We're Winning!

This is our final video. I used YouTube because it takes too long with Blogger's video uploading system.

kcabdeeF ssalC

A summary and yet also a more 'full' way of putting our Feedback would be to say that everyone liked how well we managed to get the lip syncing pretty much exactly in place. The class enjoyed how well our narrative fit with the lyrics and also that the editing was pretty good, the clips we had, moving them around, we managed to get them on time almost all the time. The actual band time or 'as live', can easily be said that they liked it. Another thing that the class enjoyed was how much we varied, when looking at the band, each member got their own 'screen time'.

The 'bad stuff' or 'improvements' that we could do would be to make some of our shots last less long and perhaps a bit more narrative, as for some it could be hard to understand just what we were trying to put across. And finally it was 'requested' of us to plan our props better, more so in the as live areas than in the narrative.

!!DEHSINIF

Finally we are done. Annie made a great bit at the end of music video. A small clips using some of the time where I (Josh) think we were mucking around during making the footage. Either way it looks good. So this lesson Annie finished off the video and then we are uploading it to quicktime twice, the first time with the extra footage, this one is going onto youtube and then the second time will not contain the extra footage as it would just generally be safer without.

WE IS PUTTIN IT ON UTUB

We are putting it on YouTube.

UPDATE
Last lesson the video did not upload (it took far too long), so I'm trying again right now. (11 Nov)

Finishing Touches Time

Well, we like to think that we're a bit ahead. Everything looks OK, we just need to add extra special stuff that looks good.

Gnitide

Implementing Narrative into the footage.

Where we need the narrative:

- post-its fluctuating
- TRacking into the center post its.
- Then input the narrative afterwards.

All of the footage of the post its was postboxed, so there were areas of the shot that belonged to other footage in the same area on the time line. Unfortunately, we now have to zoom in, 'pull' the footage. This lessens the picture quality, and is just too tedious.

After much trial an error, they've done it =D woooo....yeah, like a ghost...


And now, just continuing with more editing, as per usual these past few days.

Extra Shooting

We are going to do a bit more extra shooting in one of our lessons because we did not quite get enough during the actual filming time. The part that we will be filming is the end of the music video as we have everything else already in order but no ending to finish the music video off.

You guesssed it

Ricky gave back some more of our footage that he had been converting. Lots of drummer footage whoo! and Yay!

So far we've just been viewing the footage and searching for footage to put in the otherwise ...'empty areas'. Looking at the amount of footage we have nearer the beginning, and then nearer the ending, the ending looks rather plain, but still good in my opinion.

With the roughly four minutes of new footage, over the top of our already 4 minutes long video, its frustrating to time each piece, all over again.

Some of the footage cannot be used, for the pure fact that you can see what we did to the drums. We put a tea towel on one to lessen the noise.

Yet more editing.

I'm not sure how much we have left to do, but I can tell you that it looks brilliant so far.

However the day has not started off in a good way. The Mac managed to crash in some way. No blue screen, just a black one. Hannah came over and we shut it down, left it off for a moment.

It's back on now, hopefully it will work for the rest of the session.

Looking at the timeline I(Josh) can see lots of clips in all areas, I remember when I first started off, and used like..2 lines of video? So far we've managed 6 lines of footage, each with markers and such to time it to the right position and so we can lip-sync it properly.

Today, Annie brought in some more shots that she had taken. So they(Annie, Dan & Aidan) will work on implementing them into the footage.

At one point there seemed to be a problem rendering, as one piece was placed they had a problem, and then the same with another.

Unfortunately we seem to have lost some footage, regardless of searches. The memory stick or original computer seems to have lost our footage.

Continued Editing.

Today the group has been editing the footage, as would be expected. At certain points, when trying to get things in, we have had some pure luck. Placing down or deleting/editing parts of the footage and they have come out brilliant, some ideas we didn't think of and some that we did. Namely 'ghost footage' which I (Josh), thought most interesting.

Yeeeh

For the time being we're only having one bit of narrative and we replaced our original idea of having a builder turn into a ballerina with a transvestite. We have kept our ideo of post-it notes and the editing of all of the footage is going swimmingly. Plenty of time is left for effects, but as this is a fairly conventional music video we won't use transitions like 'fade' and things like that.
The silhouette idea went down the drain, but Aidan's idea of turning the lights on at the beginning of the song have opened lots of creative doors!

And now for the long awaited production shots.

I took most of these photo's myself (Josh) but a few were taken by Annie, when we were doing the original idea of someone wanting to be a punk (shown below.) That idea was scrapped, along with the idea of Aidan being the person that would look like a woman. (Also Below.)

Here Josh and Leo are setting up the drums, the drums started off being too loud, so we put masking tape on the sticks and linen on to the drums, so that the noise was quiet or non-existent.



This next one shows the end product.



Our makeshift dolly, until we finally found one at the back. And in the end, I don't think we used either of them.



As refered to above, this next picture shows me(Josh) being someone that wants to be a Punk.

Here are the two guitarists practicing their parts.

Rough Cut Contents

Our Rough Cut will only be able to contain the Guitarist and the narrative

Because of the setting it takes smages to write- ARGH!

Map of the Problematique

The format of the video as it is at the moment isn't compatible with the project at the moment, so things are sort of taking a while! Ouchies...

Rough Cut in Process

Annie and Dan have been working on getting a few shots sped up. They finally found a tutorial on youtube and the results were, to speed up the footage either:

command + J

OR

Modify - Speed


***
Edit
***

The problem has been rectified, we have now managed to speed up the footage.

Listen to Daisy Chainsaw

...Because I said to.

We're putting together our rough cut today, so it's not going to be TOO polished. However, it'll still give y'all a good idea of what we're doing. At this moment in time we are figuring out where to put all the shots in relation to the song. In fact, there's some footage that I've never seen before, so Annie's obviously gone off and got quite a lot!

The pressure's well and truly on, but we'll be fine!

Just Me This Time

Hullo.
I'm all alone in the media room, just waiting for half of the band footage to write to Final Cut. The other half I will bring tomorrow for the lesson (silly memory sticks).
The worrying part is that we won't get much done by the means of a rough cut. I'm considering fiddling around with the footage I have today, before next lesson.
I suppose we need all the time we get!
Everything looks okay at the moment, it's all here and we're all happy.

We're All Here!

We have just shot footage of all of our sticky notes with people's dreams on them. We took a little walk to look for a suitable wall and found one right outside our room- argh. Ah well, we need the exercise.

Anyway, the shooting itself went really well, and we left all the sticky notes up for people to take/laugh at. w00t. 'tis all captured, and t'will be edited to a suitably funderful standard.

It's pretty well edited, but we haven't sped up the newly accustomed still versions to fit the beat!

Hello, It's Annie and Dan

Well yesterday, our footage was unuploadable! (From the band location, that is.) So I (Annie), took it home last night to turn the usable bits into a Quicktime and bring it in. As my memory stick calls itself 8GB, I thought it would be perfectably cabable of the 30 minutes I cut it down to. Unfortunately, it is only 7.47GB and the file was 7.79. As Dan says: "Dayum".

Anywho, as we couldn't edit, we decided to re-shoot the dreams shots as the band location shots didn't work very well (we used an improvised dolly, consisting of the fully opened tripod and an office chair (which I wrote about on the Video Production Risk Assessment )... only later to find a real dolly in the store room.)

Final Shots

So yesterday we all but one met up at the band footage location. We had our 'back-up band members' stand in for the real band and we shot a lot of footage, I will be uploading some of the photo's I took 'production shots.'

Our ideas have changed around a bit. As we have scrapped one idea of someone being a clown that wanted to be something else. (the song is based on peoples dreams.)

The footage, I think I heard Annie say, consisted of one hour. Some of this will be the 'as live' and some will be preparing, some of Me (Josh) and Aiden as the two 'dreams'.

Test Footage 2

So we went out again today, shot some more test footage. Using me (Josh), Leo, Tom and Sam as the band. We shot the footage first 'as live' by the hall. And then some narrative shots in the quad.

More shots in the quad included the band rocking out and singing. It was ...organized mucking around, but it came out really well.

Dan is, as I write this, editing the footage and putting in the real song. He and Annie are adding in the animatics to fill in missing areas in the test footage.

Blogging t3h f33db4ck

All our posts are efficient.

"There is a lot of information on location and equipment and they have obviously put a lot of effort into their project"


"A fair bit of information, but some we couldn't understand.

Talk About Changes... Phwoar.

We're using a studio on Saturday for ALL of the as live footage, sorted. We have the new band and back up actors (all musicians, learning the songs in time for the shoot.)

Grand!
:D

Further Costs for Costume and Props

Saturday is Park Time. Whoop.

Ballerina shoes: £0, to borrow from a friend (who WON'T let me down)

Lawyer suit: £0, to borrow

Builder: £0, actor

Clown costume: approx. £30 -http://www.jokeshop.co.uk/cgi-bin/sitewise.pl?act=det&pt=&p=3585&id=jokeshop

Lights: for a rack of rhythm co-ordinated lights, approx. £15

Travel for the rest of the group to location: £5 each

There are so many more things yet to take into account, but we are taking things as they are.

**
Edit
**

We decided to scrap those ideas, and do some new ones, including a wig and some make-up. Which made Aidan look fabulous (pictures later.) So the costumes changed, the general dreams changed, and we didn't do the lights

Also, we were going to use this guitar originally. It is Aidan's custom-built Gibson and it does cool things with lights. However, the idea was scrapped due to the lights not being used and the fact that he'd have to take this ultra-valuable one-of-a-kind guitar on a BUS!

Test Footage

Didn't work out either. On the plus side, we've got everything else back on track and our fingers firmly crossed that it will stay that way.

x

YAY, A CRISIS. And a change in ideas.

Hi. So the band have pulled out, a DAY before filming. Great.
AHHHHH.
It's ok, we'll get actors. Just give us a few more weeks.
Sigh.

Along with the lack of cast (which we have now discussed and found a feasible solution too), we have an issue with the Polaroid idea. As the film is so expensive, we have decided to use post-it notes instead. Then we can still use the fluctuating wall effect and the dream idea. Also, as Aidan is a genius and is hiring a lighting rig, we can use fluorescent post-it notes with a black light to make them glow.

We are collecting the camera at 4:10 tomorrow and the next day... it's official!

And now we've already got over all the bad things in life. Oh to be this simple.,

We're no strangers to love

Today we have filmed some test footage. however because we had limited time and facilities we were only able to film a few shots, but we managed to sort out a few potential bug with the chair shots. P.S. the cake is a lie!!

We have the dreams, but do we have the talent to fulfil them?

Simon Cowell says no- WE say yes. Do we get a prize?



Aidan and Annie will be in the camera pit and on stage, filming during the real performance and sound check, also, while other songs are performed will will be gathering cut-aways.

Aidan has just gone home as he is ill, but Josh and I will be filming test shots.

Animatic Feedback/What Aidan did at the weekend

Today the group viewed our animatic and they have given us some feedback.

Pros:

- Live performance shots are clear and help to define genre
- Editing was well timed with the beat of the music
- Split screen with the silhouetted band members worked well



Cons:
- Shot of the Polaroids on the floor is unclear

We only had one con- get in there! =D Anyway, I (Aidan) checked out our live location at the weekend- Newmarket Battle of the Bands. From this little visit I established that the stage looks pretty damn awesome and there is sufficient space between the barrier and the stage for us to set up our cameras- sextacular, Count Dracula!

The Polaroids are going to cost us a lot of money- like... £50. =/ Ouch! This is going to be costly! Because of this, I will drop my trousers for spare change.

ARGH!!!!! Wizard angst!

Animatic

I feel like such a let-down!

Unfortunately I (Annie) wasn't able to attend the 19th September lesson. I was on a college trip to the BFI library in London... BUT ENOUGH ABOUT ME!

