1. Research:
The music video industry
By Lewis Ireland

2. How are music videos made?
You could record a simple music video with just a handheld camera and a small
desktop computer however for a really professional music video, expensive
software and hardware is neccesary.
Equipment:
• Video Camera
• Editing Software (e.g. Sony Vegas/Final Cut Express)
• Computer Hardware (MAC if using final cut)
• Studio Lights
• Green Screen
The equipment highlighted in bold are the most important and usually require a bit
of money to purchase. Getting down to the basics, the camera records the footage
you want to film which can then be uploaded to editing software using a computer.
Additional equipment includes studio lights allowing better lighting for footage and
green screen if you wish to use additional editing software for effects such as
Adobe After Effects.
Doing all of this on your own will be too difficult and will require some assistance.
People will need to be actors in your music video, this could be yourself or others
but you will need to make sure someone is recording this process. You will need at
least three people to make the task less difficult, any less and you are bound to
struggle.

3. Production Process
• Writing Music Video Treatments
• Storyboards
• Casting
• Location Scouting
• Broadcast quality digital video
• Editing
• Production Insurance
• Mastering
(In depth in the following slides)

4. Writing Music Video Treatments
At the beginning of every music video project, there is a need to work with the artist to define a
desired treatment. A video treatment, also known as video concept, outlines information with regards
to what the music video will be about. Conceptually, a music video could show the artist performing
the song in front of a live audience or by itself; alternatively, a music video can also present a story line
where certain situations and storytelling takes place. Furthermore, it can also be an experimental
exercise where random images are shown to complement the music in a more abstract way. All of
these angles constitute the treatment, or concept, of a music video.
However, a video treatment goes beyond this exercise of defining the overall direction of the video.
The treatment goes down to describe the kind of locations, situations, stories, images, look and
feel, tone and colour, pacing and so on of the music video. Even though most treatment writers don't
follow specific guidelines or structures, a well written treatment is one that can successfully
communicate complete ideas to artists.
We have had the chance to write several music video treatments for several artists where different
ideas and angles were presented for them to consider. Also, a video treatment can help with the
process of creating the production budget where items identified in the treatment are included in the
budgeting process.
Summarizing, a music video treatment is the starting point of every project. It allows the production
company to communicate its ideas to the artists and it allows artists to make decisions regarding the
direction of their video. The treatment also helps production companies to write production budgets
that are accurate and that give artists a complete view of what to expect when embarking on the
production of their music video.

5. Storyboards
Usually after a music video treatment is approved by either the artist or the record label, the next step
is to create the storyboards. Storyboards are a great medium to help everyone involved in the
production get a visual understanding of the treatment.
Storyboards allow the director to try different approaches to a scene. Storyboards also serve as a
communication tool between the production company and the artist where either party can provide
input or feedback in a more contextual way than if it was only based on a narrative treatment.
Another advantage of using storyboards during production is that they are a great time saving tool.
Storyboards help keep the process of filming stay focused on pre-planned and pre-determined angles
and takes.
Furthermore, everyone involved in the pre-production, production and post-production process can
benefit from storyboards. From actors to camera operators from lighting technicians to producers, from
editors to wardrobe, makeup and hair stylists. Having a visual reference of what is being filmed and
how it will flow when cut helps everyone work towards a common, organized goal.

6. Casting
Casting is the process of hiring actors to play the
characters in a script, typically done by a casting
director, but with some input from a
director, producer, or studio. (Internet Movie Database).
Music videos based on the artist's performance usually
don't require actors as the only subjects on-screen are
the band members. There are however, situations where
a basic performance video can be complemented with
minor appearances from actors helping depict a
storyline or simply relationships between people.
In more complex storytelling situations, it is important to
cast actors that can play the roles in a way that is as
representative as possible of those described in the
treatment.
In this kind of situations where the success of the
storytelling depends on the actual artistic performance
of the characters, it is essential that the chosen actors
can match the requirements of the role, either naturally
or by training.
In summary, storytelling-based treatments will require
the hiring of actors, preferably with on-screen
experience and that are versatile enough to adapt to the
requirements of the roles.

7. Location Scouting
When filming on-location, as opposed to filming
in a controlled studio, there is a pre-production
step that needs to be taken: location scouting.
Typically done by directors in conjunction with
directors of photography and sometimes lighting
technicians, location scouting is the process of
selecting a right location for the different scenes
of the production.
Locations have a significant impact on the final
product. They can be either exteriors or
interiors, studios, houses, living
rooms, offices, stores, warehouses, open
fields, etc. Every set where the action is filmed, is
a filming location.
Choosing the right locations is the responsibility
of both the production company and the artists as
the locations need to please the artists as well as
serving the technical and creative requirements of
the treatment as interpreted by the director.

8. Broadcast Quality Digital Video
Without getting into the technicalities of
what broadcast-quality digital video
means, it is more effective to concentrate
on the practical applications of this format
and what makes it compatible with
broadcast standards.
When filming, or taping action using digital
video, in most if not all cases, it is
important to treat the captured footage to
make it compatible with television
broadcast standards. Technically
speaking, there are certain limitations in
the amount of colour and luminosity that
need to be respected. For instance, a very
bright image or one with over-saturated
colour can fall outside the accepted
scope, according to NTSC television
broadcast standards. This is why it is
important to do proper treatment to the
footage through colour correction to
ensure the final product will be broadcast-
friendly and therefore considered for
broadcast by television stations.

9. Editing and Colouring
Editing is the most important step during the post-production
workflow. Without editing, there wouldn't be any cuts and
there wouldn't be any video. After all the footage has been
loaded up into the system, the editor will layer out the
sequences on a timeline and will carefully select which part of
which sequences will be used to build the final music video.
This process takes a fair amount of time and it's directly
proportional to the amount of footage shot during
filming, known as principal photography stage.
Once all the shots have been laid out into the timeline, it's time
to do some colour correction.
The process of colour correction brings a few benefits to the
final cut. Some of these benefits are:
ensure colour found in the selected shots don't exceed the
limits set by broadcasting standards;
if desired, increase the consistency of colour throughout the
video;
also if desired, create specific looks for some or all the clips on
the timeline (high contrast, burnt image, saturated
colours, etc.).
Once all the clips that need treatment have been corrected, it is
now time to apply transitions and effects.
Transitions are used to join two clips together. Some of the
most commonly used transitions are cross dissolve, dip to
colour dissolve and fade-in and fade-out. Different transitions
have different "meanings" in the language of filmmaking. For
instance, cross dissolves can be used to cut between action in
present time and a flashback scene. On the other hand, fades
can be used to express that a longer period of time has passed
between the situations depicted in the joint clips.
Once all the clips have been cut, colour corrected and smoothly
joint together using cuts and transitions, it is time to master the
timeline.

10. Production Insurance
With every video production, there's a risk for
accidents, loses or other inconveniences that may ruin
assets that are either irreplaceable or very expensive to
replace. There are also other cases where dangerous stunts
or handling of potentially dangerous elements are required
during production. In these situations it is very important
that the production company provides insurance to cover for
these potential inconveniences. In some cases, when renting
expensive motion picture equipment, it is a requirement
from the company renting the equipment that this is
covered by production insurance.
The cost of production insurance works in a similar way to
any other insurance policy. It depends on the conditions in
which the production will take place from the location to the
stunts, weather conditions, cost of equipment, third party
liability, and so on.
There are cases where productions are executed in a very
controlled environment and where recreating assets in case
of loss may not be as expensive. In such cases, it may be
okay to not get a production insurance policy as it may end
up being more affordable to cover the costs of redoing than
to pay for a policy that after all, may not even be needed.

11. Mastering
Just like in music recording, mastering is the process of "flattening" all the effects, colour
correction, transitions, and other effects into a format that can be distributed for broadcast.
Mastering also includes making sure that audio levels are in the right place and that the final
version is technically compliant with the rules of broadcasting.
There are a several formats in which music videos can be mastered. Here are a few:
Betacam SP: This format has been around for a while in television and most television stations
will require this format in order to broadcast your content. An alternative to Betacam SP is
DigiBeta, which is its digital counterpart.
DVD: This format is one of the most convenient formats when looking at distributing copies of
the video to a lot of recipients. It is relatively cheap to reproduce and most people can watch
it. The DVD format is also very popular when submitting films to festivals as it is cheaper to
mail given its compact size.
MiniDV: This format is great for maintaining a master which can later be used as the source to
make duplications. MiniDV is a digital video tape that delivers much higher quality than a
DVD, thus making it more appropriate for master.
VHS: This format has been around for a very long time and most people have access to a VCR
that can play it. It is very affordable to produce but its quality is not very good. It's also the
format of choice by some film festivals although its larger size makes it less convenient than
DVD or MiniDV when mailing it.

12. Main Purpose of a Music Video
The main purpose of a music video is to sell the song but mainly invoke a reaction leaving you wanting to re-listen to
the song, share it with others or even just remember it.
A music video can also inform or entertain, depending on the type of music video.
A Beautiful Lie (30 Seconds to Mars) Wide Awake (Katy Perry)
For example, these two music videos differ. 30 Seconds to Mars’ music video “A beautiful lie” is set to inform people about
the glacial ice captures around the arctic circle and we should act to prevent this whereas Katy Perry’s “Wide Awake” is an
example of many music videos which is generally made to entertain the audience.
However despite all these reasons some people still dispute that the main reason music videos are made are for: promotion.
A simple promotional tool for the artist, more than often serving as a catalyst for boosting sales and popularity.

13. Famous/Well-Known Music
Video Directors
One famous example is the pseudonym “Bartholomew Cubbins” to
which ‘Jared Leto’ (Lead Singer of 30 Seconds to Mars) uses to direct his
music videos.
With many famous and successful short films he has produced with his
music such as “Hurricane”, “A Beautiful Lie”, “This is War” and “From
Yesterday”.
These videos are very well known since they all have subliminary
messages that can mean/relate something different to a specific
audience. These songs aren’t set to engage a particular audience, they
engage specific individuals since the meaning of the music video can be
interpreted so broadly.
Another famous example is director and turntablist Joe Hahn (or “Mr
Hahn”). Joe has directed several of the famous band: Linkin Park’s
music videos including “Burn it down”, “New Divide” and “Breaking
the Habit”. These music videos are conceptual and different.
Breaking the habit is animated and consists of a conceptual and
narrative storyline which you don’t usually find in music
videos, especially animated ones! New Divide and Burn it down are
both conceptual and entertain the audience since they are just so
different from other common music videos.

14. Music Video Budget
From a case study I researched to produce a
high quality music video, it should cost you
around $5000. Theoretics fundraised this
money to produce their new music video with
donations from their fans.
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/theoretics
/jekyll-and-hyde-the-music-video
(Embed unavailable)
The link provided above includes a video and
article regarding how the band produced the
music video with five thousand dollars.
Companies could spend anything from a pound
to hundreds of thousands of pounds producing
a music video but sometimes the music videos
will less money which consist of simplicity, are
usually the best. http://www.youtube.com/watch?featur
e=player_embedded&v=nphr6QGiYrg#
An example of a $5000 dollar music video:
Providing the detail of professionalism within
the budget.

15. Where to access music videos?
The most common place to find music videos in
contemporary society is on Youtube, a famous video
uploading/sharing site. A lot of famous artists upload to a
company called ‘VEVO’ only allowing the most mainstream
artists to get promoted by them, in which users can
subscribe and get notified when a mainstream artist
release their new song.
Other ways to access music videos, via no internet include
television and radio. Television channels are usually
dedicated to music, for example: VIVA, Scuzz, MTV, Kerrang
TV, VH1 and Fuse TV.