Generic research- Filming and Lighting

As a consumer of kpop music videos myself, I know how important it is for a kpop music video to have stunning visuals. Therefore I knew that it was vital for me to have aesthetically pleasing footage.  By watching these videos, I learned how to utilise lighting to create certain effects and what type of artificial coloured lighting looks best on camera. 

Planning- Lyrics Analysis

Using Microsoft Word's comment function, I analysed and added descriptions to the lyrics according to what I plan to have in the music video e.g camera movements, editing and visuals. I will use this when filming to ensure I get the shots that I need for my music video.  

Planning- Animated Storyboard

Planning- Inspiration

I will shortly be filming my footage and even though I will still be using my ideas from my treatment, from further research, there are some more music videos that I will be using as inspiration for my own production.



Video #1 :

• This music video's content has achievable and appropriate camera work and editing. Furthermore, I also think that the body language and the performance of the artists in this music video would be a valuble inspiration for my own talents. 
• Editing: I have now, quite often seen, text of the name of the song and the artist at the beginning of music videos of this genre. Therefore, in order to strengthen the representation of this music genre, I will also do the same.
• Editing: At the beginning of this music video, there were various short cuts of each of the different scene both with and without the artists. I think that this would be a good idea to do the same for my music video. 
• LED lighting highlighting the leading lines of the set
• At 0:36 editing effect
• At around 1:40 the camera work
• The use of the 1st set at 1:47- 2:08 (even though one set was used, the variety of shots and the use of editing keeps the music video engaging)
• 2:44 editing +camerawork  

Planning- Mise-en-scene

Once my talents had confirmed that they were able to feature in my music video as the stars, choosing their costumes was the next step. I first sent screenshots of legitimate costumes from music videos of the Kpop R&B/Soul genre and similar genres, so that they were able to comprehend what sort of aesthetic/ representation I was aspiring to achieve.

                                 

I also sent an image of an outfit that I specifically wanted to create:

However, the images that I first received gave me the impression that they weren't able to see my vision:

      

       

Research (Generic)- Practising the Art of Editing

We don't talk anymore from i Browse on Vimeo.

Due to my lack of experience in editing, I de cided to create a music video for the first thirty seconds of a song, using footage from a pre existing music video (linked below) that I thought would suit the genre of the song. This process enabled me to practise and learn skills such as; using slow motion, filters and creating a pace to reflect the song's pace.

Research (Audience) - Focus Group

Eunice Bihag Borbe
Ethnicity: Asian
Age: 18
Occupation: Student
Hobbies include listening to Kpop, painting and travelling. Also enjoys reading fashion magazines and buying designer goods.
Do they watch music videos: YES




Fleur Feeney (British)
Age: 17
Ethnicity: English
Occupation: Student
Hobbies include watching films, reading and collecting issues of Vogue. Hopes to become a journalist in the future.
Do they watch music videos: NO

Aina Corcelines
Age: 18
Ethnicity: Asian
Occupation: student
Aina enjoys keeping up with the latest beauty and fashion trends and enjoys exploring new places with her friends. Hopes to work in international relations in China.
Do they watch music videos: Yes

Amunet Boafo
Age: 18
Ethnicity: African Asian
Occupation: Student
Hobbies include learning about Japan's culture and language. Amunet enjoys travelling all over the world, especially Japan and is interested in street fashion- particularly in Japan, South Korea and London.
Do they watch music videos: Yes

Generic/Audience Research- Overall Codes and Conventions of kpop music videos

Codes and Conventions of Kpop music videos

After analysing Kpop music videos in great detail, I have identified the codes and conventions of this genre, and I have listed them below:

•        Kpop music videos are almost always ‘performance based commercial exhibitionists’ according to Sven E Carlson’s theory on types of music video as the performers are made into a selling item; fans will aspire to be like them and the music video will appear to have a high quality, and a ‘gloss’ to them.    
  
• ·       A ‘star image’ is always created via adhering to the target audience’s ideologies. In terms of the Kpop genre, this is achieved by the display of materialistic wealth (through fashionable high end branded clothing, elaborate and expensive looking sets, and overall pleasing aesthetics).
  
• ·       Kpop music videos almost always have the master shot of the group dancing. Not only does this provide the music video with structure (Carol Vernallis), it also contributes towards creating a ‘star image’, as the better the choreography and its execution, the more the artists are viewed as talented. However, like Richard Dyer theorises, this ‘talented’ image is constructed. And this is through years of pre-debut training, and choreographies being created by external, professional dancers.
  
• ·       Kpop music videos contain lots of close up shots of the artists in order to meet the demands of the record label to help sell the artist.
  
