planning setting and iconography

Location and iconography elements are both essential within a music video for different reasons. Firstly, the location of the music video must be shown and used throughout the video to establish the genre of the video. Different genres use different settings as they are a reflection of the lyrics and beats they use. The indie genre is evidently a lot more slow-paced compared to a lot of other genres and therefore you need a location that reflects this, e.g. the countryside; whereas pop or dance genres are more likely to use the city as its busyness echoes the fast-paced beats of the music. In addition, the location of the music video will generally change a fair bit and therefore this keeps the audience immersed in the narrative, as well as being a contribution to inducing emotions from the audience. Iconography is also crucial to a music video as it is a method of regularly referring back to what genre the music video is, as well as keeping the audience entertained as they subliminally and consciously have certain expectations of the genre, e.g. including the artist playing an instrument in an indie music video. Iconography is also useful for linking the visuals and lyrics together to create a more uniformed and professional music video.

Below is a picture of all the different settings and iconic features my group and I are going to include in our own music video. 

The first location idea we came up with is the countryside. As a group we collectively desired to create a really rustic feel to our music video and therefore picking an open green space would be more appropriate as it is a lot more conventional of the genre. For the scene where the couple first meet we chose to film it in a cow field in Theydon Bois , as this location would be quite isolated and therefore would be more intimate; this would be a lot more exciting for the audience to watch, especially as they can focus solely on just these two characters. The lack of architecture would give a neat and simplistic shot which is necessary for the nature of the scene. In addition, the setting would reflect more about the artist's personal life as using Theydon Bois would portray the artist to be a lot more indie herself and more genuine, reflected by the openness of the landscape. In regards to the lyrics, the scene fits in well with this part of the music video as the artist sings "you are the avalanche, one world away, my make-believing...". Here, the artist is being quite figurative and poetic, fitting in with the conventions of the indie genre, as the artist often sing love songs which use more captivating language. Therefore, if the location is quite simple, it shows how the artist is focusing specifically on the male character as he is her whole world, and nothing else matters. Another reason why we chose to use this location is because it would be beneficial to my group as evidently we do not have a high budget and this is an extremely accessible location for us all. However, there could be some limitations in that the weather could affect the quality of the shot. Evidently a shot of the couple meeting for the first time would desirably have strong natural lighting as the brightness of the shot would convey innocence and happiness; however, as the album title is "English Rain", we could get away with having a rainy shot as we could adapt the narrative. For instance, if the male character lends the female character an umbrella the situation is still presented as quite sweet. In addition, the use of rain is actually part of the iconography of the indie genre, as it is conventionally shown to add to the natural and rustic feel of the music video. However, if the weather is miserable and the time of the day is quite late then the natural lighting will most likely be extremely poor. Therefore, we have to try to film the shot as early as possible in the daytime as we can. Furthermore, if it does rain then there is the health and safety issue of the grass turning muddy and slippery; we definitely do not want anyone to fall and hurt themselves so this raises a problem we have to consider on the day we film the scene. If the weather and lighting do become too horrendous to film in, then we will just have to film on another day. There is also the hazard of the camera getting wet from the rain and therefore distorting the quality of the filming if there are rain drops on the lens. In addition, we cannot risk the camera becoming water-damaged. If the weather does become progressively worse and we cannot simply film on another day due to our filming schedule, we will simply have to reconsider the location of the shot. For example, Amy will simply have to run on a footpath rather than through the forest/field. In addition, we will have to ensure that someone is holding an umbrella over the camera so that it does not get wet. 

