Evaluation Question 4

How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?

The first thing my group did was to pool together our ideas, we looked into genres, bands and narratives and conventions which would go with each which helped us come to a conclusion. We decided to go with the Rock/metal genre due to already having an interests, and there fore prior knowledge, and also we knew a reliable band of this genre.

After this we went off individually and looked at real media tests of our genre on you-tube. This helped us find generic conventions we would like to follow and go against such as, location, lighting, narrative and costumes.  We put our findings onto blogger which helped us keep a track of our individual and group research on both our video and ancillary tacks.

When we where thinking about our ancillary tasks we used a Nikon DLSR camera to do photo shoots in various locations to make sure the quality of our images where clear and to a good standard. We used that same camera so that the photos where constant in quality.
We used the Photoshop software to edit all of our photos as well as but together our magazine advert and diji pack. It took a long time because we only know the basics of the software but it came out to a professional looking standard. 

We used IMovie to create our music video. All clips where imported straight from the HD camera, they where easy to access through the software and the HD made every shot very clear. The software allowed us to add different effects over clips and adjust lighting levels, this meant we could get our desired effect easily and make every clip the same to fit the convention of our genre
.Media technology's have been essential in the making of our video and ancillary tasks without them all stages would have been very difficult. Without websites such as YouTube and Blogger our research and planning would have been very hard to do and keep track of. Also without software such as IMovie and Photoshop we wouldn't have been able to make products look as professional as we want them to be.

Evaluation Question 3

What have you learned from your audience feedback?

Audience feed back helps you to improve time and time again. You will always get improvements and this helped us learn more about what the audience wanted and how we can improve. Our first rough cut was very underdeveloped, due to it being at its very first stages. Most of the feedback we got were improvements but we did get a few positives. We where told it seemed to fit the genre well, this is a good comment for our first cut since that is a important part. The audience also said they found the sped up shot effective and really helped show the narrative. 

Our improvements where to make shots shorter and add the blank bits. Also they told us what shots they didn't like which helped us to pick the right ones for our video. And we still needed to add the song and get rid of audio.

So as soon as we had our feedback we went and filmed more instrument shots and really started to think about the order of our video and editing our shots to fit the music. We decided to focus on getting it together before looking into extra details.


So when it came to our second rough cut we had developed our video a lot more but still very unfinished. We had a lot of good points as well as improvements which we really took on board. We where told we had good framing and editing skills and had really caught the chaotic feeling of the song. They felt we had been creative and had really thought about costume and make up. The audience felt we had  started to develop a definite style which very much fit our genre.
One of our improvements was that there was a shadow that moved across the frame. We had done that purposely and thought it was effective but our feedback told us that it looked like it was a mistake so when it came to editing for rough cut 3 we edited it out. We where also told that our shots still seemed too long, this was due to us wanting to get the whole song mapped out before going back and refining to make it better.
Our audience found that our opening shot was irrelevant so when editing for rough cut 3 we changed the opening shot to see if the audience liked that one better. We where also told that we had to tweak some lip syncing at the beginning, this was the first thing we corrected.
The audience commented that there was a inconsistency in brightness in our shots, in editing we adjusted the brightness and contrast levels to make the brightness balanced. But we decided that we purposely wanted our instrument shots to be brighter then the narrative to show them as separate.
Our last comment was that the location was repetitive and to try a new location so we stared scouting for new ones.

The audience commented saying they really liked our new shots and felt like our camera and editing skills where good. They commented that some shots still felt long and needed cutting down. They liked the improved opening shot showing the window because it worked like and establishing shot. There are a few shots that still have audio on and we where having problems with the editing software are where unable to get rid of it.
The majority of the feedback was mostly just needs to be finished. For our next rough cut we found a new location which was out side. This helped really pull our video together.


The audience seemed really impressed with this cut and felt it was really close to being finished. Our feedback included that the fade to whites where to long for the quickness of the song and needed to be extended also that the audio was still attached, we where still struggling with the software. The audience noted that they liked our new location but felt that it needed to be split up with some instrument shots. They really liked our slowed down end shot and felt it really helped finish the video.

