AV O C E T ‘ I N T O A

M O N S T E R ’

MAIN PRODUCT; PROMOTIONAL VIDEO

To view the main product please select the below link

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0d607hISMYo&safe=active

ANCILLARY TASK 1: DIGIPAK

Front cover Internal

cover

Back coverCD design

ANCILLARY TASK 2: POSTER PROMOTING DIGIPAK

The three media products are effectively combined to introduce the artist ‘Avocet’ as a young, gothic, indie-rock artist with a

mysterious and ominous yet innocent public image. This is elucidated through the uniform dark colouring, black costume,

monstrous makeup, typography and camera angles. Uniformity in the production of media products is essential for establishing

the artist’s public image and allowing an audience to recognise the relationship between the artist and the commercial products.

The construction and planning of the main product and ancillary tasks utilised the visual and design conventions of posters,

digipaks and promotional videos in order to develop three individual products with distinctive characteristics that an audience will

recognise as related through the use of mise en scene, effects and camera shots.

Colouring uniform is a typical convention used in indie rock music

videos.

The main product has a distinctive colour scheme. The colours black

and blue are predominant in the video, particularly the

performance aspects. However, there are scenes in which the

colour scheme is not utilised such as the opening sequence

whereby a black and white effect has been applied to the visuals.

Nevertheless, the absence of the branded colour theme

emphasises the scene in which the selected colour scheme

dominates the visuals.

Alternatively, the album design utilises the generic

colour scheme but also incorporates a green

colouring to advocate the album title ‘The Monster

Experiment’. The green has a harsh, cold

impression which effectively communicates the

dysfunctional emotional concept which may be

recognised in the leading single ‘Into a Monster’.

The ancillary texts and the main product utilise Andrew Goodwin’s theory by using a common motif to

develop a strong connection between the three products. This technique ensures that the

audience will be able to recognise the relationship. The calavera makeup is present in all three

products. The sugar skull imagery elucidates the strong gothic theme which is incorporated into

each product. The focus on the peculiar and vivid makeup design effectively highlights the bleak,

intense, and nostalgic connotations in the music in addition to producing a strong visual link

between the products.

THEORY

INTERTEXTUALITY

The artist’s multifaceted public image is reflected by performers such as The Pretty Reckless’ lead singer ‘Taylor Momsen’. The artist previously modelled the stereotypical young blonde ingénue appearance until her late teens in which her rebellious gothic portrayal arose. The contrasting depiction is apparent in the video as the generic ‘good girl gone bad’ image is a recognisable and popular trait amongst contemporary female indie-rock artists.

Intertextuality refers to the way in which existing texts

have influenced or been incorporated into a medium.

The music video ‘Into a Monster’ contains noticeable

elements which have been included in established

promotional videos. For example, the calavera makeup

is similar to the skull makeup used in Lady Gaga’s

‘Born This Way’ music video. The pronounced use of

intertextuality enables the audience to distinguish the

key characteristics of the brand as the viewers are

familiar with brand features; for example, the gothic,

skeletal makeup.

THE SIGNIFICANCE OF A BLACK BACKGROUNDIn this shot the performer is isolated by the

dark surroundings.The shot informs the audience of the gothic and dark

concept as black is often associated with morose, death

and evil. The combination of the skull monster makeup

upon the artist’s face and the black connotations may

illuminate the supernatural features in the music video,

and digipak.

The contrast between the artist’s light physical

features and the deep black background

subsequently accentuates the detail of her facial

appearance.

THE BLACK CLOAKThe black cloak which is worn in the photographs used in the digipak, and the music video was inspired by

the music video ‘I’ll Follow Rivers ‘by Lykke Li. The video displays the performer in a pure black cloak which covers her face and body. The lack of exposure encourages the audience to continue to view the music video as the viewer may feel inclined to witness the reveal of the performers true identity. This technique is employed in the opening lyrics of the main product , the event poster and the back cover of the digipak in order to promote the artists through mystery and ambiguity.

,

The black cloak reinforces the supernatural

elements in the texts. Popular examples of black

cloaks include the infamous fictional character

‘Dracula’, and the well-known Harry Potter’s wizard

characters. The popularity of black cloaks as the

costume of supernatural characters effectively

depicts this concept in the three media texts.

