Final edit of magazine advert

Evaluation Question 4

How did you use new media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?


Research and Planning:

• Blogger 

Blogger has been used by all the media students as a method of creating an interactive blog to present our coursework.

A blog is a much better method of presenting our coursework that on paper, as we are able to use HTML to embed videos, podcasts, images, documents and presentations.

Blogger is easy to use, especially as the compose section does most of the work for you.

We are able to link directly to sources.

It's relatively quick to use.

We were able to access it from both school and at home.

The overall result of using Blogger for our coursework, looks better and helps us to exhibit our technological talents.

• Youtube and Vimeo

Although we were only able to access Youtube from home, it was still a crucial resource for our research and planning, as it provided a means of watching almost any music video we could think of.

As it is global and anyone is free to upload to youtube there is a substantial range of music videos available to share and watch.

Also, the fact that anybody can access Youtube means that people are able to comment on your videos and give their opinions and feedback on your work.

Their embedding tool also meant that we were able to upload these videos to our blogs, and this provided a simple solution to exhibiting what we were watching and annotating directly to the annotations in text underneath.

An example which I have used in evaluation question 3 [HYPERLINK] is our target audience feedback which we did in the research and planning stages, and on this we used the annotation tool which is something which only youtube has to offer. It is a very direct and effective way of adding notes to work on video.

Vimeo is very similar to youtube, but has some limitations. However it did allow us to get around the fact that we were unable to access youtube in school. 

Vimeo provides the same uploading service as Youtube, although it doesn't offer the annotation tool and also doesn't have as wider user base as Youtube and for that reason we didn't gain any audience feedback from Vimeo via commenting. 

Vimeo also offer a service through which you are able to upload large HD files which you must pay for, whereas Youtube offer this for free, so we had to use Youtube to upload our HD footage final cut to the internet instead of Vimeo.

• Scribd

Scribd was used predominantly as a method of uploading microsoft documents to our blogs, for example:

My original music video pitch

Libertines Pitch

Again, Scribd provides another service to upload existing pieces of
work, such as documents, image etc and turn them into HTML which we can then embed to our blogs, making them even more interactive.

• Facebook

This social networking sight was great in the planning stages of our production, as we used it to arrange the filming of our rave scene. Although in the end we did cancel it it still provided a quick and easy method of contacting large numbers of people we know to let them know of the event and invite them to come along. Seen as facebook has become so popular recently, highlighted by the film 'The Social Network' which is based on the creation of this website, it seems as though any person you meet has a facebook account. This meant we were able to invite a lot of people, and had we stuck to this arrangement could have potentially got a lot of extras involved.

The planning of this can be found on this blog post: http://emma-graveling-musicvid.blogspot.com/2011/01/date-for-filming.html

• E-Mail

Using E-Mail we were able contact the right holder to the track 19/2000 quickly and easily, without having use a telephone or write and post a letter. We were also able to keep a record of the E-Mail we sent, and therefore could upload it to our blogs to evidence that we had followed the brief.

E-Mail isn't very recent technology therefore by now almost everyone is accessible via E-Mail, this meant that we definitely could use it for the purpose of contacting the rights holder.

We uploaded it to our blogs using Divshare. This is another website through which we could upload and embed bits of our work 

Here is the E-Mail we sent

• HD Cameras

The access to the high definition cameras, which produce a much better quality of footage, meant that we were able to do our locating scouting with an accurate interpretation of what the resulting footage would look like.

• Scanner

The scanner was a very useful bit of equipment in the research stages, as we researched existing examples of digipaks and also magazine adverts.

Although we were using 'old media' in the form of print text, the scanner meant that we were able to upload the images to the blog and annotate them, in order to compile a list of common conventions.

The scanner was also useful in the planning stages, as it meant we could draw out our storyboards by hand, and then scan them in to put on our blogs in order to showcase how we were working through the planning stages.

• Podcasts and Vodcasts

Using the macs, we were able to create podcasts and vodcast throughout the planning stages of our production. They were a good method of keeping our blogs up to date with the processes of planning.

We used vodcasts at every available opportunity and found using a camera very useful for things such as:

• casting 

• location scouting 

• initial ideas

We used vimeo, in school to convert these into HTML format in order to upload them to our blogs directly, which was very quick and easy.

