How did you use media technologies? Evaluation Question 4

Research  The internet played a heavy part in the research aspect of this project, I used Google Docs quite frequently (more specifically the Document aspect of Google Docs) with my cohort as this was the most efficient way of making it accessible to editing from the both of us. I also used the Google Slideshow feature on Google Docs in order to cover the music studio comparison.  I tended to simply use Word Document if I was working independently as it was the most simple and straightforward approach to take.  Sony Vegas was used when it came to creating the recreation of the Equinox music video.

Planning  As with the research, using the Document aspect of Google Docs and Word Document seemed to be the logical choice in most instances. However, when it came to the storyboard, which was drawn by hand, we animated it using Sony Vegas. We attempted to make it animated and fluid, opposed to just having the pictures be shown in a straightforward sequence. The background music used for the storyboard was selected as it was upbeat, simple and didn’t contain any lyrics.  Planning the music video was the first real challenge in terms of creativity since it was difficult to think of a narrative that would be effective while in the format of a music video. There were several original ideas for the music video (that shared the premise with the final choice) that weren’t satisfying.  In the end, a few of the design decisions that weren’t used in the final product were in the storyboard animatic anyway as we hadn’t finalised our ideas at that point.

Planning (continued)  When it came to the more intricate planning of our music video, there were many things that didn’t apply to my production. These included ing anybody for permission to use land, a shooting schedule (as it was basically completed in two days) or a document that linked the lyrics to our video (as we used a song without lyrics).  The song that was selected for our video was chosen because of its lack of lyrics and its very prominent beat. The lack of lyrics was a creative advantage to us because it would have been a struggle to find a song with lyrics that held any relation to our visuals, it was also a concern that a song with obviously relevant lyrics may detract from the ambiguity of the narrative.

Construction (Production Log)  The first thing created as a part of the construction was the Production Log, this was created on Google Docs yet again so that both me and my partner could add anything of our own editing experiences that we felt should be on there. This extended over multiple weeks as the editing process itself was rather long winded. Since we managed to complete the majority of filming in one day (October 11 th 2014), we each managed to complete a large section on the Production Log rather promptly. This Production Log was completed as soon as we had both finished editing our final videos. As the editing process neared the end, I found that it was difficult to write anything noteworthy on there since I was just making minor changes to the video.

Construction (Filming and Editing)  To film we used a Canon 600D and a Hama Star 75 Tripod. While filming the main storyline, we filmed in black and white which proved to be a questionable decision as the feedback on this particular aspect of the video was very mixed. In hindsight, we should have just filmed in Tungsten (as we did the flashback segments) and then changed it to black and white in editing if we felt that it was still necessary. However, I personally feel as though this particular filter is effective as it sets a certain tone and distinguishes itself from the flashbacks.  All of the editing was done on Sony Vegas, by this point I was comfortable with how Vegas worked and so I was pretty content with how the video turned out, I made it my priority to make the visuals match the beat of the song as much as possible.

Construction (Issues when filming)  When we created the storyboard, we had already thought of the location we would use to film the final music video and so planned accordingly. However, we failed to fully consider the execution of some shots. For example, the protagonist’s fall down the hill was something that seemed so simple in concept but actually filming it proved slightly problematic as it was difficult to convey it in an authentic or believable fashion. As a result, the video kind of omits the actual impact and cause of the head wound which is something that I feel could have improved it slightly.  Another problem is that we ended up changing the ending from the original storyboard as we felt it originally lacked direction. Although we knew where we wanted it to go, there was some confusion as to how to definitively end it.

Construction (Posters and Digipak)  All of the posters were created on Adobe Illustrator. There were roughly 10 posters overall, with some of the posters being created exclusively by me, some created solely by the person I was working with and some being a combined effort. Selecting one single poster to be used as the true, final poster was difficult as the original concept was always a favourite in the group but not always held as the definitive ‘best’ of the bunch.  The digipak first draft was incredibly effective in my perspective as it really maintained the minimalist, simple idea that I felt was the driving force behind our entire product design. There were two variations, one was on a white background and one was with a black background. These were also created on Adobe Illustrator.

Evaluation (The Four Questions)  I used a different form of media in order to answer each of the four evaluation questions. This, being the fourth question, is obviously utilising PowerPoint. The reasoning behind this is that it is the best way to have clearly distinct sections while also having the capacity for a large amount of text.  The first question made use of Celtx and Google Docs in order to create and share the script respectively.  The second questions asks about the effectiveness of the combination of my main product with my ancillary products. For this, I planned to film a focus group talking about their thoughts on my products as a whole and how well they do (or don’t) link together.  The third question focuses on the feedback that I received for my products, this question will take the form of a podcast where I talk about the results of my survey. I also discuss what I would take away from this feedback and what I would change if I were to make this video again as well as the aspects that I am proud of.

Evaluation (Feedback)  In order to gather feedback on my products, I used Survey Monkey to create a questionnaire. I then sent an to the entire school year and included the link to this questionnaire as well as the link to my blog which contained all of the products, including my final video.  This feedback would be used for the third evaluation question which was purely focused on the feedback. I feel as though the variety of answers and responses to our music video was very beneficial to the evaluation as it allowed us to make a number of observations and think of many improvements that we could have made.