Concept Films Analysis using ShowStudio

One of the videos I chose to look at was one created and edited by Raquel Couceiro which has a theme based on punk. Below the video is an image of a pair of shoes which the video has been related to both showing a mouth with vampire teeth which seems to be one of the main focuses of the video. When watching the video, it portrays a scary mood and makes you wary of what is next in the video.

The style of the music relates with the collection shown in the video which is also punk. The music has been made with electric guitars and screams in the background creating an effective edgy feeling. It is set indoors in a black/dark room where almost nothing can be seen except for the main focuses which are the models and their props. Although there is barely any lighting, the lighting that is shown is very harsh with flashes of light that flickers throughout, again giving that edgy, cautious look.

The video initially is based on a collection which resembles an attitude. There is plenty of imagery in the video that links to the collection. Below the video is a pair of shoes which link to the video also have the same teeth at the front of the shoe that is viewed in the video. The garments shown also feature animal skin including snake skin and leather also linking to the teeth which could potentially be animal teeth. Part of the props include a gun which could portray the hunting of the animals.

The model reflects the collection as she has been given a specific styling typically towards punk, she has black lipstick and pale skin, similar to a vampire also relating to the teeth and hunting. The timing of the video is fast paced, sharp and snappy.

http://showstudio.com/project/punk/raquel_couceiro

Another video I looked at was created by Sasha Wider which I found really interesting to watch and felt drawn into the video itself. The theme seems to be vintage as it has an old feeling to it.the music in the video makes it feel scary and wandering what will happen next. There is no voices/singing in the music, it is just a tune which I feel gives it a better affect as you are waiting to see what happens.

The video is set indoors in a larger building which seems to be deserted and like nobody knows it is there. The garments worn by the female models are long black dresses as well as a blind fold. I think they have been dressed in all black so they do not stand out which I think links to the narrative of the video. The narrative, from viewing the video numerous times seems to be based on time as the main prop are two watches shown by the male model. The video is based on the male model controlling the female models and they are trapped in the building by a male over powering them but as time goes by the women lose their blind fold and regain their sight and freedom similar to real life events from centuries ago when women where seen as less important but as time has gone by, everyone is now seen as equals. The watch symbolises the time in which women were given freedom.

The lighting in the video is dull and gloomy which gives an airy effect, the whole video seems to be black and white with very lack of colours. The styling of the models have been made to create a very simple, plain look, there hairs are all tied back with no makeup with little facial expressions. Overall, I think this video has created a scary feel but towards the end a sense of happiness as the women in the film are free.

http://showstudio.com/project/dressing_the_screen_russia/fashion_films/undefined

Technical Drawings - Colour

Here are the images of my coloured technical drawings which I had previously suggested I would do. I done this to give a more realistic effect. I thought overall I liked the technical drawings without any colour because they look more sophisticated and I feel they are more understandable.

Concept Video Evaluation

After planning my concept video, it made it a lot easier when it came to filming my footage as I had a clear idea of what I wanted. I found capturing the footage really fun as one of my friends helped out and was one of the models. Although having a plan made it a lot easier, trying to get exactly what I wanted to film was quite difficult. One of the hard scenes to film was filming the buildings as this was getting done driving along the road it was hard to make sure there was no traffic that got in the way of view.

To create the video I used iMovie. I find this software quite hard to use at first but after getting the hang of it seemed quite simple and was surprised at all the different effects I could try out and the things I could change such as the contrast, exposure and saturation.  My favourite effect was using the clip adjustments and changing the clip into reverse, this gave the clip a completely different look.

Overall I am really pleased with the outcome of my video, especially for my very first one. If I were to do anything differently I would try and add a few more different effects, but for my current video I feel the certain effects I have chosen have fitted in with the theme and mood I was trying to create.

 

Below is a complete evaluation of my designs and ideas for the concept video:

 

 

Theme:

My video has a modern theme to it as most of the footage was filmed recently, although at the beginning of the video there is a small scene that shows the making of cars which then leads into the main part of the video which is modern.

Mood:

When I watch my video back, it makes me feel happy as a lot of the footage is of winning car racing. The part that shows Liverpool and the Liver birds also makes me smile as I am proud to be from such a beautiful city.

Music:

The music I have used is by The Temper Trap called Sweet Disposition. The song is about capturing the moment of our youth but in the case of my video it is about capturing the moment of winning and looking back on the good times of car racing. I also thought this this song synced well with my footage and set an all-round good mood.

