3. What have you learned from your audience feedback?

Various methods were used to gather audience feedback throughout the process. The first of these was a 'Vox Pop'. These are used to provide an overall viewpoint on a particular subject by randomly selecting members of the public. They are not planned but instead have honest responses because the interviewees have not heard the questions previously. They are a good way of getting a fast and honest response from many different people. For our vox pop, we asked 8 people a series of 6 questions covering their favourite genre and what they look for in music videos. One useful piece of information received from the interviews was that most people like to see some kind of performance in videos they watch, suggesting we should definitely include performance shots. It was also clear that people enjoy a good narrative along with the performance, especially that of the amplification and disjuncture styles. This lead to our decision of including both performance and narrative shots in our promo. The final question revealed that all of the interviewees watch music videos on YouTube, mainly because of the instant access to a huge number of varying videos.

After presenting our initial ideas, we asked the audience to vote for the idea they liked the most using Poll Everywhere. As is seen below, 50% of people preferred Idea 2, so that was the idea we went with. This feedback was very useful, as we were struggling to decide upon an idea at the beginning of the process.

A similar technique was used to help us decide upon the idea for the ancillary tasks. Three options were given for the magazine advert, and two for the digipak. The results of the poll showed that Option 1 was preferred in both cases, most likely due to the synergy between the two chosen options (both feature the band members in their junk food costumes). After this feedback was received, we were able to develop the ideas further and create a finished product.

Feedback was also gathered on our chosen mise-en-scene, in the form of an online survey. From this survey, we found that the audience liked the idea and choice of costumes as they believed it would make the promo more entertaining. The performance clothing was also deemed appropriate because it adheres to the conventions of an indie rock promo. The props and lighting were approved, too. These results meant that we didn't have to change any of our ideas and were able to continue with our original plans.

The feedback on our raw footage was overall positive, although it was suggested that some of the shots filmed at night appeared grainy due to the low light. In response, we re-filmed these shots during the day, so the issue was no longer apparent. Additionally, we didn't feel that there was enough footage of the band members in their costumes, so another filming session was organised in order to obtain some more shots.

To collect our audience's response to the rough edit of our promo, another online survey was used. The feedback was positive, as each survey response stated that people enjoyed it, particularly the performance and costume scenes. On the other hand, some people did mention that the football scenes were a little long and that it would look better if the sequence was broken up by some different shots.

We got further feedback for our rough edit from Facebook and YouTube. The comments were again very positive and everyone seemed impressed.

The feedback on our rough ancillary tasks was that they both linked together and with the promo conceptually and visually.

To get feedback on our final production and ancillaries we carried out a session with a focus
group. The questions we asked the group were as follows:

• Do you like our video?
• What are the strongest aspects of the promo?
• What is the best features of the ancillaries?
• Is there are clear link between the ancillaries and promo?
• Are there any improvements?
• Would you recommend it to a friend?

The responses were yet again positive: All but one person said that they liked our video. From the information gathered, we found that the narrative sections and the editing were believed to be the strongest aspects of the video. We also discovered that the images of the band wearing the food costumes was the best feature on the ancillaries, and that there is a clear link between the ancillaries and promo. When asked if there were any improvements that could be made, most of them said that none were required. They all said that they would recommend it to a friend as well.




Some more positive responses were received on Facebook when the final edit was shared, and it was felt that the changes had further improved the promo.

4. How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?

To overcome copyright issues, we chose a song produced by an unsigned artist. Websites such as www.unsigned.com were useful in this search as they allow the artist to provide some background information about themselves, along with at least one sample track. After we decided upon our artist and song — The Amazons, Junk Food Forever - , we used social networking sites (including Facebook) to do some further research before contacting the band via email to gain their permission for the use of their song. The band were happy for us to create a promo for their song, providing we sent them the video before it was listed on YouTube and gave them the necessary credit in the description.

When we began our research, YouTube was a very useful media technology as it allowed us to explore many different examples of existing promos for inspiration and gave us a better grasp on the conventions of music videos in general and of our specific genre.

In order to construct our product, Final Cut Pro X was used to edit our promo, and Adobe Photoshop CC for the ancillary tasks. As iMovie was used to edit our preliminary task, we felt that in order to enhance our editing capabilities and improve the quality of our promo, a step up in software was required.

When shooting for our promo, the main issues we had to overcome were lighting and not getting enough footage. Said issues were easily resolved, however, as we just re-filmed the shots that were too dark and grainy during the day, and also spent some time getting additional footage for both the narrative and performance sections of the promo.

