Cd Cover

We have been discussing our ideas for the Cd Digipack and we have three different ideas at the moment.
As we are doing the song 'Burial' by Accidents, we are approaching it from either the idea of the band name or the song name.
Idea 1: We call the album "This is a Burial" and we take a picture of a lone man in casual clothing with a spade in the process of digging a grave in an empty field.
Idea 2: We call the album "Accidents" and have a picture of a split condom in a drain, which taken in the right light could be quite a memorable cover.
Idea 3: We have a man in a full body shot holding a shovel, looking at the camera in a menacing fashion and we call it "This is a Burial".
The CD itself we have the idea of using a man sitting alone with crutches/a pregnant woman on a row of hospital chairs.

'Burial' Lyrics

"Have a heart, break a leg tonight

In tribulations, I'm out of sight

let's make a scene tonight, and tear this building down

the water rises, it drags me down

I can't breathe, the memories consume me

as time past, this can't be happening.

We look, to the sky, our time has come at last

and please remember me when death has come to pass

just hold me close.

the beauty has arrived.

the hands tick, the clocks chime

the hourglass is running out.

when you see me coming,

you'll say your prayers just keep your mouth shut,

your hauled over the coals

this is a burial."

'Burial'

Re-think

We have struggled to form an effective idea for 'Walking Disaster', and the ideas we have formed do not link in as we go through the song. This is why we have decided to revert to Glenn's original idea of 'Burial' by the amateur local band Accidents. We are going to do a performance video, and have set up a practice filming session at an Accidents band practice next week, and then we are planning to a a live gig for the filming using Acccidents as the band over the Christmas Holidays.

Glenn

Unfortunately for Glenn, his idea for Media has fallen through, meaning he had to rejoin our group.
So of course, we welcomed him back with open arms, and we can use his skills in the subject to our great advantage.

Setting for 'Walking Disaster'

For filming of 'Walking Disaster', we are going to need to find/go to several places to film. We may need:

- a front room with a window, in which to have the kid see his parents arguing through
- a city, such a London or Brighton
- a club
- many streets, some in residential areas and some in the city.

Interpretation

Today, I have been listening to the song 'Walking Disaster' with the lyrics in front of me, and I have been writing down every idea that comes into my head. They are only rough ideas so far and I have not consulted Sophie about them but it has given me a general idea of, personally, what I want the video to look like.
[pictures of text here]

Walking Disaster Lyrics

I haven't been home for a while
I'm sure everything's the same
Mom and Dad both in denial
And only jokes to take the blame

Sorry, Mom, but I don't miss you
Father's no name you deserve
I'm just a kid with no ambitions
Wouldn't come home for the world

Never know what I've become
The king of all that's said and done
The forgotten son

This city's buried in defeat
I walk along these no-name streets
Wave goodbye to home

As I fall...

At the dead-end I begin
To burn a bridge of innocence
Satisfaction guaranteed
A pillow-weight catastrophe

Our own mission nowhere bound
Inhibitions underground
A shallow grave I
Have dug all by myself

And now I've been gone for so long
I can't remember who was wrong
All innocence is long gone
I pledge allegiance to a world of disbelief
Where I belong

A walking disaster
The son of all bastards
You regret you made me
It's too late to save me
(You regret you made me
It's too late to save me)

As far as I can tell
It's just voices in my head
Am I talking to myself?
'Cause I don't know what I just said

(And she said)
As far as where I fell
Maybe I'm better off dead
Am I at the end of nowhere
Is this as good as it gets?

And now I've been gone for so long
I can't remember who was wrong
All innocence is long gone
I pledge allegiance to a world of disbelief
Where I belong

A walking disaster
The son of all bastards
You regret you made me
It's too late to save me
(To save me, to save me, to save me, ...)

("It's too late") [x2]

To save me, to save me, to save me, to save me

And now I've been gone for so long
I can't remember who was wrong
All innocence is long gone
I pledge allegiance to a world of disbelief
Where I belong

A walking disaster
The son of all bastards
You regret you made me
It's too late to save me

I will be home in a while
You don't have to say a word
I can't wait to see you smile
Wouldn't miss it for the world

I will be home in a while
You don't have to say a word
I can't wait to see you smile
Wouldn't miss it for the world

Other Characters

We also need to cast older characters to act as the parents in the video. Both of our mums would be willing to play the part of the mother, but we can't find anyone to play the role of the father.

