Wednesday 30 March 2011
Three final ideas for CD cover
After reviewing the results of my questionnaire, I chose the three most popoular pictures and quickly sketched some designs using each image as the main backdrop for my cover.
My sketches:
My sketches:
First Ideas for CD cover
I took some initial photographs, trying to stick with the conventions of some of the existing CD covers I researched earlier on. Here are my favourite photographs so far:
I can tell from the results that pictures one, four and five were favoured amongst the people I asked so I will therefore experiment with different designs using these images.
As my song has quite emotional lyrics, I feel that a darker colour for my ancillary products would link in with the depressing/sad tone of the song.
I asked 10 people which of my designs they liked the best, to help me when designing my final product.
Question: Which is your favourite of the six designs? (Left to Right 1-6)
I can tell from the results that pictures one, four and five were favoured amongst the people I asked so I will therefore experiment with different designs using these images.
Colour theory:
Colours are often associated with different emotions and can also have connotations of different things, for example red is often seen as a fiery/angry colour but also reminds people of danger or blood.
The colour wheel is a good way of comparing and contrasting colours which oppose and compliment each other:
As my song has quite emotional lyrics, I feel that a darker colour for my ancillary products would link in with the depressing/sad tone of the song.
Monday 28 March 2011
CD cover research
These are six examples of existing CD covers from a variety of different artists (pop/rock and alternative) which all differ slightly. I am going to conduct a questionnairre asking people which CD cover they prefer and why to help me when designing the cover for my CD.
I asked a total of 15 people to fill out my questionnaire, they were aged 17 - 25 as I have identified this group as my target audience.
The first question I asked was:
The results showed that 'The Rasmus' and 'Hockey' CD covers were the favourites amongst the people I asked.
I then asked them why they had chosen that CD cover as their favourite, below are a few of the comments I recieved.
I also asked what they felt were the most important features of a CD cover:
The majority of people I asked thought that the main image shown on the cover was the most important feature, with the colourscheme being the least important.
Finally, I asked people how much they would normally spend on a CD:
I will take this feedback into consideration when designing my Cd cover as I want it to appeal to as many people as possible.
Saturday 26 March 2011
Digi-pak research: existing CD cover
As part of the ancillary task, I am required to design and make a CD cover to compliment my music video. To start my research I took several photographs of an existing CD I own:
Characterisation
Although there will not be any dialogue between the two characters appearing in my media video, it is still important to build up their character in order to make them relatable to the audience.
Michael is the 'artist' whose song the music video is played alongside. It is therefore important for him to be present in most of the shots, so that the audience clearly know that he is the 'star'. I have chosen to make him seem like quite an average sort of man, his clothing and overall appearance is common amongst young adults, the people who are most likely to watch the video. You can also see through some of his facial expressions that he is a good person, he does not like to see his girlfriend upset.
Costume ideas for the characters:
I have looked into what I think would be suitable clothes for Michael and Ellen to wear, these are only a vague idea of what they will look like and they will each have several different outfits on as it is supposed to be filmed over a longer period of time.
Michael:
Ellen:
Michael is the 'artist' whose song the music video is played alongside. It is therefore important for him to be present in most of the shots, so that the audience clearly know that he is the 'star'. I have chosen to make him seem like quite an average sort of man, his clothing and overall appearance is common amongst young adults, the people who are most likely to watch the video. You can also see through some of his facial expressions that he is a good person, he does not like to see his girlfriend upset.
Costume ideas for the characters:
I have looked into what I think would be suitable clothes for Michael and Ellen to wear, these are only a vague idea of what they will look like and they will each have several different outfits on as it is supposed to be filmed over a longer period of time.
Michael:
Ellen:
Copywright issues
Due to copywrighting laws; the music I will be using is a newly released, widely recognised song by a popular band, I would need to gain the permission to use it from the copywright holder. I could do this by writing a letter to them but instead of this I have found a cover of the song on 'Youtube' which is not copywrighted which I will use.
This version is an acoustic cover by Phil Olczak and Aaron Smith.
Further Research
Before filming my music video, I conducted further research into music videos, this time focusing on other videos by 'The Script'.
The first one I watched was their official video to the single 'Breakeven':
After watching this video I realise that there is a strong focus on the artist throughout the video, he is shown both performing and as part of the narrative. There is another typical convention of a music video, a relationship in crisis is the main focus of the narrative, fitting in with the lyrics being heard. There is a short piece of footage at the beginning which further builds on the characterisation and narrative structure. Although this is not essential it fits in particularly well with the tone and story of the song. I really like the switches between the black and white mixed in with full colour footage to highlight his happy memories which juxtapose strongly with his bleak reality.
