Constructing the Star Image

 

When Rosie May came into school to visit our group she also brought her scrap book with her. As you can see from this there are mixture of different women from varying eras, reflected in their hairstyles and makeup. We worked with this to produce a 60s star image, heavily influenced by Amy Winehouse and Charlie's Angels. From this we extrapolated that she was going for a strong female presence that signified power, authority and rebelliousness through her stylish appearance of the typical 60s beehive hairstyle and her bold cat-flick statement eyeliner. We took this on board and this lead us in our development of our ideas to look at ways of integrating this into our narrative structure.

 

Meeting Rosie May

On the Monday morning Rosie May came into visit our school and chat to our group about our ideas for the video. We ran her through all of our previous ideas that have had major flaws in them and therefore have been rejected. This was a helpful time in which we, as a group, could gauge her reaction to our previous as well as new ideas. Her feedback and our progression is as follows:

• She wants to be more modern in an urban way than Lana Del Rey and Amy Winehouse yet still encapsulate the timeless retro look they both portray. Since her style is quite similar to Lana Del Rey's this alteration to the star image would be advantageous as she will be differentiating herself from an already successful artist. Therefore another popstar which could influence Rosie's star image is the urban rooted Lily Allen who has, in recent years, altered her star image to become more retro!
• Rosie is still keen on the idea of stock footage, especially of the weather and in particular sunrise and sunset because of the song title 'Morning Blues' and references in the song lyrics. This idea recalls use of vintage film clips of the weather incorporated in Lana Del Rey's 'Summertime Sadness' video at the very beginning. As well as this Rosie loved the idea of the performance elements of her lip-syncing being shot against a wall occupied by projections of London in the 1960s or stock footage of the sunrise and weather. such as in the video below, as the Lana is filmed against a wall with projections of telegraph poles over her, an image conforming to the lyrics of the song. 

• On showing Rosie the video of Beyonce's 'Why Don't You Love Me?' she loved the idea but expressed her hesitation towards the age barrier as she is only 18 years old therefore may not be able to pull off the role of a housewife. However, she found the 50s style very appealing to her taste in style as well as the retro intro suggesting we could take from this idea by creating a similar intro to her video with the text of 'Rosie May' and 'Morning Blues' scrawling across the screen as a way of officially introducing her to the music industry in her new career. 
• Also I suggested we show Rosie the video of Paloma Faith's 'Picking Up The Pieces' due to the retro style she also showcases in the video, whilst also being set in the countryside at a manor house which would perfectly link to Leith Hill Place but is no long possible to use. On hearing this news Rosie instantly reverted to the idea of filming in London again due to the unattainable nature of Leith Hill. 

• However, our teacher expressed his worry to Rosie about shooting in London due to the unpredictable nature of the public around on the street as well as the weather and light constantly changing. Whereas at school we have a perfectly suitable studio offering constantly fixed surroundings and control for shooting. In the studio we could also incorporate shots of other people's lives such as a couple sitting at either end of a long table, sipping coffee in the morning, not talking to each other. Another shot of a girl crying on her own, as well as a shot of a couple fighting, which could all be conclusions of the activities from the night before. 
• However, Rosie then informed us of a connection she has in London to a warehouse area which her cousin lives in and owns. This could therefore easily be the setting for the video due to the fact that it is not completely out in the open like a street is. 
• From here on in the ideas for the video came flowing once the setting was partially decided on, as we still needed confirmation in writing to film in this area. Our thoughts now are to create a very simple video focusing on the feeling of the morning after a party, filming shots incorporating sunlight and natural tones and hues in Rosie's beauty shots. Rosie's lip-syncing shots could be a partially shot in silhouette form against blinding morning sunlight in London in the warehouse setting, possibly on a roof top to catch the light, using this as a cutting point for each shot. 
• In performance shots Rosie could be dancing and turning around during the chorus with the sunlight behind her. 
• However, the video is still too ambitious to shoot at sunrise due to the travel time needed to get up to London. 
• 'Morning Blues' is about the after effect of the night, experienced in the morning. Therefore there is no point in concentrating on the night before. 
• We have decided on the music video being one that concentrates on the location and therefore we can decide on shots based on the urban locations we will be situated in such as against brick walls, lying on rusty car bonnets, walking around empty rooms in the warehouse and dancing on rooftops. Therefore including shots inside and outside of the warehouse. 
• The warehouse location seemed to remind me of James Arthur's new music video 'You're Nobody Till Somebody Loves You' which involves James playing a concert in a street to the public. The video obviously retains the artist's urban roots due to the fact that the setting lacks extravagance, ultimately being realistic and prioritising the music over anything else. I feel we can definitely get some inspiration from this type of video due to our location being similar, as well as our ideal target audience being the same age and style as James Arthur's.  

