Final Film

Final DigiPak

This is my final DIGIPAK that I created in photoshop. I took some still images, and then used these for my Digipak. I found the creation of the digipak quite enjoyable, as I was able to use the skills I gained at AS to assist me in using the tools that photoshop offers. I am happy with my Digipak, however if I had had more time to put into it, I would have taken more of a variety of images, so that my Digipak was more diverse in photography and angles. The top image is my 3 outside sections, and below is the inside of the digipak.

I decided that the black and white effect would be a good option for me to use, as I then planned to contrast this with the building block, text with bright colours. I decided on the different coloured text on the digipak, as I felt that it suited the story I had created in my video, and added a 'childlike' theme to my digipak, as my video took a serious song and channeled it into a childs story. I also used a very direct image for my front cover on the digipak, I did this because I felt it needed to drag an audience in, and I felt that the serious and direct picture, contrasted alongside childlike colours and fonts and made it look more interesting and diverse. |I used serious images for the outside of my digipak, as I felt this linked in with the set up of my video ( at the beginning of the story, the little boys story is told, and then we hear how his life is now better and he is happy) And then the inside of my digipak concluded the story that my video reached.

I also felt that the back of my digipak with the little boy standing with his back to the camera was different, and although simple was original.

In the inside of my digipak, I lifted the mood slightly and had images of the actor smiling, I also included  quotes such as' Hello my name is Elias' that are in the video. I think this was a good idea as it links my video and digipak together and is still telling a story.

Final Advert

This is my final advert, which I also created in photoshop, and my AS skills of using photoshop were enhanced and I also thoroughly enjoyed this task.

The theme of my advert was very similar to my Digipak, I did this on purpose as I feel that an audience can look at an advert and therefore know the theme of the Digpak, and this may help them to identify the CD( Digpak) in stores or online etc.
I kept the theme of the coloured blocks, and black and white saturated photo's, I did this as I felt that it added a depth to my images, and made them stand out. I feel that my advert is reasonably simple, but I think this is appropriate for the story of my video.

Unlike my Digipak I did not include any 'happy' or 'positive' images, as I felt that for an advert I needed to advertise a story that has no answer at the moment and I feel that my advert does this.  Moreover I included lyrics from the track 'Nobody knows my troubles but God' on the advert, so that an audience can link the images, with the lyrics and they will then make up a story for themselves and want to know the story of this little boy.

Evaluation Question 1- In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Image 1: This is the first shot that my audience see when my video begins, the shot is accompanied by a voice over of myself reading the text, I felt it was appropriate to use some facts and statistics about the fostering industry, and give some shocking information to draw the audience in. I felt that as fostering is sometimes not such a well known area, and some people are not are not aware of anything to do with fostering it was helpful to give some background information and to show what my video was about, as without it some people may be lost as to the point of it. I got this idea from watching other videos about serious and controversial subjects, which introduce a story with background information. 

Image 2: This image is a shot of the young boy in my film lip-syncing the lyrics to the Moby song. This is in the first few seconds as the video begins; I added a heavy effect onto the shot as I felt this made it look dramatic and different, not only this but is not what was expected and drew the eye in. I decided to use the young boy lip syncing in a direct mode of address shot as I had seen other videos where children in particular have been lip syncing to a song, especially serious and deep songs where it has made me want to know the story and made the story feel much more personal I feel It can also allow an audience to feel like they are sharing the story with the actor in the film, therefore getting the message across in a passionate and straight to the point way. Moreover I also used the lip-syncing for only a snippet of the song, unlike other videos that may use it throughout the whole song, I felt that for my video it would not have been appropriate and would work better if I took the most powerful part of the song, (the chorus) and used the lip syncing there in certain places of the song, I could tell more of a story elsewhere within the music, and keep referring back to the chorus in this was when I felt it fitted the story.

