Actors

There were many factors involved in the allocation of myself into the video piece, the ambition and drive to take part deriving from the fact that I was being marked for the piece, so not putting in full effort would cost me dearly; the fact that I am profecciant at playing guitar also added a sense of realism towards the performance aspects. The factor of image was also reassured with aspects such as costume easy to find, and my long hair also boosted a rebellious image popular with our audience demographic and of the performers within our genre.












Alongside bassist and fellow group-member Dexter, James was allocated the role of singer within our production due to his prowess as an actor; studying Drama alongside Media. James ability to drive also was a great help in filming our production, as we had intended to include many shots of the band in a car, with James driving.










As a profecciant bassist, Dexters role within the band (as bassist) was vital in creating a sense of realism within the video. Dexters room was also a perfect choice in setting of the performance video, as equipment such as an array of electric guitars and a very sizable amp was easily available. The logistical location of being a few minutes walk from our drummer Sam's house meant it was also easy to transfer the drums needed from Sam's to Dexter's for the performance shots. The mise-en-scene of Dexters bedroom of band posters, throws and lighting was also very usefull in filming.

Media Audience Demographic

Audience demographic for tilted smile

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Explain What 'Find Your Tribe' Implies About The Concept Of Identity In Todays World

After going through the findyourtribe quiz numerous times, a number of factors about identity become clear. With the explosive rise and flourishing of these tribes due to such factors as growing urbanisation, new tecnology and stemming of new sub-genres of arts such as music, film and fashion it is difficult for the multiple choice question website to easily differentiate their questions to cover these new 'tribes', which forces, as a result, the quiz must adopt a stereotypical attitude. An example of this generalised attitude occurs with the 'whats in your bag?' question, with one possible avenue to delve further into the quiz being a 'crappy old phone so I don't get jacked too much' which implies an attitude that the user is afraid of being attacked on the street rather than (a much more feasible occurence) the user simply not having much intrest in new technology or having better things to spend their money on.

It is with this generalised attitude that findyourtribe proves ineffective, the user may listen to Nirvana, for example, but that does not mean that he/she "automatically appreciate an artist after they passed away." These fixed taglines and attitudes fail to take into account the concept of fragmented identities which are much more feasible than the tribes included, which in many instances seem to be plucked out of thin air.

The ideas of Michael Maffesoli seem to apply in many aspects, who talks of mass culture in his book 'The Time of Tribes.' In his book Maffesoli argues that modern tribes are not permanent groups, but shifting and always changing and qualify non-permanent membership; this ideal seems to reveal the shallow way young people, who are forming an identity, seem to move from one group to another by observing what is the most popular style depending on what is shown in front of them or around them, whats in the magazines or in the group of people around them. Another concept of what Maffesoli calls 'identity politics' stresses the faux-importance of identity in competition with one another and reveals the hollowness of modern identity in this tribal enviroment, the idea that someones identity, taking in factors of style and attitude, can be superior over anothers is pathetic. Maffesoli underpins this hollowness, who states that social existence is conducted through fragmented tribal groupings, organised around the catchwords, brand-names and sound-bites of consumer culture, this argument reveals how social existence, just like consumer culture, is forever changing and that a persons fashion, music taste and even speech may be influenced by what is stylish at the time, for example slang such as 'safe' or 'phat' has broke into consumer culture from West-Scene rap into British society within the 'chav' tribal grouping, with lower-class youths attracted to the glamour of rap music organising their social existence to these sound-bites.

This changing consumer culture and its impact on the apparatus of a persons lifestyle is represented in findyourtribe, whose multiple-choice questions may be shown to emphasise a 'pick-n-mix' tribal lifestyle, which gives all power to the user to determine his/her identity. However multiple run-throughs of the quiz say differently, as soon as you pick an establishing question in the beginning of the quiz (for example saying you enjoy guitar music) thrusts you into a stereotype which findyourtribe pushes you further into, which makes it impossible to be labelled a chav or a clubber- thus reflecting the flaws in the multiple-choice structure which findyourtribe attempts to use to create appeal.

How Does Nirvanas Video 'Heart Shaped Box' Convey Themes Of The Genre?

Nirvana are a much celebrated band that are seen as the pioneers of the grunge movement in Seattle in the early 90's. 'Heart Shaped Box', taken from their last album 'In Utero', was directed by Anton Corbijn and conveys many themes of the grunge genre, isolation, alienation and a fragmented existence that was set to destruct at any given moment.

This establishing shot (above) sets the scene very strongly in envoking a sense of morality, a theme which is dealt with throughout the video. This is achieved with the colour imagery of the black curtain and cross, the curtain creating a sense of being surrounded by the immorality the curtain connotes. The cross conveys a religious aspect to the scene which is reinforced by the birds-eye camera shot: together combining to emphasise an aspect of judgement from a higher power, which empowers the sense of morality within the scene alongside the stream of light breaking through which is positioned onto the band, strengthening the aspect of judgement upon them which fits into the sense of purgatorty that comes within the mis-en-scene of the chairs. Alongside the black and white the only notable colour shown within the setting is red, connoting violence and rage which is a theme of the genre.

