Blog 11

After a week of successful filming, it became essential for us to sit down evaluate and analyse what shots would work well in our final production. Through the use of the software device (final cut pro), we were able to edit really effectively. But before all the editing had began, we went through all the shots and chose the ones we liked, but more crucially got rid of the ones that we didn't need. Doing this, gave us the go ahead to choose where some of the shots would be in the final production. What i found most vital however, was the nuance each of my group members shows, although i may not have agreed with some of the shots that were taken, they had a vision that enabled me to see how it could be implemented within the video. During the later stages of week 11, we needed to do some extra camera work, this time it was taking photos rather than recording. This was done in preparation for our magazine cover, so it was important to find the right cover shot.

Job Roles

The job roles was significant to us as a group because it gave clarity regarding what we needed to do. This helped clear any ambiguity as we could always reference back to the allocated roles each of us had to do. In the end, we were able to come to conclusions regarding who would be doing what. Additionally, understanding our own weaknesses and strengths helped us to reach our decision in an easier way. For example, we understood that Johnson had a vast amount of nuance when it came to Photoshop, so allocating him with that job was paramount as that way we could manipulate his skills in order to make our final production impeccable. Similarly, he was able to do it with Cherly also, which meant that she could learn from him and improve her own personal knowledge regarding the process of Photoshop. Continually, this in turn helped Timi, as he watched, listened and understood the process and although he wasn't allocated to that job role, he gained an insight as to how to process it because it may prove useful in times when Johnson and Cherly are away.
Furthermore, the group had one female member in it and we felt it necessary for her to utilise her skills also. An example of this, is the allocation of make up to her. This conforms to the perception of teenage girl and Cherly was happy to take up that role as it came naturally to her.

Timi's skills are in grammar and based on this, we allocated him with the task of typography. This way, it ensured that grammatically our work was impeccable and in turn made it clear and understandable to readers.

• Location/Recce (Johnson)
• Manager (Johnson)
• Casting agent (Johnson)
• Costume designs (Cherly)
• Photography (Cherly)
• Script writer (Timi)
• Flatplan (Cherly & Timi)
• Production schedule (Cherly)
• Camera operator (Cherly & Johnson)
• Cast (Mohamed & Johnson)
• Director (Johnson)
• Cinematography (Timi)
• Graphic designer (Cherly)
• Make-up artist (Cherly)
• Costumes (Johnson)
• Copy writer (Timi)
• Typography (Timi)
• Photoshop (Johnson & Cherly
• Editing (Johnson & Cherly)
• Sound editor (Timi)

Blog 10

Week 10 was when we began our filming. Our first location was our friends house around south east london. It was ideal to the image we were looking to pull off and it met our philosophy fantastically, as the building looked old and poor. This shows our characters early lifestyle as he was seen to be poor from the early parts in his life. Furthermore, the continuation o the filming took place in the living room, we felt that putting clothes around and making the room really messy helped to demonstrate the immense struggle he went through. Recording him like this also has connotations of him being lonely and afraid. It showed he wasn't being looked after and he was left alone. Those words were mentioned in the lyrics, but it shows conformity through visual references regarding how bad and tough he found his life. Furthermore, the filming that day also suggested that he had no food in his fridge, as we put a camera in his fridge to suggest that he had no one around him and nothing to eat. Putting the camera in the fridge was a good affect as it gave our audience a personal feel to it, because some may have experienced similar things.

Blog 9

After the first draft of our music digipak we wanted to make another copy that we could always make references to. We altered a couple of images that we had included in the first stage, as we felt we needed to go in various directions in order for us to gain the maximum potential of our character. After some re adjustments, we decided to include some religious connotations and we felt that the best one to use was a crucifix cross around our characters hand. We felt that this would work really effectively, as we would be able to imply to the audience that our character is a humble down to earth character who has always kept faith in Jesus and for that has gained everything he deserved. Furthermore, we also thought it'd be effective to put sad images o four character at the back to signify the fact that he may still be sad but audience members just see him when he's happy. subsequently, it portrays him to be a considerate character as he doesn't allow his personal life, or past to get in the way of what makes him the happy character that he is.

Treatement

Artist

Yungen is a grime artist also known as Clive Johnson. He is a Enlgish born citizen with Jamaican heritage. Yungen has been rapping since he was 13 and is now currently 22 years of age he is known for he's various types of music he produces whether a hyped up beat, slow or punchlines. The fact Yungen is able to adapt to the varieties of grime music shows how he reaches out to a large number of a target audience. He isn't known for any instruments but most commonly known for the punchlines he produces in his music. Yungen could also be described as natural musician as none of his music is auto-tuned and is just naturally his voice. In addition, for this music video he is likely to wear plain casual clothing like a t-shirt and tracksuit bottoms to connote with the idea of him being poor and there will be scenes where he wears luxury clothing to show where he is now and how his 'stage name' is living.

