Researching how record labels control artists - Arman

Record labels have the power to end an artists career depending on how much money they decide to invest in the artist, or if they even want to continue to invest in them, they can ruin their career in an instant.

I've found these facts on new millennium realities:

"Throughout the 20th century, record labels were the dominant force behind the most successful artists.

Record labels had the power to make or break artists, depending on the amount of money they invested in promoting their music. The Internet has freed artists from dependence on record labels, and through social media, many artists market and distribute their music independently at a much lower cost. To stay in business given the reality of the digital age, record labels now offer so-called "360 deals" to artists that give them a cut of all the artist's work, including album sales, media appearances and product endorsements."

This shows that todays artists have to rely more on social media and the internet to distribute their own work rather than label's which could potentially backfire at them and ruin their careers at any given moment, so to secure themselves a future they use youtube, facebook and twitter to distribute their works and gain revenue through the sites through deals.

Website - Samit

independentmusicnewslondon.weebly.com

Today I started to create our website for the other portion of our grade. Even though the website is in early stages of production, it is coming along well.

Samit

Shooting Schedule - Rye

This is a schedule of all the shooting that needs to be done over the next few weeks.

Arian progress on opening news title - Arman

Today I worked on the opening titles, with and without sound, I used Adobe Premiere Elements for this project in order to create the text and the musical background and create some cool visual effects in order to appeal aesthetically pleasing to the audience.  I used a part of the soundtrack Endless by Kavinsky for the opening.

The first clip is without any sound and one with sound to see how impactful it would be.

Arian progress on opening news title - Arman

Today I worked on the opening titles, with and without sound, I used Adobe Premiere Elements for this project in order to create the text and the musical background and create some cool visual effects in order to appeal aesthetically pleasing to the audience.  I used a part of the soundtrack Endless by Kavinsky for the opening.

Logo 2.0 - Samit

After consulting with my group, I set out to create a more simple but effective logo. Even though I prefer the original logo as it suits our target audience more then this logo as this logo is a picture of a vinyl record. However, this is more simplistic and effective than our previous logo.

Samit

Logo Research: The Art of Logo Design - Seyi

It came to our attention today, that our logo is not suitable in the sense that it is not replicable, and the use of black in our logo may not be seen in the corners of our frames. So, we decided to go back to the drawing board, starting off with research and more planning.

Today we watched this video off YouTube in order to learn how to create a better logo:

 

From this, we learned:

• Now logos look more modern, assisted by simplicity. Complex designs connote status of aristocracy and Victorian era
• A good logo should be well recognisable in order to satisfy brand identity. This can be done by making it simple and so it can be used everywhere and still look the same.
• Logos should have an interesting interruption in order to look more appealing to the eye, nothing too complex, but as simple as the red strikes through the NASA logo
• The colour scheme should be able to fit every situation its in and match all backgrounds and frames. This is why it advisable to play with transparency of the logo, in order to have the logo blend in with every frame.
• A logo should be timeless. it should not be affected by the changes of time or fashion, even if the font originates from something old, it can still be made contemporary, such as the Metallica Logo. There are some fonts which instantly put people off, such as Curlz. It was cute when we were younger, but when you are older it just becomes annoying and childish.

Logo Changes - Rye

It has come to my attention that our logo design may be too complex to be recognisable when scaled down to a smaller size. For example the details on the face will merge together when it is shrunk down and put into the corner of the screen when our newscast is being presented. I decided to watch a video discussing the infinite complexities when it comes down to designing a logo. I realised that our logo needs to be simple and easily recognisable by all whilst the design remains timeless for example the Coca Cola logo.

We can take off the face leaving a plain white and change the colour scheme as the black will blend in with the background quite easily leaving only a face with no headphones or visible beats.

First draft of 3 column script - Arman

Today I decided to finish off our 3 Column Script which will be modified at a later date.  We are still deciding on what we need to have on our script for the reporter to say when we have our opening and conduct the interview.

