"Shake it Off" Music Video Lip Sync

As part of an introduction to the course, two classes were taken to the studio, split into three groups and rotated around 3 camera set ups,  and filmed 30 second shoots to the Sogn Shake it off by Taylor swift. A song deliberately chosen because the department new we all hated it.

In order to prepare for the shoot, we all had to learn the lyrics, and bring some costume to wear.
People brought morph suits, flowers hats, and a whole array of items to be used as props.



Initially i was appointed as Assistant Director, and had to audibly inform the studio, when shooting was about to commence.

"Quite on set", get everyone ready, a preparation command to see if everyone is ready to shoot the next take.

"Standby" once i have confirmation from the crew that we are ready do go.

"Rolling", the DOP's press record

At which point i give the Playback operator a polite nod, to indicate to them to press the play button on the soundtrack/song. The playback also doubled as a Clapper board which was placed in front of one of he cameras before each take.



Like i said, the 3 different groups rotated around the three stage set ups...


1. A Canon SLR, Tripod, and a stationary lens, facing a couch, the set up was designed for good visuals, and camera quality, the stationary lens meant that the camera only had to focus on one length instead of compensating for many.

2. The green screen, though it wasn't used for any visual effects, it gave us an idea about working with backgrounds. The camera, a Sony NX5, was set on a tripod,  and eye-line hight.

3. The dolly, a Sony Professional Grade NEX-FS100, was set on a dolly track, with a rocky background, the track carrying the car the length of the Set, this made for some interesting shots, and gave the music video more dimension.


After we shot for a few hours, we went up to the editing suit to put together the footage, splitting up into smaller groups from the ones before. The footage had been shot over the top of 'Shake It Off' playing in the back ground, and when piecing together footage, we had to match the clapper board in the videos to the one on the soundtrack, otherwise the lip sync would not work.

What did i learn from this exercise?

In short, i found out that there are plenty of other things which need to happen on the set of a music video than that of a regular shoot. But this taster did give me ideas on how to shoot the music video that we do for our final piece of course work, the use of the dolly etc... I also learned that on the set of a music video there needs to be more control over the cast and crew on set. For idea that i have, that involve a lot of extras, this is essential for me to get the hang of now!

The Practice Website Foo Fighters

https://practicewebsite4dominic.wordpress.com/

Building my first homepage "Using Word Press"

The Home Page

Two things which were important when making the home page where an image of the band, the bands name, which has to stand out, and easy access to anything that the pages visitor might want to know or see. So i added links to the most relevant information, and a side bar and lower header which contains links to social media, and the ability to share the site.

On the home page is also immediate notifications about the band, like the new album release, and other news that the fans might want to know.

Unlike the bands official page, this one is designed to appeal to the new or potential audience, rather than  an existing one...

About

To Taylor for a new audience, i added an about page containing information about the bands history, the band members, and a little about their backgrounds, so the new fans get to know their band a little better. Almost like a mini biography if you will...

I also added links to music download websites, so that they can listen to the new songs, and a YouTube link to the bands Vevo page on YouTube...

Members Area

This came to me as another way the Foo Fighter could earn money, why just give away content when you can make the super-fans pay for it? You may have noticed that images of the band are persistent throughout the relevant pages. In this case, it is so the fans keep in mind who they are paying to see exclusive content of, their favourite band. Ive also given the intensive of having potential Prize winners, i haven't specified what those prizes might be, but the audience will use their imagination and think "Free T-Shirt", "I might get to meet the Band" and so on, and this will make them want to pay the money to be a member. Another Source of Revenue

 Shop

 Another source of revenue, because fans love merchandise, and will pay £14.99 for a T-shirt...

The page also includes OUT OF STOCK products , as a nice touch of realism. This links on the immediate web page, as it would make sense for fans to have easy access to this kind of stuff.


