Little Mix on Social Media

Social Media

Typography/Logo Ideas

Typography Research

Today I started began researching typography for artists. I found it interesting to see what fonts different artists use to promote themselves and how they develop over time.

Most artists I found, such as Katy Perry and JLS keep the same font throughout their albums, advertising, merchandise and anything that they include their name on which enables convergence throughout their products. However, artists such as Beyonce change the fonts they use throughout the development of their career. For example, every album of Beyonce has a different font for her name. This is because she tries to reinvent her self for each album, bringing a new sound/ style and presence to herself. Her record label would decide this for her and promote her in the way that they believe will get most attention. A major change we can see is that one of her first albums has an old fashioned feel to it, making her look like a classic artist who has been around for ages. Whereas one of her most recent albums uses a bold font, representing her as a strong artist.

I will now use InDesign to create my own title font for CHELSEA VIOLET.

Weather Report 12/12/16

Production Diary 11

Travel Schedule Day Two

Locations Day 2

SHOOTING SCHEDULE DAY TWO

Focus Group Findings

Today I completed my focus group within my media class. I showed them my test footage and then asked them the questions that I have previously prepared. Here is the information I found.

1) Does the binary opposition used of youth and teenage years creates an interesting narrative for our audience?
It is more appealing to our target demographic of teenage years as we represent them within our media. It is interesting as it shows the journey and story of their friendship blossoming. Interesting narrative of the development between young and growing up.

2) Should we have different filters to represent thee youth scenes?
Using different filters to create flashback scenes allows the audience to clearly seen the changes in age. It creates a clear difference between past and present and shows a strong divide between the age brackets.

3) What codes and conventions can you see in our test footage?
The costume is conventional and it is conventional and fits in with the setting and location. The lip syncing is clear and performed well. The high key lighting creates an upbeat feel conventional of the pop genre. The bright colours go with the pop conventions.

4) Is our mis-en-scene in keeping with our pop genre?
The mis-en-scene of the video fits in well with the pop genre. The locations are strong which retains the audiences interest. The London locations create iconography and are not boring for the audience. However they believe that the makeup should be brighter to fit in with pop.

5) What uses and gratifications do you think my video will be used for by the audience?

My video will be used for entertainment. It could be used as a sen of escapism. The fact that the characters are relatable allows people to be appealed to the music video. They can also learn about the artist from watching the music video.

Focus Group

A focus group is a form of qualitative research in which a group of people are asked about their thoughts on a particular event/ object. Questions are asked in an interactive group where participants of the group are free to talk with other group members. During the focus group, the researcher will take notes or record the vital points they are gaining from the discussion.

I am going to organise a focus group to find gain opinions about my test footage. I will create a range of questions to see if we have met the pop genre requirements and to see what we can improve on to ensure we make the best video possible. 

Here are the questions I have constructed for my focus group:

Does the binary opposition used of youth and teenage years creates an interesting narrative for our audience?

What codes and conventions can you see in our test footage?

Is our mis-en-scene in keeping with our pop genre?

What uses and gratifications do you think my video will be used for by the audience?

Weather Report 25/11/16

Production Diary 10

SHOOTING SCHEDULE DAY ONE

Crew List

Here is our crew list. The purpose of this is so we can see which team member is in charge of each part of the process. However, as this is a team task between Hannah and I most of the roles are shared between us. However we took extra responsibility on two items, props and locations although we both helped make the final decisions.

Equipment List

Here is our equipment list. It includes all the resources we need for when we film and the reason in which we need to use it.

By producing a list we will not forget to bring anything with us on the day of filming.

Props List - DAY ONE

Theses are all the props we need for our first day of shooting. By creating a props list, we can ensure that we have everything we need and can remain organised before our filming. It will also ensure that we can get all the filming we need to get done completed and not have to refilm another day due to a missing prop.

Locations Day One

Production Diary 6 - final idea with hannah

Representation of our Artist

This poster shows the representation of our artist through the use of camera and mis-en-scene. I have looked at how these elements have effected the representation of

-Conventional representations

-Challenge stereotypes

-Positive and negative stereotypes

Institution Name Audience Feedback

This is the results from a questionnaire we conducted asking a group of students 'What is your favourite Institution Name?'. From the results it is clear to see that the most popular result is 'Sumic' with 60% of the result.

