Risk assessment UPDATED

Prior to filming our music video I created a risk assessment, this is an examination of everything that could go wrong or cause harm to ourselves and our actors. By doing this is helped us to highlight the hazards that could cause harm when filming and what could go wrong, and made us consider how we could prevent these from occurring so that we work is a safe environment. It is important to highlight and recognise potential risks that may be involved when filming the video so that we can pre think preventions to stop these risks from occurring. By doing this we are trying to put our actors and filming crew in the least possible danger and keep everybody safe. If we did not create  risk assessment then my group and I would be very unaware of dangers and hazards that we may encounter when producing our music video.

While filming we did encounter some of the risks that were outlined in my risk assessment. One of these were that our artists will be cold when filming in skirts and dresses due to the cold weather. We encountered this when filming in claybury park, after the first hour of filming our actor became extremely cold and could barely hold the guitar. We did give her a coat and gloves in between takes however after a while we decided to film the rest of the scene on another day. Another risk that we did find when filming was the general public. It was hard to keep filming the same scenes when the background kept changing (different people in it) to solve this issue we had to wait for it to not be as  busy and therefore the people changing would not change as much. However, as it is hard to pre-plan and consider every single risk that we could possibly encounter, we did have some risks occur that were not expected. This included, the smoke canisters that we used spread very far once dispersed therefore could effect the surrounding public.
 At one point there was two dog walkers standing very close to where we were filming. It would have been dangerous to set off the canisters with the people and dogs around. The dogs may have run over to the smoke, and may have damaged their eyes and breathed in too much smoke. To solve this issue, we approached the dog walkers and explained our situation and they was more then happy to move along so that we could safely release our canisters.
The various columns of the risk assessment made sure that everything was discussed in great detail as we knew what the risk was, who is would harm, the severity of the risk, how we could prevent it and a back up plan. By doing this I had a clear guide of what to do if any of our risks occur, and made sure that all areas were covered. From this risk assessment i have learnt the importance of it because it has made us think about the different preventions when we encounter risks. If/when we encountered the risks outlined we knew exactly what to do to prevent and solves these issues.

Filming schedule - UPDATED

It is important when creating a music video to have a filming schedule because it allows my group and I to ensure that we have filmed all of the parts of our video. Also it helps us to plan out when and where we are filming, therefore making sure an appropriate amount of people in our group can make it to each day of filming so it can be done successfully. It also helps to keep our group organised because it will tell us what equipment, iconography and actors we need for each shot, as a result of this we wont forget anything/anyone, which would waste time. We have various columns in our filming schedule, 9 altogether. The first one is simply, the shot number, this is used so we know altogether how many shots are going to be included in the video. The next one is the 'date and time' column, this is important because it is telling our group exactly when this shot is going to be taken. This is important to organise the group. Then we have the 'location' column which goes along side the previous column as it helps to organise our group as it shows everyone exactly where they need to be. Following this, is the 'content/action' column, which tells us exactly what is going to be included in this shot and what will be seen. Next is the 'shot type & duration' column this is describing the type of shot that is going to be used e.g. mid shot, and how long it is going to be seen for. The sixth column is the 'costume/hair and make up' which includes what the characters are going to look like and what they are going to wear. This is helpful because we will be able to dress the artist in the exact outfit that is needed which will overall save time and help us to be more efficient. My next column is the 'iconography' this is what props will be needed in the scene, this is needed so that we can prepare what to bring before we go filming. Then we have the 'personnel' column this includes everyone that is needed in this particular filming day, which will help us to organise who is needed on the day of filming. The final column is the 'equipment' this is what equipment that is needed on the day of filming to make sure that we do not forget anything that is vital to carrying out the filming e.g. tripod.

We did mostly follow our filming schedule when filming. By having the schedule it made it much easier to prepare for each shoot, this is because it was very detailed and it was quick/easy to look at and see exactly what needed to be done and who needed to be there for each shoot, meaning we could carry out each scene successfully. However,  on the 07/11/15 in Claybury park we started off by taking photos for our magazine advert and digipak but when we went to begin filming the artist singing, it was extremely cold and damp. Our artist was freezing, therefore we decided to film the rest of this on another day to prevent her from becoming ill. Furthermore when filming in the bonfire event we added in some extras shots of the couple together. This included a long shot of a merry-go-round, and some establishing shots of the fireworks in the sky. Also another shot that did not go to plan was shots 24-28 on the 12th in the Drama studio with the dancers, this is because upon reflection we realised as a group the dancers would be quite confusing in the video and could possibly confuse the audience. Therefore, we have decided to take out this part of our filming schedule. Now this means that we have a gap in video, we have decided to fill this gap with more filed scenes and forest scenes of Sharna singing.
Through this i have learnt that a filming schedule is important when filming our music video because it allowed us to have a clear structure to follow and it showed us all of the different shots that we need to include in each of the various settings. This makes us more organised as a group as we are prepared for all of the different shots as we know who is needed what is needed, where and when we need to go and what we want to achieve for this shot.

