Taking on board the advice and feedback given to us after submitting the rough cut of our video, we have had several decisions to make regarding changes and improvements to increase the quality of our final product. Firstly, there was a lot of re-shooting to do for the purposes of getting better quality, better framed and in many cases better lit footage. The narrative section which takes place on Newcastle Quayside has been re-captured using Redhead outdoor lights powered by a generator, to increase visibility and make the storyline more easily understandable.
We have also decided to relocate the performance element of the video, also filming the musicians on Newcastle Quayside in order to provide a better link with the narrative and in particular the opening shot. The mise-en-scene and the background add to the glamourous aesthetic and, being filmed on location, is much more professional than the drama studio at school.
Given the change of location we could no longer capture the high-angle shots of the band from above that received positive feedback in the rough cut; however we turned our attention to shoot close-ups and other such angles of each musician individually. We experimented with changing the focus of the camera and filming the instruments from interesting angles, making the performance footage more diverse and interesting to watch.
Also filmed on the Quayside, the opening shot of the video has been changed from a slow zoom and pan of the Tyne river to a slow pull focus of the lights of the Tyne bridge up close, zooming out to reveal the entire Quayside – this overall looked more smooth and professional without a jumpy camera pan, and ends up at the same spot as the performance, providing a link between the two.
In terms of the casino, the feedback suggested it looked unprofessional, and the best solution would be to film inside an actual casino – unfortunately due to age restrictions we were unable to do so after contacting five different casinos in the area, and as they are open twenty-four hours we could not go in when it was closed. Therefore, after much consideration, we decided to make the best of the current location and relocate the performance instead to ensure locations were varied. We added several tables and extras to the background of the shot to allude to a busy casino, and hung different coloured fabrics as a backdrop for the set so it was not dull and obvious that it had been filmed in school. I also created a more realistic looking card table for use in the close-up shots, which helped create the illusion of a casino with the aid of other effects.
Narrative-wise, the feedback frequently suggested that we ought to include more of a happy relationship between the artist and his leading lady at the start of the video, in order to further demonstrate the loss he feels after she leaves him. We initially considered filming some flashbacks of the couple’s relationship in a brand new location such as the beach, however given that we already have three elements to our video (narrative and performance in addition to the casino) we decided this would overcomplicate and disrupt the flow of the video, along with breaking the trend of a glamourous look for our current locations.
Despite re-shooting the majority of footage, the feedback we were given indicated that the footage in Newcastle City centre was good enough to keep, and we felt the lighting and framing was of a high enough quality to re-use in our final cut. This element of the narrative is not being changed and we feel the emotions are captured perfectly, so although it will appear at a different point in the song all the original footage will be maintained.
Equally, we will not re-shoot the card falling sequence, as we all thought the two camera angles we captured were very effective. We also made the decision not to alter “Brandon”’s clothes for this shot, as we feel it shows a transition: in the narrative, he is dressed in purely formal attire, while the performance outfit incorporates elements of this while also showing a more casual side to his personality. In the card falling sequence, he is then dressed entirely casually, as this seems to be the climax of the song both lyrically and in terms of pace; it shows complete anarchy and shedding of his pretences.
We have made the decision to reduce the inclusion of the female character in the red dress against a black backdrop that were featured in the rough cut – this was purely an artistic representation to indicate her constantly being on his mind, however feedback indicated that some viewers found it confusing as they were under the impression it was part of the narrative. These shots in the opening will be replaced with footage from the casino, in order to create the atmosphere as early as possible and make more room for narrative later in the video.
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