings of Leon's album 'Because of the Times'. The cover is simple but eyecaqthcing. It just consists of the two images on a plain black background. As the images are a skull and a smashed lightbulb above it on the black background I think this would make the audience expect quite a sinister more rock based album. The cover could also symbolise an idea with the positioning of the lightlbulb over the skull, that idea could be the songs in the album that have now been created.

On the inside of the inlay the black background is continued which still looks effective. It simply has lists of quoted and song titles on the page in a simple font with a colour change as it goes further down. The colours are white, yellow and orange which may be symbolising fire. The idea of the smashed lightbulb carries onto this page as there is pieces of glass that appear to be shattering in the corner of the page. So the theme is carried on inside the digipak.

Finally on on the inlay there is a picture of each band member on a full page. Each picture is a close up of their faces at some angle. The pictures are black yellow and orange which continues with the idea of fire as did the writing on the other pages.

Overall the digipak is very sharp looking with it's simple but bold colour schemes. It reflects on the band and brings around different ideas of symbolics depending on the audience therefore I think it is creative and innovative.

Video Analysis, Rizzle Kicks 'Down With The Trumpets'

This video is different from the other one because it's set in a different area and the song is about a completely different thing.

Camera shots:

The vast majority of shots in the Rizzle Kicks video are panning shots and two shots. This is because they are walking around and the camera is following them on their journey. As they are a duo it makes sense that there are a load of two shots throughout. There is also some slow motion and sped up parts to emphasise certain shots in the video. My favourite shot sequence is a series of quick cuts making it appear as though they are falling onto the ground/a wall and it is really efective. These shots are simulating the feeling of being 'high' as that is what the song is based on.

Lighting:

There is no artificial lighting used in the video as it is all filmed in daylight there isn't much need for lighting to be used. There is only occasional shots where the contrast appears to have been tampered with. The video is fairly light the whoole way through and thre is not much of a chnge to symbolise anything.

Mise en scene:

The locations in the video tend to be urban built up areas. My favourite location in the video is in the shot where the sea is in the bachground and there are the little wooden huts along the coast. There are also shots in a house at the start and random parts of the video throughout. Other than that the majority of the video is shot along streets and pathways in some sort of park. That is in the shots that are following the boys on their journey around.

Research into the industry

Record company is in control of most things involving making and selling a music recording or video. It deals with the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion and importantly it enforces copyright over the song/video. They also scout for new talented artists ad maintain contracts with current artists and managers. Their are four major record label conglomerates and these are Universal Music Group, Sony BMG Music Entertainment, EMI Group and Warner Music Group.


Universal Music Group:


UMG is the world's largest music content company. The music group was first founded in 1924 by Dr. Jules Stein.Universal promote their music across a wide array of formats and platforms. They have a massive family of record labels belonging to them which is why they are so successful and large. Some of these record labels include: Decca, Deutsche Grammophon Emarcy, Island Def Jam Music Group, Machete Music, Mercury Records, Polydor Records, Show Dog–Universal Music, Universal Motown Republic Group, Universal Music Latino, Universal Music Group Nashville, and Verve Music Group.

History of UMG:

1999: MCA Music Publishing is renamed Universal Music Publishing.


2003: Universal Motown inks deal to distribute Casablanca label.


2005: Gwen Stefani becomes first artist to sell one million commerical downloads.


2008: UMG partners with MySpace to create MySpace Music


2010: The Black Eyed Peas become first group to sell over 6 million US digital downloads with “I Gotta Feeling and VEVO named #1 online music destination by comScore.






Artists:
Snow Patrol
Rihanna
Jessie J
Maroon 5
Mumford and son
Nicki Minaj
Enrique Iglesias
Florence + the machine
Justin Bieber






Sony BMG Music Entertainment:


Sony BMG Music Entertainment is the second largest record company after UMG. They have offices in 43 countries across the world and the headquaters is in New York City. They also own many record labels such as: American Recordings, Battery Records, Beach Street Records, BNA Records, Columbia Nashville, Day 1, Epic Records, Jive Records, LaFace Records, Legacy Recordings, MASTERWORKS, RCA Records, Roc Nation, Sony Classical, Sony Music Latin, Verity Gospel Music Group, and Volcano Entertainment. So they also have a wide variety of music making them one of the largest companies.

History of Sony BMG Music Entertainment:

2006: Google signs ageement with Sony BMG Music Entertainment to give users access to expansive catalog of music. Sony BMG Music Entertainment signs content license agreement with youtube.


2008: Sony Ericsson adds unlimited music download service to its 'PlayNow' brand and expands 'PlayNow'' to new countries. Sony BMG Music Entertainment joins Nokia comes with music.

2011: Edgar Berger named president &  CEO, International, Sony Music Entertrainment. 




