Q1 : IN WHAT WAYS DOES YOUR MEDIA PRODUCTS USE,

DEVELOP OR CHALLENGE FORMS AND CONVENTIONS OF

REAL PRODUCTS?BY : MISS EVELINA VYSNIAUSKAITE

THE CHOICE OF GENRE

I HAVE CHOSEN TO WORK WITH DEEP HOUSE MUSIC, BECAUSE I AM A PART OF TARGET AUDIENCE MYSELF, THEREFORE IT IS EASIER TO KNOW WHAT ARE THE EXPECTATIONS AND WHAT WOULD TARGET AUDIENCE WANT TO SEE IN THE VIDEO AS WELL AS IN THE ALBUM ADVERT AND THE DIGIPAK. ALSO MOST OF MY PEERS LIKE THE SAME MUSIC WHICH INITIALLY MEANS I HAVE A PERFECT PEER ASSESSMENT GROUP. HOWEVER RESEARCH AND QUESTIONNAIRES TO MY TARGET AUDIENCE HELPED ME TO FIND OUT MUCH MORE, EVEN SUCH THINGS LIKE THE EXPECTED COLOUR SCHEME OF PRODUCTS, WHAT CLOTHING CHARACTERS SHOULD WEAR, WHAT LOCATIONS TO USE, WHAT CAMERA ANGLES ETC.

GENRE CONVENTIONS

GENRE CONVENTIONS WHEN IT COMES TO HOUSE MUSIC ARE QUITE OBVIOUS. AS THE MUSIC HAS VERY LITTLE LYRICS OR SOMETIMES NO LYRICS AT ALL, THE VISUAL SIDE OF IT (THE VIDEO) IS USUALLY CONCEPTUAL RATHER THAN NARRATIVE BASED, HOWEVER IN THE PAST 3-5 YEARS IT STARTED CHANGING AND MOST OF HOUSE MUSIC NOW HAS A ISSUE NARRATIVE BASED VIDEO. USUALLY THE STORY IS QUITE HARD TO UNDERSTAND, MOSTLY DEALING WITH BIG ISSUES IN OUR SOCIETY SUCH AS VIOLENCE, DRUGS OR DISCRIMINATION. HOWEVER QUITE A LOT OF THEM ARE ALSO BASED ON LOVE AND BREAK-UP SCENARIO, WHICH IS WHAT I CHOSE TO DO. I HAVE FOLLOWED THE MAIN GENRE CONVENTIONS HAVING SOME KIND OF PROBLEM, WHICH ATTRACTS TA TO WANT TO WATCH THE WHOLE VIDEO IN ORDER TO RESOLVE THE OCCURRED ISSUE, HOWEVER THE WAY I CONSTRUCTED THE VIDEO, TA CANNOT BE SURE WHETHER ISSUE HAS BEEN RESOLVED IN THE END. I MADE IT THAT WAY SO TA WOULD WATCH IT AGAIN AND AGAIN, BECAUSE IN THIS WAY THEY WILL START PICK UP SMALL DETAILS AND THE WHOLE VIDEO WILL START TO MAKE SENSE.

THE CHOICE OF ACTORS

FROM THE VERY BEGINNING I HAD THE VISION IN MY HEAD OF HOW I WANT THE VIDEO TO BE, WHAT ACTORS I WILL USE TO REPRESENT MY STORY. I HAVE CHOSEN TO USE A YOUNG CHILD, BECAUSE IT WAS A CHALLENGE TO ME, AS WORKING WITH A THREE YEAR OLD ON THE SET CAN BE VERY DIFFICULT, BUT HAVING A CHILD IN THE VIDEO ALWAYS BRINGS THIS SENSE OF ‘INNOCENCE’, SENSE OF HAPPINESS. I WANTED MY TARGET AUDIENCE TO BE SURE THAT WHEN THE MAIN CHARACTER IS THINKING OF THE GOOD TIMES, A CHILD IS ALWAYS THE MAIN FIGURE, HE IS ALWAYS PRESENT, THEREFORE TARGET AUDIENCE WOULD ASSOCIATE SEEING A CHILD WITH HAPPINESS, AND AN OPEN FIELD WITH FREEDOM, ALMOST LIKE FOLLOWING THE IDEA OF WHEN YOU FIRST FALL IN LOVE AND SEE NO ONE ELSE AROUND – SHE WAS SO HAPPY SHE DID NOT NEED ANYONE ELSE, ONLY THE TWO PRESENT CHARACTERS.

