Final Media Products

Evaluation

Q1: In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

For my A2 Advanced Media Portfolio, I chose to produce a music promo package for the song '9 Crimes' by Damien Rice. I took the original song, through the use of YouTube and YouTube Converter and formulated my own version of a narrative. I used the process of analysing the song lyrics to invent a narrative which made sense accordingly. 

In order to create my final products, I first had to go through many stages of planning and research. The creation of my music video required research into certain genres, target audiences and general conventions that allowed audiences to relate to what they were being shown. After creating my music video I also created a DigiPak including a six-panel album and a poster for my artist and which would, in reality, help to promote the products. 

In order to create a professional looking final product, I first needed to ensure that I had a full understanding of what was expected from a music video. I found that my research aided me in finding certain conventions which were the source of all audience expectations and used these as a way of deciding which conventions I wanted to incorporate in my own work. Within a music video, audiences would expect to see aspects such as a singer/artist, music, performance, lip sync, editing (usually rhythmic), narrative, cinematography, editing and mise-en-scene. For example, within the indie rock genre there would be common elements that would be seen by the consumers: low-key lighting, rural settings, performance elements from the artist parallel edited with scenes from a narrative and very little costume change. 

To understand this specific genre conventions in more depth, I looked at other artist music videos such as Damien Rice, Arctic Monkeys and The Killers.

Within my music video I tried to make my work look as aesthetically pleasing as possible and so I used my research to find conventions that I could follow to make the connection between the genre, the media text itself and my product.

In my research I found that the narrative is an extremely important factor in indie rock music videos. Therefore, in order to make sure I could devise an accurate narrative that related to the lyrics and would help the audience understand what was going on a lot more, I created a short lyric analysis.

In my music video, as well as the narrative I also had to take into account other elements of mise-en-scene and cinematography. In relation to the mise-en-scene, I dressed my artist in bland colours such as black, white and grey - this was because I wanted his clothes to reflect his life and the relationship he is currently in. I also chose not to use any make up or hair products in this video too as I wanted the artist to look as natural as possible, this is because this would enable him to look a lot more pale and run down in order to show the effect this relationship has had on both the male and female role. 

The settings in the music video are rural areas such as a normal quiet street and within the home of the artist. This is because it is conventional of indie rock music videos to use low-budget areas for their surroundings and so I used this convention to my advantage as it also keeps the focus solely on the artist. 

The lighting in my video is low-key. I chose to do this as the tone to the song and the narrative is sombre and I felt that the lighting being shown in this way would add weight to the idea of having a darker tone. I also used a filter on my music video as a way of darkening the outside clips and allowing there to be a specific effect on the audience as I wanted them to understand that this couple is in trouble and that the two individuals are struggling. 

Damien Rice - The Blower's Daughter

My Music Video

In terms of the DigiPak, I had to look at existing products in order to fully understand what it expected and which elements I need to include. After researching into other digipak's I had found what was important to incorporate. One aspect of a digipak that I noticed is that the fonts, colours and images all tend to link together across all media platforms in order to create continuity and familiarity for the audience. I also found that normally, digipaks within the specific indie rock genre have a certain look in relation to their colours. A lot of them use an array of browns, yellows and whites as their main colour, and so I used this in mine too. 

Existing Products

My DigiPak

Q2: How effective is the combination of your main products and ancillary texts?

For my digipak I chose to use the same colour schemes etc. to create a house style. I also used my artist on all of my products in order to link them all together. I decided to choose 'Sleep Don't Weep' as my album's title as it is a song lyric by Damien Rice which is incorporated within a song which is about forgiveness and believed it would fit well when considering themes of my music video. 

Audience Feedback

As I wanted audience feedback for my music video, I decided to send out the youtube link to my finish product to people within my target audience and asked them to comment on the lip sync, the genre, the editing, the camera shots, and what they thought that narrative was trying to portray. Below are some of the responses I received:

Overall I am extremely pleased with the responses I received as they easily recognised the genre and what they narrative was trying to tell them. They also commented on my camera angles and seemed to be pleased which means that the target audience as a whole is likely to be pleased with this too.

Therefore, I believe that this demonstrates that my products are effective as it portrays a clear message and also allows the target audience to make sense of the song whilst being aesthetically pleasing too.

Q3: What have you learned from your audience feedback?

