This is the mind map for the initial ideas that I had for the music video of We Can't Dance - 'You Don't Know'. The mind map details ideas for different sections of the music. This section of the mind map shows information of the band, We Can't Dance. Here, it shows an image of the band members and an image of their first EP release.
This section of the mind map showed the idea I had for the camera angles I would present the music video with. The image shows an example of an ideal camera angle to use, being labelled with text saying "The image below could also go with lighting and costume. It fits the genre of the song and band."
This section of the mind map shows the costume ideas, being separated into different sections for males and females. The costume ideas highlight the current conventional fashion trend, this would help to relate to the audience and signify the genre of the music. The use of costume is important, with the target audience copying their favourite band's clothes. Artists are also judged on the type of clothes they wear, helping to make a good first impression with new fans.
This is the mind map that I made when I was still undecided on what artist that I was making a music video for. The mind map details the ideas that I had for the music video of Microchip and his song 'Violence'.
Different methods on how to use stop motion were thought of, with design models being made to test the effectiveness of each method. Method one was to used one word per an A4-sized piece of paper, with the text being printed off the computer after the use of a word processor. The shot would then only show a change in word and not the background scenery of the mise en scene. Method two was to use post it notes with the text being handwritten. The post it notes would be stuck to a white paper background in different shots, with only one note in the first and two in the second etc. Method three was to stick together post it notes to create the words of the chorus. The letters would spell out the words, and be filmed on a paper background being similiar to the other methods.
After the testing process method 3 was not effective, with the time that the text took to produce being too long. The letters that were made were also too large for the quality of the music video to be of a good standard and being bigger in size than the paper background. The vocals were also of a too quick tempo for the words to be able to be spelt out as the words are being sang. Methods 1 and 2 were both successes, with the only problem being with method 2 and the movement of the post it notes during the practise shoot.
After the planning of the shoot for the stop motion, the filming was started. I decided the easiest and most effective way of the text being shot without the problem of shaky handheld camera shots, I used an camera tripod. This meant I was able to keep the camera fixed in the same direction, creating the same location for all of the shots. The tripod was set up infront of a door in my house, as the papers with the text written on were stuck on the door with the use of blutack. An example of how this looked is shown in the image above. With the use of paper markers I managed to keep different pieces of paper stuck to the wall in the same position, this meant that the camera position did not have to be changed which would have caused an issue with the timing of the shoot.
In my music video I used stop motion for the first play of the chorus, with the lyrics of the chorus shown in the mise-en-scene. While I was watching other music videos the other day I came across a music video which was fully based on the idea of lyrics of the song being shown along the music throughout the whole video, although was of a different genre of music to the song that used. With the song being being produced and performed by two well known artists, Rihanna and David Guetta, the music video is well funded. Instead of using still images which are then merged together, the music video uses animation and special effects. It is used very effectively with the genre of the song, which is Dance, using bright colours to represent the use of flashing lights in nightclubs, with the chorus of song being used especially with quick changes of bright colours on a black background making the audience feel like that they are actually in a pub; while the song would have heavy involvement in night clubs. The fast pace of the text symbolizes with the fast pace of the song and the busiest of nightculbs in modern society.
The use of the Cannon video camera was key to making the music video, without the camera no filming could of been done. All of the footage for the music video, apart from the photos for the top motion, was captured by the video camera.
Tape
A new tape cassette was required to record and store the footage onto. The need for a new tape was to avoid the troubles of the qualitly of the new footage being poor.
Tripod
The tripod was used to stablise the camera while taking shots, while if needed the height and angle could be adjusted. The tripod was mainly used for long distance shots, although when the shot needed to be still it was used as well.
Stills Camera
The stills camera was used to take photos for location ideas around Norwich. The camera was also used for the stop motion that featured in the music during the chorus.
The location of the music video is an important part as it must fit in with the genre of the song, while also help to represent the target audience, the band and the meaning of the song. The location must be somewhere where you expect to find the target audience, a place they were they hang out with their friends or some where they would visit. Seeing a certain group of people in a place where they do not fit nor where they would have no interest in going would sent mixed messages to the audience; although this could be part of the idea of the video to use people's views of one another and twisting them. The setting of the location must also go with the mood of the song; the mood and beat of We Can't Dance - I Don't Knowis fast paced, while also upbeat and happy. This means that the location of the music video must use bright colours and lighting, while creating a positive vibe that is shown through the music video and felt by the audience.
The photos below are location shots of the streets that I could use for the middle verse of the song where the main character is running through the city to find the girl. The only trouble of using these locations would be the amount of traffic and people that would be going past and maybe disturbing the shoot. The buildings that are next to the streets are around 30 to 40 years old, holding that vintage 70's look that is similar to that of the target audience. The shots also show the conventional view into an old British city that is had compared to the modern view of London.
