CDM 327
Music Video Production
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Music Video Workshops
These are two examples of techniques that our group practiced for the music video unit, in preparation for the music videos that we will be creating over the next few months. By recording at different speeds either speeding up or slowing down the video in the edit, it is possible to sync up miming lyrics to a song while appearing in slow motion. Both ways of filming are used in popular music videos already, for example in ‘Yellow’ by Coldplay and in ‘The Scientist’ by Coldplay.
Example Technique 1 - 200% miming
Outcome 1 - 200% miming
This is the first video technique that we tried to replicate. The technique involved recording the artist miming to the track which was playing at 200% of its usual speed. Although this did make miming to the song much more difficult, we chose a slow repetitive song ‘I’m Gonna Be (500 miles)’ by The Proclaimers. The video was recorded in real time at 50fps. On the timeline, in order to sync the miming with the track, we slowed the video down to 50% which gave a slow-motion effect while keeping the lip-syncing in time. We didn’t need to make any changes to the audio track on the timeline because we wanted the song to be heard back at the normal speed.
Example Technique 2 - 50% miming
Outcome 2 - 50% miming
This second example was made by miming to the track at half speed (50%) and shooting the video at 25fps. When imported into premiere pro, we sped the video up to 200% but kept the audio at 100% so that the video would sync up with the lyrics. Here are some images of the timeline and how we sped up the video. We used the song Bohemian Rhapsody because its a well-known song and although some parts are fast, it is much easier to mime to in half time.
Music Video Initial Ideas
Who are Land Captains?
Land Captains are a heavy, funky, groovy rock band who describe themselves as ‘anarchic’. The band have recorded 2 thunderous EPs to date, and they plan on releasing more in upcoming years to grow their fan base which currently rests at a steady 2,426 monthly listeners on spotify. Their music is available to stream on multiple music streaming platforms including but not limited to: Spotify, Apple Music, Soundcloud and Youtube Music.
Land Captains want to share genuine emotion through their music in order to make a connection with their listeners. Anger with purpose, and humour without hatred; serious songwriting and passionate storytelling, all wrapped up in the primal power of live performance.
In all, the band have released a total of 10 original songs including Automatic with 3,578 streams and Turn It Up with 3,258 streams on Spotify at the moment. Every song they release aims to tell a different story with meaning and conveying power at the same time.
Most recently, Land Captains have been working on the release of their new single called ‘Turn It Up’ featuring strong elements of electric guitar and a passionately delivered set of lyrics. Turn It Up aims to tell the story of empowerment in women and ties strongly to the group’s motto “Music is EMOTION. Music is CONNECTION. Music is POWER.”
Land Captains believe strongly in developing a connection with the audience so in the spirit of connection, they aim to give the energy of a live stage show to any performance that they give which means sharing the stage with their audience. Original songs have been written to be experienced live; words, music and raw energy combined.
Deciding on the track
Having contacted the band, we came to the group's decision to make the music video for the song “Banana Phone”. The song is about empowerment of women, which we felt was a theme that we could do a lot with. The band didn’t have many requests about which song we picked, they only advised us not to make videos for “Automatic” or “Turn It Up” because both songs already have promo videos. Another reason why we chose “Banana Phone” was because it was their third most popular song, next to the others which already had music videos.
Banana Phone Music Video Initial Ideas
At the beginning of the video, we open on a gothic dinner table in a dimly lit room with neatly placed table settings, silverware and flickering candles. Every food item on the table has been spray painted black for effect and some contain red food dye so they look as if they are bleeding when they are broken open. One female member of Land Captains sits at one end of the long wooden table and another male member of the band sits at the other end. They glare at each other through over the top decorations, candles and food, locking eyes with one another in the candlelight. Quick POV shots, focussed on switching between the two faces, quickens the pace of the video and creates tension so the audience can feel that something is about to happen. A triggering event occurs and the incident triggers an intense, high energy food fight between the man and woman sitting at either end of the table. They both start grabbing handfuls of food off of the table and hurling them at each other under intense red lights. Some slow motion shots will be used when the food makes contact with the other person and breaks open, splatting them with ‘blood’. Overall, the female member will win the fight at the end of the song to stick with the theme of the song female empowerment.
