How I Think Filming and Editing Went

I found the whole filming process very stressful, mainly because of how hard it was to get the perfect shot and get the band to sing with enthusiasm. We had a shot sequence and schedule list that we were supposedly supposed to stick to. This was because with the schedule list certain people couldn't make it on days we'd originally agreed on and with the shot sequence sometimes we found a better order to shoot the shots. However, both of these caused problems because it meant we had to choose another day when we were all free and with the sequences it meant we missed out shots because we didn't stick to the order. I think we had brilliant equipment for the filming, that included Harry and Jess' cameras which were       the band instruments and the huge light sources that could be battery powered. This all helped towards the final draft of our video. When it came to the performance shots, we did struggle to get our lead singer Steve to sing with great enthusiasm and really open his mouth so you could see what he was singing. I think this was down to nerves and hopefully now he's used to it and learnt the song a more he'll do a much better job when we re-film... or so I hope anyway.

I found the editing process just as stressful and I didn't use the software! As it was just the draft and only Harry had experience with the program we were using, which was Premier Pro, we let Harry take charge and edit it. However, during all lessons and frees we had together we would all sit round Harry's Mac as he edited it, saying what shots were to come next, how long they were to last, if we wanted any improvements made to a shot and generally helping him out making his job easier. Jess also went round to help the evening before the deadline which unfortunately Joe and I could not make because of work commitments. The hardest part I observed with editing was trying to get the singing in time with the music. Lip syncing is very difficult.

I am very pleased with the outcome of the video as we as a group as well as the band have put in a lot of time and effort giving up our free time and I really think it paid off. We have leanrnt a lot during filming and editing and will use it when we start to refilm the sections which we aren't pleased with such as: the performance in the barn and the forest of course as we need Lewis.

DigiPac Developing

After having received my DigiPac feedback, I decided a few things needed to change and I needed to use other artist's digipac ideas more to develop my own. Firstly, my digipac looked like this:

but I decided there were a few things that weren't as professional as i'd like them to be. For example, the back cover had no particular layout. It was supposed to be in the style of vampire weekends "contra" but i hadn't directly copied it. Also, the "Run" writing didn't work with what I wanted. The front cover also seemed somewhat plain, so i added "Run" to the front cover too.

I then decided to look through some fonts and trial them against the digipac:

I most preferred the last one as it was more simplistic and suited the style of the digipac more on the whole. Also, on this digipac i removed the white boxing on the CD and i removed the black CD finger holes from over the person jumping's head. I also made the writing on the far right page on the bottom smaller. During the process of changing this, I also scanned Vampire Weekend's "contra" back cover into my computer and then placed it on my digipac:

I then laid my tracks over this to ensure my back cover was the exact same as theirs:

Which achieved the look i wanted. However, after looking at my digipac with the black font on the front cover, it seemed too bold for the antlers faded look, so i tried a light grey colour, which i think works well:

But then, i thought it may be a good idea to centralise the "run" and also try the "run" to the right side to see what it looks like:

But i have come to the conclusion that this is my favourite digipac so far:

as it targets the indie genre well, it is simplistic and it looks more professional than my previous ones.

I then went on to looking at my poster, because my fonts obviously were being experimented with. My originals looks like this:

I preferred the more simplistic approach to this poster and so I decided to go forward and remove the available dats etc. and the iTunes branding.

I then debated on the size of the antlers on the poster to try and use theories such as the rule of thirds. On the first picture is the larger set of antlers:

But i prefer them when they are smaller as, again, it gives the poster a more simplistic look.

Also, i changed my mind with the font and developed this idea:

 but the run seemed a bit too large and over powering in comparison to the image, so i made it a bit smaller:

This is all my developing for now, however, i am going to ask my target market for their feedback on my digipac and poster and see what else may need changing to make the product more suitable.

Final Draft Music Video

Final Draft Music Video
The Skeleton Boys - One Night In October

DigiPac Feedback

After having received feedback from my peers and from my teacher, we collectively decided that the font of "Run" did not fit the DigiPac. So I have looked and selected fonts that are bolder and perhaps more gothic to suit the artwork in both my poster and my digipac. I will put this picture on facebook and ask them which one they think will look better and put the feedback on a later post.

