I've sent john an email here is a copy.

Hello john,
Here is a link the video, you can download it from here aswell. Hope you like it
It was a pleasure working with you and thank you for the opportunity. If you need anything else feel free to get on to us.
Best of luck with your album. Hope to catch a gig sometime soon.
https://vimeo.com/114148342

Regards,
Brús, Douglas, Callum, Dylan & Linda

We've uploaded the video and i've submitted it via black board



John Blek - Kathleen from Ieuan Pearse on Vimeo.

Presentation

I just started the presentation, pls everybody add your stuff ( what you did etc, + footages, etc.)

I will upload it to google drive or dropbox in the next hour

Linda

Kathleen

Updated with the visuals toned down.

Class on the 5th

Could you pls bring your hard drives, so we can exchange the footage

Color Grading

I am almost finished with the first color grading.

I tried to achieve what we wanted to have:
- adjust the narrative shots to the performance shots concerning color
- reducing brightness

See below before and after
Narrative:
                                   

                               

For the performance I changed it like this :

Both:

Kathleen

Black and White

last time we talked with Darragh about changing the color of the performance or the narrative part of the video.

what do you think of it?

next steps

Do we need another shooting ? Or is everything needed recorded?

And as the shootings are over now, if you need help with the Postprod I can help you. (usually do a lot of post prod. stuff )

Reverse Test

Photo

Who wants to look for a photo of a girl?

Should I do it?

And how does she have to look like?
Blonde, brown hair, red hair, .... ?

Actor

Actor has been sorted , Nigel Frahill said he would act in the video tueday morning

Tuesday

Hey,

do we have any new information because of our shooting ? ( concerning actors?)

I looked up the weather :
On tuesday it is going to be cloudy and on thursday it will rain , so let's do it on tuesday :D

Shoulder Rig

Just Asked in The Equipment room: they now have  a steady Cam availible.
For the camera operator: it is pretty hard to handle and built up the shoulder rig, so the person who will do it should try it out on monday, because it is heavy in weight  Right now we have it at home, because of another shooting , it is this one :

Please  don't forget to ask relatives ofyours if they want to take part in the video. As I do not come from Ireland I don't know any old people haha, so it's up to you

Lighting in the park

For the shooting in the park, I  will organize a silver or white reflector, so that I can set up something like in the left picture. If I do not get it, I try to get a mirror and a diffusor, this works as well, we did it very often in Darmstadt. I they do not have any diffusors at the equipment room, I'll get sandwich paper, works as well :P 

Will approximately look like this : 

Udate for the next shooting

Current situation :

Brus contacted the drama society for an actor.
What the actor should look like : not too young
Date : Next Tuesday morning ( 11.11.14) In case of rain : Thursday morning ( 13.11.14)
Location: Fitzgerald Park, Cork


Still have to figure out a way to handle the camera, everybody please ask for a dolly, shoulder Rig, Steady Cam, …

I'll organize reflectors, try to get a silver one, but I think we only have golden and white ones in the equipment room.


For the photo : We decided to take a photo of girl. The actor should not be in the photo. so when he rips it off, it is obvious that he is mad at her, sad, whatever. ( And so we do not have to organize a earlier shooting for the photo as well)

Contacted ucc & cit drama socities

i have contacted the ucc and cit drama socities with the following message. Hello, We're looking to shoot a music video next week or the week after for a well established Cork singer/songwriter. we're looking for an older actor (male) preferably over the age of 25. Please let any members who meet this criteria known of this opportunity. Please contact me at ieuan.pearse@mycit.ie

JohnBlek Test 1

Seccond shooting / To do List

What we need:

- Actor
- Date for shooting
- Idea of how we handle the cameras (I'm against hand held, this always looks so amateur-like, maybe a dolly, shoulder Rig, Tripod, …)
- The Photo ( Should be done before we do the shooting, because the actor has to be in it)

First Shooting

First Shooting went well!
Please don't forget to give everyone the footage.

Another Test Shot

Filming with John Thursday

I've been in contact with john and he has agreed to film with us on the thursday the 30th of october at 5.45 in CIT.

Storyboards

Here's my draft of the storyboards for both performance and narrative. Performance shots are based on the effects we've decided to use and the test footage we took earlier. Narrative shots are based on the ideas we collaborated on and the storyboard Linda posted earlier.

Key:
Shots framed in red represent the narrative
Shots framed in blue represent the performance
The shots that have a time written on them indicate that the shot should end around this time
Otherwise, duration is determined by the lyrics
Arrows indicate movement

Sorry about the bad resolution/contrast issues, I'll have to re-scan the pages at a later date.

These are subject to change, especially the narrative shots. This is just to give us an idea of the timing of the song and to make generating a shot list easier.

I'll provide a shot list for the performance based off these storyboards for the performance.

Double Exposure Test in B&W

slightly different overlayed video on this one , just messing around with different footage. I Think b&w works well with this kinda thing , but not sure how it would be applied to the whole video , just an idea anyway , we'll discuss more inclass tommorow.