Setting:

My video is set outdoors in an urban area. I wanted it to feel busy with a lot of buildings and people around. As one of my settings I have chosen to capture a long road with trees along each side whilst driving, a field and the sea which are all very calm. These settings symbolise the calm and relief of winning.

Garments:

The garments used in the video by my chosen models are everyday clothing but the secondary videos I have used are mainly garments that are worm whilst car racing which gives whoever views my video a good idea of typical car racing attire.  

Colour:

Throughout the video the colours are relatively bright.  I didn’t want to create a dull feeling so kept the colours lively. A lot of the colours in the secondary video images are full with colours that relate to car racing such as the red and white which is well known in Formula 1 car racing event.

Lighting:

The lighting I have used is soft taken from the natural daylight. In one scene along the road I edited the effects of the lighting to dream effect which gave it an extra soft feeling and slowed the video down to create a calm effect.

Content:

The video is based on car racing which links into my recent collection for the British Racing Company as that is my chosen sport. There is a narrative within the video which is based on a car racing looking back on his time before a race and winning the race. The video is also about time as time is an important issue when racing as people are always racing against the clock to be the fastest; therefore I have added footage of a ticking clock.

Imagery:

Is there any imagery that links to the collection or such prints or patterns? Does any of the imagery relate to the overall story?

Model:

The model reflects my collection as he is a casual, young male as does my own collection which I have designed for.

Styling:

In my video I haven’t used any particular styling as I didn’t think it was important. My video focuses on the surrounding and how time affects car racing, therefore I didn’t need any specific make up or hair styles.

Timing:

Timing throughout the video varies for different scenes.  I used the clip adjustments to change the effect and slow some of the scenes down to slow motion or speed them up depending how they fitted within the video. For example, at the beginning I have changed the scene of the making of cars into slow motion so everything can be seen clearly. I have also slowed down and changed to reverse the scene of the liver birds as this was my favourite footage and wanted it to be shown in full so the viewer can get a good luck at the historical buildings. In other scenes such as the scene driving through the city, I have speeded up as I wanted to create a fast paced movement just how a city would be.

Technique:

The techniques I have used in the video include changing the effects to give the image a different look, slow motion and speed. I have also used an effect at the end of some scenes that help them to blend better into each other so that the scene isn’t cut off bluntly.

Props:

The main prop I have used is the clock as this is one of the main focuses which represent time being the theme of my video. Another prop would be the speed dial in the car, I decided to use this as not only is it because it is important within car racing but also suggests time – the speed at which you travel determines the time in which you arrive at your destination.

Accessories:

One accessory that has been used is the pair of shoes at the beginning of the video. Although the shoes themselves do not relate to the theme, it is the fact that they are walking towards to camera as someone would do if they were walking to get ready for a race.

Issuu Portfolio and Evaluation

Here is the link to my online portfolio in Issuu:

http://issuu.com/hayleykeane/docs/portfolio


http://issuu.com/hayleykeane/docs/portfolio_097bdf1b6b6119

Overall, I am happy with the outcome of my portfolio. As it was my first time creating one, I think it has turned out quite well.

I think the second part of my portfolio for ‘under the microscope’ has turned out better than ‘made in Britain’ because it is more colourful and looks more exciting. I enjoyed putting it all together and looking at everything I had completed so far.

I found it difficult when it came to uploading the portfolio to Issuu as some of the pages that I had cut in half didn’t join in the middle and were slightly off sync so I had to re-upload the portfolio over and over again until it was more fitted together in the middle.

Subtraction Dress - Shoot

As part of my portfolio I had to add photo-shoot images of my subtraction dress which was made from my own designed print for the ‘under the microscope’ assignment. Initially when prepping my photo-shoot, I wanted to use a model and change the effects on Photoshop so it looked as though the model was upside down. However, as it was short notice, I was unable to find a model who was small enough to fit into my subtraction dress so I decided not to use a model at all.

 

I decided to hang the dress so it looked as though it was floating and as it was windy, it gave a better effect as I could then edit it on Photoshop to give a more abstract shoot.

