Equipment and Props

I need...

- A camera that shoots in video.
- A tripod so that all my shots are kept steady and as I am going to be the one in the video i need to be able to press record while the camaera is steady on something and go and be in the shot without having to hold the camera.
- A bottle of wine and other alcoholic beverages.

-A Paracetamol and a credit card and a bible... oh the irony

-A lampost or dark street just for some night shots

-Sherbert

Ideas for video

I am going to make a concept based music video as i like the idea of just having loads and loads of simple shots around the main important shots in my video as i think it helps the main shots look more importants and helps the song stand out and it makes it easyer to keep up with the speed of the song when it gets faster. - I got this idea after looking at owl citys video and escape the fate video as the simple shots from escape the fate of the light in the street are beautiful and the little shots to make owl citys video help make the song stand out more so i think it is important to have them in my video.

I am also going to use the fact there is a story in the nickelback video i looked at and not have an actual story in mine but going to imply things and not litterally acting it out. I am also going to try and repesent someone thats been out of life in my video as i feel that is what the song is trying to get out in the lyrics.

In all the music videos i looked at there is atleast some performance based footage in there however this would be hard to achive in mine so i am going to go against it and not have any in mine.

I have decided i am going to appear in the video myself as i only need one main person and i can rely on myself more than another person and i know how i want the shot to look without having to explain it to someone else in great detail.

Lyrics

These are the lyrics of the song i am going to make a video for. I used wordle to make a word cloud and highlight easily which words are the most important and are used the most.

Tell your friends not to think aloud
Until they swallow
Whisper things into my brain
Your voice sounds so hollow
I am not a leader of men
Since I prefer to follow
Do you think I could have a drink
Since it's so hard to swallow
So hard to swallow

So turn the television off
and I will sing a song
And if you suddenly have the urge
You can sing along

I touch your hand, I touch your face
I think the fruit is rotten
Give me lessons on how to breath
Cause I think I've forgotten
I think I've forgotten

One day, up to a cliff
That overlooked the water
I jumped in to save a girl
It was somebody's daughter
And now the ring is on my hand
It was given to me by her
To this day we all sit around
And dream of ways to get higher
To get much higher

Band Research

I have decided to make my music video for the Nickelback song 'Leader of Men'

Nickelback were formed in 1995 by Chad Kroeger, Ryan Peake, Mike Kroeger and Brendon Kroeger. Thier first release was a 7 track EP called 'Hesher' one year after the band had formed, the same year they recored thier first album 'Curb'. 'Fly' was featured on both the album and the EP and was the first single produced by Nickelback.

In 1997 Brendon Kroeger left the band and in 1997 Mitch Guindon joined but left after just under a year and Ryan Vikedal joined the band.

'The State' was realeased in 2000 in the US and in 2001 in Europe. It spawned four singles which were top 10 rock hits making the album certificated gold in the US. It reached platnium sales in 2008.

In 2001 'Silver Side Up' was released and 'How You Remind Me' was an instant hit reaching number 1 on the mainstream and modern rock charts and pop chart. Number 2 on the adult top 40 and billbord number 1 single of the year.

'The Long Road' was released in 20o3 and the lead of five singles was 'Someday' the album went on to sell 5,000,000 copies would wide.

Ryan Vikedal left the band claimed to of been pushed out, then Dan Adair joined the band and they released 'All The Right Reasons' the album featured other people in some of the songs with Billy Gibbons playing a guitar solo in the song 'Follow You Home'

In 2008 the album 'The Dark Horse' was released as singles and then as an album.

'Here And Now' is to be released on 21st of november 2011.

CD cover for my CD

(above) is for the front of my CD 

I was going to use a photo of them on the inside but found out i wasnt alowed to so i just kept it plain and simple which has been the case for lots of sucsessful albums.

With the back cover of the CD i just have it plain with the track list, band title and a bar code. These are pretty much the same in most CDs. The reaseon i didnt put a photo on the back is because it would make it look to cluttered and i was going for making it look simple.