Evaluation Question 2

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

We wanted our Video, Diji Pack and Advert to all link smoothly together to show them as a package and all go along the theme of a Asylum. We quickly decided that the front of the Diji Pack and the Advert should be in same image. We decided this because this really connected them together. Also since we chose such a iconic image that is clearly portrayed in all three tasks it shows them as a package. We chose the 'I'm A Freak' cut into the back of the jacket because it really fits with the convention of gore within the genre. It also shows the same of the song and album cover making it perfect for a diji pack cover.
The image of the lead singer holding the lens of the camera is a identical copy of a shot from our music video, we chose to do this because we felt the image was perfect for showing him as the main character on the inside of the diji pack since the 'Band' image doesn't show his face.
In the image of the band this has a direct link to the video because of the iconic mask in which the bassist is wearing in his backing vocals as well as this photo.
The font which is used is the bottom right corner of the front cover is also the same font as on the advert. We chose to do this to keep it constant through all of our tasks. The second font we used in the track list is the same as the reviews and facebook and twitter. We chose a different font for these because we needed a more ledge-able font for a busier background.
The filter over the track-list picture is lot similar as the 'old world' effect we used in our video. We chose to use the same filter to have a good link between the two. We chose of use a different effect on the two pictures of the broken down building because we needed some colour to break up our diji pack and to make it more busy. We used a different location because we really liked the photos and was unable to film our video there so we felt like including them.

Evaluation Question 1

In what ways did you use, develop or challenge the form and conventions of real media products?

As the band we chose to use was a metal band, we had to follow the stereotypical conventions of the music. Videos of our genre are very performance based and the story line isn't the main focus. But some often have a  have a clear mixture of both. This helps build up pace during the video and have fast cuts. Metal bands like to focus more on the music and instruments and don't like to distract from the performance. Also since metal bands are known for festivals and gigs, so they like to create that atmosphere with there videos. We wanted to keep this convention and keep our video balanced. For some of our shots and narrative we got inspiration from Avenged Sevenfold 'Nightmare'

There are lots of different ways this video helped develop our video for example instrument shots. They use a variety of creative shots which helped inspire some of ours. For example this guitar shot,

We used various shots similar to this in our video. We chose to use this because it fits the metal conventions of being more about the music less about the artists.
We also got inspiration from the high angle over someone in a straight jacket, we used this throughout our whole video. There are lots of points in this video where they have disjointed and sped up moments,

we really liked these and how it made it look like the character was going crazy, it really fit our narrative. The was our inspiration for our sped up and reversed clips. Through this video there is a lot of bright lights and we really liked the way it gave the hospital feel so we adapted this and had some fast fade to whites to give that flash of white. This video also contains a lot of gore in different parts.

We wanted to include this into our video, but much like this not make it the main focus,just small glimpses. We achieved this by having make up which shows cuts and bruises showing glimpses of blood, the main gore is the cut out 'Kill the Freak' in the main characters back.
In parts of the video there is are snippets of people rocking, this is a common convention within our narrative of asylum to show the patients insanity.  We adapted this to fit our character and our style.

This worked effectively especially sped up.
The ending shot in many ways is very similar to ours, the shot is slow bringing the song to a conclusion and drawing your attention to the final shot. Also the location in which it is filmed is very similar to the locations we used for our video.

Also we briefly looked into this video, Asylum - Disturbed, which also follows a very similar narrative. 

There are a couple of parts of this video which have influenced for our video and ancillary tasks. This video has no performance shots its purely narrative.

This is unconventional for our genre due to them being mostly performance based. There use of close ups was really effective for making screams look better on camera so we used this some for our vocal lip syncing. This really helped highlight key lyrics that we thought were important and effective. There are parts of the song where they sped up clips to show the characters insanity, this is a common convention through lots of videos

in this genre with similar narratives. There are several parts of the video which include running/chasing we really wanted to include this but found that we struggled to find a location with a corridor/ room suitable. Also had issues with our actor not taking the running seriously when we tried and made the clips unusable.  The use of high angles is really effective in

 in this video. Videos with this narrative have angles like this to show the lack of power the character has other themselves, making them look small. This was perfect for our video since it fit with the negative tone the lyrics have, showing the negative feelings the character has about himself. This convention really fits the narrative and help show the balance of power.