The main character

We have decided that we will need a boy to play the main role, as the male voice singing would seem out of place with a girl actor.
We probably need him to be a bit younger than ourselves and we decided that he should have longer hair, as in my view this suits the music more than short hair, although Sophie disagreed to start with.
He should be wearing jeans and a hoody, both slightly dirty as if he has been walking for a bit, but also with a rucksack.

Letter for permission

Yesterday, I wrote to Island Def Jam for permission to use the song 'Walking Disaster' by Sum 41.
This is the letter I used:

Dear Copyright Holder,

We are A level students and I am writing to request your permission to use one track from the latest album by Sum 41 entitled Underclass Hero.

The track I wish to use is 'Walking Disaster', track 2 on the album.

With your permission, this track would be used in my current A-level Media Studies
project which involves creating a music video for a popular music track, as well as
producing an album and a magazine advert for the artist.

If I received your permission, this track would ONLY be used in an educational
context and be viewed by our media class, our teacher and the OCR exam board
moderator. It would NOT be released to a large audience or uploaded to any public
video websites.

The artist and your company would of course be fully recognised throughout pre-
production and the final video itself. A copyright notice, with wording supplied by you
can be included in the records of the project. If this is required, please send full
details.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Regards,

Alex Newcombe and Sophie Brown

Filming

We decided that the filming wasn't up to standard in our opinion, as we did not put enough movement and they did not put enough enthusiasm into the performance so we have decided to change the song one more time to (hopefully as it is dependent on permission) 'Walking Disaster' by Sum 41. We are planning on doing a narrative video as the song is about kid who has run away from home due to annoyance at his parents and possible negligence. However, during the song he realises that he misses home and he begins to head back.

Possible Lighting for the Performance

Sophie's brother has allowed us to use some of his DJ equipment to possibly light the video. Here is a link to her blog post.

Yellow Box Booked

We have now successfully booked the location for our media video.
I went to the Big Yellow Box Company and queried them about the price, and at £52.88 for a week, plus the insurance which is at the rate of £2.50 for £2000 worth of stored goods.
This as been booked for the 24th October for primarily a week, but we have access for the next 4 weeks at extra weekly cost.
The storage box is 200 square feet and is the ideal size for our project.

Shots

I like this type of shot quite a lot, and if we cover the back of the container in the Crash Course logo then we could use this type of shot, maybe at the start of the video.



The shot focuses on the background using deep focus, then switches to shallow focus to encompass the lead singer Deryck.



Furthermore, when the music drops, in the song 'Still Waiting' we see the whole band except the drummer but it is perfectly timed. We could use a similar shot with maybe just the guitarist and the bassist in the chorus when Nick sings "understand each other".



Also, I have been looking at many different styles of shot to use with Nick, the lead singer, and here are some ideas using Sum 41:

This extreme close up shot allows the audience to effectively view the lead singer, as in many conventional performance videos, the lead singer normally receives the most close up shots, as the record labels tend to market the band around the lead singer.

The medium shot from a similar angle as the extreme close up allows us to further see the lead singer, but also where he is established and what instrument he is playing. Furthermore, we can see his clothing style which would allow for fans to idiolise him even more, and perhaps for even some product placement.

This is another Extreme close up shot, but from a much higher angle so again we see more of the lead singer's surroundings.

The previous two shots are Extreme close ups from a very similar angle, except they are from either side of the singers face. This adds a bit more variety to the video as well as further advertising the lead singer.

This final shot is a slightly further out medium shot, whilst the angle is also slightly different. It allows to see more of the lead singer, and it also makes it easier to use more camera movement in the filming, such as perhaps a pan or a tracking shot.

Setting

We are perhaps looking at renting a 200 square foot room as this would be more than suitable for our needs.
Here is a general idea of the size of it (yet without the couch in it) :

Meaning of the Lyrics

The meaning of the lyrics are generally in regard to the departure of the previous lead singer. They convey the tensions felt between certain band members and him, and also their desire to succeed without him. Furthermore, they also pay tribute to how far he helped them form the band, but they are adamant to succeed without him.

News!

In the band, the lead guitarist Matt has decided to leave. However, Nick, the vocalist, can play the guitar so he will make the step up to guitarist as well as vocals. This is beneficial to us in regards to filming because it means there will be more room in the storage facility, if we are allowed to use it.