C.V and Evaluation

 

 

As part of my Foundation Degree I have to complete work experience within the fashion industry. For this, and as part of my online Issuu portfolio, I have to produce a C.V with all the relevant information for my future employer. I found this a difficult task as I have no previous experience working within the fashion industry so when it came to writing relevant information I found myself hitting a brick wall so I decided to write about the recent things I have been doing in our assignments such as working for the British Racing Company and the tasks I had to carry out such as brand research, having meetings with the buyers, and designing different parts of men’s clothing. I also added my interests which included fashion trend hunting, print development, creating my own garments and designing and draping. I thought it was a good idea to add this to my C.V as employers can see my main interests. I have also added my personal and technical skills. I thought I should add this to make employers aware that I can work in the physical part of the industry as well as designing and using Photoshop and Illustrator.

The job role I am most interested in is the communication part of the fashion industry which means I will be applying for placements in jobs such as fashion magazines and styling. As my experience lasts for 4 weeks, I am hoping to gain two different job roles so I will hopefully complete 2 weeks in each placement to gain as much experience as possible.

When creating my C.V I looked at other student C.V’s which are on the Westminster University website from those who are studying fashion design. This helped me a lot as it gave me guidance of how to lay out my C.V and the format of different designs. After I added all the information I thought was necessary, I then edited the font, colours and layout slightly to fit my own, personal style.

 

I have decided to use the bottom image for my C.V where I have changed the font to Ariel. This is because the writing is bold and is the most clear out of them all, straight to the point and sharp; also I think it fits well with the rest of my Issuu.

I decided not to use the C.V with the shadowed background because, although personally this is one of my favourite, I find reading it not as easy and didn’t want to increase the size of the font as I didn’t want it to lose its sophistication.

Another idea for my C.V was to have it all on one page with my personal information to the left hand side. I also liked this idea, however thought it was too small and wouldn’t have had the same effect if it was spread on two pages.

 

 

 

My Final Concept Video - Vimeo

Below is the link to my Vimeo concept video for British Racing Company.

 

 

 

https://vimeo.com/user26515762

Concept Video Prep

As part of an assignment I had to create my own concept video. I firstly looked at other concept/fashion videos and then started to plan my own beginning with a mind map of everything I wanted the video to have in it.

As my chosen sport is car racing I wanted to have footage of racing cars which I knew would be difficult as it would be hard to access a car race track so I decided for them particular scenes, I would use secondary resources from the internet such as YouTube.

My initial idea was to focus on car racing but also the concept of time as time is an important factor of racing as you are racing against the clock to become the fastest. I also thought about the time it takes to get somewhere when travelling in a car so wanted to add some scenery to my video that you would see whilst travelling.

In the mind map I have included the basic things that I want to have featured in my video and below I have written a small story board of what I want to include in each scene with slightly more detail. I decided to write the story instead of drawing a story board as I personally find it easier to understand and my drawing skills aren’t the best! It was much easier to have a plan of my video as I then knew the direction where I wanted to go with it.

The last image is of my concept film moodboard which was the first thing I created when collecting ideas for my film. This helped me to see clearly with images the these I wanted to include in my video.

 

 

 

 

Under the Microscope Photoshoot Prep

As part of our online portfolio I had to organise a photo shoot that displays my under the microscope print in the form of a subtraction dress. For inspiration to do this I used Pinterest and searched for things such as abstract fashion photography to bring up unusual shoots. Some of my favourite images are below.

 

I particularly liked the above 3 images because of the way the model has been positioned.  The models look like they are upside down but the photograph looks like it has been taken on a straight angle giving the images a really good looking effect. I think for my own under the microscope photo-shoot, I might try this effect by photographing the model bending down so their hair is falling to the floor and then editing it using Photoshop to turn the image of the model upside down.

More images that caught my eye where the ones that used a simple silhouette, I liked these images because the model stood out, I think this would be effective to use when conducting my own photo-shoot because the subtraction dress would stand out because of its vibrant, printed fabric.

The last images I liked are the two above. The first one I liked was because again, it was simple and stood out which if I were to use my subtraction dress on a solid coloured background I think would look really good as I could use contrasting colours. The other image I found really eye catching as it looks like there is a pane of glass in front of the model with water pouring down, creating a blurry, but interesting effect.

Men's Coat - Toile

Here is the toile for my men’s jacket which I couldn’t be happier with. There is just one minor change which I will be making on my construction sheet which is to move the bellow pocket about 4cm upwards as the current position is too close to the hem.