Spinning Globe After Effects - Rye

This the spinning globe that I made using After Effects, I still need to add other effects to it before it is finalised.

3 column script- Arman

Today I decided to work on the 3 column script which still hasn't been finished but is almost done, obviously there are some bits and pieces we need to change, however we will alter it on a alter date.

Music for cutaways - Rye

This is some sample music for our cutaways that will be featured just after our presenter has introduced the audience and the topic of discussion. I used garageband to create the piece of music and made the piece sad using acoustic guitars and layering as to reflect how the music industry is dying due to the impact that music piracy is having on new musicians in the industry. This will help my group when filming as we will have the tone of what the images should be showing the audience and so we will know what to look out for. 

Voiceover of Opening piece - Rye

This is a quick voiceover explaining what each section of my opening sequence contains and what the actual opening sequence will have within it. The draft playing in the background gives a rough visual image to help viewers understand what the actual piece will look like whilst the voiceover describes any additional features that will be include for the real piece. 

Filming Venues Research - Seyi

Today, I carried out research in order to find venues suitable for filming.

The criteria in which I used to find these places included: the lighting of the venue, the people within the area, distance, the risk attached to being in that area, and the scenery and activities available.

As a group, we decided to find areas which had many young people around or queuing up in the area, preferably gigs, since that is what our news package is based on. However, most gigs are done at night, and we cannot film under low lighting, as that is not a convention of news packages because it lowers the quality.

I had found these 8 venues:
1. Roundhouse Radio: Young Creatives
2. Young Vic
3. Rough Trade
4. Dalston Roof Park
5. Shoreditch
6. Camden Lock/Market
7. Outside any Mcdonalds
8. At school

I think Rough Trade, is a good venue as it works in favour of what we are going to report about - "The legendary Rough Trade record label has a full programme of in-store performances, events and signings at both Rough Trade East and Rough Trade West, giving music fans a chance to meet some of the most exciting up-and-coming bands."
Shoreditch is also a very good place to catch scenery which matches our newspackage. Assisted by graffiti, it provides a colourful and youthful appearance, which would be good for the short frames which would be shown during the delivery of the news. Camden Lock is also a very colourful place, is very crowded, and commonly visited by young people.

Lastly, the conventional places to find any young person, outside any McDonald's or at school. McDonald's is a popular hangout for young people, even though it is just a fast food restaurant, there are usually loads of young people inside or outside of  it. 

Some of the places I had mentioned, such as Rough Trade, must be filmed at night to achieve the best results for population. If we want to film under high key lighting, I think it would be more suitable to stage the scene.

Primary Research: Target Audience Member Profiles & interviews - Seyi

Christopher Williams

Age: 19

Gender: Male

Occupation: DJ
Interests: - disk jockeying and sound manipulation,
-Wild n Out (TV program)
- Listening to music

Christopher Williams is a suitable member of our target audience because he is a young male and likes discovering underground artists and music is the main part of his occupation.
Where do you get most of your news from?
Snapchat, because it provides different sites to where you can get your news from which all have different themes which do not appeal to everyone, but some appeal to me. I subscribe to MTV on Snapchat.
Why do you like MTV's snapchat?
I like it because I have always been one to watch MTV for the information on music, even on TV, so when  I found out it was on Snapchat, I said 'oh, an easier way to access my news.' I like the busy layout and design of their Snaps and even the short few seconds of colourful animation and a great beat behind it. 
What don't you like about MTV?
I don't like the fact that they are more about the celebrity, rather than the music. For example: I hate seeing news on the Kardashians on MTV, because they have nothing to do with music. MTV used to be solely about the music, but now it's more about the person making the music.
What kind of music do you listen to?
Considering my profession, I listen to everything, but I personally, I like bashment, and r&b. 
Do you listen to underground artists?
Yes, a lot actually. Many times when I'm working a set, I'm often given tracks from random people who want to be discovered. I also work alongside many underground artists when they performing their set. I also use my SoundCloud to discover new sounds which would be good to play when I'm working.
How would you describe your ideal news channel?
Loads of colour. Loads of music involved, during or somewhere in between the delivering of news. Fresh ideas and conversations on real issues in the industry. I also like discussion tables, where people express their views on controversial topics, its really informative and interesting to watch. Also, because music is a fun thing to talk about, I love it when there are a few jokes here and there, with the use of camera and sound. Like, when someone cracks a bad joke and there is a pathetic sound of drums and symbols, or when something is awkward and the camera zooms into someone's face really close to see their clueless expression.