For the podcasts we would have used Divshare, although there was a problem with the format so instead used Tinypic. This was disappointing as it created a large video size player and this looked less professional. 

• iMovie 

iMovie, was a good piece of software for editing our vodcasts as we had prior experience of using it from last years production task. This meant that we were able to create the videos relatively quickly and easily. We could put in relevant images, and footage from other videos and then edit the audio by extracting it and laying it over.

• USB's

The USB memory sticks were useful in transferring documents directly from one computer to another, this was very useful when working in a group as it made it easier to share work. 

The USB port in the macs was also used when uploading footage from the cameras as well. 

The internet in general was by far the most useful resource we had access to in terms of doing our research, as almost anything is reachable via the web.
Search engines such as Google are a quick and effective method of finding almost anything you require, as well as images which can be posted onto the blogs and transform a blog of text into a mulitmedia post. If we had had only books as a resource for research, i think that would have been very restricting, and left us with less varied and in-depth research.
Also without blogger we wouldn't be able to make an example of our range of skills within this subject and using technologies.

Construction and Exhibition:


FILMING

• HD Cameras

The use of High definition cameras meant that our final product was of much better quality, this means it is more realistic in the sense of creating a real music video, as existing examples of music video in the recent past have moved towards high definition and therefore, we are keeping up to date with this change in trend within the music industry.

The use of HD also helped us to film things which in the past we would have been unable to. An example of this is the difficulty we would have had on achieving focus on a text message from a mobile phone screen with a standard camera whereas with the HD cameras we were able to achieve this which meant we could use a texting scene in our narrative.

The HD cameras had all the same features as the mini DV cameras with the addition of aperture and shutter speed, which were useful when filming scenes in which the lighting was either too light or dark.

• SD Memory Cards - USB's

One of the problems we had with recording on the mini DV cameras was that sometimes the footage on the tapes was recorded over when they were rewound to far. The HD cameras store footage on a memory card, and this solved this problem. They also had a larger memory space so more footage was able to be recorded and stored. 

• Fish-eye Lens

We chose to use the fish eye lens on parts of the rave footage because it has a slightly retro style which ties in well with the image of Gorillaz, and also the digipak we designed. 

This is a type of shot which we haven't used before, in order to create it we had to buy a fish eye lens cap and fasten it onto the camera. We did this using tape due to trial and error, this was the best method as the lens didn't fit onto the camera completely

Some of the inspiration to do this came from the teen drama skins. As this programme targets a similar audience to our music video it makes sense that if it is appropriate for them to use it is equally as appropriate for us.

• Snorricam

The snorricam, again was something which we haven't used before. We used a home made version created by Callum Moreman. - [Link to how he built the snorricam]

EDITING

• Final Cut

As I wasn't as well involved with the editing of the video this year, Beth learnt how to use the editing software final cut to a higher level than myself.
Her evaluation of Final Cut was this:
This year, instead of using iMovie to edit our production, we have used final cut. This is a more advanced editing software, giving more control over editing, more special effects and the availability to layer various numbers of footage.
Some editing techniques we have used are:
Layering a sequence, using an opacity of around 50%, so there is a faded image on top of another.
Transitions such as additive and non additive dissolve, where the colouring between the two clips dissolves into the other image, and creates a nice dissolve effect.
Lens flare has been affective in our rave scenes, to add an interesting affect to the scenes, and create a transition between normal and fisheye footage.
Trails on the skateboarding, gives a motion blur/slow motion effect, which is a bit more interesting than the plain footage.
Issues with final cut came through right at the very beginning, when I'd only had about 2 hours practice at the Bradford Media Festival back in October. So had to teach myself how to use, which was a matter of trail and error; which considering the short time that we had to edit, meant a lot of time was put into the editing process.

• Scanner

As we were creating our own cartoon imagery for both the ancillary texts, we chose to draw them out by hand. This meant that the scanner was crucial in turning them from a drawing into a format which could be digitally edited.

• Photoshop

The editing of the ancillary texts was done using the programme Photoshop. Basic editing programmes such as Windows Paint are far less advanced and offer less options for editing that photoshop, which works on a basis of layers which allowed us to edit things separately and add things in without having to alter backgrounds etc.
Using Photoshop was much quicker and produced more professional results than more basic editing software which was important in creating our ancillary texts as they had to match the quality of the music video to create a successful package.
Although it took a little training to adjust to using Photoshop both Beth and I has prior experience with the programme from last years media coursework poster and in other subjects such as art.

