Editing Problem

Editing Problem

In my last blog post I planned to use iMovie to edit my footage for my first attempt at a music video. However, something came up and I could not edit that night. Our Apple Mac is through at my Dads house and I am back at my Mams house again now which leaves me with the temperamental Windows Movie Maker. I really don't like editing on Movie Maker as it is so unprofessional and I don't enjoy using that software. Despite this, I knew I had to do what I had to do. I am having a few issues with movie maker at the minute the audio is not working properly and once I start cutting down clips I get a warning to say that I cannot save or publish the project unless I remove the clips that I edited. I began getting frustrated as I was getting nowhere fast and I have decided to give up and when we go back to school on Monday I will use my lunch times and free periods next week to edit using Adobe Premier Pro as that is the software I feel most comfortable using to edit my music video for Summertime Sadness. 

Day of Shoot

Day of Shoot

Today I filmed my first attempt at a music video. Charlotte and I spent a few hours dancing around and lip-singing in the fields behind our estate. I'd hoped for a sunnier day but it was a bit overcast which  actually worked white well as the song I chose was Summertime Sadness by Lana Del Rey vs Cedric Gervais so the weather worked for the mise en scene of the video as the characters are wearing summer clothes in a summery location but the weather connotes misery. 

We actually had some camera trouble when filming. We did not start filming until 2 pm today, and this morning I got up early as it dawned on my that maybe I would have to charge the camera. So I turned on the camera and it was on 2/3 bars of battery but I charged it regardless just to be on the safe side. I then unplugged it, put it back in the camera and headed to the location of the shoot. When we got there Charlotte and I set up and began filming and half way through filming the second shot the camera battery died. I have no idea how charging the camera actually reduced the amount of power it had but it did. Charlotte then phoned home and had her camera dropped off. We assumed that would be the problem resolved but no. When Charlotte's camera arrived it was also out of charge. This resulted in us using our phones to shoot the video. As we both have iPhones and both our batteries were below 50% we had a very limited time to film before we ran out of battery. Unfortunately we both ran out of available space on our phones before the battery did. I frantically went through my phone deleting as many photographs and videos from concerts as I could to clear space quickly before I ran out of battery. I did begin to panic but I think I got enough footage to manage. I did plan to make a 1-2 minute video but depending on how the editing goes I may have to shorten it down due to the circumstances I faced.

I am going to attempt to try and edit a rough cut of the video using iMovie as I do not have Adobe Premier Pro at home. I've rarely used iMovie so we'll have to wait and see how it turns out. 

Storyboards - Summertime Sadness Music Video

Storyboards - Summertime Sadness Music Video

I planned out each of the different shots I plan to include in my music videos in this particular order. I have chose to do my own version and spin on the Cedric Gervais video and remix of Lana Del Rey's Summertime Sadness.

Here is the video by Cedric Gervais and Lana Del Rey:

(YouTube.com)

My Storyboards:

Summertime Sadness (Remix) Lyrics

Summertime Sadness (Remix) Lyrics:

I got my red dress on tonight
Dancing in the dark in the pale moonlight
Done my hair up real big beauty queen style
High heels off, I'm feeling alive

Oh, my God, I feel it in the air
Telephone wires above are sizzling like a snare
Honey, I'm on fire, I feel it everywhere
Nothing scares me anymore

Kiss me hard before you go
Summertime sadness
I just wanted you to know
That, baby, you're the best

I've got that summertime, summertime sadness
S-s-summertime, summertime sadness
Got that summertime, summertime sadness
Oh, oh, oh

I've got that summertime
I've got that summertime
I've got that summertime
I've got that summertime, summertime sadness

I've got that summertime
I've got that summertime
I've got that summertime, summertime sadness

I'm feelin' electric tonight
Cruising down the coast goin' 'bout 99
Got my bad baby by my heavenly side
I know if I go, I'll die happy tonight

Oh, my God, I feel it in the air
Telephone wires above are sizzling like a snare
Honey, I'm on fire, I feel it everywhere
Nothing scares me anymore

Kiss me hard before you go
Summertime sadness
I just wanted you to know
That, baby, you're the best

I've got that summertime, summertime sadness
S-s-summertime, summertime sadness
Got that summertime, summertime sadness
Oh, oh, oh

I've got that summertime
I've got that summertime, summertime sadness
S-s-summertime, summertime sadness
Got that summertime, summertime sadness
Oh, oh, oh

Got that summertime
I've got that summertime, summertime sadness
S-s-summertime, summertime sadness
Got that summertime, summertime sadness
Oh, oh, oh

(http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/lanadelrey/summertimesadnesscedricgervaisremix.html)

Chosen Song

Chosen Song

The song that I have chosen to base my first attempt at a music video on was the Cedric Gervais remix of Lana Del Rey's song Summertime Saddness. The original song is slow and would not require the fast paced editing style that I am hoping to use when I create my own music videos.

