In order to set up for our group’s shoot day we chose our cast member for the narrative strands, our settings which would then shoot at on the day as well as our props and costumes for the actors. Because our group were not going to shoot in the studio we consequently did not have to set up any staging, backdrops or equipment in order to prepare for our shoot day, as other groups had to because of their studio based shoot day. This was therefore a benefit in some ways due to the fact that we did not have to set up the afternoon before, however, it was also a disadvantage because of the fact that we did not know what the shooting conditions would be like on the day of our shoot as well as what the circumstances of the weather as well as public access would be for some of our desired locations. Since our group planned for our video to incorporate narrative strands of certain activities on rooftops we had to decide on our cast members very carefully. We chose one of the girls, Philippa, to be in a bikini in our music video on the rooftop sunbathing. This would therefore attract the male gaze and target audience to our video, widening the range of our viewers. However, the problem with this is that we are shooting at the end of November, which is a particularly cold month this year and could present problems for her, therefore we may have to improvise with another sixties outfit on the day if it is too cold. We chose our other girl, Bo, because she studies drama at school and would therefore be able to act a realistic and believable role in the music video of a 60s woman putting up washing on a line. Our last girl, Jemma, was also chosen to add an ethnic and cultural sense to the video and to widen our range of viewers and target audience. Our female cast members are all good looking girls and would therefore attract a heightened number of males for the target audience. Our final cast member of a drummer boy, Dillan, is an actual musician and producer and is therefore in the know about music and can therefore realistically be seen to play a drummer in a drummer boy’s outfit on the day of the shoot day, however, other commitments arose and he was unable to make it on the shoot day. When preparing props for the day our group searched eBay and Amazon websites for cheap and suitable props and costumes of a 60s style that were needed, primarily for the narrative strands. There were only a couple of props we actually bought ourselves as many of the props were everyday objects that we had at home ourselves therefore this did not present any problems to us as a group. The matter of selecting 60s costumes required more time and effort however due to the fact that each cast member was a different size and I had previously specified the actresses different outfits from the 60s as to not be a predictable stereotype of the era. Therefore with the help of eBay and Amazon we were able to select our costumes with ease. When it came to choosing locations for the shoot day to film at, we each carried out our own research and formed a list of prospective locations. We chose, as a group, in terms of what would benefit and complement the urban yet 60s vibe of the music video. Therefore our preparations for our shoot day were to choose the cast members, their outfits and props as well as the locations we would film at, which was all completed successfully.
On the morning of the shoot day I felt confident for the day ahead as well as at ease with our plans and preparations for our music video. Since our preparations for our narrative strands were not in fact needed on the day, I felt much more at ease due to the fact we did not need all our extra actresses and their costumes and props. However, since we decided to change our narrative on the day to Rosie starting off in the town, filmed to be shopping, and gradually moving towards the Brighton coast at the end of the day, provided our group with a vague narrative. Therefore, it was hard to know how we would film Rosie until we actually got to the locations and decided on the most suitable shots to use.
Our shoot day was not a matter of being prepared as we simply had to turn up at the planned location in Brighton and begin to shoot Rosie, lip-syncing and posing for the camera. The fact that we had neglected our plan to shoot the narrative strands on the rooftop meant that we did not have as much to bring and prepare for Brighton. However, before we decided to reject this narrative idea of the different actresses on the rooftop, we were very organised with the choice of our props and costumes. When we arrived in Brighton, because we were solely focusing on the subject of Rosie, we therefore just got stuck in to filming her walking around Brighton.
Our group did not shoot in the studio, we shot in and around Brighton. We were particularly impressed with the location of the Prince Albert Pub. When we arrived at this location we found that the shoot day really came to life. We all loved the Banksy style art on the walls of the pub and it really seemed to fit and emphasise our desired 60s style for the video. The fact that Dusty, one of Rosie May’s idols, was on the exterior wall of the pub was perfect to be included in Rosie’s music video as this incorporated some of Rosie’s personal likes and interests, giving the audience a hint of her music taste. The other location we used that really impressed me, and the rest of the group, was the last location at the end of the day on the Brighton coast line with the background of the Brighton pier and eye as we caught the sun going down. The location set an atmospheric finale to the music video as it really encapsulated the mood of the song. Also as she includes a lot of language about light the incorporation of the sunset at the end was very apt for the finale of the music video. As the day ended so does our music video.
