Question 4

Q4: How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages? The way media texts are being planed, researched, produced and distributed is changing because of the development of media technologies, now media texts can be easily distributed onto the internet on websites such as youtube, this has made research for similar texts extremely easy all you have to do is type in what you want a video of and hundreds of matches will come up. The technologies I have used during my production work for my music video was an editing programme I also used a video camera and I used a website for unsigned bands to find the soundtrack fro my music video. And for my print productions I used a digital stills camera and I used Photoshop to make the panels for my digi pack. For both my music video and digi pack I used the website www.blogspot.com this website made it possible for my teacher to see how my work is progressing and also making it easier for me to keep my coursework in order. These have developed my work by being easy to use and being able to tweak aspects that I felt needed changing to make it more aesthetically pleasing.The digital cameras allowed me to view raw footage, this made it possible to select different pieces of footage and to see what kind of shots I still needed or whether I needed to improve on the shots I had get some shots from different angle distances etc….Editing on the computer made it possible for me to add effects where I thought it was needed I could slow things down, speed them up, fade shots together, place one shot on top of another and also change the contrast of colour , make it brighter put I coloured filter over it or change it to black and white. All of these effects helped me to make my music video more creative and interesting. For my print productions Photoshop allowed me to merge several images together ,It also let me change the contrast of colour and to add coloured filters and to also use effects that changes to outlines of the picture ie; tile effect, poster effect and sponge effect. New technologies are allowing more people to go from being the audience to being a producer, this is possible because there are now an assortment of programmes that allow you to edit your own clips, and you can now upload your own videos onto social network sights such as facebook, myspace and youtube. The technology I ued to insert the still into my evaluation has helped me give a visual of what I am trying to get across which I can also use the images to back my points up. I put my music video on you tube and also on face book and the feedback I got was very helpful in answering the questions in this evaluation it gave me quotes and it also gave me some interesting statistics to write about.

Question 3

Q3: What have you learned from your audience feedback? The research method we used was a questionnaire which consisted of 13 questions this would give us a good idea of what was good in our music video and our Digi pack and also what wasn’t effective and how we could improve it. The number of participants we had was 12 pupils aged 16-17. For some of the questions they had to give a score out of five 1 being the lowest and 5 being the highest. The questions they had to answer with a mark out of five were; How much did you enjoy the music video?, Did it hold your attention?, How do you rate the camera work and editing? and How do you rate the standard of mise-en-scene? These questions gave us a clear sight into how well the music video appeals to our target audience which are teenagers. The next set of questions they had to answer were; Were there any aspects you found offensive? And Was there any part you found confusing or hard to understand? These questions gave us feedback for whether we had done something that could lead to the viewer disliking the video and not watching it again. The next set of questions the participants had to answer were questions where you had to circle the answer you agreed with the first question was “ Was the music video A) too short B) correct length C) too long and D) don’t know” this showed us whether out music video should longer, shorter or if we should keep it the same. The second question the participants had to answer was Would you listen to it again? They had to choose Yes, No or undecided this question showed us whether we were successfully appealing to our target audience which is teenagers. Another question that was on the questionnaire was “ what was the best part of the production?” this showed us what our audience enjoyed the most about or video. Another question on the questionnaire was “Does this video reflect the style of the music?” this gave us an insight into whether the our audience found it easy o recognise the genre of music. The next question on the questionnaire was “Does this video successfully promote the artist /band/ group?” this shoed us whether were successfully promoting the band or not. The last question was “Can you suggest anything that could improve the appeal?” this question was particularly helpful to us because it told us exactly how we could improve our music video. In the feedback we got from our questionnaires we noticed that the girls that watched our video enjoyed it more than the boys. This could be the case because in our music video the lead singer is a girl and she dominates the shots of the band, this challenges the normal role of a female in a music video which is them mainly been see as more of an object rather than them being in charge or having any power. This suggests that the male participants don’t like the change of roles in our music video and that the female participants do like the change of roles and possibly find it empowering. Apart from this there weren’t any other major differences that were consistent. From the feedback we have received we have decided that we have chosen the right demographic and that we have included aspects that they can relate to and that our music video does successfully promote the band and that we did make our music video by focussing on what the audience would enjoy and not just for ourselves.

