Effects + Transitions

Effects - We decided to experiment with the different types of effects that were available on Final Cut Pro in attempt to make our music video the best it could be. The majority of the effects made the footage amateurish and weren't appropriate for our genre - R&B. As we wanted to use an effect for the reminiscence shots to show that it is a flashback, we played around with different effects. The sepia effect wasn't right as it had too much of an orange tint and the black and white effect looked good but it was too strong an effect for it to be suitable for our video. In the end, we decided to desaturate the shots, which made them fainter; this is effective in showing that they're flashback scenes.

Transitions - The only transitions that are suitable for our genre and look professional are either the cross-dissolve or the fade in and fade out transitions. We are going to use these regularly through the video to mark the beginning and ending of a flashback. Also we may use these in other scenes to make one clip run in to another clip smoothly.

Starting to editing

After we captured the shots we had we started editing.
We had a pan shot of Syed walking down the bridge and looking down we thought this might be a good shot to start off the song before the lyrics are sang.

When the lyrics are sang the title is sang before the verse, 'How do i breathe', and we have thought to put a close up shot of Syed's mouth lipsyncing the lyrics.
When the verse begins we have put a medium shot of Syed on the bridge lipsyncing the lyrics and are going to put shots at other locations of him lipsyncing the first verse as the one shot looks too long for one verse.

We began to match a shot of Syed reminiscing about Chelsea and thought it would look better if it was shown when the song played 'i just had a wake up call...' we also attempted to match the shot with the beat and so the shot at the moment looks a bit like a jump cut shot as the camera was zooming in slowly towards Syed and Chelsea when they were sat on the bench acting as if they had different opinions about something.

Update

Our next task is to film over the holidays and get last few shots done. And then after editing and putting the music video together. Group is working as a team coming up with good ideas and that has helped us think of good shots that we have taken.

Editing

Our group started editing and the shots and lipsynching do match the in the film. we captured it on the computer and just put it into test and we were quiet please. we still have some filming to do which will be done through the holidays in our own time, and just capture the video when college starts again. our next location would be a park.

Filming Update

Today had a very slow start, we felt we were running out of places to film so we went back to Deansgate bridge to get some more ideas so that we was still making the most of our time. We decided to do some more reminiscing shots as we hadn't filmed any in this location. We took some shots of the couple sat together on a bench; we didn't give much direction on what to so because we wanted it to appear realistic. Me and Zafreen then decided to film a long shot, then zoom in a bit and film and continue like this until it was a close-up; in a similar manner we filmed them and then zoomed in until the camera went between their heads and past them. This shot looked very good when we replayed it back; the sun shining behind them which meant that the shot was clear and there was 3 seagulls sat on a hand rail behind them; overall this made the shot look professional. We also went to the top of the bridge and zoomed onto them so that it's a high angle shot, looking down at them. When we captured this on Final Cut Pro we thought that it could be implied that it's Syed looking down at his memories.

Then we went to a nearby area and had Syed lip-sync the next verse. We wanted him to be sat down on the stairs so it creates variety in the pose of the star; he also lip-synced the chorus. We filmed him with a long shot, mid shot and close-up; this makes it easier during the editing process to be able to have enough footage to create fast cuts and show a mixture of shots.

Locations

We manage to use same location such as the bridge near East is East, Triangle, Arndale Tower and Starbucks. These location were still useful for our Music Video as we needed places which define the word "Reminiscing". This is a key word for our movie as it is based on romance and heartbroken story of Mario.

Lip-Syncing

In order to make the lip-syncing look professional we had Syed follow some tips we found. Hopefully this will help Syed and make our music video as good as possible.

Learn that song. If the singer has an easily understood voice listen to what they're saying. Don't bother to learn the words, but feel free to glance at them.

Watch how people talk. Pay attention to how people with different accents move their lips differently to yours. Imagine yourself saying what someone else is on

TV. Practice this for a while.

Tips

Dont try to sing the exact words of the songs, merely what the artist sounds like they're saying. In other words, if the word is "Example" but the artist pronounces it "Icksumpul", don't make the lip movements of "Example!"

The trick to lip syncing is knowing the entrances and coming in about a split second before. Otherwise you will lag.

