Analysis of Final Product - Website

The screenshot above is how the website looks as you enter it. It is mainly plain as nothing stands out too much, however I put a glow effect on the text so it draws more attention to it. The XO logo represents The Weeknd's record label which he also founded. In addition to this, when on a certain page; text in the navigation bar highlights in pink. I chose this colour because it contrasts nicely, stands out and is reflective of the tones within my version of the 'Wicked Games' music video.

On the left hand side, there is another navigation bar. Over there the icons are direct links to social media pages related to the artiste.

The second page on the website is a dedicated social media page. This displays The Weeknd's instagram feed and updates in live time. The purpose of this page is to increase fan engagement as it enables the site to act as another platform for fans to keep up to date with what is going on with the artiste. Moreover, if fans do not have social media accounts, the website remedies that in a way; enabling them to view the content through another medium. Yet again on this page, the navigation bar is at the top and the social media links are located on the right side.

This page here is so fans can purchase the album directly from the artiste. The album visible in the picture is The Weeknd's most recent project and is a condensed version of it; containing the most popular songs. The pinky colours are consisted with the rest of the website.

This page is the most relevant in terms of this project; it is all about music videos. The page has direct links to YouTube and The Weeknd's most popular music video. In the bottom left, you can see the VEVO watermark which is a company that helps distribute music videos on the internet. Due to this, the videos are unloaded from potentially numerous channels, the VEVO channel and the artistes one.

This is the final page of the website and the page is to do with touring dates. The page displays information about the artistes touring dates. There are links to buy tickets to the gigs. For the purposes of the website, I have used made up data.

Background/Colour Scheme

The home page of the website follows a mainly black and white colour scheme which is consistent with my digipak and elements of the music. I like it because it is effective yet simple.

As mentioned above, the pink on the website reflects that of the tones in the music video. The cloudy background that consisted throughout the site (Except the home page)  was used because it looks quite cool and I feel reflects some themes of The Weeknd's songs such as feeling 'high' and judgement being 'cloudy'. The clouds also have a blue tinge to them which is a colour that subtilely appears in the music video as well.

What Website Would you use to Advertise your Music Video?

YouTube

I would use YouTube to advertise my music video because it is essentially the hub for music videos with various artistes, record labels and other production companies owning their own channels which said videos are displayed on. One company on YouTube that would be used is VEVO. In terms of the actual advertisement  I would use the pre-video Ads option on YouTube and utilise it to spread word of my video and promote it. YouTube also has such a diverse demographic ranging from various ages, nationalities and individual interests that mean theres always an audience for what you're putting out there.

Examples of your website first designs/rough cuts

I used wix.com to create my website; I was already familiar with the online based software due to using the site in another project. Because I had used the site before and knew what was possible and what wasn't, I did not feel much planning or first designs were necessary.

Instead I decided to improvise as I went through to identify what I felt looked right and conformed with the the artistes image and brand.

To begin with, I liked the pink look on the website because it stands out; after exploring more ideas after this cut, I decided the pink made it look unprofessional and did not fit the artistes persona. So I decided to go with a mainly black and white colour scheme; in keeping with my digipak and music video.

Website Analysis - Bruno Mars (R&B/Soul)

What is a Website?

Wikipedia describes a website as "a collection of related web pages, including multimedia content, typically identified with a common domain name, and published on at least one web server. A website may be accessible via a public Internet Protocol (IP) network, such as the Internet, or a private local area network (LAN), by referencing a uniform resource locator (URL) that identifies the site."

But we need to relate that to music artistes and bands, for them a website is so much more than a collection of webpages and multimedia content. It is a key way to reach to their audiences. Some ways that they can increase fan engagement are;

• Social media feeds and links - This allows fans to feel apart of the artiste by following their day to day activities. This helps create a strong connection between the artiste and fans.
• Personal messages to fans on their website - This could be done through merchandising; if you buy products from the website you can get limited edition products with that previously mentioned personal message.

Engaging websites will often have these features;

• Latest news
• Upcoming shows and events
• Blog: opinions, behind the scene stuff and social networks
• Merchandise: full online store
• Media: pictures, videos and other rich media content
• Story and bio: about the band and members
• Community Forum
• Mailing list/Newsletter system

Analysis of My Final Digipak

Digipak First Designs/Rough Cuts

In my first attempt at the digipak, I took an improvised approach to see what came to fruition and these images below are the outcome.

FRONT COVER
I decided to use the liquify tool in Adobe Photoshop to create the effect shown on the cover, however I felt this look did not fit my genre as it fits into, from my experience, the indie genre. The use of colour here was a preference but in reflection I do like how the blue tones convey a sense of seclusion.

LEFT/CENTRE INSIDE
As you can see here, I decided to maintain the same colour scheme although it has a higher contrast in this image. I like the image in the centre although I am unsure of the smokey effects that surrounds it. Moreover the placement of the tracklist is unconventional and at this stage I will be changing that.

EXTRA PANEL
I decided to turn the extra panel into a lyric page as this is conventionally seen in most digipak's but the colours; especially on this panel, look unprofessional and distracting from the fans whole album experience.

BACK COVER
I am really not happy with this as a back cover as it looks unprofessional and more like an image from within a digipak or an album cover it self. The back cover itself it unconventional as well; not including a track list, barcode or record label.

6 PANEL DIGIPAK
The image above shows all of the panels I have created in the first design phase, over the top of a template which clearly demonstrates where each panel would be placed.

Template of My Digipak

Digipak Analyse

My genre - R&B/Soul

Add caption

Pop

Moodboard of Digipaks that inspired me

What is a Digipak?

Digipak’s are a style of packaging that is often used for CD singles or special editions of CD albums. Digipaks typically consist of a gatefold or paperboard binding, with one or more plastic trays capable of holding a CD attached to the inside.

How does a digipak benefit the artist?

The front of the digipak will have some aspect of the artistes’ image and normally the conventions of their genre. The digipak will most likely embody a theme and a message about the artistes’ image.  The digipak also helps to elevate the artistes’ popularity by reinforcing their brand image. The digipak also exemplifies the artistic and creative approach the artist is taking through their music. All aspects of the digipak, brand image and music video are all intertwined together. Digipaks benefit the artist and their music as its promotional aspect of the music industry which helps bring awareness to the artist thus selling the artiste and encouraging consumers to buy and listen to their music. You could argue that buying a digipak establishes your loyalty to your artiste; making you a ‘real fan’.

Filming Equipment

Filming equipment

Iphone 8 Plus

I decided to use my phone for a lot of the filming because its 12MP wide-angle and telephoto camera offers 4k video with optical image stabilisation. With an autofocus and exposure control feature, I was able to film myself quite easily. In addition to this, the device was easily accessible which made it ideal.

This was also ideal for my digipak photo shoot due to the advanced camera functions. Exampled below:

Said advanced functions included the mono stage light feature which focus' the camera subject whilst deleting the background.

Thieye action camera

I used this camera for my point of view, underwater and high angle shots. 

Tripod

This was used to mount my action camera onto for some time lapsing shots and various other motionless footage. This video below is an example of one of my shooting days but it also shows how my tripod was set up.

Illustration, Amplification, Disjuncture

1. Andrew Goodwin used illustration, amplification and disjuncture to describe how music videos can connect back to the song.

      Illustration

1. This is very commonly used and is where images are used to illustrate the lyrics of a song. It is the easiest way to create a base for a music video because you can take the lyrics literally which makes the imagery easy to create and then follow.

1. Amplification
2. This allows the director to be a creative act throughout the music video as a whole; constructing a deeper layer and meaning to the lyrics. Amplification is essentially the enhancement of the video concept.

1. Disjuncture
2. This is where the video completely ignores the lyrics and juxtaposes itself so present something completely different, separate to the lyrics. A good example of this is The Red Hot Chilli Peppers' 

Lip Syncing

Lip syncing is the process of getting the persons lip movements be synced up with the music. The person lip-syncing, usually the artiste, should be very confident with the songs lyrics so they can mime a convincing performance. If it is not done well, the video will look unprofessional and take away the verisimilitude of the video.

Lip sync battles

Lip-syncing has become its own thing altogether now with late night shows starting the trend; Jimmy Fallon's late night show had celebrities competing against him in a said battle. Moving on from that; recently, lip-syncing has gotten its own dedicated shows such as lip sync battles hosted by famous artiste Ll Cool J.

The image above is of Clark Gregg, best know for his appearances in the Marvel cinematic universe. He is portraying Britney Spears' toxic music video; this is a good example of intertextuality. 

Director's Commentary

Lyric Analysis

Branding

Creating a Brand

Artistes are often sold as a brand and  the music video then acts as a product of the brand. The use of music videos often will inspire audiences to buy into the brand ; done through the use of Mise-en-scene, the look of a music video can be expanded and the look of the video enhanced. The artiste will aim to have a constant "image" across several platforms such as websites, social media and so on. For some of the artistes, the "image" is of more importance than the quality of the product.

Accessibility

At the time when MTV was introduced for the first time, artistes had a real opportunity to get themselves out there in the public eye and go beyond what was heard on the radio. Videos enabled the artistes to convey a more comprehensive message and create their desired brand/star image. However at this time, videos were not accessible to people to be viewed at one's convenience. In the last 8 or 9 years, the proliferation in web-video technology (Enabled by Web 2.0)now means music videos have asserted themselves as powerful marketing tools for the artistes regardless whether it is played on TV or not. 

Distribution

MTV
MTV's audience within contemporary society is that of millennials as the distribute music videos more appropriate to that generation. Moreover they distribute reality TV shows which also appeal to the younger audience. As their target audience aligns with mine, I could use them as a platform to distribute my video.

Internet

The outlet I will be primarily using to distribute my music video is YouTube because most people within my target demographic use YouTube or are at least aware of it.The service that YouTube provides is free and simple to use; you are able to search a huge library of videos. All you have to do is type in the title in the search bar and all the videos you could possibly want are at your disposal. In recent years, YouTube have started forcing certain media upon it users - the most notable way in which they do this is by forcing viewers to watch an advert before most videos and you have to watch it or part of it because you can watch the video you want. Another reason why I would distribute through YouTube is that the process of uploading videos and creating a channel is very easy. I could also used the google owned company, VEVO. VEVO is a music video provider that has its own app and service but also has its own channel on YouTube where most main stream music videos are hosted. If they distributed my video, it would reach a greater audience.

Record Label

As Patient Productions is an independent company, I will seeking out a partnership with XO records as they are a small record company with a catalogue of 4 artistes; one of them includes The Weeknd who also founded the label.

Marketing

In every music video production, a target audience will need to be considered and can be key to the success of the video during its release. When advertising and marketing a music video; a clear genre needs to be identifiable and appealing to the target audience. For example if they were advertising a pop video, it would need to follow conventions of that genre and be recommended on streaming sites near to similar established artistes. Furthermore, in contemporary media, social media is a huge player when marketing a film with platforms such as Facebook and Twitter giving films publicity whether it bad good or bad. There are several factors that need to be considered when targeting a demographic; ethnicity, gender, class and age need to be taken into account.

Demographics

R&B/Soul listeners and viewers can fit into any of the categories below as this genre is so broad and covers many types of R&B music which is popular with various audiences. Stereotypically however an A grade demographic would listen to classical music whilst an E class demographic would listen to rap and grunge music as you might associate this with rebellious behavior like the youth of today who generally fit within the lower classes because their careers are not established leaving them with little money in general.

This table clearly shows how society has been segregated. Because of this segregation and due to changing interests of demographics; audiences are becoming fragmented and harder to reach and appeal to.

Psychographics

Psychographic segmentation is where splits the market into sections based on their social class, lifestyle and personality traits/characteristics. As mentioned the R&B/Soul genre is broad; so it can appeal to all of the psychographics in different ways.

This table clearly shows how psychographics are segregated by their values.This can be used to assume what and audience may like based on the factors previously listed.

Technological convergence has allowed the recent ease in marketing as music production companies can market and distribute their products via the internet and social media platforms that make advertising very cheap and accessible; meaning their products are easily accessible to various psychographics and demographics. 

All of the above needs to be considered when marketing a music video. A music video can be marketed in a variety of ways; 

• Television

Adverts - very expensive so only big conglomerates have access to this method of marketing. Not very common for them to be marketed this way; this is done for films usually.

• Internet

Social media - Free advertising to a vast range of people; reaching a bigger audience. Teasers could be leaked online to create interest before it is officially released. Also a good platform to display and distribute photos and behind the scenes footage with the artiste.

• Streaming sites 

Sites such as Apple Music/iTunes can tell you videos and new music you can be expecting and pre-ordering.

How are you going to market your music video?

Social Media Promotion video - Patient Productions

Facebook

Twitter

YouTube would also be a handy tool to use to promote my product. Guerrilla marketing could be used as well as means of creating viral videos which yet again would require social media to distribute effectively.


Publicity Stunts

Radiohead

Radiohead are wise to the concept of publicity stunts and this was evident  early in 2017 when crop circles in the shape of their "modified bear" logo appeared in the middle of the Glastonbury festival grounds. This was soon spread over social media - leading to a widespread speculation to whether the band would be heading lining the festival later in the year.

Radiohead

Radiohead had another well know publicity stunt 10 years ago in 2007 with their album 'In Rainbows'. They released the album in a way no other had before. The albums 'pay what you want' online release encouraged fans to buy the album; some paying and others not depending on what they felt the album was worth.

The Weeknd

Even the artiste whose song I have chosen to do has had his share of publicity. In 2011 when he released his album 'House of Balloons' it circulated online for free and Drake supported it; propelling it further towards success.

Kendrick Lamar

Kendrick Lamar took a slightly different approach when he dropped untitled

Unmastered with a simple tweet in March: the eight-track mini-album was a surprise to fans.

This is a good example of how social media can be used as a very cheap means of marketing a product.

Music Video Directors

BRTHR

BRTHR are a Brooklyn film production duo, Alex Lee and Kyle Wightman are the two members. Their Videos are appropriate to contemporary audiences that like fast paced and disorientating music videos. You could suggest they represent what is the epitome of post-MTV whilst bringing a unique look to their videos by using grainy vintage effects which make their style recognisable. 

Here are some of their projects, taken from the portfolio section on their website:

As you can see from this portfolio, they have worked with a wide range of popular contemporary artistes. One video they worked on (Party Monster) was one of my influences that I previously spoke about.

Paul Thomas Anderson

Anderson is known for his feature-length films. He has quite a knack for making mundane techniques appear stylish and current and his work tells a story vividly with his patient craft. One example of his recent pieces is his video for Radiohead's "Daydreaming" which at a glance is simplistic but it is under closer inspection where the Mise-en-scene and references throughout the video can be noticed; giving it a deeper meaning with a powerful execution that works well with the events in Radiohead's lead singer, Thom Yorke's, life (Divorced from his wife).



Dave Meyers & The Little Homies 

Dave Meyers has been making video or a couple decades now, picking up awards along the way. He has collaborated with artistes such as Jay Z, Britney Spears and Missy Elliott. His most recent work is arguably his best - he collaborated with Kendrick Lamar to make up "The Lil Homies"; which created the Video for "HUMBLE" and "LOYALTY" on Kendrick's 2017 album "DAMN". This videos for both have been widely created and even won
at the VMA's.

Dave Meyers also directed one of Justin Timberlake's latest music videos "Supplies" which tackles contemporary problems in society. This is evident at the start of the video when JT is staring at an array of screens showing clips from the news (Including Kevin Spacey and Donald Trump).