Dream Eater

        Due to blogger's file size limit, here is a lower-res version

        To view the higher quality version, click here

CCR

        Similarly to my opening, Blogger doesn't like big files, so here's a smaller one

        With a bigger one down here

In Retrospect Pt. 1

         Looking back at all of my editing, recording, brainstorming, and planning, I want to say the final product was pretty good. Here I wanted to talk about the project itself, and in part 2 I wanted to reflect on myself, so here we go.

        With everything almost done except for some nitpicking here and there, the final idea actually differed from my initial idea quite a bit. One of the major changes was the pacing. At first I thought of including a scene at school, one outside, and a few possible extra scenes here and there. Obviously, none of this came to fruition. In the end, I really enjoyed the opening because it not only brought together a lot of things I like, but also gave me an opportunity to learn.

        The credits of the opening scene were my favorite part of the production, as I was able to incorporate something I saw in other media in my own film. In some movies I've watched, I remember how creative some title sequences were. While some films were dull in their delivery, others did an amazing job. Final Destination 4 for example, showed the cast and crew alongside major plot points. While it certainly isn't the best, it is a lot more enjoyable then bland, white text on a black background. Another memorable opening scene was Memento (2000), where backwards, unintrusive video was played alongside the credits. The way these two movies brought about creative, memorable, and entertaining-ish titles (as far as credits go) became a very good source of inspiration for me.

        Links to the openings are here, but fair warning as both have gore/blood

Final Destination 4 Opening

Memento (2000) Opening

        While movies do an alright job at keeping audiences engaged, there is nothing less intrusive than some of my favorite video game openings. Seeing everyone who worked on what you are interacting with is on another level when compared to movies. While many openings still retain movie-esque portrayals of abstract art alongside credits, some do a fantastic job at getting you right into the action.

        Starting off with Tales from the Borderlands, we see tons of resemblance to movie openings. While the openings aren't interactive, the blending of text credits with what's being shown is creative. The usage of text that blends in/interacts with the environment inspired me tons, and gave me the idea to not do yet another boring title sequence. While my credits were not as expansive or detailed as these, I still managed to get the same idea across by having unobtrusive and creative openings.

Check out the opening here, fair blood and content warning though

        Last but not least, we have last year's The Last of Us 2, which is the epitome of reserved credits. Being able to see everyone who worked on the game while playing and interacting with it was an amazing experience. I wanted to do the same with my short film by not wasting time on credits and still including as much story as possible. By having the credits show up on every shot while at the same time including content I was able to make full use of all 2 minutes given to me.

Fair content warning on this one as well, but the link to it is here

        In the end, I think I accomplished my goal of not being hindered by credits and creating a good story. I drew inspiration from everything I find well-made, and the final product is reflective of it all.

Learning to move on

         With the final project deadline fast approaching, there are not many changes that can be made without wasting time. Because of this, any further editing I choose to do will have to be done in post, as re-recording takes time and requires a good environment, primarily a silent one with matching natural light.

        Considering I am at home, I can afford to re-shoot simpler scenes, but the more complicated ones will be harder to pull off. Choosing to re-shoot is very important, as it's an obvious commitment. It's always better to try and fix lighting in post. When you're lucky and know what you're doing, you can fix up a shot only by changing a few settings.

        Both shots are the exact same, but some effects such as lumetri color, Red Giant, color balance, and others all allow to change brightness, contrast, shadows, and other video settings. Color correcting is usually subtle, and is usually done to make every scene look similar in terms of lighting/coloring. Because it doesn't take much time, it is much easier to leave perfectionism for later as it usually works out. However, sometimes you aren't so lucky.

        Again, we see the same exact scene, before and after editing. While post-editing looks MUCH better, looking at it closely reveals an extensive amount of grain. Even when playing around with settings, it can be unlikely to find a perfect solution. In this case there are quite a few solutions. One thing you can do is replace a scene with B-Roll. This is much more common in larger productions, as scripts are sometimes written to counteract unpredicted events, such as actors leaving or unprecedented weather. Reshooting is also an alternative, as sometimes you just NEED a shot. This was the case with my scene, as it was relevant to the "plot". Keeping the original while re-shooting is important as you can see exactly what went wrong, and work to counteract it. 

        Small cameras with LCD's are usually subject to under-exposure, as they are not always accurate to what is captured, and tend to show brighter footage than is actually being recorded. Because of this, it's good to remember the approximate ISO levels when recording, as bumping it up a bit results in a nicer-looking shot.

What goes around comes around

         If I haven't beaten it into your head yet, I'm working alone. That would be all well and good if I had tons of equipment. Alas, I do not. Because of that, I have two alternatives; buying, and borrowing. 