Tour Dates

Finally, tour dates, another feature that should be easy access, if you click on the date, then the link will take you too a page where you can buy the ticket for the show, which is external to this page. The Tour date go from jun 19th, all the say to September, and if were to be constantly run, would be updated every time a tour date passed. However i wont say if the date is sold out, because the fans may be drawn to other features of the website.  

Conventions of a Website, Rock & Roll

 Foo Fighters

The page for the band is simplistic, a picture of their new album cover, their FF logo and the lead singer/guitarist Dave Grohl being the first images we see. This is obviously a webpage designed for existing fans, and not designed to draw the attention of a potential audience.
However the conventions of a Rock band are there, a guitarist on stage, the font inscribing 'Foo Fighters' has lighting bolts in some of the letters, which connotes the power of Rock and Roll, the colours are all within the black and white colour range.

Stone Temple Pilots

The webpage maintains some of the conventions of the Foo Fighters webpage, however there are some differences, such as the Fonts and colours. The fonts used in this page, are more fluid and look hand written as apposed to digital, and the overall homepage is darker, yet there is more use of colours, in things like the bands logo, and the home image,  also features a band playing live.
The overall layout of the site, is similar to that of the first one, but the use of colours may represent a different style of Rock and Roll.

 Nirvana

There much more going on in this web page, Nirvana are a ver 90s Band, so representation of the Rock and Roll Genre will differ for the previous two. Here there are more colours, and a much bigger symbol of the band, in the background of the page.

Like the previous two sites, their are links to social media, recent news and updates, and all of the Links expected, in similar layout. The huge difference being, is that the page is much louder in terms of colour and font.

Pearl Jam

This Page is much more similar to that of the first home page, the Bands name, black and white colours, a bolder font, which still represents Rock and Roll, through being 'BIG'. Some hints of colour, but nothing miraculous enough to differentiate between the first example.

There should also be a image of the Band on the

home page, yet this hasn't shown up on the screen 

shot, just something to bare in mind...

Negus - Organic and Synthetic Acts in the Music industry

Negus theorised that there are two different types of acts within the music industry, ones that are organic, and ones that are synthetic. Organic acts are self formed and the institution, or label, ha very little creational input in the band of group, they are usually long terms sources of revenue. Synthetic acts, are fully formed as a result of the institution, in order to make quick and easy money, these groups are usually incredibly popular, or at least one of their songs becomes a one hit wonder. They don't last very long and the institutions that concoct them don't expect them to survive a season or at the most a year.

Organic acts are more specifically aimed, and the audience will continue to enjoy the material and media that the Band or Group produces. Foo Fighters, were formed in 1995, and still have a fan base 20 years later, and maintain many of the original fans. Foo Fighters have a unique style of RockMusic as the the Singer Songwriter for the Band Dave Grolh, approaches the guitar in the same way he approaches playing the drums, and the audience recognise this organic approach to his the Bands Music. This benefits the the institution, as they have a band that can generate long term revenue, and that requires little maintenance.

Other 'organic acts' include :

Ed Sheran
Red Hot Chilli Peppers
James Blunt
Kanye West

As all of the performers create their own music and have their own personalised style within the genera that they play.

The fact that they are organic, are represented synthetically, as their is no other way to do so.

A good example of this is Amy MacDonald...

The difference between a Synthetic act and and Organic act is that Synthetic acts are short term and aimed to make quick and easy money, if they last longer than expected that means good business for the institution, as the money is even easier, and the fans will buy anything that that group make.

Synthetic acts include :

Justin Bieber
Taylor Swift  (In her Early Days)
The Bloodhound Gang
and most other groups which appease a teenage audience for a short period, and then disappear.

What genere of Music am I interested In?

My Dad on the right hand side, with
one of his Guitar Designers.

If i want to fully explain what my tastes in music are, i have to look back to around he time i was 6-7 years old, when i began to fully understand what my parents did for a living. My Dad is the Managing directing of the Musical instruments company JHS, and he has worked with players of all genere, but more specifically Rock and Roll, people like “Gordon Giltrap”, “Def Leopard”, so from a young age I haven't really been exposed to anything else.