• Another image shown in James Arthur's music video which we had an idea to incorporate into 'Morning Blues' in the bonfire and the public gathered around it. The warehouse location can house a bonfire outside and we can gather the people living in the various warehouses to come together and enjoy the warmth which will ultimately create a sense of community for the video. The relevance of the bonfire may be that the depressing thoughts of the night before are simply being burnt away, preparing for a fresh start. 
•  With the imagery of flames, fire and sunlight being all sources of light and warmth the use of warm sepia tones as well as old fashioned filmic looks of added film specs and light leaks helping to create and include the retro vintage aspect of the video Rosie wanted to maintain. 
• A valid point our teacher made was that the extras must be on the same level as Rosie, socially, but they can't be above her in anyway as they may steal away attention from her in her own music video, therefore she needs to stand out. We also need a range of ages for the extras, which will be found amongst the residence of the warehouse, as to avoid the look of a kids music video, which would be achieved by having extras from school, all around 17 and 18 years old. 
• The projections on the wall we want to include will be stock footage of Brick Lane in the 1960s adding to Rosie's want of retaining her urban roots and love for London. This use of stock footage in projection form will be possible to do due to the fact we are using the videos in a unique way. 
• It could even be possible to include a time lapse shot of Rosie against a wall outside the ware house, lip-syncing, and the residence around the bonfire to be edited in high speed time resulting in a time lapse shot linking to the idea of the people of Brick Lane in the 1960s at their market stools and living their life day by day in anonymity, which the time lapse suggests, additionally allowing Rosie May to stand out against the crowd in her music video.

Influences for our Music Video Idea

Since viewing the Beyoncé 'Why Don't You Love Me?' video where she is seen to be a 50s house wife carrying out everyday chores of watering the plants, washing the windows, hoovering etc. we have discovered the Pop Art artists of Eduardo Paolozzi and Richard Hamilton.

Eduardo Paolozzi's piece called 'It's a psychological fact pleasure helps your disposition' of 1948 presents a familiar European attitude toward the shallow contentment and fixation on hygiene disdainfully ascribed to Americans; but Paolozzi's title also contains a protest against coerced deprivation, which withheld from Britain's working classes the freedom from drudgery and the sensual excitement that seemed to be nearly universal across the Atlantic. As well as this original underlying connotation of the Pop Art piece, the images clearly also show the woman to be the one to do all of the housework and duties, which is also represented in a retro way, being dated to today's viewers. Similarly, Richard Hamilton's Pop Art piece titled 'Just what is it that makes todays homes so different, so appealing?' of 1956 displays a similar style to the art direction incorporated within  Beyoncé's music video of 'Why Don't You Love Me?'. This Pop Art piece also shows the woman to be exploited in her topless state, which could be seen as typical for the female gender in the past. These are all influences for 'Morning Blues' due to the fact that they are around the time of the 60s, possessing a retro style, which Rosie May desires in her video, as well as the fact that it provides a narrative which fits the idea of depression in an everyday, mundane life, depicted through the act of houseduties, communicated through the song of 'Morning Blues'.

Eduardo Paolozzi 'It's a psychological fact pleasure helps your disposition' 1948

 

Richard Hamilton's 'Just what is it that makes todays homes so different, so
 appealing?' 1956

 

 

Chatting With Our Teacher

For some extra feedback from our teacher I went for an extra chat with him. He expanded on the notes that Rosie gave our group and his own opinions on past our ideas.

• London as a setting for the video is not ideal but not unrealistic. The problems include the facts that we would only be able to shoot in London for the day which would limit us dramatically in own narrative strand ideas as well as amount shot by our group on the day as the travelling takes up a fair amount of time. Therefore the studio would be more beneficial to film in. 
• Our idea of filming different eras in the studio would also be quite hard to achieve due to the fact that the studio is simply not big enough to house 4 separate sets with the camera revolving around in the centre of the studio. Also the four different stages displaying different eras of music with bands playing in the background of the sets would not work as the only song that would be playing is 'Morning Blues' from the present era.
•  The video also needs to be low budget because it is her first therefore it can't be too extravagant, allowing her to enhance detail and budget of her music videos in her career. 
• A suggestion with the car idea would be to position Rosie inside the car instead of outside, in order to avoid the problem of the unattainable amount of cars in a traffic jam, a green screen can be assembled behind the one car Rosie is in, recalling the Michael Douglas film 'Falling Down'. 

