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Evaluation

Overall I am very pleased with my final product (CD, booklet, video etc). I feel because I had my idea planned out well and used my time effectively my project went pretty smoothly. I tried to experiment and expand my ideas to produce an original, professional piece of work. 

Because of my lack of experience using my camera to video I didn’t realise how difficult it would be to get the correct lighting. I also found it hard to translate some of my original ideas into an effective piece of film so I had to abandon them and substitute them for a more manageable interpretation. Despite my lack of knowledge on video production and editing, I gained some useful new skills, especially on Premier Pro software. 

At first I was a bit despondent as I wasn’t sure my idea was strong enough but after persevering with the layouts and numerous shoots I am very happy with the final outcome. 

Using the right photo paper for the CD booklet and the CD itself gave a professional finish and the help of a friendly, local independent printing service was invaluable. 

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Video

My video is about an artist called Jamie Addison, who is struggling to come to terms with his gender identity. The video shows the different emotions and confusion the artist is facing while he struggles to come to terms with deciding whether to transition or not. I have tried to produce a fragmented narrative that tells a story. Theories suggest that if the audience can empathise and connect with the artist and the storyline, the artist can sell more copies of the album.

The purpose of a music video is to promote an artist, song or album. To do this the video needs to fit a clear genre and be attractive to a target audience. It does this by creating elements that are recognisable and explicit. In my music video I have used pace and transitions to establish the moods and the feel of the video to portray the song. The edits try to match the beat of the music. I tried to use quick cuts and evolving scenes to grab the viewer. 

I have used low key and backlighting to create a sexual effect, emotional confusion and connotations of mystery which defy the conventions of a typical pop music video. The settings in the woods at night, with large scenes of trees has an impact on the mood, genre and atmosphere. The atmosphere creates a certain mood  which will help the audience identify with the artist. I shot inside and out to add interest and variety to the video.

The problem I faced when shooting outside in the dark was that my camera was unable to focus on the main subject, so a lot of blurring occurred. To over come this problem I decided to try using a soft-box light outside that provided just enough light to overcome the problem, but didn’t produce too much light to distract from the fact it was night time. Because some of my videos were shot at night, when it came to editing they were too dark. I used the brightening tool on Premier Pro however it did make the footage grainer than expected. 

In one scene I had the idea of using photos of different female body parts as a prop as another way of illustrating the artists thoughts and feelings about confusion over gender.

I have tried to use a variety of different shots and angles, such as over the shoulder, close-ups, medium close-ups etc. I have used close-ups to create a sense of intimacy with the viewer and to market the artist more effectively. The reasoning behind the lack of clothes is to enhance the idea that the artist has body issues.

I used the software Premier Pro to edit and produce my promo video. I decided to use this software because I feel it produces a lot of features and flexibility. It also produces a high quality and professional looking product. I wasn’t familiar with the software as I had only used it once before. If I didn’t know how to achieve something I either used the Premier Pro help search bar or Youtube tutorials. Although this slowed down the editing process I feel that I have learnt a lot of new skills in the process.

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My final video- Jamie Addison, Fragile

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Social media layouts

As well as fitting my main image into the social media layouts provided I also decided to make an Instagram, Facebook and Itunes page for my artist. This shows how strong my final image is and how it stands out. Despite being a unique topic the album cover image fits in with a current genre of music and artists who have fluid ideas about gender and identity. 

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Pre-production planning

Objective: To produce a 3 minute promo music video for the artist Jamie Addison. 

Audience: Male and female aged between 14-25 who are experiencing problems with their identity, gender or sexual orientation. 

Planned distribution: I will be using several different media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook and Youtube to promote my music artist and his work. 

Concept: The promo video is going to tell the story of a young male who feels uncomfortable with his identity and gender. Through the video you will see the struggles he faces with raw emotions. 

Treatment and storyboard: I have chosen to shoot in black and white because my photo images are in black and white as well as I think it conveys the mood I am trying to create. It also matches the music better. He won’t be singing along with the music because it’s not a performance promo. The intention is to show emotion and a sense of mystery. As it’s 3 minutes long I have decided to shoot both inside and outside to provide some variety. 

Scheduling: I am planning to film over a weekend as this is when my model was available.  

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I tried to experiment and develop my ideas as much as possible however when it actually can to shooting some of the ideas just weren’t strong enough. Especially the idea of using red lipstick as it came across very cliched. 

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Inlay layout

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CD layout

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Booklet layout

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Production

I used folded paper to help visualise the layout of my booklet and album cover. I found this very useful to make sense of the flow of the images with the narrative I was trying to create. 

CD paper

While talking to my tutor Geraint he told me about a special type of paper you can print on especially for CDs. I purchased some of the paper from Staples as I want my end product to look as professional as possible. 

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I really likes the video Wolves and the music. The music complemented the narrative and theme of my planned promo video. This isn’t the original song but an amateur production remake with no words. 

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I had used Scannography before, mainly with flowers so I wanted to experiment with the medium again. I used cling film and fragile tape to add texture and give the audience a narrative to follow. The fragile tape suggests the emotional state of the artist, while the cling film suggests a sense of being trapped or imprisoned. This took many attempts to get the exact layout I wanted but I feel it’s very effective. The whitening out of the fingertips of the artist suggests a loss of identity because there are no fingerprints. 

I’m thinking of using the first image as my album cover, and even using the word ‘fragile’ as the title of the album.

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The image on the left is unedited, image on the right is. 

I used a projector to reflect quotes that I had written in Word on a white sheet of paper, onto the back of my model. It was very difficult to get the quote lined up perfectly and I had to play around with the size of the font, and rearrange the lines of text to fit the back. There was a lot of shadowing that I couldn’t remove but in the end I think it adds something to the image. Because I had the quote written in Word, when I took the photos the bottom tool bar could be seen, so I used Photoshop to edit this out. 

Another element to the images is the use of the hands wrapped around the body. This reminds me of the phrase “you can’t love somebody else until you have learnt to love yourself”. 

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I tried to take some shots with the netting material but soon realised it needed to be ironed so that the the person could be seen more clearly. I have planned to reshoot this series of images another time. Because it was hard to see the subject I had to use Photoshop to expose and contrast the image. The use of the material continues the theme of hidden identity but also adds a sense of mystery to the narrative. 

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These extreme close-ups only show part of the face to follow on with the theme of hidden identity. At first it was difficult to get the model to show a realistic sad emotional face but I carried on taking shots from different and giving instructions until I was happy with the result. 

The contrast between a definite male model and the female prop (mascara) moves the narrative along and engages the audience. 

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Artist possible names

As I’ve been researching the current music scene, transgender musicians/artists I have been thinking about possible titles for my artists name/logo and title for the album. Some ideas for my album name below:

-Limbo/stuck in limbo

-Moving on

-Way back when

-Discovery

-The journey

-Over exposed

-Decisions, Decisions

-The unexpected

-Transitioning

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Model

I have decided to use my friend as my model because he has the look I’m going for. He’s 6ft, with mousy brown hair, he also has a beard which I think will contrast well with some of the female props I will be using in my shoots. He is 21 years old which is in the middle of my target audience meaning younger and older people will be able to relate to him.