Task 13: Advanced Editing Techniques

Unfortunately, we were not able to obtain the footage from this video but we still developed a learning comment on the task

What I have learnt:
For this task, we were given a small video of our teacher with no cuts or editing. Our task was to make this video interesting to watch by including jump cuts, sound, transitions, and other editing techniques. One technique that I believe we used to great effect in our video was the inclusion of multiple jump cuts. This is because they helped quicken up the sequence and also reflect the characters emotions. Jump cuts miss out bits of action meaning that the cuts aren't seamless. Therefore, this disjoints the video and splits it up which is a great way to reflect someone's annoyance or frustration. We used lots of these in our video because our character was clearly annoyed and unstable but I believe that we could have used even more to exaggerate the characters emotions. I will have to use jump cuts in my music video because they help add pace to a sequence and the song I choose is likely to have a high tempo. We also used sound in our video to make it interesting to watch. We used the sound effects that were available on iMovie to put over the character's action to add humour. This is evident when a sea lion sound effect can be heard over our teacher jumping up and down and this works well because it adds a comedic element. One issue that we had with sound was that some of our clips still had the background sound up meaning that there was a lack of consistency and professionalism. This made the video less interesting to watch because it was easily noticeable. This minor error will have to be identified and observed in my music video as a soundtrack will be played over the video and background noise will have to be at a minimum. We managed to feature one transition at the end of our clip which ended it well. However, I believe that with more time, we would have been able to include much more as these are a great way to make the video interesting, keeping the audience on their toes. Overall, this task has aided me in reminding me how to use and feature these techniques in a video and also shown me that editing will be the most important part of the production process.

Task 10: 30 Cut Chorus

 

We chose to use the song 'What Do You Mean?' by Justin Bieber because we felt that this song would suit the action that we were going to film and also had a fast paced rhythm which helped us include more shots. This is because a lack of shots in this video would look strange as the intensity of the music requires fast shots that ideally link to the beat, meaning that it was much easier to tell whether our video was a success or not.

What I have learnt:
This task has enabled us to include 30 cuts in a very short space of time, 42 seconds. This means that we roughly had a cut for each second meaning that we had an effective music video that suited the high intensity song. To film this sequence, we had to use previously used techniques like match on action so that the video was seemless and the action carried on into the next cut fluidly. However, I beleive there are some parts in our video where this was not achieved. This is clear as one of our actors falls on the ground in one shot and starts to fall again in the next cut. This can be clearly identified and reduces the quality of the video so for my own piece, I will need to insure every shot transitions smoothly into the next one. This task has also taught me that a strong narrative is as crucial as lip syncing in music videos. This is because the narrative is the part that engages audiences and I believe that we chose a narrative that not only suited the song but was interesting to watch as it involved forms a conflict. A final element that we discovered is important in producing a professional music video is the ability to edit to the beat off the song. I believe that this was done to a sufficient standard in our video although this will need to be looked at a lot in my final product to improve the overall quality of the video. As well as the production, I have learnt about the importance of planning for any video. Things like a storyboard, location, shot list and lengths of shots to match the beat. Although we created a storyboard, this differed to our final product which is an area of improvement because the video will look much better with a certain plan. Overall, this production was a success because I now know the elements I will need to include and the effort I will need to put in to produce a professional video.

Task 9: Lip Sync Battle

First Edit:

Second Edit:

Actual Music Video:

What I have learnt:
This creative task has mainly taught me how to lip sync and enhance my editing skills. I discovered that lip syncing is a difficult technique and takes time to perfect. During this task, lots of elements in our video went well. Firstly, everyone in our group managed to have a go at lip syncing and I believe that we were each very successful and in sync with the Mr Bright side lyrics. Additionally, we managed to include other shots than when we were lip syncing which made for a interesting video with lots of action. However, one difficulty that we experienced was that some of our shots started when the person was stood still, hence slowing the sequence down. Therefore, in the future we will have to make sure that the characters are in all motion so that rythm can be kept up. Overall, this task has been extremely useful because it has shown me how difficult lip syncing is and has enabled me to give people lip syncing in our future videos advice like making sure that you know the lyrics seemlessly. 

Task 2: Analysis of Music Websites

What I have learnt:
From the completion of this task, I have found out the key codes and conventions that need to feature on a music website. Firstly, every example of a music website which I looked at included some form of social media. For example, Rihanna's website included links to Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram. I will need to include this element in my music website because this gives the audience easy access to extra information and also attracts a wider audience as people that will view the website are more likely to be on these sites. Additionally, the French Montana website includes hyper links for Spotify and Vevo where you are taken straight to the song on that site. Again, this makes the experience easier for the viewer and encourages them to listen/purchase the song increasing the popularity. Secondly, I have found out that music websites are very simplistic with only necessary information needed. For example, most websites have an image as the background, the artists name, their newest song and a menu. This is because people are either going on the website to purchase a song or find out more about the artist. Therefore a simplistic layout is crucial so that the viewer can find what they want. The backgrounds are also important as they say a lot about the artist or band. Most website feature an image which represents them or is them which helps us identify who they are. Some websites however, don't feature the artist, which could be because they are either highly established and they don't need to be on it because of their huge fan base already. Because of this, there is a contrast in background images but every website has an image as a background. A final convention that I have identified through this research is that colour also plays a crucial part in terms of identifying the genre of the artist. For example, black has connotations with death so the viewers is initially drawn to the genre of rap/grime or rock/heavy metal. Also, white has connotations with purity and features on a lot of pop artist websites and female artist websites. Therefore, the colours used help the audience figure out what kind of artist they are. Overall, the codes and conventions that I have identified in music websites will need to be used effectively when I produce my own website because they can be a great way to gain popularity.

Task 1: History Of Music Videos

History Of Music Videos Timeline

What I have learnt:

From the completion of this task, I have learnt and identified some key features of music videos even though I have only looked at a few examples. For example, I have noticed that fast paced cuts and a variety of camera angles and shots are evident in the examples I have seen. Additionally, I have have found out that the most successful music videos follow a narrative which works in synergy with the lyrics of the song. A strong example of this is in Michael Jackson's Thriller music video where there is a clear link between the action and the lyrics and also long periods of time where the narrative is being built. Therefore, my final product will need to include these aspects as they are key parts in a music video. Overall, creating this timeline has made me realise how far music videos have come and how particular videos encouraged change and ideas for future videos.