Christmas Break

We will have a two and halpf week break from school. We have finished our filming and the editing is now done as well. During the Christmas holiday I will not be posting alot on my blog as we are not going to be doing any editing or work on music video, and I will be focusing on revision for the exam when we return to school in Janurary.

Our Group and 4flava

This is the group 4flava who produced the song "4 the camera" that we are using for our music video. Here they are posing by a wall, and in pur music video we have a dance routine where we have filmed by a graffitti wall, so we have matched our idea's together to hopefully produce a hight quality music video.

Animatic

We are having trouble uploading our animatic at the moment. We have completed it and are going to upload it to youtube, I will also keep trying to post it on to our blog. We will post our animatic a.s.a.p :)

Our Filming

We have completed our filming and uploaded it onto our computer. We have been revising for our January resit in lessons and have been arranging when we can start to edit our filming. We plan to start filming next week and continue to work on it until the Christmans break.

Other music video's

We have all our ideas put together and have an idea of exactly what we want our music video to look like. We are working to make it look very glamours and we have been looking up other artists such as Girls Aloud, and the Pussycat Dolls, to look at their music videos and the ideas they use to make their videos look glamorus. We have compared our work to theirs and anaylised many of their own music videos.

Lessons

In lessons we have been watching the filming we have already got and plannig how we are going to edit it and the order we want it to be in. We have researched into music videos so we have background knowledge and so our music video will atrract views and the auidence will enjoy our music video. We have one more bit of filming to do, which we are going to film on Thursday, this is the dance scene. Once this is done we are going to spend our media lessons editing our filming for our finished result, our music video.

New Dancer

One of our dancers has now dropped out. We had filmed the dance scene but on Thursday we are going to film it again with the new dancer who has stepped in to replace the dancer who dropped out. We hope to have all our filming done by the end of this week so we can start editing next week, so our coursework can be finished before the Christmas break.

Permission and Reply to 4flava

Filming Pictures

Explaining our storyboard

Risk Assessment

• No filming in inappropriate locations
• Check safety of locations
• Minimise risk of theft of the equipment
• When filming on location ensure teachers and a responsible adult know where you are and have your phone number and know when you are returning
• Check all equipment is working before you leave
• Ensure you have permission for filming is necessary
• Always film with at least one other person

Reply for permission

This is the email we recieved back from Madam Tassauds, giving us permission to film there as part of our coursework.

Filming location

We are going to be filming in a number of different locations for our music video. However we wanted to film in Madame Tussauds for part of our music video. We had to email them to ask for permission to make sure we would be able to go to Madam Tussauds and film at their attraction.

This is the email we sent them to ask.

Media texts

The influence and consumptions of media texts by the audience can help them with issues such as learning, emotional satisfaction, relaxation, help with issues of personal identity, help with issues of social identity, and issues of aggression and violence.

Feminist Film Theory & Audiences

• Laura Mulvey
• Visual pleasure and narrative cinema (1975)

The Theory

• Cinema reflects society
• Therefore cinema reflects a partiarchal society
• How does a patriarchal society manifest itself in cinema?
• FOR EXAMPLE: patriarchy and phallocentrism are linked.
• The phallus is the symbol of power
• Note how guns are used in films
• Gun = phallus = power

The Gaze

• The gaze of the camera is the male gaze
• The male gaze is active, the female gaze is passive
• Within the narrative, amle characters dorects their gaze towards female characters

Theory

• The spectator is made to identify with the male look, because the camera films from the optical, as well as the libidinal point of view of the male character
• There are three levels of the cinematic gaze - camera gaze, character gaze and spectator gaze, that objectify (sexual character) the female character (triple gaze)
• Therefore the audience is constructed as thpugh everyone was male
• women are forced to look as though they were a male audience member

Agency

• In the classical Hollywood cinema the male protagonist has agency - he is active and powerful
• He is the agent around whom the dramatic action unfolds
• The female character is passive and powerless - she is the object of desire for protagonist and audience

Erotic Disire

• Mulvey argues that women have two roles in film:

1. an object of erotic desire for the characters
2. as an object of erotic desire for the audience

Suture

Classical Hollywood narrative and editing "sutures" or postions the audience in certain ways of making only one preferred reading possible, however unconscious the audience is of that position.

Storyboard

We have started drawing up our story board and having group meetings in order to discuss our ideas for our music video. We have our main ideas of what we want to do, and we have also discussed the props we need to use, our coustumes; how many times we will change, what we are going to do with our hair ect. The story board is complete and everyone in the group knows what we are doing. We now just need to arrange dates to actually start our filming.

