Final Album Designs

After all of our audience research we completely changed our album designs to accommodate the suggestions made. Still keeping the unique outer cover with our seascape theme we changed the inner side with screenshots of our production as well as lyrics from several of the album's songs. Overall I feel that the design is the best we could have produced, being edgy yet hitting the conformities and conventions of a typical album cover

Task 13: Evaluation

1. In what ways does your media project use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real music products?

             There are many ways in which our media project was specifically created to both challenge and develop the conventions of a typical music video. Where development is concerned we felt that we would combine the music video conventions of both performance and narrative, as it would devise a broader scale for which we could film our actors where both angles and storyline were considered. In some ways we felt that we challenged the codes and conventions of a typical music video through the fact that we had only two main locations in which our scenes were set. We filmed the two environments and edited them so that they contrasted with each other, linking also with the change in which our two main protagonists go under. During the party scene sequences there is a much warmer lighting hue as the two leads especially, transform from alienated party crashers into the centre of attention. Within our performance scenes our two leads are filmed within a cooler hue that almost creates a sense of realism, as here we see the characters for what they really are- typical high school nerds.

                Throughout our discussion of the plotline we all decided that we would challenge convention through the ambiguity of our storyline. As in our end scene a shot of the two leads awakening on a sofa is shown, resembling an earlier shot in which they both fall asleep on the sofa. This leads to several possible endings that the viewer is left to decide themselves; either the protagonists awake from a great night of which they are accepted, or they fell asleep during the party and dreamt half of the sequence.

               As the official music video to ‘Mamma Do The Hump’ (our selected song) had elements of humour, we wanted our own to have its own comical elements. Being teenagers ourselves, we thought that we would base our music video on something which we can relate to, topics such as parties, drinking and social groupings being highly relatable towards the demographic. As well as this, as our selected topic involved that of teenage male ideals, we decided to include female characters which the protagonists attempt to pursue. Through our relatable plotline we felt that we would transform our location’s atmosphere from negative and awkward to positive and exciting, something in which the audience would applaud as the likable characters are successful in their endeavours.

         Similar to the typical music conventions of the narrative music video, we had our two lead protagonists, Matt and Ryan, to mime along with particular sections of the song as we felt it would complement the actions of the plotline. These scenes would be alternated between that of action, almost as if the song were playing in the background of the people at the party.   

   2.   How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

                When considering our created print artefacts there are many ways in which we associated  them with our music production. Our final two products consisted of an album cover for our Rizzle Kicks ‘Stereo Typical’ album and a HMV poster advertising this. The album cover consists of 2 sides and 3 separate segments and we wanted our album cover to look distinct and unique so that the audience would be able to identify it visually.

                Our final album cover is a mixture of screenshots of our music video and edited collected images of landscape scenes. Within the inner section of the cover we also included lyrics from several other songs on the album so to link more with the artists themselves. To use the conventions of a regular album cover we ensured to include features such as a barcode, the ‘Universal Island’ records logo and also a list of people that the Rizzle Kicks inferred in their original ‘Stereo Typical’ album who they liked to thank. We used Photoshop to construct this artefact as it allowed us to easily manipulate the images selected for use. Our theme selected was that our a seafront as well as a compilation of urban landscapes as it created a variety of bold colour tones for our distinctive cover. The inner section is composed of screenshots from our production itself as then it had a definite link to our final piece; Something which before our audience feedback form it lacked.

                The second print artefact we created was for a poster/ billboard associated with the popular media franchise HMV. For this we had to assemble previous models of their adverts so to notice their similar design features. In this artefact we also decided to infer qualities of our own album design into the background so that they integrated nicely. For the characteristics of a HMV advert we had to use their colour style of pinks and purples against black and white texts, something which I felt we created successfully. The colour scheme also allowed the piece to stand out significantly; therefore meaning that our aims in being eye caching with our pieces was effective.

                Before we decided on our final print artefacts we decided to experiment with many different styles and appearances to see which we felt would look most effective for our final design. Especially where our album cover is concerned as we wanted it to appear as aesthetically pleasing as possible. After several changes in our selected covers we eventually settled on the one design described beforehand. Our audience feedback also gave us a variety of things in which we could improve on. 

     3.What have you learnt from your audience feedback?

