Evaluation and Feedback of the Video

Evaluation

I am very pleased with the final piece as it conveys the message of role reversal and objectification of women really clearly and effectively.

The use of costume really helped with the representation and I think appeal to the target audience. As well as the Hip Hop gestures used throughout. I think the simple camera shots and editing techniques make it flow well and easy to watch. This would appeal to the target audience as it puts the emphasise on the performer and their lifestyle.

In what ways does your video use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Our idea challenged the conventions of hip hop music videos where women are objectified as sex objects and men are in the state of power, our video turns that around and puts women in power. This whole idea contrasts normal Wu Tang Clan videos where women are seen in bikinis and are just in the background dancing for the men. In our video the women are the ones actually singing. This is juxtaposed with the fact the track over the top is clearly a mans voice. This shows the irony. Most of our shots within our music video are using forms and conventions of real media products. Putting the camera at eye level and having the actors perform into the camera is a convention of hip hop and rap videos. We did this to make it look as much like a real rap video as we could with the only difference being the role reversal in gender. This shifts all the focus on to that and makes it more noticeable and means the message is stronger. As well as shots that we used that were handheld. We only used around 24 shots in our music video which is really little, this challenges the conventions of rap and hip hop music videos as most have 2-3 hundred+ shots per video. We did this again, to put more emphasise on to the driving message in role reversal. We followed conventions of the hip hop genre with the gestures and costume we used in filming our music video. Again we did this to make it look at authentic as we could to shift focus on to our main message of objectification of women in hip hop videos. We developed conventions by not using lavish sets or urban settings we just used one setting, with one backdrop and one set of lighting. This means that the footage we captured was more reliable and more consistent in terms of lighting and conditions like weather. This worked in our favour because we didn't have to organise big outing plus I think it looks more polished this way.

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

I think it is very effective. They all have the same performers with the same/similar costume and facial expression. The advert and digipack use the same colour scheme and layout as well as fonts and images. In one instance the exact image is used on both. This creates continuity and builds a brand image for all my products. This means they are easily identifiable and therefore should be more well known/successful. I think all 3 complement each other in the use of different techniques. For both my analysis of adverts and digipacks I used the same/similar artists in an attempt to create a coherent promo pack. I feel it looks professional and is consistent through the 3 different forms.

What have you learned from your audience feedback?

From the interview I did as well as the questionnaires I got people to fill out I think it was a success. However this only reflects 4 people's views and means that it could not be accurate data. I could have used Facebook or a larger focus group to calate more information and get more accurate feedback. However with the feedback I did get I've learned that it is very important to keep everything on screen very consistent. The lighting was a problem with us as we filmed at such different times (3/4 weeks apart) so I've learned to record everything you are doing to make sure everything stays the same. In light of this I would made sure lighting was the same on both shoots so that the continuity stayed the same. Also learned that the lip syncing was off in places, this is obvious to see but after working so closely with it and for so long you get so involved you loose sight of some of these things. In this way, I would go back and make sure each shot had a perfect take with lip syncing. I think this was partly due to the actors not learning their words enough so I would have had a day where we all got together and learned the lines so I knew it was done. The thing I would definitely go back and change the most after getting audience feedback would be the fact there are only 24 shots. I would put more in, more varied shots as well. I think this would make it look a lot more interesting and a lot more fun to watch.

How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages of all your products?

Throughout the process I used a lot of software and equipment. The filming equipment such as Cameras, tripods, lighting rigs, green screen. As well as the Final Cut editing software. I think I've learned most about the cameras and tripods simply because I didn't know anything about them before. After being shown, I can take down and put up a tripod, using the bubble level to make sure everything is straight. Also using exposure and white balance on the cameras really makes the filming look a lot nicer when you know what you're doing. This really helped when trying to achieve a professional finish to our video. Being able to have the cameras lower at times on the tripod so performers could sing down at the camera really made some nice shots happen. I've used Final Cut Pro a lot recently and learned a lot too. Being able to sync video with audio was hard to start but after you get some practice it definitely becomes easier. Even simple things like cutting it down in to each shot was hard at the beginning and now it is very straight forward. It allowed us to get a final piece that looks and feels the way we wanted and representing the underlying theme through the whole thing of gender reversal. It also helped bring all our ideas together and put them all in to a 3 minute video. The internet has also been a huge help in developing and helping plan our ideas and process. By looking at examples of music videos we got the majority of our ideas. This meant that we could browse clips from the web and make sure we did it properly so that it looked just as good.