Image 3: Image 3 shows the form of clip that I used several times in my video, throughout the video I used clips like this where the little boy talked about his life, and told his story parallel to the supporting clips. I added subtitles to these clips, as I felt it would make it easier for the audience to follow what was being said, and also when there is something to read it can draw the audience to listen and concentrate more. I also feel that the contrast between the video, and then the short clips of the little boy talking added depth to the video, and stopped it from becoming boring. I had seen techniques like this used in other videos, for example in a song by Deadmau5- I remember the song flicks back and fro from a conversation that it subtitled and a club scene, and I liked them and thought that it made the video a bit different and more interesting to watch. I also felt it particularly helpful because of the story to my video, as I feel without these clips it would have been hard to portray the details and depths to the story of the little boy.

Image 4: Image 4 is another direct mode of address image that I have added the effect ‘replicate’ to. I have added this effect as I felt that it was still as direct but maybe broke things up a little bit and made it less intense for an audience to watch. I used this clip to present the way children can feel in the care system, which can be alone and isolated. I felt that the actor I used portrayed these feelings well through his face and expressions. The little boy puts his head down in this clip, and I think that the effect I have put onto it (replicate) insinuates the emotions I am trying to show, as everything happens four times.

Image 5: Image 5 is a blurred image of the little boy acting in my video, this shot is used at the part of the song just before the chorus. I used this form of focus and clip as I felt that it portrayed the feeling of confusion and being lost, which linked with the story I was telling, and is a well known emotion for children in care to feel. The clip shows a messy focus of leaves and the ground and then turns to the little boy walking away. I used this sort of technique in my video because I had seen it in other videos and liked the emotion and effect that it created I found it to have a very physical symbolism linked to it and actual makes the audience feel like they are confused and lost along with the actor in the story. I also linked this clip to a part of the music that I felt was appropriate which was just before the chorus because I felt that it worked well as build up to the lyrics and linked them nicely.

Image 6: Image 6 is the same clip as Image 2, just without the effect being added. I used this clip in the middle of the video at a chorus point that I felt was poignant in the music and video. I took the effect off because I wanted the clip to mean the same thing as Image 2, but I wanted it to look different and being less intense.  Not only this but I felt that it was refreshing to see the face of the little boy clearly, and this actually added a vulnerability to him, and showed the audience how young and innocent he actually was. The idea was that as the story unravelled so did the shields (effects) that the little boy was using as emotional protection.  

Image 7: Image 7 shows the little boy walking around a tree in a residential area, again I used direct mode of address in this shot as I wanted to hold the story, but in different ways so I used a ‘childlike’ activity like swinging round a tree, but adapted it with my actors face and attitude. To contrast how some children’s lives can be so different even though they may do the same activities and look the same. By changing his body language and facial expressions I could show a different and contrasting message. Furthermore I also used a slow motion effect on this shot, to intensify the facial expressions and body language even further. I have seen similar slow motion shots with things like swinging round trees etc in different videos, however I have never seen something that challenges and contrasts the meaning with body language and facial expressions which I aimed to do.

Image 8: Image 8 is another direct mode of address shot that was filmed inside a house; I used the banister of a staircase to shoot the clip, I intentionally filmed the clip in a way that would make the audience feel like they were looking down on the actor, and I think that the banister in the shot makes it feel and look like this. As again children do things like looking through banisters and sitting on stairs, I tried again to link and contrast the content of the shot with the way it was filmed.

Image 9: In this part of the film, I have used the opacity tool to create a crossing of clips. I felt that this was a good idea as I have seen it in other music videos, when confusion and intense feelings are being demonstrated. I felt that by using it in my video it create the feeling that the little boy was in two different places, which could demonstrate one place physically and another emotionally. I think that the clip presented this. I also think that by using one medium close up along with an establishing shots works well, and links with the contrast I was trying to create, I have also seen this in other videos.

