Below is a vlog in which we respond to the feedback:
Friday 25 September 2015
Pitch - Audience Feedback
After pitching our ideas for our music video, we asked the class to write down any comments or questions that they had. By doing this, we now know what elements worked well and what needs to be made clearer and any improvements that need to be made in general.
Below is a vlog in which we respond to the feedback:
Below is a vlog in which we respond to the feedback:
Pitch
Today we presented our pitch to the class, it was very useful for us to share our ideas and receive feedback from others. Below is the Prezi that we created as well as a recording of our pitch:
Wednesday 23 September 2015
The Japanese House - Clean
The group has been inspired by the music video for 'Clean' by The Japanese House:
We like the effect of layering different shots. I think that it creates a dream-like and disorientating atmosphere, this is the feel that we want our music video to have. I think that the layering will help to show the emotions of our confused character.
I also like the washed out colour palette of the video as it helps to emphasise the dream-like atmosphere. I think that this could work well in our music video as we want our character to appear lost and dazed, this could be symbolised through the use of soft, hazy colours.
We like the effect of layering different shots. I think that it creates a dream-like and disorientating atmosphere, this is the feel that we want our music video to have. I think that the layering will help to show the emotions of our confused character.
I also like the washed out colour palette of the video as it helps to emphasise the dream-like atmosphere. I think that this could work well in our music video as we want our character to appear lost and dazed, this could be symbolised through the use of soft, hazy colours.
Battles - The Yabba
I found this music video, 'The Yabba' by Battles, on YouTube and really liked this particular shot. The high angle allows the circular shape to be seen, the spinning camera gives it a hypnotic feel. This idea would work well in our music video as we, too, want to achieve a hypnotic look through the inclusion of spiral shapes. I like the idea of having a similar shot of a maze or spiral staircase where the circular shape will be obvious. I think that if used with the staircase, it would look very effective if the camera is spinning in the opposite direction to the character's descent of the staircase as this would enhance the disorientating atmosphere and give the impression of a never ending staircase, reflecting the character's desperation to escape her mundane life.
Disclosure - Jaded
We were inspired by the editing of Disclosure's 'Jaded'. There is a particular section (shown below)where there is extremely fast paced editing of the same shot of a person sat in a chair, but the identity of the person changes with each 'flash'. I like the flickering of the lights within this shot as it helps to create a disorientating atmosphere, I think that this effect would link in with our narrative of a confused protagonist in a hypnotised state.
This music video also portrays ideas of hypnotism, with the explicit, instantly identifiable sign of a swinging chain. In our music video, however, we want to imply the hypnosis of our character more subtly, through fast paced editing and flashing lights, we hope that this will create an overwhelming atmosphere that will reflect the protagonist's emotions.
This music video also portrays ideas of hypnotism, with the explicit, instantly identifiable sign of a swinging chain. In our music video, however, we want to imply the hypnosis of our character more subtly, through fast paced editing and flashing lights, we hope that this will create an overwhelming atmosphere that will reflect the protagonist's emotions.
Friday 18 September 2015
Wednesday 16 September 2015
Planning our Pitch
Today we started to plan our music video pitch that we will be presenting next Friday. We began generating ideas for the specific elements of our video, for example, locations, props and costume.
We want to elaborate on the idea of feeling trapped and escaping, linking to the lyric 'locked up till your'e moonlit'. We want the character to be presented as feeling trapped in her 'hypnotic' state, blurring the lines between reality and her dreams of love and freedom. We also thought of a possible new filming location, a river either in Forty Hall or Camden. We think that this could represent themes of reflection and the protagonist's distorted view of reality.
Our ideas are at a very early stage and need a lot of developing. We hope that by pitching to the class, we will gain important feedback to see where we can improve.
We want to elaborate on the idea of feeling trapped and escaping, linking to the lyric 'locked up till your'e moonlit'. We want the character to be presented as feeling trapped in her 'hypnotic' state, blurring the lines between reality and her dreams of love and freedom. We also thought of a possible new filming location, a river either in Forty Hall or Camden. We think that this could represent themes of reflection and the protagonist's distorted view of reality.