Yellow Box Company

Sophie and I had the idea to perhaps rent out a storage box to film our performance video as this would provide a suitable environment to film as it would also be very easy for us to light it as we want and for us to fashion the mise en scene as we would like it to look. Knowing this, I looked up a quote to find what a suitable price would be, and we found a 100 square foot container would be £30 per week. However, considering this, we thought that perhaps 100 square feet would not suffice to our needs, especially if we want the band to be lively, so we decided that we would look for a bigger container. However before this, I was contacted by the company who asked the details of why I wanted the container, and I told them it was for a music video and we would not need it for long, but we were looking for a bigger size, within our budget.

Progress

I must have listened to 'The Great Nothing' a good 20 times today, and my understanding of both the lyrics and my awareness of the tempo and general instrumental side of the song has increased dramatically, and that will help with my timing what cuts I plan to use with the video, which I also began today.

Some Simple Shot Ideas

Here are some simple shot ideas that we could use in the video:
- Overview of drum kit
- Bass drum close up
- Close up of cymbal
- Close up of guitar, angled facing up towards the end of the guitar.
- Same view of other guitar
- Medium shot of Dan
- Medium shot of Matt
- Close up of Rory with mic (in stand).
- Nick close up
- High angled shot of the band playing
- Eye level shot of the band playing
- Eye level shot of Nick singing
- Over the shoulder shot of Glenn playing the drums
- (Unclean Lyrics) Close up of mouth
- Shot of Nick in the close, Rory in the far, switch of focus, during when they are both singing
- When the band are being very lively, we would use longer shots.

Obviously, we'll develop these into better ideas, with more shot angles and we shall develop the ideas of camera movement. Furthermore, once we know the setting, it will be easier to determine what shots we can use, as well as the lighting. Also, whilst filming, we will without doubt have some spur of the moment ideas for different shots, and the band will also have a say in what they are willing to be filmed, although hopefully that will not be much of a hindrance.

Details About The Band

Just some simple information about the band, so when I use names in descriptions of shots etc you know which member of the band I am talking about.

Nick Nowak - Lead Vocals
Rory Bevis - Guitar/back up vocals
Glenn Rice - Drums
Dan Smith - Bass Guitar
Matt Dudley - Guitar

Furthermore, their music is a progression of rock, known as post-hardcore.

Their Facebook page is here.
Their Myspace page is here.

Lyrics to 'The Great Nothing'

Here are the lyrics to 'The Great Nothing' by A Crash Course In Collision, The song we're planning on filming our music video with:

Is this your idea of killing time?
You're crushing bones with words
And to make matters worse you're still some kind of friend to us.
A man of profound history you stole away our dignity
But we're still alive, and it's all because of you.

Maybe we just understand each other,
A bit too perfectly
But now you're shouting at me through closed doors this time
Surely it's a remedy, but it's so sad to say
You're nothing to me.

Sound alarms, hold the phones, it's time we take over the town
This has never meant more to me like this very inspiration
This view has never been so clear
And we're making our mark

MAYBE WE JUST... understand each other,
A bit too perfectly
But now you're shouting at me through closed doors this time
Surely it's a remedy, but it's so sad to say
You're nothing to me.

You've had your day, and we're on our feet without you.
You've had your day, and we're on our feet without you.
You've had your day, and we're on our feet without you.
(Without you)
You've had your day, and we're on our feet without you.
You've had your day, and we're on our feet without you.

'Motivation' - Sum 41 Video Analysis

- The video is set in what seems to be a bedroom, which suggests that this could just be a band practice.


- The opening shot is a tracking shot across the bedroom to help establish where they are. The only sound is the drum being played, and while the lead singer (Deryck Whibley) jumps to play his guitar, there is a cut to him from the front. This signals the rest of the band to begin playing.






- This only takes 6 seconds.


- There are then many fast cuts as they establish the band playing the introduction to the song, in various part of the room. This means we can better establish the band members and we also are conveyed, through the cut speed, the tempo of the music. This tempo drives the pace of the music video its self, which is why there are so many fast cuts.



- The first vocals are shown through an extreme close up shot of Deryck, as he sings into the microphone. We are now made aware of who the lead singer is. Furthermore, the record company demands many close ups of the star of the band, to increase the ability of the star to market himself and the band.






- Although there is very little camera movement, the pace of the cuts is very fast as we keep moving around the room from band member to band member, so we have an idea of everything that is happening in the room.


- At 1.43, it uses a lamp shade to frame a shot of the bassist in the near and the lead guitarist far away. This helps add to the idea that this is only a band practice as it is just a common household item, something that would not be found at a gig.