CAMERA ANGLESThe close up shot creates a dramatic, detailed and intimate effect which reflects the

passion and intensity of the music. The front cover displays the ‘monster’ version of

Avocet, whereas the close-up shot used in the early stage of the music video depicts

the singer’s natural appearance. This provides the audience with an opportunity to

compare the two presentations and recognise the artist’s multifaceted public image.

Moreover, the contrast supports the narrative as the difference illustrates the

development of Avocet becoming a ‘monster’.

The close up shot used for the front cover features the artist looking upwards,

this is to accentuate the feeling of being trapped by the monster façade as

facing skywards connotes the idea of the singer ‘wanting to be free like a bird in

the sky’. Alternatively, in the close up shot used in the music video the

performer engages in direct eye contact to depict the idea of this presentation

being her true identity. The contrasting poses builds an intimate bond between

the audience and artist because the viewer may feel sympathetic towards the

emotional turmoil presented in the front cover and will be engaged by the

intense, passionate eye contact in the music video image.

BIRDSThe lyric analysis revealed that a need for freedom was an

apparent connotation in the song ‘won’t you just let me

be?...you’ve stolen all my identity, a person that I don’t want

to be’. Therefore, using this idea, the theme of birds was

employed in the construction of the media products.

The singer is shown to be facing upwards in the shot to

communicate the idea of her wanting to be free like a

bird. This is reinforced by the two bird wings projected

onto her body.

The theme of birds has been applied to the logo which is present on

the poster and the back cover of the digipak. The design was inspired

by the black and white colouring of an avocet as well as the bird’s

long beak. The similarity between the logo and the appearance of an

avocet is used to accentuate the idea of freedom which is associated

with birds.

Below are examples of birds which inspired or appear in the music video. The avocet’s black and white features, the fragility and

elegance of the swan and the shot of several birds flying away into the distance, is used to communicate the singer’s delicate and

innocence image to the audience.

The black and white effect in

the opening resembles the

colouring of an avocet , and

is utilised to indicate that the

scene occurs at a time

before the performer

becomes a monster‘, where

she is ‘free like a bird’.

EDITINGUsing a range of editing technologies including Adobe premier pro, Pixlr.com and

Adobe Photoshop, the visuals used in the digipak and music video were manipulated to produce a powerful and stimulating image. For example, the front cover conveys a close up shot of the performer looking upwards to symbolise her need for freedom . However, a whitening effect is applied to the iris of the eyes to illuminate the supernatural and gothic elements in the text. Moreover, a darkening effect is used to intensify the deep colours and add a harsh, poignant and vibrant effect.

A different range of effects were employed in the production

of the music video. Similarly to the digipak, a darkening

effect was applied to the majority of clips. For example,

using the ‘Levels’ video effect, the dark colours in the

below screen shots were increased to highlight the

sinister themes and conform to the rock genre

convention of dark imagery. As inspired by

alternative/indie promotional videos such as ‘Little

Talks’ and ‘Young Folks’, a gradient effect was applied

to two of the mages below. The function produces

cartoon-like graphics which effectively demonstrates

the surreal and supernatural concept. These editing

techniques are combined to successfully communicate

the abstract

No effect

No effect

No effectLevels and gradient effect

Levels and gradient effectLevels effect

No

effect

FRAMINGThe image used for the front cover of the digipak is also present

on the inside cover. The framing of the photograph was

transformed into an extreme close up shot. The effect

used on the image depicts three cropped versions of the

image which are combined to emphasise and isolates the

presence of the performer’s eyes to further elucidate the

significance of the pose. The monster image is also

advocated by the repetition; the unusual makeup used on

the performer’s mouth in addition to the close-up shot

that accentuates the sinister and monstrous artist’s

image. The framing design in the music video changed in

correspondence with the conceptual idea present in the

shot.

A zoom in effect was applied to the shot which

initially presents the singer from a far

distance in order to depict her isolation

and emphasise the idea of her being

imprisoned by the monster persona

The below shot was changed into a mid shot

to illuminate the passion in the singer’s

facial expression.