Our ideas are at a very early stage and need a lot of developing. We hope that by pitching to the class, we will gain important feedback to see where we can improve.
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| The group brainstorming ideas |
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| Our pitch plan |
Tuesday 15 September 2015
Hollywood Records and Pinetop Records
Our artist, Zella Day, is signed to both Hollywood and Pinetop Records. I have researched both in order to understand their target audiences and to also highlight the differences in major and independent labels.
Hollywood Records:
Hollywood Records is an American label, founded in 1989 by Michael Eisner. It is owned by the Disney Music Group, making it a major label. Hollywood focuses on the pop, rock, alternative, hip hop and country genres. Signed artists include Zendaya, Bea Miller, Demi Lovato, Olivia Holt and Jordan Fisher, all of which are young artists whose music appeals to the 16-24 demographic, as does Zella Day's.
Pinetop Records:
After searching thoroughly, I have discovered very little to no information about Pinetop Records. It seems that the only artist signed is Zella Day, making it a very small, independent label. Day was raised in Pinetop, Arizona, leading me to believe that Pinetop Records is either a local label or one she has founded.
Major Vs Independent:
The main difference between a major label and an independent label is budget. Majors have large budgets that allow for high quality recording and production, advertisements that will increase sales, and merchandise, all of these elements are extremely appealing for our target audience, 16-24 year olds. However, independent labels, although they may lack the marketing and distribution power of a major label, can allow an artist to build on their niche appeal.
Signing to a major label can boost an artist's exposure greatly, this is an important factor for any artist and has proven beneficial for our artist, Zella Day, as she has released music videos as well as gone on tour.
Independent labels are more likely to take risks and sign undeveloped or unusual artists which was advantageous for Day as she has only been in the industry since 2012 and released one album. It has provided her a platform to reach a wider audience, therefore earning her more profits.
Hollywood Records:
Hollywood Records is an American label, founded in 1989 by Michael Eisner. It is owned by the Disney Music Group, making it a major label. Hollywood focuses on the pop, rock, alternative, hip hop and country genres. Signed artists include Zendaya, Bea Miller, Demi Lovato, Olivia Holt and Jordan Fisher, all of which are young artists whose music appeals to the 16-24 demographic, as does Zella Day's.
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| Multiple signed artists |
Pinetop Records:
After searching thoroughly, I have discovered very little to no information about Pinetop Records. It seems that the only artist signed is Zella Day, making it a very small, independent label. Day was raised in Pinetop, Arizona, leading me to believe that Pinetop Records is either a local label or one she has founded.
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| Only one signed artist |
Major Vs Independent:
The main difference between a major label and an independent label is budget. Majors have large budgets that allow for high quality recording and production, advertisements that will increase sales, and merchandise, all of these elements are extremely appealing for our target audience, 16-24 year olds. However, independent labels, although they may lack the marketing and distribution power of a major label, can allow an artist to build on their niche appeal.
Signing to a major label can boost an artist's exposure greatly, this is an important factor for any artist and has proven beneficial for our artist, Zella Day, as she has released music videos as well as gone on tour.
Independent labels are more likely to take risks and sign undeveloped or unusual artists which was advantageous for Day as she has only been in the industry since 2012 and released one album. It has provided her a platform to reach a wider audience, therefore earning her more profits.
Monday 14 September 2015
Zella Day
A Rising Artist:
Our song, 'Hypnotic', is by indie-pop artist Zella Day, a 20 year old American singer-songwriter, her young age and pop genre music means that she is popular amongst a younger demographic, particularly 16-24 year olds. Day is becoming increasingly more popular, her music video for 'Hypnotic', released February 27th 2015, has received 2,498,150 views. Although a relatively a new artist, she is gaining more recognition, most notably by making her national US TV debut in June 2015, performing on talk show 'Conan'. 'Conan' is an immensely popular show, with over 1.3 million viewers from the 18-49 demographic, making it the ideal television appearance to introduce Day to a wider audience. Day has also recently performed at Lollapalooza, an annual music festival hosting alternative rock, pop, hip hop and EDM artists. Other famous indie artists to have performed there include Coldplay, Foster the People, The Black Keys and Arctic Monkeys, all of which are also popular with younger audiences.