Here is the original video and song for Summertime Sadness by Lana Del Rey:

(YouTube.com)

The Cedric Gervais remix uses the same clips from the original music video both performance and conceptual and gives the video a remix too. With some fast paced editing, a few effects and looping clips to give a more upbeat effect.

Here is Summertime Sadness - Lana Del Rey Vs Cedric Gervais:

(YouTube.com)

Chosen Genre of Music

Chosen Genre of Music

After considering to chose female pop or a pop ballad as my genre of music I actually have chosen a genre which is neither. I have chosen to avoid these genres after looking at many different pop music videos and looking at there dynamics and how I could apply these techniques such as dance routines, filming in studios and lots of lip syncing. These features of pop music videos would be difficult to me as I am in the position where nobody I know would be willing to take park in such a way. Friends I have used for media productions in the past have made it clear that they would definitely not have the confidence to pull off such an intense style. So I had to consider other genres. I also ruled out using a male indie band as in AS Amy and I worked together on 'Just Another Boyband' where we worked with a group of boys from our friendship group and I was just about ripping my hair out trying to direct a group of lads. Therefore I will forever avoid using a group of boys, for my own sanity if anything. Another thing I considered was that as my favourite part of creating a media production is the editing process so I thought about what would be challenging for me and since I have never really created a music video I thought it would be best to create a piece which used the most common technique of jump cutting to lots of different shots which are not chronological. Slow songs usually have a slow paced  edit which follow a story line and this is not something which particularly interests me.

Recently in the charts most pop songs have been influenced by dance music and often have dance beats. This is due to the increased popularity in dance music over the last few years. 

Here are the singles charts for this week:

(http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/chart/singles)

At least 18 of the songs in the UK Top 40 are dance tracks or pop songs with a dance beat on them. This style of music is very popular currently. 

Songs like this rarely have performance clips in there music videos, only conceptual. Examples would be: 

(YouTube.com)

This track by Sigma is a 'summery' song and the video follows two girls dancing around on the beach and various other locations. But there are no performance clips. A main theme for songs such as this is summer. They make you want to go on holiday and have an amazing time with lots of beautiful people. Using two good looking girls means men stereotypically would enjoy the video and are more likely to watch the video again. It could also manipulate people into thinking that this is what their summer will be like if they listen to this song which gives the music video more popularity. People would be persuaded by the stunning locations and scene of the 'perfect' summer trip with your best friend.

Another example would be:

(YouTube.com)

Yet again, the theme of this music video for Duke Dumont's 'I Got U' is the perfect summer holiday. The video shows the character traveling around Thailand. The video is literally shot through the eyes of a man, from the point of view of a man's dream holiday. 

However, I did not want to use just a dance track as I would like to include some performance clips within my music video. So I looked at songs which have previously been a pop ballad and have been remixed into a dance track or a dance track which features a female singer.  This would allow me to include performance clips and to use fast paced editing. 

Examples would be:

(YouTube.com)

(YouTube.com)

(YouTube.com)

Each of these songs have a female singer on the track and a dance beat. These are the type of songs that I would be most interested in perusing for my music videos.

Target Audience Research

Target Audience Research

 

 

What genre is most popular with teenage girls?

 

The general idea of what is most popular with teenage girls would be pop music. Stereotypically young girls like artist such as One Direction, Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber.

 

 

 

 

 

When collecting primary data on what music and style of music video my target audience was into I found:

 

This individual's preferred genre of music is dance music however her favourite artists are Eminem, Troye Sivan and Britney Spears. Eminem is a rap artist, often many rappers have worked with DJ and producers and this is becoming increasingly popular. Troye Sivan is a YouTube sensation turned singer which is a culture  in which teenagers enjoy and spend their free time watching collaboration videos and vlogs from stars of YouTube such as Troye Sivan. Many teenage girls will have grown up listening to catchy pop songs by Britney Spears.

 

 

 

 

 

When asked about what they would like to see within a music video this individual said that they would like to see an emotive story line. Something like this would engage the audience and give the video a talking point. Some people would be able to relate to something such as bullying or domestic violence and a focal point and may encourage them to seek advise on what to do to stop it. This could increase the popularity of the video, making it memorable and a 'watch again' quality. This is something that I would like to do within my own music video.

