2nd Day Filming

In order for us to use our chosen location for filming the band play we had to book session for using a drama studio in our school. We wanted this location because of the black curtain that you could pull around the room and the lighting that is installed for drama performances. We had to book a week in advance which gave us time to finalise all the props we usedand where we would position the drum kit.

This filming session ran more smoothly compared to our first day of filming. This was due to the fact it was inside and we did not have to put up with freezing conditions,we could also easily read our story board with out it blowing away or our hands becoming to cold to actually hold paper. We was also more focused to what we was going to be filming and not as many adjustments had to be made because their wasn't any natural events taking place such as tides rising quicker than we were filming. The fact that all the filming took place in one location and it was only the camera that changed position made it much easier and quicker because we did not have to keep changing the position of the tripod. It was quicker to film as continuity did not matter so much, as we were a band playing and going crazy it would be better to not match to add to the fast paced confusion mood of the music video.

We used a dolly cam tripod to film the sequence of the band members playing. This was a key tool to creating the mood that we wanted to be established. It enabled us to film a smooth moving shot that added pace to our film alongside professional qualities. Although having access to this equipment was a huge benefit for us it still had its floors. Firstly it is fairly old and as you would expect there was some wear and tear from where it has been used through out the years. the top of the tripod was broken and a replacement holder for the camera had been put in. As we found the dolly cam like with we could not buy a new one because it was old, this caused the camera to become loose at times and slip of.This was corrected by placing additional materials in the part that holds it together to create a firm grip on the camera. Furthermore the tilt motion on the dolly tripod had become loose, even tho it was as tight as possible it still slipped down which meant we had to hold it up at all times to stop it slipping.

Some last minutes changes were made to the actors in the band because of people letting us down at short notice. We did not want to use the character ‘Guy’ in our band because we thought it would seem a bit strange that he is being chased by a nun and then he was a nun in the band. After a much team consideration we chose as a group that our best option was to use Steve, who plays Guy as our drummer. We concluded that it would create more enigmas if he is playing in the and also get the audience thinking to them selves about what is happening more. As i was the guitarist in the band we needed another media technician to be in control of the camera. we also needed some one to control the lighting for us to make it flashy and as if we were playing to a live audience. this worked well but some times thelight contrasted with the dark to much and created very strong flash which the cameras could not handle.

-Brad Hart

Changes We Have to Make (The Hair Cut Situation)

After our first day of shooting our actor has had his haircut. Although it was only a little bit he still gives the rocker image we were looking for for our character Guy. The problem we face is continuity. we shot the 2nd from last scene first.This means our character will have short hair in the beginning up until the river scene and then after that it will be short again. The solution we have come up with is to put a hair cut scene in. We will have o organise another shooting day or make it totally random and have the nun cutting his hair in his sleep at the hospital, if not then a open isolated field. It will still effect the continuity of our video so we can make the river scene a flash back from the guy. This will wok well because he will be having flashbacks within flashbacks create even more enigmas for the audience.

As a media group we need to take the blame for this mistake because we did not warn our actor about this when he agreed to act for us. Instead of automatically assuming he was aware of the situation we should of confirmed this with him before making our filming arrangements.

I am adding to this blog post at a later date to say that this did not take place. We tested to see if you could notice the difference and it was pretty much exactly the same as before. After this out come we have decided to follow the original plans as before.

-Brad Hart

Setting and location - Train Station

In our music video we decided to include a few seconds of footage at a train station. From discussing our ideas we decided that the best train station to film at was Brentwood Station as it is an open station so we didn't have to buy a ticket and it meant we could film on the platform which would normally not be allowed. The footage that we took was good as we managed to capture our main character running up the platform and onto a train, this was a good location to film at and created a valuable footage time filler.

Editing diary

After every filming session i would upload the footage straight away to the computer so it can be check for quality and edited. The usual procedure was that i would spend my free lessons editing the footage that we had to the correct places of the song then in our media lessons we would finalise the editing as a group. We did this is 7 different installments until all of the footage was uploaded and perfect.

The software that was used to edit our video was Pinnacle studios. It is a professional software which offers many different techniques and features to create the video in. An advantage about using this software was that you could zoom in on the timeline which is very handy whilst producing a music video because you can get the footage matching the  tempo of the song almost perfectly. A disadvantage with the software is that it can be very problematic when editing clips. As our project was edited in installments we had to place clips into the timeline. this moved all the other clips either backward or forward. When clips were cut it also cut the song so we had to keep re-editing. 