To ensure we had the correct results, we completed a small focus group where we could gain more research into why people liked and disliked the three options. From the video below, we can see the following 

• SUMIC - LIKED as catchy, sounds like a big brand, rememberable
• RSML - DISLIKE as too long, not got a catch to it, 
• HF Productions - DISLIKE as plain and basic.

From our research, the name we have decided on is Sumic. as we believe it is easy to say and remember and is an anagram of the word music, which is the heart of our institution. It is also a fun word, representing our pop genre.

Institution Name

This is a mind map created when brainstorming Institution Names. We looked a number of areas, Genre, Our names, Words, Music and abbreviations to help us come up with ideas.

We have decided on 3 names that we liked the most, Sumic, RSML and HF Productions. We will create a questionnaire on the names and conduct extra audience research to find the most effective name.

Production Diary 8

Risk Assessment

This is my risk assessment. By completing a risk assessment I can ensure I have looked at all the health and safety of my locations and shooting schedule. This means, if followed, there will be no injuries or hazards on set, making sure everyone is safe and time is used effectively.

Audition 4

This is Grace Elliott's audition, who has auditioned for the role of The Friend. We liked her energy and attitude but don't believe her lip syncing was of an extremely high standard.

Audition 3

This is Maisie Ingram's audition. She has applied for the road of The Friend. We liked her lip syncing but are not sure she fits the role.

Audition 2

This is Fay Davenport's audition. She has applied for the road of Chelsea Violet. We believed she suited the look of the artist but don't feel like her acting was natural.

Audition 1

This is Hannah Innerds Audition tape.
She has auditioned for the role of either Chelsea Violet. We liked her lip-syncing ability and believed that her look suited what we wanted our artist to be like. An improvement would be to act more natural infront of the camera.

Auditions

There are 4 characters in our music video.
Chelsea Violet as a young girl
The Friend as a young girl
Chelseas Violet
The Friend

To chose our cast we held auditions, to guarantee we choose the actor who best suits the role. In our auditions we for Chelsea Violet and The Friend, we made them lip sync to the opening of the song. This then indicated to us there lip syncing ability, personality and how they come across on camera.

To chose the two young girls we filmed them saying their names, pulling a funny face and then interacting with one another by pairing up. This allowed us to see how they worked within a pair indicating their team work abilities. We were also able to see what pair had a good connection and would come across well on the camera for our music video.

Makeup Update

The makeup style we have decided for Chelsea Violet is a mature, simplistic look. We do not want her make up to cover her natural beauty and we want her to come across as normal and down to earth as possible. Sometimes artists wear so much makeup and look nothing like their natural selfs. This is not what we want for our artists as we want her to appeal to young girls and also teenagers.

The brown tones of her makeup give her a warm look and also an autumn feel to the film, which is the timing of the filming, so it fits in with our setting and locations. 

What Are The Purpose Of Music Videos?

This is a mind map I created when researching the main purpose of music videos. I found that there are 4 main reasons, for profit, promotion, entertainment and sort telling.

From this research I can ensure that my music video does all this 4 things.

Copyright Letter

Today I found the record label that Florence and The Machine belong to. After research, I found that the record label the song 'You've Got the Love' belongs to is Island Records, who belong to the conglomerate Universal Records.

After more research I found an email address, to enquire about Copyright for our music video.

Here is a screenshot of the email I sent.

Actor Release Form

An actor release form gives you the right to distribute a film with an actor's likeness. Without getting an actor, or crew member to complete this, your production could be at a legal risk and you could potentially get sued. By using a form you can protect yourself and production company.

It is used anytime you have talent in front of a camera, especially if you are looking to distribute it eventually.

Hannah and I will make sure all members of crew and actors sign this form, so that they are all aware of the purpose of filming and that there is no potential legal risk.

Updated Artist

Mind Map created by Fay Davenport with GoConqr

Production Diary 7

Mis-En-Scene of my Music Video

Production Diary 5

Pop Music Conventions

Francis Lawrence, successful Music Video Director

How Are Music Videos Made?

Intertextuality Examples

I have previously researched intertextuality. I know want to know how it can be incorporated into music videos. Here are some examples that I have looked at.

FANCY - IGGY AZALEA
I have previously studied this video and how I enjoyed the similarities between the music video and the film 'Clueless'. I now know that intertextuality has actually been used here. Director X, who directed the video, has based the whole music videos, from locations and props to costume on the film Clueless. He has done this to create nostalgia for the audience and create excitement between a well loved film for the age group he is targeting and the new music video for a popular artist.

