Filming Blog For Music Video

    While filming on Saturday and Sunday I found out so much more I didn’t know before about cameras and filming. It only took us a few hours each day to get all the clips we needed. In class we all decided that this Saturday and Sunday would be our filming days. Anyeska took the camera, SIM card, and tripod because we were going to be filming in her house. After this, we packed up and brought ourselves and the clothes we needed to change into for the music video. Anyeska bought confetti, some sunglasses, a birthday hat, and birthday suit/cape. Two of us wore sweatpants and hoodies. While the other 3 wore shirts and sweatpants. We all wore sunglasses. I learned that you could make the camera higher with the tripod and I didn’t know that before.

    Lesly was the first scene we did because he had to leave soon, so we decided to get his scenes out of the way. The first scene we did was Lesly is in his birthday suit and hat. In this scene he is strutting, drops a part of his suit and ends up covering the camera with the cape. The next scene we filmed was Anyeska’s while we waited for Britania because she still was not at her house. Anyeska’s scene was from a high angle. The scene went from her laying on the bed to a transition of the camera zooming into the phone. It’s took us a few tries to get this because I wasn’t y’all enough to get the angle we wanted and we kept laughing. After this though, we recorded our friend who volunteered to film with us Nick. His scene where he is playing video games. Brit finally showed up and we were able to film the dancing scenes. 

    At first my group wanted to film us dancing the same as Bruno Mars, but I thought we should make up our own dance instead of copying. I came up with the dance moves, which was pointing at the floor, ourselves, shaking our hands over each other, and then shrugging. It went along with the lyrics. Then we did the scene where Bruno Mars says “No no no no no no no no no nooo”. Anyeska printed out “No’s” and we got in a line and showed it for each one. Lesly had to leave, so we proceeded to do my part and Britania’s. In my scene I get a phone call, but don’t pick up. Then I had show the audience all the missed calls I have on my phone. For this Lesly and Britania kept calling my phone and I didn’t answer, so that way it appeared on my screen. I also had to film in the same setting, but this time I was kicking off my shoes and laying back. Anyeska also has a scene in the same setting as her previous one where she throws the blanket over her head. Although, Britania’s scene was by far the easiest because we just filmed her thinking about combing her hair, but then she doesn’t. This was all the filming we did Saturday. Sunday we only had two scenes left, which were very easy. We cut out two scenes we didn’t need. Our last two scenes was throwing the confetti, dancing, and then I walked up to the camera and covered it. This took us one try, which was amazing and that’s it. After all this, we were finally done.

Storyboard For Music Video

      Today my teammates and I manifested our storyboard in our group chat. After completing our planning blog where we discussed how we wanted to go about filming our music video, we knew it was time for our storyboard. It took approximately an hour to draw and write out our camera angles, camera movements and actions for each scene. Had we not execute a plan in our planning blog last class, story boarding would have been a much longer process. Our teachers restrictedour timing to at least one minute and five seconds, and at most one minute and fifteen seconds. Ourstoryboard consists of fifteen different five second scenes. Meaning, our music video should be around one minute and fifteen seconds long. So far, we are on a good track with timing. Our storyboard is shown down below. It is filled with great details which will guide us during the filming process.

