Tuesday, 29 November 2011

I was not able to film on the 27th so I am going to start filming tonight. I am going to film the chorus and a part of the beginning.
The part will star Ewan who is seven years old as I'm going to present him dressed as an old man to go with the lyrics 'I wont be the lonely one sitting on my own and sad, a fifty year old reminiscing what I had'. He will be wearing a flat cap and drinking a cup of tea because that's what you associate with an old man.

Sunday, 27 November 2011

Prop Changes

I have changed my video slightly and will now not feature a birthday cake, dog, football etc, however it still features the flat cap because it represents(symbolises) old men and the lyrics of the song are about a father leaving a son, in a way it symbolises the only thing the young boy has left of his father.

Tuesday, 22 November 2011

What I am Currently doing.

I am currently focusing on creating an animatic so then I can begin filming, which I am planning on starting on Sunday the 27th of November.

Friday, 18 November 2011

Props

I am using the thick rimmed RayBan's as an intertextual reference to the lead singer of the band Glasvegas as he is wearing them in the video to the song Daddy's Gone.

Wednesday, 9 November 2011

Genre Conventions

In this essay I am going to explore the genre conventions of ‘Indie-Rock’,  I will also look at the history of indie/rock and more specifically the song ‘Daddy’s Gone’ by ‘Glasvegas’ in which I am using to use to create my music video.
         First of all a genre is a category and conventions are what you expect from a specific genre. Music can be divided into many genres; this is due to the different purposes behind them and the different points of view from which they are made. Genres often overlap creating many sub-genres. For example ‘Indie-Rock’, which I am going to explore in more depth, is a sub-genre of ‘Alternative-Rock’. Alternative-Rock originated in the 1980’s and became popular in the 90’s bringing us music by artists such as ‘Red Hot Chilli Peppers’, ‘Nirvana’ and ‘Foo Fighters’. Indie-Rock also came about in the 80’s, however bands never really got any commercial success until the millennium as a result of the changes in the music industry and the growing importance of the internet. Independent music, ‘Indie’, is a term used to describe independence from major commercial record labels or their subsidiary. Independents have a ‘do-it-yourself’ approach to recording and publishing which means they have a very little expenses and everything has to be done low-budget. Nevertheless artists have artistic freedom to be themselves therefore they are able to explore sounds, emotions and subjects limited to appeal to mainstream audiences.
As the Indie-Rock genre is so immense these days, there are many sub-genres, however when anyone thinks of indie-rock as a whole certain elements come to mind such as all bands play their own instruments and bands are very male dominated.
On the other hand, the band Glasvegas (who’s song ‘Daddy’s Gone’ I am using in my music video) have a female drummer which ultimately shows how dynamic conventions of genres can be and also backs up Steve Neal’s theory (1995) in which he said ‘Genre reflects the culture that creates them and shows things of the time. They express things in society’ because women now are seen as equal to men therefore it been seen as the norm for a female to be in a former male dominated industry.
       Glasvegas are a Scottish indie-rock band from Glasgow which consists of three men and a woman. The band are known for using their strong Glaswegian accents in their songs, making them very unique as it is rare for most artists to do so but as they are signed to Columbia (EMI/SONY) which is a subsidiary label, they are able to use their artistic license and stay true to themselves, reinforcing what indie-rock is all about. The song I am using for my music video is ‘Daddy’s Gone’ which is about the break-up of a family because of the father’s behaviour, You can tell that there is a lot of resentment towards the father as the lyrics are quite hard-hitting but a lot of people can relate to the song, ergo making them likeable. The song is very ‘indie’ because it’s not just about love or socialising with friends, which most mainstream songs tend to be about (vaguely), it’s about something which has happened in a band members life and they have been able to put and express their emotions in to the lyrics to emote the listener.
     Artists also tend not to care so much of their appearance. For them it is all about the music, opposed to an artist of a major label who is manufactured to look and act a certain way with the intention of giving mainstream audiences something to aspire to. Conventional of the indie genre males are seen to wear Drain-Pipe Jeans, a knitted jumper, possibly a patterned polo and some battered plimsolls. Females of the indie genre would wear quite quirky tops, leggings and basically anything vintage looking that isn’t too bright.
     In conclusion the genre conventions of Indie-Rock are very vague however the  stereotypical image which immediately appears in your head when envisioning the genre, in my opinion would be, a band that includes all males which all are dressed casually and are all playing instruments. Then again after exploring further into the genre I began to realise how people of different ages will have a different set of conventions for the indie-rock genre as it is very dynamic due to the way in which society changes. This is because Indie-rock artists write and sing about ‘of-the-time’ situations.

What I am Currently doing:

I am currently working on finishing my storyboard. I will then make an animatic  in order to be able to see if there needs to be any changes etc. before I go on with filming.