Music video 4 - Video as parody, reference or homage

Reference - To refer. 

Parody -  A literary or artistic work that imitates the characteristic style of an author or a work for comic effect or ridicule.

Homage - a public show of respect or honor towards someone or something.

 In the music video genre, there are many examples that illustrate each of these sub-genres.

Reference

Marilyn

Madonna

A particularly well-known 'reference' is Madonna's 'Material Girl' that includes a large amount of similarities with Marilyn Monroe's 'Diamonds are a girls best friend'. Both are an example of a music video that reflects the artist and features them in a performance. There are many similarity's between the two and it is clear that Madonna wanted to reflect Marilyn, for example: They both wear pink dresses and fancy jewelery, and also are both performing on a stage with stairs and with male dancers who are wearing suits.
 Another comparison is the beat and pace of the song. Madonna's 'Material girl' was confirmed to be a mimicry of Monroe's hit from the 1953 film 'Gentlemen prefer blondes' and reports also claimed that she had created the video to seem as powerful and elegant as Monroe therefore "promoting Madonna's image". (wiki) Madonna also claimed that she was "curious" of Marilyn Monroe's "sexuality..that I can relate to". I think that this statement shows that she was striving to be as good as a previous star, and by creating a music video that contained large amounts of reference from a different famous video, she herself would gain more popularity like Marilyn did.


Parody
 A more recent parody is the 2010 "overnight Internet sensation" spoof of 'Empire state of mind' is the Welsh hit 'Newport state of mind' which features actors singing about the love they have for their home town, another comparison is also the visual for example: the collection of photographs of the cities, which both including a bull statue, buildings and general sights. Director M-j Delaney was a fan of the original song, and the idea for a spoof came around whilst she was with two of her friends. They wrote it as a joke but Delaney claims she wanted it to be a "celebration, something the people of Newport could enjoy"(BBC interview July 2010). Starring Alex Warren and Terema Wainwright, the parody follows the exact same melody as Jay-z and Alicia's 2009 3x platinum hit but with the lyrics changed to comic information about Newport, Wales. After posting the song on YouTube, the song received over 500,000 hits in the first few days and Warren states in BBC news interview just a few days after the video went global,"we weren't expecting that at all, we could never have predicted it". 

New York

Newport

Although some press releases have described it as a "tribute" to the original song, all involved agreed that it is supposed to be a parody and "a gentle ribbing of Newport, not designed to be harsh, but funny instead".

Homage

In March 2011, Chris brown released his new album 'F.A.M.E' that contained the single 'She ain't you'. Brown used this single to pay tribute to Micheal Jackson, who passed away the year before, by putting a small quote - "Dedicated to my biggest inspiration of all time, I love you, R.i.p Micheal..", at the beginning of his video. The viewers then see Brown dressed in an 80's suit, much alike the one that Jackson wore in the hit 'Smooth criminal', he also includes some famous Jackson moves in his modern choreography.

  During the song, Jackson's 1983 single 'Human Nature' is sampled as the background melody, mixed in with a few new instruments to give the song a fresh twist. "Browns new video is the ultimate nod to the late ledgend"- (http://blog.music.aol.com/chrisbrownjackson), this is clear because of the obvious attempt to re-create Jacksons dance moves and the heartfelt message at the start of the official video.

  Brown notes that Jackson was "his inspiration to become a performer" and it is clear the Brown really looked up to the "King of pop", at the 2010 beta awards CBS news reported that after Brown paid tribute by singing 'Man in the mirror' on stage, he got "Emotional almost immediatly after the song started" (cbsnews.com), I think this really shows that Brown wanted to make his idol proud, and he did this by creating a video that reflected Micheal, but also showed what he could create by himself.

