Our group know that we wish to time lapse some of our footage during the editing stage. To discover how much footage compresses down to the final product once the speed has been increased we did a practice shot. We decided Nicola would sit perfectly still in the middle of the college atrium whilst people move around her for 20 minutes.
I captured the footage in Final Cut Pro and put it into the timeline. I then used the speed option to essentially put the footage on fast forward. At first I tried 500% and 1000% but this did not make a significant impact on the movement around her. In the end, we set it at 9000% speed which is the video you can see above. This is the most suitable speed setting for this footage as the atrium wasn't that busy. 20 minutes compressed down 7 seconds worth of footage
Through doing this preliminary editing exercise I have got to grips with how to use Final Cut Pro and we have an idea of the length of footage we will need, and how much that will compress down to, to create time lapse sequences. Due to the location being different as well- the cars will be moving at a faster pace than the students in the atrium-I imagine 9000% will be too fast, I will use 2000-4000% region as we will want to keep it in pace to the music.
Here are two examples of album covers for Boards Of Canada.
This one is for the album Geogaddi released in 2002. It is of what appears to be silhouettes of people standing with their arms and legs outstretched , amongst some trees, around a star or planet. It is almost as if it is simply a tie-die pattern, and then on closer inspection you realise its actually humans and objects.The red and orange tones give a warm and friendly feel to the cover. It has a symmetrical look to it, and a psychedelic feel. This goes very well with the fact that the music is of the electronic/ambient/psychedelic genre. Personally I think the font size that has been used for the title of the album and the band name is too small, and when we make our own album cover we need to carefully consider the size of the font we use so that it is easy for everyone to read.
This one is for the album The Campfire Headphase released in 2005. It is a photograph of a man, but we cannot see his identity as the image has a green and blue smokey/liquid like overlay. It is almost as if water has been poured onto the photograph, making it damaged but giving a nice affect. I really like this cover and it has given me some good ideas on what I could make my album cover like. As our artist is fairly anonymous, we could have a photo of him (or someone similar as it wouldn't really matter) then overlay it with something such as an effect or colour, to give the impression that our artist is rather mysterious and unknown as you cannot see his identity.
Interesting typography has been used for the words "Boards Of Canada" with all the letter A's being changed, and we could experiment with fonts when making our album cover to give a unique and interesting feel to it and make it stand out from the crowd.
Print Adverts (Posters)
Here is a print advert for the album The Campfire Headphase. It is heavily based on album's cover - the same photo, typeface, look and feel. This increases continuity, strengthens the albums brand identity, and helps the audience to recognise that this advertises the album, so when they go into a record shop looking for it they will know what it looks like. I am going to do similar with my music album promotional package, and make the album cover and magazine advert very similar in style, as it works really well in strengthening the artist's and the albums identity. As the photo of the poster is quite bad quality, I can't see what is written in the smallprint underneath the title, but I presume it is the albums release date, and perhaps a link to their website, which is really crucial to put on a print advert so people know where to find more information on the album or artist.
This is the music video for Boards of Canada's song "Dayvan Cowboy", taken from the album "The Campfire Headphase". It was directed by Melissa Olson and has been watched over 820,000 times on YouTube. The video consists of footage from Joe Kittinger's famous parachute jump from 19.5 miles (31.4 km) altitude. Later on in the video, slow-motion footage of big-wave surfer Laird Hamilton is used. It is quite simple, no complicated narrative, just watching an amazing spectacle of someone jumping from plane and the view they had and imagining the adrenaline rush that he must of felt, and I think it works really well with the uplifting feel of this song. It "matches" the album cover and their overall marketing campaign, with a strong nature and artistic theme, and I think the music video has a very broad appeal in terms of who will watch it.
This is the only official music video Boards of Canada has (the rest on Youtube are fanmade). Some artists in this genre of music choose to simply not have pop promos and just have their songs. We hope to show that having a music video can be a great addition to your song, and can really help to create a promotional package that can help to promote the band/artist.
As the artist of our chosen song to make a pop promo for is not well known and hasn't had any previous marketing campaigns or pop promos made, I have been researching artists that make similar music and have had previous marketing campaigns and pop promos. Nicola has been researching Zero 7, and Jessica has been researching Star of the Lid and Four Tet. I have been researching Boards Of Canada, a Scottish electronic music duo.
