Music Video Evaluation

Little Lion Man

Production team - MSK Productions

FULL MUSIC VIDEO HERE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zWTQBG5uaj0

Myself (Sam Goodfellow) - Director , cameo actor, camera operator

Matt Flower - actor, camera operator

Karenza Wheatley - actress, camera operator

For our music video assignment in groups or singularly we had to produce a music video which was
of a professional standard as well as completing the necessary pre-production forms. In our groups we all had to assign ourselves with different roles within the production. As you can see above I have listed what roles we all took on. The production of the music video also involved the filming and editing. Below are some action shots of us all taking on our various roles while filming.

 

Myself directing

 

Karenza camera operating

 

 

Matt camera operating in the woods

The first stage of our project was to come up with some initial ideas which we would then discuss with each other and then decide which one we liked the best. After we came up with our initial ideas we then had to choose a song out of a short list of three which we came up with. Our favourite initial idea which we proposed to the class and was our favourite was the idea of regret and how a boy is riding a bike showing that he is sad and then it shows him dumping his bike and walking off into the woods. The main component of our initial idea which brought us to like that idea the most was that it incorporated flashbacks of all the bad things the boy has done to show why he is so sad. This coming together with the song we liked the most Little Lion Man by Mumford And Sons made for a great story which we felt would flow at a good pace and would make an exciting and moving music video.

Below is a schedule we put together after we discussed and chose our initial ideas. The schedule was to show who would do certain pieces of each pre-production paperwork. However before any of us even completed the paperwork we had a group discussion in which we spoke about the whole production and what each of us would put in the paperwork.

Before we started the project we all had individual skills in the area, Karenza especially as she had already made some of her own amateur music videos. So this gave us some great experience because she knew certain things which we could add in which made the video more exciting. Myself and Matt also had experience in filming and editing as we did GCSE Media Studies and already made some amateur short films on YouTube beforehand. However all of us only had a short amount of experience of Final Cut which was the program we used to edit the music video in the post-production. This meant that during the post-production we was a stranger to a lot of the tools. However we shortly picked up experience and some great techniques. For example we learnt how to specifically change the contrast and colour correction which made the flashbacks really look like flashbacks. Below is a mid shot still from the music video in which Matt is seen to be playing poker. This was meant to be a flashback so we changed the contrast.

BEFORE

AFTER

During the pre-production research we also went out and did some individual research on location and whereabouts we was going to film. During our initial ideas brainstorming we already had an idea of whereabouts we wanted the location to be and where we would film the present day and the flashbacks. For the present day we wanted to give it a slightly more grainy feel and make it look more rough and dirty because we wanted to show how the boys life has declined and got worse. Therefore we decided we wanted to film in a wooded area and make it seem really natural with all the scenery. We also as a group thought that the present day location should also be a place which he visits in which it reminds him of a good time with his girlfriend. So we decided that a secluded wooded area would be a fitting location. For the flashbacks we wanted an indoor location which the boy retreated to in the past and it altogether made him a worse person. We felt a house would be great so we decided to film at the house I live at. Below are a couple of location report images which we took on our research. 

We filmed our music video on the 26th of November 2013 at 9.30am and finished up at 4pm. During the first segment of the day we filmed from 9.30 to 1pm the present day scenes in the woods and by the countryside. The reason we filmed here first was because we wanted to make sure we got all the shots possible of daylight and while the weather was nice and sunny. It was just as well because after 1pm the clouds came out and if we had filmed during the second half we would have got little light in the forest which therefore would have caused problems for the visuals as it would have looked darker and not as effective. During the second half of the day we filmed the flashbacks at my house. This was a good idea because we had freedom to film where we wanted around the house giving us great improvisations which added on to our initial idea.