Double Exposure Test

Storzboard/Moodboard

For the narrative:

Meeting

Today we meet at 6pm in the canteen to talk to John.

( For Eoghan who doesn't have Facebook)

John Blek- Portland, Oregon (Official Video)

This is john's latest solo video , just sharing it on the blog.

Double Exposure

Douglas posted a video on the blog earlier that featured a lot of double exposure (found here). This is more often a static photography technique that blends images. Below are some examples:

This technique has since made appearances in video, such as the opening to the HBO drama True Detective embedded below.

I want to expand on the possibility of using this technique because I feel it would work with our project for a number of reasons.

Firstly it would create consistency between the band footage and the narrative, because we could leak footage of the narrative into the shots of Blek performing using double exposure.

It would also help blend the nature-orientated shots we're planning into the video without them appearing out-of-place.

Also, it just looks really good. It could definitely bring a professional quality look to the performance footage.




P.S. The presentation slides are now available on dropbox if anyone wants to make any last-minute changes. Link:

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/nh50run3y56ffw4/AACU4zRoTd2fPvwqElOgl8hRa?dl=0

Test Shot

Shot in fitzgerald park , early morning , here's an example

My first Idea

Content :

First Idea :
He sings about Kathleen and that he loves her but it seems that she is not good for her. Like Eoghan has said Kathleen seems to be an object. I imagine that he sings about a drug. I know this would be very hard for a musicvideo but it was the first thing that came into my mind.

This would also fit to the lyrics, espacially these lines :

When I woke after sleeping, knowing you would be gone  
He is not high anymore

You freed me from language
She (the drug) makes him free and she seems to be the only one who can do that with him

You keep leaving this town, always bringing me down, I don’t love you Kathleen.
In the end, he admits that she is not good for him

Seccond Idea:
He fell in love with a prostitute that doesn't love him back. By telling himself "I don't love you", je tries to convince himself that he does not love and need her, but in fact he is  addicted to her.

Effects:
I really would recommend to have lyrics in the video (kinetic ones, like the one in the "Here I go" Video or in the one I have posted.  Another effect we could use is the overlaying of videos via masks ( Like in the "diamond eyes " video). I would shoot it in a studio with a black background and everytime this "oooooh" comes, we could use that effect.

Meeting tomorrow

Concerning the meeting tuesday at 2pm :

For our Media Project 3 - Project we had to change the time for our shooting because of our actor, thus it can be possible that I arrive later. ( I try my best not to, but we'll shoot a tiny scene in the CSM at 12 and I have to take the bus, dont know how long it will take).

Concerning the presentation :

I have an idea, maybe you can tell me what you think of it : Everybody prepares a plan of shooting of his/her function. The person who does the VSF for example, can present how he will achieve it, what kind of effects he will use and so. The person who does the lighting will present how he/she will achieve certain effects. If you want to, I can collect that and put it into a powerpoint presentation and bring it on Friday. What do you think of that ?

(And if we do it like that, and if I'm late tomorrow : I'm interessed in camera, lighting, editing, VSF; just give me a role I'm fine with everything)

Linda

Some video techniques I've gathered

I really liked the use of the glass-shattering video overlaid on top of the footage of the band performing (most noticeable after 2:48):

It syncs with the music and really adds something to what could've been an otherwise bland video. This particular footage works well with the punchy start-and-stop riff in this song but wouldn't compliment the slower mellow vibe of John Blek's music. The idea of overlaying video like that is definitely something to look into though, I think it could work if we used visuals more fitting to the video than shattering glass.

The next video is far from spectacular, but I think the simple effects used could fit well with the music we'll be working with:

The well placed lighting, use of silhouetting, vignettes, and lens-flare come together nicely and the old-timey look they've given the video would be appropriate for the acoustic-folk style Blek has.

This video uses minimalism very well. It's all visual effects, synced to the music in the form of waveforms (sans the animations that come into it later on):

I think this technique could be really effective for our artist, because his music has a large focus on the lyrics. These visuals kind of accentuate the vocals with the synchronisation and could work well either inter-cut or overlaid on his performance.

This video is my example of budget effects, which is obviously something that needs to be considered for our project. It is a first official video made by some rather broke artists, but it captures the mood perfectly:

I chose this one because the use of double images of the band members with varying opacity and light-levels makes the whole thing feel rather ethereal or something. Blek's music, from what I've heard, is largely quite depressing. This one is also (mostly) a sad song, and I think these effects, coupled with the use of black-and white capture the mood/atmosphere perfectly. It isn't spectacularly done, but it works, and it's cheap.

This video is a solo artist like Blek, and again it's similar in the sense that it's rather saddening music/lyrics. I think this atmosphere is worked into the video very well. (plus it looks as though it was very cheap to film):

The way the lighting is set up to only light the edges of Buckley's face fits the mood perfectly and it's a pretty simple technique we could definitely implement. Also the colour helps amplify this effect as well. Almost black and white, but with a slight pale pink hue. Gives it a kind of old-timey feel which again is appropriate for Blek's music.