• ·       Kpop music videos are expected by its target audience to be aesthetically pleasing in all areas of the music video; editing, camerawork mis-en-scene etc.
• ·       Kpop music videos almost always consist of elements of performance, narrative and art/cutaway shots, adhering to Andrew Goodwin’s theory from ‘Dancing in the distraction factory’. The different types of content usually enable fans to display what Henry Jenkin's theories as 'participatory culture', where fans will create theories from the music video, and 'cover dances'. 

  

  Screenshot from kpop dance cover video from music NCT's music video (shown below)

  

• A recent trend that I have also noticed is the mixture HQ and LQ shots, with the low quality shots imitating a 'VHS' feel to the footage. (Shown below in NCT's 'limitless')

My research has also been confirmed by asking my focus group about what they expect to see from kpop music videos in particular :

 

Audience Research- Purpose of a Focus Group

Through research, I have discovered that I am to use my focus group to conduct my own research asking questions on both a micro and macro scale such as:

• What do they (my target audience) care about?
• Why would they engage with my product?
• What are their expectations of a Kpop genre product?

and 

• What do you think my artists should wear in the MV?
• Do you like this shot? 

I will use my focus group to ask for their thoughts and opinions during planning, research, production and postproduction so that I have constant access to the thoughts and opinions of my target audience, (theoretically- as the possibility of other members of my target audience 'decoding' messages in ways other than my 'intended reading' as explained by Stuart Hall's Audience Reception Theory, exists.  

Generic Research- Music Video Textual Analysis (KARD)