This video, much like many in its genre, contains a lot of gore. This video contains a lot more then 'Nightmare' and more then we wanted for our video. But much like this video we wanted to make the gore that we did use is subtle, so it didn't draw attention away to the rest of the video. That's why we chose to keep the generic convention of gore but not make it a focus.
Also this video has things that influenced us with our ancillary tasks.

The  location seen on the left is very similar the the image we chose to use in our diji pack. We felt like its was a really effective due to the length and darkness of the corridor, making it look like its never ending.
The other shot this this one where the lead character is being dragged off by the 'doctors' this is very similar to our shot of the whole band in the diji pack. we chose this to show the little power the patient has over the doctors.
More then anything this video was more of a narrative inspiration then shots. This is due to it clear story line which is impossible to miss, we wanted a narrative like this. But instead of telling a story we wanted the emotion and sanity of our main character to be the main focus. Also like both 'Nightmare' and 'Asylum' we chose to have one main character which is that main focus of the whole story line. But more like 'Nightmare' the main character is also the vocalist of the band.
For a video the gave us purely inspiration in a filming sense is  'Before I Forget' by Slipknot.

We chose to follow this style of not showing the band members face during the performance shots, to make the band more mysterious. This fits the convention of focusing more on performance and music other then the people in the band. We liked the washed out colour throughout the video. We liked how it made the video look so it inspired us to fiddle with filters and found that a effect
called 'Old World' really worked for our video.
Throughout this fast paced video they show lots of creative ways to film instruments and we took inspiration from the ones we found most interesting. For example this drum shot, this really worked for our video because the song contains a lot of predominant bass drum meaning this
shot was useful. We also liked the close up of the hand as the guitar is being played. This worked for our video because it helped high light the rifts in the song and show a variety of shots of the guitar. This video contains a lot of fast cuts making the video fast and hard to follow. We chose to not make our video that fast because we wanted to show a narrative which needed clear shots

but if we chose to do a full performance video this if defiantly the way to do it. We also liked the shots of the mic only showing the mouth of the singer. We chose to use this because we decided to have the main singing within the narrative shots and the backing vocals in the instrument shots. So to not take the focus away from the narrative we had the backing shots like this. This was really effective because it showed the

mask the singer wears which is the bands motif. We really liked this low angle of a bass showing up the neck. We felt it was a very interesting shot and really gave us a way to show off the bassist and it was a shot we could adapt and use for the guitar as well.
So over all we followed a lot of conventions we found from real media texts and really helped make our video and ancillary tasks as professional as possible.

Digipak

Ive chosen to analysis this diji pack because it fits the genre of our music video and i like its simplicity. The black, white and red theme is consistent through out and seems like a common theme for the genre because of its dark to bright contrast. I like the way that the text on the back is actually upside down to make it more individual. The theme of a skeleton is the same through the pack as well as the lyric book inside.

I like the graphic picture because it is a constant theme and is eye catching.

The inside of the pack is very plain but it suits the simplicity of the pack itself. 

Showing how the track list is upside down. This is impracticable but also interesting.

Lyric book

The way the lyric book is set out is strange. The lyrics are in block paragraphs making them hard to read but makes spacing easier. The pictures are really well done and still fit with the theme.

This was their 4th album in 2007 and was rather popular. Since it was their 4th album they didn't need things such as band photos because most people who brought the album would know who they are.

Album

Chart	Peak position
Billboard 200	8
Rock Albums	1
Digital Albums	8
Alternative Albums	1
Hard Rock Albums	1
Japanese Albums Chart	263

Singles

Year	Title	Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks	Hot Modern Rock Tracks
2007	"Becoming the Bull"	5	11
	"Doomsday"	-	-
2008	"Falling Down"	5	3
	"Slow Burn"	16	16

Intertexuality and Representation. Rihanna, Robin Thick and Lily Allen

Lily Allen's song and video is all about the representation of the female gender within media. She shows direct link between Rihanna and Robin Thick throughout the video.

Lyrics

Relation to Blurred Lines

Relation to Pour it up

I suppose I should tell you what this bitch is thinking

You'll find me in the studio and not in the kitchen

Saying how she wont be domesticated.

I won't be bragging 'bout my cars or talking 'bout my chains

Doesn't care about money.

Don't need to shake my ass for you 'cause I've got a brain

She doesn't need to show off her body to get where she wants in life because she is smart.