Our Vision

Our vision is to have a clear juxtaposition between a narrative and performance video, which will be denoted throughout the video. The reason for using two types of videos in one was because of our artist bad situations basically sending a message his 'superstar' side is what everyone sees but don't they see or really know what it took him to reach where he was and he sends a message to the audience even superstars goes through tough despite having fame and materialistic items. To show this, our intention was to show his performances in color and flashbacks of the disasters he's been through in black and white to enable to enhance the clear juxtaposition we intend to show to our audience. One of the locations, we intend to use is the assembly hall which is located in our school. The reason for this, is because we feel we will be able to pull off a successful performance based like scene in the hall as it has conventions of a performance stage with how the seats are positioned in the hall. Furthermore, our second location as part of the narrative part to our video will take place in a house. In addition, this will show clear continuity to our narrative, as a third location is ideal to our video and will be located in a alleyway to create realism to the audience. We feel that the location of a alleyway helps us essentially to appeal particularly to those who live in urban areas. The pathway has connotations of robberies normally occurring in alleyway or somewhere deserted so therefore we have reached out to our target audience as they would either relate or understand to us using a pathway.

In addition, we've decided that the majority of the music video would be narrative as we feel that using a storyline would be the best way to relate to the target audience. Furthermore, we create a nuanced understanding to the audience of a scenario they are likely to relate to. The next crucial aspect of our music video will be the lighting, which comes under editing. With the lighting, we aim to have a dark lighting when our artist mention 'no electric, no gas' the dark lighting will connote with the lyrics as it gives the audience a clear visual reference to how he is if visually shown in video. Also dark lighting in the alleyway would be idea and realistic, based merely on the fact that over 90% of robberies take in alleyways during the night. Giving our music a dark lighting in this point of time in the video creates a sense of deviance and criminal behavior, which is exactly how we'd like the audience to view it. Bright lighting is likely to be used when he performs on stage connoting with the ideas of happiness and comfort, as music is what he loves and we will show this in order for the audience to be engaged.

Logistics

As part of the progression of our music video, logistics would play an essential role towards the continued development. Through the logistics we would need to analyse the locations, characters and logistical problems that may occur. Our first location is going to be in a house. The essence of using this location that is located in south London creates realism but more crucially follows the story line and lyrics of the song. Furthermore, the location helps to conform to the grime genre of our music video. Although it may be cliche the location of the house we add to the originality by giving the lyrics purpose through creating a continued story line that could be followed with great intrigue. The narrative point of our music video continues with our next choice of location, which is located in the alleyway. Through the alleyway, we aim to re create a robbery scene to go along with the lyrics from the song. Furthermore, the alleyway creates a relatable and realistic appeal to our target audience as it has connotations of deviant and criminal behavior. The time of day also helps to conform to our set genre. Using the alleyway during the night subsequently makes the scenario made understandable as a vast majority of criminal’s deviant behavior comes alive at nighttime. The artist we chose use, needs to be reliable and dedicated when we need him. Furthermore, Mohamed meets the ideal image regarding how our artist should be, as he had a rough childhood drawing comparisons with our protagonist artist. The potential logistical problems that may occur 

Technology

When creating a music video we would need to use a digital camera so that we will be able to film our music video. We intend to use close up shots which would be used to connote the stress and depression in the artists facial expression. An over the shoulder shot will be used to to denote him going through his contact list on his mobile phone searching for his mum that left him as this shot will relate to the lyric when he says 'tryna rebuild with my mum hoping that she's gonna change'. This will add to the narrative as this will show that is hope & audiences can relate and feel the emotion that the character went through; conforming with personal identification to make audiences not to feel isolated. Furthermore, the final cut pro will support our music video to be made into a final production. Through using continuity this will ensure the video is realistic and flows. Also, we intend to shoot our music video in black & white to connote the idea of a flashback to when he was struggling. The use of this effect will merge with lyric creating a story and as well as a music helping it to release gratification. We will also use transitions when introducing a new scene using dissolve or a fade to show a clear cut to the new scene whether it being a flashback or him live on stage.

Using a film camera will have a great benefit on our music video as it will enable us to film our scenes in various shots. The film camera has the quality to pick up little details. The camera has a long lasting battery, this will enable us to film as much scenes as we want. Final cut pro will benefit our music video because of the opportunity to add various of effects. For example, we are able to change the color effect to black & white which in our video will symbolise flashbacks. The software will be able to import our video straight from the camera. Professional luminous lights can be used as additional editing.

