Prop List

To ensure we were organised when filming, we needed to compile a list of the props that we would use throughout the filming process. We needed to identify what scenes we would use the props in, so we could make sure that we had everything we needed when going to location to film.

Here are the props that we will be using in our music video:

The prop list may be subject to change, depending on the scene/shot changes.

Filming Day: Winter Wonderland

Location: Winter Wonderland, Cardiff Central

Date: 15th of November

Group members present: Hannah Martin, Jade Dibble, Caitlin Elward and Jasmine Greene






We chose to use this location to film, as we wanted to make use of the bright and colourful lighting that this venue has. We thought that these shots would be representative of the LGBT+ themes within our video, and they would create a stark contrast to the more melancholy coloured shots with Josh. In the evening, the rides light up, which in previous years has created some wonderful landscape photography opportunities for us. It was these experiences that made us consider this location, as we knew that it looked good on camera.

We arrived at location just prior to 5pm, to ensure that we could start filming at that time. We had worked out with our previous visit to scout the location, that 5pm was the optimum time for us to film. The lighting at this time mean that the colourful lights would stand out very prominently against the dark background in shots. We were concerned about the quality of the shots we would have achieved in dark lighting, as the filming equipment we had was not advanced enough to film with flawless quality in minimal lighting. However, we discovered that the lighting at 5pm was perfect, as it did not cause the footage to be grainy, and it did not reduce the quality as we had previously worried about.

We planned the shots we would film in this location carefully. We wanted to use them to enhance the focus on the developing relationship between Jade and Hannah's characters. As a result of this, we ensured that we would use multiple two shots, and also P.O.V shots. As demonstrated on the left, the P.O.V shot aims to help to develop the audiences understanding of the relationship between the two females, by giving the audience the impression that they are viewing Jade's characters through the eyes of Hannah's character, as the shot is from her perspective. This helps the audience to engage, as they feel directly involved in the narrative.

A problem...

Whilst we were filming in this location, we did encounter certain issues. Most were very minor, however, there was one in particular that caused problems; the volume of members of the public present at the location.

The day we chose to film on was a Friday, as this was the only night we could organise to travel there together in which we were all free. Winter Wonderland is always very busy on a Friday night, as it is the beginning of the weekend, however, we had to make it work. It was necessary for us to achieve what we needed to when filming on this day as we were not aware of a time that we could revisit the location.

When filming, we found that people would walk in front of the camera, and this would obstruct and ruin the shot that we were trying to achieve. This difficulty can be demonstrated in this clip:

It was off-putting for Hannah and Jade whilst they were acting, as I often had to stop and start scenes spontaneously due to where people were walking, or in regards to us finding a gap in the crowd. However, they were both very professional and worked past these difficulties.

In my role as director, I was responsible for instructing what would go on in a scene. I had to tell Jade and Hannah what to do, and how to do it, whilst describing the shot that I wanted to achieve out of it. Here is a short video in which you can hear me directing Jade and Hannah:

Casting

During the creation process of our AS thriller opening sequence, we discovered that it was very difficult to gather people to act in our music video. Therefore, we had to resort to using people within our media class.

We encountered the same problem this year, as we could not gather any people external to our media class to be involved, as only minimal people showed interest. It was then found that these individuals were not able to adere to our filming schedule, so they had to be discounted from our selection.

We chose the cast of our video out of willing individuals in our media class. The roles and subsequent candidates are as follows:

Female Roles:

• Female protagonist
• Best friend/love interest

Candidates:

Name: Hannah Martin

Age: 17 

Role: Female protagonist

It was decided that Hannah would take on the role of the female protagonist, as she was the most comfortable in acting, due to her previous experience studying Drama, and performing in school productions. Hannah has good relationships with everyone in the media class, which meant that she would be able to work well with whoever we chose to co-star in the video with her. 

Name: Jade Dibble

Age: 17 

Role: Best friend/love interest

We thought that Jade would be most suitable for the role of the best friend/love interest, as she has also had previous acting experience, from her studies of drama. Jade also has a very close friendship with Hannah, which we hoped would contribute to ease of filming the more relationship orientated scenes.

Name: Caitlin Elward

Age: 17

Role: N/A

After consideration, Caitlin confessed that she did not feel that she would be entirely comfortable in front of the camera. This meant that she was not a suitable candidate to be cast in the video, as obviously, the foundation of the production is video based.