Image 10: This is another example of a narrative video, which similarly was talked about through image 3. As said before I used this technique of the little boy talking directly into the camera as I thought it was a good/personal way of sharing his story alongside the video. I also felt it would make it clearer to the viewer. Clip 10 indicates where the story within the video unfolds; the little boy starts to talk about how now he is living with a family where he is happy. I picked a particular part of the music to unravel the story as I felt it linked with the story, as there was no chorus through this part of the video, and was instrumental music, the film then finished with a chorus.

Image 11: I used this shot of the linking hands between the adult and child as I felt that it signified really well visually the message that I was trying to put across. This was the first time that someone else was appearing in the video, as before this shot the character had been completely isolated. And therefore the idea was that the visual reflection of someone else in the video would make the audience almost feel like they were not alone anymore, as in the first half of the video I had tried to make the video intense and almost make the audience feel like they were with the character and lonely and isolated also. I also think that the significance of the white hand linked with the Black Hand sends a message, and states how every culture and race can be and are united.

Image 12: Image 12 was a high angle shot of the little boy in my film looking up to the camera, I have still used direct mode of address to hold the audience, however it is a much softer shot, and I feel that the little boy who acted in my film really grasped the idea, and completely changed his presence for the second part of the film. I filmed this shot in a local park, as I felt that the child play area really linked in well with the ethos of my film. The classic red, rubber flooring of a park play area is seen in this shot and I think that this backs up the ‘childlike’ theme.  I used the high angle shot as I felt that it contrasted with a high angle shot that I had used in the first half of the video (image 8), which was much more serious and although the facial expressions and angles were not that different, the feel of the shots were completely differently, which I think really shows how well my actor understood what I was trying to create.

Image 13:  This image shows the adult and child walking through a door that we have previously seen the little boy running out of, I used this because I think it signifies being loved and having a home, which every child needs and wants. I think that by having this almost concludes the video, and my aim was to make the audience feel like they are going through the door with them.

Image 14, Image 15: These clips, are beginning to conclude the story, as the little boy tells the story of how his life has changed and talks about how he has now got a family, as said before for image 10, and image 3 I used these clips to make the story clear, and I think that in doing this it told a clearer story and did the story justice, that would have been hard to show through acting and shots with the limited acting skills that were available to me.

Image 16: This shot was also filmed in the park I spoke about in image 12, I used a very stereotypical idea of a child being on swings and laughing to portray a ‘happy’ and ‘full filled ‘ child. I did this because I wanted to show a positive and clear picture that signifies how the little boy in the story is now feeling. I think this uses conventions that other videos that I have seen have used before as a lot of the time stereotypical ideas are used to send a message as they can be understood in the same way by more people, whereas something less direct and not so clear can be taken in a different way by different people.

Image 17: This is the second to last clip, I used a clip of the little boy in my video, the clip consists of him laying on a bed of leaves, looking into the camera, whilst it circles him, his facial expressions are soft and I have continued the theme of a ‘happy child’. I filmed the shot walking around the little boy, I did this because I felt that it was like the video had circled his life and shown everything in it. So therefore I felt that the effect of circling him was like a conclusion, and with him laying on the floor I felt showed his vulnerabilities and age. Furthermore I added a blurry effect to the shot I did this because I think it made the shot look more professional and interesting, it also softens the walking around him. Adding to this I made it slow more to intensify the shot, and make it fit to the music more appropriately.

Image 18: This is the concluding shot of my video; I used the same idea of the little boy on the bed of leaves and simply had him laughing. I felt that this was an appropriate ending, and linked in nicely with the music, as the end of the song was the chorus, where the lyrics now contrasted with the laughing image, which I thought was positive in a way and left a nice feeling to the end of my video. 

Evaluation Question 2- How effective is the combination of your main Product and Ancillary texts?

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

Hello I’m Taylor, and this is my music video that I created to the song Natural Blues by electronic musician Moby. The song was released as the fifth single from his 1991 album ‘Play’.  The song was first released in the UK where it reached number eleven in the charts.