Setting and locations - Car park

The idea of using a car park in our music video was one we had from the start. This was meant to be a location that came in the video straight before the train station sequence. This gave the idea that the character has ran through a car park towards the train station to get away from the nun. After a discussion with Brad we decided that it would be better if we have the car park sequence after the train station sequence because it shows that he has come from a location that no one knows. This location was ideal because of a few factors.

The first factor is the fact that the car park we are using is big and is used by a lot of car owners. This allowed us to get across the idea that the character is living in a normal life were it is busy and congested. This was a good factor because we didn’t want to make it seem like no one is around seeing as the shots we have used before and after this made it seem like there was no one else around which isn’t what we wanted throughout the whole music video. The second factor that was good about this location was the efficiency of filming in the car park because of the closeness to our school. It was about a 10 minute drive which meant that it was easy to go back and film in case we didn’t get all the shots we wanted.

Overall the location provided us with a good time space of footage. We managed to get around 20 seconds worth of film in the car park, but still managed to create a fast paced beat to the cuts.

Setting and locations - Boiler Room

During the planning stages of our project we initially wanted to use a hospital for the opening for our music video. Using a hospital will set the theme for music video and establish the song. As the title of the song is “Who was in my room last night?” a hospital seemed the perfect place for our character to be woken up by a nun. Having him in a hospital indicates that he does not know what has happened to him the previous night. 

As the first 40 seconds of the song is very slow with a small amount of sound it establishes the meaning of the song and why it has been wrote in this certain way. In the same manor we need to fit the music video into this, establishing what it is going to be like. Most importantly we need to get the audience interested and engaged with the video. Also we figured that the white walls and corridors in a hospital conveys the image of innocence and  insecurity. 

In order to use the hospital we had to arrange it through a friend who’s mother worked there. As time pushed on we were still waiting for an answer. We eventually decided to go location hunting again for the same scene using the same shots. We suggested thing like having the character waking up in the middle of a street, but we dint want to include housing estates. We also considered using an empty field for the character to wake up in but it would not have been as effective as we wanted it to be. After summing up all of our ideas I suggested using the boiler room in our school. It doesn't look like part of the school, but something unusual and ‘creepy’. Having white walls, mostly covered in heavy machinery this seemed our best bet. It was also very easy to get to as it was in school. We had to adapt some shots and improvise with the structure of the building. On top of this we also found a cart. What the site team use to transfer tables and chairs into the hall on. We thought this would make a better bed as it looks like the character has had a drunken/intoxicated night and found him self in the most ransom place he could possibly imagine. We were still able to fit in within the timing of the song and stick to the story line I had perviously planned out. 

 This is the entrance to the boiler room. We will see the nun walking from the left around the corner to the door which is on the left(opposite the lockers). The shot would be much better and more professional if the lockers were removed but I do not have the authority to move them, or ability seen as they were really heavy. 

This is the door way where we will see the nun's feet walk out from. Although is is just a step we make it look like a door way/entrance. This will be achieved by taking the shot from the left so that you cannot see around the corner in the video. It will look like the nun has just walked through a door. This shot will replace the establishing shot of the hospital alongside the opening shot establishing the character 'Guy' is asleep. 

The following two pictures are where the Nun will walk down. This will replace the nun walking down the corridor in the hospital. This has slightly changed the mood of the video. It was planned that the white hospital walls would create an innocent feeling which will be enforced y using a nun character. This location suggests a psycho, crazy persons hide out. Rather than being innocent we are using extreme controversy with the nun to confuse the audience from the very beginning. 

(The nun will be steeping out of the step)

(This is the direction the nun will be walking in)

This is the room where the character 'Guy' will be sleeping in. When we use it there will be exams on so it will be empty as the tables will be in the hall.  The mise en scene of this room really emphasises` the fact that the character 'Guy' does not know what had happened to him the night before, hence the song name 'who was in my room last night'.

Setting and locations - Church

A key location I have always thought of including in a media project is a church at Laindon, Basildon, Essex. I had always thought it had an eerie, creepy feeling to it, yet it still looked a pleasant place to be. When I first found out about the A2 coursework of making a music video the first thing that struck me was to include this church because of its appearance. It is at the top of a very steep hill and graves at the front were starting to slide down as the earth eroded. This has been touched upon now and has been corrected but the appearance of the graves still has a sinister resemblance. I was informed by a teacher that a church had already been used for a music video in previous years so I will have to be careful in order to not replicate their work.

