Final cut of Cyanide

This is the final cut of our music video. In this cut we replaced some of the shots so that the two aspects of performance and narrative were more distinctive, and we also tweaked the timing of some shots to make the lip syncing as accurate as possible.

- Ryan Chapman -

Cyanide rough cuts

- Ryan Chapman -

Changes to our ideas

As we came close to shooting our video we realised some changes could be made to our final product in order to improve it.

Firstly the pre-recorded copy of the song we had did not include the drums as it was an acoustic version. At first we thought we could record the drums separately and edit them into the song later, so we filmed our drummer for the music video. However we realised there was no need to add them and it would give us unnecessary extra work so we decided not to include the drums in the video.

Next we chose to not include the second female in shot as this may draw too much focus away from the important characters. Also due to the lyrics referring in first person we chose to make our lead singer the main character as well. She also played the part well and looked how we imagined the character to look. This would also make the video a little less complicated for the audience and allow for an interesting twist at the end.

Finally, during filming and editing our first cut, we found it was difficult to manage times which fitted with the people and places we needed for each scene despite our filming schedule so as a group we decided not to include the party and argument scenes. This would not only save us time but also it made the video's narrative much simpler and easier to understand.

-Joseph A. Luck-    

Shotlist for digipak and magazine advertisement

This is a shot list of the pictures we will take to choose from for using in our magazine advertisement and digipak. Because both will use much of the same imagery we chose to list them together as they would require some of the same shots.

• Mid-shot of wall
• Long-shot of tunnel
• Long shot of band in tunnel
• Mid shot of Singer in tunnel
• Low angle of band in tunnel
• Close-up of apple on floor
• Close-up of pint glass on table
• Close-up of empty pint glass on floor
• Extreme close-up of poisoned pint glass
• Mid shot of female character
• Long shot of male character
• Close-up of guitar
• Long shot of pub outside

-Joseph A. Luck-

Equipment information

The equipment that we will be using is very simple, however, used in the correct way, we will be able to create the desired effect.
We will need a camera in order to film all of the footage that we need, a tripod so that we can eliminate any movement in the camera for certain shots, which will create a nice still shot.
We may use a dolly in some shots which will allow us to move the camera from side to side without any jolts to the shot.
Along with all this filming equipment we will be using the editing programme iMovie. 

With the use of all of this equipment we will be able to create a music video which will be of high quality.

-Peter Godwin- 

Casting

Male 
The male lead is a well dressed, attractive person. We have chosen Harry Pye as our lead as he is a very capable and talented actor who is able to take on many different roles. He has a very large social circle and is usually attending social events. This fits the character profile of the male lead very well. Kieren also wears smart casual wear which again fits the character profile. Rhys is also in his late teens which meant he is able to assume the roles of the male with ease as they lead similar lives.

Girlfriend
The girl we have decided to cast as the girlfriend is Anna Acevedo as she is a very confident person. She also likes to wear elegant clothes however she sometimes is unable to afford to buy these items. She is also a very capable actress and will be able to take on the roles of the girlfriend with ease. However she is a bit shy when it comes to meeting new people and so sticks with the people she knows best. This fits the profile as the girlfriend will cling to the male and will consider him as the centre of her attention.

-Peter Godwin and Joseph A. Luck-

Shot list

This is a complete shot list of our music video, arranged in chronological order but separated into categories so that we know what specific sections we can film in the same location. For example, if we were at a restaurant filming our narrative shots, we would already know that an 'Establishing shot of the band' would be impossible to do because our current location wouldn't fit that criteria. In comparison the shot list I created on Excel is categorised by the shot types o that we know how many of each shot type we should plan for. For example, knowing that there are only 2 establishing shots mean we won't need to use a dolly for a majority of our shoot.

Doing this has helped us to understand and improve upon the structure of our music video, taking into consideration how the audience will perceive the order in which events take place and whether or not that makes sense. This list will also be a useful tool to have on location, to ensure that all shots have been filmed and that we have a lot of material for the post-production process, specifically editing.