Planning digipak analysis

A digipak consists of a book-styled cardboard outer binding with one or more plastic trays for the CD, compared to a jewel CD case which is the original compact disc case that has been used since the compact disc was released in 1982. Digipak's are used for the special edition and contain higher quality images and meaning in them. To give it more of a personal feel they also usually contain a letter/note from the artist directly to the fans. Occasionally, a digipak will also contain bonus tracks unlike a CD which may not. Also the digipak has 6 slides, meaning there was a better opportunity for artwork, information or promotions. Making the digipak more appeal and attract more potential buyers. However, jewel CD cases also will often contain lyrics of the songs included, therefore people who buy it will be able to learn the songs, enabling them to relate to the artist and gain a deeper understanding for the lyrics. Although the jewel CD case has an actual plastic case, the inside part is paper, and although the case will help protect it to some extent, the paper is easily ripped when removed or put back into the plastic grips. On a digipak, all information is very easily accessible making it more appealing as it can be opened up and viewed at the same time. Whereas, with a jewel CD case most of the detail is solely on the front and back of the case, which can make it awkward having to flip between the two. However, it is more likely to grab the audiences attentions when buying it as they will be able to see most of what the CD will include.
Prior to creating my own digipak I analysed one from Gabrielle Aplin who is also an indie music artist. From this I saw how her digipak represented her, this was as quite timid and simplistic due to not showing music of herself on the covers of the digipak. Also I was inspired by the naturel colours that she used within the digipak as I think it further helped to represent her.
I am going to be creating a digipak for my artist Sharna Rae to promote her new album Illuminate. It is important for me to plan my digipak because I need to ensure that I effectively use my inspirations that I took from Gabrielle's. Also that I include all of the conventions needed in an indie digipak. Furthermore I need to make sure that I correctly represent my artist and her style of music. By planning it, it will save me lots of time when it comes to actually creating it, as I will already have a good idea of what it should look like.

In my digipak the colours that I have chosen to use are mainly pastel or neutral colours, these help to represent different things about the artist. I have used a pastel red for the writing of the song list and her personal message to her fans. The colour red has connotations of being fierce and confident as it is quite a daring colour. Therefore by putting these parts in red when she is talking about her songs shows that her music makes her feel more confident and this could imply that she uses her music to help express herself to her audience. I think by showing that she is quite fiery when discussing her music it shows to her audience that she has faith in her music, which would make them feel joyful for her as it shows her passion. Another colour that I used in my digipak is a nude/yellow colour. This I used for Sharna Rae's dress in both photos and for the wings on the CD. This colours connotes her personality as being sympathetic, kind, fair and also as the background is quite dark/dull in most of the pictures is shows her to be 'sunshine on a cloudy day'. I think representing her like this is important because It will make her audience feel more comfortable with her and make her seem to be more of an approachable person. Another colour that I have used is a pastel blue to write her name and the album name, this colour has connotations of the sky and openness. Which helps to represent her as a very open person and shows she is accepting of everybody, this could make the audience feel more comfortable with her as they would not feel like they would be judge if they met her. By using different colours to show different aspects of my artists personality it helps the audience to feel as if they know her on  more personal level which will help them to find her songs more relatable able and understand them better.

I have incorporated indie conventions into my digipak. The first convention that I have used is the setting, this is where I took my photos for my digipak. The artist is situated in a big open field and all you can see around her is the grass and sky. This helps to represent her as vulnerable and isolated, which further helps to represent her music, as indie artist song are normally about  issues that the artist has had and had to face. Which could imply to the audience that she does not normally share her issues with people around her when she is facing them, this could make the audience feel quite privileged that she is sharing her story/difficulties with them. Another convention that I have used in my digipak is the positioning of my artist. Sharna is just off centre in all of the photos, this shows her to be selfless and considerate of others. Even though it is her digipak for her music she is not wanting to be the centre of attention. This is conventional of indie artists as they care more about promoting their actually music then promoting themselves as a product. This is further supported as her song list in central in the  page. Highlight her focus on the music. By showing herself like this it could make her more respected by the audience as they don't feel as if the artist is trying to be sold to them as a product and they can focus on enjoying the actual music.