Was just on the phone with Timi, lead singer of TITTM (Tell It To The Marines) and everything is fine on that end of the line. I also called a couple of other media group members today, Josh and Aiden, after carelessly losing Dan's number. Sigh. But when I know when everyone is free, we can start arranging meeting at BLANK location on BLANK date.

God help us when we fill in those blanks, two Worlds will collide and hopefully create a masterpiece as apposed to a COMPLETE disaster.

Fingers crossed, catch you latorz blogzord.

Animatic

Animatic

Today we have uploaded our track to final cut and taken our shots of our storyboards so that we can produce our animatic. We are aiming to make the animatic as close to the final video as possible.

Teqneekes

For the video we will be using the split screen technique, at least for some of it. The screen will be split into five screens and the images in the screens will be alternated between the band members and the extras.

One Polaroid on the wall, up to 100...fluctuating back and forth almost like stop motion.

We have also thought of another technique which we may use, for one or two of teh performance shots we may blur the movement of the band to kind of create a ghost trail behind them.


Added by Annie on 20.09.08:
Although I love the power standing behind the camera gives me - editing is by no means second best! Music is music and video clips are just lots of pictures joined up, editing is like nothing else. Not only are we desperate for this video to be successful in the way that it's punchy and impactful, more than anything we want to iliminate ANY chance of continuity error. In the past, this has been trickier than we originally thought.
However, in this blog, we'll talk about techniques which will keep our audience's eyes glued to the screen, such as:
(As Dan and Mynnion said) Split screen
Stop motion
and for the 'as live' footage, a blur effect

We're excited as can be after getting really good marks in our Thriller projects last year. We'll be using the same software- Final Cut. I'm completely stoked as I've been waiting for an excuse to use all the features again. Obviously, for synching purposes we have to use the roll, ripple, slip, slide, and of course razor blade tools (although we might use flash synching anyway)

There are a few techniques we are really biased against this time, a shorter list than the tools we DO want to use. As we would particularly like the editing to suit the song's message and there aren't any slow bits, we don't see the song as fade-worthy. As yet we have thought a lot more about the ideas for shots in the performance stage, instead of the narrative side of things, which I assume may lead to improvisional editing methods and a slightly more abstract feel.
Although we have been advised to follow a strict plan of action, playing the song repeatedly from different angles in different locations, if something looks particularly shocking and is thought to suit a certain part of the song, we may use it as a cutaway and stick it in where we like.

We're all aware of the importance of knowing the song inside out before the editing stage. I hope we're all free for the shoots, but if not, I'm sure the song will be a fantastic annoyance to us all forever more! I don't doubt it will be overplayed.

After capturing the footage on Final Cut, we'll use Opt+ Cmnd+W to see the wave forms and the marker to clearly represent moments in the song which will carry us towards the rough edit.

I've thought about using the colour glow tool to accentuate light flares, if any. Just to add a little sparkle. I've also thought of a few ideas about bringing Photoshop into the equation, adding keying layers and creating a unique feel.

Wow, this went on a long time. Now, to other school work!
What a Saturday night.

C/P/L

Costumes are currently:
Band in Civies
Extras:
In costume related to their stereotypes.

Props:
-Polaroids
-Chair
-Ropes/chains

Location:
-Annie's garage
-Newmarket Memorial Hall
-(outside) bench perhaps in the botanical gardens

Anything

Here are a couple of videos that have similar concepts to our general idea.

Our plans, they have changed!

We have a super-special awesome new member to our erotic club/group, and she has linkage to a band who are sexy enough to be in a video that we record. We turned down Napalm Death for being too fat. Her name is Annie and she rocks socks like rocks with... chickens. Anyway, this allows us to use the band in our video, which is super-special awesome.