Music Video 3 - Video director as "Auteur"

James Houston - 'Big ideas: Don't get any'
 In James Houston's last year as a graphic design student at Glasgow School of Art, world renowned English rock band 'Radiohead' posted an online competition, encouraging people to remix the song "Nude" from their 2007 album 'In rainbows'. Houston, entered the competition as part of his final project and what he created was "All kinds of amazing"- (Shapeandcolour.wordpress.com)
 Basing his idea on lyrics taken from the song, he decided to wire old computer parts together to recreate and mix-up the song. He used a Sinclair ZX Spectrum for the Guitars (rhythm & lead); An Epson LX-81 Dot Matrix Printer for the Drums; A HP Scanjet 3c as the Bass Guitar and a Hard Drive array that acted as a collection of bad speakers to represent the Vocals and FX - (http://www.youtube.co/watch?v=pmfHHLfbjNQ)
 Houston describes it "doesn't sound great, its not supposed to" on his YouTube channel, where the video has received over 730,000 hits. I think that the video reflects James's take on the whole competition, he saw it as a joke but a challenge that he wanted to set himself. Houston, being a last year university student, had total control over what went into his video, this is common when it comes to being a director.
  Depending on the circumstance of the Music video, whether its Hollywood or low budget, a director almost always has the final call on everything. A case study from the Guerillas film makers movie blueprint (Chris Jones 2003 continuum books), on director Julian Richards (Summer scars) outlines the responsibility that a director has and with that comes power. "Unstoppable" is the word that he uses to describe himself, and he illustrates that the more you become involved in every little process from the script writing to the casting of the actors the more a director can familiarise themselves with the crew and therefore allows them to take charge more. By working closely with every department, a director can oversee everything and give their own opinions also. Chris Jones also writes "Lead, don't rule".

Music Video 2 - Video which reflects the image of the group/artist/act

Moderat - Rusty nails
" Rusty nails" is an electronic performance video and is a collaboration of Modeselektor and Apparat, together they make Moderat.
 Founded in 2002 in Berlin, Germany, Moderat is an electronic music project. After creative disagreements they finally released their first full length album in 2009, seven years after their first EP. Since then, they have toured Europe and released several other singles that were worked on during their tour, in which they played mainly at festivals.
 Rusty nails is a contemporary, non linear music video "its not a film, it has no narration" that explores the use of camera effects rather than using computer software to enhance the video in post production. This is a common trait within Moderats music videos, and the outcome is simple yet beautifully effective visuals. By using these simple uncommon ideas, the listener is drawn to the music and whilst not being distracted from the sound by a bright and crowded video they can appreciate the sound and yet still be visually stimulated by what they are seeing - "we just wanted more space in the music".
 Moderats passion for creating computer based sound technology is reflected in all of their music videos, and also the press reports on their website. They describe themselves not as artists but "three producers" that use the moderat studio as "a playground where we can live everything out."
 The music video itself is representative of not only them but also their lifestyles, and the logo of the band is prominent throughout the video, as well as some cult symbols. This could show that they are trying to appeal to smaller, more defined group of listeners rather than the whole general public - "I hope it effects people, gets under their skin."
 In conclusion, this music video was to promote Moderat as producers and essentially filmmakers as well, not for commercial gain and popularity.

Roles in the industry - Set designer

A set designer is, in basic, an architect who draws out and helps to create each structure or space that is required for a project, a set designer is also sometimes know as a production designer.
 Work begins in the basic stages of the planning for the project and a set designer must work with the director to understand what environment the director has envisioned for each scene. They must then communicate their ideas to props, make up and costume design so that everything is in keeping with the whole feeling of the scene.
 A set designer also has the task of working out where lighting structures are able to be placed, they must allow room in their designs to accommodate the amount of equipment that the crew will have to bring into the space. Another obstacle that a designer will face is the budget and although the money given for sets is usually quite high, the materials that may need to be purchased are quite costly and the designer must work out how much money they will spend on each scene. They can then work out if any parts of one set can be used in multiple scenes to cut costs.

Example of a scale model.

 The set designer must then start to plan exactly what the sets will look like by drawing out a storyboard, scene by scene they draw the background in great detail, and then work with props to add in any items that will be included in the design. The designer then shows these carefully drawn pictures to the director for any changes to be made. Once the director and producers have given their input and the drawings are complete, the designer must then start to build and photograph scale models to work out the dimensions of a set.
 The set designers final job is to oversee the building and decoration of every set that is needed, they will also assist in any changes that are required on the day of filming.                                                                              