• Instead of a traffic jam, being a boring concept of daily life, I attempted to mind map other ideas which are equally boring and happen often. The idea of waiting for the phone seemed suitable but no one really waits for their home phone to call anymore due to the constant instant messaging on new technology of today therefore the dated image of 50s or 60s could be introduced to the video again and could either depict a house wife waiting for the phone to call at home or perhaps a woman at her local switchboard job answering phones repeatedly. Therefore this recalled the music video of Beyonce's called 'Why Don't You Love Me?' conforming to a 50s house wife style but slightly more sexy than the true, being the image we would try to create. 

Rosie May's 'Morning Blues' Urban 60s Star Image

Rosie May's 'Morning Blues' would really suit a 60s star image. Since the SBTV videos are extremely urban in their setting, the 60s star image may not entirely suit the setting. However, Rosie May wants to create her own unique star image, being partially influenced by the 60s era with a twist of urban style within her image in order to begin her career in the present day, with aspects of the retro past fashions, which also allows her to be her own artist. Therefore, her main influences and references of style will be Amy Winehouse and Lana Del Rey with a hint of Lily Allen. 

Luke's Feedback on Leith Hill Picnic Idea

• Despite the music video idea sounding rather like Alice In Wonderland, which Luke did not entirely like, the fact is that Leith Hill Place is unattainable for any music videos this year due to past years use and subsequent lack of permission now. 
• Luke did not see the point in the animal masks, other than adding a bizarre element to the music video, on top of the psychedelic 60s costumes, therefore creating a dreamy or triply effect. The hazard about the masks, similar to our first original idea about the robot, is that the masks may look cheap, if they are bought off the internet. 
• He also did not understand the significance of the tea party scene as a pop video narrative is not the same as a film narrative, being similar to the tea party scene in Alice In Wonderland. Therefore Luke told us what he first thought of when hearing the song for the first time. His idea includes Rosie and the orchestra in the track being positioned on top of cars in a traffic jam. He has taken the viewpoint of 'Morning Blues' being a reference to the mundane routines of daily life such as the drive to work and being stuck in traffic. There would also be ball dancing couples on other car roofs around Rosie and the orchestra/band. Rosie would effectively be freeing the public of their boredom on their separate islands, incorporating a universal concept within the video, with the jolly song, however, with a sad underlying meaning shown by the lyrics. The idea of a monotonous day to day journey links to the Rise and Fall of Reginald Perrin. 
• This idea fits perfectly with the song's tempo, however, the idea is far to elaborate and consequently expensive which we do not have the budget for and further restricts Rosie in her music video ideas in the future. 
• We will also have a problem with recruiting extras for the video due Rosie being 18 years old and also the AS and A2 students being the same age, therefore the video will look like a school playground, filming a congregation of teenagers. 
• The blue trails created by Rosie's movement will be hard and time consuming to create in After Effects. Plus we need to lock this effect into the concept of the video more as it may seem slightly random, although the video is called 'Morning Blues'. 

Prospective Idea for 'Morning Blues'

Since Rosie displayed an interest in the near by Leith Hill Place this idea, developed by a member of our group for an initial music video idea, would fit perfectly providing the music video with a bizarre sense yet plenty of room for inclusion and demonstration of fashion.

• Forest

• Animal masks (fox / rabbit / squirrel / etc.)

• Assortment of chairs around long dining table in Leith Hill for tea party scene

• Picnic mat / tea pot / teacups / cake and other food

• 1960s costumes providing a psychodelic feel 

• Powder paint

• Streamers / ribbon

• antlers and animal skulls

• shots of people wearing the animal masks peering around trees

• 2 girls wearing rabbit masks, pretty dresses are sat at the picnic mat drinking tea ... can cut back to them when they are having a food fight

• fox, sat on the old arm chair, smoking a pipe, in a brown suit

• The animals who peer around the tress go wild and throw the powder paint at each other, and the streamers and ribbons etc.

• Slow zoom towards a girl stood in the middle of the forest, in an animal mask, holding a deer skull by the horns