       Within the first scene of the blog we will edit in a fade in transition which then displays a wide shot of my three other teammates, a volunteer, and I dancing to the lyrics “today I don’t feel like doing anything.” Secondly, we will have a high angle of someone laying in bed “sleeping;”Lyrics: “I just wanna lay in my bed.” Third, we will have a jump cut into an over the shoulder of someone silencing their phone then tossing it on the couch— lyrics: “don’t feel like picking up the phone, so leave a message at the tone. ‘Cause today I swear I’m not doing anything.” In the fourth scene: “No, I ain’t gonna comb my hair, ‘cause I ain’t going anywhere.” The actions that match the lyrics would be someone holding a comb, looking at it, placing it down, then shrugging their shoulder. In the fifth scene, all five of us involved will hold up signs which reads “no.” Using the camera movement, pan and a close up shot, we will move the camera left to right going down the rows of “no” signs. The lyrics will play: “no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, noo.” On the last “no,” the camera will zoom into someone’s eye and then zoom out of it in the following scene. The following scene will include the lyrics “I’ll just strut in my birthday suit, and let everything hand loose.” A person will be strutting sound and pulling their suit an appropriate amount to match the lyrics of letting “everything hang loose.” Moreover, the next scene will be a dance sequence similar to the one we introduced the video with; This will be portrayed through a wide shot.  The lyrics: “yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeaaah.” Next, there will be a pan shot of someone playing Xbox, but dropping the gaming controller. Lyrics: "Oh, today, I don't feel like doing anything." Then, there will be a high angle of someone laying in the bed and pulling the cover over their head: “I just wanna lay in my bed.” Furthermore, along with a jump cut, there will be an insert of a phone screen which displays missed calls. The following scene will also be an insert of a phone screen which shows a new voicemail/message. Lyrics: "Don't feel like picking up my phone, so leave a message at the tone) The next scene will consist of a long shot which shows someone kicking off their socks or shoes then laying on the couch. (Lyrics: cause today I swear I'm not doing anything.”) The third to last scene will be everyone throwing papers in the air and having the last dance sequence (Lyrics: "Nothing at all...) The instrumental will then play out as everyone lays down on the couch and floor as though we are asleep. (Lyrics: nothing at all"). Finally, someone will walk from the group and cover the camera with their hands, which signifies the ending to our music video.

      Thankfully, my team mates and I work well together and we all pull our own weight. Everyone makes an effort to contribute towards each section of the project.

Conventions For Music Video

    Codes and conventions are used by many different companies. They can be used as a marketing strategy in order to grab the attention of consumers. That way the product seems more interesting. A code is a system of signs that are put together to create a meaning. One example of a code is a technical code which are camera techniques, framing, lighting, exposure etc. Another example of codes are symbolic codes, which consist of objects,  the setting, body language, clothing, and color. Lastly, there are written codes which are headlines, captions, speech bubbles, and language styles. Conventions are habits of doing things. In short, what people have come to expect. Examples of conventions are: Camera angles, shots, editing, lighting, sound, music, computer graphics, and special effects.

    Many songwriters use conventions in order to help the audience understand the theme of the video. They also want to give them a feel for the emotion behind it. While in the original music video of The Lazy Song, the dancers dressed in baggy clothes and wore ape masks. This created a crazy, lazy, but happy atmosphere. Throughout the song the dancers dance along with the music. In the Lazy Song's music video, there were a limited amount of camera angles. One camera angle the director used was a wide shot which allows for the audience to see everything lateral. The wide shot was used in the whole music video. This is evident because as the music video was occurring, there were not any changes to the wide shot camera angle. The director is trying to engage with the audience by showing them all of the dancers with Bruno Mars in the center.

    

    For our music video, we will change the dynamic. To start with, we are going to engage our audience by opening with a fade in. This makes the audience seem like they just walked into something. Then right after, we will start dancing just as in the original video. This will catch the audiences eye and make them want to continue watching. To add onto that, our costumes, makeup, and props will surely catch the eye of our viewers because we are wearing bright and crazy colors. Our music video will also take place in multiple settings, rather than just one. We will zoom in to the birthday suits characters eye and transport from the bedroom to a different location. Another thing we show differently is what we’re doing. The actors in the film will be watching TV, combing their hair, and playing video games. These are things that people contribute to everyday life and have genuine interests in. Lastly, there will be more camera movements which allows for a better understanding of the film's theme.

