Evaluation Task 3 (Part 1): What have you learned from your audience feedback?

Feedback on Ancillary Tasks

We did an initial focus group with our classmates during the lesson. In general, we got positive feedback because we have worked hard up to this point. However, my group is not particularly experienced with handling editing software such as Photoshop and Wix, so we still need to make some arrangements so that our products reach the required professional standards. 

First, I showed the class the digipak so far. The most important criticism I got was:

• To make the titles in the cover fit the images/structure more rather than appear just stuck in.
• To remove the text I put on the inside cover and make the image stretch throughout the whole section.
• To add one/two more song titles on the back cover to follow the conventions.
• To change the spine, as it is barely visible: I should tint it white.
• To switch the position of the barcode and the company logo. 

The main changes we have to implement the website are:

• Reduce the number of tabs/change the colour so that they are visible.
• Use specific vocabulary in the front page to indicate that it is a music website.
• To carefully choose the picture of the gallery or get rid of it.
• To put the "About" page second in the order as it is more relevant than the tabs we included before.
• To be consistent with the fonts chosen.

Evaluation Task 2 Conclusion: How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

I have been effective in communicating the star image as part of my campaign – considering the distribution of the product and the brand image.  Ultimately, the brand image I wanted to promote was a passionate young musician with initiative and the aim to unite people in the strive to be creative.  This is important for any campaign or concept for example, in the campaign. For example, this could be compared to actual artists like Rex Orange County, who is constantly willing to collaborate with similar upcoming artists and engage with his fans.

Second, I feel that I have given the campaign a unique selling point through the star image.  The star image I have promoted is accessible and mysterious at the same time, an inspiring personality who  encourages people to work hard in order to success. A unique selling point used in a  coherent campaign will provide different opportunities to market the star image.  An audience who is able to spread word of mouth about a publicity campaign can ensure success through the engagement with the  text as a form of online media – helping spread, circulate and distributing meaning among fans.

Finally, I have technically delivered a coherent looking campaign, with faded blue tones and an emphasis in showcasing art such as collage through the use of image and online social media.  The music video promotes a release from the album release whilst the website acts as an effective online toll which helps distribute and promote meaning for a fan base.  The circulation and spread of meaning by the intended audience helps with co-option, a theory that Boyd developed which comes hand in hand with the rise of the Web 2.0, among the fans and aids me with the marketing and promotion of the album.

Evaluation Task 2 (Part 2): How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

Evaluation Task 2 (Part 1): How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

For Task 2, we are required to carry out a video evaluation of the combination of our main product and the ancillary texts (CD digipak and website). They all constitute a promotion campaign which advertises the artist to the niche audience it is directed to. The marketing strategy and visual images are a key part of the task. We have to follow the forms and conventions of the industry and compare our campaign to similar artist's campaigns.

CD digipak covers are key to market the star image before the music is purchased and widely known. Through the use of conventions blended with innovation effectively, they construct a message for the audience. A website is a tool that mainly promotes:

• The release of a single or an album.
• The artist's tour or a live appearance.
• Merchandising (posters, clothing, vinyl records).

Dyer's theory of the star image is intended to link the look of the artist to their style of music. Apart from being more accessible and easy to understand by worldwide fans, campaigns help idolise bands and singers. This is done by giving out certain information but holding back some details in order to keep the mystery: the star image of the artist is never completed.

Some campaigns that we have compared August's to are King Krule, Beach Fossils, and Rex Orange County.

Evaluation Task 1 Conclusion: In what ways does your media product use,develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Conventions are the generally accepted ways of doing something.  Conventions can be used, supported, reiterated.  They can be challenged deliberately to make a point about an artist and make them stand out in the market. In evaluation of the question set I feel that I have drawn on the conventions of media products in my own campaign.  This use of these conventions is evident in the construction of my own products.

This is supported by my own research onto indie music conventions, analysing the websites of King Krule and Beach Fossils, among others. This enabled me to create a similar look, with wide images, a big font and an About page that was very detailed in the passion and talent of August.