Boards of Canada are a Scottish electronic music duo consisting of brothers Mike Sandison and Marcus Eoin. They are signed to Warp Records and have released several works on that label with little advertising and few interviews, while also having an obscure and elusive back-catalogue of releases on their self-run label Music70.
Their music is reminiscent of the artificial, warm and scratchy sounds of 1970s media and prominent themes include nostalgia, childhood and the natural world. They are said to take the documentary films made by the National Film Board of Canada (Canada's public film producer and distributor), from which their group name is derived, as a source of inspiration.
Major releases:
1998: Music Has the Right to Children – (Warp/Skam) #193 UK
2000: In a Beautiful Place Out in the Country – (Warp/Music70)
2002: Geogaddi – (Warp/Music70) #21 UK
2005: The Campfire Headphase – (Warp) #41 UK
2006: Trans Canada Highway (Warp)
Audience: I think that the target audience for Boards of Canada's music will be fairly young people aged 18-30 (although there's nothing to say older people wouldn't like it), either male or female, and the key feature that defines their audience is people's music tastes - whether they have an open mind when it comes to what music they listen to and would enjoy non-mainstream music, and that will enjoy experimental and electronic music.
I am going to analyse the music promotional package for the band JLS. This is the first album for the band JLS, who rose to fame after coming second on The X Factor in 2008.
Album Cover
This is JLS's first album cover and they have kept it very simple. It is a photography of each of the band members, all staring straight at the camera, and has been covered with a blue-ish tint. As the album has no title, just their name, "JLS", this has been made large and bold and placed at the top so that it will grab your attention when you look at it, so you know immediately who's album it is. "JLS" is underlined with a line of 4 different colours, this represents that their is 4 members of the band, and each one is an individual and has their own qualities. The star to the left of the word "JLS" could simply show that they are up and coming stars, even though they are a relatively new band.
I think that the reason they have kept it so simple with just a picture of the 4 band members is because this is their main selling point, that they are attractive young men that girls will fancy. The are represented as being well groomed, friendly and that they take pride in their appearance, and by looking at the photo you instantly know that this isn't going to be an album of the rap genre, you know straight away that they are a pretty non-offensive pop boyband.
Print advert
Here is a print advert advertising their debut album. It appeared Heat magazine in the 14th-20th November issue. I don't have a scanner so had to photograph the advert, so the white lines are from the cameras flash and are not on the advert itself.
This print advert is extremely similar to their album cover. It is the same photograph of the band, with the same blue/grey tint to it. The only difference this time is that they have added some key details about the album - its release date, the fact that its their first album, and two examples of songs on it. Their singles "Beat Again" and "Everybody In Love" are displayed on this advert as these are their two singles that have both reached number 1 in the UK singles chart. Also included in smaller print at the bottom of the advert is their official website address, this gives the audience an opportunity to go online and find out more about the band and their new album. The typeface used is very clear and easy to read, in a simple font and large size so no on should have any trouble reading it, and having it white on a black background makes it even easier to read.
Having a print advert so closely resembling their album cover really helps to strengthen their brand identity and create/develop their star image.
Music Video
JLS - Beat Again [2009]
Mise en scene - The video is set in what looks like a disused warehouse, and shows JLS dancing to the song in front of various coloured lights. The dance choreography involves moves revolving around heartbeats, corresponding to the title "Beat Again" and the songs lyrics. The band members are wearing blue and grey clothing, such as unbuttoned skirts showing some of their chest, jeans and trainers, giving them a relaxed yet attractive look. The lighting of the set is very dark apart from the coloured lights, this could be to hide flaws in the set on account of a low budget, as this was their first single release so they didn't know if it would be successful and make money or not. Sometimes, such as 0:15, lighting has been used to create a silhouette of the boys, where they have been lit from behind but not from the front.
Cinematography - Low camera angles are used throughout, perhaps to cover up the fact their not that tall. Lots of mid shots and close ups are used of the boys faces and bodys, to show how attractive they are to the audience. Wide shots are used throughout of all the band members dancing their routine, as it is completely performance based so seeing the choreography of the boys dance routine is crucial.