Moby is quite a unique artist, with very interesting lyrics in his tracks as well as unique videos. I wanted to combine influences from other videos of his like the original ‘Natural Blues’ video which told a story of elderly people in a care home and their feelings. I wanted to take this idea of having quite literal lyrics with a strong story and incorporate this into my video. Therefore I used the story a young boy in care, and linked the lyrics ‘no-body knows my troubles but God’ with how a child in the care system can feel- isolated and lonely. The music video ‘Love Lost’ by ‘The temper Trap’ were another inspiration to my video, as they have children running and miming the lyrics looking directly at the camera, I liked the feeling that this created which I felt was very personal and as they were children was unique and in turn made the video stand out much more, as well as catch an audience’s attention. Because of this I wanted to have my actor singing directly into the camera. Furthermore as I wanted my video to contain a strong message I felt that this direct and intense approach would be suitable.

With this in mind I wanted to have parts of my video that would consist of my actor talking about his life, in between the music, I wanted to do this as I felt that it would help the audience to understand what was happening as I thought I may find it hard to present every aspect of the story along with the emotions and feelings with my limited budget and acting skills. I also felt that having the clips of my actor talking added a reality aspect to my video, and made it clear that it was a true story which I felt made it more powerful and effective. I then decided to add subtitles to the clips where my actor was talking as I felt that it made it clearer to the audience what he was actually saying as I found that it wasn’t very easy to understand with him speaking it, as at times he mumbled his speech. I was aware that I was at the risk of an audience thinking that my video looked more like a documentary, however I didn’t think that was the case and simply felt that I was playing with the conventions of a traditional music video, and trying something new. I felt that it allowed me to communicate the context of the setting to the audience, and allow them to experience the environment as the little boy has experienced it.

From experimenting with lots of different effects on Adobe Premier Pro, I managed to add different lighting effects to my film, I used brightness and contrast controls to intensify different parts of my film, and make the video look more interesting and eye catching. I also used slow motion in some parts of my video, as because I was working with a slow song, I felt that this effect also intensified important parts of the video, and helped me to keep to the pace of the song.

Furthermore I wanted my video to have stereotypical ideas of a happy family running through, for example holding hands with a parent walking through a door. Shots at the park form a stereotypical ‘happy’ place for a child to be. I did this because I wanted my audience to be able to relate to my video, and to be able to link the ‘happy’ part of my video with these stereotypes, therefore making the story more clearly to them.

When I created my Digipak, I wanted to continue the theme that I had created in my video. I wanted to do this by using the same effects I had used in my video, so that my audience would be able to identify the two as being together.  I included black and white pictures, so that they linked in with my video. I also used building block text in different primary colours to build my title for the front of the digipak. The child was represented by the building block text, and primary colours, which traditionally people relate to children. However the direct mode of address image I used for the front consisted of my actor having a very serious yet expressionless face. This contrast of the text and image I felt summed up my video completely. I also felt that it was very unique and different, and the contrast would attract an audience and intrigue them to want to know what the video was about.

I then used an image of my actors back for the back of my Digipak. I wanted to use an image like this as I felt that it was very simple, however that it still had uniqueness and the fact that it was literal, (with the back of the Digipak being an image of the back of my actor) added originality and personality to my Digipak.

My advert also keeps in theme with my film. I used the effect ‘threshold’ on the images for my advert; I had used the same effect in my video for the miming part of my video. I felt that using the same effect linked the all three of my product together, as I didn’t want it to be the same as my Digipak, but still be similar enough that my audience would recognise the two. I therefore continued the use of the building block text. Not only this but I also used some of the same images.

I have received feedback from the screening to parents and friends who filled out questionnaires on the video which consisted of some positive comments, which I was very happy with, and also some comments of different opinions which were not so positive. Many of the positive comments consisted of saying how strong and clear the message in my video was.

In conclusion I feel very proud of all three of my products, and feel that I have successfully accomplished my aim to link all three together in subtle yet strong ways. And creating a video that puts across a strong message, and one that has been a huge part of my life.

Evaluation Question 3- What have you learnt from your Audience Feedback?

Evaluation Question 4-How did you use new media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?