will.i.am - Bang Bang (Official Video)

In class we watched the live video from the voice and then we watched the official video for will.i.ams new track Bang Bang.

I thought it was effective how, everybody was in suits and the main character (will.i.am) had a white had unlike everyone else who had a black one. The fact that will.i.am is black and has a white hat on and the blacking dancers are white with black hats on conveys a very string image.

James - Sit Down

This was one of our first ideas for a song, because our concept for this song was strong and unique. This song already has a music video, however we would redo the video because the video is very old fashioned.

The idea:

The main focus would be the bad, dressed in suits but with a female lead singer. There would royal dinning room chairs situated behind the band players and when the chorus of 'sit down' came on half of the band would sit down and the others stand and then swap over. We would also include shots of individuals going a chair dance and then at the end of the video all the individuals would join together to form a line. This shows care and help, which is what the song is about.

We decided not to carry on with this idea, because we feel it is better to choose a song with no music video so that the two videos cant be compared together.

Video killed the radio star

This was a good idea, however when we pitched the idea to Luke (in the media department) he suggested that the song was too well known, but our concept was a good idea.

Polydor Records- Emily Tedrake

Emily Tedrake works for Polydor Records and is a video commissioner in London.

She explained and went through several ways in which the media industry works, the people she has worked with and the process which the treatments are presented. This includes the layout they are sent to her  and all the information this includes. The treatment which we were shown often included a Variety of pictures of the location, main characters and things you want to involve. But other famous well known artist just sent a short word document with there ideas and don't need to prove how good their idea is.

Emily Tedrake is a commissioning editor for Polydor records which is a major record label,  which is a part of Universal Music Group (Time Warner conglomerate). She commissions Music video for music artists (inc the Macabee’s Ellie Gouding, Lana Del Ray), and she put out tender to directors who once selected will submit a treatment.  Emily may have contact 10 clients who may want to shoot, depending on bids/ concept. 

 

The main information which she informed us with was that the shoots of the videos often take up to 1-2 days and the budget can range from £100-£100,000 depending on the artist and how big the track you are wanting to be and what you want the video to convey to the audience. The process of putting the whole video together often takes up to a month.

 

 

Main points:

 

• The artist has to be in the video.  They have to promote the star image.

 

• Not all artists like narrative based videos.

• Video are shot on locations and in studios, they need to have permission otherwise you will get kicked off your shoot!!!!!!
• 
  Each video is a  part of a campaign – tied in with

• Important to get the image right, particularly the visual image – MV can be the most  important aspect of the marketing campaign.

 

Some examples which Emily showed us:

Ellie Goulding

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CGyEd0aKWZE

 

Treatment – images used are suggestive of content and theme, but also realistic on behalf of the director.  Uses specific references for the look of the video, specifies location, how are you going to shoot the band, what will props will look like, also considers casting etc for narrative.  Will need to consider weather Ellie have the right star image and styling.  The treatment covers the most important parts.  The director will then storyboard the video – an important visual process in the shooting of the video.

A bog production 70 -100 extras. 12 hour shoot on a military base, needed permission, risk assessments etc needed.  Used location, narrative, performance and lyp sync. 

James Blake -Overgrown.

Overgrown music video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AlaRjP8pg0Q

 

 One of Emily’s  favourite, no visual images to this treatment.  Shot in Los Angeles over two days.  £30,000 budget  & top named director.  Lots done in post-production, highly stylised with lighting.  Cabin built in studio, green screen on windows, uses a time lapse.  Cabin put in hillside in post-production.  Starry sky is post as are the grim reapers.  Use professional backing dancers.  Gets across a fantastic star image and this has to match the music.  Where Ellie had scale energy and colour, James Blake is elegant and simple.

 

This was extremely beneficial to have a talk from Emily because she is professionally involved in the media industry today.

Main concept ideas

Throughout the lesson we were put into groups and watched some unusual videos which we then discussed.

We watched the video''

Our group really liked the concept of the video being played backwards. We discussed ideas in which we could include this idea.

We came up with the idea of someone who starts off with all their make up on and then when the video starts bit by bit the layers of make up come off. For example: the lipstick would come off lip my lip, and then the mascara, blusher and eyes shadow.

This would be filmed by filming the whole shoot normally and then in the editing room you would swap it round to make it play backwards.

We liked this idea because it is unique and hasn't been done many times before. However, we have to include a performance section of the band in the video and this will not fit with the backwards section. Also it was hard to find a song to fit with this concept because the song needs to be about dressing up and going partying and all the songs like this are new famous songs with big budget videos already.

Treatment 3

Artist- Avril lavigne
Track name- Sk8er Boi

Star image:

-Young girl with a rebel side
- gothic
-she often wears black clothing
-her image is portrayed as her being a rock star

Ideas for video:

-graffiti
-people splaying a plain wall with sk8er obi on it and zoom into the '8' and then have skate boarders stating down a street singing.

-The arrive at a house and turn on the TV and band playing the song zoom into the tv and band on full screen

when the song slows down have a boy and girl dancing ballet together
-then with the girl singing with a graffiti background [green screen)

Marketing:

Appeals to the younger generation (teenagers)
-stakers
-upbeat which appeals to active people.

Treatment 2

Artist- Mather wilder
Track name- Break my stride

Star image:

-Old fashioned from the 80's
-80's style- dated permed hair
-moustache

Ideas for the video:

-Band playing music on treadmills
- band members, wearing colourful clothes and curled hair

-high socks
-leg warmers
-flouresant paints, turn off lights and just see flouresant socks running on the treadmills

include different shots and angles- including electric guitar string and then close up of a aril stringing the strings of the guitar with colourful flouresant nails

Marketing-
-The song is old which is appropriate for a older generation and target group. the album cover would consist of of a similar fashion to the 80's to attract the older target audience.
-Funky upbeat song, god for exercising too, promotes excerise.