Friday, 21 December 2012

Moonrise Kingdom


Moonrise Kingdom 


Moonrise Kingdom the comedy starring Jared Gilman, Kara Hayward and Bruce Willis follows a 12 years old boy and girl, whose witty sense of humour and maturity sends them on a wide adventure across New England set in 1960’s. Their blossomed love captures the audiences heart as they are part of a man hunt from the Chief (Bruce Willis) and the scouts. However I found this film wasn’t as funny as I hoped it would be. The lose Romeo and Juliet love story reference wasn’t clear, I believe if it was clearer to the audience the film would be more popular. Also I found the young girl irritating and no funny at all.


Wes Andersons film opens with the hunt for the first of the two young children Sam, as he treks through the New England to meet his lover Susie. The pair uses their wilderness skills to start their new life together because they believe no one understands them and their love. Their love blossomed when Sam sneaks into the girls’ dressing room where Susie was getting ready with her ‘friends’ with her sarcastic attitude and his awkward personality was love at first sight. After dozens of letters back and forth discussing their day-to-day lives the pair plan to meet, to start their new life together.



Moonrise Kingdom’s us-against-the-world tale is well directed by Wes Andersons, the film expresses young love between Sam Shakusky and Susie Bishop. Sam is a very serious young man who from a background of moving to and from different foster homes has left him strongly independent therefore believes he can survive on his own, so disappears from Scouts camp only leaving a resignation letter for the leader (Edward Norton). The eldest daughter Suzie of a dysfunctional family where the mother and father (Bill Murray and Frances McDormand) just wonders around the family home after a long day being a lawyer, with out any recondition of the three young children. The characters perform well through out the film, portraying the writer’s vision clearly.


The film is available in most stores from the 1st October 2012 including Amazon and HMV. 

Wednesday, 12 December 2012

David Howarth Article



Aspire to Inspire...

                David Howarth


David Howarth is a local 20 year old who aspires to become a professional artist. He creates different art pieces of his favourite musical artists, television artists and famous actors including Kanye West, Muhammed Ali and Ron Weasley. To produces his pieces he uses a range of materials such as watercolours and paint, to form the canvases. Howarth befit’s from light when developing his art, highlighting the key features of the persons face.  He is a expanding his client audience and now selling to buyers across the globe. His unique sense of style allows him to express his creative personality through his clothes and body art. Recently I discussed with David his ambitions and what inspired him to get where he is today. 

Have you been interested in art from a young age?
 
Yeah, i used to sit and play drawing games with my mum before i knew how to write. I could draw an apple before i could draw my own name!
 
 
Is there anything in particular what got you interested in art?
 
Probably my mum again to be honest, she’s amazing at drawing so more than likely stems from there x
 
So would you say she inspires you the most? Or are they any other artists that do?
 
Well my mum inspired me to appreciate art but i remember visiting the Louvre in Paris when i was about 8, so I’d say it was a place- Rather than a person!
 
Ok, what high school did you go to?
 
Walkden 


Did you do art as a GCSE? If so what did you get?
 
Yeah got an A
 
Have you ever taken part in any art festivals, if so what were they called or do you plan to?
 
I haven’t! Yeah would be something I’d get involved in definitely
 
Have you ever bought any pieces of art?
 
Well i recently moved into my own place so been buying bits and bobs but mainly do my own work!
 
Who's your favourite person to draw and why?

 
I don’t have anyone in particular but i prefer drawing women to men as the have more defined features to work with eyelashes, defined cheek bones etc...
How do you begin to create the paintings?
 
It’s all done using grids, i draw a grid on the photo and the canvas, to scale, then roughly fill the separate boxes with lines, that’s when start to paint, i may have to spend several hours working into the picture to get it spot on


 
What's the hardest art piece you've painted?

 
There’s a Kanye West in my living room that I’m painting with metallic paint, which is hard to use because it has a similar consistency as butter
 
Out of all the paintings you've painted which one is your favourite?

 
Probably a Notorious BIG that I did about 18 months ago
 
Do you use any websites to sell your art?

 
Nope!
 
Don't know if this is true but, I've heard that you've sold a painting to someone in America?
 
A person from New York wanted to buy one, but postage costs were too dear at the time!
 
Ok, do you design your tattoos yourself?

 
I have designed like 3 of them but my tattoo artist is amazing!




I have designed like 3 of em But my tattoo artist is amazing!
Your tattoos are really good! What is she/he called?
12 Nov
Thanks! I have 2. One called Mr Jack, the other is called Chardaine Spelzini
Where do you see yourself in 10years?
If all goes to plan i want to run a small shop, more than likely in the local area, anything bigger would be a blessing!
Thank you so much for doing the interview I really appreciate it

Tuesday, 13 March 2012

Unit 1 Media TV production blog (The Week Breaker)

The Week Breaker

 Blog
Over the last couple of week I have been working with a group of my peers on creating a magazine style show. I was involved in all the different staged including pre-production, production and post-production. The brief, which was set, ask us to create an exciting new and live youth show. We would have 3 weeks to research and become familiar with techniques used by other show of a similar style. The next step of the project was to create and develop our ideas, then in small groups present our ideas to an industry professional. Then the ideas, which are the most successful, will be put into pre-production. After the pre-production is complete we had 4 weeks to rehearse and record the show. The project deadline was 17/12/11. 

