Research and Planning The Moving Image Work

Website creation

As a group we thought it would be a good idea to create a website for our music video, in a way promoting the music video and the artist. we will put things as written articles, footage of filming and the finished product. We also aim on making a Tumblr page as the urban world is very big. many artist have blown from Tumblr such as A$AP MOB. Creating a webpage shows that we are using a wider range of technologies for our work, this will help us in the long run. Since we are still in the process of making our website we have made a plan:

•  Home page: providing navigation bars to direct users to other pages on the website. 
• The Artists: This page would provide information to users about the artist(s) of the song and why we had chosen to create a music video for it.
• Photos/Videos: A small slideshow showing pictures and video footage of what we have done on set, pictures of the location and the photo-shoot. 
• Contact: A way for users to contact us for any technical difficulties, reviews on our video (when it's done) and any business enquiries.

Editing summary

One of our main issues during the process of editing was that we didn't have all the footage due to the fact we changed our actor and we couldn't find a replacement. What we did instead was we edit and put the footage that we had of the establishing shot and Jesse James and when we found our Rejjie Snow we put in the reminder of the footage.

During the process of editing, we had problems adding in transitions. There was certain parts in the music video that we wanted same transition almost looking like there isn't none at all. In order to do that we had to manual do that ourselves without using the transitions proved. We manually drew 2 dots indicating the start and the end of the where the transition would take place with the pen on Final Cut Pro would take place and we draw a line in between the dots drawn. We would move the mouse to either extend the line or make it smaller which would make the longer or short whereas if you moved the line up or down it would either make the transition sharper and quick or losers the lighting which makes the transition seem shorter.

Another problem that we had during the process of editing was that there was a slight glitch when watching our video and  editing it when made the video slow. The problem was the format of our footage. Before starting to edit our video we had to change our footage to a format that Final Cut Pro could handle as it wasn't it caused glitching. In order to change our format we had to convert into file that Final cut pro could handle. Once that was done our video was running smoothly. Another problem that faced was trying to get the audio in synched with video, the glitching also made it difficult to do so. So when we sorted that out we were able to synch the audio with the video.

Editing suite

We now in the process of editing some of our footage, this is Jesse James part who was a feature on the track. At the moment the editing is going well and we are manage to synch the video with the music it's fitting in well. We haven't added any transition effects but we are already thinking of what we could add. We are happy with our work at the moment.

Jesse James (Redo Videos)

On Sunday 10th November 2013 my group and i had finished filming the music video for 'USSR', we were very please with how well it went and couldn't wait to start editing. The next day we were in the editing suite, watching a playback of the videos we did on the shoot - looking through the videos, we had noticed two that were high quality enough to include in the video as the camera holder was a bit shaky. My group had also noticed the same thing with the two videos we had looked at and decided to redo them today. We had went to the same location to record the verse and used the tripod to have a steady camera and prevent any camera movement.

The videos below are of what we had recorded on the first day of shooting 'Jesse James' verse:

 

 

Actors

ACTORS

                                      (Bakar)                                                      (Jesse James)

                                     Jesse James                      played by                 Bakar

Why did you choose your chosen actor to play the part of featured artist (Jesse James) ?

The way we had chosen Bakar to do the role of Jesse James was by holding an audition that didn't require him to showing that he could do the role but we started a general conversation to find out more about him. By doing this we were able to find out more about his personality and most importantly his musical interest/ what he listens to.
Reasons for choosing Bakar for the role:

• HIS PERSONALITY- Bakar is very mellow, calm and friendly individual. Jesse James' personality was very similar to Bakar's which made him great for the role as on the USSR track, the artist has a calm voice almost as if he's having a conversation with the audience - with those particular characteristics, people would want to listen to you because your easy to talk to. Jesse James would be considered as conscious rapper as he uses metaphors, juxtaposition, etc in his lyrics
• STYLE - Their sense of style is similar too, the strap back, pattern shirts, black jeans etc. They both have an Urban and chill type of look. 
• UNDERSTANDS THE LYRICAL CONTENT - This was one of our main concerns as we wanted actors that would understand the lyrics for the role that they are portraying. Again Jesse is a conscious rapper, so in order to how he raps you must look at how he does. But Bakar had understood the lyrics that gave him a clear understanding of what the artist is trying to speak about, with this he was able to emphasize on the lyrics, have the right mindset and portray the correct persona of what the lyrics is trying to convey. 
• BODY LANGUAGE - The actor had rhythm which made it easy to work with him, his body language was in time with the beat and he didn't over exaggerate on his movements. 
• WHAT HE LISTENS TO -  He listens to many artists within the alternative hip-hop music genre such as Earl Sweatshirt, Tyler the creator, Kendrick Lamar, J.Cole etc. The artists in particular that he mainly listens  to are Kendrick Lamar and J.Cole as they do Conscious rap which is political raps that focus on social and political subjects and other aspects of life.

