Shoot 14/11

This shoot was also for performance. We came in at 7am in order to set up for this due to the early arrival of our actors as well as our experience previously with the long setup. This meant that we were ready for the actors' arrivals and could get everything done quickly and in accordance to our shoot schedule.

For this shoot we did shots with the DJs alone again in periods 2&3.

We picked up on any shots that we felt we missed in the previous shoot, which was only a few close ups. We also spent a lot of time filming moving shots. For this we used a Glidecam.

We found the Glidecam surprisingly difficult to use as it was very hard to control and balance. We did get some good shots using this, but after reviewing our footage we found that only small sections would be useable.
From this we learned that we would need to practice more with the Glidecam for future shoots if we were to use it again. We also got advice on how to use it from another media student who was more experienced in this.

In periods 4&5 we only had Georgie to work with. This was not a problem as we had a range of shots that we needed to film with her alone. This included close-ups and mid-shots. This was our first real performance with Georgie so it took a few attempted to perfect it, but once we had done this the filming ran very smoothly. We filmed numerous run-throughs of the song in a close up, big close up, mid shot and a side close up. This gave us lots of options for our performance bed.
The footage from this shoot was very successful and we did not feel that we needed to re-shoot anything.

Shoot 11/11

On this day we didn't have Georgie available. Despite this, instead of cancelling the shoot we decided to work around this and schedule shots that we could do without her there. Therefore, we got Gavin and Eugene in and filmed close ups of the DJs alone.

This was the first time using our performance set-up and so we had to ensure that we came in early to set it up. We began by preparing the DJ desks by covering them with cards and placing soundboards/keyboards on top of them. We then had to hang the giant playing cards from the ceiling. This proved quite difficult as we had to have the technician hang up several wires from the lighting rigs for us to attach them to. Each one took a long time to stick on but we got better as we progressed.

The lights for this particular set-up proved incredibly challenging as we had to spotlight three different people as well as lighting the cards in the background. This took significantly longer than expected and so it was lucky that we had a lot of time before the actors arrived.

Once we had finished the lighting we were very impressed with our set:

The boys were fairly easy to prepare and so we could get on with filming straight away. We began by filming long shots of the two DJing for a basic shot to cut back to, and then we moved closer and changed angles to get different and creative shots.

This shoot was very successful and was a good practice for us for when Georgie would be there.
The only difficulty we faced was the fact that we couldn't film any shots in which Georgie would be, and so we had to keep the framing tight around Gavin and Eugene. They were however incredibly cooperative and proved to us that they would make great artists for our music video. From watching the footage afterwards, we realised that we needed to film using more camera movement and so planned for this in the next performance shoot.
We also took from this that we needed to allow lots of time for the preparation of this particular set-up as the lighting in particular was quite difficult to perfect.

Prop Making for Performance

Prior to our next shoot we had to make the props for our performance scenes. For this we needed to create giant playing cards that were to be hung from the ceiling.

We did this by cutting out several large white cards, then using templates of the suits to recreate these on black and red paper, as well as the numbers.

We all did this together in one afternoon in order to get it done as quickly as possible and ensure it was ready for our shoot.

It took longer than expected but we experienced very few difficulties and the end result was more impressive than we had expected.

First Shoot 6/11

 For our first shoot we decided to film the most simple part of our video. This was because we knew that this section would be easiest to re-shoot. With the nature of this being our first shoot, we knew that we were likely to experience unexpected difficulties.

In this session we shot the 'white scenes'; this consisted of Georgie walking into a white room to discover and eat a cupcake.

Maisie and I came in early to set up the lighting and set so that we would be ready to shoot promptly and according to our shoot schedule.

The other members of the group came in later, followed by Georgie. In order to prepare we touched up Georgie's hair and makeup, and luckily she came already in costume which made things a lot quicker.

We went over the shoot schedule with Georgie and she had a clear idea of what we wanted to produce for this scene.




We were also using this shoot as a way of getting Georgie into character.Throughout the shoot we ensured that we were always getting Georgie involved as we felt that this was important for her to understand what we wanted to achieve.

Outcome:
Overall, the shoot went very smoothly and was enjoyable for everyone. However, it did show us that lighting and setting up takes a lot longer than expected. It also showed us the importance of sticking to a shoot schedule as we over ran by quite a bit. This was not a problem as we had allowed for this on our first shoot, however it would definitely be a problem in future, especially when we have multiple actors to deal with. This led us to plan the following shoots much more precisely.
We reviewed the footage later that day and decided that it was good. The only minor issue was the brightness of Georgie's face, but we knew we could fix this in grading. Therefore, we decided not to re-shoot.

Location Recce

As we had decided not to film the paint fight in the forest due to the difficulty of filming on a weekend and at a different location, we had to try out our alternate location. This location was the wrek which backs onto the school making it much easier to transport the paint to this place as well as getting the actors together.

We had to test this out in order to see what framing would work due to the minimal woodland behind the grass. Therefore, we tested out different framings as well as camera movement in order to see how we could frame this scene while avoiding revealing that the school is visible behind. This was incredibly useful as we would not have to worry about this on the actual shoot day and so it hugely limited time wasting.

Performance Rehearsal

Before we began filming we brought Georgie in for a performance rehearsal. This meant that we could direct her and inform her of how we wanted these scenes to look. We also needed to check her lip synching for this particular song.

The video above shows one of the run-throughs we did with Georgie. The rehearsal was successful and we could really see Georgie taking on the role of the artist. However, it was not a perfect performance. This rehearsal showed us that Georgie needed to work on learning the lyrics, but most importantly we had to work on our directorial skills and really provide Georgie with a clear image of our intentions.

This showed us the importance of rehearsals. With the limited time we had in the studio in the following weeks we had to ensure that we were utilizing our time properly. This meant that there was very little time for practice during these sessions.
From this rehearsal we took away the knowledge that not only would Georgie be very good and cooperative in her role but also the fact that we had to direct and inform all of our actors of their role in the video prior to filming.

Shoot Board

 Shoot Board for our first shoot:

The shoot board enable us to see the time and date that everyone needs to be in the studio. We have used blue to colour in the parts that aren't actually filming so we can see when we need the actual equipment set up for. This works with our kit list as the kit list states all of the technical equipment we require in the studio.
The shoot board functions as a shoot schedule because it has a break down of each shot and the timing it will take us to film each shot. This is incredibly important for the shoot as it allows us to see how long we will need and gives a schedule to keep to in case we are taking longer than necessary.

Before we created the final shoot board/schedule to use on set, we made a shoot board of each shot we were to film:

 

 

This allowed us to have a list of shots that we could then use for our shoot schedule once we had our final scheduling. This is a more detailed breakdown of each shot which we can use alongside the final shoot board/schedule. All of the documents work well together in order for us to run an organised and fluid shoot every time we film.

Call Sheets

We worked out our call times based on when everyone would be needed on set. We worked it out so that we would have time to for setting up, for hair and makeup, and for filming. By having a call sheet we could inform people of the exact times they would be needed. The call sheet also helps us as it lists equipment and gives us strict times to stick to so that we ensure we don't run over.

Schedule of Studio and Location Shots

Studio schedule:

The studio schedule was broken down into weeks, with different colours corresponding to different groups. We were all given equal time in the studio according to when we were free. Our group was coloured in red.

We scheduled our location shoots according to when our actors were free and when we could get the equipment. This resulted in them being scheduled for 12:30 to 1:30 on both the 17/11 and 20/11.

Kit List

Publicity Shots

 For our publicity shots we are going to take lots of pictures during our shoot as we feel that these will be most synergistic with our album release. We are going to take both shots of the band and single shots of Georgie as well as the DJs together. 

 

We would like to take shots like the Paramore promo shot above as this is a really nice shot and creates a serious band image while keeping with the powder paint theme.
We would also like to take some more natural and playful shots like the photo below as we feel that this will connote the relationship between our artist incredibly well. This is also in keeping with our festival style and friendly feel that we would like to create. The two are quite different but show the differing sides to our artist.

As well as the paint fight scene, we would like to try some promo shots with the balloon scene, especially with the static of the balloons. We are going to do this as again it is in keeping with the friendly and playful artist image we are going for, while being interesting and exciting for the audience.