        Buying is obviously a good alternative as I only have to worry about upgrading it when the time comes. The problem is, I'd have to buy it. I managed to get some equipment, primarily a light kit, that will forever help me. Especially in my house, there is no downside to getting a light-kit, as I will be using it frequently. Although a few of my scenes need little to no extra lighting, the light kit is very much needed for some scenes in my kitchen, as there are no windows nearby.

        On the other hand, there is more equipment that would not only improve the quality of my production, but make everything much easier. As such, I have decided to borrow some equipment from my friend, and in turn, I helped him with his project.The experience was very enjoyable, as I not only got to learn more for myself, but I got some insight into advanced techniques as well as inspiration for my own film opening. 

        As for the equipment, I got a few stands, a mechanical slider, and a tripod head. Each has their own uses, but I'll primarily focus on the slider. One shot idea I had was to slowly wipe through a character and reveal myself behind it. Seeing how it's a "duplicate" shot I would have to do it twice, with myself in each position. Using a mechanical slider helps, as it can go through the movements over and over again perfectly, allowing me to stitch shots together in post. If that does not work, I can use a double for myself and just record two plates of the shot, one with me and one without.

        As you can see, both shots are essentially the same when it comes to timing thanks to the wonders of technology. Stitching them together just comes down to cutting or fading to it. Were it not for the slider, I would resort to alternative ideas, which would've been fine, just not as cool.

Editing

         It might be weird to think about editing at this point, but that's exactly what I'm doing at this point. Similarly to how CG is done before much of production, many effects are shot first so as to complete them. One "effect" I need to do is add credits, but I decided to make them much more engaging, and have them interact with the environment. As such, I need to keyframe and animate quite a bit of text. Because of this, I'm doing a rough edit to see what can and cannot be done.

        Keyframing, or animating is the changing of properties over time, whether done manually or automatically. Scrolling text is a good example, as it is constantly changing its Y-axis position. Since I am lining up text to actual movement, there is not much I can do outside of manual editing.

        While changing properties is easy, lining all of it up so that the text isn't too slow or too fast is fairly challenging. Constantly having to play back the video as I change everything frame by frame becomes tedious, but it is very much doable.

        Another effect I'm using is masking. Just like movement, everything has to be lined up properly to keep something from appearing when its not supposed to. At slow frame rates it is easier to catch something even for a single frame. After all, 1/24th of a second is much more than 1/60th, so it is on screen for longer.

        After making sure that my simpler effects are doable, I can move on to practical effects, which are on a completely different level.

What is recording actually like?

         Recording is pretty enjoyable, except when it isn't. Making sure a scene comes out the way you intend it is extremely tedious, as there is always something you can fix or do better. One issue I have to constantly deal with in my home is lighting. Some areas are fairly well-lit, and don't need much editing, while others NEED external lighting to look good. While editing can sort some of these problems out, it is better to make sure your raw footage comes out as best as possible.

        Working around the house means working with different lighting environments, primarily natural and artificial lights. 

        Natural lighting is anything that cannot really be altered, such as windows, reflections, and anything that interacts with the sun. It's considered natural because it is just that. While tricky to work with, it is not impossible. Golden hour is a prime example of how anything can look good with minimal effort. 

        To undergo the process of mimicking golden hour entirely digitally is hellish, and I would not wish it upon anyone. Natural lighting does not work with you. You should be working with it. This is why schedules are usually tight when filming with the sun. Because it never stops. 

        Artificial lighting is a bit easier to work with. Keep in mind I said a BIT. Depending on your set, you might have to deal with reflections or bright spots due to glossy material. But if you can't change your material you'll have to change your lights, and to find that sweet spot where it isn't over or under exposed is hard.

        While the picture looks balanced, keep in mind it was shot using my phone, so it was automatically leveled out. On the left you can see my light kit, and on the right is my camera. To end up on this exact setup I had to try out every other setup that did not look like this. First I chose a specific light level to work with, one that wouldn't create too harsh of white spots on the counter or too many shadows, but at the same time I needed to light it up significantly. 

        Once that was set up, I had to find an angle that would keep shadows to a minimum. I tried left, right, up, down, north, west, south, east, northeast, south-north, and everything in between. Thankfully I had a tripod and once I found the right angle it stayed there. Lighting up the other scenes were not as hard, thanks to windows or just more direct lighting.

Sound design

         Sound design can sometimes go unnoticed in productions; but other media, primarily video games, revel in creating the appropriate atmosphere using as many senses as possible. Horror is a genre closely entwined to audio, or the absence of it. Creating a harrowing environment just from audio, or releasing tension with a stinger can be considered a simple idea, but unless it is done properly it will come off as weird.

        One technique I was interested in using was audio mixing. While the word means nothing more than putting different audio tracks together, to me it means putting tracks together so as to complement a scene or idea. This comes into play during my dream scene, as one idea I had was to mix "real" and dream sounds. Similarly to how noise affects our dreams, I planned on having some sounds bleed into the dream in a distorted way. Not only does this distortion set up the right atmosphere of familiar yet distressing, but it also foreshadows it all being a dream. But how does one go about this? By taking small steps at a time.