New Album Cover Photos

Filming- Forest

We faced various dilemmas in the run up to filming the shots in the forest. Our first problem was we decided it would be done on a Wednesday, but then a few of the band members said they couldn't make it. So in the lesson on Monday we made a quick decision and decided to do it later that night because that was our only other option. However, we then found out Lewis in the band couldn't make it and neither could Harry, our camera man, because of other commitments he could not get out of. Despite this we had to do it Monday and looked for a replacement for Lewis just for these shots, but we had no luck and Jess our director had to play his role. This meant our roles were changed around slightly. Joe had the role of main camera man and director, and I was in charge of sound, lighting and shot sequencing. Jess tried her best to help out as well in between filming shots. 

After all the dilemmas were sorted we could begin setting up and filming, but not before we rescued Jess after breaking down! This meant we had to start later than planned but it did not affect the filming. We had large battery powered lights provided by Harry which gave us just the right amount of lighting and I had my battery powered speakers and iPod so we had sound. Jess got changed into clothes that we would expect Lewis to wear, that were provided by me (or more my brother). We soon got on with filming as it was cold, dark and quite scary so I think everyone wanted to get done quickly and leave.

Overall I think it was successful despite being 2 members down! Thankfully it was only a draft which means when it comes to the final version we'll make sure everyone is free and stick to the schedule. 

Below are some images that were taken on set:

New Ideas For My Digipak

I went away for the half term which meant I was unable to take part in filming, access the internet to post on the blog  or social network to find out what was going on with the group. However, I did have access to a television and was able to keep working by watching music videos, and one stuck out to me. That video was Joe Goddard- Gabriel feat. Valentina. It got me really inspired to go in a completely different direction with my album cover.

As plain and boring as the video seems, I actually find the video really interesting to watch as a lot happens with such a simple idea. My favourite idea of the video is the rain drops, and how they vary in size and colour. This inspired me to create my own version for The Skeleton Boys digipak.

Here is Joe Goddard's cover for the single that carries on with the same idea from the video:

Finally, these are some of the ideas I have come up with after taking inspiration from Joe Goddard's music video. I'm still undecided on which design I like the most as I think I could do a bit more work with the rain drops and make them look a bit more authentic. I'm also still unsure on whether I like my first idea of the four coloured skeletons or this rain drop idea. To come up with a final decision I think I'm going to have to get opinions from my target market.

Raw Footage So Far

Here is just some raw footage from the filming we did at the barn on Sunday;

Filming so far:

I feel that on all of the occasions that we have filmed our draft video, we have worked successfully as a group (including the band members). We have two more scheduled days/evenings of draft filming to take place to finish off some location footage and some shots that we accidentally missed out. Filming is a time consuming part of this course so we have done our best to try not to interrupt the band's study time and working hours. We have found that because we are using two of the same make cameras the quality of the video is very similar which shows continuity in the filming; we are lucky to have a group of four to spread the work of lighting, cameraman, sound technician, and director, equally.

Weekly Round Up #3

We are sorry we have left it over a week to create another round up post, the only explanation i can give for this is we have been busy! Our music video is well under construction having filmed in 3 locations now; car park, forest and Jess' barn with us filming again on the coming Tuesday.

Unfortunately i couldn't be there to film at the forest but never the less i made sure i found out how it went;

Not only have we been filming we have all been concentrating on our digipaks and posters, because the band we have created is classed as 'indie' and 'alternative' we decided not to use the band as the cover for the album (apart from jess who wanted to challenge the conventions) which meant it was hard to think of ideas for the cover and me personally had to take a trip to visit family to get the photo i wanted.

Final Poster for Draft

After getting my peers to look over the three posters they helped me make us my decision of to which i would have as my poster for my draft;

DigiPac Poster

With my poster, i wanted to keep the idea as simple as possible, whilst keeping the theme of the digipac running throughout to show the continuity between the advert and the product - as i had analysed in my posters. Therefore I used the image from my album cover and the writing from on the front cover but used "THE SKELETON BOYS" in a tahoma font, which is the one i had used throughout, giving them a signature font. I then kept it simple:

I then thought that the poster was perhaps too simple and did not contain information that the audience may need to buy it and hence created this poster too: