History of.. Music Videos

As the project is based on creating a music video to promote my artist, i've done some research on music videos; how and why they came about.

A music video is a short film or video that accompanies a complete piece of music. They are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings. Although the origins of music videos go back much further, they came into their own in the 1980s and this is when the term 'music video' first came into popular usage.

MTV was the most popular music channel which played music videos. It was launched on August 1st 1981 and in the beginning they only used to air rock and roll music videos produced by White artists.

However, Michael Jackson was the first Black artist to be shown on MTV breaking down the racial barriers with the first music video movie 'Thriller' (which was an impressive 14 minutes long). It was directed by John Landis (director of 'An American Werewolf in London') and it was released in December 1983. It has sold 9 million copies and is still till this day,the highest selling record ever and even Michael Jackson couldn't beat his own record. The genre of music was different to the usual genre that MTV aired which was 'Rock and Roll' and so this was the beginning of the crossover genres.

We had a Music Video Director 'Ben Peters' come into our lesson and talk to us about music videos. One thing i learnt was that there are so many different roles and some of them i haven't even heard about before.

These are the ones that are new to me:

• Spark: This person has the job of fixing lights.
• Gaffer: This person is the head of lighting.
• Grader: This individual fixes the colours of every shot so the shots run smoothly. They work on the quality.
• Colourist: Similar job as the Grader.
• 1st A.D: Assistant director who helps the filmmaker in the making of a movie or music video.
• PM: Photo manager.
• Focus Puller: They make sure the focus of the shot is fine.

He has directed Urban videos and worked for artists such as N-Dubz. He directed the music video for their song 'Wouldn't you'.

In this video (which he also directed) he appears in a cameo appearance. He can been seen wearing a hoody and fake beard & moustache at 0:44:

However one music video which wasn't Urban was this one:

Artist: Frankie goes to Hollywood
Name of track: Relax

This particular music video has turned Ben into a diverse director making it easy for him to attract more artists from various genres and giving him opportunities to direct their music videos.


Ben also showed us a treament he produced for the producers of N-Dubz next track 'I need you', however the job went to the director who worked with Lil Wayne.

The Q&A session with Ben was useful and we learnt that, to do something big and live your dreams, you need to start off small; Ben started off as a 'runner' who gives everyone their tea and coffee etc and then he stated talking his way in with the directors and that's how it started off for him. We've also come to know that every job for creating a music video is very important including the runner because, if for example the runner messes up someones tea then they might go and make it themselves which means wasting time. Usually a music video is filmed in one day and if it moves onto 2 days then it means more money and the director might have to take it out from his own wallet. I guess we're lucky we have have more than 1 day! lol

Evaluation of AS Media Production..

Last year, as part of our AS course, me and my group created the beginning of a film which was about a maximum of 3 minutes. The genre of our film was a 'Martial Arts drama' and the name of the film was 'Purple Death'. The story was about a boy called Aaron who's father died and his Master was given the responsibility to look after Aaron but little do they know that it was the master who got his father killed. During a visit to the local park, someone attacks Aaron and then towards the end it was revealed that it was the master who attacked him.

Strengths:

• Characters: We were lucky enough to find two Oriental Asian characters to act in our film because it fits in with the genre. They were always present during filming times so there was no need to go hunting for them.


• Camera work: Most martial art films contain fast pace shots and we had quick and tensed shots in our film. We had an establishing shot which set the scene and it was one of the best shots in the film.


• Music: According to our audience who have watched the film have said how the music used for the scenes suited the moods of the scene which created an impact on them. When the song was emotional, the scene was emotional and when the two were combined together, the audience felt emotional.

Weaknesses:

• Music: Although the music set the scene, the down side of this aspect was that due to the different songs used for every scene, there were skips and this was obvious to the audience.


• Shots: During the last shot, in the background behind the audience can see the actors bags and coats and this made this scene look a bit tacky. We also broke the 180 degree rule; We were on one side filming and then suddenly on the other side.


• Criticism: We received criticism about not having enough obvious martial arts conventions to show off the genre. The only thing that worked was the costume (a karate kit).


• Storyline: The story seems a bit unclear when first watching the film even though we had a voice-over where the master narrated the story.

During the process of the production i learnt how to use a Sony HDTV 108 10i camera. This is a very contemporary camera and its small weight is nothing compared to all the different effects it can do.

By learning how to use the editing software Final Cut Pro i was able to edit both the preliminary task and the final product. I now find it easy to use and this is an advantage i can use for the next task which is to produce a music video for a new standalone artist or a band.

I've learnt how to use the camera and so i can record the next production and edit the production using Final Cut. I didn't know how to do a 'depths of field' shot before but I am going to learn how to do it and apply it to the music video and hopefully this will give us extra marks!

The Beginning of A2..

The Brief:

Our task for this year is to produce a promotion package for the release of an album which includes a promo video; a cover for it's release as part of a digipack (CD/DVD Package) and a magazine advertisement for the digipack (CD/DVD Package).

I have to to be a new record producer who has to create, produce and distribute a new standalone artist or a band. We (meaning me and my group) will be using an original music piece from an existing artist or band. We will use the song to create a music video using 'Final Cut' as the editing software. The song will be part of an album and we have to create an album cover for it's release using 'Photoshop'. Last but not least, we will create a magazine advertisement for the digipack as part of the release also using Photoshop. There has to be a continuity (something in common) through all 3 products which will link them together and help the release.

The purpose of this Unit is to assess our ability to:

1. Plan and construct media products using appropriate technical and creative skills.
2. Assess our application of knowledge and understanding in evaluating our own work, showing how meanings and responses are created.
3. Assess our ability to undertake, apply and present appropriate research.