Evaluation Questions

For our A2 media studies coursework, we had to produce a practice music video before we could film our final music video. The song my group and I were assigned with was ‘Little Drop Of Poison’ by Tom Waits. This involved us carrying out the pre-production, production and post-production.
We used digital technology throughout all the stages of the construction of our music video. Firstly, we looked at previous music videos that were available on the internet, to find out what the typical conventions, so we knew what to include in our video. For the production of our music video, we used a digital camera, which allowed us to have higher quality shots. This enabled us to film a variety of shots from different angles, whilst maintaining them to look professional. The use of digital technology was very important when editing our footage. We uploaded our footage onto the computer and used iMovie software to do the editing. We had to cut each clip, to ensure we had continuity editing and the sequence was fluid. It was also important that we cut the clips in time to the beat of the song, which was a little difficult, but the technology made it easier. The use of digital technology meant we were able to add effects to our video. We added a film grain effect, to make our music video look authentic and to empathise the old sounding style of the song.
Before we could begin filming, we had to plan our shots with a storyboard. We started to brainstorm ideas of what to include in our video. We decided to include a narrative, rather than a performance; so we came up with the idea of an arrogant boss and his assistant. My group and I then storyboarded our shots, so we knew what exact we were filming, including shots, angles, mise-en-scéne and characters.
The pre-production of our music video, involved us researching the typical codes and conventions of music videos. From our research we found that they often include a narrative, performance, artist, props and are cut to the beat. This helped us know what to use in our video. To further our research, we planned to watch music videos that were of a similar genre to our song. However, we couldn’t find any, which made it difficult for us, as we had no conventions to follow. Nevertheless, the genre of the song was a huge help for our production, because it gave us a scope to work around.
After the completion of our music video, showed it to our audience, and received feedback from them. The main strengths were the variety of shots and angles we used, as it successfully conveyed the relationship between the two characters. The audience also stated that we use continuity editing, and they could identify the narrative of our music video. However, our production did have weaknesses, for example, the use of props. At one point in our video the cup of coffee was empty when it wasn’t suppose to be, and we used a jug instead of a kettle, which were both very noticeable. My group and I also agreed that we should have used a few more shots in our video to give variety, especially the scene when the poison is put into the drink, as it would have emthasied the significance of the it.

Louise Welch