If I told you 'bout my sex life, you'd call me a slut

Link to the media and how magazines and talks shows make people out to be sluts.

When boys be talking about their bitches, no one's making a fuss

How men can talk about how many women they have been with and get praised but the other way round and women get shamed.

There's a glass ceiling to break, uh-huh, there's money to make

And now it's time to speed it up 'cause I can't move at this pace

[Bridge]

Sometimes it's hard to find the words to say

I'll go ahead and say them anyway

Hard for women to voice there opinions about how they are being portrayed.

Forget your balls and grow a pair of tits

[Chorus]

It's hard, it's hard, it's hard out here for a bitch

It's hard, for a bitch (for a bitch)

For a bitch, it's hard

It's hard out here for a bitch

It's hard, for a bitch (for a bitch)

For a bitch, it's hard

It's hard out here

You're not a size six, and you're not good looking

How media makes it hard for normal sized women to feel good about themselves because of models and celebrities 

Well, you better be rich, or be real good at cooking

Men are only after a house wife or money

You should probably lose some weight

How women are represented within media and the pressure about weight

'Cause we can't see your bones

You should probably fix your face or you'll end up on your own

How lodes of famous people get plastic surgery and how that can make people think thats the only way to be good looking.

Don't you want to have somebody who objectifies you?

Don't want to be treated like an object.

Have you thought about your butt? Who's gonna tear it in two? 

We've never had it so good, uh-huh, we're out of the woods

Saying how even though Feminism has gone a long way it hasn't gone far enough yet.

And if you can't detect the sarcasm, you've misunderstood

[Bridge]

[Chorus]

A bitch, a bitch, a bitch, bitch, bitch [x4]

Inequality promises that it's here to stay

Always trust the injustice 'cause it's not going away

Inequality promises that it's here to stay

Always trust the injustice 'cause it's not going away

[Bridge]

[Chorus x2]

Lyrics

Money

Alcohol

Throw it up, throw it up

Watch it all fall out

Pour it up, pour it up

That's how we ball out

Throw it up, throw it up

Watch it all fall out

Pour it up, pour it up

That's how we ball out

Strip clubs and dollar bills

I still got more money

Patron shots can I get a refill?

I still got more money

Strippers goin' up and down that pole

And I still got more money

Four o'clock and we ain't going home

Cause I still got more money

Money make the world go round

I still got more money

Bands make your girl go down

I still got more money

Lot more where that came from

I still got more money

The look in yo eyes I know you want some

I still got more money

Ohhhh

All I see is signs

All I see is dollar signs

Ohhhh

Money on my mind

Money, money on my mind

Throw it, throw it up

Watch it fall off from the sky

Throw it up, throw it up

Watch it all fall out

Pour it up, pour it up

That's how we ball out

Throw it up, throw it up

Watch it all fall out

Pour it up, pour it up

That's how we ball out

That's how we ball out

That's how we ball out

That's how we ball out

Valet cost a hundred bills

I still got more money

Gold all up in my grill

I still got more money

Who cares how you haters feel

And I still got more money

Call Jay up and close a deal

I still got more money

My fragrance on and they love my smell

I still got more money

So who cares about what I spend

I still got more money

My pocket's deep, and they never end

I still got more money

I'm going dumb with all my friends

I still got more money

Ohhhh

All I see is signs

All I see is dollar signs

Ohhhh

Money on my mind

Money, money on my mind

Throw it, throw it up

Watch it fall off from the sky

Throw it up, throw it up

Watch it all fall out

Pour it up, pour it up

That's how we ball out

Throw it up, throw it up

Watch it all fall out

Pour it up, pour it up

That's how we ball out

That's how we ball out

That's how we ball out

That's how we ball out

This song and video is all about sex, money and alcohol.