The above midshot was altered into a close up

shot in order to engage the audience

through the clear and direct eye contact in

addition to increasing the intimacy

between the viewer and performer

TYPOGRAPHY

The use of fonts is consistent in

the digipak and poster. A ‘Wood

Cutterfence’ and’ impact label

reverse’ font is apparent on both

products and is utilised to produce

differing effects.

Similarly to the front cover image and the below

shot of the performer in a small space, the artist’s

title is centrally positioned to emphasise the

singer’s importance as the conventional central

placement attracts the audience’s attention and

connotes the idea of power and eminence which is

essential for establishing an artist’s image and

status in the industry.

The ‘Woodcutter fence’ font used for the album title on the digipak and poster is employed to resemble the wood scene in the

music video. The design resembles the harsh and coarse twigs and branches on the trees. The performer is shown to be walking

in the woods during the second verse of the music video and the scene portrays the performer discovering the cursed flower which

turns her into a monster. A linear narrative is present in the music video and the scene signifies the beginning of the developed

gothic and monstrous artist image. Similarly, the performer’s title is placed at the top of the poster to reflect the idea of the wood

scene being the beginning of the transformation.

The ‘impact label reverse’ font

style adds a powerful effect to the

information. The title is eye-

capturing through the bold

colouring, large size and unusual

design. The reviews for the album

use the font to accentuate the

information and convey the rock

genre as rock posters typically

use capitalised lettering to mirror

the raucous and boisterous music.

MARKETING AND BRANDING: USPBranding the artist is an important process for promoting a new artist. Creating an artist brand uses an

appealing platform to summarise the artist and displays their appealing qualities to the target demographic.

A unique selling point is vital for publicising a new artist in the music industry, Avocet is a young , white

female who is also a trained ballet dancer. The debut single features the typical ‘girl next door’ appearance

turning into a gothic monster creature. The performer may be viewed as an unconventional adaptation of

the generic ‘good girl gone bad’ presentation which is famed by artists such as Rihanna.

A typical artist branding technique includes logos, the Avocet logo conforms to the multifaceted artist

image and employed in various products in order to build a consistent visual style and reputation for the

artist. The innocent young girl presentation is a typical singer archetype which is presented in the logo

(the bird-like design accentuates her fragility and elegance) and the music video (white dress to

represent purity and vulnerability). The modern feminine youthful representation provides fans with an

identity that is recognisable and relatable. Alternatively, the monster characterisation embodies

adolescent angst and rebellion. Thus, providing an outlandish, outcast role model image which

numerous young people will be able to identify with. The capital A in the centre of the logo elucidates

this representation through the eerie, sharp font style.

CONFORMITY BRANDINGConformity branding refers to marketing

techniques which adhere to societal

norms. Audiences are accustomed to

these techniques and the generic

branding traits have been incorporated

into ‘Avocet’s’ artist image in order to

successfully appeal to a wide audience

range.

The lead singer has short blonde hair which imitates the typical

‘blonde bombshell’ look which has been adopted by numerous

contemporary female singers such as Rihanna, Pink, Pixie Lott and

Miley Cyrus. The modernised hairstyle effectively displays the products

as relevant to a modern audience.

Similarly to several modern popular female alternative singers such as Kate Nash, Florence Welch and Leslie Feist, ‘Avocet’ (Aimee) has a tall, slim frame which conforms to the typical societal expectations of beauty. The performer is an aesthetically tall (5”8) young, white female , which is an artist presentation that is conventional in the indie-rock genre.

A considerable amount of modern female singers are marketed through

their youth. Popular examples include performers such as Demi

Lovato, Selena Gomez and Lucy Hale. An evidently young appearance

effectively promotes an artist as relatable and relevant to a young niche

demographic.

HOW EFFECTIVE IS THE COMBINATION OF YOUR

MAIN PRODUCT AND ANCILLARY TEXTS?In conclusion, the music video, digipak and poster are effectively combined to promote and market the

purchasable digipak, the artist’s multifaceted image and to appeal to the target audience of young

people with a preference for rock and indie/alternative. The consistent use of makeup, framing and

colour imagery distinguishes the artist’s public image. The consistent presentational design

enables the niche audience to identify with the performer and recognise the singer’s relatable and

appealing elements such as her youth, modern fashion sense and eccentric music style.