Music Video CCR

1. The product used several of the elements commonly found in pop music videos including props, angles, and camera shots. Examples of props used include a cellphone, which can be seen within scene twelve where I am entering the mall. Many other videos will use smartphones as well for the same reason or for reasons that move the storyline along. In this case, the smartphone was used as a prop for the actor to hold and made the hands look occupied, as opposed to hanging awkwardly on both sides. Bright lighting was also included within the video. The bright lighting coincided with the storyline, as the third scene was of the actor waking up and getting ready for the morning. If the lighting had been dark, it would not have made sense with actions taking place. Shots such as medium, full, and two shots as well as the eye level angle were used within the video as well. These shots and angles also added to the common conventions within pop music videos. The setting of the video was inside a home and a mall. Many other pop music videos can be seen in these settings as well, as these settings can coincide with many different storylines, including this one. Lastly, the editing used was simple, but included several extra effects. This was done in order to not distract from the storyline or take away from what was happening. However, transitions such as the fade transition were used in order to add to the storyline and allowed the audience to understand that the actor was thinking of what they would do if they were wealthy.

         The makeup used within this video did not align with the elements of many pop music videos. Although a lack of makeup, or what looks to be a lack of makeup to the audience, is present in some music videos, for this storyline, as it includes wealth, many pop music videos would include makeup. The reason why I did not apply makeup throughout the video was as a result of my poor makeup skills. In addition, my mother is not very good at makeup either, which also led to the actors not wearing makeup within the video. Overall, the absence of makeup did not affect the storyline too much. However, with those products applied to the faces of the actors, the video would have looked better, especially because it would have been beneficial to show the element of wealth with eyeshadow or lipstick that matched the outfits worn.

        This product represents social groups or issues by including people who dream of being wealthy. As majority of people within the world do not have large amounts of money, this leads to many dreaming of what would happen if money was easily attainable. The music video also adds a sense of relatability for this group, as some can see themselves within the main character.

2.          This product engages with audiences with the simple storyline and minimal amount of editing used. The storyline of the video is easy to grasp, allowing for the audience to understand what is occurring within the video without too much difficulty. A complex storyline would have been more interesting with a longer time frame, however, the simple storyline used allowed for ease when watching the video and fit with the time limit given. In addition, the editing used allows for engagement as well. The scene of fast motion, for example, allows for a change in visuals and uniqueness while watching the video, as none of the other scenes are like it. Even though the editing was minimal, the transitions and scene of fast motion aid in the viewers’ engagement of the video.

           This product would be distributed as a real media text on the video sharing platform, YouTube. With YouTube, viewers would have easy access to the music video at all times. This would allow for more views of the video as well, as those who wanted to view the music video while having a party or in the morning while getting ready for the day would be able to. In addition, people from different countries all over the world would be able to view the product whereas on a television channel, those only from the area with which the video is being broadcasted would be able to see it. TV channels would also only show the product for a limited amount of time, whereas on YouTube the video can stay on the site for as long as one wanted. Other music videos from similar artists are on the website as well, allowing for ease when the audience is listening to different songs. In addition to putting the product on YouTube as a video, I would also display advertisements of the product on YouTube as well. Ads on YouTube allow for the viewer to click on the link to the music video in present time while watching the advertisement. This, again, allows for an ease in access to the video and with the advertisements on YouTube, the video would be able to attract a wider audience.

3.         My production skills advanced with the use of fast motion and on the editing software “OpenShot.” I began by performing the primary stages of editing such as trimming the music that I was going to use to fit the time limit and trimming or attaching the scenes together. The primary stages of editing stated above had been established in other projects which allowed me to complete them in a short amount of time. Even though they were established in other projects, I still feel that my skills when completing these tasks improved with the practice done as a result of this project. After these primary stages of editing were completed, I added transitions. At first, I was not sure where the button to locate the transitions was, however, after watching a tutorial on YouTube I was able to figure out where to find it. After this was done, I was able to choose from a variety of transitions and was able to change the length of the transition as well. I then adjusted the length so that it fit with the music video. Overall, my ability to use transitions evolved from not knowing how to add a transition, to being able to add and change the length as well as type of transition. In addition to learning how to use transitions, I also learned how to add subtitles. This was done in order to see how they would look within the video, even though they were not included within the project. I began by, again, looking for a video on YouTube. This video allowed me to learn what type of subtitle was needed for what I was trying to achieve. As a result, I could then use the simple buttons shown on my screen to change the font, color, and size of the subtitles. Once this was done, I included it into the music video and decided not to use them. However, despite not using these skills within this video, I was able to learn how to add subtitles and change several features of them for future projects. The last production skill learned was changing the speed of a scene. In order to do so, I used a mobile app on my phone and transferred the scenes from my phone to the app. This allowed me to then trim the video, if it was needed, and change the speed of the video. I started and completed tis process by dragging my finger across the screen to increase the speed of one of the scenes so that it brought something new to the eyes of the viewer. In addition, my production skills improved as I am now able to increase and decrease the speed of videos with this app.

