PLANNING: Video Storyboard

Below is the storyboard for my video, it shows what will happen in order.

FINAL PRODUCT: Final Digipack

This is what i finally came up with for my digipack, as you can see i took all of the given feedback into consideration and used a lot of it.

Above is the final front cover and the final inside cover of the digipack, as you can see I took the idea that Jack Holmes put forward of changing the heads to that of something else, I think it was a good suggestion because it adds to the surreal image of the band. I also too Jack Perry's idea of using light colours, such as blue or creams.

As you can see I also put the alternate heads as the heads on the back cover.

I used images from the video to make the actual DVD label

PLANNING: Target Audience Feedback

So I could get an idea on whether my digipack was good for its purpose I asked some people in my target audience what they thought about it. My target audience was teenagers ages 13-18 generally male. This is the feedback I got.

Jack Perry - "The idea for the front cover is good, but you don't explain the colour scheme that you are going to use, I suggest you use light colours, blues or creams, as any colours such as black or browns would not really fit with the idea of using "The Beatles" other than that, I like the idea of using images from your video as part of the digipack, it adds consistency."

Jack Holmes - "I like the idea of the digipack, but perhaps you could change it to be a a little more surreal as this would fit better with the albums music - for example you could replace their heads with something else, for instance animal heads."

Charlotte Butcher - "I like it but I think you need to make it more colourful."

Sonny Drake - "I think that the album cover and the rest of the digipack are well thought through, and look good, but my main thought on how to improve it would be that the front cover has a lot of blank space around the top, maybe you could use something to fill it up, a picture, or some text would be good."

PLANNING: Draft Digipack

As part of the coursework i have to create a Digipack for my CD to go in, here you can see the draft for this Digipack and the reasons i have made it this way.

If these are too small to read, please save the images and open them, so they are legible.

PLANNING: Video Influences

There was one main music video that influenced the way my video has been filmed and that was Subterranian home sick blues - Bob Dylan


This video has been copied many times, most famously by Maxell tapes adverts.

I decided this would be a good way to make my video because it is easy to illustrate the words from the song.

PLANNING: Tools used

I have had to use several different tools to help me make my video and digipacks. One of the most usefull tools i have at my disposal is Adobe Photoshop CS3 this helps me cut and paste the heads, the background and all of my digipack together. Im also using Adobe Premier Pro and iMovie to create the film. For the animated section of the video im using a programme called 3DS Max.

PLANNING: Format - Text

Im using a simple text format called "Graffiti Three" I chose this font because its a little wierd and i think this fits in well with the video as well as all the other choices i have made about the band. This will be used for the bands main logo. The other font i will be using is "Franklin Gothic" im using this because it is easy to read and neat, but i will be moving it around and crowding it together so it is important that i had picked a very simple but easy to read font.

RESEARCH: Influences

The Residents: One of the people who influenced the idea for my video, specifically the animal heads, was the residents. They change the heads of the band on many covers and videos to things such as eye balls. You can read more about them here. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Residents

Slipknot:This band also cover up their faces using masks at all times, they masks are usually wierd or scary, which makes it similar to us changing the heads to animal heads. You can read more about them here. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slipknot_(band)

Sound Garden: Have made some very surreal music videos, such as black hole sun, and this could be attributed to my music video.

You can read more about them here. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sound_Garden

There is also a clear influence in my video, as well as in the digipack, where there have been influences from The Beetles

RESEARCH: Moodboard

This is the Moodboard i created for my project.

PLANNING: Permission Email

This is a copy of the permission email i sent to the record company who own "aint no rest for the wicked" to use the song for my coursework


Dear Sir or Madam

For our ‘A’ Level Media Studies coursework we have to make a music video to accompany a song. For our project we would like to use Ain’t No Rest For The Wicked by Cage The Elephant and are seeking your permission.

The resulting music video will not be used for commercial gain, will be hosted on a private coursework blog and also rendered on to DVD for the attention of our teacher and the coursework moderator. Should we not hear from you to the contrary within 14 days of the date of this email we will assume that your are happy for us to use this music under a fair use arrangement.

Should you require any further information please contact our teacher, Mr Scargill on scargill@guilsborough.northants.sch.uk

So far i have not received an email back.

PLANNING: Desicions

The song I have chosen to do for my Music Video is - Ain't no rest for the wicked By Cage The Elephant. I have chosen to work on my own to do this music video because not many people know the song and would be hard to do it well with people who don't know the song. Also I have a very strong idea of how I want the video to look already.

Preliminary task - Monster, The Automatic

This is my preliminary piece for the music video's.

RESEARCH: A Beautiful Lie - Digipack Deconstruction

This is my second deconstruction of a digipack, this one is for Thirty Seconds To Mars's album, A Beautiful Lie.

The front cover of the album is white with the Thirty Seconds To Mars logo down the left hand side, then on the right hand side there is an image with some skulls and " A Beautiful Lie" written on it. The skulls are very typical of the genre of music that the album is and are the kinds of things people would expect to see on a rock album.