As a team we collectively came up with the idea of our youth show by all thinking of creative ideas which would make the show more interesting and fun. After that we would come together in a meeting and discuss what ideas would be best for the show. 
 

As a collective group we decided to set the studio in a V formation, therefore we could use the 3 cameras to our full advantage. We used two table set on an angle facing each other slightly so we  could position the cameras at the side of of each table, therefore then we can get a clear shot on the presenters or the guests. At the beginning of the show we stood the two presenters in the middle of the table, so the middle camera could get a master shot of the whole set. All the camera operators and the floor manager had headsets and microphones; this connected them with the director/producer in the gallery.  


 The equipment included an talk back this was useful because if anyone had a problem they were able to discuss it with the people in the gallery. We also needed lightening to light the set in a professional way, by high lightening different parts which were important such as were the presenters stood when introducing the show. A sound mixing desk was used to control the volume of the theme tune and McFly track after the V.T. We used a boom mic to pick up the presenters voices however we did you microphones as well to make it clear. In the gallery we used the vision mixing desk and monitor so the vision mixer could see which shot he was selecting. 
 

The producer, director, vision mixer, floor manager and presenters all had a copy of the script therefore they could see if everything is going to plan and what was going to happen next. The presenters had que cards of the script this made it look more professional when filming becuase then they wasn't looking down at pages of white paper thye had small cards with the shows logo on the back, this was also an advertising the show. Musical insturments were also used for the final quiz round.

My role through out the project was the producer, so on the day of filming i was in the gallery and worked very closely with the director, floor manager and vision mixer. I over looked the project making sure everyone knew what they were doing and if there were any problems i would try by best to sort them out.Before filming i checked if all the camera shots were correct and i was happy with everything in the studio. During the filming process i timed each section to make sure we were still on time and not running over or done a round to quick. I found this quiet difficult because i had to do a number of things at once. However once we went through the show a couple of times, it wasnt as hard to do. I enjoyed the roleof producer because i think im a good team leader and i made sure everyone had something to do in all stages of production. Next time i would like to be a camera opperator because i liked being in the studio and its a role i have always wanted to try.
 
                                      
 


Tuesday, 24 January 2012

LO2 music video- style conventions and techniquies

 BTEC Extended Diploma in Creative Media  
Unit 29: Music video Production- LO2
Unit 3: Research Techniques- LO2
Music Video - Styles, Conventions and Techniques  


 I am going to look a range of different music videos and artists including 30 seconds to mars, Eminem featuring Rihanna and The Foo Fighters. All these videos use different technical techniques to promote there song to there audience, such as filming the video in front of a live audience, having a narrative to the video and pastiche.

Daft Punk- Digital Love
This music video is in the style of animation with a narrative, therefore the story has start, middle and end. At the beginning of the video it shows the audience straight away, where they got their inspiration from, which was the Japanese artist Manga. Daft Punk have done a homage to Manga and the popular television battle of the planets. 







Eminem ft Rihanna- Love the way you lie 
This music video has a narrative style similar to the Daft Punk video. Through out video it changes between the two artists performing, mainly using close up shots to capture the expressions on their faces, this helps the audience connect with the song because they look more convincing; as well as showing the domestic story. To make this music video more successful they have used Megan Fox who stared in blockbusters such as Transformers and Dominic Monaghan who was a regular in the television series Lost. 


 Oasis- Let there be love 
Let there be love is in the style of a live performance due to the fact it was filmed at one of Oasis' concerts. Through out the video the camera uses mostly wide shots to capture to expressions of the audience. Mise en scene

Foo Fighters- Walk
This music video is a pastiche of the popular 1993 film Falling Down. The lead singer mimics the main character especially in the first scene.










 Weird Al- Eat It
 Weird Al- Eat It is a parody of Michael Jackson's hit song Beat it in 1983. This song is a funny take on the song, they use the same backing track however his has changed all the food to relating to food. This isn't a easy task to complete and make it successful. 






 Kanye West- Gold digger
 Kanye West uses the theme of sex to promote this song, this is a very effective. The main techniques he had used in this video is the green screen, he is also wearing all white therefore when hes against the brightly coloured backgrounds he stands out.






 30 seconds to mars- The Kill
This video is referencing to the 1980's horror film 'The Shining' its set in a old haunted house, 30 seconds to mars have set their video like the film by using some important scenes, in the film for example when the lead singer gets haunted my a ghost. However they are parts in the music video when they're performing.