Feedback This is an interview I conducted with someone just after they viewed my music video.

The interview threw up some points like an improvement would be more varied shots and a larger quantity of shots. This is a good point and would make the video more interesting however is might take away from the simplicity and straight forwardness of the video.

She liked the idea of the role reversal which is good and thought it looked professional which is a major part in the video.

These are also some questionnaires I typed up after I conducted them to find out more about people's opinions on it. I tried to ask a variety of people to see how opinions changed across different ages and sexes. This is the first one and was a 19 year old male. The overall opinion is that it was a good final piece that looked professional but could use a little fine tune, which I agree with. The point about alienating the target audience is a good one. However I feel like it wouldn't as it almost pokes fun at it, while still remaining professional and steering clear of the parody side. I think this allows people, men and women, to relate to this. This was a 58 year old woman. The good points highlighted the use of lighting in making it look interesting and professional. The only improvement would have been more interesting effects which I agree with, it was our intention to use fish eye lenses etc but we ran out of time and resources. Again the fundamental idea came up as a good point.

This one was done by a 32 year old female. A negative brought up in this one was the lighting, as we filmed over 2 different locations and times the lighting was different for half the shots, this shows up slightly in the video and it was noticed by this viewer. This is something that we should have done differently, we could have written down locations of lights and settings they were on. On the other hand, they liked the idea and said there was some good camera use.

Finished Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-n6bjNpgts&feature=channel_video_title - This is a link to the finished video on Youtube.

Creative Camera Use

These are some stills of shots that we deem creative use of the camera. 1. The first is a close up of the actor as she sings a verse. This close up is shown for about 2 seconds in the video and is used to see the detail on the actors face. This way we, the viewer, can see the actors mouth as she sings giving greater realism to the video. Also it allows us to see her expression which dipict that of a hip hop artist.

2. This is a profile shot used during one actors verse. This shows the viewer what the action looks like from another angle and breaks the tension that has been building from the actor staring directly into the camera. It also gives a sort of 'behind the scenes' feel to the video as its not completely emersing the viewer in the actors movements.

This shot goes from the feet up to the next photo of the actors face.

3. We used this tilt to introduce the first actor from foot to head. This way she is easily recognisable no matter what part we show. It also showcases her hip hop clothing and stance - wide spread - in charge.

4. This is the still before the zoom, and the photo after is a still after the zoom. This zoom happens as all the actors sing 'BOBBY!' and introduces the people standing in the back. Creating a unity between them. It also makes it more interesting, while keeping in the beat.

5 . This is a shot filmed handheld and at a lower angle than the rest. This allowed the actor to rap down to camera slightly and move around more while being included in the shot. This made it look more interesting and made the actor look bigger and more powerfull which is a common convention in hip hop music videos. I think this worked really well.

Rejected Footage

These are some stills of rejected footage from our music videos and the reasons why they were not used. 1. This is the first shot we rejected. It is 2 of the actors standing still while the camera pans from right to left. We didn't use this as we couldn't find a place to fit it in. It was a possible ending as the music fades out so would this shot but we went with another shot instead that represented the genre more. This looked a bit cheesy which didn't fit the mean, tough look we were going to fit the hip hop genre's conventions.

2. This is a shot of the actors standing still while the camera tilts up from their feet. In this shot the tilt stopped too early and cut off the actors heads.

3. This is another shot of the 2 actors standing still while the camera is static. This time we didn't use it because we caught the edge of the green screen in it. We thought this looked too amateur and we wanted to make our video look as professional as possible.

4. This shot was off one of the actors feet while she danced. We wanted to use this in the video but found when it was played back the lighting wasn't good and it looked amateur because of this. Also the floor and shoe choice didn't match the style we wanted. The shoes are a bit too messy looking for a flash hip hop group and the red carpet contrasts the green screen too much.

5. This shot wasn't used as the bottom of the green screen is visable making it look less professional as well as the actor turning her back on the camera too much. As well as this, throughout the shot the shadow casted on the back is too noticeable which took away from the action.

6. This was a 'to the camera' shot in which the actors danced to the camera (Which was handheld.) it came out looking a bit odd as the camera was very shakey which took away from the prefessionalism as well as the actors looking a bit uncomfortable.

