Friday, 8 January 2016

Rough cut



When it comes to having a rough cut, it is important to receive different kinds of feedback from various people. It is important for a number of reasons. A rough cut is not a finalised version and opinions are needed in order to find out what you need to improve and what you missed. This feedback is crucial when it comes to production, as viewers can give useful and also effective comments for the music video producers to take note of and make changes in areas of the video that may be lacking in some aspects or what needs to be added further. The viewers give a good indication of what should be kept in the music video from watching it and also the things they enjoyed about the video, this means the producers will bear this in mind and make sure they do not make many changes to this part of the  music video, as it already has good reviews. Rough cuts are a vital part of making a music video, because these rough cuts are considered drafts and are not the final end product, which means when something to improve on has been mentioned by a viewer of the rough cut, the producers are then able to work on these specific parts in order to improve the video so that the opinion on the video betters and overall the audience end up being happy with the final version.

Me and my group were given feedback from a number of people, one way we did this was using the internet social media site, youtube, which is also where we uploaded the rough cut and it meant that by using youtube, our audience could leave their comments in the comment section below the video. Another method we used was to show the actual product to our whole class so that me and my group could listen and gain some good opinions and views as well some improvements needed from the students and teachers in the room. I also showed my video to members of my family at home to gather their opinions and also gain more feedback. From our questionnaire results, we can note that the indie genre has a large audience age range, and me and my group asked people of many ages to give us feedback on our indie video, teachers, parents, students the same age and maybe younger or older siblings.

Me and my group made our rough cut with the intention to gain some constructive comments and also things we did well. Me and my group created a rough cut before making the video final so that when our group had all of our comments and feedback received, we could then use this to imrprove our final product. If all of these improvements are made it will then lead to the video looking better and it will feel like a real music video, as when it comes to our rough cut, there are improvements that need to be made and things changed and we will need our audience to point out the points of issue and errors we made. The comments on youtube about our rough cut gave myself and my group an insight into what we needed to better and change and also at the same time what we had done well, if all the improvements mentioned get added to our existing rough cut video, then we will complete our group task of producing a music video that appeals to our selected target audience. The rough cut we produced and how we took on board the viewers comments will benefit the music industry, as all audiences will feel appreciated for the fact that they are listened too and their comments have been taken on board and that they will be included and adjusted in order for them to have the most enjoyable experience that they possibly can when they are watching music videos.


One comment that we received on youtube in the comment section about our video which shows that we included something a viewer liked and enjoyed was that there was a good use of a narrative, which may mean that the story put together and thought of well or it was simple to follow or the fact that the narrative and story of the artist himself was portrayed in a way that the viewer was able to empathize with him, thus establishing a connection with the audience, which is a convention of the indie genre. The next part of this comment says that another thing we used well was locations. I agree with the viewer on saying that we used good and a different range of locations, as me and my group took a lot of time trying to choose locations that would look different but at the same time, still get across the same ideas as we had before, for example, me and my group used Loughton high road when filming to try and show that it was a different part of Central London.

Another positive comment that we received was from another student saying that the artist had a very clear representation throughout our video, and also that the way he is portrayed with struggling to make it in the big world and be a successful musician is clearly shown throughout and easy to grasp. I believe our group did indeed convey this well when we made our music video, as there are many scenes that show he literally has hit "rock bottom", our album title cover, for instance, when the camera suddenly cuts to an extreme close up of the artist's money pot and there is very little money inside showing that the artist is not really getting any money or doing well at all, which then goes on to relate with the scene where he has to run away from the taxi, because he didn't even make enough money to pay the fare.

A final positive comment our group received came from our teachers stating that we used a wide range of diverse camera angles as well as techniques throughout the whole video wherever it was possible or needed. Our group agreed with this comment because we were always making sure that the shots were not too repetitive whilst filming in London as well as Loughton and Buckhurst Hill. All of these shots were used so that our viewers would enjoy the amount of diverse camera techniques we used and a few shots we used that helped create certain ideas coming from the audience, for example, when the artist is turning the sky to try and get back into his home near the end of the video and the shot in this frame is high angle, to show that he is in danger and vulnerable, we know he is in danger as he is about to face homelessness.

