Proposal

The brief
We have been asked to produce a music video with a print project, as part of our A2 media coursework, which includes a music video, magazine advert and DVD cover. The band we have decided to film is called Tarantula who incorporates reggae into their rock themed music. For this reason they are unique and are able to target a niche audience. Our aim is to produce a video which highlights their individuality and creates a star presence which looks conventional as well as original. The song we have decided to film is called “no more”, which is based around domestic violence.

Research findings
The subject matter of our music video is a sensitive subject and from our target audience research we have found that our potential audience would appreciate a hard hitting video with a twist. This is because it would grab their attention and would allow them to feel empathy for characters. For this reason we have decided to look at narrative style videos. Furthermore looking at other videos from similar genres, artists are casually dressed and in terms of the subject matter there isn’t that many other music videos dealing with the issue of domestic violence. A key feature we found was that videos that do show some violence tend to try to create the illusion of violence rather than showing it full on, because that may be disturbing to the audience. In our case, it may be more appropriate to just show evidence of violence rather than showing it directly, because there is a risk that our attempt may come off a bit comical.

Psychologists suggests that domestic violence occurs in lower class families when the husband hasn’t got resources to threaten their partner with, which results in violence, therefore issues suggest as this need to be thought about in our characterisation and production design.

Initial ideas
Based on the above findings, each member of our production team came up with an initial idea in response to the brief.
1. Alexander Bradbury
My first idea was based around a young couple in a middle class home. The video would begin with the couple having a heated argument and the man hitting the women and then leaving the house. The rest of the video would follow the women around and there might be black and white flashbacks to show that the violence has been going on for a while. Each flashback could represent a different aspect of domestic abuse. The end of the video would show that the women decides to leave however with a big twist the man shows up at the front door and shuts the door behind him. This will show she is trapped like a prisoner.

2. Gavin Man
My idea for the music video was a narrative of the women getting abused and deciding leave her husband. She decides to leave at the end because throughout the video she is seeing visions of her being killed.
However I also thought there should be a performance part of the video, showing the band playing in a small room with coloured lighting; this would create a surreal visual effect. To link the performance to the concept of the narrative, I think the small room that the band are playing in, should show evidence of domestic violence, to suggest perhaps they are in a room in the house where the violence took place. For example, there may be a broken glass on the floor, or empty alcohol bottles.

3. Daniel Bond
As I am in the band, my first thoughts were to do a performance structured video, filmed in the bands rehearsal studio. The reason I thought of this, is because I wanted to get the bands image noticed as much as possible so people would be able to recognise us after watching the video. Throughout the video there should be lots of individual close ups of each member and the instrument they play and mid shots of the band as a unit. The song is fast paced and therefore there should be lots of quick shots coming from different angles to make it interesting. The song has a heavy chorus and therefore I think at those parts in the film there should be a change in the video to highlight these changes. For example when we begin the chorus there could be neon lights flashing to make the video more attention grabbing.

4. Ameera Tayabali
My initial idea when deciding how to film the video was to create a performance and illustrated mix. The song is about domestic violence which is a sensitive subject; therefore I thought the video had to be able to capture the seriousness of the topic. My idea starts off with the women feeling isolated and hopeless after her husband hits her and leaves. Throughout the video I don’t think we should show the man’s face; this can create an element of mystery and in turn shows that it could be “anyone”. As the video is in the women’s point of view it can show how, by the end she regains the feeling of self worth and fights back. By doing so, she kills her husband by accident, however instead of feeling remorse, she feels liberated and safe. Because the band is new, I thought this video would be a great way to get their image known a little bit more and therefore there should be cuts to them at a rehearsal for a gig. The way I thought you could link the band to the domestic violence is to posters of the band on the bedroom wall or leaflets of the bands upcoming gig on the kitchen table.

Final idea
Our final ideas incorporate a bit of everyone’s ideas. We all liked the idea of doing a performance and narrative mix, because this way we could illustrate the meaning of domestic violence and grasp the empathy and emotions from our target audience, whilst at the same time promoting the members of the band.
We decided to create the story of a young woman, living together with her boyfriend suffering from the hidden abuse of domestic violence. We will start the video off with the heated argument and the man leaving the house. The story will be from the woman’s point of view and follow her while she is doing her daily routine around the house. Whilst tidying up she will be reminded of past abuse, which will trigger flashbacks. This will illustrate to the audience the abuse has been going on for a period of time and the victim has been suffering in silence. The aim of this is to show how victims feel trapped, isolated and embarrassed to seek for help.
During the chorus that is heavier than the rest of the song, we will cut to a performance by the band in their rehearsal studio. This should help create layers to the production, making it more interesting for the viewer. By the end of the song she will decide she has had enough and pack up her stuff to leave for good. However to create a twist to the story, as she is about to leave her partner will be at the door, shutting the door behind him. We decided to do this because it creates a twist that from our target audience research has shown us our audience appreciates and also show the reality that their isn’t always a happy ending.

Production team roles
Planning-
We will all have a part to play in the planning of the production and gathering research on our target audience and subject matter.
Gavin Man is in charge of creating a project schedule to make sure we have planned when and where all the stages of production are going to take place, so that we are able to hand in our final piece on time . He is also concluding our target audience research so that we know what is needed from us to engage our potential audience.

Ameera Tayabali is going to finalise all subject matter research and write a conclusion, so that we are able to make a genuine account of what it feels like to be in a relationship suffering from domestic violence. This is important, so that we are able to represent thousands suffering in silence and able to emphasis the seriousness of the issue. Furthermore she is going to make sure all paperwork is completed including misc production paperwork.

Alexander Bradbury is going to research the band so that we know how they want to be represented and the conventions of the genre of music they embody.
Finally Daniel Bond is going to develop the script and make sure all the timings for each scene correspond to the timings of the actual video.

Construction-
Gavin Man and Alexander Bradbury are going to be filming on the days, making sure we get enough different angled shots and are able to get good footage of the band members.

Alexander Bradbury and Ameera Tayabali will be directing during the day and help get the shots needed for dramatic effect.

Daniel Bond is in the band and therefore will be performing with the band during filming, furthermore, he is in charge of editing which includes visual effects to make the video exciting.