Our initial thoughts on the project was that the present day and flashback scenes would cut together nice and smoothly giving exciting visuals to fit together with the song. I foresaw that the project would give good opportunities for improvisation and to add a few extra scenes which were not already scripted or storyboarded in. I felt that the project was not as easy as I thought it would be. I thought that producing a music video would be quite straightforward and that it would not cause many problems and we would get on with it easily. However my judgement was quite wrong because producing it was not so straightforward. Producing what we felt was a strong storyboard was hard because it was difficult trying to re-create something which we had a great idea of what it looked like in our heads. We as a group were happy with what we produced during filming and during while filming it did take us quite a few takes to get what we really wanted. 

As seen in the image below I have improvised the opening establishing shot of the bike by placing the camera on the floor and placing a few leaves in front of it. This shot was done out of the spur of the moment and it made the shot look bigger than it was. This is tricking the audience and showing the depth of field. A technique which I have learnt from this project.

After all of our filming was done we then started editing on Final Cut Pro. The main chunk of editing for our music video took place over one whole day at college, however we needed a few extra sessions to perfect the video. This included all the colour correcting and making sure there weren't any continuity errors as well as changing some shots which did not fit well together. Below are some screenshots of the post-production process.

Below is a screenshot of a fast cutting technique which we learnt while producing the music video in the post-production stage. The way we did this was that we used the razor tool to cut loads of the clips together so to give it a fast feel accompanying the song.

This is when we dragged in the image control and added in brightness and contrast to all the flashback clips so to give it the look of a flashback. For every flashback clip we changed the contrast to -95.

We had many strengths which could be highlighted from the project however we also have points for development which can be pinpointed and can show what we need to do to improve. One problem which occurred during filming was when we were filming at a wooded entrance at the end of a road. This caused us difficulty because we had to keep stopping filming because there were quite a few dog walkers in the morning and there were rubbish trucks collecting all the green bins so therefore this caused us some trouble as they kept blocking our shot so we had to wait quite a while until we could continue filming. This was a big knock back which lost us valuable filming time. However we can learn from it because we know how to improve and what we can do to work around it. For example we can film another external scene at the time and come back when it is less busier. This would have been much better if we had proceeded into the woods and came back when the area was free.

 

One of our strengths as a group was during the post-production part of the music video in which we successfully managed to come up with great ideas which helped to make the music video much better. One particular problem which we found out quite quickly during editing was that we did not have enough footage because we didn't film enough to last three and a half minutes. However along with some suggestions from us all Karenza came up with a great idea to reuse some clips but instead of making them the full length just cut them so they are really short and then overwrite them into the fast paced bits of the song. This worked brilliantly and added tension and excitement to our narrative.

Another problem which occurred during our project was that the camera we lent out from college the Canon XHA1s was really quite old and the inside of the lens was all dirty and this made the visuals look less professional. However it did slightly help to adding to a more grainy feel for the present day scenes. To avoid this in the future we should book out a better camera and by doing this we should book quite a few weeks in advance. We should also check the lens is clean.

 

So in conclusion of our music video I would say that I am pleased with how it came out and that it is as true to the initial ideas and the pre-production notes as possible. I have definitely learnt a lot from the project and how in the future I can make a student film look even better without a budget. For example we could improve the visuals and make them look smoother. We can do this by testing the focus and depth of field more by focusing on a particular object and then zooming out and focusing on the background. 

 

I have also learnt a lot more advanced techniques on Final Cut Pro which I had never come across before. For instance how to use the 'snap' tool. The use of this is that when dragging clips to another clip they snap right next to each other instead of having to carefully put them in the right place. This helped the music video to stay in sync and to keep the lyrics in time with the visuals. Overall I feel that there are various aspects which could be changed with the video and shots which I did not like however these are elements which can not be changed whereas they will act as guidance for the future. For example the lighting was a bit off at times and so to change this we could change the white balance, the focus was also a little off at times however in the future I know how to focus the foreground and background so to make it look more aesthetically pleasing. As well as the negatives there are also many positives which I love about the video, for example some of our cutting techniques and our use of shots making it look like a multi-camera project. So in conclusion this was a worthwhile project which taught me professional skills while giving me lessons for the future which can help me make something even better.