For the beginning of the music video I shall use Chapelfield Gardens as the location. I shall start by walking alongside the Chapelfield shopping mall before entering Chapelfield Gardens for the first verse and chorus. These are common locations in where the target audience use to hang out with their friends. With the location being a park with trees and flowers it has lots of brights colours that reflects the mood and vibe of the song. While Chapelfield is an iconic location in Norwich, with the gardens and shopping centre being very popular. Chapelfield Gardens has a band stand (shown in one of the pictures below) helping to promote music to unsigned and unknown bands. In the summer Chapelfield Gardens held a mini festival during the Lord Mayor's procession with unsigned bands, mainly who are based locally, playing. The Chapelfield mall is a relatively new to Norwich, giving a modern feel to Norwich and the music video.
The costume used in a music video is an important part of how the band represents themselves, their fans and creates a bond with their fans by being associated with the same style and having the same ideologies as one another, putting them in the same social 'tribe'. The way that people are dressed in a music video, especially the band members, reflects on how the target audience dresses too, or inspires their style as they want to be like their favourite band. Costume is also sometimes used in music videos to show an opinion on another social group, giving them a negative representation, for example the video below.
The Drums - Best Friend
With the target audience of We Can't Dance seen as 'Indie Kids' I have decided to use an normal ideology for how they dress. The main character will be shown as indie, making the audience reflect with him for being like them. I shall use the following pieces of clothing for the main character:
The shoes that would be wore by the main character are Plimsolls, like the ones that are shown in the picture to the right. . In the early months of 2008, the Plimsoll shoe within the UK became a major fashion statement, with many celebrities such as Pete Doherty and other stars influencing their comeback. They are generally worn with tight fitting jeans or jeans with turned up bottoms. Recently however, they have become part of hipster fashion.
Skinny Jeans are the most conventional view that people think of when they are asked or think what indie kids would wear after they were brought back into by indie revival bands in the early 2000's, most notably by The Strokes. By the end of the decade the fashion began to replace the baggy jeans of the 1990s and early 2000s. Among women, skinny jeans are most often worn tucked into boots or scrunched up over the wearer's footwear. Skinny jeans are becoming mainstream to men, as well. This style is often associated with the emo and scene styles, though hip-hop and rap artists, such as Lil' Wayne, are seen to be adopting this style as well. There have been many famous artists who have wore skinny jeans, for example Elvis Presley, Freddie Mercury and Michael Jackson with skinny jeans being fashionable before in 1950s, 1970s and 1980s. 'Tapered' jeans became most notable with country music stars and helped with the birth of rock and roll in the 1950s. jeans and rock 'n' roll were inextricably linked to create the "bad boy" image that remains today. In the early 1960s they were worn by numerous rock bands, including The Beatles and The Rolling Stones.
In the last few years more and more people have started to wear shirts as a casual fashion, and not just for formal occasions. The shirts that are wore have a vintage look about them, like the shirt to the right, this is the type of clothing that the target audience wear. I have decided for the main character of the video to wear a shirt like this, with a cardigan over top. Mainly because this is the conventional view people have of the audience, while it fits into the narrative of the story with the main character having to take off his shirt.
After research we have decided to use inspiration from another music video for our own. The music video we used was for the song I Found Out by The Pigeon Detectives, using the idea of superheroes and the relationship between men and women. The superhero idea goes with the song title, You Don't Know, with people not knowing who is behind the mask, while also having a hidden meaning of finding out that someone you hold close isn't who you thought and 'not knowing' who they are.
The main narrative for the music video is a young male, who has just spilt up with his girlfriend, running across the city to try and find her and get back together with her. But when he gets there she is with someone else and completely ignores him.
There is the narrative structure for our music video:
Starts with a close up of a foot tapping to the beat of the intro. The costume of the character is of the ideology that is held of how indie kids look like, with the character wearing skinny jeans, plimsolls and a shirt.The shot is unfocused until music kicks in.
The camera scrolls up the body of the character, starting at his shoes up to the top of his shirt/neck. This shows the audience what he is wearing, creating a ideology of the character before he has even been seen.
The character starts to walk after the first lyric "You better run, they're coming for you." Close ups are used mainly, while location is of Chapelfield Gardens.
The character keeps looking at a picture of him and a female on his phone as he walks through a park. He opens up a contact on his phone, stares at it before going to press the call button and hesitating. Close up of phone and face are used in this shot.
At the end of the chorus the first time it is played, "I've got the solution, to end this thing." the character undoes shirt to reveal superhero costume. Close up of the buttons of the character's shirt being undone, then removed with the logo of a superhero visible.
The camera zooms out of the character to see the character in a full superhero costume.
The character then starts running across to the other side of the city.
During the last versus, the character catches up to the girl. Medium shot of the character slowing down.
A close up of the girl smiling, fooling the audience into believing it's a happy ending.
The girl is now in the arms of another man. Medium shot of both of them.
Long shot of all the characters with main character's face visible, shocked/upset look on face.
Medium shot of the main character, he is now wearing the clothes that he wore at the beginning of the video. Zooms/pans to show the new man wearing the superhero costume.
The new couple then walk off. Leaving the main character on his own as the song fades out.
We Can't Dance - You Don't Know Run time of track - 3:37 minutes.
You'd better run cos' their coming for you. It's about time you changed all you're views. You'd better run cos' their coming for you. It's about time you changed all you're views.