In my images that I have used Sharna is not looking as the camera in any of them. I have a long shot showing her from the side sitting on the floor looking straight ahead of her, this is my front cover. Also I have another long shot for one of my images showing her facing away from the camera. Another shot I have included for my second image is a close up of her face, (which is highly conventional of the indie genre) but she is looking away from the camera. All of these have the low budget setting of a field, as this is a public place it will not cost anything to shoot here. And indie music videos are normally low cost, giving it a sense of realism to the audience. By using these images that I have chosen I think it helps to represent my artist as sensitive and vulnerable. This can link to the theme of her songs, indie music is generally based on real life experiences that the artist has been through, therefore it could be a sensitive issue for her. Which could result in her feeling vulnerable singing about it. However, it also shows her as independent as she is happy to stand alone and let her audience know about some of her most negative experiences. Resembling her a brave, and by showing her various personality attributes it helps the audience to feel as if they know her better. Therefore, when listening to her music it will help to create a sense of realism and help the audience to understand her music better. Another image that I have used is of a pair of 'angel' wings on the CD itself. I have used them here as I think it shows that her music helps her to express herself and show her true self to her audience. The wings her connotations of freeness and flying away. This represents Sharna as forgetting about her issues and showing herself through her music. It is conventional for indie music artists to feel more comfortable and confident expressing themselves through their music.

I have decided to have Sharna Rae's name in a large handing writing style font on the front cover. I have chosen this as I feel it makes it more personal to the audience, it is as if Sharna Rae has written it herself. Also I want it to be quite large because she is a relatively new artist and I want her name to stand out to her audience to encourage them to buy her digipak. Again this personal touch is another way that the audience feel they are building up their relationship with Sharna, and getting to know her better. Underneath this I will have the album name illuminate in large writing but I will be slightly smaller than the artist name. This is still really important information for the audience, therefore still has to be large enough for them to notice it. I have not got lots of writing on the front cover because I wanted to keep it looking professional and not cluttered with irrelevant information.
The only other writing that I have include in my digipak is my artists personal message to fans. This is going to be in a hand writing style font and will be signed off by Sharna at the bottom. This will make the digipak feel really personal to the audience and will again help them to build up their relationship with Sharna as it reveals to them how she speaks and writes. I didn't make her personal message very long as I wanted it to be something that stuck in my audiences head and they could remember. In this personal message I used words like "you" as this direct address makes the audience feel as if they are specifically being involved and the message is directly to them. Another personal touch in this personal message is Sharna signing it off at the bottom as this looks like she has signed it personally herself. All of these personal touches help the audience to build up their relationship with our artist and that helps them to gain a better understanding of her songs and lyrics.

It was extremely useful to plan my digipak prior to taking the photo's ready for Photoshop because it gave me an exact idea of what I want my photos to look like. Therefore when we take the photo's it will save lots of time because I will already now how I want my artist to pose and what I need her to look like.

Music video inspirations

Felix Jaehn - Ain't Nobody

My first inspiration while looking into music videos in from this song, i took inspiration from the various cinematography used in the song. The song opens with a close up of the artists feet walking, this straight away engages the audience to the video as it intrigues them into what is going to happen/where the person is/ who the feet belong to. This is common within the video when they introduce a new character they start off with a close up of a part of their body and then pan out or across, allowing the audience to see the whole of the person. I really like this idea because it means throughout the song they will be waiting to see who the person is, also by doing this is helps to keep them engaged when new characters are introduced meaning that they will follow the story line better as they will be more aware of who the characters are. Following the introduction of the characters the video then follows up wit close ups of parts of them throughout which helps to remind the audience who each character is. They also do this for the artist which allows the audience to constantly be reminded about her throughout the song. I think i am going to use this in the same sort of way in my music video. When i introduce my artist and my main characters i will 

Ed Sheeran - thinking out loud

My second inspiration is from this song by Ed, I love the style of this video. It is primarily performance. This is evident at the start of this video where the only thing in shot is the silhouette of the dancer. I think this is a really engaging start to the  video as it leaves a lot of mystery and to be discovered by the audience. By creating this sense of enigma it engages the audience as they want to find out who the person is and what they are representing. It also allows the audience to really see the shapes created by the dance and these match the music that is being played at that time, and helps connote the rest of the dancing style that is going to be used. I would like to use this silhouette of a dancer or dancers through out my music video however i would not want all of the focus to be on the dancers and would like to incorporate the narrative style as well in the video. As i think because they are professional dancers they are amazing and therefore are able to maintain audience attention purely through dance but i would need to used a narrative style as well to maintain attention. I am going to use the dancers to portray the main characters in the my video and show their emotions.