She is scheduled to perform in London in November, at the Hoxton Square Bar and Kitchen. Hoxton Square has been the heart of Hoxton's arts and media scene since the 1990s and has a variety of bars, restaurants and clubs. Such an urban and fashionable area is popular with young people, Day's target audience, this would give her more exposure and therefore more success. iTunes has also afforded Day more fans by serving 'Hypnotic' as one of their 'Singles of the Week' where it was available for free download for a week. This allowed new listeners to sample her music without the need to pay, which can sometimes be off-putting, especially with younger people, this would then entice people to purchase her other singles or whole album.
In the Media:
Zella Day's debut album 'Kicker' has received many positive reviews. Paul Lester of 'The Guardian' wrote that Zella would be 'most likely to be a smash', his review was shared 20 times on social media, further increasing her popularity. Jon Pareles, a specialised critic writing for 'The New York Times', said, 'She [Zella Day] sings about desire and self-destruction, about pleasure bound up with addiction, betrayal and surrender', I found this description of her music particularly interesting as these are themes that we wanted to explore within our music video.
I think that it was important to research further into Day's career as it has given me a deeper understanding of her appeal and of her audience. This will be helpful when thinking of ideas for our music video as we can cater to the needs and preferences of our audience.
Our song, 'Hypnotic', is by indie-pop artist Zella Day, a 20 year old American singer-songwriter, her young age and pop genre music means that she is popular amongst a younger demographic, particularly 16-24 year olds. Day is becoming increasingly more popular, her music video for 'Hypnotic', released February 27th 2015, has received 2,498,150 views. Although a relatively a new artist, she is gaining more recognition, most notably by making her national US TV debut in June 2015, performing on talk show 'Conan'. 'Conan' is an immensely popular show, with over 1.3 million viewers from the 18-49 demographic, making it the ideal television appearance to introduce Day to a wider audience. Day has also recently performed at Lollapalooza, an annual music festival hosting alternative rock, pop, hip hop and EDM artists. Other famous indie artists to have performed there include Coldplay, Foster the People, The Black Keys and Arctic Monkeys, all of which are also popular with younger audiences.
She is scheduled to perform in London in November, at the Hoxton Square Bar and Kitchen. Hoxton Square has been the heart of Hoxton's arts and media scene since the 1990s and has a variety of bars, restaurants and clubs. Such an urban and fashionable area is popular with young people, Day's target audience, this would give her more exposure and therefore more success. iTunes has also afforded Day more fans by serving 'Hypnotic' as one of their 'Singles of the Week' where it was available for free download for a week. This allowed new listeners to sample her music without the need to pay, which can sometimes be off-putting, especially with younger people, this would then entice people to purchase her other singles or whole album.
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| Tickets are sold for only £10, allowing people with less money to attend her shows. This would appeal to a wider audience. |
Zella Day's debut album 'Kicker' has received many positive reviews. Paul Lester of 'The Guardian' wrote that Zella would be 'most likely to be a smash', his review was shared 20 times on social media, further increasing her popularity. Jon Pareles, a specialised critic writing for 'The New York Times', said, 'She [Zella Day] sings about desire and self-destruction, about pleasure bound up with addiction, betrayal and surrender', I found this description of her music particularly interesting as these are themes that we wanted to explore within our music video.
I think that it was important to research further into Day's career as it has given me a deeper understanding of her appeal and of her audience. This will be helpful when thinking of ideas for our music video as we can cater to the needs and preferences of our audience.
Sunday 13 September 2015
Mood Board
Below is the mood board that I have created. This is something that I will be able to take inspiration from when generating ideas for our music video.