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                                                  (D'angelo)                             (Rejjie Snow)        

                                           Rejjie Snow                 Played by           D'angelo

Why did you choose your chosen actor to play the part of the main artist (Rejjie Snow) ?

We was recommended by one our colleagues from another group about D'Angelo as he would be great for our particular genre. He audition by rapping Rejjie Snow's verse while my group were all present and chose him for the role. D'Angelo doesn't listen to much alternative rap, so this was a new experience for him and he did a great job portraying the artist. 

Reasons for choosing D'Angelo for the role:

• FUN AND BUBBLY PERSONALITY - He has an explosive personality which makes him a fun to work with. 
• SENSE OF STYLE - D'angelo has a similar style to Rejjie Snow, Rejjie sense of style is very laid back, his bucket-hats and bucket hats is what makes a statement in his outfits. his clothing represents/reflects his personality in a way as being cool and chilled. 
•  BODY LANGUAGE - It was kind of difficult to work with D'angelo as he didn't really comprehend the follow of the Rejjie. When it comes to Rejjie it's all about the lyrics so there is not much body movement as such.  
• WHAT HE LISTENS TO- Rejjie has been compared to rappers such as Tyler the creator, which is true. He listens to a wide range of musicians from rappers to jazz blue artists. This is evident through his instrumentals and beats as he manages to combine jazz and hip hop beats together. Which makes his an alternative rapper. 

written by Tamika
some edits stuff by me

Risk assessment sheet

 

The risk assessment sheet is information about the shoot and what could be a hazard whilst shooting. We tried to fill the forms accurately and looked at the surroundings before-hand. One of the main dangers for us with the electrical fence that was placed near an alleyway where the actors would walk nearby. We made sure they weren’t too close for their health and safety. But we made sure they knew about the regulations before we started filming.

Talent Release form

 

The talent release and location release form is part of the pre-production. The talent release form is a written agreement signed by the actors and us. It states in writing what they are getting themselves into and what we will be providing them with. The location release form is proof of permission of filming as well as selected location of filming (further detail in reece)

Team meetings

We as a team have had many group meetings, we made a group chat on 'whatsapp' to discuss relevant issues concerning our music video. This sheet will help us plan and structure our discussions in sections. We also planned our ideas here and share links with each so we were all on the same page.

 

Locations - Bricklane

These are a couple of the location we decided to film in bricklane, we liked the fact it had abandoned alleyways and that it had a lot of graffiti everywhere and this what we were looking for. As we went further down there was a railway track which gives the city feel of London and links in with the lyrically content (Jesse James verse mostly).

Lyrics

Rejjie Snow feat Jesse James - USSR 

[Verse 1: Rejjie Snow]
Illuminati at the door
And when it rains it fucking pours
And when it pours it fucking rains
The fake Versace leaves a stain
I’ve seen a Christian kill a baby, inhumane
In this world where you struggle just to love
And obstain, can the greed and the sex – collay
If i died right now, would you still remember the name
Would you still remember the name

[Verse 2: Rejjie Snow]
Painted the picture, picture painted perfectly
Confession on confession, tend to be the burdensy
It’s blasphemy, but it’s honesty over everything
Walk with the gun and let the murder be the remedy
Hennessy on melody’s, starring at the enemy
Illuminati grab a shotty, look it’s Rejjie (Check Check)
Illuminati grab a shotty, look it’s Rejjie