Birdy - people help the people

In this video by Birdy i love her use of editing. She uses slow editing, this evident at the start of her video. This can be seen in this establishing shot, it slowly shows a frame in London with a taxi driving past and people walking behind this. By having slow editing at the start of the video I believe it helps to set the tone and expectations of what the video is going to be like. From this shot from Birdy is allows me  to assume that the song is going to be slow paced. It also helps to focus the audiences attention and allows them to get a good look around the shot, therefore they are able to see more detail which would be missed in a faster shot. I want to use slow editing in my video when the couple in the video are sharing moments just with each other. I think using slow editing here in my video will help to portray the couples intimacy when its just them together. And it helps the audience to focus on details that might have been over looked, e.g. holding hands.



Ellie Goulding - Starry Eyed
My next inspiration was from the cinematography of this video by Ellie. However, it is also the editing slightly as well. Below we can see three different shots that have been montaged together. Firstly, we see a mid shot of the couple walking together. Following this we see a close up of the couple holding hands. And after this we see a panning shot of a close up of the couples faces. I love the range of shots showing the couple together because I think it helps to create a sense of realism for the audience. It could also make the audience feel like they know the couple better as they are seeing various shots of them, therefore helping the audience to create a better relationship with them. I think I am going to try and use this in my own video when the couple are walking through a public place together, e.g. the market. I am possibly going to use this here because it creates a sense of intimacy for the audience. And shows the couple are focused on each other even though they are surrounded by people.


Lana del Rey - video games
My final inspiration that I have taken is from this video by Lana, I have taken inspiration from the editing that she uses. She uses filters in this long/panning shot of two couples on their motor bikes smiling and having fun. The filter layered over the top gives the impression of the shot being old and implies to the audience that it is a memory. This allows the audience to build up a relationship with the actors/artist because by showing their memories they audience will feel like they  know them better and this helps to create a sense of realism for the audience. I think I am also going to use a filter like this In my video to show a memory, I will use it when the artist is thinking back to all of the happy times that she has had with her partner.


Three songs that I have considered using for my own music video are, Birdy -Wings, Ed Sheeran- Small bump and Kelly Clarkson - I do not hook up. I am going to tell my group my ideas in my next meeting with them and will explain my reasons for each song.

Music video storyboards - UPDATED

We created story boards in order to give us a clear structure and guidelines of our music video and what shots we will see when. By doing this it allowed us to plan and organise our filming schedule, as we could ensure that all of the shots needed in a certain location are taken. Also it helps us to ensure everything needed is included in the video. We can also plan ahead to make sure we bring all props and actors we need for the shots, therefore helping with the general production of the video.

Prior to designing our storyboards we carried out primary and secondary research in the form of a questionnaire and looking at other indie artists music videos. The primary research of the questionnaire asked our audience the conventions and what they expected to see in our indie music video. We used this research to aid our storyboard creation because it showed us the specific elements that we have to include in order to attract our target audience. This included things like, including musical instruments and having a narrative based music video with some elements of performance. Once our survey was completed we reviewed our results and included the most popular answers in our music video to appeal to the audience. In particular from our storyboards we noticed a 65% majority of the people asked said they would expect an artist to wear quite casual clothing in the video. This could be because by the artist wearing casual clothing it makes them more relatable to the audience and this shows that the people I asked generally relate to the indie music videos they watch and one of the ways  they do this is through the casual clothing the artist wears. This highlights to me the importance of choosing the correct clothing for my female artist so that the audience can relate to them. Also another reason this could be the most popular answer is because again like I said in my earlier point most fans of indie are aware that the music videos are quite low budget. Therefore by the artist wearing casual clothing is represents the video is more about the music then showing off money and wealth through over the top clothing. Therefore, in the video we gained inspiration from this and our artist wore everyday clothing. One of the outfits our artist is wearing a turtle neck, ripped jeans, a parker jacket, high top black convers and this will be styled with chokers to accessories. Another inspiration we gained from our primary questionnaire research was the type of camera shots that we are going to use within our music video, 62% of the people asked said that they mostly expected to see close up in an indie music video, which encouraged me to think about the type of close ups that I can include in the video. From this we gained inspiration to include lots of close ups of our artist singing in the field so that the audience can relate to our audience and feel as if the video Is more personal. Also it helps to highlight the artist emotion when singing certain lyrics therefore the audience will be able to relate their own emotions.
 Our secondary research of looking at similar indie artists was helpful, because these artists are already established and successful, therefore their videos will show us how they attract their audience. Also how they allow their audience to understand the concept of their video and get to know them on a more personal level. In this research I saw that one major way that indie artists done this was close up and playing an instrument. From this we was able to make sure we included all of these features that we recognised in other indie music artists in our own video. Specifically, in Lana Del Rays' Summertime Sadness, a time laps was used, this editing technique inspired Jemimah and she shared this with the group. We all really liked the idea of a time laps as it portrayed time passing by, which could easily link to our video as it is all about our artists past to present life experiences. Therefore we all gained inspiration from this an decided to incorporate this within our own video. At the start there will be a time laps of the clouds, this implies that the video is based on experiences that have happened over time. 