Editing/Visual effects - As the song has an upbeat mood, it is edited using fast-cut montage using loads of different quick and snappy shots of the band members, so many that one viewing may not be enough to grasp all the images, so multiple viewing is likely. There are very little/no visual effects in this music video, because it is performance based so they are not really needed.
Relationship between lyrics and visuals - There is a strong relationship between the lyrics and the visuals, and this is mostly shown through their dancing. An example of this is at 0:56, where it says "telling me that my heart won't beat again" and they imitate a heart beating using their hands on their chest.
Relationship between music and the visuals - There is a fairly strong relationship between the the music and the visuals -the camera shots generally change to go with the beat of the song. Longer shots are used when the music tempo slows down, then when it picks up again quick snappy shots are used.
Genre characteristics of the music style - This music video is very typical of pop bands music videos. It is performance based, as most of them are, and features lots of close ups of the band itself as their good looks are one of their main selling points, and the fact they come across as charming and sweet.
Representation - The four band members of JLS are represented as good looking young men, who are charming and athletic and can dance well. They are non offensive, and overall look very mainstream and look like a typical boyband, and are represented as the ideal boyfriend that a teen girl would want - attractive, caring and talented. They are all mixed race, which challenges the stereotype that boy bands usually just have white men in them, such as Westlife, Boyzone, Take That, Nsync, and Backstreet Boys.
Audience - The target audience that this music video is intended for is tween girls aged 9-12, teenage girls aged 13-18, and perhaps some women aged 18-30 who like boybands. It is aimed at heterosexual females, but also perhaps to a lesser extent, homosexual males.
Today we brought together all our individual ideas and discussed them. All our ideas are quite similar in some respects so it wasn't that hard to all agree on a final idea. We want our narrative to center around a boy and a girl who cross paths throughout the day but never notice each other. Near the end of the music video they will finally meet and form a relationship. However, we are still keen to include nature shots to reflect the inspirations Lawrence King has within his music. Over the next few week we will pin down locations and characters, and then begin our treatments.
Before we got into groups and picked a song to make a music video for, we individually chose a song and thought about a pop promo to make for it and the synopsis and treatment for it. Below is my individual idea for a pop promo for a song. The song I have chosen is "Before The Worst" by "The Script". I chose this as the song itself it relatively unknown so people won't have any preconceived ideas of what music video to expect from the song, and it doesn't already have its own music video.
The music video is going to have a fairly strong relationship with the lyrics of the song. It won't simply illustrate the lyrics alone, but key lines will play a part in the visual associated.
The video starts with a young man sitting on some steps in a busy town center or city area, with people rushing past going about their day to day lives. He sits and looks towards the camera and sings the lyrics to the opening of the song. After a few seconds, it cuts to a shot of him a few months ago, meeting a girl in the same area where he is sitting now (but in black and white to show its the past). Then throughout the rest of the video it goes over the same pattern, cutting from happy, scenes with him and his girlfriend in the past, such as in a bar, at the beach and playing in a snowy park, back to him sitting on the steps. It then cuts back to the past, showing them having an argument (that ends with them splitting up and showing him deleting her number from his phone) to now where he is single and depressed and sitting on the steps with people going past, wishing he could go back to those moments with her. He is remembering all the good times "before the worst", with "the worst" being when they split up.
Treatment
The present times with the man singing the lyrics will be in colour (although desaturated to give it a glum and depressed feel), but the flashbacks to the past with his ex girlfriend will be in black and white to symbolise to the audience that the time they were a couple is now over, and that he misses those times. The man will be dressed quite scruffily, which conveys the idea that he doesn't really care about much now that he is on his own with no-one else. The shot of him sitting on the steps will be high angled, to make him look vulnerable now that he is on his own. An extreme close up shot will be used of his mobile phone, showing him deleting her number from his phonebook, to convey to the audience the message that they have split up. There will be no added sound effects in the video, just the music track. Some shots of the past with the couple together will be slowed down, to show that the memory's are now rather distant and hazy, and also this will fit in with the tempo of the song well, rather than having fast action.
To gain further knowledge of Lawrence King and get an insight into his music we emailed him a questionnaire which he politely completed.