IMAGE - PHOTOSHOP STILL FRAME

EXHIBITING

• Youtube and Vimeo

Every rough cut we made was uploaded to Youtube and Vimeo. This meant that we were able to gain some audience feedback via commenting.


This is the audience feedback we got on our final draft:

On this final draft Beth also added annotations, which helped to show which sections would be altered in the very final cut. This meant people would be more easily able to give feedback as they would have a more accurate reading of the text.

This cut was also uploaded to Facebook, which recieved a higher number of comments for feedback. I think this was due to it being more personal. Facebook also offers the option to 'Like' videos which again is positive feedback.

This feedback highlighted how some people may not detect our preferred reading although very few other people had this problem, so it isn't something we feel needs to be edited differently.

The final cut which was uploaded to Youtube received one very detailed and well criticised comment,

" I think this pretty good actually, the storyline works well in a nicely circular fashion, the effects for the skateboarding and the final party scene were good. If I'm going to be really critical, the lighting could have been better in some of the house scenes, and the party at the end needed a little more flow, it seemed a little stilted/staged.

Overall though, this is a good effort, would it work as a video with professional production standards - absolutely yes, good job."

which shows how useful the site is in gaining audience feedback, however we were unable to use that feedback after it was left on the final cut.

• USB's

The use of USB's made it easier for us to transfer files from one computer to the next which meant we were able to screen our rough cuts to the class on the whiteboard in order to gain audience feedback.

Evaluation Question 3

What have you learned from your audience feedback?

The first bit of audience feedback we did was to narrow down our target audience, and discover whether the age group we thought would like the 19/2000 Soulchild remix which was between 15 - 24, actually did.

We had thought this would be our target audience mostly because of the genre, hybrid between hiphop and dance. Original Gorillaz fans would be quite a bit older than 15-24 now as the band first released records in 1988. Though as were not using an original Gorillaz track we figured they're not our main target audience, however they could be a secondary target audience.

We used a quick questionnaire to find out whether students aged 17-18 recognised the record, if they could establish which genre it is and if they liked it. We filmed their responses and uploaded the video to Youtube, and then annotated using the annotation tool.

From this we found that on the whole people recognised the song but were unable to tell us the artist or song title, unless they were existing Gorillaz fans. This was disappointing although the majority claimed to like the track and therefore still matched our thoughts on target audience.

Their feedback on what they expected to see in a music video for the track was useful because some of their ideas were very similar to our own. This would suggest that a person of that age would like our music video and find it authentic.

We never gained any audience feedback from a possible secondary audience, out of our target audience age range. Perhaps if we were to re-do the research and planning we could have gained some feedback from an older audience, to see how they would respond, and whether they would follow a preferred reading of the video. However their feedback wouldn't be as relevant because they aren't our primary target audience.

Our audience feedback for our music video was sought from various sources:

• Class screenings
• Screenings to other media students
• Screenings to our year group and also the year below
• Youtube
• Facebook

Each of these resulted in different types of audience feedback, for example:

• Media students were happier to constructively criticise our work meaning we could use there feedback to improve our work.
• Screening the video to the students in other media classes whilst we weren't present resulted in even more criticism which suggests perhaps our class were trying to be nice to beth and myself.
• Although one positive with screening to the other class was that they hadn't seen our work as many times as our own class which meant that they were giving feedback in a more realistic setting as opposed to our class who seemed to be analysing every detail which wouldn't happen with a general viewing in the real world.
• Other sixth form students in general were less willing to criticise, we could however ask them specific questions such as 'do you follow this reading' and see whether they responded positively or negatively.
• Very few people gave feedback via Youtube, which meant that it was difficult to use their feedback for any specific purpose, though we in total received 3 positive comments and 6 likes on the final draft and final cut out of a supposed 431 views.

• Facebook friends were more willing to give feedback although due to the social aspect of the site not all of it was necessarily feedback on the video, friends were also less likely to criticise.
• Youtube users who left comments are anonymous so we were unable to tell what age group was giving us audience feedback.
• Facebook was better for this, as the comments left were from friends aged within our target audience group 15-24.
• However Youtube offers a statistical view of the video views from other people which tells us whether they have been linked from Facebook which is a good sign that uploading it to that social networking site was a good choice.
• Youtube also provided us with this statistic:

Audiences - This video is most popular with:

Gender	Age
Male	13-17

which matches what we had previously thought in terms of target audience and therefore helps us anchor that. 