The second video I looked at by 'The Script' was 'We Cry':
This video shows the lead singer in most of the shots, again reinforcing his importance to the audience, this is once again mixed in with the narrative, which is mainly quite literal in relation to the lyrics heard. The camera movement is shakey giving the video an almost homemade feel. This could appeal to the target audience, young adults, who prefer more realistic videos especially with this type/tone of song.
After watching both of these existing videos for the band which I will be focusing my music video around, I have decided to make a few changes to my product. Firstly I would quite like to incorporate the black and white theme which occurs in the video 'breakeven' as I feel that whilst primarily fitting in with the conventions I wish to recreate, it will also be relevant to the tone of my video and will help to distinguish between the memory scenes and the present day scenes as well. I have also decided that I will have a few close up shots of the artist and the instrument (the guitar) as these seem to be vital in a music video.
The first one I watched was their official video to the single 'Breakeven':
After watching this video I realise that there is a strong focus on the artist throughout the video, he is shown both performing and as part of the narrative. There is another typical convention of a music video, a relationship in crisis is the main focus of the narrative, fitting in with the lyrics being heard. There is a short piece of footage at the beginning which further builds on the characterisation and narrative structure. Although this is not essential it fits in particularly well with the tone and story of the song. I really like the switches between the black and white mixed in with full colour footage to highlight his happy memories which juxtapose strongly with his bleak reality.
The second video I looked at by 'The Script' was 'We Cry':
This video shows the lead singer in most of the shots, again reinforcing his importance to the audience, this is once again mixed in with the narrative, which is mainly quite literal in relation to the lyrics heard. The camera movement is shakey giving the video an almost homemade feel. This could appeal to the target audience, young adults, who prefer more realistic videos especially with this type/tone of song.
After watching both of these existing videos for the band which I will be focusing my music video around, I have decided to make a few changes to my product. Firstly I would quite like to incorporate the black and white theme which occurs in the video 'breakeven' as I feel that whilst primarily fitting in with the conventions I wish to recreate, it will also be relevant to the tone of my video and will help to distinguish between the memory scenes and the present day scenes as well. I have also decided that I will have a few close up shots of the artist and the instrument (the guitar) as these seem to be vital in a music video.
Friday 25 March 2011
Final Idea
I have decided that for my final product, I will use the Irish pop/rock band The Script (s) single 'for the first time'. After researching different genres, I believe that this type of music would mainly appeal to people aged between 17-25, so I will be sure to consider this target market when constructing my video. The lyrics to this song are as follows:
"She's all laid up in bed with a broken heart
While I'm drinking Jack all alone in my local bar
And we don't know how we got into this mad situation
Only doing things out of frustration
Trying to make it work but man these times are hard
She needs me now but I can't seem to find a time
I've got a new job now in the unemployment line
And we don't know we got into this mess it's a Gods test
Someone help us cause we're doing our best
Trying to make it work but man these times are hard
But we're gonna start by drinking old cheap bottles of wine
Sit talking up all night
Saying things we haven't for a while, a while yeah
We're smiling but we're close to tears
Even after all these years
We just now got the feeling that we're meeting
For the first time
She's in line at the door with her head held high
While I just lost my job but didn't lose my flight
But we both know how we're gonna make it work when it hurts
When you pick yourself up you get kicked in the dirt
Trying to make it work but man these times are hard
But we're gonna start by drinking old cheap bottles of wine
Saying things we haven't for a while, a while yeah
We're smiling but we're close to tears
Even after all these years
We just now got the feeling that we're meeting
For the first time
Drinking old cheap bottles of wine
Saying things we haven't for a while, a while yeah
We're smiling but we're close to tears
Even after all these years
We just now got the feeling that we're meeting
For the first time
For the first time
Oh, for the first time
Yeah, for the first time
Oh these times are hard
Yeah they're making us crazy
Don't give up on me baby
Oh these times are hard
Yeah they're making us crazy
Don't give up on me baby
Oh these times are hard
Yeah they're making us crazy
Don't give up on me baby
Oh these times are hard
Yeah they're making us crazy
Don't give up on me baby"