Kathleen Lyrics

21s – Music Only

When I woke after sleeping, knowing you would be gone, nothing could console me, not the words in this song. Two tears in tandem, one on your cheek, one on mine. We’ll keep on saying, it will all be all right. (Oooooooooooooo) (Oooooooooooooo) (Oooooooooooooo)

You freed me from language, the words that I type. Put me in your bed and lay by my side. Let my fingers touch your face. Let my fingers touch your face. You keep leaving this town and you’re never around, I don’t need this my dear. You keep leaving this town, always bringing me down. I don’t love you Kathleen. 

(Oooooooooooooo) (Oooooooooooooo) (Oooooooooooooo) I stay with you darling, my dearest with ease. I will stay in your system like a gentle disease. Dormant I lie til the day you return and I’ll do my best to let the home fire burn. You keep leaving this town and you’re never around, I don’t need this my dear. You keep leaving this town, always bringing me down, I don’t love you Kathleen. (Oooooooooooooo) (Oooooooooooooo) (Oooooooooooooo)

Musicvideos I like

So here are some videos with some nice effects I like .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXFWVFzDdvM
This one has nice edits between slow-motion and fast forward.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-k9qDxyxS3s
This one is pretty similar to the one we have seen in class. I think this effect could also be nice  when we use it in combination with slow-motion.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WA4iX5D9Z64
In this video what I like most is the fact that the whole video has been recorded (it seems so) in one shot.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOdmf4N5aPE
I also like kinetic Lyric Videos very much. I've created one by myself too, it's not that hard but it takes time. There are also some videos where Cinetic Lyric-Stuff is added to a normal video ( for example wicked wonderland, but that video is shit).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8KQmps-Sog
A video like that would be cool as well. I like the VFX they have done with the green screen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dM6CcMVpZSo&list=UUarONZkfQqaC9R2ZeSOLOHQ
I like this one, because of the photo album. It's a good way to tell a story as well ( would be good if we have a narrative part).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6j7huh5Egew
This video is pretty similar to the one we have watched in our group on wednesday. The moving towards the screens makes an impression that the audience can not really "Reach" what they are longing for.


Linda

Music videos that I like

I like this video as it was done as part of a competition to make a video for the band i don't know if it won but out of the versions that i have seen i like this one the most.


I like this video as it's done well and it suits the music very well.

I think this video is good because it suits the mood of the song and i like the way that the lyrics are overlaid on top of the video

This video is good to me because it has a bit of a narrative i like the shot particurly in the woods and think they go well with the rest of the video.

I like this video just because it is very original although it more then likely has a big budget behind it but i think that some of the techniques and looks that are in it are very achievable.

Video's i like

Like all aspects of this video , narrative , style , visual effects. Like the visual effects on this , but not sure if it's fully relevant to our particular project. I quite like this as it has some great scenes dealing with the lead singer on his own. Few interesting shots All aspects of this video interest me , it's a budget made video but done well same as above Some visuals in this are pretty cool

Some examples of what I like

Here are a few examples of music videos I like. I'll give a little spiel as to why for each one. Some of them might not be exactly doable for our purposes, but I think there are a few things we can maybe take away from some of them.

First up is the video fro Holly Herndon's "Home," a break-up song about the NSA. I like the head on perspective - gives a cold, calculated feel. The overlaid textures and scrolling icons are something that can feel off-putting, but this is very much on purpose and definitely fits with what they're going for. The shots from behind the camera itself are equally strange and unsettling. Good stuff. Also, note the large, colorful text punctuating certain words.

Next, the "Arcosanti Cut" of Hundred Waters' "Out Alee". This is a bit more traditional, in that it combines a handsomely-shot live performance with equally-handsomely-shot views of various locations, in this case around the strange desert-town of Arcosanti, where the band were staying and performing at the time. I think the biggest things to take away from this video are the colours and the camera-work. While very traditional in the live performance sections (lots of static shots or short pans), the camera work opens up in the location shots, with long floaty pans across the environment. There's also a lot of colour-correction going on, with everything given a flattened, purple cast. This all gives the video a sort of dream-like feeling.

Next, another very different, unfortunately very low-res, video for Fifth Column's "Like This". Combines various shots of the band performing and hanging around, various narrative bits, and a man getting his head shaved for some reason? Cutting style is anarchic, camera work is all over the place, and it's all shot on something like super-8. Nothing seems to match up, but it all feels right for the song, which itself is fairly loose and meandering, but also a little harsh and rebellious. This all fits pretty well with Fifth Column themselves, who were a kind of DIY feminist punk outfit in '80's Canada.

Next video is slightly NSFW:

The video for Gesaffelstein's track "Pursuit". I am all about this video. Cold, calculated, well-paced camera movement, a cool mix of old world and new world imagery, some slight cyberpunk influences, subtle, interesting effects and an eerie atmosphere. Kind of love all of this. It only briefly segues it "normal" music video for a second or two with strobing lights and dancing, but this is quickly turned on its head.

Silliness follows:

Since we are meant link music videos that we like, here are a few:

Megitsune:

Kira Kira Killer:

First of the Year (Equinox):

Sam & Max - War Song: