Deconstruction and Reconstruction of Shelter by Birdy PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS

In groups of four we were set a task to re-create 30 seconds of a music video we chose to do Shelter by Birdy and decided to reconstruct one minute of the video to go the extra mile!


PREZI FORMAT

Evaluation on deconstruction and reconstruction of media text one on Prezi

PROBLEMS

Filming and Directing

We encountered many problems working in a big group as it seemed like there were only 3 of us doing all the work and people were not working together.  As a solution the group split a bit and swapped roles.

Amy took on more of a directors role and Tasha did more of the filming instead - as this suited the group better.  I (Olivia) also helped with some of the camera work rather than just being the cast. Meg and Ella did not suggest anything as they were supposed to be editing - all this confusion of things not going to plan made our group quite stressed and as a result we did not have time to film all the scenes we needed to.

On the day we were filming it was a bright sunny day, unfortunately since the British weather was not stereotypical and dull we had to edit all our film to make it much darker - and this took a lot of time. Also on the day we filmed I was not feeling very well which probably came across on camera.

We also filmed some of our video in the dark with torches but we learnt in the process that cameras work on  light so it didn't come out very good.

We rushed quite a lot of the filming and I (the cast) hadn't heard the song before, so I did not know the lyrics.
 Also I didn't really want to be in the video but because I was at a physio appointment when the the roles were dished out.

Editing

Megan and Ella were supposed to do the editing but were not meeting deadlines.
Ella went on holiday (which she did not inform us of) so she didn't get to film or edit.
On one of the editing lessons Tasha, Megan and Ella (the editing team) did not turn up, so it fell to me Amy, and Claudia to do the editing as the solution.

We we had to start again as the one shot that was done, was too slow and not to time. Eventually we got a lot of the editing done, but the "filming group's"  moral was low due to people not turning up because of a University open day. (Which they must have known they were going to when we arranged the days for editing.)

The day after this we decided to edit again to finish off, on this lesson Amy was ill but this was not a problem really as she did the filming, and Ella was on holiday. The problem here was because myself and Claudia did the editing beforehand it felt like we were doing Megan's job and Megan did not make much effort to do some editing herself. Both me and Claudia were annoyed about this and asked Tasha to do the lipsyncing bit to the middle and end section which she did - overall we felt like the filming group especially me and Claudia had done the majority of the work and although it had initially been spread out fairly, it was not spread out fairly when it the work actually had to be done!

Eventually we got the video done and were happy with it - but this has taught us not to work in a group with so many people as lots of problems can occur! We were mostly happy with the outcome of our video but we know a lot could be changed to make it better!

The ironic thing is we could have made this video "better with the lights turned on"

Research

I did some research into Genre...

Audience Feedback on Influencial Texts

To obtain results from my audience I conducted interviews:

I encountered a problem here as somebody deleted all my footage before it had finished uploading. So I had to film again.

I filmed my other video using iMovie on my Mac, however I am finding difficulties uploading this to you tube. (solution convert it to QuickTime .mov and upload worked!)

MAC INTERVIEW

Interview 3

Deconstruction and Reconstruction of a Media Text

Deconstruction and Reconstruction of a Media Text

Amy Wright - Camera

Claudia Parker - Camera

Olivia Bucknall - Camera

Meg Hackford - Editing

Ella Beech - Editing

Natasha Ullah - Director

The song we will reconstruct is Shelter, performed by Birdy

Filming: Date: 2nd October
Time: 2:00pm
Cast: Olivia
Camera: Amy and Claudia
Location: Green Room
Props: Long Trench Coat (blue), Boots (brown), Scarf, Studio lights, Torches.

Filiming: Date: 3rd October
Time: 9:00am
Camera: Amy, Claudia, Natasha
Cast: Olivia
Location: Field
Props: Long Trench Coat (blue), Boots (brown),  Scarf, Trees (to touch).

Editing: Date: 4th October
Time: 11:30
Editors: Meg and Ella
Using Editing Suite.



WE HAVE DECIDED TO DO 1 MINUTE OF FILMING RATHER THAN JUST THE 30 SECONDS TASK SET!!!

Influential Media Texts: Psychographic



I have looked at 5 Media texts that I think will be highly influential in the creating of my music video:

• The Queen of Hearts is a character from the book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by the write Lewis Carroll.  She is a foul-tempered monarch, that Carroll himself pictured as "a blind fury", and who is quick to decree death sentences at the slightest offense. Her most famous line, one which she repeats often, is "Off with their heads!" I have chosen to feature her character in my video to add to the quirkiness that is a common convention and code in the Alternative Genre.

QUESTIONS:1. Would you say the queen of hearts fits into the alternative genre and why?
2. How would you describe this image?
3. What appearance do you assocaite with the Queen of hearts?

This song tells a story of a girl who originally gets her heartbroken, then  becomes stronger and dominant in the marines, and is able to dismiss her ex boyfriend's pleas...



QUESTIONS
1. Did you like the narrative style of this video?
2. Do you prefer videos where the artist performs in them too? 

• This headline particulary interested me as my protagonist will be a heartbreaker. I thought it was very strong and powerful and this reflects my main character.

QUESTIONS:
1. What do you think of women when you see this headline?
2. Would you agree that in the past women were seen as the victim of heartbreak, but now, in modern times the table have turned? So would you like to see this theme of a dominant woman in a modern music video?

•  In this song is describes how to be a heartbreaker so I thought I would follow these conventions which are pointed out. 

  ♡ H . T . B . A . H . B ♡

  "Dear Diamonds, Such is life. A week after the UK album went to mastering, I got an idea for a new song. That song is ‘How To Be A Heartbreaker’ & I am thrilled to confirm that it will be my next single in the UK and will be added to the UK album, also." - Marina. QUESTIONS 1. Would you agree that the 'rules' pointed out in this video fit the conventional heartbreaker? 2. Can you suggest any other aspects of being a heartbreaker?

 
Please rate the following:
 Editing 1------------------------------------------------------10
 Cinematography 1------------------------------------------------------10
 Mise-en-scene 1------------------------------------------------------10
 Lighting 1------------------------------------------------------10
 Performance of the artist 1------------------------------------------------------10

ANALYSIS OF MUSIC VIDEO 1 & Research Into Conventions of Alternative Music Videos

Conventions of existing music videos of the alternative genre in terms of:

Cinematography (camera shot distances / angles / movement /framing / focus)

Editing (montage / continuity / transitions / special effects etc)

Mise en Scene (colour themes, props, costume, body language, lighting, set design, location)

Sound (diegetic, non-diegetic, soundtrack, voiceover etc)

Form (performance / narrative (storyline) / lip-syncing etc

The opening shots have a wrapper blowing in the wind and the sound of the wind is emphaised to make the atmosphere very eerie and mysterious. In the opening shots candles are blown out which I think symbolises darkness but also connotes loss of hope and direction. The pink wiritng contrasts with this eerie scene it stands out and connotes a girly innocent feel. The typography looks like the word 'SHAMPAIN' is handwritten in blood dripping down so therefore it does fit in with the scene somewhat and adds a personal yet creepy touch.  Again, the full moon behind this writing connotes mystical elements for example myths and warewolves. It creates a lot of tension alsmost like a horror movie. These opening scene is very common as it almost works like an establishing shot, it sets the scene yet does not show the protagonist and gives the audience an idea of what they are letting themselves in for.

The narrative storyline of Marina metaphorically drinking Shame and Pain, is portrayed well as you through the range of shots the audience understand what is going on in the plot/strory line. The frequesnt use of lip syncing is a common convention in all music videos this is where the artist is portrayed to be singing along to their song. Not only do the voices have to be in sync with the music, I have noticed that scence flashing or for example in this video Marina's eyes opening are all in time with the beat of the music. What I have noticed in the music video is that it really does pay attention to the lyrics, for example the lyrics "inside a lonely bed" Marina is laying on a bed.
A motif of shots are used such as the rubbish at the start blowing around and then we see it blow over Marina's head which indicates she is outside. This wrapper is blowing around in slow motion to emphasise it's significance and it encourages an audience to be more empathetic to the event. Here instead of feeling hatred and humour towards Marina we, as an audience, feel sorry for her.

All music videos and especially this music video contain a wide range of camera angles, shot distances and movement to keep the video busy and entertaining as they have to keep the audience interested in a (usually) repetitive song for 3-4 minutes. In this music video I have noticed a lot of shots are cantered and overlap each other to give a hazy dream-like effect. Camera movement often reflects the moods of a song for example if something is sad and depressing the camera movement will be slow however if that music then speeds up the movement will become faster and more busy. . This also applies to edit cuts, since the song is fast paced the cuts are quicker and the shots are busier to reflect the tempo.

In most music videos there is usually a lot of dancing in groups or alone to make the music video exciting and eye catching Another characteristic of music videos is their length which is generally 3-4 minutes long. Music videos use a lot of fading for edit transitions in order to make it more smooth and therefore relate one shot to the next. Blackouts are used for dramatic effect for example to reveal Marina on the step as she wakes up from her slumber. 

Frame by Frame Storyboard for one minute of an existing music video (Thriller)

I chose the music video Thriller by Michael Jackson as to me it is one of the best and most inspirational music video of all time. I love the way it tells a story through the song and video and hope to achieve this effect in my own.

In an interview that aired December 11, 1999, for MTV's 100 Greatest Videos Ever Made, Jackson spoke about the making of the video:

"My idea was to make this short film with conversation ... in the beginning - I like having a beginning and a middle and an ending, which would follow a story. I'm very much involved in complete making and creating of the piece. It has to be, you know, my soul. Usually, you know, it's an interpretation of the music. It was a delicate thing to work on because I remember my original approach was, 'How do you make zombies and monsters dance without it being comical?' So I said, 'We have to do just the right kind of movement so it doesn't become something that you laugh at.' But it just has to take it to another level. So I got in a room with [choreographer] Michael Peters, and he and I together kind of imagined how these zombies move by making faces in the mirror. I used to come to rehearsal sometimes with monster makeup on, and I loved doing that. So he and I collaborated and we both choreographed the piece and I thought it should start like that kind of thing and go into this jazzy kind of step, you know. Kind of gruesome things like that, not too much ballet or whatever."   -- Michael Jackson

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