        Going around and recording foley with a mic is essential, as getting any unintended audio can be hard to fix, if its fixable at all. Two mics are exceptional at handling this problem, shotgun mics and lavalier mics. Without getting too technical, shotgun mics gather audio in a specific area in front of themselves, while lavs are much smaller, gathering audio close to itself if the levels are set up properly. 

Both lavaliers (lavs) and shotgun mics have similar pickup patterns, focusing on the area directly in front of them, which keeps unnecessary audio from being noticed.

        Another piece of equipment that helps but isn't necessary is an audio box. While nothing is stopping me from directly recording and getting rid of the visual aspect of the file, directly importing audio files from a separate unit makes everything much more manageable. 

        The box itself allows for much audio managing, from input to output. It also allows me to access XLR audio cables (the big circle with three smaller ones), which would be impossible to use with my camera. Were it not for the audio box, I would be very limited equipment-wise. If needed, I can even connect it directly to the camera. This is beneficial as if it works properly I already have both the audio and video linked, without me needing to do anything. But if I do want to edit audio manually, the audio box saves a copy of the file, meaning I can safely edit it, knowing I'll always have a backup.

        I am not too proficient with extensive music theory, but I do understand the basic concept and application of many terms, both from music theory classes I took as well as Scruffy's YouTube channel. Be sure to check him out, as he does an amazing job describing the audio techniques I plan on using and many more.

Color and composition

         Now that I am fully ready to move on to live-action recording, I can start thinking of how the rest of my scenes will look. There are many theories about color, movement, and composition; and they all play major parts in any composition. I will be talking about a few, but focus primarily on the ones I plan to incorporate.

        The rule of thirds is a majorly used composition technique. The idea of it is simple, and many people recognize it even without being film excerpts. All it really does is split up your screen into a 3x3 grid so as to help you align your subjects or horizons, like so. 

This picture was taken from Christian Hoiberg's article on the rule of thirds, which can be found here.

        While not the most complex, this composition technique is often seen in films because of how easy it is for audiences to follow and for filmmakers to set up. 

Ratatouille by Pixar

The Joker by DC Films

BBC's take on Sherlock

    

        Incorporating this technique to my film opening will also be rather easy, considering how most things will be recorded on a tripod. Once the shot is set up, it is up to me to align everything to the correct third, and if I do end up making a mistake, cropping the video will allow for a quick fix.

        Going back to the film scenes; even with their wildly different genres, settings, and colors, we still know exactly what to focus on. However, composition isn't everything. While each scene does utilize the rule of thirds, costume design, color theory, blurring, and other techniques help the subject stand out in the scene. This all takes me to my next point: costume design.

        In each of the above scenes, one thing that helps the character stand out is color. From the Joker's vibrant suit to Sherlock's darker jacket, every character has clothing that at least kind of sets them apart from the background. I decided to incorporate something similar in my film, where the clothing does not directly line up with the background.

        Seeing as how most of my house has white walls, almost any clothing would work to set myself apart. So I took to my closet and chose the least white pajama I had. The sharp contrast between a red/black pajama and pure white walls immediately gives the audience a subject to follow. Most of my scenes will have white walls, with the exception of the kitchen, which will not directly have me as a subject.

How to create a schedule

        When it comes to creating movies, TV shows, magazines, podcasts, and every other type of media; a schedule becomes one of the most important things for producers and directors. The breakup of jobs and managing on time helps bring down production time, allowing us to view weekly or bi-weekly shows. Schedules become highly important for larger productions, as they allow for different Production Units to all work together.

        One great example of this is in literally every action movie that uses a stunt double or needs a variety of "Pick-ups" (shots that do not require the main unit eg. closeups, establishing shots, cutaways, etc.). Were it not for schedules, movies would take much longer to make, as all these different production units would not be able to work without the preceding unit finishing up their work.

        I am having this problem. Kind of. As I am a mortal man, I can only do so much by myself. I plan on starting with the most important scenes that take the longest amount of time, CG. Good CG scenes can often take months of production time. Production for them usually begins at the start of production, and they are often the last of the scenes to finish up. For the 2012 movie, one of the final earthquake scenes took 20 hours on average to render a single frame. Keep in mind there were 7,000 frames to go through. Had the production not accounted for multiple artists and computers, as well as artists breaking scenes up into easy-to-manage components, it would have taken 141,120 hours to render the scene alone. If you want to look more into the astonishing numbers and work that went into CG scenes for the movie, check out Popular Mechanic's article on it.