Name: Jasmine Greene

Age: 17

Role: N/A

We decided that I was more suited to roles behind the camera, as this is where I am most confident. As I have taken on the role of director, it would be difficult for me to fulfil this role effectively, whilst actually having to act in the piece.

Male Roles:

• The boyfriend

Candidates:

Name: Josh East
Age: 18
Role: The boyfriend (Actual)

Josh was not our original choice for the role of the boyfriend in our piece, as he has a lot of other commitments outside of school time. However, after discovering Rhys had broken his leg, Josh agreed to step in and help us with the video. We made an effort to work our filming schedule around Josh's other commitments, as he had volunteered to help us.

Name: Rhys Jones
Age: 18
Role: The boyfriend (Initial)

We chose Rhys to play the role of the boyfriend in our music video, as his schedule was more free to allow us to organising filming times well. However, Rhys was unable to fulfil his role in the music video, due to breaking his leg. 

Filming Day: Bridgend Town

Location: Bridgend Town

Date: 13th November 2017

Group Members Present: Hannah Martin, Jade Dibble and Caitlin Elward

Our use of this location was inspired by alternative genre music videos we had seen. We wanted to film in a dingy, urban environment, that did not have particularly stimulating mise-en-scene. Our inspiration as a group for this location came from watching videos such as 'Sweater Weather' by The Neighbourhood:

We thought that a location like this would help to highlight our protagonists emotional trauma, as the dark lighting would connote the misery that she feels. We wanted to use a location that was a blank canvas, as this would mean the protagonist would stand out against, and this would show her importance in the piece. We decided that filming in a location like to this would reflect the loneliness and the isolation of Hannah's character.

Unfortunately, due to other commitments I had with school, I was unable to attend this day of filming. However, before my group left, we had a discussion as to what the objectives of the filming day would be, and what we wanted to have achieved by the end of the day. Additionally, when they arrived back at school, they updated me on what they had filmed, and showed me the footage that they had gotten.

This was my favourite shot that they achieved on this day. The sunlight shining through the window isolates Hannah in this shot, which sets her apart from the dark background. This helps to portray the isolation of her character, and how to her, the world feels dark because of the emotional trauma she is experiencing. In this shot, she is holding a cigarette, demonstrating the bad coping methods she has turned to in order to try to cope with her self-hatred and denial. Cigarettes are common props used in alternative music videos, and have become conventional to their mise-en-scene.

The purpose of this over the shoulder shot is to demonstrate the distance between the two characters, and to demonstrate the longing that Hannah's character feels for Jade's character via her facial expression. As with the nature of over the shoulder shots, its purpose is to show the relationship between the characters, so Hannah is purposely positioned quite far away from Jade. Hannah is stood in such a way that makes you perceive that she wants to get closer to Jade, which represents her wanting to get closer to her emotionally.

The long two shot shown here has the purpose of demonstrating how Hannah's character is influenced by Jade's. We wanted to demonstrate the protagonists development of feelings for Jade's character, which we thought we could encompass in our video effectively through making it seem as though Hannah's character holds Jade's character on a pedestal and idolises her. Jade is influencing Hannah's characters to smoke, and the fact that she does whatever is suggested to her by Jade in an attempt to impress her, shows that her rational thoughts are overshadowed by her feelings.

In all of these shots, we focused on the lighting to make sure that it appeared dreary and miserable, to create a sense of pathetic fallacy, reflective of the protagonists clouded mind. We made sure that Hannah and Jade were in dark clothing, which is a common convention of alternative videos. They often focus their aesthetic around dark colours and lighting, and wear grunge-style clothing.

Risk Assessment

Before we began filming in each location, we needed to carry out a risk assessment of where we would be filming. Carrying out a risk assessment in necessary to ensure the safety of our actors and filming crew, throughout the filming process. Assessing the risks can allow us to implement control measures, so that we can reduce the probability of incidents happening.

To complete the risk assessment, we needed to assess the likelihood and severity of the risk, which we did by using this grid that we found on the internet:

Our Risk Assessment:

Group Roles

During the production of any media piece, there must be a highly skilled, enthusiastic and committed crew. Each individual must have their own assigned role, which is suited to their area of expertise, as this ensures that the production of the final piece will be of the very best standards possible. Roles within the crew also prevents confusion in responsibility throughout the production of the piece.

As we want our music video to be of the best standard possible, we decided that it was important for us to allocate roles within our group. This would also make the production process a little easier for us, as we would be clear on our responsibilities.