                After approaching ten fellow media students and asking them to review our completed footage and print artefacts we used the feedback to its best potential so that our products would appear to be at the best of their ability.

                Upon reading the reviews, we listed the criteria in which the volunteers felt needed to be altered slightly, which overall benefitted the final editing process as we could see an alternate viewpoint to our production. The most common point which several people included in our feedback was that during our character’s miming scenes they appeared to be slightly out of synch. From this we added jump cuts into the framework and carefully reworked the shots so that they would fit better with the rhythm of the song. We felt that as it was evidently the most obvious flaw to our production we would concentrate on making it perfect as synchronisation is an important principle within a music video. As well as this, we also edited several of the dancing sequences to ensure that they befitted specific moments of the song and added to the dance-like feel. Another comment which we took into a lot of consideration was that of amplifying some of the more basic scenes with colour and lighting effects. Through this knowledge, selected scenes were given flashes of muted colours so as not to be too garish; mostly in the dancing sequences flashes of light were added almost as if the characters were in a nightclub or disco. After editing the sequences with more colour and general effects we as a group noticed a significant and positive change to the video, making it much less bland and a lot more eye catching. However, there were a small amount of improvement comments which we could not adhere to, this included character number 2, played by our companion Ryan miming within more scenes. This was not applicable, firstly as there were not as many lines for his character to move compared to Matts, and secondly we felt that the more miming scenes we added in would create in imbalance between the locations shown.

                When gathering the information about our print artefacts we also received a mixture of positive feedback and suggestions of improvement. With our album cover the majority of feedback suggested that the cover have more of a link with our music video, as there was barely any link involving the shots of our video or video’s theme. From this we added screenshots and added additional lyrics from several songs on the Rizzle Kicks album, almost like a taster of what was included. From the feedback of our HMV advertisement we received very positive feedback as many commented that it appeared to look professional and fitted the conventions of a typical HMV advert. We also integrated some of our album artwork into the background of the poster, so to link the pieces together somehow.

                Overall, much was learnt and came to be useful from our audience feedback, without knowledge of other people’s opinions we would not have been able to change our products into something more aesthetically appealing. Also, it gave us a brief idea on areas of our production which worked well and more which we should concentrate on.

   

   4.  How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?

                Within our production we used many different forms of technology, including various computer software programmes and media related websites.

                During the opening stages of our group work, we relied on the popular broadcasting channel of Youtube to research similar music video products. In this process we also analysed the original RIzzle Kicks music video for ‘Mamma Do the Hump’ noting down anything which inspired our product. As the song is fairly recent and is of the Hip-Hop genre we also looked at the work of artists Tinie Tempah and Labrinth who pose a fairly similar style of modern hip-hop. Another website we used for planning and construction was that of website ‘az lyrics’ as we needed to collect the lyrics in detail and annotate them to fit into our shots somehow. Throughout gathering research we also recorded our finding son each of our blogs, so it acted somehow like a base to collect our concepts and ideas.

                When we filmed footage for our music production we used James’ own Sony HD Camera, as James being the cameraman thought that he would feel most confident with his own home camera, as well as being able to adapt to filming situations more (having learnt previously how to change the camera’s functions). With the camera being HD it also meant that our footage was often caught in high detail and therefore would give the project a cleaner, more professional appearance. Subsequently, the camera stored all of our data into its SD card and we had to make sure that we brought it in within every lesson, the SD card was of a 16 gigabyte capacity so it also gave us freedom that we could film many shots without worrying about lost memory. The advantage of using one SD card meant that all of our footage stayed in one place too, so we did not have to fuss over several other devices. As an extra to make our filming a lot smoother and more steady we required the use of a tripod stand, which meant some of our tracks, pans and tilts were a lot more controlled than our hand held footage.

                After collecting all of the footage we felt we needed we downloaded it straight onto the Media Departments I-Mac computers which contained a variety of software programmes for which we could edit our music video. The video editing programme in which we used was Adobe Premier Pro, which allowed us to freely manoeuvre our footage into a necessary order, later adding in the song itself so we could synchronise the scenes to the best of their ability. Later we also adjusted the brightness and contrast to make scenes cooler and cleaner. The colour was adjusted slightly in several scenes also to create a more dynamic effect.