        If you couldn't tell already, I need to start working on a good CG scene, and pronto. As soon as I am done with CG, I can move on to recording live action. Seeing how most of my scenes are done at home, I can keep my render going while recording, which helps save time in case I need to make a quick change or something goes wrong. Post-production should come shortly after. Starting of with a simple rough cut is ideal, as I'll be able to add/delete scenes quickly, without wasting too much time on more complex editing, such as transitions, effects, and color grading. 

        I am purposefully not including many dates and expected completion times as this is mostly dependent on how well some scenes come out. While loose schedules are bad for productivity, I'm working alone, so I'll be able to make  sure everything comes out ideally, especially with CG (more on that later).

So, what's next?

         Looking back at all the analysis I've made, I plan on using most, if not all of the thing's I've analyzed. I want to include some sort of flawed character, with a creative design for a monster, and obviously a horror genre. Recently there have been quite a few popular and well-made horror movies, so I certainly have lots of inspiration.

        The idea I feel most comfortable going with is a thriller-horror about a monster that haunts nightmares. The idea is very similar to A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), as there is some sort of safety net protecting the characters while they aren't being hunted down or chased in their dreams. While this can go against pacing, it does provide a sense of preparedness, as the characters are able to devise some sort of plan, while at the same time providing a setting for character change and development. 

        However, I want to take inspiration from A Quiet Place (2018), Alien (1979), and The Thing (1982), as they all had creative designs for monsters that either played into the plot, or had a plot centered around those monsters. I would like to avoid the latter, and create a story that doesn't pander to the point where there is no sustenance. But this will take quite a bit of time and effort, and I see myself writing a few scripts and drafts because of it.

        While I do not have the time, money, or desire to include a full-scale monster, I don't see why I wouldn't be able to hint at it using close-ups or renderings such as pictures and drawings. I really want to bring the antagonist to life, and make it a valid threat, but going for the funny jumpscare and closeup approach seems like a bad idea. I plan on building up the characters and plot within the trailer, giving basic insight into what the characters are like as well as establishing some sort of presence that drives the movie forward.

Our favorite flawed characters

         Conflict plays a great part into almost all movies and TV shows, but often times we see something that relates to a character's flaws or shortcomings, whether it was their lack of decisiveness or a lack of knowledge. As we follow these character's stories, their flaws will often intervene, either by causing a problem or worsening it. These weaknesses and shortcomings are what makes us want to see their success.

        A perfect example of qualities and shortcomings impacting the plot and story is Death Note. As we follow every character, their flaws and qualities start to clash, bringing about an enjoyable dynamic to them. In the end, Light loses because his traits (precision and independence), were lost as he grew his following.

        

        Even Superman has flaws, whether it's his impulsiveness, or his immense naivete. And it's those flaws that serve as a drive as well as a hindrance to him when someone is kidnapped so as to distract him.

        In horror movies, a character's flaws usually boil down to a lack of knowledge, and only once they learn some vital piece of lore are they able to triumph. However, there are quite a few movies that are able to do away with this trope (sort of).

        Believe it or not, but in IT (2017), and later in IT Chapter 2 (2019), the Loser's Club does in fact lose to Pennywise, twice. While this was partly due to something outside their control (the ritual not working), the final victory only comes when all the characters managed to get over their fears. 

        It's this growth and development that keeps us wanting to see our characters succeed. Think back to any character you know, and you'll most likely see their flaws, but if you look a bit deeper, you'll be able to see that those flaws shaped up the character into something you could grow up with.

Unmasking horror movies and thrillers

         Taking a step back to look at the overall conventions of movies we consider  "scary", we see the uncanny resemblance of inhuman monsters. There are quite a few movies that prey on our innate fears of things such as sharks, birds, piranhas, snakes, spiders, bats, crocodiles, and many other types of animals. As you may have guessed, there have been numerous movies with the antagonist taking one of those forms. But ask anyone if they'd rather take on a real animal or a monster from hell, I can guarantee most people will refuse to go with the latter.

        So what makes non-real things so successfully scary? The mystery is certainly and important factor. When you have a monster that does not follow our well-known biology, the audience is constantly wondering about what it may look like, as opposed to an already discovered animal. When refusing to follow conventional norms, directors are able to create terrifying monsters, from the indestructible Michael Myers to the nightmarish Freddy Kreuger.

        One great example of character design playing into tension is in Predator (1987). Throughout the entire movie we do not see the alien's face, not even a glimpse. However, as the final showdown begins, he removes his mask, showing his true face. This was not something unexpected, as the movie built up to this moment. We see the predator's "honor", as well as the malfunctioning technology, and we come to expect the moment, yet we are still surprised when it happens. 

