Intro:
Within this report I will be demonstrating and
reflecting on my experience working on a commission with a client, Verity Rae
Martin, for her music video, ‘All I Ask’, an Adele cover song. This will be showing the research and
developments of my ideas for the video as well as covering my job roles
involved in the development into making the video with a client. A critical
evaluation outlining my performance will also be included highlighting aspects
of professional practice and areas of specialised interest that will enhance my
future career within creative film and television production.
About my client:
Verity Rae Martin -
Figure
1. Verity Rae Martin Website Homepage (2016).
Background -
Graduate of The BRIT school, she has been on the live
music scene for as long as she can remember. Clocking up thousands of live
performances over the years, she has worked with many a producer to get her
sound and live show to where it is today.
Her soulful voice has won her national critical acclaim
from audiences all over the world, and she has performed at many prestigious
events and venues. During her live shows, Verity has been described as, “a powerful
force on stage, offering audiences a night of pure pulse, pleasure and
passion”.
The debut single ‘Lost in the Song’ produced by Laurence
‘Woo’ Allen (who has worked with artists such as Big Brovaz and Craig David)
was released by Triumph Music Group in January 2012. VERITY loves to pass on
her knowledge and understanding of the creative arts and in September 2009
opened her first academy in Kent with Britain’s best loved comedy actress
Pauline Quirke. It proved so popular that they went onto open a further four in
Kent together and you can often spot lots of the PQA students on stage and
screen.
Her TV and Film credits include, The Bill ITV, Dreamteam
Sky, Midsommer Murders, Little Miss Jocelyn, I Really Hate my job starring Neve
Campbell, Spiceworld The Movie, Godforsaken directed by Jamil Dahlavi,
commercials and modelling include Ocado, Vision Express, Max Power, MCM, and
various advertising for publications to name a few…
First Job Role: Music Video Director
What did my role involve?
· Directing an actress.
· Listening to client's song and
forming an idea.
· Organizing dates to record with my
client/ actress.
· Finding a location to film.
· Researching the music video genre and
directors.
· Doing Storyboards and Shot lists.
What are the industry requirements to be a music video
director?
Research from ‘study.com’ say that 4 steps are quite
necessary when wanting to be a music video director in the media industry.
Step 1:
Earn a Bachelor's Degree
Although
not required to start a career, individuals interested in becoming music video directors may consider earning a
bachelor's degree in film. Topics and courses covered in film school include the history of film,
camera techniques and the business side of the industry.
Step 2: Intern For a Production Company
Working
as a production assistant on a music video is a great way for individuals to
gain hands-on experience and network.
Step 3: Gain Additional Music Video
Experience
Prospective
music video directors may be able to obtain jobs as assistant directors to gain
additional experience. Working
as an assistant director will give individuals more responsibilities on the set and help prepare them for
becoming a director.
Step 4: Develop Connections to Advance in
the Field
It
can be beneficial for individuals who are interested in pursuing this career to
build connections with musicians,
bands, producers and other professionals in the industry (study.com, 2016).
Although directing actors can be a challenge,
working with Verity was a pleasure as she has had much experience with acting.
I could only recall one time I had to direct her in terms of acting and this
was only near the end of the song when I had to explain that she had to put
more feeling into it, as the song got quite emotional and strong.
‘The
very best actors make it look easy. Their technique is invisible, they seem to
“become” the character, they seem
to speak and move out of their character's impulses and needs, their feelings well up strong and apparently
unbidden’ (Weston, 1996: 7).
Music Video Research:
‘Ariana Grande - Problem (Lyric Video) ft. Iggy Azalea’
Figure 2. Ariana
Grande - Problem (Lyric Video) ft. Iggy Azalea. (2014)
My client wanted a black and white lyric music video so one
example I researched was from ‘Ariana Grande's video Problem’. I examined the
black and white and how the director Jones Crow used this method to make the
video stand out. What made this video unique was the fact that it remained in
one shot and this was the use of close ups of the face and nothing else. What
made the black and white effects interesting was the use of lighting.