                Our print artefacts also required us to use several programmes on the I-mac systems. For our album designs Photoshop was used to manipulate the pieces into looking believable in their appearance. We collected our album artwork from photo publishing website Flickr, which regularly post images, we also edited these so that they were our own. 

Location changes

As our key location of the music video required a house party setting we selected a date to film in which our friend was hosting a gathering, therefore giving us a more realistic setting . The party itself being one of fancy dress meant that we change our plot line accordingly, a way in which I felt worked better.
As the 'Nerds' would have to dress in fancy dress party attire it meant that the characters would bend into the crowd more; the majority of partygoers wearing distinct outfits. However, this meant that within our miming sequences the two lead characters would have to wear their regular geeky clothing, helping the audience identify with their true appearances.

Artifact HMV Advertisement

Within our group we devised a HMV advertisement to accompany our print artifact album cover. There were several codes and conventions which we had to follow, but I feel that we successfully managed this. Firstly we researched examples of typical HMV adverts, which all followed similar characteristics, including a colour scheme of black, purple, white and grey, as well as large block lettering for titles. We also decided to diverge our own cover design with the backdrop of the poster, customizing it so that the audience found our design more memorable. The finished product was created at A4 size, as if it were to fit into a magazine for advertising (magazines such as NME). In the background of out advertisement, we also incorporated the inner side of our created album cover, diverging the audience more into the basis of our product.  

Selected album design

We decided to select design #2 as we felt it hit more of the typical conventions of an album cover, as well as suiting the style of the Rizzle Kicks and their music. Also, we felt that the stylish appearance of it added a professional feel, with its photoshopped mirrored image. James created our image as he has the most experience with photoshop and had a mixture of ideas for this. The black text stands out very much so against the grey and white background so we felt that it is more appropriate and significant. 

Album Cover Ideas

Design #1: 

For this design we went for the urban street vibe, with a graffiti like feel. The simple colours of grey and white we also felt added greatly to the typical convention of album cover colours 

Design #2:

Our second idea also with the colours of grey and white included that of a mirrored image of a large city bridge. Like our previous design we felt that this linked with the urban music genre of the artists, also we felt that the album stood out from the crowd and looked distinct.

Design #3:

Our third and final design was more of an experimental piece. us agreeing that it did not have much relevance to the artists or album name. However, we felt that the album stood out and had the conventional colour schemes, even though it would have suited more of an indie rock group. 

Risk Assessment Grid

Alternative Ending Discussions

For the end of our music video we each came up with an alternative ending which would fit the narrative as well as creating a comedic value.

Alternate ending #1:
The first alternative ending was that of our two protagonists being kicked out of the parties entrance where the music video first began. For this scene we would simply have other party goers crowding around the door and throwing the confused pair onto the driveway, they would then stand as the music fades off and slowly walk away, the screen also eventually fading to black

Alternate ending #2:
Our second idea consisted of a successful ending, the two leads being shown to be passed out a bathroom, surrounded by females who are also passed out. This would infer that the characters eventually gave way to their finicky personalities and had a good time. Furthermore, the camera would zoom out of the long shot in the bathroom and then fade to black.

Alternate ending #3:
In our third and final idea we decided to evoke the audience's interpretation of the character's fates. During a small shot in the midst of the party atmosphere we would have our two protagonists sitting on a sofa as they appear exhausted by the party atmosphere. After this the negative introduction in the party soon changes to a positive one, the party goers bringing the nerds to the centre of attention. In the end scene we would then switch to see the pair of characters asleep on the sofa in which they previously sat. Meaning that either the characters fell asleep during the midst of the party and dreamt the rest, or they genuinely had a good time and fell asleep.

Album Cover Ideas

For our album we decided to combine several ideas, the album we must create is that of Rizzle Kicks' 'Stereo Typical'.

Our first idea was the recreate the original artwork but replacing the two real band members with our two actors. In similar stances to the album cover our actors would evoke their 'nerdy' personas through to add a comedic effect. This would require a photo shoot of both Matt and Steve together with a white background and simple layout.

Another idea of ours included inferring the Alternative Hip-Hop genre into the cover, with a simplistic white background contrasting with a cityscape. As well as this we considered photoshopping the cityscape into a stereo like silouhette, relating to the 'stereo' in the title.