Audience

Our target audience is targeted at black males who may be able to relate to the lyrics of having a tough childhood going through the 'street life'. The music video style would appeal to the target audience as it conforms to the target audiences behavior style. Sympathy in this sense is created through the lyrics as most black young males have experienced what the artist has been through and therefore would be able to empathize with the artist. Also the secondary target audience who will be the white race would be able to have empathy with the artist as they could imagine how Yungen will feel. 

Blog 8

During week 8, we decided to carry out some work on our digipak flat plan. In order to ensure we produced a fantastic one ourselves, we needed to look at examples of both bad and good examples. This enabled us to do some research on what makes a good didgipak, we came across numerous examples with a wide range of genres, but we still weren't understanding what we wanted to include. So, we felt it'll be to good to focus on our set genre, which was Grime. Our artist was a grime artist so we felt it'll be sensible to include some of those characteristics in our digipak. Through this, we came to the understanding that we would use the artist at the font of the cover. It meant that our audience members understood who the main character was in the album that they were looking to purchase. Furthrmore, continual research meant that we gathered knowledge on the features that was needed to be included in order to make a successful and good digipak. For example the barcode it paramount as it allows us tho know the price of the item.m It's also good for the customers as they understand the item is valid.

Blog 7

In this week, we started had started to think about what our theme was going to be. Our initial ideas was for our protagonist artist to wear block and red attire as a recurring theme throughout the music video. It was vital that we kept in mind the fact that our final piece would need to be original. Taking this into consideration, it became apparent that we wouldn't be able to go ahead with our initial ideas as the background information carried out denoted the character in black and red attire already. So doing a replacer of this reduced the effectiveness of our final production, as it meant that we weren't being original. What this consequently showed us, was that the contextual research done on our character wasn't done in vein, as we knew what colours to use in order to make our production standout. We then discussed further and were able to understand that we'd make our theme blue and black. The blue would depict the subtleness of his characteristics, but also we understood the character also had a dark side so it was good to stick with the black, as it conveyed the negative aspects of his character.

Blog 6

In week 6, our job allocations were put to the test. Knowing what we all needed to do was extremely helpful, as we all went off and done what was needed. My group members and i sat down as a group and discussed which of our songs would fit the philosophy of our genre, during the meeting we were able to come to a decision that entailed we all felt comfortable and happy doing the song we'd chosen to do. Furthermore, we decided to take it a step further and research about the artist. Knowing about the artists background is really essential as it means we have a better understanding on how to portray his characteristics in our music video. From the research, we understood that our artist was very similar to us, as he was from south east london and grew up in areas similar to us. Knowing this benefited us as we understood and empathised with the lyrics of his song. In addition, understanding that he had a tough life, gave the lyrics more meaning as it's emotional specifically to him, it could also have been emotional to our set audience as they may have experienced difficult circumstances and watching the music video as well as listening to the song could help to inspire them.

Magazine analysis 3

Magazine Analysis 2

The chase status music band is a British one, this is made clear through the dog as the main focal point/ image of the magazine. This dog connote that the band members are British and are proud to be by using an iconic feature of the most famous dog in Britain. This Magazine cover also has simplistic features to it as well, it establish the fact that they believe in themselves and are proud to be British. Although, this band are also simplistic there seems to be an arrogant edge to them, this could be reinforced through the anonymity of their face. This represents their confidence ion their ideas and beliefs as a band, as they don't feel the need to show their face in order for people to know who they are.

Furthermore, the yellow coloured writing leads towards feline features. This could suggest that the band have a wide target audience, that include males and females. They make it clear that their music is there to please both genders independent of they nationality.

Finally, there also seems to be no reviews for this music video and this could represent the fact that it doesn't support their theme. They aim to keep it simplistic but at the same time it supports their philosophy of pleasing their fans and making everyone feel important amongst their vast audience population. The words 'no more idols', could represent the fact that they are an original group and they don't want to copy any other band to make themselves successful as they could active that with their own talent.

Magazine advert analysis

Starting with the band name, we denote that there is a simplistic feel to it. This becomes reinforced, through the simple writing in white. Further interpretations lead us to think that nothing special or out of the ordinary should be expected from the band. Furthermore, the name of the band in itself is a subversion to music as whole. When we think of music, we connote loud pleasant noise in most cases. Here the theme seems to be different as they aim to make us feel that their music is simple but effective. This is highlighted through the word 'hush' as it draws connotations of quietness and relaxation. In addition, the significance of the colour white is to show the purity and innocence of the band. This usually is something that wouldn't be associated with a band as they normally partake in rebellious behaviour as part of their image.

The main advertisement being portrayed is of 'warner music'. The band is being used to put forward what seems to look like the music production company. This could be a really effective tool, as if individuals like 'The Hush Sound' for example, they could be interested in the warner music company. The collaboration could create a fan base and increase the amount of people who are interested in warner music.