 

  

 

This participant also listed 'dance music' as their preferred genre of music. Their favourite artists are regularly in the charts. As dance music is one of the most popular genres for teenagers my age it is a genre that would be interesting to look into and use as my chosen genre for this project. Acicii, Calvin Harris and Imaging Dragons are all inspiring artists that I could look at in terms of their music video, albums and adverts.

 

 

 

 

As well as saying they would like to see an emotive storyline within a music video, this participant said they prefer to see scantily clad women and sexual content in music videos. This participant is male and this links with Laura Mulvey's Male Gaze Theory. She believes that often music videos are made in the eye of the heterosexual man. I would not like to use this style of music video for my own video as I tried it out when making a practice music video and as music videos are now beginning to move away from this style of music video I will follow this trend.

 

 

From this participant who prefers dance music they said they would like to see the artist performing which is common when DJ's collaborate with other artists.

 

 

Pop music is also popular amongst teenagers, in particular young girls like female singers that they can look up to and they tend to be inspired by them. This participant said they would like to see performance clips, an emotive storyline and a love story. This would be the kind of music video I would like to create.

 

Two of the most popular genres of music are Pop and Dance. I would like to combine the two together to appeal to both teenage boys and girls as my target audience.

 

 

 

The artists preferred by this participant have all collaborated with female solo artist and are generally greatly successful.

 

From my audience research I have decided to go with a combination of Dance and Pop music by using a female solo singer and a DJ/Producer as my artists. In terms of the music video I have chosen to go with the popular idea of incorporating an emotive storyline along with a love story and performance clips.

 

Laura Mulvey Research

Laura Mulvey - Research

Laura Mulvey is a film theorist and a well known feminist. She came up with the concept of the Male Gaze Theory.

The Male Gaze Theory:

'In this theory the camera is a man that looks at and objectifies women. The camera tends to pan from the legs up.'

The main features of Laura Mulvey's Male Gaze Theory are:

• The representation of women in a sexual fantasy and from a heterosexuals male point of view
• Scopophilia - the pleasure involved in looking at other peoples bodies
• Objectification of female characters
• Patriarchal society
• Active male and passive female
• Men - controlling subjects
• Women as an image
• Men do the looking and the women are there to be looked at
• Needs of the male ego

The following videos are examples of videos which appeal to heterosexual males as sexual objects. The artists are Rihanna and Nicki Minaj who are two very famous artists. These women are the 'role models' for young women these days and their overly sexual behaviour and provocative dancing in their music videos are setting a bad example for girls. However, in the eyes of men this is how female artists should behave. The following videos are controversial and age restricted for explicit content.

Nicki Minaj - 'Anaconda':

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDZX4ooRsWs)

Rihanna - 'Pour it Up':

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehcVomMexkY)

The example I have chosen to analyse considering Laura Mulvey's conclusion is 'Call On Me' - Eric Prydz. I chose this song as it fits with my genre of dance music and also because the video is famous for having explicit content and the video is age restricted online. The video definitely appeals to young male audience as the video shows many women wearing very revealing gym wear and dancing provocatively while a one man joins the gym class. I'm sure many men have wished they were him over the years. This song was released in 2004.

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_fCqg92qks)

The music video for Call On Me does not link directly to the lyrics as some music videos do. The main aim of the video is to appeal to a male audience by portraying a male fantasy on screen. 

The video shows one man surrounded by several women wearing 'skimpy' gym clothes. The man is wearing black and white which is not attention grabbing whereas the women are dressed in bright colours so that the audience's eyes are drawn to them rather than the man. This signifies that the women are the main focus of the video. But this is obvious for many reasons.

Again it is obvious that the main focus of the video is on the women as the camera focuses on her and the man's reflection in the mirror is blurred. This allows the male target audience to fantasise about being in his shoes.

Here the man looks way too happy to be at the gym and I wonder why...

The man's white shirt blends in with the background which signifies to the audience that the man is almost a fly on the wall in this situation and it just there to observe. Backing the idea that women are there to be looked at.

The women make very suggestive and sexual faces throughout the video which builds on the male fantasy.

There are many mid-close ups and close ups focusing on pelvic thrusting which has sexual reference. This signifies to the audience that women are just sexual objects.

These shots from the video are examples of Laura Mulvey's idea that music videos include scopophilia - the pleasure involved in looking at other peoples bodies to satisfy the male fantasy.

And of course the man got the girl at the end while some other woman sticks around to do some splits. The fact that two women were left at the end also appeals to the male fantasy. This meets the needs of the male ego.