The inside of the booklet has double pages, one which has a picture of a band member and the other has the lyrics from a song/ a few songs. It is all very red and black with the band members looking very pasty. It is very stereotypical idea of what people who listen to that kind of music look like.

RESEARCH: Scream Aim Fire - Digipack Deconstruction

This is my deconstruction of my first digipack for Scream Aim Fire

The front cover shows the front of a building with crows and the Bullet for my Valentine logo with the album name (Scream Aim Fire) underneath. The whole cover is in dark brown and black colours and is a very stereotypical idea of what a rock/metal album would look like.


The inside of the digipack is also very stereotypical of an mteal/rock album, its mainly black with grey writing and no pictures, except the middle section which is just a large picture of the band but it is still very brown and black like the front cover.


I think the album relates to the uses and gratifications theory because it is obvioulsy related to a rock or metal album and that is easily noticeable just by looking at it, this makes it very obvious that the person who listens to it is into that kind of music and therefore satisfies peoples need to be classed within a certain view IE, goth, chav etc.

RESEARCH: Second video deconstruction, Lostprophets - A Town called Hypocrisy

The second video ive looked at is A Town Called Hypocrisy by Lostprophets. Like the first video it is also a rock/metal video.



Genre Characteristics - Rock or metal Videos tend to have the band playing infront of the camera, with some sort of background related to whats going on in the rest of the video and then have a separate section of the video that tells a story, usually related to the lyrics.

What is the relationship between the lyrics and the video? - The songs lyrics talk about how people are hypocritical and the video shows exactly that, it shows the band as the presenters of a children's TV show teaching kids to share and be nice people, saying please and thank you. But it then also shows the band at a party after filming with the crew and people in the TV programme doing everything that they teach kids not to do through the programme and are therefore being hypocritical

What is the relationship between the music and the video? - The music for the song is quite cheery and upbeat, and so is the video, everyone seems to be having fun and a party, but the video is also a bit tongue in cheek in the same way the music is.

Are there close ups of the artist and star image motifs? - Yes, like the previous video there is alot of shots of the band playing, but then also in the parts of the video that tell the story the band stars as the people who are in the TV show.

Is there a reference to the notion of looking? - Yes, a large one, the entire video is set as though you are watching a TV programme for kids. There is also a section that is done entirely through looking through a telescope.

Are there intertextual references? - I cant think of any.

Is it performance based, narrative based or concept based? - I would say that it is largely concept based because it is all based around the concept that everyone is hypocritical and it shows that noone is perfect, even the people who present TV shows to kids.

RESEARCH: First Video Deconstruction, Skillet - Monster

The first video in deconstructing is Monster by Skillet, it is Rock/Metal Video.

You can watch it here - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mjlM_RnsVE (i couldnt embed it because it was disabled)

Genre Characteristics - Rock or metal Videos tend to have the band playing infront of the camera, with some sort of background related to whats going on in the rest of the video and then have a separate section of the video that tells a story, usually related to the lyrics.

What is the relationship between the lyrics and the visuals? - In the video the lyrics talk about how he feels like a monster and that it is breaking out from inside of him. In the section of the video that's telling the story, he is in a lab and the people are treating him like he is a monster and experimenting on him. He then escapes, or breaks out, and they treat him even more like a monster by sending men with guns after him.

What is the relationship between the music and the visuals? - The music is very fast paced and this is shown in the video by lots of very short cuts and scenes. The video also tries to show how loud it is by at points when watching the band, making the camera shake and judder.

Are there close ups of the artist and star image motifs? - Yes, a lot of the video is the band playing the song to the camera, but also the characters in the story telling section of the video are played by members of the band.

Is there a reference to the notion of looking? - A little, when the band is playing to the camera you are always looking at them through a pane of glass that's supposed to be a window, like in films when people are in interrogation rooms and police can see in, but the people inside cant see out.

Are there intertextual references? - I think that there is a slight reference to Frankenstein, as the monster is created by these people, and then it escapes so they try to kill it.

Is it performance based, narrative based or concept based? - I would say that it is about 50% performance and 50% narrative based. As a lot of the time you are just watching the band perform, but then alot of the time you are also watching the story section of the video.

RESEARCH: Andrew Goodwin's key features of a music video

1. Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics (eg Stage performance in metal videos, dance routines for boy/girl bands etc)

2. There is a relationship between the lyrics and the visuals (either illustrative, amplifying or contradicting)

3. There is a relationship between music and the visuals (either illustrative, amplifying or contradicting)

4. The Demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close-ups of the artist and the artist may develop motifs which recur across their work (a visual style)

5. There is frequently reference to the notion of looking (screens within screens, telescopes etc.) and particualy voyeuristic treatment of the female body

6. There is often inter textual reference (to films, TV programmes, other music videos etc.)