Unit 29: Music Video Production

Pre-Production Booklet for Music Video

Name: Emily Manning

Order of contents (italics show areas you must add in yourself)

Song

Lyrics

Meaning of the song

Storyboard

Script

Mood board

Props list

Locations

Shooting schedule

Call sheet

Risk assessment

Clearances

Rules for your production

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.

1.
2.
3.
-

Your potential track must conform to the following

criteria:
It must provide opportunities for original and creative work
It must have a clearly definable target audience
It must be generically identifiable i.e as clearly belonging
to a particular genre/sub/genre
it must be of digital quality and in an appropriate format
for capturing to Adobe Premiere Pro CS5
The track must have been missed and recorded to a high
standard, including if using an independent artist (e.g. local
band)
You need to be able to prove you have checked ownership
and have sought permission to use the track.
Your choices will need to:
Be filtered out by your teacher if unsuitable (please
anticipate the likely 'secondary' audience at Henley (parents,
younger children, principle etc)
Inspire the group to make a creative, original music video
that uses and/or challenges conventions
Be suitable for broadcast on mainstream music television
so
No swearing
No sexually aggressive language/imagery
Avoid drug related lyrics/imagery

Song

Song title

Talk Show Host

Artist
Radiohead

Genre
Alternative Rock

What are the conventions of music videos from this genre?

Rock music videos generally follow a clear narrative, and includes the band performing the
song, which shows lots of different angles and shot types. They consists of dark colours like
black and red these colours are also shown through their clothing to portray anger, love,
etc.

How are you going to meet these conventions in your video?

Style (in-concert and as live footage; animation (stop motion, digital); interpretative; narrative;
impressionist; surrealist; pastiche; parody; referencing; homage)

My music video will be narrative, having a simple and easy to follow story line allows me to fit
into the conventions of a rock music video. Also, my story line is interpretative to the
audience, because you dont find out why the couple are arguing, you are not shown how the
argument begins and this is left up to the audience to decide.
My music video follows a pastiche convention which means my idea has been taken from
another music video which I like but has been adapted. The music video for Breezeblocks
by Alt-J. In this video there is also a couple fighting in reverse and slow motion and this is
their main concept of my video. Although my lighting, song genre and certain elements of my
story line have been adapted to allow it to fit into the song more. For example, my video

starts in forward motion with lip syncing and ends in forward motion after fast forwarding
through everything that's happened to get to where they were at the start of the video, which
Breezeblocks dose not. Also, you don't see why they are fighting and no one dies or gets
seriously hurt.

Costume
I have decided to keep my costumes simplistic to keep in with the realistic nature of my story
line and to allow the characters to be relatable as well as ordinary. The male character will
wear black jeans, a white shirt, and shoes. This can lead to interpretations that he has just
gotten home for a stressful day at work which once again, adds to how ordinary I am trying
to get the characters to look. The female will be wearing a black, casual swing dress and
slippers to show that she's been at home all day working. Which we can tell when in the
middle of the video she pushes lots of documents off the table that she could have been
working on. I decided to have them wearing dark / colourless clothes to add to the mood of
the video. If they were wearing bright and bold things, it could make the video come across
as happy to start with, this is not what I'm trying to portray, and would not fit into the genre
and conventions of rock music.

Lighting
I am going to use natural lighting. Using harsh, artificial lights will brighten up the mood and
this will not look effective. When using artificial lighting indoors it can sometimes come
across as too dark. Although, I can work with this as this is effective for the mood of my video
and the conventions of rock music videos. I don't want the subjects faces to stand out either
so this will work well.

Locations
I am shooting my music video in my house, using my living room, hallway and kitchen. I have
chosen to shoot inside because I think it will work well with the story line. The Arctic Monkeys
are signed to a major record label. So therefore do have a higher budget than more
independent artists. Therefore I will need to try and show this through my video even tho this
is not possible. But I feel like filming in a house could show more of a higher budget in
comparison to filming outdoors in a public area.

Shot types
My video will consist of mostly tracking shots through the middle of the song, I am going to
use two cameras to film the whole thing from different perspectives. This is so I can cut to

different angles if needed to. This will also be useful because a lot of my shots are not
staged, as in I will tell them both to fight, but not exactly how to do so. This means that
sometimes, some parts will not look as good as others. So I have to cameras, it's easier to
work with one take if I need to.
My video will not just consist of tracking / long clips. At the start of my video there is an
instrumental and during his part of the video I am going to have lots of short clips of parts of
the room and the characters. These will be short close ups that will all be cut to the beat of
the song.

Research
What music videos have you watched to research your genre?
The music videos I have research for the rock genre is Royal Blood Ten Tonne Skeleton
which features the band performing the song outdoors, and it cuts to other shots which tell
a story. Also, Use Somebody by Kings of Leon, which is a montage of the band performing
their song live, and them hanging out with friends.

