PLANNING: INITIAL IDEAS

PLANNING: INITIAL IDEAS

Introduction

In order to create a successful product, I have been paired up which will allow us to divide the task and work together to make the campaign.  Both of us have come up with an initial idea which can be used as a basis in the building of the final plan. Initial ideas are important because they allow to combine different plans and critically discuss whether it is credible and possible to create. It can also evolve into a whole new concept and help you develop your own ideas. Initial ideas are simple to amend because they tend to be simple outlines which can be built upon and later changed. They often lead to discussions about the final product which is beneficial when working alongside someone else as you get to combine and create original and unique products.

These are the initial ideas we have come up with:

Idea 1: Natalia

Song: Imagine Dragons ‘Warriors’

Genre: Alternative Rock, Indie Rock, Pop Rock

Narrative Structure: Narrative and Concept

• ·         Narrative: Non- Linear Narrative. The video opens with establishing shots of an old factory in dust and clearly demolished/ ruined. There are close ups of blood and bodies who look defeated. The scene flashes back to the begging and shows two opposing gangs approaching the factory. Both look aggressive and intimidating, clearly ready to fight. The video resolves around the fight and towards the end both groups fall and no one wins (scene goes back to the beginning), which shows the audience that violence is never the answer.
• ·         Concept: The video will try to show the audience that violence is not a way to resolve conflict. The factory is a personification of balance which falls after the gangs clash and start the fight. Throughout the narrative there would be shots from world war or current affairs to show the everyday issues of today’s society and apply the idea to real life.

Characters:

·         Two groups of ethnic young males who compete with each other. Stereotypically ethnic males are associated with gang culture and fighting, therefore audiences can draw deeper meanings from the video and characters. Gang members are also characters who today’s youth will be able to associate with which will broaden my target audience.

Mise En Scene:

• ·         Setting: An abandoned factory. This is conventional of an indie band as they tend to use obscure and isolated locations
• ·         Lighting and Colour: Predominantly natural and low key lightning to show the dark nature of the video and message behind it. Also the track is quite dark which will complement the lighting.  
• ·         Body Language and Facial Expressions: The gang members would have aggressive and open body language and facials to show their anger and rage towards the opposing gang. It also marks their territory and intimidates the viewer.
• ·         Iconography: The key objects will be weapons which will aid the gang members during the fight.
• ·         Costume: The gang members would be wearing white vest and casual trousers which complements the indie genre as generally such videos are casual and don’t glorify characters or artists.

Application of Theory:

• ·         Hegemony: The gang culture became widely prominent amongst youth and the ‘masses’. Many young people lack job and education opportunities and turn to gang culture.
• ·         Barthes: Cultural understanding. The Western society and suburban areas are known for gang culture and high crime rates.
• ·         Todorov: This idea subverts Todorov’s theory as the narrative structure is subverted and nonlinear which develops the idea further.
• ·         Aristotle: Themes of violence and rivalry are common within youth and can excite them or worry them depending on their own experiences.

Advantages:

• ·         It’s a unique idea with an original narrative
• ·         It has a strong and meaningful message behind the video
• ·         There are links to historical and current affairs which can broaden the appeal
• ·         The characters will appeal to the mainstream audience despite the niche soundtrack

Disadvantages:

• ·         It will be difficult to shoot in an abandoned factory as these places may be unsafe
• ·         It will be hard to shoot a falling factory as it’s not safe too and hard to capture
• ·         It may be hard to gather a lot of people and film them at once
• ·         The fighting can be a hazard to the actors’ health
• ·         There is no performance from the artist and even though it is common for indie bands to just portray narratives, my audience could feel detached from the performer.

Idea 2: Bibi

Song: This is Gospel – Panic! At the Disco (Piano Version)

Genre: Pop/ Indie

Narrative structure:  Performance and narrative:

• Performance: The artist will perform and appear in the music video to ensure he makes himself familiar to the audience.  He will sing and perform during the chorus and build a connection with the viewer. 
• Narrative: The narrative will include the main artist arguing with his female partner because she cheated on him. There will be shots of them fighting and close ups of her crying while the man ruins their apartment and possessions to symbolise and end to their relationship.

Characters: 

• Male (artist) – The artist will dominate the music video as he will perform throughout the video. He will be young in order to let youth connect with him and his experiences.

• Female (girlfriend) - she will be trying to persuade her male partner that she is innocent. Despite her cheating the audience will feel pity and empathy for her and still feel connected to her as a character.

MES: 

• Lighting: - Low Key Lighting- In order to make it more mysterious and dramatic but at the same time convey the dark mood and their melancholy and break up.                                                                       
• Colours: Black & White throughout to show that their relationship is no longer ‘happy’ and ‘colourful’ as it used to be.
• Costume, hair & makeup: Both characters will wear usual clothes such as shirt and trousers. The female character will wear a natural makeup, whereas the male character will have a stylish hair. This will allow the audience to connect to the characters as they will find them familiar and regular.

Facial expression & body language: 

• The male should have a regretful facial expression and body language suggesting that he doesn’t want to lose his girlfriend but at the same time is hurt to have her cheating on him.
• The female should will also have a regretful facial expression due to her unfaithful behaviour and show that she still lives the male and wants to fix her mistake.
• When both characters will begin to argue, their body language will be aggressive. Furthermore, when they finish to argue their body language will be more approachable and calm to show possible reunion and a hope to their relationship.

Setting: 

• A house -  where the argument between the male and female takes place.  This is a regular and familiar setting which will allow the audience to feel attached to the narrative.  

Application of Theory:

• ·         Popular Culture: The idea of heterosexual relationship comes under popular culture as ‘straight’ couples are very common among us and follow the common ideologies and Hegemonic values of marriage, family etc.
• ·         Aristotle: The theme of love will evoke the audience to feel empathy as many of the viewers will be able to relate to the feeling and their ‘young love’ as evident in the video.
• ·         Todorov: The common narrative structure of start, middle and end compliments Todorov’s theory of narrative structure and it is a clear structure for the viewers to understand.
• ·         Goodwin: Close ups of the artist to glamourise him which is common in pop music videos. There is a relationship between the lyrics and the visuals as he sings about love and ‘letting go’. There will be a narrative and a performance.

Advantages: 

• The characters will be easy to find.   
• The narrative will appeal to a wider audience, as females may relate to this situation. Males will also find the narrative appealing due to the females that will perform in the video and their past relationship experiences. 

Disadvantages: 

• The narrative may be perceived as too mainstream, typical breakup situation and therefore may not attract audiences.

Questionnaire

In order to validate my idea and show its credibility I have devised a questionnaire consisting of questions that were specific to my idea and handed it out to 20 people. This allowed me to gain some direct feedback from the audiences and see what they think about my idea. It also helped me to gain credible response from my possible target audience. Bibi also devised her own questionnaire about her idea and we got to collaborate our feedback in order to see what works for the audience and what we could do for our final idea. In my questionnaire I utilized a number of different kinds of questions, including a closed, open and multiple answer questions to allow my audience to express their feelings. I have concentrated on the indie genre and asked about conventions and generics in order to show the credibility of my idea. This is the questionnaire with the responses.

Conclusion

Overall, being paired up with another media student was beneficial because now we will be able to divide out responsibilities and tasks equally and create a proficient campaign. We will also be able to focus on our own strengths and weaknesses and help one another out when necessary. Creating and comparing our initial ideas was also very important as both out us were able to discuss our visions and debate what idea is more valid and realistic to create. In the end we have decided to stick with Bibi’s idea. This is because it is more practical to shoot and has a mixture of performance, narrative and concept which will help our campaign to stand out. In addition, her application of themes is very mainstream despite the niche appeal of the song which can broaden our audiences and bring success. Her idea has rich theory application and from looking at it critically we have decided it can be safer to shoot and edit.