Hi Lawrence! Firstly, how would you classify your music into genres?
I tend to describe it as Experimental/ Ambient/ Electronica. However I'm not putting myself into boxes just yet, things may change!
What is the inspiration behind your music?
Mainly nature and the wonderful things it creates... sunsets, bright blue skies the sound of a pebble hitting the water etc. But also the journey of time within nature and the concept of day and night.
What other artists would you consider in a similar genre to yourself?
I like the works of Boards of Canada, Four Tet and Zero 7. We aren't exactly the same but you get the idea.
How come you don't have any music videos?
Music videos are less common in electronic music- we like to concentrate more on the music! However some of the bands I have mentioned before have done music videos and I do believe they can sometimes help do justice to the song. As I'm not a big artist yet, still a student, there wouldn't be much point to making a music video until i gain a bigger fan base after considering costs etc. Unless more students like you want to make them anyway!
What do you enjoy in music videos (any genre)?
Variety is key, some have a great story to them, whilst others you just see the band performing and its still great. I don't believe its necessary to see the artist unless its a band, then its cool to see them all play together. I enjoy some of the more weirder music videos from Aphex Twin as you genuinely want to keep on watching to see what the hells is going on. Its always nice to see things you have never seen before in music videos- new environments and cultures etc.
What would you like to see in the music video we make for you?
That's really up to you, I have nothing set in my mind, hopefully you have got an idea what my music is all about and use inspiration from that. But I'm all for being experimental and doing what no one has done before so go crazy! I wouldn't want it to be generic and copied.
And... Would you like to be in it?
Preferably not, I'm quite keen to remain anonymous as an artist. I want people to concentrate on the music not me. This isn't like pop music where the image of the artist is key to the success. (Lucky for me? lol)
Age- Average age of participants was 19, but ranged from 16-26
It was important for us to gain the views from our target audience who we typically identified as 18-25, although we were limited by the people available to fill in the questionnaire.
Sex- M- 45% F- 55%
We don't believe there is any gender preference to the electronic music genre so we aimed to get equal views from both boys and girls.
1. How many music videos do you watch a week?
0- 5%
0- 5 - 10%
1-5 - 10%
5-10 - 10%
10-15 - 15%
15- 20 - 20%
20+ -30%
Many commented that although they may watch up to 50+ music videos a week it is done in an unconscious manner- i.e putting music stations on the TV to listen to the music, but they do not become absorbed in the video.
2. How important is it for a song to have an accompanying video?
Won’t listen without a video- 10%
Fairly important- 60%
Not bothered either way- 25%
Don’t watch music videos- 5%
The results tell us that the majority like to see music videos, and interestingly it is actually vital to some. Electronic artists often don't have music videos and we believe this is a disadvantage and they may loose a proportion of a potential audience albeit quite small. An intriguing music video is a good way to get someone listening to your music if they have never heard it before.
3. Do you enjoy music without lyrics?
Yes- 20%
No- 50%
Exceptionally - 30%
We asked this question as we needed to gauge how responsive are audience would be to Lawrence King's music. Unfortunately half of the people we interviewed do not listen to lyricless music but we hope this could change once they had been introduced to different types of music, and a music video maybe a good way of doing this.
4. Do you ever listen to Electronic or Chillout music?
Yes- 15%
No- 45%
Sometimes- 40%
45% of the people we interviewed do not listen to electronic music whether this be because of personal tastes or access to different type of genres. The electronic genre is not widely played or promoted on TV or radio so the results are not surprising. However many seem to like it occasionally and the medium of music video may help promote this further.
5. Do you think it’s important to see the artist in the music video?
Yes- 65%
No- 35%
It is useful to point out that mostly girls answered Yes, and when we asked why it was often because they like to gain fashion ideas from pop role models. Many participants also commented that if they were listening to music with out lyrics like dance music or d'n'b they often do not care about seeing the artists. The opposite is true with bands and pop stars. Our group therefore believe that it is not a necessity for Lawrence to be in the music video unless it would benefit our final piece.
6. Do you like to see a narrative (i.e story) in the music video?
Yes- 75%
No- 25%
From these result it is obvious that the larger majority like to have something to follow within a music video and we will definitely incorporate a narrative within our music video.
