Mise en scene

Props list
- large stack of papers looking like a contract
- powders looking like drugs
- light sabbers
- gold chains
- space craft door
- chocolate bar

Set
- The set created in the studio will be silver in the background will red tape along some of the angles looking like cable wires. We would aslo like to use a computer in the background to give the feel that the rappers are inside a space ship.
- In guilford we will shoot on the main high street so that it looks like the alien has litterally just landed in the middle of a completely new city

Performance
- the whole video should be perfromed in a jokey way, the video is poking fun at the alien invasion idea

Lyrics (Beastie Boys- Intergalactic)

Intergalactic Planetary Planetary Intergalactic Another Dimension
Well now don't you tell me to smile
You stick around I'll make it worth your while
Got numbers beyond what you can dial
Maybe it's because I'm so versatile
Style profile I said
It always brings me back when I hear Ooh Child
From the Hudson River out to the Nile
I run the marathon just up until the very last mile
If you battle me I will revile
People always say my style is wild
You've got gall you've got guile
To step to me I'm a rapophile
If you want to battle you're in denial
Coming from Uranus to check my style
Go ahead put my rhymes on trial
Cast you off into exile

Intergalactic planetary
Planetary intergalactic

Jazz and Awol that's our team
Step inside the party disrupt the whole scene
When it comes to beats well I'm a fiend
I like my sugar with coffee and cream
Got to keep it going keep it going full steam
Too sweet to be sour too nice to be mean
On the tough guy style I'm not too keen
To try to change the world I will plot and scheme
Mario C likes to keep it clean
Gonna shine like a sunbeam
Keep on rapping cause that's my dream
Got an A from Moe Dee for sticking to themes
When it comes to envy y'all is green
Jealous of the rhyme and the rhyme routine
Another dimension new galaxy
Intergalactic planetary

Intergalactic planetary
Planetary intergalactic

From the family tree of old school hip hop
Kick off your shoes and relax your socks
The rhymes will spread just like a pox
Cause the music is live like an electric shock
I am known to do the Wop
Also known for the Flintstone Flop
Tammy D getting biz on the crop
Beastie Boys known to let the beat drop
When I wrote graffiti my name was Slop
If my rap's soup my beats is stock
Step from the tables as I start to chop
I'm a lumber jack DJ Adrock
If you try to knock me you'll get mocked
I'll stir fry you in my wok
Your knees'll start shaking and your fingers pop
Like a pinch on the neck of Mr. Spock

Intergalactic planetary
Planetary intergalactic
Another dimension do it

PRE-PRODUCTION PLANNING - Costumes

Fist strand- alien
The alien we want to create will be a shade of dark green, dressed in a colour matching green jumpsuit. Other factors to construct the look of the alien will be a third eye and two antennae coming from his temples. We also came up with the idea that two fingers from each han could be tapped together then painted over so that it looks like he only has four, as apposed to five on each hand.

Second Strand- performance element
Although we do not have a live band there will be three rappers (like in the Beastie Boys)wearing ientical silver jumpsuits. They will also be wearing accesories like flat caps, nike trainers and large gold chains. We wanted to put a modern twist on the video but still comply to the sci-fi theme. By putting both the alien nd the rappers in jumpsuites and looking like they are from outter space we are tying them together but not directly as they arent wearing the same colour.

Third strand- cool element
There will be two factors comprising the "cool" element of the music video. We will have the three rappers play fighting with light sabbers and photoshopped images of the alien on the front cover to Vouge magazine with super models.

Testing the cast on camera

Camera testing
Before finding a definite cast we needed to take pictures of the boys because many people look different in real life and on camera. For example although we thought one boy would be perfect, once on screen he didn’t look as authentic. Alex I and had to make sure that they had the right look and physical attributes to be in our music video. Another reason for this may be to ensure your cast are co operative and not camera shy. If the candidate seemed awkward and shy towards only a few people giving them instruction, they may not be able to handle a room filled of spectators on the actual shoot day. And therefore you would have to find someone else who feels comfortable enough. Especially for our music video we really needed energetic and easy going people that felt comfortable dancing and rapping in front of others.

