Photoshop task

Various ancillary options require print based elements, therefore i have used this Photoshop project in order to re-familiarise myself with the various tools and techniques available in Photoshop. By completing this task i will be able to produce more professional looking work to higher standards due to practicing the methods demonstrated in this piece of work.

After taking the close-up and long shot respectively i used the magnetic cut-out tool to carefully trace their outlines and cut them out of the original images to place onto my movie poster. I chose these poses/facial expressions to match the rom/com genre of my film poster. I feel that as they are silly and informal they provide an element of comedy which helps to portray the genre.

I chose the background as a park setting as this a steroetypical film setting where "the guy will meet the girl" therefore i felt it was important to include as from this the genre can be determined . It's also a brightly lit image which gives hints to the comedic genre and lets the audience know that it will be a light-hearted film.

Along with the background image i have included a close up of the female actors face. This is so the audience knows who is in the film and the inclusion of the broken heart gives hint to the plot and genre of the film. As the actress is well known it will lend to the films success as she will be present on the poster making the film seem more appealing to her fans and increasing the target audience.

I have used lightly coloured text to represent the comedic side of the text, it is also bold and clear to see so that people will be able to recognise the name of the film so that they can then go and watch it.

Other touches i have added are a BBFC age certificate which show that the film has passed the BBFC's 15 age rated guidelines meaning that people aged 15 or over can consume and buy the product. This also offers an insight into the type of content in the film. I have also included the names of certain production members, this is so fans of each of these people may be attracted to the film which widen the target audience. I was manage to include these other details through the use of creating different layers to the image and adding them on top of ach other to gain the desired effect.

During this task i have learnt how to accurately cut out images and place them onto a background. I have also learnt how to adjust the brightness/contrast of images to make them appear clearer and brighter. I have also refreshed my knowledge on how to add and edit text to add detaisl such as the film name, actors and production credits.

 

Short film analysis

http://www.shortoftheweek.com/2012/09/15/the-butterfly-effect/

The reason this works as a short film is through it's emphasis on action and pace, rather than focus on characters or plot. The directors behind the clip have used it to demonstrate their abilities rendering and animating 3D models and movements. The only element of characterisation is present at the beginning of the clip where it focuses on the alarm clock and shows the main character getting out of bed. This shows the audience that he is an early bird and most likely a person who commutes to work everyday (further shown by the white shirt and tie). As the main emphasis is on short bursts of action there are lots of explosions and crashes with things being constantly smashed and destroyed. The fact that it is a short film purely composed of action helps the audience to digest it easier compared to if it featured in a feature length film where the lack of other important elements like plot would weaken the effectiveness of the film.

The short film is about a chain of unfortunate events that happens to a man based on the "butterfly effect" which suggests that the smallest change can result in larger and larger consequences. The protagonist wakes very early in a groggy mood to disvoer there is no milk left. He then goes to the local shop to buy milk where a butterfly flaps its wings to cause a skateboard to fall over. The protagonist then steps on this to then roll down the hill and lead to bigger and bigger consequences, ending with him arriving where the story began - in his bed.

It fits relatively well into various theories including: Barthes,Prop and Tolarov.

Barthes
As it is a short film with a focus on action lots of enigma codes are asked, but are however not answered by the end of the film. The various enigma codes include: where is he?,who is he? why is his alarm set so early? These however are not answered and make the clip more effective as hey do not impair on the focus of the action.

Propp
The Hero: Unnamed main character
The Villain: The butterfly
The Donor: The shop clerk
The Dispatcher: Unnamed main character
The Helper: Various drivers of cars/bikes
The Princess: Carton of Milk

Todorov

Equilibrium -----> Disequilibrium------> Resolution

Waking up------>Chain of folly ------->Back into bed

What i have learned from editing a music video

To start with, we learned how to construct a music video using various theories  such as Goodwin's theory which contains the conventions of a typical music video. We then used these connotations in our own video. For the verses of our chosen song we followed his point of "Visuals will either illustrate, amplify or contradict the lyrics and music". As our chosen song was "3 lions" by Baddiel,Skinner and The Lightning Seeds we recorded visuals of a football player doing keepy ups and shooting the ball into a goal for the line "Shearer certain to score". This demonsrates our ability to match visuals with the music/lyrics of a song.

We also learnt how to import video and sound into final cut pro and how to cut down footage and match it to a musical beat. This is to achieve a perfect synchronisation between lyrics and visuals. I also learnt how to accurately display each type of clip from the 3 avaliable.

In final cut pro i have learnt the function of each individual window and how to move files between them. By doing this i can now edit video by rearranging footage, removing its audio and placing a different level of audio alongside it.

My Hero Music Video Analysis

"My Hero" was the third released single from Foo Fighters second album "The Colour and the Shape". I will be having an in depth look into how the music video corresponds to widely accept music video theories provided by Andrew Goodwin and Sven Carlsson, including the type of performer showcased in the video as well as the style of the clip.

"My Hero" contains elements of both a narrative and performance clip, with interweaving images of the artist performing the song and an ongoing story being told which matches the lyrics being sung. The video is only partially a performance clip however as although the band is seen lip syncing to the lyrics and playing their instruments along to the music no actual crowd is seen in the video with the band only performing to the video. The band is not seen on screen in the whole of the video but often appear in the different places the hero of the video is going to, showing that it cannot be considered a "pure" performance clip.

The narrative clip is displayed through the use of the videos own "hero" who, during the video, is shown running into a burning building to things of importance: a baby, a dog and a  photograph. This matches the songs theme of being a hero as he is shown to be risking his life to save others, the final shot of the video is a group of people surrounding and congratulating him - further backing the positive attitude expressed in the song. The video also reflects the idea of everyday heroes as the protagonist's face is never shown - implying it could be anyone.

As with most music videos "My Hero" conforms to most of the characteristics outlined in Andrew Goodwin's music video theory. As previously mentioned, the lyrics and tone of the music match with the music video. The video also follows genre characteristics as the band are shown playing their instruments together - often seen in other rock music videos - as well as providing varying close ups of the lead singer and featuring close ups mid shots of each individual band member. Although the notion of looking is not fully portrayed in the video - it is styled as a kind of home video recording with the camera following the protagonists and swaying around looking at the various band members.

In the video the Foo Fighters appear as both a televised bard and an electric shaman - with elements of both being using to convey the message in the song. They appear as a televised bard as they act out the story using their lyrics, with the chorus playing at the climax of the onscreen action taking place. However, during the clip the band disappear and reappear at several moments in different positions. The protagonist and other characters in the video are also not aware of their presence even though they are plainly in sight for them to be seen. This demonstrates the effect and power of the electronic shaman to re-position at will and not be seen. The artists are also not threatened by the fire seen in the video but merely ignore it - they are however affected by its presence as is several mid shots you can see the sweat on their bodies and the perspiration stains on their clothing.

Foo Fighter's music is described on their Wikipedia page as a rock band and on the albums amazon page the product description is listed as rock- therefore you would expect the video to reflect the band's primarily rock genre. The video closely resembles and portrays the band's rock image and style of music by showing the band members singing and playing their instruments together - a classic troupe of rock music videos. When focused on, each band member also acts as if they were performing on stage as they perform various movements such as swaying with their guitar and head banging. This is seen in many other rock videos and is a common element as most rock videos are based around a performance style clip.

      


From this music video I will apply several of the conventions I have seen into my own production. When producing my own music video I will try to incorporate both performance and narrative elements which interweave throughout the video in order to make the video more interesting and appealing to a wider audience.