The action line with this music magazine is straight forward and goes directly to the point. The aim is to show the interested audience any upcoming dates that are of any significance to them. In this particular case, the 10th of December is the date of significance as it shows that will be date of a performance. This alerts the audience and straight away they let others know who may be interested in coming along.
The main image of the product, is to establish the faces of the band members and this is done with good effect. Firstly, what seems to be the protagonist artist is holding the other two band members this could be done to show dominance within the group. Establishing himself as a superior to the others. The image of the band members could be used as a pack-shot as it demonstrates this is their product and they become a more recognisable figure. Although it would normally be set in the lower right corner, we see it differently this time, as it is directly on the page.
In conclusion, there doesn't seem to be any reviews this could highlight the fact that the band isn't a very well known one. Reviews would normally take place based on the popularity of an up and coming band. Unfortunately the hush sound weren't reviewed and the main reason for this could be because people don't see the need for reviewing them. Newspapers may see it as a waste of time and money.

Blog reflection questions week 5

During week 5, we have been able to write up a vast majority of our plans. The current right up is with our logistics, in addition the key concept we have been focusing on this week have been the narrative. As a group, we have decided to do each section of the music video in chronological order. Week 5, has also made us as a group think carefully regarding what role each of us plays within the group. Knowing what each of us are meant to do helps the effectiveness and improves the reliability of each member in our group. Being assigned with a task gives us all purpose and helps to improve the actual quality of our work.

Blog 4

During week 4, it became essential to make our ideas practical. The best way to do this, was to analyse several music videos as a way to understand what we could do differently from other grime music videos. Additionally, this gave us an insight as to what we could implement in order to make our video unique, but we also had to focus on what codes and conventions are needed to make our video successful. As a group, we also decided on what individual would suit the part of a character as it was vital for us to captivate our target audience and getting the right character to do this because it enabled it to be relatable amongst our target audience. After looking at all the several possibilities, we were able to find what we felt was the right person because he had a good understanding of the genre of music and was also familiar with the song. We knew that this would make it easy when recording as it meant that we would record limited amount of times which in turn would give us more time to edit the footage.

Blog reflection questions week 3

During week 3, we are starting to conclude the initial ideas for our music video. We have concluded on each location for each part of the video. Furthermore, this week has also given us the understanding on what we particular need to make our target audience sit up and understand that we are doing something different from usual grime/ rap videos. This week, we also decided that the ;performance part of our music video would be done within our school as it's easily accessible but at the same time compliments the ideas we have on how the performer uses the stage to benefit our final production.
The other major concept we focused on, was our target audience, the decision was that it'll been largely teenagers as the music video portrays how most south east teenagers live. Similarly, it demonstrates realism in regards to the fact that a vast amount of the lyrics are relatable to all most if not all our target audiences.

Blog reflection questions week 2

The impact our planning has had on the music video, has played a huge part onto the final development  of our music video. Planning our music video, means that every member of our group needs to implement some ideas. Getting everyones opinion helps us understand as a group what we need to improve on and what else we could include to make the music video even better. overall, i would say that our planning has helped us understand briefly just how much work we still have to do so the impact had has been limited.
Furthermore, our technical skills would have to come under the research heading. The amount of research carried out about the artist has enabled us to have contextual information about the artist. This may not seem significant, but it helps us understand whether his lyrics are actually based on facts. His harsh background compliments his lyrics and at the same time makes it relatable to us as the audience because we may have been through difficult moments like he has.

Blog reflection questions week 1

-My initial ideas for my portfolio, is to do something out of my comfort zone. My reason for this, is due to the fact i would like to explore another type of music genre that i can conform to based on contextual information. I particularly want to have a nuanced understanding regarding the codes and conventions needed to create a successful music video. Ideally, i have decided to do a grime/rap video, as it compliments the environment i am situated in as well as broadening my knowledge on other music genres.
Furthermore, i feel that working with Johnson and Cherly encourage the ideology on doing a grime music video, based on the fact that they are reliable, determined and hard working students who will help to bring the best of me. Working with them also helps me to take on constructive criticism as a ploy to develop and improve the final production. The implementation of these two other members promotes ideas that i may not have thought of which again, only helps to develop the music video positively.
My main hope, is to pull of a really successful music video that helps to encourage students that would be in my position in years to come. As well as encouraging them, i also hope to inspire them to create more music videos. Ideally, i would like to create the music video to get a high grade, but also to show that with limited resources a group of teenage media students can create something really good and relatable to those of the same age group.
However, there will always be fears and one major one is originality. I fear, that there is such little space in the market for something new and i fear that my media group may not be willing to put in the amount of research in order to create something really original. Furthermore, if we do manage to do something that hasn't been done before, we may have to deal with the problem of discontent all together from the audience. That is the major issue with originality, as it has the potential to work really well but at the same time to not work in general.
At the end of the music video, i hope to reflect on the work i have done with my partners finding both the positives and negatives within the chosen song. Of course, as a group we would still need to determine and understand what song we will be using within our groups. The decision would be made, through close analysis of all the songs that we had individually chosen. Through the analysis of the songs, we would be able to infer what one suits our groups the best. Particularly based on whether the genres differ from one another. Fortunately, we have two similar songs in our group, with the same genre meaning we could easily find positive and negative correlations between both of them.

