Ancillary text - magazine advert (Research)

Part of my final brief includes 3 ancillary texts, two of which a i have to complete as part of a promotional package for my music video. One of the texts i decided to complete was a magazine advertisement for my music video, below is a presentation of the initial research that I have taken in to existing adverts. 

It was important that I carried out this initial research as it helped me to get a better understanding of what sort of elements are to be included in a magazine advert. This will help me when I begin to design my own as I can refer back to my research in order to choose what I should include.

Ancillary texts

As a part of my final brief I will need to create two of three ancillary texts as specified below as part of a promotional package for the music video that I have created.

After considering all three ancillary texts I have decided that the two ancillary text that I will create will be a website home page for the band and and a magazine advertisement. I chose these two as I feel that they would be the most effective part of a promotional package, especially when paired with my final product. Next I will carry out research into existing products in order to identify what elements I should include in the products that I create. 

Candle flame practise

In a previous post I discussed how I wanted to include a variety of shots in my final product that were more abstract and that added significance to the tone of my overall piece. One of the potential ideas that I wish to include is a flickering flame and smoke, I felt as this would fit well in my final product as flames are able to signify romance and feelings of love which is a part of the narrative for my music video. 

Initially my group and I were unsure of how we wanted the flame look on camera and we were also aware that our choice of lighting had to be appropriate seeing as we wanted the flames to appear bright and vivid but we also needed enough light in order for the smoke to show once the flame had been blown out. 

When filming my group and I struggled with an appropriate location considering that outside was windy and bright and inside filming was not allowed seeing that we were on school site. We decided to line a box with black paper in order to shield the flame from the wind as well as limit the amount of natural day light. I was pleased with the overall outcome as it gave us a feel for the potential challenges we face when filming fire.

When editing we decided to dim the background during the edit in order to make the flame more vibrant. We also decided to reverse the smoke and flame as this made the shot more interesting to watch. 

After completing this small practice task my group and I agreed that we liked the idea of striking a match however we felt that a long and tall candle would look better than the one we originally used in the clip above. 

Begining Production

As I mentioned in my location post it is vital for my final production that I secure the 'summer' shots before the weather changes, due to this my group and I decided to begin filming for our final product before this happened.

My group and went to our location along with our cast members and began filming our 'summer' shots. Although the temperature was extremely cold the sun was shinning which enabled us to get some stunning shots, some leaves on the trees were turning brown and areas of the location looked autumnal however the orange tones paired with the sunlight created the look of sunset rather than sunrise which fitted our theme just as well. The shots we gathered are intended to be a memory of the girl so we aim to add a hazy filter to them during the editing process so I believe that any hints of autumn will be effectively masked. 

Above is preview of one of the practice shots we got during filming, due to Megan's sunglasses I had to be careful and angle my self so  that the camera was not show in the reflection. I feel the shot is able to portray the feeling of a summer season.

Mausi Consent - Reply

Previously I discussed the issue of gaining consent from my chosen artist due to copyright issues. I am pleased to say that a few days after contacting Mausi I received a reply to my request about using the bands music in my final production. Below is the response that I received via their Facebook page.

   

Location

Currently my attention is much more focused on filming the 'summer' scene of my final product as I am aware that the natural summer environment will soon fade seeing as it is already the end of October. My group have acknowledge this, and as a result we have become extremely organized and we have secured actors, location and a scheduled a production date. The whole concept of our final piece revolves around the cross cutting between scenes so it is crucial for us to get those shot completed as soon as possible.

My final product will include two main locations and action taking place during different seasons which will be summer and winter, it is important that my chosen locations are appropriate the season that they are being shot in as well as being able to emphasis the feelings of the characters and the narrative of the story. 


For the winter scenes I felt that it the location should be one that is built up and more urban than rural so I decided that the chosen location should take place in a city centre. Oxford city center is an ideal location for my group and I to shoot as we are all able to get there easily as it is not to far away from where we live, it also provided us with busy roads, a train station and bus stops, street life and built up architectural structures which will give us plenty of filming opportunities. 


This location will help portray the season of winter as well as the emotion of our main character as the location will be mostly grey in color with little greenery on show, especially during the time in which we wish to film. My group and I aim to film at this location before December or during the new year, any later than this would put a strain on our production as we want to make sure we leave plenty of time for editing. Filming early in the day would give us the best opportunity to gain the best shots as it will be fairly busy and bright enough to get clear and detailed images. 

The location for our summer scene should be one that is able to portray the stereotypes of a summer setting such as greenery, grass and wildlife. I felt that Blenheim palace would be an ideal location for my group and I to film as it is accessible as well as beautiful and it will really help create that contrast between the two scenes of my final product. 

This location is extremely open and provides us will all the elements needed to complete our filming such as trees and water. 

Now that I have chosen both locations I will focus beginning production as soon as possible. 

Editing Practice

As my production planning progresses I am aware that editing will play more of a significant role in my final product than when compared with my AS production. When researching existing products I have found that some include a range of editing techniques such as many cross fades and unusual color treatments. I felt that it was important for me to experiment with a range of editing techniques as I am aiming to include them in my final product.

We decided to experiment with colour treatments, cross fades, over exposure and motion blurs. My group and I decided to keep it fairly simple as we did not want to over complicate things during the earlier stages. I feel that this task has benefited all members of my group including my self as it has allowed me to explore and develop a potential style to how we want the edits to look. Appropriate editing will really help my final piece come across in the way I want it as it will help create the contrast between the two locations and the change in seasons as well as providing rich a dynamic visuals that will be appealing to the audience.