Justin Timberlake – ‘Suit and Tie’
Directed by David
Fincher, who also directed ‘Fight Club’ and ‘The Social Network’. Fincher’s
work is often dark, which is what I saw in this video as well, plus knowing he
did the social network I can see how he got the chance to work with Justin
again. What interesting
aspects of the video was the fact they showed the process of how they made the
music in the studio and then showed it in an ‘as live’ performance which is an
interesting way of storytelling.
Figure 3. Justin
Timberlake - Suit & Tie (Official) ft. JAY Z. (2013)
Avichi – Hey Brother
Figure 4. Avicii - Hey Brother (Lyric). (2013)
Although I couldn't find a director of the official lyric
video there were things I got from the video I thought I could use in terms of
editing. Using the text to appear creatively at certain times when the song
lyric is sung was an interesting creative touch. If I was to utilize this
within my commissioned video I could see it developing in a variety of ways;
1. It could be done and would look really nice and
professional
2. Even though it would look nice, the amount of time to do
it might be a little too much work to do
before the deadline.
3. If done correctly, the text needed to be visible in each
shot and should have an impact.
Goo Goo Dolls - Black Balloon
Figure 5. Goo Goo Dolls - Black Balloon [Official Music Video].
(1988)
Directed by Nancy Bardwell and released in 1999. What I loved
about this video apart from the effect of black and white is how it uses
transitions between scenes in a very creative and artistic way. How the band is
presented but also how at the same time it showed a story. Not all music videos shows the band or the
lead singer lip synching for every shot. This music video shows a story and
cuts to a main character representing the music video and what it's about.
My Client's Song:
Adele’s Song: ‘All I Ask’
Since this is a recent song released by the pop artist
‘Adele’, I could find background to the song but when reading the lyrics it
seems to be about having one last day with someone you love before moving on.
The song in detail is more about having that last request to do the things you
and loved one enjoyed doing before saying goodbye.
‘By the album’s
penultimate track, it’s hard not to wonder if Adele might perhaps leave the
songs about relationships in their death-throes to one side. All I Ask finds
her in what she presumes to be her last night with someone, asking to be held
“like I’m more than just a friend” and wondering if she’ll ever love again. You
will, Adele. He’s called Simon. (Hann, 2015).
So this someone could be presumed to a really good friend to
her but she just wanted to want this friend to connect with her like if she was
more then a friend.
Editing for my music video:
Some skill requirements are essentially needed if you want to
be a music video editor within the industry. Nearly all film, sound and special effects mixing is done
digitally, which means music video editors must be competent in editing
software. Having the connection with technology is paramount and can be
obtained by earning an Associate of Arts in Communication and Media Arts
qualification. Other options include a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in Film and
Digital Production or a BFA in Motion Picture Television Editing. Courses for
prospective music video editors may include scripting for electronic media,
video production and the art of film.
Skills Required -
‘A
successful music video editor has a keen eye, open ear and deft hand for
telling a good story. The best video
editors are so adept at splicing elements together that their work is invisible. This takes technological skill and
artistic ability’ (study.com, 2016).
Challenges faced while editing -
Getting to synch most of the lyrics to the artist’s singing
was a challenge because I had to make sure that not all the shots were the
same.
What was also a challenge was the placement of text on the
screen as most of it was hard to see when layered on he background. In a couple
of shots, I had to make do with what I had. Some challenges were actually with
the song itself, as there seemed to be a mix up of the lyrics. So I had to talk
to Verity about it and make sure if anything could be done before hand to
correct this or to do this again another time, or even if that is what she
eventually wanted to say in the song anyway.
Things I done in editing:
‘In simple terms, editing is nothing
more than putting shots and sounds together. In reality, it is much more than
this. I t is both a technical and creative process. It is also intuitive.
