1. Evaluation
1: In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and
conventions of real media products?
Our video fits in with the genre of indie or light rock videos, in that it promotes a light
sense of teenage rebellion – drinking, staying out late with friends, etc – but does not
promote anything truly harmful or destructive to its audience. The imagery is light
hearted and fun filled; we can clearly see the members of the band and the members of
their audience having a good time and messing around and helps promote the image of
the band as being typical lads, who dress casually and enjoy making music.
Our video is in the style of a video diary, a type of video that consists of performance and
conceptual aspects, allowing the audience to access the member’s personalities and
backstage habits. We felt that this would be good for a new band, who are trying to
establish a fanbase for themselves, as it allows the audience to get to know them in a
sense.
Video diary-style videos are not that common in the mainstream indie scene, so in a way,
we are breaking some of the conventions of what one would expect to see from a
performance video. However, the montages add a sense of artistic and aesthetic flair,
fitting in with the more conceptual aspects that are seen in videos from this genre.
A lot of bands use a narrative style of video to accompany their songs, often featuring a
love story between a man and woman, but we felt that firstly, a narrative was too
convoluted for this track and secondly, it wouldn’t have stood out nearly as much as it
does as something that is just a little bit different from the norm.
A common convention of music videos from all genres is making the shots fit in with the
rhythm and tempo of the song, which we knew was an important aspect of keeping it
flowing steadily. Since this is a fast track, we made sure our cuts were quick and short,
fitting in with the guitars’ rhythm.
Also, we conformed to the conventions by making sure some of the footage was synced
correctly to the track, but challenged the conventions by having some of the footage
detached from the track. We did this because we felt that it was not necessary to sync
everything up, since we wanted to deliver the idea of a video diary, comprising of footage
obtained from an entire gig and simply set to a song’s rhythm.
2: How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?
Both the music video and the digipak artwork portray the same image, or brand, for the
band. After researching bands from the genre, we thought that the casual, slightly scruffy
image of indie rockers would definitely suit the band and the track, as opposed to a more
individual and striking image, such as the gothic image that a band such as the Horrors
has built for themselves.

2. We have created a brand for the band and that brand is a casual look, with plaid shirts, t-
shirts and jeans – as they are a band that can appeal to anyone from around fifteen to
thirty years of age, fitting more into the mainstream, rather than a subculture less
accessible to the wider audience. The scruffiness of the group is subtle and not over
played. It simply connotes, along with the subject of the video, that they do not take
themselves too seriously.
This idea follows through into the print products. We chose to draw illustrations that are a
little bit messy and unconventional, but aesthetically appealing to our audience, the
slightly cartoon-like appearance adding to the idea that they do not take themselves too
seriously. We felt that this would also help our production to stand out amongst other
products on the market, as we rarely see traditional line art used in contemporary CD and
DVD covers.
The video analysis’ proved to be useful in learning what aspects of the genre we could
retain in our video – what common features were, how shots tied in with the rhythm of
the music and what themes were important or used a lot. We wanted our product to fit in
with the genre, even if it is somewhat different in various respects, so we wanted our
video to be artistic and interesting, but we did not want a set narrative. It is mostly a
performance video, with some clips of their backstage antics included in order to promote
the concept of their brand.
The images for the digipak relate explicitly to the band’s name, however I still feel that
the products retain subtlety as the images are drawn and it does not just feature a
photograph of a wolf.
Therefore, we felt that the simplicity of both our print productions and music video’s
style worked well together to provide an understated, easy to understand (but not too
simple, so as not to patronize the audience) image for the band we are promoting.
We also didn’t want to be controversial or create a sense of infamy for the band, since
they are just starting out and we have learnt from our research that while any publicity
can be good, bad publicity can still be harmful to a band’s reputation. We decided to stick
with the image of a fun loving, and in many ways innocent, band, simply playing music
for the enjoyment of it and the lifestyle it brings.
3: What have you learned from your audience feedback?
We learnt a lot from members of our audience, both during and after the production was
finished. The tempo was an important part of the video, and people that watched it while
it was being made stated that the tempo didn’t quite match with the footage and that we
needed faster cuts between shots.
Therefore, we created fast montages and quick, choppy cuts in order to keep in time with
the music. The feedback after that was positive and the members of the audience were

3. pleased that we had made the changes.
We also learnt that we needed a division between some of the footage, to differentiate
between locations and to create a flashback type image for our video diary. The audience
seemed to be very positive about the result, though it took them a little while to
understand the black and white shots, so we feel it achieved the desired effect of adding a
bit of variety within the video and helping establish the differences within the settings
and time periods.
We also achieved a division between performance shots by increasing the amount of
cutaways to backstage antics and communication between members. This was necessary
in order to keep the video interesting and to stop it becoming tedious.
Someone that I had asked for feedback picked up two of the points that we had been
aiming to bring across to the audience – the fact that we wanted to show them having fun
on and off stage and also that it was a video for the completion of a tour, a diary showing
their experiences throughout the tour. This shows that we have been successful in our
work and we made the right choice in producing something simple, but interesting.
Another person I asked for feedback stated that they thought the video looked like a ‘real’
music video, which is flattering considering our non-existent budget and our lack of
experience. Also, these responses suggest that even though the video isn’t shocking or
controversial, it is still entertaining to watch, suggesting that society does not need
deplorable and/or disconcerting footage to be entertained – a seemingly unpopular
opinion with the mainstream media. The positive responses are encouraging and as a
result, I am satisfied with what we have achieved.
4: How did you use new media technologies in the research, planning, construction
and evaluation stages?
We used new media technologies for all the stages of production. Firstly, for the research
stages, we used the internet for many different purposes. Firstly, google was used as a
search engine in order to find relevant information, followed by websites such as
Wikipedia, which were used as a tool to learn about various things – such as conventions
and social norms – and also to help develop our skills.
Then, I used social networking sites, such as Facebook and Livejournal, to gain
information from our target audience, by uploading the questionnaires and allowing them
to answer online. This method is more efficient than simply handing questionnaires out to
people in person, especially since you can access a wider range of people online.
For the planning stages, our word-processed and handwritten documents were uploaded
to Blogger, via the website Slideshare, in order to access them efficiently and easily. I
also used my DSLR camera for location shots and also, at a later stage, some of the
filming. This is an easy way to gain knowledge of cinematic surroundings and also, to
document them in a way that enhances the visual appeal of the blog.

4. In the construction stages, we used a Canon XM2 camera, which was easy to use and
gave us decent footage that we could edit in the software program Final Cut Pro. Final
Cut Pro allowed us to easily arrange the shots in order, cutting them to the required sizes
and fitting them to the music. The software made the process simple, in comparison to
old methods of using VCR tapes, as opposed to digital camcorders and USB sticks.
For the print production, we used the photo editing software, Photoshop, alongside
websites such as Brusheezy, in order to manipulate our illustrations and create modern
and attractive designs that are easily uploaded onto a server, such as Photobucket.
For the evaluation stages, the video was converted into the appropriate format and
uploaded onto the video hosting website Youtube, where anyone in the world – where the
website is not prohibited - is able to access the video and give feedback. This allows us to
gain a wider spectrum of opinions and feedback from all walks of life. Also, I uploaded
the videos onto Facebook and Livejournal, so I could gain feedback from those in the
immediate area.