Our
group divided our roles on the shoot day equally. For the entirety of the day I
was the photographer, documenting the process of the music video and attempting
to capture the album cover for her digipak
as well as the photos to be shown in the leaflet inside. I also filmed a few
close up shots as well as mid shots on the terrace of a restaurant in Brighton
within the town. I also acted as an assistant, holding up the reflector to
Rosie in the darker scenes by the Brighton pier. Nick, our other group member,
spent the majority of the day shooting wide shots and establishing shots of the
settings we used around Brighton. Georgie, the last group member, took it upon
herself to manage the play back music and continuity in each shot.
I personally feel as though I worked particularly well on the photography of the shoot day. I photographed our processes and efforts on the shoot day to get certain shots in certain locations achieved, as well as photographing the star of the shoot, Rosie May, in her element, lip-syncing the words to ‘Morning Blues’. Consequentially this will benefit us when we come to make our album cover as we can definitely use my images I shot on the shoot day for the four-sided album cover and inclusion of images inside the inner leaflet. I also acted as a runner on the shoot day, helping to carry around certain parts of technical equipment such as the tripods and cameras as well as Rosie’s possessions of makeup and clothing whilst she was on camera. When I had a chance to be the cameraman I also felt as though I achieved the extreme close up shot of Rosie on the rooftop in Brighton particularly well. I thought to set up an additional mid close up shot on the second camera we had with us for the day in order to simultaneously capture the lip-sync and offer variety in the way of shots in the final cut when editing.
The main problems our group experienced was as a result of locations. When outside the pub, against the wall of art and graffiti, we had some issues with cars as Rosie was one side of the road and the camera crew were the other side with a frequently used road in between. However, we solved this by a member of the group volunteering to stand around the corner of the pub calling out when the next car was coming so Rosie and the film crew could prepare themselves for its arrival. Our next problem consisted of location accessibility. Our group wanted to shoot on certain locations such as a dinner near the pub which we very successfully shot outside of, however, this was not permitted by the owners as it was private property and restricted from everyone else in the way of filming also. The other location problem our group faced was the fact that the old Greek church our group researched was unfortunately unobtainable as it had been shut and restricted from public access for the day, chained up outside at the gates. The last location, which we had a problem with, was a fairly sparse urban area of white columns and pillars amongst greenery in the park we had listed on our location list. However, this area was next door to a nursery, which was just finishing for the day. Therefore, children and parents were crowding the area, warning us off filming because they did not want their children caught on film. Consequently, with all of these locations, we made to simply push on with our next location on the list as we had no time to waste and the light was fading fast which meant we had to be down by the pier to capture our desired and prioritised sunset shots for the grand finale of the music video. The problem we experienced with the sunset shots was that the sun was in fact fading too fast, despite our missed locations, we captured a couple of shots of Rosie lip-syncing in front of Brighton pier and the setting sun, however, we were cut short and were successful in reverting to use the reflector to grab the last remains of the sun’s golden light as possible, but this did not last for long and we were forced to pack up the equipment and end.
I was a key member in attending to her needs and making sure she was satisfied. On the way to Brighton on the shoot day I was the member of the group to be in touch with her, agreeing a meeting place and time in order to be organised and as efficient as possible. I offered and helped to carry her possessions as well as informing her of what was to be filmed when and where.
