Here’s our lipsynching video to ‘If You wanna be my lover’. I found that this task was both extremely enjoyable as well as useful as it helped us recognize what singers or we as actors/directors must do in order to create an effective music video.

What I learnt from this task was that you must:

- Shoot the whole thing through filming each singer or/and both singers separately
- Shoot from a range of angles and sides
- Include many CUs and ECUs of the singers
- Know the lyrics really well
- Really sing the song rather than mouthing it so that it looks real
- Be choppy with the editing cutting shots before a line finishes and cutting to the beat of the music

Overall this task has brought to my attention many factors that help make a successful music video. It has also given us all a chance to experiment with lypsynching and editing music videos before approaching our actual coursework making me much more confident.

Spice Girls Lip Synching

Teenage Dirtbag Worshop

Evaluation Questions

1.What do you think you learnt from Friday's workshop? It could be specific things about making a music video OR general things about the production process.

Fridays workshop was a great learning experience as not only was it our first experience of making music videos but we also got to see how it’s done in the real music industry.

In order to complete the task within a limited time of only one day, the pre-production planning had to be thorough. From this task specifically I learn how important it is to divide the extract into how many camera set-ups are needed before creating a shot log and schedule. This meant that we were much more organised on the day. Everyone knew exactly where to set-up the equipment and where to be at what time. This was extremely important especially with such a big group. I also learnt about the importance of casting the right actors. In this case as we were imitating a Wheatus’s Teenage Dirtbag, it was important to consider both the look and performance of the cast. They also have to be directable and willing to do whatever is asked of them. Luckily we had the perfect actors!

From this workshop, I especially learnt a lot about the role of a director as we were directed by Jake Wynne who was extremely professional. From him I learnt that a director must know exactly what he wants from the actors and crew at all times in order to be efficient. They must have good communicational skills in order to give orders and take charge. They must also remain patient throughout the day. From watching Jake Wynne, I saw that directors in general have to be extremely hardworking and committed as even though were so tired after sitting around, Jake was still on top of everything and full of energy by the end of the day!

Finally I learnt a lot about the technical side of things. For this task were lucky enough to use professional equipment. I was able to see how a real track is used. This takes real team effort as the director says what he wants whilst the runner pushes the track and the camera man videos accordingly. A smooth track is produced through good co-operation and timing. Jake took many takes of each shot which was extremely helpful when editing as it gave us a lot of choice when trying to choosing the right shot. I also saw how professional lighting produced a much better quality shots. In this case, Jake had used tracing paper in order to soften the light so it looks more realistic. Finally, I learnt how it was important to make sure the audio was kept extremely loud when shooting to save actors from the embarrassment and for better lip synching.

2. For you, what was the best bit?

The best bit for me was when we all danced together to the chorus =)


3. How do you think the work we have done will impact on your group project?

I think this task will have a great impact on my coursework because as I am now aware of the overall process, I will approach the real coursework in a much more professional way. It has also given me a better idea of what makes a good music video. For the real coursework:

- As a director I will make sure I have a good idea of exactly what I want the actors to be doing and when, before the shoot
- We must spend a lot of time on pre-production and planning to be as efficient as Jake Wynne
- It will be essential to include a range of shot types and camera movement as these make it seem more like a music video
- We must use good quality lighting to make it look professional
- Both the look and performance of the actors is very important and therefore we would need to choose the best actors we can find to suit our video
- Personally after this task, I feel more confident to take part in the video itself if we need any extras as I have already done it before

Thriller by the great Michael Jackson

I thought it would be a good idea to analyse the music video to Thriller by Michael Jackson, not only in remembrance of the great King of Pop but also because it is one of the most successful music videos ever made! This music video was the most expensive of its time costing US$500,000 and selling over 9 million units. So what made it such a successful music video?

I feel that this is because of its use of conventions as well as the unique twists that in fact make it quite an unconventional music video. Below I have tried to identify what makes this both a conventional and an unconventional music video:


Conventional
- Song/Music with a conventional chorus

'Cause this is thriller, thriller night
And no one's gonna save you from the beast about strike
You know it's thriller, thriller night
You're fighting for your life inside a killer, thriller tonight

- The artist, Michael Jackson, is seen performing in the video
- Use of narrative- Michael and his date leave the theatre whilst watching a horror film and walk through the forest
- The lyrics of the song influence what is happening in the video

‘It’s close to midnight and something evil’s lurking in the dark’ – In the video it’s almost pitch black and really smoky which as if there is some mysterious ghost present during the late night


- The use of a Dance routine by Michael Jackson and the other Zombies
- A powerful performance – the abstract idea is made to seem believable through the great acting
- The dress codes reflect the mood of the song-

Michael is wearing red to connote blood and danger
The female character is wearing dark blue clothes to reflect the mystical night time
Everyone else is dressed in Zombie costumes to connote the Thrill and fright

- The mood of the song remains consistent through to the end
- The video is shot from many different angles and sides


Unconventional
- The music video is 14 minutes long whilst conventionally music videos are about 3-7 minutes
- Both the long narrative and mise-en-scene (Zombies, forest, graveyard) make it less of a music video and more a of short horror film
- The pace of editing is quite slow/medium, for example one of the first shots of the song lasts 12 seconds from 0.38 secs- 0.50 secs, which is quite long as music videos usually consist of fast-paced editing and quick cuts
- The narration during the song makes it less conventional as music video narratives are not usually narrated. This again makes it seem like more of a short film.

‘Darkness falls across the land

The midnight hour is close at hand

Creatures crawl in search of blood

To terrorize y'alls neighbourhood…’

- At 3.54 secs the music stops, the short silence is followed by horror film sound effects- usually the song continues throughout the narrative of a music video
- No proper beauty shot of the singer- Michael Jackson never directly addresses the audience until the very end with his yellow eyes whilst in most music videos this is one of the most important shots


From this video I have learnt that in order to make a successful music video, it is important to re-use the conventional repertoire of elements whilst adding your own, perhaps less conventional, unique twist to the video. This will help give your artist and video a distinctive identity.