Found Footage Task.

'uncool playlist'

PostModernism | Daft Punk

Apply Audience Theory to your Product

For my advanced portfolio I created a music video, aimed at an indie rock genre who’s hobbies were based on going to gigs and listening to/playing music. I wanted to interest this specific audience by creating a music video that they could relate to rather than I high end, large budget music video. I feel I created a production that the audience wanted. To create this image I wanted to use a standard room they most ammeter band would most likely practice in, so limited room available with the all the equipment 'crammed' in and standing out. I also wanted to keep the video constantly changing through a large percentage of the song so I used different camera techniques and angles to create this. With the main focus on the instruments and a common practise room I thought the target market would enjoy viewing the video a lot more, which was also a positive as it made the whole production much cheaper to make.

Using IMovie, I edited the clips together along with the pre recorded music. The moving shots kept the video interesting still with a focus on the instruments by using close up on the guitars. Also with a clear focus on the band as I wanted to ensure the audience could make them identifiable by face. This is important with this genre of music as the band are together the star image seen on most of the products they will sell. To emphasis the music I ensured I used clips of the relevant instrument at the stand out parts of the song for example for the drumming intro I used a mid shot of the drums. The range of shots I wanted to keep varied throughout the video with one front facing mid shot that would be used to create continuity within the chorus. I therefore used some interesting shots such as the close up focus change on the high hat and also the close up on the drummers foot peddle which I have found brought a lot of interest in the feedback. The key lyrics correspond with close ups of the lead singer.

After the first draft the feedback I received from both peers and teachers was encouraging, as well at the comments and feedback I had received from my YouTube upload. There were comments about a few small mistakes I had made within the music to video syncing mainly with the drumming. However this was easy and quick to adjust and re upload as my second draft. I then thought about the detailing on my video and how I could improve the final draft. I decided to add my production company logo to the video as a water mark and also the band website at the end. This firstly gives the production company recognition as well as a professional look and also increases the chance of the audience showing further interest in the band creating links they could use.

Overall I feel that my final product really appealed to my target audience. It featured a directed focus on the instrument and band members with a performance video that would appeal on a direct level to the audience, as well as keeping the professional image with the equipment and camera quality. All of those conventions of an indie rock genre that the audience wants to see. Therefor hopefully increasing the bands fan base and widening their opportunities as performers. As well as creating an identity for the band that they can go on and portray through the sales of Albums, mechanise and future gigs. 

Inglorious Basterds Research

Essay one.

“Digital Technology turns media consumers into media producers”. In your own experience, how has your creativity developed using developed using digital technology to complete your coursework productions?

I believe with modern technologies its now easier for people to be creative with the vast amount of information available through the world wide web and also the software that is accessible to create professional looking products without much skill or thought. I also think it depends on the task, relating to how much skill is actually needed and how much digital technology can be relied on to product a quality end result. 

During my music video production task I used a number of different media technologies to aid my work into the final end product. The most important software I used during my project was iMovie. This is a simple easy to use software that I already had a lot of experience with so therefor found it easy to edit my shots with. The software has many different features allowing anyone with the programme to create a professional looking video/movie with little effort. IMovie allows you to add; music, sound effects and photos as well as title, transitions, maps, backgrounds and animatics. This gives the user a lot of easily accessible effects giving professional finishes without any skill at all and just a small bit of knowledge into the woking of iMovie.

Another software I used during the production process of my music video is YouTube. This is an online software that is widely used around the world being among the most used websites on the internet. YouTube firstly help me discover other music videos and therefor give me more of an insight into the conventions in my specific genre. The millions of video  available gave me a strong research basis especially into what the target market liked and didn't like. With the large amount of people using YouTube this was a great place to upload my music video through the stages of production to get feedback from a wider range of people. Although not alway 100 percent reliable the feedback did push me into making the right decissions for my video. YouTube is widely available to everyone with internet access and as I have found it doesn't take a massively creative or professional looking video to get a high amount of views. Uploading my final video at the end of my production video will have given it a large potential audience and the best chance of getting spotted for no physical extra cost. 

For my digipak I chose to use Photoshop as the software I wanted to use to edit. This for me was a programme I had easily accessible on both school computers and also a personal Mac laptop, however this software is expensive and not so easily accessible to most people. Also it is quite a complex programme to use and takes time to get used to the effect that are available. However when even the basic controls are learnt Photoshop is capable of create many different types of products suitable for professional use. In my project I used tone, colour and contrast adjustment to edit the look of the images I took, enhancing the quality. I also used tool such as the magic wand to cleanly cut out my photos and remove the background. With the use of dafont.com I was able to download a variety of font, differing from the standard fonts available, straight into Photoshop to make my design stand out with originality.

Photoshop was fast and easy to use with my background knowledge of how to use it which saved a lot of time, as well as developing my skills throughout the production of my digipak, finding new and interesting tools as I went along. Photoshop allows you to save in a high resolution jpeg format allowing the quality of the digipak to be kept which I felt was important when creating a professional finish. I found this quality even more apparent when using a mac to edit and save.

To conclude I believe that have the access to a wide range of media technologies during the production of both my music video and digipak has improved the overall quality and creativity within the task. It has allowed me to research and gain greater knowledge into the genre I was aiming for which I was able portray into the design of my products to therefor appeal to my target market. One this that stands out for the use of media technology and especially the software that I used is that nothing it permanent and mistakes and improvements can be easily changed and made. Amatuer media consumers I feel I have shown can reach the same quality finished product through the use of digital technologies as most professionals and therefor reduces the gap between consumers and producers, therefor lowering the value of the professionals. 

I will be presenting my research using iMovie. Using this I can include all the photos, clips, text that I will need combined with a voice over commentry to give an intresting and informative presentation.