Max Van De Banks

Max Van De Banks is a renowned make up artist who is know predominantly for his talent to make people appear dead. He specialises in wound make-up, but has also worked on sets for period dramas, music videos and fantasy films.
 Max gave us a two hour presentation about the role of a make-up artist, and within it, he applied a qauter piece to the side of Robs face and transformed him into a zombie. As he was applying the piece, he talked us through the equipment he was using, which included glue, blood and gelatine. He also spoke about how he has to prepare for a shoot.
 The considerations that Max has to include for every piece are vast. To begin with, he recieves a script that has been annotated with notes about the character. He must look at each characters background and also the situation they are in at that time to determine what they will look like. He must also make sure that the make-up is appropriate for the time that film is set in. For example, really bright pink lipstick would not fit a period drama, but would fit a modern say soap opera.
 Max also has to consider the time-frame that he has to create the look, if an actor has to be on set in an hour then he is not able to spend two hours putting make up on said actor. To be able to finish all the actors on time requires a lot of planning and communication with other departments that are involved with the production.
 He works with the costume department, the producer and the director to create a look, to ensure that what he puts onto the characters is how the director envisioned them looking. Max told us that the Make-up department are the last people to see the actors before they go onto set, and therefore have the important job of making sure the look is complete. If the characters do not resemble what the directors see in their mind, it is up to the make up department to fix it.
 He also works with the producers to determine a budget for the production, and this is one of the last things on a big project that is decided, so Max must then work quickly to accumulate all of the materials that he needs to create looks for every actor within the price range of the budget that he has been given.

Music video 1 - Neon Bible

Neon Bible Interactive video

Vincent Morrisset is a web-friendly director who prides himself on being able to "push mediums boundaries". Morissets "Neon bible" project for Arcade Fire, was one of the first interactive music videos to gain credit amongst music technology developers and opened up the music industry to new and exciting ways of creating music videos. Since "Neon bible", Morisset has been director for a number of Arcade Fire's music videos.
  "Neon Bible" is a black and white video, that allows viewers to use their computer mouse to control different movements at various points in the song. Throughout the video, all that is shown is a mans head and his hands. He allows the viewer to help him move cards and play with flowing water. The video seems simple to produce but is incredibly creative.
 The main attraction of this short catchy video, is that it allows the viewer to feel important and in-control, therefore giving them an instant connection with the video and song. " I wanted it to have the feelings of watching a video and accidentally moving the mouse and then it gets creepy.", This was Vincents comment to spyfilms.com just a few days after the video was released. I think that he was successfull in what he wanted to achieve and this is mirrored in the reviews that "Neon bible" received.

 I think that Vincent Morisset is really inspiring because he took a risk to promote a great band, that ended up being noted as "one of the top 6 milestone videos in the history of the 25 year old medium." by an independent music critic.

Our "Neon Bible" project 
 I was really intrigued by the technology behind arcade fires interactive music video, so when Tim set us the task of re-creating it with a series of different shots that had to be included, I was pleased to be given a challenge that would help us to think outside the box and test our planning skills. We were provided with a sheet that outlined specific shots that we had to include, for example; a mouth movement; a hand signal etc. but were told that we had the freedom to decide what actions we wanted to include, and the angles that they were shot from. 
 As a group, Rob, Chris and I agreed that to make the concept work we needed to stick to simple movements and use uncomplicated items. Overall, we needed to include about 15 different movements in the piece. To begin with, we were stuck for ideas on what to include because we wanted to keep it simple and like a homage to "neon bible" but we also wanted to put our own fresh, modern spin on it. After a lot of discussion we decided to do just that, we modernised all of the hand movements and made them into "OK" finger signs, and the hippy hand signal for "peace". We then had to work out what objects we wanted to include, In "neon bible" the man plays with cards and water, which almost suit his character, so we wanted to take the same angle. We thought about what things we came across on a daily basis, and after many suggestions, we sorted it down to three items. A pair of scissors, a water bottle and a clap-board reflect the things that we use frequently in college. 
 We had just 15 minutes for filming but I think it went smoothly because we had planned what we wanted to accomplish within the given time limit. After editing, I was pleased with the outcome of the film, and the reception from the audience. However, I would have changed a few things. If we had been given time in-front of the camera before we had to film, we could have gotten a feel for what the movements looked like and how well they worked, because we were unable to do this, some of the objects didnt work as well as we had anticipated. If we had been given the chance to re-film, I think as a group we would have wanted to re-select some more suitable objects that worked better with the background we had for the shoot.