Jacob Scales

Age: 16

Gender: Male

Occupation: Student
Interests: Rugby, Football, WWE, Fifa, Music, Memes

Jacob scales is a suitable member of our target audience because he is a young male and likes music on a whole as he finds it is a good way to bond with his friends.
Where do you get most of your news from?
I don't really like the news, but I do watch Sky news sometimes when they talk about things which affect me and they deliver news about everything, which would appeal to everyone. Most of the time I read Complex magazine or go on their website.
Why do you like Complex?
I like it because they have news on everything, even though they specify on music, they have articles on things like the US elections, basketball, etc. It is from Complex that I get to know when albums drop as well. I also like Complex because of their quite artistic. Their cover art for every magazine they release is legendary, Khole Kardashian's cover being my favourite. Their backdrop when they deliver the news is also quite nice as they keep it colourful, yet simple, so I can concentrate on the reporter, unlike Sky news where the colours are too bright for me to concentrate for long. Lastly, I like their opening sequence art, its simplistic, yet it hits you in the face, so you notice what you are watching.
What don't you like about Complex?
It can get a bit boring because I feel like I'm just watching someone talk and looking at photos. I also don't like how they are not international enough, I never really see music from the UK there, although I do get surprised when I see Section Boyz on it.
What kind of music do you listen to?
I listen to grime, rap, and pop music.
Do you listen to underground artists?
Yes, all off my soundcloud. I think the best music comes from underground artists because it isn't anything you hear everyday. I like how I can introduce songs to my friends and they haven't heard it off of MTV already. I find it really hard to find music from them though because as the name illustrates 'underground.'
How would you describe your ideal news channel?
Colourful, brings up news that the media won't normally recognise, fun, special guests and really cool animations.

Toni Braithwaite

Age: 23

Gender: Female

Occupation: Blogger

Interests: Painting, public speaking, drinking wine and conspiracy theories

Where do you get most of your news from?
I read Dazed magazine
Why do you like Dazed Magazine?
I like it because of their in-depth articles on artists and creative images on the cover and within, I also like their website because it gives me information on the people to look out for (both mainstream and niche) and has reminders on music i may have missed within the month. I also like their articles, as they tackle controversial topics and recognize topics people don't really talk about. I also like their 'modernised grunge' theme, and how it is reflected on both the website and magazine.
What don't you like about Dazed Magazine?
The website can get a bit cluttered, and they focus too much on the images.
What kind of music do you listen to?
Anything. Especially, R&B, Jazz and Alternative Rock
Do you listen to underground artists?
Not always, I feel like I cannot access them without going out of my way. However, I do like live music at coffee houses and bars.
How would you describe your ideal news channel?
Organised and I would also like to hear snippets of music

In Depth Explanation of the Logo - Samit

The creation of our logo was using Adobe Photoshop Elements. The basis of the logo started with multiple different music symbols. However, none of them were able to be merged into a decent looking logo. So I decided to cut the symbols up and use fragments of them to create our logo. An example of a fragment of a music symbol that we used was for the eyes of our logo, this was then end part of the music symbol shown below. The rest of the logo we used images that we found off of google images that allowed us to construct the face e.g. the mouth and the blank circle. I decided to add the headphones to give the logo some character, which then allowed me to add the sound waves emitting from the headphones, the sound waves used was also a separate image that I found on google images. Also the individual images used to create the logo are displayed below:

Samit

Problem encountered! -Arman

This morning whilst I decided I would start to widen my knowledge on animation with adobe after effects, I decided to watch a video tutorial on how to make a smoke effect with after effects, however I have encountered a slight technical issue in which I can't download the required file which is blocked by the school in order to use it as a template for our project.  Instead I will be doing a blog task to pass the time until I get home to animate it on my own computer.