This is a view from Google maps. From this picture we can see how big the church and graveyard is on realistic terms. This is a great place to be creative with our shots and still have the freedom to choose from a variety of angles. The fact that it is based on top of a hill it will be very effective to use a lot of low angle shots.

This photo shows the path leading to the church door. It is perfect for our character to run through as it is lower than the ground its self. All sorts of connotations can be from this, for example, the characters inability to realise what is happening can be shown from the eerie surroundings.

Again this is a great place to frame a shot. The camera could be placed on the floor within the pebbles looking up at the guitarist who is playing in the door way. This can resemble how the character is trying to be connected with the church and questioning the fact there is a nun following, which will be happening in our music video.

This is the front of the church. Once again another great place to represent the characters state of mind and uncertainness. All of the shots in this scene will consist of the same colours, a vibrant green from the grass and the grey from the stone. It cannot not be changed but I will work with lighting in post production to produce the most effective piece of work.

The next series of photos show how the ground has eroded causing the graves to collapse and move. This is ideal for our music video as it creates a unique selling point. Using this location will help us make the video as professional as possible and escape using the common locations in A-level video productions, like housing estates and bedrooms. This specific part of the church will enable me to be as creative as I possibly can, it seems ideal to have close ups on this feature with the character or guitarist in the background, especially during the solo of the song. Panning around the hill will also be very appealing to the viewer and I will be able to establish the location that I have chosen. I will have to be careful with the sign because if this is included in the video it will ruin the shot and suspensions created by intense editing.

The following pictures were taken to show a variety of options when choosing the perfect shot to establish the mood of the song. To fit in with a rock music video we will need to use shots to fit in with the expectations of the genre. Creating a ‘haunted’ and ‘eerie’ mood we can also express the humour within the genre and style of the song when the nun has followed the character every where in the video.

Bradley Hart

Setting and locations - Drama Room

To shoot our band performing we originally thought we could use footage from a charity concert our band usually plays in for the school, Shenstock. Although this was an inviting idea it would have been really hard to use good shots that will be effective in our video. We also have the problem of performing, it wouldn’t have been very exciting as we do not regularly play gigs and are not used to the nervous environment of being on stage. Despite this we did not actually play in the concert due to it being postponed to the new year. This is past our deadline so we decided on a new idea.
We considered having the band play at the locations where the character guy would be. This would be effective as it shows we went to the effort in getting a drum kit to a river and a church. How ever I feel that it does not fit the codes and conventions of a rock music video. The band are normally playing live or playing in a designated room. We are going to use a drama room in our school which has a black curtain to pull around it. The room also has lights installed which we can use to make our video look professional. Because this location is in our school we can easily shoot the footage and correct it if something is wrong. The only problem we face is that the room may be being used for rehearsal for the Christmas concert but we will have to manage our time around them.

Brad Hart

Planning Diary

The project has changed a lot over the last for weeks. Looking over the blog so far we can see that our ideas have been adapted over the last few weeks. This has created a timeline blog, which means that our blog shows the development and adaption of our project over time.

Looking at the first storyboards that we created we can see that our initial ideas for the music video was to be more of a chase sequence. It showed a man being chased from one location to the final destination. It has changed with the idea that instead of the character being chased we are going to have him develop the idea that he is confused of where he has to go and is given signs through the music video to end up at the final sequence of the church location. This creates more of an on edge storyline as it creates the effect that the character is looking for an answer which will be at the end of his journey.

Also we can see that the locations have changed a lot. We first decided to start the location shooting in a hospital with the main character waking up. This has then developed with different ideas coming forward. One of the ideas was instead of the main character waking up in hospital we would have him waking up in the middle of an empty field. We choose this idea as the location would be easier to film at and also it creates more isolation and importance to why he ended up there. We are still un sure on how we will start the thriller and we will try to develop our ideas more over the next few weeks.

