Prelim Evaluation

The completed task



Our group chose to base the edit on the original cut, but didn't choose to exactly match the Five video.

Evaluation of the task 

The Call Sheet

Filming behind-the-scenes footage

1. Did you enjoy the workshop day? What were your best bits and why?

I really enjoyed the workshop, and found it really interesting. My favourite parts of the day were when the entire class had to freestyle dance, as it meant that everybody got to be involved. The atmosphere throughout the whole day was really positive, probably due to the fact that it's very difficult to be miserable whilst doing 90's dance moves. It was also really good to be able to watch shots through the monitor, as we'd never been able to see the full effect of the higher quality cameras before.

Using the crash mat

Background dancing shots

Filming the performance

2. What did you learn from participating in the workshop?



Off-duty extras watch the footage



I leant that it's really important to keep up a good atmosphere throughout the shoot, as by the end everyone will be really tired. I also noticed that often it takes longer to direct the technical side of things than the actors or dancers, so we will have to take that into consideration during our own projects. In addition to this, I also realised the next day that it would help to properly warm up and down after the day, as everyone's arms were really aching!

3. Are you pleased with the footage and your edit? Is it how you expected it to look?

I am really pleased with the footage, although when we arrived in the edit suite we realised that a couple of shots were missing, or looked rather different to the originals. For this reason, our edit is based on the original cut but not identical, as we felt it would be a waste to not use other good shots.

4. How do you think your workshop experiences will impact on your approach to next term's music video coursework?

I think that the main thing is to have everything meticulously planned before the shoot, so that the actors don't get bored and distracted whilst we set up the equipment for each new shot. With any physical sequences, we should make sure that everyone on set has enough food and drink to keep going, as it's vital to have everyone on screen looking enthusiastic. Also, it took us maybe hundreds of plays of 'Everybody Get Up' before we became comfortable with the raps, so it would possibly be easier to use a slightly slower song that can be picked up easier. This would also make the edit slightly easier.

Five Re-Edit

A recent task we were set was to re-edit part of the original music video for 'Everybody Get Up'. To do this, we were given all the different shots in a jumbled up order, and had to cut them apart and make them fit once more with the music.



This extract took us around 30 minutes, which highlighted how complex the editing really is. For example, some of the shots are much less than a second long, meaning that we needed to do some very fine editing. What we realised in this task was that many of the shots were from the same takes, albeit presented in a spread out manner. As far as we could distinguish, there were at least 8 different camera set ups, presumably with more that ended up on the cutting room floor.

Overall, this exercise helped us understand how complex creating a music video really is, especially if there is quick editing involved. We are all looking forward to beginning the production stages next week.

Practice Lipsync- Everybody Get Up

This is our practice lip-sync to Everybody Get Up, in preparation for our day long shoot next Friday. Although this was was only a rough shoot and edit, it was invaluable in helping us to recognise the main issues we'll have to face for the actual production. For example, anyone with a verse will need to be well-rehearsed with the lyrics, and we all need to remember to perform, especially when we're not singing. As the track is a couple of minutes long, repeating shots quickly eats into your time and it's probably better to practice beforehand.

CASTING

I'd like to play the 'Red Top Girl' - as pictured below.



Although most of the chorus members have similar roles, I'll give out my reasons for playing this role below.

• I can easily find a red top and dark trackies.
• Red Top girl does a fair amount of dancing, and I used to take dance classes. This should hopefully mean that I don't look too ridiculous in the shots.
• She also gets to stand on a table at one point, and I've never had badly hurt myself. This can only be a good sign, as this clearly makes me a safer bet when considering health and safety!
• However, I'm happy enough to play any role, as long as I get to take part in the video!

Meeting Jake Wynne

We were recently fortunate enough to have a session with Jake Wynne, who will be directing our whole year group music video for 'Everybody Get Up' in a few weeks time. Jake is a director and editor who has worked on many music videos, commericals and short films.


Key Advice that he gave us:

• Show a selection of your skills
• Include:
• Perfomance
• Choreography
• Special Effects
• An original Concept

One of the more mainstream videos he directed was Geri Halliwell's 'It's Raining Men', which includes many of these things (even special effects - watch closely, Geri isn't all she seems!)




In addition to this he gave us an eye-opening insight into his experiences in the media industry, which very much makes us look forward to working with him on our group perfomance of 'Everybody get up'

Music Video Analysis

Last Friday Night(T.G.I.F) - Katy Perry

Extended Edition

Featuring: Rebecca Black, Darren Criss, Kevin McHale, Hanson, Kenny G, Debbie Gibson and Corey Feldman
Producer: John Winter
Production Company: Rockhard Films
Director: Marc Klasfeld

Applying the 10 Features of effective Music Videos

1. Instant impact - The clip opens in a filmic style, indicating that there is going to be a clear narrative structure. The first time Katy Perry is introduced as 'Kathy Beth Terry' instant impact is achieved as she is styled as an unflattering 80s dork, in vast contrast to her other videos in which she traditionally is made to look as pretty as possible.
2. Non-linear editing - The video cuts between Katy on her bed, using her laptop to recount the night before, and the actual party. In addition, a 'sub-plot' is used, showing Kevin McHale and Katy Perry in a King Arthur style environment.
3. Repetitions - The repeated shots of Katy on her bed lip-syncing the lyrics are used in this case to create humour from her expressions, and to emphasise the party as a flashback.
4. Strong sense of artist identity - The funny costumes and the exaggerated facial expressions suggest that Katy Perry is not a 'serious' artist, but her obvious comfort in dressing like that indicates that she is confident in portraying herself in an unflattering light. 
5. A Performance - The cameos by Hanson and Kenny G playing the musical instruments fulfills the definition of a performance, as does the dance sequence in front of the video game.
6. Visual Pleasures - The colour scheme is very bright and colourful, whilst the indicators of the night before such as the hen and the partiers tied up in gaffer tape create humour as well as suggest an interesting back story. The party itself is made to look amazing and enjoyable, relating to the teenage target audience.
7. Wow Factor - The first wow factor is the introduction as Katy Perry wearing the head brace, but the entire clip stands out through it's highly decorated location and numerous celebrity cameos.
8. Provoke a reaction - The shock of seeing several famous faces cast against type provokes a reaction - for example seeing the typically beautiful Katy Perry as a cringey awkward girl and the young, 'annoying' Rebecca Black as her cool best friend.
9. Works on different levels - Whilst the world of 'Kathy Terry' is initially set up to appear embarrassing, so that the audience pity the central character, as the video develops there is a change in tone so that by the end the audience want to be at the party.
10. Pop Culture - There are numerous references to pop culture in the video - the narrative is reminiscent of traditional high-school movies like 'Grease' in which the dorky protagonist learns to be popular, whilst several of the cameos are used to draw in extra viewers. For example, Darren Criss and Kevin McHale are from the very popular teenage show 'Glee', whilst Rebecca Black had recently released her own song virally on the Internet, called 'Friday'.