Preliminary task props and location

The location that we will be using is a cattery in our local area. This is to create a pun through the name of the song, and the setting that we have in mind. We plan to have the actor walking through the cattery, trying to choose a pet to take home.
The only props that we will need are a microphone and possibly a microphone stand. We will also need to ask the actor to wear a suit so that they can look as classy as Tom Jones.
Contact details and photos of the cattery are below:

144 Bunwell Street, Bunwell, Norwich, NR16 1QY
Email us: info@gardencattery.co.uk
Call us: 01953 789950

 

We think that this location is perfect for our video as it is a manageable size, not open to the public, clean, and organised. Filming there will be very fun.
 

Preliminary task Script

The script for our video will be the lyrics for the song 'What's new pussycat' by Tom Jones. The whole lyrics are shown below:

What's new, pussycat? Woah, woah
What's new, pussycat? Woah, woah

Pussycat, pussycat, I've got flowers
And lots of hours to spend with you
So go and powder your cute little pussycat nose

Pussycat, pussycat, I love you, yes, I do
You and your pussycat nose

What's new, pussycat? Woah, woah
What's new, pussycat? Woah, woah

Pussycat, pussycat, you're so thrilling
And I'm so willing to care for you
So go and make up your big little pussycat eyes

Pussycat, pussycat, I love you, yes, I do
You and your pussycat eyes

What's new, pussycat? Woah, woah
What's new, pussycat? Woah, woah

Pussycat, pussycat, you're delicious
And if my wishes can all come true
I'll soon be kissing your sweet little pussycat lips

Pussycat, pussycat, I love you, yes, I do
You and your pussycat lips
You and your pussycat eyes
You and your pussycat nose

The section that is highlighted in purple is the part of the song that we will be using, as we only need to create one minute for our preliminary task.

Existing short films - student made

Chase (2014)

This is the first student made film that I have looked at. I think that it has a very good story, and the characters are believable. It features one main woman being followed by another character. Some of the shots are very effective, such as the over shoulder shots, as they allow the audience to see from the characters point of view.

Listen (2013)

I loved this short film, the story was good, the actors were engaged, and the filming and quality of shots was brilliant. One scene that I found particularly good was the roof scene in which we see some good long shots and tracking shots as the main character approaches the edge of the roof. I also liked the opening shot in which we see a character moving past the film title.

Pensil (2012)

I do not like this short film as much as the others because it does not have a very strong story, however I chose to look at it because of it's individuality compared with others. I think that the shots are very good, and the general colour scheme of the scenes if effective as it matches the mood, however I was not very engaged with the film, so do not like it.

Existing short films - professional

Boy (2014)

This short film is an award winning piece by young Danish film maker Lucas Helth Postma. The film is about a young girl struggling to come to terms with the body she is in. In her head, she is a boy. I thought that this film was very good and there were many different emotions to be felt throughout. One thing that I think was particularly good about this film was the cast. They all appeared to be fully engaged in their roles and gave a brilliant performance.

Plastic (2013)

Another award winning short film, this is about people being unhappy with the way that they look, and is a surreal way of representing people who use plastic surgery to try and achieve the appearance that they believe to be perfect. This short film is brilliant, and one thing that I found impressive was the special effects of the 'plastic' face of the woman. Good effects can be one of the most useful thing sin film, so I will try to achieve a good level of effects if I need to use any.

Alone (2013)

This double award winning film tells the story of the last man on Earth. After waking up after work, the man finds that he is the only person around. The best part of this film is definitely the cinematography. I do not like the story as I think that apocalypse films have been used so many times that they have become rather boring. I would like to use similar shots to those shown in this if I was to create a short film for my coursework.

Preliminary task idea/brainstorm

To prepare for our full length music video/short film/tv episode, we will be doing a preliminary task in preparation. As I will either be doing a music video or short film for my final coursework, (and we made short films last year), I will be creating 1 minute of a music video for the preliminary task. For this, I will be working with Luke Bates and Becca Stimpson.

