We explored several forms and convention of real media products during the research stages of our project. Some of these we have adopted, whereas others we chose to challenge, or develop.
Numerous examples can be found of instances where we have followed conventions. One convention of folk/indie music is that the early videos (for instance, promo videos) that the bands release tend to have the band members visible for a large amount of time; Bloc Party and The Temper Trap are just two examples of bands that have employed this technique. It is also a technique which we adopted as it enables the audience to familiarise themselves with the band members, and gives them some form of identification with the band, which would make them more likely to purchase the product. Another convention which we chose to follow was the setting. Many bands in the genre opt to set their videos in a practice hall or room of a house, and the video for 'Balloons' by a band called Foals is a prime example of this. We, therefore, chose to set our video in a practice hall, as it acts as a stock ingredient of folk/indie videos, and the audience would know instantly what genre the video is from, and would be more encouraged to engage in it. In addition to this, animation is a common feature amongst folk/indie music videos, and examples can be seen from Jet (Are You Gonna Be My Girl?), The Fray (Heartless), and This Town Needs Guns (26 Is Dancier Than 4), amongst others. This is a convention which really appealed to us, and the audience as our audience research showed. Consequently, we chose to follow the examples of many bands within the genre, and included a number of scenes of animation in the video. The clothing of the characters (in our case, the band members) in our music video is conventional, too. The clothing can generally be classed as smart-casual in the genre; members wear garments such as t-shirts, shirts, cardigans, jeans, smart shoes, plimsolls, and so on. Mumford & Sons, Local Natives and Two Door Cinema Club are three folk/indie bands who opt for this kind of wear. This is little variation in terms of clothing in the genre, and subsequently, we thought it would be sensible to follow suit, and dress the characters in the video in the same kind of clothing, so that the audience are aware instantly of the genre, as clothing is a stock ingredient. Therefore, in our production we have followed several conventions of the genre, and these allow the audience to make an informed decision early on of the genre of our production.
However, there are also cases in our production where we have decided to challenge or develop conventions. Our use of lighting can be viewed as a development on the conventions of folk/indie music videos. Most of the videos in the genre feature natural lighting, or they get progressively light or dark, or in the case of The Temper Trap's 'Fader' lighting is flashing continuously. For the majority of our video we have opted for warm lighting, which gives a friendly feeling, and is conventional for the genre. However, we have developed this convention, by implementing flashing lighting at more dramatic parts of the song. This will keep the audience engaged as it evokes a change in the mood, and allows them to become more emotionally involved in the production. We have also challenged conventions in the dynamics of our video. Most music videos in the genre use either live shots or animation, which may or may not form a narrative, or they might have only a narrative, with no live shots and no animation. This Town Needs Guns for instance, have animation featuring continuously forming a narrative for their video '26 Is Dancier Than 4'. On the other hand, in 'Hunting For Witches' by Bloc Party, live shots are prominent. We have challenged the conventions, as we have created a hybrid of the two systems (live shots and animation). Though many bands use one or the other, as you can see from the examples, it is difficult to find an example where both are used, and therefore, we have challenged the conventions. We have chosen this system as we liked aspects of both animation and live shots; the animation is aesthetically pleasing, while the live shots allow the audience to familiarise themselves with the appearance of the respective band members. Consequently, we have challenged and developed some of the conventional aspects of music videos in the folk/indie genre.
To conclude, we have chosen to follow many of the conventions of folk/indie music videos. The stock ingredients are something which we have opted to adopt, as they act as idents, and the audience can promptly decipher the genre of our production. We have also chosen to have the band members visible throughout the video as it allows the audience to familiarise themselves with them. The animation which we decided to use was a feature that is common among music videos within the genre, and therefore, another convention which we have chosen to follow. However, there are also aspects of our production that have challenged forms and conventions. For instance, the changing of the lighting to reflect the pace of the song is something which is not commonly seen in folk/indie music videos, and consequently, a convention that we have developed. In addition to this, the dynamics of our video (animation running alongside live shots) also challenge the conventional music videos from the genre.
How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?
We have attempted to ensure that the combination of our main product and ancillary texts is effective by implementing a running theme throughout all three elements of the production. The colour scheme is forms a large part of the continuity between the three products (the music video, the magazine advertisement, and the CD/DVD cover); a discoloured white constitutes the background for the magazine advert and the CD/DVD cover, while it is the colour for the background of the animation in the music video. Therefore, our use of colour schemes is effective in the combination of our main product and ancillary tasks, and allows the audience to make the connection between the three. In addition to this, we have taken stills from the animation in our music video, and then edited them (using Adobe Photoshop CS3), and they feature on the CD cover and magazine advert, which combines the main product and ancillary texts together effectively. Furthermore, all three products include the band logo 'Belingo'; the music video features it animated at the end, and the ancillary products have it displayed. The same fonts are used in places where text is used, such as the CD cover and magazine advert, where Arial font is used. We decided to use Arial as it is simplistic, and for the blurb this is a factor which is desired. Therefore, there are a number of methods which we have used to ensure that there is a way of identifying that the three products are related to the same band, and consequently, the combination of them is effective.