We took a majority of our inspirations from other indie music artists but also from some pop artists. One artists that my group and I took inspiration from was Ed Sheeran and his song 'Thinking out loud'. At the beginning of this video there is a silhouette of a dancer, I was inspired by this as I felt it helped to really focus the audiences attention and the dancer helped to portray the emotions that the lyrics represented. This helped us when planning our video and storyboards as my group and I recognised that we wanted to included performance elements, like in Ed's video, in our own video. It allowed us to see exactly what part of the video we wanted to plan a dance routine for, as on the storyboards we put the seconds for when the frame will occur in the song. Another successful indie artist that we looked at was Lana Del Ray, we looked at the conventions that her music videos include, so that we could get ideas to include in our own video. Furthermore, we looked at all of the various micro elements that are included, such as mes-en-scene (hair and make up, facial expressions, body language, lighting and colour and costumes, these combined help to give a sense of realism to the video), cinematography (the different shots that they included in order to maintain audience interest and engage them) and editing (how they connected their different shots in order to make the video flow).


My group and I sat down together to create our storyboards. Firstly, we discussed our general ideas for what we wanted to include and the various elements we want in it. We then started to produce our storyboards a frame at a time. We looked at the lyrics and tempo of the music to decide what frame we wanted to include. By doing it this way we could ensure that we included all of our inspirations and ideas that we had previously discussed and planned. We done these storyboards from the very first to the very end shot. For each individual one we included a basic picture of what we wanted the frame to look like, also the camera shot, location of the shot, iconography needed, lighting, actors, sound and editing we are going to use. At the bottom there was also a very brief description of the narrative.  We planned these together as a group so that we could all agree on each shot and there would be no arguments when it comes to filming. By doing this is helped us to visualise the shot when it comes to filming them. While creating these storyboards we shared out the responsibility, Rishika done most of the drawings because she it the best at art, therefore could provide a better visual representation of the shot. Jemimah had the song playing, allowing us to listen to the music and lyric, also she helped in planning what as going to be in each shot. Bettie and myself was looking back at our inspirations and helping to decided each frame.


By creating story boards for our ideas it helped us when filming because it gave us clear visual guidance of what we wanted our shots to look like. It also helped us to plan filming because we were aware of who needed to be there and what we needed to bring with us. Furthermore, It made it easier to create a filming schedule as we were able to group together all of the shots that were taken in the same location and film them on the same day. Each shot has a detailed column with a visual of the shot, the duration, shot type, location, iconography, lighting, actors, sound, editing and narrative description. Therefore, as well as having a visual image of what we want the shot to look like. When it comes to editing together our footage we will know what is meant to go where and how it is going to link with our next shot. Although will mainly followed our storyboards, we did make some alterations along the way to develop and improve our video. For example, shot 12 and other shots taking place in the tent is no longer in our video. Instead of having our artist sitting in a tent, we changed this to a mid shot of our artist and her partner running around and having fun in a field together. Another frame that we have altered was frame 4, instead of a high angled shot of the artist we decided to do a panning shot of the artist sitting in the chair and getting her photo box.

Planning individual magazine advert

A magazine advert is important to promote an artists album because it helps to create awareness of them album, which creates a buzz around the artists and the new release. By creating this buzz, the audience are likely to look into the artist to trying to find out more information and songs by them. The advert also gives the audience some hints and clues of what the music within the album will be like and what the should expect. Additionally, it reveals the artists style and characteristics by showing what they are wearing and their look. I am going to be planning a magazine advert for my artist to promote her new album with her no1 single in it. It is important to effectively plan this to makes sure I include genre conventions and ensure the advert appeals to the target audience, in order to effectively promote her album.

     Magazine adverts are important to help promote an artists album because it helps to show the artists personalities and gives the audience a sneak peek of what their artists music will be like.

        In my magazine advert i have decided to use primarily pastel colours in my advert. The writing is going to be in two different shades of blue, her name "Sharna Rae", the album name "Illuminate" and the number 1 single name "wings" is going to be in a darker shade of pastel blue because these are the most important words on the advert therefore needed to be highlighted to stand out to the audience. This will appeal to the audience as thee most important information will stand out to them, making it easy for them to quickly scan over the advert and find all relevant information. Also this darker colour of blue has connotations of tranquility, implying that Sharna and her music are quite calm and easy going. These connotations will appeal to Sharna's target audience because it revels partly what her music style will be like within the album.  The other writing/words "New debute album" and "featuring no1 single" are going go be in a lighter shade of pastel blue. By doing this it highlights that this information is not as important but it is still needed to make the writing make sense if you read it as a whole. By having the lighter blue it implies that this writing is fading into the background, which could represent our artist as quite shy and reserved. This is conventional of indie artists because without their music they can be seen as innocent and not outgoing, but use their music as a way of being confident and expressing themselves. Also I am going to have a dull grey sky background because I think this shows that her music is based on past experiences that may be a little negative and the artist was unhappy at this time in her life. However, this is contrasted by a fresh looking green colour for the grass, which further connotes that although the artist was going through a negative time in her life she has now learnt from this and can look back at it as an experience and learning curve for her.