Despite the fact that we want to create a rustic feel to the video, as a group we thought it would look quite good to include various fast-paced shots of London. Therefore, we planned a few locations to check out in the city centre such as Covent Garden, Camden Market Town, Oxford Circus and the London Eye/Big Ben. What we plan to do is leave the camera (but under supervision) rolling on people just walking by but then when it comes to editing, we will increase or decrease the speed of the shot depending on what part of the song we put the shot to coincide with. My group and I thought through the narrative and came up with various possibilities as to where to use these shots. For instance, we thought it would work well in a montage with the artist running through the forest as we will speed up the shots of London and therefore they will help build up the tension, as the tempo of the music increases at this point. Lyrics of "I never meant to fall for you but I was buried underneath and all that I could see was white" fit in well at this point as they connote suffocation and therefore if the tempo of the music is increasing and the shots are becoming more fast-paced, there is a successful link between the lyrics and the visuals, which will make the video more appealing. The locations within London we picked are good for this as they are all extremely busy places and therefore as we want to use them to reflect the artist's feelings, they will work well. We will move the camera about every 15 minutes or so and change the angle of the camera so that we have a variety of shots. However, the issue with this is that as we have to wait for minimum 10-15 minutes until we change the camera's position, the weather could change dramatically and if it starts raining, the shots will not all match. As we are placing the shots into different parts of the video, they all have to roughly match in aesthetics (color, lighting etc) as despite the fact they will be sped up, you will still be able to kind of tell what is happening in the shot. If the weather does become quite bad, the only solution is to just wait the rain out as it is problematic to have to come back another day as there most likely will not be enough time to do it. However, if it does not stop raining then we will just have to use the rainy shots throughout the video to keep it consistent. 

Another issue with the location is that all 
the filming will have to done on one day as it is not cheap having to travel to the heart of London and then places all around. The location itself is relevant to the artist as despite the fact there is no personal connection to the area with Gabrielle Aplin, it is useful as it contrasts with the open space of the countryside and creates a claustrophobic and trapped atmosphere which is what the artist would be feeling at this point. It is rare that the indie genre will use the city as a location, however we want to challenge conventions and make our video different from the content the audience usually see in an indie music video. A further health and safety risk my group and I identified is that as London is incredibly busy and I will be the one who will film the shots of London, I may face issues with the crowds due to being mildly claustrophobic. Therefore, I need to ensure that I firstly take a friend with me to help with filming and making sure everything goes well. I also need to be cautious as to where I position myself; it is more logical that I stand somewhere quite empty so that I can film in a location that overlooks the busy crowds, rather than standing in the midst of one and being crushed or the camera getting damaged. 

Another location we have decided to use is a house; more specifically, the house of the female character. This is due to the fact that we want to create a homely and warm atmosphere to reflect the relationship of the couple. For this location, we can film scenes such as the couple's first date or just simple scenes such as the couple watching TV together. The first date scene would be especially good to film in the house as because it is the first, we want to make it as innocent and carefree as possible, However, I have taking into consideration that as a house is quite an intimate location, the content must be quite relaxed and not intense as they have not known each other for long. My group and I ensured to plan out this scene in the part of the song where the artist sings "just a trick of light to bring me back around..." As the use of candle lights and one-to-one setting fits in well with the connotations of the lyrics. The lyrics demonstrate that the couple have become slightly closer and the female character feels more connected to him; therefore the lyrics must show this, and they do. In Gabrielle Aplin's music video for "Panic Cord" the majority of the narrative uses a house as a location as she looks back on memories they shared together. Therefore, a house as a location is effective in portraying that this couple have had a long history together, making the video more aspirational and appealing for the audience. Consequently, the artist will be represented as more genuine and relatable to the audience and therefore makes the music video more successful. Using a house generally seems more conventional of the indie genre as it is such an easy location to film at and gives more raw emotion to a music video. Fortunately, as the location of the house belongs to the person we are using as the female character there are not any limitations to using it. Furthermore, the shots will be taken inside the house where we can edit the lighting if we want to make it high or low-key and weather will not be an issue. As my group and I planned to film the scene so that it looks quite relaxed and moderately intimate, we may use candle-lights which can be a safety hazard if someone accidentally knocks one over or goes too near one. Therefore, we have to ensure that when we set up the scene, we take good security measures to reduce the lack of any risk. For example, placing the candles in the centre of the table, with anything else a good distance from it, and that nothing is flammable, would be taking precautions. However, if when we get to actually filming the scene, we feel as if it is just too dangerous to use real candles, we always have the option of using battery candles.