- It then goes onto use the same tracking shot as it did to establish the scene, yet this time we see every band member playing their respective instruments. This helps add an element of continuity to the video.



- At 2.03, we see the music slow in tempo, and only one guitar is playing. This then shows the members of the band doing things such as being on the phone or playing darts, as they would in a break. This makes the band members seem more realistic, and it also adds a air of comedy to the video, especially with Dave Baksh eating fish food.






- However, we see the basist from behind, still with his guitar on, which lets us know practice is still happening.





- The closing shot is of Deryck's mouth engulfing the camera in darkness, which signifies the end of the video with a slight comedic twist.





There is a distinct trend to music videos recorded by Sum 41. They always use a slight comedic aspect to their videos, and also use a slight immature theme as it allows them to connect with both the younger audience, and the immature side of the older generations. This is shown in videos such as 'Walking Disaster' (based on the trials and tribulations of a toy robot), 'Hell Song' (Dolls used to represent the band playing live, with many celebrity dolls in the audience. This exposed the corrupt and antisocial behavior of celebrities behind closed doors) and 'In Too Deep' (which showed a diving competition, with the band members competing s a team and performing random diving stunts which are not in keeping with the austere environment of a diving competition).

Sophie's Video Analysis

Sophie has analysed the music video 'Elvis ain't Dead' by Scouting For Girls.

It has a combination of performance and a storyline.

If you want to see it, have a quick look.

Story of the Year- Until the Day I Die

The video on which the times were based in the text had disabled embedding 'by request'. So I'm posting a link here.

- The opening shot is of various bottles smashed on the floor. This is as the guitar is starting to sound in the background.




- The first 6 seconds are all of the guitar building up, with 3 different cuts. We then see a fly which flies across the screen, this accompanied to a cut brings the lead singer (Dan Marsala) into the audiences view. He begins to sing whilst still out of focus.




-He comes into focus briefly at 0.09 before another cut.



- This high amount of exposure to the lead singer is almost inevitably due pressure from the record company wishing to establish him as an icon or star.



- It continues with the same chords being played on the guitar in the background with his vocals laid over it for roughly 15 seconds. It uses a large amount of shallow and deep focus.


- At 0.24, we see the first cut to the live performance, but the first thing we see is the guitarist mid way through a jump whilst playing the guitar.



- For the next 10 seconds, we have varying cuts of the band members performing. This helps establish the people who are in fact in the band, as in this video there are many shots of individuals in the crowd singing along, and this helps distinguish between the band and the crowd.




- At 0.35, we cut to the lead singer no longer on stage on his own, in a similar setting to the start of the video. This signals the beginning of the vocals again. Once more, this helps increase exposure.




- The music video effectively uses the crowd, as it shows many singing along and obviously enjoying the experience.



- At 0.43, the lyrics say 'I die too', and he pats his heart.



- In the live performance, there are many many cuts between the band members. Also there is a large amount of camera movement, to put emphasis on the idea that YOU are in the crowd.

- This is further reinforced at 0.59 when a low angled shot from within the crowd, facing towards the stage, helps add to this idea of actually being there.



- The camera even moves in time with singer nodding his head at 1.27, with the camera panning up and down.

- At 1.45, we hear the words 'My hands are at your throat', and he points to his throat.



- Even when he is singing on his own, the camera is still moving.



- During the unclean vocal section of the song (scream) we have an extreme close up of the singers mouth. This is at roughly 2.25.



- Drummer spins his sticks in his hand when he isn't playing. This is a close up shot and helps increase the audiences estimation of the bands skill.



- The lyrics repeat 'My hands are at your throat', but this time we see the audiences hands all around his throat. This helps increase the audience interaction with the band.




- At 3.04, the music begins to become more heavy again, and to signal a return to the live performance we see a member of the crowd, or possibly the band, run and perform a back flip. This helps increase the enjoyment of the performance, as it makes it seem more extreme and dangerous.




- The last shot of the live performance is of the bassist playing the final chord. While this is playing out we see the singer alone again, and the shot cuts are similar to the start of the video.