       One convention that I am going to include in my magazine advert is the iconography of the guitar, this shows our audience that she can actually play an instrument and therefore has pure talent. Unlike other 'stars' that use auto tune and have other people create their music for them. It also portrays to the audience that she writes and composes her own music, this will make her more respectable as it highlights that her music is purely her and her own original style. This helps to promote Sharna's music because it reveals a clue of what her music will be like within the album and implies she will be playing the guitar in a song. It is conventional for indie artists to have a type of instrument in their music because they are much more about showing their own natural talent and not an auto tuned version of themselves.

      The image used in the magazine advert is a long shot of Sharna. In this shot she is holding her guitar tightly in one hand, and is standing up straight, but looking down away from the camera with some of her hair falling slightly over her face. This implies to the audience that she is quite a shy and insecure person as she is trying to cover her face and isn't making eye contact with the camera. Suggesting she is not confident with her facial appearance and could lack some self esteem. This makes the audience feel sympathetic towards her as many of the target age group would have been through confidence issues at some point, which makes them able to relate to her and share some emotions. However, the fact that she is standing up straight and hold her guitar tightly suggests that she uses her music as a way to express herself and be confident in who she is. This helps promote her music, because if it shows her as normally quite shy but confident in her music then it implies to the audience that she values and thinks her music is quite good, encouraging them to listen to it.
      By having her standing in an open field with green grass and a grey sky it suggests to the audience that she is a very open and accepting person, the open field could represent her mind. Anyone can walk into a public open field, suggesting she is open to every type of person. This makes her highly relatable to the audience because they would feel automatically accepted by her even though they don't actually know her.  Furthermore, it portrays that there is two sides to her, the duller grey side which is not very confident but then the green brighter side which is more confident and represents Sharna when she is performing/composing her music. As mentioned before it is conventional of indie artists to use their music as a way of escaping their insecurities and expressing themselves confidently.

      I decided to put Sharna herself just off centre because I think it displays her as a very humble person, even though it is her magazine advert she does not have to be the centre of attention. By representing her like this is displays her as a likable person and approachable, this will appeal to the target audience of my indie artist because if they relate to her as a person it helps them then to gain a better understanding of her music style and lyrics. It is conventional for indie artists to want their target audience to understand them as a person and convey their personality and experiences through their music, they often do this by presenting themselves a particular way and having primarily a narrative based music video. I put her name in big writing at the top of the page, just above her head because promotionally it is important for the audience to know the name of the artist they are looking at, also it makes it easy for the audience to link together and remember her name and face. The album name and single name are in the same size writing (slightly smaller then the artists name) This is because this is still very important information and needs to be noticed by the audience but cant over power her actual name. The rest of the writing is in an even smaller font because it is still needed but isn't anything that the audience actually need to remember. This text is more to make the advert make sense.

      I found planning my individual magazine advert and taking pictures of my sketches very helpful because it helped me to map out my ideas and see what worked and what didn't. I had a picture of what I wanted the advert to look like in my head, and this helped me to physically see what this would look like. It also helped me to consider the specific various colours that I am going to use In the advert, whereas before I was just thinking blue or black and not thinking about the various shades available. Also now when it comes to creating my advert of photo shop I will have a clear layout and plan of what I want my advert to look like. Furthermore, when I do my photos for the advert I will have a clear idea of what I want my artist to do and how I want them to position themselves, because I have already planned the position and look I want her to have.

Planning editing

Our first editing technique that we are going to use in our music video is montage editing. This will be used in the market scene when the artist and her partner are walking around together looking at all of the stalls and people. The montage will be a variety of shots montaged together, showing various elements in the frame, e.g. facial expressions, body language, stalls, other people in market. The montage editing will make the scene interesting for the audience as it encourages them to pay attention to what's going on, various elements will come in and out of frame quickly. Meaning they will have to be paying attention to see what each one is. Also the editing style helps to hype up the audience and create excitement, as the changing of shot is happening quite quickly the audiences heart rate could increase with each shot change. Using a  montage when the couple are walking through the market could show their  relationship to be exciting and like they are 'living on the edge' as they are hiding it from friends and family so trying not to get caught. However, this could also make the audience feel sympathetic towards the artist as they know the other partner does not want expose their relationship to their friends. Which could imply to the audience she is embarrassed of who she is, in front of her friends. As she is happy to walk around with her when nobody she knows is there.