For the performance side of the music video, we are going to use a group member's house as they have a piano which the artist will be playing. Showing the artist playing a musical instrument is extremely conventional of the indie genre as it presents the artist as being more authentic and their music being a lot more personal. Therefore, we wanted to incorporate a musical instrument in to conform to audience's expectations. As we are going to film the performance side of the narrative using different types of shots, we can manipulate the location to cut out bits of the room that we do not want to be in the shot and the size of the room is sufficient enough that we can move about well. The location of the piano scene must be kept simple and neat as the sole focus must be on the artist being portrayed as extraordinary (Dyer's paradox theory) in that she can play an instrument. In addition, we need simplicity as we want to detach this location from all the other locations we are going to use as the performance and narrative need to be kept separate in that the audience can quickly distinguish between them. There are not many limitations to this location; the only thing is that it is a relative distance for everyone else but that will most likely not be a problem. As we intend to use candles in this scene to create a more intimate and mysterious ethos, we do not need to worry about the lighting as it will be low-key. And evidently we do not need to worry about the weather as it is indoors. In regards to health and safety issues, there is the fire hazard of the candles and therefore we need to ensure we have minimal interaction with them so that we do not accidentally knock them etcetera. However, if we feel as if the candles will be too dangerous to use then we can simply use battery-powered candles instead.

In regards to iconography, there are various things we want to include to make the genre really stand out throughout the music video. The first iconic aspect to the music video is the use of a piano. The artist playing a musical instrument is extremely conventional of the indie genre and for the performance side of the video, we want to show this. The shots of the artist playing the piano will be shown throughout the video but will be edited so the shots are only a maximum of three seconds long each so that the audience do not become quickly bored of the video. Having the piano allows the audience to take a quick break from the narrative and means they will not be overwhelmed by the content. Furthermore, the use of a piano makes a statement about the artist in that they are multi-talented as they are the sole composer of the music; it also adds an aspect of authenticity as playing a musical instrument automatically makes a video more personal. In my opinion, I also think that the use of a piano makes the video look a lot more professional and of higher quality; it is helpful that we are going to make the location of the piano quite simple as this makes the shots look classier. It is a good choice using a piano as the actual music features a piano and therefore will create verisimilitude throughout the whole music video. Above, I have included a picture of the indie artist Birdy, playing the piano in her song "Skinny Love". Despite the fact that the aesthetics in the shot are not want my group and I are aiming for in our own music video, the same idea can be applied. Birdy uses a lot of facial expression when playing the piano as this is conventional of the genre and adds real meaning to the video and song and therefore we can apply the same to our "Salvation" video. In regards to the part of the lyrics where the performance parts will go, my group and I have started planning the video so that these scenes will be placed in a part where the artist's feelings need to be clearly displayed and they contrast well with the narrative scenes. For example, if something happy or sad occurs, then the artist can show this emotion when they are alone in the performance scene, showing passion in their singing/playing the piano.

Another part of the indie genre iconography is the costume that the female and male character will be wearing. The costume is significant in demonstrating the genre of the music video. As a group we have planned different costume ideas depending on the scene as the costumes need to regularly change to reflect the narrative has developed, as well as for matching the mood of the music at certain points. For example, in the scene where the couple first meet we put the artist in more neutral colors, e.g. whites/creams/beiges as it signifies the innocence of the relationship. However, in the scene where the artist is in the forest on a run, we will put her in dark clothing as it connotes danger and foreshadows the fact that the male character is going to die. The image above has been taken from Gabrielle Aplin's music video for "Panic Cord". As you can see, she is conventionally wearing a white dress as it reflects the innocence and purity of her music. This represents artists in the indie genre and Gabrielle Aplin specifically as very raw and genuine in comparison to women in a lot of other genres.

Overall, this planning procress has been extremely helpful as it has organized the production of the music video well. As a group as now know what exactly we want to include, how to approach it and what to do if we are faced with a hindrance on the actual day of filming. It is exceedingly beneficial to plan ahead as on the day of filming we will not be wasting time trying to figure out how to film the scene; therefore we can get the whole music video filmed a lot more quickly and have more time to edit the video so it looks as professional as possible. Furthermore, as I had to research conventions and iconography of the genre, I now know more about indie music videos.