Anyone can string words together, but not everyone is able to write a good
story or a book without a sound knowledge of language. Editing is similar’
(Young, 2013,34).
I had to make sure to make the text feel like the song, so I
edited the text’s font to look like handwriting as if the song is about having
that one last chance to be with someone before you move on with your life.
Figure 6. All I Ask Final Cut Pro Editing. [Screenshot]
(2016)
The black and white effect on the shots worked well
especially with the location we shot at. Having the historic Dockyard’s old
attractions in the background suited the feel of the music video.
Reflection:
The shoot for the video went surprisingly well and the
weather was on my side on the day of filming. We thought we would get some
shots outside of the studio where we were filming, although finding a location
was a bit tricky. I managed to find a studio named DEF Studios, which is a
rehearsal studio, within Chatham's historic dockyard. I managed to book an
eight hour session with a date, which I confirmed with my client before the
deal for the studio was struck. The outside shots of Verity, were beautifully
shot at the dockyard, as we managed to get some shots of a steam train as well
as other industrial dockyard equipment.
Since the weather was so nice that day, Verity and I decided
to film around the Dockyard and to get more ‘coverage’ and shots that could be
edited into the finished video. Directing a music video can allow you to put
your own style into it. A music video is very similar to film, the director of
Justin Timberlake's music video showed how he can put his own film style into
the music video.
I learned that sometimes making a music video or sometimes
any video filming project things can often go wrong in terms of vision. At one
point I had to ignore the storyboards and visualize what I needed to film on
the spot. Problems encountered were often out of my control. One problem that
occurred was when the band were in the middle of recording a song and then they
lost their bass player. I only found this out when my client Verity told me
after I gave her a phone call to get a status report. I also didn't receive the
final version of the song we were going to be doing until the near end of my
Easter holidays even though I planed us to have filmed by this point. Even
though I did storyboards, I informed Verity about having her guitar player to
join us on the shoot but unfortunately on the day of the shoot Verity had to
inform us that he wasn't going to turn up. I managed to refer to my
storyboards, but for the rest of the shoot I had to improvise and visualize on
the spot. What made things even more awkward was that I heard in the middle of
the song the lyrics had been changed and I wasn't sure if Verity had made a
mistake with the song or she did it on propose, so I had to conform with her
before converting the final video.
What I could improve on is establishing more boundaries with
my client regarding our working relationship such as; if there is information
that you need to know, always try and call them just in case you can get more
insight and ideas from them. Don't feel like your bothering them just ask if it
is an appropriate time to call them, if not ask when they can speak with you.
As a resolution, my client really enjoyed the finished
product. She said that it was everything she hoped for and I even got offered a
job because of it.
I have learned to always be prepared for the worst, when
filming a commission make sure you get full details of what your client wants
and what you think could work and try and collaborate, at the end of the day
it's up to you making your client happy and giving them what they want.
Image List:
Figure
1. Verity Rae Martin Website Homepage (2016) [Screenshot] At:
http://www.verityraemartin.co.uk (Accessed on 31/01/2016).
Bibliography:
Glebas, Francis (2009) Directing the Story Professional
Storytelling and Storyboarding Techniques for Live Action and Animation.
Burlington: Focal Press.
DeKoven, Lenore Changing Direction A Piratical Approach to
Directing Actors in Film and Theatre (2006) Burlington: Focal Press.
Weston, Judith. Directing Actors. (1996) Studio City:
Micheael Wiesse Productions
Young, Rick. The Focal
Easy Guide To Final Cut Pro X. (2013) Burlington: Focal Press.
Web Sources:
Martin, V (2016) Verity Rae Martin Website. At:
http://www.verityraemartin.co.uk (Accessed on 31/01/2016).
PQA (2016) Hello from Verity. At:
http://www.pqacademy.com/academy_locator/rochester/ (Accessed on 31/01/2016).