Animatic

This is our storyboards cut together asif it were the actualy shots of our music video.

Story boards

This is one of the most crucial stages of post production as we can truly test out what we want to be on screen but also start to put the shots within a time scales and decided of the type of shot needed.Through editing the storboards we get a better understanding of the edting style we needed to adapt to fit in with our music video. All in all we had about ninety drawings to cover the whole song.
Most of the shots of the rappers are actually close ups, with them rapping right into the camera to give a kind of in your face vibe. Whereas, there are a lot of mid shots of the alien walking down the street and interacting with other people. Ths creates a contract between their two personalities and shows the alien to be shy and timid but the rappers to be confident and outgoing.
The edited verison of the storyboards as if it were our actual footage, which will be shown in a later post.

Letter to record lable

Def Jam records
2220 Colorado Avenue,
Santa Monica,
CA 90404
6th October 2010


Dear Sirs,

Myself and Alex Roberts would like to use your song “Intergalactic” for our A level media promotional pop video task at Hurtwood House. The aim is to create a unique video idea to go with your chosen song; our idea is keeping in tune with the video you created. Our ideas include an Alien coming to the planet Earth and instantaneously getting given a contract. We will use many shots to show the rise and fall of him and have fast cut editing to three rappers miming the words of the song. We hope that this will be ok especially as it is school policy to upload completed videos onto you tube. If you would like to contact us please email me back or have any questions do not hesitate to ask.

Many thanks, yours sincerely

Stephanie White and Alex Roberts

Composition rules

Composition is the placement or arrangement of visual elements or ingredients in a work of art. This really forms the basic understanding of what’s going on onscreen through the use of shapes, textures, patterns and colours. We must ensure that all of these factors mesh together well enough se we can truly convey the meaning and mood of scene vividly. There are a few principles one must obey that govern the way visual element react to each other within a photograph frame. Once we have understood the basic principles we can then add new innovation to our photographs and inject more underlying meanings and effective imagery.

The Rule of Thirds
One of the most popular 'rules' when undertaking photography is the Rule Of Thirds. It is also popular amongst artists, so we must ensure this applies to our music album front cover and other promotional photos.
It works like this:
Imaginary lines are drawn dividing the image into thirds both horizontally and vertically across the given frame. You place important elements of your composition where these lines intersect as it is said that these are the areas the eye automatically will flicker to.

As well as using the intersections you can arrange areas into bands occupying a third or place things along the imaginary lines. As you can see it is fairly simple to implement. Good places to put things; third of the way up, third of the way in from the left, you get the idea. Duff places to put things; right in the middle, right at the top, right at the bottom, away in the corner.
Using the Rule of Thirds helps produce nicely balanced easy on the eye pictures. Also, as you have to position things relative to the edges of the frame it helps get rid of ' tiny subject surrounded by vast empty space' syndrome.

One last thing about the Rule of Thirds is that once you have got the hang of the Rule of Thirds you will very quickly want to challenge this. By challenging this you could challenge the stereotype and fool the audience as to who is the “evil” one. As I said earlier the rules are basically used as guidelines and if you can create a better image by making your own rules then this is very beneficial.
For our music video we really want to take the rule of thirds into account, especially as this is a new band. We want all of the target audience to be able to gain a clear understanding of the type of music the band will potentially be making, as soon as they pick the dig pack up.

My ideas for the pop video

My ideas for the music video 5555

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Music Video conventions

Common generic conventions of popular music promo videos Along with the bands identity being promoted, it could be thought of as a brand aimed for mass consumption. The bands talent is showcased through the video, which could be in the form of instrument, dancing or musical creativity. By incorporating many different types of shots e.g. tracking, close ups and innovative camera movements it creates an element of surprise and rattles the audience. By selecting a thematic element suiting the bands image the audience will be able to identify with them adding other strands of narrative the skeletal structure of the video will be made. Most music videos conform to using three strands in a music video, consisting of performance element, narrative element and enigmatic strand where the band usually does something surprising. Usually the third strand shows the band in a quirky, personal light disregarding realism. To give a greater sense of rhythm the shots can be cut to the beat of the song, reinforcing the song into the viewers mind. Depending on the image of the band special effects, animation. CGI and suggestive lighting can be used. While keeping the band occupied and looking appropriate the mise en scene must also conform to the theme of the video. If the tone is slow, perhaps the use of paler less vibrant costume and background will reflect this.
Keith Negus said the organic acts tend to follow some of these conventions
1) ‘naturalistic’ approach to artists