Radiohead- Streetspirit This is a very creative video which does really make that much sense, therefore the audience are made to watch very closely to try and understand what is happening. The black and white theme is significant because it gives the video depth. They are a lot of special effects such as slow motion which then mirrors the music. This video is also similar to Madonnas frozen music video they are both creatively done. when the lead singer is singing his solo parts, the camera does a extreme close up of his face, as well as using the cross dissolving effect.

 The Lonely Island- I'm on a Boat
 This music video uses humor, by mocking other artists who show off the fact they have a lot of music by filming their music videos on a boat. The technical term for this is called interpretive. Also the lyrics in the songs are funny therefore, the artists can stick with the theme.






 

The Beastie Boys- Sabotage
This video has a narrative in the style of 70's police films.




Thursday, 19 January 2012

Synergy in Media
In the media industry, synergy is when to products can work together it comes from a Greek word meaning working together for example when a film soundtrack and video game. The popular film Terminator 2 teamed up with the Guns and Roses 'You Could Be Mine' therefore making a video to promote to movie and the band, this became the soundtrack to movie. Another example of this technique is Destiny's child song 'Independent women' and Charles Angels  came together this promote the film/song in 2000.


















Producers Strategies

Producers Strategies
Major record like Island Def Jam  sign artists which they believe will be a good investment therefore make there company a lot of money.  They have signed people such as; Mariah Carey, Justin Bieber, Kanye West Jlo and Bon Jovi. All of theses people are mainstream artists, they reach a large audience.


Small Independant labels on the other hand market to a smaller audience, becuase of there restricments. They promote themselves on Youtube, MySpace and Facebook. Theses are good ways to get the public talking about your music. Due to the fact its free therefore more people will see it. some of the songs maybe on itunes as well. The band/record company post videos of there songs on their websites however this promotion technique is not always that effective because you have to do research to find theses bands. An example of a small record label is 'Boy Better Know' they were established by Jamie Adenuga. The genre is rap/grime, therefore have a niche audience. There target audience iis mostly boys but also girls aged 16-25. 
They produce low budget videos for example ' Too Many Men'

Artists who self produce has no budget to promote themselves therefore often use free services like Facebook, Youtube and MySpace. Most of them don't have a lot of money due to to the face they have not got a record company, in addition post videos on the popular site BandCamp. The videos will they post will be homemade with low tec equipment and cameras. On this website they can either post just recordings of just their voice or music videos. An example of an artist who uses BandCamp is Soul Khan, one of his songs  hold on has over 30,000 views on YouTube. On the other had this technique may not be effective because you have to search and find out more about the artist yourself, when using this when using the site. However it depends on what you would like to achieve from making your music, if its just a hobby just would useful. 


Tuesday, 17 January 2012

LO1 - Understand the purposes of music videos

Music videos began in 1975 when Queen released there song Bohemian Rhapsody, which then when on to get a number one in 1976. They decided to make a music video so they could promote themselves to a wide range of people on television, when they couldn't make a performance of a show like 'Top Of The Pops'.  There video showed them miming their song as if it was a live performance.  Before artist/bands created music videos they would promote themselves by doing live performances, getting there songs played on popular radio stations, interviews, and posters.





Now a days we can watch music videos by using many different sources such as; MTV, YouTube, DVD, ITunes, FaceBook and MySpace. Many artists use all of these techniques therefore reach as many people as they can. MTV is of the most popular music channels in the world, because they tell the public about the newest music. The first ever music video played on MTV was 'killed the radio star' by the Buggles on the 1st August 1981. We have more music channels where we can watch video, such as Viva, 4music, Q and magic. The main reason artists have their music videos played on channels like MTV, is for promotion.  The outcome for MTV is that they get their money from advertising, most of the music on MTV is mainstream  also you have to prescribe to get the channel on your television box. 



 The difference between with mtv and you tube is as that he audience chose what we want to watch. The purpose of putting in on YouTube to get views and promote yourself with or without a record deal, the audience decide. Vevo similar but is for professional musicians. YouTube’s competitors are also Google  The outcome of putting a video on YouTube is you can become popular and well known, For example like Justin Bieber. It’s free however the sound quality isn’t as good.


 
The main reason musicians’ use dvd is to promote themselves and Sell their work.
It was round before YouTube, but now a day’s people use the computer to send files.  It’s another way of disruption; people go to the shop and buy it. There is profit for both the artist and the record company on the dvd. They have to go on lorries and self-etc.

FaceBook is basic self-promotion, it’s independent. You can advertise on people’s pages, this makes a wider audience for yourself or your company, however this does cost money. In addition it’s a very good market research technique, because people who like your page you then can see their basic information. It doesn’t say that they do this- only male or female and age no personal details. It links to friends etc. by sending on links this is called the snowball effect.

My space is very  similar to FaceBook promotions likes, viral marketing again, self-promotion it’s a wider audience.Bands can put details about themselves on loads of different social networks you can put information on when you’re playing gigs etc.