Gratifications Model

• It is still unclear that there is any link between the consumption of violent media texts and violent imitate behaviour.
• The theory is not proven as many people who do watch violent texta appear to be not influenced.
• Therefore a new theory is necessary....its called the uses and gratifications model.
• The uses and gratifications model us the opposite of the effects model.
• In this theory the audience is active.
• The audience uses the text and is not used by it.
• The audience uses the text for its own gratification or pleasure.
• Here the power lies wirth the audience NOT the producers.
• This theory emphasises what audiences do with media texts - how and why they use them.
• The audience is free to reject, use or play with the media meainings as they see it.
• Audiences therefore use media to gratify needs for: diversion, escapism, information, pleasure, comparing, relationships, lifestyles to ones own and sexual stimulation.
• The audience is in control and consumption of the media helps people with issues such as: learning, emotional satisfaction, relaxation, help with issues of personal identity, or issues with aggression or violence.
• Controversialy the theory suggests the consumption of violent images can be helpful rather than harmful, because the audience are in control.
• When playing violent games are not influenced to be violent but are acting out through the consumption of media violence.
• The theory suggests audiences inclination towards violence is sublimated (absorbed) and are less likely to commit violent acts.

New Song

Cincere never emailed us back to give us permission to use their song. So we have found another song called 4 the camera, and have now emailed 4flava to ask if they could allow us to use their song. They emailed back and have given us permission to use this song. In lesson we are now going to start planning our idea's and our work so we can start filming as soon as possible.

Audience Theory

1). why do audiences choose to consume certain texts?
2). how do they consume the texts?
3). what happens when they consume the texts?

There are three theories that we can appl to help us come to a better understanding about the relationship between text and audience:

• the effects model or the hypodermic model
• the uses and gratifications model
• reception theory

The effects model is the consumption of media texts that have an effect or that influence upon the audience. Audiences are passive and powerless to prevent the influence and the power lies with the message of the text. This is also known as the hypodermic model, where the message in media texts are injected in to the audience by a powerful "syring-like" media. The audience is powerless to resisit, therefore the media works like a drug and the audience is drugged and addicted.

Key evidence for the effects model includes: the frankfurt school theorised in the 1920's and 1930's that the mass media acted to restrict and control audiences to th benifit of corporate capitalism and governments. The Bobo Doll experiment is a very controversal piece of research that apparently proved that children copy violent behaviour.

Examples that are sited as causing or being contributory factors are:

• film child play is argued to be the influence of the murder of Jams Bulger in 1993
• game manhunt influenced the murder of Stefan Pakeerah in 2004
• film clockwork orange for a number of rapes and violent attacks in 1971
• film severance contributed to the influence for the murder of Simon Everitt in 2006

Case Study

Murder of Stefan Pakeerah

• Stefan Pakeerah was murdered on the 27th February 2004, by his friend Warren Leblanc.
• The victim's mother, claimed that Leblanc had been 'obsessed' with the game, "Manhunt" after he pleaded guilty in court.
• The game was removed from sale by some vendors, such as GAME.
• The police denied a link between the game and the murder.
• However after Leblanc was sentenced to life, it was discovered he did not even own the game, but Pakeerah did.

The effects model

The effects model theory suggests that the consumption of media texts effects the audience. The audience can eb influenced by something the watch or read. They are influenced sometimes to replicate what they have consumed.
This is also know as the THE HYPODERMIC SYRINGE MODEL. Here the auidence is passive. The images of the text are injected into the brain and the audience is powerless to resist.

Waiting.....

At the moment we are looking for more songs that we could possibly use. This is because we are still waiting for a reply to the e-mail we sent for permission for the other song we was going to use. We need to have a back up for another song as we need to get on a start filming and planning our ideas as soon as we can.

What works well in a music video

We have some idea's about what would work well for our music video:

• directly link the video to the lyrics - make sure the story we are telling makes sense and relates to the lyrics in the song.
• Lip synching - good, in time lip synching makes the music video look more effective.
• Edit - if the editing is in time with the music, the music video will look good and professional.
• Effects - using different effects that go well, and match the story and also the lyrics of the song can improve the quality of our music video.

Music Video's

In lesson today we watched some past media studies music video's. We discussed what was good about them, what was bad, what worked and what didn't work so well. We started to get idea's for our own idea's about what we could do that would work well, and what we should avoid as it wouldn't work as well. We want to make our music video enjoyable to the audience therefore we need to discuss in our group the idea we have that would be good and also what would work well.

Waiting

At the moment we are still waiting for a reply to the e-mail we sent the artist of the song we want to use. We have to wait until he replies to make sure we are able to use his song for our coursework. We cannot start filming or working on our music video until we know we are definatley going to be able to use the song we want to, as we have to have permission before using it.