CALIFORNICATION - THE RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS
This video was released in 2000 and includes references to popular video games. It sees the band members digitally transform into characters in video games that have strong similarities from games  such as 'Grand Theft Auto', 'Pro Skater' and 'Tomb Raider'. By using popular current games, the music video was topical and excitement about any games released would also create conversation about this music video. The games which are used in the video have the same target audience as the music video. This allows those who would be interested in the games to then watch the video, a clever trick.

MADONNA - MATERIAL GIRL
Intertextuality can be seen dating back to films that were released decades ago. The video for 'Material Girl' has links to to Marilyn Monroe 'Diamonds Are a Girls Best Friend' from the film 'Gentleman Prefer Blondes' in 1953. In the video Madonna wears a pink dress with her hair in a short blonde bob. She is circled by men in black suits dancing up and down stairs holding handfuls of diamonds. This is identical to the clip in the Monroe film. This has been done to portray Madonna the same amount of sophistication and beauty as Miss Monroe had. The film also has same kind of target market as the music video, young women. Therefore that demographic would watch the music video, recognise the scene, and nostalgia and an emotional bond would be created between the viewer and the media.

What is Intertextuality?

Chelsea Violet Moodboard

This is a mood board I have created on InDesign to show what my artist likes and who her inspirations.

Where Can You Find Music Videos?

Mind Map created by Fay Davenport with GoConqr

Storyboard

Inspirations for our Final Pitch

Final Pitch

Today, Hannah and I compared both of our final narrative ideas. It was clear when we spoke to one another that our favourite theme was to revolve around friendship, as we feel it is an inclusive theme that relates to everyone and also light hearted and fun.

So here is our pitch...

Before the song begins we will have a section where two young girls meet, over their love of music. An extreme close up shot will show they keys of a piano being played. A wide shot will then show the back of a young school girl, with blonde hair, playing the piano. She will be playing a simple version of the chorus of You've Got The Love . A wide shot will show another young girl, with brown hair, sitting next to her and joining in with the piano playing. We will then see the blonde girl giving a bracelet to the brunette girl. The significance of the colour hair of the girls will portray what girl they are in the rest of the music video. A close up will show the two girls bracelets saying 'best' on one and 'friends' on the other.

A quick shot change will then show our artist, Chelsea Green, lip syncing in a living room looking through a photo album. She will then pause on one photo, where a zoom shot will be used. This photo will then 'come to life' as it will be a freeze-frame of the start of the scene.

The verses will be a mixture of events the girls have gone through together and then also a range of lip syncing. The choruses will be made up of fast pace montages of all happy memories of the girls friendship. We will repeatedly go back to the photo album to show freeze frames of scenes, where we will zoom into the photo. This inspiration came from the One Direction - Story of My Life Video, that I previously analysed.

Throughout every shot there will be a significance of the friendship bracelet. This may be a zoom in or slow motion focusing on the bracelet, or just the knowledge that both girls are wearing them.

At the musical break element of the song we will use a 360degree shot with a selfie stick. This will work by completing a full 360degree circle with a selfie stick at each location and merging all the different locations together. The selfie is a new shot that can be used in media, so by using it in our music video will allow our video to remain current and fun for the audience to watch.

The end verse will be a mixture of lip sync and an event, to bring the music video to an end.

The end of the song finishes with a 7 second piano melody, which links in with the beginning of our story. Therefore we will cut back to the two young girls and see them perform this melody. As the music ends they will shut the lid of the piano keys and the focus will zoom into the two bracelets.

Research Into Camera Techniques

To gain some more insight into camera techniques I found a range of videos on YouTube to help me. Here is one that I watched on camera angles and movement.

Production Diary 5 - audience questionnaires

Audience Questionnaire Results

Here are the results I gained from the questionnaire that I sent out.

The first set of results, 1-5 show me that the majority of my target audience watch music videos every day, therefore we need to ensure that our music video is different and stands out in order to grab their attention. I have also learnt that Twitter is a social media site that many people see the link to a new video from an artist, therefore we will create a twitter account, alongside the other social media sites that have shown popular, to ensure our video is sent out to members of the public. Most of my target market watch music videos on TV, so we need to ensure all shots can be shown pre watershed, so that the video can be shown on TV 24hours a day so maximum people can view it. Youtube is also very popular so we will need a Youtube channel. The most popular channel on TV in my target market is MTV, which shows pop music videos, which is the genre we have chosen. 