Planning Blog For Music Video

      For our music video, we will be filming at my partner Anyeska’s house. There are no present health and safety procedures we would follow. The props would be a phone, gaming controller, TV remote, paper, and hair comb. The costumes would be birthday suit and formal clothing. In the beginning of the music video, there will be a fade in into a wide shot of our dance sequence. Every action by the characters are going to be matched by the lyrics of the song. So, the next scene will be a high angle of someone laying in their bed (Lyric: "I just wanna lay in my bed"). Then, there will be a jump cut to an over the shoulder shot of someone silencing a phone call and throwing it (Lyric: "Don't feel like picking up the phone, so leave a message at the tone, cause today I swear I'm not doing anything"). Next, there will be a jump cut to a medium shot of someone holding a hair comb then putting it down (Lyric: "No, I ain't gonna comb my hair cause I ain't going anywhere" as they lip sync it). After this, there will be a line of five people with signs reading "No" (Lyric: "No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, nooo). In the last "No" there will be a zoom in to a character's eye, then a zoom out in a different location and showing a person in a birthday themed costume. Following this will be a zoom out from the character's eye to the living room and someone will be shown dressed in a birthday suit. They will be strutting around and dropping some part of the birthday suit (Lyric: "I'll just strut in my birthday suit. And let everything hang loose"). Then, we will have another wide shot of our dance sequence (Lyric: "Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah"). Next, there will be a pan movement of someone playing Xbox, but dropping the gaming controller (Lyric: "Oh, today, I don't feel like doing anything"). Then, there will be a repetition from before where there is a high angle of someone laying in their bed; However, this time they will be pulling the cover over their head on camera. (Lyrics: "I just wanna lay in my bed"). Furthermore, along with a jump cut, there will be an insert of a phone screen which displays missed calls. The following scene will also be an insert of a phone screen which shows a new voicemail/message. Lyrics: "Don't feel like picking up my phone, so leave a message at the tone) The next scene will consist of a long shot which shows someone kicking off their socks or shoes then laying on the couch. (Lyrics: cause today I swear I'm not doing anything.”) The third to last scene will be everyone throwing papers in the air and having the last dance sequence (Lyrics: "Nothing at all...) The instrumental will then play out as everyone lays down on the couch and floor as though we are asleep. (Lyrics: nothing at all"). Finally, someone will walk from the group and cover the camera with their hands, which signifies the ending to our music video. Not to mention, there will be subtitles throughout the music video.

Schedule: (11/18-12/9)

- Day 1: Planning our music video.

- Day 2: Script and story boarding.

- Day 3: Filming.

- Day 4: Edit

- Day 5: Submitting music video.

- Day 6: Reflecting on music video.

      Back-up Plan: We will be filming at my house. It will be the same where in the beginning of the music video, there is a fade in into a wide shot of our dance sequence. Every action by the characters are going to be matched by the lyrics of the song. So, the next scene will be a high angle of someone laying in their bed (Lyric: "I just wanna lay in my bed"). Then, there will be a jump cut to an over the shoulder shot of someone silencing a phone call and throwing it (Lyric: "Don't feel like picking up the phone, so leave a message at the tone, cause today I swear I'm not doing anything"). Next, there will be a jump cut to a medium shot of someone holding a hair comb then putting it down (Lyric: "No, I ain't gonna comb my hair cause I ain't going anywhere" as they lip sync it). After this, there will be a line of five people with signs reading "No" (Lyric: "No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, nooo). In the last "No" there will be a zoom in to a character's eye, then a zoom out in a different location and costume. Following this will be a zoom out from the character's eye to the living room and dressed in a birthday suit. They'll be strutting around and dropping some part of the birthday suit (Lyric: "I'll just strut in my birthday suit. And let everything hang loose"). Then, we will have another wide shot of our dance sequence (Lyric: "Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah"). Next, there will be a pan shot of someone playing Xbox, but dropping the gaming controller (Lyric: "Oh, today, I don't feel like doing anything"). Then, there will be a repetition from before where there is a high angle of someone laying in their bed (Lyric: "I just wanna lay in my bed"). Along with, the jump cut to an over the shoulder shot of someone silencing a phone call and throwing it (Lyric: "Don't feel like picking up my phone, so leave a message at the tone, cause today I swear I'm not doing anything"). The second to last scene will be everyone throwing papers in the air and having the last dance sequence (Lyrics: "Nothing at all, nothing at all"). Finally, someone will walk from the group and cover the camera with their hands, which signifies the ending to our music video."