The next editing technique that we are going to use in our music video is slow editing. This editing technique is quite self explanatory. The shot/frame is slowed down in order to create  certain affect. This editing style is going to be used in the field scene, when the artist is dancing around with her friends in the smoke. By using slow editing here is helps to capture the moment and allows the audience to capture the moment, as it allows them to see the genuine happiness of the friends and artist and therefore assists in creating intensity around the people dancing. By slow it down here it also creates suspense for the audience as they could think that the artist and her partner might get together when the scene slows, meaning it would be an 'edge of your seat' moment for the audience. Seeing if the couple come out to their friends in such an intense friendship moment. Slow editing also has connotations of calm and peacefulness, which could suggest to the audience that it is better for the artist and her partner to not reveal their true selves to their friends as it may disturb the peace. The audience are able to build up a relationship with the artist through this editing technique as they could feeling sorrow for her that she feels she may upset the peace if she reveals her true feelings for her partner.


The following editing technique that we are going to use in our music video is a fade. This is an editing technique that will help connect the different frames in the video. A fade editing technique creates a sense of realism as it is quite basic and not extravagant like a swirl. This helps to represent the artist as quite plain and ordinary, due to the basicness of the editing style. By representing her like this it makes her a more relatable person to the audience, it shows her more as a real person than a star. The audience can build up a relationship with the artist through this as they could possibly imagine themselves being friends with her and compare her to what their friends are like. A fade also helps the video to flow more and make sense instead of just jumping for frame to frame as it would disturb the fluency of the video. One of the key areas that we are going to use a fade editing technique is at the end of the video, the scene will fade to black. This highlights to the audience that it is likely the end of the relationship between the artist and her partner. However, as it is not show what exactly happens next it does create a sense of enigma within the music video. It does not show the audience exactly what happened between the two, this could interest the audience to watch more of the artist music videos, as they may think that is may reveal more of what happened between the two.


The final editing technique that we have decide to use in our music video is filters, this is where a colour or various colours are layered over the frame to give it a certain effect. We are going to use filters throughout the music video as it implies to the audience that the video is like her looking back at the relationship and what happened. It is as if the video is in the artists head and she is looking back. By using the filters it allows the audience to gain a better understanding of the artists emotions and what they are feeling. The sepia filter implies the artist is quite down and depressed due to the darkness of the colour, the audience could relate to this because by showing what emotions she is feeling the audience can link in past experiences when they felt these emotions. Meaning that the lyrics and narrative will be more understandable for them as they are linking in real emotions. It is conventional for indie music artist to use filters in their music videos because many of their songs are about past experiences and them looking back at how they felt at the time and what went wrong.


To conclude, we have decide to use filters, montage, fade and slow editing in our music video as these are common conventional editing techniques that are used within indie music videos to help the audience gain a better understanding of the narrative and what the artist is feeling.

Lyric analysis planning

By analysing the lyrics of our chosen song it helps us to plan out what elements we need to include in our music video. It also helps us to ensure that we include all of the various features that are needed to make sure that we have a successful music video.

From analysing the song we have concluded that the hidden message of the song is that the artist was going through difficulties with a loved one and that there relationship is not as good as it use to be. The can be seen when it says "so far from where we are" Implying that they use to have a close relationship but now come into difficulties. Also when it says "oh lights go down, in the moment we're lost and found" This could imply that they are only good together at night, this could be when they go out and are drunk or on drugs. Which could suggest that they aren't very comfortable with each other in the harsh lighting of day but are fine at night.

By analysing the lyrics we were able to plan the genre codes and conventions. We have decided when it says "oh lights go down, in the moment we're lost and found" We are going to have the artist singing into the camera, possibly playing an instrument. This is conventional of the indie genre because it shows that the artist actually has talent and is able to play an instrument. By showing they actually have a talent it could make the audience respect them more, as it shows they do not need auto tune or their music created by someone else. Also by her singing into the camera it allows the audience to feel like they are connecting to them and as if she is singing to them directly to them. Another convention that this has allowed us to plan was when it says "under a trillion stars" For this we are going to show our artist on bonfire night with her friends having fun, which is conventional of indie genre. This is because it shows them as real people as they are with their friends and having fun.

