Because of the growing issues regarding copyright in this
day and age, when chosing our music track we chose from the internet. WWW.unsigned.com features lots of artists
that are not tied to any record label, allowing for their music to be free from
copyright. The use of the internet and other new media helps artists to create
their work and share it online, without having to deal with the constraints of
working with a record company. Because of this we browsed the site, looking for
an indie band, a genre that interested the group as a whole. We found The
Smiling Lies and attempted to contact them, however they did not reply to us.
In this case we looked at other quirky music videos and took inspiration from
them, these include The Beastie Boys, some Oasis videos with a strong
narrative, and the Automatic’s monster video. We research a bit of background
information on our artists by using their Myspace and the Unsigned page in
order to help us construct our pitch. When creating our Music Promo, we used a
Canon DLSR camera and a HD Sony camera. The use of HD helped to create a
professional feel for the footage and about half of the footage filmed was
filmed on a tripod. A lot of the other footage, such as close ups and moving
shots were filmed freehand so that the video retained it’s fast paced feel and
gave the impression that the viewer was in the scene with the band. In order to
create a realistic lipsyncing feel, we played the audio through a laptop
instead of individual headphones, so that everyone knew what was in time and
when to perform. A downside of this was because of the sheer volume of the
drums, it was hard to hear the music over them, so in future projects which
require this, perhaps find a way to subtly mute the drums, or use a louder set
of speakers.
Another key part of our filming equipment that we used is a
Fish Eye lens. The use of this lens in narrative brings the otherworldly feel
to life. Taking inspiration from Intergalactic by the Beastie Boys we chose to
use the lens to create an abstract and otherworldy feel.
Fish eye lens example.
We did try to film the performance in a band room originally, but the lighting and the amount of camera angles were not sufficient. There are multiple reasons for this, such as us not having high enough lighting of a good quality, as this made the shots look flat and dull, and being restricted by the size of the room. Because of this we decided to reshoot the footage using professional lighting rigs in a bigger, more open location. These helped to create the lighting effect we wanted and increased the professional look of the performance which was what we were looking to do.
We did try to film the performance in a band room originally, but the lighting and the amount of camera angles were not sufficient. There are multiple reasons for this, such as us not having high enough lighting of a good quality, as this made the shots look flat and dull, and being restricted by the size of the room. Because of this we decided to reshoot the footage using professional lighting rigs in a bigger, more open location. These helped to create the lighting effect we wanted and increased the professional look of the performance which was what we were looking to do.
Because we decided to shoot at night
time, we had to light the central area using the stage lights and in order to
use the car as the backdrop, the car was parked on the drive and the lighting
was set up around the car to create a shot that featured just the car in the
background. In order to achieve this we had to use the lighting set up
efficiently to make sure the lights are set up in the right positions.
We set the lighting up to illuminate the front of the car
and the ground around it by angling the lights downwards and setting them up in
front of the car. We did this so there was no background visible and this gave
the impression that the car was the backdrop. This was done to create an
unusual looking stage location which would appear eye catching and individual.
The overall look of
the pro-lighting and the use of the car as the backdrop created footage,
superior to the original. The variety of shot was increased and we took much
more footage then before, giving us plenty of spare footage to work with in
order to get the shots for the fast paced editing we were going for. For the
editing process we used the programmes iMovie and Final Cut Pro. We did the
bulk of the editing in iMovie because it is simple to use and has an easy
saving and importing process. In our initial ideas, we wanted to create a
teleporting effect by fading videos together sing final cut. Because of
technical issues regarding exporting the files, we abandoned this idea; however
we kept the footage for test footage.
Specific ways we used Imovie:
We edited the footage by cutting, and splitting clips. We added some visual effects on some shots to keep the colours the same throughout. We sharpened some shots which were not quite in focus for fast cuts. We sped up some of the narrative footage to add to the comical and lighthearted feel of it all, and we cropped some of the shots to remove some elements that were just on screen. For the final shot we added a blur effect to add to the idea that the song ad come to an end, and the song was set to fade out as well. Imovie was used to sync the audio also, delivering one of the most conventional elements to the video. One final thing we used Imovie for was exporting the video in HD, to give it a more professional feel.
We edited the footage by cutting, and splitting clips. We added some visual effects on some shots to keep the colours the same throughout. We sharpened some shots which were not quite in focus for fast cuts. We sped up some of the narrative footage to add to the comical and lighthearted feel of it all, and we cropped some of the shots to remove some elements that were just on screen. For the final shot we added a blur effect to add to the idea that the song ad come to an end, and the song was set to fade out as well. Imovie was used to sync the audio also, delivering one of the most conventional elements to the video. One final thing we used Imovie for was exporting the video in HD, to give it a more professional feel.
Example of Final Cut usage: Splitting clip for original footage.
Speeding up clips on iMovie
Fast Paced Editing
Splitting clips
Adding Effects
Final Cut test video
For our ancillary tasks we used the programme Photoshop to
manipulate and colour the different images to create the desired indie effect.
This is because Photoshop features an easy to use Layer tool, which means we
can trace the original image and just leave the sketched over version, which a
background is then applied to and coloured. This allows for an accurate drawing
to be created on the computer creating a professional looking set of album
artwork.
Other technologies we used during the production were
Blogger, to host all the planning digitally so lots of multimedia can be used
to make up the planning, using Photoshop and GIMP to create costume sketches
via a graphics tablet, which allowed for detailed, digital sketches.
After the creation of the production, we posted the video onto Facebook and Youtube, allowing us to share our creation with the world, and also allowing other people to comment and provide feedback on the work. The video on Facebook gained lots of feedback and the Youtube video currently has over 500 views. Feedback from the Band was positive and finding this out would be near impossible without the use of new media, as the band is from America. The use of a global network such as the internet has allowed us to create these international links.
After the creation of the production, we posted the video onto Facebook and Youtube, allowing us to share our creation with the world, and also allowing other people to comment and provide feedback on the work. The video on Facebook gained lots of feedback and the Youtube video currently has over 500 views. Feedback from the Band was positive and finding this out would be near impossible without the use of new media, as the band is from America. The use of a global network such as the internet has allowed us to create these international links.
What I have learnt from this experience:
This year’s media project has had some unforeseen issues that I will know to look out for in the future. The lighting and location issues resulted in a last minute refilming crisis, changing our initial idea to something which ultimately worked better with our chosen genre. The refilming was caused by lighting issues and a lack of space in order to get suitable shots. In the future, practical testing of the location beforehand will take place, and lighting will be a top priority. The studio lighting rigs we used outside were far superior to the dark, dingy lighting of our first shoot and this was a major problem. The refilmed footage tackled these issues and looked superior in the final promo.
This year’s media project has had some unforeseen issues that I will know to look out for in the future. The lighting and location issues resulted in a last minute refilming crisis, changing our initial idea to something which ultimately worked better with our chosen genre. The refilming was caused by lighting issues and a lack of space in order to get suitable shots. In the future, practical testing of the location beforehand will take place, and lighting will be a top priority. The studio lighting rigs we used outside were far superior to the dark, dingy lighting of our first shoot and this was a major problem. The refilmed footage tackled these issues and looked superior in the final promo.
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