How have these videos influenced the decisions made? Include screen shots of the key
influences

The kings of Leon music video has influenced me in various ways. For example at the start
of the video Caleb is lip syncing to the first verse. This has been shot as an extreme close
up, so the cameras so close that his full face isn't in shot. The lead singer moves around
slowly, you start to only see he's eyes, and then moves up so you can see his lips. Then he
moves back so most of his face is framed in shot. I think this is really effective, other lip
syncing elements of music videos Is of the camera and subject completely still and normally
just a close up of mid shot. I am going to try and include this in the start of my music video,
also during the first verse.

Additionally, There is slow motions parts of the video and I like how these have been shot.
Although majority of my video is in reverse, the first verse and outro is in forward motion. I
like how they have edited it only subtly slower in comparison to other videos I've seen
where it's so slow that it doesn't look over effective. So for these parts of my video I am only
going to slow it down a little bit.
The Catfish and the Bottlemen music video only consists of the band performing their song
in an empty white room. Although this isn't really an original concept, they have used red,
dark lighting. What I can use as influence for my music video is the different shots used.
Although the band members stay relatively still, the video shows long shots, close ups, and
mid shots, as well as filming from different angles. In my video I can try and show a variety
of shots like they have done in this video.

Lyrics
I want to, I want to be someone else or I'll explode
Floating upon the surface for
The birds, the birds, the birds
You want me, well f****** well come and find me
I'll be waiting with a gun and a pack of sandwiches
And nothing, nothing, nothing, nothing
You want me, well, come on and break the door down
You want me, f****** come on and break the door down
I'm ready, I'm ready, I'm ready, I'm ready, I'm ready...

Meaning of the song

Does the song have a meaning? If so, what is it?

Although it may not be clear, the song is about love as we can tell from it being features in
the movie Romeo and Juliet. The lyrics portray violence between a couple.

How will your visuals relate to the song? (Illustrate, Amplify or Disjuncture)

My music video is going to relate to the lyrics, for example come on and break the door
down

Storyboard

Think carefully about the shots you will be using. Consider the range of shots/angles
to give interest and perspective

Script

Description of what will happen in your video inc. camera

movements, angles etc

Mood board

Props List
What props / models / furniture etc will you need to make your music video?

Production Name:
Producer:

Item

Script page

Description

Character/location

Notes

X6

Page two

Used to throw a

Charlotte / kitchen

0.50 each

photo frame at

Wine glasses

Paper

Page two

Used when
Charlotte pushes
her work off the
table.

X2
Cameras

Charlotte / kitchen

Location recce
Complete the location recce for the final venue.

Shooting Schedule for production:

Week

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesda
y

Filming at
my house

Thursda
y

Friday

Saturday Sunday

Reshootin
g at my
house if
needed

Call Sheet
VIIBE PRODUCTIONS @ The Henley College
Production: 505
Client Information:
Location: Henley-on-Thames

Cast and Crew:

Charlotte Kelly
Faryal Mumtaz
Charlotte Pooley

Role: Phone Number:

Female Actress
Male Actor
Camera Operator

Production Requirements:
To film a music video for the song `Talk
Show Host by Radiohead

Brief:

Other Information:

Risk assessment of venue

Complete risk assessment for the shooting locations
ACTIVITY

Smashing
glass

HAZARD

RISK
H/M/L

Broken glass

High

PRECAUTIONS

Clean it up
as soon as
Ive
finished
filming

IN PLACE

REVIEW
DATE

REVIEWE

Emi

Please leave this section blank:

Risk Assessment checked by: Name ..
. Date

KEY:Activity :Describe the component part of your pursuit.Hazard :

List the
things you anticipate might cause harm or the things associated with your activity
that have the potential to cause harm. Consider the likely harm. Risk: Assess the
risk as either H (High), M (Medium) or L (Low). When concluding your assessment
consider all of the circumstances.
Precautions: Consider what
you could do to minimise / negate the risk.
In Place:
Will the
precautionary measures be in place at the time of the activity?
Review Date:
When would it be reasonable to review your assessment?
Remember it might be whilst you are undertaking the activity.
Reviewer: Name of the person responsible for completing the risk assessment.
A copy of this form should be taken on the activity or visit by the Reviewer.

Clearances
Insert copy of email sent to record label requesting permission for the use of
chosen song

Parlophone Records

Signed

43 Brook Green
London
W6 7EF
England

Dear Sir/Madam

I am writing to ask if I could use the song Talk Show Host by Radiohead for
educational purposes for a music video.

I hope to hear from you soon,

Emily Manning