Our third and final idea was that of a classic cassette tape taking central composition against a white background, adding an almost vintage element. Despite being simple we felt the the contrasts between the item and black lettering would create an effective, stand out album cover.

Selected artist information

For our music video we selected the fairly recent song 'Mama Do the Hump' performed by Alternative Hip-Hop duo the 'Rizzle Kicks'. The song is taken from their 2011 album 'Stereo Typical'

Not only did we select the song as we are fans of the artists and feel that we can get an interesting energetic video, but we felt that it would be open to a wide demographic, much of the younger generation knowing the popular rhythm. During December 2011, 'Mama Do the Hump' was number 2 in the UK singles charts, proving its popularity with the public. Gaining a positive reception and celebrity fans such as James Corden (who appeared in the official video). Along with the video a dance move was incorporated with the song, something which we want to include at some point in our own production.

Costume Designs

As we wanted our productions two leads to display the stereotypical geek attire, we decided to research into what it required and what the geek look often entailed.

Both 'Geeks' and 'Nerds' can be seperated into two  categories meaning:

Nerd: noun Slang .

1.

a stupid, irritating, ineffectual, or unattractive person.

2.

an intelligent but single-minded person obsessed with anonsocial hobby or pursuit: a computer nerd.

Geek: noun Slang .

1.

a computer expert or enthusiast (a term of pride as self-reference, but often considered offensive when used byoutsiders.)

2.

a peculiar or otherwise dislikable person, especially one whois perceived to be overly intellectual.

Considering both of these terms we investigated images and popular characters who resembled this popular stereotype. The indie film 'Napoleon Dynamite' by director Jared Hess displays its protagonist as a typical socially awkward geek, along with his brother Kip, whom also has 'nerdy' tendencies. The costumes from this inspired our own designs.

Other examples of geeky attire also include:

The most common accessories include: 

Glasses

Braces

Combed Hair

Buttoned up shirts

High waisted trousers

Stationary

White Socks

Character Designs

When planning the personas of our characters we took to a manga character designer to create cartoon of what we would like our characters to be like. The two main male protagonists in particular were planned precisely so that they would emit the 'geeky' stereotype; as well as this, they have an opposing character to show how they believe they look. Also, the female cartoon represents the latter of girls present at the party as there will be several.


Character 1- Male #1

Reality:

Fantasy: 

Male #1 is one of our music videos main protagonists, similar to Male#2 he is trapped in a fantasy where he oozes confidence and is a real ladies man. However, the audience will be able to notice that in reality he is a clueless, stereotypical 'nerd', who regularly fails at both his social and romantic conquests. Unlike Male#2 however, he can be seen as the more authoritative figure having to mime more lines towards the camera. Significant character  traits include a cap, bow tie and checkered shorts. - He will be miming the parts of Rizzle Kicks member 'Rizzle'

Character 2- Male #2

Reality:

Fantasy:

Our second male protagonist Male#2 is the other character trapped within a fantasy of sexual confidence. He is more of the henchmen of the pair, being Male#1's second in command. His outfit consists of sunglasses over regular glasses, a cartoon t shirt (which is tucked into jeans) and a mismatched tie. As well as this, Male#2 is the more promiscuous of the two, attempting to chat up ladies with his frankly cringeworthy dance moves. His miming segments will be that of Rizzle Kicks member 'Sylvester'.


Character 3- General Partygoers

This anime character represents the latter of female party goers who display both shocked and disgusted attitudes towards the male protagonists cringeworthy behaviour. All female characters reject the prowess of the two main characters, the music video concluding with them being thrown out of the building.

Task 10: Filming Schedule

Film schedule for the opening scene.

Task 9: Casting

When selecting the actors for our two male protagonists we had to consider actors that could pull off the correct look, as well as them radiating confidence.

For the character 'Male#1' we selected our close friend Matt Nield, who displayed interest in starring in a music video. As the Rizzle Kicks are in fact one of his favourite bands we felt it would be easier for him to get into role and mime to the lyrics. His part would require him to mime the parts of Rizzle Kicks member Rizzle, who mimes the majority of the verse lyrics. Furthermore, we felt that Matt had a diverse enough appearance for us to change him into both geek and 'heartthrob', as his appearance has a certain youthful quality.