As well as this gothic dinner table scene, we will also film a performance video in the studio using the same set as the food fight scene. All the group members will be dressed in casual, black gothic outfits. The scene takes place after the food fight, where the table is clear and there is food all over the floor. The band performs standing on the large table as the room starts filling with smoke over time. We will record the entire song as a live performance while smoke surrounds the band and chop and change between the food fight and live performance.
Inspiration for the music video
I don’t know of any other music videos that are exactly like the idea that we are proposing, however there are elements of ‘Kiwi’ by Harry Styles that kind of resemble what we want to do. Obviously, because the entire music video is based around a food fight where people take handfuls of food and throw it around. But also because of the extravagant costumes involved with a strong colour scheme that it sticks to, which in our case will be red rather than blue.
Our vision for the table layout vs. the final outcome
Tablecloth measurements
Music Video Mind Map
The Count Song Change
After communicating this initial idea to the Land Captains, they responded to our messages proposing that we deliver the same music video but instead, we use their song 'The Count' rather than 'Banana Phone' like we originally planned. The band felt this way because they wanted to present Banana Phone as a light-hearted, playful song, instead of a more heavy-hitting song with a dramatised narrative like we'd planned. So, they came up with the idea of producing the same video but for their other song 'The Count, which has the darker gothic qualities and would fit our original plan much better than it would fit Banana Phone. The idea remains the same, with a candle-lit dinner table, a food fight and a basic narrative structure. Although our pre-production documents are written under the name Banana Phone, they are the exact same idea that we proceeded to make for the song The Count. There is nothing different about the aesthetic or way that we planned the video. I have attached communications with the band detailing their opinions about the song choice below, and luckily they were very quick to respond to our original idea as this idea was discussed during our zoom call pictured on the right. This gave us time to rethink the shooting script, because the original timings of each shot were matched to the song Banana Phone rather than The Count.
Original Track - Banana Phone
New Track - The Count
Communications with the band
Production Schedules/Schedules of activity
The Pre-Production Schedule guides all group members through the plans for pre-production, everyday up until the day of the shoot.
This is the Production Schedule for the day before the shoot. It details what time an action needs to be performed and which crew members are assigned to each role at that time.
This is the Production Schedule for the day of the shoot. The schedule plays an important role in ensuring that the day runs as smoothly as possible. When everyone knows what needs to be done and the time that the task needs to be completed by, they are able to work more efficiently and are more likely to reach the desired outcome for the shoot on time.
Daily Shooting Schedule
Recce
These are the slideshow presentations of information that we provided to the Land Captains to let them know about the technical specifications of the facilities we were working with.
Facilities Slideshow 1
Facilities Slideshow 2
Shooting Day Risk Assessment
Allergens Risk Assessment
As all band members and the crew would be in contact with a variety of food across the day of the shoot, we felt it was a necessary precaution to perform a second risk assessment. This risk assessment details any food allergies that would pose a risk to the band members or crew if handled. Because we intended on buying all our food fresh on the day, for sanitary and storage reasons we took this list to the supermarket with us to make sure that we avoided any foods that could cause a reaction.
Music Video Mood board
Arranged messily to match the vibe of the food fight in the music video.
Storyboards
I have attached both the Banana Phone shot list which we originally created for the video, and the new revised shot list for The Count so you can see the differences between both. The key changes are the timings of the shots and therefore the pacing of the video as a whole.
Banana Phone Shot List
The Count Shot List
Shooting Script
Lighting Diagrams
Technical Requirements
These are the technical requirements we planned for the day of the shoot of the music video for the Land Captains. We felt that this list was realistic and achievable within our low budget. There are also pictures attaches to the diagram to show how we made use of the resources available to us during the shoot.
Zoom to read
Budgeting
A lot of the budgeting for this production was done as if we were going to buy everything new. However, most of the items that featured in the final video were either from family members or charity shops. This meant that the cost of the production was significantly lower than originally predicted.
Creative Decisions
A deeper look into the creative decisions we made about lighting and camera positioning on set.
The Count - Land Captains Final Music Video
Please change the resolution to 1080p before watching the video. You can do this by selecting the settings icon in the bottom right of the video player, then choosing quality > 1080p.