Kard Textual Analysis from Isabella Browse

Research(Generic)- Glossary of film terms

aerial shot	A camera shot filmed from an airplane, helicopter, blimp, balloon, kite or high building (higher than a crane).
arc shot	A shot in which a moving camera circles round the subject being photographed.
bridging shot	A shot that connects one scene to another by showing a change in time or location. A bridging shot can also be used to connect two shots from the same scene by using a close-up, distant pan or different camera angle thus relating the shots via content.
camera angle	The position of the camera on a vertical continuum relative to the object being shot: eye-level, high-angle (looking down from above), low-angle (looking up from below), Dutch-angle (with the normal vertical axis tilted diagonally). The term can include the perspective given by the camera to the depth of focus, height and width of the particular object and action being photographed.
caption	See titles.
close-up	A shot in which a smallish object (e.g. the human head) fits easily within the frame.
composition	The complete arrangement of a scene by the director. The process includes camera angles, lighting, properties, characters, and the movement of the actors.
continuity editing	The conventions through which the impression of an unbroken continuum of space and time is suggested, constructing a consistent storyline out of takes made at different times.
crane shot	A shot in which the camera rises above the ground on a mobile support.
cross-cutting	Swiftly cutting backwards and forwards between more than one scene.
crossing the line	Breaking the 180º rule typical of continuity editing (see 180º rule).
cutaway	A sudden shift to another scene of action or different viewing angle; or a shot inserted between scenes to effect a transition (as a bridging shot).
depth (of field/focus)	The range of a camera lens. Depth of field refers to the distance furthest away from a lens in which the objects being photographed will remain in focus approaching infinity. Depth of focus refers to the closest proximity to the lens in which the objects being photographed will remain in focus approaching the infinitesimal.
dissolve	The slow fading of one shot into another.
dolly	A trolley on which the camera is pulled along the ground.
dynamic cutting	Combining a series of seemingly unrelated shots, objects, people, situations, details and characters in juxtaposition with one another (a form of montage, opposed to continuity cutting).
establishing shot	A long shot, often the first in a sequence, which establishes the positions of elements relative to each other and identifies the setting.
external diegetic sound	Sound which comes from out of frame, but is understood as belonging within the story space (unlike incidental music, which is extra-diegetic).
extreme close-up	A shot in which a small object (e.g. a part of the body) fits easily within the frame.
flashback	Narrative device in which the action is interrupted by scenes representing a character’s memory of events experienced before the time of the action.
flashforward	The opposite of flashback: future events (or events imagined by a character) are shown.
frame	Each individual photographic image making up the film. Also refers to the area of the picture seen on the screen.
framing	The size and position of objects relative to the edges of the screen; the arrangement of objects so that they fit within the actual boundaries of the film.
frontality	The placing of the camera at a 90º angle to the action.
graphic match	A visual rhyme between two successive shots.
jump cut	A rapid, jerky transition from one frame to the next, either disrupting the flow of time or movement within a scene or making an abrupt transition from one scene to another.
long shot	A shot in which a large object (e.g. a complete human figure) fits easily within the frame.
long take	A shot that is allowed to continue for longer than usual without editing.
match on action	A cut between two shots of the same action from different positions, giving an impression of seamless simultaneity.
medium long shot	A shot in which a largish object (e.g. the human figure from lower leg up) fits easily within the frame.
medium shot	A shot in which a medium-size object (e.g. the top half of a human figure) fits easily within the frame.
mise-en-scene	Everything placed within the frame, including set decoration, costume, and styles of performance (implies an emphasis on psychological and visual unity in a film from one frame to the next).
montage	Style of editing involving rapid cutting so that one image is juxtaposed with another or one scene quickly dissolves into the next. Angles, settings and framing are manipulated in a conspicuous way (violating coherent mise-en-scene) so as to convey a swift passage of time, to create some kind of visual or conceptual continuity, or to generate a distinctive rhythm. (See also dynamic cutting.)
narration	The telling of a story and the information supplied to the audience by a voice coming from off screen who may or may not be a character in the story.
off camera	Out of the boundaries of the camera’s field of vision (although a performer’s presence may be indicated by the context of the scene or their presence in dialogue).
180º rule	The convention that the camera can be placed in any position as long as it remains on one side of the action.
overhead shot	A shot looking down vertically on the action from above.
pace	The tempo at which the storyline of a film unfolds, affected by various elements including action, the length of scenes, camera angles, colour levels, editing, lighting, composition and sound.
pan	A movement in which the camera turns to right or left on a horizontal axis.
parallel action	Aspects of a story happening simultaneously with the primary performer’s situation, edited so that the projected image goes back and forth between the primary and secondary scenes (often leading up to a convergence of the two actions).
passing shot	A shot producing a projected image that travels quickly across the screen, either by moving the subject past a stationary camera or by panning the camera past a stationary subject.
POV (point of view shot)	A shot which is understood to be seen from the point of view of a character within the scene.
racking focus	A shift in focus between planes at different distances from the camera within the same shot.
reaction shot	A close-up in which an actor or group is seen to respond to an event, often accomplished with a cutaway from the primary action to someone viewing the occurrence.
reverse angle/ Shot reverse shot	Two successive shots from equal and opposite angles, typically of characters during conversation.
sequence	A series of segments of a film narrative edited together and unified by a common setting, time, event or story-line.
sequence shot	A relatively long and complete scene shot in one take without editing (similar to long take).
set	A constructed environment in which to shoot a scene: often consists of flat backdrops or façades, but can be a three-dimensional construction.
shock cut	The immediate juxtaposition of two incongruous shots (e.g. from a sex scene to a religious icon).
shot/countershot	Same as reverse angle.
subjective camera	A camera shot or film style that provides the audience with the specific vision or perspective of a character in the film (i.e. the technique of using POV).
suture	The ‘sewing’ together of imaginary and symbolic in Hollywood cinema carried out by continuity editing. It serves to ensure the sense of a unified narrative and subject position.
tilt	A movement by which the camera moves up or down while its support remains fixed.
titles	Any words that appear on the screen to convey information to the audience, including credit titles (identifying personnel), main title (the name of the film), end titles (closing credits), insert titles (announcing scenes or identifying settings) and subtitles (translation of foreign-language dialogue). Insert titles and subtitles can also be referred to as captions.
tracking shot	A shot in which the camera is pushed horizontally along the ground on a dolly.
two shot	A shot in which two actors appear within the frame.
voice-over	Voice heard while an image is projected but not being spoken in sync with one of the characters appearing on screen. Used to suggest a character’s thoughts or recall of something said earlier, or to provide objective (extra-diegetic) narrative or commentary.
zoom	The effect of rapid movement either towards or away from the subject being photographed, either by using a specialized zoom lens or by moving the camera on a boom, crane or dolly. Zoom effects can also be achieved and enhanced by the use of an optical printer.

This list has been taken from Durham University's glossary of film terms. 

Generic research- Music Video Textual Analysis

NCT Textual Analysis from Isabella Browse

Research (Generic)- Target Audience Profile

Research- History of Kpop & Youth culture

Research (Generic)- History of R&B/Soul

The History of R&B/Soul

Rhythm and blues (also known as R&B or RnB) is a music genre combining jazz, gospel, and blues influences, first performed by African American artists. The term 'rhythm and blues' entered the American vernacular in 1949, but was first used by Jerry Wexler in 1947 when editing the charts in Billboard Magazine. Lawrence Cohn, author of Nothing but the Blues, writes that rhythm and blues was an umbrella term invented for industry convenience. According to him, the term embraced all black music except classical music and religious music, unless a gospel song sold enough to break into the charts.

Soul music is a music genre that combines rhythm and blues and gospel music, also originating in the United States. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of funky, non-religious testifying."

More on the history of R&B soul can be found here.

Planning- Location Ideas

Planning- Location Ideas 

Due to the nature of Chinatown, I have realised that the possibility of not being able to shoot footage that has the right camerawork, composition, and is aesthetically pleasing, is considerably high. Therefore, I have researched for other locations to shoot footage at and have found more suitable alternative that still is in keeping with the genre and theme of the music video. 

Research (Generic)- Ferdinand De Sassure

Ferdinand De Sassurre: Signs and Semiotics

Ferdinand De Saussure is widely considered as one of the two major founders of semiology (the science of signs). A sign is a conceptual object, which consists of a signifier, and the signified (the referred idea in the mind, concept or meaning). In addition, there are perceptual objects or referents (the real objects), but the signs do not refer to them, but only the concepts in our mind. The goal of semiology is to determine the relations between the signifier and signified in the given language context. De Saussure argues that the signifiers and their relations to signified ideas are purely arbitrary and that there are no "fixed universal ideas".

Iconic-  icons are signs where meaning is based on similarity of appearance.

Indexical-Indexical signs have a cause-and-effect relationship between the sign and the meaning of the sign.  There is a direct link between the two. 

Symoblic- these signs have an arbitrary or conventional link.

Research (Generic) - Music Video Production

• Camerawork
• camera movement can be used to accompany movement of performers (walking, dancing etc.)
• camera movement can be used to create a more dynamic feel to a performance e.g circling around the star
• close ups are used to create a sense of intimacy for the viewer and emphasises the product; the song, the artist and the artist's voice

Screenshot from the music video, 'Eclipse' by Loona

• Editing
• the most common form of editing associated with music videos is fast cut montage, this often makes it extremely difficult to grasp all of the images on the first viewing, thus ensuring multiple viewings
• slow pace and gentler transitions are used to establish mood- this combination is often used for solo female singers
• enhancing the original images creates different kinds of pleasure for the audience e.g split screens, colourisation and CGI

• Star Image
• In 1979, Richard Dyer stated, "a star is an image constructed from a range of materials"
• For example, for a pop music these materials are:
• songs- their lyrical themes and musical structures/genres
• record covers- singles and albums and the image of the star they present
• media coverage- from interviews about career and private life through tabloid gossip
• live performance- the image through the stage show
• music videos: music videos reinforce existing image of the artist and takes that image further

'I Got Love', Taeyeon

• Voyeurism
• The idea stemmed from Freud:

• Male gaze; male viewer's gaze is geared to notions of voyeurism in that is a powerful controlling gaze at the objectified female on display.
• Goodwin argues that the female performer will be frequently objectified in this fashion, often through a combination of camerawork and editing with fragmented body shots emphasising a sexualised treatment of the star. 

'Focus' by Ariana Grande 

Research (Generic)- Different Programs

The only program I was aware of that could be used for editing my footage with to make my music video was iMovie. However after some practice using iMoive I realised that what the program

The only program that I was aware of, that I could use to edit my footage with to create my music video was iMovie. However, after having used iMovie to practise editing, I realised that what the program has to offer is very limited in terms of creating the effects that are used by official music videos. Therefore after some research, I found out that there are other programs that can be used to enhance my music video. Below are some tutorials, using Adobe Premiere, that I think that I am going to be using for my music video.

Planning- Music video Treatment

Treatment from Isabella Browse

Planning- Asking for permission

Here is an email of me asking for permission to use, Dean's I'm Not Sorry (ft. Eric Bellinger) for my music video.

Planning- Choice of Song

I have chosen to make a music video for the song, 'I'm Not Sorry' by Dean ft. Eric Bellinger. I made this choice as I want to create a music video with a genre that I, myself am interested in as I believe that I will be more enthusiastic and invested in creating the piece of text


I made this decision as I believe that I will be more enthusiastic and invested in creating a media text that incorporates a genre that I am genuinely interested in, which will consequently, result in a better final piece.

Originally, I wanted to compose an indie music video, due to the low production value required for the text to seem professional, however I only found South Korean songs of this genre appealing. This would have meant that, in order to follow the codes and conventions of music videos, I would need talent that would be able to lip sync Korean lyrics, a task that I am not able to achieve.

As a result, I made the compromise of choosing an English song (with a South Korean artist), but of a genre (R&B/ Soul) with a higher production value.