Tuesday 23 April 2013

Question 1

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

In my opinion the purpose of a music video in relation to bands is to represent what the band is like on a personal level and their star image; it is much more effective than an interview in a magazine or just the Album/CD art. As I decided to do an Alternative Metal Rock music video, I instantly decided that I would have a performance based video; this is very common in Rock genre as well as it is with the sub genres of this style of music. I used Andrew Goodwin’s theory of visual relations as the visuals in the video create a completely different mood to a conventional music video, as it is nearly completely dark with a orange and yellow tinted hue makes it almost sinister.

The pace of my music video might also link to Goodwin’s theory that music and visuals also intertwine at times. The song I chose “Get Back” by Nine Lashes starts off by dropping straight away rather than having the conventional energy building intro that most rock song genre music videos have. It begins with a up beat tempo and towards the end the mood changes and builds to a temporarily slower tempo and then goes back to the same up beat tempo, therefore when editing my music video, I ensured to keep a steady pace, making sure the cuts of shots were on the beat, and did not contradict the melody of the song.

Furthermore, Goodwin states that music videos might also be used to amplify and provoke emotions and moods, without completely illustrating the song. In terms of this theory, my music video conforms perfectly, due to the fact it is all performance based; none of the lyrics of the song are illustrated and leaves the audience in the 'unknown', my intention from this is to provoke an almost inquisitive mood. Towards the end of video when the tempo initially slows, the shots I used are more up close and personal with the instruments and the members, creating a new perspective to be viewed from when watching my music video. This grabs the audience’s attention, keeping their interest the whole way through, and my intention of this was to evoke feelings of 'idolism' not only to the band members but also to the instruments being played, I wanted the audience to want to play the instruments themselves.

In terms of the representation, I attempted to create a sense of escape and full immersion in the song within my music video. I essentially did this through the use of mise-en-scene. For instance, by filming in one location I was able to take advantage of the darkness of the location which in turn created a sense of 'band members and the music', this is also stopped anything else from taking away from this. Furthermore, it allowed the mood and feeling to stay constant and only change when I wanted it to which is evident when the band members look directly into the camera which would spark an instant change and then go back to normal once that particular scene had finished .This allows the audience to relate to each individual band member and instrument and when keyed on individually a different emotion would be linked to them. Another way this was portrayed would be in the costumes of my actors; dressing them in dark clothing, also signifying the genre and mood of the song, reinforcing the idea of the band members are fully immersed in the music.

My music video fits into the metal/rock music genre, due to the footage within my product echoing many shots used in music videos for artists such as Rise Against, Nine Lashes and Dead By April. An example of this is my focus on the dark matters. Close-up shots of the band members allows the audience to get closer to their idols; places them in a God like position, and also encapsulate the codes and conventions of metal rock music videos typically shots that are used in order to create an intimate feel to the video, as the songs usually aim to make the listener sympathise with the bands emotions – in contrast to perhaps indie music that initially aims to make the listener feel calm and mellow.

My focus on an array of different shot types is what makes my music video so aesthetically pleasing. Thinking outside the box when it came to placing the camera's in different unique positions, such as the angle from inside one of the drums looking up at the drummer placed the audience in the position of being part of the drum kit, giving of an intimate feel. Shots like these help me in aiming my music video at the right audience. Those who listen to Metal rock music and some of the sub genres of metal will appreciate the unique camera angles and be able to enjoy the music video more. Therefore, the camera angles within my video are easier and more effective for my audience to identify and appreciate. 

Furthermore, those who listen to metal rock music who live in city areas might find great joy in enduring within footage outside of their normal environment, creating a sense of escapism, whilst also maintaining the codes and conventions of a metal rock video showing the band playing on a proper stage with lighting. My video would largely appeal to a young, predominantly white audience, increasingly growing number of audience members from other ethnic backgrounds and blue-collar, however the group also includes those outside its core demographic base who follow its dress codes, appearance, and behaviour. This is because the band consists of young men who sing about issues that others in their group can relate to. Their vocals and lyrics portray this; therefore largely appealing to those of a similar social group. Due to this, I carefully picked my band members and actors to appear as stereotypical alternative metal rock types; Attractive lead singer, attractive guitarist and backing vocals singer and also an attractive drum player. This is so I could ensure that my audience would feel a personal identification with my actors, as they belong to that group of fans, also helping them to feel more engaged with the song as they too may be able relate to the lyrics. By definition this means that my video is also applicable to Bulmer and Katz' Uses and Gratifications theory.

My video reinforces the concept of how the emotions you portray during a band performance will get an equal and opposite reaction from the audience. This also will demonstrate the emotions that the artists have towards the events depicted in the lyrics of the song.

My Digi-pak and magazine advert both conform to forms and conventions of an metal rock album cover and poster. They both are inspired by existing products. The front cover is inspired by ‘Black Canvas’ by Yonas, and the Back cover of the Digi-pak in inspired also by the back of ‘Black Canvas. While, these are for a different target audience, I found when researching effective metal rock Digi-paks that the best ones have a very similar style and make, this is because they rely on the art and not the image if any of the artist/band. This means my Digi-pak in a minor sense challenges the typical conventions of metal rock music ones with the use of art used in other products in a completely different brand. I think that looking at real life products and emulating their style is a very effective way to create a Digi-pak and poster.

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