Music video Title: Wavey.

Song name: Wavey.

Ah you, Ah you ah......
ah you ah you ah you hell...
see you should come and ride me,
i got cro, see you should come and smoke the weed,
you already know, see baby you look fine tonight,
you already know see we whine and dine tonight,
just gimme blows, see you should come and ride with me,
i got jokes...
cruising round with the q when the dank come kneesh,
you already know,
see baby you look fine tonight, lets hit the road,
and we could whine and dine tonight, just gimme blows,
i know one girl that loves to role my spliffs, i prefer to roll my own,
and i really prefer when we're in my zone, i prefer when i'm home alone,
sinking till 9 but we're down for the bone,
doggy style she won't pick her phone,
got a man at abay ready to go,
oh my gosh she were giving me blows,
tell her come ride about it,
make it clear to her don't be late,
yh i swear to Danny trashing the place
ay girl watch what you say,
ayy pay and let's get waved,
see you stunting on them in, chennel,
let's get waved,
keep it true everyday, i got soul as AJ,
keep it true all the way,
matching roley's yh one day,
roley poley yh p.a,
got her bouncing got her sucking,
ooo..., see you should come and ride with me,
i got cro, you could come and smoke the weed,
you already know, see baby you look fine,
lets whine and dine tonight and lets hit the road,
see could come and whine and dine tonight,
lets hit the road, just gimme blows,
you should come and ride with me,
i got draws, see baby you look fine tonight,
you already know, lets hit the road, and we could whine and dine tonight,
just gimme blows,
crusing with these london streets,
its really cold, rolling round HOP,
you know the cold, i just text that we just,
shot the show, i'm coming home,
took her to sams to write the lyrics and i'm good to go,
just need a couple of biscuits man,
thats how i role,
you know that i do it so standard,
quick verse but you its still grand day,
quick verse but you know i been landin,
so, so , riding round with my team,
amma still fuck with this bitch,
she still calling me,
everyday we do it so cold,
with the potant flow
bitch...
see you should come and ride with me,
i got cro,
you could come and ride with me tonight,
just gimme blows,
see you should come and ride with me,
i got draws, see baby you look fine tonight,
and we could whine and dine tonight just gimme blows
ah you you....
ah you you ah you you ...

Beachcombing

This music by Trey Songz has exactly what i would want in my music video. Firstly, the music video is an example of how an original artist such as Trey Songz sets himself apart from everybody else. Through the expensive cars we are able to connote that the artist has a lot of money. Unfortunately this is somebody i would be unable to have in my music video as i wouldn't have the necessary funds to pull this off. Furthermore, the music video also demonstrates a nuanced understanding on exactly what the audience are looking for. The identification of very attractive females connotes that the music video is preferably for male characters as they are more incline to enjoy a music video with a number of attractive females from all over the world. Notwithstanding, through the luxurious looking house at the start of the music video, we can denote that the artist is a wealthy one. Furthermore, the fact that the artist feels comfortable enough to be in his video and at the same time show his body, means that he is very comfortable with his image. Then implementation of a dominant male character in my music video will help to target a particular audience that would be willing to consistently listen to music videos.

One of Rihhana's first and most undoubtedly famous songs is Umbrella. I am very envious of this video, as it has a mixture of rap and and actual soul, a trend that has gone on to dominate for the last 5-10 years. The reason i am drawn to this particular video, is because it has very good and organised choreography something i would need to implement if my music video is to be successful. Notwithstanding, Rihanna and Jay z are well re-known artists who have gone on to dominate the music industry in their particular Genre. They have both sold records worldwide and as a result have an audience that become consistently attracted to their music. More crucially, they are able to adapt to new trends and although this music video was a few years ago, its something that people would still listen as it has a modern and catchy feel to it.

 This Katy perry music video, is different to the first two, as there are less materialistic items, to show that she is a worldwide superstar. The inclusion of animations, as a replacement makes it cheaper for her but at the same time very relatable to us as the audience. Ideally, this sort of music video normally attracts a teenage and an older aged audience, but in this scenario it is very different based on the fact that all age groups particularly those under 10 or above the age of 10 can watch the video. Ultimately, the implementation of animations shows and astute mindset who targets not merely one type of audience, but a whole range. As media students, it also enables encouragement to what we aim for as our nuance improves based on the fact that we don't necessarily have to have huge amount of funds to pull of a successful and attractive music video.