Mood board from Emily_Field
Saturday 12 September 2015
Kodaline - High Hopes
I really liked Kodaline's video for 'High Hopes' as it has a very clear, and emotional, narrative. The story starts with a runaway bride interrupting a man's suicide attempt. Throughout the video their relationship is seen growing. Towards the end, the woman's previous fiancé is shown shooting the couple. The audience is then lead to believe that the woman has died, this is due to a close-up shot of her bloodied body and a shot of an empty hospital bed. However, at the very end it is revealed that she is alive.
I like this idea of a plot twist as it makes the audience more excited, particularly as this video is very emotional so the viewer forms a deeper connection with the characters, this makes the events of the video more impactful.
I like the simplicity of the music video and think that it is an excellent example of a well-executed narrative video. The video has the very clear overall message of love and hope, shown by the couple's strong relationship, and enforced by the lyric 'high hopes'. The idea of 'beating death', such as the man's failed suicide attempt and the couple's recovery from the shooting, also adds to the 'hopeful' atmosphere.
This video has been very inspirational and will help my group when we come to storyboard our music video in order to create a clear narrative.
Friday 11 September 2015
Hypnosis
Our song 'Hypnotic' talks about feeling hypnotised, with the chorus repeating 'hypnotic taking over me', this is one of the most important lyrics in the song and one that we want to address visually throughout our music video. I thought that it would be beneficial to research the definition and history of hypnotism to gain a larger understanding, this will help us to incorporate hypnotic references in our video.
Below is a link to a webpage briefly describing the history of hypnotism:
http://www.stateofmindhypnosis.com/men/historyhypnosis.html
Below is a link to a webpage briefly describing the history of hypnotism:
http://www.stateofmindhypnosis.com/men/historyhypnosis.html
Lighting Inspiration
Whilst researching other music videos, the group discovered two techniques that we are thinking of using in our music video. The first is from the Calvin Harris & Disciples video for 'How Deep is Your Love':
I like the use of different coloured lights as it helps to create an energised atmosphere. The vibrancy would make our video more unique and exciting, I like that we could use colour as a way to express the character's emotions as colours are usually associated with a specific feeling, I think that this would be very effective as we want to present a reckless, disorientated character. I think that we could achieve this effect either by using a filter on the camera, coloured lighting or in post-production where we can change the colours of clips in iMovie.
The second technique that we liked is from The Weeknd's video for 'The Zone':
I like the idea of projecting images or videos behind the character in the music video, it makes for a more interesting background instead of a black or white screen. As we wanted to film in an urban area, this would be relevant as we could project onto a brick wall similar to the one in the 'The Zone' video.
I like the use of different coloured lights as it helps to create an energised atmosphere. The vibrancy would make our video more unique and exciting, I like that we could use colour as a way to express the character's emotions as colours are usually associated with a specific feeling, I think that this would be very effective as we want to present a reckless, disorientated character. I think that we could achieve this effect either by using a filter on the camera, coloured lighting or in post-production where we can change the colours of clips in iMovie.
The second technique that we liked is from The Weeknd's video for 'The Zone':
I like the idea of projecting images or videos behind the character in the music video, it makes for a more interesting background instead of a black or white screen. As we wanted to film in an urban area, this would be relevant as we could project onto a brick wall similar to the one in the 'The Zone' video.
Initial Ideas
After finalising our song choice, we started to brainstorm ideas for the narrative of our music video. One lyric that jumped out at us was 'Make me feel like someone else', we want to show two different sides of the character in the video, her 'normal' side and the 'hypnotised' side. The lyric 'I don't wanna come back down' has connotations of being high, however, instead of drug use we are interpreting this as not wanting to return to reality from her 'hypnotised' state caused by her overwhelming emotions, we have the idea of presenting her as quite a reckless character. We though that, in order to shock the audience, her 'normal' side should be revealed at the end of the music video, showing the character to be a strong, professional woman, this would allow us to explore themes of feminism and what society thinks a woman should be.
We also started to think about location, we decided that we wanted to include urban areas to appeal to younger audiences as well as to create a busy, confusing atmosphere.
We also started to think about location, we decided that we wanted to include urban areas to appeal to younger audiences as well as to create a busy, confusing atmosphere.