this relates to the appearance of the music video, whther it is minimalistic and focuses on the artist or whether the music video is concerned more with the narrative strand and less bout them as a musician.
2) The seeds of success are within the artists, who have to be ‘nurtured’ by the record company.

This could suggest the artist was already talented and had no star imgae before joining the music industry.
3)The image of the artist is ‘enhanced’ by the record company.
4)Emphasis is given to album sales and the construction of a successful back catalogue
5)Often aimed at older or more sophisticated consumers
younger audience tend to be less excitted by raw talent whereas older audiences will be more likely to appreciate their sound.
6)Profits generated by this kind of act tend to be part of a long term strategy by the record company

this is the record label stratergie as the organic artists apply to a smaller audience than the synthetis groups, therefore making them less likely to make a lot of money in the short term.

Keith Negus also referred to synthetic acts that followed these conventions.
1)A combinatorial approach to artists and material
this relates to the way inwhich the record label market the band. They will try to associate the band with what is cool and trendy now, making them appeal to a wider audience.
2)Executives attempt to construct successful acts out of the artists and the songs at their disposal

the band themselves will most likely not write their own music but sing other peoples songs.
3)The image of the artist is often constructed by the record company
the record label will dictate which gigs, clothes and personality of the band to ensure they sell more records.
4)Emphasis is given to single sales and to promoting first albums
more money is spent on launching syntetic bands then organic ones so there is more pressure from investers to get profit in the short term.
5)Often aimed at younger, less sophisticated audiences
For example, Blue, Pussy cat dolls, mcfly and busted.
6)Profits generated by this kind of artist tend to be part of an immediate, short term strategy by the record company

the synthetic music industry is very competitive so record label need to make money in the short term for the band to continue.

I researched and analysed the major conventions of Britney Spears music video "Toxic", she is a very popular synthetic artist who follows a generic approach to her videos.

In this video we se Britney playing many different parts, one for example is her dancing in a see through, diamond encrusted catsuite. This follows the generic conventions of a sysnthetic artist as there is sex appeal. In all of the other outfits she either shows clevage of her legs, which is done to entice the audience to but her album and watch her music videos. Although, there are some organis aspects to britney carrer; she is a long term investment to the record lable and been around for over seven years. She also was in the mickey mouse club when younger, showing she did have a natural voice and did have talent

Development of the main idea

As a group we thought we should use Alexs ideo of the Beaste Boys track, for the video. By researching the band and watching several other videos of the Beastie Boys, it became clear that the threesome wanted to create a spoof as well as a tribute to older content, and their own music video (Intergalactic) is a tribute to old Japanese monster movies e.g Godzilla. We chose to go along with the sci-fi theme but having a deeper meaning and poking fun at fame hungry people. In todays society, it seems almost too easy to be well known for doing only a simplistic thing.
We had developed our initial ideas of the music video and urbanized the story line.
Firstly, we began with really wanting to do a Beastie Boys songs as both Alex and I really enjoy their style of music. Next, we came up with the idea of taking the song quite literally and making a sci-fi themed video. And so once we had decided the rough outlines of the media product we set to work on what would look good, fit in and portray the bands image successfully.
We began with the image of have the beastie boys walking down high streets and doing funny thing in public, but we later decided we wanted them to be within the space ship set for the duration of the video. We did this as after looking at other videos, we felt filing inside the studio walls gave the video more of a professional feel. We developed our ideas of what we actually wanted the rappers to be doing from just generally having a good time to specific movements. Equally, to give off the idea of not everyone being perfect, we incorporated a scene where the spacecraft suffers a bit of turbulence and the rappers are being thrown around the set. Though we wanted the image to be a group of low skilled workers growing tired of their everyday lives, we thought of newer and perhaps more interesting ways to convey this.
We also developed the idea of the alien dramatically through this process. The initial idea for him to also be wondering around a high street was also altered some what. We felt by putting in backgrounds and using special effects, this would also contribute to bettering our knowledge of new media technologies and giving the video a cleaner cut.