The music video:

After gaining audience feedback from a small group of students in the other media class with which we ran through our entire music video in detail we gained this audience feedback:

This was the rough cut that they saw:

Rough Cut 3 from Beth Cooper on Vimeo.

These are the suggestions they made as to what we could edit and improve upon:

• Cut back to the phone ringing and add in SFX to the shots to mimic the vibrations of the phone, in the opening scenes of mise en scene close ups.
• Also add diegetic sound of the phones vibrations.
• Reverse the shot of the light bulbs to focused, then blurred, as this will tie better with our central protagonist, Callum waking up.
• Alter the sequence of shots to mix both mise en scene, bottles and cigarette packets etc with the extras cast asleep.
• Add more lip-syncing as Callum gets dressed.
• More shot variation during the fridge scene.
• Possibly add a close up shot of Callum opening the can, and using SFX put his face on the can lid.
• Possibly repeat the motion of the fridge shutting to match the beat, similar to the repetition of Callum running down the stairs
• Overlay Callum taking the cigarette of the girl sleeping on the floor to mask the slight shake of the camera
• De-saturation of red hues on the skateboarding scene
• Add more ghost trails on the long shots from the skateboarding scene or possibly just on the jumps
• Re-shoot the shot of the CD player in the car
• Add shots of the road, to increase shot variation in the car scene
• Re-shoot the scene in which Callum and Simon arrive at the party, as the shots are too long, they're poorly framed and they don't flow well into the next sequence of shots from the house party.
• Mix together shots of the rave and the kitchen scene with fast pace editing to create a more slowing transition.
• Alter the main shot of transition from our cast member Megan, to the DJ, to a transition of Megan to Megan down in the rave which would flow better.
• Layer some of the HD shots from the rave 
• Link the HD shots to the fish-eye lens by panning down into a bottle creating a circular frame which is similar.
• Also improve the transition between the fish-eye lens and the scene with Callum and our female cast member Vicky going upstairs in a similar way.
• Re-shoot the ending to make it less abrupt, we will film Callum putting his hand to the camera to signify the end.

This is the final draft and as you can see we took on board what the group said about the following scenes and edited them accordingly:



Here is the screening of our final cut which we presented to a group of sixth form students which fits our target audience age range.



Following this screening it is clear that there is little left to be done to improve our video and therefore we can use it as our final cut.

The ancillary texts:

YOUTUBE VIDEO HERE

Digipak

 This was the draft our our digipak which was discussed in the video.

From this audience feedback it was clear that on our digipak we were missing a lot of the small details which go into creating a CD cover. For our final digipak we had to add all these in to make it authentic and like a real digipak production which was our brief.

It was said that the theme of our digipak ties in well with our advert which is positive as this shows that our audience feel that the two work well together as a package despite the imagery not being identical.
However it was suggested we could further improve the links between the two by matching some of the colours etc.
There was a suggestion to tie in the youthful image and graffiti with the album texts with a spray can effect so we aimed to create a convincing spray can effect as we thought it was a great idea. To anchor that it was graffiti style we also added in an outline of a spray can.

The sticker idea was also mention in this audience feedback session which is something which we chose to add to our digipak as it is an easy way to add any extra information about the special edition digipak which is separate to everything else. Also, as the sticker is a common convention of existing digiapak and CD cover examples, using the same technique makes our digipak look more authentic, like the real life examples.

Magazine advert:

 

 

This was the draft of our magazine advert which was discussed in the video.

From that class discussion it was suggested that we:

• Use the same pink text on more of the white text.
• Make the text on the digipak features stand out more, for example: in shape of a record.
• Re-order the writing as it is a little squished up.
• Compress 'THE REMIXES' so that the edges of the letters aren't lost.

Following the audience feedback we created one more draft with which we weren't happy and then exhibited our final draft which received positive feedback from a group of media students, which was why we eventually chose it.

We gained less audience feedback from our ancillary texts as the process of producing them took less time, also we only gained feedback from media students. Given more time I think it could have been beneficial to gain more audience feedback by possibly uploading

Final Cut - Music Video - 19/2000 Gorillaz (Soulchild remix)