Adding Black Syndi-Conga To The Video

On the digipak and website there is the slogan, join the black syndi-conga, but it wasn't on the music video. I wanted it to become a thing associated with the band, a memorable saying for the band. However I realised it wasn't on the music video, and it didn't work continuity wise. It made no sense for it to be on both the digipak and website but not the music video.

It was important to me that I keep the fonts consistant, so I needed to learn how to import a font into Final Cut Pro. Following a YouTube video I found online I learnt how to import the fonts.

Not only did I keep the font the same, I also wanted the colour of the font to be the same, so made it the same dark red. I wanted the focus to be on the slogan, so I then inserted the website below, but smaller, so you can read it but its not the focus. I just added it at the end of the video after the production company, as an extra advertisement.

CD case mock up

I have recently made
my small mock up of
the CD case I intend
to make.

I was originally making the digipack net I had found online, but while making it I realised that it wasn't the shape that I wanted so I kind of bodged it and made it how I thought it would be made. It did eventually create the shape I was hoping for.

 Below is the net that I created by cutting extra tabs off the net allowing me to create pockets where I wanted them. I then cut the center spine part of the CD case off and stuck it down, creating two flaps to the side

Reviews of Zombie discovery scene

During my feedback session, they agreed that the scene where the band stopped playing to listen to the noise outside and investigate was a little awkward and clumsy. The felt like one of the reasons they felt this was because the music completely stopped for the whole scene until the drummer and base player open the door, which is very unconventional for a music video. I agreed that maybe the stop of music for the whole of the scene is unnecessary but it did need to stop at least once as the band stop playing to hear the noise. So what I did was stop the music but only for a few seconds, and ease it back in once the drummer and base player leave to see to the noise. 

Upon further consideration I thought one issue might also be that its just a static shot through the whole scene. In retrospect, it would be ideal if another camera angle of this scene, however turns out this was the only shot I had of the scene, so had to work with what I had.first three changes

As I said, original the shot was static with no change of angle or anything.

second/final change

So what I did was as the music stopped, cropped the image closer to the band, then do  jump cut further back to show a long stop of the band. In all honesty, I am not happy with the outcome of this section, but this is the best I can do at the moment, and will look into other ways of improving it.

Studio/Production/Distribution Logo- Conventional?

Throughout the time of editing my production I have been toying between whether to put these logos into the video, I was just unsure as to whether this was conventional or not. So I decided to do some research into whether is was conventional or not.Using Vimeo as my platform I search a vary of songs, but focused mainly on the music videos in a similar convention to my own client. I searched lots of videos for lots of artists and only came across a few who mentioned any legalities or companies. Two being Biffy Clyro and Slipknot. And even then it wasn't an image just a company name and who the rights are reserved too, 

So for my own work I decided to add a fade out to a black screen with just a line that says 'all rights reserved by Phantascope Studios'. I felt like it was important for the copy right symbol to before the All rights reserved as this is convention and I believe legality if all rights reserved is stated.  To the left is a web page discussion I found on how to insert a copy right symbol into final cut. And below is me inserting the symbol. 














As I said I decided to add a fade into the end of the product, but to make it more interesting, I made the text appear in the last few seconds of the video and it stays on screen as the music video fades to black it stays on the screen. I feel like this made the production look more professional and ends it nicely.

Following my research, I have come to the conclusion that there is sometimes the Studio logo, but not the other logos as these aren't particularly conventional.

Band Photoshoot

Today I am photoshooting the band for images for their website and Digipak. 

I am performing the shoot in a local woods, taking conventions from existing rock band album covers such as Black Stone Cherry; Folklore And Superstition.

This band do however take themselves quite serious, which Black Syndicate do not. So the overall feel of the Photoshoot/digipack cover will not be as serious.





Although they are a pop band, Me First And The Gimmie Gimmies are a parody/cover band from America. Their whole characteristics and personality is similar of that of Black Syndicate;



The overall style of my work will be a combination of the styles of the two bands; Black Stone Cherry and Me First And The Gimmie Gimmies

When looking up digipak case I discovered a number of templates that you can download and use for your own personal use. The standard Digipak case has two sleeves to it, one to store the booklet, the other sleeve for the CD itself. However when researching templates I was unable to find a template with two sleeves, so will adapt a template with a single sleeve to be correct for two sleeves.

http://www.oasiscd.com/graphics/templates-digipak.asp

Website conventions

I found a Prezi made by another media studies student, about the conventions of a website. Its the conventions shown in this presentation that I must conform to in my final website. Some of which I have already met with my website.

I have recently developed the website further towards the final site. I have inserted all the key points on the website in place, with some basic detail and finish.

I have filled all the links in the 'connect with us' section with their pages, added their music from soundcloud on the right.

I have recently asked the band for information on new tours and news, but they only have one tour coming up which I added to the Dates section, I made up some news to add to the Lastest News section for now. I wanted to create some form of enigma for the audience to keep checking on the band, so added the mystery event on the 10th April.

Colour Correction

Using colour balance setting I changed the
exposure, brightness, contrast and colour
tones to the footage. I saved this 'present' so
I could later apply it to all of the clips. 

The original footage was quite lit and bright, which isn't conventional of
music video for a heavy metal band. 

I had to basically match the colour of the footage to the colour of the worst quality camera. The worst camera had a kind of green tone to the footage, I did actually quite like this look as it further added to the dystopian effect I was looking for. This was want my final set 'present' looks like on one clip. 

Although I added the same 'Present' to all the clips, due to changes in light and camera quality and other factors I couldn't control it didn't always look the same across all footage. 

So using the colour balance tool again I made slight changes to the 'present'. You can see on this footage of the drummer, is very, very green once the present was added to it. 

So to counteract the green tones on the original footage, I added some pink tones as they are opposites on the colour wheel, so counter balance the green tones. 

I originally wanted to keep the scenes outside the original colours and brightness, however after watching the footage with the inside of the 'studio' matched with the scenes outside it was too much of change in colour. So reduced the exposure and brightness of the clips, so it was still lighter than inside the studio but not as light as the original.

The footage inside the studio gets steadily darker as well, as I wanted to impose the idea of the zombies bringing in the darkness so for that idea to be consistent, the zombies need to have the darkness outside which they bring in with them as they enter the studio.

Style of work

In terms of the style behind the Digipak and Website they said they wanted a particular style, a style like the band Black Stone Cherry; http://www.blackstonecherry.com/

The style of their website is very dark but simple and easy to navigate and follow around the site. I will keep the navigation and appearance of the site very simple too. However they did express that they wanted it to be a little more interactive, so will have links to videos rather than just a play button for the songs. On the home page there will be the more recently videos/songs, latest news and contact details.

The CD will be inspired by that of Black Stone Cherry's Folklore And Superstition album, based in a wood, with no form of special effects or anything. The font will be basic and not 'perfect' looking. I am looking at getting the member of the band to write it in their own hand writing to make it more personal to the band. The back would have the track list written on it, so would get the band members to write that too.

I will keep the template of the digipak simple and traditional. If you look at exciting digipaks from heavy metal/rock bands, their CD cases aren't overly complicated, but stay traditional.

Zombie Make up

A major thing I need to think about is my make up for the zombies in the video and what look I want them to have; conventional, unconventional, comic like etc.

After looking into a few different styles of make up for a zombie, I think I want to keep it away from the conventional zombie, with the green face and things like that and still for a more contempary style of make up like that of the character from warm bodies shown above on the left. A white pale face with dark eyes. In terms of costume for the character, I considered all the actors wearing the same thing, like all black or something similar. Like the actors in the video for Black Chandelier and also considered the actors in their own clothes, just a bit scuffed up and dirty, which I feel would work better. If there was a zombie apocalypse, it would make sense that the zombies are just in there own clothes from where they were bitten. So for continuity wise so work with the narrative of the video, their own clothes would make more sense.

Narrative Structure

The music video will follow a linear narrative, as there is no flash backs, but follows the film in chronological order from start to finish.

However the narrative doesn't follow a narrative code as simply as its follows the linear narrative. The closes code it follows is that of Todorov's enigma code.
Tzevtan Todorov:
He believes that the point of narratives is to solve a problem, and that characters pass through many stages, and all the events caused through these stages unfold chronologically. He also believes that the narratives follow the 'Equilibrium, disruption, resolution to equilibrium' rule. 

There will be slightly disrupted equilibrium at the start of the video due to the radio station and empty surrounds, however this equilibrium will then be completely disrupted when the zombies enter the building and begin to attack and kill the members of the band. There is technically a resolution to equilibrium, but not a conventional one. The members all become zombies and play a concert as zombies, to the zombies that killed them. If it were to be a conventional resolution to equilibrium then the members of the band would have killed the zombies and saved the world from them taking over the world. 

Horror Film Conventions

I have previously mention that I would like the music video to have that 'trashy', conventional horror film feel too it, with all the key buzz lines that are used in all horror films, to help set the scene of the parody, none serious feel to my video.Below is a Slideshare I found explaining that the codes and conventions of horror films.

Horror Genre Conventions from CallumCarmichael

You can see the conventional location for horror films are quiet, excluded abandoned areas of isolation, where no one would hear the characters scream. I do intend to film my music video in a very quiet excluded place as previously stated.

In terms of the low and high camera angles I intend to use them, but mainly mixed in with he POT t camera angles. I will use these shots when giving the feel of seeing the band from the audiences eyes looking at the zombies and visa verse, particularly when the zombies a killing two of the band members. I will not be using the high and low angle shots in the penultimate scene, when the last band member is hiding up high, as the zombies will be looking up at the member, making them look like the weaker characters, however they will be the more powerful characters as they ultimately win, and kill the whole band.

The lighting will represent the whole feel of the location and theme to the music video, it will be low lit and have a dystopian feel to it. If I do decide to film in the pub they normally play in, there are stage lights that we might have access to to help create the right lighting.

There wont really be any conventional props, as the weapons will be the bands musical instruments and like most zombies, they wont have any weapons themselves.

The opening to the film 'Scream' has all the sterotypical conventions of a horror film in terms of everything I previous discussed but also convention lines and buzz dialogue.

Although the narrative of the film is very different to that of what my music video will be, you can see the clear conventions in this opening scheme.



The scene is set very clearly, a teenage girl home alone, a weird guy stalking her and shots like the gas cooker lighting to create tension with the audience, and creates a risky environment, leaving the audience ready for the character to die or get injured. There is a lot of silence in the opening scene, and when there is music, it is tension building string instruments which again builds that tension. After the door bell rings and the character shouts who is there, the stalker on the phone even says, 'you should never say whose there, dont you watch scary movies, its a death wish.  you might as well come out here to investigate a strange noise or something', they are drawing attention to the conventions of horror films. Conventions my film will follow. The memeber of the band does go out to investigate what the noise is, and ask, whose there? so meeting those conventions in such an obvious way it makes it parody-like.