Digi pack research

With most nickelback abum covers they are one plain photographic picture and the band name is very obviously placed and written. The name of the album is not as obviously put and is near the band name so you read the band name first and then the album name after.

The album is entirly covered with one photo so that the photo can become easily associated with the album and people can recognise it easily.

The photo on the front doesnt normally have anything to do with the narrative of the songs or the videos on the album but does strike the audience to think about how it could link to the songs and most different people will find their own meaning for it as the graphic desginer orriginally did not have a link in mind to the songs and the photo.
I am going to do my CD cover like these ones so it can keep with the same way the artist does it and i really like the simplicity of it and how it being simple makes it easy to recognise.

CD covers

The CD covers i like the most are the plain ones with a single picture on the font and the title of the artist and the album/single clearly labled and clearly visable.

I like the dark CD covers like this one by coldplay as it makes the title and the colour of the picture stand out more. I like that the picture doesnt really link to anything on the CD and just looks nice and simple.
I am going to look at some specific Nickelback album covers before i decide what im going to do when i make mine.

Advert

This is the advert i made for my Digi Pack to go in a magazine

I kept it simple like the Pink Floyd advert i looked at as it only has the infomation people need to know aboubt the single.

I did put a picture of the band on it though as i thought it would help it stand out to fans with a photo of them and the logo way of writting their name with the backwards 'B' makes it stand out to fans more.

I also found out i wasnt alowed to use a photo of them so i made it simple like the CD cover to make the two of them link. 

Advert research Green Day

This advert from kerrang is for grren days album 'American Idiot' the thing that stands out is the colour use of red black and white which is conventional to the genre of music and the cover of the album so you can see it stand out easyer after looking at the advert. Another thing that stands out is the photo on it wich is of the singer and as the band is quite well known the photo would stand out because people would see him and know instantly who he is and if they like the band read on to what the advert is saying so its better to eye catch with a picture of the singer as it grabs peoples attention more. I am going to use that for my advert as the band i am using is very well known so a picture will catch a readers eye more than the name of the band.

Advert research

I looked at this advert for Pink Floyd when i was looking to make my advert and i love how simple it is its easy to get the info off it and you can see imedietly what it is they are advertising.

For mine however i chose to have a photo of the artist as i think it helps people even more then as they see the band then read rather than the other way around.

It has the name of the band, the name of the single/album and the date it comes out and thats all the info fans need. So that is all i am putting on my advert.

Target Audience

The audience i am making my video for is aged between 15 and 30 and there isnt really a specific gender as both genders seem to like the type of music i am doing, in regards to socail grouping there isnt really one but they have to enjoy the 'Rock' genre of music which does usally tend to fall into a certain group of people.

(Media Grouping) Films and TV shows my audience would maybe like are ones with maybe some drama (but not a soap) and maybe some comady programs but not slap stick humor more like ittellagent wit. They probaly listen to other music from the genre but nothing to heavy as Nickelback are not that heavy. They also may listen to songs with a meaning in them rather than just rihanna singing about sex with no clothes on.

For the individual song i think it will be people who are maybe bored of their lives, living the humdrum life (get up, go to work, come home, eat, shower, go to bed) everysingle day that will enjoy it and get a meaning out of it. This also backs up Dyer's Utopian Solutions theory as his theroy says that people will resond to a media text if it offers them compensation for the things missing in their own lives. Through the media people can fulfil their own lives leading them to strive a utopian life.

Copyright

Dear Mr Chad Kroeger, Mr Ryan Peake, Mr Daniel Adair and Mr Mike Kroeger (Nickelback)

As part of a media studies course i am doing at collage, in England, i have to make a music video and i was wondering if i could use one of your songs. It is the song 'Leader of Men' and you will be fully credited for it.

It will be on my blog for media and if you want i can make it privte on youtube so people cant view it i can also credit you on youtube for it as well.

I will not be making any money from it and i will not be publishing it in any way.

Although it is for a meida course, i am a HUGE fan and it would be an honour if you would let me use your music to make my own video.

I look forward to hearing from you,

Please email back to 05brooksm@mangotfieldschool.org.uk

Mara Brooks x