4.          The technologies used while making the video were the editing software OpenShot editor, a cellphone, and the app, “FastMotion.” OpenShot editor was used to edit the video, allowing me to trim the music, trim the scenes, attach the scenes together, mute the scenes and add transitions. As I have used the editor before, using it throughout this project was much easier than in the past, and I was able to avoid mistakes that I had made in the past as well. While using it, I did not have any bad experiences either, and if I was confused on how a feature on the software worked, I would look up how to use the feature on google, which then directed me on how to use the specific component. I also used a smartphone while filming the music video. Using this piece of technology was not as easy as using OpenShot Editor. The storage on my phone, for example, led to many difficulties while filming. After filming a scene and when trying to delete takes that would not end up in the final product, my phone would often produce reminders about the storage space on my phone. As a result, so I had to go through the message several times before deleting all the takes that were not needed. In some scenes, the lighting would also not be ideal, which lead to the cameraman changing the brightness settings so that the setting became brighter, as the auto-generated lighting on the phone made the scene look darker. Although these experiences were not too bad, they were still worth mentioning as they effected the process, even if it was slightly. In addition to using a smartphone to film, I used the app “FastMotion” as well, which was also on my smartphone but was used for a different purpose. That purpose was increasing the speed of a scene. Overall, I would say that this app is fairly easy to use, and I did not have a difficult time using it, as the instructions were very clear.

Rich Girl Music Video

*When referring to scenes I will refer to them according to the storyboard, even if some of the scenes were removed.

I found that this project was a great learning experience. In the editing portion particularly, I was able to use many of the techniques and features on the editing software OpenShot much better and found that adding subtitles was not hard, as I just had to use a certain type of subtitle. I ended up not adding subtitles, however, because I found that I did not like the look of them. In addition to these changes, this music video went through many modifications in other areas. Scene fifteen, for example, had to be removed so that the mall scenes, which lasted longer than expected, could be added and fit the time limit for the video. In addition, scene five was also cut out of the music video because I found that it could be condensed into scenes four and six. Furthermore, the camera movement within some scenes differed. Scene three, for instance, included a tilt as opposed to scene twelve. This was done because while at the mall, I had forgotten to film the tilt movement that was supposed to be included. Instead of going back, I filmed the tilt within scene three and found that I preferred the tilt within this scene better than if I had done so at the mall. The types of shots used were changed as well. Scenes three, four, and seven through eleven were made as a medium wide shot as a result of a change made while filming. When writing the storyboard, I was unsure of how the scenes or shots used would look, so while filming I found that using a medium wide shot looked best. I also changed the type of shot within scene sixteen to a medium wide shot for the same reason. The angle was changed within scene eight as well and instead, scene six included the shoulder level angle. The props for the scenes where I am shopping within the mall were changed as well. I did not bring a purse or handbag, as I had forgotten it at home and did not want to go back to the mall. My mother would not have been happy if I told her that we had to go back to the mall again after filming, so I made do with the scenes I had. The scenes where I had just woken up and am getting ready for the day, as a rich girl, do not include an eye mask. This was done because I did not think that it would match with the pajamas being worn and would not look wealthy. Overall, I would say that the video taught me quite a bit about planning and using extra people within filming projects. It took quite a bit of time to film with my brother as the actor and a large amount of stress, as we were all yelling at each other to get the scene done as quickly as possible. In addition, I was not prepared or did not look over my storyboard in preparation for several scenes, leading to several mistakes. In the future, I plan on asking my family members to be in projects only when necessary and double-checking my storyboard and planning sheet before filming.