Have fun with the song. Maybe do a play on words while you're syncing (i.e do the 'call me' sign if the singer says something like 'ring me up')

Don't try too hard. Not all lip syncers are perfect, and you're bound to mess up

Filming Update

Today we went to Starbucks to film the next verse and the chorus. We decided to are going to have a different location for each verse however for the chorus it will be a a variety of locations. After getting permission from the manager and being given an exclusive area to film, we confirmed what shots we wanted and then began filming. First we did some side shots, mid, close-up and extreme close-ups of Syed singing. This looked good because there was a mixture of different shot types. Then we moved onto some reminiscing shots of Syed and Chelsea together.
We did a whip-pan of the couple sat together, two shots and some of individual shots of them looking at each other. We had an idea of making it look like Syed is singing to her so we did some shot reverse shots and some more two shots; this meant that we seen that he was lip-syncing but also her reaction to him.

Locations

Trinity Bridge - Deansgate.

This is the location where we did the majority of our filming; it is perfect for the mise en scene in our video. The buildings have a very urban, modern edge to them and the bridge and river look photogenic. There is a high amount of sunlight available in this location and as it is outside all of the areas are accessible meaning there is no hassle in getting permission for filming. Also this means that we can use a variety of camera shots and angles such as long shot, medium shot, close-ups and shots which require movement such as tracking shot and pan. In addition as we were short on time, by using particular areas we could use this location for more than one scene. Instead of using an establishing shot, which we found looked amateurish when filmed, we could begin the intro of the video with Syed walking down the bridge.

Shotlist

To make our blog look appealing and creative I went back to this post and put one of our finished inside covers as a background for the shotlist

Details of Artist's Availability - Shooting Schedule

Shooting Schedule

We wrote this list to show exactly when Syed is available for shooting.

Tuesday's - 1:00 onwards
Wednesday's - 12:00 onwards
Thursday's - 9:00 - 2:00
Friday's - 9:00 - 2:00

We could film during lesson times which are Tuesday's - 9:00 - 12:00 and Friday's - 2:00 - 4:00 however we all thought it was best if we used that time for capturing the footage and beginning the editing; then we will film during our spare time.

Orginal Video

Mario - How Do I Breathe

Analysis of R&B Video

Chris Brown - With You



This video is concentrating mainly on the artist Chris Brown; he plays the main role in the video. He lip-syncs throughout the video using a variety of side shots, mid shots and close-ups.
The video is both performance based and narrative based. He showcases his dancing skills in the video appealing to many male fans and also female fans. This could be that its a demand of the record label (Goodwin's theory on music videos); they want to represent the artist as both a good dancer and singer. Also he tells a love story in the music video with the use of a female actor. It is shown that there is some conflict between them and that she has left him; this shows a link between the lyrics and visuals. Then it moves on to him reminiscing about their relationships. There are some shots which may appear sexual; this could appeal to the target audience as its showing a realistic view on a relationship. The girl is stereo-typically good-looking with a 'sexy' figure; this refers to the media of only using girls who look good. Also it could appeal to male fans. In reference to Goodwin's theory on music videos, there is a strong use of objectification of women. There is also a complimentary use of a link between the music and the visuals.
The video is set both outside for example the streets and the bus and inside e.g. his apartment. This shows a realistic view on a guy that his age, who would spent both time in his apartment and outside. The surroundings appear realistic and don't look like sets made for the video. It captures a laid-back feel to it with the mixture of dance and narrative in it.
There is a variety of shots which include pan, close-ups, long shots and establishing shots. The majority of the video uses a niche type of filming and editing, to rotate the shots and make it appear that he is sat upside down in his apartment and walking upside down.

Codes + Conventions of Music Videos

Conventions

Lyrics + Ideas

We thought we'd search for the song's lyrics just for reference. The lyrics will also aid in giving us the literal interpretation for our storyboard and help construct the time line for each shot. Overall the song is 3 minutes 40 seconds however w are going to make the about the video about 2 minutes 40 seconds. This ensures that we reach the deadline; also at the end he sings using very high notes, this will be difficult to lip sync to so we want to end the video before this. We are going to attempt to film each verse in a different location e.g. verse 1 will be filmed at deansgate bridge and another verse in a park etc.

A convention of R&B videos is that the duration of shots seem to be long in the verses so attention is payed to the lyrics, while there is faster cutting during the choruses when the audience is more familiar with the repetition of the words. We are going to attempt to do this by having a number of fast cuts and variety of camera angles and shots during the chorus. Also we could use Syed lip-syncing to the chorus in more than one location whereas during the verses there will be just the one location.