The next setting comes in at 15 seconds into the video and is only the forth shot in, the slow editing emphasising the sombreity of the verse and, in turn, the genre itself. The theme of morality using religious imagery is again apperent with the use of the crucifix, symbolising death alongwith judgement. The use of mise-en-scene in that the crucifix is wooden embellishes the bleakness and harshness of the image alongside the fact it is included with the connotations of immorality and death with the crows and a ladder which makes it apparent that the victim must create his own demise- emphasising the bleakness that comes with the image. The endless barron location of the desert also reveals the desolation of the video whilst the adjusted vibrancy of the colours makes the location seem much like a dream-world, which envokes the idea of oblivion and escapism which is common within the genre. The imagery of an emaciated old man also reinforces the desolation of the image, stripped of everything he has except for a santa hat: ironic in the warmth and happiness the image would usually convey and, with the red colour imagery, instead connoting pain and death. The use of the colour red also fits with the poppies on the floor, which as well as emphasising the imagery of the hat also hints at the use of heroin: used for escapism and numbness in seperating the user from the real world which makes it widely affiliated with the grunge movement- it is well known also that Cobain himself was a heavy user of the drug.

Once the performance shots incurr, the setting changes dramatically, in place of the yellow and blue is red, which connotes the rage and frustration which is intertwined within the dynamic of the song and with the genre itself, which becomes much more louder and ragefull as the chorus begins, the editing also becomes more fast and chaotic: consisting of variations of an extreme close up of Cobain, which strengthens the sense of anger. The backround consists of blurred and distorted images of the previous setting and of the rest of the band, which connotes the aspect of alienation and seperation from reality and society which is a theme of the genre.

The music video displays a moral ambiguiety throughout, a battle between good and evil. This is displayed by use of binary opposites, a common opposite within the video are the aspects of black and white. The most reccuring example of this are the use of the white (above) and the black (bottom) KKK outfits, which is an extremely strong case of moral ambiguiety considering the actions of the KKK, who were incrediably prejudice towards African-Americans and are infamous for their white outfits, the inclusion of a black outfit sets a mass of confusion and ambiguety, especially as a child is wearing it, whom looks remarkably like Cobain.

The video also effectivly uses narrative structure to convey the themes of the genre, using non-linear and abstract scenes which are slightly different from each other and linked only by mis-en-scene, which creates the sense of disconnection and escapism alongside a moral emptiness which comes with the fact that we are not, as an audience, invited into the video.

Grunge as a genre is radiated throughout the video, the elements and themes of escapism, isolation, alienation and moral destruction very apprent by use of mis-en-scene, camera shots and imagery within the video.

Shot List

1) *Toilet* panning feet
2) verticle tilt up to CU of abdomen and face
3) ECU of toilet roll being pulled *Credit Opt*
4) Ariel Shot of swirling flushed toilet *Transition*
5) *Living Room* Ariel Shot Of spoon stirring tea
6) ECU of tea being drunk
7) Character 1 sitting on sofa: CU of abdomen and face
8) Over shoulder shot of Character 1 watching telly
9)*Hallway* ECU of letters coming through letterbox
10) Character 1 picking up letters: filmed through letterbox
11) FPV ECU of looking through letters- sees credit card and attached note *Music Begins*
12) ECU of C1 grabbing keys
13)*Outside* ECU of C1 going out of home: over shoulder shot
14) ECU of locking door: over shoulder shot
15) ECU of going into car: over shoulder shot
16)*Car*- ECU of starting car
17) Reversing whilst texting: over shoulder shot
18) ECU of phone sending text to rest of the band
19) CU of driving from passengers seat- side profile
20)*Graveyard* panning establishing shot
21) canted high angle shot of C2 aproaching car
22)*Car* ECU of car closing
23) Low angle canted shot of performance
24) ECU of neck of bass guitar
25)*Pub* CU of pub sign 26) CU high angle shot of C3 getting thrown out of door
27) CU high angle shot of C3 catching drumsticks that are thrown out of the door
28)*Car*- ECU of car door closing
29) Low angle canted shot of performance
30) ECU of snare drum being played
31)*Outside* Panning high angle shot of car passing corner
32)*Car*- ECU of C's
33) Over shoulder shot from passengers view of driver running over guitarist
34)*Outside*- floor shot of dazed guitarist
35) guitarist steps into location shot
36) canted backsteat perspective, over shoulder shot of guitarist banging on window
37)*Car*- ECU of car door closing
38) ECU of wheels spinning
39) ECU of lisense plate as car speeds off
40) ECU of C1 singing *Transition*
41)*Flat* ECU of singer
42) ECU of neck of guitar
43)*High Street* Faded timed shots of the C's walking down street, verticle tilt, crosscutting
44) ECU of ATM
45) ECU of card going in
46) ECU of pin
47) ECU of money coming out (repeated, various cants) *Transition*
48)*Poker Table* Money going into dealers pocket
49) Ariel view of chips being thrown across a table
50) High angle shot of hand grabbing chips
51) ECU shot of cards being shuffled and dealt
52) Clockwise Panning shot of table, ECU of faces
53) Anti-Clockwise Panning shot over shoulder of cards
54) ECU of spinning chip
55) Clockwise Panning shot of C's drinking and smoking- Zippo Trick
56) ECU of C blowing smoke ring *Transition*
57) Ariel Shot of money being put into pot
58)*Flat* Crosscut to performace shots/fades- ECU
59) Canted high angle shot of performance
60) Singer pushing lead guitarist- slo mo
61)*Party* Real time transition from party mosh to slo mo
62) Canted shot of pushing into crowd
63) ECU of guitarist's face as he walks through crowd *Transition*
64)*Poker Table* ECU of guitarist's face as he puts down cards
65) ECU of smoke coming from mouth into nose
66)*Flat* Performance: Close up of strumming gutair
67)*Flat*Performance: Midshot of bassist swinging away after hitting note
68)*Poker Table* ECU of mouth doing shot
69)*Party* High up shot of people 'bouncing'
70)*Flat* Performance
71)*Poker Table* ECU of smoke coming out of mouth
72)*Flat* Performance
73)*Poker Table* Side profile CU of bassist 'Ghostying' smoke:- Exposed over the top of following shots -

