Risk Assessment

We have to evaluate the risks of going to film in the local surgery, it is important to think of all possible problems we could encounter whilst filming in order to try to avoid them.

Risk - Be involved with a car accident whilst walking to the surgery
Location - The roads between the school and surgery
Avoid - The ways in which we can avoid a accident from happening is to remain safe and be very cautious when crossing the roads.

Risk - Tripping and falling in the surgery due to steps/objects
Location - Surgery
Avoid - The way we can avoid any accidents by tripping or falling in the surgery is to be cautious of any steps and be sure to watch out for any medical equipment and other objects.

Risk - Hurt on any medical equipment
Location - Surgery
Avoid - Due to the many sharp objects in the surgery and other dangerous medical equipment/practices there is a risk one of us could get hurt. To avoid this we will be cautious of where we are walking and stay always aware of any dangerous objects.

Risk - Fire
Location - Surgery
Avoid - Although the chance of this risk are low, it is still a valid risk, we can avoid it by if their is a fire, remaining calm, leaving the surgery cautiously and following any further instructions given by the authorities at the surgery.

Location

We have chosen our local doctors surgery to film our preliminary task. The reason we did this is because we wanted find a fitting location that will really recreate the waiting room location seen in the real 'Small Bump' music video. We had to gain permission by the authorities first which we did manage to do and now we can film in this location and obtain footage that will firstly help us with the realness and level of how professional our preliminary task looks but secondly footage good enough for us to breakdown into strengths and weaknesses and to learn from.

Storyboard

I wanted to plan a storyboard to increase efficiency when filming our preliminary task. The reason a storyboard would be so helpful is it would let us know exactly what shots we have to do and for the exact time those shots should be used. This way we will eliminate chance of firstly missing a shot and secondly get the wrong angle/timings of a shot.

0.00 - 0.02

0.02 - 0.04

0.04 - 0.06

0.06 - 0.08

0.08 - 0.20

0.20 - 0.48

0.48 - 0.55

0.55 - 1.00

Script

It is important to be aware of the lyrics in Ed Sheeran's Small Bump, this way the lip syncing will be accurate and make the music video all round more accurate.

'You're just a small bump unborn in four months you're brought to life,
You might be left with my hair but you'll have your mother's eyes,
I'll hold your body in my hands, be as gentle as I can,
But for now you're just a scan of my unmade plans,
A small bump in four months your brought to life,
And I'll whisper quietly and give you nothing but truth,
If you're not inside me, I'll put my future in you.'

Filming Schedule

We have to plan out a filming schedule for our preliminary task as it will increase efficiency and save time.

1:00 PM - Meet in Common room
1:05 PM - Acquire all needed props/costumes/equipment
1:10 PM - Walk to the filming location (surgery)
1:20 PM - Film
1:50 PM - Walk back to school

Permission

We have to gain permission from the doctors surgery to film their. This is essential as we need it to film all our shots in our preliminary task.

Prop List

We need to plan what props we would need to make our recreation of the Small Bump music video by Ed Sheeran more accurate. We must consider clothing and props to help make the video as real as possible, we wanted to be sure we focused upon Mise En Scene.

We plan to use the x-ray printout in one of the shots to make it correctly match the shot in the original video. We plan to use clothing which consisted of that which Ed was wearing in the music video, blue hoodie, blue jeans and nike shoes. Finally we are planning to take a tripod to film some of our shots and a Cannon HD video recorder to film our music video.

Shot List

We needed to plan ahead what shots we will be using in our preliminary task.

Clock - The first one is a low angle shot of a ticking clock. We will use a tripod to keep the camera steady and tilt it up to look at the camera and focus on it and create a low angle.

X-Ray - The second shot is looking at x-ray projection, here we will just take a picture of a x-ray projection in our chosen location (doctors surgery).

Containers - The next shot is of yellow containers, and we will just take a picture of the yellow contains on a counters.

Bed - The fourth shot is looking at a empty bed, here we will take a low angle picture of the bed being cautious to make sure the lighting and the main focus, as these are key in the original music video.