- Ryan Chapman + Peter Godwin + Joseph Anderson Luck -

Audition information

Before we are able to cast the characters in our music video, we have to interview and audition people to determine their abilities and whether they are able to follow the directions we give them. We decided that at least 3 people would be considered for each role but only one of them would be cast as the character.
For the audition I asked them a couple of questions which relate to the character profiles and the situation that they are in. For instance the question for the second girl audition is, 'If you liked a guy who is already in a relationship, would you split the couple up?'. This relates to the situation for the music video.
From their responses to the questions and from talking about their interpretation of the scenes we will be able to decide whether they are suited for the role.
When auditioning the parts it is important to choose people who enjoy performing in front of a camera and can bring their own personalities to the camera. 
-Peter Godwin-

Lighting Notes

In music videos lighting is extremely important. Not only does it make it easier for the viewer to see the content in the music video but it can also help to convey a setting or a mood. For instance, dark lighting in a scene could connote danger and sinister plots, or could convey a flat, dull or sad tone. If bright lighting is used it can convey a happier, more light hearted atmosphere and connotes enjoyment and fun. The videos in the punk rock genre often use minimal lighting to connote anti-establishment behaviour and rebellion.

This Green Day music video has very dark lighting used throughout it, which shows it is of a darker, more sinister tone, which links to the use of drugs and violence throughout the video. 

This video from Owl City uses very bright and dynamic colours which connote a happy and friendly environment. It also shows that the members in the music video are enjoying themselves.

In our music video we are going to use darker, more naturalistic lighting which is generic of the punk rock genre. This will also help to emphasise the dark themes that are present in our music video. The naturalistic lighting will also help to create a realistic atmosphere in our video. However in contrast to the dark lighting of the performance shots, we will have slightly brighter lighting used in the narrative shots. The bar will have bright lights to connote a lively social atmpshere. Key details in the scene can be seen by the audience such as the cyanide being put into the drink.
When the camera focuses on a single band member the lighting used will be a bit brighter to emphasise their importance and bring the focus to them.

-Peter Godwin-

Magazine advertisement ideas

These are my designs for the magazine advert, they have allowed me to design the adverts and link them to digipak designs. It will also allow the group to pick and choose the ideas that we find are the best and follow the codes and conventions of the genre.

From all of these ideas we will be able to pick and choose the ideas that we deem the most appropriate for a punk rock magazine article. All our ideas will be taken into consideration and we will be able to create a magazine article that follows the generic codes and conventions of the punk rock genre. 

-Peter Godwin-

I based these designs partly on the scene of the music video and partly

-Joseph A. Luck -




These are two designs I drew for our group's piece of magazine advertisement. Like with the digipacks, I chose to take two different approaches as a way of demonstrating how artists in the punk rock genre can be conveyed in several ways. The first advert, for example, is very simplistic, similar to the Kings of Leon advert I analysed previously, with this singular band member connoting solitude and loneliness. This would be very appropriate if the songs within the album in which the poster is advertising were based on such themes, establishing a target audience while also informing consumers as to what to expect from this particular product. In comparison, the second advert is structured more complexly, by displaying more information about the product, as well as presenting the band as more of a group, which has connotations of unity and friendship, contrasting from the previous design. With regards to colour, I would use quite dark shades for the background of the first design, to amplify that sense of solitude, while also making the artist the main focus of the poster. The pieces of text would therefore be white to create a strong contrast to the background, which could also suggest that the band are a symbol of hope within this darkness, presenting them as quite hopeful. For the second design, I would use a brick wall with graffiti on it to incorporate the idea of rebelling, and create an opportunity to use vibrant/passionate colours, such as red and green, to demonstrate the musical range the band has. This exercise has helped me to consider the different ways in which artists can be advertised, and also think about how the song that we've chosen to do fits in with these representations.  

