The 1980s

Genres of Music Videos

Genres: 

• Pop - Usually what the TV/radios play as they are often songs by well-established artists. They often have a boom when they are released, where viewers and listeners are introduced to the song(s), however it usually does not last very long. 
• Rock - A conventional rock song is based around real instruments such as electric guitar, bass and drums. It is developed out of rock and roll in the 1960s/70s and performed by rock bands.
• Grime - Originating in England, it combines elements of garage, hip-hop and rap but it is more about violence and often filmed in the streets and estate blocks.
• Folk/Blues - It is a tradition of country, rural areas, music. They usually perform with acoustic instruments such as guitars and banjos. 
• Hip-Hop - Originating in the USA, it is rooted out from the 1970s containing upbeat rhythmic music, with rapping and perhaps a singing chorus. 
• Metal - A louder, harsher sounding music of rock with strong instrumental beats using electric guitars, bass and drums. 
• Electronic - Instead of intruments, uses electronic instruments such as keyboards and sythesisers. It is often looped to create a catchy, upbeat rhythm.  
• House - DJ music originated in the early 1980s. It is an electronic dance type of music with heavy synthesised bass and drum lines, using catchy loops.
• Drum and Bass - Heavy electronic music emerged from rave and oldschool jungle scenes in England during early 1990s. 
• R&B - Full of rhythm and blues, funk-influenced pop music that orginated as disco. 
• Jazz - Usually contains a full band with jazz instruments such as saxaphones and trumpets. It is a highly sophisticated harmonic idiom. 

Differences:

Rap vs. Rock 

 - Rap is more upbeat in terms of computer-made beats, as opposed to rock which use real instruments, like guitars and drums with a band and singer.

- Rap songs are usually about money, women and drugs whereas rock songs are more about relationships and life in general.

- Rock sometimes do not include the artist(s) and are associated with men with long hair and smoke cigarettes. 

- Rap is quite aggressive and violent are usually associated with gangs, sexual activity and swearing.

Rock Music:

Music Video Analysis

Seminal Music Video 

David Bowie - Ashes to Ashes

Contemporary Music Video

Justin Bieber - What Do You Mean

Controversial Music Video 

Nicki Minaj - Anaconda

Controversial Music Video from Shanzelle

DigiPak and Magazine Advert

Dolly Test

This was our Dolly practise. It was very easy to use but we had to be extra careful. However, because the green screen was not very large, our media classroom was shown when we reversed.

Green Screen

This was our video practising with the green screen. We had a few difficulties such as getting the flashing lights to cooperate as it didn't really work in post-production.

Research and Planning Processes

Creativity

Use of Digital Technology

PRELIMINARY VIDEO TASK

Pre-Production

For my preliminary video, pre-production only consisted of 20 minute planning. We didn't really use or need digital technology in this section, because of our restricted short time, we weren't able to plan to the best. In our video, we had to include match on action, shot-reverse-shot, 180 degree rule. Someone had also go through a door.

From our plan, we concluded Aidan was going to be our protagonist and that we were going to use the media block and room 64 as our location. Additionally, Tawanda was our cinematographer and the rest of us assisted. We had to have a screenplay too, so we quickly made one.

Production

During Production, we filmed our sequence in order of the screenplay. We used the Canon DSLR. We considered everything we needed such as shot-reverse-shot and 180 degree rule for later, so we filmed twice during the conversation.

Post-Production

This was the editing section. Here, we pieced the whole video together, picking the best footages to combine, using the software Final Cut Pro. In Final Cut Pro, we were able to add sound and some sort of text. During editing, we made sure we included all the requirements needed and that it weren't too long. 

THRILLER OPENING

Pre-Production 

During Pre-Production, we were able to plan for a long time. I was able to research and plan with my group as well as by myself. I was able to track my every research on this website - BLOGGER. I used Google as my main search engine to get to other websites such as IMDb.com and BoxOfficeMojo.com. I also used other softwares to present my data like Prezi and Scribd.

Production 

In production, we only used one camera, the Canon DSLR 650D.  This had many strengths and weaknesses. For example, it was very useful in focusing, zooming and being stable when we put it on tripods. However, it didn't have the best mic therefore we had to add an extra one to make sound better. 

Post-Production

Post-Production includes the editing process. For this we used the software Final Cut Pro.  We used Final Cut Pro to piece every raw footages together - choosing various angles and frames - add sound and text/credit. 

Post-Production

Conventions from real media texts