After completing the final draft of my music video, I decided to share it with a select group of people from within my target audience. I did this by both sending them the link on YouTube and also screening the music video as a way of being able to see their initial reactions. Overall, I received a lot of positive feedback as some people had said they enjoyed the song a lot more with the narrative I had created and also that they liked how well the lip sync worked and that the filters did help illustrate the emotions of the artists.

In order to gain more audience feedback, I conducted a survey which I then shared on social media. Although I only got 4 responses, they were really positive and 3 out of 4 of the responses were from people within my target audience and so I believe these responses are extremely relevant. The responses I gained are as follows:

Overall I am really pleased with the responses I have received. They have all quickly and easily recognised the reasoning behind the narrative and effects I have used as well as being able to highlight the genre I have chosen to work with and its conventions. I believe that this demonstrates that my products are a success within my target audience, proving that I have successfully created realistic media products.

Q4: How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluating stages?

Music Video Edit 4

DigiPak

Advert

Album

Album Cover Image

DigiPak Process

The first step in creating my digipak was to take the measurements of each area that I was able to use and then create a page using Adobe Photoshop CS5 which allowed me to begin my front cover for my album with the correct dimensions. 

I was able to get each dimension using a digipak template that was given to each of us and used this as an example to my own work. 

I then took these dimensions and entered them into Adobe Photoshop so that I could start editing. 

I then selected the image of the male artist in my music video that I wanted to use so that I could use this as a template for the editing that I was planning to do. This image was going to act as a template so that I can create a line outline out his figure in order to create an illustration effect similar to those I had previously researched. 

I then selected the image layer and changed the opacity of the image so that I could see where I was outlining behind the image onto the background that I wanted to use. 

I used the brush tool in black in order to begin my outline. I decreased the size of the brush so that it would be thing enough to create an aesthetically pleasing looking brush stroke for my outline. 

The outlining using the brush tool ended up looking like the image on the left. It was a careful outline of my artist which I then used as the beginning of my album cover. To progress this I removed the background image to show the outline on it's own. Which is what is shown in the second image. 

I then added text that I thought suited the type of album cover that I was trying to create. The text reads the name of the artist along with the name of the album that is being released, following conventions of an album cover.

The next step I took was adding colour to the cover. I used an off yellow/brown colour as my background colour scheme as in my research I found that this colour is really popular within this genre and wanted to incorporate that. I then made the figure in my image white in order to allow it to stand out as it is the most important area of the whole product. I also decided to keep the text black so that it would stand out against the figure and the colours.

The next step in creating my front cover was duplicating the layer of the figure image and six times and spreading them out on either side of the main image. I then used red and blue on four of the duplicated images to create a 3D effect. This was done to add something unique to the image and draw the attention of the audience.

The last step I took was redoing the text I had originally chosen. This was because the other text looked too simple and not as eye-catching as I had wanted it to look and therefore I chose another.

I also put a white stroke around the text so that it would stand out that bit more and made the main image larger so that it would take up the majority of the space and become the most dominant part of the product.








In order to begin creating the back of my album, I had to use the template that I used in the first area of my digipak and use the dimensions as seen before. I then had to use a colour match as I wanted the whole album to be the same colour so that it looked as if it would go together properly.

In order to do this I used to eye-drop tool and selected the colour that I had used for the album cover. I then used the shape tool to draw a square with the dimensions used on the template in this colour, which I would then use as the background to my back cover.

I then used the ruler tools in order to add text to the back of my album. This was so that I could make sure that all my text was lined up with each part and did not look scruffy.

For this part of the process I also selected the same font as the one I used for the front cover. This was so that each part would link together and look like a product. I also planned to use this font throughout my digipak.

The next part of my digipak was adding more text in order to add other tracks to the album I was creating. For this I used the text tool and set it to the same font size as the numbers I had already put in place. I then chose six song titles, all from different Damien Rice albums as I wanted to create the link between this product and the real artists products.

 I then added a barcode as this is a vital convention which appears on all CD's so that the audience is able to purchase it. As I wanted the barcode to be part of the product, I used a google image and then used the eraser tool to lose any of the white background.

The last part of my album cover back is the image above the tracklist that I added. I used this because it is extremely similar to the style of Damien Rice and so I added this to create a stronger link between the two. Also, adding an image makes the album tracklist look a lot less boring.

