What have you learned from your audience feedback?
After conducting this research we were able to create a profile for our typical consumer: a 17 year old male who attends college and listens to music of the punk/rock genre. He enjoys going to gigs with his friends and listening to music on channels such as Kerrang and NME TV, whilst also reading these magazines. He enjoys watching topical music programs, such as ‘Never Mind the Buzzcocks’ and ‘Top of the Pops’. Our fictitious viewer also shops at alternative clothing stores such as Topman, Urban Outfitters and vintage stores such as Rokit.
Once we had established who are audience are we then had to decided what to include in our video that would appeal to them. We used other music videos for inspiration, particularly ones from the same genre. Blur’s video ‘For Tomorrow’, set in London, also follows the concept of visiting famous London landmarks. The video is shot entirely in black and white which gives the footage a more vintage quality, however we felt that this would not be appropriate for our video, as we are using modern characters and mostly colour footage. We also took inspiration from the Gwen Stefai video for ‘What You Waiting For’. This video is uses mise-en-scene effectively, and we wanted to include this in our own video. The costumes and props make the video more interesting and exciting, while helping the audience relate to the characters through what they are wearing.
To appeal to our target audience we incorporated various characteristics of the punk/rock genre, to build an atmosphere of rebellion and anarchy that fits with the tone and lyrics of the song. The lyrics of ‘London Calling’ evoke a sense of hatred and bitterness towards the British government, and we reflected this in such shots as the St. Pauls protests and shots of the band performing. This showed a direct link between the lyrics and the visuals while also giving the video a comical and ironic tone. Our target audience would be someone who could see the comedic effect in these shots, but may also have grievances against the government in the same way the protestors do such as student loan cuts etc. However this comedy could also appeal to people from a wider audience. Our target audience may also represent certain social groups and classes, such as the working class or Labour supporters. To ensure out video appeals to them the two characters are repeatedly mocked, appearing to be involved in a romantic relationship, and are shown to be completely different from their real life personas.
In regards to audience positioning we wanted our audience to be taking the view of the British public, who despite knowing of the problems in our country also take pleasure in London’s many landmarks and the beauty of the city. As a group we included various techniques concerning camera and editing styles. We adapted a very popular style of fast and quick cuts, not only to incorporate all of our footage into the allotted time but to keep the viewers attention and make the video entertaining and exciting. The fast paced cuts can also symbolise the pace of London and show how quickly a day in London can go buy. Another way we engaged our audience was through mise-en-scene, such as the masks. These were a constant feature in our video as well as out brand, and help the audience to identify the characters. Most of the mise-en-scene was used for a comedic purpose, as well as helping to convey the conceptual and performance aspects of our video.
Audience feedback was very important throughout the creation of our video as well as the evaluation of our final product. We received four different groups of feedback at different stages of production to help us develop out ideas. This feedback helped us to ensure we included certain aspects that would appeal to our target audience and showed us how effective our editing was. From all four stages of production we received very positive feedback from our classmates, many thinking the video was funny and the patriotic theme was portrayed effectively. Many also thought our idea to use politicians was extremely effective. As a group we were very happy with this feedback as well feel our ideas and our hard work was appreciated and shown creatively in our video. We also received feedback for our digipack and magazine advert, again which was very positive. Both our classmates and our teacher agreed that the continuous use of the red, white and blue text worked very well in keeping with our theme and brand. The rebellious tone was also conveyed through the font and images used. We were also very happy with the feedback regarding this. Our intention of keeping the same text, colours, images and background throughout our product appealed to our audience in the way it was intended to and the way we had hoped it would.
When filming we ensured that we included a variety of different shots to enhance the footage and to use the setting as a constant feature in our video. The use of a good quality HD camera along with a tripod was extremely important in doing this. The feedback we received in regards to our camera work was very positive, and many of our classmates commented on how the concept of our video was clearly portrayed through our shots. They also felt that our patriotic theme was felt all the way through, due to the portrayal of the politicians and the setting we used, as well as the constant reminder of the lyric ‘London Calling’. In particular we received many encouraging comments about the acting of our two characters who our peers felt worked very well together and brought a humorous tone to the video as well as conveying their relationship on screen.
Due to the amount of hard work put in by our group and the high standard of our three media products I feel that our work does meet the OCR brief. Our music video contains many of the key elements seen in any video today. The camera work is steady and the shots have been thought out in detail and filmed appropriately. The concept and narrative of our video is clearly displayed in all of the shots and the continuity of them. We also used mise-en-scene, lighting, and the editing facilities to make our video look as professional as possible, whilst also showing off our ideas and creativity. Some of the shots could have been improved if we had access to better equipment, such as the performance scenes, but we still feel that the hard work contributed by all group members is shown through the high standard of our media products.
Our group is very proud of our three products, and we feel that our work is unlike anything else on the market at the moment. I think the unique selling point of our video is the comedic aspect, conveyed through the use of the masks. Many people can relate to comedy in different ways and each person who watches our video takes a different interpretation of the comedy we are showing. I also feel that comedy is very engaging and it is very easy to hook a consumer this way. The use of masks also provides the opportunity for our brand to include merchandise, such as copies of the masks.
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