Sunday 25 March 2018

13. Closing Post

Dear Examiner,

You will find all my media work to the right under the label 'AS Research and Planning'. Thank you for taking the time to review my work, hope you enjoy.

This blog is now closed. 

Thank you,
Candidate 4139

Friday 23 March 2018

12. My Final Production

Here are my two finished deodorant adverts:

11. Production Review

Production Review: My production and my intended improvements

I asked the media staff to review my adverts before I went out filming for the last time. I worked out what I wanted to ask them beforehand. Below is a summary:

Mrs D: we talked about actors and I decided to use the same actors as my earlier shoot.
Mrs B: she agreed that my editing was a bit 'jumpy' and she encouraged me to look back at earlier classwork on continuity techniques, which I did and re-edited one sequence as a result.
Sam, media tech: I asked him some questions about grading my adverts and also about music.
Focus group: 2 girls aged 16/17, 2 boys aged 17: they liked the pace and style of the adverts and thought the choice of music was good.

Friday 23 February 2018

10. My Planning Evidence

This is all the pre-production planning which I have done:

The character, casting and costume list - This was beneficial to me as I knew exactly what everyone needed to do and also their costumes. It was very simple to distribute among my actors so they were also aware what they needed to prepare for the shoot.









The location, set design and props list- This enabled me to get all the sets ready as I knew exactly how I wanted them to look and also, to know what props were needed.










The script- This is for the pack shot which will have a voice-over. This features at the end of both my adverts. "Wave. The new unisex deodorant for anyone, anywhere."

Shoot board- This is a sample from my shoot board which outlines the locations, camera framing, action taking place etc. This was a very easy guide to follow when producing my advert which aided the efficiency of production.

Shoot board 










 The storyboard - This helped me to visualise all the shots as well as determine exactly what framing is needed for each one. I first started by planning out what I wanted to happen in each shot then decided on any camera angles/movement and the framing of the shot.
One page of my storyboard

Thursday 8 February 2018

9. The practicalities of filming: when and where production will take place and who with

The grid below depicts when and where I will be filming as well as identifies any possible risks.
I will be filming with friends from both in and out of school, the first advert will have 3 actors and the second will have 2 actors.


Wednesday 7 February 2018

8. The planning I intend to complete in order to ensure a successful outcome for my production

To be successful in my production I must first plan out the the necessary information to make sure my production is as smooth and efficient as possible.

This is a sample props list
I intend to produce:                                                  
  1.  a storyboard listing all the shot types, the sequence and any technical information (05/02/18)
  2.  a cast list along with costume so my actors are well informed and know what they should be wearing. (24/01/18)
  3. a set and props list (24/01/18)
  4. a script for the end pack shot to inform the audience (10/03/18)
  5. audience feedback for any improvements to be made (16/03/18)
This is a sample storyboard               

Monday 29 January 2018

6. The ASA rules, regulations and industry

What I have learnt about industry in relation to television advertising and how I intend to use this knowledge and understanding, to ensure my production is appropriate to the media industry context of the set brief I have chosen.

The advertising standards authority (ASA) is the UK's regulator of advertising. Ads in the UK are regulated through a system of 'self-regulation' and 'co-regulation'.
The vast majority of TV and radio ads are pre-cleared before they are broadcast.
Under their licences broadcasters must take reasonable steps to ensure that the ads they broadcast stick to the UK Code of Broadcast Advertising. Television adverts are forms of Broadcast advertising
and due to this must follow the BCAP code. 

These are the first five sections of the BCAP code which in total has over 30 sections.
Both the public and the industry may make complaints against an advert. The ASA will then proceed to check the advert and if they find that the complaints stand, the advert may be banned.



This article shows an example of a banned fragrance advert. This advert was banned as it was deemed inappropriate for children. Despite this, it was then broadcast on ITV where complaints were received for putting a 'mildly sexual' TV advert during the show 'You've been framed' which children watch.












This perfume TV advert for Jimmy Choo is an example of an advert which is suitable for broadcasting on TV as it upholds the rules of the ASA.


In my advert I must be careful to follow the rules of the ASA in order to meet the requirements for a television advert.






E4 and the context this provides:
I have learnt that E4 mainly appeals to the 16-34 age range the majority of whom are female. Their audience is niche predominantly targeting students and young adults. Their most popular shows are The Big Bang Theory, The Inbetweeners and New girl, therefore suggesting the demographic enjoys American sitcoms. This is useful in relation to my adverts as the audience finds comedy appealing. Also the fact that 59% of the viewers are female means that any adverts slightly skewed towards girls and young women will be appropriate and relatable.











Copyright:
When making my adverts I must ensure the music used is copyright free in order to conform to TV advertising regulations. In the UK, music that is over 100 years old is copyright free as well as any artists who deem their music with no binding laws to suggest copyright, is copyright free. For this reason, I will carefully select music from what is available to me, to ensure it is not breaching copyright or TV advertising regulations.
I have chosen the tracks 'lift it up' from free music archive and 'animals are free' from freeplaymusic.com to ensure that all the music I have used is copyright free.