                        In case you needed a reminder as to what he looked like

        We see this trope in many movies, both in literal and rhetorical way. Most times we see some sort of monster, we know nothing about them, but as the movie progresses, we learn more and more about them. And it's this discovery that we feed the audience that keeps them entertained, whether it's Jason Voorhee's physical unmasking, or the more figurative unmasking of Freddy Kreuger's past, we all want to learn and see more of the monsters that haunt our dreams.

What we don't see in monsters

         Hello again! Today, we're gonna be researching techniques in horror/action/any movie with a focus on big things. Are you ready? Neither am I, but let's get started.

        I'd first like to name a few of the objectively best horror movies (and you aren't allowed to disagree). Alien (1979), A Quiet Place (2018), Jaws (1975), The Cabin in the Woods (2011), and Reign of Fire (2002) are among the best, both in the amount of detail and creativity put into composition as well as the astounding effort put into having everything come out the way it did. I will try to not talk too much, but if you appreciate horror and good filmmaking, check those out, as each film includes the techniques I will talk about in this post.

        To start with a very well-known example, we'll take a look at Jaws. We all know it was a scary movie and not because of what was shown, but rather what wasn't shown. The lack of the shark in many scenes could be blamed on mechanical malfunctions (who knew it was a robot?) and a comparatively low budget, but because of the movie's pacing and unique approach, the substitution of any shark shot with a POV did not seem forced, and played into the movie's elements perfectly. When watching the clip below, notice how infrequently the shark appears, and when it is shown, it is usually obstructed by something, such as blood, darkness, a cage, or the edge of the frame. This obstruction and framing makes it seem like we are seeing something tangible, that is able to interact with the environment, while at the same time making the subject much more threatening and massive.

        To hit a higher word count and help you understand these concepts a bit more, here are some more examples. Remember that both techniques can be used seperately, or joined together to create any sort of shot.

        We very clearly see how massive the dragon is in Game of Thrones, but not because of a size reference. If you are able to recall the Jaws scene you just saw; how many shots included a full view of the shark? Not many. When you obstruct something that the audience clearly knows is larger than normal, said thing appears to be much larger. Similarly to how a low or high angle shot makes a subject appear larger or smaller, cutting out parts of an already massive thing makes it seem even larger.

        In this shot from Pacific Rim, the kaijus are given a sense of size by the comparison to the surrounding buildings, but the focus of the shot is the occlusion that is happening. While we know that kaijus aren't real (yet), we see that they are real at last in the movie, given how they interact with the environment and other physics. The same technique was used in Jaws, as the shark was hidden behind the cage and other elements in the scene.

        Obviously there are more differences and specifics to these techniques, such as some characters being physically real, while others are CG, but the incorporation of occlusion and framing remain the same. I will eventually go over the incorporation of these techniques in both a real and virtual environment, but I will leave you with an overall view on occlusion and framing for now. Until next time.

Late Night Ramblings Part 2: Electric Boogaloo

         Yes, I know I made that joke twice, but it's my blog and I can say it as many times as I want.

        Anyways, it is time for some unfortunate news, I will be working alone. The not-so-bad news, I have some ideas. Following the slightly more technological approach we had with Neue, I wanted to create a  3-D render of some sort. So far that's the only really thought out idea I have, but I do have ideas on how I can incorporate it. 

        One idea I had was creating a glass-breaking simulation. The overall idea is simple, but learning exactly how to make it work and how to make it look good will be a challenge. How do I plan on incorporating such a wonderful idea? By making a horror flick. I'm mostly inspired by ultra-realistic redners made in Blender (the 3-D graphics engine I am most comfortable with). It's simple yet complex nature has helped me quite a lot, as there are tons of online tutorials to help newcomers get used to it. I managed to make a render myself actually (pictured below).

        

        Yeah, it's pretty hard to see it's full 4k glory due to compression, but it's there. It also helped me get used to nodes and texturing, both of which are pretty important in renders in general. 

        So, what does this have to do with my project? Not much, maybe I'll find a way to incorporate the moon or something. Still too early into the planning stage to actually come up with something.

        As for my inspiration, I've been looking to my second-favorite thing, horror. One idea of having a glass-breaking render be used would be by having some sort of monster hunt a main character. The idea of an all-powerful beast looking for humans to eat and the hero finding some way to fight back has always been cool, especially when done well. I'll list a few examples and note what I enjoy most about them. 

        Hopefully it works, if not, click here. But as you saw, the trailer presented us with a terrifying threat, but we never saw the full scope of it, just a few shots, where wouldn't you know it, the creature was obscured. This type of filmmaking is brilliant, as designers, editors, directors, producers, and everyone else knew that fully showing us the monster would not only get rid of fear, but make the model itself seem fake.

        I've studied my fair share of how to make renders look convincing, and I think that implementing it into a minimal amount of scenes would add to the project as a whole. This is just the transitional post, but it is what has been on my mind. I'll keep jotting down more ideas and hopefully come up with a more conclusive idea later on, but until then, adieu!