The second set of results have shows me that our target audience like coloured videos, therefore we shot include bright shots. They also prefer narrative videos so our pitch should include a strong narrative. Fast pace editing is the most popular within our market, however if a slow shot is needed it can add to the suspension if adding fast pace shots after. The majority of the target market said they like videos around 2:00-2:99 and 3:00-3:99, so we need to make sure our video is no shorter or longer than this.

From question 9 and 10 I have found out that most people's favourite music video is either because it has a sentimental value to them or it has stuck in their head. This may be because it reminds them of a fun time or has striking visuals that engaged them into watching. The majority's least favourite video was down to a lack of an interesting story, which then made them loose interest and not remember the video. Many also said they didn't like lyrical videos as they feel like the artist couldn't be bothered to make a proper music video.

Audience Questionnaire

Yesterday I created a questionnaire about music videos to give out to my target market, teenage girls (and boys). The idea around this is to gain information about what my ideal demographic like in a music video, so that I can use the information gained to create a successful final music video.

The first set of questions I asked (1-4) focus on the distribution of the music video. The information gained from these questions will allow me to know what type of platform my video has to appeal to. For example, if most people answer TV, we will have to think about what shots can't be shown before the watershed period, which will limit the amount of times our video is shown which will mean it is not as successful as it could be.

The second set go questions (5-10) ask the participant what they like in music videos. From these answers I can ensure my music video includes what they like. For example if the majority like short, slow, black and white videos, I can check this against my pitch to see if it will be successful.

Question 9 and 10 will help my research as I can see if there are certain elements that are similar between the target markets favourite and worst music, so that we can either include of avoid them in our video.

Artist Style

Inspiration for our artist mainly stems from other current pop artists. Females like Pixie Lott, Zara Larsson and even celebrities such as Millie Mackintosh have the classy, trendy look we want our artist to resemble.

Chelsea Violet is an artist that we want a large demographic to be able to relate to. Therefore we do not want her style to be extremely out there like that of unique artists such as Katy Perry and Lady GaGa who are known for their wacky outfits.

Here is a moodboard of some outfits I believe Chelsea Violet would wear.





















On the left is a causal outfit, made of a shift dress and an oversized denim jacket. Denim jackets are in trend at the moment showing Chelsea is an up to date fashion follower. The trainers give it an edgy finish along side some unique shaped sunglasses.

To the right of this is a burgundy rollback paired with some ripped jeans. Chelsea worn sport this look when out and about on her way to shoots/ meetings or even lunch with friends. The hat and boots give a sense of sophistication to the artists style.

Another day time look is made up of the flannel shirt and leather jacket. I created this outfit from inspiration from Pixie Lott, who as we have previously said is an artist we want Chelsea Violet to be like. This look is extremely casual and makes our artist relatable, as there are no high price items.

The last outfit is a night-time going out outfit. The Valentino bag and Christian Loubotin shoes portray Chelsea Violet is successful as she can afford high priced designers. The look is different to a traditional dress, showing that Chelsea Violets style isn't just to follow every one else.

From this research I have been able to build up an even more detailed image of what I want my artist to look like and how Hannah and I wish to style our artist like in our music video.

Pitch Two

Here is another narrative idea I have thought about, that links to our theme of friendship.

A wide shot all show two young girls, around the age of 7-10, playing together whilst singing the lyrics 'you've got the love'. There will be no music here. One of the young girls will then hand over a friendship bracelet to the other. A zoom shot then focuses on the two bracelets, and a fade to black appears.

When the lyrics begin, 'sometimes I feel like throwing my hands up in the air', we see two older girls, who's features still resemble those of the younger girls. For example one brunette and one blonde. Throughout the song we will see the two girls journey through their friendship. The images on screen will create an illustration video as they will resemble what the lyrics mean. However not all the images will match. The pace of the song with also decipher what part of their friendship the viewer see's. For example, the slow pace parts near the beginning may show a friend comforting her crying friend or the two having an argument. Whereas the fast pace chorus will show the fun parts of the birthday, such as going out, theme parks and laughter.

Throughout the music video, it will keep cutting back to a location of a recording studio. Here the artist, Chelsea Violet will be singing to her song. This can be done by either using a real recording studio location or on a green screen. I believe the most meaningful words should be lip-synced, to create a relationship between the viewer and artist.