This music video is another example of how to create a successful song put across without huge amounts of money used. Firstly, the cartoon characters who have a large audience presumably, are used in the video as a tool to attract more individuals to watch the music video. This allows people to watch the video based on their enjoyment of a previous television programme. Secondly, the music video also portrays a chronological storyline that keeps the audience tuned in. However, this may be slightly harder for us to do based on the fact that my particular song choice doesn't necessarily have a storyline. Finally, the location of the video is nothing extravagant or sophisticated which suggests the simplicity of the music video, but at the same time it remains effective.

This particular music video is exemplar to what i am aiming for. Again, it may not be the most attractable music video, but the passion and realism makes it similar to the approach i am aiming for. Furthermore, the Genre of the music video, also compliments my chosen unsigned song as it's grime. The music video is also very simple based on the narrative and location, a well known American rap artist relates his lyrics back to where he had initially grown up which suggests that his roots will always remain in his heart, something i aim to implement significantly within my music video. To conclude, its very intriguing that Meek starts off the song with a glamorous house before moving it to where he grew up. This is a way to represent the difference in his life since his childhood.

Repetition and Difference Theory

Repetition and difference is known as when a particular Genre product works through repetition containing certain elements or combinations of elements with a music video. There could be pleasure from the audience can come from both the repetition and difference which means that institutions would need to strike the right balance between both of them. David Bordwell's 1989 theory, claims that in music videos, any theme can appear in any Genre.

This music video, is an example of repetition and difference. The narrative seems to be the same as normal up until the end where a twist is experienced. It seems to be a normal everyday love story of a couple having difficulties but we are made to think that the woman is the one in the wrong. The set up of the video creates realism and  to the situation. From the time 4.0 seconds to 4.5 seconds we realise the twist, that the female character had put herself in the place of her husband just for one day. She done it, so that the male audience in particular could see what some of their partners may have to go through when their partners are doing some 'harmless' flirting. It means a lot to the women and that becomes the main message from Beyonce to her audience.

Stars as Construction,products,embodiments and personalities.

Stars as constructions is known as when an artist becomes moulded by certain record labels into a normally sexualised object as a way to boost the sales of a record label. An example of this, could be Leona Lewis, the winner of Simon Cowel's TV  show the factor. Leona was an artist with a unique singing voice that idealised singers such as Whitney Houston based largely on the powerful lyrics and Genre of their music. One major example, is the transformation of boy band one direction. One direction were another group on the factor and signed by Simon Cowel they became a global sensation producing music mostly for a target audience of young teenage girls. They initially had been a group of solo artists on the factor before they were put together on boot camp and the rest becomes history. They are five attractive young teenage boys who sell records worldwide based on the style given to them by the record label. Although the record label have been successful in moulding certain artists to sell records, there have been cases where this hasn't been the case with Leona Lewis being an example. She wasn't happy with the image and songs given to her by the record label and subsequently fell out of favour with it leading to her move. The move was of little effect on the record company, because they have a lot more artists that could sell the records needed to be sold.

Stars as products is known as when there is a gap within the market that needs to be filled up. An artists that represents this is Nicki Minaj. Through her appearance, we are able to denote clear sexualisation. Particularly through the presentation of her body and the way she chooses to set out her music videos. For example, her music video 'Anaconda' presents her as a sexual object which conforms to Laura Maulvey's Male gaze theory. Artists like Nicki Minaj encourage this idea as it becomes a really useful technique as well as skill in order to successfully sell their products. Watching videos like Anaconda, would be encouraged particularly by men and in watching it broadens Nicki's Minaj audience.

Stars as embodiments is known as when an artist has started a particular trend that has been followed on and encouraged since then till this day. An example of this, would be the gang trend started by Tupac and Biggie Smalls. Two rival artists who subconsciously and infamously encouraged gang culture with American society to and even greater extent.







 
A modern example, would be Micheal Jackson. Micheal Jackson remained an undoubted icon after his death. But during his time alive, he created multi-million fans on a global scale that still remains in huge numbers till this day. Micheal was remembered not only for his diverse music range, but also for his dancing skills and there is one particular dance that sticks out till this day the famous 'moon walk'. Micheal Jackson created a very special dance move that is still looking to be emulated till now.
The final one, is known as stars as Personalities and what better representation that Lady gaga. Possibly the biggest personality till date. Lady gaga's controversial appeal is what surprisingly encourages the audience to listen to her music. The bad behaved artist has a unique style that encourages bad behaviour. This appeal isn't the most favorable, because it means that the younger ones cannot buy the products. Which limits her target audience. Also making her not favourable to parents of young teenage girls trying to emulate her behaviour.

