Question 4

Google - Google was a vital tool when we began researching the conventions used in music video and helped when we needed tutorials in how to use some of the more advanced tools in premiere pro and photoshop.

Photoshop - we used photoshop as the photo editing software when we made the digipak and the advertisement for our music video.

Wikipedia - this was vital when we were doing in depth research on the band we chose.

Blogger - we used blogger to upload relevant research we done which went towards making the video. We also used it to write down the progress we were making on our work.

Youtube - youtube allowed us to view other videos of the same and other genres. We were able to take note of the different types of shots used but mostly the conventions of music videos.

Amazon - Due to the many opinions people had about the genre our band was, amazon gave us exactly what it was. We were also able to view the other artist which came from the same genre which helped towards the making of our digipaks.

Camera - we used the camera to film the shots that we used in our music video. We also used the cameras to take pictures of the storyboards we made for the music video and the drafts we did for the digipaks and advert.

Premiere pro - we used this to edit the shots that we filmed. Editing included cutting shots down, ordering them adding special effects and changing the colours of the shots to create different moods.

survey monkey - we used survey monkey to get feedback from a wider audience.

facebook - we used this social networking site to promote the survey in order to get feedback.

Question 3

The feedback that we received after showing our animatic of our music to the class was generally positive, although they did make comments about how some of the shots were too long and that it did not flow well with the music or change to the beat of the music. They also made comments on how the narrative of the story lacked clarity so they were unable to make out the storyline. The positive feedback at this stage was that we had a variety of different shot types and that the props and costumes gave out unclear hidden messages.

After the animatic we went off to film the music video. We then made a rough cut out of the footage that we obtained and then showed it to our peers. We were positively commented on the way in which we changed the colours of the whole video using the three way colour wheel. This changed the mood of the images to make them feel more linked to the music. They seemed to also find great interest in the two shots that were reversed and agreed that the narrative way much clearer than the animatic. This was due to the fact that we took measures to ensure that the two characters were representing their conflict with each other by give them opposite colour of clothing and making their shots contrast in colour.

The negative feedback was that the shots were too dragged out and that they still did not go to the  beat of the song. Another comment from our teacher was that the shots did not tie together well and looked like random shots thrown together which went against the conventions of music videos but in a negative way. In order to remedy this problem we decided to ask a friend who kindly agreed to mime some of the lyrics.

 Another criticism we received was that some of the longer shots were a bit shaky. In order to remedy this problem we decided to cut these shots into pieces and re-order them. This allowed us to erase the fact that the shots were shaky as the shots were constantly changing. It also gave off a disorienting effect which worked to our favour as it matched the music. Cutting and reordering the shots meant we had more to shots to order into the beat of the song.

After the completion of our music video we moved onto making drafts for our digipak and advertisements. For this we wanted to use key shots of the props that we used in the music video, such as the masks and candles. This showed a clear link between the music video and the advertising.

Overall, after showing the class the final piece they agreed that we had fixed all the problems and that it flowed well together. The only negative feedback was that some of the shots were not as strong as rest of the shots that we used.

After the completion of our music video we moved onto making drafts for our digipak and advertisements. For this we wanted to use key shots of the props that we used in the music video, such as the masks and candles. This showed a clear link between the music video and the advertising.  The feedback that we received was that the fonts were not clear enough. This meant that we needed to play around with the positions until it was clear without it looking dire.

question 2

question 1: music video evaluation

shot number 1: At the beginning of our video we decided that we wanted to have a short soundless intro before the music began. In most music videos this is when someone begins singing or playing and instrument In order to achieve the same effect we needed something that would trigger the music after the into and finally decided to do this when the needle of our gramophone hit the record. I think that the initial idea conforms to the conventions of our genre but we distinguished ourselves by using a gramophone which gave our video a vintage feel which does not conform with the conventions of music videos in our genre.


In one of Swedish house mafia's videos they did a similar thing to us but decided to use and instrument that is far more modern and fits their genre of music.

Shot two: This shot depicted one of the main characters throwing flour into the air. When editing this shot we decided to make it backwards as it produced a ghostly effect as it goes back towards the character. Looking at other videos of the same genre we noticed that they didn’t use this effect in their videos. This gave me the impression that we challenged the normal conventions in our genre.

 Shot 3: In this candle shot we also decided to make the footage go backwards. We wanted to do this as it linked itself to the lyrics of the song which mainly focuses on light coming to us rather than the light going away and leaving us in darkness, which was how the original footage looked like.

Shot 4: this shot depicts one of the locations that we used in our music video. I feel that this shot conforms to the conventions of our genre as the setting is outdoors and shots outdoors are often used when they are trying to make a character look like they are going on a journey or searching for someone or something.another point is that most music videos are often set in unusual environments that are unlike normal everyday locations.

Shot 5: this shot conforms with the conventions of a music video in this genre as we decided to isolate the artist in the darkness when filming. We also decided to make the shots black and white. Together, this allows the artist to be depicted as segregated from the rest of the characters and storyline. This is common in music videos as they don’t want the artist to be confused with the rest of the storyline.

Shot 6: In this scene we see the two characters come together and clash which symbolises a battle between good and evil. I feel that this shot goes against the normal conventions as the shot is obvious in its meaning as the characters act out their feeling with their aggression. Another factor that adds to the tension within the shot is the fast pace in which we edited the shot. It flows with the music which is common in music videos in general when they are at the ‘peak’ of the song.

shot 7: When filming this shot we used strobe lighting to give the shadows depicted in the shot an eerie and intimidating feeling. I feel that this does not conform with the norms of the conventions of our genre as their shots are more subtle and fluid whilst this shot was sharp and shocking.

Shot 8: It is obvious that this shot matches the normal conventions of music videos of any genre as most depict musicians playing instruments.

shot 9: The costumes used in our music video correspond with the conventions of music videos as it is more like a costume than casual clothing. I feel that the costumes that we used challenged and use the norms of the conventions of a music video due to the fact that our characters were wearing masks for most of the video but the clothing looked regular. It is unusual for characters to have a mixture of casual and costume in music videos.