Numerous examples can be found of instances where we have followed conventions. One convention of folk/indie music is that the early videos (for instance, promo videos) that the bands release tend to have the band members visible for a large amount of time; Bloc Party and The Temper Trap are just two examples of bands that have employed this technique. It is also a technique which we adopted as it enables the audience to familiarise themselves with the band members, and gives them some form of identification with the band, which would make them more likely to purchase the product. Another convention which we chose to follow was the setting. Many bands in the genre opt to set their videos in a practice hall or room of a house, and the video for 'Balloons' by a band called Foals is a prime example of this. We, therefore, chose to set our video in a practice hall, as it acts as a stock ingredient of folk/indie videos, and the audience would know instantly what genre the video is from, and would be more encouraged to engage in it. In addition to this, animation is a common feature amongst folk/indie music videos, and examples can be seen from Jet (Are You Gonna Be My Girl?), The Fray (Heartless), and This Town Needs Guns (26 Is Dancier Than 4), amongst others. This is a convention which really appealed to us, and the audience as our audience research showed. Consequently, we chose to follow the examples of many bands within the genre, and included a number of scenes of animation in the video. The clothing of the characters (in our case, the band members) in our music video is conventional, too. The clothing can generally be classed as smart-casual in the genre; members wear garments such as t-shirts, shirts, cardigans, jeans, smart shoes, plimsolls, and so on. Mumford & Sons, Local Natives and Two Door Cinema Club are three folk/indie bands who opt for this kind of wear. This is little variation in terms of clothing in the genre, and subsequently, we thought it would be sensible to follow suit, and dress the characters in the video in the same kind of clothing, so that the audience are aware instantly of the genre, as clothing is a stock ingredient. Therefore, in our production we have followed several conventions of the genre, and these allow the audience to make an informed decision early on of the genre of our production.
However, there are also cases in our production where we have decided to challenge or develop conventions. Our use of lighting can be viewed as a development on the conventions of folk/indie music videos. Most of the videos in the genre feature natural lighting, or they get progressively light or dark, or in the case of The Temper Trap's 'Fader' lighting is flashing continuously. For the majority of our video we have opted for warm lighting, which gives a friendly feeling, and is conventional for the genre. However, we have developed this convention, by implementing flashing lighting at more dramatic parts of the song. This will keep the audience engaged as it evokes a change in the mood, and allows them to become more emotionally involved in the production. We have also challenged conventions in the dynamics of our video. Most music videos in the genre use either live shots or animation, which may or may not form a narrative, or they might have only a narrative, with no live shots and no animation. This Town Needs Guns for instance, have animation featuring continuously forming a narrative for their video '26 Is Dancier Than 4'. On the other hand, in 'Hunting For Witches' by Bloc Party, live shots are prominent. We have challenged the conventions, as we have created a hybrid of the two systems (live shots and animation). Though many bands use one or the other, as you can see from the examples, it is difficult to find an example where both are used, and therefore, we have challenged the conventions. We have chosen this system as we liked aspects of both animation and live shots; the animation is aesthetically pleasing, while the live shots allow the audience to familiarise themselves with the appearance of the respective band members. Consequently, we have challenged and developed some of the conventional aspects of music videos in the folk/indie genre.
To conclude, we have chosen to follow many of the conventions of folk/indie music videos. The stock ingredients are something which we have opted to adopt, as they act as idents, and the audience can promptly decipher the genre of our production. We have also chosen to have the band members visible throughout the video as it allows the audience to familiarise themselves with them. The animation which we decided to use was a feature that is common among music videos within the genre, and therefore, another convention which we have chosen to follow. However, there are also aspects of our production that have challenged forms and conventions. For instance, the changing of the lighting to reflect the pace of the song is something which is not commonly seen in folk/indie music videos, and consequently, a convention that we have developed. In addition to this, the dynamics of our video (animation running alongside live shots) also challenge the conventional music videos from the genre.
How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?