- Ryan Chapman -

Ideas for digipack

- Peter Godwin -

- Joseph A luck -

Above are several designs, regarding how our chosen artist cold be conveyed through a digipack. Each of us took a different approach, in term of the layout and even how we constructed our ideas, with Peter using Photoshop as an opportunity to consider colour as a key factor, while Joseph and myself hand-drew ours to make them appear more artistic as well as be able to give reasoning via annotations. This exercise has helped us to develop our ideas of how the digipack should look, as well as compare with one another to see if we could find any consistencies we may incorporate into our final product. For example, a theme we found that appeared in each of our designs was aggression, with the fire in Peters, the graffiti in Joseph's and the weapons in mine. As a result this has aided in our collaboration as a group and given us an opportunity to be creative.

- Ryan Chapman, Peter Godwin, Joseph Anderson-Luck -

Character profiles

We chose to create a profile for each of the main characters in our video to help us decide what kind of person we wanted to play the role of that character and what we'd be looking for in them.

Male
Being a character who went to house parties still but also has his own house and went to a pub for dinner we decided the most appropriate age for him would be around 19-25, attractive masculine features so the fact he was being fought over by girls made sense and of a low to medium class to match the sort of locations he would be placed in.
1st Female (Girlfriend)
Similarly to the male an appropriate age for her would be around 20 years old of the same social class. She would also be expected to be attractive but self centred by the way she chooses to solve the situation. She is also very controlling of the boyfriend and is desperate for his affection.
2nd Female (Girlfriend's Friend)
Again she will be around 20 years of age and will be equally attractive but more flirty and facetious, by the way she takes away her friend's boyfriend. However she will also act innocent to hide away her malicious personality.

-Joseph


Before attempting to cast the roles of the main characters in our video, in depth character profiles needed to be developed. This would enable us to explore the facets of our characters so that we can use people to play these characters who would be able to bring the different aspects of the characters to life. For example, we need to explore age, gender, social class, ethnicity and physical aspects such as height, hair colour etc.

Male
The male character in the video is a well dressed, attractive male who would appeal to the opposite sex. He would probably be in his late teens (18+) for he is still unmarried although currently in a relationship. He would own his own flat and have some expendable income in order to enjoy going out to pubs and restaurants. He would have a wide social circle and be invited to parties and social occasions. He would dress in smart casual clothes which women would find attractive. He would be average to above average height and would be quite vivacious outgoing in social situations. 



Girlfriend
Again in her late teens, she would be attractive, slim, with a good job which would enable her to afford to buy classy elegant clothes. She would be quite self assured and confident, and would believe that her boyfriend is totally in love with her. She might possibly getting to the age where she wishes to settle down in a committed relationship.
When she discovers he has been unfaithful, she is devastated but determined to get revenge and destroy him.




Second Girl
Around a similar age, she would be equally as attractive but not at the present time in a serious relationship. She has gone to the party with the intention of finding herself a boyfriend and is flirting with everyone in the room. She is outgoing and lively, and doesnt stop to consider anyone elses feelings.

-Peter Godwin-

Narrative

Narrative

The narrative for our video begins with a 20 year old male walking into a bar.

He sits down at a table where he orders a drink, he gets momentarily distracted and the waiter puts a drop of cyanide in his drink. The video then flashes back and the story shows him and his ex-girlfriend together, but get broken up by one of the girlfriends’ friends who seduces the boyfriend. The couple then argue and he leaves, which then leads into the beginning scene where the waiter is revealed to be the ex-girlfriend. He drinks the poison and shortly after dies which marks the end of the video.

 

~Peter~

25 word pitch

Our constructed music video depicts ‘The Fake Imposters’ song Cyanide, based around the band performing and a narrative about an evolving relationship between a couple.

- Ryan Chapman -

A couple have broken up, as a result of the male sleeping with another woman, while the female plots revenge through poisoning him with cyanide.