Week 1

Our first week consisted of mainly looking at our AS blog and comparing it to what we will be doing and also we discussed what went wrong and what went right. After our first blog post we looked at bringing forth ideas towards what song we were going to choose. The first main change that our coursework has under gone is the change in idea of the genre of our music video. When me and brad first decided what song we was going to choose we had mixed opinions. Brad came up with doing song choices such as ‘Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’ by The Beatles and ‘Comfortably Numb’ by Pink Floyd. We decided that these songs were too slow paced and wouldn’t be suitable when creating a successful music video that fits the markers mark scheme. I came up with ideas that maybe faced paced lyrical songs such as ‘Fast Car’ by Example would solve the problem of making the video fit into the markers mark scheme. This is because songs that have more lyrics would make it easier to get footage because of the fact we can connect more visual meanings with the words in the song. From what we have now we can see that our ideas have changed a lot seeing as we have chosen ‘Who was in my room last night?’ by the Butthole Surfers. This is different but still combines the idea of the song having a faced paced beat and the use of different and relevant lyrics.

Also in the first we created a blog which gave information on the codes ad conventions of a music video. This contained background research on what you would normally find in a music video such as mise en scene, sound, editing, narrative structure and cinematography. This post gave both me and Brad the basic knowledge of how we will create the music video to fit into the standard set mood that a normal music video consists of.

After this post we then moved on to look at how our chosen genre (Rock) would influence our music video. This was not a set blog post to do but Brad suggested that he would do it as extra work because it will help understand in more depth what our music video should contain. It also gives a bit of information on the song we have chosen and what codes and conventions their music videos contain of.



Week 2

In the second week of our project we decided that we would put our knowledge to the test of music videos and do two textual analyses’ of well-known music videos that we found on YouTube. The first textual analysis that Brad done was a song called ‘By the way’ by the Red Hot Chilli Peppers. Brad looked at the different aspects of the music video and analysed it using he’s knowledge of the song itself. While he was doing he’s blog I decided that I would analysis a song called ‘Down’ by Blink 182. I decided to choose this music video because it contained the same sort of aspect that we wanted to include in our video. Also it connects to the song that Brad chose. Both of these songs contain a chase sequence. Analysing these music videos helped us give a set idea to base our music video around.

The second piece of work we done in the second week was the ‘Intended Institution analysis’. This blog post consisted of us giving ideas towards what music institution would promote our music video and what way they would go about it, e.g. Roadrunner records would advertise our music video for free on YouTube.

Week 3

At the start of the third week we decided to move onto the Brief/Synopsis. This blog contained information on what our music video will contain and what types of locations and shots that would be involved. For example ‘The chorus is purely instrumental so at this point we will show the band playing to establish their rock and roll life style. Using a series of shots in a dark room with stage lighting will help us achieve a professional approach to our music video. This will happen through all of the choruses’.

As you can see so far we have made good progress on the course and have adapted our ideas. If we continue to adapt our ideas then we surely be successful when it comes to filming and editing the final product.

Costumes

We have selected various costumes to create a sense of professionalism. Firstly the nun will be dressed as a nun. We chose this character to fit in with the psychedelic codes and conventions of a rock video, to be humorous, surprising and random.

Using this costume will also create copious amounts of controversy. Nuns are seen as respectable, loyal and innocent women. Using a male in a nun suit will instantly indicate that this is not the case and we have a case where the ideology of a nun is changed.

All band members will be dressed in nun suits to create more enigmas to what is happening.

The other character known as guy will be dressed to fit a rocker/grunge stereotyped person. The image we re trying to create is long haired, slightly scruffy and casual. We do not want someone to be normal but also not someone who would be stereotyped as a ‘grunger’. The main point we will establish is that they are not a trend follower but will be what ever they want to be being them selves. This is because as a group this is the effect we want our video to have on people. For people to not attempt on being something there not for the sake of it but for being who they are. The clothes we chose were a black hoodie worn under a leather jacket, black jeans and longish hair. This expresses the image we wanted to portray.

Setting and locations - The River

To make our music video the best we could we decided on using as many different locations as possible without it becoming ‘odd’ and going against the codes and conventions of a rock music video. I have always thought of using the River Crouch as a location for a media product. As my Dad owns a flat over looking it at South Fambridge I have become very familiar with the river having spent a lot of time there fishing and walking in the summer.

Firstly the river bank in general is an appealing place that will stand out in a music video. It will create enigmas to why the guy is running along it and how he got there. Being a rock music video this will not be established so that it leaves the audience trying to figure out the answer, therefore thinking about our music video for a greater time. The Bank creates an isolated effect as there is nothing but fields and water. There are boats mored in the river but where we are filming they will not be seen.

