Friday, 25 September 2020
Saturday, 22 August 2020
Tuesday, 16 June 2020
PLANNING: Video Clip for Website
On my website, I need to feature a 30 second video clip, and
I currently have two ideas for this (the one that I pick will depend on the
footage that I am able to get – so it’s good to have a backup idea).
My original idea was to make a short behind the scenes video of my music video. This would feature clips of quotes from the cast on set, a montage of the filming process, and little interview clips with the cast members. I like this idea, but this might not be something I’m able to do due to COVID-19 and social distancing – getting clips for the music video will obviously be the main priority, and there may not be time/opportunities to get many other clips with the cast.
My other idea is to create a tutorial on how to make a ‘bug friend’ (these bug friends will be featured as a prop in the video, so showing fans how to make their own would be a nice idea). The tutorial would show what materials you need, how to make the bug, and at the end I could feature clips of the artist with the bugs or clips of them on set. The advantage of this idea is that it would be something that I could make on my own, and making the bug friends is something I need to do anyway. This is also quite an original idea compared to the behind the scenes video, but it will all depend on what I am able to do with the resources that are available.
My original idea was to make a short behind the scenes video of my music video. This would feature clips of quotes from the cast on set, a montage of the filming process, and little interview clips with the cast members. I like this idea, but this might not be something I’m able to do due to COVID-19 and social distancing – getting clips for the music video will obviously be the main priority, and there may not be time/opportunities to get many other clips with the cast.
My other idea is to create a tutorial on how to make a ‘bug friend’ (these bug friends will be featured as a prop in the video, so showing fans how to make their own would be a nice idea). The tutorial would show what materials you need, how to make the bug, and at the end I could feature clips of the artist with the bugs or clips of them on set. The advantage of this idea is that it would be something that I could make on my own, and making the bug friends is something I need to do anyway. This is also quite an original idea compared to the behind the scenes video, but it will all depend on what I am able to do with the resources that are available.
Monday, 15 June 2020
GENERIC RESEARCH: Industry Research
How has the music industry changed?
The music industry has changed a lot over time, especially in the last 10 years. Streaming has changed the way we listen to music, and is more popular than ever – Spotify currently has 130 million premium subscribers. Streaming currently makes up 80% of the music industry’s revenue, and CDs, which have drastically declined in sales over the past decade, now only make up 9% of the industry’s revenue. Vinyl has made a comeback, but nowadays most artists make the majority of their money through streams and selling merchandise, whereas this was previously made by selling CDs and vinyls.
These are all things I will have to bear in mind when designing my website. Having links to streaming platforms will be essential, and will encourage people who visit the website to download the music (especially since streaming is very popular amongst my target demographic). Featuring a merchandise store on my website will also be a good idea, as this is one of the main ways artists make money. On this merchandise store I will feature products such as t-shirts and hoodies, as well as the option to purchase the album digitally, or purchase the physical copy on vinyl. Vinyls may not make as much money for artists as they used to, but they are still quite popular amongst my target demographic (my website research showed me this, as all the websites I looked at had the option to purchase vinyl albums on their merchandise store).
What role does Warner Music Group play in the industry?
Warner Music Group (WMG) is a record label conglomerate owned by Warner Bros. It’s one of the ‘big three’ recording companies along with Universal Music Group and Sony Music Entertainment, and WMG owns some of the largest and most successful labels in the world, including Atlantic Records, Parlophone, Warner Records, and Elektra Records. There are a lot of big mainstream artists signed to Warner, such as Dua Lipa, Ed Sheeran, and Charlie Puth, but the label also signs some smaller artists, such as Cavetown and Hobo Johnson. This means that there are a range of music videos produced by artists signed to Warner, from large scale productions intending on appealing to a large mainstream audience, to smaller productions made mainly for fans of the artist. My music video will be more like the latter, because of both the record label and my target demographic (a socially conscious, 16-25 year old, middle to upmarket demographic, rather than a big mainstream audience).
The music industry has changed a lot over time, especially in the last 10 years. Streaming has changed the way we listen to music, and is more popular than ever – Spotify currently has 130 million premium subscribers. Streaming currently makes up 80% of the music industry’s revenue, and CDs, which have drastically declined in sales over the past decade, now only make up 9% of the industry’s revenue. Vinyl has made a comeback, but nowadays most artists make the majority of their money through streams and selling merchandise, whereas this was previously made by selling CDs and vinyls.
These are all things I will have to bear in mind when designing my website. Having links to streaming platforms will be essential, and will encourage people who visit the website to download the music (especially since streaming is very popular amongst my target demographic). Featuring a merchandise store on my website will also be a good idea, as this is one of the main ways artists make money. On this merchandise store I will feature products such as t-shirts and hoodies, as well as the option to purchase the album digitally, or purchase the physical copy on vinyl. Vinyls may not make as much money for artists as they used to, but they are still quite popular amongst my target demographic (my website research showed me this, as all the websites I looked at had the option to purchase vinyl albums on their merchandise store).
What role does Warner Music Group play in the industry?
Warner Music Group (WMG) is a record label conglomerate owned by Warner Bros. It’s one of the ‘big three’ recording companies along with Universal Music Group and Sony Music Entertainment, and WMG owns some of the largest and most successful labels in the world, including Atlantic Records, Parlophone, Warner Records, and Elektra Records. There are a lot of big mainstream artists signed to Warner, such as Dua Lipa, Ed Sheeran, and Charlie Puth, but the label also signs some smaller artists, such as Cavetown and Hobo Johnson. This means that there are a range of music videos produced by artists signed to Warner, from large scale productions intending on appealing to a large mainstream audience, to smaller productions made mainly for fans of the artist. My music video will be more like the latter, because of both the record label and my target demographic (a socially conscious, 16-25 year old, middle to upmarket demographic, rather than a big mainstream audience).