RESEARCH INTO CHOICE OF CHARACTERS

MY RESEARCH SHOWED THAT HOUSE MUSIC VIDEOS USUALLY HAVE EITHER VERY LITTLE PEOPLE, OR THERE IS A MASSIVE PARTY THAT EVERYONE JOINS. I WENT FOR THE QUIET SIDE OF IT, USING ONLY THREE ACTORS. JUST LIKE IN THE VIDEO ‘THEY DON’T KNOW’ BY DISCIPLES, THERE ARE ONLY THREE MAIN ACTORS, VERY BIG, OPEN AND WIDE SPACE AROUND TO CONNOTE LONELINESS(IN A GOOD WAY) AND FREEDOM. I LIKED THE WAY THEY USED A LOCATION TO TELL MORE ABOUT THE ACTUAL CHARACTER’S FEELINGS INSIDE, THAT WAS WHAT I DID IN MY VIDEO. THIS IS THE REASON I FILMED ON MOUSEHOLD HILL ON THE SUNNY DAY WITH THE CHILD, AS A CONNOTATION OF FREEDOM, OPEN SPACE AND HAPPINESS. NO ONE ELSE AROUND JUST THEM, AS THEY DO NOT NEED ANYONE ELSE.

USE OF CLOTHING AND COLOURS

IN ORDER TO DEVELOP THE GENRE CONVENTIONS I HAVE USED FASHIONABLE CLOTHES FOR THE COSTUMES (WHERE ALL THREE ACTORS ARE TOGETHER AND HAPPY) AND I USED PLAIN BLACK CLOTHES TO CONNOTE THE DEPRESSION AND FRUSTRATION OF THE MAIN ACTRESS. I TRIED TO PORTRAY IT USING DIFFERENT COSTUMES AS WELL AS NO MAKE-UP ON THE SAD SCENES, RUINED MAKE-UP ON THE CRYING SCENES AND GREAT MAKE-UP ON THE HAPPY SCENES. EXACTLY THE SAME WITH THE LIGHTING IN DIFFERENT LOCATIONS. HAPPY TIMES THAT SHE REMEMBERS ON THE MOUSEHOLD HILL WERE FILMED ON A SUNNY DAY, AS OPPOSE TO THE SAD DAYS WHEN SHE WENT BACK THERE AND IT WAS A CLOUDY, COLD AND WINDY DAY. ALSO I HAVE USED A PINK FILTER OVER LIGHTS WHEN FILMING IN THE ROOM AS A CONNOTATION OF A SAFE BASE, WARMTH, BUT AT THE SAME TIME SHOWING THAT SHE IS NOT ENTIRELY HAPPY, AS PINK IS FROM BLUES COLOUR SPECTRE THEREFORE IT SHOWS SHE MIGHT TAKE HER ROOM AS THE SAFE BASE, HOWEVER DEEP DOWN SHE IS NOT HAPPY.

NARRATIVE

I HAVE CHOSEN TO USE NORMAL LINEAR NARRATIVE, HOWEVER I CHANGED IT TO A CIRCULAR NARRATIVE TO EXPLAIN THE STORY BETTER(THE SECOND SHOT OF THE VIDEO IS THE SAME AS THE LAST ONE). BY USING THIS I WANTED TO IMPLY THAT ALL WHAT HAPPENED COULD HAVE BEEN ONLY A DREAM OR MAYBE ONE BIG MEMORY WHICH SHE WAS THINKING ABOUT WHILE WALKING DOWN THE STREET, I WANTED TARGET AUDIENCE TO BE CONFUSED. THIS USES GENRE CONVENTIONS IN A WAY THAT THE WAY VIDEO IS CONSTRUCTED THE MORE TA WATCH IT, THE MORE THEY CAN UNDERSTAND. HOWEVER IT CHALLENGES GENRE CONVENTIONS IN A WAY THAT THE VIDEO IS SO STRICTLY CONSTRUCTED, IF TA MISSES A LITTLE TINY BIT OF IT, IT IS HARD TO UNDERSTAND WHAT IS HAPPENING. FOR EXAMPLE ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT SHOTS IN THE FIRST HALF OF THE VIDEO IS THE PHONE CALL THAT SHE IS GETTING, THEN DROPPING HER PHONE, WHICH IS ALL LAYERED WITH THE SHOTS OF THE GUY – CONNOTING THAT IT IS HIM WHO’S CALLING. IF TA IS WATCHING CLOSELY THEY WILL NOTICE THAT LATER ON HER PHONE IS RINGING AGAIN, LAYERED UP WITH THE MAN’S FACE WHICH CONNOTES IT IS HIM CALLING AGAIN.

