Actors, Costumes, Props, Locations

Actors
- Sister 1 = Emily Hawksby (main character, begins the music video)
- Sister 2 = Megan Loveys (sister that has been diagnosed with cancer)

Costume
Both Sisters are to be in casual clothing, to represent normality and their age.
This should include, jeans, converse and basic t-shirts.

Props
Locket, including a picture of the two sisters
Piano, to be played at the beginning of the video
Pictures of two sisters at a younger age

Location
Main Hall - for Sister 1 to play the piano, constant flash backs to the hall 
Field - Filming to be done in the field to show two sisters 'having fun'
Home Bedroom - to show quality time of the sisters together

Filming Locations

I felt it was important to take pictures of all filming locations I wanted to use. This way I could get a feel for the locations and plan how I was going to film. I could instantly tell from the location in the main hall, that lighting was going to be an issue, it would be important to close all the curtains to create a dark lighting. There was also another problem, the fact the canteen was behind the piano meant that it would be in the shot, I then had to decide to change the way the piano sat in the middle of the hall. I situated it on an angle so the shot didn't get a direct view of the canteen. 

Analysis of Previous Work

At the beginning of the music video a close up is used on the radio in the boys bedroom, the song 'Mr Brightside begins to play on the radio, I think this is a clever idea, it gives the male actor a chance to begin the narrative of the video. An over the shoulder shot is used on the boy to reveal a picture of a girl, this initiates to the audience a narrative of a relationship, this involves the audience straight away. Some people may say that the narrative is very cliche, however it always targets the audience for them to relate to. Many cuts are used at the beginning this is conventional of an upbeat music video, it represents different images. As the music of the song begins, cuts are used to show the memories of the boy and girl, this starts of the narrative and instantly you feel sympathy of the boy and the audience will want to take his side. Cuts are used throughout the video of the band in the bedroom as a band, lip syncing is used which is extremely conventional of a music video. Flashbacks have been used, this technique is an initial idea for our group, we believe it represents the narrative well, which gives depth. Basic locations are used throughout the video, which is what we are aiming to do, we believe this is a good idea as audiences can relate to the setting, it suggests normality. There is a clear narrative throughout the video, however many jump cuts are used to the band playing in the bedroom, I believe this is not needed, it distracts the audience from the narrative. The use of camera work used throughout the video is good, ,many close ups are used to show the facial expression of the actors, it suggests the breakdown of their relationship. The different use of camera work has influenced me to use different shots to create interest and suggest different points of view. In the middle of the video fast paced jump cuts are used to build up tension for the audience, the cuts show that their is another boy, this keeps the audience attached to the video to see what happens. Slow motion is also used, this contributes towards building up tension for the final moments of the video, I don't want to use slow motion in my video, I believe sometimes it can be seen as quite comical, which is not the effect i want to achieve. The video ends with the original shot used at the beginning, I believe this is very effective, it suggests the story has ended, this has given me thought for the final product to end on the beginning image. 

First Draft Storyboard

Above is the first draft of my storyboard, it was important for me to create this, as I needed guidance for when and where I am going to begin to film. I needed an visual idea in my head of how the video was going to look, and if it was how I wanted it to look. After producing this, I felt ready to begin to film my video, I could follow the instruction of what I wanted to create, and could make changes to the storyboard if it didn't work.

Ideology

What is an Ideology?

An Ideology is a set of ideas that coheres around a set of basic social and political values.

Change those values and you will usually change the Ideology.

An Ideology sets out a way of organising society and politics, and indeed culture based on the core values
AND

Criticises other ideologies because they lack the goals and core values of the preferred ideology.
A system of meaning that helps us define the world.
This system of meaning makes value judgements about the world. We share common values, judgments and beliefs depending on what culture we are part of.

Truths?
-What truths or things that feel are natural about society?

• A woman is in the home
• Boys will be boys
• Education is important
• Ignorance is bliss
• The news is a window on the world

Norms

-Ideology makes us normalise media texts.

What does this mean?

If we normalise something, we accept it as behaviour (or values, beliefs, ideas and attitudes) and don't question this norm.

How could this be problematic?

The media represent images of social interaction and social institutions on a daily basis; because these ideologies are repeated, they shape broad social definitions.

My music video;

1. How are males and females represented?

The female in our music video is represented as a vulnerable artist, she tends to show no emotion, which emphasises the sad narrative.  With the use of the piano, it suggests that the artist is passion about music, and that suggests she is a songwriter herself. This is the character I wanted to create, following 'Ellie Golding' closely, she tends to use instruments in her music videos, which insinuates her 'indie' look.

2. Do they display a narrow range of lifestyles and behaviours, and marginalise others?
The artist in the video displays a 'normal' life style, with the use of the piano, it represents her as a young girl passionate about music. There is nothing in the video that is shocking for the audience, therefore it displays her behaviour as normal and a 'down to earth' artist. Unlike many videos that represents artist breaking taboos, this video aims to inspire young artists and brand the new coming artist in a positive way.

3. Do they make value judgements about what is normal and what is deviant?
The video does make a judgement on what is normal, the fact that the video is 'close to home' suggests that the girl that is passionate about music. The video touches a heart aching subject that is different from many music videos.

Digital Technology

What Technology will I be using to create my music video..

iMacs - Every lesson I use an iMac to research different music videos, to keep up to date with my blog, and I will be using it to create my music video. An iMac is extremely important for this task, I will be able to keep all my project filed on the iMac and it will be where the finished piece will be presented.

Youtube - Youtube is another source for me to complete this project, it enables me to research other music videos which will inspire me for my own video. I can note the use of camera work, the different narratives and the conventions used to make the video successful. 

Blogger - I will be using Blogger every lesson to update all my research and the latest work for my project. It is important for me to keep up to date with the blog and make sure I am researching to the best of my ability to help me achieve a successful end project. 

Panasonic HVC 500 Camera - This is the camera I will using for filming, it will be important for me to make sure I am responsible for the camera. I have to make sure all filming are transported from the camera to the iMacs every lesson to make sure no film is deleted.

Final Cut Pro - I will be using Final Cut Pro to edit all the filming that we do. It is an important source for the project, I will be able to use techniques like 'slowing things down', 'adding music' to edit the the video to make it look professional.

Audience, Genre, Narrative

Decision...

Audience - The type of audience I am aiming my music video at is teenagers aged from 15 -19 years old. My reason for this is that the video and the song is a close to heart subject, I believe it would be quite hard for teenagers under the age of 15 to understand the difficult narrative.

Genre - The genre that we have chosen is indie/pop. I believe this genre is extremely popular in the music industry at the moment, however I still believe there is room for another girl artist with a unique voice. 

Narrative - The narrative I have chosen for our music video is quite strong. I have chose to focus on the subject of cancer, as I believe it is a popular subject and a big issue in todays society. The story involves two sisters that have a strong bond between them, the video begins with one of the sisters walking into a big room with an eerie atmosphere, she begins to play the intro of the song on the piano. With the use of camera work, there will be a focus on a locket positioned on the piano, the locket will have a picture of the two sisters inside, this will show to the audience the two characters together. I want to use flashbacks throughout the video to show the two characters childhood, when they were happy, to contrast with the devastating news of one of the sisters getting cancer. The video will end with the sister in her final moments, this will hopefully touch the audiences heart.

Representations - The themes I want to create throughout the video is 'friendship'. I believe it is important to create a video where people of today can relate to the video. Many videos of todays society are high - tech and create 'unusual' narratives, my intention is to produce a video that is simple but effective. Another theme represented is the importance of Family, how loved ones are effected by the loss of a family member, how important family life is.