You don't, you don't, you don't, you don't know. You don't, you don't, you don't you don't think. I've got, I've got, I've got the solution To end, to end, to end this thing. You don't, you don't, you don't, you don't know You don't, you don't, you don't you don't think I've got, I've got, I've got the solution To end, to end, to end this thing.
Give me a minute, to gather my thoughts and I'll give you an hour, to gather yours. Give me a minute, to gather my thoughts and I'll give you an hour, to gather yours.
You don't, you don't, you don't, you don't know. You don't, you don't, you don't you don't think. I've got, I've got, I've got the solution To end, to end, to end this thing. You don't, you don't, you don't, you don't know. You don't, you don't, you don't you don't think. I've got, I've got, I've got the solution To end, to end, to end this thing.
Got an idea, well good for you. Bet you any money, that it falls through. Got an idea, well good for you. Bet you any money, that it falls through. Got an idea, well good for you. Bet you any money, that it falls through. Got an idea, well good for you. Bet you any money, that it falls through.
Below are the two messages that I sent and recieved to and from the artists. These both give our group permission to use their material for the project, while I have also explained to them about who I am and details about why I want to use their material.
When we were told of our project and what we had to do we started to look for an artist that was local. We used websites, like MySpace.com, and word of mouth to find out about local unsigned bands. After a few nights of scanning the artist's material I managed to bring the shortlist down to two. These two artists we were;
We Can't Dance are a unsigned indie pop band from Norwich. They are a 4 piece set consisting of band members Harry Dawson, Josie Steward , Tom Joy and Ash Alsop. The band were formed in October 2009 through "Access To Music", a company which has now partnered up with the Norwich Arts Centre College to help get local bands into recording and productions. This has helped them to slowly gain more and more fans with many gigs in Norwich being sold out; the latest one being when they supported Ed Sheeran at The Waterfront in August 2010, while they have an upcoming gig at The B2 where they are headlining to promte their new E.P. The band have also been featured on BBC Radio 1's Introducing Show, whilst also being featured on BBC Radio 6's Introducing Show. We Can't Dance currently have one E.P out called 'Gary Doherty' containing four tracks, with the namesake track making it into the Top 40 indie chart at 40th place. The track that we chose to use is off the 'Gary Doherty' E.P, and is called You Don't Know.
Microchip, aka Tom Joy, is an electronic artist in an one man piece from Norwich. He started writing music when he was 12 years old. Most of his compositions were guitar based and heavily influenced by 70s rock and roll. In aim to branch out Tom learnt to play bass guitar aswell, and played his first gig in September 2005, aged 13. After gaining his first taste of live performing, he was determined to carry on his music, and learnt to do his own recordings at home. After a few months of practicing with his recording equipment and learning keyboard, Tom's music started to take a new, interesting direction, mixing basic keyboard sounds with heavy guitar lines and a simple drum machine instead of a real drummer. Tom found that he worked better with music when he was on his own, and started his own electronic music project in November 2006. Tom's first one-man band was purely electronic, using simple sounds from his computer to make music. He thought that his music sounded like soundtracks from old video games and decided to base all of his music around this retro sound. As time went on the music gradually became less video game like and started entering new territories. In April 2007, Tom and a couple of friends formed a punk band. Having a strong influence of Muse and Enter Shikari, the band decided that they should have some synthesizer and electronics in their music, a job which was handed to Tom. After doing this for a year the band dispanded after realising that they were not very good, going on to do their own things. At this point Tom was fed up of the generic band set up, and not being able to work well with other people to try and create music that he liked playing he began a search of something interesting and new. After reluctantly being invited to a chiptune night at local Norwich venue B2, Tom found what he was looking for, and founded Microchip. Microchip has currently released two EPs, the first being 'Johan Vs Oliver' in February 2009, and the second being 'Midnight Sun' in June 2009.
I messaged both artists on MySpace.com asking for permission to use their material before we asked for feedback from an all round audience who like different genres of music. After discussing with the class after showing them the two tracks that we had chosen to do from both artist, we got feedback from the class saying which one they preferred. The feedback was spilt between the class, showing the different target audiences for both tracks. With me and my other group member being more into the indie music genre we chose to use We Can't Dance over Microchip as we felt that we would be able to represent the band and the music much better, even though we both have an interest into the electronic music genre.
This is the mind map for the initial ideas that I had for the music video of We Can't Dance - 'You Don't Know'. The mind map details ideas for different sections of the music.
This section of the mind map shows information of the band, We Can't Dance. Here, it shows an image of the band members and an image of their first EP release.
This section of the mind map showed the idea I had for the camera angles I would present the music video with. The image shows an example of an ideal camera angle to use, being labelled with text saying "The image below could also go with lighting and costume. It fits the genre of the song and band."
This section of the mind map shows the costume ideas, being separated into different sections for males and females. The costume ideas highlight the current conventional fashion trend, this would help to relate to the audience and signify the genre of the music. The use of costume is important, with the target audience copying their favourite band's clothes. Artists are also judged on the type of clothes they wear, helping to make a good first impression with new fans.
This is the mind map that I made when I was still undecided on what artist that I was making a music video for. The mind map details the ideas that I had for the music video of Microchip and his song 'Violence'.