When the lyrics sing, Time after time I think 'Oh Lord what's the use?' a wide shot will see one of the girls staring at a gravestone. A shot reverse shot will then show the back of the girl, and using the rule of three another silhouette will come into focus on the righthand side. A side wide shot will then show that this is the girls friend. A zoom will then show the second girl going up to her friend and holding her hand, with the zoom focusing in on the girls hands and the friendship bracelets being clearly visible. This is the disruption of the music video, when looked at through Todorovs theory. I believe this scene will give the video more depth and not just a typical pop music video of following a few characters having a good time. It makes the video more relatable as we all go through bereavement and need our friends to be by our sides.

The fast pace chorus will then come in, and the shots will cut back to being fun filled and heart warming. In terms of Todorovs theory this will be seen as the final equilibrium as both females are once again happy as they were at the start. 

When the song has stopped the music video will fade to black. It then cuts to the two young girls again and then walking out of the room they are in holding hands. This is a circular narrative as we see the whole story and it links back to the start. By showing the two younger girls at the end again the audience gains a sense of pride as they feel as if they have seen the two young girls friendship grow. The audience also feels happy, as they feel like the two young girls have their life of friendship ahead of them and they are yet to live it all.

Pitch One

The main theme that we have thought about is friendship, however I have also come up with a narrative that has another theme.

'You've Got The Love' is a song about love, obviously, therefore I believe we should explore a narrative that includes a love theme. Here is the idea that I came up with...

The main shots of the video are point of view shots, so the audience can make a relationship with the characters easily. To begin with the camera will walk down a busy market, full of happy excited shoppers. A wide shot would then be used to show a male character, then a zoom into a close up to identify the man on the lyric "sometimes it seems that the going is just too rough'. A shot reverse shot would then be used to show the identity of the girl.

We would then go on a journey through the couples relationship, the first date, the second date, the meeting of the parents. Fast pace shots would show the couple on holidays, at adventure parks and completing fun activities, this would take part in the first chorus. When the speed of the song then slows down again, slower pace shots will then be used to show the couple getting engaged, married and having their first child. By seeing these important life events we feel as if we have followed the couple on their journey. A timpelapse then shows the child growing up, starting school, leaving school, starting work, bringing a girl home and leaving his house to buy his own. These shots will be shown in the second chorus. It will then cute to a hospital bed screen using a close up shot. Another wide shot then shows a female hand holding on to a males hand which is covered in wires and drips. A wide shot is then used to display an old male laying in a hospital bed with his wife by his side. As we have followed the couple though their journey it is obvious that it is the same couple. This also creates high sad emotions for the viewers as they feel as if they know the couple theirselves. There is then a shot change on the lyrics 'But you've got the love I need to see me through', where a wide shot is used to show the back of an elderly woman facing a graveyard, dressed in blacked. This is sure to create a sad emotion for the viewer and as death is something that effects every single person, they will definitely relate to it. If the video does effect a lot of people effectively, viewers will tell their friends to watch it and the video will gain popularity.

This narrative would be an amplified video as I have used the lyrics to create the story. 'You've got the love I need to see me through', can be analysed to say that as long as she has that persons love she can go through anything, this matches the last scene of the elderly woman in the graveyard as she knows that her husband and her had a love-filled life.

Copyright Holders

After completing research I found the record label for the track we wish to use is 'Moshi Moshi Records'.

From this I found their email address and sent them my enquiry to gain their permission for the song. Here is the email I sent.

I received an automatic reply, explaining I should receive a reply within a couple of days.

Genre of Music, SONG CHOICE

This video describes our journey of choosing the genre and song.

Here is our brainstorm:

Here is our analysation of You've Got The Love, Florence and the Machine:

Here is our analysation of Gravity, Ella Eyre:

Artist Name

To decide the name for our female artist Hannah and I sat down and discussed the names we liked. We come up with a variety of names, as you can see below. 

After creating our initial name ideas, we then put the names we thought sounded good together and wrote them down. Here, it came apparent that the name Violet was very popular. 

We then spoke about each name in more depth and used red to cross out the names we were not happy with and highlighted greens the ones we wanted to take forward.

This left us with

Chelsea Violet

Harper Violet

Violet

Chelsea.

After asking our classmates for their ideas and researching each name we agreed on Chelsea Violet.

To make sure Chelsea Violet was definetly the name we wanted to use, we annotated the name to show how it would relate to our artist. We believe the name shows she is feminine, calm, spiritual, and down to earth. The name also creates a character, of a girl who grew up in Chelsea and had a childhood nickname of Violet. From this research we are extremely happy with our artist to be called Chelsea Violet!