Instead, I have decided to go look for some free templates and insert our logo in them to see how it would look like.  So far I have been playing around with a flourish template which brings out bright colour and a smooth finish.

Adobe Premiere Elements - Seyi

Today, I learned how to use Adobe Premiere Elements to edit my videos. I am new to the school, and in my old school used to use Movie Studio Platinum. Learning how to use this software was slightly difficult, considering it's complexity compared to Movie Studio Platinum.

Explained below is how I  used MSP to edit my videos. It is extracted from my blog post at AS Level, Evaluation Question Six:

Evaluation Question 6 Extract: MSP software from SeyiiO

Below is the picture taken when I had first used APE. I learnt the basics during class, while putting together the opening sequence draft. Rye provided the videos of the globe, and I cut and put together long videos I extracted from YouTube.



Using this software, I learned how to trim, fade in, fade out, add music, add more videos, and more of the basic skills used to make a video. I found it very difficult to use, and remember what to do, however, I look forward to leaning more advanced ways of using it.
I used these two videos from two different concerts, from up-coming artists, Byson Tiller and Bibi Bourelly:



I will post more about my progress with APE as I learn how to use it, as for now, everything I do on APE is preliminary.

First animated logo draft- Arman

Today I used adobe after effects to make a draft of what our logo might look like with animations, i had a play around with it and ended up with this, i added some non-diegetic sound effects to make it look/sound more professional.  I used the light sweep effect on the text and a dissolve on the logo to create a cool aesthetic to the design.

Rough draft of Opening Introduction - Rye

This is the rough edit of the opening sequence before the presenter is shown on screen. This to show what our idea will roughly look like.

Website - Samit

Today I started making the website related to what our news package is about (music). I have currently set up the fundamentals of the website allowing for our group to easily edit the website where see fit. The website is currently not published as it is a work in progress. However, it is coming along well.

Samit

Opening Sequence Ideas - Rye and Arman

Firstly, we have a rotating earth that is vibrating to a background beat. The next shot is the camera zooming into London from space as our newscast is going to be 'Independent Music News London' and so we need some reference that our news will be reporting locally for London. We will then have cuts between different musicians, concerts and other gigs all with a soundtrack in the background (preferably a guitar). The ending shot will then be the logo of our newscast with a final strum of the guitar. We plan to make the sequence less than 20 seconds as this will be too dragged out otherwise. Bellow are some footage that we can use for our draft.

Current Projects for the Group 5/10/16 - Rye Arman Samit Seyi

Today, I finished making my music piece for our opening sequence so we now have some music to which we can pace our frames to the beat so that they match. Samit successfully completed the logo on Adobe Photoshop so now we actually have an image that represents our company. Arman used After effects to animate the logo for our opening sequence to allow it to move and present a professional brand for viewers of our channel. Seyi is currently working on getting a rough draft of what our opening sequence is going to look like so we have a pitch ready for our assessor where they can get an idea of what our project is going to be like.

Bellow are links to the logo and music piece which will both be in our opening sequence.

Opening Sequence Music - Rye

This is my music proposition for our opening sequence that will come before our news presenter is shown on screen.

Logo - Samit

After using photoshop I have established this picture as being our logo for our news package. This may not be our final version of the logo. However, this is what we are currently using until further change.

Samit

Opening Sequence Idea - Samit

The idea that I have for our opening sequence consists of both animation and real footage that we collect. The mix between the both will allow our group to achieve the highest mark possible for our news production. The pictures below will be the order in which I envision our opening sequence being portrayed.

The idea which I have is that we start with real footage of a gig which then focuses on to the guitar player. From the guitar we then move to the amplifier which emits sound waves distorting the screen using animation with our logo appearing as the distorted screen fades.

Samit