[Verse 3: Rejjie Snow]
Because the kid is unpredicteble
I came from a jungle where there’s animals and miracles
Ah, im trying to be the first to make it
To make a broke boy religion, have a pay check
Make a pig see the dig of this convict
Vietnam veteran slaying rappers with diligence
And that’s the Predicament for your intellect
The black boy is hungry, now the a pigs on a baby smack

[Hook: Rejjie Snow & Jesse James]
Illuminati that’s the real enemy (x3)
Yea i know you ain’t gotta be telling me
Put some henny in my tea, that’s the remedy
That’s the remedy, hennesy on melodies (x2)

[Verse 4: Jesse James]
Slurpin’ Ribena, burnin’ my reefer
Sip a henny, let me turn up my speaker
Bit ‘n cheese, blowing out soliloquy’s dilla beats
Chilli’er than the window breeze
Feel at ease, pizza, all a nigga need’s
But when it’s -, darker than the lenses on your shade’s
Cold nights through december, man surrender to the page
Plain and simple, plain and sinful
Blowing blunts just remembering the days
Fell into a maze of -, never been away for more
Then a couple -, love from my street and love for the peeps
Reminiscing on a relevant mistake
On the cold corner tryna’ sell a man my pain
And this…

Booking for kits

(written by Tamika)

Today my group and I had booked out equipment to start filming on Saturday 9th November and Sunday 10th November. We booked two cameras, a Canon DSLR camera and a HD
quality camera - the choice of equipment we chose are best suited for our filming because the DSLR has the optical zoom with a 50mm Lens to be able to zoom in from afar, which is an effect that we want to use for one of our scenes to depict one of our characters being drunk. HD quality camera for general filming, filming scenes with automatic focusing.

 

Equipment:

 Canon DSLR Camera:

 

Sony HD quality camera:

 

Tripod:

 

Recces

Mise en scene

Characters/attire:
Rejjie Snow played by D'angelo aged 16

We did a main audition for the role of Rejjie Snow, we discussed the track and the personality of Rejjie Snow. We advice D'angelo to watch videos of of Rejjie's other tracks so he could comprehend his character and how he acts. We also discussed clothes, locations and filming dates.

Clothing:

Hype beanie

Blue coat

Printed jumper

Ripped jeans 

Air Force




Jesse James played by Baka, aged 17

We had a talk with the featuring rapper playing Jesse on the track discussing clothes and locations. We decided to go for an urban, layed back look would suit his role best. We looked at how Jesse James dresses, his characteristics and his flow on the verse. As well as this we had to look at the storyline and theme of our video.

Clothing:
Black hoodie

Black jacket
Checkered shirt
Black jeans
White socks
Supreme cap (black, blue)
Jordans 6


Setting: London, England, UK
Oxford Street (cut away)
SoHo area (any streets near by)
Brick lane

Liverpool street (Gun Str.)

(look in reece for further detail)
Lighting:

Natural lighting (day/night)
Street lights
Torch light
Props:
Toy gun
Hennessy bottle or other bottle
Plain canvas
Paint
Chair

Shisha pen

Rejjie Snow & Jesse James

Rejjie Snow, 19 year old, UK artist who is signed to Elton Johns record label. Rejjie Snow is an upcoming artists but he is making a strong status in UK rap. He has been reconigsed by major magazines such as XXL magazine one of biggest urban magazine. He produces alternative hip-hop music -he has been opening acts for big names in the industry such as Kendrick Lamar, King Frule and MF Doom.  

Jesse James is a 18 year old Londoner, he's a upcoming artist he produces altenative rap music as well as trip hop music. Rejjie and Jesse James produce mind blowing collaborations and he had also opened up with Rejjie Snow and Crave Moore for Kendrick Lamat

Finished storyboard

this is the finished storyboard, each frame has been drawn briefly and we could possibly change some scenes during shooting

Editing Tutorial

Today we learnt how to use Final Cut Pro in order to editing our music video. We were taught how to but our shots together and how to fit all the slots in with the sound. We were taught how to cut the clips, the cutting rate and making the video cross over. We also learnt how to adjust the clip to our liking, for example being able to change the colour of the video, or to add in special effects such as mirroring and fish eye lense. The effects that our group and I were taught and will use in our music video is blur, fish eye lense, flash and mirroring we think these are effective effects and will make our video standout. As well as this it fits in with the genre of music and video and will help our show our theme of our music video