Because people in bands are fickle people (which is why I've been through 16 drummers in a year- I'm not like this anymore so PLEASE contact me if you can actually drum -Aidan), so Annie consulted the band to see what their ideas are. Their initial idea involves what the lyrics imply - people's dreams. This also involves using Polaroid pictures, with their hopes and dreams written on the white bit at the bottom, for example, a picture of a builder whose dream was to be a ballet dancer, mixed with performance shots of the band in the chorus with the band performing in a room to meet the demands to sell the artist. Here are a few of our ideas:

1) Point-of view- looking at polaroid, then the person's face.
2)

Here are the lyrics:

My hands and feet are tied to this chair
It stays like this where I get nowhere
Woah-oh we lost all feeling
Woah-oh a long time ago

'Cause it happened again
We have the dreams but do we have the talent to fulfill them?

'Cause I won't fail you
I won't fail you again
I won't fail you again
You break your back to know my name
Then you just throw me away
Forever, we'll see where this one takes us

I lost my touch a long time ago
One poker game and now I'm broke
What a suprise

We open up to dreams
Dream 'til we lose our feeling
But we can always say
At least we try

'Cause it happened again
We have the dreams but do we have the talent to fulfill them?

'Cause i won't fail you
I won't fail you again
'Cause i won't fail you again
You break your back to know my name
Then you just throw me away
Forever, we'll see where this one takes us

*instrumental*

You ain't see the last of me yet
You ain't see the last of us yet
You ain't see the last of me yet
You ain't see the last of us yet

'Til the death bed
'Til the death bed

'Cause I won't fail you
I won't fail you again
'Cause I won't fail you again

Pitch:
FILL OUT BY OVER 240 WORDS
The music video will be aimed at the target audience that the song already has. Which (by the look of the comment board on their social-networking page) consists mainly of young teenage girls... fab(?). They'll want to see this music video as the song is already hugely popular with the fan base.
The video will have both a narrative and 'as live' performance footage that is interlinked with the lyrics. The idea is all about dreams, as the chorus implies. Visually, the 'story' side will present characters (extras) who have dreams they have either missed the chance to fulfill (for example, a builder whose childhood dream was to be a ballet dancer) or can still fulfill but is nervous about. Each extra is introduced by a polaroid picture being stuck to a wall of a board, in a hall opposite the band (who are playing the song itself). Initially there is a negative feel as all the extras are disappointed, but through the song, either the band members to the extras, or the extras to one another help everyone achieve their dreams.
Unlike other music videos, this was not fully consciously inspired by any other video, although in production, I'm sure other's ideas will shine through.
This music video is gunna be aweeeesome.

iMe gusta el bus!

No. Do not want deadline. However, 'tis next lesson. DO NOT WANT.

PITCH-

-To be written on t3h blog.
-PROPOSAL for t3h muzak video.

MUST INCLUDE-

-Clear written summary for t'video (500 words)
-2 embedded actual music videos that are similar in style and/or content, AND analysis of each.
-Images that indicate location choices

NARRATIVE? AS LIVE? LOCATIONS? GENRE? PEOPLE? PENGUINS? MUDKIPZ?

w00pw00p!

We don't need a title. We're just cool like that.

Soup, /b/?

We've decided on none of the songs on the list because we're too good for them. However, we've used our ultra-mega quantum-band links to get the authorization to use a super-special-awesome track by Man on Earth called Lazy. They have even said that if they like our video enough that they'll put it on their myspace page- how freakin' 1337 is that? We will win some internets if they do.

We have sort of started to think about pitching, but first we have to transcribe the lyrics. This is hard because we are still upset at not being able to do 'Poo Through My Ass' by The Left Rights, which would have been much easier to pitch due to its specific lyrical content.

Since the song is about a failed relationship, expect something cheesy and Nickelback-esque. Hmmm... cringeworthy! Well, it would be nice to break away from this formula of ph41lure, but the video has to be depressing- people like to be afraid or depressed in our bizzare post-9/11 world. Oh yeah, I went there.

In other news, a man tried to break into my house last night, so I proceeded to whack him over the head with my fold-up chair until he was 'unconscious'. Upon inspecting him after my assault, I found:

-A torch with no batteries
-A half-empty packet of fig rolls
-Instructions for The Simpsons Monopoly
-A pack of used matches
-An elastic band

Upon further thought, I have suddenly thought to myself;

'Oh my God, I killed MacGuyver!'