Unfortunately when i went to take photos the tide was raising which means I could not take photos of the river bed when the tide is out, which will be used in our music video. The concrete kelp works well with creating a bold contrast with the middy river bed and the green scenery on the bank. We are going to use this to have a selective amount of colours in one shot which will produce a colourful and eventful music video. It Will also keep the audience focused on the video as running along a river can be seen as boring.

However there are pill boxes from the war still located along side the river. my initial idea was to use this as a sage for the band to play. After a lot of consideration I summed up that getting a drum kit to this location would be extremely hard. After all we had found a better location to shoot the band performing at which would be a lot easier. Another key point about this location is that the ground has grown over it in the years. This means there is no entrance. We can use this for the part in the third verse where it says “and I couldn't find the door”

shooting Schedule

To make the filming process easier and more organised I have created shooting schedules to Make sure that we stay on target.  

I found it hard to use this shooting schedules because once we went out of time it was hard to get back in the hang of it. It was also very off putting and made us panic when really there was no need to. To make a better video we feel we need to be comfortable and work at our own pace when filming so for the next planned filming dates we are going to use the storyboard to guide us. 

1st Day of filming

Our first scheduled day of filming was for Wednesday 17^th November. Unfortunately our actor let us down on the day and was unable to come and film. We had to postpone the filming date to Tuesday 23^rd November. This had set us back and we are now closer to the deadline which created a panic. We also had to use another actor which meant explaining the story line and he didn’t know if he was very good. As we arrived to our location and walked down the river to where the scene will be shot we realised that we had left a key prop in my car so I headed back to get it. As we arrived to the place where the scene will be shot for the second time we realised that we had left the guitar in my car, so once again headed back to my car. Another problem we faced was that it was so muddy walking along the river bank. We almost fell over and some of our props and costumes got a bit muddy. Following this the weather was dry but extremely cold. As we were shooting beside a large river it was very windy and the freezing conditions were almost unbearable to be in. Due to the cold weather our actor was almost freezing and appeared to be very rigid. When it came to the scene where I was in a nun suit playing guitar I had trouble moving my fingers to the pace of the song. It was so cold I could barely separate my fingers let alone perform a guitar solo. This will affect our final product but shouldn’t be a major issue. Another major problem we faced was that the tide was coming in and we started to loose areas which we needed to film down on the river. As there is a concrete slope in which the river rises up on I thought it would be a good location which I could smash the guitar on and swipe it through the water. Although I was warned not to I still decided to go ahead. I was purely thinking for the final outcome of our music video. Of course the obvious happened and I slipped on sea weed and fell in. despite the freezing cold conditions my legs were fairly warm. On the other hand I was still able to film a few more shots until the battery had run out on the camera, luckily at the end of our shooting.

Another problem we faced was the fact there were fisherman fishing beside us. They did not affect our video but it was slightly embarrassing and off putting smashing a guitar in a nun suit in front of them. We did not let this effect us and just thought of what our finished product will look like.

Despite our floors on our first day of shooting we did capture some very effective footage. We used the fact it was a very windy day to make our video better. By placing the camera in the long grass it looks very professional as it is a contrast from a close up of the grass and a large river in the background. Although it was freezing the windswept atmosphere turned out very well when we was smashing the guitar, and using a lot of deodorant we set the guitar on fire to create a Jimi Hendrix style of smashing up and destroying a guitar.

Our initial plans for this day would be to film the scene by the river and then head straight to the church so we could film the church scene. But due to a lack of time we will have to arrange another date for the shooting of the church scene.

-Brad Hart

Shooting Schedule

Monday 1st November 2010

Location: River
Cast: Steve Taylor & Brad Hart
Crew: Brad Hart & Tom Winn
Time: 9am – 4pm
Scenes Shot: Various running scenes by the river

Wednesday 10th November 2010

Location: Drama Room in X-block
Cast: Brad Hart, Sam Latimer, Steve Taylor
Crew: Tom Winn
Time: 3:15pm – 5pm
Scenes Shot: Different shots of the band playing

Friday 19th November

Location: Boiler Room

Cast: Brad Hart & Steve Taylor

Crew: Tom Winn

Time: 2:15pm – 3pm

Scenes Shot: Shots of the nun finding the main character asleep and starting the chase sequence

Monday 29th November 2010

Location: Car Park & Train Station

Cast: Steve Taylor

Crew: Tom Winn

Time: 10:30 – 1pm

Scenes Shot: Running through car park then running to the train

Props