Location Ideas

Originally I decided to use Wollaton Park, Nottingham, as my location for my music video, as it has a large grounds and a large hall open for the public.

However due to unexpected changes in the weather I decided to film some of my music video inside the protagonists house. I believe this gave the video more verisimilitude and it was alot more practical for the scenes. 

To create a passage in time and for my flashback elements I decided to use an outdoor setting on Woodthorpe Park, as it has a great deal of space and was ideal for the flashbacks I wanted to achieve.

Costume Ideas

I will be dressing my band in black skinny jeans as these are quite a versatile, conventional indie piece of clothing. 

I will be dressing the band in different coloured t shirts, reflecting their personalities. For example the cheeky member of the band will be dressed in red, as this is associated with that sort of personality. This is how I will be making sure each band members personality is portrayed, partly through use of costume. 

I am thinking of choosing converse as footwear for the band, as these come in a variety of colours and are associated with indie, 'laddish' behaviour. I will try to match the converse colours with the t shirt colours as I think this will match with the genre particularly well. 

Filming schedule

I will begin to film on 15th December, to ensure plenty of time for editing and allow time to change anything that I feel doesn't work. When finished, I will evaluate the rough cut and asses any areas that need to be re-shot, and film again as soon as is possible for me and the cast.

Research into the band

Ruby Roses is a six-piece, indie rock band with a pop mentality. The northern New Jersey-based group practices and records in a... home studio around the corner from the middle school where five of them met.
The band is comprised of Evan Hooker (Vocals, Guitar), Andrew Giordano (Keys), Aaron Mazie (Guitar, Vocals), Jon Bruno (Guitar), Matt Marrs (Bass) and Brian Carlucci (Drums).

Contact with the band

Pitch for Catch A Dream-Ruby Roses

My music video will star two band members, a male and a female. I believe this works, as the Indie Genre is so varied and broad.
My video will begin with the male protagonist in his room looking deep in thought and indecisive, doing various activities to distract himself. Such as; checking his phone, playing on his Xbox, smoking a cigarette. He will then be visited by the female protagonist, who will be his love interest. However when she arrives and knocks on his door, he is unsure whether to answer and eventually will decide to ignore her and her text messages.
As the song goes into the chorus and slows down the video will flashback into memories of the two when they were happy together.
During this I will have an animatic element of a treasure map with pictures on the characters to symbolize their journey and their relationship to see if they will eventually get back together.
As the song plays into the 2nd verse I will have the male protagonist deciding he will visit his love interest, as he remembers the good times they share. He will greet her at her door with a sign reading 'ill be here'.
The 2 will then exit the house together, looking happy and fooling around together e.g picking each other up etc.
It will then end with the 2 driving off together holding hands, waving to the camera as the car drives away, symbolizing a new start of the 2 together.
However as the video ends I will have the male protagonist awakening in his bed looking confused, as he has dreamt the whole thing. I believe this works as it is unexpected, comical and ties in well with the song lyrics about dreaming.

Michel Gondry - Music video director

Michel Gondry is an academy award winning film maker, his work also includes music video directing. Usually noted for his visual style and use of mise-en-scene, he is known for being quite inventive, which is highlighted in the music videos he has directed.

He has worked with rock duo The White Stripes, directing 'The hardest button to button', 'Dead leaves and the dirty ground' and also 'The Denial Twist', which won a music video association award for art direction. Gondry's quirky nature is portrayed through this video particularly.

He also directed 'Any Sound' by The Vines, which is famous for its video, involving puppets as opposed to the band members.

Like Jonze, Gondry hasnt only directed for indie/rock bands, he also worked with rap artists Kanye West and Wyclef Jean. Although an entirely different genre to rock and indie, Gondry usual quirky nature is still easy to spot in Wyclef Jeans - Another one bites the dust.

Also for Kanye Wests- Heard em say, in which the video is in black and white, and apart from showing  clips of Kanye West, tells a story through the use of pencil drawn cartoons.

Gondry is one of my personal favourite directors as his videos are so unusual and original, ranging from rap genres to indie genres, they are memorable and intriguing.

Spike Jonze - Music video director

Spike Jonze is an american director, producer, actor and screenwriter, however a lot of his work includes music videos. He has successfully worked with the likes of the Beastie Boys, Weezer and Bjork. Some of his videos seem like more like a short film than an actual music video.