Intro to new project

I recently finished my commercial project and now my group and I will be working on a music video project. I felt like my commercial project went well but could have went better. This is mainly because there were story boarding inconsistencies in the commercial. Some of the scenes we filmed did not match the story board we planned. Even though the commercial did not go as planned, I was taught many things. One thing i learned was how to work with other group mates creating a film. Another thing I learned was how to do many camera movements such as pans, tilts, and tracking shots. I also learned first-hand how to edit my films to make the end result crisp and interesting. I will integrate the different techniques I learned from the commercial project into my music video project to help it become more interesting than my previous project.

The song my group and I chose was "The Lazy Song", by Bruno Mars. It will be a clean version of the song so it is school appropriate. I recommended this song to my group and they all agreed. We will start from 1:57 into the music video and end at 3:03. This is because the minimum is 1:05 seconds and the maximum is 1:15 seconds. One good thing about this song is that it has lyrics that are easy to act out. This limits confusion on what to do in specific parts of the song. This song is a fun, upbeat song that highlights how many people feel when they are tired and do not want to do anything. The fact that the song relates to the audience makes the song more interesting. I am super excited to film this music video!

A music genre is a conventional category that identifies some pieces of music as belonging to a shared tradition or set of conventions. Music can be divided into different genres in many different ways. The artistic nature of music means that these classifications are often subjective and controversial, and some genres may overlap. The camera angle we would use in the music video will be a high angle. The camera shots and movements would include pans, tilts, variants of medium to close up shots, wide shots, and long shots. The sound would be a score and sound bridge. The editing process would include fade in and out, insert, and cross cutting. 1. Costumes: Birthday suit but formal clothing. 2. Lightning: Dim, to set the mood of being lazy. 3. Actors: Everyone in our group (Anyeska, Jazmin, and Brit). 4. Makeup: None. 5. Props: Phone, gaming controller, TV remote, paper, and hair comb. 6. Setting: In a house.

Editing Part 2

    Last class we were able to actually start editing. After dealing with all of the frustration of the computers not working and not being able to concentrate. We finally were able to begin. Pinnacle Studios worked. We got into class, sat down, and waited for further instructions. The teacher told the left side of the room that we would be working first with the computers. As I stood up to get the computers, I then grabbed number 13. Opening the computer, I logged in and proceeded to go to google. I went in my google drive and put all the videos I dumped in there into Pinnacle studios. It took some time for the videos to load, but we were advised to wait. 

    We didn’t need the computer to crash. So we waited. After about a minute or so the videos loaded. I began to choose from the scenes we were going to use. The scenes that were the best. I started to take each clip and cut the parts that were not needed from the scene. These were parts of the scene where we either talked, it was silent, or it just didn’t make sense. We also knew that we could not exceed a 30 second time limit. So we kept that in mind as well. Using the scissors icon we cut and deleted or just simply right clicked. Then pressed “cut”. 

    After shortening the scenes and taking what we didn’t need out. I then sped up two scenes because we didn’t want to cut it out and it just looked better sped up. So we clicked speed and then chose 140% for both scenes. Music in the background was definitely needed, so I detached the audio from each clip. That way there is silence and the music we input will not be bothered with another sound. For our commercial we wanted to say, “run, skate, jump, and be yourself in Vans.” “Vans off the wall”. So I added our voice over. I chopped up the voice over because specific words are being used for certain scenes. I raised the audio because you couldn’t hear it that well. I also raised the audio for one scene where Lesly says, “I can’t do anything in these”. This made the audio much clearer. The next class was a PSD day, so we didn’t have as much time to continue editing as we did last class. We are pretty much done, so we just added in the music and logo in the end of the commercial.