Channel 4 - 100 Greatest Pop Video's

THE 100 GREATEST POP VIDEOS
1. Michael Jackson: Thriller
2. Peter Gabriel: Sledgehammer
3. A-ha: Take on Me
4. Queen: Bohemian Rhapsody
5. Madonna: Like a Prayer
6. Robbie Williams: Rock DJ
7. Michael Jackson: Billie Jean
8. The Verve: Bittersweet Symphony
9. Madonna: Vogue
10. Nirvana: Smells Like Teen Spirit
11. Coldplay: The Scientist
12. Michael & Janet Jackson: Scream
13. Pink Floyd: Another Brick in the Wall
14. Christina Aguilera: Dirrty
15. REM: Everybody Hurts
16. OutKast: Hey Ya
17. Blur: Coffee & TV
18. Beyonce: Crazy in Love
19. Madonna: Material Girl
20. Gorillaz: Clint Eastwood
21. Queen: I Want to Break Free
22. Justin Timberlake: Cry Me a River
23. Britney Spears: ...Baby One More Time
24. Radiohead: No Surprises
25. Madness: Baggy Trousers
26. TLC: Waterfalls
27. David Bowie: Ashes to Ashes
28. Foo Fighters: Learn to Fly
29. Electric Six: Gay Bar
30. Weezer: Buddy Holly
31. Eminem: Stan
32. Chris Isaak: Wicked Game
33. U2: The Sweetest Thing
34. The White Stripes: Fell in Love with a Girl
35. Sinead O'Connor: Nothing Compares 2U
36. Red Hot Chili Peppers: Give It Away
37. Guns N Roses: November Rain
38. Fatboy Slim: Weapon of Choice
39. Pulp: Common People
40. Missy Elliot: Get Ur Freak On
41. The Spice Girls: Wannabe
42. Bjork: It's Oh So Quiet
43. Dire Straits: Money for Nothing
44. Kylie Minogue: Can't Get You Out of My Head
45. Aerosmith: Crazy
46. Adam & the Ants: Prince Charming
47. The Prodigy: Firestarter
48. Johnny Cash: Hurt
49. Jamiroquai: Virtual Insanity
50. Paul Simon: You Can Call Me Al
51. Run DMC & Aerosmith: Walk This Way
52. Massive Attack: Teardrop
53. Wham: Club Tropicana
54. Daft Punk: Around the World
55. Fatboy Slim: Praise You
56. Eminem: Without Me
57. Meatloaf: I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)
58. The Cure: Close to Me
59. Abba: Knowing Me, Knowing You
60. Eurythmics: Sweet Dreams
61. The Prodigy: Smack My Bitch Up
62. Blur: Parklife
63. George Michael: Outside
64. Bjork: Human Behaviour
65. Aphex Twin: Windowlicker
66. Bob Dylan: Subterranean Homesick Blues
67. The Beastie Boys: Sabotage
68. Madonna: Ray of Light
69. Frankie Goes to Hollywood: Two Tribes
70. The Police: Every Breath You Take
71. Bjork: All Is Full of Love
72. Robert Palmer: Addicted to Love
73. Basement Jaxx: Where's Your Head At?
74. Wu-Tang Clan: Gravel Pit
75. Duran Duran: Rio
76. The Beatles: Strawberry Fields
77. MC Hammer: U Can't Touch This
78. Godley and Creme: Cry
79. New Order: True Faith
80. Radiohead: Just
81. Ultravox: Vienna
82. 50 Cent: In Da Club
83. Shakespear's Sister: Stay
84. The Boomtown Rats: I Don't Like Mondays
85. Sid Vicious: My Way
86. The Streets: Fit But You Know It
87. Talking Heads: Once in a Lifetime
88. Elton John: I Want Love
89. Smashing Pumpkins: Tonight Tonight
90. The Pet Shop Boys: Go West
91. The Specials: Ghost Town
92. Herbie Hancock: Rockit
93. The Rolling Stones: We Love You
94. Bonnie Tyler: Total Eclipse of the Heart
95. The Cardigans: My Favourite Game
96. So Solid Crew: 21 Seconds
97. Cornershop: Brimful of Asha
98. Bronski Beat: Smalltown Boy
99. Supergrass: Pumping on Your Stereo
100.Musical Youth: Pass the Dutchie

Lesson's

At the moment in lesson's we have been watching the greatest 100 music video's. We have been watching and getting idea's for own own music video and looking to see what sort of thing will work and what wont. Also what viewers like to see in a music video, this is so we can make our music video more enjoyable for the audience to watch.

Song - My Way Home

We finally found a song that we want to use. We found it on www.unsigned.com, its called "My Way Home" and we have emailed the artist - Cincere to ask permission to use his song for our music video. Before we start planning our ideas we have to wait for a reply to make sure we are able to use this song. While we are waiting for a reply we will update our blogs and research different music videos and get ideas for our own filming.

Music

We have been looking for the music that we want to use for our music video. We have been looking at a number of different websites to find the song that we want to use. At the moment we are just listening to different songs until we find a piece of music that we want to use. We have been looking on www.unsigned.com, www.mobygratis.com and www.freemusic.com for a song we want to use.

Promo Video

My task is to produce:

• a music promo video
• up to 5 minutes long
• working on your own or up to four members

You also need to produce:

• a website homepage for the band
• a cover for its release on DVD
• a magazine advertisment for the DVD
• a critical evaluation
• on a blog
• including research and planning.

Group Members

Jordan Ward

Karishma Bhandari

Kayleigh Middleton

Ian Ondongo