Question 2

Q2:How effective is the combination of your main product with ancillary texts? My print productions are linked with my music video firstly because I have used screen shots from my music video for the third panel and also for the fourth panel.(pictures) This is because the shots have used capture the essence of the music video because of the lighting and the facial expressions on the band members face. My print productions are also linked with my music video because I have used the same locations for the filming and the photo shoots this helps the audience to identify the pictures on the album with the music video. My promotional page for the album is very easy to understand and it is clear what it is clear what it is promoting because I have kept it simple. I have placed the name of the band in big letters across the top, made the date it is coming out in clear letters and just added a star rating of it by the magazine it is in which is “NME“ keeping it simple males it more accessible to the audience and also they wont get bored of it is something that they can just take a glance at and get all the information they need and the design style I have chosen will catch their eye so even though it is simple, they wont just flick past it.. The four panels on the dig pack I made have a recurring theme of urban scenery which the audience can recognise as the bands trademark theme that they can use to boost their likeability by showing the audience they are just like them and we have chosen costumes that highlights how humble they are and aren’t conforming to today’s music industry by trying to set new fads or being outrageous. My advert will appear in “NME” this is because this magazine has all sorts of non mainstream genres in it and it is also know for finding some great new up and coming bands that have now become famous through “NME”. It will also appear in NME because this magazine as a massive fan base because of all the different genres it has inside this leads to thousands of people subscribing to it which will promote the band to a whole knew audience.

Question 1

Q1: In what way does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? My music video is typical of the Ska genre because I have used fast cuts/edits to connote chaos and mayhem, I have also used run down urban locations for our filming which famous Ska bands such as madness use to help connect with the audience to show them that they are just like them and that it is still a part of their work. I have challenged the Ska genre by with some of the shots I have slowed them down to make them seem dramatic and deep which is more commonly associated with the Rock or Metal genre. We Have used some elements from some of Madness’s videos such as their famous walk. For my Music video we looked at “Goodwin’s Theory” on the conventions of music videos and we used some aspects of it such as showing a “relationship between lyrics and visuals” this helps the audience to understand what is going on and we have also cut the shots to the beat of the music this is “A relationship between the music and the visuals”. We have not used voyeurism because we felt that it did not fit in with the genre but there are traces of it in there. We have used many close ups of the lead singer because this helps the audience to connect with the artist. The demographic of our target audience is teenagers of either sex, our target audience are also likely to spend a lot of time on social network sites (Facebook, Myspace) and they are also likely to subscribe to magazines such as “Distorted Magazine“. Our “Ideal” audience are likely to not have a full time job and just generally like to hang about with their friends and not have to many responsibilities this is why we have shots of the band members just messing around and laughing. Our music video is Representing youth as not serious , no direction in life it also shows them as being alienated in their group from the rest of the world this is also am aspect in the film “This is England” this film is about a group of friends who are typical of the Ska genre in the 80’s and we have used this film for inspiration for shots and some aspects of the costumes and of course the locations. In my music video we have created our own costumes but have included parts of typical Ska clothing such as boots, trilbies plain black suites with black skinny ties. We got this idea from watching other music videos from similar artists such as “Madness, Reel Big Fish and The Specials” who have all put there own twist on the Ska genre. In my print productions I have developed forms and conventions from the Ska genre by mixing it with aspects from acoustic music. I researched other Ska bands album covers such as “Madness, Reel Big Fish and The Specials” and realised that they are all either plain black and white or are vibrant with an array of eye catching colours. The way I have added an acoustic twist on my panels for my print productions are I have given them a grainy effect which is something you don’t find in the Ska genre because in Ska it is always about one extreme or the other there is no middle. I have challenged conventions of the Ska genre by not including just plain black and white and I also haven’t gone for bright colours I have gone in the middle which is a bit of a risk but my feedback showed that it was a risk that paid off.

Reel Big Fish

Reel big fish are an American Ska punk band from Huntington Beach California, they are best know for their hit “Sell out” released in 1997. The band gained recognition in the mid/late 90’s during the third wave Ska with the release of the the album “Turn the Radio off” which was awarded with a gold certificate. Lead singer Aaron Bennet is the only original member of the band having been with the band since 1992, the horn players Dan Reagan and Scott Klopfenstein have been in the band for more than 15 years. Being a Ska band they mainly interact with their audience through gigs but they have released some albums such as “Everything Sucks, Turn off the radio, Why do they rock so hard?, Cheers up, Were not happy till your not happy, Monkeys for nothing and the chimps for free and also Fame and Fortune.

Location planning

The the kind of locations we chose for the filming of our music video was urban areas that were kind of run down, this is because these are the kind of places that the Ska audience are likely to congregate. When we were looking for locations for shooting we thought about the people we knew that were in to the ska genre and though about where they normally hang out in their spare time. For example they would hang out at anglia square which is where we did alot of our shooting and places around that area, this is becasue they have alot of vintage shops in that area which is a generic theme of the ska genre.

My Music Video

The Specials are an English 2 Tons Ska band formed in 1977 in covenrty. This is a very sereotypical cover for a Ska band. This is because it has everything that is asociated with the Ska genre, such as a man in a trilbe wearing a plain black suit with a black skinny tie, it also has the black and white checks across the bottom of the cover, and finally the cover has only black and white on it.

Front cover developments

In recent developments i have decided to abandon the idea of spliting the cover into four sections, this is because after looking at other ska bands album covers none of them have front covers that have been spit into sections. It has become apparent to me that this idea does not fit in with the Ska genre. Instead i will be having a picture of the band all together in an urban location, which fits with the Ska genre. I will experiment with the backround to make the image most effective.