74)*Party* ECU of bassists face as he walks through crowd
75)*Poker Table* Side profile CU of bassist doing shot *Super Fast Cuts*
76) *Flat* Headbanging
77)*Party* Flash of Hands rising
78)*Poker Table* Chips being reeled in
79) *Flat* Gutair smashing swing
80)*Party* Legs dancing
81)*Poker Table* Cards laid down

Shooting Schedule

Audience Research, Media Theory

Uses and Gratifications

During the 1960's, as those who had grown up with television became adults, it became apparent and important for media theorists to disect how and why audiences viewed texts. Instead of a mass collected audience passivly viewing homogeneosly, it was shown that the audiences individually viewed texts for many different reasons. In 1948 Lasswell suggested that media texts are viewed for the following functions and reasons:

Surveilance: Viewing media texts to gain information which could be usefull for living (i.e weather reports, financial issues, advertisment) however with the rise of surveilance programs such as Brit Cops: Zero Tolerance, revealing the law-flouting underbelly of society; it is possible that these shows are viewed to provide caution and safety to those at home.

Shows such as Brit Cops: Zero Tolerance attempt to provide surveilance gratification, a warning of the crime on the streets alongside morbid curosity and a wish against blissfull ignorance for the audience.

Correlation: Viewing media texts to provide yourself with a reflective of yourself, identifying your own personality and characteristics alongside those of people you know.

As of late, there has been a rise in T.V shows such as Skins (Above) which combine the gratifications of both surveilance to an older generation in watching a media text to impead interest of those younger alongside correlation to those of the same age as the cast. Whilst Skins attempts in this fashion to hit a mass audience of all ages, shows like Shameless (Below) attempt to hit an audience of all classes using this techinque.

Entertainment: Self Explanatory

Cultural Transmission: Though it can be seen that cultural transmission is very similar to surveilance instead to learn more about another culture; a main difference is instead of the viewer being gratified it is those who impead the text- a mass showing of a culture in an attempt of boasting. An extreme example of this is the cultural transmission of America, once invading Iraq, setting up a channel showing only American shows such as Friends (Below) in an attempt to draw the civilians into their culture.

The T.V show friends can be seen to provide a very inviting example of American culture, an example of Cultural Transmission between America and the East.

Researchers Bulmer and Katz expanded upon this theory and published a much more refined version in 1974, dissecting the far too broad Lasswell and narrowing a function such as entertainment into Diversion: (escape from everyday problems and routines). They also dissected the broad function of correlation into catagories of Personal Relationships: (using the media for emotional and other interactions, i.e substituting soap operas for your family life)

Relations To Our Music Video

Due to the hedonistic lifestyle which comes quickly to a downfall in our music video, our music video could relate to alot of these functions. The factor of surveilance in our music video could apply to not only apply to those considerably older than the characters (late teens making a band) but also those of all ages trapped in a mundane routine wishing to get out- relating to the functions of diversion and personal identity in that those who cannot get out of this routine can instead watch as the characters ditch the shackles of the lifestyle they once had only to implode and return. The personal identity shown in our video promotes the attitude and psychological character of the underacheievers who would love to be part of a loved band alongside the social values of the hedonist. This aspiration is underpinned by the use of costume of the characters, relating to the bands they themselves and the audience aspire to.