The Calling Card

We were set the task of creating our own "calling card", by taking ten still photographs and then manipulating them into a short three second film clip. The calling card had to represent us, and we had to use photoshop to add a polaroid effect.
 I had a few ideas to begin with, one was to use each photograph to show one part of my body, such as an eye or a foot and then use the last one to incorporate all of the previous pictures together to show a picture of my whole body. I thought that this would reflect the thoughtful and puzzling side of me, because the viewer would be putting the pieces together as they watched the video. However I realised that after putting the pictures together on photoshop, the video would be too fast to create the full effect of a puzzle.
 Instead, I took ten photographs of myself stood in front of a whiteboard whilst words and pictures that described me appeared. I feel that this projected the artistic and fun side of me, because the pictures were hand drawn and messy. We used a standard digital camera for this project and no tripod because we wanted the pictures to have a grainy and unpolished look. When we added the filter on photoshop, I realised that this was a good idea because it made the polaroids seem really authentic.
 I'm pleased with the way that my "card" turned out. I found it challenging to begin with because I am not very confident with photoshop, but after asking a few questions, I was able to locate the filter download and complete the effect on my pictures. I then imported them into Premier pro and complied them into a 3.5 second clip, I extended the time just a little so that the viewer could clearly see the words and pictures.

Our "SwishBlog" Project

To begin with, we booked out an A1 camera and a tripod from the ERC, and started to plan. We walked around the college get some ideas and decided that we wanted to follow something on a journey. We took inspiration from Justin Johnson's video by documenting places that all followed a similar colour tone.
 For example, we matched the grey metal automatic doors to the grey of the lift, and the cream walls to the beige double doors. We then had to decide on a subject, and we thought about possibly following a man from behind as he completed a journey through the college to his class for the day. We came up with a route that he should follow, set up the camera and started to film.
 We got the hang of the technique after a few shots, but decided that we were not happy with the effect that the man walking gave, so we changed the idea around. Instead of watching the man walk from behind, we would show his face fairly close up from the front, therefore putting a bit of comic injection into the piece, just as Johnson had with his "finding of the ginger beer". We also decided that we wanted to take the camera off of the tripod because the shots seemed to stiff, we wanted it to look as if the man was carrying the camera himself.
 We started to shoot from the start again, taking multiple shots for each part of the journey, and experimenting with the technique, and swishing different ways on each shot. This proved to be a good idea because when we came to edit the footage, we were able to reverse the footage, to make the man seem like he was done for the day and leaving college walking backwards, but the swishes were still going the same way.
 As we finished editing the footage, we watched it through and we were really pleased with the way the swish turned out. However, unlike Johnson's video, ours was quite long and to keep it interesting we felt like we needed to add something extra. So we started to find a song that would compliment the comedy injection and the pace speed of the man.  After much input from all of the group, we decided on Noah and the whale's "L.i.f.e.g.o.e.s.o.n" because we felt the lyrics were appropriate for the message we wanted to get across about this mans day, and also because the beat of the song matched the footsteps that the man was taking.
  Overall, we worked as a group really well and all listened to each others input about the idea. We worked around a few conflicts such as the choice of the music for the video by talking the ideas over and picking out pro's and cons for all the choices before we chose one that we were all happy with.



Swish from Tash Magor on Vimeo.

SwishBlog

"Swish" is a method used in filming to transport the viewer from one scene to another quickly. To create the effect, you have to flick the camera as fast as you can onto a subject, and then after that scene is finished you flick the camera the other way. If you do this multiple times you can then edit the scenes together on a computer and the scenes will be joined by the "swish" technique.
 We were given our assignments and Tim showed us some examples of the technique. One that he showed us was called "swishblog" by Justin Johnson. I was interestedby the randomness of the scenes he had chosen, however I then made the link between the "random" shots and realised why the scenes had such a good effect. Johnson had chosen a similiar colour tone for each shot, therefore linking them together and giving the video a certain flow. The element of colour was something we really had to consider when creating our own swishblog because otherwise, the shots really would be random and not have anything and could possibly lose the audiences attention.
 Johnson's swishblog is really creative, and his example helped us to not plan this project shot by shot, but just take a camera out and be inspired by what we saw and what we did, to ensure we got our desired effect. By watching "swishblog" and reading Johnsons simple comment underneath of "this covers today and yesterday", we realised that going out is exactly what he did and by experimenting he created a great piece.