1. Marvin Gaye
By: Greta Malec

2. It was difficult for Gaye to maintain a life of a normal child whilst being repeatedly beaten by his father due to his sins. In his interview with the author David Ritz, he admitted that by the time he was twelve, there wasn’t an inch on his body which hasn’t been bruised by his father. Finding his peace in music, he mastered his piano and drums skills, along with singing in his fathers church. Gaye also expressed his strong love for his mother, who was always very supportive of him. He explained that if it wasn’t for her, he would have been “one of those suicidal kids you read about in the papers”
Having a three-octave vocal range allowed Gaye to experiment with his voice. His influences included Levi Stubbs of “ The Four Tops”, which led him into producing songs which had a much grittier sound, including “ Heard it through the grapevine”
Early Life
02/04/1939: Washington DC- 01/04/1984: LA, California

3. Musical Styles: Funk Psychedelic Soul Pop Blues
Motown music gradually became the heart and soul of America, as it bought together a racially divided society. Barry Gordy -the founder of “Motown Records Cooperation”- founded his company with a loan he got from his parents.
Roots of his music
What is Psychedelic Soul?
Psychedelic music covers a range of 1960s music genres, which were considered as popular by the Psychedelic culture. It emerged during mid 1960s, along with folk rock and blues rock
Musical Styles:
Funk
Psychedelic Soul
Pop
Blues
The Psychedelic culture, were known for taking drugs such as LSD and DMT to gain a hallucinogenic experience.

4. Ideologies, Philosophies and Messages
The hit album “What’s Going On” was a reflection of Gaye’s spiritual anger, regarding the state in which soldiers were sent to war.
Suffering from depression from a young age, Gaye kept most feelings inside, and as a result he suffered from a cocaine addiction
Ideologies, Philosophies and Messages
After a failed marriage with his second wife, Jan, he sank even deeper into his depression, and his actions caused his father to kill him
“What’s Going On”
1965 was the year in which the Voting Rights for black people were passed. It was therefore believed that they would be willing to go to war , however this was everything that Martin Luther King was against. Gaye was inspired by him and even used a quote from his speech in his song.

5. Marvin Gaye- “The Prince of Soul”
Gaye epitomized Motown style; leather coats, open shirts and raw edged T-shirts. Everything was accessorized with a signature beanie which he always wore
Visual Presence
Marvin Gaye- “The Prince of Soul”
His dignified style allowed him to reach the top of the charts, as once he became an established figure in the industry, his careless, yet funky style was copied by many in the 1970s. However, when first taking media by the storm, he made sure to dress in a sophisticated, well-tailored suit to present himself as professionally as possible.

6. P2.
Narrator
From a young age, Gaye's father (Marvin Gay Sr) influenced his son to sing in church choirs, however, from the very start of his Motown career, Marvin Gaye looked for insight in fellow label mates, such as "David Ruffin" of "The Temptations" and Levi Stubbs of "The Four Tops". Their experimentation with voices and vocal ranges inspired Marvin into producing a similar grittier sound songs, such as "I heard it through the grapevine". His main musical influences however, included Ray Charles, Smokey Robinson and Sam Cooke. Gaye was particularly impressed and keen to reach the vocal styles of Nat "King" Cole and Billy Eckstein.
The documentary will begin with a short intro, summarising Gaye’s life
Paragraph five will sum up the theme, leading the documentary to it’s final part- the final days of Marvin Gaye
P5.
It was clear that Gaye's depression struck again, when his anger was triggered after hearing the stories his brother came back with. In 1977, Gaye got married once again, this time to a woman who was his fan, but also who was seventeen years younger than him. Jan Gaye. In 2015 Jan released a book titled "My Life with Marvin Gaye" in which she wrote about the horror she went through, and how she watched Gaye's obsession with sex, prostitutes and drugs slowly led him into a deeper depression. She expressed that when Gaye parted from Motown records more and more often, he was deep into his paranoia. He was sure someone was trying to kill him, and in his thoughts, he wanted to maintain their isolation. At one point he attempted to kill both him and Jan, when he took a kitchen knife and threated her. Jan stated, "His eyes turned red with hatred. I was filled with fear...he took a kitchen knife and put it to my throat". His depression took over, he begged to be provoked so that he could take away both of their lives as the strength of his love towards Jan was "killing" him.
P1.
Narrator
Marvin Gaye: music icon, style icon, sex icon. Born in 1939 in Washington DC began his musical career at a young age of four, as he sang in his fathers church and mastered his skills in piano and drums. Marvin Gaye began his career as a Motown artist, however his three-octave vocal range allowed him to experiment with genres such as Psychedelic Soul, Pop, Funk and Blues. In 1969, Gaye played David Owens in a movie called "The Ballard of Andy Crocker" which was about a war veteran returning, only to find that his expectations haven't been met; he feels betrayed. Soon after, he starred in a Lee Frost directed movie, "Chrome and Hot Leather", and played one of the veterans. The movie itself was about a group of veterans taking on a bike gang. It was an interesting yet a dark period for Gaye, as the hit "What's Going On" was released in 1971, which was the same year that he took on the role in "Chrome and Hot Leather"
In the final part of the documentary, the narrator will describe Gaye’s final years, followed by his death
The narrator will then begin talking about artists who inspired Gaye and influenced him to pursue his music style
P6.
Soon after that night, Jan moved out of their LA home with their two children. At this point Gaye's addiction to cocaine was out of hand. After their divorce, Gaye moved to Hawaii, where he organized to kidnap his son. Filled with misery over the shambles in his life, Gaye attempted to take away his life once again, this time by consuming more than gram of pure cocaine. In 1981 he moved to Europe, where he released one of his top albums "Midnight Love" which included the hit "Sexual Healing". Still battling his cocaine addiction, Gaye was forced to move back in with his parents where he got into a heated argument with his father, which caused him to kill Gaye. Marvin Gay Sr admitted to killing his son by shooting him in the chest three times. On the 10th of October 1998, Marvin Gay Sr died of Pneumonia.
Script
Paragraphs three and four introduce and talk about the main theme (in this case, Gaye’s depression.)
P3&P4.
But who really was Marvin Gaye?, A loving father?, A caring husband? What message was he trying to send his fans through his lyrics?
1970s ushered a dark period for Gaye. Hearing the stories his brother came back with from Vietnam regarding the horrible ways in which soldiers at war were treated, inspired him to write one of his most successful albums "What's Going On" which bought Gaye's spiritual beliefs out regarding issues ranging from poverty and discrimination to political corruption. Gaye structured many of his lyrics around his brother's point of view. During the Vietnam War, the media played a significant role, as they managed to uncover many stories regarding the soldiers who were sent to war high on drugs.
It was no secret that Gaye's mental stability has been battered from a young age. His father was a reverent at a church, and therefore his strong religious beliefs regarding the rules a true Christian should obey, led him into physically and mentally abusing his son. Gaye was regularly beaten for his "sins" which also drove him away from Christianity. It was also stated by his sister, that their father took his anger out mostly on Marvin, as he was the only one to always disobey the rules. When explaining the history of the abuse he went through to an author, Gaye admitted that by the time he was twelve, there wasn't an inch on his body, which wasn't beaten or bruised by his father.