Blur Cover

This is an album cover for the band "Blur" who are an english alternative rock band from London. Like the previous post this cover had been slpit into sections but this time it isnt the band members its some black and white cartoons each with a different coloured back round to represent each of the characters personalities. My original ideas are to split the cover up into four sections with each section ahving a member of the band in and they will be posing in a way wich they think shows their personality to the audience.

Sum 41 cover idea

This is the cover of the album "All Killer No Thriller" by Sum 41, Sum 41 are a punk rock band who are renown for their happy go lucky attitude towards music. This cover shows the audience the band playful side, this is done by putting close up pictures of band using a fast shutter speed to capture the band distorted faces as the shake their heads about giving the crazy facial expressions. This album cover gave me the idea to split my single cover up and show a part of each of the band members personlitys by getting them to pose in a mid shot so that they can show what they are realy like.

Ska - Clothing

People that listen to Ska music are usualy seen wearing big army boots that they got from a charity shop. Or if they have a bit of money they will usualy purchase a pair of Doc Martens.

People that listen to ska music are also steryotyped as wearing a black plain suit with a plain black skinny tie, this is mainly because of the iconic Ska band Madness.

They are also linked to often wearing trilbies, normaly plain black ones.

They are also renown for waering braces.

Research into similar artists ( Less Than Jake )

Less Than Jake is an American ska punk band from Gainsville, Florida. Originally formed in 1992 as a power pop trio, the band evolved into a hybrid of Ska punk. Less Than Jake have also been cited as showing influences from a wide variety of genres including post grunge, heavy metal , alternative rock, third wave ska, pop punk and punk revival. To date, the group has released eight full-length studio albums and a number of singles and compilations. The current lineup comprises guitarist/vocalist Chris Demakes, bassist/vocalistRoger Managelli , drummer/lyricist Vinnie Foriello, trombonist Buddy Schaub and saxophonist Peter"JR" Waselewski.

They interact with thier audience mainly threw live gigs but they have also released albums such as Pezcore, Losing Streak, Hello Rockview, Borders and Bounderies, Anthem, B is for B-sides, In Withe the Out Crowd, GNV FLA and TV/EP.

Research into similar artists ( Reel Big Fish )

Reel Big Fish is an American ska punk band from Huntington Beach California , best known for the 1997 hit "Sell out". The band gained mainstream recognition in the mid-to-late 1990s, during the third wave ska with the release of the gold certified album Turn the radio off. Front man Aaron Bennet remains the only founding member, having been with the band since 1992, and horn players Dan Reagan and Scott Klopfenstein have been involved with the band for more than 15 years.

They mainly interact with their audience through live gigs but they have released albums such as " Everything sucks, Turn the Radio Off, Why Do They Rock So Hard?, Cheer Up!, We're not Happy 'Till Your not Happy, Monkeys for Nothing and the Chimps for Free and Fame Fortune and Fornication.

Research into similar artists ( Madness )

Madness
Madness are a British pop/ska bandfrom Camden Town, London, who formed in 1976. The band perform with their most recognised line-up of seven members, althoughthis has occasionally varied slightly over the years of their existence. They were one of the most prominent bands of the late 1970s 2 Tone ska revival.
Madness’ audience in the early days of their formation were predominantly skinheads; members of a British working class subculture that the media often stereotyped as racist (although many skinheads, including the original generation, are non-racist or anti-racist). This sparked much controversy about the band, who were on the receiving end of racist allegations, claiming they too were racists. This however waslater disproved as they denied their skinhead roots, disappointing much of their fan base. Towards the later stages of their careers, although still being predominantly 2 Tone ska, they edged slightly more towards the mainstream pop audience.

They appeal to their audience largely through their roots. They are a well known British ska band, who use their national appeal to draw in audiences who get a feel of patriotism and belongingness from listening to their ‘rock steady’ beats. The media surrounding their music, such as album art and videos, contain a number of generic signifiers relevant to both the ska genre and Britain. For example in their video for one step beyond, they are seen dancing down the British streets, with a red telephone box in the background, a prominent signifier of British culture.
They interact with the audience through the performance of live gigs and festivals, in which they still partake. For example, Madness continue to tour playing most recentlyplaying Birchington-on-Sea Quex Park in Kent with a new set of UK tour dates throughout November and December 2010. Even long after their years in the limelight, they play shows for the fans that have been loyal to their music that has been and still is so iconic to the British ska/pop scene. In a large sense, the way in which they dress plays a large part in their interaction with audiences. Their partially smart dress, with suits, ties, smart shoes, trilbies and of course the large shades worn by Suggs are vital in the establishing of their image. Fans of the ska genre then have an image to aspire to and aim towards by dressing in a similar fashion to achieve this.