The selection of our second protagonist 'Male#2' came down to one of our other close friends Ryan Evans , another student who previously starred in other productions. We felt that Steve possessed the right demeanour to portray our 'nerdy' character, he himself being a self confessed geek. For his role, he was required to learn the lyrics of Rizzle Kicks member Sylvester, a task he found easy as he is also a fan of the Rizzle Kicks work. Due to Ryan's previous performances we were confident that he would portray our character both confidently and professionally.

Task 8: Final Proposal

The title of our music video will consist simply be that of the artist and song name ‘The Rizzle Kicks- Mama Do The Hump’ which will coincide with the production within the bottom left hand corner (often seen on popular music videos during their airtime on television).  For our production we felt that music channels based more around a younger demographic would be more suited for our music video. This is due to the song itself, being fairly recent (released in 2011) therefore making it more appealing  to the younger audience, for example 10-20 year olds. Channels such as MTV, Viva and 4Music being our primary suggestions as they also gained high votes in our audience research questionnaires.

In terms of age, class, gender, ethnicity etc, we felt that the target audience from our selected song was incredibly broad. In particular however, we felt that our music video’s typical audience would hit more of the younger generation as they will be more familiar with the fairly recent track; ages 10-40 would certainly be our key targets. Despite the fact that all classes may be considered as a target audience, the more outstanding viewers would be more lower to middle class citizens, as the hip-hop music culture may be associated more with the latter. Furthermore, the song’s catchy beat has made it widely recognised as a party tune, often played to an audience for an energetic reaction. Also, we felt that the appeal of the music video would be left widely open for the demographic of gender as well as the majority of ethnicities.

As the Rizzle Kicks are often regarded as Alternative Hip Hop artists, ‘Mama Do The Hump’ in particular containing a positive and catchy vibe we felt that our music video must contain a fun, exciting atmosphere. In addition to this, the lyrics of the song have an almost edgy, comedic value so therefore we wanted to incorporate a comedic sense into our narrative. Our group felt that the most effective video would come from a combination of Performance and Narrative techniques; our two lead actors playing out a narrative storyline during a party, as well as performing the song’s lyrics at the camera itself. We also felt that this would help the audience recognise the actors character traits, along with it creating a more diverse final outcome.

For the style of our music video we converged various ideas that we felt would create a unique look for our production. Upon considering camera angles we discussed many that would be used within the opening scene alone. These included: extreme close ups of the protagonist’s body parts such as their shoes, sunglasses, hats and lips, to create an almost ambiguity around their appearances. Other angles we suggested were Subjective POV’s of entering the building, establishing shots of the party room of guests and consistent two shots of the lead males and their conquests together. Throughout the scenes within the dance floor, we felt that we should edit the scenes in colourful lights similar to that of disco lighting effects. The entrance, concluding and performance based scenes would be regular everyday colours perhaps lit up in a specific way as if the characters are centre of attention. As the opening scene will hold a mysterious quality we decided to edit them in slow motion, to build up on the characters eventual revealing. On the other hand, a selection of the dancing scenes would be made quicker indicating the quick exciting party atmosphere. Quick cuts will be used between shots creating an energetic vibe for the audience also. 

Task 7: Role Allocation

In our group we decided to share all jobs equally between us, however as each of us had qualities in which we were best at we all decided to focus more on a specific role. Jess, James and I all agreed to seperate them evenly.

Camera person/Editer:
For this role we selected James as he has the most experience with filming and editing. As his skills with photo-shop were a lot greater than ours he set himself the task of creating the album cover, as well as controlling the camera as we decided to use his for a better quality finish.

Director:
This job role was taken by Jess who is confident in telling the characters what to do in scenes as well as being able to direct James' camera angles so to tell what would be best for specific scenes.

Writer:
For this job I decided to volunteer for the role as I have a keen interest in writing and enjoy the prospect of creating an original piece. During the filming I will also help Jess with matching the camera angles to our created storyboard.

Task 6: Storyboard

Task 4: Questionnaire for Music Video Ideas

1. Do you like the music video to contain a dark theme?

From my questionnaire the results concluded that a slightly smaller majority of people did not like a dark theme, with 60% of participants saying no.

2. What is your favourite genre of music?

The questionnaire forms shown that every person enjoyed a variety of music genres, including: Pop, RnB, Drum & Bass, Indie-Rock, Rap and Acoustic.

