Planning: Pitch

 I am going to create a music video and website for indie/rock band The Trusted, who are 'signed' to universal music group. The website will adhere to codes and conventions of music websites, namely that of indie/rock bands to portray their musicianship and fun side while also honing in on lighting and vibrant arcade style (indie inspired) themes. The website will have all content on one page (a feature of many indie artists), with my one linked page being exclusive content with the frontman of the band to add an element of fulfilling Henry Jenkins' fandom theory, through enabling the fans to feel close to the band. On my main page, I will have a rotating menu, as inspired by Declan McKenna's website, a strip of albums which flip to the back cover when hovered over, as inspired by Catfish and the Bottlemen's website, a merchandise section, tour poster, social links and the tastes music video. The mainly single page setup is heavily inspired by the Wolf Alice website. 

My music video will be heavily inspired by the Inhaler video for 'It won't always be like this', and also by the video for 'Piledriver Waltz' by Alex Turner for the film 'Submarine'. The video will use the concept of a flashback which is portrayed by a film reel, depicting a relationship which turn at the volta of the song, from good to bad. The video will have a running 'narrator' of Tom, the frontman who I will have lip-syncing in different locations, including live on stage. The start and end of the video will mirror, with both parties of the relationship in the same place, at the gig of the band, which will not only link everything together, but provide intertextuality to 'La La Land'. 

Documents:

Lyric 'script' (includes locations) - 4/7 blog post

Storyboard - 4/7 blog post

Flatplans - 4/7 blog post

Draft pictures - 23/6 and 10/5 blog posts 

Risk assessments:

Saen and Charlie; 

Old Leigh - Safe distance from sea

Chinnerys - security teams present, not getting any non-consenting faces in the shot 

Train - stand back from edge wait behind yellow line 

Tom; 

Cliff gardens - safe even surface, make sure equipment doesn't get stolen

Planning: Lyric analysis and storyboarding/ flat-plans

 

Planning: Key codes and Conventions

 From my research I have recognised the following codes and conventions of indie/rock bands websites and love song videos:

1- consistent colour scheme and theme throughout

2- performance footage motifs

3- lights ie arcade or that of reflecting stage lights

4 - tour dates in typical indie venues ie Brixton

5 - many cuts in time with music

6 - intertextual links to other bands, usually ones they take inspiration from, or well known movies 

7- lyrics reflect visuals 

8- strobe lighting 

9-many websites are single page with an extended feature page - this is often the store but in mine it will be a feature on the latest single

10-often have 'film strip' effect 

I will use these as inspiration for my coursework, to enable me to fulfil the brief via sticking to the genre conventions and creating an almost seamless link between my website and those of other universal artists. 

Photoshoot Camera Practice

 For my website background, I used the photoshoot opportunity in class in order to capture my glitter. I learnt how to use and handle a Digital SLR camera. Here is my first shot where I was trying to focus the lens and balance the zoom:

These were the shots I ended up with, including the focus and zoom balanced with the correct lighting:

Additional Research

 I have been looking at a few more indie band websites to see which elements I would like to include aside from that of my other textual analyses. 

When designing my website, I realised it was missing something. - Having looked at a few more websites I realised I needed a band logo in the header to fill it out but also to act as a link to my home page from my other linked page, rather than a button. I have taken inspiration from the Wolf Alice website with this design:

I have then also looked further at the presentation of my album covers and have managed to include a similar effect to that of the Catfish and the Bottlemen website, where the albums flip covers when the mouse hovers over. This has enabled me to show off my photoshop and design skills in terms of creativity and consistency of brand image:

Inhaler have also just dropped the music video for their latest single 'It won't always be like this' of which combines animation with colours popping at certain points, lip syncing, band footage both live and of showing their fun sides and some clever intertextuality. It prompted me to think about the use of intertextuality in my video and how I could incorporate it as such. They used signs to incorporate lyrics adhering to Goodwin's theory, and also band t-shirts of which I will be trying to also incorporate in mine. 

 

Experimenting With Camera

 I have used multiple shot types and angles with different detachable lenses as practice for my music video. I edited the shots together in the style of a music video for 'T-Shirt Weather' by an indie band called Circa Waves. The theme of the video - a summery day out - reflects the tone of the song and the theme of brightness and fun. This is even more prominent during the time it was filmed due to covid. 

I have experimented with depth of field and different camera lenses; including a wide angle and zoom lens to create different focus points and a stark contrast between establishing and extreme close up shots. I used Southchurch Park, Southend seafront, Adventure Golf and Old Leigh to gain a variety of locations all of which are similar yet presenting a flexible attitude to filming. 

I have used a variety of shots, including tracking shots to reflect the pace of the music, extreme close ups to create enigma and long shots to set the context. 

The fast paced editing reflects the pace of the song and also demonstrates my ability to edit according to Andrew Goodwin's Music Video Theory, as the music reflects the visuals. 

Generic Research: Textual Analysis 3 - Inhaler 'My Honest Face' Music Video