7. Treatment Feasibility Synopsis Rationale
As this is a video-based project, I will be using Adobe Premiere, and Adobe After Effects. Any archives used, will be collected from the internet and books, especially because I'll be using my own research. In addition to the pictures and the sections from certain concerts I'll be getting of YouTube, I'll also use interviews-my main aim is to find an interview with Gaye's sister, in which she stated that everyone knew about the problem Gaye's father had with him.
Due to the fact that any information and visuals will be collected of the internet, neither filming nor equipment will be needed, and therefore this project isn't too ambitious or expensive. In addition to this, with over six months of practise we have had using Adobe Premiere, there should be a low amount of technical/editorial issues, and the standard is bound to be high.
Synopsis
"Life behind the stage lights". A three-minute documentary aimed to uncover the depression battles Gaye fought in everyday life.
The documentary will begin with a ten second shot from one of Marvin's last concerts, in which he performed a song from his hit album "What's Going On", he states..."What is it about music we make that makes it the music of yesterday, today and forever". As he carries on by playing the piano, the concert will slowly lower in sound and the narration will begin. The following shots will consist of photos, in which Gaye was still a child. Due to the topic of this documentary, most of the background music of the whole production will be a collection of songs from Marvin Gaye's hit album "What's Going On. The narrator will then begin talking about the artists whom Gaye followed and as this happens, the next ten second shot will be a video from one of Gaye's concerts, in which he performed "Heard it through the grapevine". As the narrator states "But who really was Marvin Gaye?" the song "What's Going On" will come on, and photographs of him and his brother will come up. Throughout the whole documentary, I will aim to show the positive sides of Gaye, and show the love his fans had for him, therefore I’ll aim to include as many video sections as possible. As the documentary begins unravelling Gaye’s deeper secrets, I’ll include photographs from his previous marriages, I would like to create a timeline of how drugs and depression changed him. As the documentary leads to the end, and the narrator is starting to talk about Gaye moving in back with his parents, the voice-over will be accompanied Gaye’s piano track.
Treatment
Rationale
As mentioned before, the aim of this documentary is to allow people to comprehend how much strength Gaye had in him, despite the fact he was publically shamed. In 2015, Gaye's ex-wife: Jan Gaye- released a book titled "My life with Marvin Gaye" which put many of his fans in uncomfortable positions, as they didn't know what to believe. "Life behind the stage lights" will explain Gaye's attitude towards one of his most successful albums "What's Going On", as well as talk about what soldiers went through during the Vietnam War.
I decided to add sections from a selection on concerts, to show who Gaye was as a performer and convey the kind of effect he had on his audience. I feel that it will succeed, as I have made sure that the information will be well delivered by the narrator, and it will fit within the time frame given- this will automatically link to having great editorial skills. Looking back at the synopsis, I decided to use both voice over and background music, which will be edited to fit in-between the interviews, photographs and concerts. Furthermore, the documentary is based Gaye's depression; his ways of approaching and dealing with it, ergo, it will give people a clearer understanding of the life some celebrities lead, and prove that fame doesn't always mean happiness.