I will film a man and a woman, (my friends Ellen and Michael) acting most of these lyrics out literally, with Michael lip syncing to the words as he will play the artist. For the first line of the song 'shes all laid up in bed with a broken heart' I will focus on a close up shot of a picture of Ellen on Michaels phone, this introduces her as the female 'character' of the song. Then an over the shoulder shot will reveal Michael looking at his phone, whilst sitting in a bar, again fitting with the lyrics 'while I'm drinking Jack all alone in my local bar'. Then I will have a different shot of him playing the guitar and singing along to the lyrics 'and we don't know how, how we got into this mad situation' this introduces him as the artist and shows that he is the one singing. It will then cut back to the scene of him in the bar where he slams him drink down onto the counter, 'only doing things out of frustration' this again fits in with the lyrics. The next line 'trying to make it work but man these times are hard' will be shown alongside footage of Michael finishing his drink. I will then cut to a different scene of Michael looking at a clock with an annoyed expression on his face 'she needs me now but I can't seem to find the time' this once again literally explains the lyrics and adds to Michael's character, he is annoyed with himself for not finding the time to help out his girlfriend. The next shot cuts back to Michael singing by himself with his guitar 'I got a new job now on the unemployment line, and we don't know how, how we got into this mess its a God's test, someone help us coz we're doing our best'. I will then cut to a different shot of Michael holding his hands as if he is praying, to go with the end of the line. I will then cut back to Michael playing the guitar, 'trying to make it work but man these times are hard' he will then smile as he sings 'but we're gonna start by' there will be a different shot of him and Ellen sitting down and laughing whilst drinking some wine, as if in a memory. This imagery will be accompanied by the lyrics 'drinking old, cheap bottles of wine, sit talking up all night, saying things we haven't for a while, a while yeh, we're smiling but we're close to tears, even after all these years' I will then show Michael standing up and pulling Ellen up as well 'we just now got the feeling that we're meeting, for the first time'. Whilst the instrumental is playing I will use extremely fastforwarded footage of traffic on a motorway traveling past, this will represent the time changing and how their relationship is also rapidly changing.
For the second part of the song, I will cut to different footage of Michael by himself, he will be sitting down singing to himself 'shes in line at the door with her head held high, while I just lost my job but didn't lose my flight, but we both know how we're gonna make it work when it hurts,when you pick yourself up you get kicked in the dirt' when he says the last part he will angrily throw some dirt onto the floor, as if he is angered by the reality of what he is saying, followed by a close up of the guitar from a different shot 'trying to make it work but man these times are hard, but we're gonna start by'. In another memory scene I will use clips of Michael and Ellen laughing and kissing to show how their relationship used to be, throughout this passage of the song I will vary the shots of them together to form almost a montage of Michaels happy memories of Ellen. When the lyrics say 'a while yeh, we're smiling but we're close to tears, even after all these years, we've just now got the feeling that we're meeting, for the first time' a close up/over the shoulder shot will be used to show both of their faces and their expressions. Whilst the instrumentals are playing I will use fastforwarded footage of the sky (a low angled shot will be used as the sky will be the only thing present in the shot), once again symbolising the change of time. The final chorus will focus on Michael playing the guitar and singing along to 'drinking old, cheap bottles of wine, sit talking up all night, doing things we havent for a while, a while yeah, we're smiling but we're close to tears, even after all these years, we've just now got the feeling that we're meeting, for the first time'. I have decided to do this as I feel it is important for the artist to feature strongly throughout the video, as shown in similar music videos I have researched. For the final instrumental I will once again show sped up footage of motorway traffic, but this time at night. This also links into what will be the final scene of my video which will show Michael walking down a road at night. The camera will follow him to a door which he knocks, Ellen will then answer looking angry with him, a close up of her face will show her expression. Michael will then stroke her hair and walk into the house, Ellen briefly smiles at him but once he has entered, her face which is facing towards the camera looks upset, she will then shut the door on the camera, signifying the end of the music video. Throughout this scene the lyrics 'Oh these times are hard, yeah they're making us crazy, don't give up on me baby. Oh these times are hard, yeah they're making us crazy, don't give up on me baby' will be heard.