Late Night Ramblings

         It seems like there will be no break for us in AICE Media. We just finished creating an internet sensation and now we have to create a short film trailer. We have time, which is good, but creativity doesn't come instantly. Not too sure what I want to do, but I do have some ideas. For Neue, we heavily focused on creating a "techy" vibe, and I intend to keep that going for this new project as well. While datamoshing looks cool and all that, I think using it again shows a lack of creativity, so I was thinking of doing something else.

        One idea I came up with was animation. I have taken a liking in it, but never really found a way to fit it into my other projects. Using some filter just to get the outline and tracing over it would be cool, and seamlessly merging it with other shots would be a challenge; but hey, it's an idea. Stoklosa DID advise us against it (hi by the way :)), but what else am I supposed to do late at night other than tracing over 60 frames per second? I'll obviously have to pitch to a group, but I know some people in class like those types of ideas.

        As for my other idea, I was thinking of doing a bit more visual effects. We have time, which is good, but I'm not too sure my future team or I would want to put ourselves through that. We could keep it to a minimum, but it would still be a hassle. I'd rather do something a bit more complex than a green screen or basic 3-D asset, but there certainly are limitations. Again, I'll have to wait until I have an actual group before suggesting.

        I'm pretty sure I have been using After Effects for three years now, but I never went into VFX territory, and focused mostly on line editing , graphics work, and pacing. I have also been picking up on Blender, but I feel like it would be hard to incorporate it into the project. 

        At this point every possibility is a possibility, and I don't do well with possibilities and choices. I'll come up with a cool little thing I can do both well and in a relatively short amount of time and create a story that fits it or uses it in some way.

        Just to hit a higher word count and get attention from colleges, I wanted to reflect a bit more on Neue. We created an entirely original story for him, which is funny for a single music video, but this time we will have no social media (I think?), so we'll have to create a project filled with information. It sounds easier, but condensing marketing and story without a full-on presentation is pretty hard, so we should primarily focus on story, which in itself should be enough of a marketing tool. I personally enjoyed taking care of the more technical things like the website and social media, and I feel like I'm way too adapted to that. I did have some creative input, but my ideas were mostly based either on someone else's ideas or a problem we were having. I feel like I can manage to create a movie trailer by myself if worse comes to worse. If you want to find out if I actually managed to get a group or not, tune in next time at this very same spot.

Music Marketing Part 2: The Electric Boogaloo

            Say, did you wanna hear more about our fictional band and processes? Me neither, but here's some more info in case you find yourself in AICE Media, are interested in R&B Virtual bands, or a fanatic of Neue. I'll be breaking down my team's process for everything, including but not limited to our research, brainstorming, production, post-production, and final presentation. 

            To start our music video project, we were assigned the R&B music genre, and had a few songs to select from to base our music video on. We started by researching the genre and looked at some more popular artists that focused solely on it and some artists that on delved lightly into it. We researched the RCA records label and Republic Records. Both of these had smaller companies and sub-divisions that focused on more specific styles of music, but we decided to research Khalid, Drake, Chris Brown, and the Weeknd as they had songs/albums that dealt with R&B. We ended up choosing these artists as they were  popular and all had unique approaches to R&B, which helped with inspiration (more on that later). We also paid extra attention to the short film Free Spirit, which accompanied Khalid's album.

            After discussing each individual song, we chose to go with Bernhoft's Cmon Talk as it had a unique and techy style to it, which played into our idea of a glitchy and technological video. Nicholas, Luis, and I all had a leaning to this style as we've done effects relating to datamoshing and similar techniques, so we decided on an intro and built the story from there. Nicholas and Luis took over the video production, with me occasionally jumping in to give ideas and suggestions. Biana and I started working on the presentation slides and information while the other two focused on that. Luis had lots of experience with editing and rendering, so we all chose him to take over the post-production. Nicholas had a camera and was willing to record the video with a friend, so we decided to let the two of them take care of the production. With the major jobs out of the way, Biana and I took over what was left, but we all tagged in and out to make sure everyone had some sort of input in the final project. Nicholas, Luis, and I created a script and storyboard, which greatly smoothed out the rest of the process. Towards the end of planning and a bit into production, we managed to come up with a name and image for our fictional character, Neue. Remember kids, planning is the most important phase of any production. 

            Nicholas finished recording in a day as we knew exactly what we were looking for. He and his friend quickly recorded everything, both to limit exposure to the virus and to pass everything to Luis as soon as possible. We would keep contact with Nick so as to make sure any alterations were planned for and communicated. After finishing, both he and his friend were promptly quarantined to make sure everyone stayed healthy. The production process would've definitely gone well had everyone been present, but there was only so much we could do before endangering our group member. More communication would've been nice, but it went smoothly and didn't really cause many problems with further production.