In addition to these shots, we are going to take some shots of Georgie alone. We have more complex ideas for these, based around the following inspirations:

We really like the way in which the layers of photos creates a sense of long exposure. These work particularly well in the Ellie Goulding promo shots and we would like to use shots like these for our promo shots of Georgie.

Finally, we would like to do some more basic shots with the DJs messing around together, again with their playful and friendly nature emphasised. Despite being incredibly simple, these shots work really well in the above pictures of Disclosure; a big artist inspiration for us.

The promo shots will be used on our website. Visuals are incredibly important on websites and so it is crucial that we use these to create our intended artist image. As according to Richard Dyer's 'star' theory, we want to focus on the image of our artist according to character and personality. Dyer says that the 'star' begins as a 'real' human, being very much of their time and generation. Therefore, the members of our band are going to be represented as fun and relateable; realistic presentations of what the audience expect. However, they will also have the 'star' side which we will bring out by using more serious and constructed publicity shots. This is what Disclosure do well, so we would like to achieve a similar impact.

Costume, Hair and Makeup

        Georgie

Georgie will need a different outfit for each of the four setups.
For the White setup she will be wearing:

Grey jumper, light jeans and red shoes. We chose this outfit as she is supposed to appear as a normal girl, before anything has happened to her. We also wanted to use light colours as the setup is supposed to be very light. We chose the red shoes as the lighting brings out the colour well against the white flooring.

For this setup she is going to have very simple makeup similar to that pictured on the left. This will consist of light eyeliner, mascara, very light lipstick, foundation and powder to keep her from being shiny. Her hair will be straight down and natural.

For the paint fight Georgie is going to wear the following:

White tshirt, black leggings and black trainers. We chose this because the paint will show up best on a white top. The colours will also contrast well with black, and the paint wont stain black clothes so we have chosen black leggings and shoes. We wanted to keep this outfit simple because this would ensure that the main focus is on the paint and it wont clash with any clothing. It is also easy to dress everyone in the paint fight the same if we keep it simple. Her makeup will be simple with black mascara, lipstick, foundation and powder but this time with pink and blue eyeshadow as well. This follows our colour scheme and adds some colour to her face which makes it differ from the performance. Her hair will be down as normal.

For the balloon setup Georgie is going to wear the following:

Purple disco pants, tie dye top and white and green Nike trainers. For this setup we have chosen to dress everyone in bright colours which will make them stand out. This is because we want it to be really colourful and vibrant in order to suit the pace of the song as well as keeping with the Alice in Wonderland theme. Her makeup will be more colourful in order to correspond with this styling, having her eye shadow blue and pink while the rest of her makeup is quite simple.

For the performance Georgie will be wearing:

Black and gold sparkly jumpsuit and black chunky heeled sandals. We chose this as it is more high profile and dressed up than the other outfits and so brings out her artist persona rather than her just being herself. Her makeup will be more intense for the performance with smokey eye shadow, eyeliner and mascara as well as dark lipstick and foundation and powder. This will be similar to the makeup shown on the left. Her hair will be down again but this time slightly wavey and with more volume in order to make it seem more stylised than normal.

Gavin & Eugene
The boys are going to be dressed similarly throughout the video. We have based their styling on genre conventional styling, as well as current trends within fans of their music. This means that their styling will be very audience driven and so increase their appeal, while maintaining a star identity and fulfilling genre conventions.

For the performance they will be wearing short sleeve shirts with dark jeans and trainers; this will make them dressed up for the performance but not overly smart as to not lose their intended artist image. The following slideshow contains inspirations for the kind of look we are going for:
For the balloon scene, the boys will be wearing brightly coloured shirts in order to incorporate the colourful and dream-like nature of the scene. They will also have bandanas as this is stereotypical festival attire which furthers the look we are aiming to produce.

For the paint fight they will be dressed similarly to Georgie, with white Tshirts and plain dark jeans. This is so that the powder paint will show up effectively like this:

The extras for these two scenes will dressed similarly in order to keep with the styling of the video. They will wear bright colourful clothes for the balloon scene and white tops for the paint scene.