3. What music videos do you like to watch and why?

After a large variety of answers the minority of participants answered that they preferred music videos to be colourful and creative (almost original) as it helped capture their attention and were never boring.

4. Who is your favourite artist?

Again a mixture of answers were given to this question depending on the participants favourite genre of music. however the two most popular included Lady Gaga and Coldplay.

5. Who do you feel has the best music videos?

Standing out most from the answers as to 'who does the best music videos' 3 people answered with the band of OK Go, whom are well known for their experimental and unique music videos, such as 'Here It Goes Again' featuring the group doing a routine on treadmills.

6. Do you like the song to link with the storyline?

Out of all participants 80% stated that they liked the music video to link with the song itself, the other 20% said that they had no preference.

7. What do you find are the least effective music videos?

Overall, 50% of participants answered that they felt performance videos based souly on the artist performing were least effective, as they do not captivate the audience's attention.

8. Do you like the artist to perform within the video?

The majority of participants (70%) answered that they only liked the artist to perform a small amount in the video as they did not want them to overrule it completely.

9. Would you prefer a narrative or creative concept?

With the most of the vote, 60% of the audience stated that they preferred a narrative, compared to the 30% that liked creative and 10% that were not fussed.

10. What channels do you preferably watch music videos on?

A mixture of channels were given in with the selection including channels such as 4Music, MTV, Viva and Q.

Analysing Max Payne 3 Official Television trailer

The official television trailer for Rockstar Games' 'Max Payne 3' certainly hits several conventions of a typical modern day video game trailer.
The opening image in fact is a medium close up of the game's protagonist Max Payne, holding two guns in front of him and therefore instantly showing the viewer that the target audience is for the more mature age group. As well as this, the trailer itself mimics that of a regular film trailer exposing what is considered as the best parts of the game for the public. Also, the gameplay must somewhat portray the experience of the game.
Text is effectively used cutting through the animated footage, referring to previous game successes as to attract the audience's interest 'from the makers of Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption' thus also broadening their demographic. Throughout the trailer, almost techno music is played complimenting the action theme.
Overall the title of the game is repeated twice so as to inbed the title into the audience's head; as well as displaying its release date in bold large lettering.

Task 3: Music Video Ideas

Idea 1: Regina Spektor- Us
A quick paced song, piano harmony enters suggesting a playful theme. Therefore the music video would contain fast cuts to different scenery and shots of characters. Hand held cameras would suggest it being home video footage making it feel as if the characters are on a personal adventure, perhaps with a sepia or old fashioned effect against the shots, as well as the two main characters being a young couple on an 'adventure.'

Idea 2: Kasabian- Underdog
The powerful rhythm of the guitar almost has a tense theme, hinting us towards an idea of hardcore fighting with a 'gangster image'. A male protagonist portrays himself as a tough guy, in the gym, aggressively beating a punching bag, also hinting towards the character being in 'training'. However at the climax of the film, instead of having a fight against his rivals the character proceeds to have a dance off almost comedically.

Idea 3: Vampire Weekend- A-Punk
A quickly paced track with a postitive, happy rhythm. A main character is listening to the song on the radio, turning it up and dancing, then he goes on to dance during regular everyday acts such as brushing his teeth and walking to school, several other dancers join in behind with a dance routine.

Idea 4: Coldplay- Strawberry Swing- A playful rhythm will lead to a happy and adventurous theme. Similar to that of the couple's adventure within my 'Regina Spektor-Us' video, the characters disembark on a journey through the woods together, eventually reaching their destination high in the wilderness perhaps a mountain of large hill. Happiness and danger are also factors as the couple frequently face it.

Codes and conventions of a Documentary

The opening five minutes of a documentary must hold several captivating necessities, to draw in the attention of the audience.

-Opening scenes must 'capture the audience' as quickly as possible
-The central question of the documentary has to be posed at the beginning in order to communicate to the audience what the prgramme is about. eg:
         Why is Britain the teenage pregnancy capital of Europe? Will we survive the double dip recession?
         Some quick snippets of interviews with good responses to draw the audience in.

