Plot ideas PRELIMINARY

As we were presented with the task four days ago, we are just beginning to explore plot ideas. Tommy came up with an idea that a boy and girl meet and begin to fall in love - we are not sure which point to take this up to, whether they go on dates or as far as moving in together. At this certain point we are going to make it appear that the couple fall out of love, arguing a lot. The idea is to then have around a third of the narrative shot and reversed which has particular relevance due to the song frequently mentioning going back to the start. Because of the stimulus walking under the ladder, we could make it so that when the man walks under the ladder, the filming reverses from that point onwards. We are also looking at the possibility of a time lapse at some point, if it would fit in.

Lyrics of the song PRELIMINARY

Here are the lyrics to our chosen song:
Baby if you could would you go back to the start?
Take any fresh steps or watch it all fall apart again?

Play another song here, then you can leave
With your delicate wings, I used to weave
Maybe there's an undertow here
Or maybe this is stuck up in the air
I know how it looks but all that glitters ain't gold

You gave me magical, I gave you wonderful
Cut that invisible cord or I'll starve you
Of what's understandable
Let's make immeasurable moves to the left
Or the right but not central 'cause
[x2]

You gave me magical
I gave you wonderful
Let's make this biblical
And hang from our invisible cords

Baby if you could would you go back to the start?
Take any fresh steps or watch it all fall apart again?

It could have been a wonderful year
Instead we might not make it to the end
Everybody cares, but nobody knows

You gave me magical, I gave you wonderful
Cut that invisible cord or I'll starve you
Of what's understandable
Let's make immeasurable moves to the left
Or the right but not central 'cause
[x2]

You gave me magical
I gave you wonderful
Let's make this biblical
And hang from our invisible cords
[x2]

Baby how can you walk away? [x8]

Baby if you could would you go back to the start?
Take any fresh steps or watch it all fall apart again?

Our group printed out the lyrics and annotated them together. The genre of this particular song is alternative rock, the tempo starts off slowly and gains rhythm becoming more upbeat, and we can tell that it is about something to do with love and relationships. It feels as though it is related to a broken relationship so due to this it is likely that we will use a couple, a male and a female, for our music video.

Format of the video PRELIMINARY

After exploring the lyrics of the song as well as looking at the way music videos of a similar genre are, our group decided to look at filming our music video as a narrative. The other options were to film it as a live performance or a mixture of live performance and narrative but the music videos of a similar genre looked most effective as purely narrative. As this is for a preliminary task we have the possibility of trialling things we are unsure of in order to ensure we know what we want to do for the real thing.

Roles within the group PRELIMINARY

We designated roles within the group so we work more efficiently and get more done at once. Currently, I am researching into existing narrative music videos to gather ideas for our own music video, Hannah is then coming up with ideas and Tommy is in charge of organising which includes when we will film and who we will be acting and the location. Annie has been doing blog posts, and we have been communicating frequently so that we all know everybody is putting in equal amounts of work.

Researching PRELIMINARY

Below is three music videos based on a similar genre.

Arctic Monkeys - One For The Road
For this one the video is engaging and tells a story. As well as the narrative story aspects of the band playing are integrated within the story as opposed separate which is an unusual feature of this music video as a lot switch from narrative to band playing.

Muse - Aftermath
This music video of a similar genre to Biblical takes on an entirely different approach. It shows no band playing, the same as Biblical however the significant difference is that the entire video is in black and white animation, another unusual stance to take on a music video. It is good, very original and creative but may be slightly more interesting if colour was added.

Coldplay - Up and Up
Another music video similar to our genre, this one does show some singing from the lead member of the band however in a foreign setting, as opposed to a studio. Rather than telling a mundane, everyday story this ones interesting and colourful making it even more engaging and my favourite one of the videos I have studied.

All three of these videos are clear and easy to understand as well as being engaging but they are all unique. I think it is important for a music video to be unique, as it makes it more interesting for the viewer and encourages them to watch.

Song Choice PRELIMINARY

After listening to the three songs we all decided on Biblical as the one most appropriate for a music video. The song is quite sad whilst remaining upbeat and we thought that it fitted best with the stimulus we were given.

Task PRELIMINARY

In preparation for our A2 coursework we have been given a trial effort over the next month to produce an original music video and an accompanying original CD cover for the release of the song. I will be working in a group with Annie, Tommy and Hannah and below is a picture of us all.

 

We were given a list of 7 songs to choose from and from this we derived our top three;

1. She Bangs The Drums - The Stone Roses

 

2. Where Is The Love - The Black Eyed Peas

3. Biblical - Biffy Clyro

 

We were also given the stimulus - 'walking under a ladder brings bad luck' which we should base the idea around and see where it takes us.

First Post

This is my blog for advance production portfolio for A2 media studies.