Arcade Fire- The Suburbs

This video was taken from Jonzes short film 'Scenes from the suburbs.' Indie rock band 'Arcade Fire' accompanied the video with their song 'The Suburbs'.


Weezer-Island in the Sun

Jonze also directed the video Island in the Sun by alternative rock band Weezer. 

However Jonze doesn't just direct indie/rock/alternative videos, he has also directed videos such as Flashing Lights by Kanye West and Get Back by Ludacris, both rappers.
His videos seem to take quite a narrative based form, and are sometimes quite comical, such as Ludacris' Get Back, which was directed by Jonze. His videos all seem to be quite alternative and different, yet equally as gripping.

Animatic

This is my animatic, it shows my initial ideas for my music video, I will use this as a guide for filming my final cut.

Applying Goodwins theory to The Killers-When you were young

  When you were young by The Killers demonstrates Goodwins theory in various ways. Firstly as Goodwin suggests that genres of music have their own conventions, The Killers, being a rock band, follow the typical conventions of a rock band, as although the video involves a narrative, the band are still shown performing, typical of a rock music video. They are also seen with instruments, which too is conventional. The fact that the characters in the video and the band themselves are not dressed particularly smartly and some of the male stars have facial hair also adds to this, as they are quite unpolished looking, which is conventional for the rock genre, compared to the pop music genre where all the characters are seen as quite clean cut.
    There is also a very obvious link between the lyrics and visuals in the music video. For example the chorus mentions Jesus, and the whole video includes religious settings, the church, religious props, the rosary beads, candles, the crosses, and also the protagonist praying.  The lyrics also fit with the setting, as they refer to a mountain as the characters are sat on what appears to be the top of a mountain. It is as though the lyrics are narrating the story of the two characters.
    The link between the music and visual is too shown, as the music slows down the characters are seen arguing and facing some sort of dilemma. As the music picks back up the characters are seen happy at what appears to be their wedding. The visuals are unhappy and problematic as the music gets to the slowest part, and are then happy and quick as the music builds up tempo.
  There are also many close ups of not only the band themselves as they fit into the narrative very cleverly, as they are performing at the pub the main characters are seen in. The lead singer of the killers is emphasised the most, however the other band members are too shown, highlighting the fact that they are a well known band and so the audience can recognise them.
   Although rock bands are not usually known for sexuality women as much as R'n'B groups for example, there is still references to the female body and the female character. For example, as the protagonist is washing herself you see the male role staring at her seductively and the camera zooms into particular areas of her body in slow motion for example her legs. Also when the male is seen sleeping with another women, we are shown it quite explicitly and arguably unnecessarily, as the audience do not need to see as much of the scene to understand what the characters are doing, yet the director chooses to show it.

  Lastly, although there is not a great deal of intertextual reference, there is an ongoing referral to the idea of religion and Jesus throughout the video. These combined would support Goodwins theory, as all 6 of Goodwins point can be analysed and applied to this particular music video.

Inspiration

Various indie bands have inspired me for my music video and have particular aspect that I wish to achieve in my own music video, these are;

The White Stripes,

as I have a male and female band I believe it will work, as the White Stripes are a very successful rock/indie band.

The Hoosiers, 

as I like their aspect of comedy in their videos and the fact they don't take themselves too seriously.

The Wombats, 

as I think their use of costume is effect against the plain white background.

The Arctic Monkeys, 

as I like their use of narrative in their videos and find this makes them unique.

Target Audience

My chosen song fits into the Indie genre, which I have been studying lately. The song falls into the pop side of the Indie genre, as it is quite light hearted and upbeat, yet has a slow chorous which relates to love throughout. I will be aiming my music video to a wide audience, as the indie genre is so broad, and due to its pop feel this broadens the target audience even further.
My proposed age group will be between teenagers and those in their 20's. The video will be created to entertain, with a cheesey, comical, light hearted feel, aimed at both men and women.

Ruby Roses-Catch A Dream Lyrics and analysis

ics: Catch A Dream

Lyrics for Catch A Dream by Ruby Roses.