As i got older i learnt to play and spent most of my time either writing songs, ( Which Were Terrible now i look back ), or listening to everything that me friends didn't listen to. Me and by Brother took a huge interest in the “Foo Fighters”, “RHCP”, and all the modern Rock Bands. When i was 11 my dad took me to go see “Status Quo”, as we where doing a guitar deal with them, i though it was Awesome, i got hooked on the power of the Music and the Audience and i got this feel for what Rock and Roll was. 

More recently I've been going to parties were lots of Pop and use music is played and getting into media studies and film making means Im more open to different music styles, i use music to help me imagine different ideas to screenplays> For example if the song were to be used as a soundtrack to a film, what would be the film about, what would be happening, who are the characters and so on.

Looking currently, as we have established i take a huge interest in all Genres of Music, as i Serve in HM’s Army Cadet Force, and teach a lot of Drill, I'm obligated to listen to regimental Tunes, such as “The War March of the Men of Glamorgan”, often played during the changing of the Guards outside Buckingham Palace, and other Regimental Tunes, its gets my head into Rhythm for calling out timings on the march. Outside of that, i find the Military and Band genere to be very powerful and uplifting music, which i also listen to for enjoyment.

2IC of my section on
Otterburn Plain, I still
prefer Drill...

What has As done for me and what will can i take with me to A2?

I guess the simple answer is that it has further opened my mind to the meaning behind media texts, everything that we see and listen to within media has connotations, even stuff we don't like, we react differently to music and film because it has material that we may or may not relate to, as i found out analysing Blank Space by Taylor Swift. The song had a lot more meaning than i originally would have perceived

What do audiences get out of watching Music Videos

Blumler, Lazerfield, and Kat’s Theory 

All three of these people  had similar theory, And that is that audiences aren't passive, they will respond to the connotations of Media texts, meaning that they are active. When they consume texts they get something out of it, it fore-fills a need they have. We refer to this as the “Uses and Gratification”, audiences use the texts for something they want or will receive by watching/listening/reading texts.

Diversion - A way to escape from the mundane reality, a fantasy. Applying this to music videos, is a way to express a more exiting world that the audiences what to be a part of.

Personal Relationships - The audience feeling companionship with the characters in media texts, soap opera is a good example as you explore the detail of their life’s. 

E.g. Rock music videos, back stage, hand held camera, shows personalities, not the negative. 

Turn Down For What - DJ Snake & Lil Jon

The music video is defiantly comedy Genre

as the dancing is juxtaposed with the casting and the Song, the characters don't fit with the style of dancing, which ads to the comedy. Along side this, the whole clip is surreal, strange and intriguing , because it doesn't really mean anything, its just people having a really good time, getting others to join in, and recking things in the process, and doing actions for that seem inhuman, the party never stops, even at the end of the Music video. Though everyone in the room passed out by the end of the video, the protagonist's penis, is still dancing around in his tracksuit.

If you were to watch this video without the Music, you realise just how  meaningless it is in terms of narrative, so the audience will defiantly feel for the wackiness, and find the music video overall to be very funny. That would explain the songs only Lyric "Turn Down For What?" being so popular on websites like Vine, and becoming a generalised meme on the Internet.

This is the Music Video, the first clip is the original 

video, and the one bellow is without the music...

Blank Space - Taylor Swift

Taylor is commonly known for creating music with a theme of Romance, and having teen girls as a target audience, and Blank Space is no acception. The music video and the lyrics are all about relationships with a character one may presume as Prince Charming, but is actually, in Taylor's mind a jackass. The theme of the music video is very modern fairytalish, the staging is very extravagant to illustrate the lack of realism, which translates to the idea that the personality of this Prince charming character isn't real, and lifestyle that comes with him isn't real either. 

The message is very clear, and very meaningful, the teen audience that the video and the song is targeted for will be at the age where they start wanting to meet guys, stereotypically, and Taylor is trying to explain that you need to be carful and not have high expectations, because it might not be what they expect.