I enjoyed the market location of the shoot in the lanes of Brighton. This was something that I had never experienced before in that we were filming amongst crowds of other people who were not aware of the music video we were aiming to shoot. The super eight style of filming possesses an inaccurate style of filming in that it is incredibly quick and simply prioritises the filming of subjects, being the main area of importance to viewers. Therefore with our use of super eight filming we simply chose to capture shots of Rosie walking amongst the crowds. We would often start off shooting a sign on a building or a part of the setting and then pan the camera’s viewfinder over to where Rosie would be situated. Another example of our super eight techniques would be when we were shooting Rosie inside of the vintage store; we focused on a clothes rail and panned over to Rosie coming in through the door. Next we captured short shots of Rosie looking through the rails and then another shot of her picking something up off the rails and admiring it. We were also anxious to include shots of Rosie replacing the clothes on the rails, as we particularly didn’t want it to seem like Rosie was out on a shopping spree. Therefore we achieved all these shots by the camera following her everywhere she went in the market. The sunset shots were also enjoyable to shoot as the lighting and setting was so beautiful. I believe we managed to get our best shots of the day down on Brighton promenade, as these were the most visually aesthetically pleasing and rewarding part of the shoot.
I am particularly looking forward to seeing the sunset shots from the end of the shoot day in the edit. I felt as though these shots were most aesthetically pleasing. Also the super eight style footage we filmed on the day in the market area was particularly well executed with a handheld camera technique and therefore it would be interesting to see what it will look when it is edited together. Potentially it will make for an effective contrast between the still and precisely composed sunset shot and roughly, quickly and edgily filmed market shots. I feel as though these different filming techniques, which will be shown, will emphasise the key action of journeying in the music video.
I feel our group worked very well as a production team. Through out the whole of the music video process I believe that our group worked well together considering how much we had to do in such little time. Although we had so many different ideas for the video and it took a while for our final idea to be passed we were consistent in our ideas, recovering from each rejection and working hard and efficiently at a new idea. On the shoot day we all had our designated positions in the team on the shoot day and organised points at which to rotate positions so we all had a chance to experience each role of cameraman, director, music operator and runner.
I have learnt some valuable lessons today that can definitely benefit my media work on shoots in the future. For example, since we knew that we were going out in Brighton for the day and would inevitably be walking around the city we decided to only bring two small easily portable cameras, being the Sony NX5 models, rather than the professional FS100. This was a very good idea and the lesson I will remember for future shoots is to always think about the amount of equipment you are bringing on a shoot and whether it is physically possible to manoeuvre in your circumstances. Another lesson that I learnt on the day is to be overly prepared. The mistake our group made was to not ring up the various locations we were planning to film at in order to check their availability and accessibility. Our group missed out on a lot of necessary filming opportunities, which would have made for some very successful shots. Another lesson that I can safely say our whole group learnt is not to overthink music video ideas. You should always start off with a simple thesis and then build on it. Our group’s problem was that we started off with too much of a complex idea and ended up getting endlessly rejected. However, when we utterly simplified our idea it was instantly accepted. Therefore, knowing this will save me a lot of time in my future shooting endeavours. The next lesson I learnt is to bring a reflector on every shoot I do. As the reflector bounces light off from the sun onto the subject the tool was incredibly helpful through out the shoot to provide Rosie with a warm, complementing complexion. At the end of the shoot it provided our group with a few more essential shots in front of the pier and therefore served as a vital piece of equipment.
I don’t think there are any changes to be made to the website or artwork as our group perfectly constructed and replicated Rosie May’s vintage and classy 60s style with an urban edge as her unique star image for all of the products we created for her, being the music video, website and digipak. The music video starts with a super eight style image of a concrete tower block and shows Rosie to be situated amongst a concrete jungle of modern architectural features of Brighton. The video goes onto depict Rosie journeying through the city, enabling some viewers to recall the prior renowned music scene of Brighton belonging to mods and rockers and openly illustrating its general alternative atmosphere in the market scene. The finale of the video provides the video with a climax and last burst of colour as the journey ends in front of the setting sun of Brighton pier. Therefore this feature matches our group’s efforts on the website and artwork as the website’s opening home page displays an image of Rosie stood against a wall on a pavement, which suggests the familiar urban sense felt in the music video. The image then continues to serve as a background to the whole of the website reminding the visitors of her individual star image. I have incorporated a gallery section within the website which also shows images I have taken on the shoot therefore this links back to the music video constantly. Additionally the artwork I have created entirely fits with the music video and website due to its colourful, urban and classy nature. The images are of Rosie stood in front of the wall of art of the pub in Brighton on the shoot day therefore the album cover images tie in perfectly with the video.