Change of Plans

We have been considering whether the tempo of Little Lion Man by Mumford and Sons is fitting with the idea we decided that we should change our music video idea.
This has led us to contact a friend who is in a band (A Crash Course In Collision) and asked if they would be willing to do a performance video of one of their songs. We are going to use the song 'The Great Nothing' which is approximately 3.25 minutes long.
This means we now need to look for:
A new setting
Find a date that suits everyone
And plan out what we're going to shoot, e.g. what angles we'll use etc

Letter to acting school

We are struggling to find people to use in our music video. We are definitely need to find two boys to use. Sophie then had the genius idea to email an acting school to borrrow people who 100% actually want to act.
Here is the letter:

To whomever it may concern,


Our names are Sophie Brown and Alex Newcombe and we will be producing a music video for our A2 (G324) Media Coursework.
We would like to enquire into the possibility of using 2 or 3 of your acting students in our mock music video.
The video will not be broadcasted or shown to the public, however it will be seen buy our fellow peers (for peer marking), our teacher and the examination board.
We would like to keep cost to a minimum as we feel this will give valuable acting experience. The actors will need to be between the ages of 16 and 19 and we will need 2 boys and possibly a girl (we will alert you in the near future whether this will be necessary or not). The actors will have a fair say in what they feel comfortable doing and we will gladly take to account any preconceptions they may have.


We look forward to your reply,


Sophie Brown and Alex Newcombe

Second Draft of Letter to Island Records

A few small changes have been made by Sophie. We now need to run it by our teacher and hopefuly we'll be able to send it off (:


Dear Sir/Madam/Whomever it may concern/Island Records,

We are writing to ask permission to use the song ‘Little Lion Man’ by Mumford and Sons in our A2 (G324) Media Coursework. It is for the Advanced Portfolio in Media. If we receive permission to use this song we would attempt to create:

- A Music Video for the song
And then two of the following three options:
- A website homepage for our fictional band
- A cover for its fictional release as part of the Digipak (CD/DVD Package)
- A fictional magazine advertisement for the Digipak (CD/DVD Package)

The people used in this video will be unrelated to the band, and the video and other creations will NOT be sold or released to the public on sites such as ‘Youtube’. The only people to see this will be ourselves, our peers (for peer marking) and the examination board.

We eagerly await your reply on the matter.

Yours Sincerely/Faithfully,

Alex Newcombe & Sophie Brown

First Draft to Island Records

This is the first draft of our letter to Island Records, where we ask for permission to use the song.
Obviously there shall be some changes but this is what I could think of and I'm waiting to see what Sophie thinks of it.
So, VOILA!

Dear Sir/Madam/Whomever it may concern/Island Records,

We are writing to ask permission to use the song ‘Little Lion Man’ by Mumford and Sons in our A2 (G324) Media Coursework. It is for the Advanced Portfolio in Media. If we receive permission to use this song we would attempt to create:

- A Music Video for the song
And then two of the following three options:
- A website homepage for the band
- A cover for its release as part of the Digipak (CD/DVD Package)
- A magazine advertisement for the Digipak (CD/DVD Package)

Of course the people used in this video will be unrelated to the band, and the video and other creations will NOT be sold or released to the public on sites such as ‘Youtube’. The only people to see this will be ourselves, our peers (for peer marking) and the examination board.

We eagerly await your reply on the matter.

Yours Sincerely/Faithfully,

Alex Newcombe & Sophie Brown

Previous Confusion is covered

The recent confusion between which company we needed to contact to ask permission to use the song has been sorted out!
We (mainly my fault I admit) took the logo on the privacy policy to be Record Label for the band. However, we then discovered that the Record Label was in fact Island Records. This left us confused as to who to contact, but while looking through the Island Records website, I discovered that the Privacy Policy is by the same company as the Mumford And Sons website.
So rejoice!
Problem solved. :)

Mumford and Sons Record Label

While researching Mumford and Sons, I have found several possible companies that could in fact be the record label for the band. Looking at the Privacy Policy it suggests that we should be looking to contact Universal Studios.
However, according to Wikipedia it says that the band's record label is Island Records in the UK.
However after looking further into the website, Island Records seems to have Mumford and Sons contracted to them.

The Start of Planning

I have started to plan out my media coursework for the year.
I am working with Sophie Brown and we have decided to do the option of the music video.
Furthermore, we are strongly considering the idea of doing the second options of a website for the band and a cover for its release.
Furthermore, we are planning on doing the song 'Little Lion Man' by Mumford and Sons.
We have planned out that we need to:
-Write to Universal Studios Operations Limited to ask permission for us to use the song
-Find suitable people who can star in the music video
-Find suitable locations
-Plan a storyboard

All of this should lead us to be able to successfully attempting to film the first draft of the music video.