Waiting Room - The final shot is a pan/tracking shot, it starts facing Ed Sheeran from one direction, then moves towards him and pans past him to move to the other side of the room facing Ed from the opposite direction. Here will we set up the camera on a chair on wheels to make sure the movement is steady and we will wheal the chair across the room whilst paying attention to where the camera is on Ed at specific points in the real music video.

Chosen Preliminary Task Music Video (Ed Sheeran)

We chose to do Ed Sheeran's, Small Bump music video as our preliminary task. It consists of him seated in a hospital and other figures fade in and out, a metaphor for people coming and leaving. The first shot is a low angle shot is of a ticking clock. This is used to couple the hospital theme with a ticking clock, almost that time is passing and running out, it opens the music video with a clear idea that can match with the lyrics, which mainly speak about a child passing before birth. The second shot is just used to enforce the hospital theme, it is looking in at a x-ray projection of a bone structure, this lets the audience know that it is a hospital or some kind of medical area. The next shot is a close up looking at toxic containers, this gives of a sense of danger, and enforces the idea of hospitals can bring bad news, this again links back to the lyrics. The next shot is looking through a window at a empty bed. This shows that the outsider is looking in and the fact the bed is empty gives the idea of empty and alone. Finally the next shot is of the singer Ed Sheeran, he is sitting in the waiting room with two other women and what appears to be a doctors dressed in a white medical coat. The camera goes up to Ed as he is singing and focuses on his facial expression, it then goes past him and pulls away. This shot shows the emptiness of the waiting room, and Ed is sitting waiting with a look of worry and almost depression. This shot is so good as it matches with the lyrics, Ed is waiting as others fade in and out he continues to sit anxiously waiting.

Music Video Analysis (Katy Perry)

The music video opens with a establishing shot which displays a wedding, opening the video with a clear theme. The next shot is of Katy Perry dressed to look very extravagant, and involves the priest asking her questions upon the marriage, this introduces her as a very beautiful and normal woman. After this the other man is introduced, he doesn't answer the questions upon the marriage and a look of frustration is shown from Katy Perry. This now shows another side to her which breaks her up a bit and gives her more character. This is done to show the audience there is almost a good and a bad side to her. Next the man runs into a concert. Katy Perry is singing on stage, here she is dressed to give more of a sex appeal, she is wearing a low cut top and short skirt. This aims to establish a link between Katy Perry and her audience who find her attractive. After this the man is approacher by Katy Perry and other females dancing. They are all wearing fairly revealing costumes, but the costumes are made to look like wedding attire. Katy is dressed in a short wedding dress with a large bow on it and later continues to chase after the man on a bicycle. As she is dancing it shows again sex appeal but also gives the viewer a look at the more fun side of her, building her as a character, like a star. This is important as it is good evidence for Dyer's star image theory, that a star is made. Finally the man approaches another version of Katy Perry, this time dressed more casually, backed by dancers also dressed to look more casual. With props such as a boom box and graffiti, it gives Katy a very street like character. This aims to connect a link with a different group of viewers, Katy is portrayed in many different ways throughout the video all in an attempt to present her sexually, in a fun way and establish links with social groups. It is a successful video because all round it is a bit fun and very un-realistic, which not only goes with the lyrics of the song but also presents Katy Perry as a almost wild and fun girl, fitting into a pop princess category.

Album Artwork Analysis (Tenacious D)

Here is a picture of the group work analysis we did of a selected album artwork. It is breaking down all the aspects that make up the Tenacious D 'Rize Of The Fenix' album cover, back, disc and booklet.