"She's all laid up in bed with a broken heart
While I'm drinking Jack all alone in my local bar
And we don't know how we got into this mad situation
Only doing things out of frustration
Trying to make it work but man these times are hard
She needs me now but I can't seem to find a time
I've got a new job now in the unemployment line
And we don't know we got into this mess it's a Gods test
Someone help us cause we're doing our best
Trying to make it work but man these times are hard
But we're gonna start by drinking old cheap bottles of wine
Sit talking up all night
Saying things we haven't for a while, a while yeah
We're smiling but we're close to tears
Even after all these years
We just now got the feeling that we're meeting
For the first time
She's in line at the door with her head held high
While I just lost my job but didn't lose my flight
But we both know how we're gonna make it work when it hurts
When you pick yourself up you get kicked in the dirt
Trying to make it work but man these times are hard
But we're gonna start by drinking old cheap bottles of wine
Saying things we haven't for a while, a while yeah
We're smiling but we're close to tears
Even after all these years
We just now got the feeling that we're meeting
For the first time
Drinking old cheap bottles of wine
Saying things we haven't for a while, a while yeah
We're smiling but we're close to tears
Even after all these years
We just now got the feeling that we're meeting
For the first time
For the first time
Oh, for the first time
Yeah, for the first time
Oh these times are hard
Yeah they're making us crazy
Don't give up on me baby
Oh these times are hard
Yeah they're making us crazy
Don't give up on me baby
Oh these times are hard
Yeah they're making us crazy
Don't give up on me baby
Oh these times are hard
Yeah they're making us crazy
Don't give up on me baby"
I will film a man and a woman, (my friends Ellen and Michael) acting most of these lyrics out literally, with Michael lip syncing to the words as he will play the artist. For the first line of the song 'shes all laid up in bed with a broken heart' I will focus on a close up shot of a picture of Ellen on Michaels phone, this introduces her as the female 'character' of the song. Then an over the shoulder shot will reveal Michael looking at his phone, whilst sitting in a bar, again fitting with the lyrics 'while I'm drinking Jack all alone in my local bar'. Then I will have a different shot of him playing the guitar and singing along to the lyrics 'and we don't know how, how we got into this mad situation' this introduces him as the artist and shows that he is the one singing. It will then cut back to the scene of him in the bar where he slams him drink down onto the counter, 'only doing things out of frustration' this again fits in with the lyrics. The next line 'trying to make it work but man these times are hard' will be shown alongside footage of Michael finishing his drink. I will then cut to a different scene of Michael looking at a clock with an annoyed expression on his face 'she needs me now but I can't seem to find the time' this once again literally explains the lyrics and adds to Michael's character, he is annoyed with himself for not finding the time to help out his girlfriend. The next shot cuts back to Michael singing by himself with his guitar 'I got a new job now on the unemployment line, and we don't know how, how we got into this mess its a God's test, someone help us coz we're doing our best'. I will then cut to a different shot of Michael holding his hands as if he is praying, to go with the end of the line. I will then cut back to Michael playing the guitar, 'trying to make it work but man these times are hard' he will then smile as he sings 'but we're gonna start by' there will be a different shot of him and Ellen sitting down and laughing whilst drinking some wine, as if in a memory. This imagery will be accompanied by the lyrics 'drinking old, cheap bottles of wine, sit talking up all night, saying things we haven't for a while, a while yeh, we're smiling but we're close to tears, even after all these years' I will then show Michael standing up and pulling Ellen up as well 'we just now got the feeling that we're meeting, for the first time'. Whilst the instrumental is playing I will use extremely fastforwarded footage of traffic on a motorway traveling past, this will represent the time changing and how their relationship is also rapidly changing.
For the second part of the song, I will cut to different footage of Michael by himself, he will be sitting down singing to himself 'shes in line at the door with her head held high, while I just lost my job but didn't lose my flight, but we both know how we're gonna make it work when it hurts,when you pick yourself up you get kicked in the dirt' when he says the last part he will angrily throw some dirt onto the floor, as if he is angered by the reality of what he is saying, followed by a close up of the guitar from a different shot 'trying to make it work but man these times are hard, but we're gonna start by'. In another memory scene I will use clips of Michael and Ellen laughing and kissing to show how their relationship used to be, throughout this passage of the song I will vary the shots of them together to form almost a montage of Michaels happy memories of Ellen. When the lyrics say 'a while yeh, we're smiling but we're close to tears, even after all these years, we've just now got the feeling that we're meeting, for the first time' a close up/over the shoulder shot will be used to show both of their faces and their expressions. Whilst the instrumentals are playing I will use fastforwarded footage of the sky (a low angled shot will be used as the sky will be the only thing present in the shot), once again symbolising the change of time. The final chorus will focus on Michael playing the guitar and singing along to 'drinking old, cheap bottles of wine, sit talking up all night, doing things we havent for a while, a while yeah, we're smiling but we're close to tears, even after all these years, we've just now got the feeling that we're meeting, for the first time'. I have decided to do this as I feel it is important for the artist to feature strongly throughout the video, as shown in similar music videos I have researched. For the final instrumental I will once again show sped up footage of motorway traffic, but this time at night. This also links into what will be the final scene of my video which will show Michael walking down a road at night. The camera will follow him to a door which he knocks, Ellen will then answer looking angry with him, a close up of her face will show her expression. Michael will then stroke her hair and walk into the house, Ellen briefly smiles at him but once he has entered, her face which is facing towards the camera looks upset, she will then shut the door on the camera, signifying the end of the music video. Throughout this scene the lyrics 'Oh these times are hard, yeah they're making us crazy, don't give up on me baby. Oh these times are hard, yeah they're making us crazy, don't give up on me baby' will be heard.
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