• THE BEGINNING OF THE VIDEO (00:07 AND 02:57) – SAME SHOTS, CONNOTATION OF CIRCULAR NARRATIVE

• THE SHOT OF THE MAN CALLING HER. HAPPENED IN TWO DIFFERENT TIMES – HOWEVER LINKS BACK TO EACH OTHER

REPRESENTATION

THIS VIDEO PURELY REPRESENTS SUCH CONTEMPORARY ISSUES LIKE RELATIONSHIP, LOSS OF THE CLOSE FAMILY MEMBER DUE TO A BREAK UP, OR MAYBE DEATH (UNRESOLVED ISSUES). ALSO IN A WAY IT REPRESENTS GENDER, AS A WOMAN IS PORTRAYED AS A VERY SENSITIVE AND WEAK HUMAN OPPOSE TO A MAN WHO SHOWS NO EMOTIONS WHATSOEVER. THIS IS A STEREOTYPE OF OUR SOCIETY. I ALSO THINK IT CAN REPRESENT CULTURAL IDENTITY, NOWADAYS MORE AND MORE PEOPLE BREAK UP/GET DIVORCED JUST BECAUSE IT IS EASY, AND THIS CAN BE SEEN AS A DEEP SOCIETY ISSUE, SUCH THINGS BREAK FAMILIES, MAKING A SINGLE PARENT FAMILY TODAY’S NORM.

DIGIPAK & ALBUM ADVERT – CHOICE OF IMAGES

ALL THE IMAGES I HAVE USED FOR MY DIGIPAK ARE THE SAME AS I USED FOR THE ADVERT, AND ALSO ALL THOSE PICTURES WERE TAKEN WHEN FILMING, THEREFORE ALL THE LOCATIONS CAN BE EASILY RECOGNIZED IN THE VIDEO. THIS MEANS THE AUDIENCE WILL FAMILIARIZE THEMSELVES WITH THE VIDEO LOCATION AND SEE HOW IT TIES UP WELL WITH THE ANCILLARY PRODUCTS.

LOGO & TEXT/FONT

THE DJ LOGO WHICH WAS USED ON ANCILLARY PRODUCTS IS AN OFFICIAL LOGO, THEREFORE I COULD NOT CHANGE IT DUE TO ICONOGRAPHY. I HAVE MATCHED SOME FONTS TO GO WITH THE LOGO, THEREFORE IT MATCHES TOGETHER THROUGH BOTH OF MY PRODUCTS. HOWEVER I DID NOT PUT ANY TEXT ON MY VIDEO WHATSOEVER AS ONE OF THE GENRE CONVENTIONS IS THAT HOUSE MUSIC NEVER HAS A NAME OF THE SONG IN THE BEGINNING OF THE VIDEO ON THE SCREEN, AS WELL AS IT NEVER HAS ANY TEXT AT THE END OF IT – I HAVE USED GENRE CONVENTIONS AS TA WOULD EXPECT THIS TO HAPPEN.

COLOURS OF ANCILLARY PRODUCTS

AS MY ANCILLARY PRODUCTS ARE IN BLACK AND WHITE, I HAVE USED WHITE COLOUR OF THE FRONT FOR IT TO STAND OUT. THE REASON I HAVE USED BLACK AND WHITE IS BECAUSE DEEP HOUSE MUSIC USUALLY HAVE VERY PLAIN PRODUCTS, HOWEVER MINE HAS QUITE A LOT OF STUFF ON THEM, SO IN ORDER TO MAKE THEM LOOK MORE PLAIN AND FITTING WITH THE GENRE (BEING DARK IN GENERAL) I HAVE TURNED IT TO BLACK AND WHITE. HOWEVER IT IS HARD TO TELL WHETHER COLOURFUL OR DARK COLOURS ARE DOMINANT IN OTHER HOUSE MUSIC DIGIPAKS AND ALBUM ADVERTS AS THERE ARE TWO TYPES – VERY DARK AND PLAIN OR VERY BRIGHT, NEON COLOURED BUT STILL PLAIN.

CHALLENGING CONVENTIONS

HOUSE MUSIC IS PROGRESSING EVERY DAY AND USUALLY CHALLENGING ALL THE CONVENTIONS (NO SETTLED CONVENTIONS AS I MENTIONED BEFORE), I HAVE MADE MY DIGIPAK TO FOLD INTO A DIFFERENT SIDE. THIS WOULD MAKE MY DIGIPAK VERY UNIQUE AND INTEREST TA EVEN MORE.