Artists:
Foster the People
Shakira
Beyonce
Willow Smith
Chris Brown 
Britney Spears
Avril Lavigne 
Foo Fighters
Pitbull






EMI Group:


The EMI Group are the thrid laregst company. Through their own companies and network of licensees, they serve their artists, consumers and partners all over the world. Their record labels include:  Angel, Astralwerks, Blue Note, Capitol, Capitol Latin, Capitol Records Nashville, EMI Classics, EMI CMG, EMI Records, EMI Records Nashville, Manhattan, Parlophone, Virgin Classics and Virgin Records. 

History of EMI Group:

1920-1929:  Columbia expanded through a number of acquisitions of record companies in Europe, including Odeon in Germany, Pathe in France and, in 1926, the Parlophone label in London.

1962: After being rejected by all other major music companies The Beatles were given a contract with EMI and in the same year The Beatles released their first single, ‘Love Me Do’.

2007: In May 2007 leading UK private equity firm Terra Firma announced details of a recommended offer for the shares of EMI and assumed control of the company in August 2007. 

2011: In February 2011 EMI was acquired by Citigroup who undertook a successful recapitalization of the company.

Warner Music Group:

Finally Warner Music Group is the fourth of the major music companies in the world. It is propbably the oldest of the four companies as well. With its broad variation of new stars and legendary artists, Warner Music Group is home to a collection of the best-known record labels in the music industry such as Asylum, Atlantic, Cordless, East West, Elektra, Nonesuch, Reprise, Rhino, Roadrunner, Rykodisc, Sire, Warner Bros. and Word.

History of Warner Music Group:

1811: Chappell and Co. opens for business on London's Bond Street as a shop for sheet music and musical instruments.

1925: Warner Bros. studios purchases exclusive rights to the Vitaphone, allowing them to synchronize music and effects to silent film.

1980: Roadrunner Records is launched in the Netherlends.

1992: Rhino and Atlantic form worldwide distribution agreement.

2005: WMG listed on the New York stock exchange with the ticker WMG.


2010: WMG celebrates the 60th anniversary of Elektra Records.






Artists: 



Bruno Mars
Paramore
Greenday
Death Cab for Cutie 
Michael Buble
Trey Songs
Ramones
Metallica
Frank Sinatra
Plan B
T.I
B.o.B
Paulo Nutini

Research into target audiences

Rosie made a questionnaire on survey monkey so that we could get some information on what our target audience like to see in a music video and what videos they like.

Research into genres

Music as a whole can be divided into many different genres. This is to do with the cultures and the sounds of the music. All people listen to different types of music because songs can all sound very different depending on the types of unstruments used, as well as DJ dance music, orchetra's, singers and rappers all having very different voices and styles. These differences are whhat make up the various genres such as: Dance, Pop, Classical, Indie, Rock, Metal, Drum & Bass, Jazz, Contemporary, Country, & Acoustic. There are many more these are just a few of the widely listened to genres. You can occasionally get a fusion of genres such pop-rock.

Pop:
Pop music is the most commercialised type of music to date. Also known as chart or popular music. This type of genre consists of boy/girl bands and solo artists usually of the younger generation. The songs are often simple and catchy with the target audience of youths. Pop songs typically sing about partying and love. Rarely using instruments to create their sounds but more technological methods. Samples: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xA3tHGWbuF4, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swcULf1ATyU.
Here are some pop artists of today:

 

Dance:

This is the type of music you would here out in the latest clubs, it is upbeat music which people tend to dance to. Not all dance music consist of lyrics but some do. It is a very popular type of music also incorporated into the music charts. Dance artists are often solo or in a group of two, occasionly they sing as well as playing their music through elctronic devices, DJing. Sometimes they will compose the music and then collaborate with another artist who may sing (often a pop singer). I would say that it is a version of pop music but more of a sub genre. It is also aimed at youths. Here are some samples of dance music: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGghkjpNCQ8&ob=av2e, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=noPHpyWUFsI.

These are some dance music artists:

Rock:

Rock is more of an emotional type of music and usually darker than pop music. Rock bands usually consist of 4-5 people, including guitarists, a drummer and a singer. More often than not you will find that rock groups are made up of males rather than females. There are different types of rock some lighter and others more heavy for example, melodic rock, alternative rock, avant garde, metal and punk rock. This type of music is aimed at a large range of people of all ages. Here are some samples: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JCE87DymKQ&feature=related, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMX2lPum_pg&ob=av2e.

These are some rock artits:



RnB:

RnB or Rhythm and Blues music was originally known as race music, it is basically made up of a range of black artists for black audiences. Different sub genres incorporated into RnB are: Jazz, Gospel and Blues. It was named RnB because of the original name being seen as racist. This is some RnB samples: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gyLR4NfMiI&ob=av2e, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JipHEz53sU&ob=av2e.