Goodwins Theory On Music Videos

We thought it'd be useful to keep a list of Goodwin's Theory intact on our blog so we can keep refering to it whenever we need to think or develop any ideas.

• Links between Lyrics and Visuals
• Links between Music and Visuals (Complimentary, Contradicting or Amplification)
• Genre characteristics
• Intertextual reference
• Notions of Looking (objectification of women)
• Voyerism (direct gaze, other people looking at artist, insight into artists life, screens and mirrors)
• Demands of the Record Label (representation of the artist)
• Performance based, Narrative based or Concept based music videos

About The Song

How Do I Breathe

Filming Update

Today we filmed at Deansgate Bridge; the scene for the first verse of the song. First we filmed a pan and a tracking shot of Syed walking down the bridge; this could be used instead of an establishing shot. Then after some practice shots of Syed singing the verse, we filmed him lip-syncing whilst stood at the bottom of the bridge; to create a low-angle shot and make the audience look up to the artist. We also filmed him lip-syncing this same verse but we varied the shot type by using close-ups, mid shots both from the front and from the side. We kept in mind the 180 degree rule throughout the filming process.

Chosen Song

As a group, we have decided to change our song choice. We came to this conclusion due to having trouble with making the video look professional; me and Zafreen decided that we weren't 'performers' and were finding it difficult to lip-sync. Syed believes he will find it more comfortable to lip-sync alongside the performing so we have now changed the female song to a male song.

New song-choice – How do I breathe by Mario

Introduction – We have decided that a mixture of both performance and narrative will be most effective; the majority of the video will be illustrative however we may decide to have some disjuncture if we run out of ideas.

Song choice – We think that this will be a more suitable song choice as after some practise shots with Syed, he is a much better performer and we believe that we have a wider range of locations that would suit this song. As a group, we will make the most of the footage that we have already produced for example as we have already begun the editing process and captured our footage we will attempt to use some existing shots like the establishing shots; also we will work to the best of our ability to ensure that we complete the production and editing in the time we have.

New roles –

Syed = Performer

Rest of the group = Camera work and Editing

We will publish more posts when we have time as our priority at the moment is finding more locations and getting up to date with the filming. We believe that to ensure we complete the video in time; we will capture our footage as we go along and begin our editing scene by scene. This will benefit us as it means we will not accidentally lose any of our footage and also have space on the tape to do more filming.

Filming Update

Today we went to the top of Shudehill car park and filmed an establishing shot of the city centre. We also went to the top of Arndale car park and filmed a pan of the city centre. These shots looked good however due to the bad weather when we captured it onto Final Cut Pro the lighting was very dim meaning that the shots didn't look as good. Also it was very windy which meant that the pan wasn't smooth; when we next have time we are going to film these shots again.
This image is from the top of arndale and this image is from the top of shudehill.

This is one of the location in process " The Starbucks Coffee". This is two shot of Zafreen and Syed at the location of how the the actors would be placed in the camera.

This is another two shot at the same location of Syed and Atekka. And we will be filming at the location as it is a really important and good location to be part of our music video.

This shot is idea of showing difference in time. From one time space to another, with different actors present. This is one of the most important shot in the music video as you will see in our actual video is finish in the making.

Research

The song's lyrics tell a story about two women disputing the love of a man and were inspired by Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson's 1982 duet "The Girl Is Mine."

Music video

The video begins with the girls in their apartments, watching television. Brandy watches the The Jerry Springer Show (whose episode title is that of the song) but then Monica accidentally turns Brandy's TV to a romantic movie, in which Monica is watching on her own TV set. Whenever Brandy or Monica turns the channel, the other's TV stays on that channel and they grow sick of it. They then give up and start to sing. The next scene shows Brandy and Monica discussing their problem with their separate groups of friends. The "boy" himself (played by Mekhi Phifer) then appears outside the two girls apartment, where all their friends walk by him as they exit their respective friends place.. The girls are in pajamas next, and then each one calls the man over to choose. After Brandy and Monica fight with words, the man comes to the apartment, frustrated over who to choose. The door opens, and only Brandy is shown. Then it swings a little wider and Monica comes. The man gets a startled expression, and the door is slammed in his face. The video was nominated for two 1998 MTV Video Music Awards, for Best R&B Video, and Video of the Year.