We have attempted to ensure that the combination of our main product and ancillary texts is effective by implementing a running theme throughout all three elements of the production. The colour scheme is forms a large part of the continuity between the three products (the music video, the magazine advertisement, and the CD/DVD cover); a discoloured white constitutes the background for the magazine advert and the CD/DVD cover, while it is the colour for the background of the animation in the music video. Therefore, our use of colour schemes is effective in the combination of our main product and ancillary tasks, and allows the audience to make the connection between the three. In addition to this, we have taken stills from the animation in our music video, and then edited them (using Adobe Photoshop CS3), and they feature on the CD cover and magazine advert, which combines the main product and ancillary texts together effectively. Furthermore, all three products include the band logo 'Belingo'; the music video features it animated at the end, and the ancillary products have it displayed. The same fonts are used in places where text is used, such as the CD cover and magazine advert, where Arial font is used. We decided to use Arial as it is simplistic, and for the blurb this is a factor which is desired. Therefore, there are a number of methods which we have used to ensure that there is a way of identifying that the three products are related to the same band, and consequently, the combination of them is effective.
What have you learned from your audience feedback?
There are a number of things that I have learned from audience feedback during various stages of the production.
Audience feedback can be utilised during the construction stages, and this is something that my group and I discovered. Following audience feedback, we discussed with one another, and eventually altered the beginning of the storyboard. We had already produced the storyboard, but after we asked the potential audience how they felt about it, they indicated that the shots at the beginning of our storyboard were unnecessary and this led to us removing them. Therefore, it is likely that the audience feedback enabled us to construct a more enjoyable product, as we altered it on the feedback they had provided us. Consequently, I have learned that audience feedback is vital in the construction stages, as it can highlights areas which you did not think needed attention, and can aid you in making a more polished product.
From the post-production feedback, my group and I have learned that we need to pay closer attention to lighting in future productions. One of the comments stated, "in some cases the lighting was very dark and hard to see the band members in the corner." This demonstrates that at some stages of the video one of the key elements of a promo video (to allow the audience to familiarise themselves with the appearances of the band members) is not being achieved. Therefore, we must ensure that the lighting is correct at all stages of the production in the future. However, we did also become aware that aspects of our production did appeal to the audience from some of the audience feedback we received. One person stated, "I like the animation." This implies that we have been successful in producing animation suitable for music videos, and the audience feedback has helped us learn that we are capable of creating a product which appeals to our target audience.
How did you use new media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?
My group and I have used new media technologies in all stages of the production.
Construction
During the construction process, one of the main new media technologies we used was Windows Movie Maker. It allowed us to edit all of the footage we had shot, and cut down clips if we deemed it necessary. It also enabled us to alter the position of which we placed shots, for instance, there was a technical issue in one of the shots in that it had a tripod in the background, so using Windows Movie Maker, we placed another clip in its place. The shots which comprised our music video were taken using new media technologies. The shooting of the video clips was taken on a Flip Ultra HD Camcorder. As this camera was not suitable for the still images which were took for the stop-motion animation aspect of our music video, we had to use another new media technology, the Nikon Coolpix. This enabled us to take capture several images in a short space of time, and meant that we were able to construct the product in a shorter space of time.
Research and Planning
During the research and planning processes, we were able to use new technologies in a numerous ways. Firstly, this blog has been essential in keeping findings in one place. It has also meant that people can easily comment on posts, and this has enabled us to conduct more extensive audience research, for instance, some people answered the questionnaire by accessing our blog. We also utilised the more luxury features of the blog, such as embedding videos. Subsequently, it means that links do not have to be clicked on, as the video is automatically loaded on the page. Therefore, the blog has been one way in which we have used new media technologies. In addition to this, Microsoft Excel allowed us to create tables and graphs for the findings of our questionnaire. Incidentally, the results we made more user friendly, and we could analyse them far easier, and new media technologies have helped in this way. Windows Movie Maker was also utilised at this stage of the production as it meant that we could practice the animation; we experimented with the programme, and put all of the images we took on a timeline and we able to create stop-motion animation in the process. Microsoft Outlook was used by everyone in the group, particularly for organisation purposes. Its use enabled us to notify each other of props we needed to bring, for example.
Evaluation
The blog has been a predominant feature of the evaluation. All of the information that I have required to write the evaluation has been posted somewhere in the blog, and therefore, its easily accessible and meant that the process of writing the evaluation has been simplified by using this new media technology. Youtube has also been an important new media technology in writing the evaluation. We uploaded our video onto the website, and then linked people to it, and they have since commented on it, and in doing so provided us with important audience feedback which I have used in the evaluation. Facebook is a new media technology in the form of social networking that I have also utilised in the same manner.
In conclusion, my group and I have utilised new media technologies in several ways during the construction, research, planning, and evaluation stages of our production. Windows Movie Maker, Microsoft Outlook, and Microsoft Excel are the main examples of programmes we have used in these stages. Though, we have also used websites (Facebook, Youtube and Blogger), and different forms of cameras, to enhance our production.