Introduction to the music industry

In today’s world there are many record labels, some larger and better known than others. Within the music industry, most recording artists have become increasingly reliant upon record labels to broaden their audience, market their albums, and be both promoted and heard on radio, television, with publicists that assist performers in positive media reports to market their merchandise, and make it available via stores and other media outlets. The Internet has increasingly been a way that some artists avoid costs and gain new audiences, as well as the use of videos in some cases, to sell their products. For this task I will look at a very large record label called Def Jam records, Def Jam Recordings is an American hip-hop record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operates as a part of The Island Def Jam Music Group. In the UK, the label takes on the name Def Jam UK and is operated through Mercury Music Group, They have managed a huge amount of artists since founded in 1984 by Rick Rubbin and Russel Simmons. Def Jam is a predominantly hip hop and R and B record label, having signed Rhianna and Mariah Carey. The benefits to joining such a vast label is huge, giving the artists lots of advice and experience in that field. There are however smaller record labels who sign more organic bands, an example of this is Bad Sekta and Bella Union. Smaller record labels usually sign artists on he basis of raw talent and are unable to create a mass audience for the artist like larger ones can.

Production Schedule: the stages of production

Throughout the year I will be creating posts in the blog about the five stages of production. This is an outline of why each individual stage is crucial in ensure success for the band and how we will ensure each stage is completed correctly. This blog is not directly related to my five stages of production, but will give an outline to the way in which professionals work.

Stage 1: Research and development
The research and development is needed to mould your idea to fit your target audience. We need to give our audience of 15 to 30 year olds what they would want to see for success of the band. The ways in which you can research the audience, is largely by questioning the target audience and observing similar bands and video techniques. Once the research stage of the project is complete the production team will probably have to mould their ideas into a more sellable product. It’s very likely that the team making the video are not the target audience, especially for younger targeting bands like Mcfly and Busted so this stage is very important.

Stage 2: Pre-Production
Pre-production stages include the storyboarding, organising, getting props and costumes, casting and other things like giving the band a lyrics sheet. Organising the day to ensure it runs very smoothly is perhaps one of the most crucial task to get right. Without organisation, the problems could be endless; ensuring all of the factors of pre-production can make your whole video look more polished and better. It could even give you extra time to try out new kinds of shots and new layouts to see what absolutely looks best.

Stage 3: Production (the shoot)
The time spent shooting and locations vary depending on how much the production company has to spend ion the video. Usually the bigger the star, the more extravagant the video will be. However some alternative bands attempt to make low budget videos that perhaps have a higher raw meaning. The shooting of the video entirely depends on the bands This stage is very relevant to the end result as because without it there is no product and the bands image will not be successfully constructed.

Stage 4: Post – Production (editing)
Without editing, the video can take no form. Especially with having different strands and elements for example performance, dance break and narrative. The videos have been edited since early 80s, late 70s; first coming about as a new cheaper and easier way to produce videos. Editing is essentially the cutting down of the rough cut into an actual music video using sharp cuts or fades. Many things like colour schemes and special effects can be changed during this stage, making the video look more professional.

Stage 5: Distribution and Exhibition
This stage envolves getting the music video and also band out into the public. Many factors must be considered before deciding where the music video should be shown and why. For example, an indie bands video would not be featured on a hip hop/ rnb music show. The reaon fo this is that the target audience would not have been reached. Other ways to get your band intot he public eye include guest apperances, live shows ans interviews. This stage useually occurs up to two weeks before and around a month after the product is released to ensure that is will reach every possible target audience.