Genre Theory.-

Genre is  something that can account for a lot as there is a range that comes under this theory. It is a important aspect of music as Genre allows the audience to understand what time of music it is they are listening to. It separates and clearly divides various music styles from other ones. In addition, sub-culture is something that comes under Genre for example, music's sub-genres include heavy metal and christian rock. Another example, being Hybrid Genre which is known as a combination of major genres that sometimes create another type of film for example, Avicil's wake me up has elements of country and dance music. Although this is something really effective it is something that is very difficult to pull off. The last style that comes under the Genre theory is known as 'postmodern'. This particular Genre's main aim, is to promote a star persona as researched by Dyer 1975. He also states, that they do not necessarily have to be literal representations of the songs or lyrics. Furthermore, there are also aspects of the 'Genre', that need to be made clear and that's what the specific objects in the room enables them to do. For example, the iconography is something that allows the objects/props to tell us something specifically about that Genre.
The main heading that comes under the word, is known as 'Genre as a system theory'. This is the theory know as when a style system of orientations, expectations and conventions allow circulation between industry text and subject.

• Bob Marley is a really good example to come under the Genre Theory. A large amount of his music is there as a representation of his country Jamaica. Bob Marley was a unique artist, as he had a distinctive voice that allowed people to understand not just his nationality, but also through the lyrics of his voice he could establish a soulful mix with reggae which can be an example of sub-cultural christian Rock. When listening to the lyrics of this song, it becomes clear that it has a jazzy soulful tune to it which subverts the ideology that black male artists just produce grime high tempo music. In a way, Bob Marley set the standards for other black artists allowing them to understand that they don't just have to conform to the stereotypes just to ensure that they attract audiences who would like to buy their music.

Styles and conventions of music video

 Narrative music videos normally have a beginning, middle and an end. An artist doesn't necessarily have to be visible in the video based on the fact an actor may fill the protagonist role in order to give the viewers a better nuance in regards to what's going on. This music video is an example of a narrative. The story line is made clear as it portrays the woman and the man in love, the narrative is there to show where there love was found, and through the physicality between the two of them, it also connotes the passion they have for their love.
Whats beneficial about a narrative view, is that it makes the audience understand what the song is about, also keeping them intrigued regarding what happens later.Furthermore, during the first parts of the song at around 32 seconds, we denote the two smoking what could be an illegal substance in a movie video. The reason this was added, was to demonstrate the realism of their relationship that can also become relatable to younger couples. This could be seen as negative by a large majority of the public because younger individuals usually look up to artists such as Rihanna to be their role model and smoking encourages the younger generation to continue a negative act.

In addition, a disadvantage of the video would be the fact that there may have been other videos with the same narrative so the song doesn't really become unique it becomes really predictable.The live performances of music videos is something that becomes really exciting for the audiences on stage. Live performances allow the realism of a preferred song by an audience. They also attract big crowds in a big venue, which normally results in a high amount of money made by that artist. Furthermore, it also allows the captivation of an electric atmosphere which cannot be felt through a music video.

Here is an example, of an interpretive music video. A clear definition, known as where the lyrics match the footage that we as the audience denote. In this music video,  we see this done perfectly, because we see that the words and description of the singer is shown clearly in the music video. This could be a good thing to do in a music video, as it shows the audience clearly what he means and this enables a better relation to the song as well as keeping the audience fully engaged in the music video because there's a need to find out what happens next, thus making the audience tuned in. However, a disadvantage  could be that the production of the song could be seen as a lazy attempt of a music video because the artist may not have been able to think about a scenario that compliments the music video so a choice was made to make in that way. Similarly another disadvantage could be that it patronises us as the audience because it could be a suggestion that we need the coinciding images in order to understand the songs and the meaning of it. 

Here is an example of a music video that has been done purely through animation. As with all major music videos, there are advantages and disadvantages with this type of video. A major positive is that it saves the producer/director a vast amount of time interms of looking for props and locations. Additionally, we denote in this music video a mix of CGI that have implemented actual humans, which could mean that as well saving a substantial amount of time they were also able to save money. On the other hand, one disadvantage could be that the video could be interpreted as something quite childish which in turn limits the target audience. Animations and cartoons are normally aimed at children, due to this the producers of the video cannot maximise the profitability of their work. In conclusion an overall judgement of an animated music video would be that if a producer were to do it the the storyline would had be intriguing unless nobody would sit down to watch it.