-Incidental music or even a soundtrack relevant, song should usually accompany the sequence. But must not override the voice over.
-Titles are important, and announced in some dramatic form.
-Actuality: Filming real events as they happen. May need archive footage.
-Fly On the Wall: Film real people as they do real things focusin on their lives, with genuine conversations.
-Voice Over: Most documentaries have a voice over, a narration of what the programme is about, giving key information and introducing the topic of debate.
-Graphics: Use graphics with written text. Maps, drawings, photographs can be incorperated. Also appear with banner e.g introducing the interviewee.

Analysis of a music video: Lana Del Rey- Born To Die

For our research into music videos we were selected the 2012 song 'Born To Die' by Lana Del Rey to analyse. The video itself being both a performance and narrative piece we expected there to be a general plotline involving the singer herself (which indeed was the case). Furthermore the song's title 'Born To Die' was in fact the inspiration behind the video as we predict our main protagonist's lives to end in tragedy and destruction (the video itself touching upon death and religion). As well as this, the video's non linear structure assists in evoking a sense of intrigue from the audience towards the somewhat ambiguous storyline.

Our opening scene introduces our two lead protagonists in a somewhat non narrative sense. Beginning with a medium long shot the camera slowly zooms forward depicting the male and female characters in a semi-nude embrace in front of a rippling American flag (a symbol for both their patriotic roots and their connection with the 'American Dream'). As they are partially naked it may be inferred of the sexual relationship between the pair; Del Rey appearing delicate and innocent contrasting indefinitely with the tattooed rebellious looking male.

We are then transported into a typically grandeur religious building (possibly that of palatial Roman origins) through a camera tilt. Revealing Del Rey again sitting upon a throne in white angelic clothing and also guarded by two tigers; this being symbolic for her wealth and most likely upper class roots within the plotline. We later learn that this church is in fact a metaphoric heaven as Del Rey portrays such avirtuous, dream-like appearance.

Our next scene presents the beginning of our narrative confirming with an establishing shot that the two previous characters are together to fulfil the 'American Dream' . Once again embracing, the body language states that the two are running away together and that the rebellious male is taking the class female away inside his car.

Broadening from the basic narrative throughout the video, we can later see a two shot close up of the runaway couple kissing and dispaying sexual affections towards each other. It is evident to see that the two are trapped in a passionate love with each other. However, it is also obvious that the male has a negative effect on the female, as if being a bad influence towards her and tainting her innocence. Hinting towards their self destructive pathway and his stereotypical bad boy image.

Another hint foreshadowing their futures is that of quick cuts to the couple arguing, the mae in particular acting in a peculiar and threatening manner. A short clip reveals the male gesturing towards Del Rey's head in a gun like motion, which eludes to the belief that he will be the death of her. As well as this, these smaller snippets suggest the slow breakdown of their American dream.

An alternative hint towards their demise is that of segments of the pair in bed, filmed at a high angle shot to almost confirm the female's helplessness. From their body language their is certainly tension as Del Rey lies with her body away from the male, with a blatent facial expression of resentment; whereas the male faces towards Del Rey whilst his fingers caress her neck. At first glance this may be denoted as a sexual gesture however an alternate interpretation hints towards that of him being the death of the female protagonist.

Through a later segment it is easy to notice the imminent danger which the couple face with a police car chase. With an over the shoulder shot, the female glance over at the male driving as they are pursued by police cars, as he is the one who is instigating the trouble. The red and orange lighting from the police car is also a symbolic trait for danger, as if a warning of the dangers ahead.

When we are then cut back into the calm church building a close up of Del Rey's angelic persona connotates death with a singular gesture of her thumb across the neck (a common motion of 'murder). This is the first time the character herself portrays a signal of death, confirming that the previous scene is a signal for the trouble they faced. Accompanied with the lyrics 'We were born to die'.

Later on we are shown a medium long shot of Del Rey's character crossing a corridor of lights flashing on and off. This may be inferred to be purgatory as the character finds herself lost in a setting of both darkness and light (following the lights ahead). Her attire of a lace white dress also gives a sense of ghostly angelic qualities with her, once again hinting towards her death having took place.