Thursday 25 January 2018

5. Representation within TV adverts

What I have learnt about the representation of events, issues, individuals and social groups in television adverts and how I intend to demonstrate this knowledge and understanding in my production in order to communicate meaning successfully.

During my research I have learnt about the ways adverts represent youth, gender and ethnicity. Here are some Levi's print adverts which I have put together to show their style of campaign and the ways in which they are representative of gender, race and social groups etc. I then compared/contrasted these with Levi's recent television advert "Circles".



→ Ranges of ethnicity to show diversity
→ Different settings
→ Genders not conforming to specific stereotypes e.g through their dress or their poses







The synergy between the brand is clear as their campaign promotes equality for all social groups, events and individuals  through both their print and television adverts.

This advert features many people all with their own individual style as they do different things. However, they are united through their passionate dancing and also, their Levi's. This advert represents a wide range of people and positively connotes the acceptance that the brand has for each and every unique person no matter their race, gender, sexual preference etc.

I have learnt that a brand is able to showcase their acceptance of everyone through the ways in which they represent different people. Ultimately, expressing this through a television advert sends a strong and powerful message.

                                                                                  (Levi's TV advert "Circles")

Wednesday 24 January 2018

4.Content and appeal of TV adverts to their audience

What I have learnt about the content and appeal of television adverts and how I intend to demonstrate this knowledge and understanding in my production in order to communicate successfully with the target audience.

The uses and gratifications theory is a very popular approach to understanding the media as it focuses on the audience/consumer. The theory suggests that the audience is actively consuming media with the purpose of using it to fulfill their specific gratifications. The theory is as follows:
Information and Education –to acquire information, knowledge and understanding
Entertainment and Escapism –for enjoyment and so the consumer can ‘escape’ any worries they may have
Personal Identity - to recognise a person or product, role models that reflect similar values to themselves and mimic or copy some of their characteristics.
Integration and social interaction – the ability for media products to produce a topic of conversation between people

In my television advert I will apply this theory to the target audience of 16-25 males and females. I have made annotations on the television adverts below to connote how this theory is applicable to existing adverts. I will be using Dove, Lynx and Impulse deodorant TV adverts. 

(Screenshot from Dove TV ad)
This advert entertains the audience by exaggerating reality with recognizable yet surreal situations. We see this through the contrast between someone who is wearing deodorant and can be confident, as oppose to someone who is not wearing the impulse deodorant therefore cannot ‘free’ her arms.
(Screenshot from Impulse ad)

The far fetched unrealistic story entertains the audience as they are easily able to escape reality when watching, however the story line is also a means of interaction and the audience can easily discuss it.
The stereotypical story line 'boy meets girl' is also very familiar.
Actors featured are in the TA age range therefore this gratifies the need for personal identity as the audience may relate or be aspired by the actors/characters.
(Lynx advert in full) 


From this I have learnt that the uses and gratifications theory can be applied to understand television adverts and their audiences. Due to this I will be focusing on the audience/consumer when constructing my advert in order to adhere to this theory. For example, conventional story lines entertain and help the audience to 'escape' as well as increase social interaction, so the audience can talk about the advert. Information about the product is included to inform the audience. Also, featuring actors that are within the target audience age range is ideal, so that the audience can relate/ be aspired by them. 

Monday 22 January 2018

3.The Codes and Conventions of TV adverts

 What I have learnt about the codes and conventions of television adverts and how I intend to demonstrate this knowledge and understanding in my production in order to communicate meaning successfully.

I began my research by watching many TV adverts then decided to compare a few of my favorites in order to  learn the common features which make up a TV advert.When comparing these adverts this is what I found out:
Impulse
Lynx 2015
Lynx 2014
Lynx 2011
Dove
Voice-over at the end
Voice-over throughout
No voice-over
Voice-over at the end
Voice-over throughout
Music- upbeat
Music-serene
Music-pop song
Music-pop song
Music- upbeat
No actor dialogue
No actor dialogue
No actor dialogue
No actor dialogue
No actor dialogue
Low lighting
Grey scale-low lighting
Lighting reflects scene
Natural lighting
High key lighting
Clear slogan
Clear slogan
Clear slogan
Clear slogan
Clear slogan
Pack shot at the end
Pack shot at the end
Pack shot at the end
Pack shot at the end
Pack shot at the end






From this I concluded some of the codes and conventions for TV adverts:
  • Voice-over is a key convention for most TV adverts- usually at the end but not always
  • Music- often upbeat/pop song
  • There is no actor dialogue present
  • Lighting differs depending on the setting
  • The slogan is clearly portrayed usually both on screen and in voice-over
  • A pack shot with a close-up of the product and the branding is always shown at the end



Thursday 18 January 2018

2. Existing adverts/campaigns I have researched and how these have influenced my ideas

Before I started to plan my TV adverts I decided to look at existing adverts which appeal to similar audiences. This was helpful because the adverts I looked at were interesting and inspirational. Here are some adverts which appealed to me and helped to inspire my campaign:

The Lynx (soulmates) TV advert influenced my adverts because of its concept of different periods of history where each time the male actor was still working towards 'getting the girl'. I slightly want to incorporate this into my advert as each different actor will show part of their daily routine and the editing will be similarly fast-paced, seamlessly flowing from one to the next.