Album Artwork Analysis (50 Cent)

The album artwork for 50 Cent's Get Rich Or Die Tryin', is very focused upon one main aspects, 50 Cent. The background of the album cover red, red is can be viewed as a rather fierce colour, it can be associated with violence. In the top right of the cover is 50 Cent's name in its well known logo form. It is very loud and unmissable, the text is incredibly bold which works against the album title text. The album title text is a much more elegant style, which works well as it goes against the normal conventions of a Rap album cover. Also important to review is the 'Explicit Content' warning in the bottom left of the album cover. This acts almost a a sense of pride on a rap album cover, it adds to the image that 50 Cent is portrayed as, very violent, aggressive, as a gangster. Finally The main spotlight, 50 Cent himself, he is staring directly at the viewer, he is also topless and there is a good sense of focus upon his muscular appearance and tattoos, this is to make him appear as a more rough individual which again provides back up for the star image he portrays. He is wearing a strap over his shoulders and around his waist which is known for carrying guns. It is not completely clear from the picture wether there is a gun in the strap but the fact he is wearing one makes him appear as ruthless and gives the idea to people that he is a gangster and could go as far as a killer, this is very good evidence to support his image, and the way he is wanted to be perceived by the public. Also two accessories he is wearing, a belt with large, shining belt buckle and a watch again covered in diamonds. This gives the impression he is rich and cares about his accessories, which is important for two reasons. Firstly is goes with the album title 'Get Rich Or Die Tryin' and also because the public have become very aware that gangsters and thugs are very involved with big diamond crested accessories to show of their money. Finally the key part to the album cover, the fact there is a bullet hole in the glass in front of him, and through the bullet hole the viewer can see the diamond cross around his neck. This is so important as it brings such a criminal aspect into the situation and compliments it with a very holy symbol, two so incredibly different ideas. This gives the impression 50 Cent is involved with the violence of crime and guns but also is a firm believer of specific things, the perfect 'gangster' image. It is clear that 50 Cent is wanting to be perceived as a criminal, careless and reckless, this will go with the music he is making and when joining those two elements successfully, music and image, a star is created.

Artist Presentation

Artist presentation is key to create a star. Involving Dyer's theory of 'Star Image', he states, artists are constructed to become stars, without the way they are represented, they are nothing. This displays the importance of the way an artist is viewed by the public and the style they display of as a musical artist.

One example of very loud and and bold figures in music is Ke$ha. She is perceived as a very charismatic individual, the public see her as almost a 'out of control diva'. Ke$ha's image plays upon this idea and leads to her success due to the more wacky she is represented, the more hype that is focused upon that crazy side that is invoked the more sales made. It is clear that the way someone like Ke$ha is presented to the public will have a direct link with his/her success. From the album cover animal it is clear that firstly the main focus is Ke$ha looking directing toward you. Her lips are covered with a gold lipstick, this is coupled with the text and the outlines of the album cover give of the effect of being written in glitter. Ke$ha is outlined to stand out from the background, this is clear that she is being portrayed at the important figure, she is conveyed as more forward and the glitter adds a sense of craziness which amplifies her image of a very captivating and compelling. Everything in the album cover is there to stand out or make Ke$ha stand out.

The opposite to this is the much more quiet and humble character. A perfect example of this is Ed Sheeran, he is conveyed as normal and just a normal person. He again plays upon this image to appear as just a average person, very humble for his fame. This is created through both his album cover and music videos. All his music videos have not been extravagant, more so just involving general situations. One example of this is in his music video for 'Small Bump', in which he is just sitting in the waiting area of a hospital in normal casual clothing as other faded figures pass him. This displays him as normal, no big production level, just focusing on him becoming sensitive and down to earth as a star, or at least the way he is perceived by the public. Also in his album cover for the album '+', simplicity is emphasised as it is just his face. The cover consists mainly of orange which helps give make him appear more friendly as it is almost a play upon his well associated ginger hair. It is clear that Ed Sheeran is made to look normal, to appear as if the fame has not changed him from who he is. People can connect to him as a more real individual, which helps his success even though that realness is outlined by the way he is made to be presented.

Artist presentation is absolutely crucial to help created a individual into a star. The way it is done and what the aimed outcome is can take large effects on the success of the artist.

Changing Blog

I took the time to arrange certain aspects to help the blog become more profession, also I changed the template and layout to fit what I want.

First Post

I set up a new blog which will be used for research & planning, creating and evaluating A2 Media work.