Digipak research

Template

I will be using a similar template to the one above since it is the most conventional and popular on the market. This will mean I will have to design the front cover, back, side panel, inside cover and poster to fit in it.

Indie Digipaks

As Indie music is very alternative, the album covers usually correspond the style. They tend not to feature the band and instead have pictures and colors that help promote the album. For example the Digipak for The XX doesn't have any pictures of the band and is very plain and simple however is quite effective since people instantly know who the band is as it is distinctive.

If the band does have a band on it, it usually is in cartoon form like the cover from 'Blur' which has an animated picture of all of the band members which I think looks cool as it shows the fact that they are independent and different. 

I have noticed that many Indie album covers only feature the bands name on the front because they want to promote themselves a lot however for my Digipak I think I will di it the other way round and have the name of the song on the from cover as it is called 'Digital Kids' I think it will look good as a title. 

I want to base my Digipak on the fact that my video will be abstract rather than the fact that it is essentially an Indie sounding song because I think it will look better and more visually appealing. 

I am really inspired by this Digipak from Pink Floyd because I like the look of the triangle on the black background. On the front cover I want to have a picture of my actor against a black background and add a triangle pattern on top to give it an abstract look. I have noticed that many Digipaks include a lyrics book or poster and a list of the songs on the back. However I think I will produce mine as if the song is a single therefore I can create an effective poster and add the name of the actor on the back rather than front. 

I really like the continuity within this digipak because the color scheme of gold, black and white really works. Although the CD is quite dark compared to the album cover you can still tell that it is from the same album. I really like that the album cover is not an image of the band and is of hands touching because I think it is effective and gives some idea of what the album is about. 

Final Cut Pro X Reverse Optical Flow Tutorial

I really loved this tutorial because I always wanted to know how to reverse footage but I never knew how and this video is really easy to understand. I will definitely use this technique in some parts of my video when my character is becoming intoxicated.

How To Blur Something In Final Cut Pro X

I found this tutorial helpful because I want to blurr some of the shots to make it look like the audience is experiencing it through teary eyes,

Outfit mood board

This is my outfit mood board. I think the character would wear quite dark clothes since she is rebellious and troubled. The song is about how young people shouldnt be exposed to the harsh reality of life so early therefore I think it would work. Most of the footage will be taken in the dark so she wouldn't be wearing girly/cute clothes. I also added the pills and alcohol to show the mood and characteristics of the person since the song talks about young people being lost.

Ideas spider diagram

Poll

I decided to add a poll to my blog to see if I could get some extra audience research. I asked these questions because I think it will help me in deciding what qualities to use in my music video. I want to find out whether people prefer to see a narrative because I am undecided whether I should have one or not. I will post the results at a later date.

Cast List

Fortunately I have found someone to act in my music video after having various people drop out due to other commitments.


Name: Maia Rose Blake
Age:19
Subjects:Performing Arts, Media, Film Studies.

I think Maia would be a great actress for my music video since she already has a lot of acting experience which will make the footage believable. She also has the right look because she is slim and with the right clothing will look 'Indie' or 'grunge' which is the image I wanted.

New lyrics analysis

Spoken word

Research

INDIE MUSIC

It is very common for Indie artists to use performance in their music video and the main focus is to show the artist being passionate for their music. They also like to show off their talent because they aren't as interested in the money and fame side, they just like to make good music. Indie artist normally have a low budget when it comes to producing the music video because they aren't as well known as celebrities and artists from major labels. They usually come from independent record labels where the music is made purely from talent and instruments using standard equipment.

RESEARCH

To help with the development of my music video I did some reserach on abstract film in which I could adapt to fit a music video. I found that abstract film is a subgenre of experimental film. Some of the earliest abstract motion pictures known to survive are those produced by a group of german artists working in the early 1920's. These artists present different approaches to abstraction-in-motion as an anologue to music or as the creation of absolute language of form.
        I also researched absoluet music and found that it is not explicitly about anything and is non representational. The idea of absolute music developed at the end of the 18th century in the writings of German Romanticism such as Willhelm Heinrich Wakenroder. The definition is "Instrumental music, as a concerto or string quartet that draws no inspiration from or makes no reference to a text, programme, visual image or title and that exists solely in terms of its musical form, structure and elements".
       I think this definition is helpful because I can take ideas from it when I create my music video. For example, even though my music has text/lyrics, the video itself will not be very representitive as my actor is going on a jouney however we never know where she is going and there is no reference in the text, therefore eahc individual can decide for themesleves where she is going or what her intentions are etc.

Abstract videos and Influences

I looked at some abstract music videos for inspiration. I like how they don't have a narrative and with the song 'Digital kids' you can interpret it how you like from listening to the lyrics. I also like the fact that in the original digital kids video the girl is going on a journey but you don't know where which leaves it up to the audience to figure out.

 I also found this abstract video which didn't really have a distinctive narrative however I like the way they blurred some of the shots and how they made it episodic and had slow motion because I think it makes it interesting to watch. I also like the way that it looks like an old movie because it gives it an authentic feel.

I really like the video for 'Chandelier' by Sia since the narrative is told through an extremely abstract dance about alcohol and substance abuse which I thought was really visually appealing. I like the way in which the camera follows the dancer which is something I would possible like to use in my music video and is really reflective of the lyrics.

I really like this video by Mumford and Sons for 'Lover of the Light' because it establishes the location straight away just from diegetic sounds such as seagulls and waves crashing. I really like this idea and think that I will have something similar at the beginning of my video to show that she is in a busy city.  

CHANGE OF PLAN

Due to being let down by various people to be my actor I have decided to change my idea's slightly. I will keep many of the shots the same however I would like to change the song and the style. I will keep the costume and amount of actors the same however I want to make my video more abstract, therefore I am going to change the song to a spoken word song called 'Digital Kids' by Viktor Taiwo. I feel like this will give me much more opportunity to use better cinematography and have a much more interesting video.
       I am going to keep the same genre of 'Indie Pop' because the real artist 'Vicktor Taiwo' is mostly a rap artist however he is independent as he writes his own song and isn't under a major label. However my artist will be more 'well known' because I can then play around with more advertising methods.

Lighting

Today I wanted find a suitable lighting state to use for some shots. The lighting I had been using had a yellowy tone and made the skin look dull so I tried the ones out from college and noticed that they were very good and made the skin look bright and highlighted certain features better. I took a photo of each lighting state.

You can see that the photo on the left is slightly darker than the one on the right and gives a yellow tone. You can also tell that the one on the left has a lot of shadowing under the eyes and under the chin where as the other photo does not. The one on the right is much brighter and the colours are enhanced. I will definitely use this light if I need it for shots. I could also use it whilst creating the Digi-pak. 

Camera Shots

After my mock exam I decided that I should practise and research some camera shots as I think the ones I did were pretty boring and standard. Also I havent had much practise with the camera so I wanted to get more experience and know how to take better shots. I found this website which gives information about the types of shots there are which I found useful since many of them I hadnt heard of however they look like they would be good and easy to use.

     I also looked for videos on how to take good camera shots and found a YouTuber that makes music videos. She also does tutorials on how to make music videos and I found this one really good since she explained different ways that you can take good shots without needing all of the equiptment such as a pan. My friend took some pictures of me practising some camera shots.