At the same time, I have sought to develop and been able to challenge conventions, for example, I have decided to include a collage composed of small-scale images of the artist sleeping rather than the typical pop promo campaigns in which the face (and body) of the artist are used to attract audiences in a sexualised way.

The reason why feel that I have achieved this is to differentiate my product in a competitive music industry market and I have attempted to challenge audience expectations, bring something new to the media forms.  Media Conventions are ultimately relied upon for communicating the right message to the intended audience, but also deviate from these expectations helps sell the star image that I wanted to promote. Audiences produce meaning from the interaction of the conventional material in a text, and their understanding of conventions, for example in my online survey, I got responses which acknowledged  the alternative style of the artist and found the image to support the music genre because they were familiar with similar musicians. 

Evaluation Task 1 (Part 3): In what ways does your media product use,develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Task 1 P3 from elenae81

Evaluation Task 1 (Part 2): In what ways does your media product use,develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Task 1 P2 from elenae81

Evaluation Task 1 (Part 1): In what ways does your media product use,develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Task 1 from elenae81

Editing: bringing Performance and Narrative together

Petr took the lead in this stage of the process. He did most of the final touches of the 10-hour long process of editing our music video. We used 15-20 layers overall in order to have a well-organised outline in which we could easily alter our choices thanks to the fact that we knew exactly what we had located in each layer.

We followed the conventions of indie music videos to recreate a model that the audience would recognise and accept, maybe cherishing the quality of the brand new release. We always followed the pace of the song, editing the cuts on the beats to mirror the music. We also included a variety of shots of the singer, using his performance as the foundation of the video, as presenting the artist to the audience is the main objective. Going back to the pace, towards the end we made the decision of not including the four faces cutting quickly when in bed because it didn't match rhythm. Moreover, we did not use the storyboard much. In music video editing, I think it all comes down to the footage you get on the day which can vary incredibly, and also adjusting yourself to the song almost instinctively.

The video had been filmed with different lenses and speed according to the type of shot. All the narrative ones were zoomed in so that we could choose the scale of the shot later on as well as take full advantage of the image detail. Also, they had been filmed in half the usual speed so that, when processed in Premiere Pro, we could adjust it to 100% speed and as a consequence get some slow-motion shots, and with more footage because we saved time. The shot composition, because part of the footage was so close-up, lacked sense. Many frames were incomplete and the figures uncentred. We arranged them with the help of Matt (we had to go to the window of "edit shot", and then move the arrow to move the frame up and down). Other arrangements were to include a template which had to be the exact measurements: 2:40:1.
By using it, we covered the part of the shot in which we could see more than the box in which the artists interact, we limited the frame and made the format wider. For the colour grading, we decided to use the same colour for the dancing and the singer, and different for the room shots.

Overall, we utilised Premiere Pro for editing and Final Cut for colour grading final touches. We didn't need to include any special effects or CGI because our video was intended to give out a very organic image as if it was quite low-budget and almost home-made by the artist and a small crew.

The star image was supported throughout, mainly thanks to:

1. The choice of clothing. The outfit was designed to give out a careless but polished look for a modern and youthful singer who has grown up in suburban London.
2. The personality of the actor, who through his hand moves and facial expressions, very striking, conveyed that he had been actively involved in the creation of the lyrics.
3. The look of the video, the colour scheme, and the symmetrical element, which clearly transmit an artsy side of the music star, who is interested in film and other disciplines.

The video is intended for a niche audience who would appreciate the detail to which the video is narrowed down, with very original shots (e.g. the circular frame in which we see Mel's eye peeking through the pipe) and a reference to Wes Anderson. The audience would potentially be young and aware of the current aesthetic trends, thus they would appreciate the choices made by the artsist himself.

Personally, I wish we had included some more narrative shots because the video gets a bit repetitive after a while, and there was some lovely performance detail we lost along the process of taking out in the end. However, my colleagues thought that it made more sense to rely on the singer's performance almost all the way through to keep the audience engaged.