Task 6 - Other Student Videos

The Good:

This video is of a superb quality.
The editing of the video is great with slow motion, blurs and special effects are used well. The section of the video where the girl is surrounded with fire brought down the overall quality, because while it was good, it wasn't the same as the rest of the video.
The lip syncing is great with it all being spot on and the acting is also very good. The actors are all in costume and it does look quite high budget despite it being a very low budget production. This shows that the creator has put a lot of time and effort into finding the right people for their video. This is a vital part of any music video and can also be the hardest.
Finally the locations are well thought through and they add to the whole look very well. This shows the amount of thought and planning put into the video.
Overall, this video is clearly of high quality, and could almost be mistaken for a professional video. This is the type of quality that I will try to achieve with my video.

This video is also of good quality.
It is a rap video, which set the actors a really big challenge for lip synching, but they seem to do well and it doesn't hold the video back. The emotions while lip synching are great and add a lot of realism. This is because the actors are brilliant, and the creator has done a great job at choosing them. They add a lot of professionalism to the video and add to the quality in general.
The editing is also top quality with the cartoon section looking absolutely great. A lot and time and effort must have been put in to make it all work together nicely.
Finally, the only drawbacks are the locations. They are very low budget looking and don't seem professional. It is understandable why they chose them, as the lighting is good, however it doesn't make up for the cheap look.
Overall, they pull off the video very well and have achieved something that I hope to too.




The Bad:

This video is noticeably worse.
The editing is almost non-existent and when it does come in, it looks tacky and as if there is little effort put in to it.
The actors while wearing decent costumes, are not who you would expect to star in a video of this type. This makes the whole production seem a little fake and the whole thing doesn't work as well as it could've as it doesn't adhere to stereotypes.
As the video is done outside, the lighting isn't a worry, but the type for song doesn't really suit the time of day nor the weather.
The angles and camera movement are a bit dodgy but suit the type of music video, so it doesn't matter too much.
The backgrounds and surroundings do suit the video, but in a low budget sort of way. This means that while they suit the video, they don't really add much.
Overall, as there are many different factors to a music video that the creator has thought very little about, I don't think the video is as good as other ones I have seen.



This video is the worst of the four.
The lip synching is literally non-existent, and the actors aren't really acting. This makes sure that little marks can be achieved from this.
The whole video is just a collection of shots of people walking around and kissing, and a few shots of iPhones. There are a couple of good quick shots, but nowhere near enough to bring up the quality of the video.
The setting allows the lighting to be good, however there are still shots that are somehow too dark. A video that is shot outside shouldn't have to worry too much about lighting, however, it should still be made sure that you can see what is going on, unlike half of this video.
Finally the editing in this video is limited to cuts, which are not unique in anyway or form. This makes the quality drop massively as the video is just not interesting at all.
Overall, this video, despite not being very good, helped me a lot in deciding what not to do when it comes to making mine.



From doing this task, I have learnt a lot about what works and what does not work in music videos. I now know what is possible from a student video and what isn't, and can now learn from other peoples previous mistakes. I will use this knowledge when it comes to making my own music video and use it to the best of my ability.

Task 5 - Branding of Music Artists

From doing this task, I have learnt a lot about what image different types of artists aim to portray. This will help me when it comes to choosing what the artists in my video will be wearing, and what they need to be putting across to the audience as a message. Finally, this will help me in making my artist appeal to the target audience for the song.

Task 4 - Digipak Adverts

Digipak adverts follow a few codes and conventions. They all seem to have close up photos and are low key with their lighting and colours. They don't ever have more than one photo, and they all seem to stay basic with the layout, making it really easy to transfer information to the audience.



This is Plan B's digipak advert. It is very effective as it sticks closely to the traditional codes and conventions. Things such as low key lighting, close up photo and is very informative for the audience. This is expected as it is a big artist and sticks to his genre and theme. Low key lighting and close ups are very common practices in the hip hop genre.



Florence and the Machine's digipak advert is also very impressive, as it also follows traditional codes and conventions. While some bright colours are used to make the close up image, the majority of the advert, such as the background and the text are very low key and very muted colours are used. This, and the short, to the point text makes it an effective advert



This is Two Door Cinema Club's advert for their digipak. The indie genre is known for their use of digipaks, so this advert does not follow some codes and conventions, for instance, there is no close up image used, just repeated patterns instead, as the audience would be familiar with the concept anyway. However, short and to the point text, and low key lighting are still key aspects to the success of this advert, which goes to show that not all codes can be challenged.



Stereophonics' digipak advert is a great example of why codes and conventions are traditionally followed. The low key lighting, close up image and informative text really works out well for the artist, and the advert is very successful.



This digipak advert is of Jessie J, and the theme is very familiar to that of pop music. This is a good aspect of it, as the target audience would be pop fans, and audience appeal is an absolute necessity for an advert of any kind. As for codes and conventions for music adverts, it also follows them closely. Low key lighting, a close up photo and informative text is used, making it a generally successful advert.



Finally, Ellie Goulding's digipak advert is also another successful example. A close up photo shows the audience who the artist is, and enables them to get more familiar with them, short and to the point text enables the information they want to get across to get to the audience easily, and unlike many others, this example has high key lighting used. Despite it being unusual, it is used effectively and makes it stand out for the target audience of pop music fans.

From doing this task, I have expanded my knowledge on what makes a successful digipak. I now know there are codes and conventions that can be either followed or challenged depending on who your target audience is and what response you are trying to get back. This could be to do with the lighting, or the photos or images on the advert.

Task 3 - Digipak Research

From doing this task, I have learnt a lot about what digipaks are, and what their purpose is. I can use this knowledge when it comes to further tasks and practical work involving digipaks. I know that this will help me greatly as it is a vital part of the music industry and I will need to master this if I want to make a good product that is of a high standard.

Task 2 - Music Website Analysis

From this task I have learnt a lot about how music websites are set out. I now know how to get certain information across easily and how to keep peoples attentions on the page. This will help if I choose to make and design my own website as I now know what works and what doesn't.

Task 1 - History of Music Videos

From doing this task, I have learnt a lot about different types of music videos and how they have developed over the years. This will help me when it comes to planning and making my video, as I now know what has worked,m and what hasn't been done yet, making it easier for me to make my video new and unique.