Lyrics

Downgrading comment

Objectifying women

Everybody get up

Everybody get up

Hey, hey, hey

Hey, hey, hey

Hey, hey, hey

[Verse 1: Robin Thicke]

If you can't hear what I'm trying to say

If you can't read from the same page

Maybe I'm going deaf,

Maybe I'm going blind

Maybe I'm out of my mind

[Pharrell:] Everybody get up

[Pre-chorus: Robin Thicke]

OK now he was close, tried to domesticate you

But you're an animal, baby, it's in your nature

Just let me liberate you

Hey, hey, hey

You don't need no papers

Hey, hey, hey

That man is not your maker

[Chorus: Robin Thicke]

And that's why I'm gon' take a good girl

I know you want it

I know you want it

I know you want it

You're a good girl

Can't let it get past me

You're far from plastic

Talk about getting blasted

I hate these blurred lines

I know you want it

I know you want it

I know you want it

But you're a good girl

The way you grab me

Must wanna get nasty

Go ahead, get at me

[Pharrell:] Everybody get up

[Verse 2: Robin Thicke]

What do they make dreams for

When you got them jeans on

What do we need steam for

You the hottest bitch in this place

I feel so lucky

Hey, hey, hey

You wanna hug me

Hey, hey, hey

What rhymes with hug me?

Hey, hey, hey

[Pre-chorus: Robin Thicke]

OK now he was close, tried to domesticate you

But you're an animal, baby it's in your nature

Just let me liberate you

Hey, hey, hey

You don't need no papers

Hey, hey, hey

That man is not your maker

Hey, hey, hey

[Chorus: Robin Thicke]

And that's why I'm gon' take a good girl

I know you want it

I know you want it

I know you want it

You're a good girl

Can't let it get past me

You're far from plastic

Talk about getting blasted

[Pharrell:] Everybody get up

I hate these blurred lines

I know you want it

I hate them lines

I know you want it

I hate them lines

I know you want it

But you're a good girl

The way you grab me

Must wanna get nasty

Go ahead, get at me

[Verse 3: T.I.]

One thing I ask of you

Let me be the one you back that ass to

Go, from Malibu, to Paris, boo

Yeah, I had a bitch, but she ain't bad as you

So hit me up when you pass through

I'll give you something big enough to tear your ass in two

Swag on, even when you dress casual

I mean it's almost unbearable

In a hundred years not dare, would I

Pull a Pharside let you pass me by

Nothing like your last guy, he too square for you

He don't smack that ass and pull your hair like that

So I just watch and wait for you to salute

But you didn't pick

Not many women can refuse this pimpin'

I'm a nice guy, but don't get it if you get with me

[Bridge: Robin Thicke]

Shake the vibe, get down, get up

Do it like it hurt, like it hurt

What you don't like work?

[Pre-chorus: Robin Thicke]

Baby can you breathe? I got this from Jamaica

It always works for me, Dakota to Decatur, uh huh

No more pretending

Hey, hey, hey

Cause now you winning

Hey, hey, hey

Here's our beginning

[Chorus: Robin Thicke]

I always wanted a good girl

(Pharrell: Everybody get up)

I know you want it

I know you want it

I know you want it

You're a good girl

Can't let it get past me

You're far from plastic

Talk about getting blasted

I hate these blurred lines

(Pharrell: Everybody get up)

I know you want it

I know you want it

I know you want it

But you're a good girl

The way you grab me

Must wanna get nasty

Go ahead, get at me

[Outro: Pharrell]

Everybody get up

Everybody get up

Hey, hey, hey

Hey, hey, hey

Hey, hey, hey

These lyrics are all very downgrading towards women and especially the video. One girl is shown naked and holding a Lamb, the lamb connotes innocence but its covering her nakedness showing she acts innocent but isn't. This is also shown by all the girls dressed in white.

There is also a shot of a girl on the floor with a car on her back.

Showing her a an object and using male gaze, making the car show off her body shape.

Even though the lyrics say 'Your far from plastic' all the girls within the video are shown wearing plastic. This gives the impression they are wrapped up in plastic as if a toy or object.

Lily Allen compared to Robin Thick

This image shows the relation between the lyrics between each song and video.

Relation between videos

Glorification of smoking in all 3 videos. 

Money and possessions glorified.

Magazine Advert and Digi pack importance.

A Magazine Advert is to help sell the band to their audience. The Advert can help sell tours, merchandise and new albums. Adverts tend to be simple because big chunks of text will put the viewer off. The Advert is simple and to the point, to help the audience to understand the ad on first glance.

A Digi pack is a way for the fans to get a little bit extra other then the CD. It gives them a more collectors addition of the album. This helps the band sell more albums to their bigger fans. It also includes more pictures and a lyric book. Some even include an extra disc CD or DVD.