Tuesday, 9 June 2020
GENERIC RESEARCH: Language and Digital Convergence
How do media producers use language to communicate meaning?
Media producers use language such as shot types, camera movement, angles, intertextuality, lighting, colour palettes, editing, and mise-en-scène to help create meaning. For example, intertextuality helps media producers create and communicate meaning by borrowing meaning from other media texts. Music videos are a short form, meaning that they often don’t have time to establish a clear narrative and create meaning, so intertextuality can help music videos establish these things by borrowing meaning from other media texts. Intertextuality also allows audiences to feel a sense of gratification if they understand the reference. Shot types and editing can also change the pace of a music video to help it fit the song nicely.
How do media producers use digital convergence to link their products?
Media producers use digital convergence to link their products in many different ways. Some examples include using a similar house style/colour scheme in both a music video and on the website, linking social media on an artists website, and bonus content (like an interview with the artist) or Easter eggs on the website that link to things in the music video.
Media producers use language such as shot types, camera movement, angles, intertextuality, lighting, colour palettes, editing, and mise-en-scène to help create meaning. For example, intertextuality helps media producers create and communicate meaning by borrowing meaning from other media texts. Music videos are a short form, meaning that they often don’t have time to establish a clear narrative and create meaning, so intertextuality can help music videos establish these things by borrowing meaning from other media texts. Intertextuality also allows audiences to feel a sense of gratification if they understand the reference. Shot types and editing can also change the pace of a music video to help it fit the song nicely.
How do media producers use digital convergence to link their products?
Media producers use digital convergence to link their products in many different ways. Some examples include using a similar house style/colour scheme in both a music video and on the website, linking social media on an artists website, and bonus content (like an interview with the artist) or Easter eggs on the website that link to things in the music video.
Monday, 8 June 2020
Revision of Pitch
Following up on my generic research and audience research, these
are my current ideas for what I will feature in my music video and on my
website.
I still want my music video to focus on narrative, but I think I will also include a performance aspect throughout the video. This was something that my focus group liked the idea of, and it would also allow me to get more close ups of the artist, reflecting Andrew Goodwin’s theory. The narrative of my video will focus on a teenage boy struggling to come to terms with his sexuality. The lyrics of the song I’ve chosen (‘Boys will be Bugs’ by Cavetown) address the issue of toxic masculinity and it’s effect on teenage boys, and my video will feature a gay main character who gives in to the pressures of toxic masculinity, but eventually ends up being proud and expressing his identity. Since the song I’ve chosen is in first person/from the perspective of a character (eg. the lyrics ‘I’m a dumb teen boy’), the main character of my video (the artist) will be lip-syncing the majority of the lyrics. I want my video to have a clear aesthetic and colour palette, so I will have to bear this in mind when choosing specific locations. At the beginning of my video, I would like to feature the titles (‘Boys will be Bugs by *name of fictional artist*’) as a hand-drawn animation as this is something that would show of my skills in other areas, and would also interest the audience from the beginning of the video.
For my website, I will feature all the regular codes and conventions of an artist’s website, including the artists logo in the top left hand corner of the website (in the same hand drawn style as the titles in the music video – digital convergence), a navigation bar with tabs such as ‘About’, ‘Music’, ‘Tour’, and ‘Store’, and the music video on the homepage. The homepage will also feature photographs of the artist, and a short audio-visual clip – a few of my ideas for this are a behind the scenes montage, an interview with the artist, or a tutorial on how to make a ‘bug friend’ (these bug friends will be featured as a prop in the video, so showing fans how to make their own would be a nice idea). The website should have clear house style, using similar colours and graphics to those featured in the music video, and should be easy to navigate.
I still want my music video to focus on narrative, but I think I will also include a performance aspect throughout the video. This was something that my focus group liked the idea of, and it would also allow me to get more close ups of the artist, reflecting Andrew Goodwin’s theory. The narrative of my video will focus on a teenage boy struggling to come to terms with his sexuality. The lyrics of the song I’ve chosen (‘Boys will be Bugs’ by Cavetown) address the issue of toxic masculinity and it’s effect on teenage boys, and my video will feature a gay main character who gives in to the pressures of toxic masculinity, but eventually ends up being proud and expressing his identity. Since the song I’ve chosen is in first person/from the perspective of a character (eg. the lyrics ‘I’m a dumb teen boy’), the main character of my video (the artist) will be lip-syncing the majority of the lyrics. I want my video to have a clear aesthetic and colour palette, so I will have to bear this in mind when choosing specific locations. At the beginning of my video, I would like to feature the titles (‘Boys will be Bugs by *name of fictional artist*’) as a hand-drawn animation as this is something that would show of my skills in other areas, and would also interest the audience from the beginning of the video.
For my website, I will feature all the regular codes and conventions of an artist’s website, including the artists logo in the top left hand corner of the website (in the same hand drawn style as the titles in the music video – digital convergence), a navigation bar with tabs such as ‘About’, ‘Music’, ‘Tour’, and ‘Store’, and the music video on the homepage. The homepage will also feature photographs of the artist, and a short audio-visual clip – a few of my ideas for this are a behind the scenes montage, an interview with the artist, or a tutorial on how to make a ‘bug friend’ (these bug friends will be featured as a prop in the video, so showing fans how to make their own would be a nice idea). The website should have clear house style, using similar colours and graphics to those featured in the music video, and should be easy to navigate.
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Here is the basic layout for my second page (the About page). I obviously need to add text to the boxes, and I will probably tweak a few thi...