Final Song Choice
Today we looked closely at the lyrics of our three main song choices, looking for ways in which we could apply Goodwin's theory of having visual links with the lyrics. By doing this we discovered which song had the most potential.
Song Choice 1 -
St. Patrick - PVRIS
Song Choice 2 -
Hypnotic - Zella Day
Song Choice 3 -
Hold Me Down - Halsey
We decided that the best song was 'Hypnotic' by Zella Day. We felt that the lyrics were more substantial and that there is a lot more imagery. The verses in 'Hypnotic' are much longer than in 'St Patrick' and 'Hold Me Down', providing us with more opportunities for visual links. The words used in 'Hypnotic' are also more interesting and varied whereas 'St Patrick' repeats many words in the verses, for example 'chemicals', 'spiritual' and 'miracle', this makes the song sound dull, there aren't enough exciting, descriptive words to create an entertaining music video.
We also thought that 'St Patrick' and 'Hold Me Down' were too repetitive, both have extremely short verses that are overshadowed by the long choruses. In 'Hold Me Down' the verses are only 4 lines long as opposed to 'Hypnotic''s 8 lines. In total, the verses in 'Hold Me Down' take up 8 lines of the entire song whilst the chorus and pre chorus take up 36. This is a verse to chorus/pre chorus ratio of about 1:4.5 in comparison to 1:2 in 'Hypnotic'.
Although we felt that the beat was more powerful in 'St Patrick' and 'Hold Me down', we decided that lyrics were more important.
We hope that by choosing 'Hypnotic' there will be enough emotive and descriptive vocabulary to provide the basis of a strong narrative for our video, it will also make it easier to apply Goodwin's theory.
Song Choice 1 -
St. Patrick - PVRIS
Song Choice 2 -
Hypnotic - Zella Day
Hold Me Down - Halsey
We decided that the best song was 'Hypnotic' by Zella Day. We felt that the lyrics were more substantial and that there is a lot more imagery. The verses in 'Hypnotic' are much longer than in 'St Patrick' and 'Hold Me Down', providing us with more opportunities for visual links. The words used in 'Hypnotic' are also more interesting and varied whereas 'St Patrick' repeats many words in the verses, for example 'chemicals', 'spiritual' and 'miracle', this makes the song sound dull, there aren't enough exciting, descriptive words to create an entertaining music video.
We also thought that 'St Patrick' and 'Hold Me Down' were too repetitive, both have extremely short verses that are overshadowed by the long choruses. In 'Hold Me Down' the verses are only 4 lines long as opposed to 'Hypnotic''s 8 lines. In total, the verses in 'Hold Me Down' take up 8 lines of the entire song whilst the chorus and pre chorus take up 36. This is a verse to chorus/pre chorus ratio of about 1:4.5 in comparison to 1:2 in 'Hypnotic'.
Although we felt that the beat was more powerful in 'St Patrick' and 'Hold Me down', we decided that lyrics were more important.
We hope that by choosing 'Hypnotic' there will be enough emotive and descriptive vocabulary to provide the basis of a strong narrative for our video, it will also make it easier to apply Goodwin's theory.
Wednesday 9 September 2015
Hypnotic - Zella Day
Today the group discussed another possible song choice for our music video, 'Hypnotic' by Zella Day. I like the beat of this song, however, it isn't as strong as that in our other song choices. I think that there is a lot of interesting imagery created by the lyrics, this would allow us to have a variety of visuals in our music video.
Zella Day is an American singer-songwriter signed to Pinetop Records and Hollywood Records. Her music is classed as indie pop which is fitting as we wanted to produce an indie music video. 'Hypnotic' is the first track on her debut album, 'Kicker', that was released in June 2015. As she is quite a new artist, she is yet to make the charts but her album has received positive reviews.
Zella Day is an American singer-songwriter signed to Pinetop Records and Hollywood Records. Her music is classed as indie pop which is fitting as we wanted to produce an indie music video. 'Hypnotic' is the first track on her debut album, 'Kicker', that was released in June 2015. As she is quite a new artist, she is yet to make the charts but her album has received positive reviews.
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