Editing my music video: Trimming, adding transitions, and adjusting the sound

 After I finished filming the last few scenes of my music video, I began editing. The first thing I did was edit the music so that it fit the 58-60 second time limit. I had already decided which parts of the song I was going to use, but just needed to edit the music so that these changes were applied. I began by cutting out the first ten seconds of the song. I then adjusted the volume of the ending of the song so that it sounded as if the song had ended, as opposed to having the music sound as if it was cut off abruptly. Next, I attached and trimmed the scenes together so that they would make a cohesive music video. As I filmed the music video on my phone, the scenes shot automatically uploaded to google photos. I then was able to open google photos on my computer and export the scenes to the editing software, OpenShot editor. For several of the scenes, we started filming many seconds before the music would actually start. As a result, I had to trim at least 10 seconds off of each scene. I then adjusted the volume of each scene to 0% so that the music from the song, "Rich Girl," would not have any interference from external sound. After this was complete, I edited the transitions between scenes 2 and 3 and scenes 16 and 17. This transition was supposed to have a dreamy effect, so that it looked as though the actor was thinking of what they would do if they were wealthy or a rich girl. The editing software that I used had a tool that allowed one to insert transitions such as a wipe or dissolve, so that it looked as though the scene dissolved into the other scene. This process took a long time to complete, and after playing around with several of the effects, I decided that the fade transition looked the best. After filming the scenes at the mall, I found that they went a bit over the time limit I had in place, so I ended up not filming the scene with another person painting my nails. As a result, I had to adjust the time of the mall scenes so that they fit in with the other scenes. Although this may seem as though it would make the editing process go faster, it did the opposite. As I already had a schedule in place, the length of the mall scenes disrupted my schedule and led to me playing around with the length of each of the scenes within this segment. In addition to using these editing techniques, I decided to see if I could include subtitles within my music video. I am not sure if they will be long enough or coordinate with the scene, since the scene that they would go with is only about 1-2 seconds long. I also have yet to figure out how the subtitles work, as the editor that I am using automatically includes a solid color background behind the subtitles. I tried watching a video online that outlines how to include subtitles, however, the video is outdated. If I can not find out how to add subtitles I will leave the music video as it is.

Advancements in filming my music video

 After completing the filming of scenes three through six, we filmed the first two and last two scenes. To prepare for filming, I printed out a picture of the silhouette of a girl carrying shopping bags. I searched the internet for at least an hour trying to find a drawing that I could use, as many had watermarks on them. Once I had found and printed the correct picture, I attached it to a clipboard and set it aside, as I had to prepare the rest of the set. I did so by making my bed, preparing the chair for the cameraman to sit in, opening the music video on my computer, and changing into the clothes needed for the scene. The first time filming this scene, I asked my brother to film it. This did not work out, as we would fight over how to film and he would not listen to me while I showed him how and where to hold the camera. Before I could complete the filming, he had to leave as well because he had to complete his homework. I then asked my father to film those scenes and he obliged. Because everything was prepared from the last time we tried filming, my father was ready to begin filming. I directed him at which angle and shot to film at and once this was done he would begin recording and pressed play on the music. I would be in position and ready for him to press play on the music when he did so, leading to the filming of those scenes being quick and efficient. In addition to filming the first and last two scenes, the sixteenth scene was also filmed. This scene was filmed late in the day, because of scheduling complications, leading to a shortened amount of time to film. To prepare for this scene, I found the correct magazine to use, filled up a cup with water, put on my costume, adjusted the lounge chair, and cleaned the leaves from the ground. Filming this scene was slightly difficult because my brother would constantly hit me with the palm leaf. In addition, at some points I started slightly earlier than I needed to, leading to my father having to film the scene again. Despite these difficulties, the filming was completed. However, after looking back, I realized that we may have to film this scene again, as my brother's flip flops were within the take that I was going to use. I may be able to use another take, however, the re-filming of the scene will most likely be done. In addition to re-filming this scene, I also have to film the rest of the scenes this upcoming weekend and begin editing.