Surreal music videos is a video that has no narrative or meaning to it or could juxtapose the lyrics and the genre of the song altogether through the visual images we get. This lil wayne song called mirror is an example of a surreal music video, because the lyrics he's actually rapping has absolutely no relation to the song. An advantage of this would be the fact that the audience ermine perplexed as to what is actually going on in the video. Similarly, it could also attract more viewers through verbal interaction about the viewers confusion convincing her or his friend to watch the video and see what they think.

A conceptual music video has some similarities with a surreal one, in the sense that they both don't necessarily have a purpose. However, with a conceptual music video it doesn't contradict the lyrics all together. It's purpose is to keep the audience tense as to what's going to happen next in the video, this way they stay tuned in till the end to keep them guessing. A disadvantage to this, is the fact that the video may not make much sense to others viewing the video as they may not understand the meaning or the purpose of watching the video.

Representation Theory

In class we looked at two types of representation. Representation as a whole is known as how the media ideally represent/ portray things to us as the audience. The way things are represented in the media, are having more of an influence on how people perception of things are. With the media, they have the ability to alter things in their favour. The representation is seen particularly between two main theories known as 'The Reception Theory' and Laura Maulveys 'Male Gaze' theory. Trey Songs' music video foreign, is an example of representation theory. As we connote the female character for large amounts of the music video surrounded by attractive female artists. The role of the media here becomes clear as they aim to show the artist as a bench mark for males implying that's what an attractive male should look like. Furthermore, in doing so this attracts wide range of audiences females mostly to watch the music video. Ultimately, as well as the artist being a good singer his flamboyant and 'cool' vibe attracts even more range of audiences.
In addition, at the time 2.28 seconds we can identify another way that the male appeals to the opposite sex. His impeccable physique is used to maximum potential as we see the woman in the music video lifting up his shirt. With the media, this is a way to present another attractive aspect of his body making it clear that there isn't just the one.
However, although this style works extremely well for Trey Songz, what it also cleverly does is limit other artists and at the same pushes them to step up. Trey songz is an artist with a wide range of fans simply because of the way he looks. This makes it very difficult for other artists as it means that if they're offering something new and attractive why should they buy their music videos when they have already got one from Trey Songz. This ultimately limits and closes out competition from another artist looking to head in the same way.

Year 12 skills development

How creative were you last year?
Last year i would say as a whole, that we were quite creative when it came to the practicality regarding what was needed to be done. A huge example being, the filming. During the filming, we became very creative when choosing the location of where to shoot various shots and from what angle it was done at. The creativity really was emphasised when deciding what the plot and narrative of the storyline would be. Other creative aspects, included the props we chose to obtain in our preliminary task as well as our final  production. Some of these included the dark lighting as it was a key element an aspect coming under mise-en-scene. This was crucial to our codes and conventions as we needed to make sure our creativeness still conformed to that of a thriller movie. Several editing techniques also made this possible as we were able to alter the contrast of the scenes to build up tension in the movie.

What digital technology was used last year?
There were a couple of top technological devices at our disposal last year . The most influential and crucial to our final production would be the digital camera. The camera was the most effective device as it enabled us to film where ever we wanted. It also provided flexibility regarding where certain shots were shot, influencing the location we had in mind. Furthermore, we also used final cut pro to edit the filming form the camera filming. This in it self was really effective and helpful as it provided us with a range of options regarding how we wanted to set up the trailer. We also used our own personal digital phones to take pictures of each character appearing in our production, this was helpful as it was portable making it easier to access.

What research and planning did you do last year in order to be successful?
Last year a large amount of our research and planning entailed watching and analysing various movie genres looking at what makes them unique from other ones. Our main aim was to analyse thriller Genres and implement the most effective aspects into our production. From this research, we were able to successfully implement major factors and effects into our production. On the other hand, we were able to include some of our ideas into our final production without subverting the codes and conventions of a thriller movie. Additionally, we were able to gather better knowledge in regards to why certain angles and shots made a thriller movie tense.
In regards to why it made me successful, i would state that i became more knowledgable in the sense that i understood why certain angle were more effective than others.
What Post-production technology did you use last year?
A key factor of our post production, was the editing of our filming. The main tool was the use of the final cut pro something that allowed us to alter our filming adding effects that made it clear what our Genre was. Furthermore, through final cut pro we were able to reduce lengths of certain shots to make it really effective.
What conventions did you apply to your coursework?
There were a number of conventions used in our film production. This was to show that it was a thriller movie. Some of the key conventions, were the way we used our camera work. Through the camera shots we established the Genre. For example, the use of close ups helped to draw the audience to the film as it is a key convention of thriller films. Furthermore, another example of a thriller convention was the lighting. The lighting is expected to be dark as a way to conform to stereotypical ideas on thriller films. The dark lighting also continually builds suspense throughout the film as a way to keep the audience engaged.