By showing them as in their natural state with their friends, it allows the audience to be able to connect to them more as they could imagine themselves as one of their friends, hanging out with them. Another convention that our lyric analysis has helped us to plan is having a narrative based music video, this is because indie artists mainly base their music and lyrics on real life events and experiences that have happened to them. This helps the audience to connect to them as they may have been in similar circumstances or gain a better understanding of the lyrics by linking it to a narrative.

Furthermore the analysis has helped us to plan the cinematography that we are going to use. When it says "oh dam these walls" we are going to have a close up of the artist. Therefore this shot will show the artists face and facial expressions as she is singing the lyric. By having a close up here it allows the audience to really see the expressions of the artists and they get a better feel of her emotions that she is feeling while singing that particular lyric. This is a common convention in indie music because their songs are generally about their emotions and a close up helps them to shows this even more, allowing the audience to build up their relationship with the artist. The close up of our artist while she is singing will help to show her actual talent and extraordinariness as she has such a beautiful voice, as well as conveying her emotions through being able to see her facial expression properly. By allowing the audience to know what emotion she felt as she was singing this song it enables them to follow the narrative better and link in similar emotions that the song may bring out in them.

 Another cinematography technique that the lyric analysis allowed us to plan was a long shot of the two ballerina dancers when it says "if these wings could fly" These two dancers are representing our artist and her partner, this long shot would let the audience clearly see the dance moves that the ballerinas are performing. Therefore, these can help to imitate the emotions and feelings of the artist and her partner.

Also it has helped us plan the editing techniques that we are going use. This includes, a time laps of the sky and the whole video at the start of the video. The sky represents clarity and the openness of the artist, linking this in with the time laps of the whole video it shows that the artist is thinking about what is happening. It implies that the video is her reminiscing on the relationship with her partner, and the sky shows that she is trying to find clarity within the relationship and what is happening between the two. This allows the audience to build  relationship with her because it makes the video seem as if she is telling them a story that they can relate to. Another editing technique that we have planned from this analysis is filters. We are going to use these throughout the video, the various filters we are going to use will be quite dark and gloomy. This will represent the artist as quite sad as it implies that she is looking back at her relationship with her partner. Also the filters imply she is looking back at the past, which is conventional of indie music. This is because their videos are normally a narrative based on the lyrics and the lyrics generally describe a past experience that they have had.  

The analysis has also helped us to plan all 5 elements of mes-en-scene. When the song says "in the moment we're lost and found" This is when the artist Is going to be singing into the camera and dancing around on the streets. For this frame our artist is going to be wearing a neutral coloured dress and a darker jacket on top, finished off with some black tights and shoes. The neutral coloured dress represents the artists innocence as it has connotations of purity. However as it is not completely white it could imply that she is not 100% innocent, this could be because she is going against the 'norm' and is in a same sex relationship. This could show that she is "lost" as the neutral colour does not show that she has a very outgoing personality due to the purity connotation. However, the denim jacket and black tights could suggest that she has "found" who she is as a person and it could imply her to the audience to be quite edgy and mysterious. As she has two sides to her. This outfit allows the audience to build a relationship wit our artist because the style choices are some that could be popular within the target audience. Meaning they will see her as an average every day girl.

The next element we have been able to start planning was positioning of characters. We have begin to consider starting our artist off as off centre in most of the shots as this will show her as shy and imply to the audience that she doesn't want to be the centre of attention. This is common within indie artists because they normally use their music as a way of expressing themselves and build their confidence. However, as the song goes on we want her to be more central within the shots, this will show to the audience that she is building up her confidence as she is telling her story. This could help the audience relate to her as many of the targeted age group would have gone through confidence issues at some point in life and could link there feelings to her story. As they see her growing more confident as the song develops they could also grow more confident.

Following this we was able to plan lighting, we think that we are going to use natural lighting in the frames when the artist and her partner are together on their own. This is because it shows how they interact naturally together and implies to the audience that they can be themselves when they are with each other. The audience will be able to link to this as normally everyone has one person in their lives that they can completely be themselves around, meaning they will be able to link this relationship to the song. The natural lighting will expose the pair and show what they are really like together. This could make the audience feel happiness for the couple as they have been hiding their feelings throughout the song and are finally showing what they actually feel for each other.

The next element we was able to start considering was the props used in the video, when it says "under a trillion stars" we are going to have a bonfire scene with the artist and her friends and partner. For this scene they will all be playing around the sparklers. The artist and her partner will be drawing hearts in the air with the sparklers, this sparkles could represent that 'love sparks' between the artist and her partner. It could show their fierce love for each other as sparklers/fire has connotations of danger and fierceness.

To conclude, by analysing the lyrics of our chosen song it has allowed us to consider the various cinematography, editing and mes we are going to include in our music video. By doing this we are also able to gain a better understanding of what connotations the lyrics have and what hidden meanings are portrayed in the song.