I think I’ll hide away this evening
Where I truly do believe in
Things I can and cannot change
‘Cause in my mind it’s all the same

My ideas for the first verse include the protagonist hiding away , possibly in his bedroom?
Hiding away from his love as he is confused about his feelings.


I know there’s no other way to fake the truth anymore
And now it’s knocking at my door, but I won’t be there

Possibly a literal reference in the video to the love interest knocking on his door and his ignoring her
 

I just can’t wait another minute
Just one blink and I’m back in it
Like a marionette who cuts the strings down for himself
Maybe we’re not so far away from changing things anymore
But I've heard it all before so I won’t be there

I could then have the protagonist confused with mixed emotions regarding his love interest

 

Falling away to catch a dream
Too many things got in our way
Our way

I am thinking of having some sort of flashback element as the chorous takes place of the 2 when they were happy together

 

It’s true I don’t know what the plan is
But my mind’s an empty canvas
And my heart is pouring paint onto the corners of my brain
From here I can see so clearly that the love hasn’t gone
So in my head or at the dawn I know I’ll be there

I will then have the male protagonist realising he doesnt want to let his love interest go, so he contacts her

 

Falling away to catch a dream
Too many things got in the way

Watch all of these material things
Dissolve into ethereal scenes

Falling away to catch a dream
Too many things got in our way
Our way

I will have a happy ending of the male and female together, however I am thinking of having a comical twist at the end.

Pete Frasers Theory

• Lyrics- Establish a general mood, key lines may only play part in the visuals.
• Music- Tempo of the track drives the editing.
• Genre- Reflected through mise-en-scene, themes, performance, cinematography, editing.
• Cinematography- Camera may move to accompany performers, or circle them, to create a drama. Lots of close ups to create viewer intimacy and emphasize voice.
• Editing- generically fast-paced, but slow-paced could be used to establish mood.
• Intertextuality- "Music video as incorporating, raiding and reconstructing" (John Stewart). Music videos often incorporate what a viewer will be familiar with.
• Narrative and performance- suggest storylines, and offer fragmented, non-linear, narrative. These leave an audience with a desire to re-watch.

I will bare this theory in mind when creating my own music video and try to apply some of these elements to my own video.

Goodwins Theory

In 1972 Andrew Goodwin devised a theory which included the 6 main generic conventions of the music video. These were;

• Different sub-genres of music have their own conventions, for example pop videos usually include a dance routine. Beyonce-Love on top is an example of this as Beyonce is a worldwide pop star who is famous for dance routines and this video demonstrates Goodwins first point.

• Relationship between lyrics and visuals. In the Arctic Monkeys-When the sun goes down, the relationship between the lyrics and visuals is very obvious, and it is heavily narrated. So the lyrics tell a story.

• Relationship between music and visuals. Adele-Rolling in the deep is an example of the relationship between music and visuals, as it is edited so that the water drops into the many glasses on the beat of the drum.

• Demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close ups of the artist to emphasise the image of the star. Chris Brown- Run it was Chris Browns first video, so close ups were necessary for him to become an icon and decide on the type of artist he wanted to be.

• There is frequent reference to notion of looking and particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body. In Christina Aguilera - Dirty, she is presented as very provocative, wearing very little clothing, she is sexualised due to her dancing and costume.

• There is often intertextual reference, either to films, other music videos or culture. In Christina Aguilera- Candyman she makes reference to the 'We can do it' posters seen in the wars, as she dresses up and does a similar pose.

Mood board

How the Indie Genre began

Indie was originally shortened from the word 'independent' genre originated from the United Kingdom and the USA in the 60's. It is extremley diverse containing many different sub genres, for example; indie pop, indie rock, alternative. Key bands included 'R.E.M' and 'The Smiths.'

The Smiths

R.E.M

 The Indie genre is extremly diverse and hard to define as over the years it  has seeped in to nearly every genre avaliable. During the 70's the indie genre became increasingly and developed into a more rebellious genre, with the 'Sex Pistols', 'The Clash', 'The Ramones', bought indie music out of the back streets and the indie genre became more mainstream. 
In 1980 the first UK Indie chart was compiled  and indie bands began to feature of Top of the Pops. From that point on the rise of the genre became seemingly unstoppable, with the Reading festival with a line-up entirely devoted to indie music. Throughout the 1990's and 2000, Indie music became more and more mainstream with 'The Manic Street Preachers' 'Arctic Monkeys' and 'The Strokes' for example beating pop and rock acts to the top of the charts. 