- Ryan Chapman -

A man walks into a bar, orders a drink that gets poisoned, as the camera then cuts back to the man cheating on his girlfriend.

- Ryan Chapman -



The lyrics tell of a breakdown in the relationship between boyfriend and girlfriend, causing overwhelming jealousy which compels the girlfriend to commit murder through poison.

 -Peter Godwin-

Animatic Storyboard

This is the animatic storyboard for our video which we created in order to help us experiment with the timings and editing of our video before creating the actual product. It shows the ending of our video in which the male character has been poisoned and the killer is revealed to be his ex girlfriend.


-Joseph A. Luck-

Final locations

This is the underpass where we filmed the performance shots for our music video. We decided this was the best location as it has graffitti all over the walls which create a punk rock atmoshpere which would greatly improve the quality of our music video.







We also filmed at the Rare Cow, Writtle, where we shot all of our narrative shots. We decided on this location as it was closed on the day we were planning on filming so we were able to film in the place with no interruptions from the public. It also had a very dark naturalistic lighting which is a generic convention of the punk rock genre. At the location, all of the essential props necessary for the scenes were already set up so when we arrived at the location we could easily shoot all of the scenes and leave without wasting too much time. The bar at the location fitted in with the story of the music video as one shot is of the male lead ordering a drink at the bar and walking to his table. This was extremely beneficial to our piece as it meant that we had less work to do in finding and securing the props needed for this scene. The fact that this was a working bar, lead an authenticity to our music video that would not have been achieved if we had mocked up our own version of this scene. It looked very real and professional as it was shot in a realistic location.


-Peter Godwin-

Final props

1. cyanide tablet-The cyanide is a key part of the music video as the title of the song is Cyanide. The lyrics tell of a jealous female who poisons her lover in a revenge killing. There is a close-up shot of the female putting the tablet into the males' drink. However we are not going to be able to use real cyanide as it is a toxic drug which will cause death to whoever drinks it. We have decided to use a dissolvable pill that will most likely be a paracetomal tablet which will  have no effects on the consumer. This is readily available at any pharmacy.
2. Pint glass-A close-up shot in our video shows the cyanide tablet being put into a pint glass of beer. I have a pint glass at home.
3. Two wine glasses-These will be needed for the romantic scene in the restaurant where the couple will be drinking wine. I have these at home.
4. Table and chairs-These will be on location in the pub where the scene will be filmed in which the couple are going to have their romantic meal. The table will be dressed with table cloth, cutlery and candles to create the intimate and romantic atmosphere. 

-Peter Godwin-

Location scouting

Below are pictures that demonstrate our research into different settings for our music video. With this research we took both our genre and planned narrative into consideration. For example, we noticed that a lot of punk rock bands tend to perform in quite outlandish locations, which is why we looked at a local car park as a possibility - being on the top floor of the car park would also connote their dominance within the music industry. This is supported in the Nickelback song 'Hero,' with the band playing on top of a New York skyscraper. In terms of the narrative, we knew that we wanted to set it in a bar because it would be in context with the lyrics, seeing as it's about a girl poisoning her ex's drink. Because I work at a local restaurant, we seized this opportunity, taking pictures and debating whether or not it would fit our needed requirements for the video, such as access to a bar, table, pint glass etc.


-Ryan Chapman-

 As a result of the car park location being unavailable to us, as the council were unwilling to let us on the location at conveniant times, we looked at some more convenient locations, in terms of being able to travel and film in these places for long periods of time. This way we are able to take the time to be more precise with our shots, as well as film more takes. Contrasting from the car park, this underpass of a bridge has a much more gritty feel, which works well in correlation with our punk rock genre. It also has a lot of space, which fits our criteria because the band's equipment will take up room, and considering we need an area to set up the camera and direct from - this location would be preferable for our performance shots. 

-Peter Godwin-