The first constructive comment me and my group received was from our teachers after showing them the video was that the lens on the camera wasn't adjusted properly and as a result certain shots are showing the artist out of focus. This is extremely noticeable when watching the video a second time an me and my group are very thankful for this constructive comment. However re filming the shots would be problematic because the filming location would be very difficult to get to again so that it's still bright and sunny as we are in the middle of winter, and the distance was very far for re filming all the way in liverpool street, this is also the reason why the second location is Loughton because it's busy as well as close by so me and my group thought that it would work there. Me and my group just need to focus on how to clear up the camera shots so that it doesn't look as if they are out of focus.

Another constructive comment made was that we need to use filters a lot more in our video so that it can look more professional as stated in the youtube comment we received. Me and my group have taken this comment on board and think that we could use a grainy filter to take some of the colour out of the video so that it looks a bit more depressing this makes it more conventional for the audience which will make it more professional as it will look like a realistic music video for the indie genre.

The last constructive comment made about our video was that one of the characters in the video, who is a successful individual and signs an autograph at one point, doesn't look as though he is a successful music artist. This is a very good comment that was made because though me and my group knew what he was, the audience would struggle understanding his purpose in the video, me and my group know he is a direct opposite from our artist but because the successful person isn't given much of an identity and it's difficult to see if he is even a music artist whatsoever. Me and my group planned on re filming these scenes so that he was listening to an Ipod so a connection could be hinted at, but in relation to the camera shot that should follow this one, he isn't seen at all with the with the ipod or even headphones, so this was a problematic constructive point but we still haven't corrected.

To help us gain even further feedback on our rough cut, a real grime artist "Lay-z" and his manager visited our class and watched each of our music videos to see what we could improve on. This was massively beneficial, as we were fortunate enough to gain advice from actual professionals inside the industry, which is something not many media classes would have the chance to receive, so this advice was vital, Lay-z knew what it took to create a successful video and also showed us some examples of his own, to give us some inspiration and to also show us what had been previously popular. When he watched our video, he told us that he really liked our narrative, he could tell what was going on and could feel the struggle of the artist and he believed it involved the audience well by using emotions, however he thought that some parts were a bit bland and needed filters to show even more emotions and also keep the video is interesting, as if it is constantly bland, then this might turn off people as they may find it boring. We took Lay-z's comments on board and included filters, for example adding faded sun before the artist begins his journey, to connote that things are about to take a turn for the worse.

Me and my group will start improving the video by adding several filters throughout, one idea me and my group have had is to use a filter that takes away a lot of the colour from the shots our artist is in so that it looks as though it is a depressing story. Me and my group then had the idea of adding colour back into the video when our artist is playing the guitar and when the successful artist is on screen because the colour would show success for the successful artist and would show hope for our artist. One last correction me and my group will be making is that there is a focus filter we can use to blur the edges of a shot so that the artist doesn't look out of focus as much anymore, he'll still be blurry but the background will be a lot more blurry so that our artist stands out.

2 comments:

  1. This post demonstrates some understanding of why a rough cut is essential to carry out and the benefits that it has to a production. You have made a start with explaining some of the reasons why it is essential, but you need to be more specific as to why you decided to showcase it on youtube.

    Aim-
    1) Be specific with what changes you wish you make, based on the feedback that you received. Example- What filters you are planning on using and why?
    2) Include the feedback that you received from the grime artists that visited the lesson

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  2. This post now demonstrates a proficient understanding of why audience feedback is essential to carry out and the ways in which it can help your production to be successful. The additional comments that you have included, demonstrates further understanding of why feedback is essential to carry out and the ways in which it can help your production to be successful.

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