Advert

This is my finished advert and this is a link to a video comparing it to established artist's adverts. I approached the advert similarly to the digipack, I wanted something that would stand out while being simple and edgy. I think I achieved this by using black and white and the choice of image editing and fonts. All of this makes this look professional and represents the target audience of the group. The images are separate and represent each as an individual but also in unity as a group. This helps to show separate power and status as well as together as a group. The images have been edited to look like a stencil - taking the contrast up and saturation down. This gives it a more street like urban feel while still retaining the human qualities that people can relate to when looking at this. They all have aggressive menacing expressions while looking directly at the viewer in an attempt to intimidate them. Again this shows their status and gains the respect of the viewer. The fonts used are similar to that of the digipack, this is to keep a sense of identity throughout the whole promotional pack. They are a mixture of graffiti and stencil type fonts. Both used to get an urban feel and look. This is used to relate to the target audience. As well as this a type writer font is used for the ratings and release date to give the old school look. This is exactly what Wu Tang Clan are and represents them, and their audience very well I feel. The layout is simple and is intentionally done like this so that the focus is on the band members and the digipack that is being advertised. This, like the colours, contrast the big lifestyles that this genre represents. I think this appeals to the target audience as it is dark and sinister while being edgy and urban. I used ratings from 2 well known hip hop magazines, The Source and Vibe. This gives the ratings clout and also lets people know that it is a recognised and obviously good digipack (5/5*s). This should encourage the consumer to become a customer. This is a link to the Facebook page that has comments on the advert. http://www.facebook.com/?sk=messages#!/photo.php?fbid=10150545789585183&set=a.10150545789580183.645144.721940182&theater Again the feedback on the advert says the use of colour (Or lack of) makes it stand out and seem quite striking. The fonts and images back this up and add to the gritty feel it has. Also a comment about the reviews making it seem more authentic and real mean that it look more professional.

After researching adverts from a similar genre I've found they all are composed of certain criteria; Band name, title of album/digipack, release date, review quotes and sometimes a tag line.

These are 2 adverts that I've looked at in depth.

The first is Public Enemy's advert. This advert features the actual album cover on the advert and then has text around it. The main image therefore is the same as the album - a black and white posed photo of the band. It features a large title with the name of the band at the top, above that is a quote from the album and adds emphasise on the type of music. It features the bands logo both on the album and on the advert, it also has a tag line "Apocalypse 91.. The enemy strikes back." This gives the name of the album as well as a easy to remember quote. This makes it seem like an attack and adds to the angry hard image the band are promoting,

This is the second and is Besatie Boys' album advert. It, like Public Enemy's album, is quite simple. Minimal colour is used with a black and white image and text. This is contrasted with the bright yellow band name at the top. This makes it stand out more and makes it easily distinguishable. The image is a posed one and features the entire band. Next to it there is the title of the album and the fact that it is "out now".

This is my first flat plan for my advert. I wanted to go with the idea of a simple advert that catches peoples eyes. This isn't specified in the photo but it is black and white (images and text) and the fonts for the text are ones that look like graffiti to achieve an edgy urban look and feel to the advert. I decided that this would be the case for all my flat plans and it would be a choice of the layout of images and text that would be the major decision more than anything else. This one has images of each member of the band (Depicted in the music video) individually so that you can see each's identity and status. The would be close ups and the person would have a stern almost angry expression showing status and power. The images would be edited so they resemble a graffiti stencil (like that of Public Enemy's image on the CD cover I analysed) to add to the urban look and follow media conventions from the hip hop genre. I decided to include the 3 most important bits of information. The band name, the release date and the name of the Digipack. This reduces the amount of 'clutter' on the advert and ensures it is simple and striking. They are placed on the diagonal from top left to bottom right so the eye naturally follows it down collecting all the information. 3 images, 3 bits of information, made into easily readable digest able bits. The second flatplan I did is a bit different. Using the same colours and fonts from the first one, as well as the same 3 bits of information. This time using a group shot of all three members to show the groups unity and power together. Again the images would be in black and white and edited to show a more stencil like appearance while using similar expressions to the first flatplan but this time having them use hip hop gesture with their arms out. Showing how big and 'larger than life' they are. This one uses the same aspects of design as the others but changes the layout again. The group is together in the image but standing more uniformly looking more menacing than the other 2 above. This gives a slightly more sinister feel to the advert. A quiet aggression rather than a 'in your face' one. The 3 bits of text are then placed around the images, making them the focal point that drags the viewer in, then they find out more by reading the information. This one uses the same colours, fonts, expressions and information as the other 3 but it is more structured. While the others are group shots or individual shots that are placed randomly, this one uses individual images of each member but places them together so that it is clear that they have individual identities while also being part of the group. The title, release date and band name is in the centre below the images. This makes it a focal point and is very clear and straight forward.