Our final scene leaves us with a sense of ambiguity as it may be characterised into three meanings. The scene itself depicts the male character in the foreground holding the bloody corpse of his lover, both of whom are semi nude; whereas the background shows darkness contrasts with red flames swaying in air. The first interpretation may be that this scene is indeed reality and shows the wreckage of a car crash which lead to the female's demise proving that he did in fact murder his lover in the end. Secondly, the next interpretation may be that Del Rey's outcome from purgatory was that she was sent to Hell for doing such corrupt deeds. However, the final theory is that of the male character being put into Hell faced with the guilt of killing his lover for all eternity, contrasting indefinitely with Del Rey's character who was sent to heaven as she is of course innocent.

The very final scene is in fact the opening scene repeated, this time with an almost ironic effect, as the two characters despite being originally symbols of love and patriotism, achieved nothing but self destruction and the opposite of the American dream.

Analysing a Short Film- Craig Dean Devine's 'This is Life'

Upon looking at the preferences of particular short films we set our sights upon analysing the   work of Cinematographer Craig Dean Devine. The piece which we concentrated  on was that of 'This Is Life' an almost biographical piece by Devine himself. The story itself is based within a lower class area and focuses on the world of a dysfunctional family who are trying to mend their past, living the 'idyllic' lifestyle. As well as this much of the biopic concentrates on the story's young male protagonist Dean, who finds it tough to bond with his reforming criminal father.

Mise En Scene

During the opening scene of the short film we are introduced inside the central family home along with the young male school boy, his sister and their mother. From the way in which each character is dressed in morning attire such as dressing gowns we know instantly that it is early morning, almost as if it were a new beginning for the family as their 'Dad's coming home'. Later on as the protagonist's elder sister picks him up from school we may see their open body language and closeness to each other. As they travel the streets inside of a shopping trolley we can also denote that the storyline is set within a lower class area, for instance their front garden has a pile of rubbish upon it. 
When first introduced to the protagonist's father he is dressed in dark colours and can be seen smoking a cigarette, as if he were a character coming from curious circumstances. Despite the father being openly affectionate towards his son there could be said to be tension on the young boy's behalf, seeming reluctant to speak to or embrace him. During the next scene the family sit together in front of a television eating their dinner, another stereotypical lower class thing to do.

Furthermore, the next scene we may see the divide between father and son through the barrier in between the characters, hinting towards the father character's criminal background. As well as this the only way in which they bond is through illegally driving the car together, the characters body language being much more open and positive. Due to the family atmosphere being noted beforehand, the adult parental characters later argue during the night, something which audience members may empathise with as this is a typical family occurance for most. 
As the father character wears mostly darker clothing throughout the production much could be said for its connotations, our suspicions are later confirmed as the figure talks to a worker about his criminal past and quest for forgiveness

Camera Angles:

There are a variety of camera angles used throughout Craig Dean Devine's 'This Is Life' which helps the audience recognise general quirks and parts of the storyline. The opening scene is introduced with the use of an establishing shot, in the typically middle class kitchen, indicating all of the key characters, general family background and the time of day. Most of the production is filmed using the hand held camera option, creating a similar feel to that of a fly off the wall documentary, like the drama is unfolding in front of your eyes. 

Later there are also ranges of pans along with long shots denoting the close relationship between the young boy character and his elder sister (the two having fun pushing one another in a shopping trolley). Simply through the introduction of the young protagonist's father we may notice their non existent relationship. An over the shoulder shot from the father's point of view also adds a hint of mystery towards his identity. Their relationship is also more evident as they embrace and we may see the father's distraught face in a close up. 
Later on a low angle shot of the father figure being interrogated is used, giving the audience a chance to focus on him and his previously hidden background. A low angle shot is also used later on when the character's bond and hold each other in a loving embrace.

Sound:
Music is regularly played in the whole of the sequence, the most frequent being that of non diegetic incidental music of a acoustic guitar and violin; these are often used in scenes of action, for example, Dean and his sister running with the trolley and Dean and his father's boxing match. The young protagonist Dean has little dialogue within despite being the most prominent character, the larger amounts being given to his father as we need to learn more about his past.

Editing:

Devine uses a few editing techniques in this piece the first most obvious being the match on action between the Mother character and the kitchen, denoting the family routine. Another editing method are the many shot-reverse-shots used especially between Dean and his father, as we slowly watch their relationship grow. Jump cuts are used, in particular the moment in which we are transported from the family kitchen to Dean waiting outside the school gates, showing  passage of time. Slow motion is also used in the boxing sequence as helps us recognise the happiness between the characters and the happy upcoming ending.