DIGIPAK (PANEL 1)I HAVE USED A BLACK AND WHITE PICTURE OF ALL THREE CHARACTERS IN THE VIDEO, HOWEVER THE WAY THE MAN IS POSITIONED IT IS CLEAR THAT HE IS THE ‘TOP BOSS’ IN THIS ‘RELATIONSHIP’, ALSO THE WOMAN CANNOT SEE THE MAN, IT ALMOST SUGGESTS WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THE WHOLE VIDEO, IT’S LIKE THE MAN IS THERE BUT IS HE?.. LEAVING SOME RHETORICAL QUESTIONS FOR THE AUDIENCE. MOREOVER I DREW THE KEYHOLE OVER THE IMAGE, ALMOST SUGGESTING THAT ALL WHAT’S HAPPENING IS A SECRET, OR IT MIGHT NOT EVEN BE REAL. THIS ALSO CONNOTES THAT THERE IS SOMETHING HIDDEN INSIDE (IN THIS CASE, A LITERAL INSERT). AND I SIMPLY PUT THE LOGO ON THE FRONT WITH THE MAIN OF THE ALBUM IN SMALLER LETTERS MAKING IT VERY PLAIN, BUT FOLLOWING THE GENRE CONVENTIONS.

DIGIPAK (PANEL 2)DUE TO THE WAY IT FOLDS, PANEL 2 IS ACTUALLY THE BACK OF THE DIGIPAK. AS I MENTIONED BEFORE, I HAVE USED THE PICTURE WHICH HAS BEEN USED IN THE ALBUM ADVERT AS WELL, ONLY DELETED THE SKY FROM IT. THIS LETS AUDIENCE SENSE THAT THE MAN IS QUITE AN IMPORTANT FIGURE, BUT IS HE REALLY PRESENT OR IS IT JUST IN GIRL’S HEAD? THIS IS SHOWED IN A WAY THAT THE WOMAN IS NEVER LOOKING AT THE MAN IN THE PICTURE, AS IF HE WAS NOT THERE/SHE CANNOT SEE HIM. ALL THE SONGS LISTED ON THE BACK ARE THE REAL SONGS OF THE DJ’S, THIS HELPS THE TA TO IDENTIFY THEMSELVES WITH THE PRODUCT, MOREOVER THIS IS ICONOGRAPHY OF THE ARTIST.

PANEL 3 (AN INSERT)AND PANEL 4

AS I MENTIONED BEFORE HOUSE MUSIC IS A VERY PROGRESSIVE STYLE OF MUSIC AS WELL AS HAS DIFFERENT GENRE CONVENTIONS, THIS IS WHY I WANTED TO DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT WITH MY INSERT. I CONTACTED THE DJ’S AND ASKED THEM TO WRITE UP SOMETHING THEY WOULD LIKE THEIR FANS TO SEE ON THE REAL PRODUCTS, AND I USED THE ORIGINAL HAND WRITTEN PAPER, SO TA WOULD FEEL LIKE THEY ARE SO CLOSE TO THE DJ’S AS THEY ARE READING THEIR HAND WRITING, NOT COMPUTER FONT, ALMOST LIKE FRIENDS. THIS CREATES NOT ONLY ICONOGRAPHY. BUT FANS FEEL LIKE THEY HAVE TO FOLLOW ARTIST’S WORK BECAUSE THEY ARE CLOSER THAN JUST FANS.ON PANEL 4, THE SAME IMAGE USED ON PANEL 2, THE BACK OF THE DIGIPAK.

PANEL 5 AND PANEL 6

THE IMAGE OF THE MAIN LOCATION (MOUSEHOLD HILL) HAS BEEN USED AND MIRRORED TOGETHER. TA WOULD IDENTIFY WHICH LOCATION IT IS AND UNDERSTAND IT HAS BEEN USED. ALSO IT IS A NICE PLACE, OVERLOOKING CITY AND CONNOTING ABOUT FREEDOM, HAPPINESS AND BEING ALONE (JUST LIKE THAT GIRL FELT WHEN SHE WAS STILL WITH THE MAN AND THE CHILD ALL TOGETHER). ON PANEL 5 I HAVE ALSO WROTE SOME LYRICS FROM THE MAIN TRACK, TALKING ABOUT HAPPINESS AND LOVE. I HAVE PORTRAYED THOSE POSITIVE WORDS IN THE VIDEO BY SHOWING THE HAPPY SHOTS ON THE TOP OF THE HILL USING GENRE CONVENTIONS.