The celebrities within this Nike advert showcase many different sports and activities which is important to show the products versatility. In my advert, by having the actors do different things, I hope that it is relatable and depicts how the deodorant can be used wherever and whenever.
This advert has a wide variety of people within it emulating the idea that anyone and everyone can wear Nike's products. I would like to incorporate this into my adverts in order to appeal to a wide variety of people within the 16-25 audience age range.

From looking at these adverts I have found useful techniques and ideas which I would like to incorporate into my own two TV adverts.

Tuesday 16 January 2018

1.How I intend to fulfill the requirements of the brief I have chosen

When first thinking up ideas for my two TV adverts I decided to draw inspiration from other popular brands with similar target audiences. I then planned out how I will meet the requirements of the brief in order to successfully produce two TV adverts.

This is a mood board which I put together when doing research for my deodorant advert. It features well-known existing deodorant brands such as Dove and Lynx. As well as, brands such as Levi's and Calvin Klein which are both popular unisex brands with similar target audiences.

In order to meet the demands of the brief, I will be making two television adverts both lasting exactly 30 seconds. My adverts will promote a new unisex deodorant from the existing agency client 'UK deodorants'. A key element of my campaign is the unisex aspect which I wish to convey by using both male and female models, this shows a unique selling point of the deodorant. The client audience of 16-25 male and females, will also be adhered to by using actors within this age range. The product name 'Wave' must connote an active and youthful brand identity. I will do this by portraying the actors to be both active e.g. through sports and activities and also youthful to target the intended audience.
 Both my adverts will enable the audience to relate as well as aspire to be like the actors. The adverts must be suitable for prime-time E4 broadcasting, specifically, on weekdays from 7pm- 9pm. To do this I will follow the rules of the ASA.
 The deodorant slogan is'Anyone Anywhere' which helps to signify the universal aspect of the deodorant as it is unisex. Furthermore 'anywhere' contributes to the active and youthful aspect of the brand's identity as the deodorant is easily transported with the consumer to events, sports fixtures, the gym etc. My adverts will include techniques such as intertextuality through the reference of pop culture either from other media products, film, fashion or music. Also, generic hybridity as the advert crosses over into other genres of advert.
I hope to engage the target audience with both my adverts,through the use of both humour and emotional appeal to make memorable TV adverts.




For my first advert I will depict a scene between brother and sister. The boy will be late rushing off to meet his friend. It will show him trying to spray on his usual deodorant which is empty and therefore his sister lets him use her deodorant instead. We then see him leaving the house and as he does so, he walks past a girl who immediately reacts to the pleasant scent, looking up at him and smiling. It will end with a voice-over and pack shot, to detail the information to the audience. This advert will connote the unisex trait of the deodorant as well as its convenience.

For my second advert I would like it to be in the style of a daily/ simplistic routine which two different people are doing and also it will show them using the deodorant. Each actor will show a snippet of their daily routine before spraying on their deodorant, I will use a cross-cutting editing technique to do this. The editing will be snappy and fast-paced to keep the pace of the advert and create excitement for the audience. The upbeat music in the background will also match this fast-paced editing style. The target audience will be likely to relate to either one or both of the models as they draw similarities between themselves and the actors. The advert will also finish with a voice-over and a pack shot, detailing the information of the product.




Sunday 7 January 2018

Homeland Continuity Task

1) What was your role in the task and what did you actually do?
During the pre filming stage of our task, I helped to make a storyboard for our video. We planned the camera angle, framing and content for each shot. We began this by first drawing up a floorplan of how we wanted our set to look. After our storyboard was complete we proceeded to make a shot list in order to making our filming session run as smoothly and efficiently as possible. I was assistant director when filming, helping to direct the actors. I then made an individual edit of our scene.

2) What factors did you have to take into account when planning, filming and editing?
When planning we had to make sure to include shots varying in camera angles, movement and framing as well as master and establishing shots. We also had to plan them in a way which helped to convey the key parts of the plot in the right order.  During filming we were careful to follow rules such as the 180degree rule so we would not confuse the audience. Also, to keep the continuity we had to film the same scene multiple times from the different viewpoints. When editing I was careful to select the best shots and make sure the continuity was smooth throughout.

3) How successful was your sequence? Did you manage to demonstrate match-on-action, shot reverse shot and the 180 degree rule? Did you achieve continuity overall?
I think that overall the sequence went well however some scenes do not follow continuity for example because of the lighting. Despite this, we successfully managed to keep to the rules, demonstrating match-on-action, shot reverse shot and the 180degree rule.

4) What have you learnt from completing this task?
By completing this task I have learnt that it is very important to keep continuity to make a sequence as realistic as possible. I realised the importance of carefully planning before filming and also the difficulties when filming a continuity sequence.