Obviously, despite us having our assigned roles, there will be areas of production that we will work on together. The planning of our piece, such as the narrative ideas and the storyboard, need to be contributed to by everyone in the group. Having each of us input to the ideas for the video will make sure that the piece is the best it can be, and that the narrative is as fully developed as possible.

After sitting down to assess the attributes of each of us, these are the group roles we decided:

Director:

The role of the director is to oversee the production as a whole. They are in charge of directing people on set whilst filming is taking place, to make sure that the scenes that are shot are suitable for use in the video. The director makes sure that the filming process runs as smoothly as possible, by having a clear knowledge of the aims of filming each day, and by monitoring the roles of the other crew members to make sure everything is being completed to a necessary standard.

Jasmine Greene

It was decided that I would be the director of the music video, as I have strong leadership skills. I am innovative, so I can improvise on ideas if we encounter problems with filming certain shots whilst we are on set. I am also a strong communicator, which means I am able to explain my ideas to the group well, and that I am able to direct them properly in terms of minor details within each shot. Being able to communicate with my team also allows me to be able to monitor everyone's progress and make sure that all tasks are being completed, and to the necessary standard.




Producer:

The role of producer predominantly involves planning and organising all aspects of production. It involves making schedules for filming in co-ordination with cast members' availability, co-ordinating editing and overseeing the process, and arranging any props that are needed for filming. They also lead the casting process.

Jade Dibble

We chose Jade to be the producer in our group as she is a very organised individual. She is skilled at planning and organising, and enjoys making schedules. Jade is also a good communicator, therefore, she can be relied on to converse with cast and crew members to ensure their availability, and then organise a schedule around this. Jade is also very observant, which means that she will be the perfect candidate to oversee the production process alongside the director.






Editor:

The editor is responsible for the post-production of the film. They need an incredible eye for detail, as well as the intuitive nature to decide which is the most interesting, yet logical, order for the footage to go in. They must also have the ability to be able to match the footage to the music, to ensure that it flows well.

Hannah Martin

We decided that Hannah would be responsible for editing as we know she is very methodical to her approach to tasks, and does pay meticulous attention to detail. Her creative mind allows her to make excellent decisions when it comes to what she believes the audience will most enjoy. Hannah is also musically talented, and therefore, is suited to making sure that the editing fits to the rhythm of the song.







Costume and Make-up:

To be in charge of costume and make-up, an individual must be fashionable, and must be skilled at applying make-up. The person chosen for this role must also have the ability to pay attention to detail, as they need to ensure that there are no continuity errors in wardrobe or make-up areas.

Caitlin Elward

Caitlin was extremely suitable for this role, as she is a very skilled make-up artist, and has a good eye for fashion. Her role will involve putting together outfits and creating make-up looks that are symbolic in terms of their placement in the video. The costume and make-up is essential to add to the aesthetics of the video. Additionally, Caitlin will use her organisation skills to create a diary of outfits and make-up, to avoid any continuity errors.

Audience Profiling

I have used the information I gathered via the target audience questionnaire, in order to create an audience profile for the possible target audience for my music video. I created the audience profile using Xtensio, and my creation is pictured below:

Some observations and justifications of our target audience...

We believe our target age range is suitable as the actors in the music video will be 17-18 years of age, meaning the characters will be relatable to this audience. Additionally, we have chosen not to specify a gender that we will target the video towards, as there will be both males and females in our video. Our piece will be made suitable for males and females, as we found that both genders watch music videos quite frequently, so it is important that the piece has diverse appeal.

Our video will be suitable for individuals that are single, or in a relationship. We aim to tackle the theme of relationships and self-acceptance, and we hope these themes would appeal to people in all relationships statuses.

We found that the methods of marketing and distribution that our target market liked the most were television and online/social media. These were shortly followed by the option of mobile phone, which highlights that our target audience are very competent in use of technology.

UK Tribes and Audio-Visual Identities:

Using the uktribes.com website, I was able to conduct some further research into my target audience, and gain a more enlightened perception of my potential audience profile.




My target audience are part of the alternative tribe, and pictured to the right are some examples of smaller niche groups that would identify as part of my target audience.





Here is some information about the alternative tribe that was on the website. It gives an insight into their trends, lifestyle and interests:

 My target audience fall into both the "Vod:Bingers" and "Short: Snaps" AV:IDS categories. AV:IDS stands for audio-visual identities, which refers to anything that people watch or hear. The age range of my target audience spans both of these, which means they are both applicable to my potential viewers.


Here is some information about these AV:IDS profiles that I found on the website. They include information on the consumer habits of individuals, and some information about their lifestyles: