Stage 2 Extras:
Visual Media Research:
Music Video: Gorillaz: ‘Stylo’
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Who made it? What is their background?
The music video showcases the virtual, animated rock band, Gorillaz and their song, 'Stylo.' They were created in 1998 by Damon Albarn and artist Jamie Hewlett. The first single, "Clint Eastwood" was officially released on 5 March 2001, produced by hip hop producer Dan the Automator. One of their most famous hits is, 'Feel Good Inc.' by Gorillaz.
How was it made?
A large filming crew when sent to the desert-based location for the music video shoot. The director pulled the strings and followed the drawings from the storyboard artist to shoot the scenes needed for the final music video. For example, the car crashing through a billboard. A number of different camera angles and visual techniques were used to ensure that the end product of the music video would match their exciting intentions during the pre-production planning.
Throughout the recording of the scenes, the director can communicate with the cast of the music video by phone call to ensure his visions can be met precisely. Furthermore, a variety of props were used during the shoot such as guns, cars and billboards to produce the action-style music video that was intended. The virtually animated characters of the band are added in the post-production edit.
How did it use conventions, such as leading line, framing and composition?
Several different conventions were used throughout the music video. For example, framing was used through the car windows to highlight the character's in the music video, as well as this it was used for dramatic effect when the car smashes through the billboard. Also, leading line is used regularly to draw the viewer's eye down the long-stretch of road that the cars are driving along, symbolising the journey that the character's are taken on during this action-packed music video.
The rule-of-thirds is used in certain shots and it is divided up by the road, the car and the hilly landscape in the background, to make for visually interesting scenes, in order to engage the viewer.
What aspects can you take from this, to help develop your own creative visual approach?
After watching and analysing this particular music video, there are certain techniques and styles that I could incorporate and use to develop my own creative visual approach. For example, the fast-paced constantly moving style of the video accompanied with the genre of rock from the Gorillaz song 'Stylo' made for a very exciting viewing. I could use the idea of fast paced travelling in vehicles or running through a location, as a part of a music video, to help build the sense of speed, adrenaline and drama.
Additionally, I could definitely use the convention of framing through windows to draw attention to what is on the other side of the glass, to enhance my own creative visual approach, and further explore other conventions seen in 'Stylo' such as leading line and rule-of-thirds, to make my own products more engaging.
Lastly, the use of multiple camera angles was really effective in Gorillaz work and is something I would like to experiment further with myself to make my work more visually dynamic.
TV Advert: John Lewis ‘Christmas Advert 2019’
Who made it? What is their background?
The television advert was produced by John Lewis in partnership with Waitrose. John Lewis first opened in 1864 and is the 'UK's largest employee owned business.'
How was it made?
They chose this particular storyline from hundreds of scripts, as they believe it harnessed the idea of thoughtful giving and acceptance during the Christmas period. Several different styles of the dragon were drawn out on paper, to help the makers of the film understand how the dragon could show different emotions, and develop it into an attractive character for the audience.
A huge amount of work went into the set design and lots of extras were used to bring a communal feel to the village. Camera distances and heights were recorded, as well as capturing all the lighting information to make sure they are prepared for the final shoot three days after.
They had to make sure, Ava, the girl in the advert, walked at the correct speed for walking and tracking shots, to allow Edgar the dragon to be added in the post-production edit, walking next to her.
The animation in post-production begins as grey-scale animation before being rendered with all its textures to an extremely high level.
How did it use conventions, such as leading line, framing and composition?
I picked out a variety of conventions within the advert. For example, leading line was used to show the fire travelling towards the town's christmas tree, in a visually interesting and dramatic way allowing for tension to build. Extreme close-ups were used of Edgar the dragon's face to show the sad and helplessness eye of the small, cute character, this cleverly captures the heart's of the viewers, making them focus on the advert, a great marketing strategy. Leading line was also used to draw the viewer's eye down the long dinner table in the end scene. Also, rule0of-thirds was used on multiple occasions to divide between the snow, the village and the sky in certain shots in a visually pleasing way.
What aspects can you take from this, to help develop your own creative visual approach?
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I can take the idea of making my products into more of a narrative-style, in order to leave the audience with a final message, in this case it was the idea of accepting people despite their differences. This means the work can have a positive impact on people whilst being artistic and visually interesting.
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Furthermore, the use of several photography conventions such as leading line and framing through doorways, for example, are all great ideas that i could develop into my own creative visual approach. Also there were lots of new and exciting camera shots such as the tracking shot which I would like to incorporate into my video productions in the future.
Film: Avatar
Who made it? What is their background?
The film Avatar was made by James Cameron. Cameron first became famous when he directed The Terminator. He is a Canadian filmmaker, artist, and environmentalist, who is recognised for making science-fiction-based films.
How was it made?
CGI technology was used to capture the movements of the actors, allowing them to play the characters in the film, through translating this information into a digital character. Many different angles were recorded of the actors, including a close-up camera on their faces attatched to the helmets worn by the actors to allow them to accurately drive a computer-generated characters and depict real human emotions.
How did it use conventions, such as leading line, framing and composition?
They used a mulititude of different conventions and camera shots ranging from close-ups to show the human emotions of the digitally programmed characters, to extreme wide shots to convey the enormous and expansive landscape within the world of Avatar. Over the shoulder shots were also used a lot, as seen in the trailer. Framing was used through the plants and trees in the jungle environment in certain scenes.
What aspects can you take from this, to help develop your own creative visual approach?
Although this film was developed in an extremely advanced way, there are still several basic techniques I could take from it to improve my own work. For example, the use of wide shots to convey the full extent of the landscape the film is being shot in, tracking shots to follow the main focal points of scenes, and using framing through gaps in natural environments to intelligently draw the eye of the viewer. Close-ups of human faces can also be used to give true senses of the emotion that they are feeling to provide atmosphere and enagage the audience.