DigiPak Initial Ideas

As my selected genre of music is Indie Rock/Indie Folk I decided to research that specific genre in order to look at what their digipak's looked like. The following are a few that I had found:

These images show that it's a really popular idea to create an illustration for the album covers that are within the indie rock genre and so I plan to incorporate this into my own in order to follow conventions of the genre.

CD Advertisement Research

In a CD Advertisement, there are certain elements that must be included in order to ensure it is successful and draws people in. These are as follows:

• Artist name
• Album/single title

These are both included as it helps the company to promote the artist or the album itself. It is important as it allows the audience to recognise the artist and name of the album.

• QR code
• Main image

The main image is an important aspect as the audience will need to know the artist for them to be able to purchase the album, however not all albums have the artist's image on the album but the artists name will still get the audience to buy it. It is also done to promote the artist. This also links with brand identity because it will have to link to the digipak. 

• Tour dates

The tour dates information is important because it lets the audience know when they should book their tickets for so that they can watch the audience perform, it is basically quick and free advertising and distribution of information for their tour so that they can make more profits that way. 

• Release date (out now/pre-order)

This is important because the audience will want to know when they will be able to purchase the album or single. The purchase information is important because it lets the audience know when, how and where to order the album from. For example, a website, release data, HMV, iTunes and Amazon. 

• Ratings or reviews

These are very important as it tells the audience how good the album is so that they can make a decision on which album(s) to purchase. However, most artists only put good reviews and not the bad reviews and ratings so that their reputation and product name is not tarnished. 

• Brand identity (fonts/images/texts)
• Available on iTunes/amazon
• Record Label
• Formats available on
• Websites

Having a website on your magazine is very important because it helps the audience gain more information regarding your albums and singles. Depending on your target audience, websites are very good. For example, pop music's target audience is usually teenagers and teenagers are stereotypically very good with technology and things to be on the internet.

• Includes... (the single/the video or 'exclusive'/'featuring')

These are included so that it can also promote the artist to show that artists latest single or exclusive, or who they have featured in  order to intrigue the audience to buy their album and encourage fans of other artists to buy their album too.

• Logo

Magazine Advert #1

This is a print for an album advertisement for the artist Plan B's second album, 'The Defamation of Strickland Banks'. This advert would have likely been printed after the release date of the album due to the ratings on the left hand side, and the phrase 'the multi-platinum album of the year'. The message of the typography is clear in this album advert, the artist's name Plan B and the quote 'The multi-platinum album of the year' are highlighted in red and bold. This makes the two most important pieces of the advertisement stand out among the rest of the information and easily draws the audiences attention. Also, the ratings under the quote gives the audience a good idea of where the album stands, constistent 4 star ratings can sway the  potential customer to go out and buy the album as opposed to choosing against it. The main image is the actual artist which adheres to the typical pop/hip-hop conventions. However, the saturation level and the clothing of the artist insists a sense of elegance and class - expected of a soul/jazz album. This could attract a massive audience as these genres are largely mainstream and the ratings suggest that the artist is able to combine these styles cohesively and effectively. The target audience that this album advert is attempting to appeal to would be young males for the alternative hip-hop aspect and young females for the pop/jazz feature. Particularly working class/lower class, however it could spring up to middle class teens in some cases due to its elegance. 

Magazine Advert #2

This is a print advert in a magazine for Wretch 32's album 'Wretchrospective' released on 6th October 2008 (which means that the advert was printed some time before this or close to its release). The typography in this advert adheres to the general stereotypical view towards the 'Grime' or 'UKRAP' genre. The title is spread out across the middle of the page, making it difficult for audiences to keep their eyes from it. The text underneath is almost displayed in a 'rave' advertisement style which is a viable approach to promotion as a lot of grime/UK rap artists go to raves to promote their music. This style may be familiar to that audience, therefore, attracting them to read on and possibly buy the album on release. The main image mixes its style, keeping some UKRAP elements while slightly straying into the popular music category. It sticks to its urban style by having the artist as the centerpiece and the clothing being that of a working class or lower class man. Also, the buildings to the left of the artist suggest that the music is urban and the paint dripping from it also signifies this because it is linked instantly to graffiti. However, while a lot of urban UK artist' albums adverts have serious tones with the artist generally looking angry while this advertisement is bright and has a cheerful aroma. This cheerful sense can be exemplified through the blue shaded rainbow behind the artist or the bright sky above him, signifying happiness which is what popular music tends to do. The target audience for this album advertisement would be lower class male youths aged 12 - 19 from underprivileged areas.