 Here are some examples  of RnB artists:

Timeline

1920's: Oscar Fischinger made some short films to music and later worked on the Disney film 'Fantasia' (1939).
1939-1946: An early jukebox, the panoram was introduced that had a 20inch screen showing black and white projections.
1950's: One of the first music video's 'Jailhouse rock' Elvis Presley(1957) was shown on television and producers were trying to get the attention of teenage audiences in the USA.
1960's: In France the scopitone was created, it was a machine that provided play and rewind for 36 short films. Coverage of pop now wanted to get the attention of teenage audiences in the UK.
Trendsetters in this time were artists such as The Who, Rolling Stones and The Kinks.
1963: Cliff Richard 'Summer Holiday'
1964: The Beatles' 'A Hard Days Night'
1965: Approximately 1000 jukebox mavhines were installed.
1970's: Serious rock had slots on TV, (1975) Queen's 'Bohemian Rhapsody' sold 2.1 million copies and it was thought to be the first music video which is not true.
1980's: A major media conglomerate 'Viacom' were now in possesion of MTV. Music videos became an essential in promoting new singles. (1983) Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' was released. (1984) MTV was the centre of all the music business and the MTV awards were produced.
1990's: The creation of boy bands, and TV shows such as Pop Idol and Popstars were introduced.

Video Analysis, Foster The People 'Pumped Up Kicks'

This video is similar to what I want to do for my media video. There is a lot of minipulation of shots in the video, the lighting has been played with which makes it look slightly different and worn.

Camera shots:
The video uses a lot of close-up shots focusing on random objects as well as people, there are also long shots used in the video and I would say theses are the main two types used.

Above: Close-up                                                         Above: Long shot

 The camera often blurs in and out of shots which will have been done by changing the focus on the camera. This gives a good effect with the sounds in the song which are quite dazed.

I would also like to point out the fact that the video uses multiple jump shots. All of these features make the video look quite retro and indie which is the type of video I would like to go for. There are also certain shots where the focus is on just one thing with everything blurred around it.

Lighting:

The lighting varies throughout the video, the contrast appears to have been changed at some points to make things appear darker or lighter. When the band are playing live the lighting is always darker with the occasional bright light flashing past as a laser type of light. These are usually red and blue. We also see the occasional spotlight.

There is a lot of natural light used in the other shots mainly in the outside ones, some artificial light has been incorporated into a few of the outside shots to improve the look and focus of the shots.

Here is an example of natural light in a shot. Below is an example of natural light with some artificial light shining on the person from behind the camera.

Mise en scene:

There are a lot of different locations in this video. I think the most interesting ones are the lake where they are jumping into the water and messing around. This is a very scenic location that ties in well with the video. It is pretty and it is representing youthful things as they jump in. There are also some shots in a more urban area, on a street as well as some more run down looking areas, there are shots in the car and in some open space which looks like an empty car park. Finally there are shots of the band playing on stage. The fact that there are so many different locations is symbolic that the band travel all over on tour to share their music and the inbetween shots where they aren't on stage symbolises the travelling part and the fun things they get up to.

Preliminary Task

Task Outline
Our preliminary task was to recreate the first 1minute 20 seconds of the Britney Spears music video, 'One more time'.

Planning

Our planning wasn't as full on as it would normally be for this kind of thing as we had a set song with a video that we had to recreate. This meant that we didn't have to decide which shots to use and what the video would consist of etc. So a few of the class took screen shots of each shot in the video. We printed them all off and then labelled the shots with who would be in them. We also made sure it was equally spread and everyone had chance to lip sync and film.

Filming

We started to film once we'd finished planning. It took us around 4 hours to record everything. Everyone in the group took it in turn to film a few shots.

Editing

When we finished all the filming between the class we split it into four chunks. In groups of 2-3 people we edited our section to fit the song and the real video. Me and Jonathan were given the last twenty seconds of film to edit in which i edited the first half and Jonathan edited the second half.

Here is our final video:

My contribution

I recorded the section where Emmie played Britney and this was a dance scene. I recorded the scene twice once in close-up and once in long shot. This video is uploaded above. I also recorded a close-up of Zoran singing as Britney in front of the lockers. I lipsynched to part of the song, this was in a dance scene in the video.Finally i edited  from about 1minute to 1minute 10seconds near the end of the video.

Evaluation

The finishing product of our music video is not great, the lipsynching is not quite in time and it doesn't look very professional like it should do. We didn't have the best time keeping skills whilst filming and editing either therefore it was more stressful than it needed to be. I have learnt that you need to be a lot more organised when carrying out a task like this and when I start to make my music video I will have a lot more strict timetable and I will follow it. It was a very useful task to o before our real music video as we now know the pressure that we will be under to make it look professional and be completed in the time scale we have been allowed.