 Different viewers from outside a target audience will view the material 

different, this parody by Bart Baker, received 34 million views on Youtube, and is a perfect representation of what others take away from Taylor Swift's Music.

Madonna 'Like A Prayer'

‘Like a prayer’ was released in 1989, as an attempt by Madonna to re-establish her brand image, as before her target audience were of a younger generation, and her music belonged to the Pop genere. the Idea behind the music video music the song, was to give her a new, grown up and iconic fashion image, however this backfired, and ‘Like a Prayer’ is now considered one of the most controversial music video ever, due to its excessive use of juxtaposition of religious iconography and sexualised behaviour. In the video there are depictions of a Black Jesus, Madonna reciting lyrics that connote sexual activity, and she also partakes in sexual activity with the racial diverse saint, in church. The images and lyrics are constantly emphasised, resulting in interpreted themes of Sex, along side disgraceful depiction of both Religious and racial stereotypes.

First we will focus on the racial and to and sexual aspect that was considered inappropriate. First of all there is an objectification of Females, depicting Madonna as a rape victim, the narrative is used to visualise women as a sexual object, as she is attacked by several white men, at the same time, her costume contains connotations of the theme of Sex, in the form of a tight fitting and revealing dress, and bed hair. Her Costume is worn throughout the video, and is most often worn in Church, where the straps of her dress come down to her shoulders on several occasions, further emphasising the theme of Sex. Her costume, is also a dark red colour, red in media has connotations of lust, and love and temptation, in religious terms, its the colour of the devil and evil, like in media. During the scene she is at the knees of a statue of the black deity, the lyrics, Diegetic dialogue, “I’m down on my knees, I wanna take you there”, can be interpreted to further emphasises the theme of Sex, at the same time she is speaking to a racial interpretation of Jesus, and in a church, which is one of the reasons the Music Video is So controversial.

Now for the Racial Connotations, Madonna is rescued by a black man from the white rapists, the man is also the music videos depiction of Jesus. After discovering and tending to her he is caught by police and becomes the scapegoat for the rape and attack. This may not seem controversial, it depicts police brutally to an extent, and how people base their opinions and make judgement on stereotypes, i.e. black people commit crime, and this can be seen as a brutal yet fair challenge of societies attitude. But the next scene, we see her dancing in front of Burning Crosses, these props would be viewed as a representation of Black Hate and the KKK (Klu Klux Klan),  this might be interpreted in a way that defines Madonna as a racist or, if you included all the other offences she has caused by poorly representing the Church, using sexual and racial connotations to create new and highly offensive impressions of both the African community and the Church. The mise-en-scene and character positioning in this part of the video, doesn't fail to be controversial, as it connotes to black and white stereotypes, as well as subverting them, in ways that would be found offensive.

Finally, there is further use of sexual connotation, the music throughout, has matched the action going on in the video, at points that should be viewed as positive or of good nature, there is upbeat non-diegetic music playing, and at times which are negative or connote ad nature, the music is deeper and reflects evil, which explains why she is standing in front of the crosses, when evil music is playing, it can be seen as a representation of what her opinion is on the way of thinking adopted by white power groups, which we can gather, by the tone non diegetic melody, is a negative opinion. even though character positioning would suggest otherwise. 

In conclusion, the Music Video, has many mixed representations, as it has several different depictions which can be interpreted in different ways, Madonna being a racist, disrespecting the church and so on. However, the overall message would suggest that Madonna is disgracing racism, and was attempting to depict african Americans in a better light, and how her victimised character, saw the man who came to her aid, as her saviour, by depicting him a Jesus. Obviously due to the conventions my people took the music videos interpretations and metaphors seriously, so much so that the Pope, banded Madonna From coming to Italy. But if you consider the representations and the technical aspects used, the suggested message is the one that we my use most appropriately.

Music Generes

Music Campaigns Comparison

The Music Video, 'Stressed Out', from Blurry Face.

1D's Music Video for 'You Don't Know Your Beautiful'