Many different technologies were used to present the research and planning that took place before undergoing the main task. The main platform for this was Blogger, where every task was posted. This technology was chosen as it allowed all of our work to be presented in an organised fashion, with separate tabs for each section of the process (i.e. Preliminary, Research, Planning, etc.). It also enabled us to embed separate technologies within a post, thus making the tasks more interesting that standard text and images. These technologies include the following:

• Prezi — A very dynamic and engaging presentation software used for tasks including the Pitch and Production Roles.
• Scribd. — Effective for embedding Microsoft Word and PowerPoint files.
• Moovly — Used for presenting the mise-en-scene that is included in our promo.
• Padlet — Used to show pre-production roles of each group member.
• Poll Everywhere — very useful for gathering audience feedback, and then presenting it clearly.

Planning Script:

The very first step of our planning was to get permission for the use of the song we selected. To do this, we emailed the representatives of The Amazons and they were happy for us to create a promo for their song, providing we sent them the video before it was listed on YouTube and gave them the necessary credit in the description. The next step was to assign production roles and create a pre-production schedule, so each group knew clearly which tasks they were responsible for. These tasks were presented using Prezi and Padlet respectively. We then deconstructed the lyrics in order to see what themes were contained within the song, which in turn enabled us to come up with some initial ideas that were presented in the format of a PowerPoint presentation to a group of people, who then gave us feedback. After our idea was settled upon, work on the shot list and storyboard could begin. When they were complete, they were uploaded simply as images. We also pitched our final idea using Prezi to gain further feedback, and give us a clearer picture of what we needed to film. An analysis of the mise-en-scene we wished to include in our promo was also completed using Moovly and, along with this, so was the location scouting. To get the images of our locations, we used Google Maps. We then did a risk assessment of these locations to ensure they were safe to film in. This was completed in Word. Before we went out to film, a filming schedule was produced in order to maximise our efficiency and ensure no time was wasted. As with all the other sections, all of the planning was uploaded and presented on Blogger.

1. In what ways does your media project use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Conventions of an Indie Rock Promo

In order to be able to create a suitable promo for an indie rock song, we had to first
research the conventions:

Performance

In general, indie rock is a relatively low-budget genre, so a lot of performance tends to be included. As aforementioned, performance shots can depict the performers in a concert setting with an audience, or in a random location with no audience whatsoever.

Influences

A big influence on our promo was 'Can't Stop' by the Red Hot Chilli Peppers. We wanted to replicate the randomness and disjuncture combined with the performance to keep the promo varied and entertaining.





Another influence was the video for 'Golden Retriever' by Super Furry Animals. The promo features the band members wearing dog costumes, and therefore relating to the title of the song. This was one of the inspirations behind the idea of wearing junk food costumes that link to our song name, 'Junk Food Forever'. This video is solely performance based, however, so our promo differs in that respect.




When designing our digipak, we looked at existing digipaks for inspiration. One that inspired us was, 'Demon Days' by Gorillaz because there are separate panels for each band member. When we made our digipak, we used this idea and had the three band members on three individual panels.

Another digipak that inspired us was 'Babel' by Mumford & Sons. We were inspired by this because it shows all the band members sat together as the main focus. For our digipak, we also incorporated this idea as we have the three band members stood together wearing their costumes.

Our magazine advert was inspired by this poster, again from Mumford & Sons for their 'Sigh No More' album. This poster also features the whole band as the main focus, much like the previous album cover. Similarly to our digipak, we included the whole band together as the main image on the poster.

2. How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

Our 3 products have synergetic links between them, drawing from the concept of 'Junk Food' from the title and lyrics of our song. The use of junk food costumes is a common image that is seen in all of the products. These conceptual and visual links help create a brand image that enables easier promotion and makes each element more recognisable individually.

We also ensured that the image of the band stayed consistent as well: In all three materials, each band member is wearing the same clothes and costume. This is another way the package linked together, thus making the artist more distinguishable. Promoting the artist with one image also highlights what sort of artist the band is, and implies what the audience can expect when watching the video and listening to their music. Also, the fact that the design of the advert is the same as the front cover of the digipak connects the two elements very strongly, again making them more recognisable.

Created with Padlet

Our digipak is very effective on its own because it promotes the band and showcases them in a unique way. The product is also appealing to fans of the band, as it offers some special content, like the band member's signatures on their corresponding panels, for example. The inclusion of lyrics might also allow the audience to connect with the song further.

Our poster is also effective on its own because it promotes the band clearly. The use of social media logos is an example of convergence, and helps to promote the band yet more as people will be able to view the band's social media pages and find out more. They can also view their website which provides information on upcoming tours or events. Other songs released by the band will also be available on the website. The use of the Spotify and iTunes logos also gives the audience a place to digitally download the song, which should theoretically increase sales.

The links between the three products are very clear. For example, all three feature the same costumes and typography, while the poster and digipak use the same colours and background - thus making it obvious that they are all part of one promotional package.