The Arctic Monkeys

The Indie Genre and Audience

The Kooks

Indie, Short for independent rock, in terms of music is independent of major labels and breaks mainstream conventions. The record labels are reasonably low budget and small. Described as a 'do it yourself' genre the artists are free to explore emotions and sounds. Despite it purposely avoiding typical mainstream fashion, the indie genre is at its most popular.

The Arctic Monkeys

Dress Code: Followers of indie music stereo typically dress in a certain way. Such as wearing dark skinny jeans, baggy t shirts, and messy hair. Unlike most artists and genre Indie is not a polished, clean cut image. 

Life style: Indie has now become more than just a genre of music, many people, particularly teenagers aspire to be indie and live the indie lifestyle. Which is seen as a care free attitude, associated with vintage clothes, indie music and smoking and drinking.

Target Audience: The target audience for my music video will be those interested in the indie genre. This is a quite a large, broad genre as the indie genre has continued to expand throughout the past few years. After various research I discovered that the indie genre is usually young adults and teenagers. This is why the indie genre is my chose genre. It is aimed at people around my age group. It focuses on low budget filming, with accessible settings such as; pubs, parks, garages, houses etc, making it easier for me to create a realistic music video to fit in with my genre. Other genres e.g R'n'B genre focus on higher budget videos with exotic settings and expensive costumes.

The Music Industry

Genre comes from the french word for group or type. This can be applied to the music industry, a popular form of entertainment. A certain genre of music can be defined by its conventions and shared traditions, its musical style or form. It has been argued that certain types can not be defined into set categories, however the main ones go as follows;

Pop music genre: Popular music, or more commonly known as pop music is perhaps the most main stream genre of music. It can contains and borrows many styles, however certain core elements can define this genre. Such elements can include; repeated choruses, melodic tunes, catchy hooks and written in basic formats e.g verse, chorus, verse, chorus etc. Rather than having deep, artistic meaningful lyrics, pop music is more for pleasure and appeals to a mass audience.
     Bubblegum pop: is a sub genre of pop music with an upbeat sound, appealing a lot to teenagers and pre-teenagers.The songs usually include sing along choruses with simplistic lyrics based on romantic love or just being happy, loving one another, colours or other childish themes.
   Dance pop: another sub genre of pop music usually intended to be played in clubs but suitable for television and radio stations. It is usually characterised by its unstructed form, catchy tunes, strong beats with emphasis on the melody.
   Teen pop: created purely for teenagers. Usually involves auto tuned vocals, repeated lines, choreographed dancing and focus on teenage issues e.g romance, friendship, fitting in.

Rhythm and blues music genre: Rhythm and blues or more often known as 'R&B' 'RnB' originated from African-American music, from a time when urban, jazz based music containing a somewhat heavy, insistent beat. However today various sub genres make R&B one of the most mainstream and popular genres
  Contempary R&B:  combines elements of soul, hip hop, rhythm and blues and pop. Usually includes polished style, smooth style of vocal arrangements. Modern R&B focuses more on solo singers rather than groups.
  Hip-Hop: consisting of stylized rhythmic music can be accompanied by rapping or speech/chanting. Can include elements such as 'MCing, scratching, breaking, dancing, graffiti writing and beat boxing.

Rock music genre: Rock music originated from 'rock n roll' in 1950's America. Rock music is usually centered around the electric guitar or as part of a rock group with bass guitar and drums. Rock is seen as a more rebellious genre of music and lyrics are usually darkly romantic or address key social themes such as politics. There are various sub genres of rock music:
   Heavy metal: characterised by being very loud, highly amplified, extended guitar solos, and emphatic beats. Nearly always bands mainly male dominated. Typical line up usually includes, a drummer, a bassist, a rhythm guitarist, lead guitarist and a singer.
  Punk rock: type of rock music that creates fast, hard edged music, typically short songs, often anti establishment in a bid to create controversy. Lyrics are often shouted, guitar solos complicated and self indulgent.

Brief

A promotion package for the release of an album, to include a music video promo together with

• a digipak for the album's release
• a magazine advertisement for the digipak