            Post-production was the lengthiest and most intrusive of the processes, primarily due to a single person handling it. Luis was constantly busy and we had to remind him to send any screenshots he had so we could use them for the social media and presentation. The final product was great and everyone seemed to like it. We did nitpick a little, changing a few errors and sequences to better fit the rules and our own view. Towards the end, we had a large call where Nicholas and I gave our input, and came up with a more cohesive ending. The effects and final render were spot-on, and definitely helped cement Neue as an icon.

            Much like the rest of our project, our presentation was also divided among team members, with peer revision and input occurring constantly. Luis focused on the overall video, with Nick taking over Neue's image. I focused mostly on showing off the social media and website, which I primarily made. Biana also helped with the social media, but focused mostly on the presentation slides themselves and the research. Biana and I started working on the presentation around the same time as production, with the final additions of pictures to the slides and social media being placed a bit before post-production finalized. We wrote major points in the slides, but for the presentation itself we used a Google doc with cues for Luis to go into the social medias or to change slides. This doc certainly helped everyone reorient themselves as we knew exactly what was going to happen and when. As for the presentation, we looked over every aspect of production, including our research and promotion for Neue. The presentation was the most enjoyable part of production, as we all came together to show off what we had been working on. 

Music Marketing Planning

         Have you ever made a fictional band and music video? I certainly haven't, but hey, how hard can it be? Planning and coming up with some basic ideas hasn't been all that hard, but filming and editing will more than likely pose a challenge. As for the ideas and research, we've made quite a bit of progress. We managed to study some popular R&B songs/bands, and I gotta say, I didn't really expect Drake to make R&B. Listening to some other songs of the genre have also been an experience. 

        Our group started looking into R&B by compiling some information about some smaller groups/artists, and then we started looking into the confusing world of record labels. We took the examples of Republic and RCA records, which both had some R&B artists signed to it. Within these larger labels, we took a look at the smaller labels owned by each company, with each focusing on more specific genres. We looked at websites, YouTube, and any other piece of original information we could, just to get a sense of how each label reached its audience. Obviously, social media was among the most popular. 

        Outside of researching marketing practices, we took the time to figure out what we wanted to do with our own band. We looked at some band names as well as their "aesthetic". We managed to find a good balance between our assigned song lyrics, the R&B aesthetic, and our own ideas. We've also been planning some filming locations as well as shots, but we're pretty far from done.

        Some challenges we face right now are maintaining focus, keeping a stable workflow, and overall team chemistry. Seeing how there's a whole pandemic, it's gonna be pretty hard to focus on something else, so yay us. As for a stable workflow, I don't really see us losing time on a specific part of the project, especially considering how each one of us is doing what we like best. Team chemistry shouldn't be an issue, as we all know when to debate aspects of the project and when to get stuff done.

        Looking forward, I can't wait to get to the final steps of creating the social media and video. But obviously we have to finish storyboarding our video as well as recording and editing. While we're working on that, I don't see why we wouldn't be able to dedicate some time to making a website and Instagram and YouTube. But that's for the future. In the mean time, I think we should finish up our music video, and after we've started editing we can focus on post-production.

It ain't much, but it's honest brainstorming

Some research. Check out those bands tho 😳😳

Representation Analysis

    Representation in media depends on the product that is being sold, as the representation reflects the audience, which in turn affects the product sales. Because brands aim to have the largest audience possible, their representation usually focuses on the audience of said product. This is often seen when products appeal to stereotypes that encompass their products, such as beauty products having mostly female representation, and power tools having mostly male representation. While it can be said that products play into stereotypes to keep their audience, it is obvious there is some input from management to keep it this way. However, some brands and companies have slowly started to move away from these stereotypes to become more "inclusive", but there still remains much work to be done. 

    This ad from Tide is a good example of brands playing into stereotypes, while also trying to be inclusive. The ad only has female representation, as the product is mostly bought and consumed by the same audience, female mothers with messy children. However, a tomboy daughter is included, both to appeal to mothers with tomboy daughters, while also appealing to mothers with messy sons. While the ad tries to be inclusive by including a smaller group, it still lacks in representation from other groups, such as people of color, or cleaner children. This limited representation leads to those outside of the target demographic to believe the product is not for them, leading to only a specific group of people buying or relating to the product.

    Every so often we may see an ad that includes much more representation, such as this ad for H&M. The diversity in this ad was much greater than in the previous, due to its message. The ad was to get people to recycle their clothes, so instead of appealing to a much more specific audience, it aimed to include as many people as possible. This type of tactic is also seen in other types of media, such as PSAs, which aim to address the largest group of people possible. When the focus of an ad is not to promote a product, but rather a cause or idea (which is not limited to a certain gender, race, age, sexual orientation, or social class), we end up with much more diversity.