Our idea...
For our preliminary task, we plan to use the song 'what's new pussycat' by Tom Jones. This is because we all like the song and as this is only a preliminary task, it is not important which song we choose to use. With the video itself, we plan to film in a cattery, making a joke out of the song's title. We will see the actor lip syncing while walking through the cattery, singing to all of the cats.

Our next step is to make a storyboard, find an actor to play Tom Jones, and contact a cattery to ask for permission regarding the use of their facilities.

Existing music videos - student made

Linkin Park - Final Masquerade

 This video achieved an A grade at A2. The video is a mix of lip syncing/performing and narrative. During the narrative, we see one main character, who unlike in many of the professional videos, is not featured in the band. During the performance, the band are in one setting (a studio style room), and an effect of bubbles has been put over the video. As much as I do not like the song for this video, I think that they have done very well in creating the video and the lip syncing is fantastic.

 

Canopy Climbers - Stuck
 

This video, like the one above, is part narrative, part performance. I think that one thing that makes this video stand out from the others is the quality of the shots, and the obvious planning and time that has gone into creating the video. The actors within the video also perform fantastically, and seem naturally talented to lip sync and act.

Woodkid - Run Boy Run
 

In this video, we see the same pattern of narrative and live playing as with the others. The band however, are in very bright tribal costumes, and seem to be playing their instruments in much more natural environments than in the other videos. The first time we see a member of this band playing, they have a couple of drums and are standing underneath a cliff/in a cave. This use of an abstract location is very effective as it is original, and allows the video to be remembered more easily. As well as this, the video also has one shot of footage of a dog running through a forest. This piece of footage is used at the start, towards the middle, and at the end of the video, and this repetition of the same shot also makes the video more memorable. Finally, the use of the horse in the video is massively impactful as it is something that not many people would have access to, so they have done a very good job using all of the facilities available to them.

Existing music videos - professonal

The Darkness - Open Fire  (April 2015)

This video is, in my opinion, the perfect mix between narrative and performance. The video starts with a setting of a scene, and then the band leader (Justin Hawkins) entering a room with his guitar. From this we then see footage of the band (in the location that was set in the first shot) playing and lip syncing the opening of the song. The rest of the video then cuts to a narrative and back to the band throughout, and the main character featured in the video is Justin. At the end of the video, we see him walking back through the room in which he entered at the start, creating the feeling of a circular narrative and finishing off the video perfectly.



Halestorm - I get Off (October 2009)

The video for this song, from pop rock band Halestorm's 2nd album, is a great mix of narrative and band lip syncing that features a very clear and strong narrative. The two locations used are a garage style room in which the band are playing, and a room (presumably in a prison) where a hooded figure is being confronted by some sort of authority. One thing that I found very interesting in this video was the CCTV (within the room) playing on a small screen outside the room. This is because sometimes we would see the hooded figure being confronted, and other times the band were in the room instead. At the end of the video we find out that, like in the video for Open Fire by The Darkness, the lead singer of the band (Lzzy Hale) is the character featured throughout the narrative. I think this technique works as it allows for an easy crossover between the band playing and the story.


OK Go - The writing's On the Wall (June 2014)

This video is quite different to the two above. Firstly, rather than using editing, this appears to be all in one shot. As well as this, there is no narrative, nor is there footage of a band playing. We do however, see lip syncing from each person as visual illusions of shapes, faces, words and phrases appear on the camera. I think that this video, much like other videos by this band, is innovative, impressive, and different. It does however create the problem of their video becoming more well known than their actual music and after watching this video, I have no idea what the song sounded like. I do not think that I will do this sort of video because we do not have the facilities, but we may take on the idea of a one shot video.

Welcome to the blog!

This is my blog for my A2 media work. To start, I will be looking at music videos, short films, and children's TV show openings. From this I will begin my preliminary task and later on start the exam coursework.