    We can take many more examples from many different sources, but most will show the same thing. If there are specific products with specific audiences, then ads for said product will most likely reflect the audience, and maybe work on increasing the audience for the product. But if there is a much broader idea, such as a message that does not reflect one specific audience, then the representation will most likely be larger as well. 

    Ads can be very confusing as they all try different tactics at spreading products or ideas. However, it's the 21st century, and we need to start pushing for inclusivity. While some brands have started to work on including more and more people, they need to realize that appealing to these hyper-specific groups will only hurt their products by offending the ever growing minorities.

The Thrill of Drama

     Films, movies, and books can sometimes be hard to categorize, often overlapping with many different genres. Two genres that tend to coincide are dramas and thrillers. By definition, dramas tend to focus more on building up the characters and situations, often portraying them in a realistic way. Conversely, thrillers evoke stronger emotions from the audience by having a darker tone and much more exaggerated and fictitious plots. 

    Dramatic thrillers combine these two traits, creating unrealistic situations but portraying them as realistically as possible. Many movies with a target audience of older teens to younger adults (ages 17-21) can be considered dramatic thrillers. However, some more niche sub-genres can appeal to a much more diverse audience, such as psychological thrillers which appeal to older women (of around 40 years). Essentially, dramatic thrillers can appeal to almost anyone, as many modern films and shows rely on the audience's emotional responses to stay relevant.

    Due to producers aiming to make as much money as possible, they primarily rely on audience reception for both ratings and relevancy. To better establish this connection to the audience, more and more thriller films are being made as they engage the audience with the many twists and turns they offer. One of the most common things you'll hear from displeased viewers is that they "lost interest". Many thrillers counteract this, usually by having overarching plots, as is the case with tv shows, or by having quicker paced stories, like in many movies.

    Films such as Breaking Bad, Joker (2019), and The Platform (2019), usually revolve around violence; while others, such as Stranger Things and The Birds, focus more on creating suspense by way of acting. Thrillers are characterized by their use of protagonists that cause or are entwined to the problems, often due to their own flaws. A dark and grim mise en scene is also common among thrillers. Thrillers often have a jarring pace, used to quickly build up tension and keep the audience invested. Close ups, hand-helds, and even high-low shots are used to cause emotional responses in the audience. Simply put, thrillers do whatever they can to cause emotion.

    These vague qualifications can also be muddled as you delve into more specific subgenres. This scene from 6 Underground uses over-the-top action, including pyrotechnics and handhelds to show that the character is at risk. Similarly, this scene from Skyfall uses handhelds to create tension, but has much more grounded action, as well as a greater emphasis on information. However, some subgenres, such as psychological thriller, might meld into a different genre, such as horror. In Joker, Todd Phillips also strived to create an uneasy feeling in the audience. While the movie does contain violence and action, this scene was much more focused on creating the edgy atmosphere of thrillers by using a much subtler approach; a dark and hostile mise en scene. All the movies from which each scene comes from can be considered a thriller, but each scene had its own feel to it. The thriller genre's broad convention of creating relentless environments that cause viewers to feel "on edge" allows for directors to create tone in a creative way, without delving too much into other genres.

    Similarly to dramas, thrillers are marketed as emotional and personal pieces; but they contrast in the sense that thrillers tend to go to a darker side of the emotional spectrum, usually involving distress, angst, and suspense. Posters for thrillers are usually dark and gritty, having much more faded colors than any normal drama would. 

    One example of this is in the poster for Alien.  

    The dark colors, character expression, and environment let us know that the character is alone, and that there is something out there. This bleak message is also shown in the movie, as Ripley is the last survivor in the Nostromo.

    Compare that poster to another one, this time from Get Out.

    Unlike Alien's much more simple poster, the one for Get Out is segmented into different parts, some showing something happy, and others showing fearful eyes. While there is still dark coloring, the focus is shared with the brighter and happier parts, creating a contrasting and disparate mood.

    One of the most popular and recent thrillers you can watch is Breaking Bad. Similarly to other thrillers such as the Walking Dead and Dark, tv thrillers are much more drawn out and take their time to build up tensions. However, all these shows are very much thrillers, from their edgy and tense scores to their uncompromising plots. Even the more self-contained episodes clearly have their own stakes as we follow each and every character, and become invested in what they have to gain, and what they have to lose.

    Jordan Peele's Us is another great example of a thriller. The movie easily encompassess the aspects of your average horror movie, primarily jumpscares and creepy visuals, while also incorporating some action elements, such as fighting and stunt work. This strained retaliation is synonymous with any thriller genre. Us also uses its mise en scene (as seen in this scene) to create an oppressive setting, causing the viewer to feel scared and nervous.

    While dramatic thrillers can cover a range of sub-genres, often mixing more disparate and broader genres, they will most certainly cause your heart rate to quicken and your hairs to stand on end.